Gong Isu raises his left hand and triggers his ability.
The very ability the doctors at Paju Central Hospital recorded as [an超real mechanical engineering capability that cannot be reproduced or imitated].
[krrrik— shrrrrrk—]
The helmet disassembles in a surreal way, briefly morphing into the form of a surreal hypercube, then—meeting Gong Isu’s right hand—transforms into something completely different.
"Magic doesn’t have great compatibility, though."
[shrrrrrrrk—]
Gong Isu’s head—no, the helmet—changes into a wholly different shape—huh!?
"Waah!? How did you do that?"
Back then Ga Pu was a bit surprised—but only with the impression of ‘Gong Isu showed a nifty trick.’
But I, watching from behind Ga Pu—
Wow—so me, I mean me.
As in Kim Sinhwa!
Woooooow!!!
Right, that thing I glimpsed from afar earlier—so that’s what it was!
From behind Ga Pureum I feel a surge of excitement strong enough to knock my mind out.
Gong Isu turns his head—no, look at that! A mask!
A mask! Hey! A mask! A mask!
Gong Isu is now truly wearing—among the masks I’ve recently collected, one of the most dazzling, gorgeous pieces—wow! A mask like that even exists! Sick! No—stop. Calm down. Breathe.
No overt ornamentation, yet an exquisitely delicate, elegant, mysterious mask that glows like emerald.
That very mask is floating where Gong Isu’s face should be.
Again: truly mesmerizing—and truly cool! A best-ever mask.
[kzzzzzit! kwhazzit!]
Memories warp with an ugly noise.
Ugh, the synchronization with Ga Pureum got cut. I got too excited, and too much of my identity as Kim Sinhwa bled through.
[System : ‘향상된 경계심’이 활성화됩니다.]
[System : 페널티 특성 ‘만찬의 제물’이 활성화됩니다.]
[shlirrrrrrk—]
Other memories of Ga Pureum coil around me. And that creepy presence sidles up behind me.
Ah, you’ve already caught up?
[shlirrrrrrrrk—]
In a flash, a massive—massive—massive—spider charges to my side.
Eight legs spun from indiscriminately tangled memories.
Eight huge, blood-red eyes, forged from pasts I want to forget, memories I’ve lost, obsessions I cannot.
A grotesque trunk like a jet-black, nauseous tumor—or a vilely over-fattened larva.
A shape so preposterously horrific it induces physiological disgust—dizzying and sickening just to behold.
‘But the timing isn’t bad.’
No need to worry. I can turn the [Weaver of Dreams]’s fierce momentum against her.
"KYAAAAAA!!"
The [Weaver of Dreams] lets out a nightmare scream.
At the same time, foul memories pour over me like simultaneous waves of reeking effluent.
Heo Sanghyun, Jang Hyundeok, Park Gwangrim, Mun Seunghee, Curtain Call, and Yang Seonho sighing, tearing up, scowling, and cowering.
And the faces of everyone I’ve met until now.
"Listen!" "Their." "Ugh—sighs." "—and." "Voices?" "That blame." "—you."
"And theeeen~" "your—" "sins."
The [Weaver of Dreams] plays me the answers of those who bit at her bait.
"This happened because of Kim Sinhwa." "Why in the world did he do this to me...." "Kim Sinhwa ruined my life." "That demon bastard Kim Sinhwa." "Kim Sinhwa tempted me." "Kim Sinhwa deceived me." "I got done in by Kim Sinhwa." "Kim Sinhwa, that son of a—!" "If only Kim Sinhwa had never appeared." "Mage King! Mage King!" "Lord Kim Sinhwa will destroy this world!"
And the Busan mayor’s voice going out over public TV:
"We declare Kim Sinhwa, who has committed a heinous, unforgivable crime, an enemy of the public."
I shout at the memories surging without end.
『Oh, shut up. Shut up. Shut up! How is that my fault! They’re the ones who did those things!』
[crackle-crackle-crackle!]
Memories shove back under a blue flash. And a calm voice comes through them.
"Was it done like this?"
Gong Isu’s figure still hasn’t vanished.
