episode_0156

The picture was unexpectedly friendly.

Is it to help the anonymous understand?

Or maybe it was because the picture kept moving and helped me understand it, as it was connected to memory.

So, the last three pictures that arrived.

Myeong-i narrowed his eyes and looked at the painting with a determination to focus on it until the end.

“… Magic circle?”

The nameless one who stood on top of the complex magic circle, similar to a jackal but different at first glance, began to recite something and breathe in his magic.

Soon, an ominous, muted light burst out from the magic circle, covering the entire picture.

“… Are you trying to transfer somewhere?”

It seems a bit more advanced than a jackal, but given the circumstances, teleportation would be more appropriate.

Chapter 2 ahead.

“Where on earth are you headed?”

Myeong took a deep breath and moved to check the next picture.

*

I looked at the scenery in the painting with a sigh.

A world that, as far as I can guess, the nameless one has reached by taking a step towards the next realm.

There, the nameless man frowned at the sight he couldn’t believe, even though he was seeing it with his own eyes.

“Is the magic science that Bell was talking about advanced…?”

So, just how far has it progressed?

Tall buildings decorated more extravagantly than the palaces fill the space, and horseless carriages roam the streets.

Heavy armored birds floated across the sky, and people were not afraid even though there was a monster above their heads.

“Here is….”

Where on earth could it be?

People’s appearances are so different now that it’s hard to dismiss it as simply the future.

Race is also limited to humans.

“Hmm… .”

The anonymous question did not last long.

Because the nameless person started to take steps and the picture started to change rapidly.

The nameless one who stepped forward without hesitation… .

“No, is it me?”

He walked down a trash-filled alleyway that reminded him of a slum he had visited before, a bit different from the place that seemed wealthy, and entered a small building that fit the atmosphere well.

“… Where am I going.”

In front of the shabby door we arrived at like that.

He stood there for a while, as if he was hesitating, then he opened the door as if he had made up his mind.

I came across someone who was very familiar to me.

“That person is… .”

Droopy eyes, eyebrows bent in the shape of an arm as if they were upset about something, and even a mole under the eye.

“Master?”

It looked a little different, perhaps due to the passage of time or a side effect of the dimensional distortion, but he couldn’t fool his eyes.

The author, no, that person was definitely a teacher.

“… Why is the teacher here?”

The nameless head begins to spin as if it will explode.

It’s hard to accept the reality unfolding before my eyes, and I feel like I’m going to vomit.

Why is the teacher here?

No, were you really the teacher in the first place?

The appearance is surprisingly similar, but if you look closely, there are some differences.

She might be three inches taller than she thought, or her hair might be a bit shorter for a woman, coming down just below her shoulders.

Also, a strangely neutral face.

However, these anonymous thoughts disappeared in the face of that person who gave off an aura that was so similar to that of the Master.

There is no doubt about it. He is the Master.

If so, the question that immediately follows is:

‘Why did I come here?’

As if to answer these thoughts, the self in the painting, seeing the teacher, seemed to lose all of its hesitation and immediately began to move.

He slowly reached out and grabbed her slender wrist.

After that, he started to leave somewhere, leading the teacher who looked embarrassed.

In the sudden situation, Moo-myeong, like his teacher, was also flustered.

Where are you taking your master?

No, what was that rude attitude in the first place?

“What are you doing now…!”

The nameless man began to glare at himself in the picture as if he was going to kill him.

But, it doesn’t reach.

Even though I knocked on the poor painting, my vision only shook and did not change.

I was lethargic.

After that, the predicted situation was played out in the picture.

At that time, the master must have been powerless, as he could not resist his touch.

He swung his fists helplessly, shed tears, and then, as if he had given up, the light in his eyes disappeared and he followed without resistance.

Even though it was just a painting, I felt like my heart was being torn apart when I looked at it.

It seemed like he had only hurt his teacher.

I hate myself for not being able to do anything.

“…”

Just like the teacher in the painting, he felt helpless and unable to do anything, so he began to look at the painting with blank eyes.

