Episode 153
The protagonist clearly confessed the fact of his regression and brought up the story of President Choi Jeong-man and his son. Although he didn’t go into detail, he said that some crazy murderer had killed an innocent child.
Lee Jae-heon looked at Jeong In-ho’s clean face for a moment and then asked.
“… You saw it?”
“I don’t know the details. I just felt something like a presence.”
It was most likely a lie.
‘What is that sound with that crazy head?’
How much can a guy who would just sit there and do nothing when a monster comes and kills someone be able to observe the signs of life? As I read the question, ‘What is that crazy guy talking about?’ in Ha Seong-yoon’s eyes as he was examining Lee Jae-heon’s shoulder, I couldn’t be fooled.
Of course, Ha Sung-yoon, who was quick-witted, quickly hid his thoughts and only treated Lee Jae-heon’s wounds. Perhaps he felt something from Jeong In-ho, who had turned around overnight. He seemed to have judged that if he was lying in that state, there must be a good reason.
“Isn’t that right, Mr. Ha Seong-yoon?”
“… That’s right, I did hear someone moving in the middle.”
He continued speaking naturally, not yielding to the tyranny of the protagonist who suddenly inserted himself into the conversation.
“I kept my mouth shut because I wasn’t sure.”
“Aha, is that so?”
“Uh… I’m sorry. I didn’t hear that.”
At Ha Sung-yoon’s words, Yoon Ga-ram tilted his head slightly as if he was hesitant, and Park Da-hoon seemed to sense something odd in the passing glances, and he was deliberately expressing an opposing opinion. It seemed that by floating around like this, he too was hoping to find out some information.
Of course, the main character wasn’t someone who would just tell her that.
“I heard the sound too, and like Mr. Ha Seong-yoon, I was so unsure that I couldn’t speak. Plus, we had luggage with us.”
“Oh, right… .”
Kwon Yeon-hee, who had accidentally ended up holding a fish trap, nodded, and then immediately after that, startled by the sudden revelation, she continued speaking while shaking her body.
“Then shouldn’t I go help?! It’s going to get dark soon…!”
And as if he had been waiting, Jeong In-ho answered.
“I think so. I think I heard the child’s voice….”
“I’m going crazy, there’s a kid here too…? What if something really bad happens?”
“I have to go help before something big happens.”
After saying that, he looked back at Jaeheon Lee.
“Isn’t that right, boss?”
“Well… that’s right.”
To be honest, I was a little annoyed.
‘Your face is getting thicker as the days go by.’
However, in the past, it had a somewhat awkward taste, but now, when it feels necessary, I don’t hesitate. It is something that deserves praise for the development of judgment and action, but when the condition is so bad, I can’t say anything. It was a situation where I could not help but lament.
But apart from that, the protagonist’s choice was right.
‘If something happens, it will be tonight.’
Lee Jae-heon lightly licked the corner of his mouth and continued speaking.
“Do you know where it is?”
“… I have a rough idea of where it is. It’s not too far from here.”
“Then we will have some leeway as well.”
As far as he could remember, it was the evening of the day he had grilled the fish that the stray dog monster got excited and started to run wild. That was when Lee Jae-heon had induced him to scatter the fish intestines.
Of course, it was impossible to be certain whether Song In-myeong really killed the child and the two adults that evening. At the time, Lee Jae-heon was barely conscious, and so he could not clearly discern how the stray dog monster was running wild. It was difficult to judge whether he was simply excited by the fish intestines, or whether he was possessed by Song In-myeong’s murderous acts.
‘In the worst case scenario, he might already be dead.’
In the last regression, I felt like I was returning to the point when ‘everyone was alive’, but I didn’t know what the criteria for ‘everyone’ was, and it wasn’t even clear if that criteria was correct.
However, if you calculate the context and timing, it was most likely that he would be killed tonight. Song In-myeong would also be under Hong Kyung-joon’s detective team right now, so he wouldn’t be completely free, and he wouldn’t have had many opportunities either, so I thought today would be the day.
“Yes, Mr. Ha Seong-yoon also said he heard the noise… If it’s okay with you, I’d like to take a look around.”
“…Is that so?”
I don’t know if the main character knows that today is the Maginot Line or not.
“I have no intention of stopping you.”
Lee Jae-heon said that and glanced around.
