Even as the sky calmed, Jiwoon could feel it—
He was being watched.
Not by Lunaris.
Not by the system.
Something older. Something beneath the system.
[System Alert: Passive Surveillance Detected]
[Source: Unknown Origin – Codename: "The First Judge"]
He looked up.
A single red eye had opened in the sky.
No pupil.
No blinking.
Just an eternal gaze.
The Council Beyond Systems
Back at the ruins, Mira patched Jiwoon's wounds. But his eyes remained distant.
"It's not over," he murmured.
"There's something else out there. Watching… weighing me."
Eri nodded.
"You've altered too much. You triggered a deeper layer.
They say before the system, there were Judges.
Entities that existed to measure reality itself."
"And they don't like variables."
The Judge's Message
That night, Jiwoon's dreams were hijacked.
Not by fear.
But by truth.
He stood before an infinite void of mirrored pillars. Each one reflected a different version of him—some kind, some monstrous, some hollow.
Then… one cracked.
And from it stepped a figure—cloaked in law, faceless, voice like thunder.
"You are unbalanced."
"Sin is not yours to bend."
"Cease, or face eradication."
Jiwoon clenched his fists.
"Then come down here and stop me."
"That is what I intend."
New Threat Unlocked
[System Update: Legacy Protocol Activated]
[New Antagonist: The First Judge – Orvak]
[Domain: Meta-Reality Enforcement | Power: Unknown | Alignment: Neutral-Terminus]
[Side Effect: Your existence will now provoke Judgment Echoes — enemy events triggered when you alter fate.]
The Price of Evolution
Upon waking, Jiwoon discovered a new scar on his chest.
Not from battle.
From choice.
[Passive Gained: Scar of Self – A marker that strengthens or corrupts depending on moral choices made.]
Mira touched it lightly.
"Your body's evolving…"
Jiwoon looked into her eyes.
"No…
The world is."