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In the dim darkness, a girl lay collapsed.

She had tired-looking eyes, a worn-out school uniform, and tidy short hair.

Inside that darkness, the girl’s eyelids fluttered.

She opened her eyes and looked around.

“Again, it’s this dream.”

She had been repeatedly dreaming one dream.

A dream that returned to her again and again, as if she was stepping into this world exactly as she wished.

A world where the sun had vanished.

Instead, it was a world illuminated by a giant Light Ring.

Under that halo, massive buildings that resembled temples or cathedrals shot up towards the sky, exuding a religious aura.

“Haah.”

As the short-haired girl let out a sigh, the sticky air filling the space filled her lungs.

In this strange place, the girl always met a man.

[Girl, you’ve come again today.]

A deep voice resonated through the darkness.

The short-haired girl looked at the owner of that voice.

A remarkably youthful face compared to the voice, yet his gaze carried the weight of many years.

[A festival to fulfill your wish is about to begin.]

He continued speaking.

[Today, you must make a decision.]

The girl’s heart began to race.

She knew.

This moment would determine her fate.

The man slowly extended his hand toward her.

On his palm lay a small orb.

It was smaller than a piece of candy and faintly glimmered in the darkness.

[This is the key to your wish.]

His voice resonated low.

[The choice is yours.]

The short-haired girl’s gaze fixed on the small orb.

It swirled with colors as if it contained the Milky Way, too beautiful to describe in words.

But at the same time, a strange sense of unease surged in her chest.

The words the man had spoken when they first met echoed in her ears.

‘[The rewards of this festival can revive even the dead.]’
‘This feels off.’

The girl bit her lip.

Such things would not be given without a price.

Yet, deep in her heart, a desperate desire writhed.

That urgent wish that trapped her in this dream.

The man had said that this place was meant for those who truly wished to achieve something.

In other words, her very existence in this dream was proof of that wish.

[Are you still hesitating?]

The man’s voice pierced the darkness once again.

His eyes held understanding and sympathy, along with some deeper emotion.

[Then take this orb. And see for yourself with your own eyes.]

The short-haired girl’s hand slowly began to move, very, very slowly.

In that moment, where time seemed to stop, a whirlwind of thoughts rushed through her mind.

Could this truly be the right choice?

Yet even so, her hand reached out towards the orb.

The moment her fingertips touched the orb, the world began to spin.

She was drifting farther from the dream.

A bizarre space disconnected from the world.

Oddly enough, it looked like a giant funnel, drawing something in, like an antlion.

Breaking the heavy silence of the hospital room, the girl’s eyelids slowly opened.

Under fluorescent lights, the familiar white walls and medical equipment came into view.

She was in her sister’s hospital room where she had been staying for months.

The short-haired girl slowly lifted her head to look at the bed.

There lay her sister, still unmoving.

It had been several months since she was hospitalized due to sudden cognitive loss.

Time had passed as doctors searched for the cause without success.

Realizing she had fallen asleep by the bed, the girl slowly sat up.

At that moment, she felt something cold in her palm.

Surprised, she opened her hand.

There was a small round orb.

It looked exactly like the orb she had seen in her dream.

As if that dream was not just a dream.

The short-haired girl tightly clenched the orb and gazed at her sister.

‘Sister. I might find a way. I will check it out with my own eyes and return.’

Faint dawn light began to seep in through the window.

Though it marked the start of a new day, to the girl, it held a more significant meaning.

It felt like a light of hope that everything could change.

*

In the Mini Reaper Garden, Marshmallow Plains.

I was testing the powers of the halo of commands I had just acquired, wearing it on my head.

[Pudding!]

As I voiced my will like speaking, pudding suddenly popped up from thin air.

‘Hmm, is this okay?’

In fact, the halo of commands had clear abilities, and I could easily grasp them with just a little verification.

It was the ability to materialize commands made through speech, text, or magic.

But I couldn’t do anything with that command.

Well, that was to be expected.

If I could do anything, that spider wouldn’t have lost to me.

The problem was that creating commands was harder than I thought.

I had to refine my thoughts clearly and cleanly into commands, which was extremely difficult for someone like me, who often had many distractions.

What I successfully conjured were only a few items, like cookies and pudding, along with some clear pranks in my head.

[Become a master!]

‘Uwaah! Mom is bothering me!’

I sent a command towards a Golden Reaper passing by while wearing the halo.

Hehe.

The issue was that remote commands could also be achieved with the Green Moon’s ability, and making snacks was also possible with the Fantasy Manifestation Halo.

