“Ha Yu-ri.”
“Why, why…”
“Why? Are you kidding me right now? You’re so dead…”
Maybe sensing that I was genuinely pissed, Ha Yu-ri shrunk back, but still seemed to have something to say, like she was wronged.
“What, what is it?! Honestly, you’ve been really harsh on me so far! I, I can pull off a prank like that… right…?”
Yeah, honestly, I admit I’ve been a little, just a tiny bit harsh on Ha Yu-ri.
“But this is too much. What’s the point of making up something that didn’t happen and acting like it’s real?”
Hearing my words, Ha Yu-ri looked utterly dumbfounded.
“What… what are you talking about? Honestly, you know deep down you’re not in the right to say that, don’t you?”
“…..”
“See? You’re making that guilty face. Who was it that framed me as a drug criminal…!”
“Enough, no, sigh… It’s an order. Let’s do the dog pose.”
Ha Yu-ri’s body moved automatically as she protested, veins popping in her neck.
“Eek! Ah! Seriously! You’re only doing this because you lost logically! What is this?!”
“…. What do you want me to do?”
“Honestly, aren’t you embarrassed too?! You should be!”
“Yeah, no. Instructor Ha Yu-ri crawling on all fours with veins popping is way more embarrassing.”
“Take that ‘Instructor’ title and shove it! It’s pissing me off!”
“Got it, puppy.”
“… You jerk!”
“Puppy, what did you say?”
“……”
Ha Yu-ri seemed to realize that arguing would only hurt her own mouth, so she shut up.
“…… Let’s drop the dog pose.”
I obediently followed her words. Honestly, my conscience was pricking me a bit.
“… So, when are we heading out again?”
“Wait a bit. There are a few people who’ve lost their memories, though not many.”
Since we hadn’t gone too deep yet, there weren’t many who’d lost their memories, but a small number had started to appear.
We only found out by chance.
Those who’d lost their memories didn’t realize it at first, just as Ha Yu-ri had said.
But their colleagues noticed when they couldn’t remember people they were exploring with or when conversations didn’t make sense.
Luckily, most accepted it quickly. They knew the characteristics of this place.
‘… Except for a few.’
Memories are like the building blocks of a person.
‘When one of those blocks is missing, some people freak out.’
Some couldn’t accept that they’d lost their memories or panicked, so we had to pause for a bit.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I might not realize it myself, but I think I’m fine?”
“… Good. If something happened to you and you started giving weird orders, I’d be in trouble.”
“Anyway, once we stabilize the Swamp of Oblivion, everyone gets their memories back, right?”
“Right. That’s why I’m here.”
Ha Yu-ri had mentioned it before.
When I asked how she knew all this, she said she heard it from a resident of the Swamp of Oblivion.
‘Well, if people couldn’t get their memories back, no one would come here.’
After calming down those who panicked, the exploration team started moving again.
What was fascinating was that the white, snow-like stuff floating around was almost identical to snow, except it wasn’t cold.
As we moved further in, it piled up on the ground, making a crunchy sound like stepping on snow.
“Ah… we’ll be there soon.”
Just as Ha Yu-ri muttered with a complicated tone, the exploration team saw a sight.
‘Is this it?’
Something that looked like a village.
There weren’t many buildings, and they were all covered in that fake snow.
The buildings also didn’t look normal, more like crumbling, shabby structures.
‘Are those the residents?’
There weren’t many people, just a small number. And…
‘Are they even alive?’
They seemed lifeless, like they had no will to live.
The creepy part was that even as we approached their village, they barely reacted, just glancing at us.
I tried to check their status window, but for some reason, it didn’t open.
“… Is this really okay?”
“Something feels off.”
Of course, from our perspective, it was natural to feel suspicious.
No, it was downright eerie.
Ha Yu-ri approached a woman who seemed like a resident and spoke.
“Do you remember me? I came here three years ago…”
“Who are you? I don’t remember. Three years ago…?”
Ha Yu-ri bit her lip and continued.
“… You’ve lost your memories.”
“Ah… is that so? I’m sorry for forgetting.”
‘Are they constantly losing their memories? Forever?’
“… No, there’s no need to apologize. It’s not like you wanted to forget.”
“…..”
The villagers seemed indifferent to the fact that they were losing their memories.
‘No wonder they’re lifeless and lack motivation. There’s no hope in their lives.’
As I said before, memories are a crucial part of what makes a person.
What would it feel like to keep losing memories as you live?
‘They’re alive, but not really living.’
They’re like the walking dead, mentally.
“… Is the priest here?”
“Yes. If you go to the chapel at the back of the village, he’ll be there.”
After finishing her conversation with the villager, Ha Yu-ri came over to us.
“Let’s go to the chapel with a small group. The village isn’t that big, so the rest can wait outside.”
