Chapter 988: Alta.n.u.s (25)
“...”
“...”
“Liar.”
I[1] would never forget.
“No, you’re going to forget.”
"That’s not possible. How can I forget?"
“You forgot.”
"That can’t be, Mr…"
“It hurts.”
"What?"
“It hurts… It really… really… hurts… I gave up everything for you…”
“...”
“I thought you guys would remember me…”
“...”
“I resent you guys sometimes. It happens rarely, but I resent you guys so much. The emptiness… pain… and waiting wasn’t painful for me, Hyun-Sung. Our time wasn’t short… but I still had fun. But… I sometimes feel like this outcome is really cruel, especially when I waited such a long time for it.”
"What do you mean?"
“There are times when I laugh, but when the day is over, it becomes painful again. I thought… I thought there would be a place for me. I thought you would make a place for me… That’s what I thought, but you didn’t.”
"Mr—I…"
“I think it’s all your fault. I think you made me this way. You changed me… and eventually abandoned me.”
"I didn’t. I…"
“You abandoned me. I never abandoned you. You forgot about me, and you made me feel miserable.”
It felt like a dark shadow was suppressing me.
A shapeless hand was climbing up me, lingering around my neck.
“I did it for you… but you abandoned me.”
The shapeless hand was tightening its grip on my neck. It wasn’t strong, but I couldn’t breathe. I became stiff, and I couldn’t move. I couldn’t shake off the shapeless hand, even though it seemed like I could easily shake it off.
“You… You… Heuk… heuuuk…”
“Heuk… heuk… T-That’s not true! That’s not… Heuk
… not true.”
“...”
“No… that’s not true…”
I was covered in sweat. The moment I got up, I immediately looked for my rosary.
I touched my neck, and the familiar feeling made me feel relieved, so I instantly exhaled. My breathing was unstable, and I couldn"t stop breathing heavily.
"Things can get tough sometimes. You will find yourself in a pinch, but I always believe in you. If everyone walks on the same path, you’ll be able to overcome any trial. So my children… empathize with each other, laugh and cry with each other.
"Remember that I—the worthless one—am always with you."
“...”
“...”
"I want to see you smile, my children. I want you to enjoy your ordinary days and the life bestowed upon you. Even if you experience hards.h.i.+ps and trials, I want you to overcome them with a smile."
I recalled Saint Alta.n.u.s" words and chanted them.
“Saint Alta.n.u.s will always be by my side,” I mumbled.
“...”
“Saint Alta.n.u.s will always be by my side,” I repeated.
I calmed down slowly, and my tumultuous emotions were stabilizing as well.
“Saint Alta.n.u.s,” I said.
It was a strange dream. It was a really, really strange dream.
“It really was a—”
“Leader, it’s Jo Hye-Jin. Did something happen?” Jo Hye-Jin asked.
“...” “Leader?” Jo Hye-Jin asked.
“It’s nothing, Miss Hye-Jin. I just had a strange dream… I’ll head out now,” I replied.
“It’s still early, Leader. You can—”
“No, it’s fine. I have work I need to take care of anyway. Is… Miss Ha-Yan sleeping?” I asked.
“She’s in the middle of her research concerning that strange s.p.a.cetime…” Jo Hye-Jin answered.
“What?”
“After today"s meeting, she said that she needed to look into it again… and she hasn’t left her spot since then,” Jo Hye-Jin added.
It wasn’t unusual. Jung Ha-Yan would often stay up all night to do her research.
“It’d be nice if there’s nothing out of the ordinary…” I commented.
“Miss Sora also expressed her worries. I don’t know why, but she sometimes cries by herself,” Jo Hye-Jin said.
Perhaps it was because I had a disturbing dream, but I felt uncomfortable, so I tightened my grip around my rosary again and looked at the mirror.
I was frowning a bit, and my expression looked so serious as if I had seen a ghost. This wasn’t what Saint Alta.n.u.s wanted. I forced my trembling lips to smile.
After reciting another prayer, I could feel my expression turning to normal.
When I walked out, I saw a familiar face.
“I’m sorry for worrying you, Miss Hye-Jin,” I said.
“Did you have a nightmare?” Jo Hye-Jin asked.
“Sounds like you heard everything from out here. Looks like Mr. Deok-Gu will tease me again,” I said.
“As the leader, you need to scold him from time to time. Mr. Deok-Gu doesn’t seem like he knows how to distinguish between private and public matters. I can"t believe he made such comments when the new members are around—”
“Isn’t it okay since it makes Saint Alta.n.u.s happy? I didn’t think I would say this myself, but as you already know, Saint Alta.n.u.s—”
“Yes, yes, I know, Leader. Don’t be too serious… but I’m not that serious,” Jo Hye-Jin interrupted me.
Jo Hye-Jin looked down slightly, looking a bit heartbroken.
“S-S-So… you sounded really scared… Did you dream about the time you were in the tutorial dungeon?” Jo Hye-Jin asked.
Her statement made me smile and chuckle. “Pfft.”
“...”
“Hahaha.” I laughed.
“I’m sorry, Leader,” Jo Hye-Jin said.
“No, it’s fine. It was funny,” I told her.
It was more like the comment she made was funny rather than the joke itself.
She sounded awkward, but she had clearly mustered the courage to say it. She had to have decided to become brave upon realizing that I was in bad condition. I was happy for some reason. I finally understood why Saint Alta.n.u.s told us to always cry and laugh together as well as empathize with each other.
