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Under the gloomy gray sky, a delicate drizzle fell over the makeshift container houses clustered in the relief camp.

The rain softly enveloped those who had fled the desert, as if to comfort them.

The Gangseo District relief camp was gradually becoming soaked from the rain that had persisted for several days.

While the rain fell with such a gentle touch that it barely made a sound, its continuity for days was quietly consuming everything in the camp.

The streetlights illuminating the dark interior of the camp, shrouded by a curtain of clouds, made the rain-soaked streets appear mystical and shimmering.

In such a relief camp, a large, tattooed woman and a small girl entered.

The tall woman, clad in an ill-fitting small raincoat, cupped the rainwater that scattered like dew in her palm, fascinated.

As if in a trance.

“Hey, sis?”

The girl, lost in the gaze of the rain, was startled by her younger sister’s call and dumped the collected rainwater onto the ground.

Then, she pulled out a leaf, chewing on it while offering her sister a piece as well.

“This is super bitter, huh?”

The younger sister scrunched her forehead in protest, revealing just how bitter the leaf was.

“Still, if you don’t want to get hypnotized, chew on it. Just don’t swallow.”

“So, did you figure something out?”

“Yeah, as I expected again. There has to be a reason why such events keep happening only in Seoul, but I just can’t figure it out.”

The tall woman looked up, admiring the drizzle that reflected a soft light and created a beautiful view.

The asphalt, glimmering like jewels and reflecting the streetlight, certainly wasn’t ordinary.

The weather forecast, which she checked directly, indicated a high chance of rain stopping at any moment, but looking at it now, this rain was definitely not going to end.

Perhaps until the whole Yangcheon District was submerged in water.

Children chasing raindrops.

The fresh scent of the air, wet from the rain.

Laughter reverberating in the damp atmosphere.

People chatting under the waterproof tarp roof.

The camp remained in a calm mood for now.

This drizzle probably wouldn’t disrupt people’s tranquility.

Ploop, plop.

As I stomped my foot, I felt a splash of water pooled on the asphalt.

About 10mm.

It was only now that the drizzle started to pool water.

This was certainly not supposed to happen in a place known for good drainage.

“But, sis. What happens to Yangcheon District now?”

“Probably, after about a week, the water will rise enough to be noticeable. That’s when it begins.”

“And then?”

“After that, it will continue to rain. And the ground will sink.”

“So, what about the people living here? Can’t they do anything to stop it?”

“As humans, there’s nothing you can do. You can’t stop it. Let’s start heading back.”

The girl nodded at her sister’s words, firmly holding her hand.

And the girl and the tall woman left the camp, which was charmingly sinking in the rain.

*

Nom nom.

Watching the reaper eating pudding nestled in my arms filled me with nostalgia about the ruckus we had gone through to get the pudding.

Traveling across the country searching for pudding, even battling through “objects” to reach the pudding factory!

It had been two weeks since that far-off pudding retrieval operation.

Fortunately, most of the puddings that had spread into the sky had been retrieved.

At first, I worried about what would happen if there were a collision with an airplane or if a droplet burst in the air and fell on someone’s head.

But it all wrapped up without any significant accidents, which was a relief.

And a special facility just for the reaper was created in our research institute.

A mini kitchen producing pudding!

It was transferred from the pudding factory and set up inside the isolation room.

Thanks to that, the reaper can sit in the isolation room and happily munch on the floating puddings.

Golden reapers in little chef hats began to squirm out of the mini kitchen.

They then carefully removed their hats and handed them over to another golden reaper.

It was the end of the working hours for the golden reaper.

The reward for the cooking work? Pudding!

There were so many golden reapers wanting to eat pudding that there was never a time when the kitchen was dark.

Though nobody instructed them, it seemed like they had set an unwritten rule among themselves.

[If you don’t work, you don’t eat pudding.]

Only the gray reaper, lying like a pig while enjoying free pudding, was exempted.

The golden reapers are impressive!

Poking the cheeks of the gray reaper, swollen from eating pudding, we watched TV together.

[Yangcheon District is still experiencing continuous rain.]

[With only 0.1mm of rain per hour, Yangcheon District is facing a water disaster.]

[People have already begun to evacuate as the rainwater has reached their ankles.]

Yangcheon District was struggling with the unrelenting drizzle.

A bizarre phenomenon where the water level wouldn’t decrease even with the pumps sucking it out.

