“I’m their son.”
“What...?”
The man named Yunseong.
His eyes opened wide.
“You’re... Section Leader Seo’s son?”
He spoke in a strangely trembling voice.
It sounded like there was a delicate emotion mixed into those words that was hard to describe, but—
“You know my parents!?”
“Ah, that’s...”
I didn’t have the room in my head to worry about something like that.
Only one thing mattered.
This man had reacted to my parents’ names.
I couldn’t hide my excitement as I spoke.
Then—
“Section Leader Seo... Right. Section Leader Seo and Seokjun’s kid, huh... I feel like I heard something like that once.”
The man muttered in a daze to himself.
After a moment, Yunseong—
He looked at me with a slightly suspicious gaze and asked,
“Where was your home?”
“Until not long ago, I lived over there, near Gwangmyeong.”
“...From what I heard, Section Leader Seo’s son is currently a soldier. He said he wasn’t even particularly athletic, but he got sent to a frontline unit way out there and he was really upset about it.”
So they talked about me that much.
I could feel Park Junggu, who stood behind my back, also looking at me with a puzzled expression.
“I am a soldier. I was just a sergeant at the end of my term, though.”
“End of your term?”
“Yes. I was on my final leave when this happened.”
“The day you went on your final leave was Doomsday?”
“You... have unbelievably shitty luck.”
At that, in the middle of my conversation with Yunseong—
I heard Junggu muttering behind me like he found it ridiculous.
In reality, I still had a few days left, but—
That wasn’t important.
“...It really does seem to line up.”
After hearing my answer, Yunseong seemed to confirm that what I was saying was the truth.
He thought for a moment, then—
“You asked if I knew your parents, huh...”
After a short time—
He nodded.
“Of course I know them.”
“How...!”
“Those two...”
He let out a sigh.
“They were Awakeners who operated right here, at the Central Branch.”
****
My parents.
Had been operating here, at the Central Branch.
At those words—
I was unable to contain my shock.
‘My parents were alive?’
To be honest.
I’d already assumed there was a high chance the two of them had died.
From the start, the number of people who had survived in this world was far smaller.
That was the obvious way to think.
When I headed for this Central Branch—
The reason I didn’t really think about “I have to find my family” was also because—
If I hoped too much, the disappointment could be that much bigger.
I’d been consciously lowering my expectations.
But then—
‘They... were alive...!’
It meant the two of them survived that Doomsday—
And had been operating as Awakeners.
Right here.
In this place where I was standing!
“W-where are they now!?”
I couldn’t hide my excitement.
Grabbing Yunseong by the shoulders, I asked where my family was.
‘As long as they’re alive!’
It’s a harsh world, but—
I’m someone who managed to build up some strength over in Gangwon.
‘If they were dead, there’d be no hope, but if they’re alive—’
If I poured in everything I had.
Then no matter what happened over in Gangwon—
I was confident that I could at least somehow manage to keep myself and my parents alive.
Even if things here went wrong—
And I ended up unable to save the humans of Gyeonggi—
If it was just a matter of protecting my family—
Then I could absolutely...
“As for those two.”
“Yes!”
“From relatively early on, they were operating together with the Chair.”
“...?”
But—
Instead of telling me where those two were,
After hearing my question, Yunseong suddenly started talking about something else.
“Your parents, Section Leader Seo and Seokjun, were both extremely capable. Even I owed them more than once.”
“...Why are you suddenly telling me all that?”
“Especially your mother—she really was the very image of a formidable woman. She was even serving as a section leader commanding ten Awakeners within an elite combat squad.”
What he was telling me was clearly—
Stories about my family, the people I’d been so desperate to hear about.
“So then, why are you telling me that story?”
However.
I did not feel remotely at ease listening to it.
‘For him to say things like this...’
I could more or less guess—
What he was about to say.
“Hey, Yunseong.”
I wasn’t the only one who seemed to see where this was going.
Park Junggu’s expression twisted.
“That story, don’t tell me—”
“...It’s probably exactly what you’re thinking, Junggu.”
When I said I ran into this while on my final leave—
Didn’t Junggu say I had unbelievably shitty luck?
“You said your name was Shin Youngjun, right?”
“Yes.”
The story about my final leave was a lie, but—
On that point, I couldn’t help but agree completely.
“I’m really sorry, but I have to give you bad news.”
Yeah.
Goddamn it.
“Your parents were Awakeners considered part of the Central Branch’s elite. And not long ago... there was an operation that deployed all of those elites.”
This shitty life of mine.
Really is dogshit.
“Right now, including the Chair who led that operation—”
The times when my ominous predictions were wrong—
“There’s not a single one of them who hasn’t gone missing.”
Have never existed.
****
“...Are you alright?”
“Sorry? Ah... Yes.”
“Yes, my ass, you don’t look alright at all.”
After we joined up with the Central Branch—
We were guided to one of the buildings inside the Wall.
According to them, in the case of this Central Association—
Most of their people had gone missing, so there were plenty of empty rooms.
“...So, uh.”
While I sat there, blankly staring—
Park Junggu scratched his cheek and spoke.