I didn’t avoid eye contact.

You have to see what happens next so you can decide whether to apologize or how to deal with it.

“Next, next… .”

The nameless man moved his feet absentmindedly.

* * *

It was just another day, no different.

…until just a moment ago.

-Squeak.

As Harang was happily resting after finishing her part-time job and volunteer work at an orphanage as usual, someone came to visit her.

“Who are you…?”

The man was doing a high-quality cosplay that you would normally see in a fantasy setting.

The first thought I had when I saw him was, ‘Is this a hidden camera?’

But, was there anyone who would play such a prank?

And in such high quality?

From then on, Harang’s head became complicated.

“Did you come to the wrong place…? No? Then how did you get in the house…?”

While she was saying those words, the man said nothing.

He just stared at himself with a frown.

‘Could this be the new type of villain I only saw on the news…?’

Harang, who had no idea that something like this would happen to her, tried her best not to show any sign of panic and picked up the cell phone in her hand.

It was to call the police to save himself.

“Ugh!”

However, the villain, who could not just sit by and watch his actions, grabbed his hand.

‘What power…!’

Harang was grabbed by the man’s hand and dragged somewhere without even being able to put up a proper resistance.

*

How far did it move like that?

“Aren’t you asking any questions?”

When the people walking around him had completely disappeared, he bit his lip at the strange man who was speaking to him with an indifferent expression.

“… What would change if I said that?”

“No, nothing changes.”

… Right, nothing will change.

Then why do you ask?

Also, where am I going?

I had doubts, but I didn’t ask.

It was because he was afraid that if he said something annoying, the weirdo would think he was running away and do something to harm him.

And, because the man’s face that I saw at first glance looked so sad.

“…”

Of course, it’s not that I didn’t resist.

In the first place, who would be helplessly dragged away by a criminal who kidnapped them?

However, the man’s strength was so strong that the more she resisted, the stronger the grip on her wrist became, and she gave up.

“Help me!”

Also, I tried shouting for help from people passing by.

I don’t know what happened, but no one was there to help me with this situation.

Was the world this bleak?

Or maybe this weirdo did something.

From then on, Harang gave up on running away from this strange man, and soon arrived in a deserted mountain area.

‘…What is this?’

Harang, who entered the small container space, doubted her eyes.

Harang let out a sigh as she looked at the elaborate magic circle that was often seen in fantasy, but was too elaborate to be child’s play.

“From now on, you will leave this place.”

Leaving? Where? Why?

Many questions were floating around in Harang’s head, but something else came out of Harang’s mouth.

“… Are you dying?”

Speaking according to instinct.

The villain spoke to him in a low voice with what at first seemed to be a stern expression.

“No, I won’t die. You have to live.”

“…”

He kidnapped me and now he wants me to live.

What the hell is that?

No, isn’t it wrong to expect common sense from someone who is obsessed with magic circles and pseudo-science in containers like this?

“Huh.”

Harang was dispirited.

What crime did I commit that the world thinks this of me?

I can confidently say that I have lived an honest life, but I felt so wronged.

The stranger, seeing his own expression, frowned and added.

“… If things continue like this, I feel like I’ll take my own life any moment now.”

Excuse me.

The strange man muttered softly, placed his hand on Harang’s head, and began to recite something.

“What the… .”

After that, a silent haze begins to rise around where there clearly was nothing.

It flows into his head.

‘…Why am I here?’

Harang’s mind began to go blank as if it had become a blank sheet of paper, and memories began to fade away.

“Let’s go now.”

“Huh? Uh, where are you going…?”

More importantly, who is this person?

“From now on, you will go to meet me.”

What does this mean?

Are you saying that what you are seeing now is not you?

My head was in a state of confusion.

No, I didn’t think of anything.

I was just dazed.

“It’s really selfish, but this is the only future where I can be happy.”

After the man’s last words, he found himself standing on top of the intricate pattern.

Fell into the abyss.