Chapter 82
Chapter 82
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 82
Chapter Title: Echoes of a Doomed Future
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Like the angel had once said, the opportunity arrived without any warning whatsoever, delving deep into Tae-jun's psyche.
It was a truly bizarre sensation—like peering directly into the future, especially a future that shouldn't even exist.
Memories raced past at a speed as if they were swimming through the gaps between them.
Sometimes they slipped away before he could even commit them to memory, leaving only fragments rampaging wildly through Tae-jun's mind.
At some point, the metallic tang of blood unique to those memories began to seep out.
"Ahh! T-Tae-jun, no!"
Who was that man called Shin Jin-seong?
It was definitely a name he'd heard somewhere before.
And why was he calling out Tae-jun's name with such desperate anguish? Doubts leaked through the cracks in Tae-jun's fractured mind.
"Blood..."
Blood?
Yes, blood.
Only then did Tae-jun realize that thick blood was pooling at the corners of his mouth.
Confirming that his lower body had been completely crushed was a given.
The sky blazed eternally in red, and in the place where the sun should have been, a massive eye blinked its eyelids, staring down at Tae-jun.
Tae-jun weakly raised one hand and flipped off the sky with his middle finger.
"Fuck, damn it. It just eats at me that I couldn't do shit to that bastard."
Beside him, Shin Jin-seong powerlessly watched his last friend's final moments.
"Hah, ha... Shin Jin-seong."
Shin Jin-seong slowly nodded.
"Do you remember... what I said before?"
"...What?"
"About turning back the world."
As the end of the memory approached, it began to crumble.
First, the red sky blurred into a hazy twilight before finally wiping away completely, and the utterly collapsed buildings in the distance began to hide their skeletal frames.
They were conversing slowly but surely, yet their words didn't reach him.
"I'll give you... my watch. Return it to me someday."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Hah!"
The place where Tae-jun opened his eyes was a cave where blue light bent through the cracks.
There was no one around except him, and it felt like he was inside the crystal orb.
A sensation like waking from a vivid dream crawled up his spine.
It was utterly chilling—something he never wanted to experience again.
"Was what I saw the truth?"
Like any other dream, the faces of the characters had already distorted like ink blots, and all details had vanished. But he remembered seeing something important.
Among them, the name 'Shin Jin-seong' stuck absolutely in his mind. After waking, it carried a strange sense of nostalgia.
It was definitely a name he'd heard recently.
"Probably the name Squad Leader kept shouting when he returned after passing out."
The fact that this had happened to him felt contrived, leaving him displeased.
"First things first, I need to get out of here."
It felt like he was inside an underwater cave.
There were only water droplets clinging to the cave walls, but the emanating blue light still induced that illusion.
Tae-jun started walking along the only path extending outward.
This time, he wouldn't make the same mistake as when he'd touched the crystal orb carelessly, like a momentary idiot.
Tae-jun focused his entire mind, observing his surroundings.
The cave made it impossible to tell which direction he was heading.
The elevation kept changing, and the path twisted left and right repeatedly. If this were reality, there'd be tons of lost explorers.
"If this is a tale like that department store back then, I'm in deep shit."
The best scenario was walking straight out like this. The second was some monster popping out that he could kill to escape.
The worst was being trapped until fulfilling some unknown condition.
"Looks like the worst case."
Tae-jun sighed.
The moment he'd touched the crystal orb, his lost sense of fear had meshed with it, preventing him from sensing anything unusual.
It felt as if it was destined to unfold that way from the start.
Of course, thanks to it, he'd gotten a hint on who to give the watch to. But in reality, no one knew what would happen upon touching the crystal orb.
"In the end, I ended up here..."
Tae-jun was also worried about Aram.
For a civilian trapped in a place like this, escaping would be next to a miracle.
For now, there were no obvious hints nearby.
It was truly just an endless cave.
No sounds could be heard—only the acrid smell of damp, water-soaked dust.
"The overall situation is similar to the department store. Since I'm feeling hungry, it doesn't look like I have much time."
And Tae-jun's words were spot on.
Water was starting to fill the cave.
Tae-jun had no superpowers like underwater breathing, so it was definitely a dire situation.
His brain spun rapidly.
