Twenty minutes later—
the city lights had faded behind them.
Old factories and rusted warehouses replaced them.
Most of the buildings were abandoned.
Only a few dim street lamps remained.
The Rolls-Royce stopped in front of a massive metal warehouse door.
A single guard sat beside it on a folding chair.
William stepped out and handed him a small card.
The guard checked it briefly.
Then his eyes moved to Jin.
He stared for a moment.
"…You look familiar."
Jin answered simply.
"Wrong place."
The guard laughed.
"Maybe."
He pressed a button.
The enormous metal door slid open with a grinding sound.
"Go ahead."
Inside the warehouse—
there was nothing.
Concrete floors.
Steel beams.
And at the center—
a large industrial freight elevator.
They stepped inside.
The doors slammed shut.
Then the elevator began descending.
Metal cables groaned above them.
Min Ji looked around at the concrete walls.
"Illegal gates."
She glanced at Jin.
"You really didn't change."
Jin replied calmly.
"Neither did you."
William crossed his arms.
Looking between them.
"…Should I be worried?"
Min Ji smiled.
"Probably."
The elevator continued descending.
The air slowly began to change.
Heavier.
Colder.
Then—
CLANG.
The elevator stopped.
The doors opened.
Mist drifted across the ground.
The air was thick.
Heavy.
Wrong.
But the first thing they noticed—
was the ground.
Deep cracks.
Scattered debris.
Dark stains.
Blood.
William frowned.
"…That's strange."
Min Ji crouched slightly, examining the marks.
"Something happened."
Jin knelt briefly, touching the cracked floor.
Then he said quietly,
"…Recently."
Before anyone could speak—
the ground trembled.
A low sound rolled through the mist.
THUD.
A step.
Heavy.
Another.
THUD.
William's voice dropped.
"Be ready."
His eyes began glowing faintly with energy.
"…I think we're late."
"The Abyss already opened."
The mist shifted.
Something enormous moved inside it.
Min Ji's smile slowly widened.
"…Fun starts."
Jin's hand moved subtly.
A small energy stone appeared in his palm.
No one noticed.
Crack.
The stone shattered.
Energy flowed silently into his body.
Then he looked at Min Ji.
"Did you bring a weapon?"
She blinked.
"…No?"
"Why would I bring one?"
"I didn't expect this."
Jin sighed quietly.
From his inventory, without her noticing, a dagger appeared in his hand.
He handed it to her.
Then another small energy stone.
Min Ji stared at them.
Then laughed softly.
"Well."
She weighed the dagger in her hand.
"I guess you became a black market dealer too."
Jin replied calmly.
"Break the stone."
She crushed it immediately.
Energy flowed into her body.
Her eyes gleamed faintly.
Min Ji grinned.
"Oh."
"I missed this."
Jin's gaze shifted toward the mist.
"Get ready."
Then—
the fog exploded outward.
A violent pressure slammed into them like an invisible wall.
The ground cracked.
Dust lifted into the air.
Something massive stepped forward.
Each step shook the Abyss.
THUD.
THUD.
The silhouette emerged slowly from the mist.
Towering.
Monstrous.
Its shape twisted between flesh and stone.
Claws scraped across the ground, carving deep lines into the cracked floor.
William's glowing eyes narrowed.
Min Ji's grin widened.
And Jin simply watched.
Calm.
Focused.
The creature lowered its head.
The system appeared.
[Warning]
[Killing Intent Detected]
[Distance: 5 meters]
A deep growl rolled out.
The sound vibrated through their bones.
Then—
it stepped fully out of the fog.
And the ground beneath them trembled.