Chapter 23

Chapter 23: Falling!

“Ah, huh!?”

The moment I touched the golden glyph, it was sucked straight into the tip of my finger. The light from the glyph overflowed around my body. Golden currents surged across me before slowly subsiding.

“…Is it over?”

I blinked my eyes.

The fear that had gripped me passed quickly. When I felt no noticeable changes, I inspected my body. That’s when I noticed something different. I rolled up my right sleeve slightly, revealing a mysterious tattoo on the back of my hand—one that resembled a magical circle.

The mark of an imprint.

Had I become the master of an ancient glyph?

“For real...?”

It seemed absurdly easy compared to the events described in Donecolint’s novel, leaving me dumbfounded.

[‘After overcoming hallucinations that made every day feel like hell, only then was I recognized as the master of the glyph, and the power of those hallucinations awakened.’]

The dialogue where Donecolint explained the origin of Siren’s Scream to his lord, the Mad Butcher, Kamel Blazer, came to mind.

Overcome relentless hallucinations?

I looked down at the floor where I was standing.

Still within the barrier.

Here, I felt a soothing warmth and an overwhelming sense of comfort, the kind that made me want to stay forever. It was as though the Curse of the Razor Wind, which had clouded my mind, had been purified.

My thoughts were clearer than ever.

I gently traced the ancient glyph etched on the back of my hand.

It seemed I had truly become the master of the glyph, though the process was entirely different from how it was described in the novel.

“Siren’s Scream, my ass.”

I couldn’t awaken hallucination abilities, nor could I wield anything remotely similar to such powers.

A thought occurred to me.

“Does the glyph’s power change depending on its master?”

It was possible.

Ancient glyphs summoned power through their masters as conduits. Just as every person’s voice is unique, perhaps the abilities of an ancient glyph vary with each master.

If Donecolint’s glyph could induce hallucinations and summon the Siren’s Scream, then—

“What’s my ability?”

The knowledge imprinted in the glyph didn’t explain the powers; it only provided instructions on how to use it.

I had intended to head outside to figure it out, but then the ground beneath me began to ripple.

Kwoong—!

“......!”

What’s going on?

I whipped my head around just as ropes began writhing in midair.

Donecolint’s enchanted ropes.

The black ropes, as if alive, twisted violently like a raging snake, emitting eerie noises.

Eeeeeeeeeeeeee—!

“Gah! Don’t scare me like that, you bastard!”

The eerie wail was unsettling, as though the ropes mourned the death of their master.

The ropes coiled around the entire altar were thick and long, exuding streams of black energy.

A sinister aura.

The moment the aura touched the ground, the floor began to distort.

“...Damn it! No way!?”

It seemed that with Donecolint dead, the magical energy imbued in the ropes had lost control and started running wild.

The ropes contained enormous power, accumulated over the span of a fortnight.

“Is this whole place about to collapse?”

If it did, I’d be buried alive.

After finally escaping Kamel’s grasp and tasting freedom, this was an unexpected and unwelcome twist.

My grand plan to shout "Freedom!" upon escape had hit a massive snag.

I sprinted toward the hole I originally came through like a madman.

Kwaa-za-zak—! Kwa-ja-ja-jajak!

“Uwaaah!!!”

The moment I stepped forward, the ground cracked apart like an earthquake spell straight out of a fantasy game. It was fun when I cast that spell, but experiencing it firsthand was pure hell.

“D-damn it!!!”

Hanging precariously from the edge of a split floor, I glanced down.

Below was a pitch-black abyss—a void so deep it felt like staring into endless oblivion.

If I fell, I was dead for sure.

Desperately clambering back up, I cursed under my breath as I scanned the altar.

The floor near the entrance I used had completely collapsed, making it impossible to return that way.

That left only the other side.

Turning to look in the opposite direction, I gave a bitter chuckle. A series of holes stretched before me, but I had no idea which one led to the outside.

The black smoke that had once streamed through the glyph was gone.

I had to choose one.

“Well... better odds than winning the lottery.”