After a brief deliberation, a thought struck him.
Is this really reality?
The future he'd seen moments ago had felt like a dream.
Then maybe he's still inside a dream?
Tae-jun placed his hand on the cave wall.
What is a dream? A magical place where everything you imagine comes true.
Combined with the truly magical power of a tale, nothing is impossible. Tae-jun judged thus and conjured one thought.
"Isn't there a door here?"
In that instant, a door appeared without logic.
But it was just a door—not connected to anywhere.
"This door is connected to reality."
Tae-jun distorted his own thought.
When he opened the door again, the cold cave wall that had greeted him was gone, replaced by some unknown asphalt ground.
Tae-jun jumped inside without hesitation.
"Ah..."
Tae-jun also realized.
"I'm still in a dream."
The burning sky he'd seen moments ago came into view.
Scorching heat warmed his body, but he had no time to care.
"Eye..."
The massive eyeball floating in place of the sun was surreal.
It was truly unreal, but before history was altered, it must have been reality.
Soon, the eye turned to Tae-jun.
The pupil dilated, and it smiled with its eye.
"Graaaah!"
His body changed.
The pain, as if his DNA from its very origin was mutating, was eerily identical to something he'd felt before.
The agony from being stabbed by Lee Young-gil's knife.
"Aaaaagh!"
But the intensity was on another level.
Malice toward the human species scorched his body, but as if toying with him, it didn't let him die easily.
He passed out from the pain, opened his eyes again, and the torment continued unabated.
The endless hell made Tae-jun crave death.
Unknown liquid drooled from his mouth, and his body convulsed.
Soon, a stone slightly smaller than his fist appeared in his hand.
No time to hesitate.
Tae-jun raised the stone and smashed it into his own head.
But he didn't die in one blow.
Without a moment's pause, Tae-jun kept bringing the stone down.
Blood splattered, and brains oozed out.
Now, just one more strike—just one more—and he could die.
Hope.
Death breeds hope.
Feeling a glimmer of happiness, Tae-jun put all his strength into smashing the stone toward his head.
But only a squishy sensation met him; no peace of mind followed.
Tae-jun forcibly lifted his eyelids, feeling a rough resistance.
Only then did he realize his body had turned into something like green jelly.
The concept of death had vanished.
No strength entered his body, yet the soul-tearing pain persisted.
But death was not permitted to him.
Tae-jun screamed and wailed.
No sound came out.
The organ called a mouth had long since disappeared.
A deep despair unlike any he'd felt before came riding the wind.
Tae-jun felt a fresh emotion.
This must surely be fear.
Yes.
Tae-jun felt fear.
I want to die.
I want to live.
I'm scared.
It's terrifying.
All human emotions crashed in chaotically.
Tae-jun remembered.
This is a dream.
Dreams can be woken from.
But can a dream exist where pain and hunger are felt?
Maybe this is actually reality?
Tae-jun thought.
Such a horrific world can't be reality.
He composed his mind.
Even as his tongue twisted and toes curled, he had to ignore it.
He just had to maintain calm.
The pain ceased to be pain, and his body returned to the realm of nothingness.
And when Tae-jun opened his eyes again, he was inside the fortune teller's shop.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ When Se-jin hurriedly rushed into the bureau, what she saw was Do-hyun, half-dead and hooked up to all sorts of medical equipment.
Fortunately, he hadn't died, but Woo-seok claimed it would take quite a long time for him to wake up.
Se-jin felt boundless rage, while at the same time having no clue how to handle the situation.
Since it was an incident inside the bureau, the repercussions were massive.
Including the Headquarters Chief, all sorts of high-ranking officials descended for a detailed investigation, and the danger level surpassed your average case.
Se-jin crouched in one corner of the office, where traces of the fierce battle still lingered.
When she presented the document she'd found, the Headquarters Chief asked if she'd read it, then hurriedly headed to another floor.
No one knew when Do-hyun would wake, and Tae-jun had to focus on rehab.
"Ah... This is fucked."
Ding—the elevator door opened.
At that moment, the elevator opened, and a man who had no business being here stepped out.
"Squad Leader! Who the hell is Shin Jin-seong?!"
It was Tae-jun, with a slightly altered aura.