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Knock. Knock. Knock.

The sound of the Girl’s Steps echoed through the pipes.

The Pink Girl and the Blue Reaper passed through the massive door labeled ‘Alchemist Academy’ and followed the path created by the pipes.

The view that unfolded after they passed through the door emitted a different atmosphere from the city they had known thus far.

Unlike the city filled with stones, roads, trees, and buildings, beyond the door lay grass and trees made of pipes, with pebbles and wildflowers everywhere.

As they traversed the path and climbed over a small hill, an endless expanse of fields came into view.

The fields were adorned with a riot of colorful flowers and grass, crossed by a stone path in the center.

And beyond that lay a massive building.

“The city outside was impressive, but this place is even more amazing.”

The Pink Girl was awestruck as she observed the pipe-crafted grass and flowers in detail.

“I’ve never seen so much grass before. You can really feel the care that went into making it.”

The Blue Reaper nodded in agreement, glancing over the fields.

In that field, it felt as if the grass was gently swaying in the wind, captured like a photograph.

Near the building they arrived at after crossing the fields, there were countless statues of people.

Children dressed in ‘identical clothes’ adorned with extravagant decorations filled the space.

“There are a lot of kids. They look about my age.”

Groups of children walking together.
Children standing in place, smiling, and chatting.
A child hugging a big book and running somewhere.

Each child had distinct features, making them feel remarkably alive.

The Pink Girl smiled at the joyful statues of the children but wore a slightly lonely expression.

“I wonder if I would have lived in a place like this originally?”
“Would there have been so many people dressed the same, laughing and chatting together?”

The Blue Reaper gently patted the cheek of the slightly sad Attached Human.

“It’s okay.”

The Pink Girl lifted the Blue Reaper onto her palm and gently stroked it.

“Then it would really be fun.”
“There must still be places where people gather on the upper floors, right? The tower is really, really vast. It must be so.”

“So, I could also wear the same clothes and live in the same place, right?”

Though the Pink Girl looked lonely, in the end, she smiled as if dreaming a pleasant dream.

As they wandered around the pipe-constructed model academy, the Blue Reaper discovered a slightly unusual place.

[There’s a somewhat strange place.]

While other areas closely resembled meticulous models, what the Blue Reaper found was a bit different.

Not a model, but remnants of real human habitation were present.

“Is this the [Exhibition Room]?”

As the Pink Girl heard the Blue Reaper’s words, a nametag was attached to the place she found.

As soon as they opened the door, a spacious room came into view.

Inside were mirrors on display that preserved memories or scenes rather than paintings, almost like photographs.

And in front of the walls with these mirrors, there was always a single chair placed.

One could imagine someone wandering around this room all day, sitting for a long time to appreciate the mirrors.

“I see a ton of people in the mirrors.”

The images of humans within the mirrors were lively, overflowing with various colors and expressions, unlike the pipe-constructed models.

[What will we have for lunch today?]
[I don’t want to attend class….]
[I heard the tower has shrunk another level!]
[Professor, come here too!]

The scenes flowing from the mirrors seemed to slice through various facets of daily life.

And in a corner of the exhibition room, mirrors with a totally different atmosphere were also on display.

Unlike the children, they reflected the weary visage of middle-aged men.

[Evolution Liquid is also a byproduct of alchemy. There must surely be a method.]
[Just like eternal alchemy doesn’t exist, this tower is not eternal. We need to find a method quickly.]
[People still don’t know. That this tower isn’t a perpetual device.]

And the last mirror reflected the appearance of an elderly man.

[I have failed. What I completed was merely a tower almost eternal, borrowed from divine power.]
[Before the end of this world comes, may someone find the answer.]

The Pink Girl was staring at that mirror, as if enchanted.

At that moment, the anxious Blue Reaper rushed in and wrote a string of words.

[Quickly hide us!]

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Heavy footsteps and an intense presence.

‘A Strong Object!’

With a tense expression, the Blue Reaper hid away from the exhibition room’s window.

“What the…?!”

The Pink Girl was about to say something, but the Blue Reaper covered her mouth, silencing her.

In that instant, a massive shadow was cast across the window.

A giant body with long limbs, as if to block out the sun.

That shadow appeared to look like a spider.

*

Sehee Research Institute, Reaper-exclusive underground lounge.

The Golden Reapers and I had been enjoying a game of tag with the Evolution Liquid in Seoul Forest, but we eventually grew tired and returned to the Sehee Research Institute.

Of course, since the Evolution Liquid is hazardous, the area near the falling columns of it was blocked off with Spatial Cuts.

