Dusk (BL Light Novel)

Just as I wrapped Abrea’s hand around the key, closing his fingers tight to hold onto it—my vision reeled. A sharp ringing pierced my ears, stabbing at my eardrums. The boss’s voice came again, this time sounding more urgent than before, as if pressed for time.
— “Follow Ba... Follow Adam... Run... Repa... ir...”
The voice was laced with static, faint and broken, just barely decipherable. Then everything dimmed, like my eyes closing involuntarily. Slowly, the view brightened again—and I saw Abrea staring up at me with a strange expression.

It wasn’t a new look. It was the exact same expression I’d seen when I got booted from the server and reconnected to Retaking’s stream.
That was the last thing I saw before the screen abruptly transitioned—like I’d been sucked away somewhere. Suddenly, it returned to the present: my character standing in the Glass Cavern. Honeybread blinked dully a few times, as if coming out of a trance, then sharply turned to face the towering glass door leading to the Mirror Maze.
That was where the cutscene ended, and gameplay resumed.

So that’s why Abrea and Adam had disappeared. I’d thought it was absurd to tell a Holy Guardian not to trust the gods—but apparently he really did run away with Adam, just like the boss had advised. I couldn’t wrap my head around it.
Had I misheard something? Missed a detail? I replayed the story dialogue in my head again and again, but I still couldn’t make sense of Abrea’s actions. Maybe I just wasn’t cut out for analyzing and understanding stories like this.
I pushed the thoughts aside for now and opened my quest log. After clearing the dungeon, the main quest had updated: “Return to Atelierna Visha and find the Cardinal NPC.” I confirmed the new objective, used a waypoint scroll, and left the Glass Cavern.

As I waited through the loading screen, my phone lit up. For a second, I instinctively flinched—thinking the boss was about to cast a wide-range AoE—and moved to hit my hotkey for dodging. The trauma of an hour-long boss attempt had clearly stuck with me.
Swallowing down a tired laugh, I picked up my phone. After unlocking it, I saw something surprising: a KakaoTalk message from Retaking, during his broadcast.
[Kang Jaegyung]
Wanna go farming together next Thursday?
It doesn’t have to be Thursday :) 14:27

He was inviting me to go farming. The fact that he’d kicked me from the party seemed to have been wiped clean from his memory—bold of him, really.
Farming with Retaking, huh. As fun as running dungeons with him was, I wasn’t too eager to keep showing up on stream for reasons I’d mentioned before.
…Still, I’d gotten used to the hidden dungeon mechanics by now, and I did really like the unique feel of the Mirror Maze. That made it hard to reject him outright.

After a bit of hesitation, I sent back a condition.
[Me]
If it’s off-stream, I’m down. 14:28
[Kang Jaegyung]
Ah. 14:28

There was a long pause after that. Then finally:
[Kang Jaegyung]
Was it really uncomfortable being on stream? 14:29
Maybe because I kept mentioning it as a reason to refuse or dodge him, he’d started thinking the worst.
Seeing him get all worried like that—like maybe I’d been pressured into being on his stream against my will—made me smile without meaning to. Did I really come across as someone who could be pushed around that easily?

[Me]
ㅋㅋㅋㅋ nah, if I hated it I’d have just quit the game
I’m not bothered by being on stream
It’s just... there’s stuff I’m sensitive about, that’s all. 14:29
[Kang Jaegyung]
Ah
That’s a relief hehe 14:29
[Me]
Where’s all that nerve you had when you kicked me 14:29

[Kang Jaegyung]
You gave me permission, didn’t you ㅎ 14:29
[Me]
Debatable 14:29
[Kang Jaegyung]
I actually prefer doing things off-stream too
So when do you want to go? If it’s not Thursday, there might be a day I can’t do.
Got stuff going on… 14:29

I had nothing but time and money, so adjusting to his schedule was easy.
[Me]
You do know I game all day, right lol
I’m good whenever
Wanna go Thursday after your stream ends? 14:30
[Kang Jaegyung]
Sounds good to me
(sticker)
Would like 1:30 or 2am Friday work for you? 14:30

