By Zephyria As soon as he entered the room, his face flushed. The heat that started in his earlobes swept down his neck and lingered under his collarbone for a long time. Embarrassed. Ki Jae-eon bit his lower lip and recalled what had just happened.
‘I, Ki Jae-eon, will strive to be someone I am not ashamed of, putting my name on the line.’
……No, embarrassed!
His hand automatically grabbed his hair. As he tore at it, his knuckles turned red, making it look as if he had applied balsam dye.
But strangely enough… there was no regret.
The words he had heard today floated around inside him like an indelible afterimage. His father’s apology, the kindness that arrived late.
And, recognition.
Ki Jae-eon dropped the hand that had been tormenting his head and turned to the mirror on one side of his desk.
That face, which had always felt unfamiliar since he lost his memory, felt less unfamiliar today. In other words, the sense of alienation had faded. Why? Is it because of the recognition of himself? Well, I don’t know.
However, the important thing is… that the person in the mirror is no longer unpleasant.
‘You’ve always shone. And that light has changed me, us.’
While he was having a staring contest with himself in the mirror, his father’s words came to mind again. For a moment, he clenched his fist without realizing it. He gave it so much strength that his veins bulged and his knuckles turned white, then slowly released it.
“I have to strive.”
Ki Jae-eon moved his lips and took a breath.
In fact, strangely enough… emotions such as embarrassment, anger, and avoidance had disappeared like a handful of ashes in the face of his father’s words.
What appeared instead was the desire to ‘confirm.’
He wanted to confirm whether that ‘light’ was really his, or whether it was an illusion that someone had put on him.
‘Is it okay for a person to be so fickle?’
Ki Jae-eon quietly mocked himself.
He, who had so resented the people around him, saying that he had no intention of regaining his memory, was now…
‘I shouldn’t have said anything to Father.’
But now that he had realized that his judgment that he would collapse if he knew the past was a misjudgment, he should no longer run away. Now was the time to accept everything and move forward anew.
Above all, in order to do that.
‘I have to know.’
Yes, he had to face it squarely.
What kind of person was the ‘me’ who had changed everyone like this. No, what kind of person was I?
“I want to know what I’ve been doing all this time.”
He closed and opened his eyes once, and averted his gaze from the mirror.
In his heart, he was determined.
“Before dawn?”
“Yes.”
The day his father was leaving. The evening was awkward, but there was a strange peace in that awkwardness.
“Don’t skip meals.”
“……My father, too.”
The greeting was short.
However, that dryness also meant they knew each other well. As such, their silence wasn’t as heavy or sharp as it used to be.
“Take care of yourself.”
“…….”
“Have good dreams.”
“……Yes.”
With an awkward final greeting, his father moved away. The departure was hurried, disappearing before sunrise under the pretense of having things to prepare.
Ki Jae-eon finished all his tasks and returned to his room.
A strange mix of refreshment and regret washed over him.
Ki Jae-eon lay down on the bed and closed his eyes. The rustling sheets carried the familiar scent of fabric softener.
‘I’m sleepy…….’
Was it due to accumulated fatigue? Sleep came surprisingly easily. Ki Jae-eon wiggled his toes, surrendering to the drowsiness that had come over him.
‘Come to think of it…… Father never told me what kind of training he was doing until the end.’
Just before his consciousness crossed the threshold of sleep, a small sentence flashed in the air. Then, finally, his eyelids grew heavy.
………
………………
…………………….
Ah, is it here again?
Ki Jae-eon cautiously scanned his surroundings. The air was mixed with dust, mold, and the acrid smell of blood. And from far away, a piercing scream echoed like thunder.
Forcing his unmoving legs, he took a step forward. Then, like a scene from a movie, everything began to change rapidly.
A broken traffic light.
A street where no one walked.
A sky that seemed about to collapse at any moment.
No matter where he turned his gaze, it was desolate. Only the frames of buildings remained, mostly destroyed, and no trace of life could be found.
Then, what is that scream…….
It was at that moment, as he was questioning.
Beneath the colorless sky, a black form appeared.
A black wave.
No, a mass?
Dozens, hundreds, thousands of faces were stuck together, chattering like goldfish, and from between their parched lips came the scream he had heard earlier. But it was a terrible scream, more like beasts than people, more like nails scratching a chalkboard than beasts.
‘What on earth is that……!’
It was too light to be called a specter.
Then is it an evil god? No, it’s not.
It was closer to something raw…… yes, it was simply a disaster.
A being that evoked instinctive fear.
An overwhelming terror like a natural disaster.
Aaaaaaaah!
Screeeeeeeech!
Kyaaaaaaaah!
As it approached, the frames of the buildings shook like water.
It was stranger and more terrifying than any specter he had ever encountered.
What is it, what is it? What should I do?
Should I fight it? That thing? Me?
I’m not confident. I’m scared, I’m scared.
Just as his legs were about to tremble, a familiar voice reached his ear. A low and clear voice, but sounding as if it were echoing from a distant place.
“I wish—”
The monotonous phrase created a huge cluster of lights in the sky. Each one shone brightly. Soon, the tails of the lights grew long like lightning and began to race.
Meteors.
Beauti…ful.
This kind of sight, really.
I could watch it my whole life and never get tired of it.
It was when he was captivated by the sacred cluster of lights, forgetting even his fear.
Clang!
A clear metallic chime rang out nearby.
A sound that seemed to awaken his dazed mind.
Startled, he looked to where the sound came from and saw a corpse-like man standing there. A worn-out robe, bandages wrapped around his entire body, a gaunt frame.
And in his hand, a Mystical Instrument of bizarre shape.
……Who are you……
Before he could even ask who he was, the man tilted his head very slightly, then slowly raised the Mystical Instrument and slammed it into the ground.
Then, the nine rings attached to the Mystical Instrument rang out at once.
Clang- Clang- Clang!
Sounds of different pitches met and scattered at one point. At the same time, the man raised his eyes and stared at it. It was at that moment.
“I wish.”
Centered on the man, crack-like fissures spread out. As smooth and flowing as if drawn with a brush. The small details visible in between were also clean and without excess.
An infinitely perfect movement.
But in that perfection, Ki Jae-eon discovered a very familiar habit.
A posture he seemed to have seen somewhere before, a breath he seemed to have heard somewhere, the angle of his wrist.
Huh?
Ki Jae-eon’s eyes narrowed.
Forgetting his fear of it, he carefully examined the man.
Suddenly, he felt something drop in his chest.
It’s the same.
That man’s movements, they’re the same as mine.
He felt his heart beating fast. No matter how he looked at it, it wasn’t a mistake.
Ah, you are…….
Who on earth are you!
“I wish—”
But no matter how loudly he shouted, his voice would never reach the man. He was still, constantly, consistently looking only at that.
As if the reason for his life was that thing.
Hey! Look at me!
Is it you? The one calling me!
What’s the reason? Who are you, and why do you keep calling me to this world!
It was when he was screaming so hard that his head was ringing.
Finally, the man’s gaze rolled over to this side.
“…….”
The moment their black pupils met, the world quietly stopped.
As if someone had pressed the pause button.
“…….”
Hey?
“……Enough now.”
The man’s parched lips moved slowly, very slowly.
“Wake up.”
At the same time, the ground beneath his feet disappeared without any warning.
Ah! Before he could even be surprised, he fell into endless darkness.
However, what was strange was that the darkness enveloping his body was not scary at all.
Because the warm chimes continued to ring out.