# 310
310. Epilogue3. Earth
“Yes, patient. You can sign the relevant documents here.”
Information desk on the first floor of a large hospital.
She put her signature on the paperwork the nurse handed over.
“Since the patient was hospitalized due to overwork, you should take adequate rest. You shouldn’t overdo it while taking care of your health for the time being. Did you know?”
“…yes.”
she replied weakly.
The eco bag in his right hand contained items he had used in the hospital room.
Small laptop and charger. A couple of self-development books.
“Confirmed! The discharge procedure is over. You can go home now!”
The nurse smiled and waved.
She bowed her head to the nurse and exited the waiting room on the first floor of the hospital.
‘I’ve rarely been hospitalized.’
As I stepped out of the glass door, the chilly wind of early autumn brushed my cheeks.
hospitalization for three days. It was unfamiliar to her, who had no ties to the hospital.
‘Pick me up.’
It was the name of the game she was playing right before she passed out.
According to her mother, who found her collapsed, she did not let go of her cellphone while lying down.
‘Did you say it was overwork…?’
There is nothing wrong with the body.
I just lost my mind for a moment. The doctor diagnosed her as ‘overworked’, and her mother forced her to leave the hospital after three days.
ha.
A sigh escaped once more.
She rummaged in her pocket and pulled out an old smartphone. In the middle of the app’s desktop, an app named ‘Pick Me Up!’ was displayed.
[Thank you for loving Pick Me Up!]
[We at Mobius lived with the Masters for two years and felt happy…]
After touching the icon, a notice popped up in the middle of the login screen.
A phrase I’ve seen dozens and hundreds of times.
All kinds of sajok were attached, but the meaning was simple.
[‘Pick Me Up!’ will end service on X/XX, 201X.]
[Information on refund period…]
“What is this?”
You said it was a global game.
Until six months ago, it was a game company that attracted attention as one of the world’s leading conglomerates.
However, Pick Me Up and Moebius collapsed in an instant.
She then entered Pick Me Up’s official cafe.
The bulletin board was covered with posts and comments from numerous users, and it was in a mess with various profanity and criticism.
same in other places. In the game community, articles criticizing Pick Me Up were pouring in every day, and even a TV special program that uncovered the reality of Mobius appeared.
‘A ghost company?’
The CEO and most executives were hospitalized.
He denies that he has never founded such a company.
As if you were brainwashed by something.
In addition, several high-rankers who were playing pick-me-up fell into a state of brain death, and poor handling of accidents and careless server operation became issues one after another and
‘failed’.
could be defined in a word.
Pick Me Up, which was buzzing with 100 million downloads, was ruined.
‘Pick Me Up’, which she once thought was a game of life and wanted to keep as a precious memory until she died, ended like that.
“Where is this?”
she muttered blankly.
‘I finally found the game of life…’
The server stopped,
the account was suspended, and
the fate of the hero she cherished was unknown.
bread!
A taxi stopped in front of her, who was standing still.
The door opened and a boy in a high school uniform who sat in the seat looked up at her.
“What are you doing? You don’t even answer the phone. He came to pick you up at best.”
“…”
“Ride first. My aunt will be waiting for her eyes to fall out at home.”
The boy stepped aside.
She got into the cab.
The taxi carrying the two men and women drove down the road without a sound.
“Jinho.”
Suddenly, she was sitting still and opened her mouth.
“why?”
“Pick me up, how was it?”
The boy called Jinho frowned.
“That damn game?”
“…huh.”
“I tried to have some fun after a while, but he dug a hole on his own.
Jinho did not hide his displeasure.
“They didn’t even add a voice actor. There’s no costume function. It’s all luck and the server management is a mess. If I play a mobile game again, I’ll get my hands dirty.”
“Didn’t it look like you were alive?”
“Are you alive?”
Jinho looked back at her with hard eyes.
“What is alive. Are they the heroes or something in the game?”
She nodded.
“Ha, I told you to play games in moderation. That’s why I’m being carried away. If my aunt found out that my sister collapsed from game addiction, it would be normal to smash her back, right?”
“Yes.”
She instinctively flinched.
I knew the power of Back Smash because I was beaten since I was a child.
“Certainly, the artificial intelligence system seems to have been well made.”
“Yeah, is that so?”
“Why do you like it so much? Do you still have lingering feelings?”
Jinho’s eyes were suspicious.
She shook her head hastily.
‘I don’t want to get hit by mom’s back smash.’
She, too, was now an adult at work.
“When I go home, my aunt prepared a meal for me, so make sure to eat it. Don’t forget to go back to work tomorrow.
“Uh, okay.”
“I say it again, take care of your life! Play games in moderation. I’m not saying don’t play at all. I’m saying don’t play day and night. My aunt is very worried.”
