We Will Be Together Forever (8)
After the brief scuffle caused by the sudden curse, I hurriedly turned my attention to Jung Hayan.
Her face looked a little worse than I’d expected.
“Aaaaaaaaah!”
It worked.
It might be a little shocking, I suppose, but the story had been arranged with a decent beginning, middle, and end.
It might be a little hard for her to endure, though.
This is the right answer.
It absolutely had to be. Of course, if she were acting like her usual self, she might not have reacted this way.
The fact that she’d been in such a state of confusion ever since entering this dungeon was all because of the curse.
If I thought of this as shock therapy, then I could at least nod along with it.
Her face was a mess of tears, and she was clawing at her own disheveled hair.
Of course, the others weren’t exactly in great shape either, but anyone could see that Jung Hayan’s condition was the most serious.
For now, all I could do was grip Jung Hayan’s hand tightly.
“No! No!”
What kind of strength is that…?
After shaking off my hand, she immediately tried to hurt herself.
Since she was strangling herself, I yanked her hand away with all my strength.
She was coughing and gagging, but at least she was still managing to keep herself breathing.
After tightening my grip on her hand again, I kissed her once more, and little by little, she began to come back to her senses.
“Aaaah….”
“…….”
“H-huuhhh.”
Her bewildered expression shifted into one of shock, and tears welled up in the eyes that were finally looking at my face properly.
“Oppa…? Oppa….”
She ran her hands over my face and then over my entire body, checking me over as if she couldn’t believe I was really there.
I supposed that reaction was only natural. The last thing she’d seen of me must have been absolutely pitiful.
“I came back.”
“What…?”
“I came back. I came back. H-huuuh… I’m back…. You’re back.”
“What are you talking about, Hayan?”
“It’s nothing, it’s really nothing. Nothing at all. Huuuh… I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry I’m such an idiot.”
Good.
“What are you apologizing for? I’m fine…. Are you all right? Did you see something?”
“No. It wasn’t anything like a curse. It was all my fault. All of it. I’m sorry, Oppa. I’m really sorry for acting on my own. Huuuh… Please don’t hate me.”
There’s no way I’d hate you.
From the start, I had never once hated Jung Hayan.
Of course, I did think she’d gone a little too far this time, but that was entirely due to the curse.
Honestly, I was almost grateful that I’d been able to shove an illusion into the cracks of her worn-down mind.
I was relieved this opportunity had come so quickly.
Someday, Jung Hayan was bound to cause trouble. I couldn’t know what the future held, of course, but given her temperament, it was only a matter of time before the bomb went off.
Thinking that I might be able to suppress that from the beginning brought a smile to my face for no real reason.
And I do feel some responsibility….
I wasn’t exactly the type to enjoy anything strange or to like being tied down, but I couldn’t deny that I felt guilt, pity, and a little affection toward Jung Hayan.
—You’re just rationalizing it. You’re thinking that if you get close to her, you can move farther away from guilt. That by not abandoning her, you can comfort yourself that you still have a conscience.
Could be.
I had considered that maybe I was affected by the curse too, but now it didn’t really matter.
A heavy voice droned on like complete nonsense.
“I don’t know exactly what happened, but I have no reason to hate you. You’re the most precious thing to me.”
That was, maybe, half sincere.
“Waaah… I-I love Oppa the most too. I like you the most.”
Once again, she buried a tear- and snot-streaked face against my chest.
“You came back. You really came back. Thank you, God. Thank you so much, God. Thank you.”
“You keep saying….”
“It’s nothing. Huuughh… Oppa. Oppa. You’re not hurt anywhere, right? Your leg….”
“I’m fine.”
“Huuuhhh… thank goodness. Your arm is fine too. No scars. No white hair. You’re not in pain. Your tongue’s fine too. Huuuh.”
Of course, there had been one situation I hadn’t anticipated.
I had expected the illusion I’d created to feel real, but….
I never thought she’d think I’d regressed….
If I’d known she’d come to that conclusion, I should have forced in a little more story.
For example, a scene where Cha Heera or Lee Jihye saved my life someday.
It would have been difficult to fit into the script, of course, but if I’d included something like that, Jung Hayan’s hostility toward them would have been much lower.
What a pity.
I’d probably have to explain it properly later.
“Oppa… huuuuh….”
“Are you calmer now?”
“Y-yes… a little… just a little.”
“Then could you wait here for a moment? I think I need to take care of the others too.”
“Y-yes. Of course, Oppa.”
As soon as I gently patted her head, I could see her cheeks turn red.
She’d been sitting quietly, and then, as if some memory from before my regression had suddenly come back to her, she started trembling and crying. It was like looking at a pitiful little puppy, and somehow, it was a little cute.
This really shouldn’t be cute….
Still, judging from Jung Hayan’s state, it looked like she’d not only regained her senses but also escaped the curse’s influence to some extent.
I’d thought there was a chance, based on the experiments so far, but I hadn’t expected the effect to be this good.
It was probably because the counseling had been tailored specifically for Jung Hayan….
But it can definitely be applied to the others too.
More than enough, in fact.
If I could pull up the person whose condition was the most serious—Jung Hayan—then the rest would be even easier.
With a suitable combination of medicinal treatment and magical effects, it was only natural that I’d be able to create some psychological breathing room, even if it wasn’t a complete cure.
