I Was Just Having Fun With The Time Limit – Chapter 195

Chapter 195

The woman was truly special.

For some reason, I felt like I had to follow her words.

My body, against my will, moved on its own and took the woman’s hand.

As I held the woman’s hand, the surroundings brightened.

It became so bright that I couldn’t see anything.

Flash! It was as if the sun had exploded.

‘Where am I?’

I found myself in a space I had never seen before.

It was a very large, wide, and white place.

If there were a white universe, I thought it might be like this space.

“Excuse me… Goddess-nim.”

I wasn’t sure if she was a goddess, but somehow, it felt that way.

If I called her by any other name, a strange feeling washed over me, as if I was committing a sacrilegious sin.

“Am I dying now?”

“I suppose so.”

“Then is this the space where I accept my death?”

“That’s right.”

“As I said before, I still have time left.”

“Death originally comes unexpectedly. You never know when you’ll die. That’s why it makes you feel like time is eternal. That’s the gift God gives to children.”

I found it difficult to agree with those words.

“I knew exactly when I was going to die. Do you know how scared I was as this day approached?”

“That’s why I came to pick you up early, isn’t it?”

“……”

It wasn’t entirely wrong.

The next few days would have been the most terrible and frightening days for me.

I would have shuddered at the dreadful fact that I had to say goodbye to my loved ones forever.

“Why did you give me this kind of life?”

“Didn’t you say earlier that it was a gift, that you were grateful? Was that feeling a lie?”

I shook my head.

“It was all real. Because it was all real, it’s so sad.”

“Yes, it must be very sad.”

The woman embraced me.

It felt familiar for some reason.

“Do I perhaps know you?”

Even dragons transformed into humans and lived human lives.

I didn’t think it would be impossible for a god to do the same.

“I’ve known you for a very long time.”

The woman patted my back.

Pat, pat.

Her touch felt like it was comforting me.

“Grieve as much as you want. This is a place where it’s okay to do so. You were a child who couldn’t be sad, weren’t you?”

At those words, I finally burst into tears.

She was right.

I was a child who couldn’t be sad, even when I was sad.

Because I was the one who would leave first.

It would be over for me once I left, but there were many people who would miss me and struggle after I was gone.

That’s why I couldn’t be more heartbroken than others.

Pat, pat.

A gentle touch stroked my back.

“Grieve as much as you want here. I will hold you.”

I didn’t know how much time had passed.

I received a lot of comfort from this woman I had never met before.

After crying for a long time, I even thought that it might have been fortunate that I had left unexpectedly.

“Are you done crying?”

“……Yes.”

I wiped my tears away.

“But, I’m so sorry that I couldn’t say my final goodbyes.”

“If you’re that sorry, let’s have you look upon them before you go.”

As the woman snapped her fingers, a small table appeared in front of me.

And a lump of cloud came flying towards me with a whoosh.

“Sit there.”

This cloud was a chair.

When I sat down, it was so fluffy and comfortable that it made me feel good.

“Look upon them.”

Several images began to appear in the white space.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

Empress Serna, dressed in a splendid red dress, declared before the citizens of the empire.

“In accordance with Isabel’s wishes, shall we hold the most joyous festival?”

Serna raised her glass high.

The soldiers fired celebratory fireworks, and countless musicians began to play in every corner of the streets.

The citizens of the empire joyfully participated in the festival led by the Imperial Family.

“Here! Another drink!”

“Uhahahaha! Let’s make it the happiest week ever!”

All the citizens drank to commemorate Isabel’s death.

As Isabel had requested in her last moments, the citizens held a feast with bread and alcohol.

The entire continent was abuzz with festivities.

“Is it okay for us to be this happy?”

“Isn’t that Princess Isabel’s wish? Since Her Majesty the Empress is enjoying herself so much, we should naturally be happy too!”

Isabel, watching them, thought it was fortunate.

“It’s truly fortunate.”

“Is it truly fortunate?”

“……Yes.”

“And you’re not disappointed?”

“Huh?”

