The soon-to-be-30-year-old young man didn’t hesitate to add titles like “No Name” and “Wizard” to the three-times-younger child. Hehe!
Is this to be seen as loyalty or stubbornness?
A clever fox would be the right term, I suppose.
It doesn’t mean he hates it that much. Indeed, this is the right kind of world.
“At least, I won’t be back in Korea until April. The winter semester ends then.”
“Well then, please drop me a message around April, Wizard. I’ll make sure the public opinion is amazing.”
“When did I say I’d be back then? No need. Thanks for sending the materials, but it’s cold, so you should go inside now.”
“Huh? Are you telling me to go now? How about a coffee outside, or at least an orange juice…!”
I promptly pushed Eom Jun-yong, former member of parliament, out the yard as if to kick him out.
He was already a figure who wouldn’t be good to get too entangled with.
Wasn’t he the one who insisted on a relationship of necessity in the first place?
Anyway, the purpose of his visit today was to win my favor, and that plan was already halfway successful.
“We each have our own picture we’re drawing. Let’s meet again if the opportunity arises.”
Someday, when the brushstrokes racing across this wide canvas overlap, there will come a day when we need each other.
But it would be better if that day never comes. More than anything, people are too burdensome.
I entered my cozy room and meticulously examined the materials from start to finish.
As I looked over the list from the Valpurgis Special Investigation Committee, most of them seemed like people with only one foot in.
In the end, it turns out it was indeed true what Eom Jun-yong claimed: he was really the one who ran throughout the world and made over a hundred-page report.
How can one person’s investigation be more excellent than that of an entire nation?
Of course, the government wouldn’t ask him to jump into the main battalion of Valpurgis, but still, there’s a degree of decency, right?
In any case, summarizing the materials he sent, it went like this:
Seol-ah’s parents are both non-magic users, in other words, ordinary people.
For some reason, Seol-ah stayed in Africa until March of the year following the end of the war.
She somehow managed to arrive in Korea via Egypt.
The government found her closest relatives to bring her back, but they were only fifth cousins, so it was inevitable that she would end up in an orphanage.
When she turned eight, she was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease.
If you look at the elementary school report that Eom Jun-yong attached as a footnote, her days of absence increased in a linear sequence.
Instead, starting from middle school, her absentee days remained constant at the maximum of 50 days.
That’s an unreliable record.
Because schools often manipulate data within a certain range to promote a student to graduate on time.
Let’s return to the beginning.
In France, it was revealed that the purpose of Valpurgis-Cherub is to create artificial life forms.
Whether they create their own gods or suicide bomb-terror bioweapons, the goal is what matters little.
Well, it seems the body was a no-go, but judging by Adella’s case, it looks like they’re almost on the verge of success mentally.
Then another question arises.
Why did Valpurgis try to save the incurable No Seol-ah? What were they missing?
I recalled the time I used “Persona Physis.”
The capsule that Seol-ah and I were in was clearly treated differently from others.
The victims, with electrodes strapped to their heads, all died the moment the power to the capsules was cut.
However, we remained alive until we were moved to some abandoned house.
Right, they must’ve been trying to take care of us till the end. Leaving the capsules in the abandoned house wasn’t to destroy the evidence but to recover them later? Was there some communication issue, and eventually, nobody could find us?
It’s tragic. But it’s the only way it makes sense.
Since they were going to burn down the research lab anyway, there would be no reason to just whisk away those heavy capsules.
[Recover the Messiah’s vessel, stolen by unbelievers, without damage. – Excerpt from Operation ‘An Nas’]
Recover ‘me’ or recover ‘Seol-ah.’
Or perhaps recover both.
“Ah… if only I could catch about three people and analyze them with Persona Physis.”
The information that Eom Jun-yong had brought with difficulty certainly held value.
Still, something felt lacking.
I laid precariously on the bed, letting my hair fall to the floor.
Due to gravity, red blood pooled in my head, and the world flipped upside down.
