Chapter 740 – Room 302, The Cursed Room – ‘Brave New World’ (14)
—
「User: Han Kain (Wisdom)
Date: Day 40
Current Location: Room 302, The Cursed Room – ‘Brave New World’
Sage’s Advice: 2」
—
— Han Kain
It’s been about 10 minutes since I entered Room 302.
Following the sage’s advice – “Shouldn’t we take a look at this new world, a paradise where everyone is saved?” – I began to observe my surroundings.
And I realized a few things.
First, my body has gotten younger.
From the moment I woke up in the dark room, I sensed something was off, but stepping outside made it crystal clear.
I now look like I’m in my mid-teens.
It seems I’ve regressed in age by more than five years from my original body.
Is it just me, or have my comrades also become teenagers like me?
I’ll have to wait until I reunite with them to find out.
—
Second, this world is now ruled by angels.
— Flap!
“Hey, you boy!”
“Uh, yeah?”
“What are you doing just standing there? Go have some fun with your friends!”
The sky is filled with angels flapping their wings.
They all boast a majestic and beautiful appearance.
On the ground, there are plenty of mischievous-looking boys and girls, all with no wings yet, but they are still considered angels.
Fortunately, gathering information wasn’t too hard since the angels were all quite friendly and cheerful—at least when they were in a good mood.
Assuming that I’m categorized as a young angel, I tried my best to talk like a kid.
“Excuse me, Mr. Angel.”
“Any questions?”
“Since you have wings, why don’t I?”
“Heh! You just woke up, didn’t you? Don’t worry—your wings will sprout in a few years!”
—
As I started to vaguely understand the rules of this new world, I categorized the angels into four types.
1. Wingless Angels:
These are the young angels without wings.
They look pretty much like regular human kids, but they are definitely not human.
2. Two-Winged Angels:
My guess is that the majority fall into this category.
They’re like your average adults, but are anything but ordinary in abilities.
Flying high in the sky is the least they can do; they also possess superhuman strength, able to uproot trees with their bare hands!
3. Four-Winged Angels:
Only a select few belong here.
They’re the equivalent of soldiers in the human world.
Naturally, they boast much stronger abilities than the average angel.
4. Six-Winged Angels or Guardian Angels:
“How strong are the six-winged ones? Can they pull up that tree over there?”
“I wouldn’t know.”
“Huh?”
“I’ve never seen them before! I’ve only heard there are four of them under the sky. But yeah, they must be incredibly impressive.”
So, there are exactly four guardian angels.
One of them’s name sounded familiar.
“Is there an angel named ‘Astear’?”
“Ha! You seem fresh off the boat, huh? Yeah, I’ve heard Astear is the representative of the guardians. However…”
“However?”
As the angel flapped his wings while chatting, he soon made a puzzled face, saying, “I heard she got really hurt during the process of opening this new world.”
Last but not least, the third matter.
“Hmmm, it seems this is your first life, am I right?”
“First life?”
Just as I was about to tilt my head in confusion, I suddenly felt someone’s gaze.
A creepy feeling as if an unknown entity was watching me.
Weirdly enough, it felt like I had met this presence before.
‘…This one’s a guy. But he looks way too smart. Nah, that can’t be…’
“What’s wrong?”
“Oh, it’s nothing. I think it is my first life.”
“Hey, do you see that big tree in the center of the village?”
“Yes.”
“Head there. That person will clarify your questions.”
“Got it.”
—
As I walked toward the village center for more information, I froze at a shocking revelation.
“…”
—
「Comrade Location Info
Songee: —」
—
Fifteen minutes into entering this post-apocalyptic world, Songee was already dead.
I hadn’t even had a chance to say a word to her.
Naturally, this world was brimming with danger!
“Hey, what are you standing around for?”
I sensed a very strong intuition.
That big tree in the center is where my first crisis awaits and also where Songee met her end.
As I flinched, an adult angel radiated a threatening aura, flapping their two wings.
“Didn’t you hear what I said? Go to the central tree!”
Should I go?
