By Zephyria 301
However, Eui-jae had learned something from his part-time job experience: satisfying customer demand, especially since they were the ones asking for a favor. Eui-jae squeezed his eyes shut and stepped onto the red carpet. “Wow!” Exclamations and applause erupted. Min-gi Seo, who was following a step behind, whispered softly,
“Feels like you’ve become an actor.”
Is it fun?
Eui-jae didn’t respond to the childish sentiment. Min-gi Seo continued undeterred.
“Do you know anything about Professor Jang?”
“No.”
“Then let me tell you in advance. The professor is basically a kind person, but he experimented on himself and suffered some side effects…”
“Some?”
“His appearance is a little different from others. You’ll see when you meet him.”
At the end of the red carpet stood a small figure about Eui-jae’s waist height. What is it? Eui-jae tilted his head, examining him. A fluffy white beard reaching his collarbone, a round nose, round eyes, all round and round…
“Oh, welcome!”
A Santa Claus doll?
“……”
Eui-jae asked Min-gi Seo with his eyes. Could this person be…? Min-gi Seo nodded firmly and greeted the round old man.
“Professor Jang, how have you been?”
“Hehe, I’ve been well. Busy though.”
“Please direct any complaints about the workload to the Guild Master. First, let me introduce you. This is J.”
As Eui-jae bowed his head in greeting, a red blush rose on Professor Jang’s round face. His round eyes sparkled. He looked just like a cartoon character. Professor Jang chuckled and extended his hand.
“J! I’ve been wanting to meet you. I was so disappointed to hear you had visited here.”
“Ah, yes. I had some urgent business at the time and couldn’t visit.”
“It’s good that we’ve met now. Well then, shall we sit down and have some tea? Ah, but you can’t drink with that mask on?”
“I’ll just enjoy the aroma.”
“Yes, yes!”
Professor Jang clapped twice, and the researchers scurried to their places. Eui-jae watched Professor Jang’s retreating figure as he bustled away, then whispered to Min-gi Seo.
“…He’s quite cute, isn’t he?”
“Indeed. If he wore a red hat and suit, he’d be the very image of a cute Santa, which is a great help during the Christmas season.”
“May I ask what kind of experiment caused the side effects?”
“There’s a sad story behind that.”
Min-gi Seo slid his index finger under his sunglasses and pretended to wipe away tears.
“There was a sheep-type Monster discovered that grew hair quickly and infinitely. It was named Dolly. He was trying to create a hair growth and hair loss treatment from that creature’s byproducts when…”
“Ah.”
“He ended up with fluffy hair and a beard like a sheep, and a small, round, and cute body like a sheep. Originally, he was muscular and had a smooth head.”
“Ah.”
…Is that a relief?
Eui-jae scratched his head, watching Professor Jang scurrying around the lab, wagging his finger. Well, anyway, he achieved his goal of getting fluffy hair and a beard. Behind Professor Jang, two fluffy little sheep trotted along.
“Um, who are the two sheep following him?”
“Those are Dolly’s children. They follow the professor around like he’s their uncle. They’re not threatening, so we’re keeping them alive.”
As if the preparations for welcoming the guest were complete, Professor Jang gestured for them to come over. Eui-jae sat down on a wheeled chair that seemed to belong to one of the researchers. At the same time, a mini-Dolly jumped onto Eui-jae’s lap. It was soft and fluffy. Enough to make you want to bury your face in it!
Min-gi Seo gestured with his eyes, as if telling him to get to the point. Eui-jae stroked the soft fur and said,
“Actually, I want to open a closed Dungeon. I heard you’ve done a lot of research on it.”
“Oh? A Dungeon, you say?”
“Yes. Have you heard that all the Invasion Dungeon entrances have disappeared?”
“Yes, of course I know. I’ve also received information about the Guild Master not returning, and about Invasion… I mean, Whitening.”
Professor Jang pushed up his round glasses.
“What’s the reason? Is it for securing resources?”
“No.”
Eui-jae scratched behind the little sheep’s ear and said,
“I’m trying to get someone who’s trapped inside out.”
“……”
Professor Jang’s eyes widened. And then he smiled gently.
“I see… Don’t worry. I’ll do my best to help.”
That easily? Eui-jae blinked. Professor Jang rubbed his small, round hands together and muttered like a machine gun.
“It’s a perfect opportunity. No, I’ve been researching for years, and just when I thought clinical trials were possible, J bravely returned, so I couldn’t use it. Ah, I’m not blaming J. If we had been a little faster, that wouldn’t have happened. Haha.”
“Ha… Haha.”
“Anyway, I’ll do my best to help!”
