Chapter 815
Episode 815 – Room 303, Cursed Room – ‘Time Machine’ (4)
— Kim Muk-seong
The call I received from my daughter-in-law was simple.
– Father, I’m sorry for contacting you so early in the morning.
“It’s alright. There’s no reason to feel bad about contacting family. What’s going on?”
– So, I’ve heard that I shouldn’t contact you. But no matter how long I wait, there’s no response. You’re the only one we can trust, Father…!
Her words sounded like a jumbled mess.
With just the contents of the call, I couldn’t understand what my daughter-in-law was trying to convey.
But I had an inkling about what she wanted to say.
“Se-yeon, calm down and speak slowly. Su-ho suddenly disappeared without a word, right?”
– Su-Su-ho hasn’t contacted us for weeks, nor has he come home.
At this point, faint memories began to surface.
The situation was simple.
When my son went missing for almost a month, my daughter-in-law did what any ordinary person would do—she reported it to the police.
The problem arose when the Management Bureau suddenly contacted her to say this.
– They said it three times from the Management Bureau. Not to contact you, Father… I did as instructed. But it’s been over a month with no word…
“Good job. This will mean you won’t have to suffer any further, so don’t worry about it.”
– Father, Su-Su-ho is…
“Don’t worry. I’ll handle it well. Just take care of yourself.”
The sudden disappearance of my son and my daughter-in-law’s report.
And the Management Bureau hid my son’s disappearance from me.
First, let’s head to the Management Bureau.
*
Who is the most powerful person in South Korea?
People who don’t know might think of the often-confusing president or the frequently changing number one chairman of the business world.
But anyone with a bit of understanding about how the world works would say it’s Park Hyun-min, the head of the Management Bureau Korean Branch in Seoul.
— Thud!
The most powerful person in South Korea placed around thirty sheets of paper on the table.
“Mook-seong, all the information you’re curious about is here.”
“Is there no other story?”
“Other story?”
“I thought you might at least apologize for formality.”
“Is there a reason to apologize?”
“… It’s been a month since my son went missing, and I just found out today because you hid that information from me.”
“Mook-seong, I was just doing my duty to the best of my ability.”
“…”
“It’s not easy to maintain composure when family is involved in such matters. Should you be an exception?”
“…”
“If there’s any fault, it’s because you didn’t place enough trust in me.”
“Sometimes I think your way of speaking is quite rude. There are times when I want to slap you.”
“Assaulting a superior is grounds for punishment.”
“What’s the big deal about receiving a punishment? My life is long enough anyway.”
“If you must hit me, do it with boxing.”
“…”
“I’m confident in boxing, you know.”
“Ha!”
At this point, I could not help but let out a hollow laugh.
Moreover, seeing such a prominent figure makes me think how he got to the position he holds now as an ordinary human.
It wouldn’t be easy to control those agents who lead immortal lives as ordinary humans.
Of course, it’s difficult to call high-ranking officials in the Bureau, who have received various lifespan extension measures, ‘ordinary humans.’
The contents of the data were as I remembered.
There were analyses hinting that my son, Su-ho, had fallen into darkness.
It was written there that the child was undergoing some unidentified magical ritual, with a minimum of seven victims involved.
“Hah… This is reliable data, right?”
“Agent, there’s no such thing as ‘reliable’ in our work. Isn’t it our job to wander in the dark, searching for vague possibilities?”
“…”
“However, if we approach it from the perspective of probability… Yes, it’s highly likely that Kim Su-ho has fallen.”
After a moment of silence, the branch manager tilted his head and said.
“Agent, you’re calmer than expected.”
“…”
“I thought you might claim it’s manipulated data or insist on re-investigating from the start.”
“…”
“If I had known you would remain this composed, I wouldn’t have hidden it at all. I acknowledge my misjudgment on this matter. I’m sorry.”
Suddenly receiving an apology from Manager Park didn’t make me happy at all.
In the past, I had truly struggled for hours trying to refute the data.
His judgment about my inability to maintain objectivity on family issues was accurate.
It’s simply that ‘the current me’ is aware of the truth.
This data is all factual, and Su-ho is entangled in an unidentified chaotic disaster.
For ordinary people, at this stage, it’s already clear that he is a ‘target for disposal’ without needing to state whether he is guilty or not.
What did I say to the manager in the past?
I remembered.
“May I ask a favor?”
“It depends on the content.”
“I will end it by my own hand. Either way.”
“Wait. I will instruct you to provide information related to Kim Su-ho’s current situation.”
Just as I was about to let out a light sigh and head out.
“Hmm? Manager. What’s this…?”
“Agent, do you have more to say?”
All the furniture in the Manager’s office Korean branch is high-end.
There’s no reason for anything of lower quality or damaged to be in the manager’s office.
However, the condition of the antique ebony desk in the center of the office was strange.
It looked like someone had sliced a part of the desk with a sharp saw.
“Your desk, the corner by the window… Was it always like that?”
*
— Kim Ari
That person! I’ve definitely seen them once before.
Where did I see them?
Ah, it was at a wedding!
“Hey! Are you getting off at this station, senior?”
But whose wedding was it? When was it? Where?
It’s strange. I can’t remember well.
