Chapter 312
“Wait, there's no need to kill me, is there?”
“Over there, Yoon Gaeul.”
“Yes, yes?”
“Have you ever seen this guy in your memories?”
Gaeul. We’ve shared so much. Uijae gave her the most earnest look he could muster. But Gaeul hesitated before shaking her head.
“No… I really don’t know you.”
System, you piece of shit.
“Same here. This is the Memorial Dungeon… a being who wasn’t in anyone’s memories has popped up as a foreign entity, and you want to let it live?”
“......”
“Not to mention, this is the kind of bastard who doesn’t die even when I choke him…”
The arm around his neck tightened.
“The fewer variables, the better.”
“That’s true, but…”
Uijae frowned. Damn it, why is his arm so thick? Lee Sa-young’s argument was, unfortunately, completely valid. Even Uijae, if it were up to him, would have decided to eliminate the variable. But...
‘You should recognize me.’
A feeling of inexplicable bitterness rose. Uijae, unable to hold back, punched the arm that was choking him. A frustrated sigh came from behind him. A low voice whispered in his ear. Goosebumps crawled up his skin.
“Stay still... I’m letting you breathe.”
What?
He didn’t need an answer to know. The pressure around his neck increased. Ah, right. He had been holding back, wanting to kill me. Our Sa-young really doesn’t kill people immediately. How impressive.
A piece of trash with a broken personality.
Uijae could no longer hold back. After being apart for so long... like this...
Thud!
“…Ugh!”
The pressure on his neck loosened. The body pressed against his back bent forward. Uijae quickly pulled away from Lee Sa-young’s grip, retreating from his arms. He was faster than expected. He always was.
Uijae pointed his finger at Lee Sa-young’s face and shouted.
“Choking people right away, trying to kill them! Is this even reasonable? Are you out of your mind?”
“......”
“At least listen to the person before attacking, you rude bastard!”
“......”
“I taught you better than this! Huh!”
Uijae let out a tirade of anger, shooting words like a machine gun. This kid had lost his discipline while I was gone, doesn’t he realize how hard I worked to get here? Doesn’t he understand how worried I was...? Lee Sa-young, still holding his bruised chest, just looked at Uijae with a blank expression.
Meanwhile, Honeybee muttered with a serious expression.
“Is he speaking another language... Is he really a foreigner?”
Anyway, Uijae’s rant and reprimand went on for a while. He felt a little better after venting everything. He wiped the sweat from his forehead with a satisfied face. Lee Sa-young muttered under his breath.
“Damn, what the hell are you saying...”
“Sorry, but what did you say after calling me rude?”
Unfortunately, Uijae’s words didn’t seem to get through properly. It seemed like they only heard “You rude bastard!” and nothing else. It was hopeless.
‘Does the content about me being Cha Uijae get distorted?’
This was problematic. The truth is, the way to escape this Memorial Dungeon is simple: just wait until your role is done.
‘But then... Lee Sa-young has to stay here too long.’
That’s why he came to get them in the first place. To make sure they wouldn’t be alone for so long. Being alone is just too lonely.
Opening the dungeon entrance, he was supposed to take the three people trapped in the Memorial Dungeon out. That was his goal... Uijae glanced around. Honeybee was hiding Gaeul behind her and aiming a rapier, and Lee Sa-young was...
“......”
Staring at Uijae intently. Still holding his bruised chest. Staring a hole through him. Uijae subtly looked away.
‘From the very first step, I messed up.’
He wasn’t going to follow him easily, was he? Then, an excellent idea struck him.
‘Let’s knock him out and take him.’
Lead them to the dungeon entrance and knock them out first. Carry one of them, and squeeze the other two on either side. Once they wake up, they’ll be back in the original world, and they’ll understand each other. Uijae smiled with satisfaction. First, make it happen! Then, explain later! This was the moment for his philosophy to shine.
So, Uijae ran.
“Hey? Wait! Where are you going?”
“Oh no, should we follow? It could be a trap…”
“Don’t let him get away.”
“Gaeul, if you can’t run, get on my back!”
“Yes? Oh, yes!”
"Three people started to follow him. Uijae scanned the surroundings with the eyes of a tracker. Fortunately, the portal he had entered was nearby. With a whoosh, the black walker stopped, raising a cloud of white dust. The dungeon's entrance swirled in blue as it rotated.
The three people arrived soon after. Honeybee, who had been carrying Gaeul, widened her eyes in surprise.
"...What, a portal?"
