Chapter 400
It was purely by chance that Director Choi Jae-man met that man. He couldn’t remember exactly, but it was the day he had stopped by the company early in the morning for some important business. Normally, he would’ve sent his secretary or a subordinate, but that day happened to be a Sunday. Him going to the office at dawn on a weekend was a once-in-a-blue-moon kind of situation.
Swallowing his irritation, Choi Jae-man arrived at the company and soon witnessed a strange sight. In the darkened office, a man was asleep wearing a headgear.
At first, he thought it was a homeless person or a vagrant. The man had a messy beard, unkempt hair, and shabby clothes. If it weren’t for the employee ID hanging conspicuously around his neck, Choi Jae-man would’ve called the police.
– Hey.
– …Huh?
Awakened by Choi Jae-man’s voice, the man groggily sat up and removed the headgear.
– You… What are you doing here right now?
– Who…?
– Director Choi Jae-man.
– Ah, yes. I see… As you can see, I was just sleeping.
The man, still half-asleep, responded indifferently even after hearing the title “Director.” What kind of guy is this? Choi Jae-man read the name on the man’s employee ID.
– Hey. Employee Jeong Ji-hwan… Do you think I’m asking because I don’t know that? I’m asking why you’re sleeping in the office on a Sunday.
– Overtime…
– Heh heh…
Choi Jae-man had seen employees like this before. Those who work overtime on weekends because they’re not yet skilled at their job. Or those who are so passionate about their work that they stay late even on weekends. This man seemed more like the former than the latter.
No matter how he looked at it, Jeong Ji-hwan didn’t seem passionate about his work.
– Anyway, stop this and go inside.
– No… I have to work now.
– …? You’re going to work?
– Yes.
Jeong Ji-hwan casually tried to put the headgear back on. Now that he looked closely, it seemed he hadn’t been using the headgear as a sleep mask but had fallen asleep while working with it on.
– Wait! Are you still half-asleep? I told you, today’s Sunday.
– Yes, I know. There’s still a lot to test…
– Do it tomorrow. Even if you work today, you won’t get overtime pay. Don’t think about earning even a penny more…
– Ah, I already exceeded that a long time ago.
– What?
– But I don’t need overtime pay. Just let me work.
– What kind of…
– Then, Director. I’ll get back to work.
Jeong Ji-hwan, with dark circles under his eyes, spoke calmly, as if used to such questions. Watching him, Choi Jae-man seriously wondered if he was an overly passionate employee or a game addict. But he couldn’t sense any passion or desire in the man.
Jeong Ji-hwan looked exhausted. All his desires had burned out, and all that remained was an inexplicable sense of duty. He seemed like someone clinging to this job as if it were a lifeline.
As Choi Jae-man watched Jeong Ji-hwan prepare to work by turning on the headgear, he muttered.
– I can’t understand. Why would anyone be so obsessed with work that doesn’t even pay?
– …I have no choice.
Though he hadn’t asked for an answer, Jeong Ji-hwan, while putting on the headgear, gave an incomprehensible reply.
– My younger sibling might be here.
*
“You probably don’t have an appetite, but eat this.”
“…What do you plan to do with me now?”
In the cold corner of the dungeon, Choi Jae-man spoke.
“…Are you planning to kill me?”
“If I were, I would’ve done it already.”
Park Se-hee pushed a tray with soup and bread through the bars. Choi Jae-man didn’t even glance at it and muttered.
“Haha… Right. After all… Both you and I are destined to die…”
Jeong Ji-hwan, after being possessed by Tristan, had lived through an endlessly repeating year. According to him, this world had already been destroyed multiple times. He had tried everything to stop it but failed repeatedly.
Choi Jae-man didn’t want to believe any of it.
That Tristan was actually Jeong Ji-hwan. That this world would be destroyed by the hands of players. But the futures Jeong Ji-hwan described were too vivid and horrifying to dismiss as lies.
Just a short while ago, it would’ve been someone else’s problem, but now that Choi Jae-man had been forcibly made a resident of this world, it was no longer someone else’s story. The end of this world meant his death. What Jeong Ji-hwan had told him was an undeniable future for Choi Jae-man. An inescapable fate.
In the end, Choi Jae-man despaired. Even after Tristan left, he sat huddled in the dungeon like a man who had lost his soul.
Anyone who learned that the world was ending would likely feel the same. Seeing his helpless state, Park Se-hee sighed.
“Don’t lose heart. It’s not like you.”
“We’re doomed…”
Choi Jae-man clutched his head. If he could turn back time, he wouldn’t have betrayed CEO Park Joon-hyuk… He wouldn’t have tried to take control of the Milky Way system…
‘What was I thinking…?’
It’s obvious if you think about it. CEO Park Joon-hyuk was a genius who single-handedly created the Milky Way. Not only did he use innocent people as test subjects for the Remina Project, but he also possessed Jeong Ji-hwan with Tristan a year ago. Choi Jae-man regretted his arrogance in thinking he could outsmart such a person.
