Free Web NovelThe Eternal Stones, purified by Yohan, turned a clear transparent hue and began slowly cleansing the grime that had seeped into the surrounding rock. It was as though they were being stimulated, Awakening one by one.
Wouldn’t this cause a problem later...? Yohan scratched his cheek and crouched on the flattest patch of ground he could find. He stared endlessly at the beautiful cavern filled with Eternal Stones.
...If I took all of these, I’d be filthy rich. How much was Eternal Stone per carat back on Earth again? He tried calculating its worth, but strangely, no thought of actually taking any entered his mind. Time passed once again. With nothing to do, Yohan grew restless, alternating between gazing at the Stones and playing games for a while, caught between fear and boredom.
Rumble... Rumble... A dreadful vibration echoed once again. Yohan froze, unwilling to waste what little battery he had left on games, so he simply stared in fear at the Eternal Stones. Unconsciously, he threw his arms around the nearest large one for comfort.
KUKWAAANG!
With an ear-splitting roar, the ceiling shattered as something burst through and dropped into the cavern. Amidst the black dust that rose, a familiar man stood, face expressionless, slowly scanning his surroundings. A red gleam flickered in his eyes, and the eerie shadow cast beneath him remained pitch-dark even amidst the brilliant crystal glow.
Yohan’s eyes and mouth gaped wide in terror.
“Uh—uh, ah!”
It was Lee Hyunmook!
The one he had longed for had finally found him. Yohan’s heart leapt with wild joy.
Overwhelmed, Yohan stumbled forward, too choked with relief to form words. Hyunmook, smiling brightly now, spread his arms and caught him in an embrace as Yohan hurled himself into him. The blood-red gleam in his large pupils slowly faded, and the strange, long, deep shadow shortened and receded.
“My little Yangyang, were you scared? Did you cry and cry?”
Whether the man was rambling like a madman or not, Yohan was too relieved—he really did burst into sobs. As the shimmering light touched him, the black stains clinging to Hyunmook’s body melted away.
“Hyunmook hyung, r-really, ugh, I thought I’d be stuck here, trapped, alone until I died... huuhhh...”
Slurring through sobs, Yohan poured out his sorrow. Hyunmook cradled him tightly and carefully licked his tear-streaked cheek. When the salty tears ceased, he continued, licking and sucking until Yohan’s cheeks turned flushed, then pressed his lips to his. Yohan’s sobs caught short in shock, and before he could speak, a hot, soft tongue slipped deep inside.
“Hhngh... mmh... huhhh...”
The contact after so many days was overwhelmingly intimate and sweet, leaving Yohan powerless. Only after drinking up every drop of Yohan’s clear saliva did Hyunmook’s crimson gleam fade completely. Eyes tightly closed, he whispered to trembling Yohan:
“I told you, Yohan. I never give up...”
Yohan, face burning red, opened his eyes. Within them shimmered an aurora-like light. Tears swelled and blurred his vision. In his mind echoed the countless times he had recalled Hyunmook’s words while trapped in the black mountain:
‘My negative enhancement... is that I never give up on anything.’
Never giving up—negative enhancement.
‘Never gave up on saving my teammates, never gave up on escaping this place. And now, never once gave up on keeping you at my side. Not once, and never will.’
That gaze told Yohan that no matter what happened, Hyunmook would cling on, protect him, and search for him again and again.
As Yohan sniffled, his eyes fell on Hyunmook’s hands and arms. He gasped. The flesh was shredded, torn open, bleeding sluggishly—despite the extraordinary regenerative power Hyunmook was known for.
Heart aching, Yohan hugged him tightly. Against his ear, pressed to Hyunmook’s chest, he heard the rapid thrum of his heart. Light spilled from Yohan’s body and soaked into him. With pitiful urgency, Yohan rubbed his forehead against Hyunmook’s chest.
So you call that “negative” enhancement? How can that be negative? I’d call it the desperate will of a wretched, pitiful human...
But instead of voicing such thoughts, Yohan sighed, trembling. With nothing else to give, he poured every bit of his warmest, brightest light into Hyunmook and whispered:
“Thank you... for not giving up on me.”
Hyunmook’s arms tightened around him. For finding him buried in the black mountain, for enduring the Abyss with superhuman will and suffering through endless torment—Yohan could only feel gratitude.
