Chapter 329
Chapter 329
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: 329. The Path
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I've clashed with Aestheticism a few times—no, we've grappled a few times—no, from our encounters, I've come to a realization.
Aestheticism always loves to toy with people.
Literally.
To her, people are just one of her amusing toys, and someone like me could even be called a premium toy.
And the pranks she pulls on those premium toys are more predictable than you'd think.
Choices, mockery, or things that require flipping perceptions or shifting thoughts.
The world turns black and white, and at the same time, slows down.
I turn my gaze to Eileen, and unlike the others experiencing the same phenomenon—slowed down—she slowly follows my gaze.
I lift my head up high.
A red dot appears.
It's obvious.
I raise my gun, aim at the red dot, and pull the trigger. The muzzle spits fire as the bullet fires, and Eileen pulls her trigger at the same time, shooting into the sky.
-Bang!
A sound like it's slowly tearing through the air echoes, and at the same time, the world returns to normal.
The air feels a bit different now.
It was humid before, but now it's just normal air.
"...Hoo."
"Good work."
Eileen and I lower our guns, look at each other, and smile. Jang Chaeyeon watches us, frowning slightly.
"What was that?"
"Oh. Things should be back to normal now."
I shrug it off like it's nothing, and the others look around expectantly.
...
...
...
-Flash!
The lantern lights up again, and darkness falls.
Silence.
Everyone looks around in bewilderment, and I do the same as the others.
"It's not?"
"...Huh..."
Why not?
"Should we wait a bit longer?"
I say that and look around.
Surely soon the picture-perfect scenery will melt away, and we'll be back—
...
Even after saying that, minutes pass, but nothing happens.
Song Arin smirks and glances at Eileen and me.
"You two struck all these dramatic poses and fired into the air, and now really nothing's happening?"
...
It feels a bit embarrassing.
"You're always swooping in for the finishing blow and solving everything, so now you're shocked, huh? Right?"
"Daon, hit her on the head for me."
"Yes!"
Before I can finish, Yoo Daon's fist connects squarely with Song Arin's head.
"You only say that because it hasn't happened to you yet! Black hair! You really wanna die?"
"Jaeheon told me to!"
Song Arin clutches her head mid-sentence and glares at Yoo Daon, who stares back with an innocent voice.
"...Did it fail?"
"I don't think so."
I shake my head at Eileen, who looks at me worriedly.
"It hit. We hit something, right?"
"Yes. We hit something, but..."
Critical was used, and we saw the red dot.
So shouldn't we be out of here?
What the hell did I shoot?
As I ponder that, Song Arin—still groaning and clutching her head—snaps her head up and looks at us.
"Argh, screw agonizing over it—let's just hurry up and go! If the lantern goes out next time, one of us might really die!"
"She's not wrong. Shall we go?"
"Yes! Arin! Stop clutching your head and move!"
"If you ever go crazy hitting your own head someday, don't blame me..."
We start walking again, along with Song Arin muttering in a voice full of resentment.
...
...
Unlike before, everyone was walking faster now.
Probably because they'd seen the old man ahead of them.
And the lantern wasn't doing its job anymore either.
How long had we been walking?
"There's no end."
Jang Chaeyeon sighs and wipes her forehead.
She was right.
What else could endlessly trudging through pitch-black darkness where you can't see an inch ahead be?
No idea where the end is, or even where it began.
The pressure of not knowing when the lantern might go out.
In fact, as time passed, the others were falling behind, while Yoo Daon kept pushing forward.
"Jaeheon, should I hold the lantern?"
"No. I can't let Daon handle whatever comes alone."
"I can die over and over and come back, but you can't."
"It's fine."
Yoo Daon looks at me with worry, and the others behind chime in, agreeing with her.
"Black hair's right. Fall back."
"Yeah. If something happens, it'll be bad."
"We only get one life."
"I'm fine."
It's not stubbornness. I'm not fearless of that old man either.
I just need to know.
At that moment, the lantern flickers.
It means the light's going out.
And if it does, the old man will appear again.
Yoo Daon's face flashes in my mind—staggering, turned to plaster—and she whips her head around to look at me, thinking the same.
