The moment those words left the crimson-eyed man's mouth, the atmosphere across the cliffside changed completely.
"He abandoned humanity first."
Not corrupted.
Not controlled.
Not forced.
Abandoned.
Ayan felt cold unease settle deep in his chest.
Because suddenly—
The previous anomaly no longer sounded like a victim.
The crimson-eyed man stood calmly near the underground entrance while corrupted humanoids continued crawling upward behind him, their layered whispers echoing endlessly through the cliffs. Yet despite the chaos surrounding them, his attention remained focused entirely on Ayan.
Almost like the others didn't matter.
Almost like this conversation mattered more than the battle itself.
Ayan narrowed his eyes sharply.
"…What does that mean?"
The man's expression remained unreadable.
"…Exactly what I said."
Aelira stepped slightly forward.
"…Don't listen to him."
The crimson-eyed man glanced toward her briefly.
"…You continue protecting him from truth."
Aelira's voice sharpened instantly.
"…You lost the right to speak about truth long ago."
For the first time—
A flicker of irritation crossed the man's face.
Small.
Brief.
But real.
Ayan noticed immediately.
Interesting.
The crimson-eyed man slowly looked back toward him.
"…The previous anomaly arrived here much like you."
"…Confused."
"…Weak."
"…Desperate to return home."
Ayan's grip tightened around the sword unconsciously.
Because every word felt painfully familiar.
The man continued calmly.
"…At first, he rejected the network."
"…Rejected evolution."
"…Rejected synchronization."
The corrupted humanoids around the battlefield whispered softly together.
"…Rejected…"
"…Rejected…"
"…Rejected…"
The sound crawled beneath Ayan's skin.
Then the man's voice lowered slightly.
"…Until he saw humanity clearly."
Silence followed briefly.
Ayan's eyes narrowed.
"…Meaning?"
The man extended one hand calmly toward the battlefield surrounding them.
Toward the adventurers struggling desperately against corrupted creatures.
Toward the fear.
The violence.
The constant fight for survival.
"…Conflict."
"…Greed."
"…Weakness."
His crimson eyes glowed brighter.
"…Humanity destroys itself repeatedly."
"…The network simply offered correction."
Ayan felt irritation rise instantly.
"…By turning people into monsters?"
The man shook his head slightly.
"…By removing limitation."
His voice remained calm.
Almost patient.
Like he genuinely believed Ayan would eventually agree with him.
That certainty felt deeply disturbing.
The crimson-eyed man stepped forward slowly.
"…The previous anomaly understood this eventually."
Aelira's expression darkened visibly.
"…You manipulated him."
The man finally looked toward her again.
"…No."
"…He chose evolution willingly."
Ayan's chest tightened slightly.
Because honestly—
He could almost imagine it.
Someone trapped in this world.
Alone.
Desperate.
Watching endless suffering and corruption spread.
Then being offered answers.
Power.
Purpose.
A system claiming it could fix everything.
The dangerous part—
Was that the network didn't see itself as evil.
It saw itself as necessary.
The crimson-eyed man's gaze returned toward Ayan.
"…And now the same choice stands before you."
Ayan immediately answered.
"…No."
The refusal came instantly.
Firmly.
But the man only smiled faintly.
"…For now."
A sudden explosion shook the battlefield nearby.
The shield user was thrown violently across the cliffside after blocking another humanoid creature while the mage struggled desperately to maintain barriers around the injured group.
The adventurers were losing ground.
Too many enemies.
Ayan's eyes sharpened immediately.
Because no matter how important this conversation felt—
People were still dying around them.
He moved instantly.
The crimson-eyed man didn't stop him.
Interesting.
Ayan rushed toward the nearest corrupted humanoid attacking the injured dual-blade fighter.
SLASH.
His sword split directly through the creature's skull before he grabbed the injured adventurer and pulled him backward.
The man coughed blood violently.
"…T-thanks…"
Ayan glanced briefly at the shattered wound across the fighter's side.
Bad.
Really bad.
The mage immediately rushed over with healing charms.
