My Name is 'Misa' -2- -〈The 666th Side Story〉 Viewing 'In My Original Appearance...' Begins
Mihail let out a breath at the bizarre situation unfolding before his eyes.
Where is this...?
It didn't feel like an illusion spell—there was no mana—and it was too vivid to be a hallucination. Mihail widened his eyes in confusion.
What the...?
Startled, he lifted his head and looked around frantically.
"This is..."
The academy. Standing in a place he'd passed countless times, Mihail's eyes went wide as he swallowed hard. Just moments ago, he'd been in the dormitory, and now suddenly he was in front of the fountain. He couldn't make sense of it. It had been night, but now it was day...
A faint voice from the blue window echoed in the flustered Mihail's ears.
The blue window's abrupt question about memories left Mihail puzzled.
What should I remember...?
The blue window dredged up a memory Mihail had dismissed as trivial.
Mihail recalled the past, wondering what the big deal was about that letter.
It was nothing.
In his faint memory, he'd thought it was just one of the many love letters he always got. From someone with terribly bad handwriting.
In that dimly lingering memory, the letter probably said...
He must have torn it up. A sudden chill gripped Mihail as he stared at the blue window with trembling eyes.
No.
With thoughts of No way and an ominous It can't be, he watched as the answer slowly appeared.
No.
And
The blue window spoke calmly, listing the boy's survival and the mistakes Mihail hadn't noticed. It recited the contents of the letter he hadn't read.
It's been a while since I last wrote a letter.
A letter with an affectionate nickname no one else knew.
A lot has happened, but since my handwriting is so bad, it's hard to put it all into words. I probably shouldn't write too much. Honestly, I don't even think you can read it.
It slowly decoded it for him.
Before leaving, I wanted to leave at least one letter. I wanted to see your face one more time.
No...
Mihail shook his head. It couldn't happen, he scolded and hated himself for missing the chance right in front of him, staring at the letter with trembling eyes.
I'll be waiting in front of the fountain at 6 p.m. tomorrow.
At the final line, Mihail's heart began to pound wildly. It raced madly, he loathed himself so much that his shoulders shook and he gasped for breath.
—Your old friend.
"Haa... haa..."
A memory no one else knows.
You read that boy's letter. Clutching your heart at the first line by chance, you diligently deciphered the rest.
That day's you was smiling. You worked so hard on it, feeling more anticipation and excitement than ever before, and prepared to head to the meeting spot.
Mihail's vision brightened. Under the rising sunset glow, with lovers and people gathered in front of the fountain, his eyes lit up.
This is...
A cold voice announced it, and a girl standing in front of the fountain came into Mihail's view.
White dress. White shoes. Silver hair with rosy lipstick, fidgeting fingers—she was like someone waiting, gazing endlessly at the clock tower pointing to 5 o'clock.
Mihail stared at the girl with trembling eyes, his face blank.
Me?
There he was, standing shyly in front of the academy fountain in an appearance he never showed others.
"...Hoo."
He looked like a girl. The shyly dressed outfit. The first-time makeup. He appeared just like a girl that age.
Fidgeting her fingers, unable to keep her toes still, the him in the viewing murmured while gazing at the clock tower.
"I wonder when he'll come."
Making an expression like she might burst into tears any second, talking to herself, she kept murmuring the same words.
"...I'll do okay, right?"
Hesitating over how to start the conversation, surrendering to the melody drawn on the sheet music. Watching her, Mihail envied her.
He'd never once felt it himself. He envied that version of himself who had seized the missed opportunity.
Excitement. Laughter. So different from his current self, who only bit his lip and swung his sword without them. Mihail felt an irrational jealousy.
And at the same time, unease. What if that letter was a death notice? What if this connection from old memories had come to deliver sad news? He stared at the unrealized past, smile fading.
Focus on reality... It's already in the past...
Scolding his wandering mind, Mihail exhaled.
The him in the viewing muttered to himself and began clumsy acting.
Ignoring others' gazes, tense about what to say first upon seeing that man from her memories, she put on awkward theatrics.
"How should I talk to him..."
"Ah... h-hello! How have you been...? I've been good. Haha... Since coming to the academy, I've even been top of the class..."
"The weather's nice, huh? If you have time, wanna go to a café?"
"Bet you're shocked. That I'm a girl.... Idiot, took you long enough to figure it out..."
The him in the viewing suddenly trailed off mid-mutter. Even while saying such things, his heart was pounding like mad.
How much had he changed? He must be handsome now. He'd be shocked to learn I'm a girl.
"..."
Still.
"I wanna hug him when we meet."
Mihail thought the same. He wanted to see, feel the man from his memories. He desperately yearned to see the boy's forgotten face, feel him, hear his voice.
Tick-tock.
The him in the viewing swallowed dryly as time approached, waiting for the memory to draw near.
