Chapter 317: Restoring memory

It’s been a week since Da-in lost his memory.

“…Da-in?”

~The living room of the house in the middle of the day~

Seo Eun came to the door and looked for Da-in, scratching her head. ‘He’s not here, where did he go…?’

Just then, she heard a voice from under the sofa.

“Da-in…he’s on the veranda.”

Seo Eun turned her head quickly, and there, lying on the couch, was Seo Ja-young.

Her purple short hair leaning against the cushions, she was lying on the living room floor as always.

When I saw her staring blankly at the ceiling, assimilated into the living room, I wondered if she had a protective color.

“Thank you, Sis.”

“You’re welcome… Can I have a twisty ice cream when you come back…?”

“I didn’t buy that.”

“…Oh.”

With that, I left Seo Ja-young, who was mumbling something like, “Why did this tragedy happen to me…” alone and walked toward the veranda.

Then, I saw Da-in figure on the veranda outside the window.

I saw him leaning on the railing, facing the wind, looking at the panoramic view in front of him.

“Ah…”

For a moment, I was about to open the veranda door and approach, but stopped myself.

“…Da-in.”

Ever since Da-in had lost his memory, he would sometimes appear to be lost in thought while gazing out at the scenery like this.

In fact, he used to stand outside and think a lot, but after he lost his memory, he did it even more. From the looks of it, it was a habit he had had for a long time.

“….”

With that, Han Seo-eun stared at him deep in thought for a moment.

…That kind of Da-in is also cool… Not like this! Eh, whatever.

Seo-eun shook her head and thought back to what she had seen of Da-in recently.

In the last week the amnesiac Da-in had been different from his usual self.

He was the same kind, gentle, caring man, but…

‘Somehow, he was a little colder…’

It wasn’t that he was cold because he had lost his memory.

It was because he’d been kind, if awkward, when he’d heard that she and the rest of the Egostream family were colleagues. …Though he’d been more reserved than usual.

But what she wanted to say was something more fundamental.

That is, he was a little more somber than his usual laughing, joking, and serious self. Something sober, unapproachable…?

‘Before you met us, you were like that…’

She didn’t know, because the Da-in she knew had been smiling at her since their first meeting, no matter how coldly she tried to push him away.

…And of course, she liked the Da-in who smiled that much better than she did now.

‘And then…’

He seemed to have changed a lot, too. After living with them.

Of course, the one thing they both have in common is that they didn’t tell me about the past.

He never told me what he did before I met him, what he was doing, or what his life was like. All he could do was repeat the same old story that no one would believe, that he was just a normal college student.

Actually…To be honest, I once hacked into Da-in’s life to find out what he was doing.

That’s how I found out.

‘…No record.’

There is no record of him anywhere in Korea.

I searched and searched, but I couldn’t find any record of him anywhere. It was as if he had been used as a test subject by the Han Eun Group and had no record of his life.

…So, I wondered if I could use this opportunity to learn the secret of Da-in, who always seemed to be hiding something.

‘No way.’

After all, even if he lost his memory, he was still Da-in but no matter how subtly I ask, he never talks about the past, and it’s almost like an iron wall.

I sometimes wondered what he had done in the past to know so much, but it seemed unlikely that I would ever find out.

Still, it wasn’t as if I hadn’t learned anything this time.

‘…Hehe.’

That’s right, he’s becoming aware of her!

The corners of her mouth twitched upward at the sight of him blushing when she got close to him, unlike usual.

Especially the way he treated her as an adult and gave her respect was very different. Yes. She had been so attached to him that he had gotten used to her… Yes, she is an adult now…!!!

Anyway, she saw hope, so she decided to be stronger in the future. Her older sister had once told her that men were meant to be earned. Of course, she was too young to understand what she meant, but now she felt like she did.

Anyway…

“…..”

And now, slowly, the promised week has come to an end.

The moment had come to give the diary back to him, to restore his memory, and to see the normal Da-in again.

“Da-in!”

“…Huh? Seo-eun?”

Thinking of that, Han Seo-Eun smiled broadly and approached Da-in.

This was probably the last time she would ever see the amnesiac Da-in.

***

~That night, more than a week after I lost my memory~

Today, finally, I sat in my room with my diary, determined to regain my memory.

‘…Da-in I didn’t open this. I think only you can open it.’

After receiving the diary from Seo Eun, who looked down with regret and handed it to me, I was in my room, silently staring at the diary in my hands.

Currently, all of the members of the Egostream are sitting in the living room, waiting for the results.

