Chapter 530
After the fusion with the black planet, the landscape of the cemetery park in Seoul had completely changed.
This cemetery park, created over thirty years ago during the Object incident, was now surrounded not by concrete forests but by dense jungles.
The sight of massive tombstones scattered sparsely among the endless green trees looked somewhat dark.
Although the sunlight shining through the dense foliage was bright, strangely, a lonely aura lingered in the air.
Today, the cemetery park was as quiet as usual.
In the vast park, only two figures were present: a blonde girl and a man dressed in a black suit.
The blonde girl stood in front of a grave, her head bowed as she looked down at the tombstone.
It was the grave of her parents, who had passed away a long time ago.
‘Even though I’m a real clone, is it okay to call them my parents…?’
The ambiguous boundary between what is real and fake, original and copy.
The blonde girl slowly mulled over the thoughts rising in her mind like quiet ripples on a deep well.
Then, all of a sudden, the Red Reapers began to appear cautiously from various corners of the cemetery.
Unlike their usual playful and bright demeanor, their expressions carried an air of sorrow.
As if resonating with the blonde girl’s emotions, the subtle red light emitted by the Red Reapers colored the cemetery red.
But even that light appeared slightly darker and deeper today.
The vines growing along the decorative metal fence swayed gently in the breeze, and distant bird chirps could be faintly heard.
The blonde girl glanced at the Red Reapers briefly, thinking to herself.
‘Those kids must be having similar thoughts to me. We are all clones of the ‘originals,’ after all.’
The thoughts rising in her heart spread endlessly, like ripples in the deep water.
The blonde girl often imagined the life she could have had if her parents were alive.
Perhaps there would have been a warm meal waiting when she woke up, and they might have greeted her happily when she returned from school—simple, everyday moments.
‘If my parents hadn’t passed away, would ‘I’ have continued living happily?’
The world that she envisioned in her imagination was so sweet.
‘Would Grandpa have been alright, though?’
For a moment, the image of her grandfather’s last moments came to her mind.
Her grandfather, lost in madness, trying to reverse everything that had been lost, even if it meant sacrificing the entire nation.
‘If that had happened, ‘we’ wouldn’t have been born…’
A heavy air enveloped the cemetery.
In this gloomy atmosphere, the ‘first Red Reaper,’ who was beloved by the others, seemed uncomfortable and glanced around, unsure of what to do.
The first Red Reaper didn’t share the same memories as the other Red Reapers or the blonde girl.
For the first Red Reaper, the best thing to do was to stay as calm and composed as possible, reading the atmosphere.
Time passed slowly, just like the tranquility of the cemetery park.
The heavy silence seemed to last forever, but eventually, the blonde girl broke the quiet.
She clapped her hands softly, as if deciding something, and looked up.
As if she no longer wanted to be lost in melancholy thoughts, a bright smile spread across her face.
It was a gentle smile, like a beam of moonlight breaking through the clouds.
“Let’s head back now.”
With that one sentence, the atmosphere around her changed noticeably.
The Red Reapers’ expressions brightened in an instant, and the red light they emitted became more vibrant.
It was like magic—the gloomy energy in the cemetery park dissipated, and vitality began to return.
The cheerful laughter of the Red Reapers was more effective than any powerful magic in changing the mood of the place.
The heavy air vanished in an instant, replaced by a warm and lively atmosphere.
Now, the Red Reapers began to scatter, each heading in their own direction.
Some Red Reapers, like the Red Sun Reapers, flew off toward their beloved humans, while the others quietly gathered around the man in the black suit.
The blonde girl frowned slightly as she watched the Red Reapers surrounding the man in the black suit.
Like someone swatting away mosquitoes, she waved her hand to try to drive the Red Reapers away.
“Well then, let’s go to the desert.”
At her words, a worried expression flickered across the man in the black suit’s face.
The desert.
It was a place that held great significance for her.
It was the end and the beginning of an ordinary life.
“It’s practically my new starting point, so I’ve always wanted to visit.”
The blonde girl said with a brave expression, laughing with a hint of excitement.
Her voice no longer carried any hesitation or fear.
Instead, it was full of the excitement of a traveler about to embark on a new adventure.
Thud-thud.
She stepped forward with confidence, her back looking light and free.
