The Freed Slaves Are Obsessed

The Reverse Heaven Realm of Heukbi.

If there’s no opposing concept, nothing happens, but when a clear point of symmetry exists, a reversal occurs.

Attack, personality, everything— Mirrors fill the space densely.

This even applies to mysterious conduits like magic. When divine power is used, it converts to demonic energy.

The proof lies in the magical beads. The red bead Yuha specially crafted appeared green on the mirror’s other side.

It was a hint subtly passed on to the Gumiho.

Because she could wield opposing forces. If she succeeds, escaping from here would be no challenge.

It was well worth a try.

"Hey, you said we’d save the Master, right? So, let’s work together."

For that, Lin’s help was indispensable.

The other side of the mirror where Lin existed seemed to be recognized as a separate world, unlike other mirrors. Heukbi likely didn’t expect two personalities to exist simultaneously.

But since the Gumiho couldn’t interfere with the world beyond the mirror, someone needed to adjust this other power.

Lin wasn’t entirely pleased about cooperating with the Gumiho, but there was no choice. She nodded.

“What’s the plan?”

“First, let’s raise the sun.”

Flare!

When the Gumiho formed a seal, the sun rose.

“Now, it’s your turn. You can do it, right?”

Lin, her gaze serious, gathered her hands and made a hand sign. She began to focus.

Lin had never created a sun before. When she began using the Sun Eye, she hid within herself.

As the Gumiho’s power grew, Lin diminished, losing her sense of self to the point she no longer knew who she was.

She even felt she was becoming the Gumiho, almost to the point where her personality would dissolve and merge. She held on purely out of stubbornness.

Thanks to that, perhaps, while inside the Gumiho, she’d managed to observe and learn.

The flow of mystical energy. The method of using the eye.

To a fine level that would be impossible without complete unification.

Thus, Lin knew how to wield power completely, even on her first try.

Flare.

A radiant sun rose above Lin’s head. The Gumiho smiled with satisfaction.

“Yes, that’s how it should be, Gumiho.”

Two suns rose like mirror images, centered around the two Gumiho.

“Now, align with me and send it over here.”

Nodding, Lin controlled her sun.

The suns high in the sky began to descend slowly. At last, the two suns touched the mirror. The suns began to be absorbed through the mirror.

Crack!

Containing an enormous amount of power, the mirror struggled to absorb the suns. It trembled as if it would shatter with a single tap.

But eventually, the mirror swallowed the suns whole. Then, it reversed the absorbed suns and projected them into the opposite world.

And what emerged was—

Ssshh...

Instead of a sun radiating intense heat, it was a moon that cast a gentle, cool light.

The sun, transforming into a moon, halted its change. It froze in place.

The quantity was precisely half. A semi-circular orb, half sun, half moon, interlocked across the mirror.

This was true for both sides.

In Lin’s world, the Gumiho’s half-moon appeared. In the Gumiho’s world, Lin’s half-moon appeared. Alongside the respective half suns each created.

With the sun and moon perfectly overlapping, the two Gumiho were in sync without needing to communicate.

The Sun Eye and Moon Eye sparkled simultaneously.

"Eclipse."

Snap.

The light was extinguished.

A total eclipse where the moon completely veiled the sun, casting the world into darkness.

A shadowed realm where neither sunlight nor moonlight reached. Not even the heavens could be seen, and the Gumiho’s absolute domain blocked even farsight.

The Reverse Heaven Realm ceased to function. In this dark void, the mirror could only reflect darkness.

Even if it tried to reverse the darkness into light, it would be no more than a candle’s glow against infinite shadow.

“Let’s go. To rescue the Master.”

It wasn’t clear who said it. The two Gumiho simply smiled.

Crackle, snap.

In the darkness, countless fracturing sounds echoed. The endless sounds ceased in an instant.

Crash!

The space shattered and collapsed. The outside world appeared.

“What?!”

As the domain vanished, Heukbi flinched, her hair whipping as she turned. In the shadows, she locked eyes with the Gumiho.

The domain’s interior was a virtual space created artificially. The moment it collided with reality, it lost strength rapidly and disappeared.

The moon created within the Reverse Heaven Realm shared the same fate.

But this opportunity wouldn’t be missed. In the fleeting moment where virtual and real coexisted, close to 0.000001 seconds— A time so brief even the tick of a clock hand wouldn’t reach it— The Reverse Heaven Realm was covered by the eclipse.

Now.

The Gumiho expanded her domain. The virtual darkness extended, overtaking reality. The area around Eumwolsa was blanketed in shadow.

There wasn’t a chance to escape, not in that instant.

“How...?”

In shock, Heukbi looked around the darkness. But it was as if her eyes were closed; she saw nothing.

She knew it was an eclipse created by the Gumiho. Yet, it made no sense, as she still possessed the power of the Moon Eye.

“Surprised? Honestly, I’m surprised too. It must be luck.”

It was fortunate Lin was there. And that Karami came as well.

