Seoul Object Story
Chapter 325: The World at the End (6)

Inside a building with a massive statue.

The pink girl read something that seemed to be a meaningful inscription carved at the base of the statue, then touched it with a serious expression.

“This doesn’t look like it was dug up recently, does it?”

The pink girl said this as she turned towards the Blue Reaper.

Then she began to rub her fingertips together.

“The marks are sharp, and there’s still quite a bit of stone dust left.”

The Blue Reaper looked up blankly at its Attachment Human, who seemed to be chattering excitedly.

“It seems like there were people here until recently. I wonder if they also headed to the upper levels?”

The pink girl said this, then muttered with a slightly confused expression.

“What should I do?”

“What am I supposed to do when I meet people?”

“I’ve never met anyone except Grandpa, so I’m not sure.”

The Blue Reaper gave a slight smile towards its Attachment Human, who seemed somewhat excited but also anxious.

<It’ll be okay!>

Then, just as the Golden Reaper would do, it clenched both fists tightly and sent out text strings.

That gesture looked a bit awkward, making the pink girl laugh softly.

The pink girl placed the Blue Reaper on her shoulder and began walking down the huge corridor.

Continuing towards the tower connecting the levels.

Thump thump.

The pink girl’s footsteps echoed through the empty white corridor.

A massive corridor built to accommodate large crowds, like parks on Earth.

Walking through this overly spacious corridor with just the two of them made the Blue Reaper feel quite lonely.

As the Blue Reaper was looking around like that, it caught a glimpse of something moving.

Slither.

One of the many statues decorating the corridor silently turned its eyeballs to stare intently.

<!!!>

Startled, the Blue Reaper frantically slapped the pink girl’s cheek and pointed with its finger.

As the pink girl turned her head at the Blue Reaper’s call, the statue rolled its eyes to look at her.

“!!!”

Surprised, the pink girl hugged the Blue Reaper tightly to her chest and started running frantically down the corridor.

After passing through seemingly endless stairs and corridors lined with white walls and black statues, they were able to reach the rooftop of the large building.

The sky had already sunk into darkness, and beyond the rooftop, they could see the landscape of a level filled with water.

The pink girl sat down on the rooftop, catching her breath.

“What on earth was that? Since it didn’t chase us, I guess it wasn’t that dangerous.”

The pink girl laughed, still breathing heavily.

Then she turned her gaze to admire the view of the level visible from the rooftop.

A night sky full of stars visible through gaps in the sky curtain.

Buildings stained by the color of night, without a single point of light.

And clear water forming a calm surface, seeping between those buildings.

“It looks like there are two skies.”

The starlight filling the sky was perfectly reflected on the water’s surface, making it feel as if they were sitting between two starry skies.

Splash.

At that moment, they heard the sound of something falling into the water.

What fell onto the water’s surface looked somewhat familiar to the Blue Reaper.

Golden luster.

Sharp teeth.

A massive jaw.

It looked like the head of the Golden-Mecha-Tyranno that Mom loved.

<Look at that!>

When they looked where the Blue Reaper was pointing, they saw black statues wriggling, crushing and devouring the dinosaur head.

“Those statues really were moving. I thought I was imagining things…”

As the statues began to move, the sturdy dinosaur head made of metal disappeared in an instant.

“Ah, so that’s why there was no trash.”

The pink girl wore an expression that somehow looked relieved.

In contrast, the Blue Reaper had a very worried expression.

<Mom’s going to be incredibly angry…>

The Tyranno toy, which was suspected to be even more precious than the Mini Reapers, had been destroyed. It felt like the tower might collapse at any moment.

‘I hope Mom comes as late as possible!’

‘I hope this journey with just my Attachment Human and me lasts a little longer!’

The Blue Reaper fervently wished.

Late at night, in the middle of Seoul Forest.

A planet that looked somehow familiar to me was visible.

‘I feel like I’ve seen this somewhere before.’

I often forget even important things if I don’t pay attention for three months, so it was really hard to recall.

‘I’m sure I’ve seen this planet before. Where did I see it?’

‘A TV documentary?’

‘Definitely not.’

Since I couldn’t remember at all, I grabbed a nearby Golden Reaper that was fidgeting and started thinking.

I waved the Golden Reaper’s arms and legs around as if playing with a doll.

‘Waaah, Mom is bullying me!’

After making the Golden Reaper clench its fists and having it hit another nearby Golden Reaper repeatedly, a very old memory came to mind.

‘That’s right! I saw it when I went to America with Yerin.’

The black planet hanging in the sky looked like the one I had seen when I first experienced omniscient senses through the Black Corpse.

I released the Golden Reaper I had grabbed, then stretched my hand towards the sky.

The Blue Reaper must be on that planet.

I just had that feeling.

