Beyond the Eternity

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While the others, Lee Suhye, Lee Jongho, Jung Yunhee, and Kim Hyunwoo, continued their separate conversations—

—Yoo Jinsung, Yoo Rin, Kuro Miyuki, Kuro Kagura, and Angelica suddenly came to a halt at the end of the shooting range.

They were standing before the wall at the end.

There was nothing truly special there. It was an ordinary wall, painted white, which possessed no 'unique characteristics'. Even then, despite appearing utterly ordinary, there was undeniably something that had grabbed their attention.

A hole.

A deep hole—an abyss of darkness resembling a black hole.

It wasn't large, just big enough for something slim and slender to pass through, like a bullet. But it wasn't the hole itself that unsettled them; it was the sprawling network of cracks radiating from it, branching out like a spider's web etched into the surface. The fractures reached far beyond what seemed physically possible for such a small entry point.

What could've caused this?

No bullet fired from even the most powerful sniper rifle could inflict damage like this. They were probably looking at the destruction caused by a powerful artifact.

The first person to break the silence was the green-haired Yoo Jinsung.

He tilted his head, muttering thoughtfully, "Um, well, isn't this something?"

"It's a very huge something," Yoo Rin replied dryly, still staring at the hole.

Jinsung squinted his eyes and frowned, "Really, what could've caused this? I doubt it was just a bullet."

"Oh? Got any better suggestions? Doesn't that look like a bullet hole, especially with all the guns displayed at the back?" Yoo Rin countered.

It was a solid counter.

Jinsung shook his head. "Are you seriously saying a bullet did this? I'm no expert, but you could search the entire world and never find anyone capable of pulling this off with a gun. I'd believe it if someone used an industrial water cutter and focused it on a single point."

He turned to the others.

"Kagura-nim, Angelica-nim, what do you think?"

Following the mention of her name, Kagura's eyes narrowed slightly as she turned her attention toward the hole.

It was as though she were trying to peer past the damage, searching for something hidden beneath the surface, like trying to glimpse the image beyond a shattered painting.

That was exactly what she was doing.

Through her perspective, the hole stretched deep into the wall, its interior shrouded in darkness. Whatever had penetrated it had traveled an incredible distance, far too deep for normal vision to discern.

Realizing this, she closed her left eye and concentrated all her senses into her right.

Her field of vision sharpened drastically, and she could feel her senses heightening as she focused further. Her heightened eyes scanned the interior of the hole, and after a few moments, her vision reached several meters deep.

The physique of a Saint not only enhanced one's body but also drastically improved one's sensory capabilities.

Finally, she saw something.

And then, she saw it.

A casing.

What remained of a bullet was lodged deep within the far end of the hole. More than that, she could sense a lingering energy emanating from it, as if traces of its power still remained.

That thing had traveled over 300 meters underground, and still retained residual energy?

... Such a thing.

In a world filled with skills and artifacts, the idea of something piercing through a wall wasn't unheard of. The real issue was where this had happened, deep underground, and how far the bullet had traveled before stopping.

A bullet capable of doing this... What kind of weapon could produce such an effect?

Breaking from her thoughts, Kagura retracted her vision and turned back to the group.

After a moment of contemplation, she spoke calmly.

"It seems this hole was caused by a bullet."

"Aha! See? Didn't I tell you? Why were you trying to play detective when all the facts were right in front of you?"

"Tch. Shut up, would ya? Why do you have to rub it in my face?"

Ignoring the twins' bickering, Kagura continued with a serious expression. "It's strange. Have you ever heard of a bullet that can do something like this?"

Angelica shook her head.

"As far as I know? No. If we're following human logic, something like this should be impossible."

Kagura nodded thoughtfully,

"That's what I thought. Which means that bullet had to be either an artifact itself or a projectile fired by one. From what I know, there shouldn't be any firearms capable of this kind of destruction. Maybe it's a heroic artifact he found somewhere."

"That's unlikely. There are no heroic constellations in Korea tied to guns. At least, none that I know of."

"Then a hidden artifact, perhaps?"

"Maybe. I heard from some survivors that you can obtain hidden artifacts if you invade certain monster hideouts."

Kagura looked intrigued. "There's such a thing?"

"I believe so. We went through something similar by entering a hidden dungeon. Although the probability of finding useful artifacts is rather low. Even Yunhee's Tsumukari Muramasa is just a replica of the original. Meaning, it is a significantly weaker weapon."

"I see. So it depends on chance and luck, yes?"

"That's correct."

"Then what about—"

Kagura was about to pose another question when someone else beat her to it.

"What if Ajusshi made it himself?"

"...."

Miyuki's innocent question silenced the group instantly.

None of them had considered that possibility.

Of course, given that this underground space existed because Kim Jakga didn't want anyone interfering with his business, it was highly plausible that he used this area to develop advanced weaponry he couldn't test above ground.

For example, a gun capable of firing bullets that could pierce underground walls and still travel 300 meters beyond the point of impact. Naturally, if such a weapon were carelessly fired in the open, it would only cause unnecessary devastation, and widespread panic.

Considering this, Jakga Kim must've already thought through those consequences. Perhaps that's why he'd asked Kim Hyunwoo to create this private space, where he could conduct his experiments without the risk of harming anyone accidentally, or drawing unwanted attention.

Certainly, he must have used this space to create advanced weaponry that could only be used by him.

They all shared this thought.

And they were right… to an extent.

But they were still far from the full truth.

Mmm... What is that?

While lost in thought, Angelica caught something unusual from the corner of her vision.

A door.

If this was the farthest end of the underground space, then the door she saw was tucked away on the right side of the confined area.

