A knife sank into his side.
Elias froze for a moment before collapsing onto John's shoulder.
He grabbed the wound and pressed down, his eyes squeezed shut from the pain. He was too stunned to even speak.
John pushed Elias back slightly and glanced at the dagger lodged in his side.
"Took you long enough..."
He closed the front door, slipped one of Elias's arms around his neck, and dragged him into the sitting room.
He gently lowered Elias onto a sofa, leaned against the armrest, and said,
"Well... Your Grace, what do you think of my humble little home?"
Elias coughed dryly a few times from the pain.
John smiled.
"What a beautiful compliment..."
He pulled the dagger from Elias's side and tossed it toward the table. Elias immediately pressed both hands tightly against the wound, grimacing in pain.
John smiled and walked toward the kitchen across from the room. He returned carrying two plates.
He placed one in front of Elias and the other in front of himself.
"Would you like something to drink with your meal?"
Elias opened his mouth, but no sound came out. A few tears rolled down his cheeks.
John's smile softened.
"Right... Two coffees!"
Without wasting any time, John returned with two cups of coffee. He placed one beside Elias's plate, kept the other for himself, and sat down on the sofa.
"Eat up, Your Grace. I hope you enjoy my cooking!"
Elias's hands didn't move.
John closed his eyes.
"Is it really that bad!?"
Suddenly, he opened his eyes and quickly stood from the sofa. He walked into the kitchen and returned with two lit candlesticks, placing them on the table.
He sat down again and said,
"I thought you might prefer a more romantic atmosphere, Your Grace!"
But Elias's hands still didn't move.
John fell into thought for a moment, then suddenly laughed.
"Sorry, sorry... I forgot that dagger is paralyzing!"
Elias clenched his teeth. His fingers twitched slightly, as though he were trying to make a fist.
John calmly stood and approached Elias.
"Don't struggle... This paralysis poison could even bring a frozen bear from the Northern Continent to its knees. And you... are human!"
Elias's brows lowered. He was furious. More and more tears gathered in his eyes, but all he could do was glare.
John calmly knelt on the floor, picked up the knife and fork from the table, cut off a piece of steak, and lifted it with the fork. He placed his other hand underneath it and brought it toward Elias's mouth.
"Here you go, Your Grace!"
Elias turned his head away and glared at John from the corner of his eye.
John remained silent for a moment, then released the fork.
The metallic clatter echoed through the sitting room.
John placed a hand on the sofa's armrest and used it to pull himself up. Once standing, he brushed off his knees and vest.
Silence filled the room once again.
John opened the door to the adjacent room and stepped inside.
A little while later, he emerged wearing a vest, with Legend of Idris resting above his shoulder.
Elias's eyes trembled for a moment.
John stood in front of him and said,
"Maybe this is cruel, but..."
He picked up the dagger from the table and looked at Elias.
Elias's tear-filled eyes stared back at him.
John tilted his head slightly.
"You were never part of my plan. You suddenly appeared in my path like a stone making the road rough for a carriage."
Elias struggled to move a few fingers.
John raised the dagger and slowly brought it toward Elias's throat.
"At Baron Romeo's wedding, you sensed something... and you saw something else, too."
The dagger drew closer and closer to Elias's neck.
"You were never supposed to attend that wedding..."
The dagger settled against Elias's throat.
"The things you saw are dangerous for you... I'm saving you!"
Elias's eyes began to tremble with fear.
John stared at him with pity.
"Poor Duke... How unfortunate that being saved means the same thing as dying for you..."
Several of Elias's fingers slowly rose.
The dagger plunged into his throat.
John released the dagger and stood.
"Well... That takes care of that."
He looked at Elias.
A faint breeze passed through the room, making the curtains sway.
John smiled.
Legend of Idris spoke.
"Was that really necessary?"
John answered without hesitation.
"I saved him. You understand that much better than I do."
Legend of Idris remained silent for a moment before continuing.
"When you said this afternoon that you wanted something from me, I expected something dangerous. But the possibility of this duke actually reaching this place... That was an unusual request."
John took a few steps toward the door.
"Unusual? Maybe... But the only way to save a human who has seen the realm of a god is death!"
Legend of Idris immediately replied,
"Space of Yellowness."
He fell silent for a moment, his hand resting on the doorknob.
"Call it whatever you want, but... none of that changes its true name."
Another moment of silence.
"Unstructured World."
The clock hand stopped at 2:30.
The door remained open, and the curtains swayed slightly.
The house was empty.
───────────────────────────
John stood on the roof of a house, looking at the night sky and the East Gate.
A few footsteps came from behind him.
A hand reached out. A foot shifted to the side, and the hand caught it.
Onlooker let out a laugh mixed with his breath and dropped the knife.
John released Onlooker's hand.
Onlooker took several steps back and said,
"I expected you to let me wound you..."
John looked into Onlooker's eyes.
"You expect too much. You were aiming straight for my heart."
"Doesn't your heart regenerate!?"
"What do you take me for... a salamander!?"
Onlooker laughed softly before asking,
"Where are you going?"
John exhaled.
"Maybe the Kingdom of Lothier."
Onlooker fell silent for a moment, then walked toward the other side of the roof.
"Until we meet again... Master."
John gave him a gentle smile.
"Seven years was a good run... my traitorous student!"
Onlooker immediately replied,
"Seventeen years..."
John's smile changed slightly.
He raised his hand, and before he could snap his fingers, his body exploded into hundreds of butterflies.
Onlooker remained silent for a moment. Tears gathered in his eyes. He wiped them away with his hand and then looked toward the moon.
"I'm sorry, Master John... I still can't accompany you. I'm still... too weak!"
