Chapter 209
Chapter 209
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: 209. A Gift Worse Than Nothing
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"..."
"..."
Silence dominated the space.
The girl stared at me intently, and I met her gaze.
"First off, you must have had it rough."
The girl, who had been locking eyes with me, bowed her head slightly as if apologetic.
"And sorry for dragging you out here when you're probably exhausted."
My words from earlier must have really gotten to her.
"I told you it's fine."
"But I had no choice. If not now, I couldn't come to your dreams so easily."
What did she mean by not being able to come to my dreams easily?
I looked at her with a puzzled expression, and she scratched her cheek before meeting my eyes again.
"Being on the moon lets me use my power a bit more easily."
"What, like how your power gets stronger the closer you are to a powerful anomaly or something?"
"Something like that."
She sighed and began walking across the moon's surface.
The sound of sand scattering with a soft rustle filled my ears.
"If that weren't the case, I'd show up in your dreams every time to talk."
That would be a bit overwhelming for me.
Fortunately, she couldn't read my thoughts. She wandered around idly and continued speaking.
"As you saw, the Management Bureau has things it manages specially."
"..."
"Stuff like the moon you just sealed falls into that category."
"The moon, huh."
"Yeah. As you know from sealing it, this is the egg of what's up there."
"A god?"
"Gods don't exist."
"..."
Her firm words left me speechless for a moment.
"Honestly, even if I wanted to tell you more, the moon already knows, right?"
"That's true."
"Yeah, your eyes told me."
She smiled as she looked at me.
"Impressive. As always, you make me worry needlessly."
"As always?"
"Well, not always, of course. Because I'd worry too much for that to happen."
She gave a small laugh before turning back to face me.
The moon still shone brightly.
"You said you'd tell me about the moon and the wedges."
"Yeah."
"Hmm..."
She closed her eyes as if thinking, resting her hand on her chin before lowering it.
"Basically, the Management Bureau always prepares countermeasures for times when it seems like the world might end."
"Like the wedges?"
"Exactly."
Wedges.
I recalled what I'd seen with Yoo Daon.
Yoo Daon, fully matured.
"The wedge is both the Management Bureau's way of stopping containment objects it can't handle and the method it's used to win."
Her gaze turned to me.
"It's exactly—"
As she opened her mouth, a beeping sound pierced my ears, disorienting me.
"...What?"
"—that's how."
The beeping rang out again.
I looked at her with a puzzled expression, and she let out a low sigh.
"Guess you still can't understand it."
"..."
"Then let me explain it another way. You should get it."
She looked at me.
"With the wedge, you'll see a future where you existed."
"..."
"Since you touched the wedge, it'll show a future without you, or after you're dead."
A hint of bitterness crossed her face.
"You'll probably see it a few more times."
"Even if I don't go to the wedge?"
"That doesn't matter."
She looked at me apologetically.
"Even without the wedge, it'll be something you have to face."
"...No matter what, I'll have to face it?"
"Yeah."
She nodded slowly.
"Do you know what it is?"
"It depends on what trials you go through."
She sighed as she answered.
"Of course, I'll use every method I can to protect you and help you."
"Because it's your mission?"
"It's not a mission."
She slowly shook her head at my words.
"I completed my mission long ago."
"..."
"I'm just doing this because I want to help you."
"...Okay."
I never knew what to say to her blunt honesty.
"Anyway, things like this will happen a lot."
"More world-ending events?"
"Sadly, yes."
She sighed.
"The time is coming."
"What time?"
"An incident that decides the survival of civilization."
She looked at me.
"Even if I told you, it seems like you couldn't hear it right now... but more incidents like this will happen."
"Ugh."
I didn't like the sound of that.
She gave a small laugh at my grimace.
"It's okay. We can get through this one."
"Have we ever gotten through them before?"
"Nope."
She smiled softly.
"But it'll be fine."
"..."
"I'll always be by your side. Until you find happiness."
At that moment, the moon behind her began to glow.
"Time's up already, huh."
She sighed, looking at the moon.
"Was the conversation helpful?"
"Honestly, too much vague talk for me to call it helpful."
"I think so too."
"Then why'd you call me here?"
She smiled apologetically at my question.
"I just missed you."
At the same time, I felt a tap on my shoulder, and the world started shaking.
"Coming next time will be tough too. No. A lot will happen from now on."
In the shaking world, only she stood straight, looking at me.
"Hang in there."
"Would it kill you to give more useful advice?"
"What are you saying? I always give useful advice."
She clicked her tongue, crossed her arms, and gave me a small wave.
At the same time, the moon behind her shone brightly,
"...Wake."
Her voice tickled my ear.
"...Wake up, I said."
A whisper in my ear.
I slowly opened my eyes.
Dull platinum hair brushed my nose.
Eileen was looking at me.
"Already morning— Mmph...!"
"Shh."
She covered my mouth.
"Quick talk. Before the others wake up."
"..."
I turned my head to look beside me.
Red eyes floating in the corner, twitching Yoo Daon, and a slight headache too.
But it seemed like everyone else was already awake.
"...Sure."
