Chapter 554 – Alone at School (4) Fin
—
– Kim Ahri
“Agent, aren’t you cold?”
“…”
He didn’t respond.
Instead, I recalled information about ‘Pale Breath.’
*
“Pale Breath”
Serial Number: C – 2213
Danger Level: C
An apparition that appears on cold winter nights.
It tempts those in crisis with a painful, dying fate, offering to spare them in exchange for the sacrifice of their loved ones.
By doing so, they are promised a frozen heart that can withstand the harsh winter.
Management Procedure: Contain.
First, confine the infected host in an isolation area inaccessible to the public.
Second, —
*
According to the records, that old man extended his life by sacrificing his cherished one after getting ‘infected’ by Pale Breath.
That’s why I have no sympathy for that host or sacrifice.
— Swooosh…
The sound of freezing breath began to grow.
The temperature plummeted.
Even though the heater was working, and it was only early autumn, frost started forming on the windows.
Seungyub had mentioned it was hard to endure the cold.
In his ‘Triune Transformation,’ he flaunted how the campfire inside the containment zone chased off the chill, but…
In reality, he wasn’t holding out because of the campfire.
He just believed that’s what it was.
“Agent, where are we going?”
“I told you, I’m going to your house.”
“My house? My son and daughter-in-law live in Gangneung.”
“More precisely, I should say they lived there. Your son and daughter-in-law died 22 years ago.”
“…”
— Crackle!
The sound of the window freezing over echoed.
It was getting hard to endure, but that’s okay.
We were almost there.
— Creak!
“We’re here.”
“What is this place?”
We stopped in front of an old apartment.
It was called ‘Rainbow Apartment,’ but that hardly matters.
After all, it’s not like I’m isolating it in real-life Rainbow Apartments.
“Your name is Kim Dong-ho, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Mr. Kim Dong-ho, you’ll be staying here. This is, um, a housing facility provided by the current government for the elderly—”
I babbled some nonsense as I climbed the stairs with the old man.
And then.
— Click!
The apartment’s main door locked.
“… The door is locked.”
Inside the ‘isolation zone’ of Bangbae Middle School.
Seungyub seems to blame the Management Bureau for the door locking and his inability to escape physically from the quarantine zone.
But that’s not it.
The Bureau’s control prevents access to that ‘isolation space,’ but it has nothing to do with being stuck inside the school.
It’s the power of ‘Pale Breath.’
“Exactly.”
The old man smiled chillingly, as if to say that now, he too would not be escaping this frozen world.
“…”
As someone who makes a living isolating chaos entities, I often find myself curious.
Do you find joy in trapping victims in places like this?
Do you understand the situation where we’re keeping you isolated?
What were you thinking when you let your son and daughter-in-law freeze to death?
Finally.
Are you still human now?
Or, are you ‘Pale Breath’?
“…”
If you gaze long into the abyss, the abyss also gazes back at you.
Thus, do not communicate with monsters.
This is one of the oldest maxims passed down by the Management Bureau.
I unfolded a drawing.
— Flutter!
“Hmm? Agent, what’s that drawing—”
And then, there was no one left.
The old man would exhale the ‘Pale Breath’ until his last breath in this frozen world.
Once he dies, ‘Pale Breath’ will be liberated to find a new host.
And we will isolate ‘Pale Breath’ and its sacrifice once more.
That’s just how the world operates.
*
— Splosh!
The moment I woke up next to Mookseong, a cup of water splashed over me.
“Cough!”
“…”
“Ha ha! Look at you, drenched like a rat – Urgh!”
One punch was all it took to silence Mookseong.
I shot him a bemused glare as he tacked on a ridiculous excuse.
“Hey, hey. How bored do you think I was?”
“…”
“Since you’re planning to escape to the Kingdom of Dreams, I had to take a nap, but I needed to know when you’d be escaping!”
Thanks to that, Mookseong had to doze off on the bench until I used my powers in the Kingdom of Dreams.
Maybe he was on some sleeping pills or something.
I get that it’s tedious, but splashing water on me the moment I wake up?
Still stuck in middle school, huh?
