Surviving Among the Letters

By the time I regained my senses, it was already close to midnight.

“Did they say they were in the infirmary…?”

I quietly got up, opened the door, and stepped into the corridor.

Since it was past bedtime, the hallway was pitch black.

Relying only on the emergency lights, I made my way to the infirmary.

◆◇◆◇◆

Without much thought, I walked and eventually arrived at the infirmary.

I couldn’t bring myself to enter, so I stood silently in front of the door.

But at that moment, the infirmary door opened.

And the one who appeared was none other than the Director of the Infirmary, Messie.

“Why aren’t you coming in?”

At those words, I finally stepped into the infirmary.

And the sight I faced when I looked at Remy was that of a critically ill patient.

“Why don’t you sit?”

The Director sat on a luxurious sofa that seemed entirely out of place in a hospital room.

Next to him, there were glasses and a laptop.

When I quietly stared at them, the Director explained.

“Huh? This? I still have work to do. I thought you’d be here in a couple of hours, but I never expected you to show up just as it’s almost midnight. So, I brought some work with me.”

Ignoring his explanation, I walked toward Remy’s side.

I quietly took his hand and asked the Director about Remy’s condition.

“How is he…?”

“It’s already past the point where surgery could help. The tumor has grown too large. Based on what was sold to our research lab, it must have been serious from the start.”

The Director said surgery was impossible.

But in this story, there are countless other ways to save a person besides surgery.

“What about magic? What about psychic powers? Those can bring the dead back to life, right?”

“Of course, magic and psychic powers can bring back the dead. But the problem is, the illness in case 14 is a brain tumor.”

Messier got up from the sofa and approached me to continue explaining.

“Losing an arm? That can be fixed by magic, psychic powers, or science. It’s just about restoring the function of the arm, right?”

He gestured, swinging his arms around.

“As long as it bends, straightens, moves left and right, and the hand moves too, it’s fine if the shape or details aren’t perfect. But the brain? What happens if even a tiny change occurs?”

“No…”

“Right. Our humanity has made incredible advancements, but there are still areas we haven’t conquered. And the brain is one of those areas. We still don’t know exactly how the brain works and thinks. The soul has been observed, but how it connects to the brain is still a mystery.”

“So… does that mean even with magic or psychic powers, proper treatment is impossible?”

“Yes. In fact, it might be better to let him die. I’ve seen cases where it’s too far gone to be fixed, even with all kinds of methods.”

The Director’s explanation was understandable, but one question lingered in my mind.

I clearly remembered a character from the original story who could regenerate even after their head was destroyed.

Then how is that person able to regenerate and stay intact?

“Then how does regeneration work? I remember hearing about someone who was able to recover even after their head was blown off.”

When I asked the Director about this, he gave me a detailed answer.

“Don’t you know?”

Well, maybe not so detailed.

“Don’t look at me like that. I really don’t know. It’s still an unsolved mystery. From what I can roughly guess, regenerating oneself happens because the body remembers. Whether it’s unconsciously or consciously.”

“Sigh… So, is there no way?”

“That’s right. No way. When case 14 regains consciousness, at least you can say your final goodbyes. You can stay in the infirmary for now.”

With that, the Director left the infirmary.

At this point, the only thing left for me was my last resort.

Praying.

I hoped that a miracle would occur in the time remaining, that Remy would gain the ability to regenerate.

…

Regeneration ability!

In that moment, I rushed out of the infirmary and followed the Director.

“Haah… haah…”

“Case 13? Do you have more questions?”

“Haah… Is it possible to… freeze Remy?”

At that, the Director opened his eyes wide in surprise.

“It shouldn’t be impossible. Are you thinking of waiting until the time passes and then trying to treat him once that’s possible? In my opinion, it would still be impossible even after 100 years.”

But that wasn’t my simple plan.

At least by the time I’m in my mid-20s, there’s a way to wake him up.

The Iris fragments.

The Iris crystal, split into six pieces, is the source of all evil, but also the hope of the world.

And the protagonist of this novel, Idealist Hero in the Paradise, which I’ve been reincarnated into, is planning to collect the six Iris fragments.

The boy I first saw when I was reincarnated.

The one who lost his younger sister and cried out in despair—that boy is my hope.

The boy who plans to gather all six Iris fragments and close the gates of the world.

And finally, after nearly 700 episodes, the boy gathers all the fragments and achieves his goal.

Thus, he becomes the true Idealist Hero in the Paradise.

Arwin Casa.

He will somehow gather the Iris fragments.

And I can steal them and use them however I want.

Then, with the help of the Director, I will grant Remy the ability to regenerate.

“I will give Remy the regeneration ability.”

“Huh?”

“Waiting for treatment is already too late. And you said it yourself, right? That regenerating yourself isn’t a problem. It’s simple. We just grant Remy the regeneration ability.”

“Are you asking me to give case 14 the regeneration ability?”

“No. This isn’t a request. It’s a deal.”

“A deal…? You?”

“Your goal. I’ll help you achieve the ability creation faster. What? Aren’t you the genius you highly praised?”