“Mom, if I could meet you right now, there’s just one thing I’d like to ask? Do you know what Seol-ah is?”
My empty shout didn’t reach her.
I pouted my feet anxiously, repeatedly stamping the mattress with my heels.
“I really wonder if I was a baby that Mom wanted.”
Given the circumstances so far, it seemed most likely that Seol-ah was exploited as a surrogate.
Because the results obtained when finding suitable genes and making slight genetic modifications are far better.
It’s similar to breeding fruits.
If that’s the case, then the theory that I’m an artificial life form isn’t entirely wrong.
In fact, there could be far worse scenarios than this…
I didn’t even want to imagine.
My head became so tangled that I could no longer focus on even the words in front of me.
I pressed my fingers against my temples to ease the throbbing headache.
“Sis, hurry up and turn my tail and ears back to normal!”
Saetbyeol scampered into my room, her innocent cheeks puffed out.
A slight pinch of pain was felt.
I spread my aura thinly on my palm.
I petted Saetbyeol’s aura ears once and snipped off the excess tail.
“Here you go.”
Saetbyeol looked dumbfounded at my rather bland reaction.
She probably thought I’d play more tricks here.
“Do you hurt anywhere?”
“Yeah, I think I have a little cold. I’m going to take a nap, so raise the room temperature a bit.”
To be honest, I wasn’t sure if it was a cold or not.
I was just tired from thinking about this and that.
“Geez, you should have said so earlier. You might pass it on to me.”
Saetbyeol dashed out.
I intended to stay in a rather uncomfortable position for a while to sort out my thoughts.
But suddenly, Saetbyeol returned and peered down at me.
“Are you going to stay like that? If you’re sick, you should lie down properly.”
In an instant, her cold hands slipped under my arms.
Saetbyeol picked me up and gently placed me on the bed.
She held her hand to my forehead to check the temperature.
“Yeah, I think you have a slight fever. Don’t push yourself today, take a good rest. I’ll go for now.”
Smack-!
Saetbyeol planted a surprise kiss on my forehead and left the room just like that.
————————————-
[2nd Circle Cast: Cerebral Cortex Reconstruction]
[3rd Circle Cast: Activation of the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex]
[Encryption: Neurotensin Receptor 2]
What is a dream?
A dream is the process where part of the brain is awake in a REM sleep state, automatically recalling memories or information randomly.
The stronger one’s aura blooming, the more likely the imaginary world reflects in dreams.
This is because the mana circuits inside the body remain open even while sleeping, allowing for unconscious reactions with the world and magic.
Additionally, if the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is consistently activated, it makes for lucidity in dreams possible.
Although, be prepared for a headache the next day. Thud!
A desolate desert, a blazing sun, white flesh turning red, golden hair shining even brighter.
Here, I whispered one phrase.
“It’s a dream.”
As soon as I uttered this line, the floor of the entire world rose.
An optical illusion created by my height suddenly decreasing.
I became a 120cm-tall Korean girl with black hair and black eyes.
“Tsk, I preferred being 176cm.”
The seven pieces of the Aura Heart had established various ecosystems over time.
The desert was the world of appetite, the world of Erichiton.
As I transitioned into the third life with them, the erosions lost all of their essence.
Yet, the one powerful enough to completely change someone’s imaginary world had great influence.
I didn’t have much to do here.
All I needed to do was check if the leashes of each erosion were properly attached, and for Erichiton, just monitor the water level of the oasis.
“Barely drank any water.”
In this friend’s world, the water level indicates the activity of the Aura Heart.
Since the seven pieces are independently growing, it’s important to reasonably maintain balance until they become adults.
Clank-clank-
I grabbed a chain tied to a palm tree and slowly followed it.
A refreshing breeze blew through the cool red dirt houses.
Drip-drip-
Pulling the chain taut, I felt a dull pressure at my fingertips.
It was definitely inside.
“Why did they make the window so high?”
Raising my heels, I peeked through the gaping hole.
The inside was dark and invisible.
“…!”
