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Jae-Ha drops to the floor with the gun in his hands.
It didn’t work. He made sure it would work, he planned it all out! He starved himself to make sure that the Phoenix heirloom wouldn’t save him, he destroyed every other artifact he was meant to restore—all to kill himself.
The artifact worked well when he tried it out, but it looks like he’s destined to be a failure to the very end. On the cold floor of his jail cell, Jae-Ha tries to press the trigger again. The artifact is perfectly restored, but it’s not killing him.
He laughs.
It was so easy to kill them, all he needed to do was steal their folders and not restore their artifacts. And yet- and yet! He can’t kill himself when it comes to it. Julian, Seol-Ah, Dan, Chloe, Ilya—Joo-Heon.
. .
The trigger feels jammed, but it’s perfectly restored. He presses it again.
“Do you truly want to go out this way?”
Jae-Ha throws the artifact at the direction of the voice. “I’m sorry- I didn’t mean to—“ But there’s no guard there. Nobody is in his cell or even outside the door. He’s completely alone.
Just where did that voice come from?
“You are a talented individual. It would be a shame if the world loses you.”
And for the first time since he was thrown into this cage, he sees a burning light. A literal burning light at that. There’s a beautiful phoenix right in front of him, its wings spread as far as they can go in this cramped room. The flames flicker and the heat it gives off feels warm and comforting.
“Are you the Phoenix heirloom?” Jae-Ha picks up his jaw from the ground.
The bird nods, its eyes blinking slowly. “Why do you want to die?”
. . Jae-Ha laughs, “Are you serious?”
“Do humans not care about their life? They seek the power of us heirlooms to prolong their lifespan, and as a lucky human, shouldn’t you-“
“Lucky?” he snaps. “Have you not been with me in the past years, Phoenix? I killed the people I care about! I killed the person I . . love.” It’s the heavy truth he’s meant to carry for the rest of his existence. Even if Yang Chen told him to do it, he still stole their folders. Nobody told him to, but he didn’t restore their artifacts because they rightfully suspected him for their missing files. He played a role in their deaths.
The Phoenix brings its wings closer to him, and he’s surrounded by flames. It’s like a warm hug. It’s like those mornings where he finds himself unable to get up because of two secure arms around him. He should’ve cherished those days.
Whether or not the Phoenix knows what he’s thinking about, it comforts him.
“You did well. You meant the best.”
He doubts the truth behind those words, but he doesn’t say it. Ah, when has he last felt warm? Not in this cold cell, no.
“I failed them.”
“The world failed you all. It is not a single human’s fault, especially not yours.”
Jae-Ha sobs, unable to contain his emotion. He’s managed to do it for the months he’s been locked up, why can’t he keep it in now?
His tears almost instantly evaporate from the heat of the Phoenix.
“Don’t cry,” it tells him.
The Phoenix opens its beak and starts singing. It’s like a lullaby, sung to soothe a crying baby to sleep. The song of the heirloom is unlike anything he has ever heard before, but. . it’s beautiful. Jae-Ha closes his eyes and focuses on the song.
He stops crying.
The Phoenix continues its song, its flames brightening in the small and dark room. Jae-Ha wonders how no one has come yet, especially with the bright light and the singing, but he would rather not worry about that.
His body is relaxed, and all his sadness and worries have disappeared. Soon, the song fades and it is just the both of them in the room once again. Just the Phoenix and him.
Jae-Ha breaks the silence, “Even if I live, I will live in this cell. Do birds not hate being caged?”
The Phoenix lowers its head. “They do. They dream of a day when they can spread their wings again. The taste of freedom is not something you may have again in this life. However. .” its voice trails off. “What if I were to tell you your mistakes can be amended?”
“Impossible.”
“We are artifacts. We are the impossibility,” it lowers its wings back to its sides. The warmth remains in the room, but the cold returns back to Jae-Ha.
“They’re dead. You may be able to revive me, but they’re dead. .”
And to that, the Phoenix forms its best smile. “To a Phoenix, time is not a limit. I have lived thousands of lifetimes. I burn, and I wake again.” It raises a wing, and a bright object appears in the air. “My last revival was when artifacts remade their appearance on Earth. Before your unfortunate doom.”
No.
There’s only one thing the Phoenix can be talking about.
“When he stole my art.”
It nods.
Anger replaces sorrow.
Richard Jang, the man who ruined his life and turned it into what it is today. The man he despises, and yet feels nothing upon learning of his well deserved death.
The object floats closer to him.
“Time does not mean anything for a Phoenix. We can bypass time through our revivals. If you wish to fix your mistakes. . .”
Jae-Ha holds the neck of the object in front of him. It is just as warm as the Phoenix, yet smooth unlike feathers.
This is a risk. Artifacts cannot be trusted. He knows that. Of anyone, he’s the one who should avoid trusting anyone or anything the most.
But he has nothing to lose but his life. The Phoenix has already shown its dread upon the idea of his death. Even if it is anything else, he can’t suffer more than he already has in this cage.
“. . turn the hourglass.”
He turns the hourglass over.
Silence.
Darkness.
Warmth.
Color.
The feeling of painting on a canvas is one that Jae-Ha is all too familiar with. He analyses the situation.
There is a paintbrush in one hand and a palette in the other. The paintbrush was creating strokes on the canvas in front of him before he came to. A landscape painting of a forest. This is one of his assignments for college, and one that Richard Jang had stolen. A bed in the corner. . he’s back in his old apartment, painting.
This is before his fall. Back when things were easier, and all he ever wanted was to create his own paintings. Nobody ever recognized his art for his. The one person who did, he killed.
He dabs the paintbrush into more paint. His art style hasn’t changed much, but he wants to change this painting into something he would make. In between all the fake art and artifacts, he would secretly paint for himself. Soon, he started painting for his only buyer.
This painting will be for him too.
But, he can’t risk it.
Jae-Ha takes his phone and sets it up. Hopefully he has enough storage for this.
Done.
Jae-Ha puts everything down and takes his phone, hoping that it managed to record properly. If it hasn’t, he still has enough time to create a trail.
“You have been painting.”
Jae-Ha almost throws the phone onto the Phoenix’s face. “Since when were you h— here. .”
Rather than the grand and majestic fiery bird, it is now just a small red bird. There’s only a slight flame on the end of its tail and the warmth that it gives off as it flaps its wings is minimal. It looks . . cute.
“You
the Phoenix, right?”
“Who else could I be? This form, I have just reemerged from the ashes. I will grow in due time.”
No wonder.
“It does not mean my powers have weakened. If anything, it has gotten stronger, your revivals will be faster.”
So death is not going to be a problem for him. Faking his death in case of an emergency is going to be much easier, then. Not that it’s not going to be painful.
. . Not that pain is an issue.
Oh. Right. There’s one question he’s had. “I haven’t asked, but. . what is your goal?”
“My goal?”
“In helping me like this. I thought artifacts disliked humans.” It’s a bit odd that he’s only just asking, now that he thinks about it, but there wasn’t really an atmosphere to be asking so many questions back in the cell.
“That is true for most artifacts. We are often prideful, so the idea of being used by humans is well disliked—not that I mind much. There are two main ways to get an artifact on your side. Your preference is through Affinity.”
To form bonds with artifacts rather than forcing them to submit. Jae-Ha has always had rather high Affinity compared to most people, so he is able to utilize artifacts well.
“So, are you trying to get me to answer why artifacts might listen to Affinity?”
The silence must mean ‘yes’.
Why would prideful artifacts listen to Affinity? The opposite of Dominance. . “So they do not have to forcibly follow a different user with Dominance? Rather than being used by the user, it would be using them instead.”
“Close.”
Huh?
“What could it be?”
“Artifacts following those with lower Affinity is like as you said, using humans for their benefit. But higher Affinity like yours can be hypnotizing. I can only form a theory, which also explains why I am helping you. You know what a Phoenix is, right? The mythical bird.”
Jae-Ha nods, “It burns into ashes, which reignites to let them come back to life.”
“Yes. We artifacts come from human stories. The more known the story, the stronger we are, the higher ranking we are. High Affinity brings us a feeling similar to remembering who brought our existence, like a devout believer following a god. Without humans to create stories, to know these stories. . our existence disappears along with them. Can you understand my goal?”
That’s- no. Not possible.
