Chapter 211
“Ah, Lord Jung Yong. What brings you here? Have you come for confession?”
Halsenberg greeted me with a gentle smile. His words were priestly as expected.
“Welcome, brave warrior. It’s good to see you. Hehe.”
Yuria also greeted me with a cheerful smile. If she wasn’t exactly nun-like, she certainly had her own charm.
Wait. Is she talking out loud?
“Hey, Holy Maiden.”
“Yes?”
“You can talk? Is this because I’m dreaming?”
“Hehe. It’s all the power of love.”
Yuria bashfully smiled, her cheeks tinged with red.
That line was unexpectedly charming. She’s definitely not ordinary.
As I awkwardly scratched the back of my head, Yuria suddenly took my hand gently.
“Through the overwhelming love of the Lord, nothing in this world is impossible. You should believe in the Lord too, warrior.”
“Uh, yeah, I’ve sinned.”
It seems like Yuria in appearance, but the essence feels different – like Sesona and Seop Baek.
I glanced at the openly welcoming Halsenberg.
‘Halsenberg seems like a mixed version of the one I know.’
The greeting he gave me and his current attitude are proof. It seems there’s a personal variance in the blending ratio depending on the intimacy or understanding from reality.
Still, I was surprised to see Halsenberg looking good in his priest’s robes, even in a dream.
“Halsenberg… or should I say Father. How is the priesthood treating you?”
I teased him. Halsenberg chuckled awkwardly.
“Well, since we don’t have many believers, the financial situation is a bit tough. We might have to close the church soon.”
“Hmm…”
Even in dreams, he’s living precariously. Or maybe it’s because that’s how Archbishop Halsenberg is ingrained in my mind.
I nodded in understanding and pointed at Yuria who was beaming by my side.
“Who’s she? How did you meet?”
“She’s a child from Hope Orphanage. She showed interest in nun activities, so I’ve given her some chores and she’s preparing for university in theology.”
“Ahh. Orphanage… I see.”
This Hope Church runs alongside the Hope Orphanage in the same foundation.
That’s the orphanage where my father spent his childhood. It’s also the place he quietly donated to without me knowing.
‘So I’ve visited a few times.’
After my father passed away and my visits to the orphanage stopped, I received a long text message from them.
They were worried because I hadn’t contacted or visited them in a while. At the time, with my cynical mindset, I thought they were worried about the money being cut off.
So I went there intending to have a fight, armed with a bat.
‘But when they heard the news of my father’s death, the director burst into tears.’
I was utterly flustered and awkwardly pretended to be a baseball kid.
Somehow, I ended up playing baseball with the kids there, and from then on, I continued the donations.
‘There’s nothing particularly special here…’
I quickly scanned the inside of the church.
There’s nothing particularly noticeable. One of the two people in front of me could be a fragment of a nightmare, but without concrete evidence, I decided to be more cautious.
‘I should visit the orphanage first.’
Decisions made, it’s time to act.
I walked out of the church, bidding farewell to the two of them.
“In that case, I’m going to visit the orphanage. I have business there.”
“Oh, good. Please convey my regards to the director.”
“Yes, I will.”
I smiled back at the affable Halsenberg.
I quickly exited through the chapel door and crossed the wide playground. As I passed, the familiar scenery of the orphanage greeted me.
I suddenly turned my head behind me.
“Ugh.”
Yuria gasped and stopped in her tracks.
This situation feels familiar. Didn’t this happen in reality before?
I said the exact same line.
“Hey, why are you following me?”
“S-since I also have stuff to do at the orphanage. It’s not like I’m following you.”
“You? What do you have to do?”
“… Do I need a reason to go home?”
Oh. Yuria pouted and talked back.
She can talk after all, which is less frustrating. Her reaction is fresh and amusing. I prefer this kind of snappy response to blind obedience.
I let out an amused chuckle and nodded carelessly.
“Fine, do as you wish.”
“Ye-… Yes, I’ll do as I please.”
As soon as I gave my permission, Yuria smiled broadly and quickly walked closer to me.
Her expression and steps were unusually lively. She must have had something good happen.
“Wow! Sister Yuria!”
“Sister!”
“Big sister!”
As soon as we entered the orphanage gate, the children playing inside rushed out.
All the attention was on Yuria. She’s incredibly popular. It seems like she’s the super-insider of the orphanage in Park Jeong-yong’s universe.
But the gathered faces are quite impressive. While mingling, I couldn’t help but chuckle to myself.
