Chapter 397: Rapolai |
‘The real... Ryu Min?’
Seo Arin was confused.
Someone claiming to be the real Ryu Min had appeared.
‘The person I shared life and death with... is standing in front of me?’
She knew it too.
This world was a replicated timeline created to fulfill her desire.
The Ryu Min she was currently with was nothing more than a clone acting with memories from the past.
But even so, this place was an undeniable reality.
Although he had no memories of the desire, he did possess the memories of the hardships they had overcome together.
That happiness crumbled with the appearance of the monster.
‘Someone claiming to be the real Ryu Min...’
Even after seeing the scythe, it was hard to believe.
Then, Ryu Min explained.
The current situation of this world and the truth.
“Just like you, I also entered the Hall of Wishes. At that time, my wish was to meet Gaia, the goddess who started it all.”
With that, Ryu Min continued his story in a low tone.
While others were fulfilling their wishes, he was busy with other things.
What power he had gained and what he did with that power.
“...Eventually, I killed the god Chronos and gained dominion over time, creating a new timeline. A peaceful world without gods, angels, demons, or survival games.”
He said he came from timeline 102.
Seo Arin couldn’t believe Ryu Min’s words.
‘Traveling between dimensions at will...?’
As extraordinary as Black Scythe was, is that even possible?
‘But I have no choice but to believe him.’
From the very beginning, Seo Arin had been observing him.
His expressions, gestures, and manners perfectly matched the Ryu Min she knew.
It was so identical that it was terrifying.
But there was one doubt.
‘Why is he showing up now, after all this time...?’
Suddenly, Seo Arin corrected her thoughts.
‘It’s not that he didn’t care, but that he was being considerate...’
He probably thought his appearance would only cause problems, so he chose not to visit her.
He let her live happily in the world of her desire.
Knowing Ryu Min’s personality, it made sense.
“Are you the Ryu Min I know? The one who was with me before entering the Hall of Wishes?”
“That’s right.”
“I’m still in shock, but seeing your skills, I have no choice but to believe it. Fine, I’ll believe you come from another timeline. But why did you suddenly appear?”
“There’s an enemy threatening this timeline.”
Ryu Min began talking about Deorant, Seed, and Host.
Since he had already mentioned dimensional travel, Seo Arin wasn’t too surprised to hear about dimensional collapse.
“The being you encountered is a Host. Its goal is to absorb the life energy of humans and deliver it to Seed.”
“Host? Is that the being that left Ryu Min like this...?”
Recalling her poor husband, Seo Arin’s eyes welled up again, but she quickly held back, realizing the presence of the Ryu Min in front of her.
After all, the person in front of her was also Ryu Min.
No, rather, he was the real Ryu Min she knew.
‘Wait, does that mean he saw everything about my marriage?’
Suddenly, her face flushed red.
Embarrassment prevented her from lifting her head.
‘Does he know what my wish was too...?’
If he knew, there couldn’t be a more mortifying situation.
It was as if she had laid bare all her feelings toward Ryu Min.
“By the way, Seo Arin.”
“Yes?”
“I’m not used to you talking to me like that.”
“Oh.”
She realized she had been speaking informally to the real Ryu Min.
They weren’t that close to talk like that.
“I’m sorry, Ryu Min. I didn’t realize...”
“I understand. You’ve grown accustomed to treating this world’s Ryu Min familiarly, so it’s natural for the habit to stick.”
“...”
It seemed he understood everything.
Seo Arin’s face was now as red as a tomato.
“So, what’s your plan now?”
“The Host’s body has been sent to the National Forensic Science Institute. Since a strange creature has appeared, they won’t be able to avoid investigating it. And Seed won’t sit idly by.”
“You mean Seed will come to retrieve the Host’s body?”
“Yes. They’ll come to recover the corpse. Even in death, the Host’s body still contains human life energy. Seed has no reason not to reclaim it.”
Ryu Min’s plan was simple.
Wait at the National Forensic Science Institute and capture Seed when they came for the Host’s body.
As he had done in previous timelines, use Seed to track down more Hosts.
As she listened to the plan, Seo Arin grew curious.
“Why are you telling me all this? I’ve lost my player powers; I can’t help you with anything.”
“I’m not telling you this to ask for your help.”
“Then why?”
“Because I think you should know, considering what happened to your husband.”
“Oh...”
The real Ryu Min was telling her the truth out of consideration.
When the person you love has become a vegetable, you need to know how it happened.
