I Was Just Having Fun With The Time Limit - Chapter 208

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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A tremendously enormous whale seemed to be approaching me.
I couldn’t say for certain if it truly bore the form of a whale, but in any case, it was something possessing an immensely vast presence.
That something spoke.
“Isabel. You need time. So don’t rush. It’s fine to return slowly. I’ll always be by your side.”
That something was Arun.
It felt as though Arun was whispering in my ear.
“Painful memories don’t fade away. So I’ll wait. You just need to cover them with good memories and summon a handful of courage. Leave the rest to me.”
I felt him stroking my head.
Clack-clack.
Back inside the train.
Spring, summer, autumn, and winter continued to pass.
‘I need to open my eyes.’
I became aware it was a dream, yet escaping from it proved difficult.
It seemed I still wanted to rest longer.
“No.”
I shook my head vigorously from side to side.
If all I needed to offer was the tiniest measure of courage, I could manage that much.
If I could summon even the smallest courage, Arun would take my hand.
With that aching body of his.
“I don’t have time to linger here.”
Arun was the greatest reason that made me flee, but ironically, he was also the greatest reason that made me want to return.
Before long, Arun had become the greatest reason for everything in my life.
“I need to go back, Isabel.”
Go and tell him I’ve returned.
Thank him for waiting for a coward.
Thank him for not hating me.
I need to hold him tight and tell him thank you.
I need to ask if he’s in pain.
I need to tell him I’m sorry for causing him pain because of me.
A pitch-black cave—no, a tunnel—began to come into view.
Clack-clack.
The train shook violently.
This train seemed reluctant to pass through the tunnel.
It was an extremely dark tunnel with no lights whatsoever.
Clack-clack.
I truly couldn’t see anything.
It felt as though I might lose my way, but it was alright.
“It’s a train, after all.”
A train runs along its rails.
As long as the rails lie beneath the train, there’s no possibility of losing the way.
As long as the train didn’t stop, I would keep moving forward.
As long as I didn’t stop, someday these rails would carry me to where I wanted to go.
My rails were Arun.
[You have arrived at the final station.]
[We hope you had a peaceful journey. Farewell.]
I decided to end the dream.

* * *
Whoosh.
I pulled Arun into my arms.
“Thank you for waiting for me.”
Arun held me in return.
He embraced me with a presence far greater than that of a whale.
It felt as though I were cradled by the sea itself.
“I’m sorry for causing you pain. The truth is, I….”
I knew you were suffering.
I knew that taking my illness couldn’t possibly be without consequence for you.
Or at least, I think I knew.
“Shh.”
Without any magic, I found myself unable to speak.
That single “shh” completely silenced my lips.
“I wanted this, Isabel.”
Arun stroked my back as though it were nothing.
Like a mother brushing the back of a crying child, his touch was truly tender.
“So don’t feel guilty.”
“….”
Karin cleared her throat beside me with a soft cough.
“Your Highness Karin?”
“I still prefer the title of Teacher to Your Highness. I would be even happier if you simply called me Karin.”
I nodded, and Karin continued.
“Isabel. It’s true that Arun’s condition is serious, but he will be fine. It will be agonizing, but he won’t die. Kim Beolggwol’s body is formidable. Moreover, on Earth—particularly in South Korea—possessors and reincarnates possess numerous privileges, so they rarely die. It’s similar to how in films and dramas, supporting characters die from merely grazing a bullet, while the protagonist survives.”
“…What?”
“I’ve applied patches to Earth, especially to South Korea, to avoid causing trouble in your homeland. It’s a fascinating cultural sphere, this place. I’m explaining it in Korean terms for your understanding.”
Karin briefly explained how she had crossed over to this dimension.
As expected, she had followed my traces here.
The problem was that since this was her first time in this dimension, there had been various trial and errors along the way.
“The Vilotian Royal Family has already dispatched a pursuit unit. An elite force led directly by the Emperor himself.”
“What?”
A pursuit unit? Not a rescue or search party?
“He’s convinced that a wicked dragon has kidnapped his daughter….”
“….”
“His Majesty has declared that he will awaken the Black Dragon slumbering in his right hand….”
“….”
“Ah! It seems he referred to it as a dragon hatchling rather than a hatchling dragon.”
My biological father, truly.
If the real Black Dragon heard that, he’d be furious.
Right, for some reason, my biological father has become far stronger than the settings in the novel.
‘To protect my daughter from the dragon hatchling, I must become even stronger,’ he had said, but I never expected him to become this powerful.
“However, please do not forget that I was the one who found you first, Isabel.”
“Where did my biological father go?”
“It seems to be somewhere on the South American continent. As I mentioned earlier, since we couldn’t establish precise coordinates, they scattered across various parts of Earth. He will arrive in the not-too-distant future, but….”
Karin laughed lightly.
When someone normally stoic and intimidating smiles, it’s always more striking.
Karin’s smile always made my heart flutter.
“Before that, the return magic will be completed. In the end, the people who met Isabel in this world are.”
Karin glanced at Arun with clear displeasure.
“Two people.”
A muttered complaint reached my ears: ‘Tsk, if only the author didn’t exist, I alone would have been the protagonist’s savior.’
“Unfortunately, both of them seem to need more time.”
Karin rose from her seat and extended her arms toward me.
“Isabel.”
As if enchanted, I approached Karin and embraced her.
It was a different kind of firmness compared to Arun.
I hadn’t noticed it before, but a sweet peach fragrance emanated from her.
Somehow, my heart felt at ease.
“I will wait at home. Do not forget. Isabel has a home waiting for her. I will wait at home. And eat well.”

