Chapter 64

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When I opened my eyes,

I saw a tree watching over me.

“……”

A tree that blocked out the sky.

No sounds of animals or insects that should be heard reached my ears, and the whole world seemed awkwardly colored, like a poorly edited photo.

It was as if someone had tried to turn a color photo into black and white and messed it up. Eyes, like flames painted with delicate strokes, moved silently towards me, and hundreds, thousands of eyes embedded in the tree looked around in countless directions. Watching their glances, moving quickly and slowly like glass, felt like falling into the rabbit hole of Wonderland.

Realizing that none of these coarse yet delicate things touched my ears, I suddenly understood.

“…Huh.”

He was trapped in a dream again.

‘If this weren’t a dream, it wouldn’t be this quiet.’

Lee Jaehun raised an eyebrow and then lowered it. The last thing he saw before falling asleep was the protagonist preparing to keep watch, so it wasn’t too hard to guess.

The hidden world reflects human thoughts, but it is also a space with a basic ecosystem. The novel’s protagonist had described this world as silent several times, but that was because he was too exhausted to hear, not because there was truly no sound.

Having heard the noise of animals and insects in the park of the hidden world several times, Lee Jaehun knew this silence, along with the strangely moving eyes, indicated that this was a dream. It was an annoyingly vivid scene, but Jaehun could distinguish between dreams and reality.

As he quietly observed, he realized where he was standing.

“…This place is unchanged.”

It was the second camp they had moved to.

Since the dream he had last time also started here, it seemed likely that his dreams began in the place where he fell asleep.

“It’s not certain, but… it seems probable.”

He wondered where the boundary between dream actions and reality lay, but he couldn’t determine that yet. If he had the time, he would conduct various experiments to find out, but for now, his role in maintaining the group’s morale was more crucial. He hoped to meet up with Detective Hong Kyungjun and the other survivors again.

As planned before he fell asleep, Lee Jaehun headed toward the algae-covered lake.

‘Drowning is a nasty feeling, but there’s no choice.’

The feeling of vomiting the bright red lake water was more unpleasant than he could have imagined, but there was no other way. For now, he would proceed according to the plan and take measures if his mental state began to deteriorate.

He continued to scan his surroundings as he moved. Not knowing anything about this mysterious lucid dream, he needed to gather as much information as possible in one visit.

The first thing he discovered was,

“There’s nothing alive here.”

No animals, insects, not even the monsters they usually saw. The green algae monster, the final boss of the park episode, remained for some reason, but everything else was nowhere to be seen.

So the second thing was,

“Then why is there a mannequin?”

The mannequin that resembled Kim Yeonwoo, which appeared in a dream he had after first meeting Constable Kim, definitely spoke and moved. This meant the mannequin monster differed from other monsters.

Recalling the novel’s descriptions, Jaehun thought carefully.

‘Well, those things are in a different category from regular monsters.’

These unsettling creatures, like mannequins roughly mimicking individuals, were not monsters one encountered inside the hidden world.

“The mannequin monster is…”

A monster encountered not within the hidden world but outside of it.

The protagonist who accidentally escaped the hidden world also had his mental state shattered by this mannequin monster. Though not explicitly described, it’s likely the other survivors faced similar situations. These monsters didn’t attack directly but had a knack for severely disturbing one’s mental state.

And the third, or rather the second point and a half,

“…Ultimately, mannequins and the final boss appear in the dream…”

These two monsters and other moving things probably had differences he didn’t know about.

Of course, this wasn’t critically important information right now. What he wanted to know was not the ecosystem within this lucid dream, but its origin and how to break free from it. Although he had made plans that included this lucid dream, knowing he couldn’t solve it immediately, he still wanted to eliminate it if he could.

After all, Lee Jaehun’s mind had its limits.

Since leaving the enclosed, dark building, his severe trauma hadn’t resurfaced, but going back into a concrete building would drive him crazy. Unlike when he was first swallowed by the hidden world, his mental strength was now significantly weakened. It was only natural, but even if he went back to the company and encountered the spider monster again, he probably wouldn’t be able to hear the wind sounds they made.

But falling into a lucid dream every time he slept, and having to die to wake up—if he was mistaken about the latter, it would be embarrassing, but he couldn’t test it right now. Considering his mind was being eroded little by little without showing any signs, it was a grim situation.

And the other information…

“I need more experience.”

To figure out the identity of this dream, which didn’t even appear in the novel.

Lee Jaehun unconsciously limped but soon realized the pain wasn’t that bad and changed his steps to a normal walk.

In front of him was the algae-covered lake that had drowned him before. Looking at the lake, completely covered in algae so that nothing inside could be seen, Lee Jaehun sighed.

It was their third meeting, yet it still made him sigh. To describe it, it felt like seeing mint chocolate whipped cream on top of a traditional Korean herbal tea. He wondered how he ended up in this situation, having to drown in that lake. Where was all the wealth and glory he had amassed in his past life?

Thinking about the end of his once-peaceful life, Lee Jaehun approached the lake.

“……”

…To be honest, he didn’t like water.

To be more honest, Lee Jaehun was afraid of water. He hated sharp darkness. He hated buildings he couldn’t see out of. He especially hated when his ankles were shackled, and he absolutely detested anything that threatened his life and peace.

But as an adult, there were many things he could do.

“…Hoo.”

Splash.

As his feet touched the lake, algae wrapped around them. It felt heavy, like shackles.

“……”

Feet.

Next, the ankles.

The calves, the thighs.

And when he was submerged up to his solar plexus, there was nothing under his shoes.

He felt the big, empty hole beneath him, even without seeing it, and then he was sucked in, submerged completely.

