(Omegaverse Arc – Part VIII)
Darkness has come again.
But this time, Seo Jin could tell — it wasn't the same one that had nearly swallowed him before. This darkness was alive, crawling through the edges of his consciousness like spilled ink.
> [System Scan… anomaly detected.]
[Unknown code residue — spreading.]
The System's calm voice echoed faintly, but it felt strained. Even its tone had changed — as though something else were listening in.
Seo Jin gasped softly, jerking upright. He was back in the apartment, though it didn't feel like it. The golden glow that once filled the room now flickered like dying embers. The walls rippled faintly, glitching between solid and digital form.
Li Ran was asleep beside him on the couch, arm draped protectively over his waist. His Alpha scent — cedar and smoke, warm and grounding — lingered in the air like an anchor, and Seo Jin clung to it instinctively.
