episode_0262

Cold winter.

The season when everything subsides.

“Baby. Pretty baby.”

It’s also about holding a crying baby,

Patting a hungry child,

Even holding the hand of a child walking down the street,

I also hug you as you shiver in the cold,

In the end, everyone,

It was a mother’s hand.

“Please, be human.”

That’s what it was.

… … .

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※Guide to living safely at home※

4-4-4-4. We don’t like your sleepovers.

– But it doesn’t matter. The more territory the better.

– If you leave ‘Saetbyeol Apartment’ and live somewhere else, we can also make that place our new territory.

5. Sometimes I hear a knock on the wall next door.

– He is a worried neighbor.

– I think he’s probably knocking on the wall to check if you’re doing okay.

– Don’t panic, just go to the wall where the sound is coming from and knock on it in the same way.

– It’s a sign that you’re doing well.

– However, you must tap at the same beat as your opponent.

– If the sound stops, it is a success.

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Next door to the galaxy,

[The beast] that made its nest in room 903.

If you think about it, it’s a strange monster.

[#232] …

Like other monsters, he is out of touch with the world…

While I was at it, it seemed like I deviated slightly from the rules of [The Black Book].

“Come on, open the door so I can see you.”

[Euncheon Restaurant] is as quiet as a mouse.

Eunha, who wrinkles her nose at the cold that is pressing in, pulls at the sleeve of her waitress uniform.

Sleeves stiffened, legs unmoving in fear.

But he moves the corners of his stiff lips to create his usual smile.

Suddenly….

What I see before my eyes is a window covered in frost.

And countless handprints knocking on the glass.

Eunha tightly grabbed the saw she was holding in her left hand.

[The beast] came looking for me because I was up late at night.

It might be because I was away from home all day.

Who would have thought that you’d come looking for me just because I hadn’t been home for a day?

It’s scary, but also a little bit happy. I didn’t know he’d be that worried about me.

If I had known this would happen, I would have stopped by Saetbyeol Apartment after finishing at the cafe.

“… … .”

[Euncheon Restaurant], where winter has arrived, was as quiet as a movie theater.

The ‘customers’ who had been sitting around the table eating food just a moment ago are now hiding under the table to escape the biting cold.

[The chef] put down his Chinese knife and left the kitchen.

Banharin, who ‘observes’ the surroundings from behind the galaxy,

The ‘mouse’ cowered in a corner in surprise as [the chef] approached with a dozen or so heads shaking.

‘I don’t think I can just open the door… Is there no place I can hide?’

Eunha recalled the screams of the monster outside the door just a moment ago.

Do monsters also avoid [beasts]?

‘You came to me… I have to solve it. If I make a mistake, I can go meet [the black man].’

The thought was long.

The worries were short.

Eunha, who had taken a quick look around the restaurant, opened her carrier.

First, I put away the saw I took out and took out the Derringer pistol and ’emergency escape button’ that I received from [Happy Convenience Store].

One bullet left underwater.

Eunha, who was shivering from the frostbite, put a bullet in the chamber and walked towards the door.

Boom! Kwung!

As the galaxy approached the door, [the beast] knocked on the glass window.

The glass, with its spiderweb-like cracks, sways precariously.

Boom. Bam.

Just in case, he was knocking on the glass window at the same tempo as [Beast], when Banharin came up behind him and worried about Eunha with an expressionless face.

“Mr. Galaxy.”

“Thank you for being with me, Banharin.”

“… … .”

“I’ll take care of it, so where are you hiding, Mr. Mouse? It’s cold.”

“… It seems like a strange thing that isn’t written in the rules I’ve heard of.”

“If you think about it differently, you are a restaurant customer. You just have to follow the restaurant rules.”

Kuung!

Po-ok!

Knock on the glass window in time with the knocking of ‘that thing’.

The sound that continues as if in communication falls to the floor, mixed with a cold sigh.

“… … .”

Phagec!

She was looking around with her [Observation] skill when told to hide.

Banharin, whose right eye was dyed golden, observed the ‘possibilities’ that were visible to her eyes…

He swept away his expressionless face and released his skill.

