Episode 147:
A small fire that was embarrassing to call a bonfire was burning, and the sound of dry tree branches collapsing from the heat was heard.
The two in front of the bright red light under the pitch-black sky did not say anything for a while.
It was Lee Jae-heon who opened his mouth first.
“…So…”
He continued, lightly wiping the corners of his mouth.
“Are you saying that In-ho Jeong died and returned to the past?”
“…I feel like yes. “It seems so.”
“So, people who should have died originally are alive….”
“Because I tried to do something. “I wanted to change it somehow.”
“….”
As Lee Jae-heon remained silent, Jeong In-ho, seeing him like that, took off his glasses and touched the area between his eyes. A voice cracked from fatigue came out from the mouth of the head that was bent down.
“…I can’t help it if it sounds crazy.”
My legs, which were sitting on the floor, had no strength.
Actually, I never thought it would be easy to trust him. When you die, you return to the past. Isn’t this a delusion or nonsense that only truly crazy people would say? And this world was a place that turned even normal people into crazy people. Looking at it that way, even if Lee Jae-heon asked Jung In-ho if he was crazy, he had nothing to say.
There may be a way to prove it, but I don’t have that much strength left, and if I were to ask Jung In-ho if he was completely sane, I wouldn’t be able to say yes. His honest feeling was that he couldn’t even trust himself.
Maybe I’ve just gone crazy.
“Maybe I’m just too stupid and weak… or maybe I just had a strange hallucination.”
“….”
“I may already be crazy, Manager.”
I wanted to cry, but not even a tear could fall.
In-ho Jeong has only told the story of one life at most. All I was saying for the first time was how I lived and how I died. The reality was that I had not even mentioned the second and third chances that I still remember.
Nevertheless, Jeong In-ho was afraid to speak out.
“I don’t know where my time ended…”
At this point, I couldn’t tell the difference.
Why am I still alive when I should have died? How many times have you died and how many times have you lived? Who is alive and who is dead. I couldn’t tell what was real and what was fake. It felt like everything had been crushed into one and had lost its original form.
Since I, who experienced the phenomenon myself, am sometimes confused, I wonder what other people would think about it. Even if Lee Jae-heon got angry and said that what I had said so far was not appropriate, Jeong In-ho did not have the power to refute it. It was so difficult and helpless.
And around that time, Lee Jae-heon, who had been quietly listening, opened his mouth.
“…I don’t believe it… I don’t.”
“….”
Jeong In-ho was only able to react one beat later.
“…yes?”
“So, I don’t think it’s a lie or crazy…”
“Why…”
“If you’re going to react like this, why on earth did you bring this up?”
He seemed a little puzzled. Should I say that it looks absurd?
Lee Jae-heon’s disapproval was clearly revealed by the hesitant look he was looking down at Jeong In-ho and his habitually frowning eyebrows.
“You probably know that I’ve met a crazy person or two, but you can’t be considered as crazy as Jeong In-ho. Unfortunately, it falls below the standard. “I’m overly self-conscious.”
“…even if you say so….”
“And I never thought that In-ho Jeong’s creativity or imagination was that good. But aren’t the things you just talked about clear causal relationships and consistent in context? “I know you’re too organized to be crazy, and you don’t have the temperament to lie.”
“….”
“No, before that. Why did you think I wouldn’t trust Inho Jeong? “I told them about my past to gain their trust, but what can I do if I do this?”
At those words, Jeong In-ho recalled something that happened not long ago, that is, not long ago. Lee Jae-heon briefly explained his past in front of Ha Seong-yoon and Jeong In-ho.
The feeling I felt at that moment was none other than absurdity.
“…Was that something you said to gain trust…?”
“…Then you probably took it out because you were bored?”
“Oh well. No, that’s not it…”
It was a little funny.
“I just… didn’t know that was your intention.”
At that time, you revealed your past not because of our urging, but for the sake of our trust. In the end, it meant that Lee Jae-heon also made an effort to somehow coexist with the current group.
“….”
No, wait a minute.
“…Then why did you say it that way last time?”
Then why did you talk like that when you went to help him when the monster attacked last time? Why did you say something like that that you don’t even see us as people?
“What are you talking about all of a sudden again?”
“No, last time the dog monsters came. No, what on earth is this….”
“Speak in human language, Jeong In-ho.”
“You are truly unlucky, manager.”
“Are you going to start a fight?”
“That’s not it…”
As I let out a bewildered laugh, I saw one of Lee Jae-heon’s eyebrows slightly raised. Then, Jeong In-ho was able to feel a strange feeling from the series of actions where he looked down with such a shameless face.
The words came out without me even having time to straighten my distorted expression.
“…I’m really unlucky….”
“You’re disgusting.”
“Wow, I’m so annoyed.”
Even so, the secretive laughter that leaked out could not be erased.
