00990 Afterword (Hole Plain) – 2

I closed my eyes once, then slowly opened them.

“Welcome back.”

The scene I had seen hundreds, thousands of times unfolded slowly, step by step, through my gradually clearing vision.

“User Kim Su-hyun.”

Gray bricks,
A dark space,
A cold, gray floor,
A sharp, rectangular altar.

The summoning room that marks both the beginning and the end of everything.
The summoning room where everything remains unchanged.

“Se…”

No, I should correct myself.

Something has changed.

Most things are exactly as before, but…

The most important thing—the one thing that would make me say everything has changed—is nowhere to be seen.

“Seraph.”

I call out, but there’s no answer.

The angel who always waited for me in this place is gone.

Since that day five years ago, Seraph no longer exists in this world.

Only cold darkness flows emptily here.

“……”

I had expected this to some extent, but facing the reality leaves my chest hollow.

Is it disbelief?
Or is it my own fault for clinging to the baseless certainty that Seraph would always be here?

Suddenly, I think I catch a flicker of white wings fluttering before my eyes, and without thinking, I reach out my hand.

But I quickly pull it back.

“Why do you reject me? I am User Kim Su-hyun’s assistant.”

Ah, how many times have we fought like this?
Still, I wanted to show you once—
To show you the outcome of the future you wished for.
I wanted to hear your story about me.

But this empty space feels too cruel, doesn’t it?

Feeling almost hypnotized, I slowly walk over and sit on the altar.

Not dead center, but slightly to the left.

“Today, you didn’t even summon me. What brings you here?”

Then, I lean back against the altar as if about to collapse.

Leaning like this, a memory suddenly comes back.

When was it?
Back then, lost and wandering with nowhere to go after some incident, my final stop was the temple—the summoning room.

Seraph, standing quietly at the entrance, looked at me with surprised eyes.

Without a word, she wrapped me warmly in her two wings and accepted me.

I couldn’t say it honestly then, but…
It felt really good.

“…Huyu.”

It feels like she could be right beside me now…

• Are you hoping she’ll come back?

Huh?
What’s that sound…?

• That’s hurtful. It’s only been five years, and you’ve already forgotten me?

At first, I thought it was Hwa-jeong’s voice, but no.

It sounds like a sultry woman’s voice, an old crone’s voice, a deep and polite man’s voice, and even a youthful boy’s voice all at once.

Yes, this unpredictable voice is…

• The one who granted your wish.

“Zero Code?”

For the first time, a deep, resonant voice breaks the silence in the room.

• Now you know… Huh? What’s that magic power?

“What? What magic power?”

• It’s only been about five years, but it’s quite…

“Zero Code?”

Appearing out of nowhere, then muttering to itself.

• It’s definitely changed from before… but for its nature to shift and its charm to increase this much… Hoo, this almost rivals the King of Nightmares… But it’s strange, very strange…

“Stop with the weird muttering. Zero Code? You’re still around?”

• Yes.

…Why so confident?

• For now, it’s just remnants, fragments. Forgot? I said I’d watch over your end.

…A stalker?

• Hmph, whatever.

As if this is unimportant, Zero Code cuts off the topic.

• Do you want her to come back?

Trying to bring the conversation back to the start, it asks the same question again.

“Of course.”

Without hesitation, I answer.

“Do you know where Seraph is?”

• Rather than where she is, it’s more accurate to ask what happened to her.

…What?
Not where she is, but what happened…?

“What do you mean…?”

• Simple. Ten years ago, the wish you made didn’t include her.

The voice deepens, buzzing in my ears.

• As a result, the angel Seraph had no choice but to make a separate request to me. I listened to her two requests and accepted them. Because I judged her wish would help fulfill yours.

Two requests?

• The first was to follow you back ten years ago without your knowledge. The second was to step beyond her role as an angel and assistant, and gain the means to help you exclusively.

Even if I noticed the first later, the second is news to me.

• It’s okay to tell you now. Ansol, was it?

“Ansol? Why mention Ansol all of a sudden?”

• Who do you think awakened as the Priest of Radiance, gained the absurd power called Blue Dahlia and ‘As You Wish,’ and foresaw the future so accurately?

“What?”

• Think carefully. Do you really believe a mere human could wield such power? Impossible. Even awakened as a user.

“What are you talking about? The Priest of Radiance appeared in the first cycle…”

• Yes, but do you remember the exact name of the Priest of Radiance active in the first cycle?

“Well, it was Sol…”

• The surname?

Suddenly, I’m at a loss for words.

I only remember the name Sol, but not the full name including the surname.

Come to think of it, I only guessed it was Ansol from the start.

• To be precise, the name is Han Jin-sol. In the first cycle, she awakened as the Priest of Radiance and worked with the Odin Clan, but in this cycle, she died during the rite of passage. Even though the timing of her arrival is similar, she’s different from you.

“W-wait a minute.”

My mind starts to twist.

It’s not that the information is complicated, but the shock makes it hard to accept.

• Well, it’s not really important now. Back to the main point: at that time, you were qualified to use me…

Why is it that the more Zero Code talks, the more an inexplicable unease wells up inside me?

• That means she wasn’t the one. I allowed her because I judged her wish would help yours, but the deal itself was more like a transaction. …Do you understand what I mean?

“But Seraph—!”

• An angel is an angel, an assistant is just an assistant.

As if knowing what I was about to say, Zero Code cuts me off sharply.

• She can only indirectly interfere with the activation of my power. Nothing more.

I finally understand what it means by “what happened”—it probably refers to the price of the deal.

