In the candy house perched above the chocolate sea within the Garden of the Mini Reaper Garden…
The air was split by the sound of something crumbling.
< R-reveal y-your identity! >
Startled by the noise, the Blue Reapers swiftly cast their search magic. Their efforts, however, only deepened their despair.
A ‘Gray Reaper Shark,’ with nothing but its antennae visible above the bubbling sea of hot chocolate, was ravenously attacking the candy house.
The Gray Reaper’s eyes, burning with a vengeful fire, glinted with unrelenting determination.
In an instant, a gaping hole appeared in the floor of the candy house, through which piercing yellow eyes emerged from the dark, hot chocolate sea, locking onto their target.
The gaze soon fixed on a Blue Reaper who had swung its marshmallow hammer.
As if to announce, Found you!
A gray hand surged out from the sea of hot chocolate, reaching toward the Blue Reaper who was sobbing in terror.
The slowly advancing hand sent shivers through the Blue Reapers, who trembled in unison.
The hand seemed to relish their fear as it seized the Blue Reaper it had singled out.
The Blue Reaper, engulfed in dread, pulled its hat down into the hand, trying to shield itself from the horror that was about to unfold.
At that moment, the Blue Reaper heard its Creator’s chilling message.
Should I put you in the washing machine like the Golden Reapers?
The Blue Reaper’s tears flowed freely at the thought. The prospect of being subjected to such a fate promised not only severe pain but possibly death, slow and agonizing.
The Gray Reaper chuckled at the sight of the Blue Reaper’s escalating fear and conveyed its will once more.
If I put you in the washing machine, you’d be seriously injured, and that wouldn’t be fair, right?
Hearing this, the Blue Reaper felt a glimmer of relief and thought, Mom is so kind.
Hmm, then… Yes! Yes! I will confiscate your hat for an hour!
Seeing the Blue Reaper’s brief moment of relief, the Gray Reaper grinned wickedly, snatched the hat, and fled to America.
The Blue Reaper, feeling the absence of its comforting hat, reached up with a trembling hand. The hat, its source of solace, was gone!
Stripped of its beloved hat and unable to move properly, the Blue Reaper sank into despair over the hour-long confiscation.
As the other Blue Reapers gathered around the hatless one, their faces etched with concern, they did little to alleviate its profound emptiness and anxiety.
The Blue Reaper couldn’t help but shed tears as it desperately searched for its mother.
While decked out in his exclusive, high-end protective suit, James strutted through the barrier like he owned the place.
Naturally, the first order of business was to tidy up the mess of relics strewn about.
What a haul of artifacts… Quite a few of them look eerily similar to Relic Number 0.
He thought this as he hefted a thick book, its edges expertly sliced.
It was almost a twin of the Relic Number 0 James already had in his collection.
The book he was examining seemed remarkably well-preserved, unlike James’s own battered copy. The metal trimmings and intricate patterns on this one were still pristine, untouched by the relentless march of time.
[ James. There’s a similar pattern here too. You should come take a look. ]
The radio crackled inside his suit, prompting him to move to the new location. There, he spotted a massive boulder, about the size of an adult’s torso, adorned with a pattern that matched the book’s blue girl design.
James instructed his secretary to preserve the boulders that appeared to be relics with the utmost care and added a little extra.
[ We’re going to need to bring in some archaeologists. Someone has to handle the skeleton and classify it properly. If we try to do it ourselves, it’ll be nothing more than a rough guess. ]
[I see. I’ll post an archaeologist recruitment notice right away. Should it be for about 6 months after James City is rebuilt?]
[ No, we need them now. With everything falling apart, we can’t afford delays. We still have some usable buildings left, so it should be enough. ]
At James’s directive, the secretary nodded and stepped back, leaving the field open for someone else.
Given the chaos following James City’s collapse, work was constantly landing on his plate.
James, who had clearly been pushing his limits, closed his eyes briefly and asked…
[ What’s the issue this time? It’s not about the budget, is it? ]
[ It’s a call from the ‘Mini Moon Observation Plan’. They’ve reported an unexpected change. ]
An unexpected change.
Aside from the dark blue moon, what else could have changed?
James glanced up at the sky, taking in the array of celestial bodies: a large, pale moon, a red moon, a blue moon, and the dark blue moon.
Ah, so something definitely had changed.
