Theatrical Regression Life

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It goes without saying, but Kang Mina had never handled a hammer enough to get used to it.

Like any typical office worker in South Korea, she had rarely dealt with tools directly. Occasionally, she had climbed up on a chair to change a light bulb at home, but she never had occasion to use a blunt tool like the hammer she was holding now.

Especially not using the hammer as a weapon like she was doing now.

Thunk.

“…Ha….”

Her breath trembled as it escaped.

“Was there more ivy?”

“Yes, it’s hard to see because it blends in with the grass and leaves….”

“We need to move as quickly as possible.”

At Yoon Garam’s words, Kang Mina nodded silently.

Although it was still daylight, based on yesterday’s experience, there was a high probability that even this would darken quickly. It was like adding black paint to murky water, turning evening into night in an instant. Today wouldn’t be much different.

“How much farther do we have to go? I’m not familiar with the way, so I keep having to ask.”

“It’s okay. The park itself is big, and many people don’t know their way around, especially since it’s changed so much. We would have arrived at the small lake within three minutes in the past, but….”

“….”

“As I mentioned earlier, the park has changed a lot.”

In response to her words, Kang Mina replied in a soft voice.

“…Yes.”

Kang Mina was timid and easily frightened, but she wasn’t stupid.

She was curious and often observed her surroundings. Kang Mina had a decent level of perceptiveness, and she wouldn’t have made it to the position of a team leader in a large corporation if she had a poor ability to assess situations. Taking care of difficult bosses and naive employees required a certain level of judgment.

To her, the current situation was filled with a deep sense of unease.

‘…How does she know the way?’

She hoped this wasn’t just suspicion but a genuine question.

‘It’s strange. Even thoughshe knows the park has changed a lot, can she confidently guide us like this? Does that make sense?’

It was odd.

In her view, Yoon Garam was displaying contradictory behavior.

She had already mentioned that the park had changed significantly. She clearly knew it wasn’t the same park she remembered, so why could she guide us so confidently?

There should have been at least some hesitation or unease on his part, but there wasn’t. It wasn’t like she was acting absent-mindedly or mechanically leading the way like a guide robot, but there was definitely a sense of unease as she led us to the lake, even though she seemed to be finding her way with ease. Suddenly, there was a chilling unease.

But the problem wasn’t the unease emanating from Yoon Garam herself.

“….”

“Oh, there it is. Just cross this wooden bridge, and you’ll reach the small lake.”

“…That’s a relief.”

The question was whether the origin of that unease was conscious or unconscious.

Of course, if that unease arose consciously, then what the outcome of that would be, or if it was unconscious, what value calculation should come out of it, was unknown. There was no time to figure out such things. Already, my head was spinning and I was panting.

But instinctively, and at the same time almost absent-mindedly, such a thought came to me.

‘…Monsters….’

Surely not?

“Watch your step. I remember there were some rotten parts….”

“…Oh, thank you.”

Kang Mina forced herself to look away and glanced at the intern who was following behind them.

“Yeonseok, be careful too.”

“…Yes.”

“…I should have let you take a break if you were feeling really uncomfortable. I’m sorry.”

As she expressed unnecessary remorse and offered a small apology, he shook his head with a pale face.

“No, no, no! How could I just let you go alone, Team Leader…!”

“…It’s not just me…”

“Oh, anyway. But I’m the strongest, so…”

Awkwardly, Kang Mina chuckled at his words, as if making excuses.

“Yeah, thanks.”

When someone’s emotions were so transparent, it was always embarrassing and awkward, no matter when it happened. Especially when that person was a student much younger than oneself.

Noh Yeonseok was an intern who came through the connection between our company and the university. Of course, we were told that this was an exceptional trial because our company wasn’t your average company, and if it didn’t have any significant effect, it would be discontinued within one or two tries. But still, he was sent to our department as an intern. Kang Mina couldn’t help but pay attention.

There were times when it was awkward and confusing at the company, but the truth was, in situations like this, she found strength in him and his demeanor.

‘I also….’

It meant having the responsibility to protect and lead someone.

As she absentmindedly stroked the hammer stained red with ivy sap, a voice she had grown accustomed to suddenly came between them. It was a voice filled with mild curiosity.

“You two seem close. Noh Yeonseok-ssi, you’re an intern, right?”

“Oh, yes…. I’m learning a lot from Team Leader Kang.”

“Look at Mina-ssi, taking care of people. She’s really sweet.”

At the mildly teasing remark that wasn’t rude enough to be impolite, the intern blushed, and Kang Mina chuckled awkwardly once again. It was surprising how not bad she felt, to the point where she herself was embarrassed.

“Yeonseok has a good personality. He does his tasks well…”

“T-Thank you.”

“To be honest, I was a little surprised. Mina-ssi, I’ve never heard of interns at your company before…. Don’t you usually not hire interns?”

“That’s right, most of them come in as experienced hires.”

“Yeah, I heard that our school really put in a lot of effort this time. They wanted to try something in collaboration…”

“If that’s really the case, it might give the students a chance. Especially since it’s such a big company, right?”

I’ve felt it before, but separate from the current unease, Yoon Garam was a good conversationalist. Rather than crossing the line or not approaching at all, her demeanor allowed her to feel Yoon Garam’s consideration without overstepping boundaries.

Her voice was just the right volume, reasonably calm, and her actions of not unnecessarily making eye contact eased the atmosphere naturally.

Just as the conversation was becoming casual, Yoon Garam slowed her steps.

“So, this is…”

“….”

“Yes, we’re here.”

Thud.

The sound of footsteps stopping echoed.

“This is the small lake.”

“Ah….”

That’s how breathtaking it was.

Breathless, the clear water’s scent gnawed at her lungs. The lake, illuminated by the entirely white sky, sparkled with an eerie bright light.

