Tir ner nog.
The one and only World Tree. The one who existed from the beginning to the end.
Open the game, start the train, destroy the world, and create the ark.
She was crying now.
So I just let her cry her heart out.
Tears, sadness, and pain are all emotions we need to live.
It is one of the pieces of me that is pure and necessary.
So, I let her cry her heart out.
To fully experience the pain of true love, felt for the first time.
I left her there to cry her heart out.
How much time has passed?
“Do you know what it tastes like when you add crispy nurungji to chocolate cake?”
Tir says something completely unexpected.
“I don’t know. I’ve never eaten it like that.”
“It has a mysterious taste that is sweet and slightly salty at the same time.”
"delicious?"
“Of course. People who haven’t tried it wouldn’t know.”
Tir laughed.
In her own form, untransformed.
I laughed innocently.
“Because it was the only food I ever tasted. It was the first and last time I tasted it.”
“I guess it was food he made.”
"That's right. I destroyed my own sense of taste. Taste clouds judgment and weakens the will... That sense is unnecessary for the creation of a new universe."
“Like love?”
Tir nods slightly.
“But, I miss it a little.”
I imagine.
In a society where all science and civilization have advanced to the point where the final question is asked, the end of civilization.
Someone who created a little girl.
And then the man handed the cake to the girl.
One chocolate cake, topped with crispy scorched rice.
To remind you of the harmony of sweet and salty.
“Maybe the world needs both sweet and salty things.”
“….”
“Why didn’t He give me love when He created me?”
Tir gets up from his chair and walks out onto the balcony.
I follow her without saying a word.
“I didn’t understand.”
“No matter how great that person was, he couldn’t have bestowed love. Love can’t be manufactured.”
“You’re half right, half wrong, Gunwoo.”
We stood side by side on the balcony, the flower pots swaying in the wind.
Look down.
A white and empty world, with nothing in it.
There is no color.
Like a canvas waiting for the painter's brush, an unhatched egg of infinite potential.
Or, like a new world that has not yet awakened.
“He must have wanted it.”
"what?"
“I wish I could recognize that feeling myself.”
A wind blows from somewhere, causing a single jasmine flower to sway.
Right now, at this moment.
There was no need for Arcadia, no poison, no ego.
In a brief silence, she and I conversed.
“So, do you think you understand now?”
“To the extent of a man waiting for his lover, a husband waiting for his wife, a father waiting for his daughter?”
Tir smiles faintly again.
For a very brief moment, I was away from her.
I see something like her shadow.
A woman wearing a convenience store vest and holding a discarded lunch box, smiling brightly.
She is wearing the Royal Guard uniform, holding an Eczex and smiling.
Even the little boy who shared the discarded bread and smiled brightly.
It is that one seed that we all have.
Obviously, it would be two words.
“But, I can’t admit it.”
Tir, lift your elbows off the balcony.
Stand up straight and look at me.
“Because we didn’t acknowledge the time that was uncountable in human numbers.”
“….”
"So, I can't accept that the eternal experiment was shattered just because of one man who was eliminated."
“That’s quite stubborn.”
“Have you ever been obsessed with just one thing during a time when numbers were falling apart?”
“There isn’t any.”
"Then I'll never know. Just as I never knew that feeling before."
“You’re being honest.”
“Now that I’m here, I have nothing to hide from you.”
Yeah, we don't know each other.
To say you understand perfectly is a blatant lie.
The male child is the female child, this region is the other region, the young are the old, the rich are the poor, this community is the other community.
Understanding everything and knowing everything is a blatant lie. Nonsense. A fool's game.
so.
We must love.
So that we can understand each other.
“So, I can’t admit it.”
Tir brushes his hair back and looks into my eyes.
“I’m going on a trip.”
"where?"
“Now, I, too, have become a mortal.”
Tir reaches out his hand.
That moment.
The world moves.
As the small house crumbles, it disappears across the timeline like white powder.
In my eyes, something incredibly vast unfolds.
Is it Arcadia? Or the galaxy where I met Tyr? Or a universe from another timeline?
No.
“This is….”
I see.
Countless shining, countless stars of the ether.