Fading out, Gong Isu keeps talking in an annoyed tone.
"No—that’s how it’s done, right? Yes. I remember."
Saying that—Gong Isu lifts his left hand and, with awkward movement, makes a peculiar sign.
‘That gesture...’
Ga Pureum, who witnessed Gong Isu’s behavior back then, dismissed it as a madman’s inexplicable act—but the [Spell Mastery] trait nested in my head spins up fast.
Right.
I know what that hand sign means.
It’s a mudra to complete a certain spell.
『Ha! What a genius—Kim Sinhwa!』
[crackle-crackle-crackle!!]
In an instant I cast off Ga Pureum’s image—and return to my own.
Leaving the unresponsive left hand as is, I form the mudra with my right hand alone.
[viiiiiiiiiin—]
The mudra Gong Isu once formed with his left hand, which Ga Pureum saw in the past.
And the mudra I now form with my right hand fuse into a single rite with one meaning.
[부동박]
[vrrrrrrrrrum!]
The memories of Ga Pureum coiling around me collapse. No—more than collapse.
[shlarrarrarrark!!]
The memories that had wrapped me now become shackles that bind the [Weaver of Dreams]’s shadow.
[crackle-crackle-crackle-crackle!!]
A tremendous spark you could only see within a dream.
"KYAAAAAAAH!!"
The [Weaver of Dreams] screams.
She thrashes like an enraged nightmare, but she can’t escape. The initiative is completely mine now.
『Got you! You spider freak!』
Like a spider trussing prey, I bind the [Weaver of Dreams] with strands spun from the useless memories left in Ga Pureum’s head and from my own mana.
『Heh, the really fun part—let’s finish it outside.』
There’s nothing more to see in Ga Pureum’s memories.
With the [Weaver of Dreams]’ shadow lashed tight—I leave Ga Pureum’s memories without delay.
[whiisssh—]
Distance and direction are meaningless, but conceptually my mind rockets upward.
A mental image like escaping from the depths of the sea.
"You’re a real bastard."
Far below.
Gong Isu’s voice echoes hollowly in the fully collapsed memories of Ga Pureum.
The same line I heard earlier.
"What are you saying? Can’t you hear me?"
Ga Pureum’s faint reply.
Ignoring Ga Pureum, Gong Isu keeps speaking.
There’s no guarantee I’ll hear this message, but he just talks.
"In about half a month, the me from the past will be coming by—"
"Excuse me? Mr. Gong Isu?"
"Keep the promise and get that dog off me. And..."
His voice recedes.
I’ve just about swum out of this deep sea of memory. Conceptually speaking, I’m almost at the surface now.
Gong Isu’s voice, barely audible.
"What did he take from me, you ask? From that bastard I..."
Regrettably, I don’t hear what Gong Isu says next.
In an instant, my vision brightens.
Cold air tinged with the smell of antiseptic.
And Ga Pureum, bound on the dissection table, sleeping.
‘I’ve exited Ga Pureum’s memories.’
Before I can even feel the satisfaction of resolving a case, Lee Haseo presses up against my left side.
"Mr. Sinhwa! Oh, Mr. Sinhwa!"
"Yes?"
"What did you just take out?"
"Hm?"
"You just put your hand into this person’s body and took something out, didn’t you?"
Ah, is that how it looked to Lee Haseo’s eyes? In real-time, it all happened in a blink.
In my right hand sits a creature smaller than half a fingernail.
A spider, bound by magical fetters, trembling in spasms, barely able to move.
"Ha. So this was the medium."
It’s the [Filino Aranea] the [Weaver of Dreams] implanted in Ga Pureum’s body to manifest her power in reality.
Tiny as it is, it’s packed with everything that matters.
For example—I can use this to craft a banishment that affects not only the [Weaver of Dreams] but even the [Blind Weaver].
"Not a bad haul."
Otherwise—I could manipulate others’ memories or dispositions the same way the [Weaver of Dreams] does. With a bit of effort I could even fix someone’s ‘break,’ like Jeong Hyuna or others...
