NOVEL NEXT Chapter 216
“…”
The scene before me was shocking enough to leave me speechless.
People sat in chairs with their eyes closed.
Or maybe, it might be more accurate to say that they seemed to be made to sit.
Around a long dining table, about ten people were seated.
“…”
I glanced around, unable to hide my astonishment.
There, in that place…
“…”
Were two familiar faces I had seen in the apartment.
Song Ah Rin’s parents were sitting there.
“They couldn’t stop the Myungil Apartment incident here either. Well, thinking about it, that makes sense.”
Song Ah Rin muttered, moving towards where her parents were.
“Since that incident happened, that’s why I’m here, and that guy’s here too.”
Her words held truth.
Both of them were far from the ordinary appearance of regular people.
Like what I had seen at the time, the two had grotesquely gaping jaws.
The only difference was that both of them had their eyes closed.
With an expressionless gaze, Song Ah Rin lightly stroked her mother’s hand.
“She’s unconscious.”
“Did she lose her mind?”
“No. She’s literally devoid of self.”
After brushing her mother’s hand several times, Song Ah Rin looked at me.
“Maybe she left her self somewhere like you did.”
“I see.”
“…”
“…Are you okay, A-Rin?”
“I’m actually grateful at this moment.”
Song Ah Rin muttered while continuing to stroke her mother’s hand.
“If I were in my right mind, I’d definitely be freaking out.”
“…”
Song Ah Rin withdrew her hand and stared at me.
“And, I found you.”
“…That’s true.”
At the end of the table, so-called the place of honor, I was seated.
Why the place of honor?
No, what’s the reason I’m here in the first place?
It felt strange, bordering on unsettling, to have someone looking at me as if I were deeply asleep with closed eyes.
“…So.”
Song Ah Rin looked at me.
“How are you going to move?”
“Huh? I thought you were going to move for me?”
“Eh?”
“What?”
For a moment, we exchanged glances,
“You seriously didn’t plan anything? Are you crazy?”
“A-Rin, you’re breaking my focus. Focus.”
Song Ah Rin raised an eyebrow, hastily stopping her harsh tone.
“…Huh…”
After taking a few deep breaths, Song Ah Rin looked at me again with an expressionless gaze.
Of course, there was anger lurking behind that gaze.
“For now, I don’t know.”
“That’s unfortunate.”
“Unfortunate? You could be living as a doll right now?”
“No, that wouldn’t be the case.”
Just finding my body was already a tremendous gain.
Otherwise, I would have had to escape without even locating my own body.
Then, a life worse than death would be waiting for me.
“…What method are you considering?”
“It’s easy.”
If I think about the person who trapped my body in a doll, the method becomes simple.
“Can’t we just find the person who trapped me and ask them to set me free or take them down?”
“…Are you seriously that out of it?”
“A-Rin, focus.”
“You’re the one making me lose focus.”
Anger resurfaced on Song Ah Rin’s face, but she couldn’t wave her hand…because her arms wouldn’t move.
“I think it’s possible.”
“How? You’re a doll right now, and I’m just me.”
“Because you’re with me.”
“What?”
Song Ah Rin looked at me, dumbfounded.
“I’m just… not that type of capable person. The amount of thread they’re using is at least a hundred times more than mine.”
“That’s okay.”
Song Ah Rin tends to underestimate herself too much.
“…What do you mean, then?”
Song Ah Rin stared at me intently.
“Don’t give me any vague assurances of things going well for no reason. Give me a real reason why you think I can connect with that and return you to your original form.”
“Hypnosis.”
At my words, Song Ah Rin paused for a moment.
“Are you suggesting we take them down with hypnosis?”
“I can’t take them down, but I can provide suggestions or something. There are various methods, right?”
We don’t need to fight straightforwardly with the chief of the theater using threads.
We can fight in our own areas of expertise.
“Then…”
Song Ah Rin looked around.
“What should we do next?”
“First, since I found my body, should we find the exit in advance?”
Here’s the plan.
Song Ah Rin fights and defeats the chief of the theater, then recovers my body and escapes promptly.
If we win properly, we won’t even need to escape in a hurry.
“Right.”
“Then let’s go.”
“Wait.”
Song Ah Rin raised her hand to stop me.
“Can I check something?”
“…Yeah, go ahead.”
“Thanks.”
She nodded and looked at the people seated at the table.
It seemed she was trying to confirm other individuals.
“Most of them I know.”
“Really?”
“…Yeah.”
She nodded slowly.
“The two sitting over there are, as you know, my mom and dad.”
“Right.”
Song Ah Rin pointed at the two who were sitting with their huge jaws open and eyes closed.
“And the three sitting over there are… friends from my nursery… Should I call them that?”
Song Ah Rin hesitated in her speech.
“Friends?”
“I can’t really call them friends. Let me correct that.”
Song Ah Rin shook her head.
“They were kids who listened well to me back then.”
“…”
Listening well.
That isn’t an expression one would use for friends.
“Regardless.”
Song Ah Rin turned her head.
“And… one is you. The next three are… my former colleagues.”
“Are you talking about the people who worked with Chae Yeon?”
“…Yeah, that’s right.”
I stared intently at the three people in response to Song Ah Rin’s words.
A woman with black hair.
She had a very warm impression. If she were in our team, she might have played a role in stopping fights.
Then, a man with a scarred face.
He looked middle-aged. Other than that, there wasn’t anything remarkable about him.
