213 – HGL 213

213

A little while ago.

Sa-young opened his eyes. A familiar landscape unfolded before him. A black and white beach. Another version of himself with lilac eyes.

The uninvited guest with lilac eyes nodded instead of greeting him. Swish, swish…. The gray sea moved slowly. The waves broke before they could reach his feet. Sa-young didn’t hide his displeasure. He crossed his arms and tilted his head.

“Weren’t you supposed to stop showing up?”

The uninvited guest slowly shook his head.

“I didn’t call you. You just got dragged in.”

The waves crashed behind the uninvited guest’s body. The uninvited guest had become quite transparent. No wonder, he’d been having thoughts that weren’t his lately. Lee Sa-young and Sa-young were slowly becoming one. He wasn’t sure if he liked it or not. Sa-young asked again.

“Dragged in?”

“Yes. Besides… you got a watch too.”

The uninvited guest gestured at Sa-young with his chin. Sa-young raised his right hand. A broken watch was on his wrist. The watch Hyung always wore. The fact that it was on his wrist meant….

“…Fuck.”

He didn’t know what was going on, but it wasn’t good news. A sinister aura emanated from Sa-young. The uninvited guest shrugged. Sa-young tried to take off the watch, but it wouldn’t come off. Like a shackle. He gritted his teeth and asked.

“Tell me how to get out.”

“Time has to pass. Until our consciousness recovers.”

Sa-young twisted his lips.

“Ha… you want me to wait for months? Again?”

“Not that long…. However.”

At that moment, his body felt terribly heavy. Like when he was bound by Jung-bin’s chains. A pain that made it hard to breathe came over him. Sa-young groaned softly and bent over. Thud, his knees hit the white sand. Sa-young knelt on all fours and grabbed the sand. It was hard to control his ability. Black Poison slowly leaked from all over his body. Sticky, black Poison dripped from his mouth.

The uninvited guest still looked at him with emotionless eyes.

“You have to wait. Until your Soul overcomes the fear of Doomsday.”

Overcome fear? A liquid, whether tears or Poison, ran down his cheek. Sa-young glared at the uninvited guest, his body trembling in pain. A cold voice came from his lips, trembling with pain.

“I don’t… have time.”

“That’s true. Doomsday is coming.”

“Figure out… a way.”

“Then… let’s do this.”

Shuffle…. The uninvited guest stepped on the sand and approached. Faint footprints were etched on the white beach. The uninvited guest, who was right in front of him, lowered himself to meet his gaze. A transparent finger touched Sa-young’s forehead.

“Let’s take a look at your subconscious.”

“Ha….”

What good would that do? The white beach was melting into black Poison. Sa-young, kneeling in the middle of the Poison, raised his head. Murderous intent flashed in his lilac eyes beneath his rough breaths and disheveled hair. The uninvited guest smiled. It was the same smile as Sa-young.

“Don’t you have a hole in your memory?”

“…….”

“Just as you saw my memories, I saw yours. There was a strangely blackened part…. Did you intentionally erase your memories?”

“…No.”

“Then why don’t we peel off the paint…. Forget the pain, and get to know yourself.”

Ah, so annoying. As expected of himself, every decision was in line with Lee Sa-young’s thoughts. If he had to endure it anyway, it was right to get as much information as possible. Even if greater pain came. Sa-young closed his eyes. A transparent finger dug sharply into his head.

Eui-jae fiddled with his cell phone. A text from Sa-young asking where he was. He was glad he seemed to have come to his senses. Eui-jae breathed a small sigh of relief. Should he send a text? Should he call? He felt like he had to hear his voice to be relieved. It was the moment he pressed the call button and put the phone to his ear.

“Oh my god! J, is that you?”

“…….”

A strangely familiar voice. Eui-jae snapped his head up. A woman was approaching through the crowd of people running away from J. Only she looked at J.

A white coat, long hair tied up in a single braid and fixed with a large clip. Round glasses. Slightly heeled pumps, a white coat and slacks with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows, and a researcher ID dangling from her neck. Even in this chaos, the coat was fluttering without a speck of dust or a drop of blood. Thud, the pumps stepped into a pool of blood without hesitation. Eui-jae stared at the woman’s face. It was familiar after all.

‘Where did I see her?’

The woman slowly raised her head. Her big eyes behind her round glasses were filled with laughter. It was a smile that was both fox-like and snake-like.

Where….

“…Ah.”

The woman with a confident face, her hands in her coat pockets. It was clear. She was older than he remembered….

‘The kid’s condition is getting better and better. The Antidote I developed seems to be working. It’s all thanks to J!’

‘I came to ask if J would like to go into the ward and see him in person starting today. You’ve always just looked at him through the glass.’

