Chapter 8: The Weight of a Second
"Jin… you're glowing."
He blinked. "What?"
Ayla pointed at his hands. "Silver light. It's faint, but it's there."
Jin looked down. Sure enough, his palms shimmered—like threads of light flickered just beneath his skin. It felt… warm. Familiar. Like time itself was responding to him now.
> [Passive Activated: Temporal Aura – Time responds instinctively to the user's will.]
"I don't even know what that means," he muttered.
Ayla stepped closer, studying him. "It means… you're changing."
---
They emerged from the dungeon hours later—well, technically minutes. Inside, time had looped strangely, but outside, barely any time had passed.
The gate closed behind them with a faint hiss, like air escaping from something ancient and tired.
The Association rep waiting at the barrier stepped forward. "Jin Ryu?"
Jin nodded slowly.
The man held up a tablet. "You've been flagged for further observation. The raid was unsanctioned, and according to our records, that gate was C-Rank. Yet, your pulse data suggests S-Rank fluctuations."
Jin stayed silent.
Ayla cut in. "There was an anomaly. I confirmed it. He didn't break protocol. The gate was manipulated—likely a test site."
The rep narrowed his eyes. "Noted. You'll both be required to file a full report."
He left.
Jin turned to Ayla. "You covered for me."
"You saved my life. Twice."
Jin chuckled. "Only fair, then."
They walked in silence for a moment. The world outside the gate felt too loud—cars, voices, city lights. Everything moved too fast.
Or maybe Jin was just moving slower.
No… more precise.
---
Later that night, Jin sat alone in his small apartment.
His mother lay asleep in the next room, hooked to the same IV he could barely afford. The hum of the old air conditioner filled the silence.
> [New Skill Acquired: Time Domain – Level 1]
Create a localized zone where time moves at a ratio of 3:1 in the user's favor. Duration: 10 seconds. Cooldown: 2 minutes.
Jin stared at the system window.
"Ten seconds…"
He stood, moved to the center of the room, and exhaled slowly.
"Let's try this."
He activated the skill.
The world didn't stop—but it slowed.
The hum of the AC deepened, dropping in pitch. The blinking LED on his router turned sluggish. Even the soft snoring from his mother's room became distorted, like someone stretched the sound out.
Jin raised his arm—his hand moved three times faster than normal.
His eyes widened. "Holy…"
It ended.
Everything snapped back to normal.
Jin dropped into the chair, breath catching in his chest.
"That wasn't just speed," he muttered. "It's control."
---
The next morning, Jin woke early and headed to a training center on the outskirts of Seoul—an abandoned gym used by low-rank Hunters who couldn't afford private facilities.
He stepped inside, nodded at a few familiar faces.
One of them, a tall guy with a bandaged arm, grinned at him. "Yo, Human Luggage. Back from the dead again?"
Jin smiled faintly. "Didn't even unpack."
A few of the others chuckled.
He moved to the far end, where some training dummies stood, old and worn.
He breathed in… and activated Time Domain.
Everything slowed—just like before.
He launched into motion.
One, two, three slashes. Step back. Pivot. Elbow strike. Backstep.
He moved like water—fluid, untouchable.
In ten seconds, he landed over twenty hits.
When the Domain ended, the dummies practically exploded in delayed reaction—limbs cracked, torsos splintered.
Someone whistled behind him.
Jin turned to see a girl with short red hair and a hunting knife on her hip. She looked impressed.
"Where'd that come from?" she asked.
"Been practicing," Jin said.
She narrowed her eyes. "You weren't moving that fast before."
Jin gave a non-answer shrug. "Guess something finally clicked."
---
Meanwhile, in a shadowed control room beneath the Korea Hunter Association building…
A man in a dark suit watched Jin through a paused video feed—frame-by-frame.
"Who is he?" one agent asked.
The man leaned back. "A nobody. Unranked. But he walked out of an Observer-class gate."
"The records say he was flagged before. Low clearance, borderline E-Rank."
The man's eyes didn't leave the screen. "He's not E-Rank anymore."
---
Back in the gym, Jin grabbed a water bottle and sat down near the wall.
Ayla messaged him.
Ayla: [You alright?]
Jin: [Yeah. Just training.]
Ayla: [I pulled some data on your new skill. There's no record of anything called 'Time Domain.' That means it's unique.]
Jin: [And dangerous.]
Ayla: [Maybe. But also yours.]
Jin stared at her message for a long moment before responding.
Jin: [I think they're watching me.]
Ayla: [Good. Let them watch. Just don't let them control you.]
He smiled faintly.
---
Later, as the sun dipped low, Jin stood at the edge of the Han River, looking at the flowing water.
Time felt different now.
It wasn't just a concept—it was something alive, something he could touch.
He still remembered the Observer's words: "You are not yet the Monarch."
Jin clenched his fists.
"Then I'll become him."
---
End of Chapter 8