Chapter 26: Fragment (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 26: Fragment (2)
My vision, which had gone completely white, soon returned to normal.
When I opened my eyes, I was lying on the floor of the mountain lodge. I could clearly feel the cold wooden floor beneath me.
“Ugh!”
As soon as I pushed myself up, a wave of dizziness washed over me, and I felt a surge of nausea.
I barely suppressed the urge to vomit and looked around.
The mountain lodge, which moments ago had looked so dilapidated it seemed ready to collapse, had been completely transformed. It now looked brand new, exuding the scent of antique wood.
The structure was the same, but the feeling was entirely different. Instead of decay, it was pristine. Instead of feeling like it would fall apart, it felt solid.
The past.
I scrambled to my feet and checked the calendar on the wall.
If the lodge had turned back time correctly, today’s date should be January 1, 1979.
That was the exact day the Fragment of Harmony was created.
“Please.”
But the date written before my eyes was slightly different.
[December 26, 1978]
Exactly six days before the Fragment’s creation.
I let out a sigh.
“…This is cutting it close.”
In the original story, the time limit for time travel was seven days.
Any longer than that, and the timeline would automatically collapse, sending you back to your original point in time.
And there would be no second chances. The lodge would disappear.
This means I’ll have to get it on the very last day…
As I was trying to work this into my plan, a voice from behind made me slowly turn my head.
“Mmmh…”
A soft, languid voice.
I slowly turned around.
Kang A-rin was there, leisurely stretching.
She turned her head, saw me, and gave me a familiar smile.
“Sleep well?”
“…”
I closed my eyes for a moment, forcibly suppressing the rising confusion and questions.
I had no idea where to even begin to make sense of this situation.
Whether she was aware of my bewilderment or not, Kang A-rin remained perfectly composed.
I looked at her and let out a deep sigh.
“…How did you know?”
She had been so nonchalant the whole time, only to come in and lock the door just before midnight.
I knew it sounded crazy, but it was even crazier to think she could have done that without knowing about the lodge’s mechanism.
My mind was spinning in confusion. There was nothing to do but wait for her answer rather than rack my brain any further.
She tilted her head, her eyes narrowing slightly.
She looked as if it were no big deal.
“It’s Glory.”
Kang A-rin answered as she stretched languidly.
“Is there anything we don’t know?”
I furrowed my brow slightly at her words.
It was true that Glory was an organization with a formidable information network.
But for them to uncover a hidden gimmick like this lodge, one that was even concealed in the original story, made no sense.
“Glory?”
I nodded and slowly replied.
“I’m not in the mood for games right now.”
My tone was unintentionally sharp.
Kang A-rin seemed amused by my reaction, the corners of her mouth lifting into a slight smile.
“I understand why you’re suspicious. But you can trust me.”
Kang A-rin slowly pointed a finger down at the ground.
“Here, at Baekdusan. One of only two Fragments ever discovered in the world is buried here.”
Hearing her words, I tried to calm my subtly trembling heart.
“And this lodge.”
Kang A-rin looked around as she spoke slowly.
“This lodge is a space affected by that Fragment’s timeline. Simply put, it’s an axis created by the Fragment’s energy twisting time.”
How…?
It was the perfect answer.
That was the exact setting, after all.
“So? Still don’t believe me?”
She smiled brightly and approached me.
She knew things in such detail that I had no choice but to believe her.
My head spun with even more confusion. How on earth did this information get to her?
Was this another snowball effect from Kang Yu-sung’s death?
If so, it just proved once again how trash his management skills were…
“And I’d rather ask you something.”
Kang A-rin leaned in toward my face. Her approaching red eyes shone faintly. Her gaze was meaningful, as if trying to see right through me.
“This information is treated as a top secret that no one, even within Glory, knows about. So how did you know?”
Now it was my turn to explain.
If what she said was true, then very few people even within Glory knew about this. So the fact that I knew? It was only natural for her to be suspicious.
Not that I was obligated to answer her.
Ignoring her question, I headed straight for the lodge’s exit.
“Where are you going?”
Her voice followed me from behind. It sounded a little urgent, but still held a trace of her usual composure.
Without breaking my stride, I glanced back at her over my shoulder.
“Aren't you here to find the Fragment, too?”
Outside, it was still evening.
“Same here,” I added, taking one step after another into the snowy landscape before me. The mountain, once covered in rain, was now blanketed in pure white snow. The cold, crisp air stung my skin.
I could feel her gaze on my back, but I deliberately ignored her reaction and kept walking forward.
I know the Fragment’s location and creation time.
