Running away (2)

This time, Yoo Jonghyuk didn't try to kill him.

In Geumho Station, Zhou Mingrui looked at the tunnel and hesitated.

Finally, he sat down and decided to stay there. Sharron would be able to survive without him. His presence would only endanger her.

Moreover, if it was for the situation to end up like the last times…

Maybe it would be better to create distance since the beginning and never become friends.

He was an outer god, and she was a Sequence 3, they would have nothing to do with each other.

Zhou Mingrui's gaze darkened.

This was for the best.

[The constellation 'Believer in Mysteries' is looking at you.]

Zhou Mingrui avoided meeting Sharron until the battle for the throne ended.

This time, Zhou Mingrui didn't become a king. Nevertheless, he transformed his face into an ordinary one and blended among the crowd in Gwanghwamun, waiting for the scenario the end.

Finally, under the angry gaze of the dokkaebi, Yoo Jonghyuk destroyed the absolute throne.

At that moment, Zhou Mingrui's gaze fell on a blonde who stood out because of the black gothic dress she was wearing.

The said blonde seemed to feel his stare and turned back, meeting his gaze for a moment.

Then, they were all teleported to different places.

Appearing in the familiar subway, Zhou Mingrui clenched his hand then unclenched it, repeating the motion many times before closing his eyes.

Seeing her gaze, Zhou Mingrui was reminded of what would happen to Sharron if he didn't come into contact with her.

The Lord of Mysteries took out a coin and threw it up.

Then, he stared at the result of his divination for a long time.

Finally, he got up and left, killing some monsters along the way.

***

After slaying a few monsters, Zhou Mingrui made the sword in his hand disappear and lowered his gaze.

He thought he wouldn't approach Sharron ever again.

He thought it would be safer for her if he left her alone.

However, in the end, he was back to that alley.

Hesitant, he stood in front of the dark passage, the silver moon shining over his head.

He raised his gaze and looked up at the sky, seeing the familiar yet unfamiliar full moon, before taking a step forward.

Because if he didn't intervene, Sharron would die.

He continued to advance then stopped in front of the ghost.

The wraith was on the ground, holding her head in pain, her mythical biological form occasionally showing.

Through her blurry vision, she saw someone kneeling in front of her, but her brain didn't register it.

"…Miss Sharron, do you hear me?"

In a low voice, the person in front of her asked something she was unable to distinguish.

Then, through an unknown mean, the man reduced her loss of control, making her hold her forehead in pain as she regained her senses.

"…Sherlock Moriarty?"

This was the identity of the person squatting down in front of her.

As her sight gradually returned, Sharron stared at him.

However, she didn't understand.

Why was he making such an expression as he looked at her?

She gazed at the empty eyes of the man in front of her. A strange gaze and a familiar face. There was dirt as well as a bit of dried monsters' blood on his cheek.

…Why did it look like he was in pain?

Finally, Zhou Mingrui's expression returned to a fake smile, as it should have been, and he extended his hand to help her get up.

In response, Sharron simply turned into a wraith, leaving his arm awkwardly hanging into the air.

A lot of time passed like this.

And one day, while they were walking through ruins, Sharron remembered something and broke the silence while taking something out of her pocket.

"Huh?"

It was a phone.

Sharron looked at Sherlock with an inquisitive gaze.

"Do you know what it is?"

When his mind registered the question, he took the phone into his hand and turned on the screen. It seemed to still have battery.

"It's called a 'phone'." He explained.

Using divination, he found out the code easily and unlocked it.

Sharron glanced at the changing screen.

"Is it a Beyonder item?"

Sherlock shook his head with a smile.

"No, it's a scientific invention. Look, it can indicate the current time and date like a clock or a calendar, be used to call people or as a calculator, or also as a means to play games, and it may not look like it but it contains a huge amount of information—it's a bit like a miniature library."

Sharron narrowed her eyes.

How was this not a Beyonder item?

As Sharron grew more and more convinced that it was one, Sherlock denied it many times.

Sharron: *skeptical*

Sherlock made a helpless smile as silence settled in once again.

He looked at Sharron, her eyes fixated on the phone, wondering how this little object could have so many options and from which pathway it was.

His smile faded a little as his gaze darkened.

He was suddenly brought back to the harsh reality.

Even though he knew it hadn't happened yet, he couldn't forget it.

These trivial moments of happiness only reminded him even more that his place wasn't here. He and Sharron were too different from each other, and she would soon realize it.

But was it so selfish to want normalcy a little longer?

Zhou Mingrui's smile brightened.

However, it was essentially all a lie.

Pretending that nothing was wrong with a smile on his face while knowing how it would all end… even that 'normalcy' was an illusion.

A Great Old One couldn't have such a privilege as living a normal life to begin with.

It would be better to maintain a distance between them with this 'lie'. Right, that was for the best.

Anyways, 'lies' had been the wall between them since the beginning, wasn't it?

How ironic.

But it wasn't a big deal, after all, Zhou Mingrui was a professional liar. He has doing been doing only that these past few years, from pretending to be someone he isn't to hiding a lot of other secrets.

Sharron placed the phone back into her pocket and continued to walk forward, dropping the matter.

Following along, Zhou Mingrui stared at her back with a complicated gaze, his mind sinking into dark thoughts.

Someone had once told him that when you go back in time, you are often reminded of the last words they said before rewinding time.

Seemingly feeling his stare, Sharron glanced back. He smiled at her in response.

["Who are you?"]

And all along, these words continuously echoed in his mind, as if to remind him to not get too close.

***

[A bounty scenario has arrived!]

+

[Bounty Scenario – Find the Key]

Category: Bounty

Difficulty: SS

Clear Conditions: Find the Silver Key in the Nameless City.

Time Limit: None.

Compensation: ???

Failure: None.

+

One time, when he was separated from Sharron, Zhou Mingrui received this strange message.

[The constellation 'Secretive Plotter' says you will be automatically transported to the Nameless City once you accept this scenario.]

He also seemed to have the choice the refuse.

He pondered the matter for a moment.

It was odd because it had never happened before, but he ignored it.

"Do I have to leave now?"

[The constellation 'Secretive Plotter' nods.]

Who knows, that constellation may also know about the regressions.

[The constellation 'Secretive Plotter' affirms that it will be useful to you.]

Zhou Mingrui paused in his tracks and looked around, taking in the sight of the building in ruins and deserted landscape.

Maybe it was for the best.

Indeed, if he left now, Sharron and him could completely cut off contact; she also didn't risk losing control anymore.

He had no reason to stay by Sharron's side.

Zhou Mingrui glanced in the direction his spiritual intuition told him the wraith was, a few kilometers away, then looked up at the sky.

He decided to leave right now.

"…I accept."

After all, maybe this decision was better for both of them.

They were simply friends that didn't know much about each other and could grant favors, that's all.

Zhou Mingrui kept an emotionless face.

That's how Sherlock left without even saying goodbye.

In another place, Sharron seemed to feel something and turned her head to the side. However, there was nothing there.

Her hair were swaying in the air because of the wind since she was in her human form, but her hat strangely stayed on her head.

She stared in that direction for a while before continuing on her way.