The car hums steadily beneath them, a rhythmic vibration that fills the silence. The road ahead is empty at this hour, save for the occasional headlights that flicker past, their glow stretching and twisting against the darkened streets. Seoul's cityscape gives way to quieter districts, where the roads narrow and the shadows grow deeper.
The journey to Hoapsa Temple is not long, but the weight of unspoken thoughts makes it feel much longer. Oner grips the steering wheel, fingers tapping against the leather in a restless rhythm. Zeus sits beside him, arms crossed, eyes fixed on the passing scenery, lost in thought. Tension hangs in the air between them, full of questions neither knows how to ask, let alone answer.
Minutes stretch on, the silence growing heavier until Oner exhales sharply and finally speaks.
"What do you really think about this, Woo Je?" His voice is quiet, but there's an edge to it, a weight that lingers between them. "About Sanghyeok hyung. About all of this."
Zeus doesn't answer immediately. He gaze flickers, as if shaking himself free from his own thoughts, and turns to glance at Oner. His expression is unreadable in the dim light of the dashboard.
"I don't know," he admits. "And that's the problem."
The justice sentinel frowns, his grip on the wheel tightening. He expected that answer, but hearing it still sends a dull frustration curling in his chest.
The Korean celestial continues, his voice steady but tinged with unease. "I've seen a lot of things in my time, but this? A presence that can trap someone like Sanghyeok hyung, someone as strong and ancient as whatever's inside him, without leaving a trace? It's not something I've encountered before."
The owner of the rift exhales through his nose. "Then what the hell are we dealing with?"
Their team's toplaner shakes his head. "That's what we need to find out."
Silence falls again, but this time it's filled with thought, with the unspoken understanding that they're grasping at shadows.
Oner breaks the silence first. "It's Minhyeung. He's starting to see things." His voice lowers. "I'm guessing it's only a matter of time before he realizes how deep this runs."
Zeus nods, gaze still fixed on the darkened road ahead. "She didn't just awaken his abilities. Our lady savior hurled him straight into the deep end. Now he's seeing the world as it really is." His voice catches, just for a second. "It won't be easy for him."
The world-renowned jungler exhales sharply, dragging a hand through his hair. "It's never easy." His fingers tighten around the steering wheel. "And we just left him with Minseok."
He raises a brow, turning slightly toward him. "You don't trust our resident baksu?"
Oner scoffs. "It's not about trust. It's about whether he's the right person for this." He gestures vaguely. "Explaining things. Guiding Minhyeung through… all of this."
Zeus leans back in his seat, considering it. "There's a reason why he's our legendary genius monster. He's got experience and he knows our world. He's good with words, better than you or me at making things seem… less terrifying."
"That's because he sugarcoats things."
"And you would rather hit Minhyeung-hyung with the full force of the truth all at once?"
He doesn't answer immediately. "He deserves to know what he's getting into."
"He will," Zeus answers evenly. "But at his own pace. And Minseok-hyung knows how to ease him into it without breaking him."
Oner exhales through his nose, clearly unconvinced but unwilling to argue further. "Fine. But if he screws this up, I'm throwing him into the nearest haunted shrine."
Zeus chuckles. "Pretty sure he'd find a way to charm the spirits."
Oner shakes his head but doesn't push the matter further.
Lee "Gumayusi" Minhyeung was stepping into a world he never asked for. But whether he was ready or not, he was in it now.
The road begins to change as they ascend, the bright city lights fading behind them. The incline grows steeper, the dense cluster of trees swallowing the road in their dark embrace. Hoapsa Temple isn't far now. The ancient sanctuary, nestled within the folds of the mountain, has stood for centuries. It was an island of stillness in the ever-changing world. But beyond the temple, hidden from mortal eyes, lies something even older.
Oner's territory.
His grip on the wheel loosens slightly as they near it. Most wouldn't know it exists, because it shouldn't exist. It's a space between worlds, veiled in the guise of forgotten history. A remnant of something ancient but also sacred.
Long before the temple was built, before the city sprawled out below it, the land belonged to beings older than men. The Haetae's domain, a place of judgment, where truth and falsehood were weighed and the wicked were devoured by the flames of justice. Though time had shifted, and humanity had built their shrines and prayers atop the land, the essence of it remained. Hidden, guarded and always waiting.
