Amon returned to his quarters after meeting with the prince.
“I’m back. No, no, don’t get up. Just sleep.”
Sonia, who was rustling in bed, trying to sit up, was gently coaxed back to sleep.
Amon then headed to the shower, the first proper one he’d had in a while.
When he stepped out into the living room after his shower, he was greeted by Cassie.
Normally, she would have tried to seduce him in black lingerie, but since they were currently staying in a separate residence, she had compromised with cute pajamas instead.
“You didn’t have to get up.”
“I was sleeping just a moment ago, too.”
Though she said that, Amon knew she had woken up because she wasn’t used to sleeping on a heated floor.
He could only offer a wry smile in response.
“I’ll be your pillow. Let’s sleep together.”
Amon offered his right arm to Cassie and, not wanting Sonia to feel left out, extended his left arm to her.
Lying down with both lovers at his sides, he took in the gentle scent that tickled his nose and finally drifted into peaceful sleep.
But when he opened his eyes again—
He was standing on a black sea.
***
Black sea.
The sight was so surreal that Amon immediately knew this place wasn’t real.
‘A dream?’
He heightened his vigilance to the extreme.
‘Is there a demon or ghost that can pull people into dreams?’
It wasn’t impossible.
Of course, concluding that this was a dream without knowing more about this space was a rash judgment, but there were no other explanations.
To confirm, Amon grabbed one of his fingers and bent it back hard enough to hurt.
‘Ow. That hurts.’
He also checked the time on his wristwatch.
From those two facts, Amon reached a conclusion.
‘This isn’t a dream.’
Instinctively, he reached for the sword that should have been at his waist.
But it wasn’t there.
His eyes narrowed.
Unfastening his watch, he raised his guard to the highest level, ready to fight at any moment, as he scanned the surroundings.
That was when he saw someone in the distance.
A figure stood in the vast black sea, dressed in a trench coat, staring at Amon.
The build was masculine, the ethnicity indeterminate.
A skull mask covered his face.
As for his weapons—
Suddenly, the man disappeared from sight.
The next moment, he reappeared right in front of Amon.
Amon acted on instinct, aiming a divine power-infused punch at the man’s lower jaw.
But the man dodged it effortlessly.
“Tsk.”
Clicking his tongue, Amon was about to launch another attack when he stopped at the man’s words.
“You’re quite impatient. I’ll admit my approach was a bit rude, but was this really necessary?”
A deep voice flowed from beneath the skull mask.
The moment Amon heard it, he withdrew his fist as if nothing had happened.
A slight nod.
He still didn’t fully trust him, so he remained on guard.
The stranger accepted the gesture and began to speak.
“This is the boundary of the world, which I protect. If you’re a Seer, I don’t think I need to explain any further.”
‘You too,’ and ‘Seer.’
From those two words, Amon realized that this man was an ally.
Only then did he lower his guard slightly.
“Name.”
“Now you’re willing to talk. I abandoned it. Or rather, it disappeared. Spending time with nameless beings here will do that to you.”
“Nameless beings?”
“Creatures beyond the world’s boundary, always lurking, waiting to invade. If we give them names, they might use that to latch onto this world, so we erase them.”
At those words, Amon finally realized who this man was.
The one who had eradicated the entities that once ruled this world from the shadows.
The one who had restored the vanished night and the blue sky to humanity.
The one who had given up his history, his name, even his records to save this world.
The protagonist of Punk City 2.
“The Ghost of London…”
“I was called that once. But since I don’t have a name anymore, just call me Specter.”
“I’ll call you Ghost.”
No matter what, he couldn’t bring himself to call someone who had once saved the world a ‘Specter.’
Amon deliberately chose to call the man ‘Ghost’ and continued the conversation.
“But… what do you mean by ‘beings beyond the boundary’?”
“Where should I start? How much do you know?”
At that, Amon recalled the events of Punk City 2, where Ghost had once fought.
Originally, this world did not belong to humanity.
On the surface, the rapid advancements brought about by the Diesel Revolution made it seem like humans had conquered nature.
But when night fell—when the darkness known as “Night” arrived—humanity unknowingly became livestock.
A red moon that drove people mad just by looking at it.
Parasitic creatures that devoured humans and mimicked their forms.
Whales that lured ships into endless abysses.
