By Zephyria The smell of bread toasting wafted through the air. Lee Sa-young chuckled softly and said kindly,
“Go sit down, Hyung. I’ll be done soon.”
“Is there anything I can do?”
“Hmm….”
Instead of an answer, a playful gaze met his. Eui-jae narrowed his eyes in mock severity.
“Ahem.”
“Then put the plates and forks on the table.”
“Alright.”
His body moved familiarly. Glancing over, he saw Sa-young skillfully rolling an omelet. His technique for pouring the egg mixture was quite impressive. Eui-jae took out two plates from the cupboard. Just then, Sa-young put down the spatula and pressed his knuckles into his eyes.
Once again, his mouth moved on its own.
“…Your eyes hurt again?”
Again? Had Lee Sa-young’s eyes been hurting?
“Yeah….”
“Your medicine?”
“Not yet. I was going to take it after eating.”
“Go put in some eye drops at least. I’ll watch this.”
“…Are you sure? You’re not going to burn it again, are you?”
“If it looks like it, I’ll just hold it up.”
What a lame thing to say. He had the pride of a Hanover Soup Restaurant worker! Eui-jae, stung in his very confidence as a Hanover Soup Restaurant worker, was about to retort when.
Lee Sa-young replied with a groan.
“Ugh….”
Thump, a curly strand of hair brushed against his shoulder. A warm, solid body filled his arms. Eui-jae stroked his straight shoulder blades and back.
“Tell me if it still hurts after you put them in. Okay?”
“Okay….”
Sa-young put down the square frying pan and staggered out of the kitchen. Eui-jae watched his retreating figure with pity.
Lee Sa-young was Eui-jae’s sore spot.
Oh.
Cha Eui-jae had saved Lee Sa-young from dying after being covered in Poison, and he had detoxified him. He had researched Dungeon Monster byproducts and treated his melting skin. He was even living with him to take responsibility for the life he had saved. Everything was almost perfect. Except for one thing.
What was that?
Only one thing, Lee Sa-young’s eyes, he couldn’t completely heal them. Not only was his eyesight bad, but he also suffered from periodic pain. Like now.
Was it? My memory is a little different.
Breaking the flow of thought, nonsensical questions kept popping up.
Unbelievable.
Anyway, Eui-jae was working at the Awakened Management Bureau, looking for Dungeon byproducts or treatments that could cure Sa-young’s eyes.
Awakened Management Bureau?
He didn’t have any special plans today, so he was resting, but he had to rush out as soon as he got a call.
No, why me?
Suddenly, the white curtains fluttered wildly. Eui-jae blinked. He was precariously holding a square frying pan in one hand and two plates in the other. Eui-jae carefully placed the frying pan on the turned-off induction stove and then put the plates on the table. The pattern on the plates was purple violets.
Purple?
Come to think of it, why are Lee Sa-young’s eyes black? His eyes are such a clear purple that they can be seen even through the thick lenses of a Gas mask….
“Ah.”
His mind cleared as if he had been doused with cold water.
‘Shit.’
Bang! Eui-jae braced his hands on the table and lowered his head. His eyes were wide open. Once he regained his senses, everything felt foreign. Cold sweat trickled down his temples.
‘Where am I?’
Why had he been taking all of this for granted? A chill ran down his spine. Eui-jae rolled his eyes, trying to recall his last memory.
Cluck suddenly appearing, Jung-bin’s call. The news that Yoon Ga-eul’s Soul had been dragged to another world and that her life was in danger if this situation continued. Yoon Ga-eul appearing in his dream, leaving behind a Fragment, and disappearing. And….
Cha Eui-jae shattered the Fragment without hesitation.
‘This guy is really crazy.’
Thinking about it now, it was a hasty action as if he had been possessed by something. He could have at least finished business before Awakening! He didn’t even know how long it would take, and he did it in the middle of the store. What’s worse….
‘Wasn’t I wearing a mask?’
Eui-jae blankly stared at the grain pattern of the table and then ruffled his hair wildly. A silent scream escaped his lips. How was he going to deal with the aftermath!
It was then. A pure white rectangle appeared in his vision. The white screen flickered as if to greet him.
[Welcome, J!]
Not welcome.
Eui-jae ignored the System and continued to rack his brain. This place was probably the Destroyed world where Yoon Ga-eul’s Soul had been dragged to. Of course, it would be, since he had left the Fragment himself.
If so, what was the timeline? Eui-jae quickly went to the window and looked outside. A Black Hole spinning in the middle of the blue sky. It was after the Day of the Rift.
‘But the Fragment that Student Ga-eul showed me… wasn’t it a point in time after the destruction had already occurred, and they were preventing the destruction?’
Besides, Lee Sa-young in that Fragment was already Awakened, so this place where Cha Eui-jae was must be in the past compared to that Fragment.
Then why did he fall into this timeline of all times? What was the way to escape from here?
At that moment, a pure white window forced its way into Eui-jae’s vision.
[Would you like to confirm your current location?]
It was a tempting offer. Eui-jae narrowed his eyes and slowly read the contents.
Current location. It was necessary information, but…. Well, it couldn’t hurt to try. After all, everyone who needed to know already knew that J was alive and that he was J. Besides, there was very little information about this place.
Eui-jae nodded.
“Tell me.”