‘There are all kinds of people.’
Among them were kids I had actually seen at the orphanage in reality. Some were from the other world I had passed through.
Tara from Kern who received the ring, the insect girl Penny from the sick village, and even Yona whose face was blurred like noise because I didn’t know her.
They were the trio of unfortunate girls I became involved with in the other world.
‘I don’t know this person who I do know.’
I recognize Yona, whose face is blurred, as someone Aldcon wanted to protect.
Even in dreams, it’s common not to remember faces clearly. But the awareness of this makes it feel mysterious.
‘Ah…’
I made a hypothesis and cautiously scanned the faces of the children.
But no matter how hard I looked, I couldn’t find the face I expected. I let out a sigh of disappointment.
“Are you looking for someone?”
Yuria picked up on my vibe and asked quietly.
That perception is incredible. I shook my head and evaded the question.
“No, not like that. I’m not looking for anyone.”
I was actually searching for Gena’s face.
If she were here in my dreams, this place would be where she would be. As the master of the dream, I am sure that she would be one of the unforgettable tragic girls.
But no matter how hard I looked, she wasn’t there. Perhaps because I had already decided that she is dead, she cannot appear in this nightmarish world.
“Those who are dead are not reproduced. Acknowledged.”
Though it’s just a theory. However, if someone who’s already dead appears, it’s highly probable that they are a fragment of the nightmare.
I nodded with a bittersweet face and suddenly became lost in thought.
‘Hmm… how did Gena look again?’
Staring at the night sky in my dreamland, I got lost in my thoughts.
Gena’s face is already blurry. Like Yona’s face, it’s obscured by noise and doesn’t come back clearly.
Grabbing my hair, I exhaled a heavy sigh.
The director of the Hope Orphanage is an elderly grandmother with white hair and a kind face, exactly as I remembered her.
The notable newcomers are two part-time workers.
“Aww, would you stop clinging already, you brats!”
“My goodness. Swearing at the children! Such a lack of refinement.”
One of them, the one shouting furiously at the children’s antics, is Aldcon.
The other, making fun of Aldcon’s fiery swearing, is Skaro.
“Refinement? You? Take care of your own face first! The children cry in fear when they see you, you monster. I’m doing all the heavy lifting because of you!”
“… Che, that’s low, attacking my person. Your level is so…”
The two were bickering back and forth nonstop even here. I immediately turned away, feeling nostalgic from their antics.
Their arguments don’t match the harsh reality outside.
‘… These two probably aren’t it. I hope not.’
There’s no specific evidence. It’s just pure wishful thinking.
Otherwise, I’d have to kill one of them, even if I check everyone else first. I’d rather avoid that.
I’ve just realized how much these two mean to me.
“Ultimately, there was no worthwhile gain.”
As I returned to the church, I absentmindedly muttered to myself, forgetting that Yuria was there.
Yuria tilted her head curiously at my unexpected comment.
“Gain? What were you trying to get?”
“Huh? Oh, it’s nothing. Just talking to myself.”
Habits are truly terrifying.
I tried to brush it off lightly, but Yuria continued to stare at me with a puzzled look.
“Don’t push it. You’ll get hurt.”
“Hmm. Now that I think about it, you seemed like you had something to do when you went, but you didn’t accomplish anything, did you? Like a rabbit at dawn?”
“Stop being so nosy. It’s dangerous.”
“Hmm. Come to think of it, you were deep in thought earlier too. Is something wrong? Something happened?”
Yuria’s relentless questioning went on for quite some time.
It continued from when we left the orphanage and passed through the playground until we returned to the church.
“Since the priest isn’t here, why not do confession with me, warrior? Yes?”
Yuria said in a mockingly pious tone, her appearance in the slightly scandalous modified nun’s clothing making it a sacrilegious scene.
Halsenberg was nowhere to be seen during this time. After some thought, I sighed and spoke to Yuria.
“Holy Maiden, this might sound awkward…”
“Yes? What is it?”
“Let’s say someone among the people around you is a cleverly disguised monster. Like a doppleganger from a fantasy novel. And let’s say I’m in a situation where I have to find that person and eliminate them.”
“…”
As expected, Yuria reacted exactly as anticipated.
Her previously smiling face froze, showing signs of discomfort. It was a look of ‘What nonsense is this guy spouting now? What’s he trying to hint at?’
Regardless. I sincerely confessed to her as requested.
“How can I identify and eliminate that person? If you have any good methods, let me know.”