Monsters beyond imagination that replaced, hunted, and toyed with humans before casting them into oblivion.
The problem was that these beings were all insidiously cunning.
If they had simply shown their power openly, humanity might have united against them.
Instead, they infiltrated society, slowly tightening their grip on human lives.
Ghost was the hunter who hunted those beings.
However, ordinary humans could never hunt such beings, no matter what methods they used…
‘That’s why I chose assassination.’
Of course, in the game, there were skill trees that allowed the protagonist to wield large weapons like axes or cannons.
But ultimately, his identity was that of an assassin.
He would use any means necessary, targeting the enemy’s most vulnerable moment to strike at their weak points.
Throughout Punk City 2, this approach remained largely unchanged.
‘This is also the game where I played the most as an assassin.’
As Amon recalled this, he began to reminisce.
Then, remembering that he was in the middle of a conversation, he refocused on the Ghost before him.
***
“Where was I?”
“How much do you know about my past?”
“I know that you defeated the Dream-Eating Moon and that a few remember you as the Silent Guardian.”
“And after that?”
“I don’t know.”
The Ghost nodded.
Then, he began explaining his actions after that point.
“I continued hunting abominations.”
“Abominations?”
“The things your era calls Entities.”
Because of his efforts in the main story, the world was rid of Entities that could pose a threat to humanity.
As a result, only those that, while dangerous to individuals, were not a threat to human civilization remained—things like the Red Shoes, the Happy Baker, and Bloody Mary.
Even after saving the world, the Ghost continued wandering, eliminating even those lesser beings.
It was during this time that he discovered something he hadn’t known in the main story.
“Entities can never be completely eradicated.”
‘The reason?’ Entities were, in essence, natural phenomena.
“Entities are beings that have been excessively distorted by divine power.”
Beings with divine power could create phenomena that defied the laws of physics.
Entities were creatures formed by an obsessive attachment to such divine power.
“In other words, as long as humanity exists, Entities can never disappear.”
The Red Mask, the Infinite Staircase, the Happy Baker—
All of these were once humans who had been corrupted and transformed.
In a way, even demons could be considered Entities, as they were once humans who sought to transcend divine limits and became distorted beings.
And in that sense, Sonia and Cassie were also halfway to becoming Entities.
The difference was this:
Entities were consumed by obsession, losing their humanity and harming others.
Demons, unable to repent for their past sins, lived harboring hatred for all of humanity.
Meanwhile, Sonia and Cassie, because their obsession was directed toward virtue, were able to retain their humanity.
Upon realizing this truth, the Ghost abandoned his plan to eradicate the Entities.
Unless he triggered a nuclear war to wipe out all of humanity, new Entities would continue to emerge indefinitely.
But he did not give up.
Rather, he could not give up.
For the moment he understood the truth about Entities, he realized yet another truth.
“Entities have a lower upper limit than humans or demons who attain virtue. Just as a beast cannot surpass humanity, an existence consumed by obsession can never be as strong as one that retains reason.”
This was why the danger level of most Entities never exceeded that of a village-wide threat.
And that, too, was only if people were unaware of how to deal with them—
With the right knowledge, an Entity could be captured in a lab and even exploited as a resource.
But the Entities the Ghost had encountered so far were different.
They were impossible to contain, and they posed a threat to entire nations.
And eventually, the Ghost discovered where these exceptional Entities were coming from.
“When beings from beyond our world lend their power, Entities are reborn on a national scale, with twisted reasoning.”
The Ghost called those who granted such power Outers.
“And right now, I’m stopping those Outers.”
***
No sooner had he finished speaking than the black sea behind him burst open, and a monstrous creature surged forth.
GROOOOAAA!!!
It was an eldritch being, with four pairs of legs covered in writhing tentacles.
At that moment, the Ghost vanished.
Roughly two seconds passed—
When he reappeared before Amon, the creature’s form was already collapsing.
KIEEEEEK!!
In the Ghost’s hand, a wriggling mass of blood and flesh squirmed desperately, trying to escape his grasp.
Holding it up for Amon to see, the Ghost continued his explanation.
“This is what I’m preventing from entering our world.”
“Ah…”
“As I kept facing these things, I found it harder and harder to live among our people.”
Amon understood what he meant.
“He who fights monsters must take care lest he become one himself.”
Looking past the Ghost’s skull mask, Amon could feel an indescribable, chilling presence.
