Uijae tried contacting Honeybee, but the answer came back that Romantic Opener was still lost in his dreams. Unable to delay further, they decided to return using Mackerel's old car—one that Uijae had ridden in before, belonging to Jang Mi-sook. Though the car was heavily worn, it would have to do. Before they left, Mackerel gathered the remaining food left by his door and placed it in front of a nearby house.

"It’s for the elderly woman living alone."

"What about the others?"

"They all returned to the sea."

"…"

"She'll be gone soon too. She's already mutating."

How many more people, villages, cities, or even countries were disappearing like this? There was no way to know. The apocalypse was quietly covering everything in ashes.@@novelbin@@

A few goldfish swam in circles near the steering wheel. Mackerel sat in the driver’s seat, and with Sa-young squeezed into the passenger side, Uijae stretched out comfortably in the back. Most roads had turned to wasteland, and they had no choice but to rely on the few crooked signs that the whitening hadn't swallowed yet to find their way. Every bump in the road made Uijae feel nauseous. He closed his eyes, struggling to suppress the queasiness.

When he opened them again, he found himself in a hospital room filled with soft, warm things.

"When will I finally get out of here?"

Uijae smacked his lips as he looked at the white ceiling. The countdown kept ticking away, unrelentingly.

---

**Present Day, Seowon Guild**

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