Revenant Resonance Ch 5

Chapter 5

 

“Hup…!”

The scream was swallowed thanks to survival instincts honed, however briefly. He had bitten his lip so hard that the taste of blood spread through his mouth.

「…….」

The terror that he might be devoured at any moment surged up, but the monster only stood there silently, looking down at him. He summoned the courage to inch his butt backward a little. The part that seemed to be the monster’s face followed his movement.

As his eyes adjusted to the dark, the monster’s appearance slowly came into view. The creature stood in the form of a man, dressed in a straitjacket like those seen in dramas. His limbs were completely restrained, unable to budge even slightly, with a huge blindfold over his eyes and a gag in his mouth. The straitjacket, tightly bound with chains, was covered in countless talismans.

Only the faint outline of his face suggested he was a man. He had no idea whether monsters even had gender.

And beneath the creature…

Yu Jiha glanced down and swallowed dryly as he shrank back his foot. On the floor was a blood-red circle, within which was drawn a gaping mouth stretched open as if about to tear. The creature stood at the center of that mouth, appearing to be devoured by the ground itself.

From inside the gaping mouth, pitch-black flames rose silently, and the chains seemed to originate from within those flames. As Yu Jiha absentmindedly traced the chains upward, he realized something was off about what he had just seen.

The chains were not merely wrapped around the creature’s body—they were piercing through it. As if the gigantic mouth had seized the monster and was torturing him.

[Stainingandmeltingstainingandmeltingstainingandmeltingstainingandmeltingstainingandmeltingstainingandmelting……]

As that realization hit, letters began to flash before his eyes.

Even after reading the words, he couldn’t figure out what kind of monster it was or how he might escape.

「…….」

The creature remained unresponsive, only staring at him. Yu Jiha couldn’t just sit there, frozen before the monster. He didn’t want to die in a place like this.

Mustered by courage, Yu Jiha cautiously started crawling toward the door, keeping an eye on the monster’s reaction. That was when it happened.

「……!」

The chains thrashed wildly. The ones piercing the monster’s body writhed viciously and yanked tight, throwing his head backward. The straitjacket convulsed violently. If not for the gag, he might have let out a bloodcurdling scream.

At the same time, the black flames that had been flickering within the mouth surged upward. The flames licked out like a tongue, trying to swallow the monster whole, then swept across the room. If he got caught in that, he’d be dragged into the mouth and devoured.

He scrambled to flee, but the twisted ankle failed him, and he slipped on the floor. As he saw the flames racing toward him, Yu Jiha reflexively squeezed his eyes shut.

A few seconds passed that felt like an eternity. Yet he remained in the darkness, not yet pulled into the monster’s maw. When he cautiously opened his eyes, the chain was stretched taut right in front of his nose. The backward-curled tongue writhed, flames crackled and sparked in every direction. Despite the still air, the talismans on the monster’s body flapped violently, and the chains creaked without pause.

Yu Jiha tightly clenched his sweat-drenched palms. Was it just his imagination, or did it seem like the monster was trying to shield him from the flames?

And then—

[Stainingandmeltingstainingandmeltingstainingandmeltingstainingandmeltingstainingandmelting……]

A new word began to form among the flowing text.

[Je Ilheon]

“…Je-Ilheon?”

He had merely read the unfamiliar word aloud, but an ominous change occurred. The raging inferno surged upward to the ceiling. For some reason, the sight didn’t seem like a monstrous display of power, but rather a desperate death throe.

[Je Ilheon]

The word, which had been faint and ready to vanish, grew darker.

This was it. He didn’t know what exactly was happening, but his instincts screamed that speaking this word was a critical blow. Steeling his trembling voice, he opened his lips.

“Je Ilheon!”

The thick iron chains buzzed with vibration. Talismans ripped apart. Squeezing out the last of his courage, Yu Jiha shouted with all his might.

“Je Ilheon!”

