Chapter 23 – The Event Horizon
“Now, these two are Iced Americanos, right?”
“…Thank you.”
When a black-haired woman who looks light and playful puts a tray with four cups of coffee on the table,
A woman named Isabelle, who was quietly touching her cell phone with Jaehyuk and I in front of us, pushes us a glass.
The dark-haired, laughing and humming song, sat down next to Isabelle and pulled out one of her small business cards from her bosom and held it out.
“The location has just moved to a quiet cafe, so let me introduce you again. The foreigner sister next to me is ‘Isabel Kang’.
My name is ‘Kwon Noah’ and I work at the Korean branch of the ‘Special Phenomena Countermeasure Headquarters’ like this sister. Please take good care of me.”
Unlike Noah, who lightly shakes her hand and introduces herself, Isabelle quietly moves her coffee cup to her lips.
A combination of a girl full of grace who seems to have come out of a classic movie, and a light girl who likes to play and decorate.
I quietly look down at the business card the two handed to me. The ‘Special Phenomena Countermeasure Headquarters’ would have been misunderstood as a pseudonym or multi-level.
However, I know that what these two are saying is not an empty lie.
“…Are you here to find a mask?”
“Oh my goodness?”
“…”
Isabel trembled with her hand holding a coffee cup and Noah narrowed her eyes, probably surprised by the unexpected words that came out of my mouth.
“…Yes, that’s right. The item Mr. Wooju picked up was an item that was being quarantined by the UK branch.
However, the mask was leaked outside due to an accidental security officer’s mistake, and it ended up in Korea.”
“…”
There were so many questions I wanted to ask.
What the hell is this mask, why did I pick it up that you guys were keeping?
If you make a mistake and how big it is, the goods in England will fall in the middle of this country, Seoul,
What are you guys really like, what did you even say to Jaehyuk? A lot of questions are spinning around in my head.
While I was contemplating which question to ask first, Isabel struck the ball.
“I don’t need long words, do you have that mask now?”
“…Yes, it’s in the bag right now. But taking it out of here is a bit…”
The place where I moved from the campus where there were many eyes to see is also a cafe.
It’s early in the evening, so it’s still quiet, but there are still a lot of people watching.
There are female customers and shop assistants, and right next to them is Jaehyuk.
I don’t know how far I’ve heard it, but seeing that he’s drinking coffee with a dark expression, he probably didn’t hear very good things.
Anyway, taking out a mask like this in a place like this could make another victim.
“It’s okay if you don’t have to show it here. Anyway, I’m well aware that Mr. Woojoo signed a contract with Mask.
The mask has the power to block anything outside that tries to dig into the existence of the Contractor. Personal information on papers, and even faces.
We can’t perceive all of Mr. Wu’s information. But being able to have a conversation like this… Means you’re the owner of the mask.”
“That’s why you don’t have to take out the mask. I’ll take care of that.”
Isabelle’s cold voice that dared to add to Noah’s kind explanation.
I think he’s mad at me for something, is it because of his mood?
“Oh, then how…”
“Shh.”
She took a look at Jaehyuk, who was sitting next to her, and tried to raise her voice, but was immediately blocked.
“From now on, we will ask Mr. Woojoo a question.
Mr. Wooju is not allowed to say anything other than to answer questions.
Jaehyuk next to me too. It’s for your safety, so I’d appreciate it if you could understand.”
Noah puts his index finger on his lips and smiles softly. He takes out a small recorder from his pocket and presses the button.
She carefully places the recorder in the center of the table, intersects it, and begins asking questions.
“First question. How long has it been since you picked up the mask?”
“…I think it’s only been about four days.”
“4 days… It’s strange. Compared to the other ‘owners’, Mr. Woo-joo seems to be very normal.”
“Yeah? You’re fine… What’s that…”
As she tilts her head, Isabel quietly pushes a picture to me.
The photo was in a dark room, and in the corner I could see something withered like fallen leaves.
“This is what the man looks like 120 hours and 5 days after picking up the mask.”
“…I beg your pardon?”
“And this is the same 4th day as Mr. Woojoo.”
Another photo, thrown onto a table, shows a man lying in bed with all his hair missing.
It is unbelievable that the man in the 4th day photo and the 5th day photo is the same person.
“There are pictures from the first day, but I won’t bother to show them.
Go ahead and compare the man’s appearance with Mr. Woojoo’s appearance. It’s different, isn’t it too different?”
I have to answer, but my voice doesn’t come out, so I barely nod my head.