“There are times when you don’t lie. Why…”
In the end, I couldn’t help but notice that he was playing a trivial joke to lighten the mood.
It was quite funny when I thought about it that way. I don’t know why, but in the end, Director Lee Jae-heon tried to get closer to them, and even now, he was trying to lighten Jeong In-ho’s mood by making funny jokes that didn’t suit him.
‘Maybe it was similar before.’
At some point, Jeong In-ho recalled Manager Lee Jae-heon, whose tone became much lighter.
At the time, I just thought I was out of my mind and passed it off. It was thought to be such a minor change. However, I couldn’t help but laugh when I thought that even that was Manager Lee Jae-heon’s effort to somehow brighten the mood of the group.
It was surprising that the word ‘consideration’ could be so incompatible.
“…From what I heard, it looks like you’ve been back to the past several times. I don’t know what I did last time, but I guess you were quite frustrated.”
“You’re right, it was frustrating.”
“Why did you even fight?”
“You know very well.”
Jeong In-ho continued with a sigh due to the sudden feeling of unreality.
“The manager said he doesn’t even see us as people.”
“….”
“…Because we don’t look at the manager like a human being anyway… You continued to brazenly say that it would be okay even if you died…”
For a moment, I felt dizzy.
At that time, my mouth closed and muttered.
“….”
Didn’t Director Lee Jae-heon, who shamelessly acted like he wasn’t going to die, end up dying twice in places that In-ho Jeong couldn’t see?
Jeong In-ho looked up at Manager Lee Jae-heon with a blank look without realizing it. Seeing a dead person again in any way is a truly bizarre and mysterious thing. That’s how Jeong In-ho felt right now.
Even if it is still alive.
“…I said I was dead.”
“…yes.”
“They said it was bait. Dying to save others…”
“That’s right.”
“Then let me ask you something.”
Lee Jae-heon, who is still alive, asked.
“What time is it now?”
“….”
“How many times have I died and how many times have you died?”
I did expect you to ask that.
In fact, the current Manager Lee Jae-heon took a very conservative and passive attitude. It was also a time when he was keeping his distance from the anxiety that he might kill someone, and because of that, he had several big and small conflicts with Jung In-ho.
He said he made his past known to gain trust, but then why did he act so exclusive last time? What kind of change of heart occurred in the meantime? Or is it true or false?
“…It hasn’t been that long.”
“….”
“Now… this is only the second time.”
What should I do to keep you from dying?
So, ever since Lee Jae-heon’s second death, Jeong In-ho has had to worry about whether we all can survive. That was the only effort and enthusiasm that a man named In-ho Jeong could make. He shared Jaeheon Lee’s mental and physical burden in some way.
In fact, In-ho Jeong was not sure. Is it common for people to return to the past immediately after death? No, it was a situation that could not have happened according to common sense before it became common.
‘I’ve already experienced something ridiculous like that once, will I go back to the past again? ‘Will that happen?’
But I felt a strange intuition. Just as I had noticed before in front of the large lake full of green algae, now it is truly the end.
“Only the second time.”
So I felt like I might not be alone.
“…I guess you expected it after the first death… I tried to make sure that the whole group didn’t get killed by that green algae monster. “I don’t know if you remember that caterpillar.”
Jung In-ho thought it was probably some kind of awakening. Even though he didn’t know why I was alive, he instinctively ran to achieve a different result from the last time. I didn’t know how I got that strength.
Jaeheon Lee asked him.
“…Are you talking about the one that was put in the fish trap? “It smells a little like blood.”
“I lured him in with that. “Most monsters are fascinated by that.”
As I gently brushed the corner of my mouth with my finger, I noticed a familiar curve drawn there.
“That was when the manager first noticed my condition. I remember. “I tried to hide it as best as I could, but I was a little surprised when it was discovered.”
At that time, Jeong In-ho was not sure. I knew that Manager Lee Jae-heon was a sacrificial person to the point of being selfish, but it had only been a short time since I had actually talked to him. In the end, because they did not know the person named ‘Lee Jae-heon’, they distrusted him and refused to share the truth.
Nevertheless, I was very grateful that he said he would listen to me at any time.
“Really.”
“….”
“It’s funny, but it also comforts me…”
Jeong In-ho felt that his mouth had become unnecessarily honest, but he couldn’t take it back. I didn’t want to do that and there was no reason to do it.
If I die again anyway, I’ll forget everything.
“…Still, I came to my senses and worked hard, but the manager suddenly slept for three days. Team members become more and more anxious. And the first thing I do when I wake up is make a fish trap. “Does this make sense?”
“It looks like you have a lot accumulated.”
“There are a lot, a lot. Do you know that dog-like monsters are attacking the place where our group is currently located? Do you know that because of that, Detective Hong Gyeong-jun’s team and our team will be combined? Why is there some idiot there? “I don’t know if you know that the manager was murdered because of that kid.”