“Ah! The dream wasn’t about the tutorial dungeon,” I answered.
“Then…”
“I’m not sure. It was clearly…” I paused.
“...”
“I-I-I… don"t really remember,” I told her.
It wasn’t an excuse. I really couldn"t remember it. I tried to remember it, but for some reason, I couldn’t remember anything about it. The shapeless hand and that voice—that was all I could remember.
“Ah! I experience that from time to time,” Jo Hye-Jin commented.
“It was so vivid… that I thought I would never forget it… but it was completely erased from my mind after talking to you, Miss Hye-Jin. I’m not really sure, but I was clearly in pain… anxious, and scared,” I told her.
“I think it’s because you’ve been really stressed lately,” Jo Hye-Jin said.
“That’s a possibility. Saint Alta.n.u.s—”
“This isn’t the first time she hasn’t said anything for a while, so don’t worry so much… Once we conquer this dungeon, I’m sure she’ll be happy and she’ll start talking again. She’s always been like that,” Jo Hye-Jin rea.s.sured.
“I agree with you, but… no… I’m sure she’ll be happy,” I agreed with her.
And that was when I heard a scream. “AAAAH!”
I placed my hand on the sheath of my sword, but I chuckled when I recognized the owner of the voice. “Pfft!”
“Haha…”
“Looks like… Mr. Deok-Gu had a nightmare as well,” I commented.
“I agree,” Jo Hye-Jin said.
“Heuk… Heuuung…” Park Deok-Gu cried.
“...”
“Hyuuuuung… Kgggggh… kgh… Heuuung…”
“...”
“Keugh… Hiccup… Heuuung…”
“Honey? H-Honey? Mr. Deok-Gu.”
“Huh? Ah…”
“W-W-What’s wrong?” I asked.
“Huh?”
“Did you have a nightmare?” I asked.
“Uh… I…”
I remained quiet and was worried about the voice coming from inside the tent.
“What kind of dream—”
“I’m not sure… I don’t really remember… Were you talking in your sleep or something?” Park Deok-Gu asked.
Naturally, I made eye contact with Jo Hye-Jin.
The first time could be a coincidence, but the second time was different.
“...”
“...”
“I’ll be right back. Dispatch the rangers and examine the camp. Dispatch the investigation team as well to address this issue. The chances are low, but a mare could be behind this, so dispatch the Holy Knights as well. This is the top priority,” I ordered.
“Okay.”
“And isolate the people who are showing the same symptoms,” I added.
“Yes, sir.”
‘Their minds?’
I looked up at the ceiling and saw the s.p.a.cetime emitting a buzzing noise while splitting and splicing.
It was reasonable for me to think that there was some kind of curse or debuff here that affected one’s mind. Park Deok-Gu and I, as well as the others who had nightmares that they couldn’t remember, could be under the same curse or debuff. A specific monster could be behind it, but it was most likely the work of the strange s.p.a.cetime above us.
I had to look around first and if there really were a mage…
‘They managed to infiltrate the safe zone?’
I checked the other camps, but I didn’t hear any loud noises.
There was a high chance that the Commander of the Republic was talking about this when he mentioned that so-called "strange feeling." The camp was lit, so he probably decided to stay up late to finish his work.
I knew it was a rude thing to do, but I decided to walk to his camp.
“Commander,” I said.
“What brings you here this late? It’s rude…” Commander Jin said.
“I’m sorry, but there’s something I have to ask you… Regarding the strange feeling you had before…” I paused.
“...”
“...”
“I was actually going to tell you about it…” Commander Jin said.
“Go ahead,” I said.
“There were quests,” Commander Jin said.
“What?”
“From the first floor of the bas.e.m.e.nt level up to here, I found dozens of quests,” Commander Jin answered.
“Quests?”
“Some of the quests have rewards. Take a look. It’s a rare potion. I guarantee there isn’t an item better than this out there. I asked the alchemists of the Republic for their opinion, but—”
“Regarding the strange s.p.a.ce…” I interrupted Commander Jin.
“That’s also being investigated,” Commander Jin answered.
I started moving again.
“...”
“...”
“Disgusting lapdogs of Alta.n.u.s. You’re still rude as usual.”
I heard him criticize me, but I couldn"t care less nor apologize. My heart was pounding, but that was probably just me.
“S-Something is strange,” I said.
How come I couldn"t hear Saint Alta.n.u.s’ voice? Had something happened to her?
“Miss Ha-Yan. Miss Ha-Yan,” I called out.
“Hyun-Sung oppa…?” Jung Ha-Yan answered. She stretched her hand out toward the strange s.p.a.cetime from afar, and Han Sora was clinging to her.
‘What’s going on?’
I ran as fast as I could, but I wasn’t getting closer to them.
They were getting farther and farther away, and I felt myself getting whisked away to somewhere else. It felt like the world was spinning. The scenery before me was spinning, and I heard strange screams and cries.
One of the strange voices was familiar, and I felt like I heard it in one of my dreams before. No, I was sure I heard this voice before. The voice sounded extremely heartbroken, so I immediately covered my ears to avoid getting beguiled.
“What the…”
"Where am I?"
“What the… h.e.l.l is this…”
I found myself inside a vast cavern filled with artificial lights.
There was an iron maiden in the middle of the cavern, and it was emitting a radiant light.
“What… is that?”
1. Kim Hyun-Sung’s POV ☜