My eyes fluttered open to a soft beeping sound and the cold sting of sterile air. Bright white lights buzzed overhead, casting shadows across the pale ceiling.
I blinked once. Twice.
The last thing I remembered was falling—air ripping past him, the scream caught in his throat, and then...
Nothing.
I turned my head weakly.
A man in a white coat stood beside me, flipping through a clipboard. The doctor looked surprised, then quickly pressed a button near the bed.
"He's awake!" he called to someone beyond the curtain, then looked down at me with a smile. "Easy now. You've been unconscious for almost three days."
My throat felt dry, but I forced myself to speak.
"What… world is this?"
The doctor raised a brow but chuckled, assuming it was a product of trauma or confusion.
"You're on Earth. Seoul, South Korea. You're at Asan Medical Center—one of the best hospitals in the country."
My eyes narrowed slightly.
Earth… South Korea? What even is a hospital!?
I stared down at my body. The blankets had been neatly tucked, but I could feel something was off—like something had changed inside me.
"We found you lying on the ground", the doctor continued, pulling back the covers slightly. "Your legs were… mangled. Twisted and broken. You were bleeding out when the rescue team arrived."
I shook my head, eyes filled with a mix of disbelief and fascination.
"But the strangest part? You're fully healed. Not a scar. Not even a bruise. No treatment, no surgery. It's like…" He trailed off, searching for the word.
"…like your body reset itself."
I slowly sat up, ignoring the slight ache that bloomed in my ribs. I looked down at his hands—no longer shaking, no longer weak.
What happened to me when I said yes…?
The doctor exhaled, hesitating before speaking again.
"You aren't the only one, though."
I looked up sharply. "What do you mean?"
"Others arrived. Just like you. People who don't belong here—who came from… another realm." The doctor's voice lowered as if afraid someone might overhear. "And with them… monsters."
The air in the room grew colder.
My fingers clenched the sheets beneath me.
"People like me… and monsters?" I echoed, with my voice barely audible.
Then, like a wave crashing into me, the memory surged.
The blood.
The smoke.
my father's body—torn in half.
A man, no, a thing—humanoid but monstrous, holding what remained of my father in one hand.
"Run... away..."
And then—boom.
My father's body exploded, and blood splattered across my face, warm and metallic. I had screamed. I had run. And now…
I gasped aloud, gripping the side of the bed as the image overwhelmed me.
The monster's face.
Those eyes.
Human… and not.
My heart raced.
Because now, I knew.
Those creatures were here.
On Earth.
And I wasn't the only one who had crossed over.
After hearing this, I fainted.