The rainfall was only 0.1mm per hour.

Yet, the rainwater kept rising instead of flowing into the drainage system.

They considered the first week as strange weather, but after two weeks and with water visibly rising, it became clear that this was no ordinary matter.

[This must be caused by the objects for sure!]

Those who lost their homes to desertification in Gangseo District were once again placed in the unfortunate position of needing to relocate.

They say they sometimes hear the term ‘cursed people.’

They were pitiable in many ways.

I took a bite of pudding, and indeed it was so delicious.

How on earth does it taste this good?

Must be the objects?

But sadly, this pudding was quite heavy in calories, so I was only eating one a day.

I too want to keep eating pudding without worry like the reaper.

In frustration, I poked the cheeks of the reaper.

*

Under an endless sky devoid of any clouds, a large full moon shone with brilliance rivaling the sun.

It was a moon bright enough to make one gasp in admiration.

The silvery glow of the moon bathed everything it touched in a gentle light, casting subtle sparkles on the surface of the lake.

The lake, infused with moonlight, shone beautifully like a mirror sprinkled with jewel dust.

The lake, reflecting the moon’s brightness, was so clear and transparent that one could see the bottom just from the moonlight.

The flickering moonlight draped a curtain of beautiful light like an aurora in the depths of the lake.

By the tranquil lakeside, a blonde girl turned to the black agent and said,

“Sir, isn’t this amazing? I wish I could see this lake during the day.”

Her voice carried a yearning for something she could no longer see, casting a fleeting shadow on her expression.

“Sure. Someday, you will be able to see it.”

The black agent replied in a tone that suggested a straightforward truth.

After hearing the agent’s words, the sadness in the blonde girl’s expression transformed into a bright smile, like sunlight splitting through clouds.

“Right? For sure.”

With a giggle, the girl turned her gaze back to the surface of the lake.

The guide to the heart.

It was where she had arrived at the lake.

In her red eyes, filled with the power of the objects, the silver moon reflecting on the lake appeared to be nothing but blue.

A lake that swallowed Yangcheon District, off-limits to the public.

Standing by the lake, the girl awaited the next guide to her heart.

For the day she could stand once again under the sun.

*

Lively singing echoed in the backyard of the Sehee Research Institute.

“Cheers!”

“Cheers!”

Despite it being late at night, the employees gathered without leaving the party, creating an exciting festival atmosphere.

A large banner hung in the backyard, revealing the purpose of this party.

<[Congratulations on Obtaining Object Usage License! <>

[Pre-party for the license acquisition.]

It was a celebration of Sehee obtaining her object usage license.

The protagonist of this party, Sehee, was babbling on and on about how difficult studying for the exam had been, her words coming out in a drunken haze while she leaned on Seoah and Yerin.

The golden reapers, drunk on the happy mood, showcased their dazzling dance skills on the large table laden with food, pumping up the party’s cheer.

How could there be this much fuss over merely a certification?

Well, Sehee did look like she was struggling so much these days, it was as if she was a different person.

Her eyes were droopy, her skin dark, and her hair a mess.

Even more astonishing was that this wild party was just the ‘pre-party.’

How hard had the exam studies been that they decided to hold a cruise overnight party for all research institute employees for an entire week?

“Reaper, save me.”

Yerin squeezed her way out from Sehee’s clutches.

Then she opened her phone and began showing off all the lake photos she had saved, bursting with excitement.

“Reaper, isn’t it exciting? They say we’re going to the famous Yangcheon Lake!”

The cruise party that Sehee reserved was taking place at the newly popular tourist spot, Yangcheon Lake.

It had been depicted on TV as a truly fantastic place, and everyone wanted to go there, so most employees decided to attend the party.

“They say that looking at the lake’s bottom, you can see the submerged Yangcheon District, clear as day. Isn’t that intriguing?”

Yangcheon Lake was a gigantic lake that had formed after submerging Yangcheon District, and I was slightly curious.

They claimed that the lake was absolutely not polluted, and the submerged city would not rust or get dirty.

It must be 100% objects.

And it was likely the type that harms humans, yet it was treated as a popular tourist spot.

It seemed a little odd.

No matter how loosely Korea handled the objects, it was strange to open up an object lake to the public merely three months later.

“Since the Reaper is going to the mini isolation room with us too, it’s going to be really fun!”

I had a feeling something enjoyable was about to happen.