C 117
I stared at my dad, and he smiled. This whole situation really felt like a dream.
A scream was heard outside; Mother was sitting on the floor as if her strength had been drained, but Dad remained very calm and at peace.
Everything is surreal.
"You can do whatever you want. How about thinking about wanting to go back this time?"
"Ah..."
"So let's go back home."
I was about to nod my head after understanding what Dad had said.
"Where are you going?!"
Unbeknownst to me, Cha Yido and Chai Hyun approached and roughly pulled my wrist.
Even if it weren't for that, my body, weakened by the long stay in the hospital, was swaying a lot.
My dad's forehead, who was trying to hold onto my shoulder so they wouldn't take me away, furrowed, and he let go as if worried I would be pulled from both sides.
"Some people can't even touch a girl because she's so precious," Dad muttered quietly.
"Your home is here. Are you insane? How the hell did you meet that lunatic?"
"...Let go of me."
I frowned at the discomfort arising from the tightly gripped wrist.
I tried to twist their wrists, but their grip was stronger than expected.
Even after becoming a full-fledged adult, the complaints hadn't changed.
"Sister, are you really crazy?"
"Did that person do something to you? Why are you covering for him like this?"
Laughter bubbled up.
"I would have been sleeping here all this time. What could he have done to me?"
In response to my questioning, the two men fell silent.
Two people who graduated from prestigious universities would know how absurd this is from a common-sense perspective.
"Let me go."
I desperately pulled my wrist and ran towards my dad. My hand was so red that I thought it might be bruised.
"You're freaking insane! You're really insane! Even if I have you committed to a psychiatric hospital..."
"Yes, I've gone crazy. So please don't come and pretend to be my family. Thanks to you, my whole life was hell, and I was unhappy."
It was a life in which I couldn't die. How much do these guys really know?
They probably never will.
"Why are you talking like that?"
I laughed wildly.
As if my behavior had been too fierce, the two men shivered as if they were still children.
It was worth it. I hadn't confronted them since they scolded me when I was a child.
"I should have died horribly that day, right in front of you."
As soon as I finished my words, my mother jumped out of her seat and advanced.
My mother, who had met my eyes without seeing me, looked at me with her mouth tightly closed and then raised her hand.
Contrary to my expectations, the trembling hand didn't hit me in the face.
Even though I was looking at her tear-filled eyes, there was no emotion. It just seemed a little funny to me.
So I put on the tip of my tongue the words I had always thought.
"Mother, I... thought you'd regret it if I died."
That's why I didn't try to escape from the skidding truck that day, even though I knew it was a stupid decision.
I don't know what kind of courage I had.
It would probably be a choice I could never make again.
"So it was a shame I didn't die..."
I wasn't in the mood to laugh, but I forced a smile. Just like Dad smiles, brighter than anyone.
Hoping that her heart would shatter, if she feels any guilt for me.
"You...!"
"I'm glad to see my mother's expression makes me happy that she's alive."
"You...! How can you say that in front of your mother...?"
Tears ran down my mother's cheeks, who was always sharp and sensitive.
"Mother."
"......"
"Do you really think that day was the only time I tried to die?"
Hearing my words, my mother's pupils dilated and widened.
Looking at her wavering eyes, a slight pleasure welled up from my stomach.
"That day, I finally succeeded."
It was fun to see that every single word I said hurt like a dagger.
I thought she knew she was sick too.
I stared at my mother's trembling eyes.
"They were the only children of mother and father anyway. So why was I born?"
Yes, I always wanted to do this.
I hope you know even if it's just a small part of how much I was hurt over and over again.
"Whether it's guilt towards my mother or affection towards me, it's lucky that something remains."
"...You."
"Thanks to you, I can see this expression. I hope you suffer guilt for the rest of your life. And then..."
I pursed my lips and forced a smile.
"...die."
I approached my dad.
Dad embraced me as if he had been waiting. My mother startled and came closer to me.
"...Let's go back, Dad."
