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In the depths of the Mini Reaper Garden, while racing across the endless plains of the Caramel Grand Canyon, I completely lost my sense of time.

For that moment, riding atop a carpet made of white hungry ghosts, I was intoxicated by the sheer speed, forgetting everything else.

But like all pleasures, this too gradually faded into boredom.

The endlessly sprawling Caramel Plains no longer felt new, and the thrill of cutting through the wind dulled.

I was starting to feel a bit weary of wandering around other areas of the Grand Canyon.

‘Maybe it’s time to head back to the isolation room.’

That thought suddenly popped into my head, and I smiled.

After all, nothing felt better than enjoying pudding on a plush bed after getting things sorted out.

Just the thought of it made a sweet taste dance on my tongue.

As I prepared to teleport while widening my senses, I recalled my experiences in the dimension of butterflies.

Though it had only been half a day of adventure, it had its own significance.

Especially, the ‘robber’ seemed to show promise as a key element in automated hunting.

‘…’

The moment I arrived at the isolation room, an unexpected situation unfolded.

Yerin spotted me and ran over, tightly hugging me without a word.

The embrace seemed to carry relief, longing, and even a hint of resentment.

‘?’

I was taken aback by her unexpected and intense reaction.

It hadn’t really been long since I had left, but something felt off based on Yerin’s response.

I had only spent about half a day in the butterfly dimension.

If I inferred from the Black Hooded Reaper’s words about having fought for years, it seemed that place had a faster flow of time than Earth.

The Black Hooded Reaper was missing for just over a month, not counting years.

After a while, Yerin finally relaxed and pulled back slightly from our hug.

But she didn’t let go entirely.

Instead, she leaned her head against mine and began munching on my antennae.

“It’s been so long, Reaper. It’s already been a month.”

Yerin grumbled in a small voice.

I was shocked by her words.

A month?

I felt like I had only been gone for a moment, yet she said a whole month had passed?

That’s a bit strange.

Yerin and the Mini Reaper couldn’t possibly be lying to me; something peculiar was definitely going on.

‘…’

In that instant, I recalled the power of the giant butterflies.

A power that messes with time and causes collapse.

‘Ah.’

It seemed the space I had been in was like the giant butterflies’ abilities, where time flowed haphazardly.

Simply put, it made sense of Yerin’s reaction.

While it had only been a few hours for me, a whole month had passed for Yerin.

I thought she was overreacting for just a few hours.

‘Sorry.’

I hugged Yerin back, conveying a bit of my remorse.

*

Rattle, rattle.

The sound of a giant suitcase rolling across the asphalt echoed through the quiet street.

I sat atop it as Yerin pulled it along slowly.

‘Why on earth did she bring such a huge suitcase to the research institute?’

That question crossed my mind briefly, but it vanished quickly.

‘Mom!’

‘Mommy!’

Well, it’s not like there weren’t tons of baby golden reapers on the street.

Golden reapers peeked out of the cracks in the stone walls, giggling with delight.

And there were plenty of baby golden reapers clinging to the shoulders of people wandering around.

‘They’re all clinging everywhere, like a swarm of locusts.’

Except for the complete silence, you could say it resembled a frog-like outbreak of nature.

There were so many golden reapers that if you weren’t careful, you might step on one!

“When I woke up this morning, there were tons of baby golden reapers in our house too.”

Thud.

Yerin lightly tapped on the suitcase I was riding and continued.

“I filled this bag with them and moved them to the research institute, but there were still too many to move.”

She had heard something from Kim Jungrwi but giggled softly, mentioning it was fun to let them loose in the office.

That suddenly revealed the reason for this mysterious giant suitcase.

It was a makeshift container for releasing baby golden reapers illegally.

Yerin had plenty to say about it and didn’t stop talking about baby golden reapers.

There were stories about baby golden reapers jumping into a hot frying pan.

Stories about baby golden reapers who were sad they couldn’t go because the bag was full.

So she asked the mini reapers, stationed at her home for protection, to play nicely, and then headed to work.

As I passed through the streets of Songpa District teeming with baby golden reapers, I finally arrived at Yerin’s apartment.

As soon as we took the elevator up and opened the front door, the sight that unfolded before us was nothing short of astonishing.

“Wow.”

It seemed Yerin hadn’t known either.

A small gasp escaped her lips.

A toy train traversed the center of the living room.

On it were baby golden reapers smiling brightly.