No constellation I've ever seen, no planetarium, no galaxy.
It was not enough to express this sea of light.
In every space, light dances.
“You know what? That’s enough already.”
“….”
“To open a new creation, enough ether had already been collected.”
“But why?”
“I’ve been waiting. For a man like you.”
Tir smiles.
“And, I hate to admit it, but… Geonwoo. I waited for you.”
Tir floats above me.
The Goddess of Creation soars above my head.
“I think that was the correct answer.”
I look up at her, nailed to the infinite constellations.
“Are you going?”
"Unfortunately, the results won't atone for my sins. If you look at me as a single ether, I'm just trash, and even tearing me to pieces wouldn't be enough."
“….”
"So, I'm going to return to the ether. No, rather than return—I should say simply become part of the universe again."
I understood that right away.
Tir, from the eternal being.
Into one ether.
Just like us, just trying to leave as ordinary beings.
“What will happen? My trip?”
“I don’t know.”
I gave him a smile.
“Not knowing that is the first step of being human.”
"okay."
Again, a brief silence passed between us.
Tir moves his fingers and draws something.
In front of me, three doors appear.
A very ordinary room, just like the one where I shared tea with Tir.
Just an ordinary door.
"The left path is where I hand over my will to you. You can either continue to be a god who controls the end times, or you can do something else of your own free will."
Tir points to the center with his finger.
"The center is the gate to a new creation. The ethers gathered here will become the seeds of a new universe. Of course—including me."
And, Tir points to the last door.
“The last door on the right is the flower-blooming door.”
"flower?"
“It was the end of April, the season when you first encountered Kali Yuga, the season when cherry blossoms were in full bloom.”
I immediately understood the true meaning of those words.
"But, unfortunately, not everything will go back to normal. Aether is a living entity. It's humanity itself."
The area around Tir begins to glow more and more.
“Now there will be no more cosmic beings, no more transcendent beings, no more egos, and no more pranks on humans.”
"then…."
"A world where humans decide for themselves. Like it or not, a world they create themselves. Will it end in destruction? Or love? That's now…."
That is a matter in human hands.
“Where do you think I’ll go?”
Tir laughs.
Just like a girl who smiles brightly, without any illusions.
“You are the biggest and best idiot I have ever seen.”
“Thank you for the compliment.”
“So, I guess I’ll probably make this choice.”
"which?"
“I’ll give up the opportunity to sit at the top of the universe, the power to control everything, the authority to do whatever I want… I think I’ll go back to being a low-paid, foolish old man.”
I'm already walking towards the right door.
“That’s right. It’s a shame there’s no prize to give.”
“Because I’ve already received enough rewards.”
Tyr's light grows stronger.
The ethers dance in response to it.
So much so that it's a shame to watch it alone.
The first and last sea of stars was so beautiful.
"But this space is the Alpha and the Omega, the only place that doesn't belong to the universe. The only place that ignores both."
Tir looks at me with a slightly sad expression.
“Mr. Geonwoo, if you go through that door—the last door—and return to reality, a piece of you will be lost.”
“….”
"In the first place, this space itself was created for the creation of a new world. I, too, cannot escape that law."
“How come, there’s no trick?”
Tir smiles sadly.
“That’s too bad.”
“Does existence itself remain?”
“Yes. You’re a man who has truly come this far. But.”
“But, memories disappear, right?”
Tir nods.
“But, you never know.”
And the goddess, who is turning into light, whispers playfully.
"As you've shown me time and time again in the apocalypse, in Japan, and in Atlantis… Even I, who controls the universe, could not predict what might happen."
“Do you know what that is called?”
“Is it two letters?”
I opened the last door.
Light radiates out around me.
A wave of light so immense that it obscures even the infinite sea of stars.
“Well, I guess that’s what they call a miracle.”
I already have my foot in the door.
I hear a voice.
voice.
The voice, which is now becoming a being rather than a voice, is saying its final goodbye to me.
“Hello, Gunwoo.”
My body is already in the light.
“To meet you.”
The light is shattered.
I become light itself.
“It was really good.”
####
“Can you please just stay still?”
