When his younger sister was still alive.

In those days, the blessing of the stars was truly a blessing for the man.

Before he had the blessing, just walking down the street could lead to an encounter with an Object.

Even in an empty house, Objects would suddenly appear, so the blessing was indeed a blessing.

And even the slightly ambiguous 'Choice of the Stars' was considered a blessing by the man.

The reason was extremely personal.

He believed that the 'Choice of the Stars' was the blessing bestowed upon his younger sister.

He had a timid younger sister, afraid of people, who couldn't even step outside the house.

But after receiving the 'Choice of the Stars,' all those symptoms disappeared.

It was truly a miracle.

It was absolutely a blessing.

There were rumors that people who received the 'Choice of the Stars' turned antisocial, selfish, destructive, and hedonistic.

In fact, most of the "chosen ones" fell into professions like hitmen, jobs ordinary people wouldn’t dare touch.

It was widely rumored that everyone who received the 'Choice of the Stars' changed into someone completely different, as if they had become a new person.

But at least in the case of the man's younger sister, she seemed to be an exception.

His sister was still the kind and gentle sister he always knew.

She had just gained a little courage.

And, for the first time, the timid and helpless girl had a dream.

"Brother! One day, I want to leave this city and travel to another country."

It was a dream she repeated like a mantra.

Of course, the man only smiled vaguely at it.

Leaving southern Italy was utterly impossible as long as they were under the blessing of the stars.

And the man was terrified that the blessing of the stars might disappear, that the dream-like happiness they currently enjoyed would shatter.

But.

Dreams are meant to break, aren't they?

The moment he saw his sister return home, covered in blood, the blessed daily life he cherished fell apart.

Even now, that moment still seemed stuck to his retinas.

Strangely, all the wounds on her were self-inflicted.

And as if she was trying to say something, she mumbled with her lips before turning into a blue light and disappearing.

What exactly were you trying to say?

To find that answer, the man threw himself into the hitman business, chasing his sister’s footsteps, but he still hadn’t found an answer.

The only thing he discovered was that his sister had been chasing the source of the 'blessing of the stars' right up until her death.

Though he had no concrete clues yet, it felt like her death was somehow related to the 'blessing of the stars' itself.

"..."

The soft sensation of something brushing against his eyes slowly pulled the man out of his shallow dream.

Through his blurry vision, he saw a purple color and a shadow wriggling around.

Though hazy, it looked as though his sister had returned, so he called her name, but there was no response.

"!"

Something was wrong.

Fully awakened by the feeling of discomfort, the man hurriedly grabbed the gun he kept by his bedside and aimed it at the unidentified figure in front of him.

"What... are you?"

Was it an Object?

In this place, where the blessing of the stars descended, it was an Object unlike anything he had ever seen, but that’s the only way he could describe it.

It was smaller than the palm of his hand.

Purple skin.

A shadow that moved as if it were alive.

The uninvited guest, which took the form of an Object, was cloaked in shadows like a cape and was slightly tilting its head as it looked at the man.

But its overly confident posture and affectionate gaze seemed a little out of place.

The Golden Reaper tilted its head as it looked at the black-and-white, worn-out clothes.

"An Object?"

The clothes emitted an eerie aura, but they didn’t seem particularly harmful or beneficial to humans, so the Golden Reaper quickly lost interest and rushed toward Yerin.

Yerin’s house, where she had been waiting for the Golden Reapers’ visit, was full of all kinds of toys—everything from a small trampoline to things the Golden Reapers might enjoy.

In fact, Yerin had long wanted to take them to the Sehee Research Institute, but there were limits to how much she could sneak in, so all the toys remained at her house.

As they played joyfully, time quickly passed, and it was already after 10 p.m.

Then, as if they were incredibly sleepy, the Golden Reapers began to wobble their heads, crawling toward Yerin one by one and clinging to her.

Just like yawning spreads, sleepiness seemed to be contagious, and soon, Yerin found herself covered in Golden Reapers, like a Christmas tree.

A Christmas tree of Golden Reapers!

"It would have been nice if Sashin had come too…"

She thought about how wonderful it would be if they were all wearing cute deer pajamas and she could take a picture of them sleeping peacefully in her room.

As that thought crossed her mind, Yerin also began to prepare for bed. But one of the Golden Reapers, clinging to her cheek, rubbed its eyes as if it were still very sleepy and woke up.

"Oh, did I wake you? I’m sorry."

Yerin apologized, thinking she had disturbed its sleep, but the Golden Reaper was merely responding to a fleeting wish Yerin had subconsciously made.

"Do you need a mom?"

The Golden Reaper, tilting its head curiously, released a gentle glow from its antennae as it began to summon “Mom.”

The Golden Reaper that had called for “Mom” stared at Yerin with a playful smile before burying its face back into her cheek and falling asleep again.

"Huh? What’s going on with these guys?"

As one antenna began to glow, all the Golden Reapers clinging to Yerin started to emit a soft light.

Did she do something wrong?

At that moment, just as Yerin was panicking, a very displeased-looking Gray Reaper suddenly appeared in midair in front of her with a pop.

"Is that... Sashin?"

Yerin, who had been confused, suddenly smiled brightly, like a child receiving a Christmas present.

