OL Ch 28

Chapter 28

“Friend?” 

Mookyeong frowned as if he didn’t hear correctly. He had no friends. Hayun clicked his tongue while looking at him. Of course, Mookyeong had no other friends except for one. However, it wasn’t wrong to say that his only friend was himself.

“I think your memory loss isn’t simple; some of your memories seem mixed with others.”

“…..”

“Your, my and their memories are mixed together.”

If Mookyeong rejected this because ‘they’ weren’t who he thought, then there was no need for them to be that person. Thus, Hayun decided to separate himself from ‘them’. Fortunately, there was a suitable candidate—the missing child from the day before yesterday.

“Kim Heewon. You are confusing me with Kim Heewon.”

“Kim Heewon?”

As soon as Mookyeong uttered Heewon’s name, Hayun felt a pang in his chest, realizing he might’ve made a mistake.

Despite not having exchanged a single word with the missing Kim Heewon, Hayun couldn’t escape feelings of guilt. He knew there must be a better way than lying, but he couldn’t think of anything else at that moment. It was not the time to hesitate about how to hold onto Mookyeong. He knew that desperation could not be a shield. Despite knowing this lie might gnaw at his conscience later…

“Kim Heewon… Kim Heewon.”

Mookyeong repeated the name, then touched his lips thoughtfully. Was he realizing it wasn’t his own name? His reaction seemed unusual. Suddenly, Hayun remembered that Mookyeong himself was the one who told him the name Kim Heewon. He gasped sharply, feeling a wave of unease as he realized how complicated the situation had become.

“Kim Heewon. Yes, that’s right.”

“…..”

Mookyeong’s memory loss was different from typical amnesia, as it was due to the aftereffects of a psychic monster. Hayun needed this story to make this unbelievable and shallow lie seem plausible. However, now he felt uneasy, thinking his words might be true.

‘What is this? Is all he forgot just my existence?’

It wasn’t even funny.

“You really need treatment.”

“It doesn’t matter now; it won’t help anymore.”

“But…”

“Heewon. I must find Heewon. You said you know about him, right? Tell me. What happened to Heewon? Why did he disappear?”

Mookyeong had eaten the cereal bar. If he was hungry now, he wouldn’t have been able to withstand this stress. Hayun led the slightly calmer Mookyeong to the sofa. After making him sit down, he also took a seat. He wanted to just lie down and sleep, but there were still lies to be fabricated. Hayun started mixing a little bit of falsehood with what he knew. Thus, he began creating Kim Heewon, who wasn’t entirely Kim Heewon or Kim Hayun, yet not completely Kim Hayun either.

“What I’m about to tell you combines what I saw on the news and what Teacher revealed to me at the last moment. Since your memories are jumbled, I don’t know where to start, so I’ll begin from what seems like the beginning.”

Hayun swallowed hard. His fingertips were cold due to nervousness. However, he couldn’t retreat here out of fear.

“Listen and try to remember what parts you don’t recall. Afterwards, verify if what I say is true or not. If it is correct, then I will continue talking about things you have forgotten… In return…”

“….?”

Mookyeong crossed his arms as he looked at Hayun. There was contempt in his eyes. Hayun clenched his fists tightly before finishing,

“Let’s be friends again.”

“…..”

“That’s my request. Let’s become friends again.”

Mookyeong didn’t open his mouth. He just stared at Hayun, seemingly suspicious of his intentions. Then he let out a long breath.

“…Tell me first. Friends or not, you came here to tell me this story.”

Mookyeong was unusually calm, perhaps because he thought it involved Heewon’s matter. Hayun closed his eyes and searched through his memories. After gathering his thoughts, he opened his mouth again:

“Before the labyrinth appeared in Seoul, there was a series of kidnapping and murder incidents involving espers. Initially, we only knew about the kidnappings, not suspecting it was murder. Later, bodies were discovered, revealing that their organs had been extracted while they were still alive. It was shocking enough as is, but these incidents continued. Gradually, the victims’ ages became younger. Do you remember?”

Mookyeong shook his head.

“I don’t remember exactly but it sounds familiar.”

“The crimes didn’t stop and the culprit wasn’t caught. Therefore, schools implemented reduced school hours. At that time, I was happy because we could go home early.”

“Even regular schools?”

“No. Not there, just our side. In the midst of this, the teacher went on a condolence visit to another region. I happened to wake up early, went downstairs for water and encountered Teacher.”

“Hold on. You went down to the kitchen, so why did you run into mom?”

“You might not remember, but Teacher recognized my ability early and took me as her student. My parents were both non-espers, so raising an esper child was difficult for them.”