“By the way, Seungyub called.”
“Did he get home okay?”
“Yeah, he did! And he was boasting up a storm!”
“Really?”
“While listening, I realized… that dude figured out the perfect counter to ‘Pale Breath’!”
“…”
Serial Number C – 2213, the most perfect countering method to Pale Breath.
Even with the world freezing and your body hardening from cold, the ‘heart’ does not freeze.
A warm heart, capable of withstanding even Arctic chills, is indeed the solution.
It’s the perfect answer, but also one that’s hard for an agent to actually put into practice.
Think about it.
How could you maintain a warm heart knowing that old man sacrificed his own son and daughter-in-law to save his own skin from Pale Breath?
“Sophia and I had a short chat, and Seungyub seemed especially dumber than usual.”
“…”
“Thinking too much; if he calculates as he usually does, then his warm heart might just melt away, and luck might guide him instead. Anyway, what’s done is done….”
“Anything else you want to say?”
“Cha Jinchul contacted me.”
“…”
“He says it’s about to begin.”
Before returning to reality, we all had a deep conversation on the Gate Train.
Among those talks was the strange request made by Cha Jinchul.
*
“Ahri, I’ve been thinking a lot, but I want to become an agent.”
“An agent? That’s not easy. You’re a top-notch talent that the bureau is keen on, so I could report—”
“Nope, not that.”
“What?”
“I’d rather you NOT report on me.”
“What’s that supposed to mean—”
“Can you do that?”
*
Someone would have tried to persuade with bizarre wordplay or thorough logic on why ‘I shouldn’t report him to the Bureau.’
But Jinchul instead made a heartfelt request.
An absurd yet emotional attempt.
“Ahri, I never thought you’d take that guy’s request to heart.”
“…”
Deceiving the Bureau regarding the hotel is easy.
Simply put, the Bureau knows very little about us.
They don’t even know how many people attended the hotel party accurately.
When it comes to what blessings and inheritances each of us possesses, they probably know more of what they don’t know than what they do.
I hid a substantial amount of information.
“Is that okay?”
“…”
“Didn’t they press you hard?”
“Not really. On the contrary, there’s talk of a promotion.”
“A promotion?”
The topic of conversation returned to Cha Jinchul.
“By the way, what’s up with him? Does he really think being an agent is all that great?”
“It sure seems mystical, honorable, and with a nice paycheck, so there’s reason to like it.”
“Does it really feel that way from the outside?”
“More like I don’t get why he’s acting so dumb.”
“Dumb?”
“Like, if I reported on him to the Bureau, they’d immediately pin a medal on him.”
“I guess so.”
“But he doesn’t want that, right?”
“Hmmm…”
Mookseong, after pondering for a minute, proposed his theory.
“Isn’t it like the psychology of a chaebol second-generation wanting to succeed on their own without parental help?”
“That’s a completely different situation! In order to become an agent, talent isn’t what matters!”
“Is it not?”
Mookseong’s expression was indifferent.
He seemed to have the attitude that whatever happens has little to do with him.
I get it.
Just before leaving, I glanced back at my ‘former colleague.’
“Take it easy.”
“…”
“Spend a happy time with your son and grandson.”
“Don’t say goodbye as if I’m leaving forever; it’s just a vacation, a vacation!”
For Kim Mookseong, his wish in ‘dreams’ was to revive his son and daughter-in-law and….
Retirement.
This meant that ‘during this loop,’ the Bureau had lost its information on Mookseong.
After serving the world for many years, the old man could finally rest.
I hadn’t told the other colleagues yet.
…
For agents, the notion of ‘living to retire’ doesn’t exist.
The moment one breathes their last in this world is the only exit, and there are no exceptions.
Someday, when the clock makes a full circle, Mookseong’s brief vacation will come to an end.
*
– Cha Jinchul
— Ring ring! Ring ring!
The phone rang insistently.
I checked the screen and saw a familiar name.
“Hyung Sanghyun.”
“Goodness! You’re really, you know, I told you everything yesterday….”
— Ring ring! Ring ring!
If I keep ignoring it, he’ll probably yell at me later.