• Do you want her to come back?

That’s the third question.

I cover my face with both hands and take a deep breath.

Given that these words come from a god of the Ten Heavens, it’s hard to think it’s a joke.

I understand what Zero Code is trying to say.

And why it appeared here, and what it wants.

Silence stretches for a long while.

Zero Code’s voice is quiet too, as if it knows I’m lost in thought.

How much time has passed?

I lower my hands from my face and stand up from the altar.

“Let me ask just one thing.”

• Hmm?

“Is Seraph still alive?”

• The angel’s existence has not returned to nothingness. For now, that’s all I’ll say.

For now…

That’s enough.

• Hm? Leaving already?

I turn around, but a heavy voice stops me.

• I think we still have things to discuss.

“No thanks. I don’t want to make a deal with you.”

Seraph sacrificed herself to make a deal with Zero Code.

In other words, “what happened” means Zero Code controlled her fate.

Thinking this way, the question “Do you want Seraph to come back?” can only mean Zero Code wants something from me.

I don’t know why it’s making this offer as if it’s been waiting for me the moment I returned, but I have no intention of agreeing.

So I don’t need to listen.

• So you’re giving up on her?

So it admits it.

No matter what, I have no intention of giving up on Seraph.

“No.”

• Hm?

“I’m not giving up. It’s just…”

• Just?

“I’m tired of moving according to someone else’s will.”

• ……

“I’m sick of it. Really. So I’ll find Seraph on my own, with my own power.”

• That means you might turn me into an enemy?

An enemy.

Honestly, I don’t want Zero Code as an enemy.

Not only because I know nothing about it, but because it’s a being above Gehenna and Hwajeong.

But it can’t be helped.

“After the demon, Zero Code is next? Suddenly the difficulty just spiked.”

That should be a sufficient answer.

No need to say goodbye.

I wave my hand as a sign of farewell and walk toward the portal.

In that fleeting moment,

• Heh.

A small laugh is heard, then fades away.

Almost like a hallucination.

• Is that so… then I understand.

As if expressing some regret.

“Is there… anything else?”

I wait, hoping for more words, but Zero Code says nothing further.

“What the… right after I come back.”

I don’t regret it, but to say I have no lingering feelings would be a lie.

…Well, I probably won’t be coming here for a while.

As I step into the portal, I glance back once more without reason.

Once,
The space where Seraph always waited for User Kim Su-hyun,
“Truly…”

Now only the shadowed altar remains alone,
“Truly, I loved you.”

Frozen coldly,
As if time itself had stopped.

I spent more time in the summoning room than I expected.

Now that I’ve confirmed Seraph isn’t here, staying longer would be a waste.

My family must be waiting outside, and there are people I want to see.

Well then, time to go.

“The air is cold.”

It’s definitely chilly, probably because it’s dawn.

“Yeah. I wish they’d come back sooner… huh?”

A small chuckle breaks the quiet.

I quickly turn my gaze.

“……!”

In the dim corridor, a lone figure suddenly fills my sight.

And then—

Her eyes closed in peaceful stillness.

Skin as pale and smooth as falling snow.

Silky silver hair that seemed to capture the moonlight.

A pair of wings fluttering gently like a spring breeze.

No way.

“User Kim Suhyun.”

There she was, where that unfamiliar voice came from.

A seraph.

Watching the angel offer a quiet word of thanks, I blinked hard, then opened my eyes again.

I stared intently at the seraph still standing there.

She slowly opened her eyes and met my gaze with a soft smile.

“…Seraph?”

“Yes. Suhyun.”

It was at that moment—

More precisely, the moment the seraph opened her eyes and looked me straight in the face.

“Thanks to you, Zero Code-sama… hmm, huh?”

For some reason, a web of confusion spread across her face as she stared at me.

Her eyes widened like lanterns, clearly shocked.

And before long, her pupils clouded over with a dreamy haze as she parted her lips slightly.

“Su… Are you really the Suhyun I know?”

Her voice trembled with disbelief.

Why? She’d been so calm just moments ago—what’s with this sudden change?

Ah, could it be she’s forgotten my face?

I’ve heard people say the atmosphere can shift, but the original is still here, isn’t it?

If anything, this is shocking.

“Seraph.”

But it’s okay.

I don’t know why Zero Code changed her mind…

“Seraph!”

Right now, the seraph is here, standing before me.

Overwhelmed with joy, I found myself running toward her without thinking.

But because of that, I completely forgot.

The warning I’d heard after the Baek Han-gyeol incident: never, ever smile carelessly.

“S-Suhyun? W-Wait…!”

I realized my mistake in an instant.

But my mouth had already curved into a full smile, unmistakably a smile.

And to make matters worse, I suddenly leaned my face forward.

In the end—

“Oh, God!”

The seraph squeezed her eyes shut, clasped her hands together as if in prayer, and collapsed to the ground.

---------------------------= Author’s Note ---------------------------=

I’ve read every single comment.

Thank you all, and I’m sorry. ㅜ.ㅠ

I remember when readers once suggested side stories they wanted to see in the comments.

Since side stories can’t be dragged out too long, it’s impossible to cover all those ideas, but I plan to prioritize the ones I envision and those that readers prefer.

Having disappointed you all with my irresponsible actions, I will do my best to finish the side story series properly.

(__)

PS. To BrokenFan, I’m so sorry for the late thanks, but truly, thank you for the Go Yeon-ju illustration.

PS2. Dear readers, I’m not pregnant;;;; ㅜ.ㅠ