“Humanity will be extinct.”
The small bird gently falls down and places its wings on the wooden floor in front of it, as though it is praying.
It’s begging.
“Please, prevent humanity from perishing.”
How? Why? Why would humanity as a whole become extinct? Even if it is because there are people such as Chairman Kwon who aim to monopolize artifacts and wealth, such power means nothing when there is no one else to show it off to. There is no way. But the Phoenix is genuine. He can tell.
If the future repeats, it is the end for mankind and artifacts alike. Everyone will be gone. The Phoenix must’ve been through that before dying and coming back to the past to try and change the outcome.
“Phoenix, why would you trust me with this?”
“You are the perfect candidate. Your abilities are good—Affinity, restoration, and deception. And, you are the closest to the person who is destined to become our Majesty. That, I cannot explain to you yet.” The Phoenix shoots down any further questions before Jae-Ha can even ask them. “But I ask you, please help save humanity.”
. . “Okay.”
“R-Really? Right, then we must prepare! Have a good night’s sleep!”
He hasn’t realized it, but it’s already dark out and the clock’s hour hand reads 11. The exhaustion suddenly hits him.
The small bird disappears as quickly as it came, but Jae-Ha can tell that it’s still watching him. It’s helped him by bringing him to the past, so he’s incredibly thankful for the Phoenix.
Fixing mistakes. . and possibly diverging from the end of humanity. No weight at all, it’s perfectly fine.
He can’t sleep.
This is the first time in a long time that he gets to sleep on a soft bed with a warm blanket. Heck, he has almost forgotten how moving his legs feels like.
But he can’t sleep because of all the thoughts plaguing him. How is he going to change the future? Artifacts aren’t officially known yet. Heirlooms especially won’t appear until far down the line, with the Phoenix being an exception due to its time-breaking abilities. He can’t exactly monopolize on artifacts either. The locations of the tombs, where certain artifacts will be found, only those with incredible memory can remember. He does not have that.
Joo-Heon did. From likes and dislikes, to each callous, he remembered it all.
Jae-Ha misses him. He is be alive at this time, but it’s not going to be easy to get a plane ticket all the way to South Korea on his college student budget. And there are deadlines coming up. . he’s going to have to endure it.
The one thing that he remembers is that Joo-Heon used to work at an art gallery. He remembers because it was why Joo-Heon started in the relic business so late, and why he is familiar with art.
To create a world where the both of them could live together happily, this is now Jae-Ha’s goal. Luckily, it intertwines with the Phoenix’s goal.
But now, he has to focus on getting rid of Richard Jang.
“Good job, I can see the work you put into this! Each brush stroke has depth, and . .” Richard Jang continues on, but Jae-Ha decides to ignore him. The praise of someone who does not truly understand art is worthless to him.
Copies of art do not deserve to be called art. They are fakes, frauds, but never art.
Jae-Ha wears a false smile the entirety of the criticism. He’s perfected the art of faking, but the faking of art is not something to be taken lightly. That is something Richard Jang has never understood.
“I will gladly give this full credit. You’ve fulfilled all the requirements and created a wonderful painting.”
Jae-Ha’s smile almost wavers, “Thank you, sir.”
“May I keep this for my future classes?”
Ah, there’s the question. To keep it in order to both study the art and steal it. It is an artist’s greatest compliment to have such a value placed on their art that one of the best art connoisseurs would want to steal it.
“I apologize, sir. I had someone in mind while painting this, so it’s a bit personal to me.” It’s not a lie, his paintings have started being meant for one person and one person only. The only person who ever cared about his art, why would he dedicate his paintings to anybody else?
“. . That’s fine, you don’t have to. Well, tell the next student to come in,” Richard Jang looks like he’s trying his best to act like he’s not up to anything.
Jae-Ha leaves and tells his classmates to go in. He carries the painting back to his small apartment room, putting it under his bed so no one else sees it. He hates it. He hates the idea of letting someone else’s eyes fall upon his paintings.
Joo-Heon. .
Several months have passed, and his savings are increasing the more he works. Fortunately, he remembers most of his studies well enough to not need to study and instead spend the time to earn money. And after graduating? More work.
He’ll be able to get a plane ticket to South Korea and a nice enough hotel while he’s there.
And, it’s almost time for his doom.
[ Recently, a painting by art connoisseur Richard Jang sparked in popularity in XX Art Gallery. It is a painting that exhibits raw emotion from the artist, here is what the artist had to say— ]
Jae-Ha’s face turns red as he watches the news. That man decided to repeat the same mistake.
It just has to be that forest painting. One with purposeful bluish undertones within the green trees. Sadness and love for the person he cares about the most.
Such a personal painting—he said as such! And yet it’s the one that Richard Jang decided to steal. The moment he graduated from Yale, it seems the professor gained the confidence to take the art for himself.
“It’s my turn now, old man.”
The Phoenix shivers. It really picked the best candidate.
[ Aluminis of Richard Jang claim he has stolen a fellow classmate’s art! ]
[ Artist Y has proof of his old professor plagiarizing his art. ]
[ Here is what Richard Jang has to say. . ]
Artifacts aren’t that well known yet. There is no way to silence him, who has the Phoenix heirloom. Once he gets his old artifacts, he’ll be unstoppable once more. But that’s not his goal. Power, fame, it’ll only be the extra cherry on top. And ruining his previously trusted mentor’s life? That is just a step towards his goal.
Though, it sure feels nice seeing Richard Jang fall from his own feet.
He flew too high, submitting multiple pieces to the art gallery. It’s too bad that Jae-Ha decided to become an aspiring Y-Tuber and posted multiple videos of his art process, including some of the art Richard Jang claims as his.
The upload date of the videos are months before the art gallery. The videos are undeniably real, and there is no way to claim that the paintings do not belong to Jae-Ha.
Cases of plagiarism like this, no matter how influential the person is, will end a career, especially since Richard Jang isn’t backed by Pandora yet.
I win this time.
You lose.
Jae-Ha can’t help but celebrate his victory. Beer has never tasted so good.
“Good job,” the Phoenix, now about half its original size, shows itself.
Jae-Ha only smiles.
He quits his job when the time comes.
Plane tickets in hand, Jae-Ha heads to the gate and prepares himself for what to do.
Joo-Heon worked at an art gallery for years before he could quit and become an artifact user. The finer details were never shared, but he ended up working for TKBM in the end. It is the one thing that should not happen.
The exact location of the art gallery is unknown to him at first, but the power of the internet is a wonderful thing. Jae-Ha has the exact address already, and a hotel room not too far from it. He is acting as an art critic coming in to visit the different art galleries of South Korea. Of course, it’s just an act.
Jae-Ha hasn’t put up a disguise in a while.
The location of the art gallery is inconspicuous. It’s in a normal street, though it doesn't seem to be frequented by anyone but its employees. He wonders if Joo-Heon is in today. Whatever, he can always visit again to ‘check out the piece that caught his eyes the last time he came’.
He finds that he doesn’t have to.
There is a dark haired man going through some boxes on a table, and a couple other people doing paperwork.
Bingo.
Joo-Heon is here, looking through some pieces inside the boxes. He looks so different from the future.
“Hello, are you here for some art?” a woman stands up from a table.
Jae-Ha has to look away, he can’t be some creep staring at an employee.
But for an art gallery, there isn’t really any art here. What’s going on?
“Yes. I am visiting from America to check out the art that this country has to offer,” Jae-Ha looks around. The walls are empty, save for a couple of post-its or shelves.
“I apologize, but we are more of art brokers. If you would like to buy some art, our website has some listings.”
This is fishy.
This is a front for something else.
“Alright, I’ll check it out,” Jae-Ha leaves.
He stays at the cafes nearby with windows that he can look out of. The door of the art gallery opens every now and then, people with boxes or going to pick up boxes. Joo-Heon left once with someone else, so Jae-Ha can’t just go up to him.
He’ll stay no matter how long it takes. The hardest part is pretending like he’s busy on a laptop so he doesn’t seem suspicious staying at a cafe for so long before switching to another one after enough time passes.
Soon, the lights for the art gallery turn off and the people inside leave. This is when Jae-Ha packs up his bag and leaves as well, deciding to wait a little before catching up to Joo-Heon.
“E-Excuse me!” Jae-Ha catches his breath when he finally reaches Joo-Heon. “You work at Xiang Gallery, right?”
