Family. (3)
......I dreamed of the distant past. A cramped room where I lived with my family. The memory was fleeting, like a shattering sunset, incomplete in every instant—yet undeniably beautiful.
I, too, once had a family.
"......"
I opened my eyes. The blazing sun poured down its rays. Dazzled, I shaded them with my hand.
I was in a meadow. Gentle winds swept the grass, cicadas chirped shrilly, and trees rustled, shedding leaves.
Tatata— tatata—
As I scanned the scenery, cute little footsteps came pattering from somewhere.
"Big bro~"
A childish, adorable call.
I turned toward it.
"Big bro~ Where are yooou~?"
About six years old, perhaps. Her tongue still clumsy, but I knew her at once.
A natural smile spread across my face.
"Big brooo~"
It was Yeriel. She'd run right into the middle of the forest looking for her big brother.
I murmured like a sigh.
"Yeriel's memory, huh."
The diary's 'security mechanism' or whatever had pulled me into this recollection.
"Big brooo......"
After peering around for a good while, Yeriel stuck a finger in her mouth and bowed her head sadly.
And then.
"......Can't find him!"
She shouted with gusto. I barely stifled a burst of laughter at the sudden outburst.
"Can't find him, you dummy! Dummy!"
Of course, no reply came. Only her cries echoed lonely in the air.
"My big bro's the best~ Can't find him anywhere~"
Yeriel lavished praise on her brother.
I envied that brother, whoever he was.
"Can't find him!"
"......"
"Can't fiiind him~!"
Yeriel wandered back and forth alone, repeating her "can't find him" cries.
"Big bro......?"
She kept walking. Small steps—thud thud—thud thud—but as the forest deepened, she suddenly looked back.
"......"
It was just woods. She'd come too far; even the way back was gone.
"......Uuugh."
Terror made Yeriel backpedal. Tears welled in her eyes, her grip tightening on her dress hem.
"Waaah......"
Tsk.
Right before the crying bomb detonated.
I stood from the ground and approached her.
"Ah, big bro......?"
Sensing me, Yeriel's face lit up—then she flinched back upon seeing who I was. Porcupine mode: full spines out.
"......Who are you."
I placed a hand on her little head.
"Gotcha."
"......Huh?"
Yeriel tilted her head, staring up with huge eyes.
Her innocent reaction made me realize belatedly.
"Oh, right. You're the one who gets caught. I'm the one hiding."
Suddenly dropped here, my mind was a bit foggy. My head hurt, too.
"Whatcha doin'? Lemme go! Gotta find big bro, I said!"
She wriggled free. I scratched my nape and said,
"Probably not there."
"Huh? Why?"
"......Your brother suggested hide-and-seek 'cause you're a pain. He ditched you to search alone."
Deculein and Yeriel's game of hide-and-seek.
I wasn't Deculein, but somehow I grasped the truth.
"He probably snuck out to play by himself."
"......"
Yeriel's face fell in shock. Betrayed by the world at six years old—but she soon shook her head vigorously.
"N-No! He wouldn't!"
"......"
"He wouldn't! Big bro! Big bro~! There's a weirdo here!"
She bolted on short legs.
I followed, calculating the local 'mana density.'
"Waaah! He's following! Don't follow meee!"
"Just walking."
What kind of magical phenomenon this was, I still didn't know......
But oddly, my heart felt light.
Yeriel flails her short legs and runs off.
I follow her, calculating the local 'mana density.'
What kind of magical phenomenon this is, I still don't know...... but oddly, my heart feels light.
"What the......"
Yeriel read the line recorded in the notebook titled Deculein.
This meant Deculein had turned into a notebook, just like the other retainers.
"......Was that Deculein just now?"
"Indeed."
The diary resembling Deculein answered. Yeriel furrowed her brow and brandished the notebook.
"Then why's my story in here? Why'd Deculein meet 'little Yeriel'?"
"This artifact's world follows its 'own magical laws.'"
"Fuck, explain properly! Who understands that shit—"
"Deculein entered via you—your diary. The security mechanism recorded him. Thus, he's in 'Yeriel's memory.'"
It replied.
Yeriel's mind blanked for a moment. Her head spun.
"Then how'd Deculein get in? No key."
"Diaries were made in pairs. Open one door, the other opens too."
"......"
Yeriel's jaw dropped. She'd never opened hers; she'd never dreamed of this mechanism.
"Then how do I undo the recording?"
"Why undo it?"
"......What?"
Yeriel's eyebrow twitched. It continued dryly.
"Don't you want succession? Leave Deculein like this, the headship's yours."
"......"
Yeriel didn't reply. She just glared silently at the humanoid artifact.
It pressed on.
"If judgment's hard, see Deculein yourself."
"Me?"
"Recorded beings reveal thoughts and desires more honestly. 'Internalization,' they call it."
"......"
"Behold Deculein's record. His shell-less desires lie there."
Yeriel bit her lip hard. She picked up Deculein's notebook.
