Chapter 144
Chapter 144
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: The One Who Steps Forward First
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Jang Chaeyeon had no idea what she was even looking at.
The sun should be setting, and the sea shouldn't be in the sky.
At least, according to the common sense of the world she knew.
"How much do you know about the situation?"
Her old colleague—and now her annoyingly persistent current colleague—Song Arin, who had been scanning the surroundings, answered Jang Chaeyeon's question.
"Nothing. They just told me to assimilate."
"Who did?"
"The manual."
"Got it."
It was the manual from the Management Bureau, so there had to be a reason for it.
Jang Chaeyeon checked the manual from time to time herself.
Of course, that was worlds apart from the man who pulled it out whenever he had a spare moment or whenever something went wrong.
She'd never imagined she'd feel jealous of a book in her life, to the point of going a little mad, but she had to admit it got frustrating sometimes watching him bury his nose in it, reading intently.
"So you don't know what this scene is either?"
Song Arin nodded at Jang Chaeyeon's words.
"Got it."
Jang Chaeyeon sorted her thoughts.
No stray ideas.
She had one body, and her options were limited.
And right now, what she needed to do was.
"Let's find him first."
She had to locate that man.
She didn't know the full context, but considering how he'd been collapsed when she snapped out of the hypnosis—and the fact that she'd been under it—she was sure she'd done something bizarre.
A bitter taste rose in Jang Chaeyeon's mouth.
Jang Chaeyeon was someone who clearly knew her own limits.
Unlike Song Arin, she had to protect herself purely with mental fortitude, and unlike Yoo Daon, she had to ensure her safety by staying on the move.
She could always step up for him first, but she could never stay by his side until the end.
Before that, she'd have to retreat because it was too dangerous, or she'd already be dead.
The best she could do—unable to stick it out to the finish—was to accept what she couldn't handle and stay with him until the end came.
It had been the same when he'd used that watch to turn back time.
She would've sacrificed herself for him first. In a drawn-out scenario where the pressure only intensified, she'd be relatively useless anyway.
Even if they dropped her into that situation now, she'd make the same choice.
In that sense, Jang Chaeyeon envied Song Arin and Yoo Daon.
Being able to face the end together was a blessing.
...
She slowly shook her head.
Envy wasn't the emotion she needed right now.
Think coldly. Herself seeing the necklace, and herself losing her memory for a moment.
"Where do we go?"
"...I don't know."
Song Arin answered quietly to Jang Chaeyeon's question.
"...Then I'll take the lead."
"Got it."
Jang Chaeyeon stepped forward.
Jang Chaeyeon knew her limits.
But if she believed it wasn't beyond them, she was the type to walk into a bed of thorns without hesitation.
The footsteps of the two echoed beneath the sky spread across the ground.
*
"I have no clue what's really going on here."
I gazed at the landscape unfolding before me.
Can the sun really rise in the west and set in the east?
"That's not possible."
I muttered to myself as I started walking.
This wasn't the first time I'd seen this view.
I'd glimpsed it while staring into Song Arin's eyes.
But what does this have to do with the ruin I'm supposed to witness?
I pulled the manual from my pocket.
...
I waited for it to open on its own, but contrary to my expectations, it just sat there, unmoving.
I slowly flipped it open.
[Office Manual for Employees]
The manual was blank.
No entries appeared no matter how many pages I turned.
It was like it had reverted to an ordinary book.
I tucked the manual back into my pocket.
If it wasn't working, there must be a reason. I'd just have to be more careful.
-You'll fail no matter how many times you try.
The whisper in my ear persisted.
Was this the kind of thing Song Arin had heard?
If it was preying on her trauma, yeah, it'd be unsettling.
I stared straight up at the sky.
The sun, glowing orange as it rose, was shifting to purple.
Soon, as the sun climbed higher, the world plunged into darkness.
A translucent window floated above the sun.
[Name: - ]
[Age: - ]
[Talent: - ]
[Abilities: - ]
[Background: - ]
[Weakness: Watch closely.]
The darkness settled, and all sounds vanished.
Then, my body burst into flames.
*
"...What is that?"
Song Arin nudged Jang Chaeyeon's arm while staring at the purple sky.
"What the hell is it?"
"No idea."
Jang Chaeyeon gave a curt reply and kept walking without pause.
Following behind, Song Arin muttered in disbelief as she eyed her.
"You're not even curious?"
Jang Chaeyeon whipped around at Song Arin's words, glaring at her.
"You think wondering about that will bring him back? Help us find him?"
Song Arin shut her mouth at Jang Chaeyeon's oddly prickly tone.
"Focus on what we have to do. Don't look anywhere else."
