Chapter 136 |
The certainty that the thing you fear most will repeat itself is enough to break a person.
At least, Hong Kyungjun thought so.
* * *
“Manager!”
“Mr. Lee Jaehun!”
When Lee Jaehun ran chasing after Song Inmyeong, Kang Mina, who had been frozen in confusion, immediately chased after him, and Ha Sungyoon quickly followed her. This was thanks to their experience with various sudden situations.
Despite this, they couldn’t even catch a glimpse of Lee Jaehun’s shirt.
“Where, where did he go…?”
Read at Novelib.com
“We need to find him quickly. Although Mr. Lee Jaehun’s condition has improved thanks to Mr. Jung Inho’s help, he’s still affected by the algae monster.”
“It must be because of that, right?”
“That’s the most likely scenario. He’d been holding it together so far, so why did his condition suddenly worsen…?”
Even as he said that, it was not like he didn’t have any guesses at all.
“…It’s probably because of Mr. Song Inmyeong.”
Although he’d been distracted by his changed eyes, Ha Sungyoon still had basic perceptiveness. He had noticed the expressions of the students in school uniforms and Jung Inho darkened whenever Song Inmyeong approached Lee Jaehun. They must have sensed something from Song Inmyeong.
Read at Novelib.com
However, since Ha Sungyoon’s eyes didn’t provide any information about Song Inmyeong, he didn’t know what exactly had happened between them. He, too, was already exhausted, making it difficult to think rationally.
But the current situation was different.
“The influence of the algae monster… It causes murderous intent, the desire to kill others. Mr. Lee Jaehun never mentioned that such intent was directed at a specific person.”
“And yet, he only chased after Mr. Song Inmyeong.”
“Even when we called out to him. He seemed almost out of his mind, unable to hear us, but in that case, there must have been a difference between how he perceived Mr. Song Inmyeong and us.”
And Lee Jaehun had clearly said it.
“I heard him ask ‘Why did you do it?’.”
It was undeniable that Song Inmyeong had done something.
Read at Novelib.com
Lee Jaehun’s original group naturally trusted him more than the college students they had just met. They hadn’t viewed the students’ blatant demands for Lee Jaehun’s sacrifice favorably.
Kang Mina and Ha Sungyoon assumed that the reason Lee Jaehun, who had been holding himself together so well, finally snapped was because of Song Inmyeong. In fact, anyone witnessing the situation would have come to the same conclusion.
Anxiety laced his steps.
“If someone who’s been holding back suddenly gets so angry, something must have happened.”
“…Manager has never truly gotten angry before.”
Kang Mina continued, recalling Lee Jaehun’s demeanor.
“Really, never.”
Read at Novelib.com
Yes, it was more accurate to call it rage than simple murderous intent.
Even when she’d put herself in danger with her clumsiness and suffered a large wound on her leg, even when the others abandoned her and Lee Jaehun and ran away, he hadn’t gotten angry.
He wasn’t someone who would get angry even if someone strangled and insulted him. At least, not the Lee Jaehun that Kang Mina had known during her time in this world.
So, the one who angered him must be at fault.
“…….”
“…But we can’t let him commit murder, right?”
“Of course not.”
Kang Mina murmured in her characteristically gentle voice and swung the hammer in her hand.
Read at Novelib.com
—Thwack!
“I should be in front, sir.”
Thud.
A familiar green vine twitched and fell to the ground.
It was a green color that suited this absurd park, yet an uncanny feeling, as if it belonged in a toy store, permeated the air. Dense teeth, like a centipede’s legs, dangled and quivered in pain.
That thing is trying to kill us.
“…Your intuition is… very good.”
Read at Novelib.com
“I think I’m just sensitive these days.”
After confirming that Ha Sungyoon had obediently stepped back, Kang Mina stood in front of him protectively. The difference between having a proper weapon and not was significant, so Kang Mina judged it was better for her, who had recently become accustomed to the hammer, to be in front. The hammer would be more effective than the wooden plank Ha Sungyoon was holding.
