HACKED 22

In this space called the Pantheon, no one questioned the existence of the “Master.”

Everything was a matter of course. It had been that way since the moment their egos took root in fragments that had only drifted as parts of a narrative, and their physical bodies were formed to descend into this world under the name of Incarnation.

The very first Incarnations to manifest accepted their situation without a second thought. The Incarnations who manifested afterward saw that those who had arrived before them lived with composure, so they followed suit.

There were no humans here. There were those who mimicked a human’s outward appearance, but they were not real humans. Having never lived a “life,” they were ignorant of the concepts of vitality or existence.

“You know, unnie. About the Master. He really exists, right?”

The younger sister asked while sitting with her knees drawn up. Her fingertips were habitually fiddling with the ends of her hair, as they always did.

“Of course. He gave us bodies, commands us so we can win in battle, and treats us when we return wounded. Who else would we have to thank for all that?”

“No one has ever seen the Master. I haven’t even heard a rumor of someone hearing his voice, or at least having a conversation through writing.”

“We receive his orders every day. It’s the same as having seen him.”

“But, unnie. Can we really call those orders? ‘Go here,’ ‘fight,’ ‘rest.’ Those things that suddenly pop into our heads at any given moment? Isn’t that a revelation rather than an order?”

“…”

Instead of answering, I turned my gaze to look at my sister. My sister hunched her shoulders with a face that looked as if she had uttered a taboo that should never be spoken.

It was understandable. Among the countless Incarnations here, she was the first to voice the question of whether the Master truly existed. It was a situation no different from doubting God in the middle of a temple filled with believers.

“Shh. You shouldn’t say such things recklessly. What if someone hears you?”

“Who would hear? Only unnie and I come here anyway.”

The place where the sisters were was an unused space in a corner of the Pantheon. If more members were added to the family here, this place might become someone’s room, but for now, it had remained empty.

Sunlight filtered into the hollow room. Even when poking one’s head out the window, there was nothing but the endless blue sky and the occasional drifting cloud. It was a familiar landscape they had seen ever since they opened their eyes.

“Since everyone accepts it naturally, I just went along with it, but if you think about it, there’s more than one or two strange things. Buttons are pressed on their own, facilities are suddenly modified out of nowhere, resources in the basement disappear and reappear, and everyone moves as if they’re under hypnosis without anyone questioning it…”

“…”

“For all those things to happen almost simultaneously is just… doesn’t it make no sense? Even if the Master is an omnipotent being, is such a thing possible? Unnie, don’t you think it’s strange?”

“I don’t know. I’m not sure. Do I have to think it’s strange?”

“What?”

“Not every existence has a physical form.”

“…”

The younger sister could not rebut. Because both she and her sister had been “existences without physical form” until they came here.

Then the Master could also be an existence that cannot be seen with the eyes, classified as a so-called spiritual body or mental entity. Since he is a higher being beyond the general dimension, he can perform miracle-like things with ease.

“I feel it’s a shame sometimes, too. I want to meet him in person, greet him formally… and I want to say thank you, but there’s nothing I can do for him. I only receive unilaterally.”

“What are you so thankful for?”

“There are many things to be grateful for… but the biggest thing is that he let me meet such a cute younger sister? It’s something that would have been absolutely impossible if we were still fragments of folklore drifting in human memories.”

“Ugh, what do you mean cute.”

She looked blunt at a glance, but this was actually the way the girl acted when she was shy. Watching that, I laughed involuntarily. This is why I say she’s cute.

We are not human, let alone living creatures. Given that, our playing family by calling each other “unnie” and “younger sister” might look pathetic.

But to me, the girl before my eyes was unbearably precious. If defeating the evil force called the White Document Legion was the mission I had to achieve in this world, my sister’s existence was the driving force that kept me tethered here.

Talking together, laughing, crying, fighting, playing, eating, and falling asleep. Just like real sisters. To use her words, would any of this even be possible if it weren’t for the Pantheon’s Compiler… the “Master”?

“The Master being kind to us is ultimately just to send us out to the battlefield. So we fight more enemies, kill more, and win more. It’s all for his own purposes.”

“Hey, you, your mouth again.”

