Chapter 199
Rewinding time for a moment.
“Be careful and don’t get hurt.”
“I wish I could go too…”
Receiving Shin Da-eun’s farewell and Yuki’s incomprehensible envy, I stepped out of the pension.
The moment I opened the door, rain poured down as if the sky itself had been punctured, relentlessly pelting my body.
Could an ordinary person endure being hit by this rain?
“Hmm.”
Crash!
While I pondered for a moment, a cracking sound suddenly came from a few steps away.
Amid the deafening rain, the sound was so clear it made me turn my head, revealing a tree lying on the ground, its trunk broken in half.
It wasn’t particularly thick, but it wasn’t exactly thin either.
As I examined the tree trunk, I nodded.
“That won’t do.”
There’s no way human flesh is sturdier than tree trunks.
A person’s entire body would likely turn blue from bruises after just a brief exposure.
For someone frail, the effects might go beyond bruising, causing them to collapse for days.
I kicked the tree trunk lightly and raised my head.
Though visibility was significantly reduced by the downpour, it wasn’t an issue.
The rain mist could not entirely obscure the towering mountain in the distance.
“Of all times, they had to attack during my vacation. Such unscrupulous creatures.”
Gamers often say the highest compliment is, “They play dirty.”
Perhaps if the Dimensional Creatures heard what I just said, they’d be thrilled.
In games and wars alike, insults from the enemy are the highest form of praise.
Surveying my surroundings briefly, I took a step forward.
With that step, the scenery elongated and raced past me into the distance, as if it were trying to evade me.
‘Well… not that it could.’
Step by step, with each stride I took, the landscape around me shifted rapidly.
Despite the relentless rain soaking me and the overflowing rainwater reaching my calves, there were still some people on the streets.
Avoiding such people, I traversed paths that weren’t roads and occasionally leaped over buildings until I reached the base of the mountain.
Had I not cared about being seen, I could have arrived much sooner.
After dealing with a stalking incident recently, I’ve become more aware of how unpredictable people can be.
That’s why I was extra cautious this time, resulting in the creation of the suspicious yellow chick raincoat figure—a hood pulled low and sunglasses obscuring my face.
Wow.
“…Even I think this looks ridiculous.”
To anyone else, I must appear incredibly suspicious.
Then again, climbing a mountain in this weather isn’t exactly normal either, so perhaps it doesn’t matter.
Anyway.
The location I arrived at was different from where the three of us had climbed a few days ago.
Back then, I wasn’t alone, and there was no urgency.
Now, the circumstances had changed.
There was no reason to stick to the hiking trail, so I deliberately chose a different route.
Though somewhat inconvenient, it allowed me to move quickly without drawing attention.
Having long surpassed the need to worry about terrain, climbing the mountain wasn’t difficult.
In terms of difficulty, the mountains I used to live by were far more rugged.
Thus, without time to admire the scenery, I left the shifting landscape behind and advanced quickly.
“──…?!”
“?”
Just as I landed from a leap, I heard a faint noise.
It was so faint that I almost thought I imagined it.
But the same sound echoed several times, confirming it wasn’t my imagination.
At that moment, my Aura Perception also detected a presence.
Ordinarily, I might have ignored it and moved on.
“Let’s take a look.”
But I had come out to resolve this situation.
The presence detected by my Aura Perception might be linked to the Dimensional Creatures.
Though unlikely, I couldn’t rule it out entirely.
Heading toward the source of the presence, I soon found—
“P-people?! Over here…!”
“Please, save us…! Someone’s here!”
“….”
It was a couple trapped beneath a mix of fallen tree debris and mud, unable to move.
It seemed a nearby tree had fallen and blocked their path.
With the thick pile of debris, they couldn’t retreat or advance, leaving them completely stuck.
But wait, wasn’t this not the hiking trail?
From what I remembered during the previous climb, the trail on this mountain was well-maintained.
Yet looking around, there was no sign of any trail.
Even if the storm had damaged it, there should have been some traces left.
“…A kid?”
Meanwhile, they seemed just as puzzled as I was.
The two, who had been calling for help, froze when they saw me.
“What’s a kid doing here…?”
“Sunglasses?”
They didn’t seem much older than me.
A couple, maybe?
Whatever their relationship, they seemed to agree on one thing—their confusion about my presence.
“…A ghost, maybe?”
“Ghosts aren’t real.”
“But isn’t it weird? Who wears sunglasses in this weather?”
“There’s no law against it. Maybe they’re a celebrity.”
“What celebrity climbs a mountain in this weather?”
“Maybe they just felt like it.”
“…Are you serious right now?”
“Well, ghosts don’t make sense either.”
“Ghosts make more sense than that!”
“…Hmm.”
…Or do they not get along after all?
“Anyway.”
The man, who had been scolding the woman, turned to me.
“Are you here with your parents? Where are they?”
“They’re not here.”
“…Not here? Oh, you mean you got separated from them? Do you know where they might be?”
“Yes.”
“Great. Then let’s go find—”
“I can’t. They’re in heaven.”
Was he indirectly telling me to die?
If so, that’s a pretty novel approach.
Didn’t see that coming at all.
“….”
“…Hey, are you trash?!”
“No! How was I supposed to know…?”
“That’s why you shouldn’t bring up parents out of nowhere!”
“But seeing a kid wandering alone on a mountain, it’s natural to assume…”
Judging by his flustered reaction, he probably didn’t mean anything by it.