I must’ve lost my mind to be making jokes at a time like this.

I ran toward the holes before the floor collapsed entirely.

Kwa-kwa-kwaang—!

“......!”

The altar sank into the ground, dragging along both Donecolint’s corpse and the sentinels into the darkness below.

The ground was crumbling fast.

I slapped my cheeks hard to keep myself from freezing up.

Fortunately, despite the tension, my mind stayed sharp.

How was I going to find the way out?

The new ability I obtained didn’t seem useful in this situation.

In fact, I hadn’t even figured out what it was yet.

As I stared hopelessly at the countless holes, a brilliant idea suddenly struck me.

I frantically ran around the holes, rubbing my fingers against their edges.

“Please, please!”

And as if in answer to my desperate plea, I found a trace of soot clinging to my fingertip.

Without hesitation, I dove into that hole and sprinted.

Even though the black smoke no longer flowed, I was able to trace its remnants backward to find the path out.

Kwoong—!

A moment later, the entire space shook violently, and darkness swallowed my vision. It seemed that the light filtering in had been cut off as the center of the space caved in.

Even in pitch-black darkness, I didn’t stop running. Wasting time in a collapsing space was suicide.

I thrust my right hand forward.

Paaaat—!

Golden light rippled.

The glyph on the back of my hand glowed, filling the surroundings with a soft radiance.

Woong. Woong. Woong.

The glyph pulsed steadily, like a heartbeat, spilling light into the darkness. I still didn’t know what this light could do, but it was good enough for visibility.

Focusing on the acrid scent in the air, I followed the trail.

Though the fear of being trapped in the dark or crushed at any moment loomed, I stayed rational and kept moving.

Was this clarity a result of my mental barrier?

The sense of detachment was strange, but I ignored it. Rational thought was essential to survival right now.

“Where is it? Where!?”

The tremors beneath my feet were growing more intense. The collapsing center seemed to be triggering the surrounding ground to give way as well.

I gritted my teeth and sprinted forward.

“L-light!”

At last, I spotted a faint glow through one of the holes—light seeping through from the outside.

The moment I deactivated the glyph’s light, the glow from the hole became more distinct.

It was the entrance.

The light of salvation.

Without hesitation, I flung myself into the hole, sliding down as if on a chute.

Zzeo-jeo-jeok—!

The outer wall began to crack apart.

Was the entire mountain about to collapse?

Faster! I had to move faster!

Cold moisture suddenly struck my face as I reached the hole’s exit.

Rain!

A torrential downpour pelted my skin. It reminded me of that scene from The Shawshank Redemption—the protagonist standing in the rain, arms raised, celebrating his freedom.

Overwhelmed with joy, I couldn’t help but shout the word aloud.

Yes, freedom!

I shot out of the hole, sliding out just as the tunnel collapsed behind me.

The entire rocky mountain gave way in a thunderous cascade.

Barely escaping with my life, I managed to survive.

But I never got to shout “Freedom.”

Instead—

“AAAAAAHHHHH!!!”

Only a scream burst from my lips.

There was nothing beneath me.

I was falling straight into the void, pulled mercilessly by gravity.

Falling!

My expression paled as I glimpsed the wild, overflowing river between the jagged cliffs below. The torrential current swirled with deadly whirlpools, as if ready to swallow me whole.

In this situation, I had only two options:

Thrash in midair.

And—

“FUUUUUCK!!!!!!”

Curse all the way down.

Splash—!

I plunged straight into the raging waters.

The freezing water engulfed me in an instant. The impact hit me like a wall, slamming the air out of my lungs.

Splash! Splash!

I struggled to keep my head above the surface, kicking and thrashing wildly. The currents were brutal, tossing me around like a rag doll. It felt as if an invisible hand was dragging me down to the bottom.

I managed to catch a breath between the crashing waves. Water burned down my throat as I coughed violently, barely staying afloat. No matter how hard I fought, the river had no mercy. It pulled, twisted, and shoved me deeper into its turbulent embrace.

“Agh! Someone, help! I’m gonna drown!”