"Where are you going?! Don't leave!"
Mother approached me. My mother's hand brushed the air as Dad took a step back while still hugging me.
A crease appeared between Dad's brows.
"So be it. But before that..."
Dad slowly took my hand. He seemed to feel bad when he saw my bruised wrist.
"Daughter, do you want me to kill them all?"
"......"
My eyes looking at my dad grew larger without me realizing it.
Dad looked at me for a long time as if calculating something and then shrugged.
"It's a joke."
"Ah, yes..."
I nodded and closed my eyes slowly.
Will my imagination really become a reality in my reality?
There was a slightly uncomfortable element, but I still couldn't find a way back.
"I want to go back to my dad. I want to be Eirin again..."
I no longer wanted to be in this world.
When I thought that, my eyes froze.
Finally, with Dad holding my trembling body firmly, my mind sank deep.
---
Erno Etham witnessed in real time as he watched the girl slowly collapse and her body become transparent.
Pop, pop, pop!
There was a familiar sound. It stretched slowly, like the sound of a broken musical instrument.
Bum, bum, bum.
It was someone's heartbeat.
Erno Etham suddenly realized that the place he was in had changed.
In total darkness where there was nothing in the cold and unfamiliar world where everything was seen for the first time.
"That was my daughter's world."
That's why she was smarter than he thought and why she seemed mature enough for her age.
It wasn't surprising. Because the girl always had a special corner.
"I was serious when I said I would kill them."
The meaning of the previous thread of life not being cut might be because they are still alive.
If he had arrived in that world alone, he would have killed the girl's former family without remorse.
He would do it so that the girl could fully belong to himself and his world.
However, the girl seemed more surprised than he thought by his suggestion, so he slightly changed his words as if it were a joke.
"So, where is this place?"
It's in the endless darkness.
Crack, crack.
As he slowly walked through a desolate and dark space looking for a way, he heard the sound of a broken cogwheel rolling with difficulty somewhere.
Erno Etham turned his gaze to the source of the sound. There was a huge and very old cogwheel.
And in front of it, a little girl was squatting and busy drawing something with a drawing notebook, crayons, and pencils scattered and lined up.
Beside the girl, there were several buttons surrounded by round, transparent spheres, and to the left, several books that looked like fairy tale books were stacked.
Erno Etham approached the girl with a muted step.
It was because he felt the girl would be very surprised if he made a sound.
But even that didn't seem to be of much use.
Crack.
Erno Etham didn't notice the crayon rolling and stepped on it.
Indeed, the girl, startled by the sound, turned her head to where Erno Etham was.
The terrified girl, with round eyes, had a familiar face.
"You..."
"Who is...?"
The girl, surprised to see Erno Etham, hesitated and stood up from her seat.
"I am..."
"It's strange... You can't come... No one can come here..."
The girl gasped and trembled.
Erno Etham looked at the frightened girl and pursed his lips several times.
"My way..."
The girl's eyes widened at Erno Etham's words.
"I'm lost."
Erno Etham, who couldn't find anything else to say, spit out a rather pathetic excuse.
"Ah, the way..."
The girl nodded as if she were a little relieved.
"Then I'll send you back, sir."
Sir...
Faced with the unfamiliar title, Erno Etham frowned and muttered softly, then smiled.
"Really?"
"Yes!"
"How?"
"Oh, didn't you know! This is a place where everything I can imagine comes true!"
Upon the girl's words, Erno Etham's eyes opened slightly.
It was because it felt very similar to Eirin's dragon ability.
"...I see, why are you here?"
The girl's expression became even more sullen at Erno Etham's question.
The corners of her eyes drooped, her lips formed a triangular shape, and her pupils moved as if looking into his eyes.
"Shhh..."
As if telling a secret story, the girl lowered her voice to the maximum and her lips parted slightly.
Ko-fi o 'Buy Me A Coffe' for Adv4nc3 Chapt3r
Publication of up to 5 weekly ch4pt3rs, thanks.