LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 10: Hope's End
Grenade.
In an instant, the woman ripped off the pin. Dropping it into the frantically-moving water, it began flowing toward Lake and Nora. It slid just far enough so that Lake wasn’t able to kick it, but close enough so that it would cause serious damage.
“I didn’t want to do this, boy. But someone has to teach you the way things work around her. You’re a man; you don’t get to decide anything.”
Within the chaos, there was a moment of silence.
Whether that was in Lake’s mind or in a moment of clarity—the truth wasn’t clear.
Despite moving away as efficiently as possible, he couldn’t avoid its blast radius.
Water, glass and debris filled the air. There was a puff of smoke in the chaotic rain. Suddenly, everything went white. The entire foundation of the house began to collapse in on itself.
Nothing.
“A super-powered grenade. Its power must have been bolstered by aura or something… there was no way for me to account for that.”
*
Even the smartest humans aren’t invincible.
…
“What… is going on.”
The subtle sounds of laughing echoed throughout Lake’s mind.
It was overtly-mocking laughter.
[Ahahaha]
“Is it over again.”
[I guess that was unexpected]
“What.”
[It’s not like you to let your guard down, Lake Ryeokja]
[Are you really the perfect human?]
“I never was.”
…
There was a moment of silence in the endless abyss.
“What are you, anyways.”
[I’m your system. A system that only works off sacrifices]
“What’s that supposed to mean.”
[It’s give and take—that’s why my rank is so low]
“Are you here to help me?”
[I guess I don’t have a definite answer for that]
[But, for your first time, I’ll offer you a simple deal]
“Am I dead?”
[You’re in the realm between life and death]
“That’s complicated.”
[I’m sure you’d understand, perfect human]
“Why are you calling me that.”
The system didn’t respond.
…
[…]
In front of his eyes, Lake saw a single game-like popup. Its details were clear, incomprehensibly superimposed on the white backdrop.
[Sacrifice your memories with Ruby and Mother in exchange for a second chance]
[Do it]
Or.
[Give up]
…
Lake stared listlessly into the distance.
“I wonder, if I lost those memories, would I become the lifeless shell that the Ideal Human Project wanted me to be?”
It was a question that had no answer.
Still, there was no choice.
[Do it]
He selected the only logical option.
[Now that choice wasn’t too hard, was it?]
[I’ll continue to inhabit your spirit, Lake Ryeokja]
[Whilst I might be here to help you, remember that everything will be give and take. Even for a pragmatic person like you, these sacrifices won’t be easy]
[I wish you luck in finding out the truth to everything, perfect human]
[Your sister’s death wasn’t an accident]
[…]
• ───────────────── •
There is no perfect human.
With light finally filling his eyes again, Lake took a breath of fresh, cold, melancholic air. Finally adjusting himself to the scene, he saw the woman with a spear struck through her lifeless corpse. There was hardly any blood, only enough to slightly discolour the water beneath her.
Looking around a little, he saw Nora. Her body was littered with cuts and bruises and her eyes were lightly closed.
“Ah, this is the aftermath.”
Slowly, he made his way over to Nora’s body.
“Nora. Can you hear me.”
There was no response.
Picking her up from the water, he began to carry her over to another room. The entire living room and most of the neighbouring rooms had suffered significant damage due to the weather and the fighting. With rain still spraying on his back, he began to trudge through the debris.
The closest functional room was what appeared to be a guest bedroom. There weren’t any belongings, with the room only furnished with a large, clean bed.
He lay the young girl onto it.
There wasn’t any first aid equipment that he could work with. Despite having some medical training, all he could do was to wrap some of her wounds with cloths.
Feeling her neck, however weak the pulse, the girl did appear to be alive.
“I guess I’ll call Nia and see if there’s anything I can do.”
Lake knew that his status as a man would prevent him from trying to get any help from the locals. There was simply too big a divide.
The phone line had just barely survived the chaos and Lake called Nia through the recents.
The was ringing.
Several seconds passed with no response.
Eventually, the other side picked up.
“Hello. What’s up, Nora?”
“There was an attacker at the mansion.”
“Huh? Lake? What was that?”
“A woman attacked the mansion. It was the other person at the stables with you.”
“The Lieutenant?”
“Yes.”
“Oh my goodness. Are you guys alright?”
“I managed to scrape by, but Nora is in pretty bad condition.”
There was a sudden moment of silence.
“Wait, so what happened with her?”
“The attacker is dead now, but Nora is severely injured.”
“U-um! I-I don’t know what to do. I can’t come back…”
“Can you call for a medical team or something to the mansion?”
“Mm! I’ll do that.”
Lake could tell that Nia’s voice was straining through the phone. Eventually, the sound of sobbing was vividly carried through the phone lines.
“P-please… Lake. Take care of her while I’m gone…”
“I’ll try my best.”
There was only so much someone could do.
Eventually, after a piercing silence. The phone was hung up.
Lake made his way back into the guest bedroom. There would likely be some problems if the medical team saw a man, but there wasn’t much he could do. Hiding would likely make it more suspicious.
“I guess I’ll wait and see.”