The Forgotten Race (3)
Was he referring to the being who was the Truth-Seeker of this dimension? I clearly remembered what the Silver Forest’s Truth-Seeker said. It clearly stated that the Truth-Seeker of Earth was a dragon.
“There is a very old Elder in our village. Thanks to his prophecy, we quickly learned that the evil Dragon disappeared from this land and that there was a crack in the country’s capital.”
“…”
As I kept silent, the boy thoughtlessly threw his eyes at the flame again and asked.
“Do you know what kind of being lives around that barrier? Is that really human-made?”
I didn’t answer immediately and asked the boy back.
“Why do you want to know that?”
Although he looked young, I was trying to be respectful for now because I didn’t know what he really was. Instead of the boy, the woman answered my question.
“The elders in our village are thinking about moving the village back to the land. White Deer is almost saturated now. It is getting crowded with the ethnic tribes from the Korean peninsula and some parts of China since the Dragon suddenly appeared in the world long before I was born.”
“…”
The woman spoke, sweeping the bangs that had spilled on her forehead. Her appearance was dirty, but she was strangely pretty. What was wrong with her? She didn’t even need to put on makeup, only if she washed her face. The woman continued, looking at the bonfire, with her slender, pointed eyes sometimes turning to me.
“After the Dragon disappeared, it would have been the time to start moving after we had made up our minds. However, the elders delayed their decision because of the cracks in space that suddenly appeared. The elders have instructed us to observe the conditions of the crack so that they can make a decision.”
The boy added.
“But now, because of that barrier, it was very difficult to access, so I was in trouble.”
I nodded quietly. As I reconstructed the barrier, I expanded the scope and intentionally put the Mapo Bridge Channel within my barrier. The purpose was to prevent beings from the third dimension from accessing the Channel and throwing tantrums. They approached to observe the Mapo Bridge Channel, but the road was blocked because of my barrier. I deeply pondered who these people were.
The core of my barrier was a copy of my soul and parts of my unconscious mind. It was impossible to directly determine whether it was an alien race or not whenever countless life forms came and went between the boundaries of this wide barrier. I couldn’t stand it with the capacity of my brain.
The criteria I judged as normal Earthly creatures were already stored in the barrier’s core, and the barrier made its own judgment and decided whether to let them pass or not. Regardless of how they looked, it meant that their real identity was out of the range of normal Earthly creatures, that much I could recognize.
I asked, “Where is the village called White Deer?”
Her eyes turned round as if I had asked an absurd thing. The light of bewilderment shook in her clear eyes.
“Elder, how do you ask such a thing? Baengnokdam is, of course, in Halla Mountain, Jeju Island.”
Ah, did she mean the White Deer (Baeknok)…was she referring to Baeknokdam? Were these beings living in Baengnokdam? Not from another dimension? Something became very complicated in my head, and my heart started beating quickly. It began to occur to me that I might have been having a fundamental illusion about the world until now.
“When I hear the story…it sounds like it’s very difficult to get on this land?”
“Of course it is. Things are getting better now, but it has been quite difficult until then. Wouldn’t you know that best, Elder? Maybe you’ve stayed on this land several times longer than me. Originally, we decided to be beyond the wall to live only on the island without stepping on land…”
I asked one question after another.
“Why?”
“Well, because the continent was the dragon’s land. Until the dragon disappeared a few months ago.”
Ah…there seems to be a lot of stories that I didn’t know. Even though it was the story of this world, the one I had been living in! The little boy began to stare at me with suspicious eyes. At this point, even these guys would start to grow suspicious. I don’t know why they mistook me for an Elder of the same race in the first place.
“I heard that if you live a long time mixed with humans, you may forget your existence. I was a bit puzzled, but Elder, you also may be…”
When I didn’t answer anything, the boy sighed. Then he muttered very quietly.
“Ah damn it. Why did we meet such a dotard old man…”
What? Damn it? A dotard old man? Hey boy, I heard it all! As if he didn’t care whether I heard it or not, the boy reached out his hand.
“As I said at the beginning, I will share some of my dreams. I chose a good one. Originally, I tried to share it so that you could enjoy it as entertainment. Still, now I think it should be used for therapeutic purposes. I am young and immature, but I will do something to wash away your muddy memories.”
Foreign energy began to build up in his hand. It was different from the way I used it, but it was definitely magic. It felt similar to the unique Mana surrounding this barrier. In comparison, the magic I used and the magic used by Dell Giants, including Ghur, differed in level. Still, the fundamental principle and the nature of magic weren’t very different.