‘Oh, I’m not trying to pressure you, really! You can stay as long as you want!’

‘But are you going to keep calling him “the kid”?’

She was definitely a Potion-making Awakener. The director of the hospital had introduced her himself. One of the researchers who was in charge of Sa-young’s treatment. When everyone else couldn’t easily approach him, she was the first to approach him in a friendly manner. Eui-jae carefully brought out the name that was buried in his memory.

“Ga…young-ssi?”

“Oh my, oh my, you remember me!”

Ga-young clapped her hands and smiled brightly.

“I didn’t think you’d remember me. I’m honored.”

“How could I forget?”

“Really, we haven’t heard from you since you went into the West Sea Rift… everyone was so worried~ Are you okay? You seem to be okay if you’re walking around like this, right?”

“…Yes.”

“That’s a relief~ Really. And thank you.”

Ga-young smiled. There were many things he wanted to ask her. What happened to Lee Sa-young after he entered the West Sea Rift? Where did all the researchers who took care of Sa-young go? Why were all the hospital records deleted? Where have you been and how did you show up like this? Could it be that you….

Beep, beep, the signal tone continued for a long time.

A strangely ominous feeling kept blocking Eui-jae’s mouth. In the end, Eui-jae brushed the blood off the window and said.

“…It’s dangerous to be here.”

“Ah, yes, that’s right. Don’t worry about me. We’re evacuating everyone~”

Ga-young was still standing with both hands in her coat pockets. Eui-jae looked at the square card hanging around her neck. An employee ID. Ga-young, Samra Guild.

“…….”

Brown eyes scanned Eui-jae up and down as if searching for something. A faint howl could be heard in the distance. It seemed that the Monster that had been devouring humans had appeared elsewhere. Even though it was loud enough for civilians to hear, Ga-young didn’t seem afraid at all.

‘How can a non-combat production-type Awakened be so relaxed?’

Even if it was because she trusted J, it was strange that she didn’t have even a hint of fear. An ominous feeling was growing bigger and bigger. But Eui-jae spoke again. Hoping that the ominous feeling was wrong.

“…Why are you here? Did the Awakened Management Bureau give you instructions?”

“Awakened? Ah….”

Ga-young’s lively voice lowered slightly, and a mocking look appeared. Her curved eyes became thinner. She covered her mouth with her hand and replied.

“Of course not.”

“…….”

“Um~ By the way, who are you calling? The Director?”

“…….”

The signal tone was still ringing for a long time. There was no sign of him answering the phone. He had just sent a text. Eui-jae didn’t answer. Ga-young tilted her head, then raised the corners of her lips.

“Ah, are you perhaps calling Guild Leader Lee Sa-young? He can’t answer right now.”

“…….”

“Don’t you have a lot of questions to ask me? J.”

A mechanical voice flowed out. The customer is not answering the phone…. Eui-jae pressed end call and looked at Ga-young. Ga-young was standing on the blood. Confidently. She sighed exaggeratedly.

“I don’t know if you don’t know, or if you’re pretending not to know. I’d be a little disappointed if it’s the former. You’ve noticed, haven’t you? Or do you need time to deny reality?”

Eui-jae answered, suppressing his emotions as much as possible.

“I hope not.”

Haa, Ga-young sighed and rested her chin on her hand.

“Seriously, I thought this back then too…. You’re such a fool. I really like fools. It’s a shame you’re an Awakened.”

“…….”

“Well, it’s okay. I still have some old feelings for you….”

The Monster that had been howling in the distance let out a death cry. Kieeeek…. Ga-young hummed a little tune and whistled. Then, something thudded down behind her and appeared. The sound of sticky liquid dripping, drip, drip.

“I’m very grateful to you, so I’ll introduce you to this kid.”

Eui-jae turned around. Something huge, about two heads taller than Eui-jae, was staggering towards him. On the outside, it had limbs like a human. Except for its strangely long arms, its gait was similar to that of a human. The flesh that was glimpsed under the black cloak was horribly distorted and stitched together with different colors. On its head….

‘Gas mask….’

It was wearing a Gas mask. He couldn’t see its eyes through the lenses.

Every time it moved, black liquid dripped down. The asphalt that the liquid touched hissed and melted. Eui-jae had seen that kind of Poison before. It glanced at Eui-jae and then went to Ga-young’s side as if it had no interest in him. It knelt down in front of Ga-young with a thud. Ga-young smiled brightly.

“Good boy, did you handle it well?”

“Yes…….”

It nodded slowly. Ga-young was already wearing black leather gloves. Similar to the ones Sa-young wore. She smiled and stared at Eui-jae.

“Doesn’t it look familiar?”