“What I said on the way here. That was just talk, so... try not to think too much about it.”
“...”
It was easy to figure out what he was trying to say.
—That the golden time had long since passed... As hard as it is to believe, we have to assume the Chair and that assault squad are effectively wiped out.
The golden time had passed—
The assault squad... in other words,
My parents, too—
He was saying there was a high probability they’d already died.
“That’s just a way of speaking! There are a lot of people who think they might actually still be alive. I mean, what do I know? I’m just a guy who likes fighting, I don’t even really know what ‘golden time’ is supposed to mean. Right?”
“...Yes. Thank you.”
“Grrr.”
Unfortunately—
That attempt at comfort didn’t really help me much.
“I can more or less understand how you feel, but... you still have to eat.”
“...”
“The food here is pretty good, so anyone who passes through makes sure to eat at least once... goddamn it.”
It sounded like he was saying something—
But it wasn’t really getting through to my ears.
“...The people from the Southern Branch haven’t arrived yet, so it’ll take some time before the meeting starts.”
“Is that so.”
Junggu looked down at me, answering like my soul had left my body.
Then he sighed and said,
“The Southern Branch is the farthest from here, and even before all this they weren’t exactly the type to keep appointment times. You’ll have a day or two to spare.”
“Yes.”
“I know from experience this isn’t something you can just get over easily, but... I still hope you can pull yourself together a bit before then. You know this meeting is really important, too.”
“...Yes.”
“...Hoo! I’m heading out.”
After Junggu left the room—
A little later.
I blankly lifted my head.
And looked around the room I’d been assigned.
They said since the Association’s elites had disappeared, there were a lot of empty rooms.
Which, said the other way around—
Meant they were willing to give the people who’d come here the rooms once used by the Association’s elites.
And among those—
The room I’d been assigned to...
Maybe this was their way of showing me some consideration, in their own way.
‘My parents’ room...’
It was the room my parents had used.
When I first came into this room—
The scenery was so different from our home that—
It was hard to believe they’d actually lived here.
But—
As I sat there, staring vacantly and looking around—
“That wallet is Mom’s... and that watch is Dad’s.”
I started to see familiar objects, one by one.
Things I hadn’t seen since Doomsday—
But that were very familiar to me.
‘I did think that if my parents were alive, they’d probably be somewhere near this Central Branch.’
Our house itself had been near here.
My father commuted back and forth to Seoul for work, but—
Doomsday fell on a weekend, so he would’ve been at home.
However—
My father was the type who just repeated the cycle of work, house, sleep every day.
He didn’t have particularly strong stamina.
To be honest, he wasn’t the type of person who could adapt to a world like this.
It was my mother, the more active one—
Who kept a tight grip on that kind of father. That was the everyday life of our family.
‘For those two to endure that chaos and survive.’
On top of that—
‘For them to become strong enough to be called elites.’
Heh.
All that came out was a hollow laugh.
“And on top of that, she ended up as a section leader?”
Maybe that’s just how I should think of her—our Lady Seo.
Not just in some simple combat role,
But in a position that stood out even among those roles.
“Ha... they’re amazing, seriously. Heh heh...”
Contrary to my expectation that the two of them wouldn’t have survived—
They not only survived in this world,
They managed to become strong enough to be counted on one hand.
It really was amazing.
It made me think there was a reason they were my parents.
But.
Because of that—
“Urgh...”
It would’ve been enough if they’d just survived.
If they’d had barely any strength and somehow lucked into staying alive, that might have been better.
Because they’d gone and become strong for no good reason—
They ended up reaching a conclusion where they just... went missing.
“Fucking... hell...”
As my vision blurred—
I bowed my head and clawed at my hair.
“Fuck... fuck...”
Over there, beyond Gangwon, I really did give everything just to stay alive.
In the process of surviving like that—
I gained power.
And with that power, wanting to save other people, I even crossed over into Gyeonggi.
But—
‘If I couldn’t protect my own most precious family... what’s the point of all that shit?’
To be honest.
I hadn’t really let myself expect from the start that the two of them would still be alive.
Because I knew that if I expected it, I’d only end up getting hurt.
I might only be going through something like this now—
But everyone living in this world, to a greater or lesser extent—
Had already experienced losing someone precious.
In this world, it was something everyone had gone through.
I also—
Had prepared my heart so that if I heard the news they’d already died,
I could somehow endure it...
‘They were alive up until the point when winter came?’
They said that the people of this Central Branch set out to find the cause of that cold—
Not all that long ago.
“Then what the hell.”
What that meant was simple.
“If I’d just crossed over a little earlier.”
From the moment I figured out I could cross the [Wall]—
If I’d forced it, no matter what, and crossed into Gyeonggi—
‘If I’d done that, then maybe—’
Before the two of them went missing—
I might have been able to find them.
“Fuck... fuck fuck fuck fuck...”
I’d given up.
But if I hadn’t given up and had pushed myself—
The story could have been different!
‘The reason they went missing is practically my fault.’
That guilt—
Threatened to break down even the resolve I’d prepared.