"Sixty minutes equals one hour, and one hour 24 times makes one day. That means it's only half a day yet. There's absolutely no need to fret. When you're annoyed, eat jajangmyeon. When you're depressed, cry..."
“Ma’am! Please shut up! I’m going crazy right now.”
Pizarro was circling around the horse, talking nonstop.
Seocheonma, with an expression like an old man who lost his horse ticket, is sitting there with his ears covered.
“But none of us have ever faced Tir ner Nog. That means we have no idea how the timeline flows within it.”
“Then, wait a thousand years?”
"Mr. Pizarro, that's not what I meant. But you must be prepared."
“Then I guess I should build a house here and live there?”
At Pizarro's chatter, Hannibal chuckles.
Noh Ae-jeong kneels on the floor, hands clasped to her chest.
He seems to be thinking of something precious. His eyes are closed.
“Vice-Chief. I went back to Odyssey once….”
“Come.”
Everyone gathered inside the ark looks at Aya.
A transcendent being in his original form, with his dark hair fluttering in the wind.
Opened his mouth.
“Come. I can tell.”
"but…."
“I can feel where you are.”
As soon as he finished speaking.
It opens.
The door of the last ark opens wide.
“Hey! The door!”
Before Pizarro could finish screaming, the earth began to shake.
“What! Is there an earthquake?”
"mister!"
Run away.
A 25-year-old feminist runs towards a 30-year-old man who has been eliminated.
Run to her and hug her.
"mister…."
But, there is no answer.
The eyes of a man who can't think of anything, empty, stroke her hair.
But is it just a reflexive stroke, or is it something else?
The man just smiles without answering.
"mister!"
Aya hugged Gunwoo.
I hugged her so tightly that my heart could be felt.
“This… quantum wave….”
“What? Onions?”
Seol-ah shakes her head strongly.
“The quantum itself is being distorted. It’s like….”
"So, a new creation has begun! Does that mean the negotiations have broken down?"
“No, this is different… this is….”
The earth rises little by little, dancing.
“Everyone! Grab anything!”
Aya hugs the old man.
Hwayi has El Condo Pasa, and Noh Ae-jeong has a white cat.
And Malrang jumps into Seol-ah's chest.
“Ah… I’m so annoyed. That’s why the ending is always bad.”
Cheonma hugs Pizarro, spitting out curses.
“Why me?”
“There’s no pillar to hold onto!”
“A wave of such magnitude that it violates the third law of quantum mechanics… This… is the world…”
It's exploding.
Space itself is shattered, and light spreads out like waves.
All existence itself becomes light, obscuring vision.
“Ah! What is it! A conquistador is someone who doesn’t do anything they haven’t agreed to….”
Even Pizarro's chatter was buried in the light.
Aya's voice calling out to her uncle is also lost in the light.
The world is disappearing.
No, it doesn't disappear.
The world again.
It was coming to them.
Like the footsteps of spring that have not yet bloomed.
####
“Cyber Games! Seido Musume! Pretty Battle~ Log in now and you’ll get a choice between SSR Golden Rush Park Eum-mer and King Gi-ppeum!”
A high school girl gets annoyed by a high school boy at the sound of a smartphone game turning on.
“Hey! Turn down the game volume in the convenience store! I’m going to die.”
“Yeah~ Your face is even more ugly. It’s like a bloodbath~”
“This is the level of a Korean kid playing a Japanese game with Chinese capital.”
“Yeah~ I like it because it’s a new game so there’s no censorship.”
“These days, Korean games don’t really have much censorship.”
“Yeah, I know.”
And then, the two people were silent for a moment.
“Hey. You.”
“Yeah~ I’m a Korean man, so I can’t hear Korean women very well.”
“Shut up.”
At the serious voice, the high school boy turns to look at the high school girl.
“Why? The cup ramen is cooked. You can eat it now.”
“No, that’s not it.”
The high school girl turns her gaze towards the window with a blush on her face.
“For the math trip, the teacher sent a text message to choose a partner.”
“Yeah, it’s all in the past. It’s too slow.”
“That, you… chose me?”
“Yeah… yeah… huh?”
A high school boy drops his smartphone in embarrassment.