Baekdusan’s Cheonji. January 1st. The Fragment is created at that exact place, on that exact day. In the original story, it was an item that had appeared suddenly, without any warning.
My concern was just how good Glory’s information network was in a world line where Kang Yu-sung was dead.
Giving them the benefit of the doubt, let’s say they even knew the Fragment was inside Cheonji.
But there was no way they could know the specific time it would be created.
I lifted my head and stared into the empty air.
I organized my plan in my head and scanned my surroundings. What I had to do now was simple. Pretend to search and shake her off.
Just as I stepped into the snow-covered field…
Pfft.
A small laugh burst out from behind me. The sound cut through the cold air, and I stopped in my tracks.
When I turned, Kang A-rin was covering her mouth with one hand, her shoulders shaking. She was trying to hold back her laughter, but her eyes were already crinkled with amusement.
“Ah, sorry.”
She bowed her head slightly to hide her laughter, but she couldn’t hide the smile that remained on her lips. Then she looked up at me with a bright, innocent smile.
“It’s just… watching you worry… it’s cute.”
I frowned slightly, but her composed smile didn’t falter.
“But you know.”
She slowly walked toward me. After a few steps through the snow, she stood right beside me. Then she looked up at me and spoke.
Her lips moved softly, enunciating each word clearly.
“Baekdusan’s Cheonji. And January 1st. How about it?”
In that moment, my mind went blank.
“…”
She smiled brightly and tilted her head slightly.
“Instead of wandering around in the cold and dark,” she said, suddenly grabbing my hand.
“Let’s just stay inside the warm lodge and talk for a bit.”
Kang A-rin squeezed my hand and gently pulled me back toward the lodge.
I could have resisted with force, but I had given up on thinking. I had no choice but to let her lead me back.
*
Glory’s information network was beyond imagination.
Honestly, it was good enough to make me want to drop everything and get a job there right now.
Every single plan I came up with was getting shattered by her, one after another.
I don’t know if our thought processes were just that similar or what, but she was an exhausting opponent.
“…So, you need the Fragment too, right?”
There was no point in hiding it anymore.
“Yep.”
She smiled brightly at my response and lightly tapped my arm.
Don’t these kinds of negotiations usually happen with a bit of distance between you?
She was stuck right next to me, using the excuse that it was warm in front of the fireplace.
I had offered to move to the other side, but she’d stopped me.
“The Fragment. Want me to give it to you?”
I stared at her, dumbfounded.
I mean, this woman, seriously…
It’s not like I wanted the Fragment for my own selfish reasons. It was all for the sake of the world.
Even if I got it, it was exclusively for Seong Si-woo, so I couldn’t even absorb it myself.
If I could have absorbed the Fragment, I might have done so long ago and planned to mess everything up with infinite regressions.
Of course, regression was gone now…
“…It’d be great if you did.”
Of course, I only grumbled internally.
As someone who needed to obtain the Fragment with my own two hands, I was at a complete disadvantage.
If she went all out to get the Fragment, it would eventually lead to a physical conflict.
But I wanted to avoid that kind of conflict with a character I had created as much as possible.
She seemed satisfied with my answer, a playful glint in her eyes as she smiled at me.
The way the corner of her mouth lifted seemed to be mocking me somehow.
“I’ll give it to you.”
Kang A-rin nodded and said it nonchalantly.
Her attitude suggested she could hand it over this very instant.
“But there’s a condition.”
“What is it?”
If there were no conditions, it would be a scam.
What on earth was she going to demand?
The Dongbaek Sword?
Iano’s Cross?
Watching my reaction, she opened her mouth with an amused smile.
“When you graduate… join Glory.”
For a moment, my mind froze.
Glory was the guild under the Glory Group.
The undisputed number one guild in the world.
In other words, it was less of a condition and more of a massive offer.
“Are you serious?”
“Yep.”
Kang A-rin’s expression was still perfectly composed.
She moved a little away from me and leaned against the fireplace as she continued.
“I’m well aware that you’re Mukgui.”
“And I know you came this far—from Iano’s Tomb to the location of the Fragment—using your own information network.”
She continued speaking leisurely, a bright smile on her face.
“I’ve simply judged that one proper talent is more valuable than a Fragment we don’t even know how to use.”
She paused for a beat, her eyes narrowing slightly.
“And besides, if you become mine, then the Fragment naturally becomes mine too, doesn’t it?”
Kang A-rin grinned, one corner of her mouth curling up.
“What do you say?”
Honestly, it was an offer that required no thought.
“Sounds good…”
I was planning to join Glory after graduation anyway.