Chapter 7 – One Week After My Awakening
It's been a week since my awakening in this new world. A week since I sent the manga to the publisher with Jin-Ah. The days went by quickly, but at the same time, every hour felt heavy with anticipation.
During this week, something strange started happening. I began to see lights. At first, they were faint, almost imperceptible—little glimmers that appeared and vanished in my peripheral vision. I thought it was just fatigue or imagination. But no. They were really there. And now, those lights are growing stronger.
I sit in my room, staring out the window. The sky is clear, with white clouds drifting slowly. Outside, I see Sung Jin-Woo. He's getting taller, more muscular. Something has changed in him. Just like something has changed in me.
The lights... They keep appearing. They're the one thing I still don't understand. But maybe I'm getting close to an answer.
"I think I'm starting to understand what they are…" I murmur to myself, watching the glowing forms flicker near my desk.
Maybe these lights are my chance. A chance to change my fate. To stop being just a background character in this world, like I was for so long. They give me hope. They make me believe I can still make a difference.
I turn my gaze to the manga I was working on. The pages are open, still bearing the fresh lines of the last scenes I drew. I pick it up carefully, as if it were sacred.
"What are these lights that appear around you…?" I wonder, staring at the pages.
I dig through my memories. I try to remember—when did these lights first appear? The answer comes almost instantly.
It was when Jin-Ah read my first drawing.
I remember the sparkle in her eyes. The way she held the pages gently, as if reading something that truly mattered.
The second time... was when the editor read the chapters I submitted. He didn't say much, but the smile he gave... it was genuine. And at that moment, there they were again: the lights. Brighter than ever.
"What do those two moments have in common...?" I murmur, furrowing my brow. The question pounds in my head. There's a connection, I know it.
Suddenly, a flashback hits me. The scene is vivid.
"So, did you like it, Jin-Ah?" I asked, nervous, trying to hide the anxiety in my voice.
"Yes!" she answered, beaming. "I loved it!"
The scene shifts.
"What do you think?" I asked the editor, trying to sound confident.
He flipped through the pages, read a few parts in silence, and then nodded.
"Yes… it's very good."
The flashback fades, but their words echo inside me.
They liked it. Both of them liked the manga. And it was exactly when they showed that emotion... that the lights appeared.
"So that's it..." I whisper. "These lights that show up in the manga... they're the emotions of the reader…"
I look at the manga in my hands again, now with new eyes. The lights glow faintly around the edges of the pages. They're not there by chance. They're a reaction. An emotional response.
But now, another question arises. One that makes my skin crawl.
"But... what are they for?"
My thoughts are cut off by my phone ringing. I check the screen: Jin-Ah is calling.
I answer.
"Hello?" "Ha-Joon! The editor responded! He wants to meet us in person!" "Seriously?" "Yes! He said to meet him today at five, in front of the subway station." "Got it. I'll be there."
I hang up and take a deep breath. My heart beats faster. Maybe something big really is beginning.
I take the manga and carefully place it in my backpack. I get dressed, grab my jacket, and leave the room.
As I walk toward the station, the gray sky signals the end of the day. The city looks normal, but the air... the air feels strange.
Then, as I turn a corner near the hospital, my eyes meet someone's.
"Sung Jin-Woo?"
He walks slowly, almost invisible among the crowd. His gaze is focused... determined. As if heading toward something inevitable.
"Why is he here... at this time?"
For a moment, I stand still, watching his silhouette disappear into the distance. My heart pounds harder, like something inside me just clicked.
But I don't move. I simply continue toward the station.
"I feel like I'm forgetting something important... but I don't know what."
Ha-Joon arrived at the café a few minutes early. He chose a table by the window, where natural light still bathed the space. Shortly after, Jin-Ah arrived with a bright smile, and the editor followed, carrying a folder filled with papers.
After brief introductions, they sat down. Jin-Ah beside Ha-Joon, as if ready to support every word.
"Your manga is gaining attention," the editor began, getting straight to the point. "Online traffic doubled since the first chapters were published. And the comments... well, they're excited. That's why we want to release more chapters quickly. Keep the momentum while interest is high. Can you produce more regularly?"
Ha-Joon gave a slight smile, adjusting his jacket.
"Of course. Don't look at me like that..." he chuckled, "I'm just a rank E hunter. Writing a few extra chapters is nothing for me."
The editor let out a short laugh, clearly pleased.
"I like your confidence. Let's see if the audience keeps responding this way."
Jin-Ah glanced at him, proud. But before she could say anything—
BOOOOM!
An explosion shook the building. The café's glass windows rattled. Customers screamed. Chairs scraped across the floor.
Ha-Joon jumped to his feet. His eyes widened.
"No... this place..."
The ground trembled again. Through the window, black smoke rose into the sky. People ran down the sidewalks. Chaos had erupted.
Ha-Joon clenched his fists.
"I remember this... it's here. A portal... it opened right here!"
His mind flashed back to the image he saw earlier. Sung Jin-Woo crossing the street... that serious look... the direction he was headed...
"The snake dungeon... he was going there!"
Ha-Joon turned with difficulty, trying to see beyond the smoke. Grotesque creatures began emerging from a dark tear in the street. Monsters.
"Damn it... what now?"
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"Thank you for following this fanfic. I invite you to discover my original work, Spirit of Gods and Demons: The Legend Continues, where a new and powerful journey awaits you."