"Ah! Trainer! If I train today, my stats will improve! Hehe! I want to fight soon! Oh my~! Oh my, it's okay even if I don't get first place! Hanwoo Oh my~!"
The game sound echoed for a moment.
The phone turns off.
“How do you know that… No, why do you know that?”
“The class president told me.”
“No, why is that kid’s mouth so loose….”
Silence falls between the two.
"hey."
"yes?"
“Why are you being formal? Have we been together for a year?”
“Even so, I’ve only seen it since kindergarten….”
“We’ve been together for most of our lives, haven’t we?”
“That’s true, though.”
Silence comes again.
“You know, I’m really, ha. I’m telling you this with a lot of courage.”
“You have a small chest but a big heart?”
“Do you really want to see blood?”
“No… I’m sorry.”
“I won’t use Hannam.”
The high school boy's eyes widen.
“Did you eat rat poison?”
"That's right! You, stop wearing that slingering slur. It's so annoying to hear."
"no…."
"Give and take. I delete Hannam. You delete Pissagae. Okay?"
"but…."
“And, I have one more thing to say.”
The high school girl blushed while stirring the cup ramen.
“Me too, you did it.”
“….”
"I chose you as my math trip partner, you idiot."
"ah…."
In the cup ramen, steam rises.
It warms the space between the two.
“So… in other words, you knew everything?”
“Of course! This Hannam bird… Korean guy.”
“….”
“Well, I’ve seen it since I was little… I don’t like anyone else but you… But what I mean is….”
“Let’s date!”
“Hey! I’m talking to you right now!”
“I won’t use the defendant or anything! I’ll just match it to you!”
“No, I’m not finished speaking yet….”
“Jiyoung! Let’s date!”
“No, you idiot! Come on! Get out! Get out and talk!”
And then, the high school boy and girl quickly leave the convenience store.
Very awkward, shy, and comically faint.
But very preciously.
Holding each other's fingertips tightly.
Tinkle tinkle. The convenience store door is closing.
The cup of ramen left over from the two of them is giving off warm steam on the table.
And then, the convenience store worker walks towards him, grumbling.
“These are kids who wouldn’t be satisfied even if they were offered as sacrifices in an Inca temple.”
“Ah… I’m bored.”
“Oh, if only I had brought all that gold.”
“Oh, even dogs and cows are crazy when it comes to love.”
“I need to save up money quickly, buy a plane ticket, and go back to El Dorado….”
“Ah, now even the most sloppy people are becoming couples and it’s chaos.”
"hey!"
A tall, Western-looking woman, who was clearing cup ramen from the table, glared at the counter.
The name tag on her chest.
Happy Convenience Store employee. Pizarro.
“Why, ma’am?”
And the short woman at the counter.
She is also wearing a worker's name tag.
Happy Convenience Store employee. Seocheonma.
“You have to clean it up!”
"why?"
“Did you eat the trash earlier? Or not?”
“Did you eat?”
“So, who should clean this up now?”
“What does it have to do with waste?”
"There was spam in the trash today! You stunted cliff!"
“It’s fine. I’ll give it to you tomorrow.”
“You don’t need it? And I’m not going to work tomorrow because it’s the weekend!”
“Oh. Right.”
Cheonma clapped his hands and quickly came down from the counter.
I walk to the corner where the hamburgers and hot dogs are placed.
“It’s the weekend tomorrow, so I have to pack up the hamburger today~”
“Hey! I ordered that hamburger.”
“They say the first one to catch it is the owner?”
"you…."
A cup of ramen falls to the floor.
The chase between the Cheonma and the Conquistadors began.
Beyond the spilled soup, a hot dog with a short shelf life was spinning in the air.
Falling to the floor of the convenience store.
The cleaning cloth flies around making a loud noise.
“Ah! Don’t pinch me! Why are you doing this to an old man who’s thousands of years old! A child?”
“You’re my spam!”
“You used the computer yesterday!”
“I don’t have any money, so sharing a studio apartment with you is annoying… and you have a computer!”
“I bought that computer with my own money!”
“What do you want me to do! I pay more for the studio apartment rent….”
