145Th Chapter. Facing Each Other (2)
“······I’m hungry.”
“I’m hungry too and I’m dying of exhaustion. If you suck my blood now, I might faint.”
“······I’m hungry.”
“Are you listening to me?”
“······Yeah.”
“This kid······.”
Mijung was clinging to my arm, probably because she was very hungry.
I had no choice but to give her the scabbard on my arm.
I had to let Mijung suck my blood, even though I was worried that I would collapse from anemia.
“Normally, adults eat first.”
“······I’m, older.”
“You’re supposed to be forever 13.”
“······Omnyomnyom.”
“You have nothing to say, so you’re just eating. Where did you learn such table manners?”
“······.”
At that moment, Mijung’s movements stopped.
For a moment, her red eyes filled with tears.
Mijung closed her eyes and opened them again, and she was back to her old self, sucking my blood hard.
“······Home, talk. Not, really, want to.”
“Okay. I’m sorry.”
“······Okay.”
The day will come when I can talk about it.
I thought so and let it go.
However.
Maybe that day will never come.
“Mmm! It’s delicious! It’s so delicious every time I eat it!”
“Stop talking and eat. You’re splattering blood everywhere.”
“hehehe. Okay. Slurp······.”
Mijung was smiling happily as she bit my arm.
Is it that delicious?
The old Mijung never left such an impression.
According to the current Mijung, my blood is a fantastic taste that vampires can’t get enough of.
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“Ugh······?”
“Why are you making me hungry again? Get lost.”
“Uung······.”
After much discussion, deliberation, and contemplation.
I was able to come to a conclusion.
Mijung has lost her memory.
I don’t know the exact extent, but.
Roughly speaking, it seems that Mijung has completely forgotten her past up until she became a bloodsucker, that is, her life before.
Wasn’t the Mijung before she became like this also forgetting the same thing?
No.
The Mijung at that time said it clearly.
She said it was a topic she didn’t want to talk about.
Not wanting to talk about it means that she remembers it.
On the other hand, the current Mijung has completely forgotten all of that.
What on earth happened last night?
It is certain that some kind of ‘change’ has occurred to all monsters worldwide.
But why have some monsters become weaker, while Mijung has lost her memory?
At first, I suspected something strange.
I wondered if it was taking away the ‘most precious thing’ of the monster in question······.
In the case of monsters fighting fiercely with mercenaries, they valued strength the most, so it was taken away from them, and in the case of Mijung, she valued her memories and they were taken away from her.
However, that doesn’t explain the abnormality that happened to Linda.
I quickly admitted that it was nonsense, grasping at straws.
I decided to approach it more intuitively.
The next hypothesis I came up with.
The hypothesis that I think is closest to the truth, in my opinion, is.
The monsters have been ‘returned to normal’.
The monsters’ powers, which had been strengthened by Draken’s protection, have returned to their original state.
And in Linda’s case······ it’s a little creepy.
Perhaps the artificial soul created by Draken’s influence has disappeared, and she has returned to being an ordinary wind-up doll.
So what happened to Mijung?
If my hypothesis is correct, then Mijung’s current state is normal.The way she is now is right, and the blunt and emotionless way she was before was abnormal.
Perhaps her current personality is the one she had before she became a vampire.
So it must have been her personality when she was alive.
But the reason why she changed when she became a vampire.
The reason why she changed from such an active personality to a gloomy and expressionless child.
It’s simple.
Because she remembers.
Everything from the past.
Thinking about it, Mijung’s memory was strangely good.
The power of Draken that was given to Mijung is clearly the curse of memory.
It is a curse that you cannot forget anything and must keep it in your head.
And those who cannot forget the past are bound to be ruined.
Because she couldn’t forget the incident that changed her personality.
Mijung has become a character with a dry sense of emotion.
What Mijung received last night as she ‘normalized’ was clearly the blessing of oblivion.
It is a blessing given to all humans, the ability to forget memories and be comfortable.
Thanks to regaining that ability, Mijung forgot the past and became active again.
She returned to her personality when she was alive.
“Mijung.”
“Yeah?”
“Are you happy?”
“Suddenly? What kind of question is this? Hmm······. Well. Actually, I don’t know what happiness is. But it’s fun to be with Eugene.”
“······.”
I don’t know what happened in the past······.
Mijung erased the shocking thing from her head and became happy.
That’s Mijung now.
The Mijung I knew is gone now.
The moment I thought that.
My eyes went dark.
“So you came to me? Just like that?”
“Yes.”
“Hey?! Aren’t you crazy! I just reconciled with my sister after all that mess, and what do you want me to do if you come here······! That’s······.”
Rabbit Suin, who suddenly got angry, pressed his hat down hard, mindful of the eyes around him.
Alicia clicks her tongue as she looks at me like I’m crazy.
It was a bold move.
I went to Yevgenia, who was under Yerina’s influence, right after I almost got caught by Yerina.
I can feel how surprised Alicia is just by looking at her expression.
She looks around for a moment, then takes off her sunglasses and gives me a slightly gentle look.
“Anyway, it’s nice to see you again. I thought I’d never see you again. My sister is in the Southern Continent, so she’s safe for now.”