Song Arin bit her lip hard, then fell back in behind her.
She knew Jang Chaeyeon was right.
She just couldn't stand how much more efficiently she always thought.
Song Arin knew exactly what this feeling was.
Envy. Or inferiority.
Of the three, Jang Chaeyeon was the most proactive.
Not just in how she treated that man. In everything, Jang Chaeyeon always took the lead.
Being first in everything meant you'd be the most memorable, the one who earned trust.
That's why that man couldn't keep his eyes properly on Jang Chaeyeon, why he trusted her enough to leave everything to her.
...
Song Arin was jealous enough to feel envious.
The two walked through the world turned purple.
The silence grew so stifling it was suffocating.
"...Found him."
Song Arin snapped her head up at Jang Chaeyeon's words.
"Where?!"
"There."
Her finger pointed toward a man standing dazed.
Staring at the sky, he muttered something.
"...Have to watch?"
"There."
Jang Chaeyeon headed toward him.
Relief washed over her.
If they could just get him out of here now...
Before she could finish the thought,
Whoosh!
His body erupted in flames.
Song Arin screamed, and Jang Chaeyeon rushed toward him in a panic.
"Water, water!"
"No water!"
Song Arin snapped out of it and joined her, reaching out,
"Ah...!"
She yanked her hand back from the intense heat.
Fwoosh!
Soon, he blazed like a bonfire.
...
...
Leaving the two in stunned silence, the man turned into a charred husk.
"H-he's... dead?"
...
"No. He can't be."
Song Arin muttered as she reached toward the ashes.
Her hand plunged into the still-hot pile, turning bright red.
The searing pain shot up her arm, but she ignored it, digging through the ashes.
"Hey, this... isn't him, right?"
...
"N-no, right...?"
Song Arin's voice began to tremble.
"Something's off. Suddenly bursting into flames like that—and this isn't even the afterlife to begin with."
...
"No, wait—what if it's not the afterlife? What if his spirit body burned up and can't regenerate..."
"Calm down."
Jang Chaeyeon cut off Song Arin's words.
"It won't end like this."
...
"What did you hear?"
"Huh...?"
Song Arin looked at her with confusion at Jang Chaeyeon's question.
Jang Chaeyeon let out a low sigh.
Figuring this out wasn't her role, but the fact that she was racking her brain now was proof Song Arin wasn't thinking straight.
"I heard: 'Isn't the necklace beautiful?' And my sister's voice."
...
"You."
Song Arin hesitated before speaking at Jang Chaeyeon's prompt.
"...A voice mocking my past self. And all my mistakes."
"Right. This is an attack."
"What?"
Song Arin stared blankly at Jang Chaeyeon, who sighed as she looked back.
"It's not about killing."
...
"It's more like mental torment."
Death was instantaneous, but feeling it over and over was like endless agony.
She'd been through it herself.
"...Yeah, you're right."
Song Arin's shaken gaze steadied as she fell into thought.
"So what do we do?"
Song Arin muttered, staring at her hand where blisters were starting to form from the burn.
"Wait."
"Huh?"
"If it's inflicting pain, it won't end with just burning."
"...How do you know?"
"I'm used to it."
Jang Chaeyeon had memories of being trapped in infinite space, enduring torment.
She'd thought she couldn't bear it happening twice, but he'd kept talking—saying whatever he could to encourage her.
Later, when they'd run out of stories, watching him desperately invent new ones made her decide to trust people again for the first time in ages.
"Let's wait."
She gazed at the purple sky.
Soon, it glowed orange,
and the sound of drums began to echo.
Jang Chaeyeon stood.
"Let's go."
Alone, he might never escape eternal torment. There were too many things in the world you couldn't break free from on your own.
But if someone extended a hand, you could get out surprisingly fast.
Now it was her turn.
*
"Hah...!"
I came to.
Just moments ago, my body had been burning.
And the pain I'd felt was real.
I frantically patted myself down,
"...It's gone."
The pain was gone.
Is this the suffering my past self endured?
Enduring pain like this over and over—I doubt even I could stay sane.
As I coldly organized my thoughts,
the sky turned orange, and drums started thumping.
...
I recalled Yoo Daon crumbling into sand in my mind.
What do I need to do here to get out?
No Critical, nothing visible to my eyes but purple, and even the manual's dead.
Should I just endure one more round of pain and wait?
The drumming grew closer.
...
I gritted my teeth, bracing for the next wave of agony.
I thought: If I can just keep my wits about me through the pain, surely...
"Found you."
A familiar voice rang in my ears.
I looked up, and there—
White hair gleamed golden in the light.
An emotionless face broke into a smile
as Jang Chaeyeon reached out her hand to me.