YOSUKE SHIN
Jiro's eyes were steady, calm but sharp, when he spoke.
"Let's accept it then—that the godglyph was pulling her. Even if she did gain that power, would she even be able to use it? She can't control elements, and she doesn't even have a core."
I leaned forward, my jaw tightening. "You're right… but she already broke one stone, Jiro. And nothing happened."
For a moment Jiro froze, then sat back, his brows furrowing as if fitting pieces together.
"Wait. If you break a godglyph, then you gain its power. That's how it works. But…" His eyes narrowed. "According to what Sai said yesterday, that power can't just vanish. So what if… the essence of the godglyph doesn't manifest in her as an ability, but runs through her instead? What if that's why she can sense them—why she felt the pull of the gate?"
The idea made my stomach churn, but it also fit. I shook my head, muttering, "You're saying she's walking around with a godglyph flowing inside her? That doesn't make sense, Jiro. If she can't wield it, then it's just…"
"Dead weight?" Jiro finished. He wasn't mocking—his tone was serious, almost grim. "Or worse, unstable."
I clenched my fists. "But because she doesn't have a core, she can't use powers. That's the truth. No matter how much the glyph's energy runs through her, it won't manifest as an ability. That's what saves her."
"Or what dooms her," Jiro countered quietly.
The room fell silent. My heart was pounding harder than I wanted to admit. If Jiro was right, then Naemi wasn't just some bystander in all this. She was carrying something volatile inside her. Something we couldn't predict, let alone control.
I whispered to myself, almost unwilling to voice it out loud:
"…Then she's more connected to this than any of us realized."
SAI SHINU
The kid was already asleep, his small frame tucked into the blankets, his breathing steady and soft. I eased the door shut behind me and returned to the main room.
Yuri and Namae were sitting together at the table, their voices hushed but steady. A strange warmth struck me—two parts of my life sharing the same space. Before I could step closer, a knock shook the door.
I opened it. Taro stood there, his expression carved from stone.
"Taro," I said, moving aside. "Come in."
He nodded to Yuri and Namae, then stepped in with the weight of someone carrying news too heavy to keep.
"I came to tell you what happened inside the gate," he said without hesitation. "You both deserve the truth."
Yuri straightened, folding her arms. Namae tilted her head, her expression tight, as if bracing herself.
Taro's voice was low but sharp, every word slicing through the silence.
"When we entered the gate—Sai, Jiro, Yosuke, and I—it wasn't just a fight. It was a trial. The gate forced us through illusions, memories, and trials meant to break us apart. At the end, we faced a false god on its throne. We defeated it. And when the throne collapsed, the power behind it—the godglyph—revealed itself."
Yuri leaned forward, eyes sharp. "So it's over? That thing is gone?"
Taro's head shook slowly, and the weight of his next words pressed down on us like a storm.
"No. That's why I'm here. The gate… is still open. Even now, in the room we entered from. And inside, another godglyph remains—untouched, waiting for someone to claim it."
Namae's breath caught audibly, her fingers curling into the fabric of her dress. She looked at him wide-eyed, as if confirming the pull she had once felt near that room.
Yuri slammed her palm on the table, her voice sharp with disbelief.
"You're saying this village is sitting on a doorway—with one of those cursed stones just waiting for anyone to take? That means anyone strong—or reckless—enough could walk in and claim power like the ones you've seen."
"Yes," Taro said gravely. "Anyone. And we don't know what happens if the wrong person takes it—or worse, if the gate itself collapses and drags the world with it."
The silence that followed was suffocating. I could feel Yuri's eyes on me, could hear the tremor in her voice when she finally spoke.
"And you fought in there? That's where those scars came from?"
I didn't answer immediately, but my silence was enough.
Taro exhaled heavily, stepping back as though the weight of the truth had finally been dropped.
"That's what I needed to tell you. The gate is still open… and a godglyph waits inside. Until we decide what to do about it, none of us can rest easy."
The room fell still again, the air thick with unease. Yuri's hand lingered on the table, trembling just slightly, while Namae's gaze dropped to the floor, lost in thoughts none of us could reach.