[Location Information: Memorial Dungeon (Creator: ???)]
Memorial Dungeon?
Eui-jae blinked. And he hurriedly looked around. This was a Dungeon? But he couldn’t feel even a hint of a Monster, so it didn’t seem like a Dungeon.
What was ‘Memorial’? The name of the Dungeon? But Dungeons were often given separate names, so it was ambiguous to see it that way. Besides, seeing the creator’s name attached to the end…. Eui-jae crossed his arms. It would be faster to ask the System.
“What’s a Memorial Dungeon?”
A new window popped up.
[Memorial Dungeon: A space recreated based on someone’s memories.]
Eui-jae tapped his arm. Was it a Dungeon recreated based on memories? If this place was a Dungeon, there would definitely be a way to clear it.
‘Like killing the Dungeon’s Master….’
“What’s the way to clear it?”
However, the System’s answer was unsatisfactory.
[It varies depending on the form of the Dungeon.]
Who doesn’t know that? Eui-jae gritted his teeth. The System never tells you the important things, now or then. Heat rose to his head. Eui-jae pressed his forehead and opened the half-open window wide, sticking his head out.
It seemed like there was a park in front of the house. The laughter of people taking a walk rang in his ears. Eui-jae rested his chin on his hand on the windowsill.
‘Different information than what I knew earlier popped into my head.’
Cha Eui-jae and Lee Sa-young were living together, Lee Sa-young’s treatment was successful, and Lee Sa-young had not yet Awakened. Lee Sa-young’s eye color was black. Things like that. That must be the memory of the person who recreated this Dungeon. And,
‘It’ll be a memory of a few days at most.’
Human memory is not perfect. The memory of the creator who created this space would be the same. So this Dungeon wouldn’t last long either. Eui-jae folded his fingers and sighed.
‘…I guess I have no choice but to spend a day here first?’
At that moment, the System Window flickered.
[Would you like to receive the 1st Place Special Reward?]
[▶Claim]
1st Place Special Reward? Eui-jae, who was searching his memories, widened his eyes and said, “Ah.” It was that thing he received on the day the rankings were updated, after doing something he shouldn’t have done at the funeral. Of course, Cha Eui-jae’s opinion wasn’t even 1g involved in that.
The thrill of being resurrected while sorting recycling was still vivid, so why was that window popping up now? Eui-jae asked nonchalantly.
“What’s the Special Reward?”
The System didn’t answer for a while and only showed a white screen. It only talks big. Eui-jae snorted and turned his head.
But,
[We will give you what you need most right now.]
Black letters carefully appeared.
It sounded like a cheap advertisement. What Cha Eui-jae needed most right now. What, were they going to give him an escape ticket or a weapon? Eui-jae rested his chin and reached out towards the System Window.
He doesn’t trust the System. He didn’t before, and he doesn’t now.
But, the reason his mind suddenly changed was….
“Okay….”
Was it because this space was too kind, or was it because of his anxiety? Or was it something else….
Eui-jae pressed Claim with his fingertip.
“Give me anything.”
Was it because of Cha Eui-jae’s intuition?
At that moment,
Thump!
He heard the sound of something heavy falling. The sound came from the direction where Lee Sa-young in this Dungeon had disappeared. Lee Sa-young, who said his eyes hurt.
‘Could it be that he collapsed because of the pain?’
Eui-jae crossed the hallway and stood in front of the tightly closed door. His heart was beating fast. He bit his dry lips painfully.
‘…No, he’ll be okay.’
Lee Sa-young in the Fragment that Ga-eul showed him had Awakened safely. He wouldn’t have any health problems here. But….
Eui-jae threw the door open.
“Lee Sa-young!”
It was a bathroom with white tiles. Sa-young was sitting on the floor with his upper body leaning over the sink. His tightly closed eyes and furrowed brow, and the cold sweat flowing over his pale skin, made him guess his pain. Eui-jae carefully cupped Sa-young’s cheek.
“Hey, are you okay? Open your eyes!”
Sa-young, who was groaning, slowly opened his eyes. The color of his pupils, which were visible through his narrowly furrowed eyes, was changing rapidly.
Black, purple, black, purple, black, purple, black….
Purple.
Eui-jae stopped breathing for a moment. The area around Lee Sa-young was dyed black. As if the graphics were breaking, something was breaking and distorting. And, the color of the sky-blue checkered apron that Lee Sa-young was wearing was gradually darkening. Finally, it appeared on his chest….
‘Soju brand Toad!’
The soju brand apron that should be hanging in the Hanover Soup Restaurant! Eui-jae opened his mouth and took a step back. He could instinctively sense it.
‘I’m screwed.’
The strength returned to his limp body in an instant. Lee Sa-young slowly blinked. His unfocused purple eyes scanned the surroundings, and then turned to Eui-jae, who was stuck to the bathroom wall like a lizard.
“……”
“……”
A heavy silence flowed. Eui-jae stealthily detached his body from the wall, faced Lee Sa-young, and then cleared his throat. He felt like he had to say something.
“…H-hi? Sa-young?”
A demon visited Lee Sa-young’s delicate and pretty face after hearing the friendly greeting. Lee Sa-young spat out in a low voice.
“…Again.”
“…Huh?”
“What did you do again, you piece of shit.”