What could one possibly say to someone who intends to walk a path where they might die, all while smiling? Eight years ago, Jung Bin was unable to do anything for the young man entering the West Sea rift. Far from stopping him from going, he couldn't even offer a single honest word, nor could he make a suggestion to his superiors. Would his heart have felt a little lighter if he had simply said, 'Don't let him go'?
The past eight years have been a series of endless regrets.
The young man was young. He looked young enough for anyone to notice. People turned a blind eye, exploited his goodwill and naivety, and finally pushed him. To death.
However, now J had returned and stood before Jung Bin. Looking stronger than before. And he was about to leave again.
Jung Bin asked with a smileless face.
"Is this a choice made under duress by someone?"
"No."
"What about brainwashing or pressure?"
"No."
"Is it a sense of responsibility?"
"…There is a bit of that."
"Are you saying you are going to die simply because of a sense of responsibility?"
"Well, there is a sense of responsibility, but…"
J raised his head and gazed at the sky. The Black Hole, which had been swirling darkly, was slowly brightening. A chill ran down the back of his neck. Loud siren sounds rang out everywhere.
The end of the world had begun its activities again.
The phone in his pocket vibrated incessantly. Jung Bin hurriedly took out his phone. J waved his hand.
"It's okay, please answer the phone."
Jung Bin pressed the call button, biting his lip tightly. An urgent voice from the other end of the phone poured out information.
―Prometheus has resumed activity, groups are gathered and praying to the apocalypse…
―The White Hole will open its eye sooner than expected!
Meanwhile, J leisurely rose from his seat, lightly jumped up, and stood on the railing. His movements were relaxed, as if he alone had bypassed the flow of time.
"I have something to get back to that guy."
"…"
"That guy took something very precious from me."
Jung Bin half-listened to his subordinate's report and looked up at the figure standing on the railing. Ash hair and a black jacket were fluttering in the wind. He looked incomparably more resolute than he did eight years ago.
What has happened to you all this time?
He swallowed the words rising to the tip of his throat. Past mistakes couldn't be erased. But…
"If you are going to leave…"
It was possible to avoid repeating the same mistake.
He took a deep breath and smiled gently.
"Please make sure to return this time as well."
He would respect the young man's will. Even if it was a path leading to his death.
"I will wait. While doing my own part."
He would get the job done.
J turned his head while standing on the railing. Jung Bin held out his fist upward.
"That's the division of labor, isn't it?"
J stared at his outstretched fist for a long time. Even as silence fell, Jung Bin did not withdraw his fist. He simply waited. For him to answer of his own free will.
Eventually, J turned completely around and crouched on the railing.
Bump, fists clashed one another. A small laugh came out from behind the black mask.
"I will."
"Thank you."
"That's what I should be saying."
J tidied his wind-tangled hair.
"Back then, you went out of your way to find me when I was stuck in a corner and strike up a conversation. You even bought me drinks from the vending machine one by one. Well… I couldn't actually drink them in front of you, though. You were just looking out for me, weren't you?"
"…"
"And on top of that… you took Lee Sa-young in and turned him into a decent person."
"…Huh?"
"No, seriously. It turns out you and Bae Won-woo-ssi raised that kid's social skills."
"…Me?"
"Anyway…"
Click. A hand lifted the lower part of the mask. Beneath the mask, a faint upward curve of the lips was visible.
"I'm saying thank you."
The brief smile vanished behind the mask. J rose to his feet, regained his balance on the railing, and stood there again. He bowed his head deeply—
—And jumped down.
Jung Bin blinked, staring at the empty railing.
Wasn't that a jawline he'd seen somewhere before?
***
Cha Eui-jae shuddered and scratched his arm vigorously. Damn it, his whole body itched after he had spilled out everything he should and shouldn't have said.
'I really should've just ended it with thank you.'
Did he get carried away by the atmosphere and said too much? Cha Eui-jae scratched the back of his neck. Just then,
Rumble…
Along with an ominous rupture, the Black Hole glowed white. It looked like it was about to open its eye again. Judging by the mention of Prometheus and whatnot, they must have performed some kind of ritual again. The presence of monsters could already be felt everywhere.
'They are of no help at all.'
Cha Eui-jae moved by hopping up and down on the streetlights. How long would it stay awake this time? how much damage would be caused? Everything was unknown.
'Should I deal with this first, or…?'
Should he go straight to deal with the source? This was a sort of battle of speed and attrition. Cha Eui-jae had to make a choice. Just then, a shrill voice from below stopped him in his tracks.
"J!"
It was Honeybee. Cha Eui-jae jumped down from the lamppost and stood facing her. Honeybee had drawn her rapier, presumably having already dealt with a few monsters.
"Why has the apocalypse come so soon? Wasn't there still time?"
"I think Prometheus is performing some kind of ritual again. The more you mention the apocalypse, the faster it comes…"
"…Those bastards."
"So I'm debating whether to go that way or just get rid of the apocalypse—"
Honeybee didn't even let him finish speaking before slapping J's back hard. It was a slap strong enough to send a stinging pain through him.
"Ugh!"
"Why are you debating that? Why aren't you leaving right now?!"
"Uh, where…?"