Or should I avoid it at all costs?
If I back away, I might have to face the angels surrounding me…
Let’s think about it while heading to the central tree since I’m already being watched.
“I’m on my way!”
—
– Kim Ahri
“Yawn~!”
Laying flat on the prairie, I let out a lazy yawn.
Someone might ask what I’m doing in the hellish Cursed Room right now, but this feels just right.
When you find yourself in a strange, mysterious place, the best safety measure is to act just like everyone else around you.
What? You thought I’d be scrounging around looking for info?
That’d only raise suspicion, wouldn’t it?
So, I’ve spent half an hour lazily observing my surroundings.
A clear blue sky, gigantic trees all around, and a prairie bathed in golden hues.
It looks incredibly pastoral and beautiful.
All around, there are kids laughing and chatting, seemingly devoid of any concerns about the future, unlike the kids I know from Korea.
There’s not even a concept of job or labor here.
“I’m hungry.”
“Here, take this! I picked it over there!”
“… Thanks.”
Houses appear automatically when angels are born.
Food grows continuously from the trees scattered about; what I ate for breakfast is already available again for lunch.
And it’s incredibly sweet and refreshing. Some ‘fruits’ even taste like well-cooked steak!
There’s literally no one telling the young angels what to do.
The only rule in this world seems to be, “Do what you want.”
One boy was gorging on food all day next to a tree, and he didn’t look a bit concerned about obesity or anything like that.
Some girl reportedly spent most of her life just lying in bed.
There were even angels wondering if she was actually alive since she had been sleeping so long.
Out of curiosity, I checked, and she was indeed alive.
If spending four years in bed counts as ‘living,’ then sure!
A life where you can eat as much as you want, sleep as much as you want, and play as much as you want.
Honestly, seeing it in person, it really feels like paradise in some ways.
Yet, there are indeed a few things that are out of bounds for these angels, too.
The poor boy next to me serves as a prime example.
“Uh… um, are you Ahri?”
“Yep.”
“Wanna practice flying with me?”
“I don’t have wings yet.”
“Hehe! That’s exactly why! I’m just now starting to grow my wings. I can teach you!”
“… I can still fly without wings.”
“What does that even mean? Sounds strange.”
—
The kid angels seem to think I’m cute at least.
And while it’s honestly amusing at times, it also gets annoying.
“Sorry, but I’d like to play alone, so could you give me some space?”
As soon as my words finished, the boy’s eyes lit up with an eerie glow.
Like, how could you possibly reject my request?
Since they’re allowed to have whatever they want, angels aren’t accustomed to the concept of patience.
In a world that isn’t about virtue but rather a shackle!
“You! Just because you’re pretty—”
Fortunately, the rules in this world seem fair for everyone.
The boy in front of me can do whatever he wants. So can I.
“— Huh?”
— Zing!
I swung my arm like a lightning bolt and struck the boy’s neck, and his head immediately rolled onto the floor.
In a normal world, everyone would be in shock.
But here, no one flinches.
First off, even a young angel packs a punch that could burst heads and slice necks.
Second, killing is allowed if you’re annoyed.
“Ahahaha! Is that idiot really dumb? Ahri was obviously annoyed, so why did he cling on like that!”
“…”
“Does he think he can just win a girlfriend by offing his competitors?”
In the world the angels inhabit, their only law is to do what they want.
With no taboos, murder isn’t a sin.
If someone annoys you, you can take them out.
Killing in plain sight, and instead of scolding me, everyone is laughing joyfully.
At first glance, this seems like some kind of hell, but there’s one more bizarre aspect to it.
“… The kid I just killed, his name was Richard, right?”
“Yeah.”
“When’s he coming back to life?”
“Next month?”
“…”
“Haha! Ahri, next time, just go for his eyeballs first!”
—
Every angel here is immortal.
…
This place is truly strange.
“Hey, Ahri! Given that you don’t know when he’ll come back, are you perhaps experiencing your first life?”
At that, I momentarily lost my words.