But no matter how much he regretted, it was already too late.
“This world is over… Now we just wait for the day we die…”
“We don’t know that yet.”
“…How can you be so calm? Aren’t you scared?”
“I’m scared too. But Ji-hwan said it, didn’t he? The future can change.”
“Hah… He failed over 500 times to stop the destruction. What makes you think this time will be any different?”
“Yes.”
“…?”
Choi Jae-man looked up.
Park Se-hee didn’t seem anxious or afraid. She was just calm.
“You might not understand, but I believe Ji-hwan can change the future.”
“Based on what…?”
“I believe in Ji-hwan.”
“Huh?”
“To be precise, I believe in him because even after failing over 500 times, he keeps trying to change the future. I believe in his effort and his tenacity. If there’s anyone who can change the future, I think it’s Ji-hwan.”
A hollow laugh escaped. To be so confident based on mere belief.
“That’s nonsense…”
“You’re right.”
Whether Choi Jae-man believed her or not, Park Se-hee didn’t seem to care. She didn’t argue back, just shrugged. It was a strange confidence. Trusting and believing in someone was an emotion Choi Jae-man couldn’t understand, so it felt even more baffling.
Watching Park Se-hee, he suddenly became curious.
“Jeong Ji-hwan… What does he plan to do now?”
“I don’t know… But I think I know what Ji-hwan is thinking right now.”
“…?”
“He definitely won’t give up this time either.”
*
“…Are you really planning to follow me?”
“Of course.”
Today marks exactly one year since I was possessed. Before sunrise, I stopped by the stables at the mansion. As expected, Helga, who had been watching my every move, was waiting for me.
“I’m your bodyguard knight before I’m your wife, Count.”
“I’ve told you countless times, we’re not married yet.”
“Oh, come on. In my heart, I’m already a married woman with four kids.”
“…”
“Oh, and by the way, the fourth one is the son you’ve been waiting for.”
She even knew information I didn’t want to know. Feeling the conversation drifting off, I ignored it and asked.
“…So, do you know where I’m going and still plan to follow?”
“No? Shouldn’t I follow you wherever you go, Count?”
“What if I order you to stay?”
“Hmm. I can’t follow that order.”
“You’re not planning to follow it…?”
“Hehe… Well, I’ll just break one order and take the punishment… or reward.”
“…Where I’m going today could be very dangerous. That’s why I’m going alone.”
“Then I absolutely can’t let you go alone.”
“You could die.”
The place I’m heading to is no different from a death zone. A battlefield where not only my life but also the lives of those who accompany me could be in danger.
But Helga nodded nonchalantly.
“Yes, I know.”
“You know…?”
“When you leave without telling me or anyone else, it’s because you’re going to do something dangerous. At the same time, you don’t want others to get involved in that danger.”
She hit the nail on the head. Helga didn’t know what I was planning, but she had a vague sense of the danger involved. And despite knowing, she had stayed by my side all along.
“Hehe… Don’t worry, Count. Have you forgotten who I am? The deputy commander of the Empire’s strongest knight order, Aslan, and the one who defeated the head of the Wolfbert Family. Who would dare stop me?”
“Helga. Even you can die.”
“Do you think I’d die just because I’m killed?”
“…?”
“You don’t think I’d die just because my heart is pierced, do you?”
“What are you…?”
Before I could stop her, Helga suddenly hugged me.
“Even if time stops, my feelings for you won’t.”
“…Even so, if time stops, there’s nothing you can do.”
“I’m stronger than time, so it’s fine! So please let me come with you!”
At this point, I was speechless. Honestly, even if I tried to leave alone, I knew I couldn’t escape Helga’s surveillance, so her coming along was expected. She didn’t need to throw a tantrum like this…
But then, Helga, hugging me, whispered softly.
“I’m not afraid of anything. Even if death separates us… I’ll find you, Count. I’ll never let you go.”
“…”
Her shoulders were trembling. She was a warrior who had overcome countless adversities. Nothing could make her afraid. But I knew. The thing she feared most was me being in danger.
“Alright. I knew you’d say that.”
I hugged Helga back. It was also my way of allowing her to come with me.
“You’ve been by my side in my final moments every time.”
“…Huh?”
“Never mind.”
I mounted the horse Helga had prepared.
“If you’re coming, I won’t stop you.”
“Hehe… Don’t worry. I’ll follow you even as a ghost.”
“…In the next life, it’d be better if we were strangers.”
“Oh, did you think you could escape me in the next life, Count?”
Helga got on her horse with her usual playful smile.
“So, where are we going? To the battlefield? Or to the north to fight monstrous beasts?”
“We’re going to paradise.”
“Huh? Paradise?”
She seemed to have imagined some dangerous place, but the word “paradise” left her confused. However, that peaceful paradise was now over.
I rode off with Helga toward paradise.
Unaware of the gaze watching us from the mansion window.