When I turned my head slightly to look around, I saw the hall still in a state of confusion.
Just like before, the people who had been screaming were slowly waking up, and here and there I could see people glancing around in confusion or muttering to themselves.
When I glanced at Hwang Jeongyeon, who seemed to have come to her senses, she shot a questioning look in my direction, as if asking what had happened.
Result: a complete success.
I immediately took out the alchemy kit and began drawing a transmutation circle on the spot, and Hwang Jeongyeon grabbed her head and started walking toward me.
It was only natural that everyone’s attention would turn to us.
I probably looked like a quack street peddler trying to sell cheap potions.
“Kiyoung, what exactly are you…?”
“Please come one at a time.”
“Huh?”
“The others, please wait for now. One by one, come over here.”
“At least explain—”
“Lee Sanghee-nim, please come over here first.”
“Master, please have a seat here.”
“Now then, let’s see. Our vice guild master. What exactly are your symptoms?”
“Pardon?”
“Ah, I suppose this might involve matters of privacy, so it would be better if you wrote it down and submitted it. Jeongyeon.”
“Yes. I’ll get everything ready.”
“Now….”
“I’ve found an effective way to suppress the curse. Lee Sanghee-nim, please relax first, and write down exactly what symptoms you’re experiencing and what voices you’re hearing. If hallucinations have started, it would also help if you describe exactly what you’re seeing. If the auditory hallucinations are frequent, please include any repeated phrases as well.”
“Ah….”
“The rest of Party Two, please line up properly for treatment and come over here as well. Bring your writing utensils and wait comfortably.”
“…….”
Everyone seemed puzzled, but the fact that they were at least willing to follow instructions was somewhat amusing.
It felt like a screw or two had come loose from each of them.
Hwang the nurse probably played a big role in that, but even so, it was a very entertaining sight.
“Ah, I see.”
“I can see the faces of the people I’ve killed so far. They keep whispering in my ear that I’m going to die soon too.”
“Of course I understand. I’m experiencing similar symptoms myself. Please receive the potion first, and we’ll proceed with mental treatment shortly. There do seem to be a few missing items… hmm. Ah, if you could also describe how you killed them, I’d be very grateful.”
“Ah, that….”
“If it’s difficult to speak, you may write it down instead. The more detailed you are, the more effective it will be.”
“I can vouch for that. It will work.”
“Yes. Understood, Hwang Jeongyeon-nim.”
As expected, Hwang the nurse’s role was crucial.
“Ah, the next person is… Gahyun. You’re all alone on Earth with your younger brother….”
“Yes….”
“That must have been terribly hard for you.”
“Huuuk.”
“I also have a younger sister on Earth. Of course I’m worried about her too, but for now, the important thing is to stay strong. You’ll meet again someday. Right now… you seem to be showing serious symptoms of depression, but even if a complete cure is difficult, we should at least be able to lift some of the burden from your heart.”
“What should I do, Kiyoung?”
“Potion number fourteen in the bag should be appropriate, Jeongyeon. I’ll prepare a mental prescription right away as well. Gahyun can begin treatment immediately. Please prepare the magic.”
“Yes.”
Since she was a gentle idealist by nature.
The medicine would probably work very well on her. Her temperament, the hallucinations she was seeing, the type of voices she was hearing—cases like this were easier to treat.
After a beautiful reunion with her younger brother, the ending should be her telling him to stay strong and live on.
“Let’s make sure we meet again alive” would probably go over very well.
It needed a few moving touches… and since her hobby was reading, I could probably weave in a little fantasy element too.
It might be effective to have the brother’s voice and the curse’s voice oppose each other too.
Of course, what I was doing now couldn’t really be called medical treatment.
Strictly speaking, it was nothing more than fraud disguised as counseling.
It didn’t completely cure them, and it didn’t make the hallucinations or voices disappear either.
To be precise, it was only about adding a bit of antibiotic to a worn-down mind.
And yet it was effective.
The human mind is both weak and strong. It can be broken so easily by this kind of curse, but if it can see hope, it gains the courage to stand again.
It finds the strength to endure stress and the will to resist the voices.
For that woman, it was her younger brother; for the man experiencing the same symptoms as I was, it was self-esteem; and for someone like Jung Hayan, it was my very existence.
Good. Good.
It felt like everything was going well.
Of course, I hadn’t given Kim Hyunsung the slightest explanation in advance.
It was only natural that he’d look shocked at my sudden treatment method.
He was even staring at the people who, after receiving counseling from Hwang Jeongyeon, were leaving looking much better, his mouth hanging open.
More precisely, his gaze said he had never imagined a way to break the curse like this even existed.
From a regressor’s point of view, it probably made no sense. He must have had a route in mind that he thought was the proper way to clear this dungeon.
He likely already knew how to lift the curse and had been trying to put that method into practice.
But the destination is the same, so the route doesn’t matter.
He seemed to understand that too, because he nodded.
“I came back…. Thank you so much, God. Thank you for bringing me back. Truly… huuuuk….”
Still, something in Jung Hayan’s muttering gave me the feeling he was wearing a serious expression for no reason.
She didn’t regress, Hyunsung.
It looked like I’d need to set aside some time after all the treatment was done and explain things properly.