Chapter 532
The moment I decided to move across space at the Golden Reaper’s call, I had already arrived at the Rift Research Institute.
It was as if I had always been there.
The Golden Reaper, surprised by my sudden appearance, widened its eyes in shock.
As I looked around, the familiar scene of the Rift Research Institute from before unfolded before me.
Outside the window, fragmented time flowed by, and transparent containment chambers lined the institute.
I smiled at the sight, thinking of the Golden Reaper’s growth.
‘Now, you can call me from beyond space.’
As I marveled at it, the Golden Reaper, looking worried, pulled at me urgently.
Thud-thud.
I followed the Golden Reaper’s lead and opened the large door, walking slowly inside.
And through the large door, I saw the research director, who appeared to be in very poor condition.
It felt like it had been a long time since I last saw him, perhaps because I had just returned from the color universe.
The director was muttering unintelligible words while writing something.
He was so focused on his work that he didn’t even notice I had entered.
Surrounding the director were alchemical books, likely brought from James Research Institute.
I quietly approached and saw that the director was writing in the Object language.
But the writing was nothing more than a jumble of fragmented, incomprehensible characters.
So, I picked up a paper that had fallen on the floor and read something I could understand.
‘Oh.’
From what I could roughly gather, the director was researching the origin of the Objects.
The director seemed quite capable, getting closer to uncovering the truth of the color universe despite having only very limited materials and cases.
However, the color universe was far too harmful for humans to handle, and the director was slowly succumbing to madness.
‘Hmm.’
I could solve this quickly by turning him into a roll-cake human, but I was somewhat intrigued.
So, just as I decided to observe the director, I could see the path he had walked.
It looked like traces of many overlapping times.
‘Searching for the origin of the Object.’
That had been his long-held dream.
A desperate wish so powerful that, even at the moment of his death, he would place it before his family.
That was the wish that had turned him into an Object.
And that was the condition for the destruction of this Object.
‘This man, obsessed with research and stubbornness, destroyed his family, and now he’s leading himself to ruin…’
After quickly reviewing the past to satisfy my curiosity, I turned the research director into a roll-cake human.
I didn’t even need to use firewood like before, just my thoughts.
Since everywhere that touched the color universe was essentially my domain, it was only natural.
With that, the director stopped moving and collapsed to the ground.
When he wakes up, he’ll be able to study properly without the influence of the color universe.
Moreover, even if he uncovers the origin of the Objects and the color universe and feels ‘satisfied,’ he won’t be destroyed.
As the director collapsed, the Golden Reaper looked at me with a worried expression.
‘Is the human alright now?’
‘Yes.’
Upon hearing my response, the Golden Reaper smiled happily and laughed.
I left the Golden Reaper by the director’s side and began to walk around the Rift Research Institute.
‘This place hasn’t changed.’
The Rift Research Institute was like a taxidermied space, almost unchanged from when I first arrived.
However, the researchers who had once roamed the institute were now gone without a trace.
Probably, since the director had been reborn as a roll-cake human, the researchers had returned to his shadow.
In the empty institute corridor, the transparent containment chambers lined up, showing the past, present, and future appearances of the Objects.
It was always a fascinating place.
Now that I had become a god of the color universe, I could do anything, but I still wasn’t confident in handling time.
So, I used the power of the color universe to control one of the containment chambers, slowly turning the channel like flipping TV channels.
The first place that appeared was Yerin, who looked gloomy because I had disappeared.
“When will the Reaper come…?”
I couldn’t help but smile as I watched her muttering while holding one of the Golden Reapers walking around.
Then, as I switched channels, the containment chamber began to show several current scenes.
A coral-haired girl conducting an interview with a red-haired reporter, set against a cold snowfield.
From the context of the interview, it seemed like they were deeply discussing the events during the Frog Foreign News.
Around them, Red Sun Reapers and Black Reapers were chatting.
I muttered while looking at the Red Sun Reaper.
‘That guy has gone to the other side of the Earth…’
It made me realize how much my domain had expanded.
Next, there was the familiar scene of James City, with my children and their beloved humans.
A girl with an orange crown Reaper and a pair of siblings with a purple blindfold Reaper.
A silver-haired girl with a Mini Flower Reaper.
It seemed like they were touring James City.
The guide appeared to be the beloved human of Mingming from James Research Institute.
After that, many other children were seen playing happily.
Far away in Japan, a black-haired girl was swinging a Black Reaper like a sword, practicing under the First Sword.
In a mansion in the jungle, a bleached Reaper and a Halo Reaper, along with a pink-haired girl, were practicing alchemy.
A blue Idol Reaper cheered on the pink-haired girl.
A teacher Goblin was giving a serious lesson to children.
At a fancy detective agency, a yellow detective, wearing a collar held by a Lamp Reaper, and their juniors, were working.
In the Sehee Research Institute’s empty rest room, a Sprout Reaper was cradling a baby Sprout Reaper while gazing at a large moon.
As I checked each child spread across the world, I smiled slightly.
Everyone was happily laughing.
Then, the screen in the containment chamber began to show the future.
It was unclear and blurry since it was an uncertain future, but it was a highly probable one.
Under a sun turned into the shape of a goblin, Sehee was having a golden crown placed on her head.
‘????’
Moreover, the one placing the crown was a Golden Reaper with a serious expression.
What in the world was going on?