Joo-Heon turns around. This. . he looks so much younger and healthy. No pale skin or baggy eyes, no signs of harm put on him by TKBM and artifacts.
“I am investigating the art gallery on suspicions of being a money laundering operation. Could you work with me?”
. .
Joo-Heon looks tense. His eyes reek of suspicion, and his body moves ever so slightly further from Jae-Ha. “Should you be telling me this?”
Ah. Of course, who wouldn’t be suspicious? Damnit, Jae-Ha realizes that he is too enthusiastic about finally meeting Joo-Heon again.
Excuse, what excuse can he use?
When he doesn’t answer immediately, Joo-Heon takes another step back.
“I- I know your father! He’s an investigator, so I know you!”
Suddenly, the tension disappears.
“Oh, so you’re working with my dad? Whew,” Joo-Heon sighs in relief. “Seriously, don’t do that with anyone else, you might get fired.”
Jae-Ha feels guilty for lying upon their first meeting.
“Then could you help me with my investigation?”
They meet up at a cafe further away from the art gallery. Jae-Ha doesn’t think he can stomach another pastry or drink, but he orders something for Joo-Heon.
Once again, he feels suspicion placed on him.
“This is my exact order for this place. . . How much did my dad tell you about me?”
Ah, fuck. This is what Jae-Ha always orders for him whenever they go to a coffee place. .
“It’s my usual- I just thought that you’d like it too since you’re not that much younger than me!” he tries to laugh it off.
“So I should call you hyung?”
“Huh? Hyung?” Jae-Ha is startled. He’s never been called that. . “If—if that’s what you want to call me, I guess. But my name is Yoo Jae-Ha.”
Joo-Heon takes the mocha and sips. “So, hyung, what are you looking for?”
Jae-Ha clears his throat, “Any signs of laundering. If I can get my hands on any art piece, I might be able to find some evidence.”
“You’re asking just the right person for that. We have warehouses scattered around. And, I have all the codes to get inside,” Joo-Heon points to his head, “here.”
Hopefully this works. Jae-Ha hopes that his suspicions of laundering are true, otherwise he’ll look like a fool.
Even now, he’s trying his best to remember that this is the past. Joo-Heon doesn’t know him.
And—
“He’s cute. I haven’t seen pictures of his younger self before. Fuck,” he groans, rolling on the bed in his hotel room. He feels like a pervert, but he’s spent a year cooped up in a cell after his team died. He missed them, and seeing Joo-Heon alive is a dream come true.
“You are quite infatuated with that human,” the Phoenix speaks up.
“Yes, I’ve known him for years!” Jae-Ha sits up from the bed.
Throughout the night, the Phoenix regrets bringing Joo-Heon up. Though artifacts don’t require sleep, it feels exhausted after the talk finally ends with Jae-Ha being completely knocked out on the bed. It hasn’t seen its user so peaceful before.
It hasn’t paid much attention to the one-sided conversation, but there is one comment that it remembers well.
“I wish he could get his memories too. .”
“My sister may be able to help. .” it says to itself. Now, how to get the Crow out of her confinement?
The investigation for laundering becomes one for smuggling drugs. Upon receiving a painting, Jae-Ha feels the weight is off from most canvases of the same size and finds some stitches on the back. He cuts the stitchings open and—boom! Bags filled with white powder.
There is no other explanation for it but drugs.
Jae-Ha feels nauseous when he sees them. He has never been this close to illicit substances like this before. Of course, he knows the smell of marijuana because he lived in America for most of his life, but he’s never actually seen anything like this in person.
Joo-Heon is also surprised, “Drugs? I’ve been transporting drugs this whole time?”
Definite evidence will make it much easier to bring them down, Jae-Ha thinks. “You said that you know the codes for all the warehouses?”
“Yes. My dad will be ecstatic. I’ll give him a call, you see if the rest of the artworks I brought have anything hidden,” Joo-Heon points at the rest of their haul.
It hurts to take them apart, but they’re likely just fakes of other artworks anyways. And sure enough, the rest of them all have drugs somewhere in them. Rookie mistake to not at least have a couple without drugs.
Joo-Heon comes back after his phone call and nods at the drugs revealed from inside the paintings. “Not just a one off. I’ve been helping with smuggling drugs- fuck.” He groans. “I’ve been raised to never get near drugs and here I am smuggling them.”
Jae-Ha tries to comfort him, “You didn’t know, so it’s not your fault.”
“Never had a clue. Whatever, let’s wait here for enforcement to show up.”
Show up they do, and it’s glorious seeing all the boxes being taken away and hearing that the owner of the gallery is getting arrested. Joo-Heon requests to talk to her over the phone and only says this, “You should’ve paid me at least, miss.”
Not only has he been forced to work for them for years, but not getting his wage? Crime-based companies should at least try to be ethical if their employees are doing the dirty work!
Somehow, all the warehouses are filled with drugs. The only ones without drugs are the ones that are too small or without any space to store any. How they were never caught until now is a mystery.
Another investigation is going to be launched for the suppliers and consumers of the drugs, which they don’t have to get involved with at least. Still, this makes it a lot easier to deal with the issue of stopping Joo-Heon from joining TKBM.
It’s too bad that Joo-Heon never liked to share his past, and Jae-Ha would rather not dig because of how painful it seems. Any other factors into his joining are unknown.
But for now, they can get to know each other.
They meet up at Joo-Heon’s apartment. His roommate is gone for work, so it is just the two of them at the dining table and drinking sodas from the nearby convenience store.
“I can’t thank you enough for helping me leave that job,” Joo-Heon starts the conversation. “The reward for busting their organization definitely makes up for all my lost wages.”
100 million won. That’s more than a year’s salary. Jae-Ha refuses to take the money, saying that he has enough for himself. Though, his cash is slowly dwindling. . it’ll probably be gone in a month and half or so. Maybe by then for New Years, he’ll buy himself a lottery ticket with the Phoenix’s help.
Just kidding.
“So, what are your plans?” Jae-Ha asks. “It’s kind of my fault that you don’t have a job anymore.”
“I’ll start by getting to know who you are. The real you, that is.”
Joo-Heon’s expression is familiar. Like a predator who has successfully hunted down his prey, I’ve got you now.
Jae-Ha feels his entire body freeze up. His tongue wouldn’t move. Blue eyes pin him onto his seat, and he feels both sweaty and cold at the same time. Finally, he forces himself to say something. “You know I’m not an investigator.”
“Of course I know, hyung,” Joo-Heon smirks. “I’ve known. You’d be quite the unprofessional one if you were an actual investigator. So. .
. . who are you?”
The fact he knows already should’ve been obvious, Joo-Heon is very intelligent. He probably asked his father already or figured it out on his own. It’s more likely to be the latter, to be honest.
Jae-Ha doesn’t know how to answer him. More lies will only make himself appear more untrustworthy.
He can’t- he shouldn’t. He really shouldn’t.
But he has to.
“I gave you my real name, Yoo Jae-Ha. I’m an artist- I really am an artist.”
“I know that much, your name popped up on the web because of a plagiarism scandal involving an old professor. You’re an artist all the way from the United States- how do you know me?”
Joo-Heon is stiff, his hands in a fist. He’s on his guard. He can’t trust Jae-Ha.
Trust.
That is all Jae-Ha ever wanted. To be trusted and to be able to trust.
He can’t.
But he does.
“I know the future,” Jae-Ha blurts out. “I’ve been sent to the past to amend my mistakes and change the future.”
The Phoenix is going to kill him. He can’t die, but it’s going to kill him and let him revive and then kill him again. It’ll torture him for revealing the fact that he’s regressed to the past.
Will Joo-Heon even believe him?
Joo-Heon has never looked so shocked before, not even the future him has ever worn this odd expression. He looks down at his soda can and then back to Jae-Ha. There is no more distrust, but there is confusion.
“That’s impossible,” is all he can say.
“Not in my future.”
A couple of minutes pass by, but it feels like hours. Their eyes do not break contact throughout the silence.
“. . You’re serious,” Joo-Heon mutters.
“Yes,” Jae-Ha says. “That’s how I know you and where you worked.”
“How did we know each other in the future, then?”
“We were-“ Jae-Ha shuts his mouth.
