The blue reaper had started to like this world, despite being pulled into it so suddenly.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

In this quiet world, the sound of the "Mom Golem's" footsteps echoed loudly.

With no one else around, it felt like they were the only two beings in this vast structure, creating an intimate atmosphere.

A world where the blue reaper could be cradled by the beloved human, leaning in close without anyone watching.

In this world, with just a little courage, the blue reaper could stay close to the beloved human as much as it liked.

The beloved human was secretly stacking snowballs on top of the blue reaper's hat.

"Hehehe."

Thinking the blue reaper hadn’t noticed, the beloved human chuckled mischievously.

Pretending not to notice, the blue reaper tilted its head up toward the sky, causing the snowballs to roll off its hat.

The beloved human let out a scream.

"No...! My white tower!"

Looking up, they could see a vast curtain covering the sky above.

Through the tattered curtain, an ambiguous sky neither fully day nor night peeked through.

The dim glow from that ambiguous light was this world’s “day.”

So strange.

Everything about this world was a wonder to the blue reaper.

Who on earth could have made this tower?

The tower they climbed with the beloved human was a massive structure unlike anything even from the "Mom" world.

The tower reached so high it seemed it might touch the sky, and it was wide enough to fit an entire city inside.

But the most curious thing was the structure of the tower itself.

It was as if round staircases were randomly patched together, with each floor designed so one could look straight up to the sky.

Why would anyone build it like this? All they’d see is the black curtain and the tiny glimpse of the sky beyond….

Time passed as they continued up.

The beloved human eventually became weary of the endless white plains around them and grumbled.

"This is so boring. The view’s all white, so dull…."

Feeling bored, the beloved human grabbed the blue reaper’s tiny hand and began playing pretend.

As they reached the end of the snowy plain, a dried-up field appeared abruptly, like winter and summer meeting at the border.

"A field!"

The pink-haired girl sat up straight and looked around.

Then, as if about to share a secret, she whispered to the blue reaper.

"Grandfather told me that when there was a sun, food used to grow all over this place. Isn’t that amazing?"

"What kind of food grew in this field? Canned goods? Snacks? Candy?"

The girl smiled, her face lighting up as she imagined delicious foods.

"That’s why I really want to reach the top of this tower."

<?>

The blue reaper formed a question mark in the air, unsure of the connection between snacks and the top of the tower.

"Grandfather said the very top of this tower stretches beyond the sky curtain. And beyond the sky curtain, there’s a sun."

"Someday, I’ll get to see the sun. And there’ll be fields filled with candy."

The girl giggled, as if talking about a dream.

James Tower on the Outskirts of Songpa District

Due to the frequency of incidents, the "temporary" label had long been removed from the control room.

James sat in the control room, watching a live video feed.

Upon discovering that the “Destruction of Civilization” phenomenon in Seoul Forest had ceased, drones were immediately dispatched to investigate.

The drone footage shook violently, flipping left and right, making one dizzy to watch.

"Hmm."

It was a nauseating display of extreme spatial distortion, but James’s expression remained surprisingly upbeat.

The drone is still intact, even while roaming all over Seoul Forest.

If the spatial distortion had been too severe, the drone would have been torn apart mid-flight.

At this level of stable distortion, there was no immediate risk of limbs being severed if a human entered.

But even without the immediate danger, entry restrictions were necessary.

Humans entering could easily become lost in an unending maze, unable to find their way out.

And there are so many golden reapers.

Golden reapers were everywhere, like crows perched on trees.

Some were lined up in a row, walking along the fallen leaves.

Others rained down from above, scattered by the spatial distortions.

Some dug furiously through the ground like moles.

The forest was so packed with golden reapers that it looked less like Seoul Forest and more like a “Golden Reaper Forest.”

Curiously, each golden reaper in the forest held a clear, bluish shard in their hands, glowing like water.

What could that shard be?

However, the drone’s camera couldn’t capture a clear image of it.

Trying to refresh his weary mind, James lifted his coffee cup from the desk.

