The group headed toward the place Golden Jelly had indicated, but they did not start speaking right away.
While Golden Jelly appeared safe for the time being, as it seemed to be following Lime’s instructions, it was not an option to simply do nothing.
Han Seori, who had been held in Golden Jelly’s arms moments before, shook her head and blushed as she recalled the scene.
Fortunately for her, the group seemed not to notice her subtle change.
While Golden Jelly tended to the other Jellies (?), the group followed the directions and reached a spacious area, thoroughly inspecting the interior of the giant tree as they spread out in all directions.
It felt a bit sneaky, but they decided it was necessary.
The group checked around the spacious area, looking into other spaces connected to it.
They climbed the stairs to inspect higher levels and even tested whether communication would actually work there.
The more they investigated the lower areas of the giant tree, the more a single sentence came to mind:
“Everything has returned to nature.”
The inside of the tree gave off a strong sense of this atmosphere.
Overnight, the tree had transformed into what seemed like a dwelling, fitting the description perfectly.
First off, the material spoke for itself. There was no telling how it was constructed, but every space was made entirely of wood.
Sniffing it evoked a strangely sweet and refreshing scent, like the breeze from a forest.
It felt like what an eco-friendly residence might be like—no trace of civilization in sight.
And yet, it wasn’t as if civilization was entirely rejected.
After all, even string and paper cups came from factories if considered carefully, so could they really say it was free of civilization? And the smartphones still functioned—they just couldn’t pick up signals.
Additionally, Electric Scent, who was practically a manifestation of civilization, was moving around perfectly fine.
Though one could argue Electric Scent herself was irregular, so maybe she shouldn’t count.
In that sense, the interior of the tree felt like an eco-retreat disconnected from civilization where one could experience nature.
This impression only grew stronger when observing the attitude of the presumed caretaker, Golden Jelly.
Whenever a crack opened, Golden Jelly showed up, as if monitoring every corner of the tree.
In that case, sneaking around to investigate was pretty much pointless.
It wasn’t clear whether the group was avoiding leaving the tree or if it was impossible to leave, but Golden Jelly was free to move wherever she wanted within.
Therefore, if Golden Jelly turned out to be similar to Little, Medium, and Big Jelly, it could mean protection.
This part required further clarification, but looking at Lime’s face, which appeared to be an older version of hers, seemed rather conclusive.
It was ironic, given how just a short while ago this tree had been a monstrous killer.
Of course, that might just be a human perspective, but since the investigators were all human, it was unavoidable.
After finishing their light inspection, the group returned to the spacious area Golden Jelly had guided them to.
Having done a basic sweep, they now only needed to get more details from Lime.
As they returned to talk to Lime, however, an odd scene greeted them.
Lime, who had been leaning against Golden Jelly, suddenly startled and trembled as she jumped to her feet.
The way she stared at Golden Jelly, who had been holding her, reminded them of a child scolding her mother for not waking her up.
This adorable sight caused the group, other than Electric Scent, to unconsciously smile.
“Does she need a motherly presence?”
“…This doesn’t feel forced.”
“It seems she likes being spoiled more than we thought.”
Electric Scent, who had come to assist with the investigation, silently observed.
As Lime sprang up, she sent Golden Jelly away and approached Electric Scent, gripping her hand.
While this was a usual gesture for communication through Electric Scent, something about it felt different today.
It was as if a child was tightly holding onto her older sister’s hand.
Perhaps it was due to the earlier scene that this feeling persisted.
Despite noticing the group’s curious gazes, Lime, who had many questions herself, continued speaking through Electric Scent.
“I was told there are many things you want to discuss.”
“Yes…”
Was Lime resting before engaging in a long conversation?
Han Seori watched Lime with an increasingly warm expression.
Lime, noticing the gaze, turned her head away, only for it to remain in her field of vision.
—–
“Hmm… So that happened, huh.”
After some hesitation, the conversation began.
The first thing I told Han Seori was the memory—or whatever it was—of the moment we approached the center of the tree.
Flying monsters and humans attacking them, only to be overpowered and swallowed into nothingness like water going down a drain.
Would Han Seori understand the significance of this?
With Kim Cheon-soo and Hwang Bo-yul busy elsewhere, Han Seori sat in thought, stroking her chin.
She looked like she had many questions as her expression grew serious.
Unlike her playful grin earlier, this thoughtful expression was satisfying, but waiting for her to speak became a little boring.
…And just as I was thinking this, there wasn’t a chance Golden Jelly would hug me again, right?
d*mn, why didn’t I bring a helmet?
It feels juvenile, but without it, I keep reacting involuntarily.
It was soft, though!
While I mumbled under my breath about the fluffiness, something reached Han Seori’s ears.
“To my knowledge, no such degree of force has ever been projected in a singularity. That means it might not have occurred in the world we know. Now that you mention it, there were some singularities that seemed to connect to other worlds—parallel worlds.”
Wow, you remember all that?
Are you a computer?
Regardless, the familiar concept was a pleasant surprise.
…Though I don’t know much about it.
Parallel worlds theory basically suggests there are countless worlds, universes, or something like that.
Recalling this, I wondered why I hadn’t thought of it before.
After all, I remember descending endless stairs and opening a door into another world once.
Maybe that was a parallel world like this, one already destroyed.
Why it was connected to my world, I have no idea.
But the memory the tree showed us… on closer inspection, it was also of a ruined world.
The entities from beyond the door struggled to cross over but were stopped by me.
…More accurately, they had crossed over, but I erased them.
Perhaps this tree entered our world in a similar way?
Does that mean all singularities that connect to this world are remnants like this?
No clue.
If I knew that, I’d be a god, not a jelly.
Lost in thought, I glanced at the jelly as Han Seori seemed to finish organizing her thoughts and spoke.
“Hmm, that was an interesting story. This isn’t something I should ponder alone; it’d be better to share it and gather opinions. Maybe… this could be a clue to stopping the creation of singularities.”
Right, interesting stuff.
But… she must know something I don’t.
“So this aside for now… how did this space come to be?”
Well…
…I have no idea, either.
When I came to my senses after digging deeper, it was already like this.
My dream of owning a home came true.
Of course, saying it directly wasn’t how it went; Electric Scent just relayed the gist.
Han Seori looked at me with a sigh and a complex expression as she spoke.
“So… in any case, that golden creature really follows your will, correct?”
“Yes.”
“Good, then that’s settled. What’s the process when even the one involved doesn’t know?”
It felt a bit awkward.
But maybe because I mentioned it earlier, Han Seori still looked deep in thought.
Forget it, I’ve said my piece; she can figure it out.
Anyway, stopping singularities…
…Wouldn’t that just mean returning to my original world?
It gave an odd feeling.
—–
