Chapter 130: Chapter 130

The smell of freshly baked bread filled the air. Lee Sayoung, chuckling softly, spoke warmly.

“Go sit down, hyung. I’m almost done.”

“Is there nothing I can do?”

“Hmm…”

Instead of answering, he gave a playful glance. Uijae narrowed his eyes in mock suspicion.

“Hey.”

“Then, could you set the table with some plates and forks?”

“Got it.”

His body moved out of habit. Sneaking a glance, he noticed Sayoung expertly rolling an omelet. His skill with pouring the egg mixture was impressive. Uijae grabbed two plates from the cupboard. At that moment, Sayoung put down the spatula and pressed the back of his hand to his eyes.

Once again, Uijae's mouth moved on its own.

“…Your eyes hurt again?”

Again? Had Lee Sayoung’s eyes hurt before?

“Yeah…”

“Where’s your medicine?”

“I haven’t taken it yet. I was going to after we ate.”

“At least use some eye drops. I’ll watch this.”

“…Are you sure? You’re not going to burn it again, right?”

“If I can’t handle it, I’ll just hold it.”

What kind of ridiculous statement was that? Uijae’s pride as a hangover soup restaurant worker was wounded! Just as he was about to defend himself, feeling like his confidence had been unfairly attacked, Sayoung groaned softly.

“Ugh…”

Suddenly, soft curls brushed against Uijae’s shoulder, and a warm, solid body filled his embrace. Uijae stroked the sharp line of Sayoung’s shoulder blades and back.

“If it still hurts after the drops, tell me, okay?”

“Okay…”

Sayoung placed the square frying pan down and staggered out of the kitchen. Uijae watched him leave, feeling a pang of concern.

Lee Sayoung was Uijae’s weak spot.

Oh.

Cha Uijae had saved a poisoned, dying Lee Sayoung, detoxified him, and healed his melted skin by researching dungeon monster byproducts. To take responsibility for the life he had saved, they had lived together ever since. Everything was nearly perfect. Except for one thing.

What was it?

There was one thing—Uijae hadn’t been able to completely heal Sayoung’s eyes. His vision was poor, and he regularly experienced pain, just like now.

Had that always been the case? It didn’t quite match Uijae’s memories.

His thoughts were disrupted by sudden, irrelevant questions rising unbidden to the surface of his mind.

He couldn’t help it.

Anyway, Uijae, while working at the Awakener Management Bureau, was searching for dungeon byproducts or remedies that could potentially heal Sayoung’s eyes.

Awakener Management Bureau?

Today, since there were no other pressing matters, he had taken some time to rest. But as soon as a call came, he would have to rush out.

Wait, why?

A white curtain suddenly fluttered wildly. Uijae blinked. He realized he was holding a square frying pan in one hand and two plates precariously in the other. Carefully, he set the frying pan down on the powered-off induction stove and placed the plates on the table. The dishes were adorned with purple violets.

Purple?

Why were Sayoung’s eyes black? They should have been a vivid purple, visible even through thick gas mask lenses.

“Oh.”

Like cold water splashing over him, Uijae snapped back to reality.

‘Sh*t.’

Bang! He braced himself against the table with both hands, his head bowed, eyes wide open. Now that he was conscious of it, everything felt strange. Cold sweat trickled down his temples.

‘Where am I?’

Why had he been acting like all of this was normal? A chill ran down his spine as he searched through his most recent memories.

Suddenly, there was Kkoko’s arrival, Jung Bin’s message. Yun Gaeul’s soul had been dragged into another world, and if it lasted much longer, her life would be in danger. The dream in which Yun Gaeul appeared, leaving behind a fragment before disappearing. And then…

Cha Uijae had shattered the fragment without hesitation.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

‘What the hell was I thinking?’

In hindsight, it was an impulsive move, like being under a spell. At the very least, he should have finished closing the shop first! Who knew how long it would take, and yet he’d done it right in the middle of the restaurant. On top of that…

‘Wasn’t I wearing a mask?’

Uijae stared blankly at the grain of the wooden table before running his hands through his hair. A soundless scream escaped him. What was he going to do about this mess?

Just then, a white rectangular box appeared in his field of vision. A white screen blinked as if greeting him.

It had been a long time since he had seen the system window.

**[Nice to see you, J!]**

Not nice to see you.

Ignoring the system, Uijae kept thinking. This place was probably the world where Yun Gaeul’s soul had been dragged. After all, it had to be, considering the fragment she had left behind.

So, what timeline was he in? Uijae quickly walked to the window and looked outside. A black hole spun in the middle of the blue sky. It was after the day of the Rift.

‘But Yun Gaeul’s fragment… It showed the world already destroyed, with no hope of stopping the destruction, right?’

And in that fragment, Lee Sayoung had already awakened, so this place must be earlier in time than that fragment.

Why had he ended up at this point? And how was he supposed to escape?

Suddenly, a new system window appeared, cutting into his line of sight.

**[Would you like to check your current location?]**

A tempting offer. Uijae narrowed his eyes and read the message carefully.