......Little Yeriel built a mud castle with magic. Little Yeriel bragged, Tada~! I laughed.
The two had grown close somehow. Brow furrowed, Yeriel read on.
I praised her, and little Yeriel said, "Heh! My big bro's waaay more amazing than me! He's already learning university magic!"
"......"
The record—Deculein turned to text.
Peering closely, Yeriel spotted an odd word.
Being with her reminded me of when I was ■■■.
"What's this? One word's broken?"
"Impossible. You misread."
"No......"
Meanwhile, pages flipped on their own; thoughts wrote themselves fast, overwriting the prior bit.
"Fuck it. Useless."
"Your eyes are the problem."
Abandoning the question, Yeriel read on.
Better I play with her a bit than leave her to hide-and-seek alone.
At that line, a thought struck: What if?
"Hide-and-seek alone...... I remember that."
Yeriel knew this memory.
Hide-and-seek, all alone.
One of her deepest scars among countless recollections.
That day, Deculein had ditched her under pretense of the game; she'd wandered lost in the woods for two days.
Too painful a memory.
Yeriel asked the diary.
"Where's my memory? If paired diaries, mine should be here too, not just Deculein's."
"Opposite corridor."
She turned left down the hall.
As promised, frames crammed the walls—her memories inside, each with a title below.
The Day I First Learned Etiquette
I Got the Switch
The Magic I First Showed Oppa......
Childhood was mostly Deculein-related. She'd leaned on him so much back then; hence the silly titles.
"......Ah."
Then she found it.
"This one."
My Lonely Hide-and-Seek
The frame's scene: the forest heart where she'd lost her way.
Peering in absently, Yeriel's eyes widened.
"......!"
She'd wandered alone that day—a painful memory.
—I can do this too!
—Oh. Impressive.
Yet there, beside child-Yeriel, stood Deculein.
"What if......"
Stunned, Yeriel drew Yukline's Key from her bosom.
Slowly, she inserted it into the frame.
Click!
The key caught somewhere inside.
Sure enough, in this diary world, Yukline's Key was the master key.
Clunk!
Yeriel twisted it like a doorknob.
Her whole body sucked into the frame.
"Eek!"
Whooooosh—!
A soul-shifting spatial warp. Directions stretched and shrank like rubber bands—nauseating distortion everywhere.
Motion sickness hit amid the churning.
"Urgh......"
Enduring the dizziness, she opened her eyes.
"......?"
Yeriel discovered her shrunken self.
She looked around blankly.
Clear sun from the frame above; mud castle child-Yeriel had magicked on the ground; and right before her eyes.
"Don't you need to go home?"
A kind-faced Deculein.
A face he'd never shown her in life.
Yeriel's heart skipped—but she nodded.
"Plenty of time left. What about you, mister......?"
*
"Plenty of time left. What about you, mister......?"
I eyed Yeriel, brow slightly furrowed. She flinched back, scared.
"......Mister?"
"Y-Yes, y-yes, yep......"
Her lisping voice was cute; I chuckled.
From her view, I was an old guy.
"Dunno when I'll leave. Looking for a way home, actually."
"Aha......"
I regarded Yeriel. She'd been bragging magic moments ago; now she plopped down with a thud.
"But...... do you have a little sister, mister?"
She switched topics abruptly. A heavy one.
I smiled wryly and nodded.
"Yeah."
"Oh...... then...... do you hate your sister too?"
Her voice dropped, heavy. Suddenly melancholic.
Well, kids this age have wild mood swings. The memory recreation was too vivid.
"......Dunno."
I gazed at the clear sky.
My heart felt at ease.
Come to think, I'd sat in this grass the whole time? Clothes all rumpled, but no discomfort.
Somehow...... like I'd become Kim Woojin again.
"Yeah. True."
I answered. Child-Yeriel yanked at innocent grass. Glancing at her, I continued.
"Back then."
"......?"
Yeriel turned, eyes round in surprise.
"Back then, I hated her. Despised her, even. But......"
I thought of her.
My little sister.
The child who'd left this world too young, too soon.
Aging me versus her—forever young.
"Not anymore."
"......Huh?"
Yeriel seemed flustered.
I ruffled her hair—unthinkable before. Might as well flop onto the grass.
The blue sky like a blanket descending.
"S-So, you like her now?"
Yeriel asked again, knees hugged tight.
I replied.
"......Yeah."
"How muuuch......?"
Kid logic—childish question.
"Pfft."
I snickered; she narrowed her eyes and snapped.
"Don't laugh!"
"......Dunno. How much?"
I paused. Child-Yeriel held her breath. Her reaction was cute.
"Enough to give up my dreams for her?"
Keep chasing 'painter,' and she'd have starved.
Her dreams mattered more than mine.
"......"
No answer. Yeriel fell silent long.
Shwaaaa...... Wind slipped into my collar, tousling hair.
Refreshing.
