As soon as Uncle entered the house, he placed boxes containing disposable masks, which I have no idea where he got them from, right at the front door.
We had only seen each other’s faces a few times through work, making our relationship almost like that of strangers.
Still, at this moment, the presence of an adult felt like an immense comfort.
“Oh dear, you all must have had a tough time.”
Uncle, bustling around the moment he stepped inside.
Without even asking, somehow he began to gather the necessary items and started taking care of us.
It was surprising enough that he dropped by suddenly, but why was he even caring for us?
Such questions arose, but right now, my sleepy body was urging me to close my eyes.
Instead of asking something, I simply closed my eyes quietly.
“…”
Even with my eyes closed, I could feel the warmth.
That single act of lifting what felt like infinitely distant eyelids.
In the darkness, the cool, moist touch of a soft towel covered my forehead.
Even amidst the hot thrashing, somehow if I kept my eyes closed, I could drift off under the influence of the medicine.
By the time I opened my eyes again, that warmth had peeled away a layer.
Although a lingering daze still remained, it was better than last night.
‘So it wasn’t a dream.’
Uncle was sprawled out on the floor, proving that last night’s events were not just a figment of imagination.
After stepping over his ample belly like crossing over a rock, he brought the thermometer from the shelf to his ear.
With a click, followed by the sharp beep of the machine.
The display showed a temperature of 37.5 degrees, thankfully indicating it was just a mild fever.
Returning, while lightly stepping over Uncle’s belly back to the bed, I checked Siyeon’s ear with the thermometer too.
Beep, the screen showed 36.8 degrees.
Just by looking at Siyeon’s relaxed expression and steady breathing, I could tell her condition had improved significantly.
Now the focus had to be on my own mild feverish state.
With my eyes open, I heated beef and vegetable porridge in the microwave, then, after finishing my lonely meal and swallowing a pill, I headed upstairs to lie down.
The microwave hummed, leading to a sequence of beeps as it finished.
It was a sound strong enough to wake anyone, even an adult…
‘How well he sleeps.’
Even after finishing a meal and swallowing the pill, Uncle was still refusing to stir.
For now, I stirred my dazed mind and thought only of my own condition, lying down on the bed upstairs.
“What’s going to happen to Siyeon’s breakfast?” I wondered, but then thought,
‘We still have porridge left, so it should be fine…’
With that, I left the remainder in Uncle’s care and closed my eyes again.
Having just awoken from sleep, I wouldn’t fall back asleep immediately, but still, the best cure when sick is to eat well and sleep well.
Even if I can’t fall asleep, the belief that one should just let themselves rest when sick rang true.
If I were to get up and move around just because the symptoms lessened a bit, it wouldn’t be long before a mild fever turned into a high one again.
Someone came to visit and care for us, a rare opportunity.
Still, he was an adult, so I thought he would at least take care of the basics for Siyeon, and closed my eyes again.
“Mary, are you feeling very sick?”
Siyeon’s voice came as she stood before the sleeping Uncle, making my eyes flutter open softly.
Waking someone up without regard for their sleep.
Her clumsiness was so elementary that I didn’t feel like getting annoyed or lecturing; instead, I slowly sat up and checked my own condition.
Clearer thoughts, I felt fine.
The heat that covered me was gone.
No sore throat.
But for some reason, Uncle was also gone from the house.
Looking beyond the bed’s edge, I saw the empty living room.
Curious if Siyeon knew something, I quickly asked.
“Where did Uncle go?”
“He said he was busy and left, wanted me to let you know.”
Uncle had truly come like the wind and left like the wind.
He certainly did what he had to as an adult, but just to be sure, I asked Siyeon again.
“Did you eat? Did you have your medicine?”
“I had porridge and took my medicine.”
Siyeon answered quickly to my questions.
Changing from a lying position to sitting, I headed for the stairs, and quick-witted Siyeon hopped down the steps from the bed.
Just as if to say “I was here,” traces of Uncle lingered all around the house.
A pile of masks wrapped in disposable plastic.
I’d heard there was a scramble to hoard masks due to the shortage; I wondered where on earth he found these.