If so, I should be able to reach it even if my senses don’t extend that far.

Because I know what kind of place it is, and a Mini Reaper is there.

As I endlessly extended my senses forward like that, I began to faintly feel the Blue Reaper.

‘Found it!’

It was an extremely weak connection, but a connection nonetheless.

The Blue Reaper’s firewood was burning healthily, and it didn’t seem anxious at all.

‘That’s a relief.’

The moment I thought that, an earnest will began to transmit from the Blue Reaper.

[I hope Mom comes as late as possible!]

[I hope this journey with just my Attachment Human and me lasts a little longer!]

‘….’

The Golden Reapers were in an uproar saying something terrible had happened, but the missing Blue Reaper seemed happy…

Well, it’s good if it’s happy.

I called the Mini Reapers together and started exuding my will.

‘I found the Blue Reaper. It seems fine.’

The moment I said that, the Golden Reapers started jumping around excitedly.

‘Hooray!’

‘Thank goodness!’

And some Golden Reapers blankly looked up at the sky, leaking this news into the Mini Reaper network.

Just as I was about to think about what to do with the runaway Blue Reaper, evolution fluid poured down from the sky.

Following my connection, along the pillar of light, drip drip.

I exuded my will, startled by the stench of the evolution fluid.

‘Ugh. What’s this all of a sudden.’

The Mini Reapers had already sensed the suspicious smell and were far away.

‘Ah!’

‘Mom smells!’

The moment I heard that will, I scattered the evolution fluid in all directions.

‘Waaah!’

‘Mom’s gone crazy!’

And when I chased after the Mini Reapers with evolution fluid all over my body, they all ran away in a hurry.

A deadly game of tag had begun.

The World at the End, upper levels of the tower.

After the Blue Reaper and the pink girl passed through a level that looked as pretty as a resort, they arrived at a level that gave off a slightly strange atmosphere.

Houses made of metal.

Roads with exposed pipes.

It had a quite different atmosphere from the levels they had been through so far.

“The shape of the houses is strange.”

The buildings made by weaving pipes together were somehow broken.

Either without entrances.

Or with ceilings too low.

Or with walls caved in.

Or without any interior space.

Moreover, there were no properly usable facilities in sight.

The girl, who had been full of expectations about meeting humans, wore a slightly dejected expression.

<The next level will be a proper place!>

But contrary to the Blue Reaper’s encouragement, the next level, and the level after that, were completely broken as well.

The level after that didn’t even have traces of buildings or roads left, it was just a wide disc.

“….”

So the pink girl and the Blue Reaper passed through the level with nothing and headed towards a new level.

“Haa.”

Inside the level tower.

In the somewhat chilly temperature, the pink girl blew out a breath.

<Let’s warm everyone up!>

Seeing this, the Blue Reaper wrote out text strings, and a warm heat settled around the pink girl.

“Thank you.”

The pink girl expressed her gratitude and moved towards the exit of the tower.

The pink girl inwardly thought it would be empty this time too, but the sight that appeared through the bright light was a bit different from her expectations.

Uniquely, the disc’s height was noticeably lower than the tower’s entrance.

And below that, a massive city that strongly felt of human traces could be seen.

Although everything was made of pipes and metal, it clearly formed the shape of buildings.

“Wow.”

The pink girl’s mouth gaped open at the enormous view seen from the tower.

Pipes twisted here and there in the shape of street trees.

A neat central avenue stretching out, made of pipes.

Horses and carriages made by hammering pipes.

It was truly a massive city made of pipes.

And that city was filled with statues of pedestrians made of pipes.

Pipe shapes of pedestrians walking on the street.

Pipe shapes of women wearing parasols and fancy dresses.

Pipe shapes of children running around the streets.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

They came down the majestic stairs leading from the tower and walked on the large avenue.

“It’s as if they’re alive.”

The pink girl muttered as she stroked the neck of a horse made by hammering and carving pipes.

The buildings lining both sides of the pipe avenue were intricately decorated even on the inside.

Though everything was made of pipes.

“I’ve never seen so many people before.”

The pink girl said, looking at people who seemed to have turned into statues while still alive.

“I didn’t know there could be this many people.”

At the end of their long walk, they arrived at a massive gate connected to the avenue.

The pink girl tilted her head, looking up at the letters written on the gate.

“Alchemist Academy? What’s that?”

<….>

Strangely, those letters seemed to the Blue Reaper to contain great sorrow.

The level with clear water and black statues.

After the pink girl and Blue Reaper had left, a strange phenomenon was occurring there.

All the black statues began to crane their necks and look up at the sky.

They looked as if they were trying to see something invisible.

They were looking up, shedding a faint white light from their eyes.

Somehow, it seemed as if the shadow of a large blue star was reflected in the statues’ eyes.