What is this light?
Wait a minute... is this the light at the end of the tunnel everyone always talks abo—never mind. It's just the ceiling light.
"Ark..? Ark! You're awake!" Eve's voice snapped me out of my daze, filled with so much relief it nearly hurt.
"Yeah… yeah. What happened?"
The last thing I remembered was that woman with the horn. Who the hell was she?
"Is this… a hospital?"
Eve nodded, but then her expression dimmed. Her eyes drifted away from mine.
"We found you at that place," she said softly, "with almost every bone in your body broken. You were lying there… almost dead."
There was guilt in her voice. I saw it, flickering behind her usual confidence.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"I… I'm sorry, Ark. If it wasn't for me or my sister, you wouldn't have gotten hurt."
"No need to apologize. It was my decision to help. I don't regret it."
"But still… if only we got there earlier, you wouldn't have been in this condition—"
I lifted a shaky hand and gently patted her head.
"It's okay. I'm not dead. That's good enough for me."
She tried to hold back her emotions, but then her face twisted in frustration. "It was because of those bastards we were late. They said they wouldn't go unless it was safe to—"
"Stop pouting," I cut in, a faint smirk pulling at the corner of my lips. "It makes you look like a toddler throwing a tantrum."
"I am not pouting! …Okay, maybe a little. But I can't not be mad about it!"
She puffed her cheeks, folded her arms, and turned her head with a dramatic little "Hmph!"
"Anyway," I said, "is your sister safe?"
Before she could answer, a knock came at the door. We barely had time to respond before the person entered.
"Excuse me, are you Ark?" A woman walked in—normal clothes, professional posture. She wasn't in uniform, but something about her screamed 'detective.'
"Yes. What's this about?"
"I'm Detective Yeomin. I'd like to ask a few questions about the recent animal attacks."
She glanced at Eve like she expected her to leave, and then offered a polite but firm smile.
"Miss, could we have a moment alone?"
Eve frowned and looked at me, waiting for my cue. I gave her a nod, and with a reluctant sigh, she stepped out.
The detective handed me a file. I opened it and blinked at the blurry photos inside—images of the horned woman, though none of them were clear.
"Did you see this individual near the scene?" Yeomin asked.
"I did," I said. "She showed up just after I killed the gorilla."
"What can you tell me about her?"
"She said… that this attack was only a warning."
"A warning?"
"She seemed to be the one leading the animals. They stopped when she appeared."
Yeomin scribbled something into a small notebook.
"Anything else?"
I shook my head. "That's all I know."
She gave a slow nod. "Thank you for your cooperation. Here's my card—call me if you learn anything more."
With that, she turned and left. I stared at the door for a second.
The first time a girl gives me her number… and it's a detective.
Another knock.
I groaned. "Again? Come in."
A nurse stepped in, holding something odd—a glowing green stone.
"Are you Mr. Ark?" she asked.
"Yep."
"Someone claiming to be your friend asked us to deliver this to you."
Friend? I don't have any friend who'd bring me a rock while I'm laid out with a body full of fractures.
"Why didn't they bring it themselves?"
"He said he was in a hurry. Barely had time to stop by."
Definitely sounds suspicious.
She handed me the stone and a folded piece of paper, then left.
I was ready to toss the thing until I saw the note. The handwriting… it looked exactly like mine.
The message read:
"Break the stone.
You don't have time.
They are currently hiding at 84th Street, between 13th and 14th. The grey house.
Tell the detective and go there yourself.
You will know what to do when you get there."
I read it again. And again.
What the hell? Break the stone? Was this a prank?
Still… the location might be real. It could be a trap, but the note felt serious. And that handwriting—how could someone forge my exact style?
I stared at the rock for a long moment. It looked like an ordinary chunk of crystal. No markings. No cracks. Just that subtle pulse of light, like it was breathing.
Break the stone.
How was I supposed to do that? I could barely move without my body screaming at me. My bones felt like they'd been held together with duct tape and hope.
But a voice in the back of my head whispered: You don't need strength. Just will.
"…Screw it. I'm already broken."
I raised the stone and slammed it against the steel rail of the hospital bed. The pain that ripped through my arm was instant and blinding—but the stone didn't break.
It exploded.
Not into fragments. No dust. Just light.
It poured into me—through my fingers, into my skin, down into the marrow of my bones. It wasn't heat. It wasn't cold. It was alive.
My breath caught in my throat. My chest lifted.
And then I felt it.
Bones realigning. Muscles reconnecting. The fire in my nerves cooling, then vanishing. My legs. My arms. My chest. It all stopped hurting.
I stood in front of the bed, testing my fingers. No pain. No stiffness. My ribs didn't ache. My leg didn't scream. I felt... whole again.
The door creaked open.
"Okay," Eve said casually as she walked in, "I brought you that soup you hate, but they were out of—"
She froze.
Her eyes locked onto me.
"You're standing," she said slowly.
I gave her a sheepish shrug. "Surprise?"
She blinked. "You couldn't even sit up this morning. What, did you suddenly develop superpowers while I was gone for five minutes?"
"Kind of."
She walked up and poked my chest like she was trying to pop a balloon.
"Explain. Now. Before I start assuming you've been replaced by an alien clone or something."
I laughed for the first time in what felt like days.
"Okay, okay." I sat down again and picked up the crumpled note. "A nurse dropped this off. Said a guy left it for me. No name."
I handed it to her. She read it aloud, eyes narrowing with every line.
"You broke it?"
"Yeah. It exploded into light. Next thing I knew, I could move again. No pain. It was like... it healed me."
She stared at me, then at the note. "You weren't even gonna tell me?"
"I didn't want you to worry."
"You idiot."
She punched my shoulder—lightly, but with feeling.
"You're my best friend. Of course I'm gonna worry. That's like my full-time job."
I smiled, the guilt creeping up behind it like a shadow.
"I was thinking of checking out that house. Tonight. Alone."
"Too bad," she said, arms crossed.
"You're not getting rid of me that easy. If you're walking into something weird and probably dangerous and possibly magical, then I'm walking in with you."
"You sure?" I asked, quiet.
She grinned. "I'll go pack some snacks."
I laughed again—really laughed this time.
"Alright. We leave tonight."