Chapter 849: The Path of Memory (2)
“Chirp?”
Come to think of it… there had been no memories from Chirp. Even though the keyword had definitely applied to him, and even though his name had vanished from the influence list. Chirp flapped his wings. The flight item attached to his legs gleamed dully. When had I last charged that thing for him…? It had been so long I could barely remember. Had the Breeding Facility staff been filling it with mana for him instead?
“Chirp, you…”
The baby bird spun in a circle. The system window in front of me turned pure white. Every word on it disappeared, then melted away in glittering fragments between the shafts of sunlight. A new window appeared in its place.
[Your rank has exceeded the system’s administrative domain.]
My rank. I could no longer open a system window and check it. But I could feel it. Twice the strength of those I had applied the keyword to. Not only S-ranks, but even one near-transcendent. And.
‘People.’
The strength of the people connected to me regardless of the keyword. Thinly, thickly, and somewhere in between, layer after layer of it piled onto me. It was impossible to count them all one by one. Even their memories had come flooding in all at once, so much so that I had only been able to glimpse an infinitesimal fraction.
But they existed within me, without a doubt.
A power that was practically a world of my own.
“…They said you become a transcendent if you swallow your own world.”
And this was twice that. I spread my wings. Golden-feathered wings beat wide and vast. I could go anywhere. But where?
My senses expanded outward. Beyond the dream world, I could feel the immense space outside it.
“…It’s too big.”
It was endless enough to make me dizzy. And even this wasn’t all of it. There were supposedly five Origins, so this was only one among them. Was Seong Hyunjae in the world of the fifth Origin? I had only seven days. Could I find him within that time?
At a loss, I simply stood with my wings spread, unable to take flight. I had all kinds of skills, but none of them were useful. Even Yun Yun’s ultra-long-distance teleportation required me to know the destination. I was overflowing with power, but I didn’t know how to wield it. I felt like a lost child.
“The system… really had been acting as a teacher.”
I’d complained that its explanations were sloppy, but now that even those were gone, the blankness was crushing.
– Chirp.
Chirp flapped his wings. His round black eyes stared back into mine. Space trembled around him. The baby bird who had always moved wherever he pleased.
“Ah…!”
With a start, I snapped back to myself and used the Teacher skill on Chirp. Chirp crossed space. I followed the exact flow of his mana and moved with it. The world changed in an instant.
“Whoa!”
There was nothing beneath my feet. I hastily beat my wings. Across a vast expanse like the middle of outer space, distant starlight glittered. Somewhere outside our world. Chirp circled around me.
– Crescent Moon’s domain is everywhere.
A voice came from somewhere.
– In every space and every time touched by moonlight.
Chirp… spoke. His voice was clear and gentle.
“Chirp, what are you? Did you come to me on purpose?”
There had been a time when I wondered if Chirp might be White Bird. But the voice I’d just heard was clearly different from White Bird’s.
– Because you’re my dad. That’s why I came to find you.
“…So you came to make me your dad?”
– Similar, but not the same. Because the nurturer existed, I was born this way.
I couldn’t quite understand what he meant. But Chirp didn’t explain any further. Chirp, the little bird cried.
“…Anyway, Chirp. You’re helping me, right?”
– Yes. I also want everything Dad wishes for to come true.
His small wings fluttered. Chirp was still suspicious, and I still had no idea what he really was. At the same time, he was the baby bird I had cared for. I didn’t think Chirp was lying. If he had meant to harm me, he’d had plenty of chances. He caused trouble, sure, but he had never done anything bad. He had just raided the kitchen or Seong Hyunjae’s pockets now and then. Seong Hyunjae’s fountain pen had been found in Chirp’s nest, but there was no way he hadn’t noticed Chirp taking it, so it was basically the same as giving it to him.
“Chirp. I need to find Crescent Moon. I need to find Seong Hyunjae.”
And at the end, my brother. Chirp landed on the palm I held out.
– Crescent Moon’s domain exists everywhere, so it actually can’t be found. But Dad, right now, you carry the memories of an entire world. You are connected to a world that is still alive, a world that has its past, present, and future.
Chirp went on. Right now, Chirp was definitely in his smart mode. Then what had happened to his other side?
– Find the path there.
“How?”
