Chapter 207

I woke up to find myself in a landscape filled with darkness.

A desolate and barren terrain stretched out before me.

Far into the distance, jagged rocks sharply jutted upward, under an ominous and dark sky.

And yet, cutting across this bleak sky was a beautiful green aurora.

But strangely, instead of evoking wonder, the aurora radiated an unsettling aura that sent shivers down my spine.

Above it all, the vast expanse of the universe unfolded, with Earth clearly visible among the stars, reminding me that I wasn’t on Earth at all.

Where am I?

Looking up at the sky filled me with anxiety, as if the heavens were about to collapse onto me.

Still, something compelled me to keep staring upward. That’s when I realized why—it wasn’t just my imagination; the barren land beneath me was slowly, ever so slowly, moving toward Earth.

Maybe I should summon some kids? I tried to activate the Mini Reaper Garden, but nothing happened.

That’s when it hit me.

Ah, this must be a dream.

The moment I recognized it as such, an overwhelming wave of malevolent energy began coalescing far away.

It was immense, evil incarnate—a presence so sinister and powerful that it felt unforgettable.

Though I couldn’t quite place it, I had definitely felt this malice before.

As the malicious energies gathered, a bizarre Object emerged, seemingly composed of both organic and inorganic elements.

Its form blended seamlessly with the scenery, looking almost like the twisted earth itself had come alive.

The silhouette resembled jagged trees or tangled roots, grotesquely warped, with what appeared to be a face staring directly at me from its peak.

Even though it lacked eyes, I could feel its gaze boring into me.

However, for some reason, I couldn’t look at the monster properly.

Whenever I tried, its image remained hazy and indistinct.

Yet the more I stared, the clearer it became.

Tap tap.

Just as I was about to fully confront the creature, someone tapped me on the back.

Turning around, I saw the Blue Girl shaking her head solemnly.

The instant our gazes met, I woke up.

***

When I opened my eyes, I found myself in an isolation room shrouded in darkness.

Next to me, the Golden Reaper lay curled up asleep, their body glowing faintly like burning firewood—its light flickering rhythmically, akin to the breathing of a sleeping baby.

While absentmindedly stroking the cheek of the soundly slumbering Golden Reaper, I mulled over the ominous dream.

The Girl with Blue Hair and the mysterious Object… they must have some connection to my “body” or to me personally.

There’s no doubt these things are related to me somehow.

Although I’d initially dismissed the dream as irrelevant, the appearance of such a foreboding entity made me reconsider.

Especially the Object from the dream—it seemed eerily familiar, though I couldn’t recall where I might’ve seen it before.

I knew I hadn’t encountered it during my time as the Gray Reaper, which meant it likely came from when I was human.

Still, I only had vague impressions of having seen it somewhere long ago.

Ugh, frustrating!

No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t remember anything concrete, which only fueled my irritation.

To vent my frustration, I picked up the tiny hand of the deeply sleeping Golden Reaper and lifted it gently.

Since the Golden Reaper sleeps like a log, it was easy to play pranks on them.

Using tape, I affixed their limbs to the wall, leaving them stuck there like an X-mark.

Seeing the Golden Reaper plastered against the wall amused me greatly and eased my annoyance somewhat.

Hehe.

Given the significance of the dream, it seemed I needed to investigate further.

But how?

The most straightforward approach would probably involve gathering moons and eyes.

After all, every time I collected one, I could sense something changing within me.

The problem, however, was that I didn’t know where—or even how—to find these moons and eyes.

There’s no answer…

“Mommy…”

Suddenly, another Golden Reaper lying nearby mumbled something incoherent in their sleep, clutching a fistful of my hair.

They looked blissfully happy as they chewed on strands of my hair in their sleep.

“Aha!”

In that moment, inspiration struck: Why not use the adventures of the Mini Reapers?

With more Attached Humans appearing naturally, there was no need to force the Mini Reapers into anything.

Indeed, I’m brilliant!

