Fallen Lightbringers' Return

It was early in the morning, but Lee Dojin was not sleepy at all. The cold from outside washed in as he opened the window, his curtains flowing with the breeze.

He looked at the message hovering in front of him. It was the reward he had gotten for reaching rank 1. Honestly, he was unsure of what to expect since he had never found out what it was in his previous life (though he never cared to do so either).

[Reward issued: Title 'King of the Shadows']

Lee Dojin felt conflicted. For one, he was excited as titles were an interesting thing. They were handed out mostly through acknowledgment from either a great deal of people or some higher being. Naturally, the system was a higher being, and thus it was easiest to gain titles from there. The one born through Affinities is a good example.

Still, that did not mean gaining a title was easy. No, it was the opposite. There weren't many with additional titles. But that was what made them so special. Another thing was that they granted great powers, outside of one's Affinity. Such was the case with this particular reward.

[Title: King of the Shadows (Rank C)

Effects: The user can see in dim light within the radius as if it were bright, and darkness does not affect them. The user can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray, but may perceive certain light frequencies not part of the traditional color spectrum]

"Wow, that's near useless," he said. Well, calling it that may be going too far. It did have great utility, and as the previous bearer of light, he did understand the importance of these frequencies. It was simply that he had expected something a little more exciting for reaching the fabled rank 1, and also earning a title through it.

"Well, that's fine, the real reward is still to come."

He walked out of his room and was greeted by his mother, Lee Seunhee—Xh'Endrada for some—waving at him with a spatula. She had made some fried eggs, with pieces of bacon atop of it. Not a traditional Korean breakfast, but they weren't a traditional family either.

"So you are going out today," his mother asked him.

Lee Dojin nodded. "It's something with school. We're going to a museum or something I don't think it's going to take that long, so I'll be back before sunset, I think."

Lee Sunhee smiled. "That's great. I'm off work starting from 15. Maybe we can do something together. You know, family bonding." She watched him down all the food. An unknown sense of pride overcame her. " It's nice to see you be more outgoing. You never attended these things in the first place."

"Don't worry about me, I'm fine," he said and ate a piece of toast. It tasted great.

His mother watched him silently. "It's good for you to have fun, but don't put too much pressure on yourself, got it?"

Lee Dojin stopped eating. He looked at her in confusion. "What's gotten into you? Why would you say that?"

"No reason. It only seemed as if you had a lot on your mind these days." Lee Seunhee took a seat in front of him. She reciprocated his gaze. Her dark eyes flashed for a moment, then returned to the usual frigidness. "As if you were lost in thought or something."

"I suppose I really was thinking about some stuff. But it's trivial," he said. "You have some good intuition."

"I'm your mother. Isn't that natural," she joked. "I keep repeating myself, but if you have anything you wish to talk about, I'm here." She paused. "Because that is what family is about."

A slight pang squeezed at Lee Dojin's heart. It was so minuscule, he hadn't even realized it. Yet, it was there, implanted from that magical word, one, so foreign and strange to him. Family. he had heard that term often, as an orphan, then as a student, and in the end as a player. Yet, it never rang the same way it did today. "Everything is fine. It will be," he told her. A carefree smile escaped his mouth. "I will make sure of it. That's why I am here."

His mother didn't reply. Instead, she gestured for him to approach her. Lee Dojin did, placing his food down and leaving his seat. He rested his arms on her back, standing behind her. His mother didn't turn around. She only took his hand and lightly caressed it—with the care a mother should give her son. "Are you happy, Dojin?"

Lee Dojin was taken aback but soon composed himself. He breathed out, a carefree sigh. "Yes, mother, I am." His grip tightened, and he leaned down, giving her a big hug. For a few seconds, he closed his eyes. Thoughts of the past swirled on his mind, as they loved doing these days.

Xh'Endrada, the Concubine of All Things Parallel, was probably the loneliest God of them all.

Unlike any other gods, she had no story; She held no prophecies, no altars, and no sacrifices, for she was not born for worship. Her purpose came only to observe the innumerable nodes of the universes, though the connections hardly needed governance.

Every day, every second, like a cog in a great machine, for eons, she continued to account for the many multiverses, and as time passed, even her fellow gods forgot and abandoned her. Those that envied her, those that loved her, those that stood behind her, they too vanished, whether moving on or slowly phasing away, as their legacies became obsolete.

But she lived on. Even if no one remembered her, the nodes of the universe would perceive and keep her eternal. Still, at times, she could see from her lonely throne above the galaxies, another God dying, like a star that faded out. And she wondered, why did they always look so peaceful? She did not understand.

As such, she continued wandering in her palace for one, further away from even the endless void, and continued watching over the countless lifeforms.

Compared to his mother, Lee Dojin was sure, his burdens were nothing. His mother's back was warm to the touch, and he saw from the corner of his eye, her jaunty expression. Thus, he was happy.

Time passed, and finally came the part where he had to leave. His mother patted his head. It was a curious feeling, being treated like a normal child, but he didn't mind. He told her he would be back soon, Lee Seunhee told him to take care, and he walked out the door.

As soon as he entered the subway station, he received a call from Kim Heeson. "Yo, Dojin?"

"Yes, what's up?" He placed the phone on speaker and held it in front of him. A passerby gave him a quick annoyed glance, offended by the noise.

"Oh, nothing," Kim Heeson said, oblivious that his voice was broadcasted for the surrounding to hear. "Aren't you gonna be on that excursion today?"

"How do you know that? What's with all of you and your info gathering? You are putting the police to shame."

"Yo, it's not that complicated," he said. "I was there when that teacher asked you."

"Oh well, that's true." Lee Dojin nodded. "Yes, I'm going to that excursion. It sounds fun, so why not?"

"I see, I see. It's with Ji-ah Seungsengnim, right? If that's so that would mean that bas— I mean, Il Chunghoo is gonna be there too, right? Right?"

Lee Dojin thought about it. "I don't know. I suppose it does. Well, if he isn't skipping, that is. You delinquents do have quite the track record when it comes to that.

He was quite the one to say that, Kim Heeson thought, but did not say out loud, as he did not want his neck broken. "But that's good! Send me your location, I'll be there."

"I didn't know you liked history." As he said so, Lee Dojin observed the things around them. He thought to himself how great the shadows were today. If he wanted to, he could achieve quite a lot in the Hidden Quest.

"Of course not. I just want to get even with that Il Chunghoo. I've been thinking all the time, it's bugging the hell out of me." He paused. "Kim Jyejin told me about what's happening. I know of the stakes now."

"Tsk that blabbermouth." Lee Dojin sighed. "But you misunderstand. I don't have anything to do with what's happening around school or elsewhere. The only person I have something to do with is Do Jiwoon. But that dude can wait." He placed the phone back to his ear again. "Anyway, I'm hanging up. I've almost arrived."

Heeson shouted loudly, "Wait, are you joking? You're just gonna leave it at that?"

Dojin held the phone away from him. "Alright, don't scream, I'll send you Taewon and Dahee's number. Don't do too much trash."

"Wait, hold on, don't hang up yet! I'm going to meet Park Wonho. Do you want to leave him a message?"

"Tell him to get well soon. Goodbye." And he thus hung up. He had arrived at the meeting place. It was time for an excursion.