"Jaeheon, you really need to fall back."
"No."
"Jaeheon!"
A loud voice, uncharacteristic of her.
Yoo Daon looks at me in panic, and as Jang Chaeyeon reaches out, I feel my waist being pulled, my body dragged backward.
"Come on."
"Chaeyeon, let go."
"It's dangerous."
I turn and stare at Jang Chaeyeon, who meets my eyes and frowns sharply.
"What if you die?"
"If Chaeyeon keeps holding me like this, I die. Let go, and I live."
...
...
Our gazes cross in the air for a moment, and Jang Chaeyeon sighs, releasing her grip. The force on my waist fades.
"If anything happens, I'll pull you back right away."
"Okay."
I stand next to Yoo Daon, holding the flickering lantern.
...
Unlike before, Yoo Daon seemed much more tense.
"Daon, aren't you too tense?"
"...Jaeheon, I might not be in the mood for jokes right now."
She mutters in a highly strung tone and scans the surroundings.
"I don't know how you can stay so calm..."
"Because you'll do great."
...
Yoo Daon looks at me, and I smile at her to ease her tension.
"Daon. As long as you're here, I at least won't die."
...
Yoo Daon opens her mouth to say something,
-Flash!
The lantern goes out, revealing a yellow wall.
At the same time, the old man 'appears' before Yoo Daon and me.
...!
Yoo Daon gasps sharply and looks at me. I meet the eyes of the old man in front of me.
A translucent window pops up.
[Name: Midas' Hand]
[Age: X]
[Specialty: X]
[Talent: X]
[Background: This old man lives inside the hotel, manifesting the loneliness of those he sees. Yet he could not share that loneliness with others.]
[Weakness: X]
More information is visible now.
Unable to share loneliness with others.
The old man reaches out quickly, and Yoo Daon, seeing it, yanks my arm.
"Jaeheon!"
"Wait."
I grab Yoo Daon's arm to stop her.
"Jaeheon, what are you—"
Yoo Daon's eyes widen as she stares at me,
And before she can finish, the old man's hand touches my face.
...!
Jang Chaeyeon reaches out hurriedly, but I extend my hand to block her.
"...Huh?"
Song Arin, watching, lets out a dazed sound.
It couldn't be helped.
I didn't turn to plaster.
The old man was just touching me all over.
I continue thinking as I feel his touch.
Midas' Hand.
There are various stories, but the core is always the same.
A man who turns everything he touches to gold ends up turning his loved ones, food, and surroundings to gold, regretting it.
So what happened to him in the end?
I don't know how the story ends.
Because this isn't a figure from myth.
Just someone given that title.
Aestheticism always makes people into works of art.
It goes beyond using human skin as canvas or sculpting people.
Sometimes she might put people inside her paintings.
Giving the title Midas' Hand, making everything he touches disappear, preventing interaction with others.
What happens to a person like that?
An example was right in front of me.
"O... Ooh..."
The old man mutters as he fiddles with my face.
"Ooh..."
Groaning like he's weeping or moaning, endlessly touching my face.
"Oooh..."
He kneads my face so hard it distorts, letting out groans.
"...How is this happening?"
Yoo Daon mutters in confusion, poking her own cheek.
"You missed me."
"What?"
"I trusted you."
I pull away the old man's hand from my face and look at Yoo Daon.
"Huh...?"
"I didn't think I fired into the air for nothing."
"Wasn't it something you had in mind?"
"You started teasing first."
Ignoring the muttering from Song Arin and Eileen behind me, I speak up.
"So I thought something changed. If we're still in the painting, I definitely removed something. So what did I remove?"
"Hmm..."
"In other words, I removed the curse on this old man. That's what I thought, and it was right."
"Ah..."
Yoo Daon nods, then beams.
"I have no idea what you're talking about!"
"Sigh."
Song Arin sighs, and the old man—who'd been fiddling with me—takes the lantern from me.
As it touches his hand, the lantern shines brightly again, and he looks at me and the others.
"Ooh..."
He starts walking, and we follow behind him.
This time, it really felt like the path was in sight.