BXBX NOVEL Chapter 64 – Rudine Eckhart (3)
Chapter 64 – Rudine Eckhart (3)
Rudine couldn’t breathe.
It had nothing to do with her will.
Everything was just too shocking.
That ominous object called a cell phone.
The horrifying truths scrolling across its screen.
Lee Seung-jun casually enjoying, which he called a “game.”
The shock was overwhelming… making her feel completely drained.
Her nerves were on edge.
When she saw Lee Seung-jun using the characters from her world like chess pieces, her mind went blank.
She ran to the window and looked outside.
Oh, it’s high.
Everything is tall, and everything is different.
Tall buildings crammed together, metal objects flying in the sky, and roads tangled like threads.
It couldn’t compare to the world she lived in.
No matter how much time passed, they wouldn’t be able to mimic it.
Tick-tock.
The clock’s hands moved.
There was a clattering sound, and Lee Seung-jun, who had been lying down, got up and approached her.
Her throat tightened.
She knew he couldn’t see her, but those clear eyes coming closer and closer terrified her.
Her entire body froze.
The closer he got, the more she forgot how to breathe, her throat tightening.
Don’t come.
Please, don’t come near me.
She screamed.
It felt like she was mumbling something, squeezing her vocal cords.
A warning tone rang in her ears.
Her gasping breaths came out through clenched teeth.
Ah, so that’s it.
The world I lived in… was fake…
Her body swayed.
Unable to support her collapsing body, she fell to the floor.
She coughed repeatedly, gasping for breath.
Tears blurred her vision.
She closed her eyes tightly.
Hoping all of this was a dream.
Please.
When I open my eyes again…
I hope I’m free from this nightmarish reality.
****
How much time had passed?
When she barely opened her eyes, the unfamiliar ceiling still greeted her.
“…Nothing’s changed.”
Rudine laughed incredulously, turning her head to look around.
It was already evening, and the room was shrouded in darkness.
Lee Seung-jun was gone, leaving her alone in the room.
Being alone in the dark filled her with a terrible sense of helplessness.
I don’t want to do anything.
I wish I could just lose consciousness forever.
It’s all fake anyway.
I am.
My life, my experiences, my story.
Even the world I believed to be real.
All of it… all of it…!
“……”
She breathed quietly, barely moving her limp fingers.
It was hard to believe she was still breathing.
A cruel realization passed through her mind.
Ah, so that’s why the world stopped.
Because Kyle died, Luna died, and Isabel died.
At some point, the story got completely messed up.
Because the predetermined ending was denied.
Just…
For such a trivial reason…
Creek—
The sound of her teeth grinding came out weakly.
Her whole body felt hot.
Was this burning emotion anger, despair, or perhaps emptiness?
She stared at the ceiling with hollow eyes.
When things became overwhelming, she used to pray to God.
Did those prayers ever reach God?
Was there ever a moment when her sincerity was real?
“No, of course not.”
It was all fake anyway.
Nothing I saw or felt was real.
Am I even really alive?
Can I, who has my fate decided with a flick of a finger in this ‘game’ world, dare to call myself human?
Rudine slowly lifted her head.
Then she saw the water bottle on the nightstand.
She leaned forward.
Her face reflected in the water bottle looked terrified.
Like someone who had seen a ghost.
“…Who is this?”
It’s my face, isn’t it?
The face I’ve seen all my life.
…Wait, this is fake?
Why? Why is it fake?
I’m clearly alive, aren’t I?
“……”
An uncontrollable tremor spread from her fingertips to her whole body.
She stared at her reflection in the water bottle.
All the memories stored in her mind turned into black ashes and scattered.
At the same time, her soul shattered and dispersed.
“No, it’s not true!”
This isn’t me.
It’s all, all fake.
“I am…!”
I am.
“I am……”
Who am I?
A burning sensation rose in her throat.
The heat made it impossible to speak.
