The bus ran for a long time. Only when the number of people getting on and off gradually decreased and more people were getting off than people getting on did Noahâs sister prepare to get off. Around that time, Noah was able to know where she was going.
Sheâd already left Seoul a long time ago. The place where the bus had stopped was some memorial park in Paju.
Thatâs when a fact suddenly crossed Noahâs mind. She pondered on todayâs date again. August 17th.
Oh⦠Come to think of it, this is the anniversary of my death.
She didnât know because it was an unfamiliar date to her. The day sheâd died in this world only to wake up and completely vanish into thin air may as well have been her death day.
Then donât tell me Iâm buried here, she thought. As thereâd been no corpse, there was no way she could have even been cremated. Her death here, which she had decided, had only been described as âDied suddenly at the hospital where she passed out and was taken awayâ, and there was no way to know how the funeral had been held after that.
Noah had brainwashed her, so someone would have reported her death even if there was a body. She guessed her sister had put some of her belongings in the casket instead of skeletal remains.
Noah followed behind her sister, who was still walking forward idly. With her earbuds in her ears, she had no clue that her older sister was trailing her.
Things happen in this scary world if you walk like that without checking your surroundings.
Now she decided to get rid of the strange worries that had suddenly appeared in her. Instead, she waited five minutes after her sister entered the tomb to sneak her way in behind her.
The inside of the tomb was still. Her footsteps echoed louder than sheâd expected. Just in case her sister caught her in the act she hid behind a corner and took Largoâs eyes from her pocket.
After rolling one on the floor, she took out the other and sat against the wall of the hallway. A transparent screen appeared when she poked the surface of the eye.
The view beyond the corner seen through Largoâs eye was as sheâd expected. Among the hundreds of glass-covered compartments, the third one from the bottom contained a pile of white chrysanthemum flowers and a recognizable photo.
Itâs my high school graduation photo.
Noah felt a bit weird.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Still, she was alive and breathing, but how could she be looking at her own tomb? Despite knowing the results of her brainwashing procedure, an unfamiliar feeling lingered.
Her sister stopped for a second, then opened her bag and pulled something out. It was a messy photo that looked like itâd been taken on a smartphone and printed out. It was a headshot from when Noahâd been looking for a job.
ââ¦hey, Sister.â
Noahâs sister said those words with an awkward look on her face. Clearly, she was not used to calling Noah âsisterâ.
Her lips quivered like she was trying to say some more, but she couldnât find her voice. Tension and depression were smeared on the face of the young girl, who had been sticking to an expressionless face the whole time.
Noah wanted to hear what she wanted to say but at the same time didnât want to. Whatever she said anyway would be the result of Noahâs brainwashing. Because she had brainwashed them to suffer from guilt for life. It's not like she was bowing down, and now that she regretted it, it didn't sound that sincereâ¦
âI just thought it would be better if thereâs a recent photo.â
Noahâs sisterâs meek voice was heard through the door, not the screen. Noahâs thoughts stopped when she heard the voice.
âI just suddenly thought about you. Thatâs why I came again.. Iâll be going now.â
She hesitated for a long time even though sheâd said she would be going now.
âUhâ¦â
Noah heard the voice that continued, hesitatingly holding her breath.
âIt is okay if I come again next year?â
On the screen, Hee-yeon couldn't keep her hands still, and Noah could see her collecting and fumbling them over and over.
Noah really didnât know now if she was supposed to feel some kind of emotion.