At last, Yeriel spoke—thin, fading voice.
"......I see."
"Yeah."
"But...... why'd you hate her?"
"......"
That touched my reverse scale.
I'd never told a soul the reason.
Just speaking it felt sinful—too painful.
But......
"What was it......? 'Cause my big bro...... hates me too......"
Her sad words tugged my heart. I turned to child-Yeriel.
Just a memory recreation, this little one.
"......I thought she'd stolen the person I loved. Back then."
"The person you loved?"
"Yeah."
Mom died birthing her. Dad grieved into cancer five years later.
Orphaned me left with a barely-talking six-year-old.
A burden.
The one who'd taken everything.
Yet became my everything.
I realized it too late—then she left first.
"Foolish, huh. Lots of regrets."
"......"
Maybe why I didn't hate Yeriel. She wasn't my real sister, could never replace her, shouldn't......
Even so.
I looked at Yeriel. Near tears. Recalling her own past from my words?
"So, don't worry."
Hand on her little head. She trembled. Ears drooping like a scared pup.
"Someday, your brother will like you too."
"......"
Yeriel said nothing. Just sprang up and ran off somewhere.
I reached—but poof! Yeriel vanished.
"......That's where the record ends, huh."
Makes sense; diary memory wouldn't last forever.
So thinking, I stood.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, rain fell.
Platter platter......
Rain from a clear sky. I cupped some, licked.
"What is this?"
Salty.
How's rainwater salty?
Brow furrowed instinctively—but a laugh escaped too.
"Pfft."
I exhaled deeply.
"Haaaaah......"
Heart at peace. The crushing weight of being Deculein lifted—refreshing. First time in ages standing purely as Kim Woojin.
"But...... that's that."
I scratched my nape.
"How do I get out?"
Time to think escape.
* * *
Yeriel fled her memory. Leaned against the wall, clutching her chest.
"No way......"
Deculein's words to her still echoed. Whispering relentlessly, refusing to fade.
"How......"
With trembling hands, she reopened the Deculein notebook. Midway, it recorded.
Yeriel vanished. Makes sense; diary memory wouldn't last forever.
Drip—
A teardrop hit the notebook, smearing the page. Unconscious.
Yeriel startled, looked up.
"......Huh."
The diary recorded that too.
Sudden rain from clear sky. Cupped some—salty taste.
"Don't eat it, idiot...... It's my tears. Ridiculous. You hate dirty things."
Yeriel laughed weakly. Reading Deculein's thoughts stopped her tears quick.
Heart at peace. Crushing Deculein-weight lifted—refreshing. First in ages, purely ■■■.
Deculein-weight—she empathized there, but frowned at ■■■.
Why's this three letters always censored?
"Yeriel."
The diary approached.
No matter how you sliced it, not diary-like—but it spoke.
"Decided?"
"Yeah."
Yeriel nodded firmly. It said,
"Then speak."
"I'm going back. To Deculein, my brother, everyone."
"......Going back?"
It furrowed its brow.
"Don't you want succession?"
"......Dunno."
Deculein had said:
—Enough to give up my dreams for her?
She didn't know the dream details.
But Yeriel knew now: her massive misconception all along.
"Doesn't matter now. Talk after I return."
Plenty unresolved—like Ganesha's request.
But that was secondary.
Ask him directly.
"You'll regret it."
"......What?"
The diary spouted nonsense. Brow furrowed, Yeriel glanced at Deculein's notebook absently.
......On reflection, that 'diary' thing ain't a diary. Dangerous bastard.
Yeriel kept poker face. But the 'diary' now glared murderously.
"You'll regret it."
Clutching her key, Yeriel shook her head.
"Won't."
"No. You will."
"......You really a diary? Defying your master? Wanna die?"
"......"
Its gaze reddened. Yeriel flinched back.
"I'm Dikailen's learning intelligence. Master tasked me with 'succession fitness evaluation' as top priority."
"What?"
"Result: both disqualified."
Mana rippled from it—no, not mana.
Demonic Energy.
Backing away one step, two, Yeriel asked.
"......Both out—what happens?"
"I, the learning intelligence, take your personas. I'm most like Master—better successor than you flawed ones."
Absurdity shocked her—but she bellowed.
"Fuck off, you shithead!"
"I'll seize your body."
"Magic-made punk, who you think you are!"
"Hundreds of times superior to succession-shy you."
Tentacles sprouted from its back. Yeriel gritted teeth.
Big talk aside, its Demonic Energy reeked dangerously high.
"Surrender your body."
Kwaaaaah—!
Tentacles lashed. Yeriel spun and sprinted down the hall. Drew Deculein's notebook—hoping he knew the answer.
Kugugugugu—!
Tentacles smashed walls, pursuing madly. Notebook filled with text, but too complex to parse while running.
Kuuuung—!
A tentacle burst through the wall, blocking her.
No choice—Yeriel jammed the key into a random memory frame.
Dove through yelling,
"Brother—!"