Return from Limen
The city was always a collision of humid heat and cold sea wind.
The fog still formed the same way it always had.
But this was not the place where she had once stood.
Niko paused.
She had no memory of any logical conditions required to return.
And yet, the feeling of the boundary etched into her skin guided her like a magnet.
One step to the right.
A slight shift—three degrees—and she turned, catching the rigid light pouring through the gap between suddenly appearing skyscrapers at her back.
Snap.
A dry sound cracked deep inside her ear, and the fog scattered.
In its place came the artificial scent of luxury room fragrance and the sharp bite of overcooled air conditioning.
The next moment, she was standing on the office floor of a high-rise—
at the reception of a place she herself had once named: NONERVE_NOIR
She glanced at the date displayed on the unmanned reception panel and calculated her absence: roughly three years.
When she held her hand over the security gate, the system instantly recognized her biometric data as that of someone who should be allowed through, and the gate opened silently.
The office was… more “perfect” than before.
Every line aligned in strict verticals and horizontals.
No hesitation in the eyes of those who worked there.
A completed mechanism.
Niko clicked her tongue softly.
“…Too much.”
The playful, hand-drawn lines she had once left behind had all been replaced by sterile, ruler-straight functional beauty.
The air—too perfectly optimized—grated on her nerves more than anything else.
Niko headed straight for a meeting room where voices leaked through the door and kicked it open without hesitation.
Inside, Nyx’s cold voice cut through the air.
“This line gets cut. It’s far too inefficient. What the market demands is reproducibility.”
The moment the words landed, everything froze.
All eyes turned toward the intruder.
Nyx narrowed her eyes.
A brief silence. Perfect makeup. Calculated gestures. High heels.
And yet—
in the instant Nyx narrowed her eyes, Niko sensed something beneath it, like background noise.
(……Is that a guy?)
Niko's intuition immediately exposed the truth behind the “female CEO” before her. She didn’t know who. But she knew: this was a construct.
“…Who are you?” Nyx asked.
The voice was deliberately lowered, but to Niko’s ears it carried an unnatural distortion.
Niko didn’t answer.
Instead, she walked to the table and picked up a prototype sample placed at its center.
She touched it lightly—reading the density of the material, the refraction of light in an instant.
“It’s off.”
Nyx let out a low, amused laugh—less hostility than pure curiosity toward an unknown anomaly.
“What aspect?!”
“Everything.”
The temperature in the room seemed to drop.
Nyx rose from her chair, closing the distance like a predator stalking its prey, silently preparing to subdue her opponent. Hand-to-hand combat was her specialty.
A beat later, one of the stunned employees muttered in a trembling voice:
“…The president…”
Another followed:
“Wait… seriously…?”
“Niko…?”
Nico, the founder of NONERVE_NOIR, who was once under the protection of the unfinished ring.
(Huh? Nico? Isn’t she the one who beat me with violence and disappeared without a trace?)
Nyx froze in fear for a moment, but she nodded calmly, trying not to let his distress show.
“Ah. The original source.…So why come back now? You disappeared on your own, didn’t you?”
Niko didn’t even move a brow.
“Not the source. The author. It’s my ‘N.’ I just came back.”
Nyx faltered.
“…What?”
“I created this place. That’s why I’m coming back today.”
Nyx forced composure.
“Hold on. I’m Nyx, the CEO of this company. I’m the CEO now. There’s not a millimeter of your seat left here.”
Niko didn’t look away.
“So it seems. And?”
The air swelled, ready to burst.
“And what do you mean and? You ran away from this place!”
“So I came back. Problem?”
Her reply was flat.
From the side, someone whispered:
“This is bad…”
“Huh!?” Nyx’s voice rose.
“No, this makes zero sense!!”
Niko didn’t react.
“It needs rework.”
“Needs rework for what?! It’s working perfectly right now!!”
She spread her arms, pointing at the space.
“Can’t you see!? It’s functioning flawlessly!!”
Niko answered without pause:
“It’s off.”
A beat. The air dropped.
“What aspect?!”
“Everything.”
Silence.
No one intervened.
Nyx froze for a few seconds, then let out a dry laugh.
“…Oh, here we go.”
She pressed a hand to her forehead.
“The worst type.”
Niko ignored her and picked up another sample.
“This is wrong too.”
“No, it’s not!! It’s selling!!”
Instant retort.
Fast.
“Selling and being correct are different.”
“In this world, they’re the same!!”
They talked over each other.
Completely out of sync.
A brief silence.
Met her eyes.
“…So?”
Nyx voice dropped slightly.
“What did you come here for?”
Niko didn’t hesitate.
“To return.”
“To where!?”
“The top.”
Nyx understood.
And her voice jumped again.
“What do you mean the top!? I’m already there!! That’s impossible. This isn’t a personal brand anymore!”
She gestured around.
“It’s a system.”
Niko didn’t move.
“Then I’ll break it.”
Immediate.
The air trembled.
That wasn’t a joke.
It was a statement from someone who could execute it.
Nyx realized that—and for the first time, grew serious.
“…Wait.”
She raised a hand, signaling the others.
Everyone quietly left the room.
The door closed.
Now it was just the two of them.
Nyx called Ivy.
She answered on the first ring.
“What?”
Low voice. No greetings.
“…She’s back,” Nyx said after a brief pause.
“Who?”
“Niko.”
“Where?”
“Here.”
Nyx continued:
“I can’t deal with this.”
“What part?”
“All of it. She just walks in saying everything’s wrong, wants to replacing everything. It’s a hassle.”
Silence from Ivy.
Nyx rushed on:
“Send her somewhere else. Even if it’s to Override.”
Ivy replied:
“Not possible.”
“Why not? Then what am I supposed to do with this?”
Nyx clicked her tongue.
Ivy said:
“N was entrusted to you.”
Nyx stopped.
“…That’s why I’m calling.”
“ It’s a report. That’s not a consultation. I understand the situation, Handle it. And by the way—you’re breaking character.”
“Hey—”
The call ended.
Nyx shouted.
“…What!? You definitely understand what’s going on, don’t you!?”
Niko stood there, arms crossed.