“…”
She swallowed and reached out to touch her reflection in the water bottle.
But her hand, despite her courage, passed right through the bottle.
Of course.
So there’s no need to be disappointed.
I am fake.
That’s why I was denied.
The world I was born in.
Even in this world, where everything but myself is real.
I am.
Fake from the very beginning.
Fake, fake, fake…!
Even though everything was denied, that moment still felt so vivid…
“Aha… ahaha…”
She laughed like a madwoman.
She couldn’t hold on without laughing.
“Haa… ugh…”
She gasped for breath.
Her escaping breaths were hot.
“Hic…”
Her soul felt empty.
It was so sorrowful that she cried.
Even if I live, it’s not really living.
I have to live like this, being denied everything forever.
“No… I don’t want that…”
In her entire life, she had never desperately wished for anything, but this time, she was incredibly earnest.
She needed something to prove that she wasn’t fake.
She wanted to reclaim everything.
Her face, her voice, her thoughts, her past… everything.
But…
Even if she returned to that time…
Could she really live as if nothing had happened?
“That’s…”
There’s no way that’s possible.
Her anxiety turned into certainty, and her certainty turned into despair.
She felt stuck, unable to move as if she were in a swamp.
Then, it happened.
Click.
The door opened.
“…”
Lee Seung-jun staggered into the room, looking like a drunken man.
He stared vacantly into the air, then took off his coat and threw himself onto the bed.
Rudine watched him blankly.
A thought crossed her mind.
She wanted to blame him.
But…
She couldn’t bring herself to do it.
After all, it wasn’t Lee Seung-jun who created the “game.”
He probably didn’t even know that the world beyond that screen really existed.
“…”
What should I do?
The future seemed dark and uncertain.
And then, Lee Seung-jun shifted with a rustling sound, lying on his side.
Rudine quietly watched him.
His jet-black hair reminded her of ebony.
His nose and jawline were sculpted with precision.
Suddenly, a sharp sensation surged up her throat.
Her heart, which had been cold, began to beat again.
“What…?”
She couldn’t take her eyes off him.
She couldn’t miss a single moment.
“……Kyle.”
Kyle Winfred.
And Lee Seung-jun.
The fake world.
And the real world.
The only point of contact between these two vastly distant worlds.
He existed.
The only one who knew of her existence.
The only one who could remember her.
Thump, thump.
The sound of her heart pounding echoed through her body.
The sight of him sleeping soundly was vividly imprinted in her eyes.
Even his faint breaths felt precious.
“……”
The shock that happened in a brief moment made her feel special.
So much so that she wanted to hold onto him no matter what.
So much so that she vowed never to lose him.
The faint hope, which had almost disappeared, suddenly resurfaced.
Maybe.
Just maybe…
“Ha…”
The sound of her pounding heart echoed in her ears.
****
Unlike her world, which had completely stopped, time in this place flowed relentlessly.
Everything changed quickly.
And she, too, changed as she adapted to this new world.
She learned a lot by following Kyle around for a long time.
Cars, the internet, cell phones, laptops…
This was a world with astonishingly advanced technology.
A world where science, not magic, existed, where everyone was equal without classes, and where the people elected their leader.
Everything was new.
At the same time, she had a thought.
If only I had met you here.
If only I had been born here.
If only I had met you like everyone else does, normally.
If you could hear my voice… if I could honestly express my feelings to you…
It was just a regret.
It felt sad, and unfair, so it was just a trivial complaint.
Lee Seung-jun was busy every day.
He had many relationships and a good personality, so no one excluded him.
Time passed by.
He eventually enlisted in the army.
It was surprising that war still existed in such a peaceful and advanced era.
‘It’s okay. Nothing bad will happen.’
As expected, his military service was peaceful.
Given his education, personality, and impression, it was natural.
However, nearing the end of his service, he became absorbed in the game again.
It was a game that was all too familiar to her.
She couldn’t forget it.