Whether he knew it or was just acting in a hurry, Lee Jae-heon was determined to completely solidify the current atmosphere. If the protagonist hadn’t opened the door first, it would have been natural for him to bring up the subject.
“Wouldn’t it be a problem if I go alone?”
“… I don’t plan on going alone. I wish you could help me out a few more minutes…”
“I am?”
Jeong In-ho met Lee Jae-heon’s gaze with an almost serious expression at those words, blinked once as if he understood the meaning, and added playfulness to his voice.
“…Please remain seated, sir.”
“Are you treating me like a dog now?”
“Oh my, how could I do that?”
“People are becoming more and more shameless, Manager Jeong.”
“Haha… I will correct it.”
The atmosphere around them lightened considerably due to that light, not-so-funny conversation.
“… Well, then… can I go too?”
When Kang Min-ah, who had been cautiously observing the situation, stepped in first with a hammer in her hand, even intern Noh Yeon-seok, who had been watching her, raised his hand and opened his mouth.
“I’ll go too…!”
“Well, I think this will be just right.”
Jeong In-ho cut the line at that point.
“I think if there are too many people, it will slow down.”
It was clearly an attitude of being wary of Song In-myeong.
‘I told you, I didn’t give up on that.’
The protagonist still had the will to endure. The problem was how long that will would last, and I thought that perhaps Jeong In-ho was taking such an active stance because he knew that fact.
Yeah, I didn’t know about the others, but I had to save the child.
——————
faqwiki.us
Join our Discord for new chapter updates!
https://discord.com/invite/xr7SxG5T6V
——————
“I’ll go right away as soon as I finish the basic preparations.”
“… … .”
“… When it gets dark, it’s a big problem.”
That way, CEO Choi Jeong-man won’t go crazy.
* * *
‘From the protagonist’s perspective, the most dangerous thing right now is just these three guys.’
First is Lee Jae-heon, second is Choi Jeong-man, and third is Song In-myeong.
They were people who could have a great influence on Jeong In-ho and those around him for different reasons.
‘For now, I feel like it’s almost mandatory.’
In fact, I thought that in the case of ‘Lee Jae-heon’, he had become a kind of necessity for the main character. It seemed that he was treating him like a talisman, and even if it were not for what Lee Jae-heon could do, Jeong In-ho would want to save him somehow. Probably.
But in reality, he was indeed a person of interest.
“You really work hard, don’t you?”
“… I’ll do it moderately… .”
“I don’t know why you’re so depressed again, but you had a good idea.”
“f*ck.”
Lee Jae-heon muttered a few curses, but did not protest loudly.
Currently, ‘Lee Jae-heon’ is a person who is under the influence of the green algae monster, but has no will to live on his own, and if he dies, he will shake the mentality of others. This is the reason why he cannot blame Jeong In-ho, who treats him like a puffer fish.
The second is Choi Jeong-man.
‘I just need my son to live.’
Even if he became a murderer under the influence of the green algae monster, the biggest reason that Jeong In-ho felt that President Choi Jeong-man had gone mad was because of his son’s death. He wasn’t the main character for nothing, so if only Choi Min-hong could survive, things would have gone well.
“Manager, how are you feeling…?”
“it’s okay.”
“… Really…?”
“Why doesn’t anyone believe what I say?”
While lamenting for no reason, Jaeheon Lee was thinking of the last person of interest.
Song In-myeong, who killed him in the last episode.
‘The key is how and when we deal with this kid.’
But unlike the others, this kid just had no answer.
‘Lee Jae-heon’ could be taken care of so that he doesn’t die, and Choi Jeong-man would be covered to some extent if his son was alive, but Song In-myeong couldn’t be saved no matter how he was dealt with. He would have to kill him or find a way close to it.
And the first step to solving all of this was saving the life of the child, Choi Min-hong.
‘I also have something to personally confirm with Song In-myeong.’
Now that we know that the skeleton of the green algae monster was once a living human, we need to know what Song In-myeong, who was chosen as the green algae monster’s sacrificial lamb in the previous episode, looks like in the current episode. Only then will we be able to see how dreams and reality are linked in the regression.
“… … .”
Suddenly, that thought occurred to me.
