Monologue (4)

"How are you here…?"

"Hmm."

Dorothy stroked her chin, observing me intently.

[All In the World] and [Emotional Insight]. It was impossible to hide one's inner thoughts and feelings from her.

Perhaps her eyes could discern my state even more clearly than I could.

"…"

Dorothy let out a soft smile before playfully grinning and rushing towards me.

"Nah, whatever! Comforting can come later! Let's go!"

"Huh…? Uahk!"

Dorothy grabbed my wrist and dashed towards the overpass stairs.

The weak but compelling force generated by her starlight mana pushed at my back.

To avoid stumbling, I had no choice but to be forcibly pulled along by her.

"S-Senior?! Where are we going?!"

"Anywhere is fine!!"

With her remaining hand, Dorothy pressed down her witch hat firmly to prevent it from flying away.

We descended the overpass stairs with haste, practically skipping over the steps.

A black and white world. Without hesitation, we crossed the street where people dyed in gray moved about.

"Let's go anywhere!"

While running, Dorothy turned her head towards me, revealing her white teeth and bright smile.

A burst of laughter suddenly escaped from my lips.

I bit my numb lower lip for a brief moment then laughed once again before being pulled along by her.

After all, this girl, the sole person who hadn't lost her color, looked so radiant.

I was once again reminded why I had liked her so much during my previous life as a State Exam prep student.

***

I shared several stories with Dorothy.

Along with the story about the hidden ultimate weapons in Märchen Academy, I explained that this place was a part of the trial given by the rock weapon.

I also debriefed her on the current situation; I still hadn't figured out the conditions for passing this trial and instead, my situation had worsened as my body turned gray.

And I passed over certain things, as if implying that we could discuss the details later.

─'Senior, how in the world did you get here…?'

When I asked as such, Dorothy spun an unbelievable tale.

She could vaguely observe countless worldlines…

And since her ability had grown stronger, she had now reached a level where she could even intervene in these other worldlines.

I was already familiar with the observation part.

Can one call themselves a true fan if they can't even recite their favorite character's settings by heart?

However, her ability to intervene was entirely new to me.

'That's insane…'

Dorothy was a terrifying existence beyond imagination.

Although the Zelver Empire had praised her as a rare genius who would reach the level of an Archwizard within ten years…

She was not at a level that could be gauged by mere human intelligence.

Dorothy explained how she had deduced the connection between my unusual actions and the sudden appearance of a new and peculiar worldline, thus deciding to intervene in this world.

This was a domain far beyond my comprehension… But the only thing in my mind was just how amazing Dorothy was.

Dorothy casually removed the clothes from a department store mannequin and went to the dressing room to change.

Out of all these people, not a single one paid any attention to her.

Surprisingly, anything she touched would have its color restored. They returned to black and white when she moved away, though.

"How do I look, President?"

A long shirt, short pants, and a neat cardigan that slid down her shoulders.

An attire reminiscent of the modern era.

All the clothes she wore had been restored to their original colors.

She had tucked away her original clothes in her magic pocket.

'Big Sis, you're gonna be the end of me.'

She was quite literally a walking photo shoot.

"It's perfect."

"Nihihi."

When I serenely gave a thumbs-up, Dorothy laughed merrily and made a V sign with her index and middle fingers.

Earlier, when Dorothy had held my wrist and ran at the overpass, I had remained unchangingly gray.

Even when she placed her hand on my shoulder as an experiment, nothing was different. My color did not return.

The same was true when touching the shoulder of a female department store employee. For reference, Dorothy was able to touch other people.

Anyway, her influence didn't seem to extend to people. It was quite disappointing.

We walked along the streets of Sinlim-dong.

Dorothy was euphoric, exclaiming 'So sweet!' while she had a lollipop stolen from the convenience store in her mouth.

How ecstatic is she?

Her voice was drenched with excitement.

"Stealing clothes, dining and dashing. Nihihi, we're total desperados! Doesn't this have a certain romance to it?"

Dorothy held the lollipop in her mouth and murmured.

A joyful voice. As expected of the juvenile delinquent who boasted the most demerits in Märchen Academy.

"I'm not sure about the romance, but it is comfortable."

"Righhht~? But, President. Is this the world you used to live in?"

