< 100. Couples' Quarrel is Like Beheading with a Knife (7) >
"I'm sure you've saved enough, Cain. I think it should be enough to cover two people."
"..."
"Of course, you need to think carefully. If you apply for two or more, you can't partially cancel one; it must be all or nothing. And there is no refund for any amount already paid. The application period is just one month. They can't guarantee if there will be another application period, and even if there is, the required amount of talents might increase."
The conditions were absurd. It was enough to make someone curse.
"Setting aside other issues... they're only accepting applications for a limited time, even though there are still years left until reaching 50%?"
"They say detailed plans for personnel deployment need to be decided as early as possible, even years before the implementation."
Of course, both knew this was just an excuse.
She closed her eyes for a moment before opening them again.
"I know that a prisoner like you, Cain, is rare across all dimensions. To be honest, I would prefer it if you stayed in this dimension."
The leader of the prisoners was trying to persuade the most capable person she knew.
Min-jun looked at her in silence.
"Of course, I will stay here. But a drastic reduction in the number of colleagues is a significant crisis. So, if you stayed, it would be a great help."
Min-jun had sufficient motivation to want to stay as well.
"You want that too, don't you? The probability of being torn apart is much higher the moment you and Del are reassigned to another dimension?"
"Did you ask the committee about it?"
"I've already asked. The committee does not accept special applications for the desired reassignment destinations. They have no plans to do so."
This meant that only if one wanted to stay in this dimension could that choice be guaranteed.
For 150,000 talents.
"I'm just making a suggestion. I think it's not a bad deal for you and Del."
Telesia vaguely anticipated Min-jun's thoughts through his prisoner ID number.
He, like her, had an enormous retirement amount set, and even if he had saved 300,000 talents now, he would still be in an impossible situation for retirement. So, she guessed he had already half-given up.
The committee's proposal was to give up on an unattainable freedom and find stability in the present.
A vile and malicious proposal.
At the same time, it was incredibly tempting.
"Cain, let me say again, I don't want to leave Ashtal either."
But her reason was a little different.
"Unlike you, who have traveled through many dimensions, this is my first assignment... and I've only stayed here. Even when the first batch of assignees who came with me left and went through rotations, I wasn't reassigned."
The prisoner, whom the residents called 'everyone's mother,' spoke in a solemn tone.
"I've dedicated my entire life as myself to them. At first, it was chaotic and despairing. Back then, Ashtal was akin to hell. Even seeing the impoverished people I had to save was burdensome. But over time, that feeling slowly began to change."
Telesia revealed.
At the beginning of the assignment, she collapsed when she discovered impoverished families who had exchanged their youngest children with neighbors to eat them due to starvation. She couldn't forgive their inhumanity due to their weakness. Thus, she wandered for a long time, not understanding what she was supposed to do here or why she should help them.
The seed of change within her began to sprout when she encountered people who had found new lives as a result of the desperate actions she had taken.
When children who had been nothing but skin and bones began to gain weight, when the impoverished who had suffered from melting skin diseases knelt at her feet and wept upon being cured, when those who had been enslaved by bandits and endured harsh labor were reunited with their families and called each other's names with tears.
They offered sincere respect and love to the savior Telesia. And at some point, Telesia realized that she too had come to love them.
"I've given up my desire for freedom. It's a sin from a past I don't even remember, but if paying for it is the way to atone, then I will gladly accept it. I will stay forever with those who love me... and live a life serving them."
She looked at Min-jun with earnest eyes.
"I would be happy if you and Del could stay with me."
Sometimes, there are moments when you know you have no choice but to endure.
The 80th wedding anniversary gift Del prepared was a dagger.
Min-jun's face lit up when he saw it.
"Is this the real deal?"
Min-jun preferred short sword-shaped magical tools. Del, knowing this well, had made it herself. It was excellent in performance and seemed capable of handling any curse.
"It's better than using those bones you cut off every time."
Min-jun nodded in agreement.
"That's certainly true..."
Unable to find a suitable sword in this dimension, Min-jun had been using bones, shaped like swords, growing through flesh, and breaking them to use as weapons.
Del had been troubled by this and, after 80 years of research, finally produced a product superior to what Min-jun could make himself.
Min-jun, whose eyes were gleaming with delight, looked at the inscription on the handle. Then he burst into a wide smile. Del's face reddened slightly.
Min-jun set the dagger down for a moment. Now it was his turn to give a gift.
"What on earth have you hidden so tightly this year?"
Del was full of anticipation.
Unlike usual, Min-jun was empty-handed. This usually meant one of two things: Either he had prepared something so large it couldn't be brought to their assigned planet's residence, or he had prepared an event instead of a material gift.
Either way, Del was ready to scream with joy. She looked at her husband with sparkling eyes.
Min-jun opened his mouth.
"Don't be shocked, but listen calmly."
And the explanation followed. With a hologram displayed in front of her.
Min-jun had agonized until the last moment. Should he tell her about paying 300,000 talents to guarantee that the couple could stay together?
He hesitated, thinking she might feel burdened or guilty.
But upon further reflection, he concluded he had to tell her.
Del had often been restless at night lately. He had pretended not to notice her quietly rising in the middle of the night and looking down at him. She appeared to be experiencing extreme anxiety, well aware that they were destined to part ways one day.
He couldn't make her endure such torment for a few more years.