To one side, there was a carousel spinning fast enough to be called a centrifuge, and on the other, a small dinosaur theater where water-made dinosaurs played.

Indeed, a miniature amusement park for baby golden reapers had been established within the apartment.

<"Make the train run fast!">

Even a rare blue reaper had joined in to help run the amusement park.

As Yerin and I entered the apartment, the baby golden reapers waved their hands enthusiastically, shouting “Mom!” from atop the rides.

Upon closer inspection, it wasn’t just the baby golden reapers playing; many mini reapers not belonging to Yerin’s room had come to join in on the fun as well.

Even the black reaper, which formed the backbone of the rides, and the golden reapers operating the park would hop on to ride the attractions for a break.

In the furthest corner, a blue reaper wore a joyful expression as it rode a simple ride made from a hungry ghost’s flesh.

It didn’t seem to notice me watching, and the sight of its laughter felt oddly refreshing.

Interesting.

It’s unusual for blue reapers to enjoy tormenting hungry ghosts…

Did something happen?

*

A quiet park located in Songpa District seemed untouched by the waves of urban reconstruction, a stillness as if time had stopped.

Amid the broken benches and rusty playground equipment creating a desolate landscape, Junior No. 2 was gazing up at the sky, surrendering herself to boredom.

‘Horn!’

‘How intriguing.’

She observed as the golden horn reaper and several golden reapers frolicked around the park.

Junior No. 2 was spending her time watching the mini reapers but couldn’t hide her restlessness.

“When are we supposed to wait here….”

She let out a small sigh and muttered.

She had been instructed by Detective Sunbae to wait here, but no exact time had been given for how long.

Even when she asked Sunbae, the only response she’d get was, “You’ll know when the moment arrives.”

‘By the way, there are oddly many golden reapers in this park.’

Typically, golden reapers frequently appeared in crowded places, so why were there so many frolicking around here, where people seldom tread?

There were no attractions or entertainment, just a park that was completely broken and fallen apart.

Junior No. 2 fiddled with the envelope she was told to open when needed, watching the sky in a daze as time passed.

‘…’

As time went by and the sun set, the park was swallowed by darkness.

The golden reapers looked increasingly sleepy.

A few golden reapers were even nodding off.

At that moment, an anomaly occurred.

A smell of something burning began wafting through the air, and white smoke started to blanket the area.

It looked like an eerie night fog.

The scent drifting through the smoke was familiar to Junior No. 2.

The smell of burning oil… the scent of a gas lamp.

Clink. Clink.

At that moment, a sound of something colliding could be heard from somewhere.

And amid the thick fog, dim lights began to appear.

As the sounds grew closer, the golden reapers’ gazes sharpened.

‘Harmful Object!’

The golden reapers bared their teeth fiercely in the direction of the light.

In the midst of the clattering sounds, the footsteps of polished shoes could be heard drawing nearer.

Suddenly—

The smoke began to clear around Junior No. 2, revealing a round space.

At the same time, the figure of a man emerged, presenting an odd sight.

His face looked hazy, like the continuously shifting smoke.

Surrounding him were dozens, even hundreds of gas lamps floating through the air.

The lamps moved as if they were living creatures, wrapping around the man.

He was precisely the sort of being one would call the Man of the Lamp.

[Good evening.]

The Man of the Lamp bowed gracefully and greeted.

His voice resonated as if it were coming from an old gramophone.

‘Harmful Object!’

‘Object!’

In that moment, the golden reapers charged at the man, expressions fierce and ready to pounce.

[Oh dear, this isn’t quite the right situation for a chat.]

The Man of the Lamp mumbled as if it was amusing.

And with a snap of his fingers, something astonishing occurred.

Snap.

In that instant, everything came to a halt.

The golden reapers that had been rushing toward him, even Junior No. 2’s attached golden horn reaper, froze in mid-air.

As if time itself had stopped.

Junior No. 2 couldn’t contain her shock.

This was a sight she had never witnessed before.

Especially seeing the powerful golden horn reaper rendered completely motionless without resistance was shocking in itself.

The Man of the Lamp leisurely looked around.

His demeanor seemed as if golden reapers were beneath his concern.

He slowly approached Junior No. 2.

Though his walking was elegant, there was an unsettling strangeness about it, as if it belonged to another world.

The surrounding lamps swayed as if they were dancing to his movements.

‘Is this the big shot Sunbae talked about?’

Watching the frozen Junior No. 2, the Man of the Lamp seemed to smile slightly.

No, it felt like he was smiling.