After all, it was a game that directly transferred her world into it.
‘Isn’t he tired of that game yet…?’
How many years has he been playing it?
What she didn’t particularly like was that he focused on courting characters other than her.
Moreover…
“Rudine’s affection points are really a pain.”
Suddenly, she felt a surge of irritation.
She wanted to smack his back out of frustration.
She felt sad but soon found herself smiling.
At least, watching Lee Seung-jun helped her endure the pain.
She felt grateful for that and laughed.
As time passed, one day.
Lee Seung-jun was returning quickly after finishing his shift.
He heard a loud noise and turned his head to see a car speeding towards him.
It was just a moment.
A brief moment as if blinking his eyes.
Screeeeech—!!
The car hit Lee Seung-jun directly.
The moment her hand reached out, red blood scattered in the air.
Everything moved in slow motion.
The droplets of blood floating in the air, Lee Seung-jun momentarily airborne, and his slow descent.
“…What?”
With a short gasp, the droplets of blood hit the road.
Wait.
What on earth just happened…?
Time seemed to freeze in the aftermath of the accident.
She ran frantically to lift Kyle.
No, she tried to lift him.
“Hold on.”
But she couldn’t touch him.
Her hand still passed right through Kyle.
She stared blankly at his limp body.
His uniform was torn to shreds.
His face was soaked in blood.
His body was completely stiff.
“Wh-what…?”
She was struck by a massive wave of dizziness, unable to speak.
She just sat down, blinking stupidly.
Wait.
So suddenly?
“Get up.”
What is this?
I just found you.
“Lee Seung-jun.”
You’re the only one.
How am I supposed to live in a world without you?
“Get up!”
A splitting headache overwhelmed her.
And then.
Cough—!
Blackish blood spurted from her mouth.
“This… can’t be happening…?”
Her body creaked like a broken wind-up doll.
Her sanity was so shattered that she couldn’t even form words properly.
Nausea surged, and a crushing sense of powerlessness hit her.
Her heart pounded as if it would burst through her ribs.
Snow began to fall from the sky.
The pitch-black sky turned white.
“Get up… please…!”
A terror greater than when she was trapped in the frozen world washed over her.
She was so terrified that even her tears dried up.
Her breath came out in ragged, white puffs.
I don’t want to lose you.
I want to stay with you forever.
I have endured all this just hoping for that.
How much I have endured…!
With trembling hands, she grasped her necklace.
Then she muttered quietly.
This is a relic imbued with divine power.
So please…
Just like when it saved me from the frozen world…
“Just one more time… for the last time…”
Then, it happened.
The rosary around her neck began to emit light.
Wooooong—!
It was a familiar sight.
When the world had completely stopped, the rosary had also emitted light like this.
But.
[Activation of 『Holy Relic: Rosary』 has been detected.]
A translucent blue window appeared in the air.
Just like the status windows that often appeared in the “game.”
[Initiating settlement of 『Rudine Eckhart』.]
She watched it in silence.
Even if this was an illusion or a prelude to a greater disaster, she felt she had to confirm it.
[Settlement complete.]
[Insufficient causality for activating the Relic.]
The light from the Relic hovered in the air before descending towards Lee Seung-jun.
As she gasped at the sudden development,
[Would you like to forcibly conscript causality?]
The ominous message floated before her blurry eyes.
She had no time or luxury to ponder each word and make a decision.
She just nodded frantically.
[Causality conscription complete.]
[Initiating scenario #81.]
Dozens of blue windows overlapped over Lee Seung-jun.
And soon after,
[A dimensional gate is opening.]
Golden shimmering mirages gathered, forming a portal.
At that moment, she instinctively knew.
That this was the only way.
The only way to save herself and him.
The passage of light approached her as if it had a will of its own.
And then.
Screeeeech—!!
It emitted a loud noise.
“…!”
And swallowed her and Lee Seung-jun whole.