“That bastard Chair, what the hell was he doing...!”
Wasn’t he supposed to be insanely strong?
He should’ve built up a fair amount of experience in this world by now.
‘And yet he stupidly threw all of his strength into some unexplored spot without even dividing his forces or scouting first? Is he some draft-dodging idiot? Does he not know the basics of strategy and tactics?’
‘From the start, instead of sending everyone, he should’ve spent time sending scouts and attacking safely. What kind of overconfidence makes you throw in every last troop, you braindead bastard...’
‘Just because he’s strong. Because he’s never lost... did he think he’d win again? With that kind of arrogance, he drove the people who followed him straight into the jaws of death?’
It was already way, way too late.
All I could do now—
Was this.
Directing my anger at the people here—
At the fact that they had failed that so-called assault—
That was all I could...
“No.”
I thought that’s all I could do—
As I clawed at my hair and spat curses.
“But... he said they were missing...”
At a sudden thought—
I lifted my head and muttered,
“They haven’t actually been confirmed dead.”
According to what Junggu said,
The Northern Branch had proposed sending forces to confirm whether they were alive or dead—
But that proposal had failed because the other branches rejected it.
In the end—
There wasn’t a single person who’d actually found my parents’ bodies.
The mind that had been churning out nothing but grim scenarios—
Suddenly started spinning up fast.
‘Junggu said since the golden time had passed, we had to assume they were all dead.’
When I heard that my family was among those elites—
Only then, as if he’d realized he’d misspoken,
He’d told me not to worry about what he’d said.
‘Maybe that really is something I don’t have to worry about.’
Alone in that room.
Surrounded by family belongings that, at least a little, brought back old memories—
I ran a hand down my face and thought.
‘This golden time or whatever—ultimately, that’s just something based on normal humans, not Awakeners.’
In the past—
Martial arts that had been created for humans—
Had very little meaning for Awakeners.
‘Existing common sense doesn’t apply to Awakeners whose physical abilities surpass that common sense...’
If that was the case—
Even now, after quite a long time had passed,
Wasn’t there still a chance they were alive?
—That’s nonsense.
In a corner of my mind—
A voice insisted that was completely absurd.
—No matter how powerful an Awakener is, surviving for more than a month in an environment like this is impossible...
It said it was a ridiculous, baseless argument.
That thought existed, too, insisting that.
But—
‘No matter how low the probability is... it still exists.’
I decided.
Not to look in that direction.
The reason my parents had ended up going missing—
Was that, even though I could have come straight over to Gyeonggi—
I stayed over there, chasing safety and wasting time.
It was entirely my fault.
“...If I go looking for them right now, I might be able to find them.”
And as for me—
I might make a lot of mistakes—
But I wasn’t the kind of guy who repeated wrong ones.
‘Aside from those Northern leaders, the leaders here were skeptical about looking into the cause of the cold, weren’t they.’
I immediately got to my feet.
Unfortunately—
I didn’t have time to properly persuade them right now.
From the start, there were still a few days left before that unification.
We weren’t even at the point where everyone had gathered here.
So—
“Droplet.”
I lowered my gaze—
And spoke toward the darkness in my shadow.
“How far along is your regeneration?”
Then—
A voice rang out from the shadow, answering my words.
=Recovery itself is fully complete.
“And now?”
=At present, we’ve moved into the next phase, the self-duplication process... There are a total of two bodies...
“That’s enough. Sorry, but.”
When we crossed the Wall—
Because of that intense heat,
That guy had needed a long recovery period.
“I don’t mind if that gets delayed a bit. Let’s pull some of it forward.”
=As my lord wishes...
I drew a kitchen knife—
And sliced away the jelly part from the slime-type lifeform, leaving only the core.
[Legion’s Droplet Jelly]
[When consumed, grants Trait ? Environmental Assimilation...]
‘This should cover the food I need.’
The highest-level stealth ability, [Environmental Assimilation].
It was a dish I’d relied on the most even back in Gangwon.
Its effect was powerful, and it suited my combat style better than anything.
On top of that, I already had a fair amount of combat rations prepared.
Even in this extreme cold, I was confident I could endure.
“Vampires.”
—Yes! Master of our master!
“We’re heading somewhere pretty dangerous. Stay as tense as you can, and guard me properly.”
—Understood!
My combat strength was pretty substantial with just this much.
Having made my decision, I immediately left the building.
‘I don’t even want to waste the time it would take to explain this to the others.’
Instead of heading for the closed main gate in the Wall—
I lifted my head and looked up at that towering barrier.
[Assistant Chef]
I activated the skill.
Stepping on the handles of the kitchen knives—
I reached the very top of the {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} towering Wall.
WHOOOOOOSH—
A world of pure white, blanketed by the roaring blizzard, came into view.
And—
‘The destination is southeast.’
I—
Threw myself into that white world.
I didn’t have anything like a map, but—
Luckily, there was no way I’d get confused about where I needed to go.
‘Where the cold gets stronger.’
As long as I kept heading that way—
I’d reach my destination someday.
