"Damn..."
Ian opened his eyes in the darkness. Rubbing his throbbing forehead, he slowly sat up.
"Why am I here?"
Ian Dross had been heading to the Asterian estate to wish Tiel a happy birthday. But suddenly, his void space had opened up on its own, pulling him in.
To make matters worse, he had hit his forehead when he was pulled in, and it felt numb. He was irritated, thinking it might be split open. He squinted his eyes in pain and stood up.
He tried to use his abilities to get out of the void space.
But,
"...?"
The abilities didn't work.
This was clearly Ian Dross's void space. Though it was pitch dark without a single beam of light, Ian knew this space well. He had been in and out of here countless times, so there was no mistaking it.
Ian could do anything he wanted in his void space. He could move freely within it, transport objects in and out, and rearrange things as he wished.
But the fact that his abilities weren't working meant...
"I'm trapped."
Ian Dross muttered irritably and flopped down onto the bed.
This had happened before. He had always operated under the assumption that he could do anything in his void space, but that assumption had been shattered a long time ago.
Ian had felt for some time now that his powers were unstable. At this rate, he could lose control again at any moment, or his abilities could consume him entirely.
But what frightened him the most was the one person with whom he had a "marking" bond.
Tiel.
Whenever Ian's powers went out of control, Tiel's body would inevitably be affected as well, since they shared the bond.
The situation where he kept causing trouble for Tiel was unbearable.
"I need to try reopening the void space from the outside."
Currently, Ian was in some bedroom inside his void space.
Typically, when Ian used his abilities, he would end up near the front gate of his estate, not in some small bedroom. This felt strange.
He decided to try again, heading toward the door and opening it to use his abilities from there.
But,
"...?"
Ian was left speechless by the sight before him.
Instead of the space he was expecting, there was another bedroom.
With a confused look, Ian walked back to the door, opened it, and... found another bedroom.
Not even a different one—exactly the same room. The bed, dresser, and scattered items were all in the same spots.
The fourth room, the fifth room, the sixth room...
By the time he stepped into the tenth room, Ian Dross was almost out of his mind as he clutched the doorknob.
But the result was the same. It was yet another identical room.
"Why is this happening?"
Had his abilities gone out of control again, trapping him?
It seemed like a possible explanation. The last time his abilities had gone out of control, he had been pulled into his void space.
Ian took a deep breath and tried to calm himself, thinking things through.
If his abilities had trapped him, perhaps they were also pulling others into the void space like before.
He needed to prevent that, but he couldn't find a way out of this room.
It felt as though someone was deliberately trapping him here.
But then, suddenly...
"...Tiel?"
Ian's eyes widened, and his emerald eyes shimmered with disbelief. He quickly stood up and moved closer.
Before him was Tiel's fish.
The fish created by Tiel's abilities seemed to recognize Ian, greeting him by happily fluttering its fins and spinning in the air.
"Why is this here? Could it be...?"
Was Tiel trapped too?
The thought that Tiel might also be trapped made the calmness Ian had felt earlier dissipate into chaos. He immediately started walking, as if ready to break through the walls.
But then,
Swish!
Tiel's fish spun around Ian's vision, seemingly trying to obstruct him.
Though Ian was puzzled, he couldn't take his eyes off Tiel's fish.
Perhaps it was his imagination, but the fish seemed to be trying to help him.
The fish continued to spin in front of him, then swam toward the door Ian had just opened.
The fish scattered light dust as it entered.
Without any hesitation, Ian followed it.
This was Tiel's fish, and Tiel would never harm him.
Even if she did, he was prepared to accept it, and without a shred of doubt, he followed it.
The fish seemed to check if Ian was following, occasionally turning back to look as it swam.
Ian kept following.
The tenth room, the ninth room, the eighth room...
Ian passed through the rooms in reverse, taking note of how many he had passed. As he had counted earlier, Ian was still keeping track of how many rooms he had gone through.
However, something was bothering him.
'Wasn't the light supposed to be stronger?'
Tiel's fish had always glowed with the brightest and cleanest light, almost like the essence of her abilities.
Every time Tiel summoned her fish, Ian always felt that they shone brighter than the sun in the sky.
'But now, it's not like that.'
The light was dim in the dark room. Even though Ian wasn't far from the fish, he could see clearly that the light was weak.
In the past, it had shone so brightly it would banish all surrounding darkness, but now it seemed as though it might be swallowed by the darkness...
Then, as if the fish had finished its task, it circled around Ian one last time.
Ian looked around.
It was hard to see because of the darkness, but this was definitely the same room where Ian had first fallen.
Why had he been brought here?
The room had only one door, and once he opened it, the same layout of rooms continued endlessly.
To make matters worse, there were no windows in this room, so he couldn't leave that way either.
At that moment, the fish began to spin rapidly, almost as if it had read Ian's thoughts.
Faster, faster.
As the fish increased its speed and circled around him, a single line of light appeared around Ian.
The light slowly spread, surrounding him.
Ian kept his eyes open, watching the entire scene unfold. Tiel's light had always been the "warmest light in the world," so there was no need for him to close his eyes.
The room suddenly brightened, and the layout began to change.
The bed moved, the nightstand shifted. A small table disappeared, and the chairs were gone.
Ian looked around, confused.
The light illuminated the space, revealing its true nature.
This was the "front gate" of his estate, the place Ian had been trying to reach.
'Then where was I?'
Without thinking, Ian looked back at the spot where the door had been.
Instead of the door, a suspicious black space had opened.
He had been in an illusion.
That black space was where Tiel's fish had guided him out.
'What would have happened if I had kept going?'
If he had kept walking into the rooms beyond the tenth or eleventh?
Perhaps he would have been trapped forever.
As he thought about it, goosebumps ran down his spine.
Tiel's fish, having finished its task, transformed into a small bundle of light and disappeared.
As the fish faded into a faint, hazy light, a sense of foreboding gripped Ian's chest.
He silently thanked Tiel for saving him and tried to use his abilities.
Fortunately, his abilities worked again, though not fully. A small opening appeared, much smaller than the ones Ian usually opened.
But there was no time to waste, so Ian gripped the opening with both hands and tore it open.
The entrance between spaces tore like paper in Ian's hands.