Perhaps because the charnel house is in Eungwang District, White Tiger is here with Olmu.
And perhaps because visitors to the place are usually big families, the descendants, who are usually barred from leaving the mansion, were here too.
The Mythical Tiger, the Legendary Tiger, the Tiger Clan’s descendants, Shinsoo, and others from the Tiger Clan that I haven’t spoken to before.
‘Those are Blue Tiger’s disciples, and I don’t know who that one is…’
My gaze fell on the tigers that I knew, but words wouldn’t easily come out of my mouth.
Everyone was holding a white chrysanthemum flower with a black ribbon around its stem.
‘Don’t tell me they’re here for my family.’
The Tiger Clan doesn’t hide the fact that they’ve done an extensive background check on me, so it’s not strange for them to know about the death anniversary of my family.
But still… I didn’t expect them to take the time to pay their respects.
And it’s not just one or two from the clan, a lot of them came.
If all those tigers are really here to pay respects to my family, they may have more mourners in this world than in the real world.
As I was still stunned by what was happening, Hwang Jiho, who was closest to where I was standing, came closer.
“We are here to express condolences to our benefactor’s family. I sent you a message in advance, saying that we would come here, but it seems that you didn’t check it. Do you mind?”
It felt surreal that Hwang Jiho in a school uniform, head of the Tiger Clan, confirmed that they really came here for my family.
I should’ve said “yes” right away and thanked them for coming, but I somehow couldn’t open my mouth to speak.
When Hwang Jiho saw that I wasn’t answering right away, he gave a guess as to why.
“Don’t worry about the ‘Eye’. We used some dummies and cut off the communication around the area to block it.”
“Although, it’s difficult for us to stay for long. The dragon is scouting around the area. He will come here and inform us as soon as he senses any abnormalities.”
Hwang Jiho is still careful not to reveal my connection with the Tiger Clan to the Eye of the Demon Race.
By the way, is that “dragon” Yong Jegun?
As Kim Shinrok said, Yong Jegun seems to be working hard so that the Tiger Clan could express their condolences.
Hwang Jiho’s gaze shifted to the bouquet of flowers in my arms.
“We thought you’d feel burdened if we brought too many flowers, but it seems we thought wrong. I should send a wreath next time.”
“Some places don’t accept flower baskets or wreaths.”
“We can negotiate that easily. If the benefactor wants a lot of flowers for his family, shouldn’t we do everything we can to support that?”
Hwang Jiho was about to laugh but he was considerate enough not to do that in this place.
Instead, he talked with Red Tiger with a hushed voice.
Although the tigers were holding only one flower each, there wouldn’t be a lack of flowers at all given that so many of them came here.
‘…It seems like my family will receive lots of flowers this time.’
After graduating from high school, things got better for me and I was able to prepare chrysanthemum flowers of various colors for my family, but it was very different before that time.
In the previous world, I first visited their remains with no preparation at all, and I almost failed at bringing chrysanthemums because they were more expensive than I expected.
“…”
White Tiger was holding a white chrysanthemum in one hand, and holding Olmu, who was biting a single flower as well, in the other.
He’s silent as usual, but his expression seems to have a little bit of worry for me.
I turned to the tigers and spoke.
I was acquainted with most of the tigers who came, but there were also those who I’m seeing for the first time, so I decided to speak as politely as I could.
“Thank you all for coming. Let’s go in.”
I gathered as much composure as I could to reassure my main playable character and the tigers.
It was completely silent after I finished my sentence which made me think if I misspoke.
“Jo Euishin, you’re…”
Hwang Jiho seemed to hesitate.
After repeating in my head the words that I said just now, I was convinced that I probably didn’t misspeak, and so I just led them to the charnel house.
The gloomy-faced tigers did not say anything until we finished laying the flowers and went out of the charnel house again.
It was Hwang Jiho who broke the silence.
“May we come back next year to lay flowers again?”
Of course, that’s fine.
If anything happens to me in this world, there would be no one left to offer flowers to my family.
If the tigers come, I would be very thankful.
“Yes. Thank you.”