“No, I lived with Kim Heewon.”

“That’s right, you did live together.”

“….?”

“You two shared the same room. Do you remember?”

The sensitive Mookyeong nodded at Hayun’s question. Hayun quietly observed Mookyeong’s face. It seemed difficult for Mookyeong to handle the conflicting memories.

“…Yes, we did share the same room.”

“However, not many people knew about it. As I mentioned earlier, doorkeepers don’t reveal their abilities publicly. They are rare, and there is potential for misuse. Just like Teacher didn’t disclose being a doorkeeper, all of us hid our identities from public scrutiny.”

“Why are you talking about doorkeepers?”

Hayun pointed to his head, indicating that he should think about it. It was an action beyond his capabilities compared to the always smarter Mookyeong. Hayun secretly smiled. Then he gained a bit of courage.

“Why do you think I talked about doorkeepers? Heewon also had the ability to open doors and needed Teacher’s protection. That’s why we lived together but as I said earlier, we shouldn’t reveal ourselves…”

“You lived with him without revealing it outside?”

“Yes. It was because he could open doors.”

“…..”

“Think back. Didn’t you hate it when he tried to escape all the time? Why do you think that happened? Because he could open doors and jump through space, making it impossible for even the great Baek Mookyeong to catch him.”

Mookyeong blinked his eyes, murmuring as if he was trying to remember something. “But he could’ve just come home without revealing that he was a doorkeeper. He didn’t reveal it outside either.”

“That’s related to the serial kidnapping and murder cases I mentioned earlier.”

“….?”

“It’s somewhat complicated. Initially, I thought they were unrelated, but they turned out to be connected. Let me think… Where did I leave off? Did I mention about the funeral Teacher attended?”

“Yes.”

“Teacher was conducting research on doors with Jeong Kiwoo and Mun Taegang. To be precise, it was focused on labyrinth doors. The funeral Teacher attended was for Jeong Kiwoo, and she looked quite troubled.”

“Was Jeong Kiwoo and Mun Taegang also doorkeepers?”

Hayun clapped his hands. It meant he had given the correct answer, but Mookyeong stared at Hayun with a cold face. Embarrassed, Hayun pushed his hands under his thighs.

“Yes. And not long after that, Mun Taegang would meet his death as well. I hope you can keep this information about the doorkeepers as secret as possible. There is a bit of a complicated story behind it, involving Teacher.”

“Continue.”

“One day before the labyrinth opened, Kim Heewon disappeared. Then the next morning, they came to your house.”

“Hold on. He disappeared the previous day, yet I don’t remember finding him anywhere?”

“You assumed he just left school early. You were too clingy back then.”

“I was?”

“Yes. However, he didn’t want to be more than friends with you right away.”

“Why?”

“…Because he liked you too much.”

“…He likes me?” Mookyeong shook his head, unable to understand. Hayun nodded sympathetically, acknowledging that even he couldn’t comprehend his own feelings back then. How could someone else grasp them?

“If both of you started dating, he would’ve loved only you for the rest of his life. The thought of committing so early overwhelmed him. Others around you were also concerned. Both you and him were so focused on each other that you two wouldn’t accept anyone else. They worried you two might end up living too narrowly confined.”

They had already become whole, fitting together seamlessly without any gaps, big or small. It was precisely because of this bond that they could navigate through life.

However, they only realized this after their world shattered. It felt like being stranded with just a small piece of driftwood amidst vast, endless seas. Everything became scary, unfamiliar, and sorrowful.

Would it have been better if they had known earlier? Or perhaps much later, near death?

“He thought having just the two of us wasn’t enough?”

“No, not at all. He never considered life without you either. He merely pondered about it. Despite knowing you both couldn’t love anyone else…”

“…But how did you understand that so well?”

The question carried hints of jealousy. Hayun burst out laughing unintentionally. When asked why he found it amusing, he simply shook his head.

“Then who would he say such words to at home? To his busy teacher or his uncle preoccupied with chasing after the busy teacher? Or would he tell you that he wants to meet someone else besides you? It’s easy. There’s no one but me. Only I know about his feelings.”

Strangely, his throat felt tight. Each word seemed stuck in his throat, unable to pass through. The tip of his nose tingled, and after taking a deep breath and exhaling, the sensation faded away.

“…That day, too many things happened all at once.”

Misfortunes poured upon them before they could even fully comprehend them. However, Kim Hayun was the only one who vividly remembered every detail.

Hayun had tried to push these memories aside, fearing they would overwhelm him under the weight of his own misfortune. Yet, unexpectedly, fragments of that day resurfaced, causing him to dwell on them and feel regretful.