Tentatively, I took the thermometer in hand, measured it to my ear, and it showed a temperature of 36.3 degrees.
“Siyeon, come here.”
“Okay?”
Siyeon tilted her head in confusion at my brief gesture, coming closer at the same height.
There was something strange about how she looked a bit shorter from this angle.
Anyway, I shoved the thermometer into her ear and pressed the button to check her temperature.
Beep, the display read 35.9, thankfully indicating our fevers had completely subsided.
Afterward, I pulled back the curtains for ventilation and swung open the balcony door.
‘Should I contact the school…?’
Thinking as a student naturally invited the school to mind.
Remembering I hadn’t brought my smartphone to my bedside, I went upstairs to grab it and sat down in the living room.
Since I hadn’t plugged it in while lying down, the battery was only at 12%.
Still, a few unread messages displayed, and it was even a message from the school.
Finally checking the content of the message.
[Notice of Temporary School Closure for Infection Prevention]
In summary, the school had been disrupted recently due to an outbreak, and would be closed for a few weeks for sanitation and infection prevention.
Especially since there had been confirmed cases roaming around school without masks.
For about a week, there would be no classes, and students were advised not to come to school at all.
‘Things have really taken a turn.’
After confirming the message from the school, I shifted my gaze to the news I hadn’t seen while lying down.
The world had entered the era of a great plague.
News about magical girls, which normally wouldn’t be a big issue, was now bombarding related articles amid the panic.
Particularly, news about confirmed cases who were traced to clumsy places like clubs and tourist spots.
Clearly, it was sensational enough to attract clicks and sell well, as media outlets were flooding the news.
And it was evident that such people were indeed contributing to the further spread of the plague.
The rational rage manifested as comments, with each article stacking hundreds or even thousands of remarks.
[If you’re going to die, at least die quietly by yourself.]
[Why do they even live like that?]
[Cleanbot has detected inappropriate expressions in this comment.]
[How annoying.]
[Those sub-human beasts should be isolated from society.]
‘This is serious…?’
It felt notably different from the usual seasonal flu.
Having recovered, I thought I should get vaccinated or something when a vaccine becomes available.
The complacency I had began to feel suddenly hit me as a harsh reality.
Is it really just a matter of wearing masks?
With questions like that, I remembered the saying that bad predictions tend to come true over the past few days.
“Mary, when are we going back to school?”
“Indeed…”
Now Siyeon was beginning to wonder why she wasn’t going to school and asking me.
The plague situation showed no signs of calming down; if anything, it was worsening.
Reports of new infections everywhere, mandatory masks in public facilities, and hand sanitizers on public transport.
Various measures were being suggested here and there, but infection cases only seemed to grow rather than decrease.
And the world was spiraling into chaos, it wasn’t just about the plague recently.
[At OO station, ‘I’ll stab everyone passing by’ knife threat…]
[Stabbings on 14th XXX station, increase in copycat crimes.]
[30-year-old woman arrested for posting a threat online, ‘It was a joke’ she stated.]
[‘I’ll slice you up like sashimi’ 20-year-old man, arrested at home.]
Suddenly, random knife attacks began to spread from one day.
Amidst the confusion caused by the plague, crime without cause was increasing.
Even online, crazy attention-seekers were getting caught for posting threats as jokes.
I found myself thinking that I’d prefer facing a monster instead of living through this chaotic mess.
At this point, I even thought that if the Minister contacted the police for support, they ought to listen… that self-sacrificial thought surfaced.
Those crazy individuals must be having it tough.
Given how crazily the world is turning, people were beginning to think of the plague as something to be brushed aside like a cold.
Recently, policies focusing on ‘living with the virus’ are gaining traction, fostering a sense of familiarity with a virus that shouldn’t be welcomed, claiming that having already spread, there’s nothing one can do.
Because of this attitude, the school announced that the temporary closure was canceled.
Soon, with the resumption of school, students were being encouraged to wear masks and use hand sanitizers frequently.
Those disposable masks felt suffocating, making even dirty breaths linger over eyes and mouths.
‘What a world…’
Whether child or adult, it genuinely feels like the world is becoming an increasingly unfriendly place to live.
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.