– Jump into the endless memories and find the moment you want. If the Pseudo-Origin still remembers Dad, if it still carries Dad’s memories, then a path should be able to reach it.
As Chirp said, I looked into the memories I held. I drew them out and spread them open. The little white bird fluttered up again.
– But Dad. The power of the memories you hold will soon become Dad’s world and reality. Be careful they don’t warp.
Chirp flew ahead, merging into the flow of memories. I followed after him. Something like a violent current battered my entire body, and my eyes flew open.
A young boy was standing in front of a bakery. A much smaller child was holding the boy’s hand. It was me and Yuhyun. The cold wind of December brushed my cheek.
‘I’m supposed to find Seong Hyunjae.’
What had happened to me now? I saw an unfamiliar adult’s hand. Who was this?
– Dad, this isn’t the place.
Chirp’s voice urged me on. But. My younger self turned away with my little brother. Without meaning to, I tried to reach out.
– Dad!
But Chirp stopped me. I couldn’t touch the past. Clenching my teeth, I left that place. Seong Hyunjae’s memories. I had to meet Seong Hyunjae.
– Chirp!
That wasn’t Chirp. The sound had come out of my own mouth. I nearly fell, then barely managed to land on a tree branch. What was this, a bird? A glass window stood right in front of me. Beyond it, Seong Hyunjae was sitting.
– Chiiirp.
His face was expressionless, like an exquisitely crafted doll. Was this right after he had first been planted into our world? He definitely looked younger, and his body looked smaller. Though he was probably still taller than me.
‘This is way too far in the past.’
I had found Seong Hyunjae, but this wasn’t the right time. For one instant, my gaze met golden eyes. With a chirp, I flew up. Further ahead. Further into the future!
“My hyung and oppa said they’d come pick me up!”
A young child’s voice rang out. My eye level dropped sharply. Was I in a child’s body…
Maybe? It was a colorful classroom. It seemed like a kindergarten room, or maybe a first or second grade classroom. Among fewer than ten little children, there was a familiar face.
‘…Byeol?’
Soft wheat-colored hair and round blue eyes. Come to think of it, the children in the classroom were of all different races too. They seemed to be Awakener children.
“Byeol.”
A boy with black hair and red pupils entered the classroom. Behind him, I saw pink hair too.
“Our Byeol! Let’s go home!”
It was Seol and Gyeol. The children were a little older than they were now, old enough to be attending school. This was the future. I had come too far into the future. I had taken a wrong turn, but I didn’t want to leave. I wanted to look a little longer. Just a little longer.
– Dad, you can’t stay for too long. Dad’s memories will mix in and grow blurry.
Chirp warned me. I could feel the memories of the body I had entered seeping into me. If I stayed like this, I would become this child completely and live on as him. I looked at the three children one more time, then left.
I missed the children I had left behind so badly it hurt. But I had to go further back, closer to the present.
“Hell–o!”
A mischievous voice came to me. Round eyes stared up at me from beyond a fence. The face was familiar…
“Oppa next door!”
“Oppa, my foot. I’m a Mister.”
I answered without thinking. The child broke into such a bright smile that deep dimples appeared in her round cheeks.
“Mister!”
It was Yerim. The moment I heard what she called me, I knew. I must have come to this time and place because I’d thought I missed the children. Was I the Mister who lived next door to Yerim right now? But hadn’t Yerim said she was the one who had first called me Mister? This wouldn’t cause a problem, would it?
I smiled back at little Yerim. Then I left that place. This time, I needed to find Seong Hyunjae. But when I saw the children.
– Kkiang.
Tiny Peace leaped up. He wasn’t in juvenile form. He really was young, a very young Peace. Peace placed both his front paws on my forepaw. He was so small. Following the instincts of the body I was in, I stuck out my tongue and licked the little Flame Horned Lion.
– Kkeung!
Peace flopped over onto his back. He bit my paw, then hopped backward. This was inside a dungeon. I, the adult Flame Horned Lion, looked up at the sky. The adult was anxious. Unlike low— and mid-rank monsters with no real awareness, high-rank monsters instinctively sensed something about the dungeon. They were incomplete beings bound here.
‘We have to get outside.’