Good. It seems they can see it too, so there's no need to knock them out immediately. Uijae pointed at the dungeon entrance and spoke clearly.
"Let's go."
"......"
"Surely this doesn't sound weird to you? Let's get out. Okay?"
"I can hear you. Wait, was this strange energy reaction you felt from here? Is this really the entrance to a dungeon?"
Sa-young, who had been observing the portal, replied.
"It's the same color as the entrance to the Jongno 3-ga underground dungeon. The energy too."
"My God..."
A bright smile slowly spread across Honeybee's face. She grabbed Uijae's shoulder excitedly and bombarded him with questions.
"Did you open a closed dungeon? How did you do it? Who are you anyway? Did you come here on purpose to pick us up? Wait, this is the entrance, right?"
Uijae nodded to each question. With each nod, Honeybee's face brightened even more—a smile like those seen in commercials. She embraced Gaeul with a beaming face.
"Crazy! We can get out, Gaeul!"
"Uh, sister...!"
"Ah, this damned shitty place! We need to get out fast. I don't want to see Matthew's dying face with my own eyes."
Without hesitation, Honeybee stepped into the portal. Her figure disappeared without a trace. Classic Honeybee, always so decisive. But Gaeul hesitated in front of the portal.
At that moment.
Uijae felt a sucking sensation. He quickly looked at the portal. The swirling portal was getting smaller. A desperate voice came from beyond the entrance.
"Keep the door... come back...!"
"......!"
"Mr. J! ...if not... can't open the door......"
Damn it! Uijae clenched his teeth. It seemed the portal's duration was ending. He couldn't hesitate any longer.
"Sorry, student Gaeul!"
"Huh? Aaah...!"
Uijae pushed Gaeul, who had been hesitating at the portal. With a scream, Gaeul disappeared into the portal. Now only two people remained. Had he recognized who he was by now?
"Sa-young! You too..."
Uijae tried to turn around, but a large body hugged him from behind, preventing him from seeing the face. Thick, solid arms wrapped around Uijae's shoulders and neck. Large hands rubbed his bandaged nape. A throbbing pain arose wherever the fingertips touched. Soft hair brushed against his ear, and a low voice whispered.
"Brother."
"......"
"Will you stay here?"
"......"
"Just the two of us... until the world ends."
"...Why, you want to strangle me again if you can't recognize me?"
"Hmm... I don't feel like it, but if that's what you want, brother."
"I'm not into that kind of thing."
"It's all a joke."
Their skin trembled with laughter. Uijae looked at the shrinking portal and replied.
"Did you finally recognize me?"
"Ah... I'm sorry about earlier... I thought I was seeing an illusion again."
"......"
"I'm more familiar with seeing you dead... I never thought it could be real."
With such words, there was nothing left to say. Lips barely touched the earlobe, then a wet tongue swept over it. Damn. His waist tickled. Uijae shrugged his shoulders and neck. A low laughter burst out, and soft lips touched and left his temples and cheeks. It felt like an empty space was being filled. Uijae grabbed the arms around his neck.
"...Does my face still look weird to you?"
"Right. It looks a bit bare... like it's shrouded in fog."
"But you still want this?"
"When have I ever liked you for your face?"
Large hands gently grasped his chin and turned his head towards him. Uijae didn't resist. Their eyes met. The familiar kindness returned to those purple eyes. Slightly rough lips touched his. Uijae, as always, slightly opened his mouth, but no tongue came in. Instead, several light kisses fell like pecking birds. Low words flowed between the touching lips.
"It's good because you're my brother."
"......"
It felt like his head was melting. There were so many things he wanted to say. He wanted to talk about what he had seen in Prometheus' lab, and about the past when he wasn't there. He wanted to ask how it had been for him. I was not okay just from seeing those fragments, but what about you?
Before he knew it, the portal had shrunk to the size of Uijae's upper body. He really couldn't hesitate any longer. Uijae put on a black mask, then grabbed Sa-young's hand.
"Let's go."
"......"
"It's time to go back."
Sa-young smiled.
That kind of talk could wait until they got back. There was plenty of time. Uijae reached out his hand towards the portal. His body was sucked in. At that moment.
Thud.
"I can't go."
What?
The warmth he had felt in his hand disappeared. Uijae hurriedly turned around. He saw nothing. The sensation of the world twisting shook his entire body. The noise around him struck his ears.
"Mr. J has returned!"
"Mr. J's return is complete!"
"All three members have returned."
Uijae opened his eyes. Then he spread the hand he had been holding.
Only one black glove remained.