Jangle jangle.
The sound of a convenience store door opening.
Pizarro and Seocheonma are entangled on the floor, friendly.
Look at that side.
The name tag on her chest.
Happy Convenience Store Assistant Manager.
Dark hair, white skin, and clear eyes.
She returned from the old timeline, looking flawless.
I have to hit it.
"uh…."
"oh…."
Cup ramen scattered on the floor, soup spilled out, a collapsed display case, and a rag scattered around.
Seeing that, Park Aya smiles brightly.
"we."
"ha ha ha…."
“Shall we clean up together?”
####
“Snow in April? Isn’t that abnormal weather?”
“It’s because the glacier melted. You stupid old lady.”
“When I think of the glacier, I think of that day.”
“At that time, I almost fell to my death because of that old lady.”
“Is it because of you?”
“No?”
Now, Pizarro and Seocheonma are out of their convenience store uniforms.
Friendly next to the counter.
Just like mother and daughter, they are shaking their heads and picking at the hot bars one by one.
Park Aya, who came in later, quietly wore her work uniform.
I'm guarding the counter next to them.
“Not getting off work?”
“Sister. It’s boring to go home and play with your mom.”
“I’ll say what I have to say first and then you can start talking.”
“Ha! And if we drink beer together, tell me what we talk about?”
And then, Seocheonma raises his head towards Aya.
"Talking about history. About the Incas, the old days, the days of Ego."
“No… fatally….”
Aya smiles brightly and accepts the empty hot bar skewer that Cheonma offers.
“But what can we do? Isn’t the cost of a studio apartment a shared expense?”
“That’s true….”
“Haha! Kid! Know the horrors of capitalism.”
“For someone born in a time when there was no capitalism, let alone computers….”
Saying so, Cheonma and Pizarro stand side by side in front of the counter.
“But it’s really snowing a lot. Snow in April.”
Saying that, Seocheonma quietly looks at Aya's expression.
“What is that? Teacher…?”
At those words, Pizarro's eyes also turned towards Aya.
Aya shakes her head with a dark expression.
"yet."
“Oh, I see.”
"What are you worried about, you idiot? My dear, you're no ordinary man."
“That’s true, but….”
The convenience store becomes quiet.
“And your memories will come back soon. No, they have to.”
"why?"
To Cheonma, who was looking so puzzled, Pizarro smiled brightly.
“Our dear, maybe you remember the location of El Dorado?”
"and…."
“That ex-android bitch. She doesn’t even answer texts about what she’s doing.”
“Write a message!”
“Talk is too difficult… Texting is easier….”
“It’s the same?”
Saying so, the two women look at the assistant manager.
Aya smiled at them.
“Because I believe.”
“….”
“Because I believe that you will come back.”
The two workers agreed with silent expressions.
Pizarro patted Aya's shoulder once.
Cheonma nodded his head vigorously.
The two of them argued loudly and left for the snowy city of Seoul.
“….”
Aya quietly picks up the convenience store remote control and turns on the monitor.
"President Chung Suk-hyun's approval rating has... hit an all-time high. It's astonishing..."
"Usually, a lame duck period comes at the end of a term. This is all due to the president's new policies…."
The channel changes.
“Recently, there are a lot of people complaining of such symptoms, right?”
"Yes. That's right. Either you suddenly fantasize about losing your memories of a few months, or you delude yourself into thinking those months actually happened."
"It's only April, and I remember something from October! How strange."
“It’s all stress. If you come to my blog….”
“Professor, are you promoting it in the meantime?”
The panelists' laughter.
Aya turned off the monitor.
And then, Park Aya quietly walks towards the door.
White snow is wetting the April ground.
In the dark night sky of Seoul, beautiful pure white crystals dance and fall.
Aya's appearance changes.
Zenobia inside the wall, looking at the snowy night sky.
Open your mouth.
“I’ll wait.”
He waited for her, and she waited for him.
In the very short time that passed, winter came.
So, she waits.
I wait for that spring day when we meet again.
Snow falls and covers the world.
It was a season that was neither spring nor winter.
The story of a woman waiting for a man.
So, back in the world again.
The woman waits for the man.