Affixing talismans to each wall to activate the binding formation proved difficult due to the flames.

Therefore, Seo Kangrim proposed an alternative method.

[We’ll attach the talismans to the Earthen Figures, which can evade the flames.]

Given the Earthen Figures’ reaction speed, they should easily dodge the fire attacks.

Even if struck, the Earthen Figures were made of clay and possessed strong resistance to fire.

Thanks to them curling their bodies into balls to protect the talismans, the majority of them remained intact.

“Oot!”

Once the Earthen Figures took their positions in four directions mid-air, the inscriptions on the talismans began to glow.

The binding formation was completed in mid-air.

The moment the Earthen Figures surrounded the man, Kang Dohyun chanted the activation word.

[Special Ability ‘Binding Technique’ is activating!]

Simultaneously, ropes of light manifested and tightly coiled around the man’s body.

Since the binding formation consisted of multiple layers, three or four ropes materialized at once.

The man was seized before he could even attempt to evade.

“Aaaagh-!”

[The target’s magic power is blocked due to ‘Binding Technique’!]

[Special Ability ‘#■?’ is dispelled!]

As the ability was dispelled, the objects floating in the air dropped to the floor with a thud.

At the same time, Kang Dohyun looked toward Seo Kangrim.

“Seo Kangrim, are you safe…!”

-Kwang!

Simultaneously, the sound of something collapsing echoed through the room.

The colossal statue had sunk to one knee, barely holding itself up by using its sword as a cane.

Seo Kangrim’s eyes burned with a blood-red intensity.

[Special Ability ‘Fighting Instinct’ is active!]

Cracks splintered across the statue’s entire body, leaving it on the verge of shattering.

Seo Kangrim immediately raised his Seven-Blade Sword and brought it down upon the statue.

-Udeudeuk!

The statue, already riddled with cracks, crumbled apart completely.

At the sight, Kang Dohyun’s mouth fell slightly open.

Beside him, he could hear Ahn Nabi muttering.

“Mr. Seo Kangrim… you truly are remarkable. To think you handled a Ghost Grade demon beast all by yourself.”

The original plan was for the two of them to subdue the man while Seo Kangrim held the statue off, after which they would join him.

Yet he hadn’t merely endured the statue’s attacks—he had completely obliterated it.

Even with Rini’s support, it was an unbelievable result.

Ahn Nabi’s eyes sparkled as she spoke.

“Your command abilities are outstanding as well. You truly are our most exceptional cadet.”

While Ahn Nabi showered him with praise, Kang Dohyun remained utterly silent.

As they watched, Seo Kangrim stared at the notification window floating before his eyes.

[You have defeated the ‘Statue of Protection’!]

[You have defeated an opponent of higher rank, generating additional rewards!]

[The barrier surrounding the Demon Realm is dispelled!]

Even after reading the message, Seo Kangrim turned away without a hint of joy.

Seeing the man bound and collapsed on the floor, Seo Kangrim let out a low sigh.

“It seems everything is finished now. The Demon Realm’s barrier has been dispelled, so we should be able to leave.”

At his words, Ahn Nabi nodded in agreement.

She looked at the groaning man collapsed on the floor and spoke.

“First, we need to bring this man back to his senses…”

The man was still drooling and had not regained his senses.

Seo Kangrim looked down at him and called for Rini.

“Let me take a look for a moment. Rini, come here and use Purification.”

“Ung!”

Rini cautiously approached the man and pressed its horn against him.

Soon, a white light began to radiate outward.

[Special Ability ‘Purification’ is activating!]

The dim interior brightened with a sacred light.

As the light gradually faded, the man’s figure came into view.

“Ah, ahhh…”

However, his pupils remained entirely vacant, saliva still dripping down his chin.

Rini appeared slightly bewildered.

“U, uung?”

Once more, it channeled the light of Purification, this time with greater intensity.

No matter how much the purifying light poured over him, the man’s condition remained unchanged.

Just then, a notification window popped up before Seo Kangrim’s eyes.

[The target has crossed the Boundary.]

[Purification is impossible for this target.]

The man hadn’t merely drawn close to the Boundary; he had crossed it entirely.

He was alive, yet not alive.

His soul had crossed the Boundary and departed to ‘somewhere.’

His body moved only through the po and han—obsession-like remnants left within his flesh.

He was no longer human.

‘I thought there was a high chance Purification wouldn’t work.’

He, too, had been accumulating karma, drawing closer to the Boundary himself.

Because of that, he had already experimented with Rini’s ‘Purification’ to try and slow the process, but the result had been a failure.

While he couldn’t clear his own karma, he had hoped it might at least cure the man’s madness, but his soul was already gone.

“This man can no longer be returned to his original state. He is effectively a corpse.”

He was nothing more than a hollow shell, starving and wandering in search of prey.

Hearing this, both Ahn Nabi and Kang Dohyun were struck speechless.

Kang Dohyun looked down at the man and muttered.

“Is this… is this the price of karma?”

He appeared deeply shaken.

He knew of the Boundary’s existence, but it seemed this was his first time seeing someone who had actually crossed it.

‘Well, accurate information about the Boundary doesn’t become public knowledge for a few more years.’

Since not even a year had passed since the Day of Awakening, they wouldn’t have properly experienced a situation like this yet.

