The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low - Chap 135
The bed where they had lain, followed by the frame and walls that had formed the house, disappeared, leaving a pure white void in its place.
In the midst of the swirling white ash, like a small storm, Cha Eui-jae pulled the hand he was holding, embracing the large body as if to protect it. The large body was drawn in without resistance. But it was only for a moment— soon, the warmth that had been in his arms gradually faded.
Cha Eui-jae’s eyes widened. He released the arms that had been wrapped around his back and opened his hands to check. They were empty— his arms, his hands.
Cha Eui-jae gritted his teeth and shouted.
“Lee Sa-young!”
In that instant, Cha Eui-jae’s eyes opened wide. In the emptiness where there had been nothing, someone dressed in black was kneeling, leaning their upper body against something black. It was a familiar yet unfamiliar figure from behind. Of course, seeing one’s own back is rare, but he could tell.
That was ‘me.’
Cha Eui-jae stared blankly at the figure’s back. Eventually, ‘he’ lifted his head. Slowly rising, ‘he’ looked down at what he had been leaning on. It was a black coffin. He spoke softly, tenderly.
“It’s okay.”
“Just sleep a little longer.”
The next moment, ‘Cha Eui-jae’ was walking. He crossed a yard filled with dry, dead grass. In one corner of the yard, flames roared fiercely from a kiln, and a harsh smell stung his nostrils. ‘Cha Eui-jae’ roughly slid open the tightly shut sliding door.
In the middle of the workshop, cluttered with tools and materials, Hong Ye-seong, wearing a magnifying glass that protruded like a lens, straightened his hunched body. His dirt-covered three-stripe slippers slapped against the floor.
“Hey, wipe off the blood before you come in.”
‘Cha Eui-jae’ roughly wiped the blood on his mask with the back of his hand. His lips twitched.
“It’s not my blood.”
“Of course it isn’t. Is it still that bad outside?”
“Yeah.”
“…”
“It’s too late.”
“…”
“I didn’t come here just to talk about this… Hong Ye-seong, you said you could manipulate space, right?”
Hong Ye-seong blinked and shrugged.
“Huh? Well, as you can see, it’s nothing grand. Just enough to arrange my little nest.”
“I need you to do one thing.”
“What is it?”
“Create a space using my memories. It can be very small.”
“What? All of a sudden?”
“Can’t you?”
“Hey, what do you take me for… well, it might not work, but I think I can give it a try.”
“…”
“But why all of a sudden?”
Hong Ye-seong’s face filled with unease.
“Don’t tell me… Lee Sa-young… hmm, are you planning to follow him?”
“…You’ve noticed too, but this world is on the brink of collapse. It’s already past the limit.”
“…”
“I can’t do it alone. Even with you, it’s not enough.”
Hong Ye-seong rubbed his cheek with a gloomy expression.
“…Fortunately, there’s still one last resort.”
‘Cha Eui-jae’ abruptly rolled up the sleeve of his battle uniform. Then he boldly showed his left wrist. A sleek silver watch, without a single scratch, gleamed. An ethereal golden aura began to rise like smoke over the watch’s glass.
Then, he took off his mask. His face was marked with exhaustion, and his eyes were swollen and red. But his eyes still shone with a vivid blue light.
“I’m going to turn back time. To before the end happens.”
“But to use that, you need… a pivot, don’t you?”
“I’ll be the pivot. I’ve experienced it once before, so I won’t fail next time. I’ll have time to prepare.”
Hong Ye-seong gulped. He asked in a low voice.
“Is that really the only reason?”
“…”
“Aren’t there other reasons…”
‘Cha Eui-jae’ didn’t answer and kept his lips tightly shut. By now, Cha Eui-jae had separated from ‘him,’ watching them from a step back.
Cha Eui-jae doesn’t give up. Not when there’s something to protect.
And yet, he gave up.
Cha Eui-jae thought of the black coffin. He felt he knew who the owner of that coffin was. No, he might have realized it the moment he saw it. The owner of that coffin…
A face with narrowed eyes and a smile came to mind. The voice that softly called out to him.
“Hyung.”
Lee Sa-young. His mouth went dry. He muttered as if spitting out the words.
“I won’t lose again.”
“…”
“Never.”
Hong Ye-seong looked at ‘Cha Eui-jae’ with a face full of pity, but he didn’t say anything more. Instead, he brought over a box from the corner and began rummaging through it. The box was filled with magic stones of various colors and sizes. He held up a violet magic stone to the light from the ceiling and asked.
“Alright. So why do you want to leave the memories? What good will that do?”
“…”
A rumbling… the ground shook. The materials piled on the shelves clattered and tumbled to the floor.
Hong Ye-seong screamed, scrambling to pick up the fallen materials. ‘Cha Eui-jae’ looked out the door. The sky was covered in a white vortex. It could no longer be called the sky— it was something else entirely. White ash swirled like snow.
Cha Eui-jae’s lips moved. ‘Cha Eui-jae’s’ and Cha Eui-jae’s voices overlapped.
“Because it’ll help me endure.”
If I gather up the best and kindest things, even if a day comes when I can’t endure life any longer…
At least, for a moment, I can breathe there.
