Chapter 210
The immediate question that came to mind was this.
“… If I mistakenly kill someone who isn’t a fragment of a nightmare, what happens?”
Indeed. I was curious about the penalty for errors.
It makes no sense that there would be no penalty. Then, since this is a dream, one could just go around massacring every passerby with impunity.
Most people would hesitate due to a sense of repulsion, but Park Jeong-yong doesn’t. There must be some safeguard against psychopaths like me.
“Should I test it…?”
I idly fiddled with the sashimi knife I’d hidden in my parka pocket as I thought for a moment.
But only for a moment. I soon shook my head and gave up.
“If it just results in game over, what am I going to do? This is absurd.”
Moreover, the problem I’m facing right now isn’t just that. I recalled the first time I killed a fragment of a nightmare.
“There’s no guarantee the other nightmare fragments won’t resist.”
The one pretending to be my father was unexpectedly caught off guard.
But there’s no guarantee the others will get caught off guard so easily. Judging by my usual luck, the chances are they’ll put up a fierce resistance.
That raised another question.
“… Can I even use my skills?”
Fortunately, I’m in a deserted back alley with few people around. There’s no need to worry about anyone seeing. After all, it’s all an illusion. What are you so worried about?
… Nevertheless, I checked my surroundings two or three times before taking a deep breath.
“Let’s give it a try.”
I extended my hand holding the concealed sashimi knife forward.
Taking a slow, deep breath, I visualized in my mind the mana concentrating at the tip of the sword.
Suddenly, I opened my eyes wide and slashed through the air with the sashimi knife.
“Seven Sword Pierce!!”
But nothing happened.
All that occurred was the biting cold wind of the Christmas season, accompanied by a tremendous wave of embarrassment.
I didn’t know dreams could be this embarrassing.
“Arghhh…!”
Thrashing about like a fish out of water, overcome by the overwhelming wave of awkwardness.
“Hey, mister, what are you doing?”
A woman’s voice called out to me from behind.
It was definitely calling me. There was no other man around here behaving strangely. Turning my head slowly,
I let out a low exclamation of surprise.
“Huh?”
What is this?
There stood Seseona and Seop Baek.
Dressed in the uniforms of a nearby high school, they were strutting towards me confidently.
“What are you doing, mister?”
“We were wondering if you’d like to play with us for a while?”
Their swaggering gait,
The mischievous smiles that never left their lips,
And their skirts, shortened and tightened to barely decent lengths.
Above their sailor-style uniforms, they wore black maker-style puffer jackets.
In Seseona’s case, she had even dyed her hair blue.
‘This is definitely…’
Yes. A classic pair of high school delinquents.
Perhaps because of my vivid memories from my school days, their fashion was slightly outdated by today’s standards.
Seseona and Seop Baek approached me with bold confidence. They leaned in closely and spoke.
“Hey, mister, do you have any money?”
“We’re a little short right now… Could you lend us some?”
Seseona and Seop Baek had begun to extort me.
Normally, I wouldn’t be easily intimidated even by male delinquents. Since starting manual labor work, I’ve built some muscle, enough that the delinquents avoid me rather than the other way around.
But then…
“Don’t say you don’t have it? One yen will earn you one punch♥.”
Rrrrrrk! The moment Seseona pulled out a chainsaw from her wrist, things changed. Ah! A chainsaw. An excellent tool for negotiation.
Seseona smiled her usual cheerful smile while casually thrusting the chainsaw at me. Understandably, I was shocked to my core.
“Th-thank you!”
Not one yen punch, but one punch for one hundred thousand yen would kill me.
One thrust from a chainsaw would take out AlphaGo, Lee Sedol, or even Park Jeong-yong in one hit. Trembling with fear, I quickly handed over my wallet.
“Such dangerous items shouldn’t be carried around, mister. Here, give it to me. Confiscated~.”
As Seop Baek playfully stroked my hand, she casually grabbed the sashimi knife.
She lightly tapped the blade with her fingertip, then licked it with a flick. Her gaze held an indescribable dangerous glint.
Of course, I was absolutely horrified by the shocking act. I floundered in tremendous confusion.
‘What? What exactly is this?’
Alright, since this is a dream, it’s possible for Seseona and Seop Baek to appear. But what’s with this appearance?
Why are they in school uniforms? Why are they behaving like delinquents? And why are they trying to extort me?
Is this from how I perceive them? It shouldn’t be.
‘… Is it because I’ve run away from them? That must be it.’
Sounds plausible.
It seems they’ve appeared in this form because subconsciously I perceive them as ‘people I want to avoid’. Swallowing deeply, I gently untangled their snake-like grips.
“S-so, I’ve given you everything I had. I’ll be taking my leave now. Have a nice day…”
Retreating with a groveling smile, then suddenly,
“Hey!”
Seop Baek grabbed the back of my neck.
My breath was almost taken away. I was forced to stop in my tracks.
“Krk, h-huh.”
“Just a moment, mister. Where are you rushing off to?”
Seop Baek approached, speaking in a lowered tone. She had suddenly switched to formal speech.
And without warning, she pressed her upper body even closer than before. Not to be outdone, Seseona also clung to me.
