Chapter 179 – Epilogue. The Dream of a Summer Night
I had a dream.
A very bitter and sweet dream.
It seems impossible to forget it easily, but since dreams are like smoke by nature, they dissipate into the air faster than anything else.
So the memory gradually fades away.
“Ugh… Ugh…”
My head is dizzy.
A headache that seems like it will break, pieces of a dream appearing shimmering.
After getting up from a familiar bed, I pass through a familiar hallway, open a familiar refrigerator, take out a glass of cold water, and gulp it down.
Only then does the hazy mind cool down.
Fragments of memories that were like illusions melted into the brain one by one, making me realize that it was not a simple lie.
“Yes, obviously…”
To make this world come to its right end.
So that everyone can achieve a happy ending.
I definitely wished for that.
But why am I, why am I returning to college student Lee Ji-hoo’s room and not the Awakened Lee Ji-hoo’s room?
Suddenly, I noticed that I no longer felt magical power.
The sense of exhilaration that filled my whole body, and the sense of omnipotence that seemed like I could do anything.
Now everything is gone and only the feeling of emptiness surrounds the body.
I ran straight to the mirror and examined my body.
This one was also the same.
The body trained as an Awakener and the hair color that changed.
As if it was all a lie, only the dark black hair and the protruding belly catches the eye.
The moment I noticed all these changes, I was overcome with a terrible fear.
If everything in the past year was really just a dream.
If it’s simply something I want to believe is not a dream.
No, it can’t be.
I was so alive
I still have vivid memories of them…
…I’m sure it was clear right after I woke up.
Memories are gradually fading.
As if everything up until now was just an illusion.
Blurred, distorted, and gradually scattered.
“This is… Nonsense…!”
Cell phone.
I take out my phone from my pocket and turn on the memo app.
And, at random, the memories just before being erased are recorded.
[I am Lee Ji-hoo.]
[Lee Ji-hoo, an awakened person, not an ordinary college student.]
[I was forcibly expelled from that world after living the life of an Awakener for a year after being possessed by the novel ‘Academy’s Cloning Master’.]
[The reason is unknown. However, it is estimated that […
No, in a way, it’s natural.
Of course, the existence of ‘Lee Ji-hoo’ would not be included in the correct ending, which they had so longed for.
With this, it is all over.
Like a midsummer night’s dream.
As much as the letters were drawn on the cell phone, oblivion also greedily devoured memories.
I hurriedly moved their names as if I was being chased.
In my own diary that will never be erased.
[Lee Ha-yul]
[Yoo Seol-ah]
[Seo Juha]
[Sianna Plata]
[Sagna Dominas]
[Jung Ye-won]
[Ray]
[Ellis]
And, last.
It’s the last one.
I know it’s definitely the last one.
…I can’t remember the name for some reason.
“Pi… A name that starts with blood… I’m sure, I knew it…!”
[ ]
In the end, the blank was not filled.
Eventually, I became a lost child of memories.
I cried for a very long time, holding onto the empty space that filled the screen.
For me, who was punished for not being able to fully remember, the hazy memories of that day could only be a dream forever.
* * *
Time passed.
Roughly 2 years.
After graduating from university and about to find a job, for some reason I’ve been obsessed with a strange delusion lately.
‘Actually, what if ‘me’ in the dream is me in another dimension?’
It’s a topic that appeared in a hero movie I enjoyed watching a few days ago, and I was somewhat surprised because there are many similarities with my usual dreams.
Yes, dream
These days, I often have strange dreams.
It’s not a big deal, it’s just a dream where I do fantasy-like acts with a fantasy-like appearance in a moderately fantasy-like world.
If it had been this far, I would have just dismissed it as a dog dream and moved on, but for some reason, I have been having the same dream for over a month beyond a day, two days, or a week.
What is the alternative cause?
I don’t get stressed over trivial things like that, but I still do, so I’ve visited places like dream clinics.
‘Sometimes it can happen. There’s a high probability that it’s a psychological problem. Would you like to get some counseling?’
Of course, the results were not satisfactory.
Personally, I think this memo might be the cause.
A detailed memo of thousands, even close to tens of thousands of characters, that had been stored on a mobile phone for several years.
[I am Lee Ji-hoo.]