He took several steps backward and threw himself from the building.
"Maybe... just maybe... one day I'll be able to prove to you that leaving you was the right decision for both of us... I hope so!"
Before hitting the ground, he grabbed a streetlamp and began walking.
The fog around John's house grew thicker and thicker.
Sebastian and Leonard, accompanied by five teams of Night Keepers, were rushing toward the dead-end alley where Leonard had seen Elias at the last moment.
Duke Somerset stood before the East Gate alongside several soldiers, police officers, and Night Keepers.
Suddenly, a bag landed on the ground in front of the duke.
It was the same bag John had offered during their deal that afternoon.
The duke smiled, turned toward the soldiers, and said,
"The Divine Gift thief... has escaped."
───────────────────────────
"I'm cold.
Why is it so cold?
My hands are moving, but why?
Wait... my hands are moving!"
I hurriedly opened my eyes and raised my hand toward my neck.
There was no wound.
I looked around.
"Misty World..."
I exhaled.
"Strange. This time I don't feel like I'm floating... Where's Dark Hand!?"
I quickly shook my head and smacked it hard with my hand.
"That damn John... That bastard..."
I clenched my teeth and made a fist.
"You baaaastard!"
I took a deep breath to steady myself and looked around.
"Come to think of it, why don't my neck and side hurt? I'm sure I was nearly passing out from the pain when he was offering me that steak, so why... Why do I feel like I'm in perfect condition right now!?"
Suddenly, Dark Hand's voice came from behind me.
"Because the fog trusted you..."
I spun around and looked at Dark Hand.
"Damn it... You scared me."
There was a brief silence between us before I realized what he had said.
"What!? The fog trusted me!? Really!?"
Dark Hand bent its fingers slightly downward, then raised them again.
"Yes... I hate admitting it."
I gave a faint smile.
"Wow... So what does that mean!?"
Dark Hand looked at me with its dark blue eye for a moment before speaking.
"Do you know what the problem is? I'm still helping you. Weren't you supposed to die?"
I stared at Dark Hand with complete seriousness, then laughed.
"Don't be upset, dear Sonder. I know you like me!!!"
Dark Hand stared at me with absolute seriousness.
"I don't know what you just said, but... rest assured, I don't like a twenty-seven-year-old man!"
I raised my hand.
"Twenty-eight."
Dark Hand suddenly snapped angrily,
"That's even worse! You old man! Why would I like you!?"
I smiled, but after thinking about what it had said, I immediately pointed at it with my index finger.
"I'm an old man!? Me!? Then what are you? An ancient skeleton!?"
Dark Hand looked like it was about to say something, then fell silent.
After a moment of silence between us, Dark Hand said,
"As I said, the fog has come to trust you. That's why your body is healthy right now."
I tilted my head.
"So... a mutually beneficial relationship!?"
Dark Hand rose slightly higher.
"It's not exactly mutually beneficial. Maybe it is. I honestly don't know!"
I raised my hand to my jaw.
"Thanks for all the incredibly useful information..."
Dark Hand pointed its index finger directly at me, but only a moment later, straightened it again and continued.
"All I know is that the fog's trust allows you to gain more abilities in this world. Like me. I can fly..."
I chuckled.
"Or like the first time we met, when you created all of London out of fog. That was last year... Time really flies!"
Dark Hand blinked its eye in what looked like a sigh.
"But... I didn't know the fog could bring a dead man back to life!"
I fell silent for a moment, then brought my hand to my neck again and pressed against it.
"So..."
Dark Hand immediately answered.
"Yes... Something about the fog's trust in you isn't right."
I exhaled and reached upward with my hand.
Suddenly, I felt myself rise higher.
"This..."
Dark Hand closed its eye.
"I hate saying this, but yes... You're no longer merely floating. You can move."
I tried to jump out of excitement.
It didn't work.
Dark Hand spoke again.
"Try thinking about a specific place. London, your room, or anything you're certain exists and can remember."
I turned around and looked at the endless foggy space.
"Certain..."
I was even more certain of my previous life, but trying out this new life probably wouldn't hurt.
I closed my eyes, then opened them.
"London... Somewhere I've seen!"
I was thinking about those places when suddenly I felt like I was standing on something.
I quickly turned my head from side to side.
Dark Hand said,
"Interesting..."
Suddenly, houses emerged from within the fog.
Gas lamps descended one by one from the misty sky and settled along the streets.
Silence briefly swallowed the foggy world.
Then, without warning, an earthquake began.
I jumped in surprise and rose higher into the air.
The Big Ben clock tower slowly emerged from the fog.
I stared open-mouthed at the reconstructed London before me.
"Whoa... But why are so many parts of London missing, or covered in fog!?"
Dark Hand appeared beside me.
"The fog uses your perception and the things you've seen to reconstruct something in this world. So places you've never seen aren't going to magically appear on their own!"
I slapped my forehead.
"I'm disappointed!"
I flew a little farther ahead, then turned back toward Dark Hand.
"Forget control... I don't want control!!"
A smile spread across my face.
"Influence, respect, power, intelligence... Lying and deception. To put it simply, teach me how to survive!!!"
Dark Hand remained silent for a moment before answering.
"I'm not human, but if there's something I know, I'll tell you..."
I spread my arms apart.
"Tell me about this world. Everything you know... And answer my questions!!!"
Dark Hand immediately replied,
"You'll probably remain unconscious for a while... I don't know much about the world outside the foggy world either, but... fine!!!"
I raised my head slightly.
"Time for a little life lesson... For revenge, if I ever see him again!!!"
Suddenly, fog surged out from beneath the reconstructed city.
The buildings collapsed one after another, and the clock tower exploded, dissolving into fog.