Chapter 129
Chapter 129
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 129
Chapter Title: The Third
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Do you know what the absolute worst thing to do in a horror movie is?
It's genre drift. After building up a perfectly terrifying atmosphere, if the movie suddenly shifts to comedy, audiences lose their minds.
A recent example is that tragic clown who went from a man-eating monster to a small-time investor wiped out in the stock market. The circumstances were a bit different, sure, but no one fears that clown anymore, do they? It's pretty much the same thing.
Drifts like that usually just earn a pile of bad reviews.
Just like in web novels, where faking pure romance only to twist it into a harem, or flipping a harem into pure romance, or slapping NTR onto pure romance escalates from taboo to something that needs to be purged.
If a chilling horror flick suddenly turns into nonstop laughs, the audience will personally show the director what real terror is. They'll probably be grinning ear to ear while they do it.
The current situation was no different.
"Senior, senior. Look over here, senioooor~."
"……."
Third period PE class.
The field, hosting a joint session for first- and second-years, was swarming with students. Not every class from both grades was out at once, so it wasn't packed to the brim, but there were still plenty of them. Ian sat quietly on a bench, watching.
Every one of those kids, who looked like ordinary humans, was actually a grotesque anomaly—a mystery in human skin. Some of them might have started out as humans, only for their memories to be tampered with until they belonged to this world. Wanderers, victims. Ian personally thought that was more likely.
Every action has a purpose. There was no way some entity had snuck into the school just to sow chaos by mind-wiping people for no reason. Mysteries weren't that kind to humans.
If their memories get altered so they can't tell truth from lies. If they accept every memory at face value.
They'd be bound to this place in that state, living out their days just like those kids.
"……Hoo."
Ian let out a long breath, forcibly ignoring the Master of the Outer Sea clinging to his side. His exhale fogged faintly in the bizarre space where all four seasons seemed to coexist.
"……Hey, Ian."
Lee Seo-ah sidled up while he was at it. Dressed in her gym clothes, she'd wrapped herself up tight and eyed the Master of the Outer Sea plastered right next to him.
"That thing... it's what I think it is, right...?"
"No idea what you're thinking, but it's easier to just roll with it. That's what I'm doing."
"……But."
"At least it won't harm us."
Ian glanced back at the Master of the Outer Sea.
"It can tell that much."
"Of course, senior."
She beamed and rubbed her cheek against his shoulder like a cat. He could almost hear a faint purr-purr.
"I won't do anything you hate. Ever. No matter what."
"……."
"Sure, you might get annoyed. You might hate having something like me around so much you'd want to kill it. But unless you ask, my hands won't get bloody."
"……Hoo, thanks. Not sure if that's the right word, but."
"Don't thank me—say you love me instead?"
"That's still a bit much."
"Tch."
She puffed out her cheeks and hugged his arm like it was a doll.
"Eheheh. Feels so good... I just want to chop off one arm and hug it forever..."
"That sounds exactly like something I'd hate."
"That's why I won't do it, right?"
"……."
He had no comeback—it was spot on. Ian tried to slip his arm free, but her grip only tightened, so he gave up.
"……Anyway, how long are you planning to keep up this act?"
He still remembered his first real encounter with the Master of the Outer Sea.
Yohan General Hospital. She'd first appeared through the Watcher's eye, and even without direct communication, her overwhelming presence had hit him full force.
The sensation of his entire body crushed under water pressure. Water seeping into his lungs, then morphing into bugs that gnawed at every cell—it was unforgettable.
But it had all been temporary. She hadn't actually done anything. She'd just peered through the peephole, giggled kyarruk, and vanished.
They'd only talked properly after that.
"When you first showed up as Pygmalion's statue, your speech wasn't like this."
About a month ago, the Master of the Outer Sea had forced an incomplete descent through Pygmalion's statue.
Her tone back then had been too casual for an Outer God—no honorifics, nothing like "senior."
Especially now that her true nature was out, there was no reason to keep up the junior act.
"Mm... yeah, this isn't my real way of talking! It's annoying to keep it up, honestly!"
The Master of the Outer Sea admitted it readily. She stroked his fingers and replied in a bright voice.
"But I have no choice. To stay in this space, I have to stick to the assigned role."
"……."
"If the concept slips even a little, this place goes pop and bursts. Oh, look over there."
She pointed at a spot in the sky. It warped like shattered glass.
"When I was bickering with that damn bitch earlier, it broke because I slacked on the act. Couldn't handle my level."
"……Unbelievable. Then why not just leave? Why bother us?"
"Eek, no way. When's an opportunity like this gonna come again? Spaces that can handle my presence aren't exactly common~."