Die.

If you don’t hide, you die.

Even if you’re behind the galaxy, you die when the door opens.

Even if you don’t open the door, the glass window will shatter and you will die.

A monster that is clearly different from the monsters I’ve encountered before… a monster that is qualitatively different.

Banharin, who had been quietly looking at Eunha’s smiling face as usual, clenches her fist.

“[Chef] Mr. Lee. The person outside right now, I know him, right?”

“person?”

“What? Anyway, I’ll take care of it, so please hide those two somewhere.”

『… … .』

Please hide me.

At Eunha’s words, [the chef] bows leisurely.

Unlike the headless ‘cooks’, they seem to have taken the head and attached it,

[Chef] Soybean with numerous heads attached like wild strawberries.

Did something come to mind?

The face of the woman in front of [the chef] looks at Eunha’s smiling face and then bows her head.

『… … Animals cannot be guests.』

“Huh?”

“The freezer is empty. I will take responsibility for hiding this foolish chef and his acquaintances.”

“Thank you.”

“Everyone is welcome at our restaurant.”

like that,

For a moment, I was taken aback by the sudden visit of a guest.

Leaving behind the galaxy that was approaching the pure white door without retreating,

Banharin headed to the freezer inside the restaurant with ‘Mouse’.

Suddenly…

Is it the sound of frost,

Is it the sound of teeth gnashing?

I don’t know, though.

“… … .”

Even though the steps forward are light,

The footsteps of those who were hiding were heavy.

… … .

… … .

“Wow, there’s no window… Aren’t we going to freeze to death here?”

“… … .”

The cold storage we entered under the guidance of a monster.

The first thing Banharin felt was none other than warmth.

The freezer is warm.

That means the air in the restaurant where [the beast] came has become cold.

I take out my phone with my hands numb from the cold and check the time. It is 4:10 AM.

It’s still far from sunrise.

Banharin walked inside, away from the ‘mouse’ that kept loitering around the entrance to the freezer, worried about Eunha.

“… … .”

Banharin was worried.

Was it said that it was a being that could not be killed or defeated?

Even an A-class hunter who was feared by others as a monster was no better than a soft D-class hunter in front of a real monster.

What good is it for you to be next to the galaxy?

Should I have run away with Galaxy?

Regret over leaving clogs my throat.

Rather than offering to help in vain, as Eunha said at the beginning… wouldn’t it be much more helpful to just forget the memories of ‘those things’?

Like ants caught in a natural disaster.

The monster that the galaxy called [the beast] was a being that brought such pessimism to mind.

(Thank you for being with me, Banharin.)

But still.

The galaxy laughed.

As her smile becomes light, Banharin’s heart becomes heavy.

“What on earth is this monster…”

Phagec…!

[Observation] Banharin, who used the skill, inspected the freezer.

A warehouse-like space lined with shelves.

The ‘rule’ of no meat in restaurants really was true, as the freezer used to store meat was empty.

Today, the unidentified ‘raw meat’ that Eunha brought is placed on the shelf near the entrance.

There was only a heavy silence in the dusty warehouse.

Is it okay if I just hide here?

She went a little further in.

“… … ?”

Then suddenly I discovered it.

In the corner of the freezer, there were traces of someone crouching there.

Her [Observation] skill ‘observes’ traces of the long years.

‘This… appears to be a human trace.’

Traces of a woman crouching,

Traces of an old man lying on the cold floor.

Traces of a woman knocking on a wall, of a man being pushed against a wall and strangled.

It’s as if countless people are hiding here to avoid ‘something’.

……but,

It seems that there was no meat in this warehouse even at that time.

“… … .”

Banharin’s eyes ‘observe’ the traces.

A freezer without any meat.

Traces engraved like stains in this place where even time is frozen.

“… … .”

And, the restaurant staff,

I recall the human teeth marks engraved on the inside of the [chef’s] uniform.

What is observed is a dark resentment.

Banharin stroked the ‘inverted cross hairpin’ on her bangs.

‘… … It seems they weren’t just monsters that killed people.’

Since she had better observation skills than others, I thought I knew a little bit.

