episode_0297

One day,

A person was sent from an orphanage I had never heard of before.

It is a place called ‘Hanbit Orphanage’, located deep in the mountains.

Did you tell them that you would like to sponsor them?

I was willing to support him, but I politely declined because the amount already going to the welfare foundation established by the guild was tight.

( ……Have you ever seen a star?)

Then,

A woman who introduced herself as the ‘director’ of an orphanage,

He said with a smile.

(Aren’t you interested in eternal life?)

After hearing the woman’s words, I realized.

This isn’t a proper orphanage.

You’re trying to play a money game called sponsorship.

Eternal life out of the blue at an orphanage,

Are they trying to experiment with children?

widely!

He told me to go back before he kicked me out.

Now even scammers who can’t even do that come to me.

(Would you like to take a look and decide?)

An order was issued to the ‘swindlers’ to leave.

However, the orphanage ‘director’,

Without losing your warm smile…

He took a USB out of his bosom and handed it to me.

(I think a strong hunter has a lot to lose.)

(I get older day by day,)

(The strength that everyone looked up to is not what it used to be,)

(The amount of mana your body can hold also decreases, so you won’t be able to use your ‘skills’ as you wish…)

(And I think.)

(If only I could live a little longer and be young.)

Words from the orphanage director.

He resembles the devil.

(Please think about it slowly and contact me~.)

Then, the devil leaves.

‘I’ went back home.

I plugged the USB I was holding into the computer.

One recording file.

There was no need for sponsorship.

How to obtain eternal life,

Where is the orphanage and what is happening there?

It contained no information.

As if they were just asking us to believe and support them.

It’s a shame that it’s not them.

… … .

… … .

What was on the USB was,

It was painful.

… … .

… … .

“… Hey, Ms. Kim Ha-yang?”

“… … .”

Come to your senses.

Were you thinking of something else?

Daughter-♪

Afternoon cafe.

[Changcheon Sword Master]’s guild leader, A-class hunter Kim Ha-yang.

She looked up at the voice coming from the checkout counter.

It’s a beautiful and languid voice.

A voice that you wish would whisper in your ear all day long.

Then, the fragrant smell of coffee captures Kim Ha-yang’s senses.

“… Sorry. I was just thinking about something else for a moment.”

“I guess you’re really tired from guild work.”

Softness is mixed in the languid voice.

The peaceful atmosphere of the cafe easily melts Kim Ha-yang’s heart, making the corners of her mouth lighten.

A small cafe… I’m sure the name was [Rabbit Latte].

It’s a good place.

Kim Ha-yang lightly waved the sleeves of her pure white uniform.

“I heard you’ve been having a hard time because of our daughter. If there’s anything broken, I’ll compensate you double, so please take good care of me in the future.”

“We also felt a lot more comfortable thanks to Kim Sa-rang’s help.”

“Can you tell me specifically what helped you?”

“… … Ms. Kim Sa-rang is…… kind.”

A kindness that does not hesitate to praise others.

This is why I left Kim Sa-rang in charge of this place.

Rather, I’m just worried about what kind of accident that fool will cause today.

“… Thanks to Galaxy, the child comes home smiling. He recently made a friend at the academy. She’s a female student with the [Clairvoyance] skill…”

Although Kim Ha-yang is blind,

Still, there was a lot to see.

The woman guarding the checkout counter… expressed her gratitude to Eunha.

(Aren’t you interested in eternal life?)

(Not just eternal life. Not just scars, cancer, even permanent disability…)

Memories of some time ago.

So, it’s okay.

(Don’t you want to see your beloved daughter’s face?)

To the woman in front of me,

I can leave my daughter in your care.

Kim Ha-yang shook off her distracting thoughts.

Dalgrak.

Soon, the coffee you ordered is made and placed on the counter.

One cup of milk coffee, order to-go.

“Here’s the ‘Galaxy Milk Coffee’ you ordered.”

Galaxy talking about the menu named after herself.

There is a hint of shame in her voice.

How can it be so true?

No matter how many times you see him, no matter where you look, he’s a good kid.

So much so that I want to welcome her as Kim Sa-rang’s adopted sister right away.

“Miss Galaxy. Do you need a mom?”

“Did you hurt your head?”

Eunha is genuinely concerned about the nonsense that came out without thinking.

It was too hasty.

If I had just waited a little longer, I would have gotten over it.

Kim Ha-yang smiles faintly and reaches out to grab the packaged coffee.