She trailed off, brought his hand to her mouth, and nipped it lightly. As Ian winced at the throbbing pain, she grinned and licked the bite mark.
"Mmm... salty. Hehehe."
"……If you're just gonna mess around, I'm out."
"Ah, nooo! Don't go! That jerk's watching from the staff room right now!"
The "jerk" she meant was obviously the Recomposer of All Things.
Ian shot a sidelong glance at the pale figure plastered to the staff room window, then looked straight ahead.
"……These things are gods?"
"Gods who lavish affection on just one person have surprisingly high demand!"
"Quiet."
"Nyeng."
Come to think of it, school ghost stories as a mystery were bound to be powerful. They existed not just in Korea but Japan too, backed by decades of fear and infamy. It'd be weirder if it were weak.
Still, for it to contain two Outer Gods' presences without collapsing was odd. No matter how much they held back, a mere mystery shouldn't handle it.
"Because it's not a mere mystery."
The Master of the Outer Sea smirked, reading his thoughts, and crossed her arms. Ian turned to her.
"……I figured as much. Learned anything specific?"
"Kiss me for five minutes with some tongue, whisper sweet nothings while fondling my ears, and bite my nape hard enough to draw blood at the end, and I'll tell you."
"Heading to the Recomposer. Lee Seo-ah, let's go."
"Aaaah!"
The Master of the Outer Sea grabbed Ian's pants as he stood abruptly.
"This space was made by an Outer God!"
"……What?"
"More precisely, by a grimoire written by an Outer God!"
Ian's face hardened at the unexpected answer. She grinned at his expression.
"Aw, cute face."
"……."
"Surprised? Of course you are. You killed one Outer God, and now another shows up."
"……Killed one? What are you talking about?"
Lee Seo-ah, who'd been listening quietly, frowned and asked. Ian stared at her for a moment, then decided to tell her about everything before his regression.
He wouldn't have told anyone else. But she was one of the few who knew both his grimoires were from Outer Gods.
She'd know what they could do. Regression being one of them was no exception.
Even the grimoires from Cthulhu mythos held dangerous spells. Real Outer God grimoires would be far worse.
Lee Seo-ah didn't react much to the regression—maybe she'd suspected something similar.
Instead, she latched onto something else.
"……Got it. An Outer God took out another Outer God. The world's timeline shifted as a result. Even that it helped Earth—doesn't make total sense, but okay."
"……."
"So if regressions happen like that, you're a regressor now? Every time you die, an Outer God rewinds the timeline? Then—"
"Earth's lifeforms really are dumb. You think that's possible, insect?"
The Master of the Outer Sea cut her off with a blank mutter.
"Even for an Outer God, messing with timelines is tough. Only that damn dog-bitch can even do it."
"……Yeah?"
"Short speech, huh?"
"……Sir?"
"Tch. If you weren't senior's friend, I'd stuff your head with Outer Sea knowledge and play with you..."
Grumbling, she snuggled into Ian's lap. He tried to push her off, but her physical weight was immense—she didn't budge. Like a damn elephant.
"We call it regression, but it's not really. The universe flows on; only Earth spun backward."
"……."
"And once a timeline's touched, it can't be manipulated again. Ignore that, and Earth—and the Outer God—vanish."
"……Ah."
"Hate admitting it, but the Recomposer sacrificed a lot for my husband. Her current state probably isn't normal either. Obvious with the magic restrictions."
She snorted and looked up at Ian.
"If you'd called me back then, we'd be laughing it up at the beach by now. Such a shame."
"Good thing I didn't."
Ian glanced at the Recomposer of All Things as he spoke.
She was still glued to the staff room window, gazing down at him.
Her face was expressionless, just like their first meeting. But Ian knew better than anyone that it wasn't from emotional flatness. He gave her a faint smile first.
The Recomposer mimicked it awkwardly, waving her hand.
"Hey, eyes here."
The Master of the Outer Sea forcibly turned his head back to her.
"I'm the one next to you right now. Focus on me."
"……Mmgh."
"Look closely—that favoritism is brutal. Too much love for one side, and the other can't take it. Be careful. Before I really devour you. A god's patience isn't like a human's."
"……Noted."
Ian smiled wryly and patted her head. She closed her eyes, savoring it.
"Hng... Anyway, to finish: this space formed when an Outer God's grimoire took root here. It just reached the level to produce grimoires, so it dropped one on Earth."
"Why Earth, of all places?"
"Probably observed my incomplete descent. Or drawn by your aura, like I was."
"……Hah."
"Don't know the Outer God's name, but one thing comes to mind."
She smirked wickedly, tapping her lips with a finger.
"In your language? Total loser. Yeah. That's the closest match."