“And next, the new…”
“This time, uncle too…”
“Oh, by the way, I heard a Golden Reaper Café has opened…”
It was as if she was putting down a heavy burden she had been carrying for a long time.
The man in the black suit smiled softly as he watched her.
Following the footsteps of the blonde girl, who had now left the cemetery park surrounded by the jungle, the remaining Red Reapers began to follow her one by one.
Now, the cemetery park was once again quiet, but this time, the stillness didn’t feel heavy or melancholic.
The cruise boat slowly cut through the lake, the warm sunlight pouring down on the deck, wrapping around my body like a cozy blanket.
The midday warmth was perfect.
‘It’s warm…’
I unknowingly felt my eyelids grow heavy.
Had I been so tired lately?
Or perhaps it was because this peaceful time had stretched on?
In any case, I didn’t mind this languid feeling.
The sunlight shining on the still surface of the lake sparkled.
Looking at it, I suddenly recalled the events after handling the White and Black Reapers.
The significant change I had undergone—being able to freely manipulate the Halo of Death.
I felt that the incomplete part of the Halo of Death had finally been filled.
‘Maybe the Halo was a little broken because some part of it remained with the Black Giant.’
The problem was that this enormous change didn’t seem to be of much use.
Now that I had become a god of the color universe, the Halo no longer held much significance.
Although I couldn’t claim to be ‘omnipotent’ like a god, I was at a level where I could do everything the White Reapers could.
As I sorted through my thoughts about this event, just as I was about to fall into a deep drowsiness, a familiar voice snapped me out of my reverie.
“Reaper, look at that!”
At Yerin’s bright voice, I slowly raised my antennae.
What entered my view was a scene of Yangcheon District’s lake, which had changed dramatically since the last time I saw it.
In the center of the lake, there was a floating park that looked like a small city.
The beautiful buildings erected above the water resembled a scene from Venice.
Small boats weaving through the area only added to the exotic atmosphere.
Amidst the small boats drifting on the water, the lively voices of vendors calling out to tourists filled the air.
It was such an unusual sight that I wondered if this was really Korea.
What was especially noticeable was the air.
Perhaps due to the careful management of the Blue Reapers, a strangely refreshing fragrance spread over the lake.
That fragrance felt as invigorating as a forest bath.
Yerin, holding a tourist pamphlet, read aloud in an excited voice.
At the same time, her warm hand gently stroked my hair.
I felt an incredible sense of peace from her touch.
‘This feels nice…’
In that moment, I felt that coming back to Earth from the color universe had been worth it.
The cruise boat continued to cross the lake.
As the sunlight reflected off the surface, I smiled softly, feeling Yerin’s touch.
I had come back for these simple, small moments of happiness.
The research institute nestled in the cracks of time was as quiet as always.
But today, that silence carried an ominous tension.
Deep inside the institute, in the central research director’s office, a faint light seeped out, the only proof that this space was alive.
The director sat at his desk, but his appearance was far from the usual neatness.
His face, unshaven for days, showed clear signs of exhaustion, and his normally neat hair was disheveled.
On his wide desk, piles of documents about the ‘Alchemists’ from James Research Institute were stacked high.
On top of them, James’ meticulous notes were scribbled everywhere, and research materials about the Objects wedged their way in between.
All of these documents were tangled like a maze, hiding the clues to the truth the director was searching for.
“Wish…”
The director’s hoarse voice cut through the silent air.
His fingertips were constantly filling sheets of paper with scribbles.
One sheet after another. The papers were scattered all over the floor, each filled with the same word written repeatedly.
<Wish?>
The letters seemed to have been etched compulsively.
Some were deep and dark, while others were faint, but all of them carried the same obsession.
The director’s gaze was filled with an almost crazed intensity, and the papers scattered around him seemed like the remnants of a storm.
In the corner of the research institute, hidden in the darkness, a Golden Reaper watched this entire scene, unable to hide the worried look in its eyes.
‘Human…’
The calm and rational appearance of the director was nowhere to be seen; only a mad obsession remained.
The researchers bound to the director had also stopped all their usual work and were now fully immersed in the director’s endless pursuit.
Their eyes too bore the same obsession.
It was as if the director’s madness had spread like a contagious disease.
The Golden Reaper had no idea where all of this was heading.
But one thing was certain: this research institute was slowly being consumed by darker and more harmful energies.
The space, hidden in the cracks of time, seemed to be turning into a gap of madness.