* * *
This was a hotel suite room with a spectacular view.
I didn’t ask how we got in here.
I could already imagine the answer: ‘I used a mind-control spell on the hotel lobby staff.’
Since we were traveling anyway, I decided to overlook such minor details for now.
“Let’s find a way to get back home quickly.”
This place wasn’t a favorable environment for Arun.
I needed to return to my world as soon as possible.
Once Arun returned to his true form in that world, he could evaporate human illness in an instant.
“Why?”
“You’re sick.”
“It’s bearable enough.”
“That’s not true.”
I knew that suffering better than anyone.
It was absolutely not at a level one could simply “bear.”
I had truly lived on despite wanting to die.
Even if Arun was more resilient and mentally stronger than I was, the sensation would be similar.
The magic Arun had used was that kind of magic.
“I know better than anyone how agonizing it is—how it makes you want to die. I’ve suffered from this illness for over a decade.”
“Back then, I wasn’t by your side.”
“Huh?”
“If I had been there, it would have hurt less.”
“….”
“Now you’re by my side.”
Arun smiled softly.
“As long as you’re here, I can bear it well enough.”
“No matter what you say.”
Beolkkot’s words were sweet, but they couldn’t be true.
“It must be agonizing—so much so that you’d rather die….”
“I suppose I love you more. So I’m fine.”
Arun spoke those embarrassing words as naturally as breathing, then continued quickly.
“I think this moment is precious. For Isabel, this place must be a painful homeland. There must be many wounds. This brilliantly shining blue star… I think it’s the only darkness that exists for Isabel. This time is a journey where we fill that darkness with light, bit by bit. I’ll illuminate it for you. Let’s cover your bad memories with good ones.”
Unfortunately(?), at that moment Arun transformed into Beolkkot.
It seemed he could no longer maintain his original form.
[We made a promise.]
That’s right.
We had promised to take a train journey.
At that height, in the night sky, under a blanket of clouds, we had linked our pinky fingers and made a promise.
[A massive metal object rolling along the rails.]
[Youth travel, let’s go.]
Kim Beolkkot seemed rather excited.
Certainly, when he looked like that, the pain seemed to ease a bit.
[Romance explodes!]
And so we boarded the train.
[Our train will arrive at Busan Station, our final destination, shortly.]
[Thank you. Goodbye.]
We had arrived in Busan.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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