Chapter 545 – A Single Ticket, Ten Dreams, and the Train’s Ending Point (1)
– Mi?
… Since when has my consciousness been hazy?
… Since when couldn’t I perceive the world properly?
… Since when has the continuity of my existence been severed?
At some point, I accepted it.
I’ve finally become a monster.
I wanted to drive away the darkness of the Administration Bureau, but to do that, I entered the hotel…
And yet, I became the very embodiment of darkness.
I laid it down.
I knew all too well that I might die or become worse than death before achieving my goals.
I only mourned the fate of humanity, to be played by the hands of the silent ones.
…
Suddenly, my consciousness became clear.
Could it be a complete resurrection?
That can’t be right, can it?
Panic was momentary.
I soon realized this place was not reality.
It was a very…
Lofty place.
In fact, it wasn’t even my first time here.
“Are you awake?”
A voice came down from an endlessly high place.
The ‘practitioner.’
“…”
“I wanted to see you one last time.”
You wanted to see me.
That’s not a phrase fit for a great one.
Well, maybe saying a great one should be like this is our bias.
“…”
Fuzzy thoughts, memories of the past.
I wanted to get free from the shackles of my infantile self.
I sought true resurrection.
I believed the distortion caused by the mirror was my salvation.
Just like Seungyub’s consciousness was trapped within and Fortuna’s awakened…
I hoped my infantile self would fall asleep within and that I would seize control.
So five years ago, I followed the path opened by Ahri and made contact with the mirror.
…
The plan failed, and I became a monster.
“You clever child. You are quite smart, but you often overestimate yourself. You cannot exit this Hell of No Return using such methods.”
“…”
Once you know the answer, the problem seems easy. Hearing the firm assertion that I cannot leave made me immediately realize the reason as well.
The hotel views the distorted being as something different from the participant and deprives it of qualifications.
Thus, Fortuna cannot exit.
The lucky boy will likely forget most of his memories after facing the mirror.
Ahri too will forget most of the memories after Miskatonic University.
The exception might be a wise young man who cleverly used tricks to prevent his “body’s distortion” and regained qualification as a participant.
He must have faintly grasped the logic of the mirror by observing earlier cases, which allowed him to devise such a clever ploy.
However, even he will likely lose the memories he had during those five years of division.
The same logic applies to me.
I could devour the infantile maze through the power of the mirror, but from that point onwards, the participant’s qualification granted to the “pure maze” would vanish.
If I go outside, all that remains will be the pure girl.
Therefore, my dream was impossible from the beginning.
“No, I have newly sculpted you, so you will be able to escape this Hell of No Return.”
“…”
I am now something that would perplex not just humans but even most monsters.
Something formless that lacks a clear identity.
Is this the state in which I can leave?
To the hotel, perhaps “pure maze” could only be seen as a superpower obtained in room 207.
“…”
For the first time, after mutating.
Perhaps for the last time, I voiced my question.
“O great practitioner, why have you called me again?”
“I have seen your dark and murky fate.”
For the first time since entering this space, I smiled.
“Even if I die, as long as I do not die alone, that will suffice.”
“Then it is settled.”
The last moment I could remain as a humanoid entity.
With pure curiosity, I asked.
“What is your purpose?”
This is my question as well as the question that the Administration Bureau harbored when it unearthed traces of the practitioner in ‘reality.’
An age-old question.
“…”
Soon, a mirage-like illusion appeared.
Fortuna.
The greatest man who, despite accepting destruction, wielded a sword for a single love.
The manifestation of a wise man.
Even though he knew he was stronger than the original, he could use his own existence as a tool for ultimate victory.
Along with the twisted Ahri, who was storing “something mixed with machinery and flesh” in a thermos.
They were Park Seungyub, Han Kain, and Kim Ahri, but also not entirely any of them.
They were fakes.
However, in a sense, “the fakes that have surpassed the original.”
“… Ah!”
Moreover, they are works of art.
Not the creations of the “Buddha,” who contemplates everything from the very top of the hotel, but the works of the “practitioner!”
Unintentionally letting out a gasp, I realized.