"Yes. It looked like this."

"President, you really are beyond imagination. I could never have guessed that you came from a completely different world."

From Dorothy's perspective, it was understandable for her to be astounded that I was from another world.

But putting that aside…

"…Senior, how did you find me?"

"I sensed your mana. I searched everywhere, you see. I was able to find you by focusing all my strength on only mana perception."

A tranquil tone.

She had mentioned earlier that she was exhausted to death because she was trying so hard to find me.

Not long after the Trial of Sandstone began, she had probably detected the small amount of mana I had momentarily released, thus narrowing her search to Korea.

And thanks to the [Frostfire] I had released for quite a while, she had sensed the minuscule amount of mana and eventually located me.

"…"

It made me somber. I felt really sorry…

"Well then! Let's assess the situation."

At that moment, Dorothy clapped her hands, as if to signal for me to focus only on her and not think about anything else.

As she did so, she stopped her feet and gazed at the sky filled with rock mana.

"The sky is falling and at this rate, it'll all be over within three days. President has turned gray like the other people. You can't feel anything even when you touch something and you don't feel like you're still alive…"

'What the f- Why does she feel so dependable?'

Dorothy was actually assessing the situation…!

Is this really the same Dorothy who got dizzy just from using her head a little?

"President, for now, you see!"

Did she already find a solution?

"Yes."

I swallowed dryly and listened carefully to her words.

"Let's play."

…What?

***

In a way, Dorothy's suggestion had its merits.

The Trial of Sandstone created this world based on my own traumas.

The reason the world's scenery and my body had started turning gray was definitely because the feeling of isolation and social withdrawal during this point in time became more severe.

So, if we played around and had as much fun as we wanted to make me feel better, there was a possibility that my condition would improve

As such…

"All the songs of this world are lying in wait in this cramped space, right?! Oh, President? What's this box? It keeps changing, eh?!"

We arrived at coin karaoke.

The reason for this was that Dorothy, who particularly loved songs, wanted to fully enjoy what this world had to offer.

…I did have a reasonable suspicion that perhaps her suggestion was just because she wanted to sing, though.

Once she entered the booth and saw the karaoke machine, Dorothy was very amazed. It kinda felt like I became a dad who brought his little daughter to see the world.

"Senior, don't you not know these songs?"

"I heard this and that while wandering around. It was so fascinating~. I liked the songs here!"

It was quite common to hear songs while walking down the street.

It seemed that while Dorothy had traveled around Korea to look for me, she had stopped at times to enjoy various songs.

If Dorothy was Korean, she would have definitely dreamed of becoming a singer.

After all, she had extraordinary memorization and talent when it came to singing.

"What's this funny-looking stick?"

"It's a mic. Uhhh, a speaker."

"Ah Ah–.

"Ooooh!"

When Dorothy held the microphone and made some sounds, her beautiful voice resonated within the space. It was funny to see her amazement.

Dorothy and I sat side by side in the narrow booth and chatted.

It was so fun to see Dorothy fascinated by modern culture.

"Ah, President. Do you know this song?"

Dorothy cleared her throat and hummed a single syllable.

I recognized it instantly and pressed the remote control button to play the strong.

「Violet Fragrance – Kang Susie」

As the music started to play, filling the booth, Dorothy's head flinched in bewilderment, However, she soon got excited, blushing and smiling brightly at me.

She immediately stood up, holding the mic in both hands.

In the karaoke room, the awkward atmosphere that usually existed for the first song had spread.

And the karaoke machine started playing a random music video.

'What's that? Why are strange people and animals appearing?"

"Just ignore it."

"O-okay…!"

Eventually, the first verse appeared on the screen.

Dorothy seemed like she couldn't understand the lyrics displayed on the machine, but it didn't seem to matter to her.

Dorothy took a deep breath and closed her eyes with a smile.

Then… 3, 2, 1.

"You came to me gently~ like a violet light~."

Ooooh…!

Suddenly, my heart pounded as my fist clenched.

As Dorothy's beautiful singing turned into a flowing melody, my sense of hearing was given a feeling of immense satisfaction.

Whew. Even though I didn't have a sense of touch, it was such a relief that I could still see, hear, and smell…!

'My ears are getting blessed…!'

Heup.

