Like me, Song Sun-young, who had been in a coma for a long time, wasn't in good shape either.
Her cheeks were sunken, her face gaunt.
Compared to her, who looked like skin and bones, I was in pretty good condition.
"…Hey?"
I broke the silence first.
'Ugh! Has my brain gone stiff like my muscles…?'
I should've started with an introduction, but I greeted her casually, like we were old friends.
How weird must she think I am?
"Hey."
Thankfully, she didn't ignore or find my greeting suspicious and responded naturally.
But that was it.
"…"
"…"
An incredibly awkward atmosphere, like we were meeting for the first time.
Of course.
We met in a dream, and the "Song Sun-young" I shared memories with was a fictional existence. The girl in front of me now is the real Song Sun-young.
And this is our first real meeting. We might've passed each other in the school hallways a few times, but that's it.
There's no connection beyond that.
'Stay calm, Kang Moon-soo.'
A dream is just a dream.
If I cling to it and hesitate, I can't move forward.
Never.
"You might not know me, but I'm Kang Moon-soo, the guy who caused a stir at school with my rare shaman aptitude."
"I know."
"…You're Song Sun-young, right? The doctor told me there's another student with the same symptoms as me."
The doctor never said that.
'What am I doing?'
I don't know why I'm lying to keep the conversation going.
It's pointless.
"I heard too."
"I see…"
"…"
"…"
I'm not shy, but as schoolmates, this was the extent of our possible conversation.
I didn't know what else to say. It felt wrong to keep a frail patient standing in the middle of a hospital.
"…"
Song Sun-young just stared at my face quietly.
What was she thinking?
How was she seeing me?
It was time to choose.
"…It's awkward standing in a busy hallway. Want to go to the rooftop? They say it's nicely decorated like a garden."
I didn't want to keep her here with meaningless chatter. It's hard for someone in her condition to stand for long.
If she refused, that'd be it.
I'd let go without lingering!
"Okay."
But she readily accepted the suggestion of a guy she'd just met, a fellow student.
'Could it be…?'
Thump, thump.
My cooling heart started beating warmly again.
***
The rooftop of a concrete building without a roof is a special place for us, filled with meaning.
Ding! Rumble-
We took the elevator straight to the hospital rooftop.
"Wow! They've completely blocked it off with iron bars and security cameras to prevent patients from jumping."
The rooftop railing was tightly secured with high iron bars.
It perfectly prevented any unfortunate incidents.
"Yeah."
Song Sun-young, scanning the rooftop beside me, agreed.
"Let's sit on that bench."
"Sounds good."
Whatever her reason, the fact that she followed me this far meant she was willing to talk longer.
I decided to ask a bold, possibly odd question.
"So—"
"Do you swim well?"
Song Sun-young, who'd been passively responding until now, asked first as soon as we sat on the bench.
Swimming.
It holds great significance for us.
"I used to only dog-paddle, but now I'm pretty good."
"…How?"
"I learned from a pretty girl in a dream whose aptitude was swimmer."
It's true.
The swimming techniques and knowledge she taught me still linger in my head.
"How pretty was she?"
"Long legs, slender, could be a swimsuit model."
"That's me?"
"Yeah, you."
"…"
"…"
Staring into each other's eyes, we were likely thinking the same thing.
'It wasn't just my dream!'
But the idea of two different people sharing the same dream is scientifically inexplicable, hard to believe.
So I tested her once more, this time with my question.
"How did people look to you?"
The same question I asked Yoo Il-am.
"Mannequins."
"Do they still look like that?"
"Hm… no. Now they don't repeat the same actions."
"…What about me?"
"Shaman guy?"
"How do I look to you?"
Our conversation began to blur the lines between dream and reality.
No.
It flowed naturally.
"A person. But not like a man."
"I see!"
And I was naturally rejected!
***
"I kept thinking I jumped off the school rooftop. No, I believed it. But… don't laugh."
"I won't."
"I was actually too scared to die and passed out in front of the railing…"
"Who told you that?"
"The doctor."
The conclusion was drawn because there wasn't a single physical injury.
I can't blame the doctor for being incompetent. The moment two different people shared a dream, we'd already transcended the realm of science.
"Ignore it. Yoo Il-am's claim sounds more convincing."
"Right. He came to me too, saying he cured me. Then he demanded payment from my parents. Unbelievable!"
"Did they pay?"
"Of course not. My dad's a doctor too. Like you, he firmly believes there's no illness that can't be explained medically."
"Good call. Yoo Il-am couldn't answer my question."
"What question?"
"Mannequins."
"Aha! He's a fraud."
After realizing we shared the dream, our conversation flowed easily.
As friends, not lovers!
'No choice.'
I knew why Song Sun-young liked me.
Because I was the only "real man" in her world. She had no other options.
But now?
Just looking around, there were plenty of decent-looking guys.
And girls too…
'Guess I haven't fully woken up.'
Unlike Song Sun-young, who adapted quickly to reality, I needed a bit—no, a lot—of time.
"Shaman guy."
"What?"
"I'm going to be a model. I decided to."
"But that's…"
It was a dream. This is reality.
She can't treat people as mannequins anymore.