That thought came to me. Inside a dungeon, monsters never knew when they might fall asleep according to the dungeon’s reset. Their world stopped frequently, and sometimes disappeared altogether. They were not true living creatures, but crystallizations of power that belonged to the dungeon.
That was why monsters were hostile to Hunters, and why they flooded out all at once when a dungeon broke. Even unselfaware lower-rank monsters, on top of the instincts carved into them by the Origin, wanted to devour the intelligent beings who came from outside because of their own instability.
– Kyau, kyang!
Peace rubbed against my leg as if asking me to play. Because of this little one, the adult Flame Horned Lion was even more agitated. As that mind began to intrude on me, I licked Peace once more and left that place. The little Flame Horned Lion would make it outside.
“…Did they really have to make monsters into sentient living creatures?”
If that was how they were going to use them, then why go that far?
– Monsters were created as simple things, like the Origin’s teeth, claws, or digestive organs. But anything that lives eventually comes to know itself.
Chirp’s voice came to me. Did that mean they hadn’t intended it, and the monsters had become like that on their own? I tried to shake off my thoughts. Even so, I ended up entering monsters a few more times.
– Grrrk!
A low— to mid-rank monster definitely had no awareness of the dungeon. I ran through a field on four legs.
Kwarrrrung!
‘Seong Hyunjae!’
I did meet him, technically. I was swept away by light before I could even see his face properly. I also collided with unfamiliar Hunters and faced Hunters I knew.
– Chiiip!
When I stuck my head out from the grass, Yuhyun was sitting on a boulder. The scent of burning came on the wind. Startled, I looked at Yuhyun, but my brother, who looked around twenty-two or twenty-three, showed no reaction at all. Did that mean I was a monster so weak he didn’t need to interrupt his rest to deal with me? He drank a little water, took one bite of dry rations, then put them back in his inventory.
– Kkik!
Eat properly, will you? Properly! When I cried out in annoyance, Yuhyun looked at me and stood up. Ahhh, Yuhyun, it’s me! I escaped before my brother’s sword could fly at me.
– Dad, focus.
I wanted to see more of the Yuhyun I hadn’t seen. I wanted to look at how he had lived. I forced that desire down. I had only seven days. I had to think about the present, not things already gone by.
To force my mind elsewhere, I moved through all kinds of memories until—
“Mom!”
…
Excuse me? A little boy ran toward me. He looked spirited. It was a face I didn’t know, one not in my memories, but… someone came to mind. No, wait. Where the hell am I right now!
“Mom?”
The boy, whom I absolutely did not know, tilted his head. He was cute when he was little… no, what the hell was I thinking? I wanted to scream, but I did my best to give him a gentle smile. Shi… the boy smiled back. Right. Be very good to your mother. I fled as fast as I could.
“Chirp, how much time do you think has passed?”
– About a day.
Already? In search of the present Seong Hyunjae, I beat my wings wide. I passed through people several more times. The more I experienced, the more chaotic my head became. Time grew hard to understand. Space, too, became impossible to measure.
“I’m Song Taewon, head of the Awakener Management Office.”
Chief Song stood there in a suit. I seemed to be one of the related staff members. The air turned frightening, and a familiar voice came.
“In the end.”
Seong Hyunjae smiled as if amused, though he didn’t bother hiding his displeasure. Seong Hyunjae was here, but this was the past. I drew in a deep breath.
‘I’m Han Yujin. Han Yujin.’
I rubbed my bare wrist. I had only worn the watch for a short time, but already my wrist felt empty without it.
“It’s all right.”
‘Gasp!’
Hyunah’s face was directly in front of mine. She wore an incredibly gentle smile. Even her voice was sweet enough to make my heart pound.
“There’s nothing to worry about. If it comes down to it, I’ll just make a guild.”
Was this not long after Hyunah Awakened? I was… one of the Hunters who had Awakened with her? No. I was Han Yujin. Han Yujin. I squeezed my eyes shut, then opened them. A large hand reached out to me.
“This place is dangerous.”
Chief Song’s voice came to me. I was very small. A puppy? A kitten? Or a Song? Rain suddenly came pouring down. Kang Soyeong stood in Sesung’s rooftop garden. I was a Sesung guild member looking at her back. Sesung after Seong Hyunjae disappeared. The moon came into view. A terrace somewhere, with the city’s nightscape spread out below. Hwang Rim, half-reclined on a long chair, reached a hand toward me. What the hell? I could see my forepaw covered in golden fur. Judging by the size, I seemed to be a large dog. Of all places, why this bastard’s house? I bit Hwang Rim’s hand with all my might. Since he was S-rank, my teeth didn’t even sink in.