It wasn’t that I didn’t understand the question; it was because as soon as the words “first life” popped out, I felt a gaze upon me.
‘…This one’s a girl. Nope, not her either…’
It felt like I had met this presence once before.
—
— Elena
About an hour has passed since I woke up in the ‘Garden of Eden.’
“Aww, come on! I was the first to sit next to Elena!”
“That’s not true! I saw her first!”
“You jerks!”
Having wings and beauty doesn’t mean every angel is the same…
I was just wandering around, feeling out of place and trying to figure out where I am.
Yet oddly enough, the boy angels around began fighting each other incessantly.
Inferiority complexes fueled by beauty lead to competition—it’s human nature, after all.
The difference, however, is that angels seem to express that instinct without any restraint.
There was not a single attempt to hide their instincts behind the mask of civility.
In just an hour, three boys had died nearby.
The last one standing, a dark-haired boy with a cocky grin, swaggered over to me.
“Ha! I won! Did you see that, Elena? Did you see?”
“Yeah, I saw.”
“Ha! I really am the strongest!”
“By the way, what’s your name?”
“Blue-eyed White Dragon!”
“… Who came up with that name?”
“I did!”
“Okay, okay, White Dragon. Can I ask just one question?”
“Sure! Any question from Elena is fine!”
“… Why did you fight?”
“Huh?”
“Did I say I’d be your girlfriend if you beat the others?”
“Uh—”
The boy’s eyes widened in shock.
Did he genuinely believe that by taking out the competition, I’d simply accept him as my boyfriend?
Kind of like a lion thinking he could earn a pride of lionesses just by winning a fight with another male?
I mean, the longer I watched him, the more my fondness turned to distaste.
“I, I um, well, uhhh—”
So I unleashed a bad thought and killed him.
Not feeling particularly guilty about murder.
I mean, it isn’t truly murder, right?
It’s not like it would count since they’re angels, and besides, they resurrect in a month anyway!
What the heck kind of hell is this? Is this paradise?
What kind of unique taste does the son of dawn have?
It feels like a half-baked mix of Eden and Valhalla.
—
As I walked around the angel village for about 15 more minutes, I began to understand why that so-called White Dragon was so flustered.
The son of dawn sees the seven heavenly virtues as shackles and has cast them aside.
Thus, purity is not a virtue, and desires are allowed without limits.
Moreover, all angels, at first glance, seem vibrant and beautiful.
In other words…
The raw sights are playing out everywhere.
Angels appear to be having a grand time, not a shred of shame in sight.
So, it makes sense that the boy from earlier thought beating the competition would guarantee my affections.
He probably thought I’d just up and say yes!
—
Thank goodness, Miro and Seungyub aren’t around.
No matter how old they are, the vibes they emit make them feel like minors.
As I wore a wry smile, pondering what to do next, two-winged angels descended from the sky.
“Hey! I’ve been watching you for a while, and it seems you’re quite confused, right?”
“… A bit, yes.”
“Is this your first life?”
“Um, what exactly does ‘first life’ mean?”
The dark-haired angel laughed cheerfully.
“All angels were once unfortunate beings suffering from the curse of mortality before paradise was born.”
“Are you referring to humans?”
“Exactly. The son of dawn opened paradise and saved everyone. We were freed from the fear of death, but…”
Like speaking to a child, the angel winked at me.
“Angels who haven’t experienced resurrection and those starting their first life often find the world’s principles bewildering. You’re in that state right now.”
At that moment, I couldn’t focus on what the other was saying.
I felt a gaze or heard a voice.
‘… Now, this one’s a girl too. Not her either…’
“Pardon?”
“Ha! Were you thinking about something else?”
“Sorry about that.”
“Elena, can you see that enormous tree over there?”
“Yes.”
“A noble being with four wings resides there. Go greet them.”
—
—
「Comrade Location Info
Kim Sanghyun: —
Kim Mooksung: —
Miro: —
Park Seungyub: —
Yu Songee: —」
—
“… At this rate, I’m just gonna end up dead before even doing anything.”
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