Current location. It was valuable information… Sure, there was no harm in knowing. After all, the fact that he was still alive and that people knew he was J was already a given. And there was very little information about this place.

Uijae nodded.

“Tell me.”

**[Location: Memorial Dungeon (Creator: ???)]**

Memorial Dungeon?

Uijae blinked and quickly scanned his surroundings. This was a dungeon? But there were no signs of monsters.

What did “Memorial” mean? Was it the name of the dungeon? But usually dungeons had their own titles, so this seemed unusual. And with “creator” listed, it implied someone had made this dungeon. Uijae crossed his arms. It would be faster to ask the system.

“What is a Memorial Dungeon?”

A new window appeared.

**[Memorial Dungeon: A space recreated based on someone’s memories.]**

Uijae tapped his arm. So, this dungeon was constructed from someone’s memories? If it was a dungeon, there had to be a way to clear it.

‘Like killing the dungeon boss…’

“What’s the clearing method?”

But the system’s response wasn’t helpful.

**[It varies depending on the dungeon.]**

No kidding. Uijae gritted his teeth. The system, just as always, never provided the important details. Heat rose in his head. Pressing his forehead with one hand, he opened the window wider and leaned his head outside.

In front of the house was a park. The laughter of people taking a stroll echoed in his ears. Uijae propped his elbows on the windowsill, resting his chin on his hand.

‘There were bits of information in my head earlier that didn’t match what I knew.’

Cha Uijae and Lee Sayoung lived together, and Sayoung’s treatment had been successful. Sayoung hadn’t awakened yet, and his eyes were black. Things like that. These must be from the memories of whoever created this dungeon. And,

‘It’s probably just a few days of memories.’

Human memory isn’t perfect. The memory of the person who made this space would be the same. So, this dungeon wouldn’t last long. Uijae sighed, crossing his fingers and then stretching them.

‘…I guess I’ll have to get through the day first.’

At that moment, the system window blinked again.

**[Would you like to claim your reward for first place?]**

**[▶Claim]**

First place reward? Uijae blinked, suddenly remembering. The reward from the day the rankings had been updated. It was something he had earned after doing something inappropriate at a funeral. Not a single part of that had been Uijae’s idea.

He still remembered the thrill of being revived after being tossed out like trash. So why was that window popping up now? Uijae scoffed.

“What’s the reward?”

The system didn’t respond for a moment, only showing a blank screen. Empty promises. Uijae sneered and turned away.

But,

**[It will give you what you need most right now.]**

The words appeared carefully on the screen.

It sounded like a cheap ad. What Uijae needed most right now… Was it going to give him an escape pass or a weapon? He leaned his chin on his hand and reached out toward the system window.

He didn’t trust the system. He never had, and that hadn’t changed.

But maybe his mind was changed by…

“Fine…”

Was it the warmth of this space? Or the anxiety gnawing at him? Or perhaps…

Uijae pressed the “Claim” button with his fingertip.

“Just give me something.”

Perhaps it was Uijae’s intuition.

At that moment,

Thud!

A heavy noise echoed. It came from the direction where this version of Lee Sayoung had disappeared, complaining about his aching eyes.

‘Did he collapse from the pain?’

Uijae hurried

across the hallway and stopped in front of the firmly closed door. His heart raced. He bit his dry lips.

‘…No, he should be fine.’

The fragment Yun Gaeul had shown depicted a Lee Sayoung who had safely awakened. His health shouldn’t be an issue here. But…

Uijae threw the door open.

“Lee Sayoung!”

The room was a white-tiled bathroom. Sayoung was slumped against the sink, sitting on the floor with his upper body draped over the edge. His eyes were tightly shut, his face pale and beaded with sweat. Uijae carefully cupped Sayoung’s cheek.

“Hey, are you okay? Open your eyes!”

Sayoung, groaning in pain, slowly opened his eyes. The color of his irises was shifting rapidly.

Black, purple, black, purple, black, purple, black…

Purple.

Uijae froze for a moment. The area around Lee Sayoung darkened. It was as if the world around him was glitching, breaking and distorting. And then, the light blue checkered apron Sayoung had been wearing darkened as well, revealing a logo on his chest.

‘A soju brand toad!’

The apron, the one that should have been hanging at the hangover soup restaurant! Uijae's mouth fell open, and he instinctively took a step back.

‘Oh, crap.’

At that moment, Sayoung’s limp body stiffened. His eyes, glowing an intense violet, scanned the room before settling on Uijae, who was now glued to the bathroom wall like a lizard.

“……”

“……”

A heavy silence filled the air. Uijae slowly peeled himself off the wall, met Sayoung’s gaze, and awkwardly cleared his throat. He felt like he had to say something.

“…Uh, hi? Sayoung?”

A demon seemed to take possession of Sayoung’s delicate, handsome face as he spat out in a low, venomous voice,

“…What.”

“…Huh?”

“What kind of sh*t have you gotten yourself into this time, you f***ing idiot?”

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