I knew the practitioner was “smiling.”
“How is it?”
With awe, wonder, pity, and a touch of jealousy, I murmured.
“But they have all perished. And you too….”
“Child. In this universe, there is no death. There is only circulation.”
— Rumble!
As if it had been waiting for this moment, the three thousand worlds materialized within room 207 began to collapse.
As the boundaries between the upper world and the lower world broke down, I began to see “Han Kain” in the distance.
I heard the practitioner’s last message.
“My works have all surpassed the original. Do not forget that you too are my work.”
This was the last memory from room 207.
*
– Park Seungyub
As they passed through the second trial room in room 207, everyone awoke.
The place was still the train, but it seemed there was a bit of procedure left.
— Clink! Clink!
“Wow! It’s been so long! Whoa? Wild boar, I almost forgot your face!”
“No… I have no memories related to room 207 at all. What’s going on?”
Kim Mooksung and Cha Jinchul began bickering.
— Clink! Clink!
“Uagh! That’s right, I summoned you in the first trial—”
“… Tell me I didn’t die there?”
“Yep.”
“…”
“Jinchul, don’t be mad. It’s not Maze’s fault.”
“… I’m not saying anyone is at fault—”
“No, someone is at fault.”
“What?”
“Everyone blames it on Kain.”
“Cough! Wh-what?!”
“Haha, I’m sure Kain had some kind of plan, right? It all worked out in the end, didn’t it?”
The remarks made by Ahri lightly teased Jinchul’s complaints about the absurd elimination, while Kim Sanghyun subtly supported her.
“Hahaha! Jinchul oppa got eliminated right away, so you’ve got nothing to gain!”
“You know that, right? You’re just teasing me? What did you gain?!”
“I did! I worked hard in the first trial, so at least a blessing enhancement—”
“Songie, it seems you’ve forgotten. You don’t accumulate contributions in the gateway room.”
“Ugh! W-was Eunsol unnie mistaken or something?”
“No, she’s right about that part.”
As they teased Jinchul, Yu Songee realized a surprising fact and seemed disappointed.
Everyone shared in a boisterous atmosphere, except for one person.
“…”
The atmosphere felt too awkward.
I had fuzzy memories of “did I have such colleagues?” but just that much.
I’d forgotten the faces and voices of the people until we met on the train.
Some even confused their names.
Is the big old man’s name really Kim Mooksung? Or is it Park Muksung?
“Seungyub, are you okay? You’ve been quiet since earlier.”
“I-I’m fine. You don’t need to worry about me, unnie—”
“… I’m not Ari, I’m Elena. Ari is over there playing cards.”
“You can’t just mix up pretty faces, okay?!”
I mixed up a colleague’s name.
Thanks to that, the mood turned awkward in an instant.
At that moment, someone tapped me lightly from behind.
“Are you okay?”
“… Horus—ah, brother.”
The word “brother” came out before “Horus.”
“It seems quite awkward.”
“Ah, no.”
“Fortuna didn’t seem to show it much, but was he a pretty good actor?”
Fortuna.
Someone who appeared instead of me after confronting the mirror.
I…
After facing the mirror at Aidia’s request, I have no memory.
“It’s fine, it’s fine! You’ll get used to it soon.”
“Is that so?”
“Brother Sanghyun had a similar experience, so you can consult him later.”
“…”
The long years spent in Egypt.
While my memories of the other colleagues had all blurred, the memory of “this man” remained a bit clearer.
An incomprehensible person.
A wise person.
And somewhat, a scary person.
“I checked the soul vessel after hearing the explanation earlier.”
“How was it? Was Sophia there?”
“Hyung, I don’t know anyone named ‘Sophia’.”
“Oh, right. My bad. Let’s hear more.”
“I may not know Sophia, but I knew that someone I didn’t recognize was inside. And….”
“…”
“Yumi… is gone.”
The calm eyes stare at me.
At that moment, I felt a chilling tension.
Is he on guard because I, having lost Yumi, might make a sudden move?
Control me with the power to read fates, or through the power of the grimoire—
“No.”