Could she handle the countless gazes pouring in if she ignored her aptitude and became a model?
She said she couldn't.
I convinced her.
'No.'
I shouldn't say weak things to her now that she's made up her mind.
"I'll cheer you on."
Because I promised while convincing her.
"Shaman guy, don't worry about the promise we made in the dream."
"Still…"
"I'm confident I'll do better than swimming."
"Okay."
It feels like I got rejected again. Just my imagination, right?
"But first, I need to rebuild this wrecked body."
Song Sun-young playfully shook her scrawny wrist, smiling.
Her limp arm.
Right now, she looks more suited for a zombie movie cameo than modeling.
"My mom hugged me, crying, and said she'd help. My dad, a plastic surgeon, goes without saying."
"I see…"
Having a family that's safe and sound must be happiness itself.
"Shaman guy."
"What?"
"I don't trust that lying fraud, but I trust you. I experienced it myself. You'll definitely become a great shaman."
"Thanks."
Not like Yoo Il-am, though.
"It's getting cold. I'm heading back."
Song Sun-young stood, rubbing her shoulders.
"Take care."
"…Hey, Moon-soo."
"What?"
She stopped and turned back.
"Are you going to keep living in that house from the dream after graduation?"
"Probably. I don't have the money to move to a decent place."
"I see. Bye."
"Bye."
The us who met in a dream parted in reality.
***
The words I said to Song Sun-young in the dream applied to me too.
If you don't like your aptitude?
Find another job.
A simple yet incredibly difficult task.
It was proof of how much P's aptitude test influenced human lives.
'But first.'
I had to do something about my convenience store job, which directly affected my livelihood.
"Oh! Moon-soo! You're okay!"
"Yes. How've you been?"
"Same as always. Haha!"
The store manager warmly welcomed me as I staggered into the convenience store with unsteady steps.
"But, Moon-soo."
"Yes."
"I'm really sorry."
"…"
The manager, who loved games more than women, apologized to me.
'No choice.'
It was expected, so I accepted it calmly.
"It's okay. Really."
"I heard about your accident from your homeroom teacher, but I couldn't just keep the position open indefinitely without hiring someone."
"I understand completely."
Getting fired was only natural.
Not just a day or two—I hadn't shown up for over two weeks. Given the nature of a convenience store, someone needs to manage it daily.
'This is bad.'
The reality of needing to find a new job already made my vision go dark.
A small silver lining?
Since I was graduating high school soon, I'd have plenty of time. I'd given up on college long ago.
"You worked hard. Thanks to your diligence and honesty, I could enjoy my games with peace of mind."
The conclusion was always games.
He was always like this.
"I'm grateful too. Thanks to you mistaking your main job, I earned a decent income."
"Hey! It's not a mistake. My real job is gaming. Ask anyone on the street if they know my name."
"Oh, I know. You're famous."
"For real! Believe me!"
"I do believe you. You showed me that article about the exhibitionist heartthrob, right?"
"Exhibitionist… No, that's…"
"Thank you for all the accommodations, and I hope your VR game business thrives."
"It's already thriving. You just don't know it."
"I'll get going."
I turned, letting the manager's obsession with fame slide.
"Thanks anyway. Come by sometimes! I'll give you something."
"Sure, I'll drop by."
Ding~♪
At that moment, a customer with an exotic vibe entered the store.
'That outfit is wild.'
A pointed witch-like hat and a black cape, paired with a gothic short skirt and black fishnet stockings, kept drawing my eyes.
'An actual witch? In this day and age?'
Not that I, with a shaman aptitude, should talk.
"Welcome!"
"…"
"Oh no, where did I put that translator? Ugh…"
The manager, sweating as the unresponsive customer ignored his greeting, rummaged through the drawer under the counter.
Meanwhile,
"You're the one."
"Huh?"
"Surprising. I thought you'd look more extraordinary."
"What…?"
The customer, clacking toward me in high-heeled black boots, whispered softly.
Her voice was eerie yet beautiful, like a demon's.
'Who is she?'
Her face was hidden under the deep hat, but the glimpse of a delicate jawline and full lips suggested beauty.
"You didn't know?"
"…"
"Interesting."
"Sorry, I think you've got the wrong person."
"We'll see if you can interfere again."
"Hey?"
Ding~♪
The customer, as arbitrary as Yoo Il-am, left the store dragging a large bag.
'She came to the convenience store to meet me? Why me?'
I couldn't understand.
"Here it is! I haven't used it in ages, so it was tucked away—huh? Where's the customer?"
"She left."
"Ugh…"
"I'll head out, boss."
"Yeah. Come back often."
"Sure."
Ding~♪
This was my chance to defy the fate of my aptitude and find a decent job.
'If Song Sun-young can do it.'
If I, who beat the human dolphin at swimming, can't do it, that wouldn't make sense, right?
It wasn't easy.
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TL Note — From now on, regular chapters will be updated 5 chapters per week.
If you want to read ahead, join my P@tron for early access:
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Just go to P@tron and search Vritra Translation (you can see a purple picture of dragon with Vritra scans below it)
If you want to read this novel, just check the collection under "Shaman: The Breaker of Dreams."
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