The Magician’s Memorial - Chapter 50



Only Krnovel

Episode 50

I came to my senses, feeling a burning sensation as if I had been burned. I instinctively straightened my upper body and felt around.

The bedding was felt and the stone used to mark the date caught my fingertips.

“… … .”

What on earth was that dream?

Pigs that walk on two legs, Drihi who makes lame jokes, and Twella who tells them not to die.

Quillvien rubbed his forehead.

It seemed like there was something more to the dream, covered in bright, colorful colors.

Even though I concentrated, it just wouldn’t come to mind.

As is always the case with dreams, when I regain consciousness they become surprisingly vague and blurred.

What could it have been?

After pounding my forehead with my fist and thinking for a while, I was finally able to recall the end of my dream.

A world dyed in gray.

A woman whose age could not be guessed.

and.

“Sorry.”

I repeated words that were no different from a curse.

Pigs, Drich, and Twella. I could understand why they were running wild in my dreams.

But what does it mean for a woman to be left alone in a world of only gray?

He covered his face with both hands and let out a long sigh.

I remembered moments when I was struggling and couldn’t wake up from my dreams. I guess it’s when boundaries become vague and I soon reach a point where I can’t even tell objects apart.

“I thought you were dead.”

Twella’s vision sat on the bed. It was a young Twella, different from what I had seen in my dream. The Twella I knew so well.

“You slept for a long time. Are you tired?”

Quillvian chuckled.

“I’ll fall in love with you. I’ll see you here and in my dreams.”

“What? Did you see me in your dreams? How much do you love me, really?”

It was Twella, smiling bashfully and coming up to me, leaning on my shoulder. It felt like she had a real body.

As time went by, fantasy became reality.

What a terrible thing this is.

It was evidence that my head was seriously broken.

I got out of bed. I moved my left foot to find the rope installed on the floor, but something clicked.

He bent down and felt around.

“……what.”

There was plenty to eat. Apples and other vegetables were rolling around under the bed.

It was strange. The hawk brought him food two or three times a day.

It would be normal if I woke up from a deep sleep and found an apple or so rolling around.

“I told you. I thought you were dead.”

Twella said with a smile.

“What happened?”

“What happened? You really slept for a long time.”

“No way.”

I crawled around the floor and counted the food. There were dozens of apples, potatoes, and other things within arm’s reach.

Only then did I notice the stench that was tickling my nose. There were countless rotten things.

It makes no sense. I just woke up one night and there was this much food left out.

Did Winte bring it?

But why?

Quilbian checked his physical condition. He wasn’t hungry or even thirsty. His joints were fine.

wait for a sec.

I remembered what I did before I fell asleep. Yes, I fought a goblin with half my life at stake.

My body wasn’t in a condition that could be completely cured by just taking a nap and waking up.

The surprisingly comfortable body felt strange.

Quilbian raised his head and slapped Nak. Nak creaked and moved.

A golden light caught my sight, which had been immersed in darkness. There was Winte on the rooftop.

I quickly left the room, leaning on the rope.

I reached the rooftop with unsteady steps.

“Winte-nim!”

I was in such a hurry that my feet got tangled. I fell down in front of the golden nose. My knees were sore, but it was nothing to worry about.

“coffee.”

“I’ll bring it later. So listen to me first.”

“I’m getting worse. But I’ve started making decent coffee, so I’ll give it a try.”

Quilbian began to speak with a hollow smile.

“Listen. I know this doesn’t make sense, but I’m asking just in case. So… … .”

“70 days by human standards.”

“yes?”

“The time you were stuck down there.”

70 days.

Quillvian felt his face crumple. His muscles were twitching against his will.

“Don’t lie. Are you just trying to tease me?”

“I always say this, but why me? What on earth do I gain by teasing you?”

“You really slept for 70 days? Me?”

“Yeah. Oh, I don’t know if I should call it sleep.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know. That’s my answer.”

“You said you were a god.”

“You said you were close to God. Your memory is really bad.”

Something hit his forehead. It stung so hard that Quillian squinted and rubbed his skin.

“coffee.”

“You’re talking about coffee right now? A person has been lying down for over two months?”

“Because from my perspective, it was time to take a breath.”

It was a sin to hope for common sense.

As Quilbian stood up, groaning, a hawk landed on his shoulder with a cry.

I reached out my hand to the hawk in excitement. Its sharp beak pecked at the back of my hand.

I thought it was a mistake, but it wasn’t. It flapped its wings and flew up slightly, then pecked my head and other parts of my body.

“Why, why!”

I shouted in panic, but the hawk just kept pecked at me.

“Stop it now that you’re back.”

Winte said. At the same time, the falcon became quiet. As if nothing had happened, it dug into his arms and rubbed its head.

He asked, stroking the falcon quietly.

“You know him well, Winte, don’t you?”

“To some extent.”

“Who is the owner of this place?”

“Do you want to know?”

“yes.”

“then…….”

The falcon, which had been standing still, spread its wings wide and flew up. Quilbian looked up at the green-colored falcon and then at Winte.

“Bring me some coffee.”

“I knew it.”

I asked one more question before going down from the rooftop.

“But was it really true that I was lying down for over two months?”

“Why are there so many doubts?”