Purungㅡ.

Something soft was caught.

I keep pressing it in curiosity. My finger is gently buried and then springs out softly.

It’s warm, and so big that it can’t fit in one hand… what is this?

“You caught something else.”

“Is that so.”

Did you catch anything else?

Kim Ha-yang stretched out her other hand.

This time, I accepted the coffee that Eunha offered me.

Swish…

The sound of rain knocking on the window.

The warmth of the milk coffee is transmitted through the palm of your hand.

‘Galaxy Yang… is really warm.’

I liked the warmth I felt in both hands.

[Changcheon Sword Master] Guild Leader, Kim Ha-yang, smiled complicatedly as he remembered the warmth of the galaxy.

Swish.

There is nothing to see,

It’s a day full of clouds.

… … .

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

1. Don’t run.

– You’ve probably heard it often. Maybe you heard it at school.

– We always tried to move quickly, but the first step of courtesy was usually calmness.

– Do not run in the hallways or on the stairs.

– You might fall.

3. Don’t make noise at night.

– They say that mice can hear what’s said at night.

– There’s always one person who sleeps lightly.

– As long as you don’t make too much noise, you can wander around at night without any problem.

4. I will leave ■◇◇■.

– □■●■□

– ◇■◇■◇◇■

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

The secret space of the orphanage.

Do Jong-ha finally reached the basement.

She exhaled heavily as she descended the winding stairs.

“Callok!”

[Secret Room Retrospect] skill that reminisces about the past in a secret room.

A space filled with blue particles made of mana.

Pieces of dissolved lung are mixed in with the blood that is vomited.

All of the ‘mana’ already stored in the body is being used, and even the ‘essential mana’ needed for life activities is being used as fuel for skills.

The ‘mouse’ that was following Do Jong-ha took out two [Silver Gang Potion] from his bosom.

“Now that I found the basement, it’s time to turn off your skills.”

“Cough… Just a little more, I need to see Eunha’s childhood.”

Blue world.

Whisper quietly.

Do Jong-ha’s blurry eyes stare at the ‘red mannequin’ ahead.

– … … .

‘Red Mannequin’… Past Banharin going down the stairs without making a sound.

Do Jong-ha and the ‘mouse’ follow the girl Ban Harin down into the dark basement.

Thump, thump.

The stairs were long.

Is it okay for a space like this to exist in the basement of a two-story orphanage?

It was as if I was looking at a huge research facility with some purpose.

‘Someone set the fire on purpose.’

Like an orphanage on the surface, the basement was completely burned down, leaving only rubble.

Do Jong-ha frowns and looks down the stairs.

“… … .”

A girl named Banharin is seen coming down the stairs.

Should I go to ‘Star’?

Do Jong-ha, who had been looking at the girl for a moment, opened the door located on the second basement floor.

Squeak.

Basement 2nd floor.

A long hallway is visible.

On both sides of the hallway are rooms that resemble hospital wards or animal cages.

However, there was no trace of humans, either in the past or present.

He closed the door and went down the stairs.

So, the 3rd basement floor, the 4th basement floor…

As he goes down the stairs, Do Jong-ha’s complexion worsens.

Things I saw while coming down to the basement.

An orphanage on earth where children who would otherwise disappear are gathered together.

‘Here… they did human experiments.’

I would have done an experiment.

Then, after the existence called ‘Star’ appeared, did they stop other experiments and focus only on ‘Star’?

And everything burned down.

People and research materials.

Who is involved in this ‘Hanbit Orphanage’ and to what extent?

I couldn’t figure it out.

Step, step.

Go down the stairs.

The further down you go, the more questions you have.

The feeling of sinking into a dark abyss.

With every step, the air becomes colder and white breath comes out.

“There are so many stairs. How far down?”

From behind, the grumbling of the Dark Dragon Commander, Kim Yu-hee, can be heard.

Do Jong-ha goes down the stairs following ‘Girl Banharin’.

They were followed by ‘Mouse’ and four members of the Dark Dragon Corps.

Kim Yu-hee, the leader of the dark dragons, guarded the rear of the group.

Purrr.

The pumpkin bee riding on a wooden horse, ‘Mouse’, carefully embraces [the black book].

Step by step,

The sound of footsteps going downstairs.

Kim Yu-hee went down the stairs while hearing footsteps behind her.

The basement of the orphanage was eerie.

It is understandable why the elders of the council told Do Jong-ha to kill him without delay if he found out about the existence of the basement.