Is the man in the picture dead? No, he looks so strange that he’s alive.
The 4th day looks like it’s barely breathing, but why am I…
“…Is this the ‘Mask anomaly’ you’ve only heard about, sister?”
“I don’t know. The last documented mask anomaly was over 40 years ago.
It could be a minor anomaly, such that the owner’s complexion looks better than other owners.”
“So… What’s the universe going to be like?”
“…?”
Jaehyuk, who had been quiet since campus, opened his mouth and intervened in the conversation between the two women.
“You said you could help the universe. But ‘I don’t know’, what’s going on with him? Yes?”
“Ahaha, Mr. Jaehyuk, please calm down and wait. We will do our best…”
“If you don’t know, you don’t know. If you’re curious, your friend will most likely die tomorrow.”
“Sister!! Please, tell me…”
Noah calms Jaehyuk, who is getting more and more angry, and Isabelle lights a fire.
“That dog-like bitch started yesterday…!!”
“Wait, Jaehyuk. Sit down for a moment.”
“Hey, you say something too! They say you’re going to die…!”
“I know, because I know… Let’s sit down and cool off.”
In the end, he grabs Jae-hyeok’s wrist as he stands up and curses at him.
I try to stay calm, but my voice is shaking, and the hand holding Jaehyuk is shaking.
Perhaps feeling the small trembling in his wrist, Jaehyuk swallows the curse on the tip of his tongue and sits down.
“… On the fifth day after picking up the mask, you die?”
“Uh, um… That’s a high probability at the moment. But there’s no such thing as an absolute.”
Noah mediates between Isabelle and Jaehyeok and answers my question with a shy smile.
I think I should ask something more, but my mouth doesn’t move. With half a day left, today is my last day?
She puts her messy head back and looks at the rattling ice in her coffee cup.
My face is reflected in about fifteen pieces of ice, then it melts and shatters. Fleetingly fast.
“Then, this is a question prepared by the British branch.”
A voice calling me when I was surrounded by an indescribable emptiness.
When she looked up, she saw a beautiful wall staring at her with her arms crossed.
“There are a total of 2 saints I detected. One from the university earlier,
And judging from the similar reaction to that saintess, the two must be related by blood.
Besides these two, how many other saints have you made? If so, tell me honestly where you are.”
Seongnyeo, Hyemi noona, and her sister’s mother, Yun Soli.
If I really die tomorrow, what will happen to the three saints?
“…Are the saints, the saints okay? Can they return to being human?”
“…Ha, that’s not even funny. Is the ‘owner’ worried about the ‘saint’? Stop pretending, because that doesn’t make your sins go away.
It’s pitiful that non-humans still think they’re human and go around mistaking them.”
Isabel, who lets out a laugh and puts me in her hateful eyes.
When asked again what will happen to those three without giving up,
Noah, raising her kindly voice, urged Isabelle.
“Wait a minute, Isabelle…! Mr. Wooju is the ‘owner’ who discovered the anomaly!
Has the owner of the mask that crossed the lifeline ever shown a friendly attitude? Calm down and talk…!
If I do well, I might be able to make a new discovery about the mask…!”
“How many times do you think this is the first time I’ve been put into action, Noah? My abilities and experiences are different from you…!
How many times do you think you’ve seen an owner who remained normal even after crossing the lifeline, who was ‘pretending’ to be friendly?
I advise you, do not pity the masters. Even while you’re being kind, they’re only thinking of making you a saint.”
“Isabelle, Isabelle! I know your circumstances, I know your past! But you don’t have to do this?!
Both Mr. Woojoo and the owners you have met have all ended up being victims of ruining their lives because of the mask…!”
“The masters you call victims are the ones who died the moment they made a contract with the mask.
Those in front of me are sinners unworthy of pity. You’ll find out soon…”
“Wait, where are you going? Isabelle, Isabelle!!”
A silver haired woman who makes a subtle expression that is awkward and has many meanings and then gets up with a bag.
Noah’s voice, trying to stop her by calling her name, was lost as Isabelle left the cafe.
When the silver hair, shining softly outside the twilight-covered glass window, moved far away and completely disappeared, Noah let out a low sigh.
“…I apologize on behalf of you. I’m sorry, this is the second joint investigation with that sister, but it’s the first time I’ve been so sharp.”
“No, more than that… What’s going on with him? Is he really okay…?”
Jaehyuk sighs in the same way.
This bastard is amazing too… I’m so dizzy with this situation that I can’t even get my voice out properly.