“I came up knowing that. I almost got caught by your sister.”
“Ha! You came up to the North right away. I don’t know if you’re brave or crazy······. Which one is it? What’s wrong with your hand?”
“Hand?”
I raised my hand and saw a bandage wrapped around my palm.
It seems that’s what he’s talking about.
“I’ve been using a sharp sword lately.”
“Do you hold the blade and use it······? No. Never mind. I’m not really curious. So tell me what you’re here for.”
“Do I have to have a reason to come see you? Why are you in such a hurry? Do you want to go to the bathroom?”
“Hey?! How can a person be so vulgar······. Sigh. I forgot what kind of person you are because we were apart for a while. ············You’re not going to help me, but you’re going around ············other places ············bastard.”
“Huh? What?”
“Nothing.”
Alicia mutters something in a crawling voice and looks around, raising her head.
What did you say?
Did you curse me?”More importantly, it’s too dangerous here right now. I won’t be caught meeting you right now, but if you stay out too long, you’ll get caught. I didn’t come here to pick flowers, so let’s get down to business.”
“This guy is the business.”
“hehehe. It’s been a while.”
“······Who?”
Alicia frowned and glared at Miso, who was giggling.
The embarrassment is transmitted here.
I understand.
I had the same reaction when I first saw it.
“It’s Miso.”
“Huh? This? Is it finally broken?”
“Broken······!”
“It’s as good as broken.”
“Eugene?!”
“She’s lost her memory. She unconsciously forgot what happened in her previous life and became like this. She used to have a body that couldn’t forget memories.”
Miso and Myeong-i were sent to another place for a while.
I gave Alicia a brief explanation.
What happened to the monsters.
What has changed in Miso.
And I want to somehow return Miso to the Miso I knew.
By bringing back lost memories.
I want to bring back Miso, who relentlessly activates her traits and knights.
I conveyed that meaning.
“You know that’s a very selfish way of thinking, right?”
“I know.”
“If you know······! Phew. I’ll stop because you know. I have a lot to say.”
“What? Tell me.”
“There’s nothing as painful as remembering everything. Even Miso seems to have been deeply hurt by the past to the point of losing her emotions and becoming blunt······. Isn’t it a good thing to forget it and change like that?”
“······.”
Alicia looks away with her chin on her hand.
A small playground in the corner of the cafe where children are running around.
There, Miso and Myeong-i are laughing out loud, mingling with the children.
Looking at it this way, it’s just like a kid my age.
“I know that’s right and normal.”
“But?”
“······.”
I can’t say that I have to activate the knight.
My lips tremble because I don’t want to give Alicia information about my traits.
That’s not my true heart.
As much as Alicia risked her life to meet me.
I also have to be honest with Alicia.
“Because I like Miso when she remembers everything. She’s still energetic and cute now······ but that’s not the Miso I know. It doesn’t matter which one is more unhappy or happier. I want to get back the Miso I know. I want to be with that kid. That’s all.”
“Does that kid want that?”
“······.”
I was speechless.
Would Miso want that?
The memory that was unconsciously erased comes back to life.
And face that terrible past again.
Do you want to go back to being like a corpse, speechless, blunt, and emotionless?
“I don’t know. But one thing is for sure.”
Well.
But I can say this one thing for sure.
My memory is hazy because I heard it in my sleep, but thinking about it now, it wasn’t like a dream or an illusion.
The night Miso groaned in pain as she appealed to me.
Just before Miso changed into the current Miso, she definitely whispered to me.
“That guy. I didn’t want to break up with him.”
······Don’t forget me.
She said so in a lingering voice.
As if she didn’t want to leave.
As if she was struggling to leave a trace in someone’s memory even if she left and disappeared······.
“I really can’t stop you. Do you want to ruin the life of a good vampire because of your greed?””Yes. I really want to ruin it. I want to be with you even if it’s ruined.”
“Huh…”
Alicia, who had been looking serious the whole time, burst into laughter.
As if she had been holding it in until now, her laughter continued for a long time.
“hahahahaha… I’m sorry. You seem a little different. You’re the kind of person who would have made excuses for this part. You’ve become so honest.”
“This is easier.”
“You’ve come to me for help honestly, so I can’t turn you away. Okay. I’ll be your accomplice.”
“Is there a way? A way to restore my memory?”
“I don’t have one. But I know an expert in this field. Take this.”
Alicia hands me a business card.
The stiff paper reads:
-White Pagoda Master. Temulen.
An oriental name.
It’s a strangely familiar name.
“This person is the best at manipulating people’s memories. If you mention my name… Ugh! Then my trace will be left behind and my sister will find out later! Oh, I don’t know! Tell him that you came with my introduction or not!”
I have a way.
At that thought, my emotions suddenly surged.
My body moved on its own, and I stood up and grabbed Alicia’s hand.
“Thank you, Alicia. Thank you so much.”
“Ouch? I, I mean. My hand… a little… Oh… It’s too late…”
At that moment, Alicia’s face turned redder and redder.
I began to hear a hissing sound.
Oh…
I really need to go to the bathroom.
Thiz… I’m quite disappointed…