“What’s wrong, darling. Want a treat?”
This time, I had hooves. For one terrible moment, I thought that running on four legs was comfortable, and I quickly shook my head to drive that thought away. Someone lightly patted the back of my neck. Seong Hyunjae’s face came into view. I gave him a full-force kick with my hind legs.
“Noona!”
A little angel of a child blinked his large, tearful eyes while clutching an armful of pillows. Even frightened, he followed after his sister walking ahead. The girl looked back. Eyes cold enough to send a chill through me softened for an instant. I was hiding behind a wall with my friends, spying on the siblings. That girl is fierce and scary. Let’s throw rocks and run.
“Ugh!”
Heat rushed in. A hand blocked the fire surging toward me.
“Please be careful.”
It was Myungwoo. Myungwoo’s hand lightly pressed down the flames, then used tongs to lift out a melted item. His skillful movements felt almost beautiful. I watched Myungwoo with a look full of respect. All that effort to get into the forge had been worth—
“…Haaah.”
A rough breath burst out of me. My body didn’t feel like mine. How much time had passed?
– Two days have passed, Dad.
It felt as if months had gone by. No, years. Chirp looked at me worriedly. I saw myself reflected in his eyes. Han Yujin. My body was twenty-six, and inside, I was thirty-one. My younger brother was Han Yuhyun, and I had taken in Park Yerim as new family, and I had Yu Myungwoo, a friend who was practically family, and Peace, Chirp, Belare, Blue… and three children named Gyeol, Seol, and Byeol. Director of Dodam Breeding Facility. The building was mine. Building owner. Chatterbox’s fortune. I still hadn’t even finished organizing all my assets! I had to revise my will to include the kids too.
“Ghk!”
A spear lodged in my chest. A Hunter. I was not a monster. Someone grabbed me by the hair. I could barely breathe. I closed my eyes and opened them. I was cleaning Seong Hyunjae’s house. It pissed me off, but thanks to that, I came back to myself. Only for a moment, though. The smell of blood rose again. A monster tore into my leg.
“Seong Hyunjae!”
Where the hell was he? Where did I have to go?
– You have to connect the path through memory.
Memory. Seong Hyunjae’s memories. The memories of me he had taken with him. But I didn’t know which memories Seong Hyunjae had taken. I couldn’t recall even a sliver of them.
Countless pasts, presents, and futures brushed past me again. Do Hamin, Seo Kyunghoon, Park Hayul, Evelyn, Seok Hayan, Kim Seonghan… Choi Seokwon, Samir, Emily… animals, monsters, plants, people whose names and faces I didn’t know. Again and again, I crawled across the floor. The duller my senses became and the more my self blurred, the darker the situations I fell into became. Some of them were quite horrific. Even Chirp’s voice grew distant.
From far away came a scream.
Black, red, and white.
White. Sunlight seeped in through the window. It touched my leaves with warmth. A somehow familiar face was looking into a monitor. The fingers holding the pen were thick and firm, yet pale. I stared at him blankly, then barely came to my senses.
‘Yuhyun.’
My brother. Yuhyun answered the phone.
“Yeah, hyung.”
He smiled. It felt as if my sense of reality came rushing back.
“I’m almost done. I’ll be home before dinner.”
Right. I had to go home. Memory. The memories Seong Hyunjae had. It wasn’t the birthday party. I remembered that one. I flew up again.
“Just wait until I find that Seong Hyunjae bastard!”
I was going to grab him by the collar first and shake him until his teeth rattled. A ripple rose. Then I really did fall into water. Beyond transparent glass, I could see the inside of a mansion. I pushed through the water and moved forward. Golden eyes.
My mouth opened and closed soundlessly. Seong Hyunjae’s mansion aquarium. He looked at the aquarium, at the fish, at me. The water wavered. Between those ripples.
“If you’ll go to the aquarium with me, I’ll gladly take them off as many times as you like.”
I heard words I didn’t remember.
–TL Notes–
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