Chapter 5
“Thank you, dear. Truly, thank you…”
At that moment, the barrier between us seemed to dissolve.
When she found out I hadn’t eaten, she warmly pulled me to the dining table and served me a plate of pasta.
As I ate, she rambled on, “After I passed, my son nearly lost his mind. He’s been leaving flowers and lighting candles for me at the cemetery every day.”
“When the fire broke out in our home, he tried desperately to turn on the fire hydrant, only to realize it had been broken for years.
“He blames himself for everything, and it hurts me to think about it. Thank goodness I met you. When you see him, please tell him that his mother doesn’t blame him…”
Tears streamed down her face as she spoke, and I stayed quiet, listening intently.
I figured she must have been stuck here for so long that having someone to talk to was a rare comfort.
Meanwhile, the unseen spectators were already in tears:
“This is so heartbreaking. Ma’am, I admit I was too harsh on you before!”
“Poor granny… she’s had such a hard life. I’m sobbing.‘
I couldn’t stay too long, so I quickly moved on to inspect the fourth room, the fifth room…
Surprisingly, the game bosses I met were all kind in their own way.
But somehow, by the time I finished, I’d taken on a lot of… extra responsibilities.
There were messages to deliver, gifts to pass along to families, and even requests for me to light candles and leave notes with their names and birthdays.
Finally, at 7 p.m., I finished inspecting all the rooms right on time and officially clocked out.
As I walked out, the boss spotted me, his expression immediately tense.
“How is it?” he asked.
I blinked. “What do you mean?”
His face went pale. “Oh no, you’ve lost your mind!”
Without warning, he reached out and pinched the bridge of my nose.
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Chapter 5
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I was speechless and struggled to sit up as the boss leaned closer, holding up five fingers in front of me. After carefully confirming that I could recognize it was, in fact, five, he finally seemed reassured that I was both mentally sound and physically unharmed.
He muttered, “This is unbelievable. You’re actually perfectly fine.”
Meanwhile, the unseen commentary erupted again:
“Did she activate some kind of luck buff?”
“Ugh, I’m so jealous! The last time I went into this game instance, I literally lost an arm!”
After briefly reporting my findings to the boss, I politely said goodbye.
Pressing the wing on my necklace, I closed my eyes. When I opened them again, I was back in the real world.
At that moment, I was lying on the bed in my rented apartment.
Checking my phone, I saw that my mom, without my usual snappy comebacks to fuel her, finally stopped messaging.
I made myself a plate of spaghetti and ate quietly. After finishing, I walked to the entrance of a nearby apartment building.
There, standing under a tree, was a little girl staring blankly into the distance.
I approached her and said, “Your dad wanted me to tell you that it wasn’t your fault. When ran out of the house, and he got into that car accident while looking for you, it was just an
accident.
“Don’t blame yourself. He’s been trying to visit your dreams but hasn’t been able to get through. He wants you to make friends again, just like how you did before you got sick.”
The nearby residents overheard and began whispering among themselves.
“Is she crazy?”
“Yeah, Nana’s dad’s been dead for ages. Why bring him up now? Isn’t that just bad luck?”
you
…
The little girl stared at me, stunned, before bursting into tears.
She cried uncontrollably, wiping her face with her hands. “Does Dad… really not blame me? Will he forgive me?”
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Chapter 5
+25 Bonus
I gently wiped away her tears and nodded firmly.
In the end, with some encouragement, she hooked her pinky with mine and promised, “I’ll take
my medicine like I’m supposed to. And once I’m better, I’ll go back to school.”