In that moment, a silhouette burst out from within like a wild boar charging.
The girl squeezed out of the dirt house through the narrow window gap, leaving the perfectly intact main door behind.
The sunlight reflected off the sand, piercing my eyes sharply.
I squinted and fixed my demanding gaze on the place where the girl landed.
“Appetite?”
Appetite was one of the erosions I had sealed at the beginning, along with laziness and anger.
Because of that, when I was human, my self was virtually non-existent, exhibiting beast-like traits.
But…
An unbelievable sight unfolded.
The girl, who could only bark like “Grr,” “Woof,” and “Ar-ar!” stood upright on two feet.
Seeing me, she crossed her arms and turned her head in discontent as if I was beneath her.
Could this be a real dream?
Am I, in fact, dreaming of a lucid dream?
So, I quickly constructed a photon clock and confirmed that time was flowing 1.2 times slower than reality.
At least it isn’t a dream within a dream.
Then, what the heck is this girl in front of me?
“Who are you? This is Erichiton’s house.”
I tightened my trembling chest and lowered my voice to sound as intimidating as possible.
But my words sounded like nothing more than a chick chirping, bringing me nothing but shame.
“I’m Erichiton?”
“You’re Erichiton?”
“I don’t like you. You’re bad. You hurt Erichiton. I like the person who pets me.”
What kind of gibberish is this?
No wait, what I should be saying is that I should be making barking sounds, but I’m confused because she’s talking human language.
How did she regain her humanity?
As I stepped closer, the girl scampered sand-spilling five steps back.
This is…
There was another footprint on the sandy shore.
I asked from my spot.
“Hey, did someone break into your house?”
“Pet-pet?”
“Is it another case of Schadenfreude?”
I roughly guessed that Schadenfreude is causing trouble just like last time with Astarte.
Since it’s the erosion that makes up the core of my identity, it inherently holds the greatest strength.
However, if I suppress Schadenfreude, then my power will also weaken alongside it.
As I pondered how to resolve this perplexing problem, Erichiton barked, “King!” and burst into laughter.
“Call? Sayra? Say, say, sayer, sir! Woof-woof!”
“What are you saying?”
The word Erichiton energetically formed with her tongue was enough to shock me. Because…
“Seol-ah… Seol-ah!”
“…!”
“How did you know that name? Do you know our mom? Did she come here?”
The reason I reacted so was that my mother’s name came out of the mouth of a girl completely detached from reality.
Somewhere, in the realm of imaginary worlds, a massive upheaval was taking place without my knowledge.
“Hih, I won’t tell you!”
“You little rascal. This is urgent, so come on and tell me. Right now!”
There was no room for contemplation.
With all my strength, I leaped towards where the girl was.
Erichiton flashed a wicked and crafty smile and cleverly tried to slip right past me.
How dare you?
Although I might not be at my peak, my response speed was still top-notch.
I immediately threw out my right arm to prepare to swing at her head.
Ever since ancient times, the best remedy for mad dogs is a lariat.
Thump!
And then I woke up from that crazy dream.
————————————-
Snap!
Namel woke up with a start from the convulsions of her body.
She paused for a moment, feeling the throbbing sensation in her palm.
As she rubbed her bleary eyes, her vision slowly expanded.
Among the sunlight filtering through the translucent curtains, Cheon Saetbyeol appeared.
“Ouch ouch… It hurts so much… meow…”
One of her cheeks was as red as if someone had slapped it.
As Cheon Saetbyeol began to whimper, Namel’s eyes widened in shock.
“What’s wrong, Saetbyeol? Your cheek… Are you okay?”
“Ugh… If you don’t like it, just say you don’t like it.”
A cold washcloth from Namel’s forehead fell heavily on her thigh.
Cheon Saetbyeol trembled her lips and then burst into tears.
Tears like dew rolled down her cheeks, soaking Namel’s hand.
In a season where Saetbyeol had her sister in her arms, crying sorrowfully, Namel wiped her sister’s tears with her burning hands.
It was winter.