[Me]
yeahyeah, all good 14:30
[Kang Jaegyung]
Great ㅎㅎ
I’ll message you again on Thursday so you don’t forget, okay? ㅇㅋ? 14:30
[Me]
ㅇㅋㅇㅋ
Now hurry up
and get back to your stream 14:30

[Kang Jaegyung]
ㅎㅎ
Got it
Come visit the stream sometime 14:30
[Me]
Might think about itㅎ 14:30
I sent the cheeky reply, but Retaking had already gone. He was the type to drop you off at your door without even saying, “I’ll wait till you’re inside.” Just a quick “Get home safe” and gone.

I closed the app and opened my calendar. Just in case, I wanted to jot it down. My clean, empty calendar now had Retaking’s nickname scribbled in on every Friday.
It had been a while since I needed to go farming—my gear was already maxed out—but the thought of having new loot to chase and a fixed party member to run with, especially one like Retaking, actually lifted my mood.
I pulled over the cat plushie lying nearby, hugged it to my chest, and slouched into my chair, staring at those three little syllables on the Friday slots. I even set a reminder. I wasn’t going to set an alarm—didn’t want to seem too eager—but still. Wouldn’t want to forget.

Unfortunately, that promise would never be fulfilled.
[Notice] Regarding Entry Issue for the Hidden Mirror Maze (Edited)
Bug Under Revision

Entry to “Hidden Mirror Maze” Unavailable
└ The dungeon is currently undergoing a partial remake and will be reopened. (Note: “Mirror Maze” remains available.)
Hello, Executors. This is GM Lufla.
We’ve received reports that re-entry into the derivative dungeon “Hidden Mirror Maze” has been blocked despite conditions being met after the first clear. We are currently working to resolve this issue.

Due to the cause of the bug being linked to the final named boss—currently using the placeholder name “null”—we’ve had to remove that entity and replace it with another. This change is being made to ensure players can re-enter as normal.
We know “null” has drawn a lot of interest due to its unique concept, and we initially tried to preserve it through various adjustments. However, internal technical issues have made its removal unavoidable. We ask for your understanding as we move forward with this fix.
We’ll do our best to restore full access to the dungeon as soon as possible.

―
find unused program
block_moth reboot success.
―
[GM Note] Early Announcement for 2nd Anniversary /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ Offline Event
Hello again, Executors!

This is GM Versiz, always first to grab the spotlight whenever a festival’s on the horizon! Many of you may already know: on July 16, we’ll be holding a special offline event to celebrate the 2nd anniversary of Dusk and express our deepest thanks to every one of you!
There’ll be new content reveals, a massive update trailer, cute exclusive merch, and even six special guests gathered from every server! Isn’t it exciting?
We’d love to meet every one of you and hand you gifts personally… but sadly, reality doesn’t work that way. Attendance is limited to 700 people, with one ticket per person, via pre-reservation. T-T

Don’t worry if you can’t attend in person! Just logging into the game during the event will grant you amazing 2nd anniversary rewards, so look forward to it~
This is just the early announcement, but I’ll be back in a week with full details. Until then, be sure to wait for me, your GM Versiz! Bye-bye for now~ ^_^
Event Date

July 16th, Saturday, 20XX – 10:00 to 19:00 (Live broadcast: 13:00–18:00)
Location & Reservation Info
To be announced

Event Content
New update reveal, Ranker Arena demos, 2nd Anniversary in-game events
Details coming soon

[New Content Showcase Participants]
Server 3 – [Bia] Honeybread (Holy Guardian)
Server 1 – [Jeopa] RealTank (Warrior)
Server 3 – [Bia] Massacre (Assassin)
Server 2 – [Bia] Calmly (Assassin)
Server 4 – [Jeopa] WhamAgainWhyNow (Cleric)
Server 3 – [Jeopa] Retaking a Class (Medic)