Another sigh escaped him, then a sudden thought. With a nasal voice, he asked:
“Did you... scatter your teammates on purpose?”
Thinking back, if even high-tier Awakeners succumbed to contamination and madness, then Hyunmook couldn’t possibly control a whole team once they lost their reason. Hyunmook nodded slowly.
“I couldn’t let them devour each other or be slaughtered. After a while, even if ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) I subdued them, they wouldn’t listen anymore. So I had no choice. They’re strong—spread out, they’d likely survive. And... someday, if I lost myself completely, I might do something far worse.”
He said it lightly, but Yohan understood: that had been Hyunmook’s best choice. Contamination drained human reason and drove them to frenzy. Yoon Seungryong, who had lived in the swamp, had barely retained a human form, unable even to communicate properly.
It was just then that a sound echoed. Through the hole Hyunmook had made, Yoon Seungryong slithered in and plopped to the ground with a wet thud. His body seemed boneless, grotesquely soft. Yohan rubbed his eyes in disbelief. Looking again, Seungryong appeared normal enough, groaning. Yohan rushed to support him and immediately poured purification over him.
“Seungryong hyung, are you okay?”
“Yohan-ah...”
Seungryong raised his darkened, deathly pale face with effort and murmured weakly, full of guilt:
“I’m so sorry... I was close by, but I couldn’t even protect you properly.”
“No, no! It was completely unpredictable, right? Isn’t that true?”
Seeking reassurance, Yohan glanced at Hyunmook. His wounds already knit shut thanks to Yohan’s light, Hyunmook nodded.
“That’s true. The black mountain never tried so actively to... abduct something before.”
Abduction, huh...? Yohan thought. Yes, the black mountain really did seem to have some sort of “will” of its own. Just like the Bumram flood, perhaps a living organism made of countless Eternal Stones could exist. The old him would never have believed such a thing.
“Wow! What is all this? Did Yohan-ie—no, Yohan hyung—make all of this happen?”
A voice of wonder called out as Joo Hoyoung dropped lightly through the hole. Frost trailed from his body, skin blue with cold as though frozen solid. His speech slurred oddly, and he grinned vacantly. Alarmed, Yohan hurried to flood him with light. Hoyoung melted to the floor like thawing ice.
“Our Yohan hyung disappeared so suddenly, I almost cried, you know.”
Dragging his words, Hoyoung clung tightly to Yohan’s foot. As Yohan flustered, Seungryong crawled over and wrapped himself around one of Yohan’s legs. Even more alarmed, Yohan turned to Hyunmook, pleading silently.
“Hyunmook hyung...”
Hyunmook strode over and pulled Yohan firmly into his arms from behind.
“Yohan must be exhausted too. Let’s sit down and rest a while.”
With that, he collapsed to the ground, hugging Yohan tight against his chest, burying his face in the nape of Yohan’s neck. Yohan’s cheeks burned scarlet. Ironically, since the black mountain itself was untainted, their contamination levels hadn’t worsened much even after days apart.
“Still... this is incredible. I never thought such a place could exist in the Abyss.”
Finally calmed after soaking up Yohan’s light, Seungryong sighed in awe. Hoyoung also gazed in wonder at the glimmering crystalline cavern. Only Hyunmook ignored it all, fondling Yohan to his heart’s content, not even looking around. Yohan, blushing to his ears, tried to answer calmly:
“These are all Eternal Stones.”
“Huh?”
“What? All of this is Eternal Stone?”
Seungryong blinked, then popped a small shard into his mouth, biting down experimentally. Hoyoung darted about the cavern, then froze stiff, exclaiming: freewёbnoνel.com
“The black mountain... it’s all Eternal Stone?!”
“Holy shit. That’s the scariest thing I’ve ever heard.”
Seungryong spat out the Stone and cursed. Both shuddered as though witnessing horror. Like Yohan, they imagined how many lives the Abyss must have devoured to form this. Their awe turned quickly to dread as they crowded close to Hyunmook.
“Team Leader, let’s get out of here, fast.”
“Yeah. Feels like standing in a million-year-old mass grave.”
Hyunmook didn’t even respond, only yawned slowly against Yohan’s nape. The drowsy breath sent shivers racing over Yohan’s skin, making him squirm. freёwebnovel.com
“Hyunmook hyung, I want to leave soon too.”
“...Now you call me hyung?”
