Waiting For Your Reincarnation

We arrived at the center as usual to find this written in bold letters on the board in the conference room.

 

<This month’s standby>

 

– Han Ryu Won

– Kim Yeon-young

 

Yeon-young read it over and over again. She had never heard of on-call before and looked at Ryu Won in confusion.

 

He frowned slightly, an expression of annoyance. He seemed to know something.

 

Saeri swung her chair around at the head of the room and tapped the board with the on-call list.

 

She smiled her usual creepy smile and didn’t elaborate.

 “Today’s your day. Do well.” “Mr. Ryu Won, what is this?” “We need someone from the center to lead Sly, who comes to Tanato World every quarter, to the Iris Forest, and it looks like it’s our turn.” “Oh, I see. What do I have to do?” “Probably…, you’ll see.” 

After leaving the

“I’ll know when I see”

message, Ryu Won didn’t return to the office until after dark.

 

After the sun had set and she had caught up on some urgent paperwork, Ryu Won came to see her.

 

It was time to do some on-call work, and he drove her out of downtown and up a rugged mountain road.

 “Are you sure you’re doing your standby duty here?” “We’re almost there, just a little further up the road.” 

We walked up, barely illuminating a bend in the road with our flashlights. 

 

The path was so steep that it wasn’t easy to walk, but Ryu Won grabbed Yeon-young’s hand and wouldn’t let go for fear that she might fall.

 

Ryu Won kept blowing on her hand, which wasn’t congratulatory, but it wasn’t pleasant either.

 

That’s why she held on to Ryu Won’s hand as they walked up the mountain.

 

She thought that if she had to go to the forest, she could just go around and check it out, but unlike the last time when she came with a light heart, even the way to the forest was not easy.

 

To sum up Ryu Won’s explanation:

 

The Tanato World was now divided into five branches, each of which was responsible for the work of the Soul Protection Center.

 

The first branch, the Pillar of Power branch, was by far the most influential.

 

Since the Tanato World was a world that ran on the power of Iris, the power of the Pillar was sent to the other branches through wires from time to time.

 

Maybe that’s why the pillars are shaped like telephone poles.

 

Most of the world’s souls were gathered at the Pillar of Iris. The Pillar collected the souls and released them from the Pillar once a month.

 

So today is the day that the Pillar is releasing the souls to the first branch.

 

She has heard that it’s a day when the pillars are sensitive to each other, whether it’s because of a Sly that gets trapped inside and comes out, or a pillar that wields great power.

 

Yeon-young remembered the conversation they had before they came to the forest.

 “Why don’t you use teleportation?” “On a day like today, you never know where you might fall.” 

As they climbed the mountain path and entered the forest, the eerie feeling intensified. 

 

She suddenly realized that she was lucky to have Ryu Won’s hand in her.

 

Without him, she’d have to start the descent with Sly.

 

The corners of his smooth mouth turned up as Yeon-young squeezed his hand.

“Ms. Yeon-young, look over there.” 

At the sound of his voice, Yeon-young stopped in her tracks, caught her breath, and looked up.

 

The trees that towered high enough to block out the moonlight gradually shrank, revealing the sky. Ryu Won pointed with his finger.

 

It was a breathtakingly beautiful scene, with stars that looked like they were about to burst.

 “It’s beautiful.” “It’s all Sly. They’re already out of the pillar, so they’ll fall soon.” 

Ryu Won explained, letting go of Yeon-young’s hand and pulling her into his arms.

 

One by one, the spirits that floated like stars in the night sky began to fall towards the forest like shooting stars.

 “Mr. Ryu Won, have you ever heard such a story?” “What story?” “It says that if you say your wish three times before the shooting stars fall from the sky, it will come true.” “Do you have any wishes you would like to make?” “I have many. How about you, Mr. Ryu Won?” “You don’t need to tell the shooting star, just tell me and I’ll make them all come true.” 

I couldn’t help but stare at Ryu Won as he spoke so confidently.