And lastly…
“…Isn’t this Chae Yeon’s ‘older sister’?”
“…It is.”
Song Ah Rin sighed softly.
“That’s right. The white-haired sister I was looking for so much.”
“…”
Could the chief of the theater we’re confronting have come from another world?
The Jang Chae Yeon I know could never exist in such a state.
“…And.”
Lastly, she stood in front of a man.
“I don’t know this person either.”
“…”
I stared intently at the man Song Ah Rin referred to.
He was a middle-aged man.
His mustache stood out, and there was something peculiar about him.
“…His clothes seem similar to what A-Rin is wearing?”
If I had to say similar, it’d be like taking the outfit that the chief of the theater, Song Ah Rin, wore and changing it to the male version.
“…”
“…”
Did Song Ah Rin think the same? Our eyes met.
“…Maybe this is the enemy we have to fight.”
“That might be.”
Only one thought surfaced in my mind.
“The former chief of the theater.”
“…”
I stared intently at that face.
The mustache, and middle-aged.
If he opened his eyes, he might seem quite comical, but right now, he wasn’t opening them.
“Where could they all be captured?”
“Probably.”
“…”
Song Ah Rin approached me, or rather, my physical body.
-Knock.
She lightly poked my cheek.
“Now that you’re with your eyes closed, it’s a bit less annoying and nice.”
“Are you saying I look prettiest when I’m asleep?”
“Let’s say that’s what it is.”
Song Ah Rin murmured, removing her finger from my cheek.
“…But.”
“Yes?”
“If I’m right, the chief of the theater probably doesn’t know you.”
“…That’s quite likely.”
“But why would they place you here?”
She mused while gazing at me.
“Weren’t they the one who asked who you were?”
“That’s correct.”
“Were you perhaps subconsciously charming women from another world again?”
“I’ve never charmed anyone again, nor have I ever done it subconsciously.”
“Wait. Then does that mean everything you’ve done until now has been conscious?”
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
Has my mind finally begun to erode?
As I stared intently at Song Ah Rin, she sighed.
“Forget it. Let’s just go.”
“…”
And then, she poked my cheek one last time and walked toward the door.
Does she think my face is public property?
*
While roaming around with Song Ah Rin, I realized this place was a huge theater.
Sometimes movie posters, sometimes puppet show posters, were set around.
Of course, aside from that room, there were no signs of any people.
The method for us to find an exit was very simple.
“Does this door not open?”
“It doesn’t.”
First, we tried to open every door available.
Of course, it was Song Ah Rin, not me.
“…Is your arm okay?”
While grunting and pushing against a locked door, Song Ah Rin looked at me.
“Yeah, I mean, being a doll, I don’t feel any sensation.”
“That’s fortunate, if anything.”
Song Ah Rin sighed softly.
“By the way, what about the other two?”
“The other two?”
“Da On and Chae Yeon.”
“…”
Song Ah Rin briefly shut her mouth before reopening it.
“They’ll come in on their own.”
“…Can they really come in?”
“It would seem so.”
Muttering irresponsibly, Song Ah Rin moved forward.
“Next room.”
“…Got it.”
How many times did we roam around?
“…”
“…”
Eventually, we found ourselves standing in front of the entryway of the room where Song Ah Rin first entered.
“There’s nothing to show for it.”
“…Yeah.”
I was pretty sure we’d opened all the doors, but where could I have missed?
I pondered.
Where haven’t I been?
A place I overlooked.
“…The only thing left is the window.”
I shifted my gaze and looked at where I came from.
The popcorn machine, still covered in dust, caught my eye.
“This way.”
“…”
Song Ah Rin followed behind me.
We emerged through the door.
Looking out the window.
It was still dark outside.
Staring at the pitch-black window, Song Ah Rin stood beside me.
“Shall we break that?”
“…Honestly, I think I’ve opened every door here.”
“I think so too.”
We had wandered around for quite a long time.
It was also quite strange that we hadn’t encountered the chief of the theater after all that.
“Alright.”
Song Ah Rin nodded and picked up the manual.
“Ha!”
And just like that, she threw the manual at the window.
“No, a book can’t break a window—”
-Crash!
The window shattered with a loud noise.
“It can.”
Song Ah Rin looked at me.
Without hesitation, she moved to retrieve the manual again.
-Scrunch!
Simultaneously, the manual opened again.
[Manual for Office Staff]
[PLZ – Please conserve the manual]
1. The manual is delicate. Please handle it with care.
2. No matter how sturdy the manual is, do not use it as a shield.
3. Handle the manual like an old friend.
4. Do not hit the manual on the head.
5. The first thing you receive upon joining is the manual. Remember that the manual is like the first colleague for every management agency employee.
6. Do not let others mishandle the manual! The manual is an incredibly delicate and precious item!
“…”
Song Ah Rin chuckled softly and closed the cover of the manual.
Right. Since I had been subjected to clinical experimentation, I guess I can handle that much.
“Let’s go.”
Then she leaped through the window, and I followed her.
Upon crossing through the window…
“…”
A deserted city appeared before my eyes.
Old buildings, trash strewn on the ground.
And,
“…”
Countless people lay neatly on the ground.
Like they were asleep, they all lay there with closed eyes, merely breathing.
And that sight stretched as far as I could see.
“What the hell?”
Song Ah Rin muttered.
“Wasn’t this supposed to be a stage?”
Turning back to glance at the building.
A sign reading [Theater of Dreams and Hope] was precariously swaying.