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In the hazy vision, scenes completely unfamiliar were flowing by.

I instinctively realized that I was in a dream, but it was a rather strange dream.

The world in the dream was a chaotic mess where time flowed at a thousand times its normal speed, not distinguishing between before and after.

I couldn’t tell where I was, whether I was lying down or standing up.

It felt as if my very faint consciousness was drifting like the wind.

The world I saw in the dream felt like a sea filled with wishes, hopes, and longings.

Amidst the chaos, the sky remained unchanged.

I, in the dream, was looking up at the sky.

“I want to fly in the sky.”

I could do anything, but that was one thing I could not do.

Even if I wanted to fly, too many things were holding me down to the ground.

Resentment and desire, hope and despair.

Some longing whispered to me.

“[A god that grants all wishes is just like a disaster.]”

“[I wish there were no gods.]”

Though I possessed a faint awareness in the dream, that particular longing somehow lingered in my memory.

*

Suddenly waking up from the strange dream, I found myself in the familiar isolation room.

It was a dark, cozy, and pleasant isolation room.

I removed the Mini Reapers that were clinging to my face and placed them on the bed before sitting up.

Near the ceiling of the isolation room were floating Orange Reapers.

Surely, the reason I had that strange dream was because of those kids.

I was annoyed and playfully grabbed one Orange Reaper and tickled it.

The Orange Reaper, being as sensitive as a cloudball, twisted and squirmed much more than the Golden Reaper while laughing from the tickles.

I wasn’t this envious when the Blue Reaper was flying around on a broom, but I found the Orange Reaper oddly enviable.

Is it because it can just fly without anything else?

As I continued to tickle the Orange Reaper, something felt off.

Was it somehow much softer than the Golden Reaper?

Wait, what?

As I carelessly rummaged through the tickling Orange Reaper’s fluff, it laughed as if it was tickled while trying to hide its body with its hair.

The objects inside the isolation room were sporadically falling due to the Orange Reaper’s abilities causing various disturbances, but I eventually managed to get its body out from its hair.

The revealed body of the Orange Reaper looked somewhat different from the other Mini Reapers.

It was a bit taller than the Golden Reaper.

And its figure seemed a bit more attractive.

Except for being fairy-sized, it was much curvier when compared to me, its mother.

Why is it that it has everything I do not possess?!

I kept tickling the infuriating Orange Reaper until the morning sun rose.

*

In a village located in Odaesan.

Trinity vehicles were pouring into that place.

The Director of Research Institute No. 2 was standing at the highest point in the village, overlooking the scenery.

After discovering that the Director of Research Institute No. 1 had done something shady, he had come down to confirm it properly.

This village was visited out of concern that there might be something dangerous left behind by the Director of Research Institute No. 1, but aside from the wreckage here and there, there didn’t seem to be much of a problem.

“Pfew, that’s a relief. If something left behind by the Director of Research Institute No. 1 caused an incident, it would have been a hassle, but there’s nothing here.”

In fact, it was somewhat beneficial.

Near the village, a large pile of high-alloy barriers was stacked up to isolate objects.

Looking at the ledger, they were facilities transported from the first research institute.

“By the way, how did this village survive? There’s no interaction with the outside, and they didn’t farm, either.”

Hearing that, a man who looked like a secretary replied as he handed over the report.

“We’re currently investigating the exact cause, but so far, the testimonies are quite ridiculous.”

“Ridiculous testimonies? What kind of testimonies could warrant that?”

Clearing his throat, the secretary responded.

“They say that when you go out to the forest, food is just lying everywhere. Wild animals would suddenly collapse and die while on the road.”

“That’s definitely a ridiculous claim. It sounds even more credible because of it. Is it an Object?”

The secretary flipped through a few more pages of the report and answered.

“The residents talk about ‘the blessing of the Orange Moon.’ They say only good things happen and they’ve never gone hungry.”

Receiving the report from the secretary, the Director of Research Institute No. 2 began to read it quickly.

“It’s similar.”

The Director thought that ‘the blessing of the Orange Moon’ was quite alike to the ability of the Gray Reaper.

Under the blessing, fruits would fall while walking, and animals would suddenly trip and die on rocks.

It appeared strikingly similar to how the Gray Reaper caused sinkholes and guided animal deaths.

While the Gray Reaper only guided destruction and death, it seemed that the Orange Moon skewed probabilities more positively.

A village where Cloud Fish lived.