“Anyway, although it was chaotic, it wasn’t your fault.”

“How can you be sure?”

“If I hadn’t said that…!”

“The next day, I met those guys at home. They were the culprits behind the esper kidnapping and murder cases. The group they belonged to was called Pinocchio, with their leader known as Geppetto—although his real name is Kim Deukcheol, who’s over forty-five years old now.”

Hayun recounted how Kim Deukcheol visited him early that morning. He explained what they aimed to create and their intentions. Seo Iju was targeted because they needed additional materials, Baek Jinha died while helping her escape, and Kim Deukcheol manipulated Baek Jinha’s corpse to attack us.

“Kim Deukcheol was highly skilled at making puppets. It is funny that he made his own puppet as well. We aren’t sure where his original body was located or if it was present on the day.”

However, he wanted to believe it existed. Hayun recalled Kim Deukcheol’s face, which looked older than his known age.

“But they couldn’t make the puppet completely identical. Instead, they made people perceive it as such.”

People perceived it as such… Hayun suddenly pondered his words again. On that day, while dodging falling monsters and swarms of corpses, Hayun escaped through another door. Meanwhile, Mookyeong remained with Kim Deukcheol.

“I think Kim Deukcheol might be an esper who can affect hallucinations or mental states, based on making it look like that.”

“…..”

“When I avoided the monster for a moment, you were with Kim Deukcheol. Then when I returned, he was rampaging.”

Mookyeong started crossing his arms as if he began to suspect something from Hayun’s words. His eyes moved restlessly.

“My memories became mixed up.”

“…Could it be because you were exposed to both a psychic esper and the ability of a psychic monster? Furthermore, there was also a suggestion placed on you.”

“Suggestion?”

“You won’t have a relationship with Kim Ha… Heewon until both of you become a legal adult.”

“You mean such a thing was placed?”

“It is because you are Teacher’s son. They might’ve thought pressure could be applied.”

“Surely they wouldn’t do such a thing to Heewon…”

“Well…you didn’t refuse it either.” Mookyeong rubbed his forehead as if he was getting a headache from hearing so much information. Then he let out a deep sigh. “You weren’t surprised when I told you about Teacher’s death.”

“…In fact, I had expected it to some extent.”

Seo Iju was the doorkeeper and more than two months had passed since then. If she could move her body, she would’ve opened the door and returned home.

“So, what did you do that day? How did you meet mom? And how did you know Heewon was kidnapped?”

“Feeling something ominous when Kim Deukcheol arrived, Teacher helped us escape. However, monsters had already infiltrated the underground exit, and nearby doors were controlled by the labyrinth. It wasn’t easy to open them, and I couldn’t take you with me.”

“Can you make it shorter?”

“In the end, I ended up running outside and met Kim Deukcheol, and after confronting Uncle he was controlling, I instinctively opened the door and ran away to avoid the monster falling from the sky. There, I found Teacher hiding there.”

Then, foreseeing her own demise, Seo Iju left a final message for Kim Hayun:

[Complete the key.]

Afterwards, she entrusted Baek Mookyeong’s happiness to Hayun.

‘Baek Mookyeong’s happiness.’

And Kim Hayun’s happiness as well.

“After fighting with Uncle, I seized a tool made by Kim Deukcheol from his puppet. Teacher explained to me what it was. As soon as Kim Deukcheol saw Teacher, he rambled excitedly. That’s when I learned about Kim Heewon. After that, I helped Teacher open and close the door.”

“Door?”

“The door of the labyrinth.”

“…..”

“I don’t remember the details clearly. All I managed was to summon my tiny bit of strength. However, as a consequence, Teacher lost her life, and I lost my ability. Her body is… her body is on… the path that I created. At that time, I could still use my abilities, albeit just slightly. Afterward, I went searching for you.”

“Then…”

“…..”

“You should’ve gone to find Heewon. Why did you come looking for me? Why… did you come?”

Hayun didn’t answer. However, inside his mind, he thought that even if he could go back several times to that moment, he would still have chosen to find Mookyeong. It was so obvious that it didn’t require an answer.

Unable to contain his anger, Mookyeong grabbed Hayun’s collar and shook him. The fabric tore, causing scratches on his neck.

“…I believed we all could survive together.”

It was partly a lie based on reality. No, it was entirely a lie. 

Hayun closed his mouth tightly. His jaw trembled as he tried to suppress his tears. He squeezed his eyes shut, and thick drops of liquid fell onto Mookyeong’s chest. These droplets felt infinitely light yet unbearably heavy, continuously pounding against his heart.