LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter : 25. A Relationship Started by Fate (5)
25. A Relationship Started by Fate (5)
Minjun couldn't remember exactly when his relationship with Dell began to deteriorate.
This was because he couldn't pinpoint the exact moment when Dell's mind started to unravel.
In the early days of their marriage, Minjun had a vague premonition. He thought that with Dell, he could continue living together forever. When he was with her, he felt that the worn-out parts of his mind wouldn't suddenly crumble. He believed that they could live by relying on each other.
"Of course, sadly, that premonition was wrong."
Minjun accelerated the unpleasant memories in his mind.
"It all began with those chilling gazes."
Whether it was while eating, dressing, dozing off for a moment, reading, or washing his hands... In the midst of ordinary, everyday moments, whenever Minjun turned his head, Dell was staring at him. With a look completely different from the calm gaze he had seen for over eighty years.
Minjun knew that gaze well.
It was murderous intent.
Finally, the day he found evidence that she had been scheming to kill him, their marriage met its tragic end. It was a dreadful day.
"Even now, when I think about that day, it feels like I can still smell the blood."
Minjun didn't know why Dell's mind had deteriorated so quickly. From what he had confirmed, Dell had been taking her prescription medication as prescribed. The blue pills that the doctor gave her during her interviews with prisoners as she traveled through different dimensions.
Still, Dell had gone mad. On the day their relationship ended, Minjun relentlessly interrogated her. Dell avoided giving a direct answer but indirectly confirmed some things with her silence. After a horrific round of questioning, Minjun was able to deduce three things.
"One, Dell wants to kill me."
He spoke those cruel words in a monotonous tone. It may have been something he had already said several times, but it didn't matter.
"Two, the reason is that she loves me too much… She believes that by doing so, I will be free."
She was insane. Insanely insane.
"Three, but as long as we're both prisoners, Dell cannot kill me. Killing a prisoner, which is an act that damages the assets of the Commission, is considered a crime of property damage."
When a prisoner commits such a severe crime, they receive a punishment beyond memory erasure: the next stage of sentencing.
Soul erasure.
That was not what Dell wanted. She believed in the superstition that the ties of the current life would continue into the next one. If she received a harsher punishment and her soul was erased, she would not be able to reincarnate.
"My God."
Bradley said in a disgusted voice.
"To think that she believes killing you is the only way you'll be free, she sees no possibility of you being released after earning talents."
"Do you know what's even more ridiculous?"
Dell had the delusion that she would first be released, become a free person, and then kill Minjun.
Then, even if she was caught and punished, she would avoid soul erasure and could live as a prisoner once again.
"I still can't forget the last day I saw her."
When their mission in that dimension was over, and it was decided that they would be torn apart into different worlds, Minjun thought he would never see Dell again.
Her retirement bonus of 500,000 talents was no small amount, and considering the way Dell worked, saving any of it was impossible. It had also been reported to the Commission that she was planning to kill Minjun after her release, so the future looked even darker. Even with the most positive thinking, it would take thousands of years.
"Her mind was already beginning to collapse, so I thought she wouldn't even be able to function as a living being by that point."
When the prisoners gathered for their final goodbyes and were about to go their separate ways, Minjun absentmindedly made eye contact with Dell. It had been a long time since they had spoken, so he tried to turn away, as usual.
But she did not avert her gaze. Just like the old days, Dell smiled shyly and mouthed a sentence.
At that time, he had dismissed it as nothing more than the ramblings of a delusional patient.
'It won't take as long as you think.'
A brief silence lingered between them.
Minjun was the first to break the silence.
"Anyway, part of the plan has already succeeded. She was released first."
Minjun's expectations were wrong, and now the remaining steps were obvious. But Bradley, as if to offer hope, brought up a possible alternative.
"Let's look on the bright side."
He racked his brain for comforting words.
"Even if a criminal regains their memory, they won't necessarily go mad and become more violent."
"If a mad person goes mad again, does it mean they will eventually become normal? Or will they become calm because of the 500,000 talent crime they committed?"
"That's impossible. It's Dell we're talking about. What I mean is not that…"
He hesitated and mentioned the name again.
"She could end up like Telesia."
"..."
"..."
This silence was a bit longer. Bradley realized his mistake and darkened his expression.
Minjun silently chewed on his words, then eventually changed the subject.
"What worries me more right now is that I don't even know what race that woman is."
Earlier, while they were talking in the office, Bradley briefly had the mistaken belief that Dell might be a dragon.