“We should come together next year.”
There’s no need for that though.
Still, I nodded as I was very thankful that they came to offer flowers to my family.
Come to think of it, Hwang Jiho usually nags at me for not reading his messages, but he didn’t say anything about it today.
I bowed to the tigers who came, and as I was about to go my own way…
“Euishin hyung, let’s go together!”
“Let’s get in the car together! Let’s drive around for a while.”
“It’s been so long since we went out of the mansion, we don’t want to go back right away.”
“How about we head to the mansion and have a meal there…?”
Woof woof!
The descendants and Olmu caught me.
It’s been a while since they left the mansion, and it’s my family’s grave that they visited out of all places.
Still, I can’t go to the mansion right now.
In the end, I hesitated before offering a compromise.
“I have some plans today so I can’t go back to the mansion, is that okay?”
The descendants nodded and Hwang Jiho immediately had me inside an air limousine as if he were waiting for the right response.
I felt like I was tricked, but considering the goodwill shown by the tigers today, I thought I’d gladly be tricked by them over and over again.
* * *
After returning to the school in the Tiger Clan’s limousine, I stopped by my dorm room to change clothes and head to the place where Cheon Dongha and I would meet.
To Hwangmyeong Research Institute.
The institute was technically located outside Eungwang High campus.
However, it’s very close to the research area of the school, and students, faculty, and researchers around the research area often use the facilities of the Hwangmyeong Research Institute.
In other words, the institute is not really a facility of the school, but perhaps it could be considered a quasi-facility as it is frequently used by people from Eungwang High.
‘I saw it on the guide map of Eungwang District, but this is the first time I’m visiting it in person.’
The glass wall of the Hwangmyeong Research Institute reflected the sunlight in a way that some colors bounce off to make an illusion of a Hwangmyeong Group logo floating on the front.
It wasn’t as majestic as the Silver Hall, but it seems like a lot of work has gone into building its facade.
I was about to ask the kid beside me, the one who designed the Silver Hall, if he designed this building as well, but Hwang Jiho said useless things before I could speak.
“Why don’t you just rest today? I’ll tell Cheon Dongha.”
I didn’t tell him anything about my plans, but he seemed to have recognized where I was headed and he just followed me freely.
This isn’t the first time that this old guy had done something like this, but I should’ve known better since I’m visiting an institute under Hwangmyeong Group after all.
“No.”
“I knew you’d say that. I’ll watch you from the side, but if you don’t want that either, I’d just send you home.”
“And if I don’t want to do that?”
“If you don’t want to go back to your dorm, just come to our mansion. Our descendants would like that.”
I don’t want that even more.
I didn’t say anything, but Hwang Jiho smirked as if he could read my mind.
He seems to be making plans on how to make me go to the mansion, but I made up my mind that I’d stay in my dorm after today’s plans.
“Oh, something important happened yesterday. But I don’t want to talk about that here today. If you want to know, come to the mansion.”
Something important?
I’m very curious as to what it was, but I hate that I’m being controlled by Hwang Jiho.
But it could be a very important thing so…
“Think about it. Tell me anytime you want to come to the mansion.”
As I was having an internal conflict, Cheon Dongha, who was wearing a white lab gown, appeared five minutes before our promised time.
It doesn’t seem like he was too flustered when he saw Hwang Jiho beside me.
“Hello. I heard that you’re coming too, Jiho. Come on in, you two.”
“Do you know each other?”
“Ah, I’ve seen Jiho’s face a few times, that’s how I know. Let’s go.”
Did Hwang Jiho and Cheon Dongha know each other?
Personal information was available on Cheon Dongha in the game, but I couldn’t think of a link between the two except for Eungwang High.
Perhaps the two are intertwined in this world because of some changes I’ve made.
I have to ask Hwang Jiho about it later on.
“When I told some higher-ups, they said they’d make you a visiting researcher right away if you wanted to. Let’s take a tour today and you think about it.”
Wasn’t his original offer an intern position?
Am I being offered a position as a guest researcher just like Cheon Dongha and Song Daesok?
