<Episode 57>
“That’s a ridiculous rumor,” I thought, and had erased it from my mind.
So why did those words suddenly come back to me after hearing what Seah said?
“…So you do know something, Manager.”
“It’s not like that.”
Seah leaned closer toward me.
“I can tell just by looking at your expression. Something is bothering you, isn’t it? Right?”
Ignoring her desperate gaze, I shook my head.
“Honestly, I can’t believe it. Killing someone in front of everyone? Why would Hunter Lee Hyunwoo do something like that?”
“I didn’t see it wrong! There were other witnesses too!”
“…Other witnesses?”
She nodded eagerly.
“There are other victims from the Incheon Gate Incident who suffered because of him. They were too afraid of the media to come forward, but… if I ask for help, they’ll definitely speak up.”
“Wait. The Incheon Gate Incident?”
“You know about it too, don’t you? It was the worst incident in history.”
A trace of moisture entered Seah’s voice.
“At the time, our wedding was only a week away. We were planning to go to Bali for our honeymoon. We were so happy.”
Large tears rolled down her cheeks. Roughly wiping her face with her sleeve, she trembled and shouted.
“But just because he was in a bad mood! Does that mean he can kill people? What did that kind man ever do wrong? Hic… sob…”
Seah stepped down from her chair and slowly knelt in front of me.
“…Please help me just once, Manager. Please.”
I couldn’t tell what kind of help she was asking for.
Was she asking me not to report her?
Or was she asking me to reveal whatever I knew?
Perhaps she was even asking me to help her get revenge on Hunter Lee Hyunwoo.
I clenched my apron until my knuckles turned white.
What was true and what was false?
My thoughts were in complete chaos.
“…First, Seah, please stand up.”
When I personally helped her to her feet, a faint color returned to her face.
She seemed to think she had managed to sway me.
“I don’t think you’re lying, Seah. But… I’m still confused.”
I carefully held her shoulders with trembling hands.
“One day. Just give me one more day to think about it. You can give me that much time, right?”
“Of course. I understand how confused you must be.”
I told her that, just in case, I would keep her phone until tomorrow.
She hesitated for a moment before nodding.
“…That’s something I deserve to endure. Then I’ll see you tomorrow. Please think carefully about what I told you.”
The moment she disappeared from the shop, Ari immediately rushed over.
“Unnie! You’re not actually believing everything that woman said, are you? She’s obviously lying!”
“…Ari, do you really think Hunter Lee Hyunwoo didn’t kill Seah’s fiancé?”
Shock spread across Ari’s face.
“…You know him. He may be scary, but he’s not the kind of person who would kill a civilian for no reason.”
Ari called even strangers “unnie” and “oppa” as if they were close friends, yet she still used the utmost honorifics when speaking about Lee Hyunwoo.
Even Ari, who was clearly intimidated by him, insisted on his innocence.
“I don’t think Hunter Lee Hyunwoo is that kind of person either.”
“Then why did you…!”
“Just because I want to believe something doesn’t make it the truth.”
‘…Seah’s desire for revenge was genuine.’
I knew the look in the eyes of someone who had lost a precious person.
She truly wanted revenge for her fiancé.
So was everything she said true?
‘…No way.’
At least, the Lee Hyunwoo I knew wasn’t that kind of person.
Clenching my fists, I spoke quietly.
“Alright. I’m going to uncover the truth about that day that Yoon Seah talked about.”
“…The truth? How?”
Using the excuse that it was getting late, I sent the curious Ari home.
After cleaning up the shop and returning to my dormitory, I immediately turned on my laptop and logged into Underworld.com.
Hanyang’s tail swayed slowly with interest.
“Oho, so this was your method all along, nya?”
The method I found was an item sold on Underworld.com called the Potion of Truth.
I had stumbled across it while window-shopping before.
According to the description, if you drank it and fell asleep, it would show you whatever truth you wished to see.
The price was 10,000 points.
For a single-use item, it was outrageously expensive.
“…Looks like I’ll have to take out a loan.”
I searched through the status window’s past logs and found Underworld Capital.
—
Not enough points? Let Underworld Capital help!
Maximum loan amount: 100,000 points!
(Repayment period: Until the day you die)
> Apply for a loan now
—
With trembling hands, I applied for a 10,000-point loan.
The approval notification arrived the moment I submitted the request.
For some reason, I let out a small sigh.
At least the repayment period was generous.
‘It’s not like they’ll make me repay it with my life, right?’
The ominous thought crossed my mind, and I quickly shook my head.
A loan was just a loan. I could pay it back.