“Wouldn’t you have done the same if you were in my shoes? You have to have something you can trust.”

My body suddenly lifted. I screamed at the speed that felt like my limbs were going to break.

Immediately afterwards, I felt my body collapse and fell down.

I could tell even though I couldn’t see it.

That crazy guy threw it off the roof.

Still, he threw it on the ground, as if he had no intention of killing it. He stroked his cold forearm and looked at the golden light in the distance.

“Hey, you crazy bastard!”

“coffee.”

A thunderous voice struck all around like thunder. Quilbian covered his ears and moved his body.

No matter what, I have to make coffee in the end. Only then will the ‘man close to God’ show mercy.

“If I lose interest in you, I’ll kill you like I’m stepping on an ant.”

Twella, rising from the ground, spoke.

Quillbian replied, placing a cup of coffee in front of him.

“It’s better than getting hit in the back of the head and dying.”

“Let’s run away. I’ll show you the way.”

“What a surprise.”

“It’s true! Trust me.”

I poured my coffee, ignoring the whining Twella.

Did you really stay in bed for over two months? Is that possible? Without eating or pooping during that time?

I touched her from head to toe with my hands.

A ‘normal person’ would have died long ago. No human being can survive without eating for more than two months.

Far from being skinny, his arms and legs had become firmer. His body seemed to have improved compared to before, except for his eyesight.

“… … Are you crazy?”

Could it be that all of this is an illusion?

Quilbian had such thoughts. The strange world, the goblins, the sorcery, the narc, that woman, the man who was close to God. What if the things he had seen, felt, and experienced were actually fake?

What if you’ve been crazy for a long time and are just lying in bed giggling and hallucinating?

Would that be better?

Quillbian held out his hand with a hollow laugh. There must be a heated kettle here.

Chiik, my hand touched the iron surface. As my hand got used to it, a dizzying pain rose up, but I didn’t let go.

I held it for about 10 seconds and then pulled away, swearing. It was so fucking hot and painful.

It was mind-boggling. It was so clear, how could it all be a lie?

What on earth am I supposed to believe?

My head was a mess and nothing was organized, but my body was faithfully making coffee.

When I came to my senses, I was already in front of Winte. I handed over the coffee I had made.

“hmm.”

The sound of people drinking coffee was heard repeatedly. Usually, people would take a sip and then give a bad review.

Quillvian looked at the shimmering golden light. The light that was usually dim was now rippling.

Do you like it?

I somehow had that feeling.

“There are stages that all intelligent things must go through.”

“yes?”

“What you’re going through right now. If you can’t even trust your own senses, what else can you rely on?”

“Now that you’ve read my mind, answer me. What should I really believe?”

“Even if you say yourself, it won’t make any sense. Even if it were the truth, what good would it do you now? Right?”

“Yes. To be honest, the Winte in front of you right now seems like an illusion created by a brain that has lost its sense of humor.”

“Maybe so.”

Something touched my calf. It felt hard.

“Sit down.”

“What’s going on? You even gave me a chair.”

When he told me to sit, I sat down. I decided not to think about trivial things like where I got the chair from. There was nothing a monster couldn’t do, since it could lift people up and send them flying into the sky.

“Why do you think you were born?”

“It’s the result of that guy Abi shaking his hips hard. There can’t be any other reason than that.”

“To change the question, why do you think the chair you are sitting on was made?”

“Why are you asking such an obvious thing? I made it so I could sit down.”

“Of course. Humans use this difficult word so easily. How irresponsible, pitiful, and amazing at the same time.”

The sound of drinking coffee continued.

“Do you like your coffee today?”

“Yeah. I really like it.”

“… … I feel embarrassed when you say it like that.”

“You should say that you did a good job. I think the 70 days you wandered there were quite helpful.”

There.

Quilbian made a sullen expression. He had been lying in bed for 70 days. Not moving from the same spot.

But that place?

“The reason chairs were created was to sit on them. The reason intelligent beings, including humans, were born was to make this world a better place.”

“You’re running it?”

“Yes. Making the world sustainable, no matter what form it takes. That must be part of your mission.”

“What do you mean? Given?”

“Don’t ask questions like that. I didn’t decide it that way.”

“Then who decided it?”

“Who could it be?”

Quillvian squinted his eyes.

“Are you a religious person too, Winte?”

“The expression is really cheap.”

“I hate it when God says something. Especially fate. Because of that fucking thing… .”

“To borrow your expression for a moment, that fucking fate exists. It looks like it’s going to collapse any minute.”

“Isn’t it fate that we end up babbling like this with Winte-nim? Isn’t that right?”

“It wasn’t set in stone, but someone’s efforts have fixed this state. Let me ask you one thing. How much influence do you think your efforts have had on your survival?”

“… … I just got lucky and bought it. No, it wasn’t even a good thing. It’s because my eyesight became impaired.”

“You were lucky to survive. There must have been dozens of humans who died in front of you, but strangely enough, you were the only one who was lucky to survive.”

Clap clap clap, Winte clapped.

“Simple is good.”

“Then who saved me?”

Instead of answering the question, Winte said something else.

“Get ready starting tomorrow.”

“What?”

Winte continued with a smile, as if he was quite amused.

“Prepared not to die.”

(Continued in next episode)