With me sandwiched between the two, they began chatting excitedly between themselves.
“Looking closely, you’re kind of cute. Right up my alley.”
“Ah, me too. You do have quite the physique, mister?”
Fondling fondling. Their hands roamed my body as they critically appraised me, then
“Perfect timing, mister. We were bored anyway. How about playing with us for a bit? You don’t have anything else to do, right? You look like such a loser.”
“You probably don’t have a girlfriend either, do you? Judging by how you act, I don’t think you do. So come on, join us?”
Suddenly, they started hitting close to home. Between internal Seseona and internal Seop Baek’s relentless attacks, I was reaching my breaking point.
Ah. I want to escape this place quickly. I was mentally exhausted to the point I could only think about leaving.
“B-but, my parents are worried. I should go home…”
“Come on, stop making excuses. It’s Christmas Eve, play with us, mister. Alright?”
Seseona lowered her voice seductively while looping her arm tightly around mine.
Mmm… Something soft brushed against my arm. I can’t say for sure, but it’s not difficult to guess. Trying to dispel my distracting thoughts, I began reciting army training principles.
And with a crack. Seop Baek began squeezing my arm tightly from the other side as if trying to break it. I had to scream silently.
“Hey. What the hell are you doing?”
The chilly voice wasn’t directed at me. Shocked by the sudden chill, I looked back at Seop Baek. However, she wasn’t looking at me but glaring daggers at Seseona.
Then with a show-offish gesture, Seseona caressed my cheek as she spoke.
“What am I doing? Trying to charm this mister.”
“Shut up and stay out of it, you bitch. I can handle this myself.”
“Hah. I found him first.”
“I was the one who spoke to him first.”
The atmosphere grew increasingly hostile. Cold glares that could drop frost in June flew between them.
Soon, I was completely ignored by both. Seseona and Seop Baek rummaged through their uniform tops and drew weapons.
Seseona drew the dagger of Eldritch I had given her long ago. Seop Baek, as usual, wielded her chainsaw.
“Alright. Let’s do it then. Fine by me. I’ve had this on my mind for a while anyway.”
“Who’s talking? Hurry up and bring it, you hag.”
Why are they fighting now? Is there some kind of factional split? I don’t understand what’s happening.
Anyway, this is a gift from the heavens. If I miss this chance, when will I be able to escape again?
While the two were fanning their fighting spirit, I quietly began slipping away. Before I knew it, I was sprinting at full speed out of the alley.
“Ah, wait, mister?”
“Where did that guy go again?!”
Just as I was about to completely disappear from their view, they noticed I was escaping.
Behind me, I could hear the voices of the two women, shocked by my getaway. My spine tingled with Goosebumps as I increased my pace even more, rushing madly through the alleys.
With delayed reaction, Seseona and Seop Baek began chasing after me, shouting.
“No!! Jung Yong, don’t go!”
“Again, you’re running away without saying anything? That’s too much!!”
The two women stretched out their hands towards me with desperate expressions.
But I clenched my teeth and ignored them completely.
Soon, Seseona and Seop Baek completely disappeared from sight. I had successfully shaken them off.
“… sigh.”
I let out a low breath. I was extremely troubled.
The words they called out just before disappearing kept circling through my head.
‘Ah. That’s it.’
It wasn’t simply that I wanted to avoid them that shaped their appearances.
They represented the guilt and fear I was feeling. That’s why they showed up as delinquents putting pressure on me.
… I don’t know why they fought each other halfway through, but I survived thanks to it, so it’s all good.
“Where am I?”
I took a quick scan of my surroundings, taking deep breaths down to my jaw.
A densely packed apartment area about ten minutes’ walk from the downtown area. Looking carefully, it was a familiar spot from my memories.
“Ah, this is it.”
Looking around more carefully, it was just as expected.
There was the orphanage where my father was from and the small church called ‘The Church of Hope’ that operated alongside it.
‘The church.’
I had often visited the orphanage personally to donate, but I had virtually no connection with the church. As a result, I didn’t know the priest, the nuns who worked there, or any of the congregation.
“…”
Yet, why?
My steps and attention kept being pulled to the church, not the orphanage, like a magnet. Curiously, I was beginning to doubt myself.
‘Perhaps I should go once?’
This was a nightmare world created from my memories. There must be some inevitable reason I’m being instinctively drawn somewhere.
Slowly reviewing my memories, I approached the church.
“Is anyone there…?”
Creeeak. Pushing open the rusty gate, I entered the church. Given my limited knowledge of churches, the interior was rather sparse.
I passed the small confessional booth separated by wooden panels. A spacious room for mass soon greeted me.
“Huh.”
I spotted two people devoutly praying in front of the lectern and smirked.
Judging by their attire, they were the priest and nun serving this church. But they were definitely out of place with this setting.
‘The same context as the earlier duo of delinquents.’
Have I cut ties with all the people who anchored me to Korea?
Even though the setting is genuinely Earth’s South Korea, the only people appearing are from the alternative world.
The same goes for the priest and nun who just appeared in front of me.
“Did you change jobs, Halsenberg?”
The man slowly turning around in his black priest’s robes was Halsenberg. Next to him, the nun greeting me was Yulia Rueva.