And if I completed enough requests, maybe I could repay it sooner than expected.
“Right now, I need to focus on finding the truth.”
After taking a deep breath, I pressed the Purchase button.
The loaned points disappeared into thin air in less than a second, but I had no regrets.
Soon, a small bottle filled with a mysterious violet liquid appeared in my hand.
“You’re going to drink it yourself, nya?”
“Of course. I want to see the truth with my own eyes.”
“Are you really that concerned about Yoon Seah’s fiancé, nya?”
I shook my head.
There was something even more important than the death of Yoon Seah’s fiancé.
“It’s not that. The Incheon Gate Incident is extremely important to me too.”
Slowly, I removed the cork from the bottle.
With a crisp pop, a rich aroma rose up, as if grape wine had been concentrated tenfold.
“Hanyang. If something happens, wake me up, okay?”
“Don’t worry, nya.”
Closing my eyes tightly, I gulped down the potion.
An intensely sweet, syrupy flavor slid down my throat, so thick it felt like it could numb my tongue.
‘Ugh. I feel like I’m going to throw up…’
My stomach churned as though I were heavily drunk.
As nausea overturned my insides, I hurriedly tried to stand…
But my consciousness cut out like a blown fuse.
***
‘Ugh… I feel sick…’
When I opened my eyes again, I found myself in a familiar neighborhood lined with shopping buildings.
The local bakery at the intersection.
Even the piano academy above it.
There wasn’t a trace of fear on the faces of the people walking through these peaceful streets.
‘…Is this before the Gate appeared?’
I tried to move forward, but my translucent legs wouldn’t budge, as if they were nailed to the ground.
Having no choice, I stood there looking around.
Then…
“KYAAAAAAAH!!!!”
A shrill scream rang out.
At the same time, a massive Gate appeared in the gloomy sky as though a hole had been torn open in reality itself.
It was enormous enough to swallow entire buildings whole.
Panicked voices erupted from every direction.
“A Gate all of a sudden? Nobody said anything about this!”
“Aah! Honey! Look over there!”
“Mom! Mom! I’m over here!”
The people running around in confusion looked like a fast-forwarded video.
Soon, they all began fleeing in the opposite direction from where the Gate had appeared.
‘Where’s Seah? Where is she?’
No matter how much I looked around, I couldn’t find her.
I was forcing my immobile legs to move when…
‘…Ah.’
The moment I looked up, my view suddenly changed.
The buildings that had been intact just moments ago were now reduced to ruins.
Flames surged everywhere.
Faced with the horrific scene, I instinctively held my breath.
“W-Where are the Hunters? When are they coming?!”
“How should I know?! My phone won’t connect– AAH! W-What is that?!”
Grrrrr…
Grrk!
Wolf-like monsters with three heads wandered across shattered asphalt, twisting their neck joints into grotesque angles.
“R-Run away!!”
Terrified civilians rushed past me.
Then I saw a man and a woman collapsed on the ground.
“C-Cough! Honey, go on without me!”
“What are you talking about?! Get up! We have to go together!”
‘…Mom. Dad.’
The moment I heard those voices again after so long, I forgot even how to breathe.
The Incheon Gate Incident.
A massive A-Rank Gate that occurred during the height of the standoff between the government and the Hunter Management Bureau.
Because of the inadequate initial response, it became one of the worst Gate disasters in history, claiming countless casualties.
‘My parents died in that Gate disaster.’
On the day the Gate appeared, I had been at the beach with friends.
That was why I survived.
But it also meant I could never witness my parents’ final moments.
Unable to look away, I watched the two people I had missed so desperately as they ran through the flames.
Unlike before, when my perspective had been fixed in place, my viewpoint now moved naturally alongside them.
“Shh! There’s a monster over there too. Let’s escape through the back.”
“I’ll take the lead. Follow me.”
“My husband is so dependable!”
Holding hands tightly, my parents hurried through the shattered alleyways.
Then my father spotted a gigantic monster standing on the main road and forcefully pulled my mother along.
After exchanging a glance, the two of them slipped into a nearby mansion beside a half-collapsed wall.
An old estate with low pine trees planted around it.
It was the place where they met their horrific deaths.
The moment I realized that, I rushed in front of them.
‘Not here! It’s dangerous!!’
But no matter how loudly I screamed or tried to block their path, there was nothing I could do.
‘Mom!! Dad!!! Can’t you hear me?!’
Knowing nothing, they passed straight through me and entered the mansion.
Only then did I realize what the Potion of Truth was trying to show me.
It wanted to reveal the truth about my parents’ deaths.
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