episode_0036

#9

A faint light appeared in the eyes of the girl who had been struggling, trapped in a dark fate.

But the light was unable to advance beyond the iron bars created by the years she had lived through.

“Can I do it?”

“That’s your part.”

The spark you’ve lit yourself, either turns to ashes or grows into a huge flame… .

It would be solely her own share. At first glance, Winter’s words might seem cold… .

I know.

This was a warm, considerate word of goodwill, embellished in her own way.

Winter Sister gently stroked the girl’s shoulder and straightened her disheveled clothes.

Perhaps because she had never received such a warm touch before, she was startled and frightened by even the slightest gesture.

“I’m not trying to hurt you. Don’t be scared.”

“… Yes.”

“I’ll cheer you on.”

“… … .”

Her rough, untouched face gradually became distorted.

Tears streamed down the girl’s face once again.

But at this moment, the water flowing from her body seemed a little more relaxed than before, which made me think it was fortunate.

“Heaven. Are you done with your work?”

“Oh, yes. We can leave right away.”

“Really? … Then let’s go right away.”

“Yes.”

It was a fleeting relationship, but anyway, Winter and I hoped that the future of the woman whose name we didn’t even know would be happy. Even until the moment we left.

#10

After breaking up with the nameless girl, Winter, who had been walking around in silence, opened her mouth for the first time.

The entrance to the slum… .

It was around the time when the sunlight that had been hidden in the darkness of society began to gradually shine.

“The aftertaste is bitter.”

“Ah… . Yes. That’s right.”

“I already knew that there are many difficult people in the world. But… .”

We have now completely emerged from the darkness and entered the realm of light.

Winter turned her head and looked back toward the dark alley that seemed to be beckoning us even at this moment.

It’s just a one step difference.

Yet, it still gave the illusion that they were separated by a barrier.

“I didn’t know the world was this different.”

“You don’t know until you try… .”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

“Sister. Can I ask you something?”

“Yeah. Tell me.”

“I thought my sister would help him before she left.”

Even if you are a top-class hunter like Winter Unnie, it is realistically impossible to help everyone living in the slums because you feel sorry for them.

However, I think I can help people who are within arm’s reach or within sight.

Still, Winter Sister chose to just leave the place.

To be honest, it was an unexpected action.

“I thought about it until the end. I wondered if I could help.”

“Yes.”

“But still… I don’t think that’s it.”

“Why?”

Winter Sister looked up at the sky for a moment.

It was a blue and expansive sky, unlike the stuffy, half-sky I had seen from the slums, obscured by old buildings.

“If she asked me to help, I would have helped her. But, I didn’t want that.”

“That’s right…”

“Yeah.”

“Anyway, the atmosphere is getting too heavy! Let’s hurry up and go. I want to see the end of this story.”

“Yes, me too.”

People addicted to the happy virus were all unfortunate human beings floundering in a swamp of dark emotions.

Are people who are parasitized by the Happy Virus the most unfortunate people in the world?

Is it possible to quantify the feeling of unhappiness and put it in a line?

So then, who, according to the monster’s judgment, should be the happiest person in the world?

I picked up the compass pointing there.

As I went in the direction the compass pointed, I felt like there were more and more people being consumed by monsters.

Even if you didn’t live an unfortunate life like the nameless girl I met in the slums, or even if you lived a life closer to happiness than misery, hardship and adversity exist for everyone, so there was no way to guarantee that those who stumbled over that ledge would not fall into the attractive world promised by the happy virus.

Conversely, this current phenomenon was evidence that we were getting closer to the nuke.

Because it is a common phenomenon for a monster to spread to the surrounding area like a tumor from the point where it broke out.

People lying on the floor, smiling happily as if they own the world.

There were even people who stopped driving because they were addicted to the happy virus while driving.

People sprawled on the ground and cars blocking the road.

The sight of people laughing together on a clogged road was not just strange, it was bizarre.

“This is serious… .”

Even to the eyes of a seasoned special hunter who has experienced all sorts of hardships, the current phenomenon does not look ordinary at all.

It had only been two days, let alone a week, since the monster known as the Happy Virus appeared.

Nevertheless, the monster’s power was so great that it completely devastated the area.