A Cloud Fish appeared at Sehee Research Institute.

And the Orange Moon with abilities similar to the Gray Reaper.

The Director of Research Institute No. 2 felt that it was somehow not a coincidence.

“Anyway, we need to relocate the old folks from this village to Seoul. Now that the Orange Moon is gone, living here is ripe for Object-related misfortune.”

Saying that, the Director handed the report back to the secretary and moved toward his vehicle.

*

Taking advantage of Senior Kim Jungloe being away, I ran to the Reaper’s isolation room.

The isolation room, which always exuded a comfortable atmosphere, had a somewhat droopy Reaper stuck to the bed.

Holding the Reaper, which seemed to have lost motivation and blended into the bed, I fed it pudding bit by bit.

Om nom nom.

The Reaper ate the pudding, creating a symbiotic relationship where I was also nibbling on the Reaper’s feelers.

After disappearing with Cloud Whale, it seemed like the Reaper was feeling unwell upon returning; was something wrong?

The TV was continuously streaming stories about the cult that has been rampant lately.

No matter how I looked at it, it sounded ridiculous, yet so many people seemed to believe in it.

It wasn’t just our country; it was supposedly spreading in various countries around the world, which was curious in this era when traveling abroad had become difficult.

“Surely this must be related to an Object, right?”

The Reaper was munching on pudding, showing no interest, but looking at the direction of its squirming feelers, it seemed to definitely be intrigued.

Those stories about the cult were quite famous.

They touted miraculous achievements of making the unable-to-walk people walk and the unable-to-see people gain sight.

While it seemed ridiculous, considering the existence of Objects, I felt like there could actually be a possibility in the back of my mind.

Could that be why it’s trending globally?

Well, it’s better than a religion that says everyone should commit mass suicide as the end approaches, but how long that cult might last is uncertain.

Seeing the Reaper showing interest, it could possibly disappear sooner than expected.

While spending a peaceful afternoon watching TV with the Reaper, the isolation room door swung open and Unnie Sehee rushed in.

Unnie Sehee appeared to be fleeing from something.

“Unnie Sehee? What’s going on all of a sudden?”

Just then, Unnie Seoah followed Sehee into the isolation room.

“Director Lee Sehee! What on earth is going on?”

Unnie Seoah was unusually angry.

With such rage, could it be misappropriation?

As I caught a glimpse of the paper Unnie Seoah was waving, I could briefly see the contents.

It seemed like documents related to land purchase; were they planning to relocate or expand the Sehee Research Institute?

“Who on earth buys land to create a Gray Reaper Theme Park for several times the market price? With our research institute’s income, it would take us 20 years to start construction!”

“We can take a loan to build it! The Gray Reaper is popular, so we could pay it back quickly!”

Unnie Seoah sighed, rubbing her temples at Unnie Sehee’s outrageous assertion.

Wouldn’t this lead to a red tag on the research institute?

Somehow I felt uneasy.

*

The paper handed by the Association Employee had the symbol of the cult that has been trending lately drawn on it.

Below that was filled with warnings and methods of evangelism.

Rachel felt her tension ease as she took the paper.

“So, they didn’t come to catch the Golden Reaper.”

The Association Employee, looking extremely tired, handed the flyer to Rachel and said.

“There have been many missing persons around here lately, so we’re distributing this for confirmation and caution.”

Then the employee handed over the report, checked something, and said in a stern tone.

“There are often reports of people going to find missing persons by directly seeking the cult, but it’s extremely dangerous, so please do not do that.”

The employee added that most of those who went looking have also ended up missing.

“Thank you for your cooperation, Rachel.”

After lightly bowing, the Association Employee slowly left.

Clunk.

As the front door closed, an uneasy feeling settled in Rachel’s heart.

“What if my mom and dad didn’t fall for the cult?”

Thinking of her parents living not far in the city, Rachel picked up her phone.

Although Rachel thought it was impossible, her face still reflected a worried expression that wouldn’t straighten.

The vanished Golden Reaper appeared on Rachel’s shoulder, gently patting her cheek.

With its tiny palm wide open and a sad expression, it seemed to say,

“Don’t worry; I’m here!”

Though the Golden Reaper couldn’t speak or make sounds, Rachel felt as if it had just said that.

While waiting for her parents to answer the call, Rachel softly said, “Thank you,” and stroked the Golden Reaper.

But no matter how many times she called again, it only connected to the voicemail.