However, the magical power of these guys was very different from Ghur’s and mine. How did they build up their magic power? The magic principle itself would be the kind that differed from the one I used. The magic was complete, but there seemed to be no intention to harm me, so I stayed still. Then, haze-like energy lumped in the little boy’s hand and began to flow—the energy of a strange texture, like a cloud and spring water. It felt familiar, so I tilted my head and realized what it was.
It was very similar to Parvache’s presence. Now that guy…was dealing with the energy of the mixed, and fluctuated like a kaleidoscope in the energy accumulated in his hand. He lifted the lump to the corner of his mouth and then blew it out. Then the colored mass lost its shape and started to spread out, covering all three of us.
And I saw the scenery from far away.
High mountain tops. Beyond the boundary invisible to the human eye, a calm lake was located halfway between reality and unreality. A very spacious and cozy village spread beneath the surface of the water. Amidst ancient buildings that were completely different from the mingle, chat, cry, and laugh together.
The feeling that flowed into my heart now that I saw this scene wasn’t mine. It was a faraway longing, strangely warm and flowing with relief. Strands of emotions that I hadn’t felt were mixed in with the memories I hadn’t experienced. The illusion that had ruled me suddenly disappeared as quickly as it covered me. While still immersed in the remnants of faint feelings, the boy spoke to the woman.
“…Mrs. Pearl, you had a dream that reminded me of the village last night, so I borrowed it a little.”
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“Ah, did I have a dream like this?”
“As you know, I don’t remember all the dreams I have.”
“You said so.”
Wait, what did he call her?
“Mrs. Pearl?”
The boy glanced at me.
“This woman doesn’t want to be called by her name, so we call her Mrs. Pearl.”
“Oh, are you married?”
No, why am I asking this useless thing?
“…I was.” She answered hesitantly.
The woman bowed her head with a dark complexion. I felt like I had trodden on some deep-seated emotion, which I shouldn’t have. The boy stared at me.
“Mrs. Pearl is a faithful widow.”
Gosh!
“Ah, sorry. Sorry. I couldn’t even imagine it because you looked so young…”
Come to think of it. I didn’t know what kind of race they are, so she might be older than she looked. The boy named Garam. I don’t know if it was a real boy or not, but anyway, the little boy looked straight at me.
“You may have received warm feelings through your dreams, but you must have seen a sight that will stimulate your forgotten memories. Are you feeling a little clear now?”
I think it was time to come out.
“Ah, I’m sorry. I knew well that you aren’t human.”
The boy’s face was distorted with dismay as if he were asking whether it wasn’t working. I went on quickly.
“I am not an elder with memory loss. I don’t know what kind of race you are, but I’m not the same as you.”
“That’s right. I would have recognized you if you were my kind. And if you’re a relative of Mrs. Pearl, she would have recognized you.”
What else did that mean? Were they different races?
“Ah, anyway. That’s not what you think. I am human.”
Hearing the words, the boy looked at me as if he was tired and muttered a little.
“It’s really severe dementia, damn it.”
I can hear it all! I hear everything!
“No, I am really a human being.”
Then, the woman called Mrs. Pearl suddenly came to me. Then she spread out her palms wide and grabbed my head like a basketball.
“Ah, why are you doing this?!”
I didn’t feel any murderous intention, so I let her. But it was a bit of a conflict whether I should blow away the magic or not. Meanwhile, Mrs. Pearl started sniffing my hair. With her nose in contact with my scalp, her breath came out, and I was swept away. Without even realizing it, I blushed slightly.
In the meantime, I felt a little contempt for myself, thinking that I was fortunate to come out after washing my hair today. She lifted her nose from my hair and licked my cheek once with her tongue sticking out. ‘Wow!’
I was so surprised that I pulled my body back, but Mrs. Pearl’s expression looking at me was unusual. It was an expression that seemed ready to burst into tears at any moment. Then she sighed and rested, and suddenly the bonfire rose as if responding to her emotions. This barrier, which had the bonfire as a core, seemed to be the magic she had unfolded.
“What? What is it, Mrs. Pearl? Hang in there and control that bonfire. The barrier will be broken!”
Turning to Garam, who couldn’t figure out the situation, Mrs. Pearl uttered with a cry.
“Oh, Garam, what are we going to do with this?”
“Why?!”
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“That young man, he’s a real person!”
“…What?!”
“I told you! I am human!” I said with a deep sigh of resignation.