"...It's settled. We can both stay here now. You don't have to worry about being reassigned to another dimension and facing separation!"
Min-jun finished his explanation and looked at Del with an expression that seemed to ask, 'What do you think?'
"This is the gift I've prepared for this year."
He hoped she would cheer.
He expected her to be incredulous, excitedly jumping up and down.
He even promised to understand if she couldn't control her emotions and accidentally broke a few kitchen utensils with her telekinesis.
However.
"..."
Del's reaction was entirely different from what he had expected.
The expectation that had been on his wife's face dimmed slightly. Her smile slowly stiffened and then disappeared.
Min-jun felt a surge of anxiety.
"Why... is that?"
Del spoke with a dryness that felt out of place.
"How long?"
"What...?"
"During this organizational restructuring, it was guaranteed that you would remain. How long will that guarantee last? Will it be indefinitely as long as we want?"
Min-jun smiled wryly.
"You know well what kind of people the committee is. The guaranteed period is 100 years."
It was a period slightly longer than the time they had spent together so far.
But in Min-jun's eyes, Del didn't seem satisfied with even that.
"So what happens next? Will we have to pay another 300,000 talents? Even if I save for 100 years, I won't be able to save half of that with my ability."
"...Del."
"This approach doesn't solve the fundamental problem. What if the committee raises the amount in 100 years?"
"I'll just save more! We have another 100 years ahead of us..."
"Reducing the organization means the committee predicts that there will be less work in the future. And their predictions are rarely wrong. The prisoners here are living comfortably. At least they don't have to worry about survival taxes. But will that continue? You've never told me how much your survival tax is. How much is it that you need to pay such a huge sum?"
Min-jun felt disappointed by Del's response. However, he considered it a nervous reaction stemming from extreme anxiety. He needed to reassure his wife.
But he didn't want to lie.
"It's around 2,000 talents."
Del looked shocked.
"2,000? So the survival tax you have to pay per year is... 25,000 talents?"
"Yes. And I've managed to pay it without issue for the past 800 years. So I'm still alive."
He was trying to emphasize his own capability. He had paid 20 million talents to the committee over 800 years. He had the ability to earn such amounts.
But Del didn't seem convinced.
"This isn't a fundamental solution."
She repeated the phrase in her mind. 'This isn't a solution.'
"And."
Del tried to say something but swallowed it again.
"What is it?"
Del, who had been struggling internally, finally spoke.
"...If this continues, it will only become harder for me because of you."
Min-jun sensed that his honesty had backfired.
Del spoke with a face close to expressionless.
"If a huge amount keeps coming out of your account because of me... eventually, you might not even be able to pay the survival tax and could end up with your soul erased."
He tried his best to reassure Del. This was something he was doing entirely because he wanted to, and he would never consider her a burden or a load.
A look of resolve seemed to flash across Del's eyes as she looked at her husband.
Even after a year passed, Min-jun and Del were still on planet XB-610.
And that year was considered one of the worst periods since Min-jun's marriage.
It was unclear exactly when their relationship began to fray. The changes, like paint seeping into paper, started slowly and gradually became more distinct.
Thus, Del began to change.
"······."
Min-jun still felt Del's gaze in the middle of the night. As he tried to sleep, he would quietly rise and see Del watching him. However, there was something different in that gaze now.
A chilling aura.
He couldn't understand it. He tried to start a conversation, but it felt like speaking to a wall. Furthermore, something happened that made it impossible for him to ignore his anxiety.
"Ashamin, I need your help."
A few days before their 81st wedding anniversary.
Min-jun asked his colleague for help. His name was Ashamin. Later on, on Earth, he would be known as Bradley, and he was horrified when he heard the story.
"Track Del's personal spaceship?!"
"Yes."
"That's impossible with your magic too... Ah, never mind. It's Del, after all. She would notice immediately."
"Yes. Real-time tracking would be quickly detected. The most reliable method for following is to track residual thoughts after the fact."
"But trailing her? What on earth is going on?"
Min-jun had no choice but to reveal part of the truth to the worried Ashamin.
"Del has been quietly leaving the house in the middle of the night repeatedly."
"What?!"
Ashamin said in disbelief.
"Even if she sneaks out, she's bound to be caught. It's not like she's living under a different roof from you."
"She's not even trying to hide it anymore. She says she has trouble sleeping and goes for a drive..."
Even during work hours, it has become increasingly difficult to get in touch with her. She performs her tasks thoroughly, so she hasn't been reprimanded by Telesia or the committee, but it's only natural for her husband to be concerned.
"Cain. Don't take this the wrong way, but..."
Min-jun shook his head, guessing what Ashamin was implying.
"No, it's not an affair. That's impossible."
After living surrounded by humanoid species for decades, she no longer openly displays her aversion as she used to, but she still views Homo sapiens as insects.
Min-jun knew well that in a world where the only sentient beings are humans, the probability of Del falling in love with someone else besides him approaches zero.
"So if it's not an affair, then what is it?"
"That's what worries me more. But she keeps her mouth shut and doesn't speak about it."
In his dreams, Min-jun asks Ashamin for help.
The observer Min-jun watched as his past self uttered the words he would regret for the rest of his life.
"So, please track her and find out what Del has been up to lately."
< 100. A Spousal Argument Is a Sword to the Neck (7) > End