episode_0121

When the wish came true, the room returned to its original appearance.

A white room waiting for a new wish.

“Ah… … Ugh… … .”

Next to him, Heo Yun is biting his lips tightly.

Just as she was about to regain control of her emotions, Dr. Chen appeared before her eyes once again.

“Sister. First, take a deep breath.”

I slowly approached Heo Yun.

Dr. Chen’s corpse hangs from the ceiling, in a much more gruesome state than what I saw in the hardware store.

It’s so dry it’s like a mummy.

His body belonged to this space, not to the decaying germs.

“You need to calm down and not think about anything.”

I know it’s hard, but it has to be done.

Even the smallest of distractions are greatly reflected here.

The next moment.

“Aaak!”

With a small scream, Heo Yun’s body soared toward the ceiling.

“No. Catch him quickly!”

Seok Hyeon-min, who was nearby, barely managed to hold onto his leg.

“What? Why are you suddenly doing this?”

“I told you. You shouldn’t think about anything. That’s how it should be… … .”

Still, Heo Yun is hanging in the air.

A black rope that wasn’t visible before is wrapped around her neck.

“Ugh, ugh.”

Heo Yoon writhes, letting out painful breathing sounds.

I held onto Heo Yun’s arm and made eye contact with difficulty.

“Sister. Please. Don’t think about anything. That way you’ll feel better.”

Seok Hyun-min asked back instead.

“What does that mean?”

“This is the layer where you make wishes! You can’t wish for anything!”

“What… … ?”

“Why are you telling me that now!”

Seok Hyun-min was really angry at me, but it didn’t last long.

The moment he finished speaking, a rope appeared and tried to wrap itself tightly around his shoulders.

Phew!

Seok Hyun-min fell to the floor as he was pushed by me.

Seok Hyun-min looks at the rope in the air and me alternately with a dumbfounded expression.

I said it again, for emphasis.

“You shouldn’t expect anything.”

This is the floor where wishes come true.

Just by thinking about a wish in your head, it will come true and you will be charged the price immediately.

The reason I didn’t reveal it on purpose was because of the ‘frame’.

If you say, ‘Don’t think of elephants,’ ironically, people will think of elephants.

Because the elephant frame has already started working.

“That’s why I hid it. If you tell me not to think about it, I’ll think about it more.”

So I was deliberately hiding the wish.

Did Heo Yun unconsciously think of a wish?

Maybe it was right to tell you in advance?

Dddd …

A white room about the size of a classroom.

The room that receives the new wish begins to shake and expand.

“No… … .”

Heo Yoon’s body is being pulled upwards more and more.

Heo Yun’s appearance seen up close was even more miserable.

A red, scaly wound appeared on his neck.

His eyes were bloodshot and bloody foam was flowing from his lips.

If you go any higher, you will end up strangling yourself to death.

Everyone is holding on to Heo Yun and holding on, but the force pulling him upwards is too strong.

“Dajuya. Can you cut the rope?”

“I’ll try! Can you hold out for a while while I open the bag?”

“Yeah.”

Daju opened his bag and took out a survival knife.

It’s a weapon I’ve never seen before, and it’s probably one of the weapons stolen from a Foundation facility.

Daju confidently brought down the knife,

Kaang!

“That’s ridiculous. What kind of chain is this?”

“… … .”

The blade swung at the rope bounces back.

Meanwhile, Heo Yoon’s body is being dragged upwards. The feet floating in the air are wiggling painfully.

“Do something!”

Seok Hyeon-min shouts while holding onto Heo Yun’s leg and hanging on.

I tried my best to concentrate in the midst of the chaos.

“Just wait a minute. I’m thinking about it.”

The best move, after all, is for Heo Yun to stop thinking for himself and come down.

But given her mental state, that’s not easy.

then?

“Dabin!”

I heard Choi Se-rim’s voice, and I hurriedly bent down.

Another black rope passes overhead.

This is because the desire to ‘save Heo Yoon’ was expressed too strongly.

“… … .”

What’s left is Choi Se-rim’s ability. It’s not that I didn’t think about this.

The problem is that if we do this, Choi Se-rim will be in danger.

The moment you manipulate someone else’s thoughts, you become influenced yourself.

If the emotion is this strong, I’ll be completely swept away.

In the end, it’s just you hanging on to someone else’s behalf.

Bam.

Something fell not far away.

I reflexively turned my gaze away.

Dr. Chen’s released body fell to the floor.

and.

Blink.

Blink.

The doctor’s eyes widened and he blinked several times.

Sunken pupils.

The dry eyeballs are stuck inside the skull.

“Ughhh.”

Dr. Chen moves his joints, making creepy sounds.

The fingers that were moving after a long time felt like they would break at any moment.

‘I want to save Dr. Chen.’

Heo Yun’s wish is coming true.

In exchange for her breath hanging in the air.

“… … .”

I didn’t know it would turn out like this.

I thought I would at least have enough time to go back to my studio and take care of Heo Yoon.

The space-time of April 11, 2011, which had been planned, collapsed much faster than expected.

“Dabin. There is a way.”

Yebin still has an expressionless face.

“What is it?”