If the green algae monster changed the skeleton in the first and second rounds, whose corpse would it have been? Who was chosen as the skeleton before that? And if the green algae monster’s behavior changed depending on the corpse, what was it like back then?
“Now, let’s take a look at the legs, sir.”
“… If we just leave it like this… .”
“What did you say?”
“No, huh. Hold on.”
Lee Jae-heon couldn’t help but sigh as he offered one of his legs to Dr. Ha Seong-yoon. To be honest, if he kept on acting like this, he felt like he would have to subdue him and have his leg torn off, or rather, he would have to confirm it, so it was an inevitable choice.
‘There’s no medicine, so this won’t speed up the treatment… but at least it will protect this person’s mental health.’
Anyway, it would be better to try something.
“… I think it might be a good idea to stop by the pharmacy.”
“Are you still saying that?”
At the word ‘pharmacy’, employee Kwon Yeon-hee’s body trembled as she approached, but both Lee Jae-heon and Ha Seong-yoon skillfully pretended not to notice. Dr. Ha Seong-yoon even frowned slightly, as if he was extremely displeased with Lee Jae-heon’s wounds.
He looked at his bandaged leg and closed his eyes tightly. Lee Jae-heon realized that Ha Seong-yoon was feeling quite tired in the current situation.
“I know this world is… a very confusing place for doctors. It’s a world that is strangely far removed from even the most basic ecology.”
“… … .”
“The typical example is you, sir. I am one too. Just by putting some strength into your head, you can generate strength independent of injury, or that injury heals faster than you can imagine, or that bleeding occurs for no apparent reason… things like that.”
“so?”
“It means that I can’t help but feel uneasy. If things were as they were, it wouldn’t have been strange for you to have died, and even if that wasn’t the case, one of your legs could have rotted away.”
Ha Sung-yoon continued talking while wrapping Lee Jae-heon’s leg again with a bandage.
“Right now, the flesh is falling off and the blood is clumped together, but we can’t just wrap it up with bandages without any medicine. We have to make sure that we don’t end up killing a living person.”
“… But isn’t it still difficult for pharmacies?”
“That’s true, but it was you, the teacher, who said that that’s why the atmosphere became like this. At the very least, if someone else had said that, I would have called you selfish.”
“You don’t necessarily have to insult anyone.”
“But humans can’t be that rational.”
He met Lee Jae-heon’s eyes.
“I think you sometimes make a mistake, but humans are not machines. And neither are you, teacher.”
“… … .”
“…I’m afraid that there’s nothing I can do as a doctor.”
I felt like I was going to confess.
But Lee Jae-heon was neither a god nor a doctor who could hear that. He had to think about what he could do to keep this poor doctor from going crazy. In the first place, he had to find out why you were so crazy before.
And I had some idea.
“… Are you afraid of not being a doctor?”
“… … .”
Ha Seong-yoon, who had been hesitating, quickly answered.
“Maybe so.”
After saying that, he immediately got up from his seat and walked in a different direction. As he walked towards Yoon Ga-ram, who was looking at the campfire, Lee Jae-heon quietly watched his back.
I muttered to myself.
‘… I guess I should try it sometime.’
The point where Ha Sung-yoon hangs himself is the ‘doctor’ itself. If so, we need to know what connection the eye he silently put in in the last episode has with that point, and what goal he was trying to achieve with it. At least if we want to see Ha Sung-yoon functioning as a doctor.
Lee Jae-heon, blinking slowly, spoke to Kwon Yeon-hee, who looked as if she was thinking about something with her head down.
“Kwon Sa-won.”
“… Ah, yes! Go ahead!”
“Should we start by cleaning the fish?”
“Oh, you’re grooming?”
“It’s a bit weird to eat it as is.”
Whatever it was, there was nothing he could do now. Ha Sung-yoon was already refusing to talk, and Ha Sung-yoon was guarding him right next to Yoon Ga-ram. However, if he were to examine external factors first, there were many things he had to do, so there weren’t many actions the protagonist could take before bringing in a new character.
‘But there’s no way the protagonist wouldn’t be able to pick up a few chicks…’
All we could do now was prepare to welcome those who would soon return.
“Let’s eat.”
To also take care of the chicks’ mental health.
* * *
By the time it got dark, the expedition team had returned with two survivors.
There were only two.
(Continued in the next episode)
