* * *

My mind was hazy, as if shrouded in a thick fog.

I couldn’t see anything, yet something warm and indistinct surrounded my body.

It had no tangible form, but the warmth was unmistakable. It felt like being inside an egg.

Was this some sort of reincarnation?

First, I had been possessed, and now I might have been reborn as an animal hatching from an egg?

If that were true, I needed to break out of it.

Without my own effort to crack the shell, I would perish.

But my body wouldn’t move.

Not even a twitch of my fingers.

That’s when I realized—it wasn’t that I couldn’t see anything; it was that I couldn’t open my eyes.

‘…Does it even matter if I die?’

I gave up trying to leave the egg.

I wasn’t sure why I was still capable of thinking, but I felt I had tried enough.

There was no need to push myself further.

Actually, it would be better to just let me go now.

I was exhausted. I wanted to rest.

I had done everything I possibly could.

After all, I had died the way I needed to—useful, beautiful even…

“…”

I thought I heard a voice.

Someone was pulling me out.

They forcibly dragged me from the egg.

My body sank, limp, into their arms.

Two arms wrapped around me, holding me tightly.

…Was it a person?

If it was, then…

‘Who…?’

I couldn’t tell, but I wasn’t afraid.

The hands holding me were careful, as if cradling something fragile and precious.

Through their embrace, I could feel the thudding of their heartbeat.

Strong and fast.

Had they just exerted themselves?

Their body was warm—warmer than the warmth that had previously enveloped me.

And… there was a wonderful scent.

A familiar one.

I knew this scent well. I had smelled it before—many times.

The memory was vivid.

This scent was…

---

When I opened my eyes, golden sunlight poured into my vision.

Instinctively, my gaze shifted to the window.

Pale curtains fluttered gently in the breeze, which felt cool and refreshing, as if cleansing the stale air.

I took a deep breath.

The crisp air filling my lungs was unexpectedly pleasant.

The faint noise of the city drifted in through the open window—not loud enough to be disruptive, but just enough to feel alive.

Was this heaven?

No, that didn’t seem right.

I wracked my brain for memories, but aside from my own and Yang Heewon’s, there was nothing else.

This wasn’t another possession, was it…?

“…Hm?”

Something was covering my hand.

No, someone was holding it.

That’s when I realized I wasn’t alone in this room, which looked like a hospital ward.

Someone was slumped over the edge of my bed, fast asleep.

Their dark hair was smooth and thick, and their body seemed too large to fit comfortably in this position.

They were wearing what appeared to be a suit.

…Who was this? Why were they holding my hand?

At first glance, they resembled Cha Junseong, but there were differences.

The feel of their hand, their skin tone, and even the texture of their hair—it wasn’t him.

The suit they wore was a shade of blue.

The scene stirred a faint sense of déjà vu.

A long time ago, when Jake Polwel had gone berserk and I collapsed after guiding him, Eunsoo had held my hand as he sat by my side until I woke up.

Of course, Eunsoo’s hand wasn’t as large as the one holding mine now.

“…”

For some reason, perhaps because it reminded me of good memories, I didn’t feel uneasy despite this stranger holding my hand.

My body felt heavy and uncooperative, so I decided to quietly observe the peaceful moment.

I didn’t know how much time passed before…

“Mm…”

A low hum reached my ears, tickling them. The man stirred awake.

I watched as he straightened himself, his movements revealing his face.

A clean, sharp nose, pale and clear skin, and gently arched eyebrows—his face was refined and cool, not overly striking but quietly handsome.

As he sat up fully, his presence became even more imposing.

I’d thought he was big before, but now he seemed much larger.

His suit seemed to strain slightly against his frame, adding to the impression.

Then it hit me.

His suit—there was something oddly familiar about it.

I wasn’t someone who could tell one suit from another, yet the delicate silver pattern on the blue fabric felt recognizable.

‘Ah, it’s similar to the suit I gave Eunsoo.’

That suit had been my final gift to him—a special, limited-edition piece of which only three existed in Korea.

I’d picked it out because I wanted it to be something exceptional for his wedding.

Now, seeing something so similar, I felt vaguely cheated.

“…Hyung.”

What?

The man was now smiling at me—a radiant, overwhelming smile that made me feel as though he were about to burst with joy.

His blue eyes, glowing translucent in the sunlight, were filled entirely with me.

Even though everything else about him had changed, I recognized those eyes instantly.

It was Eunsoo.

Though he looked much more mature, there was no mistaking it.

This man was undoubtedly Ye Eunsoo.

Was this some kind of life review?

A final, happy vision of a grown-up Eunsoo before I passed away?

“How are you feeling?”

Eunsoo held my hand in both of his, gently massaging it.

Just as I had once done for him when his hands cramped.

But Eunsoo didn’t stop there.

When I twitched, indicating I was fine, he smiled softly and, like a knight from a storybook, pressed his lips to my fingers.

The warmth of his lips lingered as he held them there.

“Thank you for coming back.”

Tears fell onto my fingertips.

Feeling the warmth of Eunsoo’s breath and the wetness of his tears, I finally understood.

This was reality.

And I had survived once again.

---

Eunsoo told me something shocking.

Five years had passed since the monster had devoured me.

Five years.

Half a decade.

Enough time for a newborn to grow into a kindergartener, or for Eunsoo to enter college and graduate.

I couldn’t believe it, but Eunsoo showed me an article.

“The Wound of Early Summer,” or as it was known here, “The Miracle of Early Summer.”

It marked the fifth anniversary of a gate where “Yang Heewon” had died saving a child.

My jaw dropped, and I was speechless for a long while.

‘Wait, how old does that make me now?’

I started counting on my fingers.

When I’d been possessed, Yang Heewon had been the same age as Elliot—23.

A year passed, and now five more had gone by…

‘No, the age doesn’t matter…’

If Eunsoo was now 25, his more mature appearance made sense—he was still growing the last time I saw him.

But everything else about this situation was incomprehensible.

It didn’t feel like I’d been asleep that long.

My body felt as though I’d just slept half a day, and my memories were uninterrupted.

Seeing my confusion, Eunsoo handed me a small mirror.

“Look. You haven’t changed at all. You’re exactly as I last saw you.”

He was right.

My face, hair, even the calluses on my hands remained the same.

It seemed… I had somehow skipped over those five years entirely.

‘What happened to me?’

Without realizing it, a long time must have passed.

Normally, in such cases, one might think they had been in a coma and then woke up, but the problem is that my time hadn’t moved at all.

My last memory was a strange sensation, like being inside an egg.

Was that what stopped my time?

Or perhaps…

“Let’s get you checked again. Everything was fine last time, but it doesn’t hurt to be sure.”

I hoped Eunsoo would explain what happened to me as much as possible, but his lips were sealed.

Even when I tugged lightly at the hem of his clothes, he simply chuckled softly.

“There’s no rush. Let’s figure things out step by step. It’s a confusing situation, after all.”

“But…”

“What happened to you this time is such an unusual case that even the management bureau is still investigating. Wouldn’t it be better to wait for a clear explanation than to rely on premature guesses?”

“…Alright.”

If it’s still under investigation, there’s nothing I can do.

Besides, there’s no immediate need to know everything.

As soon as I followed Eunsoo to the examination, I felt another flow of time stretch endlessly.

* * *