“…sorry.”
“Don’t apologize. I didn’t mean to ask for it.”
Jinho bluntly averted his gaze.
She could feel that the boy was worried about her.
“By the way, sister, I went to visit the hospital two days ago, and there was a strange man in a suit in front of me. What is your relationship with that man?”
“uh?”
“You’re not going out with a man like that, are you? If it’s older than you, men will cling to you if you decorate it a bit.”
“Oh no! He’s nothing.”
Jinho looked at her suspiciously and shrugged.
“I don’t like to talk.”
“That’s why he said weird things. I think he was a common trader. I sent him back.”
She glanced at the eco bag next to her.
Inside was a paper bag handed over by a suspicious man.
‘Did you say 3 billion?’
And an officetel in Gangnam-gu and a high-end foreign car
in a certain area of Seoul.
‘Who gave it to me?’
Those were the words of a man in a suit.
The name of the property has changed, so please check it properly.
gulp.
She inhaled.
The relevant documents were packed in luxurious envelopes.
I thought about looking at the documents, but after thinking about it several times, I gave up.
‘Even if it’s real…’
I feel like I shouldn’t accept it.
There will be an original rightful owner.
‘If I don’t give it back…’
I think I’ll have to think about it for a while.
“We have arrived, sir!”
The taxi stopped at the entrance of an old apartment complex.
Jinho handed a couple of 10,000 won bills from his wallet to the driver and got out of the taxi.
“I’m going first. I have to go to the academy. Noona, go home right away. Don’t go the other way.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
“then.”
Jinho walked out to the other side of the apartment complex.
“Thank you for the ride.”
“The young lady is well-mannered.”
She bowed politely to the driver and got out of the taxi.
The apartment she lives in is right in front of the complex.
Take the elevator up to the 7th floor.
It was an old, small apartment.
Unlike Jinhone, who is a gold spoon, her house was shabby and rented, but she had a dream of one day building a house for herself and her mother.
Tilik. Tiririk.
After entering the password, the door opened.
Upon entering the front door, she was greeted by a family hanging on the opposite wall.
‘I’m back, Dad.’
There, a man on horseback lifting a trophy was smiling brightly.
Her father, once a promising equestrian but now absent from the world.
“Are you here, Soo-yeon?”
“Oh, I’m back!”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t pick you up. I want to feed my daughter a warm meal.”
“You don’t have to.”
A spicy smell wafted from the kitchen.
It must be her favorite menu, kimchi stew.
The stew will have tofu and pork in it.
“Are you really okay? Is it okay if I don’t rest more?”
“If I rest more, the manager will scold me. I’ll go to work tomorrow.”
“Okay. I’m almost done? I’m washing up and watching TV in the living room.”
“I’ll just pack up and I’ll help.”
“No, it’s okay. It’s unconditional. Mom will do it.”
A mother at a time like this cannot be stopped.
After packing her things, she sat down on the sofa in the living room.
There was an ad playing on the TV at the time.
[The unicorn… is alive!]
[Oni-chan!]
[I feed her and stroke her hair…]
A commercial for a mobile game.
It was a content that emphasized the bond between the user and the game character.
‘…one.’
She touched her smartphone.
The game that once burned her passion was in it.
‘I worked harder than that man.’
I didn’t even act like that guy.
She was still sincere.
‘I’m alive…’
What happened three days ago felt like a dream.
If anyone else knew what she was thinking, they would have laughed heartily.
He would click his tongue saying that he was a sick person who was overly immersed in games.
‘Why did it end there.’
It’s unclear exactly what her submaster Han Israt was fighting for.
But for some reason, I felt like I could feel his heart.
‘There is something I don’t know.’
She who belongs to the outside world will never know.
But…
‘alive.’
You might call it a delusion.
I couldn’t confide my feelings to anyone.
But she was sure.
‘Those heroes were alive.’
Even though it was just a game on a smartphone, they were fighting to the best of their ability.
That’s why she also dedicated a part of her life to it.
Because I wanted to see them do well.
“you… Who is it?”
she whispered into her smartphone.
There was no way she would get an answer, but she couldn’t bear it otherwise.
“ Han.”
Her face
contorted.
want.’
I want to know what happened to him.
I wanted to help him if I could.
“As expected, you…”
“Suyeon-ah!”
She woke up from emotion.
“It’s done. My daughter, let’s eat.”
“Oh, yes. I’ll go!”
My mother is waiting. She
can’t show her sad face.
She left her smartphone on the sofa and headed for the kitchen.
Then, the voices of mother and daughter echoed through the house.
A few minutes later.
Ughhh!
They lay on the sofa . The smartphone vibrates and
the
screen
brightens
.