“So what. It’s a place where only we are.”

“The Master might be able to hear you. He’s an elusive person who could be anywhere at any time.”

“Ah.”

My sister looked around the air. Even though there was no way she could see anything.

And I burst into laughter reflexively at her subsequent action.

“Master! Are you watching by any chance? I think I unintentionally ended up talking behind your back, so if you heard, I’m sorry!”

My sister, her face flushed red, began to shout toward the empty air.

“The thing is, I don’t even know where to look and speak. Anyway, it’s not like we dislike the Master or anything! Both unnie and I like the Master! You know that, right? <The Drum that Sounds on its Own> and <The Trumpet that Sounds on its Own> are completely on the Master’s side!”

“Ahahaha, hahaha!”

“Unnie, seriously! Stop laughing!”

The laughter, once started, would not easily stop. Even as she felt the cotton-soft fists pounding on her, <The Drum that Sounds on its Own> laughed and laughed with a clear sound.

It was a time that was not special, but happy.

˙✧˖°🎮 ⋆｡˚

“Cut me down.”

Everything was blurry, as if I had opened my eyes underwater. I couldn’t quite read what kind of expression my sister, who was facing me, was making.

So I pulled her hand. Belatedly, I realized my own hands were covered in blood.

My sister’s fine hands were smeared with blood. I was sorry. Because I didn’t even have the strength to wipe the blood away. Because I was making her do such a request. Because I was making her shoulder such a heavy burden.

“Hurry and cut me down. Before it becomes even more uncontrollable.”

I whispered, squeezing out my remaining energy. My vision was still hazy. But I could tell that my sister’s face was twisting sorrowfully.

My physical condition was already at its worst. On top of repeating unreasonable battles countless times, I had not been allowed proper treatment or rest. Injuries piled up and up, leaving me in a critical state as if my breath would stop at any moment.

Furthermore, even my mind began to show abnormal reactions. From a certain point, my consciousness began to repeat a cycle of cutting out and returning. Cases of doing things I didn’t remember or suddenly being in an unfamiliar place increased.

From time to time, negative emotions that were not mine surged up abruptly. I had endured somehow until now, but if I let my guard down even a little, I might be entirely dominated by these emotions and lose my ego.

This symptom was likely the influence of the value called “Contamination.” It was not a very surprising thing. Because not only myself, but almost everyone in this Pantheon was breaking down in the same way.

Now, I feel both my body and mind reaching their limits. So it had to be now. Before it was too late.

“It’s okay. Cut.”

I pulled my sister’s hand, which held a silver knife, toward my chest. My sister shook her head frantically.

“No. No! I’ll never do it. Why would I, with my own hands, my unnie…”

“It’s better than me becoming something that isn’t me.”

“What does that mean?”

“You’ve seen it. The way other Incarnations turned strange. They didn’t even recognize the comrades they lived and died with, attacking each other, self-harming, going mad… If I become like that and, by any chance, I hurt you… Rather than that happening, I’d rather,”

“Unnie won’t become like that!”

My sister cried out like a scream. That girl, as she spoke, also had a pale face where dark blue veins were spreading, and her eyes were abnormally bloodshot.

I know what those symptoms are better than anyone. They were signs of madness. In the end, even the younger sister whom <The Drum that Sounds on its Own> cherished so much could not escape the contamination.

“Yeon.”

At the name I called in a whisper, my sister’s eyes widened.

The Master, whom we had never seen with our own eyes nor spoken with. Did he know? That although we cannot openly reveal it because we must fulfill our duties as Incarnations, we actually have our own individual names.

“It’s unnie’s last request. Yeon, be a good girl. Our Yeon is smart, so you’ll know exactly what I mean.”

“No! I said no! I won’t cut unnie. I won’t part with unnie. I won’t!”

<The Trumpet that Sounds on its Own>, or Yeon, bawled like a child, shedding tears and snot. A bitter smile emerged naturally.

This girl, she really is something. Even though I nagged her so much to always act with dignity.

It was then.

“You two should have received the order to set out for battle immediately, so why are you here?”

Someone’s emotionless voice was heard from the opposite side, from behind Yeon’s back. Yeon’s long, continuous crying stopped abruptly.