Had he not arrived, Lin wouldn’t have awakened to snap the Gumiho out of it. And without the Sky Fox’s bead, they might never have found him in time.

She didn’t want to admit it, but a compliment was in order.

The Gumiho left Heukbi writhing in the darkness and searched for Karami. Since she controlled the domain, locating him in the shadows wasn’t hard.

He was by Heukbi’s side.

But his posture was strange. He lay on the ground, face down. He didn’t move a muscle.

“Master...?”

Lin felt something amiss as well. She hesitantly approached Karami with anxious steps.

Her perked ears didn’t catch the sound they should have.

When she gently turned Karami over, his body flopped over, limp.

Thud.

But his head, slightly tilted, didn’t follow. In his half-closed pupils, a dense dark cloud lingered.

“Master...?”

Lin called out in a trembling voice, but there was no response. Touching his face, she felt an unnerving, icy coldness. Even his scent was faint.

“Master? Master! Master!!”

Lin shook Karami violently, but he swayed without resistance. He was like a doll being shaken.

The Gumiho realized something was terribly wrong as well.

“What did you do to him?”

Heukbi had no time to answer.

When plunged into complete darkness, one’s senses become disoriented. Am I truly here? Or have I become one with the darkness itself?

The mind drifts, and the longer one remains in darkness, the closer to madness they become.

Tsk.

The Gumiho clicked her tongue. A normal conversation was impossible in this state.

Reluctantly, she shed a little light on Heukbi. Since they were within her domain, this mercy posed no issue.

Seeing a single beam in the darkness, Heukbi rushed toward it, clutching her arms as if to embrace it.

“Now, speak up. What did you do to him?”

Barely regaining her senses, Heukbi gazed at Karami with a dazed expression.

“Him? Ah... You mean the one who defied fate.”

Even for a fox adept at masking emotions, keeping composure in her hazy state was challenging. She let out a faint, mocking chuckle, unable to suppress a low, scornful laugh.

“The defier of fate?”

“Didn’t you know? He’s one who defied the heavens, resisted the fox’s tricks, and carved his own destiny.”

“That’s how strong he was?”

She knew he was no ordinary person, but never imagined he was that extraordinary.

“He’s changed the fates of many and will continue to do so. So, I took action.”

“No way...”

“Yes, Gumiho, you’re correct. I inverted his fate. He has now met his destined end.”

The opposite of life is death.

She’d killed Karami to set fate back in motion. That was all there was to it.

“You...!”

Before the Gumiho could speak, Lin lunged and tackled Heukbi to the ground.

Lin’s eyes gleamed with fury.

“I see. I wondered why something felt off. So, another personality was hiding. You’re collaborating, though neither trusts anyone.”

“Stop spewing nonsense. Bring Master back to life right now!”

“Sorry, but that’s impossible. Life can be reversed to death, but death doesn’t reverse to life. Life is more than mere existence.”

There are billions of lives, each with a unique thread. No matter what path they take or fate they face, all lead to the final destination of death.

Each path leaves a distinct trail, but all converge on a single point.

But in reverse—

Where would a path beginning from death lead?

No one knows.

With countless threads, retracing would be impossible.

That’s why memories and connections reset in reincarnation, a necessary process for death to become a new beginning.

Only then can a life starting from death be possible.

There must be a clear point of symmetry, defined by the world itself, without exceptions.

Meaning Karami’s revival was impossible.

Had he been alive, the Gumiho could’ve twisted his fate, but in death, it was too late. A dead person’s fate couldn’t be altered.

But such logic was meaningless to Lin.

“I don’t care about all that! Just bring Master back!”

“If you insist, I can assist with reincarnation. Shall I? But he’ll be entirely different from the man you knew.”

“That... that means nothing.”

As an immortal Gumiho, she could wait. But she couldn’t bear him being unrecognizable.

If Karami didn’t recognize her, she couldn’t endure.

Even as tears welled, Lin’s gaze held a deadly intensity that could kill a god, focused on Heukbi.

Droplets fell, hot tears landing on Heukbi’s face, shocking her as her eyes widened.

“She’s... crying?”

A Gumiho, crying? Just because a single human died?

A Gumiho, selfish and arrogant above all, shedding tears for another. It was an unbelievable sight.

“Sigh...”

The Gumiho watching from afar sighed.

“So all that’s needed is that clear point of symmetry, right?”

“...Theoretically, yes, but it’s nearly impossible for the deceased—”

“Oh, that’s fine. I’ve got what’s needed on this end.”

“Pardon?”

Ignoring Heukbi’s startled inquiry, the Gumiho lightly tapped Lin’s shoulder.

Lin, her eyes red with tears, looked back at the Gumiho.

“Why...?”

“Why do you think? Aren’t you going to revive Master?”

“C-can you really?”

“Somehow. I didn’t plan it, but...”

She hadn’t intended this when coaxing Lin. Still, she supposed it was time to repay the debt.

“Alright, time to spit it all out.”