[ Tell them to keep observing. I’ll dig into Relic Number 0 to see if there’s any mention of similar phenomena. ]
As he watched the person leave, James sighed and looked skyward.
In James’ eyes, the once-large, pale moon now had a decidedly ‘gray’ hue.
After wrapping up the paperwork for the Glass Flamingo’s destruction and the intake of new Objects, I made my way out of the deputy director’s office.
My next stop? The containment room for the ‘Navy Blue Bud Reaper’.
The ‘Navy Blue Bud Reaper’ had been moved to the sleeping room way too late. Can you believe it? Researchers at the Object Research Institute failed to report the appearance of an Object that was showing abnormal behavior!
If I hadn’t stumbled into that chaotic scene in the sleeping room, the Bud Reaper might still be snoozing there.
Some folks who knew about the Bud Reaper tried to downplay it, saying it was just a cute sprout that was sleeping. Yeah, right.
The other Objects that popped up thanks to the Gray Reaper were all a handful to contain, so they had their hands full. But come on, the Bud Reaper seemed like a breeze to handle. Shouldn’t it have been contained properly?
I shook my head in disbelief and gave a star candy to the Golden Reaper.
The Golden Reaper chomped down on the candy with a crunch that sounded like pure satisfaction.
When I finally reached the containment room, the scene was a far cry from what I expected.
The flowerpot was surrounded by dirt, and the Bud Reaper was sprawled out on the table. It looked like a crumbling mess, with its sprout drooping like it was having a really bad hair day.
Surprised, I quickly scooped up the Bud Reaper and gently planted it back in the flowerpot.
There, all better now, right?
The Golden Reaper fluttered down from my shoulder and peered at the Bud Reaper in its flowerpot with a curious gaze. Maybe because the Bud Reaper looked so pitiful, the Golden Reaper nudged the star candy towards its mouth.
The Bud Reaper’s tiny tongue flicked out and began to taste the star candy, little by little.
I snapped a photo with my phone. Just for data purposes, of course.
< Status Report of the Bud Reaper. >
I couldn’t help but smile faintly at the adorable picture of the Bud Reaper with its little tongue out, looking as cute as ever.
< Mom! I looooove you!! >
After I returned the hat, the Blue Reaper perked up like a flower in spring.
I had actually planned to “accidentally” extend the hat’s confiscation by a whole extra day. But, oh dear, the Blue Reaper’s desperate little cries melted my heart. I ended up giving it back before the hour was even up.
It turns out, it’s a bit tough to prank someone when they’re already feeling weak.
But hey, fairness is important.
I glanced down at the Blue Reaper, all cozy and beaming up at me from the palm of my hand. Then my eyes wandered to the state of the hotel room—ugh, it was almost as messy as my containment room!
Yerin had kicked off her blanket and was snuggled up with the Golden Reapers. Some of the Golden Reapers were sprawled across the floor, fast asleep, while the mini Hungry Ghost sat on the table, gazing up at me with its big, curious eyes.
I pressed the mini Hungry Ghost’s belly, and it let out a cheerful ‘Gyuuu’ sound.
As I peered out the window, which was brightening with the morning light, a mischievous idea popped into my head.
Since my last prank didn’t quite hit the mark, why not try another?
I looked back at the white Hungry Ghost and let out a giggle.
Then I turned to the Blue Reaper, still looking all cheerful and content.
Hey, could you make this place look like a party’s about to start?
When I woke up, I couldn’t believe my eyes. The hotel room had been transformed into a watery wonderland, with decorations and trees all made of shimmering water.
It was like a party thrown by mermaids or something!
In the middle of this watery extravaganza, the Reaper was perched on the table, clutching a fork and knife in each hand.
The table was set with an array of utensils, and a big bowl sat in front of both the Reaper and me. The bowl’s lid occasionally rattled, making me wonder what surprise awaited underneath.
I couldn’t help but think, Please don’t let it be a Golden Reaper. Please!
The Reaper had a reputation for playful pranks, so I braced myself and lifted the lid. To my surprise, there was the White Hungry Ghost inside, looking at me with the saddest little eyes.
It did have a knack for playing pranks on the White Hungry Ghost and the Cute Puppy. Was this some sort of twisted joke?
Despite the Reaper’s blank expression, it looked oddly pleased with itself.
The Hungry Ghost whimpered as the Reaper’s fork and knife hovered menacingly. It was a mix of pitiful and, well, kind of hilarious.