My voice naturally trembled due to the frustration and nervousness welling up from my danjeon.
“This time I saw a corpse. “I saw how you died.”
The corpse of Director Lee Jae-heon, which I saw for the first time in my life, was indescribably horrific.
He had his eyes closed as if he were sleeping. Contrary to his calm eyelids, his entire body, including his hands, was in chaos, and his abdomen was torn to the point where his internal organs were almost spilling out, making it difficult to open his eyes and look at it.
Anyone could see that it looked like a person who had been tortured to death.
“…Thanks to you… Kang Min-ah was very shocked.”
“…Why?”
“Because I remembered everything that happened back then.”
“….”
“It’s funny to hear that you had some kind of deal with that bastard.”
After a while, Kang Min-ah, who regained her senses, went crazy again.
The incident at the company was repeated, and this time, Manager Lee Jae-heon died in her place. Even though she can’t actually be said to be a ‘great minister’, in Kang Min-ah’s opinion, the reason Lee Jae-heon died was because of her.
“He was holding on to Kang Min-ah while hanging on a tree root. Just like that, I asked that art-sick bastard for a deal. Well, what did it say?”
“….”
“Instead of torturing me like this, don’t drop me. I heard you made a deal to try to save that person somehow, since if you fall from that state, both the manager and Kang Min-ah will die…” I looked at Lee Jae-heon, trailing off, and
he answered in a mechanical voice.
“I can’t possibly do that.”
“…I thought you would say that.”
“okay.”
Nevertheless, Jaeheon Lee just snorted and spoke. I don’t know if it was because he really didn’t believe it or because he didn’t want to admit it, but what was certain was that Jeong In-ho was heartbroken by such a reaction.
He pressed his temples and continued speaking.
“Well… after that it was similar to last time. Detective Hong Gyeong-jun has become a maverick again, and thanks to the people he killed there, people are going crazy. “The mood is getting worse day by day.”
In particular, in the case of Vivian, who had both the killer and the victim as friends, it was impossible to say anything. Because of his close relationship with Song In-myeong, he had to face the distrustful gaze of quite a few people, including Detective Hong Gyeong-jun. It was a pity for him to lose two friends out of nowhere.
Jeong In-ho knew how terrible the situation was.
“Because I was also suspected of that.”
This time too, police officer Kim Yeon-woo urged people to refrain from making groundless charges, but things did not get better. Jeong In-ho couldn’t help but swallow his sadness as he saw her working hard in everything.
“Yeonseok was also one of the people who hated Vivian. I know it’s a ridiculous way to vent, but it’s true that Kang Min-ah ended up like that… because of Song In-myeong. “I blamed myself for doing such an ugly thing to a fellow student, but I did not change my attitude.”
“….”
“…Then the monster came. It was a green monster. Yes. It’s a green algae monster. It’s much faster and stronger than before, but I thought I was watching some kind of battery commercial. What was it? Oh my gosh, he’s so big that he kills people almost like he’s fishing…” “
….”
“…a sick person like the manager has come out.”
My fingertips were shaking.
“He feels murderous towards living things and wants to kill them… Just like last time. “I’m just as crazy again.”
“…Mr. Jeong In-ho.”
“I had to kill again. Who will kill it if not me? Isn’t that right? It has to be someone who has killed and died once. If not me, who would tell me to kill someone?…”
“Calm down.”
“This time, it was President Choi Jeong-man.”
“….”
“…You endured it for quite some time, but then you saw your son’s body.”
I felt a familiar sense of déjà vu and couldn’t even get there.
“What that bastard killed was President Choi Jeong-man’s son.”
After that, things were very similar.
Seeds of distrust. Escalating conflict. A divided team. The traces of the killer burrowing through them and the intrusion of monsters that disrupt them. Humans turning into monsters and green algae monsters watching as if they were watching.
In-ho Jeong was the one who had the choice.
“…This time too… I didn’t want to be alone.”
“….”
“I was scared. I’m sorry. I was so scared… I ran away. If it continues like this, I think it will be the same again. I was afraid that I would kill everyone, monsters and people, and then be alone again to see the bright morning… I didn’t want to do that…” I decided
to let go of the choice I was holding on to, at least this time.
“You know what? “It would have been okay if the manager had been alive.”
“…gibberish.”
“It would have been better for you to be here than for me. I would have found a better way and made it into a better situation. Rather than having a nobody like me alive. “I just keep failing.”
“That can’t be possible, right?”
“So please don’t die…”
“….”
“…please…”
For Jeong In-ho, all the freedom to make choices came from Director Lee Jae-heon. If he didn’t exist, everything would have been ruined in the first place. Isn’t that clear?
He muttered as if he was praying to an amulet.
“Don’t die, boss.”
“….”
“Don’t die….”
It felt like a curse.
Even if Jeong In-ho heard it.
(Continued in the next part)