All I had to do was lie back in Sehee Research Institute eating pudding while the Mini Reapers searched for moons and eyes on my behalf—perfect!

With my worries resolved, I began decorating the walls of the isolation room with the Mini Reapers who were still asleep.

Like creating Egyptian murals, I arranged them in various poses across the wall.

Particularly, I placed the Golden Reaper who had been chewing my hair smack dab in the center for maximum visibility.

Before long, I’d managed to stick all the Mini Reapers from my bed onto the walls.

Stepping back to admire my handiwork, I felt quite satisfied with the artistic masterpiece I’d created.

***

Late morning at the courtyard of Sehee Research Institute, Yerin sat enjoying snacks and sipping warm coffee by a table laden with treats.

From the mini TV atop the table, soft news reports played in the background.

“The Object Association has decided not to quarantine Mapo District.”

“It seems Mapo District will become the first test site for peaceful coexistence between humans and Objects.”

The news discussed the recent surge in Golden Reapers appearing in Mapo District.

Ultimately, the Object Association chose not to isolate or designate the area off-limits.

Given the impossibility of containing or exterminating certain Objects, perhaps there was no other choice.

Meanwhile, the Gray Reaper, completely uninterested in current events, played with the Mini Reapers in the courtyard.

Typically lazy and prone to lounging around, today the Gray Reaper seemed unusually energetic.

Probably because I’d turned the Mini Reapers into butterfly-like exhibits earlier this morning.

“Japan has revoked the safety rating of the Red Lightning Island previously deemed harmless.”

“Now linked to numerous disappearances occurring nationwide in Japan, the island is considered highly dangerous.”

Following the segment on Mapo District, the news shifted to alarming developments in Japan involving a terrifying Object capable of swallowing people by the tens of thousands.

“Poor Japan… They really need a Reaper.”

Sipping pudding shared with a Golden Reaper, Yerin thought idly, unfazed by the grim report.

***

Gazing up at the cloudless sky, the girl reflected.

“What a rotten day.”

Actually, calling it just “today” minimized the extent of her bad luck.

Ever since being kidnapped by this Labyrinth Object near Japan, she hadn’t experienced any good fortune.

The sudden emergence of this enigmatic Object off the coast of Japan baffled everyone.

An Object impossible for humans to approach, immune to missiles or artillery, yet seemingly harmless.

Everyone believed it posed no threat—and so did she.

“This kind of thing has nothing to do with me,” she’d thought confidently.

But here she was, captured by the very Object she dismissed.

Lying in bed now, memories of home flooded her mind, vivid yet unreachable.

Had anyone discovered yet that this supposedly harmless island was actually abducting people randomly across Japan?

If they had, maybe there’d be a chance to return…

“Sigh.”

Today truly was a rotten day.

The girl sighed heavily and began picking up the shattered remains of her sword.

This morning, she’d bought the sword at a third of its usual price from a street vendor near the labyrinth entrance, thinking herself lucky.

But it turned out to be fake—shattering upon the slightest pressure.

Still, when she purchased glue to repair it, she clung to hope.

Glue that could fix broken swords! Surely, this meant she could become a proper adventurer!

But alas…

The glue was also fake.

Even after following the vendor’s instructions—gluing the pieces together and letting them dry under sunlight for an hour—the sword refused to mend.

She left it resting on a flowerpot, hoping against hope that perhaps the sun simply hadn’t been strong enough.

Deep down, though, she knew better.

That glue was fraudulent too.

Despite knowing this, she couldn’t bring herself to throw away her first weapon, continuing to leave it out in the sun anyway.

Eventually, even the patched-together sword broke again.

This time, thanks to a mysterious black Object falling from the sky and smashing her flowerpot.

“Sigh. So unlucky.”

Adding insult to injury, she’d lost all her savings.

Feeling utterly dejected, she forced herself to leave her lodging nonetheless.

No matter how depressed she felt, she had to gather plants from the labyrinth to afford food and rent.

Trailing behind her as she trudged along was a small, swift-moving black Object, hopping cheerfully.