I blocked my mouth. It felt like I was being moved to tears.

After all, her gestures may be dainty, but she was fucking beautiful…!

"You wereeeeee~!! The one who gave me~ love~!"

Even her high notes were perfect.

As I cheered, Dorothy extended her arm towards me, making a V sign with her index and middle fingers.

Her bashful smile looked so delighted that it lifted my spirits as well.

Soon after, Dorothy's rendition of 「Violet Fragrance – Kang Susie」 ended and the karaoke machine displayed a score of 97 points.

This impertinent bitch of a machine dared to give Dorothy's performance a score that wasn't a perfect 100 points?

How fucking dense and stupid can it be?

"Nyahaha! That was fun!"

…You're lucky Dorothy's happy. Thanks to her, you'll live to see another day.

"Senior, I'll sing too."

"President, isn't this the first time you're going to sing in front of me?"

"I wasn't familiar with the songs from that world. I know these ones well."

"Nihihi, okay!"

I got up and played 「Trip To Myself – Buzz」.

I was planning to sing all the songs I had listened to whenever I had a tough time during my prep student life.

A familiar bass sound.

Followed by the explosive drums and electric guitar.

Now, 3, 2, 1.

"If! You run to the end of that blue seaaa~!"

"Oooh, Presidennnnt! Oh myyyyy~!"

"Over there with a horseee~!"

Yes! This is it!

The feeling of suffocation, akin to a clogged toilet, burst as it was released from my stifled emotions.

Just like how I did, Dorothy excitedly moved her body up and down, following the beat.

And at the highlight section, when I grabbed onto my stomach and shouted with excessively excited gestures, she exploded into laughter.

After finishing the first verse and moving on to the second, she joined in, immediately grasping the mood of the song.

We danced together and in the highlight, we screamed the high notes together.

""Far away you're my sunshine! We were together~!!""

I was grinning because it was so much fun. I listened as Dorothy's laughter mixed with the sound of the music.

And so, we stomped our feet, jumping around like lunatics.

And as Dorothy, who somehow knew various songs, sang famous hits in her own style…

I also sang all the songs that had comforted me during my prep student life to my heart's content.

It was a lot of fun.

◆ ◆ ◆

Agh, my throat hurts.

But well, it was still fun.

Though, I shouldn't be saying such things while looking at the scenery of the world ending.

"That was so much fun! What did you think, President? Have your ears been blessed?"

"Yes. I seriously think that even if I die today, I won't have any regrets."

"Good! That's a perfect answer!"

Even though she had belted out so many high notes, Dorothy's voice was still perfectly fine.

Of course it was. Why wouldn't it be? Would a goddess lose her voice just from singing a song made by a human? Of course not.

We arrived at the park and sat side by side on a bench, gazing at the Descending Sky.

My body was quite stiff and heavy now. It felt like I couldn't move freely anymore.

It seemed the petrifaction of my real body had progressed tremendously.

"President."

"Yes."

"If you were to die today, what would you want to do?"

Where did that even come from…? And what kind of question was that…?

"Isn't that a bit of an inauspicious question….?"

Don't foreshadow so ominously…

"Still, the scenery of a world ending like this is not something you can easily see wherever you go, right? It's not a bad idea to immerse ourselves in our emotions at a time like this."

"…What does Senior want to do?"

"Eating chicken while watching the world meet its end?"

"Why chicken?"

"It's delicious."

At such a one-dimensional answer, I was speechless for a moment.

Of course, I agreed with the fact that chicken was delicious, though.

"What about President?"

"I haven't thought about it. After all, I don't plan on dying just yet."

"…You're no fun."

Dorothy giggled but didn't continue the conversation.

We sat in silence for a while.

And suddenly, something soft and supple burrowed between my fingers.

"…?"

I turned my head and looked towards my hand that had felt such a sensation.

Dorothy was holding my hand, which I had set down on the bench, her fingers interlocked with mine.

As I dumbfoundedly looked towards Dorothy, her bright smile, shining like starlight, was reflected upon my eyes.

"Now you can feel a sense of touch, right? I was just trying it out as an experiment."

"…"

"President, your color has returned."

A world dyed in black and white.

Before I knew it, my body, just like Dorothy's, had regained its original color.