“Thank you. Ryu Min, or rather, Black Scythe.”
“You’ve decided to call me Black Scythe?”
“It’s just that there are two Ryu Mins, and it’s confusing to call you by the same name...”
“Then let’s go with how it was when I was Black Scythe.”
Ryu Min smiled and took out the white mask he used as Black Scythe.
He couldn’t show his face openly in this place.
Due to his marriage to Seo Arin, Ryu Min’s face was quite well-known to the public.
“Hosts and Seeds are parasites living in human bodies. Do you remember the Song Min-hyuk incident?”
“Yes...”
“They even share memories, so it’s not easy to distinguish them. You’d better avoid seeing anyone for a while, including Manager An Sang-cheol.”
“Is that really necessary? You’ve already killed the Host.”
“The Host isn’t the only one. I don’t know how many there are in this world, but in the place I was before, there were 300. There could be even more here.”
“Ah...”
“So I ask you to stay safe and not expose yourself until I’ve wiped out all the Hosts and Seeds.”
“I understand what you’re saying.”
Without a doubt, she didn’t want to see the person she shared life and death with get hurt.
Seo Arin nodded silently, aware of Ryu Min’s considerate nature after dating him for two years.
“I’ll finish soon, so don’t worry and wait. I’ll let you know when I’ve taken care of them all.”
“How long will it take to eliminate the Seeds and Hosts?”
“I have to finish within a week. Before there are more victims.”
With that said, Ryu Min turned around with a smile.
“Hey...”
From behind, Seo Arin’s shy voice was heard.
“Thank you. For saving me... and Ryu Min. And for protecting this world...”
“If you know that, then take good care of yourself. In times like these, you need to be strong.”
It was advice for her mental well-being.
“Y-Yes. I’ll be strong...”
Before she could respond, Ryu Min had already disappeared.
He really moved like a ghost.
“He’s gone.”
Though it was only for a moment, Seo Arin felt happy.
The idea of being able to talk to Ryu Min, whom she thought she would never see standing again.
“But this Ryu Min is different from the other one.”
Essentially, they were the same person but with different consciousnesses.
With distinct experiences and skills.
In a sense, you couldn’t exactly say they were the same Ryu Min.
“He’s Black Scythe. The person I saw. Even his way of speaking is just like back then.”
The fact that she called him Black Scythe and he immediately adopted the concept of speaking informally.
Seo Arin let out a laugh.
————–
At the National Forensic Science Institute, an intense investigation was underway.
“Look at this. The hardness is incredibly high.”
“How can such a substance exist in this world...?”
“There’s no way a human could have this kind of power.”
“So the rumor that he was a Player is false, right?”
The researchers conducting the autopsy on Song Min-hyuk were engrossed in studying the black liquid.
It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to investigate an extraterrestrial substance.
“Look at this. Although it’s very hard, it becomes soft when an electric current is applied.”
“So what we saw on the security cameras was really a high-voltage current? Black Scythe burned it with electricity, and that’s why it turned all black like this.”
“I can’t believe there’s an extraterrestrial organism that parasitizes human bodies. This is fascinating.”
Even though they were absorbed in their research, they didn’t know that someone was watching them.
“Those humans dare to touch the Host’s corpse that belongs to me!”
Seed, Rapolai, who had infiltrated the institute in liquid form, was watching the situation from the ventilation ducts.
Seeing those insignificant humans touching and manipulating his prey filled him with unparalleled rage.
“I’ll kill them all.”
First, he would enter a researcher’s nose and take control of their brain.
Then, he would attack the other researchers, absorb their life energy, and recover the Host’s body.
“And then I’ll absorb all the life energy of the humans in the building.”
Absorbing life energy was the work of Hosts, but since there were none in this country, he had to clearly show them what they had meddled with.
“They’ll make a good target for venting my anger. It’s time to start.”
With his plan in mind, Rapolai extended his liquid form and descended through the ventilation duct.
His target was the nearest human’s nose.
But before he could infect the brain...
“Huh?”
Rapolai couldn’t help but make a bewildered sound.
He had fallen into an unknown space, as if he had plunged into an abyss.
“Where am I? A dimensional rift?”
Disoriented like never before, Rapolai frantically looked around.
“What happened? I was in the Host’s autopsy room...”
At that moment, in the dark space, a figure appeared.
“Who is that human?”
A human with a jet-black scythe resting on his shoulder grinned, baring his teeth.
“Got you, bastard.”