The lake, shining in a color of jade rarely seen in reality, resembled a work of art made of glass, and the surface of the lake, undisturbed by the wind, was so unrealistically serene.

Beautiful. Fresh and clean. Surprisingly, within that transparent lake, there were pebbles bubbling with water, resembling the sky and the lake’s color, white and transparent.

Kang Mina, who had been momentarily speechless, struggled to speak.

“…It’s beautiful.”

It was the first adjective she had uttered since arriving in this world.

“Yes, it is beautiful.”

“….”

“…It didn’t sparkle like this before….”

There was a hint of regret in Yoon Garam’s voice as she spoke.

Perhaps she missed the world before it changed like this. If that was the case, Kang Mina could easily sympathize with her thoughts. Wanting the comfortable and peaceful reality rather than the unreal beauty in front of her wasn’t that strange at all.

However, feeling the strange unease at her fingertips, Kang Mina kept silent.

“….”

“It has really become beautiful.”

Because the voice had a vague, dreamy quality to it unlike before, she couldn’t quite grasp what exactly was being regretted.

Kang Mina slowly spoke up.

“…Let’s fill the bottle with water for now.”

Somehow, they had to bring themselves back to reality.

“Yeonseok, could you hand me the bottle you picked up earlier?”

“Oh, I’ll do it. It’ll get heavy once it’s filled with water.”

The intern said, holding a 2-liter drink bottle in his hand.

It’s the kind of bottle that, when you go to the mart, is placed at room temperature rather than in the refrigerator, just in a cool place.

Seeing that, Yoon Garam said, “It’s fortunate that we have a bottle like this.”

“…It’s definitely fortunate since it would be difficult to keep coming back here…”

“If there’s a problem, it’s that we haven’t found any cans yet….”

She interjected.

“…Is there a glass bottle? Why?”

She seemed a bit flustered.

‘…But why would there be?’

Actually, now that she thought about it, the 2-liter drink bottle they picked up on the way here was also strange. Normally, when you drink in the park, you drink from a can from a vending machine, not a bottle this big.

In the same vein, it was odd that Yoon Garam was examining the bottle as if it were unusual. In the past, glass was often used for bottles containing cola or cider, but nowadays, isn’t even that made of plastic? Moreover, wide-necked containers like that were usually used for jam in bakeries….

“….”

“….”

“…Well, good things are good, right?”

Yoon Garam concluded their speculation.

“After all, in a yard where crawling ivy exists, this isn’t too surprising….”

“Yes, it’s not really that strange.”

As Kang Mina and the intern nodded, Yoon Garam smiled somewhat awkwardly and said, “That’s right. Besides, cans can be a bit worrisome.”

“Why?”

“Because they’re so thin, I’m afraid they might melt in the fire….”

“…I don’t think it would be that bad, though?”

A doubtful expression automatically formed.

How strong would the heat of a campfire have to be for an aluminum can to melt? Even if you tried, it would be impossible to melt it. At most, it might get a little wrinkled or soft.

When they sent him a questioning look for his worry, Yoon Garam gave an awkward smile.

“Well, when you boil water, sometimes it can taste like metal, right?”

“That’s… true.”

That was a bit worrying.

While nodding, Kang Mina gestured to the intern, and Noh Yeonseok followed her to the lake. Soon, Yoon Garam joined them as well.

“….”

The water of the lake rippled calmly, but there was no sign of any monsters nearby.

“…Didn’t they say there were fish here?”

“Yes, although we’re not sure about the bigger lake due to algae, but there should be some in the small lake.”

“But there’s nothing here.”

Only the sparkling water of the lake was there.

Upon hearing that, Yoon Garam remained silent, and Noh Yeonseok, the intern, looked back at her, but there was no particular plan. Whatever the case, they couldn’t just leave without filling the water.

Kang Mina looked at the intern while adjusting her grip on the hammer.

“Yeonseok, could you fill the water?”

“Yes, sure.”

He carefully submerged the mouth of the bottle into the lake.

“….”

As the water filled the bottle, it was as silent as if transparent pebbles were rolling into it. There was not even the usual gurgling sound when filling a narrow-necked bottle with water.

Perhaps due to the mood, the clattering sound of his own utensil could be heard, and within the transparent bottle, the flow of water came in like blossoming flowers. Along with the flow, water droplets lightly sparkled.

Carefully lifting the bottle filled with water, “Ah.”

The shimmer of the lake disappeared.

“A bit disappointing.”

“Yes, it was beautiful.”

The intern Noh Yeonseok set the bottle aside and received another bottle from Yoon Garam. Since they were already there, they wanted to take as much water as possible, so they intended to fill both the empty water bottle they had and the glass bottle they had just picked up.

As the empty water bottle was filled with clear lake water, and after rinsing the glass bottle once and filling it with water again, they had already fulfilled their purpose of coming to the lake.

Kang Mina nodded and stepped back.

“Then let’s go back before it gets dark.”

“Well, it’s also difficult to make a campfire here.”

“And we don’t even know how to make a portable fire….”

Before coming here, they had received a lighter from Director Lee Jaehun, but it was more of a precautionary measure, not something they hoped to use. They had to return before evening came.

They gathered their containers filled with water and quickly left the spot, but just before stepping onto the wooden bridge.

Kang Mina turned around once to look at the small lake.

“….”

It was strangely transparent and white.

Underneath the lake, which was brightly illuminated, were countless pebbles, giving it a glassy appearance with the color of the grass leaves. The trees surrounding such a lake drew the gaze like a painting on the surface of the water.

It was indescribably beautiful, but….

“….”

“Team Leader?”

“Let’s go, Yeonseok.”

…It was unnaturally clean.

A little bit frightening.

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