Because even at this very moment, the distortion of the world that I can clearly feel is chilling my skin.

If I made one mistake, I too might be invaded by the monsters.

Winter Sister also, in order to survive in a city that seems to have become a monster itself, has drawn out more magical power and increased the power of the supernatural ability she is releasing.

In order to survive in this world of distorted happiness, we have strengthened our ego and deepened our isolation from the world.

The blue light, the color of her magical power, grew brighter and larger, and it seemed as if blue lines were drawn all over Sister Winter’s body.

Even I, who was there with him, was affected by the intense energy.

I hastily distanced myself, putting physical distance between her and me.

“Ah. Sorry. Did I bother you?”

“No, I fell before you could interrupt me.”

“Ah… , yeah.”

I quickened my pace again.

Winter Unnie followed me, two steps away, emitting a strong magical energy, as if she would not disturb me.

And so we entered the heart of the monster that had caused a huge crack in the world.

In other words, it meant that they had succeeded in finding the core by tracing back the phenomenon caused by the monster.

Surprisingly, the ghost story in which a monster impersonates itself was a very minor phenomenon.

‘Lucid Dream’

It is also called a lucid dream because you are aware that you are in a dream.

The concept of lucid dreaming has taken root in the world as a monster, and has cleverly made it the direction in which people dream, infecting them widely.

That was the phenomenon that gave shape to the conceptual yet human-desired concept of ‘happiness’ and made it a reality.

And… the human who fell into that eternal dream with that lucid dream and laid the first soil of the paradise world of endless happiness was a face I knew very well.

‘Yeonsuho’

Yeon Su-jin’s younger brother, a member of Elder Ryu Se-hwa’s clan, and a human who became a vampire.

And… . there was a guy I once tried to recruit as an assistant.

‘Why is he…?’

“This guy. Isn’t he the little brother you know?”

“Yes… . That’s right.”

Winter Unnie also witnessed Suho in the crazy priest’s basement.

She must have been conscious of me, because she stopped while she was fully armed to destroy the monster’s core and began to look at my face.

“Sister. I have a question. What exactly does it mean to nuke a monster?”

“Literally. It physically destroys the being that became the mother of the monster.”

“Then what happens to Suho?”

“… There’s a high chance he’ll die. Looking at this guy, he seems to have been half-fused with the Happy Virus monster. ”

“… … .”

I looked down at Suho once again.

He was smiling brightly, a smile he had never shown before.

What was so hard that you became one with a monster?

What do you see in that happy world?

If saving the guy last time was a simple emotional outburst, this time it was due to a slightly more rational curiosity.

I’m curious.

What on earth made you like this?

And what is your dream in that happy world?

Happy virus.

A dreamlike monster that offers the infected their most desired ideal: paradise.

If you think about how living is a struggle, maybe… the happy virus isn’t as harmful as we thought.

However, hunters must subdue even the most benign monsters.

There is no guarantee that the happy virus will remain a happy virus forever. If it infects all the people on the Korean peninsula and turns into a sad virus or an angry virus, or even worse, a deadly virus, it will become an irreversible disaster.

That’s why I stopped in front of Suho.

Not as the boy’s acquaintance.

As an explorer of mysteries, and as a witch.

The ‘happy virus’ is a monster that can become a heavenly poison if used well.

My thirst for knowledge soars. I am curious. I want to dig into it.

Perhaps, when the Master said I had the qualities of a witch, he was referring to this.

“Sister. Can I try it?”

“What? You? No. It’s dangerous.”

“Please trust me just this once. I’m afraid you’ll regret it if I let you die like this.”

“You really… . Last time too… .”

At the repeated request, Winter Sister sighed and turned her head away.

He didn’t say anything, but I guess he meant to leave this job up to me.

I bowed my head slightly to her, expressed my gratitude, and sat down in front of Suho.

The guy was smiling with his eyes closed.

And beyond that, the mystery of the great monster is felt.

It was a monster so strong that it could spread its enormous power throughout the entire Korean peninsula.

It was unknown how much of the guardian’s self-consciousness would be preserved after being eaten by such a monster.

Still, I challenge it.

Because I’m a witch.

Because I am an explorer of mysteries.