You must have heard what I’ve done, but Jaehyuk still…
“To be honest, I don’t know what will happen to Mr. Woojoo.
We say that we cross the ‘lifeline’ by expressing that it has passed the 3rd day since we signed a contract with the mask.
Most of the owners who have passed this period lose weight or change their personality… But it seems that Mr. Woojoo is not like that.
There is also a record that the owner who has crossed the life line but has not changed has passed 5 days, so there is still time. So please be at ease.”
“Ah yes…”
“Then what about the mask that the universe has? It’s impossible for him to have this forever…”
“I can’t take that mask carelessly. The mask never tries to get away from its owner.
Have you already experienced Mr. Universe? Anyway, the only way to get the mask off the owner is to break the contract…”
Noah, who groped his chin with his hand and slurred his words, seemed to force himself to swallow the voice he was about to bring out.
I want to ask what you’re trying to say, but I’ve been dizzy since earlier, so I can’t speak properly. What…?
“Anyway, you can rest assured today. Woojoo-san will be fine.
And I’m sorry, can I do the rest of the story tomorrow? As a rule, we must conduct an investigation in a team of two people…”
“Ah, yes… I see.”
Jaehyuk looks up at Noah with his eyes wide open, and answers bluntly.
Noah smiled and gently pushed the business card he had placed on her table toward me.
“If there is anything wrong, please contact me right away. I will come right away, so…”
Noah, who bowed his head while playfully sticking out his piercing-studded tongue, cleaned up his cup of coffee and left the cafe.
“…”
“…”
And two men left behind.
What should I say, how should I look at your face, arrogant thoughts run through my head.
When the ice in the coffee cup melted and disappeared, it was Jaehyuk who spoke first.
“…Let’s go, there’s nothing to do now.”
“…Okay.”
After tidying up our seats without a word, we packed our bags and lit a cigarette in the small alley next to the cafe.
The smoke rising like breath spreads across the sky and fades away, and Jaehyuk’s sigh is overlaid on top of it.
“How far have you heard?”
“I don’t know, I still can’t believe it. That the mask turns people into strange monsters…
That Hye-mi noona has changed like that, and that you could die soon.”
“I’ve heard almost everything.”
Whoa, spit out cigarette smoke.
“Have you apologized to Hyemi?”
“…I did. I’m sorry.”
“That’s it, it’s not like you wanted to…
I’ve heard that if you didn’t do that, you would have died long ago. That’s not your fault.”
“…No, it’s my fault.”
Even if it wasn’t me who made Hye-mi noona her saint, it was definitely my fault that she did whatever she wanted with her body.
I could understand Isabelle’s look in her disgusted eyes, and how she called me a sinner.
And I didn’t want to deny it. I wanted to protect the last remaining humanity.
“Ehh…”
Pak-!
“Ouch!! What, what…? All of a sudden?”
Jaehyuk sighed and patted the back of my head, thanks to which the cigarette I was biting in my mouth fell to the floor.
“How much do you smoke in a day? Reduce it a bit, bastard.
Why did you say it was your fault when I broke my grandfather’s pottery in middle school?”
“No, that’s because I broke it while playing with you…”
“Yes, I dropped the pottery while playing with you. It wasn’t your fault, right?
Jaehyuk trudged down the alley with his hands in his pockets and didn’t even look back.
“…I’ll see you tomorrow.”
At the end of the voice I don’t know who brought it out, I packed my bag and headed in the opposite direction to Jaehyuk.
I walked towards the bus stop on the top of the hill to catch the bus back home.
‘Sister, I’m sorry. The story is getting longer than I thought… Would you like to talk tomorrow if you don’t mind?’
‘Oh, I’m fine! I’m drinking beer with my friends after a long time~~’
Standing leaning on the bus stop where grass bugs are crying, exchanging messages with Hye-mi noona.
I wanted to do this much earlier, even earlier, but why did it come to this form now?
No, can I say this has been done… It’s okay, everything will be okay tomorrow.
I didn’t notice the joy of having a helper who knew about masks, and the fact that the bus didn’t come for an hour due to Hye-mi’s cute drunkenness.
It was a phone call to let them know that an hour had passed.
“Hello? Mom? Sorry, I’m on the bus…”
“Usu! Universe…! Where are you now?! Hurry up and go to the hospital that your mom texted you!
Jaehyuk, Jaehyuk…! Got hit by a bus… Uhhh… Maybe it’s good!! You’re in critical condition!!”
“…What?”
* *
