By Zephyria 284
“Die in front of me.”
It was a voice so low it sent shivers down his spine. Eui-jae’s eyes widened. It was definitely a language he knew, but he couldn’t immediately understand it. Sa-young intertwined his fingers with Eui-jae’s.
“I’ll be watching you from the side. Until the moment your breath stops.”
“……”
“Don’t think about dying alone.”
It was a gentle threat. Eui-jae, unable to say anything, just moved his lips, finally spitting out the one word that filled his head.
“Why?”
“Why, you ask?”
A snort was heard.
“I don’t want to be a fool who doesn’t even know why you died.”
“……”
“And…”
A blunt fingertip lightly scratched his palm. A rustling sound was heard, and then, thump, the sound of a helmet falling to the floor. A sweet scent grew noticeably closer.
Soft hair tickled Eui-jae’s temple and ears. His cheek touched the cold, smooth mask. A small whisper, uttered after a long hesitation, came with it.
It’s lonely to be alone.
Eui-jae couldn’t dare to answer. The loneliness he hadn’t realized, the fear of death, and the other loneliness that was evident in the voice washed over him like a wave. Instead of answering with words, the lonely man raised his hand and embraced the back of the other lonely man. Sa-young curled up and hugged Eui-jae as if clinging to him.
It was strange. It was definitely a firm and broad back, but still….
“……”
He felt like he was holding a child. Like the boy who used to hug him as if Eui-jae was his whole world. Eui-jae closed his eyes, ignoring the tingling in his nose. The fear of death that had been dominating him seemed to have faded a little.
At that moment,
A pure white window appeared in the darkness.
[Warning! Synchronization Rate is decreasing.]
[Re-measuring Synchronization Rate….]
What?
Eui-jae opened his eyes wide. The Synchronization Rate had decreased. He was one step further away from the risk of dying together. Of course, he still couldn’t see anything. Eui-jae poked Sa-young, who was crumpled in his arms, in the back.
“Hey, hey, Lee Sa-young.”
“……What is it now.”
Sa-young asked in an annoyed voice. Judging by the strength he was putting into his arms and legs, he didn’t seem to have any intention of getting out of his embrace. Eui-jae hugged Sa-young, who was clinging to him like a koala, and racked his brains.
‘What’s causing the Synchronization Rate to drop?’
Is it because of Lee Sa-young after all? Because he’s remembering those days? The memory of leaving Lee Sa-young behind wouldn’t exist for ‘J’ in this world. Finally, his brain started working quickly. The influence of the poker face trait also seemed to have weakened a bit. Eui-jae moved his fingers.
‘I need to lower the Synchronization Rate even more.’
In a state consumed by ‘J’s despair and fear, he can’t do anything properly. Eui-jae hugged the clinging Sa-young and began to move his feet awkwardly. Sa-young, who was moving his feet along with him, snapped irritably.
“Can’t you just stay still? What are you trying to do now?”
“I have my reasons. Sa-young, just say anything.”
“Say anything? What kind of thing?”
“Anything is fine, really.”
“Do you think I’m a talking vending machine….”
Sa-young, who was muttering sullenly, rested his chin on Eui-jae’s shoulder and asked.
“Then…. what are you going to do when it’s over?”
“When what’s over?”
“When Doomsday is over.”
Eui-jae was the one who said to say anything, but still, this was….
“Isn’t that too far off?”
“We came all the way here to solve that, we need to think about the future. What are you going to do?”
Judging by the way he asked again, he didn’t seem likely to change the subject easily. In the end, he had to think about the answer to the question. The future. Eui-jae silently rolled the word on his tongue and pronounced it. It was an unfamiliar feeling. After Doomsday disappears, what will he be doing? He had never even thought about it.
No, he had thought about it. When he was with the boy. At that time, he thought about treating the boy, Lee Sa-young, and becoming a family and living together. But after the West Sea Rift, Eui-jae could no longer imagine such a future. After losing his only one, losing his aunt, and losing his colleagues, even living seemed like a luxury.
He pondered for a long time, but Eui-jae couldn’t come up with a suitable answer. Even if he tried to think of something, only the imminent death and the flickering shadows filled his mind.
In the end, Eui-jae shook his head.
“…I don’t know.”
“……”
“I’ve never thought about it.”
“Don’t you have anything that comes to mind?”
“Nope.”
“Well…. I figured.”
Sa-young sighed in his ear. Was he being sarcastic? Just as Eui-jae was about to snap back, Sa-young whispered in his ear.
“Then I’ll decide for you.”
In the time it took for him to shrug his shoulders at the tickling sensation in his ear, Sa-young began to unfold a grand plan.
“First, we take over the Hanover Soup Restaurant from your grandmother.”
“What?”
“And then we reopen it under Hyung’s name. Eui-jae Hangover Soup or something like that.”