“There is a book in the bag.”

“Book?”

“Yes. I brought it from the library.”

Yebin’s words brought back memories.

A few books I picked up from the library for later.

Among them, if there is anything that can be used in the current situation… … .

“Okay.”

I took out the book I had put in my bag and opened it to the page with the bookmark.

Taking care not to let myself see the contents.

What is written on this page is a memetic kill agent with a powerful memory-erasing effect.

Not only can it erase memories instantly, but it has a success rate close to 100%.

However, it is volatile and can only be used once.

There are also side effects that can cause memory distortion.

Do I really have to use this?

If you use it, you can definitely erase Heo Yun’s memories.

No matter how strong your feelings for Dr. Chen are, there is a high chance that you will not even remember what Dr. Chen looked like here.

The problem, of course, is the side effects.

The human brain is not a computer.

Memories are not only indivisible into units like files, but are also like Jenga blocks that depend on each other.

If you artificially erase memories, problems are bound to arise.

Moreover, these characteristics become more prominent as the performance of the memory-erasing agent improves.

The more neatly and perfectly you try to carve out memories, the bigger the empty spaces that are left behind, which causes problems.

“… … .”

“Dabin. I don’t have time.”

“Okay. Got it.”

I tore out the page of the book with the meme in it and held it in my hand.

Heo Yun is almost out of breath.

Everyone is holding on to Heo Yoon with all their might, but the rope is much stronger.

Heo Yun was already floating in the air, and the other people holding him were also shaking.

“Should I support you from below? So you can breathe.”

“No, you won’t be able to do that. You’ll be dragged all the way up.”

The situation is becoming increasingly difficult to endure, to the point where such talk is going around among the group.

I called Jeong Hae-won.

“Hey. Come here.”

“Huh?”

“Please lift me up for a moment.”

“Sister, is there a way?”

“Yeah.”

As soon as he nodded, Jeong Hae-won took action.

He came towards me with quick steps and hugged me with both arms.

“Wait a minute. You just have to bow down… … .”

I lost my balance for a moment and stumbled in an unexpected situation.

“Oh no!”

“Are you okay, Sister?”

“It’s okay, just keep holding on!”

Luckily, I was able to grab the guy’s neck with my arm and position myself on his shoulder.

The process was a bit messy, but I got on the horse as I had hoped.

Carefully maintain your balance, carefully raise your head and look ahead.

Heo Yun hanging with his eyes closed.

Now our eye level is aligned again.

“Everyone close your eyes.”

“Huh?”

“I’m going to use a meme killer. Everyone close your eyes!”

Using both arms while riding a horse was much more difficult than I thought.

Even if I only move one arm, I keep swaying.

First, I plan to force them to open their eyes and read the meme.

He wrapped his legs tightly around Jeong Hae-won and slowly bent his upper body.

Po-ok. I was able to lean on Heo-yoon’s body just like that.

Now I can use both hands.

He spreads out the paper in one hand and lifts Heo Yun’s eyelids with the other hand.

You don’t need to open both eyes, because one is enough to see.

Bam.

The rope that seemed impossible to untie broke easily.

Along with Heo Yoon’s body falling down, I could see the already used meme killers scattering into the air.

thud!

It made quite a loud noise when it crashed, but it wasn’t fatal.

Even if it was deep, it was only high enough to leave a bruise somewhere.

Everything will be okay now.

“Okay… … . Put it down.”

I slowly got down from Jeong Hae-won’s back.

Heo Yun was lying there in a miserable state, with wounds all over his neck.

“Sister. Are you okay, sister?”

“Are you breathing? Check it out quickly!”

People around her are fidgeting and checking on her condition, but she herself is sleeping with a peaceful expression on her face.

I pushed my way through the crowd and stepped forward.

“It’ll be okay.”

There is not much strength in the voice.

Questions about his brother. Some kind of contract. Dr. Chen’s death. Heo Yun’s suffering.

There have been many hardships, but this time, I feel completely drained. Mentally.

In the corner of my vision, Dr. Chen’s corpse was decaying and disappearing.

“… … Now let’s go back. To the elevator.”

The floor where wishes come true.

At one time, I thought it was a place I could stay, but it was a much more unstable space than I thought.

“I can’t stay here.”

Rustle.

I can hear the sound of someone lifting a load.

Dan and Rico also pack their bags.

I picked up my bag again and grabbed Seok Hyun-min’s carrier.

“Brother, take care of Yooni.”

“… … Okay.”

Seok Hyun-min carrying Heo Yoon on his back.

“… … .”

“… … .”

No one spoke until we left the small room and settled into the elevator.

Square. Square.

All I could hear was Choi Se-rim writing her exploration journal next to me.

[memo]

What I Obtained: A new weapon stolen from a Foundation facility.

DANGER: The price of your wish = your life!

How to deal with it: Try not to think about anything at all.

Especially the thought of wanting something, etc…

***

The elevator’s guidance voice sometimes plays and sometimes doesn’t play.

[The door opens.]

This time, an emotionless male voice announces their arrival.

The door opens and a new floor begins to appear.

“… … Let’s stay here for a while this time.”

A hotel hallway with purple carpet.