[Lee Ji-hoo, an awakened person, not an ordinary college student.]
This memo that begins with , I wonder if it appears strangely often in dreams because it is a place where you can feel something nostalgic beyond something magical if you look at it.
However, the warning message at the end of each memo is annoying to erase, so I leave it alone again.
[If you erase it, you will forget forever. Never delete it.]
Well, I have these minor worries, but I’m living my life well.
In fact, even this kind of worry is not a big deal compared to the excruciating pain that modern people go through.
Today, I take the first step towards becoming such a modern person.
A black and white suit, an extremely stiff posture and expression.
This is a common sight for people who are preparing for a job interview.
It’s not a well-known name, but it’s just that level of IT company that doesn’t have a strong pay.
The reason why I made this place my first goal was actually very personal.
R&H.
A name derived from the capital letters of Research and High tech respectively.
It was a very simple naming, but strangely, I liked the name.
“Next, come in 25 times.”
The person calling my number.
Like everyone else, I entered the interview room with a very nervous expression on my face.
And at that moment, I couldn’t help but be quite surprised.
‘This, what is this…?’
The hair color of the interviewers was all unique.
From deep red like flames to light blue, and even silver hair.
It was around the time when the DNA of the Confucian mind was just boiling that even if it was an IT company that valued a free atmosphere, it might have gone too far.
“You’re the interviewer, right? Have a seat.”
“Oh, yes, number 25!”
I had no choice but to sit down on my own due to the sudden intense pressure from the interviewer.
About 10 minutes passed after that.
It was a place where formal questions came and went.
With such a free hair color, I wondered if the interview would be conducted in an eccentric way, but it must have been simply my misunderstanding.
“Then, the interview will be over.”
“Thank you! It was number 25!”
“I-I’d like to ask you one last question.”
It was the silver-haired interviewer who stopped me as I was about to say goodbye for the last time and leave.
Your name is… Seo Joo.
“Yes, I will answer any questions sincerely.”
“Mr. Jihoo, don’t you have the same dream so often lately?”
“…Yes?”
A half-doubtful question.
However, the interviewer just shook his head as if it was nothing.
The interview was over before I knew it while I couldn’t speak in a confused mood.
It was as if I had been dreaming for 10 minutes.
“What is this…”
I took out my cell phone.
After the interview, only one short text containing instructions and announcement date filled part of the transparent screen.
I put away the text and go straight to the notes app.
After writing down tens of thousands of long memos, I found a familiar name.
[Seo Juha]
[Silver hair, brown eyes]
“Silver hair, brown eyes.”
Obviously, the interviewer’s appearance was also the same.
Only then did I know the identity of the strange sense of deja vu that I felt throughout the interview.
At the same time, memories that had been blurry for over two years were about to come back.
“Pirahyeon… Yes, it was Pirahyeon.”
End of note, still unfilled blank.
With trembling hands, he typed letters one by one.
[ Pira Hyun ]
Black hair that was not common in that world.
Dark red eyes that always looked at me strangely.
Yes, I was trying to remember everything now.
I was Jihoo Lee.
Jihoo Lee is not an ordinary college student, but an awakened person.
At the same time, he was captured by the world of Pira Prefecture and spent a year as a scapegoat.
Also, a sinner who must atone for Lee Ha-yul,
A lover who has a love-hate relationship with Yoo Seol-ah,
The only savior of Seo Joo-ha,
A good disciple of Sanya and Siana,
Jeong Ye-won and Lay’s friend who can open up their hearts,
Alice’s only owner.
And, the academy’s minor villain.
It was all me
“Next, come in number 27.”
“Wait a minute, I have something to say to the interviewer.”
“No, for personal business other than the interview… Kyaa? Now, wait a minute!”
I headed straight back into the interview room.
“What’s your business? Interviewer 25.”
The red-haired woman asks me with a look on her face.
Only then could I answer her without her embarrassment.
“Coming to think of it, I think my introduction was a bit wrong.”
“Who are you?”
Laughter seems to burst out.
But at the same time, tears flow down your cheeks.
Crying and laughing, in a situation where you can’t even do this.
He answered her quietly with her quivering voice.
“Lee Ji-hoo. This is Lee Ji-hoo.”
Lee Ha-yul’s face finally turned into a smile.
Became an academy villain
End.