Thinking that this old tiger is the one who made this happen, I turned around and stared at Hwang Jiho.
“You’ve been a very promising player Jo Euishin. You even received an alias before entering Eungwang High. You maintained good grades and participated in various activities, including defeating enemies and saving lives. There’s no shortage of guest researcher positions. Hwangmyeong Research Institute won’t miss the opportunity to secure such a great talent, and so the proposal is given to you.”
“That’s what I heard.”
Hwang Jiho and Cheon Dongha seemed to be getting along, but it’s kind of weird.
Satisfied with my answer that I’d think about it, Cheon Dongha walked ahead and guided us throughout the institute.
Introduction to the main facilities.
Papers published and new technology.
We rode the elevator as we listened to Cheon Dongha.
“Let’s go to the top floor and start the tour there. …Oh?”
The elevator didn’t respond even when the buttons were pressed.
The doors were closed, but it doesn’t seem to be going up.
Is it broken?
<Skill, Destiny activated.>
With the system message, the elevator started to go down on its own.
Hwang Jiho stared at me as soon as the skill was activated.
“This is…!”
Destiny is not something that I can control.
All I could do was prepare for it to be activated whenever I use the Player Identity skill.
It seems like Cheon Dongha already activated his light skill, but it doesn’t look like he’s found anything wrong.
Dding.
The elevator that went down a long way stopped and the doors opened.
Judging that it would be dangerous to stay in the elevator longer, the three of us quickly stepped out.
“I’ll send someone to check that elevator.”
“This floor doesn’t have stairs going up. We’d have to wait.”
Cheon Dongha seemed to be thinking if it was a simple malfunction or if it was a deliberate attack.
“What’s in here?”
“Ah, that’s…”
Cheon Dongha looked at Hwang Jiho instead of answering.
Hwang JIho nodded once and Cheon Dongha spoke again.
“…My dongsaeng.”
“Your dongsaeng is in the research institute?”
“Yeah. Do you remember when I said something about my brother?”
“You said something about LIS.”
Cheon Dongha nodded with a heavy expression.
“Yeah, the condition of my brother’s energy wave is very similar to something called ‘deep sleep’ with people of royal lineage. I’m cooperating with them in the research on how to wake those of royal lineage in deep sleep.’
I’ve heard about deep sleep from Hwang Jiho before.
Unlike humans, people of royal lineage and their descendants are said to be able to leave their bodies as much as they want because their souls can jump around.
It is said that the soul that has left the body permanently is in a state of deep sleep.
‘There must be a reason why Destiny was activated. There must be something about Cheon Dongha’s brother.’
I asked something carefully.
“May I meet your brother?”
“…I once suggested to my brother that I’d bring you here. He refused right away. I guess he doesn’t want to bother you.”
While Cheon Dongha hesitated, Hwang Jiho suggested something.
“I think that your younger brother is related to Jo Euishin in some way. It’s fate that led us here. We should go.”
And so we walked through the dark alleyway before arriving at a place that I wasn’t sure if it was a laboratory or an intensive care unit.
A boundary was set with spells inscribed in ancient words.
There was a life support device made from modern technology.
The room was filled with all kinds of things, from magic to devices, but there was only one thing that registered in my eyes.
‘That is… Impossible…’
He was much younger and thinner than I remember, but I knew that boy.
No, I can’t be sure about this.
He might not be the dongsaeng that I know.
As I steeled myself and did my best to maintain a poker face, Cheon Dongha’s brother began to blink.
“…He’s rarely reacted this actively before.”
I heard Cheon Dongha’s surprised voice.
On the other hand, Cheon Dongha’s brother blinked for a while before closing his eyes.
I felt choked up as I realized that he was talking in morse code, and horrified when I interpreted the word.
I remembered a conversation I had with a dongsaeng in the real world.
– Euishin huyng, I heard you had a nickname as a chess player, didn’t you?
– Stalemeteless, right?
The boy’s blinking eyes translated to something in Morse code.
S,T,A,L,E,M,A,T,E,L,E,S,S
Stalemateless.
My nickname.