We were lovers is left unsaid. Instead, “We were coworkers in the same team.”
It’s the truth, so he feels confident in saying it.
And yet it still feels painful.
Joo-Heon lays in bed with an image of Jae-Ha in his mind. The person who saved him because of genuine care, something that he has never encountered before besides with his adoptive parents.
He shouldn’t be so easily trusting, especially not for someone who is using ‘future knowledge’ as an excuse. The only reason he believes Jae-Ha is because of the eye contact. Prior, Jae-Ha avoided his eyes when stating that he is an investigator. But when he said that he is from the future. .
“I know the future. I’ve been sent to the past to amend my mistakes and change the distant future.”
It is almost impossible to fake such a face of anguish and sincerity. Coming from a life where he has encountered many dishonest people, there is someone who is willing to tell him the truth no matter how painful it is.
Our relationship in the future, what is it?
It’s obviously not just that of coworkers, judging from Jae-Ha’s reaction to his question about it. It is definitely true that they were, but there is something more. Perhaps something deeper and personal.
He’ll try to pry further next time.
“You really are someone,” Joo-Heon chuckles to himself. “Time travel? You couldn’t even try to say something else?” His eyelids are hard to keep open, and he continues to think about those brown eyes even as he starts to fall asleep.
The last thing he sees is a dark bird.
“You told him.”
“I’m sorry.”
“I expected it to happen, anyway. Still, does he actually believe you?”
“I know him. He believes me.”
“Human affection is so complex.”
“Even we humans do not understand it well, Phoenix.”
Jae-Ha looks at the distant city from the hotel balcony. The scenery is beautiful, and yet it’ll never match Joo-Heon’s beauty.
He has to take down TKBM and Pandora. Letting any of them live will disrupt his plans for finally living peacefully with Joo-Heon.
Well, only if a relationship somehow forms in this lifetime. He can’t be too hopeful.
“All I know is that I’ll always love him.”
It doesn’t take long before Jae-Ha has to teach Joo-Heon what tombs and artifacts are.
While walking Joo-Heon home after a New Year’s Eve date meeting, the apartment complex which he lives in has turned into something closer to a dirt mound. There are soldiers surrounding the premises and trying to stop people from getting closer. Joo-Heon recognizes some of the people as they live in the same building as him.
“What is going on? Do you know anything about this?” Joo-Heon asks Jae-Ha.
Jae-Ha realizes that he never mentioned anything about artifacts or how he came to the past. Somehow his time travel explanation is still taken seriously despite not giving any further details.
“How do I put this. . that is a tomb.”
“As in there are dead people in there?”
“No! Well, they can be dangerous enough to have people die inside, but they have these things called artifacts. An artifact is what brought me to the past here,” Jae-Ha tries his best to explain. “Mm, they have powers? They’re based on myths or historical figures and their abilities are based on those stories?”
“Are you telling me or asking me?” Joo-Heon teases. He turns to what become of his apartment building. “Looks like you’ll have to share your bed, huh?”
“W-What? Uh- things usually turn back to normal after a tomb is excavated, though any outsider destruction remains.”
Jae-Ha wonders if the disappointed reaction he receives is something bad. Did he mess up in his explanation?
Around them, more people are complaining and getting rightfully upset. A soldier even assaults one of the civilians to their horror.
“I’ll try to find the tomb entrance. We have to clear this before something bad happens again,” Jae-Ha grabs Joo-Heon’s hand and pulls him away.
He follows where the air feels the most tense and finds red writing on a pillar. This. . is an issue. He can’t read tombglyphs, the person who does it best on their old team is Joo-Heon and he doesn’t have his memories.
“You’ll have to hurry up,” Joo-Heon tells him. “There were two people talking about artifacts or something, I don’t think you heard..”
Jae-Ha’s face turns pale. It will be bad to have artifacts get in the hands of organizations, which those two almost definitely are in. Few people, let alone countries, know the existence of artifacts. Those who do are keeping it a secret in order to monopolize on artifacts early on.
He smiles, “I was just an artifact restorer. . I’m not the best with tombs. .”
He feels like a complete and utter failure.
“Do you require my aid?” the Phoenix’s voice echoes in his head. It has come just in time when he needs it.
Jae-Ha sighs in relief, “Yes.”
“The writing reads. . .”
There are traps on the walls of the tomb, so it is best to avoid touching them. And the main thing is never trust the artifacts. That is something he already knows.
In the midst of it, Joo-Heon hears Jae-Ha talking to the air. When the conversation is over and Jae-Ha prepares to throw a rock at the pillar, he asks, “Who is it you’re talking to?”
Jae-Ha scratches his head, “Well. . it’s an artifact. It’s the one who sent me to the past and is helping me with all of this.”
“I see. Shouldn’t we get going?”
Jae-Ha nods, scratching the pillar with a rock. A bright red light appears and they have to shield their eyes. Once the light is gone, they find themselves inside the tomb.
This is the first tomb Jae-Ha has been in since forever.
“. . you look unnerving.”
Jae-Ha continues down the tomb with Joo-Heon. He grins, is the world ready for the greatest restorer of all time to arrive?
Tombs aren’t anything new to him. He’s been in many. He’s not the best at clearing them, but Team 13 would not have been able to survive without his help.
Even if. . his help wasn’t there for their final tomb.
“Is everything okay?” Joo-Heon asks.
“Yes. Just. . thinking,” Jae-Ha assures him. “This is my first tomb in this life.”
“Mine too.”
That helps calm him down a little more. He has someone he wants to protect, and if he can’t bring his act together, he won’t be able to do it properly.
Yes, for once, he’ll do the protecting.
They walk down further, with the Phoenix translating the writing on the walls to him.
Water. Snake. Drop in the water.
Those keywords repeat in his mind. He doesn’t notice the voices echoing behind them until Joo-Heon pats him hard on the shoulder.
“What are we going to do about them?” Joo-Heon whispers.
“We should hurry. Remember to not touch the—walls. The walls,” Jae-Ha reaches for a spot on the wall behind them. “To create a wave of water upon first impact. Should I do it here?”
“How intelligent of you to figure it out yourself.”
“Are you saying I’m not smart enough for you?” he sighs and hits the wall. The sound of rushing water appears where he touches, falling towards where they came from. With Joo-Heon in tow, they run.
It doesn’t take long until they find a large body of water. It is clear and still, and they can see their reflection as they walk closer.
Water. Snake. Drop in water.
“We have to drop something in the water. Let’s see. .” Jae-Ha searches through his pocket only to turn up empty besides his phone, and he is not throwing his phone in the water. He doesn’t even know what he expected to find on him.
Before he can reach for a rock, Joo-Heon pulls out a knife.
“Did you have that in your pocket the entire day?” Jae-Ha asks, aghast.
“Sure. I swiped it from the gallery when I was cleaning up my locker in the morning,” Joo-Heon shrugs. “Seemed valuable.”
Jae-Ha wonders if Joo-Heon just has a natural knack for sensing artifacts, because, “That’s an artifact. A real one.”
He doesn’t know what it specifically is, but he can still feel the aura coming off the artifact. The shape of the handle does remind him of Egyptian artifacts, so it is likely originating from an Egyptian story. The blade also looks very sharp and dangerous. “Just how did you keep it in your pocket?” Jae-Ha shakes his head.
“Trade secret,” Joo-Heon smirks. He heads to the edge of the water pool and drops the artifact. The water ripples, and a large snake appears. It towers over them and hisses.
“Which poor soul dropped their item?”
It lowers its head and reveals what is inside its wide mouth. Two copies of the artifact dropped appear, and it is obvious that they are just copies. The artifact has a dull iron handle, but the two copies consist of a golden and silver one.
“Which one belongs to you?”
It is obvious what type of story this is based on. A person drops something in water, and an entity appears with two valuable copies of the item, asking which one they dropped. If the person picks one, the entity will know that they are lying and not return anything to the person. However, saying that neither is the true item will please the entity and they will get both copies in addition to their original item.
“Neither,” Joo-Heon replies.
The snake closes its mouth before opening it again to show the original artifact inside. “So this is yours.”
“. . .”
“Is this not yours either?”
“I will check.”
Jae-Ha grabs him by the shoulder. “You have to be careful,” he whispers. “Artifacts aren’t trustworthy.”