Minjun thought it would be better if she were actually of the dragon race.
"When we learned about Telesia, we found out that the release process is done in two stages, right? First, they restore the memories, and then they return the original body."
The natives of the previous dimension were humans, and Minjun had operated in the same body he was using now. Dell had appeared human at the time, but no one knew what she really was.
"What if she belongs to a species with abilities I can't even touch…"
If Dell were able to unleash the sealed power to its full extent, she would return as an even more terrifying madwoman. But Bradley shook his head, dismissing the idea.
"Eh, no way."
The two continued discussing Dell briefly, but eventually, the conversation took a turn. Minjun thought it was pointless to dwell on worries and complaints.
"By the way, how much longer do you have?"
Bradley grinned.
"Another 10,000 talents."
The topic shifted instantly. The atmosphere changed.
Upon hearing his answer, Minjun slowly, but with force, clapped his hands. Clap, clap, clap.
"How much was your retirement bonus?"
"70,000 talents."
"Weren't there any instances where you wasted talents on something unexpected?"
"Of course not. Are you me?"
"Then if you play your cards right... you could fill the rest in on Earth?"
"That's the plan. You'll notice too, but there are a lot of illegal immigrants in this dimension. Even without doing anything, talents just walk into my pockets."
Minjun agreed. That was one of the reasons he had stayed in this dimension longer than he had originally planned.
After that, the two continued talking about trivial matters before standing up. The two prisoners exchanged brief farewells in front of the bar entrance. Just as Minjun was about to turn around, Bradley suddenly asked.
"Hey, since Telesia came up earlier, I might upset you with this, but…"
"Then don't say it."
Bradley smiled wryly.
"…I just wanted to say that it's not possible."
Minjun snorted.
"Hmph. If that's all, then it's fine."
"Freedom."
"Freedom."
Like a long-standing custom between prisoners, they exchanged well-wishes before parting ways. They had no idea when they would meet again.
Minjun walked a short distance to the commercial area, briefly thinking about Bradley's last words instead of Dell. The meaning of that brief sentence was simple.
'Minjun, even if you pay your retirement bonus and get released, you won't end up like Telesia.'
The man who had lost his memories of the distant past walked down the cold road, recalling a relatively recent memory.
The dimension where they had worked together was called Ashtal, and the republic, which claimed the 36 planets and 145 space stations in its territory, was ruled by a dictator for a long time.
The dictator was notorious enough to make a name for himself across other dimensions. He ruled with an iron fist, oppressing the people through terror, and anyone who resisted was brutally violated and killed. The number of people killed during his reign has never been fully accounted for. There are only wild speculations that the number must be in the billions.
One of the most famous and horrific cases during his reign was the tragedy of the pioneering planet XE-21.
As Minjun recalled that memory, he involuntarily furrowed his brow.
'I only encountered it through records… but it was truly an absurd event.'
The dictator, having received intelligence that the citizens there were plotting a rebellion, ordered the suspension of all food supply ships to that planet without warning. XE-21 had originally been designed as an industrial planet, with 99% of its food supply dependent on external sources.
The planet's inhabitants, exhausted from hunger, tried to escape into space, but their ships were shot down by satellites surrounding the planet. There are no detailed records of the hellish conditions that unfolded after they exhausted all emergency rations, but it is assumed that even in a place where parents ate their own children and humans hunted each other, the hellish descent did not last more than three years.
'That incident was the turning point. In the end, even those close to him turned their backs.'
A coup occurred. Fearing treason, the dictator had been constructing a defense system that even his closest subordinates were unaware of. The war lasted longer than expected, but after many sacrifices, the revolutionaries eventually claimed victory.
When the dictator was on the brink of being purged, he did not beg or panic, but quietly smiled and pressed a switch.
'No one knew. No one knew how far his madness reached.'
At that moment, more than 90% of the republic's critical infrastructure, including power plants, collective farms, communication bases, and stations, self-destructed and disappeared into space dust. Even the defense shields that had been protecting against space bugs attacking everything and tearing it apart collapsed.
Only then did the revolutionaries face the ugly plan that the dictator had been harboring for so long. If he had prepared for this much, it would have been possible to secretly implant a self-destruct device in the planet's core. However, the dictator had not done so. He had hoped that the people who defied him would return to the primitive age, suffering from barbarism and hunger, living painful lives hunted by space bugs.
It was truly wicked evil.