“…”
“I can see what you might be thinking, but no. I’m just worried about you.”
“I’m sorry.”
Soon, Han Kain smiled lightly.
“Is Yumi saying something negative about me?”
“…”
“Relax. Remember this, we’ve never harmed one another. That’s our strongest—”
“You both killed each other many times, didn’t you? Yu Songee is apparently compiling a list of the ‘Dark Hotel Party.'”
“Th-that was just Songie’s joke. We were all a bit out of our minds.”
“…”
“Trust me. Trust us. Don’t worry about Yumi. There will definitely be a ticket as a reward from the gateway room. With that—you can—”
“… I want to talk a little more about that.”
“Huh?”
His voice showed slight surprise.
Did he think I would be clamoring to resurrect Yumi “right away”?
Half right and half wrong.
Emotionally, I wanted to bring back my one and only love immediately, but at the same time, another part warned me.
The hotel is hell, and the journey is not over.
Am I thinking of reviving my lover from hell?
“I want to resurrect Yumi after finding safety.”
“Hmm… I see what you mean. Let’s talk about that later as well.”
Han Kain lightly patted my shoulder, then tossed a thoughtful remark.
“I believe you will also be given a choice when the train stops.”
“Excuse me?”
“You might have forgotten, but I spent a very long time in the Curse Room before. I was even in the state of a bird.”
“…”
“When it was time to leave, they gave me options. You’ll get one too.”
“What kind of options?”
“You’ll see.”
“…”
“The choice is yours. I assure you that no one among us will interfere. However—”
“If you have something you want, please say it.”
“I wish you would consider the choice also in terms of ‘our relationship’.”
With those words, Han Kain returned to his own seat.
It seemed he wanted me to think alone without interference.
Unfortunately, his intention failed.
“Ba-da-bam! Da-da-da da-da da! Hiru-tu Ma-tu -”
“Ah! What kind of nonsense is this?! Merchant, you bastard!”
A much louder interrupter, a monster making sound effects with his mouth, burst into our train car.
“Haha! I brought a ton of gifts that you’ve been eagerly waiting for!”
He ignored Kim Mooksung’s curse and displayed items from the cart to everyone.
“See this?”
We saw it.
On the cart, a single ticket and ten of…
What is this? Bubbles?
“Huh?”
The elegantly beautiful girl with a puzzled head, whose name I often confused, must be “Eunsol”?
“I know the ticket, but what’s the other stuff? Since there are ten, it must be rewards for each of us? They look like bubbles.”
“They are ‘dreams.’”
“What?”
“Ladies and gentlemen.”
As if everything was wrapping up,
the merchant opened his arms and surveyed everyone.
“We promised you through various routes. After the second floor ends, you all can safely leave.”
A serene silence settled.
“The last stop of this train is escape, the escape station.”
People couldn’t take a deep breath, dumbfounded and lost.
“The ‘dreams’ are gifts for you all. Return to reality. Go back, and paint each of your dreams into reality.”
Return to reality.
Go back and ‘paint’ your dreams into reality.
In that instant, someone, with a pale expression, shouted.
“No way! Hey! Just how many times can we ‘paint’ that? I mean, if we could change all future cycles—”
“Not that much. Just once.”
“…”
“Haha! As expected, coming from someone from a secret organization, you recognized that immediately, hmm? Or is it just intuition?”
“…”
“I’ll skip the detailed explanation. We have quite a bit of time until we reach the last stop, so until then, feel free to have some deep conversations.”
— Clap!
Someone clapped lightly, and looking back, it was Han Kain.
“Any more questions?”
“How do we get back to the hotel? What do we do to get to the third floor?”
“Find that out yourself.”
“What the—”
The monster seemed no longer interested in talking, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
Soon, everyone’s attention focused on “Kim Ahri” and “Kim Mooksung.”
“It looks like it’s going to be a long conversation. I had a feeling this moment would come someday.”
The girl, Lee Eunsol, smiled brightly.
“Right, so you’re finally going to unveil the secret package?”
“I’ll tell you everything I know about reality, everything within my knowledge.”
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