Is it because of the memories before entering the hotel?
— Clunk!
The train will be stopping soon.
“Are you alright? It seems like you can’t hear me – Ah! If you get off suddenly!”
— Creak! Bang!
.
..
…
When I came to my senses, I found myself sitting on a seat in an empty subway station.
“… What’s going on?”
“Senior, you’re finally awake!”
I couldn’t tell if it was a relief, but I wasn’t alone.
The young man, Aleph, who had an extremely flustered look, was next to me as well.
“That was really strange earlier. You suddenly stared at someone like you were bewitched, and then you got off following them.”
“…”
“Moreover, this station wasn’t even a recommended drop-off point from the train. It was the next station.”
“It felt like I was possessed by a ghost. What about you? Did you follow me because I got off?”
“Haha! If a lady gets off, how could I remain? – Just kidding.”
As I sat dumbfounded in the chair, a clumsy hypothesis popped into my head.
I tried hard to recall the identity of someone I had seen on the train.
Did the train interpret my actions as ‘deciding a destination’?
I don’t know.
One thing is for sure: I inadvertently got off the train.
“Senior, shouldn’t we head back to the train?”
Agent Kim Ari’s mission is to uncover the countermeasures against the train causing mass disappearances.
Then, we must return to the train.
“Right.”
“Is it possible?”
“Totally possible.”
Returning to the train isn’t difficult.
If I think about how I even got into the train in the first place, the answer becomes clear.
Since I originally received help from the Management Bureau to get on, I can just seek their help again.
However, at this point, two thoughts crossed my mind.
First, the name of the person I encountered.
“Oh, it just came back to me.”
“What is it?”
“The name of the person I found on the train.”
“Who is it?”
“You probably won’t know if I tell you.”
“Hmm, would it be appropriate to not tell me then?”
“Ha Su-yeon.”
“Still don’t know that name.”
The person I found on the train was Ha Su-yeon, Mook-seong’s wife.
She should certainly be an ordinary human.
Her husband, Mook-seong, had never mentioned anything special about her.
Why on earth was she on the Parinirvana Train?
I realized once again how incomprehensible this world is.
Second, Aleph.
“Why are you looking at me like that all of a sudden?”
“…”
By now, Aleph should have realized he is a fool.
This world is an entirely different realm from the loop Aleph has lived through, and I am not Aleph’s ‘senior.’
Of course, he was not an foolish person.
“May I say just one thing?”
“Go ahead.”
“This situation is filled with riddles. From the train to this world. It feels like there’s more unknowns than knowns.”
“…”
“It seems there are also mysteries between us. For instance, are you and I truly from the ‘same organization’?”
“…”
“But let’s move past that for now. Don’t you think our goals are the same? We need to return to the train.”
“Why did you follow me in the first place? I was forced out by some unknown power, but you could have stayed behind.”
The young man smiled brightly.
“I told you earlier, didn’t I?”
“What?”
“How could I let someone as beautiful as you fall into a deserted island all alone?”
“…”
After a pause in silence, I couldn’t hold back the next sentence.
“… It’s hard to rank this and a confession on KakaoTalk for superiority.”
“What?”
“Come along. We’re going to the ‘Management Bureau.’ You are… my local assistant now.”
*
As the sky began to darken, I arrived at the Management Bureau Korean Branch.
After about ten minutes of explanation, the branch manager had a slightly bewildered expression.
“So… Kim Ari, let me summarize what you’ve explained.”
“Go ahead.”
“Back around 2003, ‘I’ ordered you. The Galaxy Train has been causing mass disappearances of civilians periodically. I sent several staff members, but we only kept repeating meaningless sacrifices. We need to deploy agents. An agent, even if they die on the train, will pass the information they learned to the Bureau in the next loop.”
“That’s accurate.”
“You followed the order and boarded the Galaxy Train. And… arrived in the present time of 1976.”
“That’s right.”
“… So, you’re telling me you’re Agent Kim Ari from the future?”
“Correct.”
“Can you imagine how I feel right now?”
“You probably thought this was the most absurd thing you’ve ever heard in your life. While at the same time, you pressed the third button on the underside of the desk with your left hand.”
“…”
“You probably verified my identity through about six different methods. You pretended it was a coincidence when you walked in, and you must have pulled a hair for a DNA test.”
“…”
“All results came back clear?”
“Wow, you really know everything.”
“The fact that you know everything is proof of my statement.”
“Phew…”
After letting out a long sigh, Manager Park spoke in a low voice.
“Agent Kim Ari, on the premise that I believe what you say, may I ask just one thing?”
“Go ahead.”
“Have you ever… met your ‘future self’ in the past?”
“What? What do you -”
— Knock!
There was a knock from outside.
The intercom activated and an external staff’s voice came through.
— Manager, it seems there’s an error in the SOC system regarding ‘Agent Kim Ari.’ She claims she never requested an interview with you – Huh?
“…”
“…”
— Rustle!
“What! Why did you suddenly slice the desk?”
“Your desk has a CK 13 sensor on the corner by the window. It will likely report me as a ‘doppelganger’.”
“I’ve never heard of such a thing – Ah.”
“…”
“Your future self has truly ascended to a high position. Very well then, I will trust you to resolve this situation.”