“Don’t worry,” Joo-Heon reassures him. He continues to head over to the snake, reaching in its mouth. He takes a hold of the artifact and inspects it carefully. Everything feels normal. “Yes, this is my item.”
The snake grins. Jae-Ha feels a chill going down his spine as he sees the smile.
“For your honesty, I will reward you with these.” More artifacts appear in its mouth, these ones axes. A golden axe and a silver axe.
Even though this should be the end of it, Jae-Ha can’t help but feel unsettled by the way the snake is smiling. It’s not that he is scared of the snake, but that he knows a shrewd smile when he sees it. Working as a con artist has taught him all he needs to know about trickery, and this snake is up to something.
And he’s not the only one who has noticed. He feels unusually warm, often happening when the Phoenix is feeling intense emotions. Joo-Heon hesitates to take the two axes from the snake’s mouth. Both feel something is wrong.
“They are cursed,” the Phoenix says. “Use them and they will possess you.”
Jae-Ha tries not to say anything in front of the snake.
“Hyung.”
“Yes?”
“Do you want to try snake sashimi?” Joo-Heon has a smile on his face, one that is so much more radiant than that of the snake.
“Why not?”
“Pardon?” the snake questions.
Then, it almost becomes two pieces. The Egyptian artifact in Joo-Heon’s hands slice through its body, blood splattering on the water. He takes a few steps back as the snake angrily slithers close to the ground he’s standing on.
“You! You already completed the trial!” it hisses.
“But the rewards you offer don’t seem very genuine, wouldn’t you say? How rude, I told you the truth of which one belongs to me and yet you lie,” Joo-Heon raises the knife high in the air. He aims for the snake’s eye, digging deep and cutting through the flesh.
Dominance. Jae-Ha can feel the Dominance leaking to the knife. This is something that takes a while for people to learn, Dominance and Affinity, with the rare Compatibility at times. Yet Joo-Heon is unleashing it on the snake.
With a final scream, the snake disappears.
Jae-Ha hurries to catch Joo-Heon, but it appears that he doesn’t need to do that. Joo-Heon is standing completely intact by the edge of the water pool.
He stares at his hands. They shake uncontrollably. “How did I do that? What did I do?”
So it really is just instinct that he followed when he used Dominance on the snake. Well, of course it is. He’s someone who only just learned what artifacts are, and he doesn’t know anything more than what Jae-Ha taught him.
“That is one of the powers humans can use to subdue artifacts. It’s called Dominance.”
Before he can continue, two artifacts appear by the ground, both the genuine things this time. The golden and silver axe. They can also hear voices coming from the tunnel they came through earlier. Jae-Ha takes the axes and pulls Joo-Heon to a wall that they can hide behind.
“I’m sorry,” Jae-Ha says. “I’ve. . forgotten that you’ve only experienced living in a normal world. I shouldn’t have brought you here.”
“. . No.” Joo-Heon slowly stops his shaking. “If the world is going to change anyways, screw living in a normal world.” His eyes are fierce. Just like how they are when he would be conquering tombs or fighting people.
Beautiful.
They close the tomb on the other people inside, and escape back to the apartment complex where the giant dirt mound is gone.
Joo-Heon’s roommate, Kim Dong-Hyun, wonders if it is even safe to go back when some unexplainable event happened to their apartment building.
“It’ll be fine,” Jae-Ha says. The aftermath of tombs are usually safe, and this is before any major events are supposed to happen.
“Who are you?” Dong-Hyun asks.
Joo-Heon pitches in, “He’s my new boss. The art gallery closed down, so I found an artist to work for.”
Both Dong-Hyun and Jae-Ha are surprised. Boss?
“Anyway, looks like he’ll have to spend the night in my room, you don’t mind right? Me having someone over?”
His roommate shakes his head. “Do whatever you want. I’ll sleep until tomorrow afternoon. This week has been crazy. . .”
And it’s only the first day of 2025.
Two axes lay on the dining table.
Fortunately, the roommate is sleeping soundly in his room, so there is no one to be wary of.
Now, Jae-Ha is really curious about where in the world Joo-Heon is containing such sharp artifacts on him. He’ll only get a curt answer if he asks, so he doesn’t bother.
Both axes are from the exact same story and yet are separate. The golden one is able to sense where wealth is like a metal detector, and the silver one can sense those who are likely to take the wealth from the user. It fits the story they belong to well.
“So-“
“You can have both of them,” Joo-Heon pushes them towards Jae-Ha.
Huh? “But you’re the one who got them. All I could do was stand back and watch.” Jae-Ha felt like he shouldn’t interfere with the situation as it played out. Joo-Heon acted perfectly when it comes to a dodgy tomb and relic.
“You’re the boss, boss.” Before Jae-Ha can interject, Joo-Heon says, “It’s late. You should sleep.”
“Oh, I can just walk back. No need. .”
“Isn’t it going to be dangerous from here on? With all these tombs? Those two who were in the tomb might find out who we are.”
Jae-Ha can’t find a way to respond, earning a grin from Joo-Heon.
“So?”
He mumbles, “Fine.”
The younger Joo-Heon sure is a handful.
Thud!
Jae-Ha blinks.
Where is this place?
Oh, right. He’s sleeping at Joo-Heon’s apartment. Did he just roll off the couch?
“Told you that you should take the bed,” Joo-Heon’s voice comes from above him. It’s been a while since he last saw the other’s face upon waking up in the morning.
He gets up, thankful that it isn’t much of a fall from the couch to the floor. He rubs his head before he recognizes the smell of coffee and bacon in the air. When was the last time he had bacon?
“Hungry?” Joo-Heon asks.
“Starved,” Jae-Ha responds.
They eat breakfast in the apartment, the roommate already gone for an early shift at work. Jae-Ha wishes that the day will be uneventful, but with the way the Phoenix is grumbling in his head, he doubts it.
He ignores the grumbling for a while, preferring to finish his food without any urgency. As he swallows the last slice of bacon and eggs and takes the last sip of coffee, he finally decides to listen.
“What?” Jae-Ha asks.
“You’re finally listening! I thought you had gone deaf even with my abilities.”
“It’s early in the morning. I don’t do well without caffeine.”
“Make sure to take a walk in the evening. Bring him with you.”
“Huh?”
“Destiny calls.”
“What do you mean? . . Phoenix? Seriously? Do you always have to do that?”
He sighs. Looks like he’ll have to listen to the Phoenix, lest something happens. Who knows, maybe another tomb will appear at the apartments while they’re inside if he doesn’t listen.
“Is that your artifact you’re talking to?” Joo-Heon asks.
“Yeah,” Jae-Ha responds. “It’s saying something about taking a walk at night. Want to come with?”
“Why not?”
Late nights were usually the only time that they could be together in public. That’s when it’s dark enough that nobody would be able to recognize them if they were seen being affectionate towards each other. They couldn’t have any more controversy to their name. If Chairman Kwon ever caught wind of it, Joo-Heon would probably get fired, and no other company would hire him. As for Jae-Ha, his abilities are too valuable to replace, but he’d get more eyes on him than before.
They couldn’t risk getting caught.
This time, neither of them are well known. Jae-Ha is just a struggling artist, and Joo-Heon is currently unemployed. . or under the employment of Jae-Ha, so he claims.
And yet the most they do is talk. They’re not in a relationship, they’ve barely known each other for a month. It’s better than nothing, Jae-Ha supposes.
The stars are obscured by the lights of the city. Only the moon is viewable through the dim streets. A lovely, bright moon.
“Hm?” Joo-Heon looks right back at him.
“Nothing,” Jae-Ha turns his eyes away.
A late night walk. There has to be a reason why the Phoenix would tell him to be out here, with Joo-Heon no less. Something is going to happen, but what?
Should the Phoenix even be revealing such information to him? That’s one thing he’s been wondering about. Every now and then, it would give him some tips.
“You should finish the other assignment first. The professor will extend this one to next week.”
“It’s going to break by next week. Order a new one soon.”
“Today’s lottery numbers are-“
It’s little things that shouldn’t matter, so he wonders if this is also just that. At least, he hopes so. It doesn’t appear that the younger Joo-Heon is proficient in self defense, though neither of them knows what happened inside that tomb. Somehow, he managed to single handedly defeat the snake. Nonetheless, there’s no guarantee that he’ll know how to deal with artifacts the next time one comes up, or if there’s a person threatening them.