The temple itself serves as a barrier, perhaps intentionally, perhaps not. The monks who reside there sense something, though they could never name it. A presence, a lingering force that they offer prayers to unknowingly. They call it protection. Oner knows it as something else.
His inheritance.
As the car slows, the landscape reveals itself in glimpses between the trees. The entrance to Hoapsa Temple stands solemn, a worn path leading up to its ancient gate. Lanterns flicker faintly in the dark, casting pools of soft golden light against the stone steps. The temple is quiet, undisturbed by the rest of the world.
But Oner doesn't turn toward it. He drives past, the wheels crunching over gravel as they approach a narrow road that few ever notice. There's a shift in the air, subtle but unmistakable. A whisper of something watching, something recognizing.
Zeus exhales, his gaze flicking toward the road ahead. "It still feels the same."
Oner chuckled. "Did you think it'd change?"
The cheonsin doesn't answer. He doesn't need to. The place is timeless. The threshold between the temple and what lies beyond is imperceptible to most, but to them, it's like stepping from one reality into another. The air here is heavier, laced with an old kind of power. A stillness that listens.
As they pass the first marker, an ancient stone half-buried in the earth, something shifts in Oner. The space seems to recognize him. Power stirs beneath his skin, not summoned, but remembered. This place is exclusively his.
It is both sanctuary and cage.
Zeus leans back, tilting his head slightly. "We should start considering what we're dealing with."
Oner hums in agreement. "Alright. Say it's a spiritual entrapment. What kind of entity could even do that?"
His brows knit together. "It would have to be something capable of bypassing protections, something strong enough to anchor Sanghyeok-hyung's consciousness elsewhere."
"You think it's a curse?"
"Maybe. But it doesn't feel like a traditional one. Curses leave traces. Spiritual threads or lingering presence. This is something different. Almost like… he's gone."
"He's not gone. He's still there, somewhere."
"Exactly. But where?"
The question hangs between them, unanswered.
"And the thing that attacked him. It's still out there."
"Yes."
They lapse into silence again, both lost in their thoughts as the road stretches on. The deeper they go, the more the world outside fades. Time bends here in subtle ways, the air thick with unseen things lurking just beyond perception.
After a while, Oner speaks again, his voice quieter this time. "The woman."
Zeus's fingers tighten slightly against his armrest. "Yeah."
"What do you think she is?" Oner asks, keeping his eyes on the road.
"That's the problem. I don't know."
"She helped us, but—"
"But we don't know why." Zeus finishes for him. "What does she gain from this? She didn't just wake Minhyeung-hyung up, she gave him something. Sight. Awareness. That wasn't random."
"She used him as a conduit."
"That wasn't just intervention. That was calculated. She knew what she was doing. And now, our ADC sees everything."
"So, what does that make her? An ally? A manipulator? Something in between?"
"She didn't feel… malicious." His voice is careful. "But that doesn't mean she's trustworthy."
The justice sentinel huffs. "And you think we'll meet her again?"
He looks at him, and there's no hesitation when he speaks. "Absolutely."
Oner glances at him briefly before looking back at the road. "You sound sure."
The god of thunder lets out a slow breath. "I am."
He doesn't argue because he feels it too. The certainty that she's not done with them yet.
Finally, Zeus shifts in his seat. "By the way, I need to use one of your gateways."
Oner frowns. "What?"
Zeus sits up straighter, his expression serious. "One of the doorways in your territory. I need to meet someone in Busan."
Oner raises an eyebrow. "You can fly."
Zeus scowls. "I'm tired. Give me a reprieve." He crosses his arms. "And be a nice host for once."
Oner snorts. "You're a celestial being, not a frail old man."
"And you're one stubborn cat-ass, but I still tolerate you." Zeus deadpans.
Oner rolls his eyes, but there's amusement in them. He sighs, drumming his fingers against the steering wheel. "Fine. But you owe me."
Zeus hums. "I'll buy you lunch."
Oner snorts. "It better be expensive."
Zeus chuckles, but the weight of their earlier conversation still lingers between them, unspoken but understood.
Their world is shifting beneath them, and the answers remain just out of reach. But they aren't the type to sit back and wait.
Whatever it takes, they'll find a way. Even if they have to chase the unknown into the depths of the unseen world.