In the meantime, the dictator's body was completely obliterated, with no pieces left. Rumor has it that the enraged revolutionaries tore him apart at the molecular level.
In the end, they won the war, but all that remained were a desolate land destroyed of nearly everything necessary for survival and hundreds of billions of exhausted and wounded citizens from the prolonged war.
'Only then did the Committee begin to intervene.'
Rather than sending immigrants, the Committee formed a task force to rebuild the broken social and economic systems, dispatching them to the planet. Of course, all the members were prisoners who had undergone memory erasure, and Telesia was one of them.
Over the 300-plus years of reconstruction, the task force's numbers were replenished multiple times, and Minjun joined in the later stages, meeting Del there. And throughout all this, the prisoner who achieved the most remarkable feats was none other than Telesia.
'The mother of them all.'
That was the nickname the natives of Ashtal had for her.
Even when other prisoners rotated out, she remained until the end, giving her best for Ashtal. The natives didn't know she was a prisoner, but even if they had known, it probably wouldn't have changed anything.
'They all loved Telesia.'
She wasn't particularly skilled in combat, nor was she a great engineer. Her strength lay in her administrative skills and political sense.
On behalf of the revolutionaries, who were on the brink of collapse from civil war, Telesia personally negotiated with the Committee, securing increased aid and multiple reinforcements. She was also responsible for the rapid recovery of Ashtal's economy after the war.
Her abilities in the reconstruction of Ashtal were overwhelming, and her attitude of treating all dimension-dwellers as family moved many. They showed her sincere affection and respect.
'Telesia loved them all too.'
It was only natural that she would develop strong affection for a world she had lived in for over three centuries, having been sent there as a prisoner.
As time passed and the Ashtal reconstruction project neared its official end, Telesia, having earned recognition for her contributions, was selected for a special pardon. In simple terms, it meant she would be released immediately, regardless of any accumulated talents.
'Thank you, it's all thanks to you guys!'
She was genuinely happy and shared her future plans with her comrades. After being freed, she would return to Ashtal and spend whatever time she had left with them.
On the day of Telesia's release, all the prisoners who had endured with her gathered to celebrate her.
The excited chatter echoed in Minjun's ears.
'I knew about the concept of a special pardon, but this was the first time I saw it with my own eyes.'
'Maybe someday, we'll be like her too?'
'Thank you, Telesia. You gave hope not just to the dimension-dwellers, but to all of us prisoners who were with you.'
Amid the excitement, the moment finally arrived.
Before returning to her original body, it was customary to first restore her memories.
In the tense atmosphere, when Telesia took a deep breath, something began.
Looking back now, Minjun couldn't feel anything at that moment. Whether it was magic, technology, or something beyond his perception, the only clue that something was happening was the stiffened body of Telesia.
After a few seconds of silence, something completely unexpected occurred.
'…Telesia?'
When someone quietly called her name, Telesia looked down at her hands, unable to believe what was happening. Then she looked at her comrades. Next, she gazed at the countless stars stretching across the night sky. The people of Ashtal scattered across the universe, their homes where they lived. She saw the vast world she had rebuilt.
Then, her face twisted in distress.
Everyone felt confusion. Whispers spread that something was wrong.
Telésia collapsed, trembling on her knees. In a state of panic, she shook her head and sobbed violently. Mixed with her sobs, she continuously muttered something in between gasps.
The words Minjun could barely make out were these:
'I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.'
She muttered only those words, crying out to the Committee, begging them to take her away from there.
The Committee opened the door at her plea, and she fled without looking back. The others were left staring blankly. That was the last image of a prisoner who had devoted herself to Ashtal for 300 years.
Soon after all the remaining prisoners left Ashtal, they received word that Telesia had taken her own life.
Minjun walked a little further down the bustling street.
Repetitive thoughts.
'I won't end up like that.'
It wasn't so much a premonition as it was a resolution and determination.
Minjun muttered to himself. No matter what memories he had lost, once he regained them, they would never consume him.
He and the other prisoners could easily infer the situation from what had occurred. It was a horrific assumption, but no other explanation seemed as plausible. What kind of memories had Telesia regained? What crime had she committed to begin her life as a prisoner?
The Committee never officially revealed it, nor did anyone ask, but everyone sensed it.
And the memory of Telesia's final moments stayed with Minjun more vividly than anyone else.
It had to.
Minjun clearly remembered.
The severance pay set for Telesia was 1.2 million Dalants.