Darkness.
Blue flames flickered in the void.
Damp.
Cold.
They changed shape.
Moved like water.
Formed lines that coiled upward.
Then rounded into ball shapes.
The balls wobbled.
Unstable.
Shaking.
Then—
They exploded.
---
Ha Joon and Eun Byol screamed.
The fire—*their* fire—burst outward and tore through their bodies, burning them from the inside out, ripping through veins and muscles and bones like molten steel poured into flesh.
They collapsed.
Hit the floor hard.
Bodies curled up.
Glowing red.
Steam rose from their skin, slow wisps crawling upward from wet clothes that clung to trembling limbs.
Chi-Long stood above them.
Hands clasped behind her back.
Posture perfect.
Face calm.
"Get up. Both of you. Stand up straight."
They struggled.
Ha Joon pushed himself up first.
Arms shaking.
Legs barely holding.
Eun Byol followed.
Slower.
Gasping.
Chi-Long moved toward her.
Stopped directly in front of the girl.
"Let us start with you, girl. Why haven't you developed a core yet? Answer me. And it better be a very good reason."
Eun Byol's voice came slow.
Cracking.
Gentle to the ear.
"It is painful. Excruciatingly painful."
Chi-Long tilted her head.
Just slightly.
"Doesn't it."
A pause.
"Your dear mother screaming on her deathbed. Your poor pathetic father working and drinking himself to death. It hurt for them. And they gave into the pain."
Her voice dropped lower.
Colder.
"They were both weak."
Another pause.
"It seems I have to remove that weakness from you."
---
An echo broke through the silence.
Sharp.
Like the final second before a whip cracks.
The sound vibrated through the room, through Ha Joon's ears, encapsulating him for just a few seconds.
He looked up.
Standing straight.
Saw Chi-Long's right hand move.
Too fast.
A blur.
He didn't see it happen.
But he could tell.
In a blink—
Eun Byol's cheek turned red.
Bright red.
Swollen.
Chi-Long's hand had teleported.
Backhand.
Clean.
Precise.
Eun Byol's face went numb immediately.
Her vision blurred.
Her balance shifted wrong.
The world tilted.
She felt herself falling.
Reaching for the floor.
Losing consciousness at the edges.
As her vision adjusted—
Crack.
Another whip-like sound.
Sharp.
Immediate.
Both her cheeks now.
Red.
Vibrating with fire and pain that pulsed through her skull like a drumbeat.
She screamed.
Started to cry.
Wobbling.
Chi-Long stood before her.
Towering.
Unmoving.
Her voice came soft.
Commanding.
"Compose yourself, child."
A pause.
"Who are those tears for?"
---
The moment she said that, Ha Joon wanted to speak.
Wanted to move.
Wanted to do *something.*
But he was frozen.
Everything inside him screamed not to act.
*It will only make it worse.*
He stood still.
Looked down.
Knew better.
Chi-Long's words cut through everything again.
"Are they for your dear mother? Are they for a memory of hope? Or are they for something greater? Religion perhaps?"
Her eyes stayed locked on Eun Byol.
"Who are they for, child? Answer me."
Eun Byol's voice came broken.
Weak.
Barely audible.
"They're for no one, ma'am."
Chi-Long smiled.
Small.
Cold.
Almost kind.
"Then you must be mad, child. It seems you have inherited your parents' weakness."
A pause.
"I shall remove it."
Another pause.
"Slap yourself."
---
Eun Byol froze.
Confusion painted her face.
Her mouth opened slightly.
Chi-Long's eyes locked onto the girl's.
Dark.
Endless.
Absolute.
Eun Byol's hand moved.
Immediate.
Automatic.
She slapped herself.
Once.
The sound echoed.
Her head snapped to the side.
She gasped.
Chi-Long's voice came quiet.
"Do it with greater force. Or I will assist you."
Eun Byol hit herself harder.
Again.
The sound louder now.
Sharper.
Her cheek burned.
Tears poured down her face.
She didn't stop.
Couldn't.
Again.
Again.
Again.
---
Chi-Long finally looked away.
Her eyes shifted to Ha Joon.
Slow.
Deliberate.
"Don't think I almost forgot about you too."
She walked closer.
"Please tell me the reason you failed is not the same as hers."
Ha Joon's voice came immediately.
Fast.
Desperate.
"I'm sorry, ma'am. It's just that the mana burns."
Chi-Long stopped in front of him.
Looked into his eyes.
"Burns, doesn't it."
Her voice was quiet.
Almost sympathetic.
"Let me help with that."
She grabbed his right hand.
Her grip tight.
Firm.
Her left hand ignited.
Red flames.
Hot.
Bright.
She pulled his hand closer to the fire.
Looked into his eyes.
He knew not to look away.
The red fire touched his skin.
Ate into it.
Slow.
Deliberate.
Layer by layer.
Ha Joon screamed.
His whole body tensed.
But he didn't move the hand away.
Couldn't.
His throat burned from screaming.
Tears poured down his face.
Warmth spread down his leg.
Piss.
He'd pissed himself again.
Shameful.
Painful.
Humiliating.
The fire shifted.
Pink now.
Healing flames.
His skin rebuilt.
New.
Perfect.
She let go.
"Eun Byol. Stop."
Eun Byol's hand dropped.
Trembling.
Red.
Swollen.
Chi-Long's voice came flat.
Final.
"Start again. On the floor. Both of you."
---
Darkness.
Blue fire at the center.
The fire changed shape again.
Stretched.
Formed two tails.
The tails extended outward.
Turned into two separate balls.
Wobbling.
Shaking.
Unstable.
The balls grew.
Then lost their shape.
Collapsed inward.
And finally—
Exploded.
---
Eun Byol and Ha Joon's eyes shot open.
Wide.
Panicked.
Sweat poured from their bodies.
Drenched.
Everything lost color.
The room turned gray.
Their vision blurred.
Chi-Long stood above them.
Her eyes watching.
Always watching.
Never blinking.