"Where else?! Can you really get rid of the apocalypse? Then you have to go. I know Mok Tae-oh better than you do. I'll take care of that idiot."
"…"
"We should each do what we're good at, shouldn't we?"
He received the exact same words he had said to Jung Bin back to him. Was this how he felt, too, then? A small laugh escaped him. Cha Eui-jae nodded. Honeybee snorted.
"So, how are you going to get to the apocalypse?"
"Into the Big Mouth."
"…Wasn't that just nonsense?"
"I'm telling you, it's true. Why can't you believe me when you've even been to a destroyed world before?"
"I'd only believe it if it were believable, but this…."
A light flashed behind Honeybee, who had a bewildered look on her face. Bae Won-woo's massive shield was blocking a Big Mouth.
"Nice timing."
"Hey, are you really going to go?"
"Of course. Bae Won-woo-ssi, open that bastard's mouth!"
"Yes, yes? Ah, understood!"
Bae Won-woo instinctively obeyed the command. He exerted all his strength to forcefully pry the monster's mouth open, holding it in place. Kang Ji-soo, following behind with a bewildered look, also stretched out her hands to form tendrils and ensnared the struggling body. Cha Eui-jae bowed politely.
"Thank you."
"What? Are you doing a dental checkup? Or did the Doctor tell you to get one?"
"Neither."
"Then what?"
"I'm going inside."
"Huh?"
He rubbed the floor a couple of times with his boots. The boots, which had gleamed when he first received them, were now a mess of ash and scratches. Yet, it was still sturdy and fit his foot perfectly.
Just like Cha Eui-jae himself.
Cha Eui-jae lowered his body slightly. He gauged the distance and height between himself and the monster. And then,
Tap—
He kicked off the floor and ran forward. And he leaped high into the air. The faces of Kang Ji-soo, with her eyes wide in surprise, and Bae Won-woo, with his mouth gaping open, flashed by in an instant. Strangely, he burst into laughter. His feet felt light. Everything that had bound him had snapped in a split second.
A sense of liberation.
Cha Eui-jae shouted loudly.
"I'll be back!"
He plummeted into the endless emptiness inside the gaping mouth.
Just as the tips of his gray hair disappeared into the mouth, Bae Won-woo let go of the hands that had been holding it open.
"…Gagh?"
He wore an expression strikingly similar to a screaming human in a masterpiece painting. Kang Ji-soo's face was no different. With its mouth now free, Big Mouth flicked its tongue and smacked its lips. It tilted its head as if to say that something had gone into its mouth but it had absolutely no idea what it was.
Bae Won-woo pointed at Big Mouth with movements that were jerky and mechanical.
"Hey, hey, ju, just now, just now—"
"…Suicide?"
"Don't say such scary things, you jerk!!"
"Ow!"
Bae Won-woo gave Kang Ji-soo a light tap on the head and forcibly opened Big Mouth's mouth again. Then, dodging the flicking tongue, he tilted his head and cried out desperately toward the void.
"J-nim! J-nim! J-niiiiim! Please answer me!"
"Vice-Guild Leader… it's hopeless. Didn't you see that just now? He was practically a diving athlete. He went in perfectly without even grazing its teeth."
"Shut up! Is J-nim some kind of golf ball to you? Huh? Going to get a hole-in-one? Huh? J-nim!"
"Well, he did look like a golf ball…"
Honeybee muttered, covering the corner of her mouth. Bae Won-woo took a couple of steps back and then slumped onto the floor.
"J-niiiiiiiim!"
His desperate howl echoed through the streets. Instead of adding a harmonious tune, Kang Ji-soo made a different decision. There was no way J, who had dove in, would pop out just because he screamed.
She tightened her grip on the Big Mouth's body, into which J had dived in, then took out her phone and pressed a number.
"Yes~ thank you for your hard work. I am Hunter Gardener from the Pado Guild. I'd like to request some cooperation from the Rift Management Bureau. Do you have any spare monster traps? No, no, not to kill it, but to catch it alive. I mean, it's nothing major, but someone dove into Big Mouth's mouth and… what? You're asking who did such a crazy thing?"
Kang Ji-soo nimbly covered the phone speaker. At the same time, Bae Won-woo, who was lying face down on the ground, wailed.
"J-niiiiiiim!"
"…Um, if I say the name, the person's image? It gets damaged, you know. Yes, I don't want to get sued… so it's a bit… Aish~ I know, it's not allowed. But it's urgent. Just this once. Yes, yes. Yes, I'll send the location. Please dispatch as soon as possible~ Thank you~ Yes~"
Click. Kang Ji-soo hung up the phone and looked up at the pale sky. A sigh escaped her lips involuntarily.
'J-nim, no, J-jjang1.'
She covered the sky with her palm and narrowed her eyes.
'You owe me…'
"J-niiiiiiim!"
Bae Won-woo's howling showed no signs of stopping. Kang Ji-soo quietly put on her wireless earphones and turned the music up to maximum volume. Only then did the howling become a little less audible. She stood leaning her back against the side of the Big Mouth, which was swaying back and forth on a vine. Tsk, she smacked her lips.
'Life isn't easy, huh?'