“Wow….”
Eui-jae, who missed the timing to interject, unknowingly blurted out his true feelings.
“That sucks.”
“You’re saying your own name sucks…. Then J Hangover Soup.”
“No way. I feel like weirdos would flock to it.”
“Then I’ll lend you my name. Sa-young Hangover Soup.”
“I don’t think a single customer would come to that.”
“Bae Won-woo would come.”
“That’s true.”
“And with the money we make from the Hanover Soup Restaurant, we’ll send Ha-eun to college and buy a house.”
“……”
“Ah, I like houses with big living rooms.”
Eui-jae, who had been listening quietly to the future that Sa-young was deciding, asked awkwardly.
“Why is your taste coming out here?”
“Of course we have to live together. You’re not thinking of living separately, are you?”
“……”
Something soft touched Eui-jae’s shoulder. It seemed Sa-young had leaned his head on it. Eui-jae unconsciously reached out and stroked his hair. Thin, soft hair tangled between his fingers.
Taking over the Hanover Soup Restaurant, serving Hangover Soup to regulars, watching Ha-eun grow up, and living in the same house as Lee Sa-young. The future that Sa-young presented was all clear and easy to imagine. So much so that he wondered why he hadn’t been able to imagine such a clear picture.
[Warning! Synchronization Rate is decreasing.]
[Warning! Synchronization Rate is decreasing.]
[Warning! Synchronization Rate is decreasing.]
“……”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
Eui-jae also rested his chin on Sa-young’s shoulder.
“Tell me more.”
“What’s gotten into you.”
A voice mixed with laughter murmurs. Eui-jae decided to run away. He turned away from the fear of death and ran away from the relentlessly decreasing red numbers. And he listened to the future that Sa-young was painting.
It wasn’t a bad feeling.
Step, step…. The sound of three people’s footsteps echoed in the wide hallway. Each time the lantern in their hands swayed, a huge shadow flickered on the brick wall. The three shadows stopped before long.
“……”
Jung-bin raised the lantern he was holding. The end of the dark, long underground passage was dyed pure white. The red bricks were dyed pure white, and the concrete floor was also covered with pure white ash. It was erosion. Min-gi Seo, who was standing next to him, pushed up his sunglasses.
“It’s progressed even further than before we contacted Team Leader.”
Jongno 3-ga Underground Dungeon. After J and Lee Sa-young entered and communication was lost, Wave Guild checked the state of the Dungeon from time to time. And a few hours ago, Min-gi Seo confirmed that white ash and white vines were protruding from outside the Portal, and immediately contacted Jung-bin.
“……”
Krrr, a beast’s cry echoed. Jung-bin searched for the source of the sound. He could hear rustling sounds from inside the management outpost covered in white ash and vines. Jung-bin signaled to the rear not to approach and then moved closer.
At that moment,
Kwah-ah-ng―!!
A beast’s foot covered in white fur slammed down on the glass window. Crack, crack, cracks began to form on the thick glass window, and then, clang― it broke with a sharp sound.
At the same time, a hand that suddenly popped out over Jung-bin’s shoulder grabbed the huge foot tightly. A sly, sarcastic voice said.
“Geez~ you’re so fearless. You’re not even thinking of dodging? You’re a mess in front of Monsters.”
Jung-bin glanced to the side. Gyu-Gyu, Ban Gyu-min, was staring at him with a grinning face. Jung-bin brushed off the glass shards that had splattered on his jacket and responded with a gentle smile.
“Haha, anyone who heard that would think I’m an incompetent public official who can’t even handle one Monster properly.”
“Oh? Isn’t that the case?”
“I can handle getting hit by this much just fine. I can dodge too. Then….”
Jung-bin lowered his head under the arm holding the Monster and slipped out smoothly. Then he took out a small notebook and a fountain pen from his suit pocket.
“Since you’ve caught it, please hold on tight. There’s something I need to check.”
“Ehhh.”
“Very Small Miracle Mingi Seo, did you bring the camera?”
“Yes. Should I take a picture?”
“Please do.”
Click, click, the camera flash went off. Jung-bin examined the shape of the Monster. Its entire body was covered in white fur, and its shape was closer to a human than an animal. If he had to classify it, it would be a Yeti type. Judging by the torn clothes and broken cell phone around it….
“It seems like a poor human couldn’t escape and mutated~”
“……”
At that time, a clear blue color could be seen through the fur. Jung-bin removed the glass shards attached to the frame and reached out towards the Yeti’s neck and rummaged around. Buried in the thick fur, a public official ID card attached to a blue string appeared. He couldn’t recognize it perfectly because of the white stains, but the five letters were clearly visible.
[Rift Management Bureau]
“……”
It was then.
Swish, swish…….
The white vines covering the red bricks began to stretch out.