?

Noticing that the cup felt slightly heavier than usual, he looked down to see a golden reaper clinging to it with a sheepish expression.

Ah! I’ve been caught!

The golden reaper had just pushed a sugar cube into the cup, smiling awkwardly.

So that’s why my coffee tasted sweeter each time I took a sip.

Seeing that James wasn’t angry, the golden reaper added another sugar cube and then stuck out its tongue, taking a small lick of the coffee.

Bleh! Still bitter.

The golden reaper grimaced, sticking out its tongue in distaste.

James picked up the golden reaper, gave it a gentle pat, and placed a jelly in its mouth.

Nom nom.

The golden reaper happily nibbled on the jelly, smiling in delight as it sat on James’s hand.

Deep Within Sehee Institute, in a Cozy Isolation Room

Nestled in Yerin’s embrace, I played with the ghostly reaper.

Edo!

Ahhh!

The golden reaper giggled as it was stabbed by the ghostly reaper.

The game I was playing involved getting the ghostly reaper to stab different targets.

The appearance of the knife changed each time it stabbed a different target, and the cry it made also varied slightly.

When it poked me, it cried, Hyo-do!

When it poked the mini reapers, it shouted, Ae-do!

When it stabbed an injured object, it cried, Yak-do!

When it stabbed a pot of white fish stew boiling nearby, it yelled Geng-do! though I wasn’t sure what that meant.

Bringing various objects for the ghostly reaper to poke, I watched Yerin glance at the TV screen and murmur to herself.

"Wow, so many golden reapers."

When I turned to look, the TV showed a dense crowd of golden reapers at the Seoul Forest checkpoint.

They filled the area, leaving almost no room to step.

The screen shifted, and the newscaster’s voice came on.

[The Object Association has issued an emergency statement, strictly prohibiting entry into Seoul Forest.]

[According to James Institute’s latest announcement, a “spatial loss phenomenon” has occurred around Seoul Forest, and caution is advised.]

The footage showed so many golden reapers deployed around Seoul Forest that it seemed excessive to think they were there merely to protect humans.

Odd.

Maybe they were just having fun roaming around in the spatial distortion?

Mulling over that, I shifted my gaze from the TV.

Picking up a mini white maw the size of a fist, I presented it to the ghostly reaper.

What kind of cry would it make when it stabs this?

Watching expectantly, I saw the ghostly reaper lift its knife high before slashing down.

Knifeeeee!

Kyuu-hihing.

As the blade embedded itself into the white maw’s plump back, it let out a sorrowful cry.

Well, the white maw suited a regular knife.

Hehe.

Crumble. Crumble.

As they walked across the bone-dry field, the ground crumbled underfoot, sounding like shattering sand.

The beloved human chattered endlessly, using the sand as background noise.

"Grandfather once said…."

"He told me about something called pudding…."

Half of the talk was about her grandfather, and the other half was about delicious foods.

While listening to her, time passed, and the faint light from beyond the curtain slowly dimmed.

"Hold up."

Upon her command, the blue reaper halted the Mom Golem, and strange creatures began to emerge from the surrounding shadows.

Objects!

They were harmful objects, reeking of evolution fluid.

"They’re grimoires that devour shadows."

The pink-haired girl’s face tensed with worry.

<Water needles, ten of them!>

Seeing her expression, the blue reaper quickly conjured water needles and launched them, but they had no effect.

It was like punching a shadow.

"Grandfather told me those grimoires can’t be killed."

"Just stay out of their shadows, and you’ll be fine."

The pink-haired girl, on high alert, looked around nervously.

"Getting caught by a shadow-devouring grimoire makes you lose a part of your shadow and erase an entire person’s worth of memories."

"But all my memories are of Grandfather. I can’t lose them."

Listening to her words, the blue reaper glanced down at her shadow.

!!!

The blue reaper was utterly shocked by what it saw.

The beloved human’s shadow was almost gone, as if gnawed away by rats.