Eyes shining brilliantly golden look back at the ‘mouse’.

“Mouse. Let’s go to work.”

“Huh? What should I do?”

“I have to save the galaxy. And the restaurant, too.”

The time is 4:15 am.

There is still more than an hour left until sunrise.

Working hours are from sunset to sunrise… I think.

“You’ll have to work a little harder.”

Banharin’s cold eyes glared at the ‘mouse’.

… … .

… … .

Tick, tick.

I longed for ordinariness.

Eunha moved forward with a faint smile.

This evening, after finishing work at a cafe, I visited the ‘Reality’ restaurant.

Inside the transparent glass window, there was a family out for dinner.

A meal shared by everyone sitting at the table.

A serving cart full of food. A waiter pulling it.

A middle-aged chef making pasta in the kitchen…

The restaurant, seen through the glass window, looked so peaceful and harmonious.

Because I feel like I will never be able to blend in with the scenery before my eyes again,

I feel bad for no reason,

I touched the transparent glass window.

“… … So what.”

Thinking about it now, I laugh.

What is ordinary?

The galaxy caressed the pure white glass window.

This is also quite ordinary.

Of course, it hurts a little and is difficult,

Because other people will be the same.

“That’s fine.”

Hot and cold…

Thinking about ‘Fly’ and [Bug Princess] who left after enjoying the meal I prepared.

Eunha decided that she was a happy person.

Tick tock.

The sound of a clock ticking from afar.

Squeak…

Today’s work.

The monsters’ waitress.

Send him back to his worried mother next door.

Galaxy, caressing the pure white glass window, opened the cracked door with difficulty.

Wheezingㅡㅡ!

A terrible cold poured in through the slightly open door.

The sensations disappearing from the extremities.

The ‘guests’ hiding under the table stop moving as if they have fallen into hibernation.

Swish…

And then, at some point, I realized that the handprints covering the window had disappeared.

“Baby.”

A cold hand reaches out from behind Eunha and caresses her.

As if it had been behind the galaxy from the beginning.

When did you come inside?

A startled Eunha reached for the Derringer pistol in her hand and reached for her head, but a hand reached over her shoulder and grabbed her wrist.

My skin freezes under the gentle yet cold touch.

“I came to look for you because you’re not home. Aren’t you sleeping?”

“Huh… hoo… hehe, hello.”

Woodduck.

The captured wrist was broken.

The Derringer pistol he was holding rolled on the floor along with his wrist that had crumbled like ice.

It doesn’t hurt.

It’s just cold.

‘Ah. I should have put the gun in my mouth beforehand.’

Galaxy, with the corners of her lips raised, stared at the glass window in front of her.

I thought I could see the [beast] through the glass window, but the thick white frost made it impossible to see anything.

“Let’s go back. To our house.”

Our house? Which house is it?

But as long as I can get [the beast] out of the restaurant, anywhere is fine.

Galaxy nodded, her lips frozen. Then a hand reached out from behind and grabbed Galaxy’s head, preventing her from moving.

Snap. Snap.

Numerous hands reaching out, one by one.

He wraps his arms around your waist, rubs your shoulders, and digs his hands into your thighs, sliding up to your lower abdomen.

Eunha, whose large chest was being held by hands that moved like kneading bread, found herself lost in thought.

As long as it doesn’t hurt, it’s okay to do whatever, but isn’t it too much to touch?

I wish you would just go back after confirming that you are doing well.

『… … Miss is still working…』

Still!

At that moment, the [chef’s] voice was heard from behind.

But the words stop with a sound of something tearing.

Thud…

A familiar head rolls to a stop at Galaxy’s feet, and long, outstretched hands grab the mangled head and drag it behind Galaxy.

Crack… crack…

The sound that follows.

The sound of animals eating.

Galaxy, whose head is fixed and unable to look back, bites her lip.

It’s a good thing I hid Banharin and the ‘mouse’.

I don’t know for sure, but [the beast] doesn’t want to show itself to the galaxy.

If two people had been here, it could have been a disaster.

“Ahh… Baby. I’m sorry. I was so hungry.”