Perhaps the Ghost himself had already become an Entity—one born from his mission to save the world.
As Amon pondered this, the Ghost incinerated the writhing mass and met Amon’s gaze.
“I brought you here to talk about this.”
The Ghost had summoned Amon to the boundary of the world through his dreams.
This black sea was the border between dreams, reality, and different worlds.
“Ever since you eliminated that Eye Beyond the World I missed last time, I’ve been watching you.”
“…What was that?”
“Huh? You didn’t know?”
The Ghost brought up a past incident—Amon’s battle with Cassie’s brother, Owen.
Owen, who had fused with a computer and ultimately transformed into a snail.
Amon frowned at the unexpected mention of Owen.
“What does that guy have to do with anything?”
“His fusion with the computer was only possible due to an Outer’s interference.”
“Ah… That makes sense.”
At the time, Amon and his group had only seen Owen melt away before their eyes.
They had never even considered that the incident might have been caused by an Outer’s intervention.
‘So that was the work of an Outer, huh…’
It was a shocking revelation.
However, it was only surprising, not to the extent of making him forget the conversation.
“Is the reason you called me related to the Outers?”
“Yeah. The demons of Goetia, the ones you loathe so much. They came here a few months ago.”
At the mention of Goetia’s demons, Amon’s hand instinctively clenched.
“Those bastards?”
“Yeah. They made contact with the Outers here and then left. I wanted to chase them down and tear them apart, but…”
Ghost pointed beyond the black sea’s horizon.
In that direction, an unidentified giant met Amon’s gaze.
Ghost stepped between their line of sight, locked eyes with the giant, and teleported toward it—just as he had done with other monsters before.
But this time, Ghost didn’t eliminate the giant.
More precisely, he chose not to.
As if something had come to mind, Ghost teleported back in front of Amon.
“Since I’m not doing anything despite your request, I feel a little guilty. Take this opportunity to grasp a clue about your ability.”
“…Alright.”
“Huh?”
Only after hearing Ghost’s words did Amon remember something he had long forgotten.
Those with divine power naturally possess special abilities.
Sonia’s ability to absorb impact and Cassie’s power of foresight were examples of this.
Yet, Amon had never discovered any unique ability of his own.
Because until now, his overwhelming divine power and the resulting exceptional physical abilities had been enough to solve every problem, he had completely neglected the matter.
“You know what my ability is?”
At Amon’s question, Ghost nodded.
Then, summoning a sword from nowhere, he handed it to Amon.
“I’ll weaken that giant to match your level. Finish it off and try to grasp the essence of your power.”
Caught in Ghost’s pace, Amon nodded blankly.
Soon, Ghost teleported with Amon directly in front of the giant’s eyes.
And within three seconds, he dismantled the giant’s limbs.
Amon gathered everything he had to prepare for the final blow against the immobilized giant.
He used his Sight to locate the weak point, poured divine power into his sword, and thrust it into the spot.
Fwoosh.
The sword pierced through what should have been thick skin without resistance, reaching the core of the giant’s soul.
As Amon severed the weak point, the giant instantly lost its form and collapsed.
However, its reaction differed from the monsters Ghost had previously dealt with.
Those creatures had melted into writhing lumps of flesh.
In contrast, the giant vanished completely, leaving no trace behind.
While Amon was startled by the clear difference, Ghost nodded in satisfaction.
“Yes. This is it.”
“I have no idea what just happened. Can’t you just explain it?”
“I’ve already given you enough hints. Find the answer yourself.”
With those words, Ghost gestured.
Just like when he was first dragged into this world, Amon suddenly began to drift away from the black sea.
As Amon faded into the distance, Ghost spoke.
“I’d love to sit down and have a proper conversation over tea, but unfortunately, I can only relay the necessary information. I apologize for that.”
“There’s no need to be sorry for something like that.”
He could never hold such thoughts against the one protecting his world.
Instead, Amon gave a bittersweet smile.
“If anything, I should be the one apologizing. I wish I could’ve at least kept you company.”
“I’ll accept the sentiment with gratitude.”
From behind the skull mask, a faint trace of lingering humanity expressed its appreciation.
And with that, Amon vanished from the black sea.
Ghost gazed in the direction where Amon had disappeared and muttered to himself.
“I hope you find a happier ending.”