Novan woke up in a pool of his own blood.
His right hand was completely ruined, the nerves shredded as if they had exploded from within. The pain was unbearable—each breath felt like another thorn driven deeper into his chest.
Slow footsteps approached.
It was Don. His face wore its usual cold expression, but this time, there was something different.
He stood before him and said in a heavy tone:
— "I can get you out of here… but I need you to read my intent."
Novan slowly raised his head, eyes glinting with disbelief.
— "Why? Why do you want me to know your intent?"
Don took a deep breath, looking down at his trembling hands.
— "I'm empty. I've been searching for a purpose in this life. My ability… control over particles… it didn't just appear. I went through a psychological breakdown, a complete collapse. That's when it awakened."
Novan's heart skipped. A psychological collapse? Then all of them…!
— "So everyone with powers… they all went through some kind of mental hell?"
Don cut him off sharply:
— "No. Not all of them."
Silence hung for a moment before Novan whispered:
— "Then what about me? How did I get my ability?"
Don let out a bitter laugh.
— "You didn't earn it. Neither did I. They gave it to you."
Novan's eyes widened in shock.
— "They? Who are they? Is it Morgan? The one who gave me the gloves?"
Don shook his head.
— "Morgan is nothing. Just a shadow. Compared to the Six Great Ones, Morgan is worthless."
The name struck Novan like thunder. The Six Great Ones?
Suddenly Don shouted:
— "Come on! Read my intent!"
Novan focused on him…
But saw nothing.
No evil. No good. No direction. Just… absolute emptiness.
— "There's nothing… You're truly empty. Why do you even exist?"
For the first time, Don broke down. He screamed through his tears:
— "They stole everything from me! Since I was a child! My father killed my mother… and then he was killed by those with powers! I have no goal! No meaning! I've been living without a soul!"
Novan's chest tightened. He suddenly realized—Don and Jon were the same.
Brothers torn apart by fate, reunited in Kroko, the City of Mystery. The same city that had swallowed Novan as well.
Then a voice shattered the silence.
Diss stormed in, shouting:
— "How many times did I warn you, Don, not to interfere?!"
Don turned on her, fury in his eyes.
— "I want to know why I exist, you witch!"
Diss exploded in rage—literally. Her nerves flared out like blades, and with a flick of her power, she crushed the nerves in Don's right hand until it burst before Novan's eyes. His scream ripped through the room.
But Don didn't yield. With his remaining strength, he raised his left hand and bent the particles around him, sucking the air from Diss's lungs. She choked, veins bulging as he counted coldly:
— "One… two… three."
She collapsed, nearly unconscious, while Don's right hand hung ruined forever.
Novan's mind raced. All their powers… born of psychological torment!
Diss, whose body became a vessel of nerves, exposed and raw, had turned her suffering into a weapon.
Returning to the present, Novan stared at them with bitter disbelief.
— "Friends? You're nothing but patients. Each of you walks only for your own gain. No one sees beyond themselves."
Just then, Jon and Ban entered the room, dragging themselves in with severe injuries.
And then—
A deep, echoing laugh filled the air.
A man appeared, dressed in elegant black, his eyes dripping with contempt.
— "You're nothing more than mental patients."
Everyone froze. Even the broken Diss trembled.
Chills surged through Novan's body.
The man smiled cruelly.
— "My name… is Morgan."
And before anyone could move—he vanished.
Leaving them all drowning in a terror they had never felt before.