Suddenly, everything around him turned black and white. The flow of the air, the falling and swaying materials, even ‘Cha Eui-jae’ and Hong Ye-seong— all froze like a scene in a black-and-white photograph. No one was alive; no one breathed. Eventually, everything began to crumble like dust.
At that moment, he felt a gaze from somewhere. In the crumbling, collapsing black-and-white photograph, something was still moving. The golden Eyes of Appraisal shone brightly. Countless overlapping patterns were alive, breathing.
The Eyes of Appraisal stared intently at Cha Eui-jae. Was that a signal? The frozen Hong Ye-seong creaked and twitched. He slowly raised his hand. Then, with a stiff, doll-like motion, he pointed precisely at Cha Eui-jae. A chill ran down his spine. His dazed mind cleared.
His lips moved.
This is the third and final chance.
You can’t hold out any longer. Neither can he, nor can you.
Don’t fail this time.
What does that mean? He tried to ask, but his mouth and body wouldn’t move. A strong gust of wind swept Cha Eui-jae away. The lips below the golden Eyes of Appraisal curved into a long arc.
I’m watching.
Explain what you mean right now! With superhuman effort, Cha Eui-jae managed to raise his arm. He reached out to Hong Ye-seong, but he was already too far away. The doll-like Hong Ye-seong in the black-and-white photograph waved stiffly.
Goodbye, my friend.
You bastard! Overcome with anger, Cha Eui-jae managed to move his stiff hand to flip him off. Haha… The hearty laughter faded.
Flash!
A blinding light, like a camera flash, burst forth. Cha Eui-jae shut his eyes tightly.
***
When Cha Eui-jae opened his eyes, he found himself floating in a vast, white void. It felt as if he had become a glass bottle drifting aimlessly on the sea. However, while his body was at peace, his mind was in turmoil. The third time, failure, Lee Sa-young… His mind, overwhelmed by the sudden flood of information, screamed in protest.
Didn’t Cha Eui-jae die first in the fragment that Yoon Ga-eul showed him?
Why was he alive in the scene he just witnessed?
Is Yoon Ga-eul okay? Is this even the same world that Yoon Ga-eul was pulled into?
Why am I friends with Hong Ye-seong?
Setting that aside, why did I turn back time, and why don’t I have any memories?
Who was that Lee Sa-young sitting alone in the dark space?
Damn it, where is Lee Sa-young now?
As his thoughts swirled like a vortex, the last image that stood out was Lee Sa-young, who had been in his arms but suddenly vanished. Cha Eui-jae frowned. Did he return to the original world? After all, he had come over due to the system’s reward. It would be better if that were the case…
At that moment, the empty space around him began to hum.
…
“…Huh?”
Cha Eui-jae looked up. The hum grew louder and more distinct.
…Hyung.
Finally, he recognized the voice. It was Lee Sa-young’s. What the hell? Where are you? Cha Eui-jae stretched his neck out like a turtle. Then,
Cha Eui-jae!
Lee Sa-young called his name loudly. Overcome with emotion, Cha Eui-jae started to get up. Is he calling hyung’s name—?
“Just recklessly—!”
Cha Eui-jae opened his eyes. The white void was gone, replaced by familiar ruins where white ash drifted in the air. He blinked slowly. His heart suddenly races.
The scene looked too similar to the interior of the West Sea rift. No, this might actually be the West Sea rift. Perhaps he had finally been dragged there…
Just then, he felt a strong pressure against his upper body.
“Shit…”
At the same time, he felt the soft sensation of hair brushing against him. Cha Eui-jae took a deep breath. He was being embraced by Lee Sa-young. The warmth of their bodies and the sound of two rapidly beating hearts filled the space.
Lee Sa-young, gripping the fabric of his shirt as if he might tear it, muttered,
“You wouldn’t wake up…”
Cha Eui-jae gently patted Lee Sa-young’s back.
A deep, resonant sound echoed around them. Still held in Lee Sa-young’s embrace, Cha Eui-jae looked up.
His blue eyes quickly scanned the surroundings. Nearby, he saw a familiar flicker of flames. It was Yoon Ga-eul. But soon, a massive shadow engulfed the flames. Cha Eui-jae raised his gaze, searching for the source of the sound.
Beyond the white horizon, from the sea of white ash, a giant whale breached.
thank god it’s really the 3rd not the 1864th
Anonymous
GODDAMMIT it wasn’t a simple parallel universe, but A FK PAST LIFE?? Not only one, but TWO?!
I’m tweaking out. So, 1st life CEJ died and maybe Sa-young turned back time and 2nd Sa young died and CEJ turned back time again..
I thought the dungeon was Sayoung’s man.. I thought he was so depressed he asked HYS to make it so it become a place where he could rest, smth like that but turns out it was CEJ’s himself. I’m crying wth
nublug
AAAAGGGGHHH
a timeline where eui jae dies, a timeline where sa young dies and eui jae turns back time, then hsy saying that this is the third and last chance?
Anonymous
FUCK NO
I HATE THIS TIMELINES THING ALWAYS THERE IS SUCH A FUCKING DRAMA WITH IT
And watches with blue eyes… It’s so similar to Lu Guang, shit, a hate it
Anonymous
what the fuck???? i swore i was just reading a comedy bl but then it was like orv style???? damn, this story fools you
Leave a comment
Δ