No matter how I thought about it, it was tricky to find a way to utilize it.

Omnomnom.

I munched on the pudding created by the halo of commands, deep in thought.

*

[Giant Mother Golem made of marshmallows!]

As the Blue Idol Reaper threw the command while wearing the halo on their head, the Marshmallow Plains surged, and a giant golem was completed.

‘Well done!’

I clapped as I watched that scene.

The Blue Idol Reaper looked quite worn out from it, but they didn’t seem to be in pain like I was.

It all started out of simple curiosity.

Wouldn’t it be effective if a Reaper who could already use commands wore the halo of commands? Just a simple thought.

The experiment was a huge success.

The Blue Idol Reaper could excellently utilize the halo of commands.

While I felt pain no matter what halo I wore, the Blue Idol Reaper did not.

However, unlike me, the Blue Idol Reaper could only use the ‘Halo of Commands.’

Could it be that each halo has compatibility?

With thoughts of trying out other halos, I summoned the mini reapers that seemed to hold a higher ranking in my memory.

The 1st Sword of the Golden Reaper and the Orange Crowned Reaper.

‘…?’

As soon as I called for the 1st Sword of the Golden Reaper, they suddenly popped up from the air and stared at me with their characteristic blank expression.

I gently stroked the head of the 1st Sword while waiting for the Orange Crowned Reaper, but no matter how long I waited, they did not appear.

Instead, through the network connecting me with the mini reapers, a faint will flowed in.

‘Busy.’

A laid-back will that appeared somewhat drowsy.

Hmm, strangely doesn’t look busy at all…

With a sense of doubt, I told the 1st Sword to wait and instantaneously teleported to where the Orange Crowned Reaper was.

And I arrived on the deck of a gigantic cruise ship.

There, the Orange Crowned Reaper was lying comfortably on the railing under the warm sunlight.

I couldn’t help myself and bit the head of the Orange Crowned Reaper the moment I saw that.

‘Uwaah!’

*

In a large hospital in downtown Seoul.

Due to a recent mass cognitive loss incident, this place had turned into an emergency shelter for the patients.

As the police handed over the case to the Korean Object Association, the atmosphere in the hospital lobby drastically changed.

The spacious lobby was bustling with people constantly coming and going.

Patients, guardians, medical staff, and now, even association employees were busy moving around, each with their own intentions.

On one side of the lobby, chairs were lined up for those waiting.

In front of them, a large TV was installed. Objectively, it was quite a large TV, but in the grand scale of the lobby and the densely arranged chairs, it strangely seemed diminished.

The TV was broadcasting the news.

The announcer’s voice wasn’t quiet, but it was barely audible over the noise created by the footsteps of people, conversations, and the unique machine sounds of the hospital filling the lobby.

[We have exciting news related to Seoul Forest just in!]
[It has been confirmed that the Golden Reapers, who were surrounding Seoul Forest, have retreated.]
[As a result, the Object Association dispatched investigators to the scene, uncovering unexpected facts.]
[The so-called ‘Civilization Destruction Effect’ that existed around Seoul Forest has disappeared.]
[Furthermore, the complete destruction of the Steel Tower, which was believed to have been obscured due to spatial distortion, has been confirmed.]
[In light of these circumstances, the government announced a large-scale investigation plan.]
[However, the government announced that Seoul Forest may still be dangerous and prohibited access until safety is confirmed.]

At that moment, a loud noise began to fill the lobby, one loud enough to completely drown out the TV.

“The Golden Reapers have appeared!”

“Where?”

Murmurs of excitement filled the air.

At the center of all this commotion were the Golden Reapers, riding on White Hungry Ghosts, wearing brave expressions like knights.

They had listened to the orders of the Gray Reaper, searched across Seoul, and even asked the Purple and Blue Reapers about the TV content.

‘There are sick humans here!’
‘The White Hungry Ghost should be able to track them!’
‘Split up!’

The Golden Reapers held the antennae of the White Hungry Ghost as if they were reins, controlling the ghost.

Kkyu!

The hungry ghosts accompanying the Golden Reapers also scurried out with proud expressions.

In that uproar where cuteness and chaos coexisted, a mini reaper clad in shining golden armor soared above the hospital.

The gaze of the Golden Armored Reaper, floating in mid-air, was fixed on a girl melting into the street as she exited the hospital.

With her short hair fluttering in the wind, she looked like she was leaving the hospital in quite the hurry.