The conclusion reached after years of experimentation and observation by the Bureau regarding the Boundary was singular.

No one who crossed the Boundary ever returned.

Therefore, in the case of a Manshin who crossed the Boundary and went berserk, summary execution was permitted.

In other words, killing them would incur no liability.

“…We need to secure this man and take him to the Bureau. Even if his soul is gone, his life hasn’t been extinguished.”

Kang Dohyun’s voice was inexplicably heavy as he said this.

Ahn Nabi’s expression was also grim, though not quite to the extent of Kang Dohyun’s.

Seo Kangrim spoke up on behalf of the silent pair.

“Let’s find the exit first. It should be nearby.”

At his words, Ahn Nabi nodded quietly.

Upon searching the fifth floor, they emerged into a massive hall at the end of the corridor, with a door situated in its center.

Ahn Nabi looked at the door and spoke.

“We need to gather the survivors first. Please rest, Mr. Seo Kangrim.”

“I’m fine. I’ll go with you…”

“Rest. This is Bureau business.”

Ahn Nabi spoke in a stern voice, as if addressing a cadet.

This was only natural, as Seo Kangrim didn’t look to be in good condition.

Seo Kangrim didn’t insist further and slumped down near the door.

‘Just how much karma have I accumulated?’

He opened his Fortune Window, but it didn’t display an exact numerical value for his karma.

He could only guess that it was a substantial amount, considering the number of belts strapped to him in the Saw Bone Room.

‘Fortunately, there haven’t been any major problems yet.’

The closer one got to the Boundary, the more they suffered from hallucinations and auditory illusions, gradually descending into madness.

He wasn’t afraid of going mad.

However, even if he did go mad, it had to be after he killed Baekyoung.

“Ung, uung…”

Rini was staring at Seo Kangrim with a worried expression.

It seemed to be trying to comfort him by diligently licking his hand.

As he silently stroked Rini, Kang Dohyun’s voice reached his ears.

“Seo Kangrim.”

Ahn Nabi had left, but Kang Dohyun stood there as if he had something to say.

He glared at Seo Kangrim and spoke.

“Don’t join the Bureau.”

Even though Seo Kangrim had already said multiple times that he wouldn’t join, Kang Dohyun was repeating the same words.

However, his gaze seemed slightly different from usual.

“I have no intention of joining the Bureau.”

“Quit being a hunter, too.”

The second statement caught him slightly off guard.

It was the first time Kang Dohyun had ever told him to quit being a hunter.

Seo Kangrim stared at him and asked.

“Why all of a sudden?”

“…”

Kang Dohyun remained silent.

He clenched his fists tightly, stared down at the floor, and then shifted his gaze back to Seo Kangrim.

“…If you keep working as a hunter, you’ll have no choice but to accumulate karma.”

His voice was resolute, but a faint trace of fear lingered beneath it.

Kang Dohyun took a bold step toward him and said.

“You’ve already built up a considerable amount of karma. If you accumulate any more, you’ll end up just like that man.”

The man who had been consumed by karma had lost everything.

He was in a state where not even a soul remained to be saved.

His mind had crossed to the other side of the Boundary.

Seo Kangrim was well aware of what Kang Dohyun was worried about.

He didn’t even know where his own Boundary lay or how close he had approached it.

But one thing was certain.

If he continued down this path, he would end up exactly like that man.

“So quit this hunter business right now.”

“I thought you hated me.”

“I do. I hate you.”

Kang Dohyun declared in a firm voice without a moment’s hesitation.

His glare was steeped in the jealousy and inferiority complex that had built up over a long time.

“I hate you. I hate that you have everything I don’t. I hate that you took my mother away from me. I hate you even at this very moment.”

“…”

“But that doesn’t mean I want to see you end up like that.”

Seo Kangrim smiled bitterly without a sound.

“I can’t do that.”

“Why the hell not!”

Kang Dohyun shouted.

In that instant, Seo Kangrim felt a headache coming on.

Just like earlier, when he had read the man’s past.

As Kang Dohyun lost his composure, fragments of memories flowed in alongside his surging emotions.

After Seo Kangrim left home without a word.

At first, Kang Dohyun was satisfied with Seo Kangrim’s absence, but that satisfaction didn’t last long.

He thought everything would improve once Seo Kangrim disappeared, but nothing changed.

After all, his disappearance wouldn’t bring about a Divine Descent.

And a few years later, Seo Hwakyung died.

Her funeral was held in secret, in accordance with Seo Hwakyung’s wishes.

After holding the funeral alone without a single mourner, Kang Dohyun was truly left all by himself.

“Just live on with a shameless face, Seo Kangrim. I don’t want to hold another funeral.”

Even if he hated him, he was a friend, a brother, and family.

No matter the relationship, it was better to be alive than dead.

Seo Kangrim stared into that wailing memory and bit his lip.

He pondered for a long while before opening his mouth.

“Hyung, you’re disconnected from the Guardian God right now, aren’t you?”

“What? I am disconnected, but why are you suddenly changing the subject?”

Since the universal communication system was also down, there was no need to worry about the gods eavesdropping.

Seo Kangrim raised his head.

“Hyung. I have something to tell you.”

Kang Dohyun looked at Seo Kangrim as if daring him to speak.

After a moment of silence, he opened his mouth.

“Hyung, I know the future.”