Only after refusing to stay with them for fear of what might happen, did I open it alone. Of course, this diary would contain all my secrets.

“…Phew, let’s read it.”

I don’t know how the hell I got my memory back, but I did it, so it must be working. Why would I want to just read the diary?

I’ve done enough self-reflection in the past week, it’s time to read my journal.

With that thought, I reached for the journal.

And just like that, the magic circle on the cover glowed and the journal opened.

“Okay…”

With that, I began to read the diary slowly from the beginning…

I don’t know how much time passed.

“Mmm…..”

When I finally finished reading the diary, I closed the book again.

The diary was quite detailed, recording everything that had happened and my feelings at the time. From the first day I fell into this world, to the day I planned to kill the Moonlight Lord and enter Carqueas.

Reading it, I realized that I’ve been through a lot in the years I’ve been in this world before I met Seo-eun, and that I’m a bit irrational when it comes to Stardus, because I still don’t know her mind.

Aside from that, there wasn’t much else to it other than my head spinning and a few flashes of memories from the past. Surely this can’t be the end…?

The moment I thought that.

“Ugh…!”

Suddenly, I felt dizzy, and something flashed in my head.

“Hello, I’m Egostic!

‘Stardus, you can do it. Stop the plane from crashing.’

‘Da-in, Da-in! Uh. Oh, my God. Da-in!!’

‘….You’re really going to help me? …Why, I’m just a monster…’

‘…Da-in, did you say that?’

‘Everyone, today’s surprise. That’s it for dealing with the Moonlight Church. Did you all have fun?’

‘Then this is the most obvious one….No?’

In my head, memories of the past few years began to flood in.

The waves of memories hit me hard, and I stopped dead in my tracks.

**

* *

* *

“…Da-in, are you awake?”

“Ugh…Hmm?”

I opened my eyes to a familiar voice.

“Uh… Seo-eun?”

“Uh! You’re awake!”

“Da-in, are you okay, do you remember me?”

“Yes, Soobin…of course.”

With that, I got up from my seat, my hair still sticky.

I opened my eyes and realized that I was in the living room of my house. And I’m surrounded by all the members of the Egostream.

Which means…

“…I, did I succeed in killing the Wish Granter?”

“You mean that monster? Yes.”

“Phew. That’s good.”

I said that and sat down.

…I’m still dizzy, but the plan seems to have worked. I seem to have found all my memories.

“Hmm…”

I thought to myself, then realized something.

‘…Wait.’

I had decided to enter Carqueas to capture the Wish Granter…

‘…And I have no memory of that?’

I was taken aback for a moment, but decided to let it go.

It wouldn’t matter since it wouldn’t be a very important memory.

With that thought, I retreated to my room after a brief catch-up with my companions.

…It doesn’t really matter, but I’m curious as to what I’ve been doing without my memory.

I opened my notebook and found the document I had written as an amnesiac.

I was a bit surprised to see my amnesiac self’s summary of what I’d been doing up to this point. It seems I’d been doing some sort of inspection and reflection. It’s me, the workaholic, even if I’m in another world.

While thinking this, I scanned through the comments and smirked when I came across a strange sentence.

[Stardust seems to like me.]

“…whatever.”

He’s writing his own wish list for me to analyze. Is this my past level of insight…?

I thought to myself and closed the document without thinking.

I’m hungry. Gotta eat.

…I didn’t realize at the time but I shouldn’t have made that choice.

***

That time.

“Hah…”

S-class Hero Stardus, Shin Haru’s home.

Shin Haru was lying on her bed, her blonde hair hanging down in a ponytail, staring blankly at the sky.

It’s been a week since she’s been separated from Egostic.

During that time, she had remained in this slightly dazed state the entire time.

The reason, of course, was because of him.

‘…Egostic.’

Is he okay, has he gotten his memory back?

Ever since they parted like that, she hadn’t been able to focus on anything else.

…Until now, she thought things were going pretty well. She wondered how it ended up like this.

Lately, as she went to bed, lying alone on an empty bed, hugging the cushion, Stardus wondered idly, feeling his absence.

…Yeah. Still, he said he was sure he’d get his memory back. The Egostic she knew would have thought of a way.

Surely, he’d remember everything and emerge smiling again. …Yeah. She’s sure he will.

Now, if he could just get his memory back…

They have grown so close in Carqueas. They’ve shared so many moments together and gotten to know each other.

She was sure they could become even closer.

Yes, they will. They will…

With that expectation, she closed her eyes prematurely.

…without realizing what was happening.