"Mr. Sinhwa, Mr. Sinhwa."
Lee Haseo, pressed against my left arm, whispers with an excited face.
"Yes, what is it?"
"Shall I attach this hand back on for you?"
"Hm?"
[System : ‘괴과학 의사 : 이하서’의 ‘수상한 의료 서비스’를 받아서 ‘손 절단(1개, 주로 사용하는 손)’ 페널티를 제거하시겠습니까?
동의(마정석 x 200) / 거절 / 분석(의료 지식)]
It’s not a bad offer.
In fact, my non-responsive left hand is a real headache right now.
The problem is...
[System : ‘의료 지식’ 특성을 사용하여 성공률을 분석합니다....... 지능 판정 성공!
‘수상한 의료 서비스’의 성공률은 38%입니다.
실패 시의 예상 효과는 다음과 같습니다.
‘손 절단(1개, 주로 사용하는 손)’ 특성이 제거되는 대신, ‘돌연변이 : 촉수(고성능)’, ‘돌연변이 : 촉수(저성능)’, ‘돌연변이 : 입이 달린 촉수’, ‘돌연변이 : 눈이 달린 촉수’ 특성 중 두 개가 추가됩니다.]
So I’d end up with two tentacles in place of a hand.
"I’ll pass."
"Eeeh, whyyy?"
Exactly the same face as last time.
Right. Ripping up a human body like a toy and modding it at random won’t solve anything.
‘Better to take time and fix it slowly.’
Same goes for minds and relationships.
Let’s not chase a quick fix and become a monster.
I gently push off the clinging Lee Haseo and say:
"More importantly, as I asked earlier—please check the blood."
What am I, a refrigerated water purifier? Why would magic stones be coming out of my body?
[You have shattered the sly trap prepared by the Abyssal entity ‘Weaver of Dreams’ and returned to reality. But in the process you confronted a shocking truth. You confirmed the wounds your cherished people suffered because of you—and how they were broken.]
"Yeah, you little punk. You said that well."
Ah, great—turn me into a madman cursing at thin air again.
I step out of Lee Haseo’s grip for a moment and check the rewards the message window offers.
"And that’s my fault? Why is it always the same routine with you lot? Was I going around personally ruining those people’s lives? If you slap the crap you did onto me—am I supposed to go, aww, trashy Kim Sinhwa, guess I should die—and start bawling?"
Didn’t I say something similar before?
This really is childish harassment.
Imagine a certain Mr. So-and-so picks people close to Kim Sinhwa and beats them.
Then is Kim Sinhwa the bad guy? Or is Mr. So-and-so the bad guy?
[It is not over yet. This is only the beginning. Those who dwell in the Abyss are moving on your behalf. A new incident will soon come for you.]
"Sure. Try it. See if I just sit still."
[You have defeated ‘Filino Aranea.’ Your understanding of divine servitors as a whole increases.]
I didn’t defeat the [Weaver of Dreams].
I merely stripped away the influence she had rooted in Ga Pureum’s mind through a servitor.
No way could you erase an Abyssal being with something so simple.
[Achievement complete! You have banished ‘Abyssal Entity – Weaver of Dreams.’
You have obtained the ‘Advanced Achievement: Dream Interpretation.’
As a reward for the achievement, your relationship with Reporter – Ga Pureum has progressed, and you gain additional experience.]
[System : ‘기자 – 가푸름’과의 관계가 ‘확고한 동맹’으로 변경됩니다.]
So I’ve gotten close with Ga Pureum.
[You have gained enough experience to reach the next stage. Your level increases by 1.]
And I leveled up.
"Phew."
More or less wrapped up.
Now I should head back and sort the rest.
Because of this string of commotions, I even had to pause making the escape device with the Lacrex grimoire.
"Hmm..."
I’m about to leave the hospital in one go when my steps stop.
"Right. Leave when it’s time, sure. But I should still handle what needs handling."
I should meet Gong Isu.
He said the past Gong Isu (from my perspective, the future Gong Isu) will be coming soon, but there’s something I want to say to the Gong Isu who’s here now.