We then headed straight down to the underground lounge and immersed ourselves in warm water.

‘Ah, it’s warm.’

Maybe it was because I had been working hard looking for the Blue Reaper, but as soon as I submerged in warm water, I felt quite drowsy.

The Golden Reapers, following my lead, jumped in one by one, soaking themselves in the warm water.

Once in the water, the Golden Reapers relieved all their tension, floating effortlessly with relaxed expressions.

Their round bellies bobbed above the water, which looked a bit cute.

As I gathered the Golden Reapers and began poking their bellies like piano keys, the sound of news came from the TV installed in the lounge.

[The nation is in chaos due to the sudden appearance of a gigantic planet last night.]
[In the early hours yesterday, a gigantic celestial body resembling Earth suddenly appeared in the night sky worldwide.]
[This phenomenon, apparently caused by an Object, has been ongoing throughout the night and is still being observed in the sky.]
[According to celestial experts, the planet appearing in the sky has taken on a form identical to Earth, like a reflection in a mirror.]
[That celestial body closely resembles the continent’s outline and cloud formations, but the color of the sea appears black, rather than the blue we know.]
[Photos and videos related to this have exploded across social media, and various speculations and rumors are rapidly spreading.]
[Meanwhile, the Object Association has convened an emergency meeting and will hold a primary briefing at 10 AM shortly.]

Everywhere on the news was filled with talk about the Black Planet I had connected to while searching for the Blue Reaper.

It made me feel a bit gleeful as if I had played a big prank on the world.

Hehe.

As I chuckled quietly while watching the TV, a familiar voice called out to me.

“Oh, there you are!”

It was Yerin, in her swimsuit.

Upon spotting me, Yerin jumped into the water and tightly hugged my torso.

“Reaper. So warm.”

Yerin smiled softly, burying her face in my hair.

She began chatting about various things, mentioning how she hadn’t seen me much lately.
“Oh! Speaking of which, I think someone has been entering the house lately, so I installed a security camera.”

‘What?’

I tilted my head at those words.

Surely, there must have been a White Hungry Ghost placed in Yerin’s house, but a thief broke in?

Looks like the White Hungry Ghost is slacking off.

As I listened to Yerin, I decided to throw the White Hungry Ghost into the ‘Hungry Ghost Hell.’

“But weirdly, nothing has disappeared from inside the house.”

“Lately, Unnie Sehee…”
“I saw the Golden Reaper the other day…”

After a long while of her fondling my belly while chatting, Yerin started nibbling on my antennae and began watching the TV set up in the lounge together.

As I absentmindedly watched the TV, I suddenly thought of James.

‘By the way, what happened to the Golden-Mecha-Tyranno Armor I asked to be made?’

Finally thinking about outfitting the Tyranno with golden armor made the corners of my mouth lift slightly.

Hehe.

*

Exhibition Room of the model ‘Alchemist Academy.’

The Pink Girl and the Blue Reaper held their breath and hid within the shadows.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

In the model city where the day had passed, only the sound of heavy footsteps reverberated.

‘Looks strong.’

The Blue Reaper wrote down some words in front of the Pink Girl with a tense expression.

[Sun-Eating Spider?]

Upon seeing those words, the Pink Girl shook her head.

“It can’t be. My grandfather said the Sun-Eating Spider always resides on the top floor of the tower.”

The Pink Girl spoke softly, afraid of being detected by the massive shadow.

“And it seems too small to be a Sun-Eating Spider. In the picture book my grandfather read to me, it was depicted as huge.”

Thud. Thud. Thud.

The footsteps began to fade away.

The Pink Girl muttered softly, “Let me just check a little.” and peeked her head out the window.

[There are many Objects that feel our gaze!]

The Blue Reaper, startled, tugged on the Pink Girl’s earlobe, but it was in vain.

The Pink Girl, peering outside, quickly hid her head again.

“It’s definitely not a spider. It looks a little odd.”

She added that it even seemed somewhat cute and chuckled lightly.

Hearing the Pink Girl’s words, the Blue Reaper felt a flicker of curiosity.

So, slowly, very slowly, they began to lean their head out the window.

Starting with the pointy end of a witch’s hat, inching out bit by bit.

Taking their time, they peeked out with just one eye.

In the corner the Blue Reaper looked into, there stood a gigantic black Hungry Ghost with abnormally long limbs.

Strangely, the Blue Reaper thought it resembled the black statue they had seen in the previous layer.

At that moment, the eyes of the black Hungry Ghost met those of the Blue Reaper.

Oh no!