Right now, in this moment, she was the world's one and only protagonist. No—a woman named Misa.
"Sniff..."
Suppressing the tears welling in his nose, Mihail slowly bowed his head.
Click.
The clear sound of shoe heels rang out. Both the him in the viewing and the current Mihail held their breath, focusing on it.
Click.
Neither fast nor slow, the heel sounds gently stirred Mihail's heart.
Click.
"..."
The viewing Mihail swallowed, and the watching Mihail clenched his fists, biting his lip.
They're finally meeting...
The man's face wasn't visible yet. Hidden in shadow.
Click.
Mihail clenched his fists tighter at the slowly emerging silhouette. It matched the man he remembered. Tall stature. Sturdy build. Drawing eyes from afar as someone handsome, walking toward them.
Face shrouded in shadow. The boy who had been his hero in tough times remained unchanged.
That's him...
Trembling, Mihail bowed his head, waiting for the man to approach. He didn't have the courage to look at his face yet. He wanted to see it right away, but without mental preparation, he'd crumble. He hid his face for a moment.
What does he look like now? Has anything bad happened? What if he runs because I'm ugly? Both the viewing Mihail and the current one bowed their heads, swallowing.
The man drew slowly closer. The one amplifying his heartbeat stopped right in front of Mihail, greeting cautiously.
"Excuse me."
A calm, resonant man's voice. The boy's youthful tone was gone, replaced by a pleasant baritone softly calling the bowed Mihail.
Tense perhaps, he swallowed dryly once, let out a deep sigh, and opened his mouth again.
"You're Mihail, right?"
"..."
"Or not...?"
Plip.
Tears began falling onto the white shoes of the viewing Mihail. He'd planned to meet with a good expression, start talking with a smile, but the emotions burst earlier than expected. Unable to hold back, his shoulders heaved.
"Yes... that's me...."
Mihail nodded laboriously. With a sobbing voice, he nodded vigorously toward the man calling his name, desperately proving he was the one sought.
Affection. Love. Memories. Complex emotions swirled into a small typhoon in Mihail's heart. Overwhelmed, he couldn't lift his head. Nodding was all he could manage. The viewing Mihail welcomed the arriving memory without seeing it.
"Ah..."
The man sighed softly at Mihail. Exhaling as if unsure how to begin, he slowly spoke.
"You're so different from how I imagined."
"..."
"But still..."
Opening his mouth slightly, the man greeted warmly, speaking of old memories.
"You're still a crybaby, and you shake your head when you cry—just like always."
The man smiled faintly at the viewing Mihail.
"You've grown up. Our little kid."
At the man's chuckling voice, Mihail slowly raised his head. The man cautiously opened his mouth, bidding farewell to the memory fragment shrouded in black.
"Guess I should introduce myself again."
"..."
"My name is Rica.. no..."
"..."
As his face slowly came into view, both the viewing Mihail and the current one teared up, gazing at him. At the smile he could finally see.
"Eh...?"
No.
He felt the world crumble.
"I'm Lee Min-hyuk."
The anticipated memory shattered in an instant, crumbling the massive dam he'd held in his heart. It couldn't be. A lie. That man must be scheming something weird again. Clenching his fists, he glared.
The man he'd hated so much, thought himself incompatible with, was gazing at him with a wistful smile.
It made his teeth grind.
"You... what the hell are you doing."
Don't mess around.
Both his past and present selves stared at him pale-faced, spewing anger.
But.
"..."
Words failed at his awkward smile. Holding a paper bag with a bear doll in one hand, his sad smile as he grinned awkwardly didn't seem like a lie.
"..."
A joke, right...?
His lips trembled. Fingers quivered, fierce pounding in his ears as he spat intense denial.
"No..."
No.
"This can't be."
"This can't be."
Mihail uttered the same words as his viewing self. Unbelievable, this makes no sense—tears spilling, he repeated fierce denials against the unbearable reality.
As Mihail's denial grew, an awkward smile formed on the man's face.
"It's really been a long time."
"This... isn't right."
"I have so much I wanted to say all this time."
"..."
"I don't know how to start, but this comes out first."
"Shut up..."
With trembling hands, the viewing Mihail grabbed Ricardo's sleeve. Desperately clutching it, shaking her head, spitting fierce denial.
"It's a lie."
"...Haha."
"You can't be that person."
"I've been watching you from the side all this time."
"No!!!!"
"You've worked really hard."
Watching the viewing, Mihail collapsed to the ground. His legs gave out; the situation stamped finality on what he thought impossible left him unable to think straight.
No. There must be more. Just a messenger delivering news. He screamed voicelessly, but the only response was his viewing self's desperate sobs.
The most loathed person. Someone unlike him. His past self, who had cruelly hated him, flashed by like a lantern show, making his breath tremble.
"I'm sorry for treating you so cruelly all this time."
The reunion filled with hope had ended in the worst way possible.