Looking at the slimy things creeping closer, she spoke again.
“…They’re not that dⁱsgʊstⁱng anymore.”
“…….”
“Am I going crazy?”
His voice, more exhausted than outright mad, made Ha Sungyoon absentmindedly rub his earlobe before responding with a picture-perfect smile. It was the same gentle and kind smile he always wore.
“That’s not possible.”
Read at Novelib.com
“…….”
“They say that when you’re truly crazy, you don’t know you’re crazy. At the very least, you’re protecting others, acting as a pillar of support, Ms. Kang Mina.”
“…Ahaha…”
“I’m always grateful.”
Kang Mina asked,
“Am I a source of support?”
Ha Sungyoon replied,
Read at Novelib.com
“Yes.”
“Am I doing well?”
“Of course.”
“Am I someone who can take responsibility for everyone…?”
He answered,
“You always have.”
“…….”
At the sight of the countless fanged vines approaching, Kang Mina couldn’t help but laugh.
Read at Novelib.com
“That’s a relief.”
She always wanted to be someone who pulled their weight.
She grew up being told she had a strong sense of responsibility. She wanted to be someone who lived up to that evaluation. The responsibility of a child. The responsibility of an employee. The responsibility of an adult, a grown-up. Kang Mina had always lived with these responsibilities etched into her mind.
And ever since Manager Lee Jaehun saved her from near-death, sacrificing his leg in the process, she had been plagued by a heavy sense of responsibility. It might seem excessive for a single moment of carelessness and s*upidity, but in the end, Lee Jaehun had suffered in her place. He bled in pain.
Kang Mina wanted to protect someone.
“…….”
Squeeze.
Read at Novelib.com
Looking at the approaching vines, she adjusted her grip on the hammer. They surrounded them like snakes, crawling from all directions, visible everywhere she looked.
Yet, Kang Mina didn’t back down.
“Mr. Ha Sungyoon.”
“Yes.”
“Please.”
I can’t back down when you guys are here.
“…Be the cliff I can lean on.”
Then I’ll become stronger.
Read at Novelib.com
Biting her lip, she swung her arm.
* * *
“…..”
Within the bounds of plausibility, Lee Jaehun intended to drag Song Inmyeong down to hㅌll with him.
Like a vengeful ghost.
‘It’s convenient that death is a one-time thing.’
In this world, death truly happened only once. In the previous world, this kind of ‘taking you down with me’ strategy was highly inefficient because he’d have to revive and grab the culprit by the collar again. But the fact that everything permanently ended in this world was a new rule for Lee Jaehun.
Read at Novelib.com
Therefore, Lee Jaehun intended to dⁱㅌ with Song Inmyeong if possible. At the very least, he would expose the b⋏st⋏rd’s true nature. He had already given Ha Sungyoon hints about the mafia game and such, so the remaining survivors could handle the aftermath relatively easily, one way or another. He figured they’d find out on their own even if he couldn’t kill Song Inmyeong himself.
And the reason Lee Jaehun, with memories of a past life full of trials and tribulations, was considering the ‘in case of a failed hunt’ scenario was simple.
“…He’s unnecessarily fast…”
Song Inmyeong was a master of running away.
‘That’s why he escaped right in front of Officer Kim.’
Many people underestimated her because of her slender build, but she was also a police officer. As someone building her career to become a detective, her skills were unlikely to be inferior to other officers.
For one thing, Officer Kim had excellent observation skills. The time it took her to assess a situation was incredibly short compared to others, leading to quick judgment and action. The fact that she, with her excellent physical abilities, couldn’t catch a criminal she saw right in front of her meant the opponent had escaped with unnatural speed.
And the current Lee Jaehun didn’t possess the abnormally strong physical abilities of his past life. Considering the setting of ‘being affected by the algae monster and coughing up blood’, he couldn’t appear too healthy either. It was perhaps inevitable that he would lose Song Inmyeong.
Read at Novelib.com
“…Hmm.”