And now that they, the Dark Dragons, have learned of the existence of the underground, they will not be safe if they go out like this.

‘I’m glad I rubbed it against Detective Do Jong-ha. I’m now Do Jong-ha’s pet. I’m going to rub it really hard and show her that there’s no better fate than a rich family’s pet.’

Go down the stairs.

Footsteps are heard behind me.

… … I was standing at the very back, so why did I hear footsteps behind me?

Kim Yu-hee stopped walking and turned her head.

“… … .”

『… … .』

Our eyes met.

He is a stranger.

Both eyelids were cut off,

‘Something’ with strangely round eyes.

‘That thing’ came close behind Kim Yu-hee and glared at her with bloodshot eyes.

There were dark circles under my eyes, as if I had been sleep deprived.

The exhaled breath, smelling of blood, brushed Kim Yu-hee’s cheek.

“… … .”

The brief eye contact continues.

I am terrified of the presence of a monster that has come right up to my nose.

There was something in the rules that said to be quiet,

Did they chase me because I was making so much noise?

Or maybe he came to check if I was running around on the stairs.

Anything is fine.

“… … .”

A moment of thought.

Soon, Kim Yu-hee took off her pitch-black mask,

They threw themselves with all their might towards the upper stairs from which they had come down.

Ta-daeng! Taeng!

The sound of a mask hitting a wall.

Then, the ‘thing’ that had been glaring at Kim Yu-hee turned around and went up the stairs where the noise was coming from.

It reacts to sound.

Lived.

Kim Yu-hee shrugged her shoulders, praising her own quick-wittedness.

“Foot. Height.”

Dada dadadadadak!

Creepy footsteps.

The ‘thing’ that went up the stairs crawled on all fours and returned to Kim Yu-hee.

I think I heard a voice.

In an instant, ‘that thing’ came right in front of her nose and started glaring at her like before.

Round eyes without eyelids.

Bloody breath.

I realize it without thinking.

Ah. If you make that sound twice in a row, I’ll die.

“… … .”

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Painful eye contact.

A body that cannot move due to fear.

Perhaps because I was at the very back of the group, I couldn’t feel any signs of other people.

“… … .”

『… … .』

“… … kk… Shut up…”

A strange situation.

Immediately after, Kim Yu-hee became sad.

The moment I took a deep breath, blaming my own snout,

Crackle! Crackle! Crackle!

A castanets flew in from somewhere,

It flew towards the open lab hallway and made a loud noise.

Basement 5th floor.

A hallway extending from the stairs.

… … .

Hot!

The satisfying sound of crickets.

‘That thing’ that heard the sound of castanets fell from Kim Yu-hee.

He enters the laboratory hallway where the noise is heard and disappears into the darkness that falls.

Squeak… Click.

Only then does the ‘mouse’ discover the existence of ‘that thing’ and hurriedly runs to close the hallway door.

“Huh…… Are you okay? Did something like that follow you?”

The whisper of the ‘mouse’ comforted Kim Yu-hee, and the Dark Dragon members came near her and shook her shoulders.

Usually, they bicker like that, but at times like this, they are busy checking on Kim Yu-hee’s physical condition with a worried face.

“Oh my, are you okay, Captain? If you’re tired, tell me. I’ll wash my hands right away.”

“… … No. 1. Switch seats with me.”

“Yeah. I’m the easiest leader, right? You said you’d bite the butts of the people in front in turn, but the person who went to the back got his butt bitten in return, so you came to your senses and that’s it? ”

“Shut up, sisters.”

Whispering, petty squabbles.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Kim Yu-hee, who realized that she had come back from the dead, sighed.

Eventually, she threw the castanets for herself…

A squash bee perched on the head of a ‘mouse’,

He looked up politely with sparkling eyes.

‘Soft glutinous rice cake…’

Purrr!

‘Fly’, who was shaking his shoulders with pride, turned his head as if he didn’t know.

Even though she turned her head, her cheeks sticking out to the side trembled, showing her happiness.

Just like a child picking up trash from the roadside to be praised by his mother,

The sound of clear, clear breathing filled the dark basement staircase.

“… … Starting today, I worship glutinous rice cakes.”

Thud.

Kim Yu-hee knelt on the stairs and bowed to ‘Fly’.

It was a sight to behold.

… … .

ㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡ

ㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡ

Time goes by.

In some future, when Kim Yu-hee bows to the pumpkin bee and is happy to ride a wooden horse instead of a ‘mouse’.