 

Under the starry sky, his face was like a scene from a movie. Looking at Ryu Won’s face was awe-inspiring.

 

Even in her dreams, she had only seen him in the fields in the middle of the day, but now that she was facing him at night, her heart was racing.

 

Yeon-young stared at the sky where the Slys floated, mesmerized.

 

The spirits that had previously moved as if on a calm sea were now descending in swarms, like violent waves.

 

The problem was the sheer number of them and the speed at which they were descending to Earth.

 Thud! 

One hit the ground, and the Slys fell to the ground with a collective thud, as if they had finally found their bearings.

 

It was as if someone had aimed a missile at a single spot to destroy this world once and for all.

 

The Sly Yeon-Young remembered was definitely fluffy and bouncy, but it hadn’t just fallen out of the sky.

 

When Sly landed, it had the illusion that the ground was slightly disturbed.

 “Do you think I’m going to watch Yeon-young die?” “I will die if I get hit in the head. Ryu Won, get up, get up, get up!” 

Countless Slys crashed to the ground, and the spirits naturally fell to where Ryu Won and Yeon-young were.

 

Yeon-young squeezed her eyes shut as she watched the Slys fall over her. Her body shook in his arms.

 

Ryu Won slipped his hand into her side and pulled her toward him, closing the distance. Time passed as he held her.

 

Judging by the speed at which they were falling, they should have reached her head by now, but she didn’t feel anything.

 

A quick glance out of the corner of his eye revealed that the slys falling over her head were bouncing off in different directions.

 

Ryu Won had used his ability to create a shield, so they were safe. Yeon-young felt embarrassed that she was afraid of herself.

 “You should have told me before. “My sin is that you didn’t trust me.” “Ming!” Thunk-! 

Slys fell from the sky and landed directly on the ground, but it didn’t seem to hurt much.

 

After hitting the ground, the Slys ran towards the pillar as if drawn by some kind of energy. Watching their progress, Ryu Won made an assessment.

 “Fewer spirits are coming to Branch 1 today, we’re lucky.” “You filled the whole forest with Sly, and this is less?” “This much. We used to build towers because we didn’t have enough land, but wars are rare these days.” “War… you must have been busier back then.” 

Ryu Won’s face flushed for a moment, as if he was remembering those days. The look on his face told her how much he had been working.

 

Hearing Tanato’s stories from so long ago from Ryu Won, she realized how long he had been there.

 

It suddenly occurred to her that he must have been very lonely all by himself.

 

Several thoughts flashed through her mind.

 

When did Ryu Won and Yeon-young meet each other?

 

What kind of connection had they had when she was alive?

 

Were they really lovers?

 

What did he remember and how much did he remember?

 

Ryu Won relaxed his grip on Yeon-young’s side and sighed.

 

He looked up at the sky, which was as clear and cloudless as it had been the first time he’d fallen there.

 “I think we’re getting close, I’ve taken measures to keep us from falling outside the forest.” “That was fast. What do we do now?” “Sometimes there are Slys who can’t read the aura and go where the pillar isn’t, like this one.” 

Most of them followed the herd straight ahead, but every now and then a few Slys would break away and run through the forest.

 “We’ll lead them into the forest, where they’ll know their place and blend in.” 

Excited to be away from the poles, the Slys ran from tree to tree, enjoying their freedom.

 

When she first met the Slys in the forest, she smiled because she thought they looked like a child.

 

But when she saw the souls that had just fallen into the forest, she realized that they were actually calm.

 

Ryu Won used his ability to levitate most of the escaped Sly into the air and return them to the herd. It was a quick move.

 

However, there was still one Sly that escaped his domain.

 “Huh? I’ll bring him back as soon as I can.” “Wait, Yeon-young, come with me.” “You need to hold the others, I’ll be right back.” 

Before Ryu Won could stop her, Yeon-young replied and ran after Sly’s glittering tail, and at that time, Yeon-young still didn’t know anything.

 

She had no idea that she would end up lost in the forest with Sly.

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