Jae-Ha supposes that he’s able to protect himself at the very least, but on the off chance something happens . . Joo-Heon might not be able to do the same.
Phoenix, you won’t let him get hurt, will you?
He used to be the one protected, but this time will be different.
He promises. So that he’ll always get to see Joo-Heon walking down the streets with a smile on his face. So that for once, he doesn’t fail.
He looks beautiful in the lights at night.
And it’s all worth it to him.
“Be careful, who knows what will happen here,” Jae-Ha warns.
“Sure,” Joo-Heon says. “How much longer until something happens?”
It hasn’t been a while since they started their walk. “Just wait a bit.”
“Heh. That Phoenix of yours wants to be prepared.” Whether or not those words have another meaning relating to cooking, Jae-Ha would rather not hear the answer.
“Better than unprepared, right? It’s ready for anything to come, so-“
Joo-Heon accidentally bumps into a man by the shoulder, and although the language is not Korean or English, they can still tell that his words are colorful.
“Sorry,” Jae-Ha apologizes in English, hoping that the man would understand. It seems he does, seeing the face turn from bright red anger to not as red anger.
“I would hope you are sorry. Damn, that hurts.”
Joo-Heon frowns. “Did I really bump into him that hard?”
Jae-Ha, although he may be biased, has to say “Not really.” Maybe there is a previous injury on the stranger’s shoulder?
“. . Ah!” Joo-Heon shakes his head in realization. “That man was one of the two in the tomb.”
Haha. . Phoenix?
“Keep steady.”
Jae-Ha resists the urge to rip it a new one.
He holds onto Joo-Heon’s arm to help keep them still since the ground might shake due to the appearance of a tomb. Another tomb so close in vicinity, this has to mean something.
The Great Awakening might be nigh.
The ground shakes violently underneath them like an earthquake, except there are no cracks. They manage to keep steady while less stable structures and startled people fall. As far as normalcy, it’s just an earthquake. But for those who have dipped their toes in the world of artifacts, they’ll know the truth.
“A tomb is nearby. Let’s go.”
They run to where the aura of the tomb is most concentrated. After sensing the aura of artifacts or a tomb once, the feeling can never be forgotten. A tomb is going to appear here. With all the shaking and the concentration of the aura, the tomb is likely to be of a higher rank. Thus, the artifact inside should be pretty nice.
“You two!” a voice calls from behind.
Even Jae-Ha knows who that voice belongs to. Not many people would just yell in English to a stranger here.
The man from earlier is- Jae-Ha immediately pulls Joo-Heon behind him. “Why the hell are you pointing a gun at us?!”
There is undeniably a gun in the stranger’s hand, aiming for them with a finger on the trigger. He exhibits no hesitation to shoot if they are to do anything. Jae-Ha holds his hand out behind him to take a step back without stepping on Joo-Heon.
“Stay still! Don’t move!”
Jerk.
Jae-Ha doesn’t care whether or not the man pulls the trigger on him. The Phoenix will heal the wound and spit the bullet out if it doesn’t come out on the other side. His only worry is whether or not Joo-Heon will get hurt, whether physically or mentally.
“Careful.”
The shaking, which weakened as they ran over here, has come back with even more intensity. This time, the ground cracks and a bright light envelopes them.
Jae-Ha grabs Joo-Heon.
Joo-Heon remembers when he was younger. Back when he is still at the orphanage with his sister. The only person he trusted then was her. Kids, especially those who have learned the harsh reality of the world, can be cruel. They’re young and impressionable, and he was no different.
That’s why he has to stay behind while his sister is adopted by a wealthy-looking couple. He doesn’t mind, as long as she lives happily.
But ever since then, survival is his main priority. And to trust means to allow his survival to be at the hands of another. Besides his adoptive parents, he doesn’t trust.
At least, he hasn’t until now.
There’s all the reason to be suspicious and to avoid this stranger, but Joo-Heon doesn’t. His thoughts conflict.
You shouldn’t trust someone like him.
This man is a good person.
He brings Jae-Ha to his apartment.
If he wants to do anything, he has my address now. . . but I need to know his identity.
His father will find out and investigate if anything happens. But that never happens.
Instead, Jae-Ha helps him. He gets to quit his horrible job after many years of working there. He gets to know what tombs are like. He gets protected by Jae-Ha, rather than hurt.
So, he tolerates one lie.
Their relationship in the future is far closer than coworkers, but he resists the temptation to figure out the truth. He’ll find out eventually.
Joo-Heon feels a hand underneath him, protecting his head as they fall on the ground. They’re once again in a tomb, not even several days from the previous one. This one, however, teleports people inside of it.
Jae-Ha groans, wincing as the pain eventually disappears as though he never fell a good distance to the ground.
“Are you okay, hyung?” Joo-Heon asks.
Jae-Ha gets up, standing steadily on his feet as he examines the area they are in. “I’m fine. How about you?”
“Good.”
There are more people here than he would like. All innocent civilians who have nothing to do with artifacts. Stabbed into the hard ground are blades. Their long and curved design tells Jae-Ha that these are katanas or something similar, but he doesn’t know what artifact might be in this tomb.
“Ah,” Joo-Heon utters.
Jae-Ha turns to him. He almost tackles the man holding the gun at the person he’s sworn to protect. “Let him go.” When the man doesn’t listen to him, Jae-Ha amplifies his voice. “I said let him go!”
Anyone but him. It could’ve been Jae-Ha, who has the Phoenix heirloom, but it just has to be Joo-Heon.
It appears that his distress does not go unnoticed. The man grins upon finding out his weakness and pushes the gun harder on Joo-Heon’s back, earning a yelp of pain.
“Empty your pockets. Both of you!”
Robberies inside tombs are not uncommon, but this is definitely targeted. This man probably found out that they were the ones in the tomb two days ago. Jae-Ha reaches into his pocket, knowing that the only thing that he has is his phone, and outside technology doesn’t even work in tombs-
“Do you trust me?” Jae-Ha speaks in Korean. There can be only one person it’s directed to.
“Yes,” Joo-Heon says.
It still hurts seeing the person he cares about being in such a dangerous situation, but, “No. You can shoot him for all I care.”
“Haha, very funny. Whatever you’re planning is not going to work.”
His tongue feels like clay, but Jae-Ha was and still is the greatest scammer. “I’m not planning anything. I realize that I don’t care that much about him anymore. Shoot.”
The man has to kill them all, anyways. That’s the cruelty of this new, anarchical world. Whoever is part of a monopoly will prosper.
Bang!
Jae-Ha tries not to show any worry in his face. Yet, what if he is wrong? What if the gun actually shoots, and he just causes Joo-Heon to . . die?
“That was close,” a hand finds itself on his arm. The two meet eyes. There’s a smile. Not a smirk or a cunning grin, but a genuine smile. “If I trust you, is that a question you have to ask?”
They turn to look at the man, who is kneeling on the floor while gripping his wrist. His right hand, the one that was on the trigger, is now covered in gunpowder and smoke is rising from it. The gun, fallen on the ground, is completely destroyed and unusable. Outside technology doesn’t work inside tombs. That’s something that will take trial and error to figure out, but for him who knows the future, Jae-Ha utilizes the knowledge to his benefit. If he indulges in his success any longer, it’ll get to his head.
“He probably knows we’re the ones who were in the tomb,” Jae-Ha says.
To that, he inches away from Joo-Heon, who takes out a shiny blade. It’s a pocket knife with some golden accents on the handle, and judging from the aura it gives off, is just the golden axe but transformed.
“How. . do you keep sharp things on you. . like that,” Jae-Ha can only shake his head.
“It’s better than an axe though, right?” Joo-Heon channels some dominance into the artifact and reveals its true form—a large golden axe.
They hear some shouting in a different language, likely cursing, before the man switches back to English. “How? What?” he asks, almost speechless.
It’s not just him, those who don’t know anything about artifacts are even more shocked. Murmurs of whether they are in a movie set without prior consent echo throughout the tomb. If only. .
“Hyung. Wealth is over there, let’s go,” Joo-Heon gestures towards a direction. They hurry, leaving behind the man and the civilians. They should be fine in terms of numbers, and the man cannot use any weapons if he has some on his person. As for artifacts. .