But there was another reason for Lee Jaehun’s calmness.
‘He’ll be heading to the flower field anyway.’
Even though the original story had been shattered by his actions, some basic settings remained.
Since three people dⁱㅌd so suddenly in the flower field, and since Kang Mina nearly fell to her death from the cliff, he roughly remembered the settings within the park.
Why would the flower field’s terrain be a cliff?
“I just need to catch him before he falls to his death.”
Weren’t the flowers below beckoning them, inviting them to fall to their deaths?
The flowers had the ability to lure survivors, starting from the moment they realized they were in the park. The protagonist had speculated that it was probably related to the centipede monster, the park’s owner, even though he didn’t understand how mere plants could grasp the situation within the park.
Therefore, survivors who wanted to escape or ran without a clear destination within the park would instinctively head towards the flower field. This was why Lee Jaehun could find Kang Mina and her group relatively easily without much thought when they ran off first.
‘However, it was unexpected that the hallucination worked even when not near the flower field.’
Having read the novel, Lee Jaehun had assumed the flowers exerted an unconscious pull from afar and strong hallucinations up close. There wasn’t much basis for this; it was just the protagonist’s assumption.
But now that he thought about it, it made sense for the hallucinations to occur even within the park.
‘I think it was mentioned that he saw ghosts a few times while in the park…’
More than anything, the information Park Dayoung had given him played a big part. Park Dahoon saw a child and an adult while escaping with Kang Mina, and Ha Sungyoon, who was separated from them, saw the figure of a child. And hadn’t Park Dayoung said she thought it was the child named Minhong?
Then it must be true. The Park siblings were perceptive, and Ha Sungyoon had basic observation skills. If their combined opinions pointed that way, it must be correct. Respecting and considering his team members’ opinions was essential for a team leader.
However, in that case, the timing was odd.
‘If it was around the time the stray dog monsters rampaged, Choi Minhong was likely already dead.’
He wasn’t sure if the surname was really Choi, but anyway.
Bodies didn’t decompose in the otherworld; they were gradually consumed by monsters.
Because of this setting, it was difficult to determine the exact time of death, but if Lee Jaehun’s hunch was correct, what Park Dahoon and Ha Sungyoon saw were likely apparitions.
And the primary source of hallucinations within the park was none other than the flowers in the flower field.
“…….”
Wait a minute.
‘Why did they show that particular hallucination?’
What difference would it make?
It almost seemed more appropriate to consider it a ghost rather than a floral hallucination. D⋏mn it, anything could happen in the otherworld. This fantastical otherworld. Anything was possible with enough willpower.
Slapping his forehead with his empty hand in frustration, Lee Jaehun shifted his thoughts.
“That’s not important right now.”
His primary goal was to dⁱㅌ with the murderer, and his secondary goal was to expose him. Lee Jaehun really didn’t want the remaining survivors wasting their energy on a mafia game after his death. That would be too inefficient.
So, he needed to locate Song Inmyeong first, but…
“…….”
It was hard to make a living.
‘Why use such a good ability to kill people? It’s driving me crazy.’
Song Inmyeong, infuriatingly talented at escaping, hadn’t left much of a trace.
That guy was fundamentally rotten and couldn’t be recycled, so even in his past life, Lee Jaehun would have kept him locked up in solitary confinement. But the waste of his talent was still regrettable. It truly was a waste.
‘If you’re going to use that ability like that, give it to someone else.’
Lee Jaehun chased after Song In-myeong with these thoughts, but in the end, he failed to catch him and ended up going in circles. As he hurried towards the flower field, he couldn’t stop grumbling to himself.
Lee Jaehun wanted to finish things quickly and quietly. He’d hoped the monsters would distract the other gathering teams, but the chicks, somewhat adapted to this world, had flocked in, so being quiet was out of the question.
At this point, he had no choice but to finish things before other survivors interfered…
“…….”
At that moment, a thought crossed Lee Jaehun’s mind.
“…No way…”
No way, right?
No innocent ones will get caught in the flower field, right?