Of course, I didn’t seriously think he had malicious intentions either.
“…Wait! Did you climb this mountain for that reason?”
The man’s eyes wavered as if struck by an earthquake.
“Ahem…! Hey, listen. Right now, it may seem dark and hopeless, but life will eventually brighten. Even I had a tough time before—”
“…What are you doing?”
“Hold on a second. We should prioritize saving the kid first…!”
The two of them lowered their voices as much as possible, trying to speak where I couldn’t hear them.
Unfortunately for them, I could hear everything.
“Are you two a couple?”
“Huh? Oh, um, yes. We’re dating. …Ah, that’s right! You’ll definitely meet someone reliable like me someday. So don’t lose hope—”
“Can you stop being so shameless?”
“…Could you stop interrupting me for once!”
“Hmph.”
So, they are a couple after all.
“What were you doing here?”
“Well…”
Why am I even answering this?
The man wore an expression as if even he didn’t know, but he opened his mouth anyway.
“We were originally at the shelter up there, but we decided we couldn’t stay and started heading down.”
“Why?”
“It just felt unsafe. The roof was creaking, water was leaking through the windows… And to top it all off, we were almost out of food. It was hard to stay put with all that.”
I mean, I get it.
Still, wouldn’t it have been safer to wait out the rain instead of trying to climb down the mountain blindly?
As if he read my mind, the man gave an awkward laugh.
“…If I’d known it’d turn out like this, I would’ve stayed put. So, I have a favor to ask.”
“A favor?”
“There’s a shelter a little higher up. People are gathered there. Can you let them know we’re here? I know it’s asking a lot, but… as you can see, we don’t really have anyone else to ask.”
“Hm.”
“And while you’re at it, you should rest at the shelter too. Honestly, climbing down the mountain in this weather isn’t a good idea.”
“You’re really not in a position to be saying that.”
“…Hahaha.”
The man laughed again, more sheepishly this time.
It wouldn’t be hard to do what he asked.
“I have a question.”
But that’s that, and this is this.
I need to ask what I need to ask.
“Do you really have to ask now?”
“Yes.”
“…Alright. What is it?”
“This isn’t a trail. Why are you here?”
Maybe I could get a clue about the Dimensional Creatures.
I asked without much hope.
“The trail was destroyed, so we couldn’t pass through it.”
“Ah.”
And as expected, the answer wasn’t anything remarkable.
My interest waned instantly, but I still needed to finish asking.
“Did you notice anything strange around here? Something suspicious, perhaps.”
“The kid standing in front of me is suspicious.”
“…Hey, kid.”
The woman, who had been silent after enduring several reprimands from the man, spoke with a dissatisfied expression.
“Are you playing detective or imitating a cartoon? Sorry, but we’re not in the mood to play along. If you’re not going to help, could you just leave?”
“Hey, hey… Why are you being so harsh?”
“Did I say anything wrong?”
“…Still, you should at least try to convince them. There’s nothing else we can do right now.”
“Sigh…”
The man tried hard to soothe the woman.
Though she seemed to calm down a bit, she still turned her head away with a displeased expression.
“Something strange…”
The man, who had been glancing at the woman with a wry smile, pretended to think.
“I can’t think of anything off the top of my head.”
“I figured.”
It felt pointless to have revealed myself, considering I got nothing useful.
Still, since they had answered sincerely despite their situation, I decided to help.
Just as I reached out to move the tree blocking their way—
“…Ah!”
The sound of someone recalling something made me pause.
“Last night, at the top of the mountain, near Baengnokdam, I saw a green light. It was still there when we started coming down, so maybe someone who couldn’t evacuate was sending a signal.”
“A green light…”
Could someone send such a clear, continuous signal in this rain?
Doubtful.
I thought it had been a complete waste of time.
“Well, it wasn’t entirely pointless.”
“Huh? What was that?”
The man responded to my murmuring, but I didn’t bother answering.
“It was helpful.”
“Oh… That’s good to hear.”
The man’s answer was just a lead. I’d have to go there myself to be certain.
But even getting a lead was something.
And I appreciated how he stayed calm and answered despite the urgency.
If he hadn’t, I might have wasted more time or left empty-handed.
“I’ll help you.”
“…Really?! Thank you! No, wait—should I find something to help—”
“I’m not going to the shelter.”
“…What?”
I’d only revealed myself this time to gather information. I had no intention of showing myself to others.
It wasn’t like I lacked the strength to handle things alone.
The man, now looking dumbfounded, and the woman, who had turned her sharp gaze toward me, stared as I raised my hand.
***
“….”
“….”
“…Ye-eun.”
“…Yeah.”
The man, who had been staring blankly ahead, called the woman beside him.
Her response mirrored his dazed expression.
Just moments ago, a pile of mud and debris as tall as their waists had blocked their path.
When they instinctively closed their eyes at the sudden noise, the obstacle had vanished without a trace.
Had they been dreaming?
“…Ouch.”
The man pinched his cheek for no reason, only to be met with pain and the woman’s bewildered stare.
Rubbing his now burning cheek, he muttered,
“Earlier, you said there’s no such thing as ghosts.”
“Yeah…”
“Well, maybe gods do exist.”
“Maybe.”
The girl in the yellow chick raincoat had disappeared without a trace.
The man, staring at the spot where she had been, shuddered as a chill ran up his spine.
—
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