Upon hearing my words, the Director laughed loudly.

“Ha-ha-ha-ha! Hah-hah-hah-hah!… ”

And the Director’s expression changed from the gentle version I had seen until now to the mad scientist look I had seen before.

“Alright. Until now, I’ve only seen you as a promising genius. That’s why I’ve treated you well. I do like children, after all.”

The Director bent his knees to match my eye level.

“You gave up the position of a child and proclaimed yourself as a collaborator, so I’ll adjust accordingly. But tell me this—are you really worth it?”

“Worth it?”

“You’re a genius. A genius beyond what one would expect from a 12-year-old. But is there really no researcher who’s far better than you? The moment you gave up the advantage of your age, your worth started to diminish. Don’t you think?”

“…Then how can I prove my worth?”

“First, finish the work you’ve been doing. Stop messing around with that strange experiment with case 14. Unleash your abilities. Can you do that?”

The Director asked me to prove my worth with a tone that implied he didn’t think I could do it.

But what he didn’t know was that this wasn’t some weird experiment—it was enlightenment. And I had already confirmed my abilities.

Now, all I had left to do was eliminate the rejection that occurs when someone tries to gain enlightenment.

“Yes. But I have one request.”

“What request?”

“Please let me conduct some human experiments. How many subjects are left? Did you say about 80? Give me half.”

“…?”

“I need to do this as quickly as possible, so how about 7 people a day? Should be doable in a week, right?”

“…?”

It seemed the Director didn’t understand what I was saying.

He remained kneeling, his gaze still fixed on me, completely frozen.

I suppose it’s understandable. He had worked hard to gather these subjects with money, so asking for half of them might be a bit shocking.

Maybe this isn’t going to work…?

“Well… um… I’ll grant you the experiment rights for a while.”

After some hesitation, he seemed to decide to grant my request.

He must have judged that I was worth more than the subjects.

This was the least he could do.

After all, he had said with his own mouth that he was treating me specially.

“Then, I’ll be with Remy. I’ll come to your office at 8 AM when the wake-up alarm rings.”

With that final statement, I turned and headed back to the infirmary.

The last expression I saw on the Director’s face was one of subtle emotion. It looked like there were many things he wanted to say, but he just couldn’t.

It was a face that seemed both happy and sad.

But so what?

It’s just printed words written by the author.

The priority is saving Remy first.

◆◇◆◇◆

Side: Messie Atraya

I am 29 years old.

I’ve never seen a child like her before.

Case 13. Was her name Blanco?

Since it’s different from the registered name, she must have discarded her original one.

Anyway, the reason I first took interest in her was because she resembled my younger self so much.

I am well aware that I’m very much out of my mind.

I wasn’t always this way since I was a child.

It’s just that I went crazy as I lived.

The goal of creating abilities came about because of that.

To ensure that no child like me would suffer from a lack of abilities.

To make sure there are no more children discriminated against.

But for a 20-year-old like me, challenging such an impossible goal was incredibly difficult.

Everyone dismissed it as delusion. While some sympathized with my intentions, no one extended a helping hand.

That’s when I learned about the organization Byulmuri.

It was filled with incredible people.

The president of the Korean Ability Association, the owner of the well-known Camellia Island conservation group, the chairman of the Abio Genesis Group, and even the developer of the must-have translation bracelet.

And they reached out to me.

They said that those who pursue impossible goals should help each other.

With their help, I started to make progress on the ability creation.

And, just like them, I started to lose my mind.

For my goal, I began to discard everything else.

Even the children I had once considered most important, I started to use as test subjects.

It was during this time that I noticed her.

How worried I was.

I kept a close watch on her, thinking, Please don’t end up like me.

That’s why I spoke to her in the Director’s office.

Could she grow up properly?

And when I saw her decide to escape from this hell, I was able to relax.

She was trying to act right to escape this research facility.

She was growing up normally.

She wouldn’t end up like me.

However, after case 14 collapsed, and I spoke to her again, I realized I had misjudged her.

She had already reached completion.

She would discard everything for her goal without a second thought.

Just like me.

Without hesitation, she accepted my impossible goal.

She said she would help me, just like the seniors from Byulmuri.

She said, without any hesitation, that she would use children of the same age as test subjects, just like me.

It’s truly a shame that a child who could have become a good person has turned out this way.

But I’m glad that I’ve found a companion who will challenge impossible goals with me.

She will probably succeed in awakening her abilities.

In that case, I need to prepare for that moment in advance.

Drrr-rururu Drrr-rururu.

I picked up my phone and called the person I needed to speak with.

[Hello, Messie Oppa?]

“Yes, Cortez. Can I talk to you for a moment?”

[Sure, I was just resting.]

“I need to urgently turn someone into a cryogenically frozen human.”

[Is there someone important to you, Messie Oppa?]

“Well, it’s not exactly for me, it’s part of a deal with someone else.”

[Alright. Should I send people to the lab tomorrow? What’s the person’s name?]

“Remy Trauss. If you say case 14, they’ll all understand.”

[Subject..? What on earth happened…?]

—Soon, someone else will be joining Byulmuri—