Banharin, a girl who came down the dark stairs, reached a dead end.

Basement 7th floor.

A space where even breathing becomes suffocating.

In front of Banharin’s eyes, there was a corridor extending in a single line,

At the end of it, an iron gate was visible.

It looks like a shooting star that has fallen to the ground is trapped deep underground to prevent it from rising into the sky.

[Observation] Banharin, who used the skill, walked towards the iron gate with careful steps.

A thick iron gate.

A foul smell coming from the narrow hole where the food was placed at the bottom.

“Ah…… Hello? Sorry, I can’t see right now…”

And, mixed with the pungent smell of iron,

A voice was heard from beyond the iron gate.

A beautiful but slightly boyish voice.

Someone around the same age as Banharin greets her languidly.

The gender was unknown.

It’s a voice that’s twisted and turned this way and that, and ‘no one’ can recognize.

Even the most fearsome monsters will pass by without noticing ‘that thing’.

“… … Are you a star?”

“I am a galaxy.”

Someone beyond the iron gate speaks.

A galaxy, not a star.

Thump thump.

Banharin’s heart is pounding.

“What brings you here? If the ‘Director’ finds out, you’ll get in trouble.”

“I wanted to see the stars.”

“I am a galaxy.”

Could it be the pull of something?

Banharin’s fingertips touched the iron door.

The cold touch makes the girl’s heart ache.

“… … .”

Phagectic.

After a while, the girl used her [Observation] skill,

I ‘observed’ the scenery beyond the iron gate,

“… … Ugh… Woofwoofㅡ!!”

I couldn’t stand the nausea so I threw up my stomach.

Blood flows from his red, bloodshot eyes.

“Oh, is that okay?”

“Ugh……! Kehek…!”

“I’m okay. I’m Eunha.”

“… … What the hell are you?”

“I am a galaxy.”

A strange conversation.

Banharin, who had been emptying her stomach, looked around.

Basement 7th floor.

A hallway shrouded in dark shadows.

The iron door handle was covered in bloodstains, and the lock was designed to be locked from the hallway where Banharin was.

The disgusting smell of blood.

Is this really real?

Why isn’t it a nightmare?

I couldn’t figure it out.

“I am a person who is resented.”

“… … .”

“Dad and Mom, I killed them, so I should be in pain.”

A strange conversation flows.

It’s something that’s hard for Banharin to understand.

However, she.

The girl who still hasn’t lost her smile.

At the voice heard from beyond the iron gate,

I quietly raised my head and looked up at the ceiling.

Basement 7. Dark hallway.

But I know that at the end of that ceiling, there exists a dazzling night sky.

“… …Star. Aren’t you lonely?”

“What all of a sudden…?”

“If I come here every night from today and talk to you, will you be happy?”

Banharin said.

Leaning against the cold iron door.

“… … Why?”

“I want to see the star smiling.”

A brat and a liar.

He hid in the dark underground like a black insect and spoke to the stars.

It’s not a story that’s appropriate to bring up at first sight.

Sagak-.

There was no particular reason.

The reason I came into the basement in the middle of the night to look for the stars.

“So, do you want to be my friend?”

She wanted to be friends with the stars.

… … .

… … .

“Star. I’m here.”

Long, long ago.

A few years ago.

The girl went to see the stars every night.

Without the nuns or the director knowing, without making a single sound.

He moved in and out of the basement as silently as a ghost.

“Star. I’m here.”

“Star. I’m here.”

“… … Eunha. You came today too.”

Was it since then?

Comfort is mixed with the voice coming from beyond the iron gate.

The basement I visited every night still smelled terrible with blood.

Separated by a cold iron door, the two people who had never met each other before became friends.

“… … Really, thank you. For visiting every day.”

“Mr. Galaxy.”

“I am here. Now I am looking forward to tomorrow. My friend will come by at night.”

I don’t know why.

A reason to want to be friends.

But… that’s probably,

As if someone who yearned for the sun had spread his wax wings and taken flight into the sky.

“… Galaxy. Then, do you want to make a promise?”

“A promise? My friend is always so sudden.”

“Someday, I’ll burn down this orphanage and get Eunha out…”

Wanting to reach the depth of the night sky that I looked up at,

Wasn’t that the kind of mind you had?

Or maybe it’s just first love.

“When that time comes, will you come out of this iron gate and… look at me and smile?”

Long ago, many years ago.

Before the two people lost their memories,

It was a memory like a time capsule buried underground.