“… … If you eat something at night, you’ll gain weight.”

“Our baby… Our beautiful baby… ”

There is no communication.

White snow falls on the restaurant where only the voice of the [beast] can be heard.

Tick, tick.

Snowflakes are piling up.

Not mixing, but covering.

Sadness and resentment both cover each other, forming a snow-white mountain.

Damn…

The skin of the galaxy begins to break down as the temperature continues to drop.

​

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※Guide to a peaceful life in Euncheon-gu※

2. Euncheon Restaurant welcomes you.

– Enjoy a delicious meal at our family restaurant for those who are tired of waiting.

– Excellent chefs, polite waiters, and delicious ingredients all come together.

​

– We don’t charge for the food. Feel free to explore to your heart’s content.

– However, only one food item can be ordered at a time.

​~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is it.

Only one food at a time… [The Beast] just munched on something, so if you don’t want to break the rules, you’re leaving the restaurant.

At first, I was planning on eating the galaxy myself, but [the chef] stepped in instead, so I’m just grateful.

I guess this is a way to repay the ‘raw meat’ I’ve been receiving.

After all, people must live good lives to be blessed.

‘Now, Mr. Banharin and Mr. ‘Mouse’… will be safe…’

A body that is frozen and crumbles like a sand castle.

This is enough.

Eunha closed her eyes quietly, facing the fear of death approaching like a blizzard.

“Baby… my baby.”

“… … .”

“Please, only you are human.”

The beast speaks.

Putting on human skin,

In the morning, they bring ‘raw meat’ dripping with blood,

He tells me to become a human being.

“… I’m already… a person…”

“no.”

Swish…

Then, a hand extends from behind.

Between her slender fingers, there is a familiar ‘pill’.

Neither pure white nor gray like [Grandpa Park],

A pill as black as tar.

“If it were the current baby, would it be okay?”

“… … .”

“If I hadn’t lost you at the orphanage back then… by now… ”

Tick, tick.

The sound of a clock’s second hand.

like that,

The hand of the [beast] that caresses the frozen and dying galaxy,

He took the black pill into her mouth,

Breaking the frozen lips with a smile…

“You would have been happy, you would have been free from pain…”

The pill that fell from the [beast’s] hand,

Touching the broken lips of the galaxy…

… … .

… … Deaengㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡ.

The sound of a bell coming from far away,

Stopped the [beast].

… … .

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4-2. Dawn is our time.

– A wise man rings the morning for you, not for the past.

– I will never forget the hand you extended to me.

– As dawn approaches, the sound of the sunset bells will rewrite everything.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Daaengㅡㅡㅡㅡ.

The paper rings.

The sound of the great bell tower, steeped in time, ringing as if wishing for wisdom.

The morning bell rings, signaling the start of a new day.

“……oh?”

[The Beast], who had returned the ‘Black Pill’ to his hand, turned his head away from Eunha.

The white frost on the windows is melting, allowing faint sunlight to enter the restaurant.

‘That thing’, which had stepped back to avoid the sunlight, carefully placed the galaxy it was holding in its arms down on a table chair.

Daaengㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡ.

Stop doing ‘yesterday’s’ work.

Because the morning bell rang.

That’s the rule.

『… … .』

[The beast] was puzzled.

It’s not even 5 o’clock yet.

There will be plenty of time,

Why is the sun rising now?

Daaengㅡㅡㅡㅡ.

But it was already morning,

[The Beast] caressed Eunha’s cheek with his loving hand as she sat on the chair…

He disappeared into the darkness with regret in his heart.

… … .

Crunch.

About a minute passed.

The morning paper is finished.

Immediately afterwards, the freezer door opened and a woman in a black suit walked out silently.

“I get off work when the sun rises… But I’m glad I get off work on time.”

“Ugh… Nya…”

“I guess ‘rules’ are more important to them than you think.”

Banharin, who was caught by the ‘mouse’ who overused the [Speed Manipulation] skill.

She walked out of the empty restaurant with a cold face, then smiled faintly as she looked at Eunha, who was leaning against the chair and dozing off.