After all the Golden Reapers fell asleep past 10 p.m., Yerin was lying comfortably in her bed in the dim Isolation Room, watching TV.

'Mom...'

'Good.'

Around her, the sleeping Golden Reapers and Black Reapers clung to her, making it a bit annoying.

If they wanted to cling to someone, why not find a human attachment figure instead of bothering her every time? Normally, Yerin would’ve plucked them off one by one and thrown them out of the bed, but today she decided to just leave them be.

Despite the Golden Reapers’ affection, their behavior had seemed a bit strange lately, so Yerin declared it was time for the “Gentle Mom Week.”

The “Gentle Mom Week” would last until the Golden Reapers regained their innocent nature and stopped questioning everything she said!

As Yerin made up her mind, a faint but numerous amount of thoughts started reaching her.

'Mom.'

'We need you.'

The thoughts were faint, almost on the verge of disappearing, but they were plentiful.

What was going on?

Wondering if it was some major incident, Yerin teleported instantly, only to find a scene far from what she expected.

A very startled Yerin, wearing her mini deer pajamas, and the Golden Reapers sleepily calling out to her in their dreams.

A situation that, at first glance, didn't seem urgent at all.

‘...’

It wasn’t an emergency, so she considered going back.

But just as she was about to turn away, the sleepy Golden Reapers started rushing toward her, barely able to keep their eyes open.

‘Mom!’

Too tired to run properly, they rolled and tumbled on the floor, but they still clung to her as soon as they reached her.

Normally, Yerin would’ve spun around and thrown them off like a top, but...

Since it was “Gentle Mom Week,” she couldn't bring herself to do that.

As she hesitated, Yerin ran up to her.

"Sashin! Did you come to join the pajama party?"

In her hands was a stiflingly heavy deer pajama that covered her from head to toe.

‘Mom’s pajamas too!’

‘Mooom!’

The sleepy Golden Reapers, who were usually calm, began whining.

Yerin, full of anticipation and joy, radiated excitement.

Moreover, it was still “Gentle Mom Week.”

Unable to escape, Yerin had no choice but to put on the deer pajamas.

Sniffle, sniffle.

Hmm.

The man, somewhat dissatisfied, let out a low grunt as he walked down the street at night.

From under his coat, a tiny purple face was peeking up at him.

'No response.'

The small purple Object that had suddenly appeared before him was impossible to get rid of.

Even if he shot it with a gun, it was fine, and no matter how fast he ran, it followed him as if it could teleport.

A small, purple face.

Over-the-top gestures.

Whenever he held a cigarette or pulled out his gun, its eyes would gleam with excitement.

And lately, he found its antics somewhat cute, probably because of the powerful mental interference it seemed to possess.

It didn’t do any harm, so much so that he began to wonder if it was his sister reincarnated.

His sister loved the color purple, and after receiving the ‘Choice of the Stars,’ she had learned to control shadows, making the thought even more plausible.

Since there was no way to get rid of it and it didn’t seem to cause much trouble, the man simply grabbed his gear and went outside.

The man slowly walked through the now dangerous back alleys that had become perilous since the ‘Blessing of the Stars’ appeared.

There wasn’t a single person in sight, but it felt like eyes were watching from somewhere—an unpleasant sensation.

He entered a shabby shop hidden deep in the alley.

“You’ve arrived. Gunslinger.”

An old man with snow-white hair greeted him.

The old man, with his large hat covering his white hair, didn’t even glance at the man as he slowly read his newspaper.

The man collapsed into a chair by the counter, and the old man glanced at him with a quick movement of his eyes before speaking.

“Again?”

“Yeah.”

A question without context, followed by a response.

At the cryptic exchange, the purple Reaper’s eyes began to sparkle even more.

The old man was part of a group called ‘Blue,’ an organization built on a complex web of individual cells, and he had been the one supplying the man with work.

He had also been helping the man gradually uncover the truth behind his sister’s death.

Whenever the man asked why he was helping, the old man only said it was because of a "debt," always sounding a bit suspicious.

“Tell them I’ll be out for about three weeks due to injuries.”

With a brief comment, the man turned to leave the shop, and behind him, the old man’s quiet voice followed.

“Be careful.”

The man paused and briefly nodded before stepping out the door.

The old man wanted to say more, but the words never formed and instead dissolved in his heart.

[It’s good to investigate the organization, but be careful.]

Fearing someone might hear, the old man never dared to voice that particular thought.

The purple Reaper was bouncing in place, full of excitement, from within the man’s coat, hidden in the shadows.

‘So cool!’

With a wave of its hand, the shadow within the coat began to expand rapidly.

It was as if the shadow had opened up into another dimension, creating a new space.

The space that formed resembled the quiet shop where the man and the old man had spoken earlier, but instead of the old man, a white ogre was sitting in the chair. Instead of the man, the purple Reaper stood.

The purple Reaper stood by the door, projecting its will.

‘Tell them I’ll be out for three weeks due to injuries.’

The words appeared over the ogre’s head.

[Be careful.]

Then, the purple Reaper gave a slight nod before dramatically swirling its cloak and stepping out of the shop.

The shadow-created stage dissolved like bubbles at that moment.

‘So cool!’

The purple Reaper giggled gleefully, repeating, ‘So cool!’ over and over.