As the syllables completed, the flames that had nearly flooded the hospital room exploded. The pieces of the fire demon that had burned black scattered into embers. The flames acted like living beings, so their dispersal was akin to severed body parts scattering.

Gruesome as it sounded, Yu Jiha found himself mesmerized, watching the scene as if entranced. Perhaps it was because he sensed something beyond the scattering flames.

At last, the final ember descended in silence. And from the darkness, the man who had crouched low slowly lifted his head.

Yu Jiha quietly interlaced his fingers. The tremble that had been twitching at his fingertips calmed slightly. The darkness still loomed thick, and his features weren’t clearly visible, but the faint silhouette made it clear that this man was the same as the bound monster from before.

Monster? Demon? What should he even call this man? As Yu Jiha struggled with the question, he timidly murmured, “S-sir…?” in a delicate voice. At that, as if it had been a trigger, the man suddenly covered his face with both hands and screamed.

“AAAAAAAAHHHH!”

It was a wail of anguish, as if all the pain that had been crushed and compressed over time was erupting at once. The scream ripped through the darkness, saturated with such sorrow that even a complete stranger would be struck still with solemnity.

Yu Jiha’s heart, which had been fluttering subconsciously with awe, now pounded with horror.

‘D-Did he just rip out his own eyeball?!’

Of course he was a monster. The earlier solemnity vanished like the tide, leaving only raw terror in its place.

He frantically crawled backward, bumping his back against the door. Outside, a monster thirsting for blood was waiting. Inside the hospital room was a monster who pulled out his own eye. Which one would kill him more painlessly? Yu Jiha wanted to cry.

“Haa…”

The monster let out a long breath like a heap of dry dust spilling out. As he stood up, it wasn’t a straitjacket he wore anymore, but a simple military jacket that fluttered lightly. His left eye, glowing in the darkness, locked onto Yu Jiha like that of a fierce predator with a golden iris.

The man’s lips parted thinly.

“You look tasty. How old are you?”

“Hiiik!”

A flicking tongue of black flame would have been less terrifying. Yu Jiha trembled as he desperately argued for the worthlessness of his own meat.

“Uh, I always eat tteokbokki and late-night snacks, and I don’t exercise at all, so I—I don’t taste good! I’m over 20, so aging’s started, and my flesh is super tough! I even caught a summer cold recently, so I’m still full of viruses. You know that summer cold even dogs don’t get? A-and also…”

He completely abandoned human dignity and pleaded for his life. When no response came, he cautiously looked up. From beyond the darkness came the muffled sound of laughter.

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding. You looked so scared I was trying to ease your nerves.”

As if a joke like that could be calming.

“Why would I eat human meat? It’s not even tasty.”

It sounded like if it was tasty, he might consider it.

“Do I look like the kind of monster who eats humans?”

Yes. Yes, he did.

But what choice did he have? In front of a predator, the prey could only pretend to laugh along and shiver.

The man stretched his limbs lightly, as if loosening up, then asked again.

“What year is it now?”

The question, oddly tender for someone who had just ripped out his own eye, was asked in a soft, gentle tone. It even carried a hint of the old Seoul dialect.

“I mean, what’s the current year in the Gregorian calendar.”

He sounded like someone who had never raised his voice or cursed in his life. If he didn’t answer, he might get eaten. Yu Jiha barely managed to reply.

“2-202☓…”

“Ah.”

The man let out a quiet exhale and rubbed his face. Yu Jiha flinched, thinking he was about to pluck out another eye, but the man merely stroked his chin. Perhaps it was just his imagination, but there seemed to be a heavy, sorrowful sigh lingering in the air.

The man’s gaze silently swept over Yu Jiha. It didn’t feel malicious in the least. His eyes, as warm as his voice, seemed to gently embrace and curiously examine him. The fear in Yu Jiha’s chest slowly eased. But even so, the one eye gleaming from the darkness was undeniably frightening. He was a monster, after all.

After staring at him for a while, the man took a step toward Yu Jiha.