We decided to send a maximum of two people from each clan into the village.
From our clan, it was me and Seo Yoo-ju.
I had a question, so I opened my mouth on the way to the so-called church.
“A church? Do the residents here believe in some kind of god?”
“Well, at least the priest in this village seems to believe.”
“…Is this okay? The villagers are in such a state, and the priest seems impossible to talk to, right?”
At least, since I wasn’t alone with Ha Yu-ri, I was using polite speech.
At least, the other villagers seemed unable to have a proper conversation due to their ongoing amnesia.
There’s no guarantee that the priest is any better.
“The priest in this village… at least has less amnesia than the other villagers. At least, that’s how it was when I came here before.”
“Is that so?”
Seeing Ha Yu-ri say that, it must be true.
Soon, the building we saw was much smaller and shabbier than a church should be. It also looked like it was collapsing.
“…Let’s go in.”
Creak—
With the sound of old hinges, we opened the door and entered the church.
‘…Is that guy the priest?’
All I could see was his back, but there was a man kneeling, clasping his hands in prayer.
Probably the priest Ha Yu-ri and the villagers mentioned.
The priest seemed to sense our presence and stood up to greet us.
“Ah… it’s been so long since we had visitors. Welcome, travelers.”
“…It’s been a while, Priest Komer.”
The priest looked like a well-put-together man in his early 30s with blond hair.
Certainly, like the other villagers, his eyes lacked vitality and were unfocused, but it was less severe than the others.
Priest Komer looked at Ha Yu-ri’s face for a moment, then opened his eyes wide and spoke.
“Ah… you must be… the one who came before.”
“You haven’t forgotten me.”
Ha Yu-ri seemed relieved by Priest Komer’s reaction.
“How could I forget? But… why have you come back to the Swamp of Oblivion? This is a dangerous place…”
“I came to recover my lost memories.”
“I see.”
While Ha Yu-ri and Priest Komer were talking, I noticed something strange.
It wasn’t about them. It was just that Seo Yoo-ju’s gaze at Priest Komer was odd.
‘What’s this?’
It was like she was looking at something dangerous.
She didn’t show outright hostility, but it was clearly different from how she looked at the other villagers.
Wondering about Seo Yoo-ju’s reaction, I tried to open Priest Komer’s status window.
It didn’t work on the villagers, but I thought it was worth a shot.
I didn’t expect much, but I was surprised when the status window opened.
‘….What’s this?’
[ Name: Komer ]
[ Age: 32 ]
[ Job: High Priest (Hero Rank), Puppet of the White Devourer (No Rank) ]
[ Titles: One Who Succumbed to Devourer, One Who Could Not Overcome Oblivion ]
[ Unique Traits ]
Puppet of the White Devourer (No Rank) – Originally not like this, but due to ongoing amnesia and brainwashing effects, he has become a puppet who worships the White Devourer as a god.
[ Traits ]
High Healing (Hero Rank) – Gathers magical power in his hands to heal himself or others. The speed and effectiveness of healing depend on the user’s magical ability.
[ Stats ]
Strength – 48 Agility – 50
Stamina – 60 Luck – 00
Magic – 85 Resistance – 53
‘Sigh…’
Everything else was irrelevant. There was only one thing that mattered.
‘Puppet of the White Devourer.’
He was an enemy we had to defeat. The only problem was that Priest Komer wasn’t the main body.
‘This is just a shell.’
I glanced at Ha Yu-ri, who was talking to Priest Komer, but she didn’t seem to know his true identity.
‘….Was she tricked by this guy during the expedition three years ago?’
There were two possibilities.
One, she was tricked by him during the expedition three years ago and suffered.
Two, Priest Komer was normal three years ago but became like this afterward.
Either way, the fact that Priest Komer was our enemy didn’t change.
‘I don’t know what the White Devourer is… but it seems certain that he’s deeply connected to the Swamp of Oblivion.’
While I was organizing my thoughts, the conversation between Ha Yu-ri and Priest Komer reached my ears.
“I hope you can recover your lost memories. If possible… I would be grateful if you could help me and the villagers recover our lost memories as well. I wish for an end to this eternal oblivion.”
‘Sigh…’
I don’t know if the White Devourer is a monster or a human, but the way this puppet acts so naturally is beyond ridiculous.
“Yes, Priest.”
Ha Yu-ri, unaware, looked deeply moved by Priest Komer’s words.
I wanted to smack her on the back of the head and shout.
The person in front of you is the one who made you lose your memories.
‘Well… I don’t know if he’s the one who made her lose her memories.’
I don’t know why the villagers and we are losing our memories.
But it’s certain that to restore the Swamp of Oblivion, we must eliminate the White Devourer.
‘…How should I solve this problem?’