He’s the type of colleague who has a warm heart but knows how to hold a grudge.
I picked up the call.
“Hyung! Long time no—”
“Have you not started yet?”
“… Not yet. Speak comfortably.”
“I thought about it after our call yesterday, and no matter how I look at it, no! Jinchul, you must avoid going into the Management Bureau.”
Sanghyun does not like the Bureau.
That’s likely because he had a tough time with the labyrinth of the Deep-Sea Hotel.
He didn’t show it at the hotel, but now being out, he could freely express his displeasure towards the Bureau.
“Seeing those similar organizations springing from the Curse Room confirmed my suspicions! They’re nothing but vile—”
“But they are an organization that protects the world.”
“… I won’t deny that they’re a necessary evil. But they’re not a place for you.”
Each person has different perspectives on the Management Bureau.
While Sanghyun has his thoughts, I have mine.
“Hyung, you know the saying? If you want to catch a tiger, you have to enter the tiger’s den.”
“…”
“I’ll observe closely. That’s why I asked Ahri not to report me.”
I hoped the Bureau wouldn’t hold any preconceived notions about me.
Only then could they show their true selves without hiding anything from me.
A heavy silence settled.
Thanks to our time spent together at the hotel, I could feel his thoughts about me.
I wondered if instead of being persuaded by me, he realized he could not persuade me.
“Um, Hyung. How are Surabarang and Jinsol doing?”
“Surabarang. Kim Jinsol.”
The names of the family that Sanghyun called forth through ‘dreams.’
Does he see the two people created in Room 203 as the same individuals he’s longing for?
I don’t know.
I believe that my deceased mother and someone revived in a dream cannot be the same person.
Of course, I wouldn’t share that sentiment with my colleagues who feel like family.
Shouldn’t distinguishing between what to say and what not to say be the beginning of social life?
“… They’re doing well. You can’t imagine how hard Jinsol is studying.”
“Must’ve taken after you.”
“Yesterday, Eunsol came to my hospital.”
“Really?”
“Despite the bad rumors spreading about Hotel Delight due to the last incident, she said they’re managing to stabilize it somehow.”
“How’s that Kain fella doing?”
“From what I heard, he’s trying his hand at something resembling an exorcist during the rest period promised by the hotel.”
“An exorcist, huh?”
I chuckled, then realized it actually fits well.
About two weeks have passed since we returned to reality.
I have a general understanding of how the other colleagues have been keeping busy.
Sister Eunsol has become the representative director of the hotel.
Sanghyun has established a pretty respectable hospital.
And then there’s Kain, who suddenly seems to be active as an exorcist.
With Elena and Songee secretly enjoying life like that, I envied them.
I think Ahri and Mookseong have returned as agents, but I haven’t personally reached out to them.
I was warned that hasty contact would expose me to the Bureau’s surveillance.
The same goes for not meeting up with Inco and Seungyub individually.
“…”
Finally, there’s me.
“Jinchul.”
“I’m listening.”
“If you need help at all, get in touch immediately. Anyone of us will come to assist.”
“Thank you just for saying that.”
— Thud!
After pushing Ahri around on the Gate Train, I learned how to become an agent without relying on anyone’s help.
The only condition for becoming an agent is ‘recognition of the loop.’
Simply put, you have to be a regressor.
Of course, there’s no public recruitment process like a company nor an agent exam like the government would conduct.
There’s no need for it.
Because regressors inevitably give themselves away!
I turned on the TV.
“Let’s begin today’s lottery! Press the button with the golden hand! Numbers will not matter, just matching the number wins! Let’s start the drawing!”
“…”
「17! 43! 10! 30! 35! 22! And now for the 2nd place bonus ball! 44!」
“17, 43, 10, 30, 35, 22… The last one is 44.”
Correct.
I got every single number right.
So…
As of today, I’ve become a whopping 12.7 million rich dude.
I’ve taken my very first step toward being an agent.
Of course, there’s still a bit more to do.
“…”
Do the people in this world know?
That the lottery is rigged!
It’s really rigged!
To my late mother, the dreams and hopes you bought every week have been rigged by the Bureau bastards!
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