The system blinked.
Reality flickered.
Jiwoon felt his surroundings twist—air turning thick, colors warping. One moment he was standing in the ruins of the bell tower… and the next, he was in a place he had buried deep within his mind.
Sector 0: The Sin Genesis Lab.
Cold white lights. Endless corridors. Screams beyond sealed doors.
"This place…" he whispered,
"It was erased."
[System Notice: Memory Loop Trial Initiated.]
[You must confront the origin of your sin.]
A Child with Blood on His Hands
He walked through glass corridors, where images flickered like ghosts—his younger self, standing in front of a burning chamber.
A researcher begged.
"Please… he's just a child—don't force him to—"
The young Jiwoon, no older than ten, pulled the trigger.
[Sin Level +200]
[First Trigger Event Confirmed.]
Jiwoon clenched his fists.
"I didn't know… I didn't choose this."
"But you did choose to keep going," a voice said behind him.
It was his own voice—but older, crueler, echoing with the system's cold logic.
A Battle With His Reflection
"You use sin like a scalpel," his echo said.
"Precise. Effective. Addictive."
"You're not fighting the system, Jiwoon.
You're just building your own."
The two Jiwoons clashed—blades forged of guilt and fury.
Each swing tore memories apart.
His mother screaming as she was dragged into the Reset Chamber.
His best friend pleading not to be judged.
In the final moment, Jiwoon stabbed his echo—piercing through the reflection.
"I'll carry the weight.
But I'll never become what they wanted."
System Shift
[Trial Passed: Memory Loop]
[New Passive Unlocked: Sin Rejection Field]
– You can resist system overrides and nullify suppression commands.
[Warning: Memory leak detected.]
– Fragments of repressed sins now visible to other entities.
Jiwoon staggered as he returned to reality.
Mira rushed over.
But she stopped mid-step, staring in horror.
"Jiwoon… what is that behind you?"
The phantom Kirin-Dragon had changed.
Now, it bore chains made of broken memories, dragging behind it like a crown of thorns.