Splash—

Sinking, unlike in reality, his body had no intention of floating, so he calmed himself down, opened his eyes in the thick water, and looked at the inside of the lake.

An orange and blackish-red hole stared back at him.

“……”

He was suffocating.

As if a heavy stone was tied to his feet, his body kept sinking downwards. When he turned his gaze from the sinkhole-like hole and looked to the side, he saw marble pieces.

‘…A castle.’

It resembled an old castle often seen in Western fantasy movies. Was it like the legendary Atlantis, lost under the sea? But it was dreadfully dark red, covered in algae and moss, making it grotesque.

What if the long castle was turned upside down? It might look like this. But how could he explain the emptiness in the center?

There were no fish, no seaweed growing like in the ocean, no shining blue world reflecting light or swaying with the waves. It was just a strange, bloody smell, as if made by melting all the blood of every living being on earth and mixing it with glass.

That smell consumed his nose and mouth, his ears, his throat, stomach, and lungs, slowly gnawing away. By the time his mind should be fading, he realized how clear-headed he still was, indicating his mental state.

And then, the touch that wrapped around his neck and waist.

“……!”

Gurgle.

All the remaining air bubbles burst out.

After being unable to breathe for a long time, his vision started to flicker.

He reached out, thinking it might be some vines from the park, but no. Even in his confused state, he could tell it was definitely a human hand. It wasn’t as hard as a mannequin’s.

‘What is this?’

Why? Who? For what reason?

In familiar terror and shallow panic, Lee Jaehun instinctively tried to take a deep breath, which, of course, backfired while drowning. Without thinking about how his actions might appear in reality, he pulled the hand away from his neck as if tearing it off.

As he barely managed to turn his body, a faint figure appeared in his vision.

“……”

It was a horribly familiar face.

A gentle hallucination whispered in his ear.

* * *

“…Cough, hack. Gag!”

To get straight to the point, Lee Jaehun failed to drown.

“That damn bastard…!”

The algae monster had saved him. He was still stuck in the dream.

He couldn’t believe that fat monster, after leaving its home, would appear in such an unexpected way. He never imagined it would hit him from behind.

It was infuriating enough that he couldn’t die, but this was just too much.

‘Why did it save me?’

It had killed him so many times already.

Although it had actually killed him only once, it had killed him in the dream before. The inconsistency between the dream and reality was just baffling.

Despite it being a dream, the vivid sensation made Lee Jaehun shudder as he vomited up the lake water. It had seemed quite clear when he looked into it, but now, having come out, it was an opaque red with hints of orange and black, like some bloody mess.

After a long while, Lee Jaehun finally managed to stand up shakily and look at his opponent.

“…What the hell.”

“……”

“What the hell is this?”

Naturally, the algae monster didn’t respond.

‘Of course, it has no mouth…!’

It was a headache.

It roughly looked like a person wrapped in algae, with limbs sticking out, but it was ultimately a monster. Given that there were also mannequin-like monsters that closely resembled specific individuals, the form of the algae monster was not particularly surprising.

In his panic-stricken mind, the most urgent thought for Lee Jaehun was not the failed drowning or why the monster saved him.

“Why does it have a human arm…?”

His heart pounded loudly in his ears.

He felt like throwing up.

His heart was racing so violently it was unbearable, his insides were churning. His worn-out esophagus and the cochlea deep in his ears felt like they were going to be expelled from his body. The rapid heartbeat echoed through his whole body.

What Lee Jaehun saw in the algae monster at that moment was that its form…

“…Why…?”

…resembled a person who should never be here.

“……”

What had wrapped around him in the lake was undoubtedly a human arm.

The arm was thin and long, the bones so delicate that if Lee Jaehun wanted, he could easily break it into pieces.

The soft feel of the skin gave him chills. Even now, it was the same.

It was almost like…

“…Hmm.”

Or was it?

‘Did I just see it wrong?’

Yes.

He was just very startled.

It must have been a hallucination people experience before dying.

“…Damn, that scared me.”

The noise ringing in his brain gradually subsided.

It felt like one of those jump scares from a horror movie he once watched in a theater. The feeling of breathlessness and anxiety was so unpleasant that Lee Jaehun pressed down on his calming heart with one hand.

With that, another question arose.

‘Why did this thing save me?’

It wasn’t even trying to kill him again, no, that wasn’t it.

More importantly…

“……”

“……”

Lee Jaehun approached the algae monster.

Not running or attacking, but slowly, as if inviting it to slit his throat. Even a ten-year-old could probably stop him at this pace.

But the monster only turned its head to follow him, not attacking or extending its tendrils. It didn’t drop any fanged vines or open its mouth. It seemed almost completely devoid of aggression.

However, as he tried to pass by the monster towards the lake,

“……”

“What the hell.”

It blocked him.

When he tried to strangle himself, just in case,

“……”

“What the hell is this.”

It stopped him.

‘What is this thing trying to do?’

His head started to spin.

Lee Jaehun looked at the algae monster, which was much taller than an average adult man, gripping his wrists with its large hands. It didn’t squeeze hard enough to break them, just enough to feel like the pain of a habitual thief being handcuffed by the police.

It wouldn’t let go when he tried to escape. Moving his legs did nothing against the monster’s solid bulk, and even kicking it with all his strength elicited no reaction. It was like it was dead standing up. At that point, even Lee Jaehun, who had been through hell with this monster, couldn’t understand what was happening.

He felt more shock and absurdity than the instinctual disgust toward the monster.

Seriously, what the hell.

“…Let go, you bastard…!”

It was preventing him from escaping this damned place.

If you’re not going to take responsibility for my life, then get lost, you damn lump.

* * *

Three days passed like that.

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