It was barely noticeable unless you were paying close attention, camouflaged perfectly and painted white, just like the surrounding wall.

In other words, the perfect disguise.

Sometimes, something hidden in plain sight was much harder to find than something deliberately tucked away.

But Angelica didn't dwell on that thought as it simply felt odd.

Tap! Tap! Driven by her own curiosity, she silently drifted away from the group, still engrossed in their chatter, and approached the door.

A few seconds later, she stood in front of it, but she didn't open it right away.

For some reason, an eerie feeling had settled inside her chest.

What if something was hidden behind that door, something she was never meant to see?

What if it shattered the perfect image she'd built of the person she trusted the most?

What if it was something utterly repulsive that it made her sick to her stomach?

That dense flicker of thoughts tangled in her mind, pulling her into hesitation. Just for a moment.

Then she swallowed hard, bracing herself for the worst.

Her fingers tightened around the handles.

And she pulled.

Without making a sound, the white door slowly opened.

Angelica hesitated, then pushed it wide open.

But—

[Some constellations are shocked.]

"This is..."

She was shocked. Then she looked inside, she saw—

Nothing.

Just an empty, confined room with plain white walls. No hidden horrors. No dark secrets. Nothing at all.

It was empty like a forgotten void or a lost memory.

More like a lost flash drive with zero contents within.

[Many constellations are disappointed.]

[Some constellations question the point of creating a hidden room just to leave it empty.]

The constellations, eager for drama or revelation, buzzed with disappointment.

But Angelica…

She sighed in relief, and she felt the growing tension in her chest loosen.

... Thank goodness.

For a brief, terrifying second, she'd been certain she would find something horrifying. She even thought her heart would jump out of her throat.

Fortunately, her worst fears never came true and remained just fears.

"Angelica-ssi, what are you doing?"

The group finally noticed her standing by the open door.

Curiosity piqued, they gravitated toward her. One by one, they abandoned their previous conversations, the air falling silent as they gathered around.

They peered inside.

The same emptiness greeted them.

The silence within was even more profound than the outside.

Lee Suhye was the first to react. "What? It's empty? Wait, Hyunwoo, did Jakga tell you anything?"

Kim Hyunwoo frowned. "This is strange. I don't remember creating this room?"

"What? You didn't create this room? Does that mean he created it himself?"

"I don't know. If he could, would he really ask me to create this space?"

Yoo Jinsung added. "That's strange. Why build this room just to leave it empty?"

"Maybe it was for storing training dummies," Yoo Rin suggested.

"I think they is a place for that though. Ahhh, I don't know anymore!"

Jung Yunhee shrugged nonchalantly. "What a massive letdown. I thought we'd find something like... experimented humans or something."

Lee Jongho recoiled in horror. "Please don't say things like that, Yunhee! Human experiments are illegal, and punishable by the law!"

Just like that, murmurs spread among the group.

Kim Jakga was nowhere to be found.

They had expected to find him here, but all they discovered were faint traces that he had been here recently. However, despite their efforts, there was no sign of him presently.

It was as if he had vanished without a trace. No footprints, no hidden notes, no clues pointing to his current location or any potential hideout.

The search felt hollow, like chasing the ghost of an unsolved case long abandoned, left to gather dust with no leads, no hope, and no answers.

All they had was an empty room.

Frustration began to simmer.

Lee Suhye's voice cut through the silence, directed to the void above. "Are you sure none of you know where he went?"

[The constellations from the <Korean Peninsula> are looking at you.]

[The constellations from the <Korean Peninsula> shake their heads.]

"Dammit. So none of you even know?"

[The constellations from the <Korean Peninsula> look sorrowful.]

"How is that even possible? You can't find one person?"

[The constellations from the <Korean Peninsula> state that he used some strange method to hide his presence.]

Lee Suhye furrowed her brow, clearly puzzled. "A strange method?"

[The constellations from the <Korean Peninsula> explain that they aren't sure exactly what it is, but he managed to conceal his presence for two hours during the past few days.] Discover hidden tales at My Virtual Library Empire

[Some constellations appear annoyed.]

[The constellation 'Duke of Naval Warfare' complains to the Lackey, demanding they do their job properly.]

A strange method… Two hours of complete disappearance…

Lee Suhye's eyes suddenly lit up.

"Wait a second. Didn't Jakga-ssi always disappear for two hours before coming back?"

Hearing those words, the group fell silent, each recalling the past few days.

Even though they had been busy with their own activities, such as training, sparring, hunting, preparing for the next ordeal, they now remembered something odd.

Kim Jakga had been disappearing!

At first, it hadn't seemed like much. He would leave without a word and return as if nothing had happened. Since there was no explanation or sense of urgency, It was rather easy to dismiss.

But now… that they were actively looking for him, the pattern stood out like a glaring anomaly.

And the most disturbing part was that even the constellations hadn't been able to track him.

They had noticed it too, of course. Whenever Jakga vanished, their messages failed to reach him. Their omniscient-like gazes which was meant to see all was utterly blocked.

They had asked, sometimes in curiosity, sometimes in frustration.

At the time, no one thought much of it.

But now, standing in an empty room with nothing but questions—

They realized something.

It wasn't just odd. It was impossible.

How the hell was Kim Jakga escaping the gaze of the constellations?

More importantly, where had he gone today? And how were they supposed to track down someone as elusive as him?

"...!"

A silent realization swept through the group.

Their gazes shifted almost in unison, first toward Yoo Jinsung, then Yoo Rin, and finally, Miyuki.

If anyone could find Kim Jakga… it would be them.

Who better to track down a missing, mysterious person than his own Three Avatars?

The three Avatars blinked in confusion, tilting their heads as they found themselves the sudden focus of intense stares.