Still, I couldn't point that out one by one.
I whipped my head around, the headache stopped, the red eyes closed, and Yoo Daon immediately let out steady breaths.
I looked at Jang Chaeyeon.
"..."
She was truly fast asleep.
I nodded and slowly followed behind her.
As we stepped out of the cabin door, cool air brushed my face.
-Creak...
The door closed with a small sound, and Eileen looked at me.
"Remember what you said on the way up?"
She looked at me with a complicated expression.
"I do."
The part about taking her to the church.
"But does it have to be me?"
"...You're a prophet."
Eileen replied in a firm voice.
"...Guess I should explain the situation first."
She squeezed her eyes shut.
"The church. Their main headquarters, especially."
"..."
"There are no humans there anymore."
She said quietly.
"It's paradoxical, but the place that gathered only humans no longer has any humans."
"..."
"Our parents went in there too. No. They were caught."
She muttered through gritted teeth.
"And they stayed."
"Stayed?"
"By their own will."
She muttered as she looked at me.
"My parents said they saw something I couldn't."
"..."
"I don't know what it was either."
Since I couldn't see it either, Eileen muttered self-deprecatingly.
"To find out, I joined the response team. But..."
"You couldn't find it."
"Yeah."
She gritted her teeth.
"I went in and out so much I created over half the church's guidelines, and I searched everywhere except one place."
"And that's where the prophet can enter?"
"Precisely, the prophet and their companions."
She looked at me.
"Take me to the cathedral. Please."
"..."
"I know. Dragging you into a place like a den of lions is insanely dangerous."
Eileen stared at the ground, fists clenched tight.
I understood.
Asking someone she'd only worked with a few times to risk their life for her wasn't easy for anyone to hear.
She lifted her head to look at me.
"But I'm begging you."
"..."
"I know it's shameless. I'll do anything you ask. If I get out of the church, I'll give you my arms. No. My life. Whatever you want, I'll do it."
Eileen looked at me with a desperate expression.
Let me think about this calmly.
She'd asked me to scout the church.
And she was important to the regressor.
Lovers?
Probably not. It was hard to imagine someone so self-centered loving another person.
Maybe she had some secret I didn't know?
If so, I couldn't just leave her be.
So...
No.
That wasn't it.
"Sure, why not."
"...Really?"
Eileen looked at me.
"Yes."
"...Why?"
She looked at me with an incredulous expression.
"Pity? Or something more..."
"Neither."
I shrugged.
When in doubt, throw her words back at her.
"I'll share the responsibility with you."
"..."
Eileen closed her mouth.
"I'm not so pathetic that I wouldn't extend a hand to someone crushed by responsibility and fear."
"..."
As I recited her exact words, Eileen fell silent and bowed her head to me.
"Thank you."
"..."
"I won't forget this."
"Then you have to survive and get out."
"...Yeah."
She looked at me.
The light in her faded eyes had already been replaced by a bright glow.
I turned my head with a flick, and the door clicked shut.
"Alright! Shall we head back in?"
"Hey, don't be so loud."
"They'll be sleeping anyway."
Precisely, they wouldn't be sleeping at all, so hurry up and get back in.
Bang! I opened the door loudly,
"..."
"..."
"..."
Everyone was sleeping soundly.
"...What happened...?"
Only Jang Chaeyeon, half-awake, rubbed her sleepy eyes and looked at me.
"No, just stepped out for some air."
"...Okay. Don't wander too much, it's cold."
She spoke in a worried voice, then lay back down and fell asleep.
"You woke her."
"The others didn't wake up."
I sighed and spread out my sleeping bag on the floor again before lying down.
Now I really needed to sleep.
*
After two days, we finally descended the stairs.
After going down, we rested for a day—actually, out of great worry—but no one at the Management Bureau treated us strangely.
"...Phew."
A sigh of relief escaped me.
I'd promised Eileen we'd go to the church when we got the chance later.
We were too exhausted now, so we'd rest first.
"Jaeheon."
"Oh, Team Leader."
Team Leader calling me from the morning.
Soon, he handed me two paper tickets.
"Here."
"..."
What was this?
I hurriedly checked above Team Leader's head, but nothing was there.
What?
"What's this? What's your angle?"
"You only got tricked your whole life? Thinking about it, yeah, you have lately."
Team Leader sighed and placed the tickets in my hand.
"These are restaurant tickets."
"Why tickets for a restaurant?"
"It's not just any restaurant."
Team Leader looked at me.
"It's for the city-view restaurant at Gangseo Hotel, booked solid for five years."
"What's that?"
"Come on, you don't know? The others..."
Team Leader glanced at our HR team members, but they all just stared blankly back.
"...No one knows?"
Young kids these days, he muttered with a tsk, handing me the tickets.
"No better spot for a date or proposal. Take someone."
"One person?"
"Me and my wife were gonna go. Do you know how expensive this is?"
Team Leader sighed.
"I owe you a debt, so I'm giving you this."
"..."
Holding the tickets, I looked around.
"..."
"..."
"..."
Three people were staring at me.
It was a little—no, very scary.