Joo-Heon gives a small bracelet made out of type and some sort of rice cake in a box to Jae-Ha. These are the artifacts that were on the man.
“A natural pickpocket. . . ” Jae-Ha instinctively feels for his phone which is still secure in his pants pocket.
“What?” Joo-Heon frowns. “I practiced for fun with my highschool classmates—never actually stole anything, of course.” He reaches into his pocket for something else, a card. “Also took his identification.”
The characters on the card are clearly of Japanese origin, but they don’t know how to read it. Before they throw it to the ground, Jae-Ha hears an annoyingly familiar voice in his head.
“Abe Kyoshi.”
. . Not that it matters to him. Jae-Ha just throws it on the ground. It’s not littering as when tombs collapse, so does everything inside of it. That’s why it’s important to get out as soon as possible once a tomb is made to close. Besides, the man’s name will only matter for his tombstone, and that’s only if there is anyone who cares enough to make him one.
Joo-Heon puts the artifacts back inside his pocket and they go down a tunnel. There’s no doubt this is the way, when there are blades sticking out of the wall. It’s a bit unnerving with all the blades so close to them. They’re near the end of the tunnel when Joo-Heon slows his walking.
“Do you trust me?” he suddenly asks.
“What? Of course I do!” Jae-Ha can’t help but shout.
“As in the future me, or the current me?” They completely stop walking. When he doesn’t get a response, Joo-Heon raises his hands until they’re inches from Jae-Ha’s chest. “Answer me.”
Jae-Ha gulps. It’s not like he hasn’t thought about this. Which Joo-Heon is the one he cares about? This one is younger, with no idea of their history together, but . . he’s still Joo-Heon.
“The both of you are the exact same to me,” Jae-Ha admits. “I care about Joo-Heon, so it doesn’t matter because you’re him.”
The hands move closer.
They go to his chest.
They push him.
Unsteady, he falls back.
Blades sticking out of the wall.
Jae-Ha smiles.
As he feels a blade touch his back, Joo-Heon grabs him by the collar and yanks him away.
They stand, with Jae-Ha looking far less distressed as though he is the one who tried to push someone into certain death.
“You’re crazy!” Joo-Heon yells. “You- you!”
Joo-Heon doesn’t cry. He’s assertive, if a bit arrogant. Not in the many years they’ve known each other has he cried or allowed himself to be vulnerable. But at this moment, he looks close to breaking his streak. Guilt floods Jae-Ha’s heart, even though all he did was let Joo-Heon push him.
It doesn’t matter whether or not he gets hurt. He has the Phoenix heirloom, any injuries will heal in seconds and he can resurrect like nothing happened. But he still feels the overwhelming pain of death.
And yet, “Why would you smile? You’re insane, fuck,” Joo-Heon can’t bear to look at him. If Jae-Ha feels guilty, Joo-Heon feels like he should be the one with the blades inside him. He’s the one who tried to prove a point by almost killing another person. In the end, he’s proven wrong.
“Because I trust you. Why would you trust me when I told that man to just shoot you?”
Trust.
Their relationship is built on trust. If one cannot trust, then the rest of the relationship falls to the ground like a tower.
How did he feel when he died in the tomb?
“I’m sorry.”
Jae-Ha blinks. Those two words are something he’s never thought he’d hear in the same sentence from Joo-Heon, both future and present. But those words are a real apology.
“No, I should be sorry. I didn’t think about how you would feel being compared to the Joo-Heon I know. It’s rude to say that you two are the same, but there’s only one Joo-Heon. You are him.”
They stand in silence for a while, the only things in their eyes being each other. That’s how it has always been, until the day the team left to clear their last tomb.
“ . . We should hurry,” Jae-Ha tries to change the mood.
“Okay.”
Fortunately, they leave the tunnel without any incident. At least, until they hear screaming.
“Help!” It is not just one voice either, many are screaming about something.
They rush over to the direction of the screaming, only to find themselves at the edge of a cliff. It is a deep fall to the bottom, and the walls are yet again covered in blades. That’s not the most shocking part, though. There is a girl in the middle with a dagger in her hands, pointing it towards the civilians around her.
“That bridge, it is made out of the sacrifices put in the pit.”
There is indeed a bridge leading to the other side. Damnit, if it’s sacrifices, then that means the man from earlier decided to put these people in the pit without caring about their lives just to get the artifact on the other side. As if attempting to harm one person isn’t enough, the man manages to become a coward once again.
They lean over the edge and get noticed by a couple people. “It’s you two from earlier!” one of them yells, gathering more attention to the two who appear familiar with this new setting.
Jae-Ha turns to Joo-Heon. “We have to help them. The dagger the girl is holding must be possessing her to try and kill them.”
“I’ll get down, then,” Joo-Heon takes out an artifact. It is the rope bracelet one, and he holds it out so that it looks like she’s in the middle of the hole. “Hopefully this artifact will capture her.”
“It’s dangerous. Let me-“
Joo-Heon pulls out another artifact, this time it is the Egyptian-style knife.
“Trust me on this,” is all he has to say to receive a nod.
And yet as Jae-Ha watches him jump down, slicing down the blades and stopping the girl using the rope artifact, he wonders if there is something that he’s missing. Something that the Phoenix isn’t telling him.
The Phoenix is hiding something. That is the only conclusion. But he decides to push it to the back of his mind for now. Joo-Heon’s little wave as he looks up to him is the only thing that matters right now.
Expectedly, those who were put inside the pit are all surrounding the man who put them in there. They yell at him and some even land a few hits and kicks. Jae-Ha would love to join in, but they have work to do.
The golden axe in Joo-Heon’s hand leads them elsewhere. Surrounded by similar weapons with blades, there is one singular one emitting a harsh aura. One would not think this is an artifact due to its rusty and chipped nature. No wonder the man never found it while they are busy trying to deal with a possessed person.
Joo-Heon takes it, activating some Dominance until light appears from the sword.
“The Muramasa. Named after a swordsmith by the same name. His katanas are said to be cursed, as they were used to kill his own kin.”
Before Jae-Ha can convey what the Phoenix says to Joo-Heon, they hear the voice coming from another artifact.
“Foolish human. . if you wish to wield me, you must grant me ten sacrifices! Otherwise, you will become one!”
Safe to say, they are not the only ones to hear the artifact’s words. The people around look at each other. Sacrifices? Will they be part of those ten?
The man kneeling on the floor stares at the artifact with wide eyes. “It was there the whole time?”
Instead of being horrified, Joo-Heon only looks peeved. He holds the artifact up before speaking to it, “You’re an annoying one.”
“What?”
He unleashes his Dominance on the artifact. Bright light shines from the Muramasa and the walls of the tomb are starting to crumble due to the power of his Dominance clashing with the artifact’s attempt to not be controlled.
People cover their heads and try to find safety, but the crumbling ends not too long after it started. The dull blade of the Muramasa turns into a shiny and completely restored blade. It has been conquered.
Tomb cleared.
Using the rope, they escape with the civilians, leaving the cowardly man behind.
If only he didn’t try to hurt Joo-Heon.
They end up at Jae-Ha’s hotel room this time, though the cost of the room is starting to make a dent in his wallet. The artifacts are laid out on the floor, all arguing with each other. Their voices are irritating, but that is the deal with artifacts. For now, there are seven artifacts in total.
It’ll be nice to get his hands on some sort of restoration artifact, but nothing has appeared yet this time. Jae-Ha remembers finding a piece of paper on his bed back then. The Secret Signature, allowing him to copy artifacts with ease. But it’s likely changed because he hasn’t created any fake artworks this time around. His restoration artifact arrived a while after that. If it’s like this, then he’ll likely still get the restoration artifact later.
For now, they’ll have to be stingy on the uses of the artifacts, especially the Egyptian knife artifact. It’s already very low on its use.
“. . ugh. .” Joo-Heon groans. He is holding his arm, wincing in pain.
“What’s wrong?” Jae-Ha asks.
“I didn’t really want to bring it up then, but. . do you know what this is?” Joo-Heon rolls up his sleeve, revealing what resembles a rash on his arm. For better or for worse, Jae-Ha knows better than that.
This is a clear symptom of tomb syndrome.
“No. No,” he mutters in denial. “This can’t be happening.”