Meanwhile the red-haired archer fired another explosive arrow toward advancing humanoids.
BOOM.
Several creatures staggered backward temporarily.
But more continued climbing upward from below.
Ayan looked toward the underground entrance again.
And realized something horrifying.
The humanoids emerging now—
Looked less corrupted.
Less unstable.
The earlier creatures had appeared incomplete.
Malformed.
But the newer ones climbing from below looked increasingly human.
Like the network was improving the synchronization process over time.
The realization made his stomach twist.
Aelira suddenly appeared beside him again.
"…You noticed."
Ayan's expression hardened.
"…They're evolving."
Aelira nodded slightly.
"…The deeper levels produce more stable integrations."
Ayan immediately looked toward the darkness below the underground structure.
Then the memory fragment flashed through his thoughts again.
Glass chambers.
People connected to the network.
Research facilities.
Experiments.
This entire place—
Wasn't a nest.
It was a laboratory.
A cold feeling spread through his chest.
Because now—
He finally understood what the humanoids truly were.
Failed synchronization subjects.
The earlier stages.
The incomplete versions.
And somewhere deeper underground—
The successful ones existed.
The crimson-eyed man slowly approached again through the battlefield while corrupted humanoids moved aside instinctively for him.
"…You understand now."
Ayan's eyes narrowed sharply.
"…You experimented on people."
The man's expression didn't change.
"…Humanity volunteered."
Ayan almost laughed bitterly.
"…That's your excuse?"
The crimson-eyed man looked genuinely confused again.
"…Excuse?"
His crimson gaze moved toward the kneeling humanoids surrounding the battlefield.
"…These people no longer fear death."
"…No longer suffer weakness."
"…No longer remain trapped by biological limitation."
Then his eyes returned toward Ayan.
"…You still see horror because you remain emotionally attached to imperfection."
The words hit harder than expected.
Because deep down—
Ayan recognized the logic.
Twisted.
Horrifying.
But logical.
If someone truly believed humanity's flaws caused endless suffering—
Then the network's "correction" would appear merciful.
That was what made this terrifying.
Not evil.
Conviction.
Aelira's voice cut through the silence sharply.
"…And what happened to the ones who refused?"
The battlefield quieted slightly.
The crimson-eyed man remained silent briefly.
Then finally—
"…They were inefficient."
Ayan felt anger rise instantly.
"…So you killed them."
The man looked toward him calmly.
"…No."
"…The network removed incompatible structures."
The casual way he said it made the silver-ranked adventurers visibly recoil.
Even the spear wielder's face darkened with disgust.
"…You're insane."
The crimson-eyed man tilted his head slightly.
"…Insanity is merely incompatible perception."
Ayan's grip tightened painfully around the sword.
Because every sentence from this man sounded less human than the corrupted creatures surrounding them.
Not because he lacked intelligence.
But because somewhere along the way—
He stopped understanding people entirely.
Then suddenly—
The crystal at Ayan's side pulsed violently again.
Stronger than before.
His vision blurred for half a second.
And the crimson-eyed man noticed immediately.
For the first time since appearing—
His expression shifted visibly.
Interest.
Real interest.
"…Ah."
The man stepped closer slowly.
"…So you already inherited a fragment."
Ayan immediately stepped backward.
"…Stay away from me."
But the man ignored the warning completely.
His glowing eyes locked onto the pouch at Ayan's side.
"…That fragment belonged to Sector Seven."
His voice softened slightly.
"…Interesting."
Ayan's heartbeat slowed.
Sector Seven.
The memory.
The underground structures.
The people from Earth.
The crimson-eyed man smiled faintly again.
"…Then the network has already started choosing."
The cliffside suddenly trembled violently.
Not from battle.
From below.
Something massive moved deep beneath the underground structure.
The corrupted humanoids all froze simultaneously.
Then every single one lowered themselves toward the entrance again.
Reverence.
Fear.
Ayan immediately felt it too.
A pressure far heavier than before slowly rising from the depths beneath the world.
And for the first time since arriving here—
The crimson-eyed man's smile disappeared completely.