This was a future I couldn’t understand based on the fragmented scenes.
The goblin-shaped sun, Sehee with a crown, the Golden Reaper—all of it was incomprehensible.
Fortunately, the following videos were somewhat easier to understand.
Valhalla, where many people were reunited.
The giant throne in Valhalla with a Lead doll sitting on it.
The Blue Girl and the Alchemists resurrected in Valhalla.
The reunion of a mother and daughter with purple hair in Valhalla.
The resurrected Blue Girl playfully teasing a Goblin Reaper while carrying her own corpse.
The towering spire rising from Valhalla.
It was the sight of a world without death being completed.
Among these bright and happy future scenes, ominous images began to emerge.
‘?’
In the deep darkness, black liquid sloshed.
At the sight of it, I recalled something I had forgotten.
‘Oh, right. I had to collect the black children, but I forgot while having fun…’
I made a mental note not to forget and decided I would take them soon.
Looking around cautiously, I was relieved that there was no Golden Reaper in sight.
If they had seen this screen, they would likely have been reprimanded for hours.
I could just collect the children after they finish playing at Yangcheon Lake.
Hehe.
The farther into the future the video showed, the blurrier it became.
In the blurred scene, an intriguing sight flashed by.
It was a strange space that seemed like both the Mini Reaper Garden and the color universe, with Yerin closing a large book.
‘That’s probably a book Yerin used to read…’
The title of the book had been blank when I saw it today.
But in the future video, the title had been filled in.
<Seoul Object Story>
And as Yerin stepped away from the book, a golden Halo floated above her head.
‘!’
Seeing that, I suddenly felt like I wanted to see Yerin again.
‘At this point, I think the Rift Research Institute tour is over, right?’
After briefly looking around the lonely Rift Research Institute, I returned to Yerin’s side using space travel.
“Reaper!”
I was embraced by Yerin, who welcomed me, and slowly closed my eyes.
Around me, Goblin Reapers, Pudding Reapers, Hug Reapers, and Gem Reapers lay down.
‘What’s going on…’
Normally, Golden Reapers would rush to me first.
But since it wasn’t bedtime yet, it seemed like the Golden Reapers were still happily playing with their beloved humans.
After handling the Golden Reaper’s SOS signal after a long time, I slowly drifted to sleep, savoring the peaceful feeling.
Zzz.
Good night, everyone.
“Where in the world is this…”
Not long after finishing the Yangcheon Lake tour, Sehee’s small voice echoed in the dry air.
Sehee, who wasn’t happy with the recent buzz about the institute becoming more like a corporation, had walked out toward Seoul Forest for a brief time.
But just a few steps out of the institute, the scenery suddenly twisted, and Sehee fell into a dark underground space.
With the many Golden Reapers who had followed her with a trusting expression, she fell away from them in an instant.
The atmosphere here reminded her of the time when she first encountered the pig-like figure in Seoul Forest.
It was dark, ominous, and the air carried a dry, burnt scent.
Looking up at the ceiling’s cracks, she saw that the usual colorful moons were nowhere to be found, and only one lonely moon hung in the sky.
The golden rings that used to adorn the sky were also absent.
This wasn’t Earth.
Crunch.
Suddenly, a sound from far away made Sehee’s spine shiver.
It sounded like bones breaking.
Groan.
Then came the sound of something shattering.
The ominous noises didn’t stop and continued to echo.
“Gray Reaper, Golden Reaper, Black Reaper… Someone, please come quickly.”
Sehee’s voice trembled.
Her usual confident and lively demeanor was nowhere to be found.
Her heart raced wildly, and cold sweat started to form on her forehead.
Hah. Hah.
As she exhaled heavily, she felt something approaching from the darkness.
Sehee instinctively covered her mouth.
She tried to stay as silent as possible.
Click-clack.
The sound of footsteps, like stepping on stones with bare feet, grew louder.
In that moment, Sehee’s eyes widened.
It was a familiar sound.
The sound of footsteps she knew all too well.
“Reaper!”
With a cry, the Gray Reaper appeared from around the corner.
The Gray Reaper’s face was filled with a look of ‘Did you get kidnapped again?’
Behind the Gray Reaper, a group of Mini Reapers with worried expressions gathered.
Only then did Sehee properly see the scene behind the Gray Reaper.
Beyond the messily destroyed cave, the familiar sky appeared.
The colorful moons and golden rings were back in their proper place.
“Ha…”
Sehee sighed heavily, feeling the tension leave her body.
Thud-thud.
As she watched the Gray Reaper lead the way, a small smile appeared on Sehee’s face.
So much had changed, but some things remained the same.
Like this moment when the Gray Reaper came to save her.
This ordinary life would never change.
Surely.
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TL Note:
Thank you for joining me on this journey through Seoul Object Story. It’s been an incredible experience to translate this surreal and mystical tale, and I deeply appreciate you, the readers, for sticking with me all the way to the end.
Since the translation is finished, I’d love to hear your thoughts. What impressions have you walked away with after reading this book? Did the translation resonate with you? I hope it captured the depth, complexity, and atmosphere of the original text, bringing you closer to the world and characters.
If you enjoyed this one, I invite you to explore our other books as well. There are many more exciting worlds to discover and many more journeys to embark on. Thank you again for your support, and I look forward to sharing more stories with you in the future!
[SataBog]