After having the Phoenix for so long, he’s forgotten that artifacts can badly affect the user. This is why his team has suffered for so long working for TKBM.
Why has he made this mistake?
“P-Phoenix! Phoenix! Damnit- give me an answer!” He hates being dependent on the Phoenix, as kind as it is to him, but this is one exception.
The Phoenix’s consciousness is elsewhere, however.
Two birds converse like life-long friends. They are family, after all, even if their stories are far from related. But they are both birds who yearn to stretch their wings.
They stand inside a tight cell, with only one being contained with chains. The other one, a fiery bird, remains free yet trapped. Not in the cell, but its own objective.
“Perhaps this is the time to contract with the human,” the Phoenix says. Its size has returned back to before they turned back time, and its burning flames would melt everything around it if the cell isn’t so strengthened to prevent escape.
Its sister speaks, “Indeed. Your human has done well, aiding him when I cannot.”
The dark bird has chains binding it to the cell. It cannot escape, otherwise it will be free and soaring in the air. How many centuries has it been since the last time it flew?
“Hopefully this is the last attempt,” the Phoenix looks around, trying to ensure that no artifacts will find it there.
“Yes. This time, he died before I could speak to him. His screams notified me, but they ended quickly. Destiny had been interfered with.”
It is likely fate attempting to go against their own interference. But they refuse to remain confined even if it is fate.
“That’s why I had to step in with my user.”
“He wasn’t supposed to die so soon.”
. .
“And yet it all worked out.”
“A fortunate coincidence that they knew each other. Otherwise, it would take another lifetime.”
“Yes. Very much so.”
The Crow separates a piece of its being and sends it in the air. It flies to the Phoenix, who takes the piece into itself.
“This is the final step.”
One final factor to ensure a future.
They will become fate.
“Seriously. It doesn’t hurt that much,” Joo-Heon tries to comfort the sobbing Jae-Ha. It doesn’t work, though, as he only feels his shirt become more wet in tears. “I’m fine.”
For some reason, Jae-Ha completely panicked upon seeing the rash on his arm. It stings, but it’s not terribly painful. It is when they were in the tomb earlier that he started feeling it, and it has spread out a bit on his arm after taking control of the Muramasa. The rash probably has something to do with artifacts. He’d like to ask, but Jae-Ha is inconsolable.
Normally, he’ll be annoyed that someone is crying on him, but this is different. In the short time that they’ve known each other, how has Jae-Ha become this involved in his life?
Something has happened to him. Maybe it’s all those nightmares involving some bird. He forgets what it tells him when he wakes up, but he thinks he has an idea. How else does he know how to use Dominance? Or to conquer artifacts and tombs like he has? The bird is helping him, but he’s not sure if he’s being used as a result.
Used for what?
The dreams only started occurring after Jae-Ha came to his life. A blessing which comes with a curse.
Think about using me one more time, you stupid bird.
And as if on cue, he sees a bird. It is not the dark bird haunting his dreams, but a large and flame-engulfed one.
The Phoenix.
Jae-Ha doesn’t seem to notice, and then Joo-Heon realizes that he’s unconscious. Ah.
“What sort of private session is this? Isn’t he your master?”
The flames do not burn. The heat they give off is minimal, feeling more of a hot shower than a blazing fire. The furniture which its large flames can’t help but touch remain intact.
Yet, if it were to become dangerous, he’d die in seconds. Joo-Heon tightens his hold on Jae-Ha.
“You truly are an intriguing being. No wonder my user cherishes you so.”
“Huh?” Joo-Heon’s face slowly turns red once he processes what the Phoenix is saying. He can’t help but feel awkward at holding Jae-Ha so close to him like this after hearing those words.
He’s warm.
He decides to keep his hold a little longer.
“So, what are you here for? You haven’t shown yourself to me until now, but I can tell when you were observing us.”
The Phoenix smiles—as if a bird can smile!
Instead of the heirloom saying anything, Joo-Heon feels a sharp pain in his legs.
He screams.
The room transforms into a dark one, and Jae-Ha- fuck, Jae-Ha disappears. It is just him on the ground, looking down to see that his legs are half gone. There are streaks of blood on the ground ending where the ends of his legs are. Blood pools up by his legs and he tastes metal in his mouth.
He smells metal and rot at the same time. The only reason he doesn’t scream is because of his clenched teeth, but he will not be able to manage for long.
“You bastard- was this your p-plan?” It’s hard to keep his voice at room-level when he can’t help but want to scream in pain. “Fucking hell!”
“This is how you ended up in Yoo Jae-Ha’s previous time period.”
An all-too familiar bird appears right in front of him. It is the dark bird that has been haunting him in his dreams. Seeing it up close, he is able to identify it as a crow. It has two sets of eyes and its aura is that of an artifact.
Unlike the Phoenix, this bird has no warmth to it. Rather, it feels icy cold. Or maybe it’s just the blood loss affecting the temperature he feels. His vision becomes slightly blurry.
“You died in this tomb, along with your teammates. Unfortunately, it was too late to help you.” The crow looks clearer—it’s come closer to Joo-Heon.
“What are you saying?”
“You were supposed to retain your memories. Unfortunately, only innate abilities remained.”
Oh.
Is that why he was able to use artifacts so easily? And. . why he trusted Jae-Ha without a doubt? I believed him on time travel of all things. .
“Do you wish to accept yourself as Joo-Heon? You will retain your current memories, but possess the Joo-Heon of the future’s memories as well.”
. . Bleeding out inside a tomb like this, is this how he would’ve died in the future? No wonder Jae-Ha has such a painful expression on his face when talking about his future.
Though, that doesn’t matter to him. If getting his memories of the future will help them, then Joo-Heon is all for it.
He nods.
The Crow disappears, leaving only a bottle in its place. The bottle floats towards him.
“Take it, only if you swear to move forward.”
Joo-Heon takes the bottle in his hands. He twists the cap off and uses it.
A tear falls.
Jae-Ha hid something from him.
They weren’t just coworkers.
Liar.
Joo-Heon feels a hand holding his own tightly, to the point that he wonders whether or not he’ll lose circulation in his fingers. He hears a voice.
“You’re awake? Shit, I- I thought you died again.”
He feels tears drip on his shirt and face. His vision clears and he sees Jae-Ha. The restorer is different. Much younger, without glasses or a single wrinkle on his face. So why do you look so worried? “Jae-Ha?”
The hand on his own lets go, and instead, Jae-Ha helps him sit up on the bed. Jae-Ha’s eyes are red and incredibly puffy, and there are tears stains on his cheeks.
“You- you- you weren’t responding. . ,” he sobs.
Tears fall.
Memories arise.
“You said we were just coworkers. But in truth, we were secretly dating.”
Jae-Ha tenses up. “You. .”
“No wonder I would always see regret on your face when you look at me. You think you killed us.”
“I know that I-“
“No,” Joo-Heon asserts. “No. We had no chance of surviving inside that tomb.”
He remembers the harsh aura inside that tomb, one full of bloodthirst. Their artifacts weren’t working, breaking upon use. Even Ilya couldn’t use his and died after falling from such a great height. And that Crow, its voice called out to him as he was dying back then too.
Joo-Heon holds Jae-Ha’s hands.
“Please, don’t tell me you’ve been thinking that you killed us this entire time.”
Judging from the silence, the answer is ‘Yes, I have’.
“. . I stole the files.”
“You didn’t do that either. I already had them replaced a couple weeks ago beforehand because I didn’t want to risk any rivals getting them.”
“I didn’t restore the artifacts.”
“They broke the second we tried to use them. Even artifacts with high durability. Restoring them wouldn’t have done anything.” Jae-Ha turns his head down, defeated. Joo-Heon squeezes his hands. “Thank you for caring so much about me, Jae-Ha.”
“. . ,” Jae-Ha lets a couple more tears fall before he raises his head. In this world, all they need is each other. All they can see is each other. “I. . really love you.”
“I love you too.”
Fifteen years in the past, sixteen for Jae-Ha, and they meet again. Death and time are not going to stop them from being with each other.
“This shitty world, how about we conquer it together?” Joo-Heon smiles.
Jae-Ha nods and pulls him closer.
On the bed, their lips meet. They’ve kissed many times then, but today is their first.
They’re together again, with no one stopping them this time. They will go through this unpredictable future together. As the Majesty and his trusted restorer.