“Ah, thank you. That’s reassuring.”
“But, would you like me to explain the principle behind it? Aren’t you curious? Huh?”
His round eyes sparkled. Just as Eui-jae was about to answer, something tugged at the bottom of his pants. Eui-jae glanced down. A small shadow doll was desperately pulling at the end of his pants, shaking its head violently. He looked to the side. Min-gi Seo was staring with wide eyes behind his sunglasses. The meaning was clear enough for even the most clueless person to understand.
‘Don’t even think about asking for an explanation.’
…It would be best to listen to Min-gi Seo. Eui-jae politely shook his head.
“Ah, the explanation is fine.”
“Oh, is that so…”
A noticeable look of disappointment clouded his round, cute face. Eui-jae tried to ignore the pricking of his conscience. Min-gi Seo skillfully changed the subject.
“Why don’t you tell J about the Guild Master? The two of them are very close. Opening the Dungeon is also to rescue the Guild Master.”
“Oh, so the rumor that they enjoyed playing tag at headquarters is true?”
The hand stroking the sheep’s wool stopped abruptly. He had barely managed to forget, but the nightmare of that time began to rise again. Just as murderous intent was about to creep out of Eui-jae’s body, Professor Jang stroked his beard and chuckled.
“No wonder you said the same thing as the Guild Master.”
“Yes?”
“Ah, that’s right. Would you like to follow me for a moment?”
Professor Jang bustled off somewhere. Min-gi Seo nodded, as if telling him to follow. Eui-jae held the little sheep in his arms and followed Professor Jang. He passed through the space where the researchers were gathered and went deep down the hallway. Finally, a firmly closed iron door appeared. Professor Jang opened the closed door with an old key.
There was a smell of old paper and dust. It was like a warehouse. Books made by binding paper were piled up, and plastic boxes were filled with videotapes, CDs, and portable storage devices.
Professor Jang pointed to the items.
“These are the materials that the Guild Master continued to investigate before and after creating the research team.”
“Investigated? What?”
“Basic knowledge such as the frequency and composition of Rifts, the phenomena that occur when they close, and information about the West Sea Rift… He collected everything he could.”
“…Personally? All of this here?”
“Yes. He brought them with him when he met me.”
Eui-jae picked up the one placed on top of the pile of papers. It was a file of newspaper articles.
「West Sea Rift, Completely Disappeared?」
A photo of the sea with a sunken center where the Rift entrance had disappeared was included. Eui-jae looked at other things as well. All of them were newspaper articles related to the West Sea Rift.
「Hero’s Death, Who is Responsible?」
There were also several photos of Ham Seok-jeong bowing in apology, and photos of J. In many places, there was familiar, neat handwriting. Lee Sa-young must have written it himself.
Professor Jang muttered.
“Opening a closed Rift… It’s an absurd thing, really. Who would have come up with such an idea? Once it’s closed, it’s gone.”
“……”
“But… The Guild Master who came to me was convinced. That he could do it. That J couldn’t be dead.”
Professor Jang originally taught physics at the university. However, after the Day of the Rift and the launch of the Awakened Management Bureau, he joined the Management Bureau as a researcher. It was to study the new laws of physics that had changed the world.
He quickly absorbed knowledge and became an authority on Rifts and Dungeons. But even he could not understand the West Sea Rift, which suddenly appeared and suddenly disappeared. It was the first defeat he had tasted since changing fields.
One day, Team Leader Jung-bin brought a dark stick-like guy.
The Hunter, who had appeared like a comet and taken first place, actually had a rather youthful face. He was tall like a beanpole, but even he was a little shorter than Professor Jang. Maybe around 180. It seems that not all Hunters are well-developed. Professor Jang said in a thick voice.
“He says he has something to ask me.”
“Yeah.”
“Lee Sa-young, you should use honorifics with your elders…”
“You said you researched the West Sea Rift. Right?”
The dark stick-like guy was rude, as if he was worth his face. However, Professor Jang answered instead of pointing out etiquette.
“Yes. I researched it.”
“Did you find anything?”
“No.”
“Results?”
“None.”
“Then start researching again. I’ll support all the funds.”
The dark stick-like guy slammed a heavy box on the desk. Professor Jang frowned and examined the contents of the box. It was various tapes, CDs, and newspaper clippings. Professor Jang scoffed.
“Are you a West Sea Rift fan? I’ve seen your collection. So, what am I supposed to research with this?”
“How to open a closed Rift.”
Professor Jang slowly raised his head. It was an absurd story. But he, who had already failed, was listening to the black stick-like guy in front of him. Lee Sa-young said in a clear voice.
“I’m going to get the person trapped in the Rift out.”