Chapter 58
Chapter 58
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: Recalled Memories
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"It's been one week since the Tale Management Bureau eliminated the tale 'Homeless Man in the Trash Can.' With nearly all reported tales that threatened civilians now eradicated, many citizens are finally enjoying a sense of stability after a long time..."
The anchor's voice sounded even brighter and crisper than usual today.
It's happy news for everyone, so she's probably in a good mood too.
"Auntie! That's great news!"
"Yeah, it really is!"
It's already been a week since that tale that nearly killed my niece disappeared. Time has flown by faster than I expected.
The bureau must have worked really hard.
Tae-jun probably did too.
"Auntie, I'm hungry!"
"Me too!"
"Okay, play for a bit? I'll make something quick."
The sun hasn't set yet, but the kids are hungry, and we have a guest today, so maybe I should show off a little and whip up some budae stew?
Come to think of it, it's been ages since I last made budae stew.
Lately, I've been so broke raising these kids.
Winning the lottery was truly a blessing.
This really is a peaceful daily life.
The tales that slaughtered people are gone, and SNS is full of nothing but happy posts.
Of course, the shop is still around.
Hm? The shop?
Oh, right. I might be running low on green onions.
I should leave a note for delivery.
For now, toss in some ham and assorted veggies, add our family's secret ingredient—cheese—and it should be about done.
Ramen noodles go in at the end.
And I feel like I'm forgetting something...
"Auntie... what's wrong?"
"Hm? Nothing,
wait, what?
Something feels off.
It feels like this can't just end like this.
Did I forget to add something?
Am I just tired today?
Yeah, that must be it.
Knock knock—
"It's me, A-ram."
"Oh! Just a sec!"
After the 'Homeless Man in the Trash Can' was dealt with, the bureau seems to have some downtime, so I'm glad Tae-jun accepted my invitation so readily.
"Ah, thanks for the green onions. You didn't have to."
"No big deal. There was a supermarket on the way."
"I heard your squad worked hard catching the Homeless Man in the Trash Can?"
"The squad leader and the others did most of the heavy lifting, not me."
"Still, you must have had a tough time too. Oh, food will be ready soon. By the way, it's budae stew—is that okay?"
"Yes, perfect. Thank you."
"Uncle! Hi!"
"Oh, hi..."
Tae-jun still seems awkward around the kids.
If he just hangs out with them more, they'd get along fine.
"A-ram, by the way... what happened to your hand?"
My hand?
My left hand has been missing fingers since birth.
Then why didn't I get it treated?
Oh... right. Raising my niece cost so much money, so I couldn't afford regeneration treatment.
But now I have plenty of money.
Maybe it's time.
"It's been like this since I was born."
"Pardon? But the first time I saw you, it was definitely..."
"Yes?"
"Ah, nothing. I must have misremembered."
Talking with Tae-jun is pretty fun.
It's tough scraping together interviews from uncooperative people every day and writing articles while getting flak.
There was someone like that recently too, but who remembers every single one?
"Anyway, I haven't been at the bureau long, but even before that, I was a victim. You can't imagine how relieved I was when we caught the Homeless Man in the Trash Can."
"Thank you so much for protecting my niece back then."
"Police uncle! Thank you!"
"Pfft."
He's not a cop anymore, but to the kids, Tae-jun will probably always be the police uncle.
The kids are playing with Tae-jun now, so I should finish cooking.
Budae stew alone feels a bit lacking, so maybe make something else too.
I need to look up some recipes.
Where's my phone...
Did I put it in the drawer?
"Hm? What's this?"
Blue... tissue?
"Wha— huh?"
It vanished suddenly.
This was from trading with the shop, right?
The shop?
What did I just say?
Do I mean the supermarket down the street, or the department store I visit sometimes?
No, neither sells blue tissue.
"Right! The Tale Shop!"
How could I have forgotten this?
I interviewed the merchant myself—the one my niece and Tae-jun encountered.
The one who gave me this blue tissue.
There was no 'Homeless Man in the Trash Can' tale to begin with.
How could I forget something this important?
But it's not just me.
The citizens, the media, the bureau—even Tae-jun—everyone forgot about the Tale Shop.
"Tae-jun, do you remember the Tale Shop?"
"Tale Shop? What's that? A new tale? I haven't heard any reports..."
Am I going crazy?
But it all feels so vivid!
I definitely traded my fingers at the shop.
That's why there was no time for treatment.
It's gone now, leaving just dust, but that blue tissue earlier is proof.
Yes, I'm not crazy.
"A-ram... is something wrong? Your face looks pale."
"I can't trust myself right now. Can you trust me, Tae-jun?"
"...Pardon?"
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ A-ram ran alongside Tae-jun.
Even so, as a reporter who'd chased down countless interviews, her stamina surpassed that of an ordinary person, so she wasn't much slower than him.
They could have used public transport.
But her workplace was close, and in this baffling situation, A-ram found it hard to trust anything except her own two feet.
Of course, to get there as fast as possible, the kids' dinner was downgraded to a blander budae stew, but it was an unavoidable sacrifice for the greater good.
Ignoring traffic lights and heightening the city's chaos, A-ram spotted a building of moderate size.
Her workplace—and the company that had taken the blue tissue.
That tissue must have done something to her, at least that's what A-ram thought.
By the altered history, she'd taken sick leave for a cold.
Her colleagues at the newsroom were puzzled by A-ram and the stranger's sudden arrival, but before they could ask, she was already bounding up the stairs.
Her goal: the blue tissue.
Not much time had passed, so the boss should still have it.
"A-ram, is this really okay?"
"You said you trusted me, right?"
"Well, yes, but..."
Tae-jun was plenty flustered by A-ram's inexplicable actions, but he decided to trust the serious expression she'd never shown since the day he saw her abused niece's wounds.
Soon, they reached the top floor—the president's office.
As a newspaper company, malicious visitors were common, so a few security guards stood watch, but their authority paled against the Tale Management Bureau's.
"Wh-what the?"
The president looked flustered as the door flew open.
Wasting no time on his question, A-ram silently rummaged through a nearby drawer.
"Hey! What are you doing?!"
The tissue was in a hidden compartment between bookshelves, packed with evidence of tax evasion and various scandals.
The president's mouth gaped wider than any tale's maw, but what A-ram pulled out wasn't that junk—it was the blue tissue.
"Tae-jun, here!"
The moment Tae-jun tore off a piece in confusion.
A faint unease washed over him, and his memories began reconstructing.
Memories slowly resurfacing.
He hadn't quit the police due to injury, nor was his fearlessness innate.
It was all because...
"Ah... I remember."
Of the Tale Shop.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ This incident was akin to a butterfly effect from overlapping coincidences.
First, the bureau's internet system had algorithms close to opinion manipulation, so the researcher's fabricated story spread rapidly.
Even so, a hastily made-up tale wouldn't have drawn much attention.
But the unique circumstances at the time amplified it.
The Tale Shop.
The unprecedented mass spread of a single tale focused citizens on the concept itself, extending even to the 'Homeless Man in the Trash Can.'
As a result, the tale that received far too much attention had no choice but to seize the slot of another tale to establish itself.
"Feels like I had a weird dream... but I can't remember."
The Merchant.
"Huh?"
A week had passed.
"What're you talking about?"
It means a week since you found that core embedded in the floor.
"That was yesterday?"
That's the mystery.
"?"
It was only natural that the Tale Shop, forgotten in people's memories, hadn't existed for about a week.
In the end, the two researchers' unintended noble experiment to eradicate the evil known as the Tale Shop for humanity's sake was thwarted by another diligent human's pursuit of the truth.