Every stroke felt useless. Swimming techniques? They were only good for swimming pools or calm beaches, not in this raging torrent where the very concept of control was a joke. Even the famed "Apgujeong Dolphin" — my elementary school nickname — was no match for this.

Glurp—!

I was yanked under again.

Water closed in over my head, and the world became eerily quiet for a moment. My limbs flailed desperately, but the violent current spun me in circles. It was like being stuck inside a whirlpool with no way out. I felt like a piece of straw swirling helplessly in a vortex.

Thud!

“Ggugh!”

A sharp jolt ran through my skull as my head smashed against an underwater rock. A crimson haze spread in the water around me. I could feel the gash opening on my forehead as blood seeped out into the cold river.

Panic started to grip me, but I bit down on it. Panic was death.

‘I need to grab something—anything!’

Blindly, I stretched out my hands, clawing at whatever I could find. My fingers brushed against the slimy surface of a clump of weeds lodged in the crevice of a submerged rock.

Got it!

I pulled with all the strength I had left, clinging to the weeds like a lifeline. The river fought back, trying to pry me loose, but the weeds held. Slowly, I dragged myself up from the swirling current, gasping for air the moment my head broke the surface.

“Pwaaah!”

The breath I took was the sweetest thing I had ever experienced. Every gulp of air tasted like salvation.

With both hands still gripping the weeds, I looked down. My soaked leather bag and two daggers were somehow still strapped to me. Relief flooded through me, knowing I hadn’t lost my precious gear in the chaos.

But as I glanced around, my heart sank.

The river ran through a steep, jagged canyon. The cliffs on either side loomed high and unforgiving, offering no easy escape.

Climbing out seemed impossible—the rocks were slick with rain, and there were no obvious footholds.

Damn it.

Could I even survive this?

I didn’t have much time to think.

“……!”

Something huge rushed toward me through the water, riding the same deadly currents.

A massive log.

It hurtled toward me with terrifying speed, as if determined to crush me.

“No, no—”

Wham!

“Kuhugh!”

The impact knocked the wind out of me as the log collided with my side, sending me spinning helplessly once more. My shoulder popped with an excruciating snap, and white-hot pain shot through my arm. My left shoulder was probably dislocated—or worse, broken.

As I drifted along with the log, half-conscious from the pain, a desperate thought struck me.

Use the log!

I summoned what little strength I had left and stabbed one of my daggers into the log’s surface. The blade bit deep, lodging itself securely. With gritted teeth, I pulled myself up onto the log, clinging to it like a barnacle. My broken shoulder throbbed fiercely, but I forced myself to stay focused.

I tied my left wrist tightly to the dagger’s hilt with strips torn from my ruined clothes. It was the only way to keep my grip steady. My other dagger, I tucked securely into the waistband of my pants.

Now it was a battle of endurance.

Ssshhhhhhh—!

The river raged on, the downpour drumming relentlessly against the log and my body. Cold water splashed in my face as fierce winds howled through the canyon. And to make things worse, night was falling fast, robbing me of what little visibility I had left.

All I could do was shut my eyes and cling to the log for dear life, enduring the freezing rain and the chaotic waters that carried me deeper into the unknown.

How long had I drifted? I had no idea. Time seemed to stretch on forever as my strength ebbed away.

At some point, the rain began to ease, and the roaring current started to slow.

I cautiously opened my eyes, barely able to lift my head.

The jagged rocks and steep canyon walls were gone, replaced by lush green forest on either side of the riverbank.

I could see calmer waters ahead—an area where the river widened and slowed into a gentle stream.

Thump—

The log drifted toward a shallow bank and floated lazily along the edge.

Finally, it came to a rest near the soft mud of the riverbank, where it swayed gently in the water like a lifeboat.

“…Damn this shitty novel.”

Relief flooded through me, but it didn’t last long.

Before I could celebrate surviving the ordeal, the exhaustion hit me like a tidal wave. My battered body gave out, and the last of my consciousness slipped away.

Everything went black.