“I’m asking if it’s okay that they are laughing and making merry like this, even though it was your request, now that you’re gone.”

“It’s okay.”

“Really?”

The woman continued to look at Isabel.

It was so bright that her face and gaze were not visible, but Isabel definitely felt it.

Someone who can see deep into my heart is continuing to look at me.

“……Just a little bit, I feel sad too. I don’t understand this feeling myself.”

I’m definitely happy.

It’s good to see them not grieving.

But at the same time, somewhere in a corner of my heart, a small pain was stirring.

“Child. It’s okay to be a little more selfish.”

“……”

“If you don’t acknowledge your own feelings, who will acknowledge them for you?”

“……”

“You have to be your own best friend. If you don’t truly understand your own feelings, in the end, it’s you who will get hurt.”

Isabel bit her lip and thought.

“I think I wanted them to… grieve for me, just a little bit.”

The feeling I had been ignoring because I felt like a bad child.

I’m going to leave anyway.

The one who leaves should leave well.

The ones who stay should live their remaining lives.

I hope they live happily.

Deep within that feeling, another small feeling peeked its head out.

The woman spoke again.

“Look at that.”

The screen changed, and a very dark space appeared.

There, instead of a splendid red dress, Serna was seen wearing a simple black outfit.

Serna was kneeling and crying.

“……Mother?”

Isabel, without realizing it, tried to run over and lift Serna up.

‘My hand won’t reach.’

This was just an illusion.

I wanted to lift Serna up, but my hand passed through her body.

“Isabel. I miss you.”

Serna was clutching Isabel’s photo to her chest.

The Empress who had told the citizens to enjoy the festival was not here.

The mother who had lost her daughter was hiding and grieving her daughter’s death.

Isabel, watching her, cried along.

“I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry.”

That voice also did not reach Serna.

“I’m really sorry for dying before you, Mother.”

I wanted to run over and hug Serna, and I wanted to be hugged by her.

After a long time, Serna wiped away her tears.

She looked at Isabel’s photo and practiced smiling forcefully.

“I can’t collapse.”

She held her trembling lips and smiled again and again.

“If I collapse too, everyone will collapse.”

She opened her wardrobe and began to slowly change back into the splendid red dress.

Isabel covered her mouth and swallowed her tears.

I was afraid that if Mother saw me crying here, she would be even more heartbroken.

I was so happy and grateful to be your daughter, Mother.

Thank you for being my mother.

Before I could even finish those words, the screen changed.

It was another dark place.

In a very small and dark space, a person was lying face down.

‘Father?’

It was Ron.

He was wearing a black uniform without any decorations.

He was sitting in a lotus position in a place even more hidden and darker than Serna.

Even though he had been meditating his entire life, he couldn’t focus on his meditation today.

His mind was filled with Isabel.

“I miss you so much.”

Tears were flowing endlessly from Ron’s closed eyes.

He had shed so many tears that his pants were soaked.

“What meaning does the world have for me without you?”

Ron bit his lip and clenched his fists tightly.

His fingernails dug into his palms, drawing blood.

Ron, the greatest emperor in the history of the Sword Empire, had become a very pathetic father here.

“Even if I add up all the happiness I’ve experienced in my life, it’s nothing compared to the fleeting moments I spent with you.”

He looked as if he would collapse at any moment.

On his pinky finger was a flower ring that Isabel had made for him when she was four years old.

He stared endlessly at the flower ring and made a resolution.

“One, I will not collapse. If I collapse too, everyone will collapse. Isabel, you wouldn’t want that.”

He lightly kissed the flower ring.

The flower ring that Isabel had left behind was the only thing that kept him going now.

Isabel, unable to say anything, just watched them.

She reached out her hand again, but it passed through Ron’s body.

“……Father.”

Isabel bit her lip and left her last words.

“I was afraid of you.”

Of course, there was no reply.

“But now, I love you very much.”

Even though he wouldn’t hear it, she confessed anyway.

“Thank you for being my father.”

Isabel lowered her head.

Outside, it was noisy with the sounds of the festival, but her most precious people were grieving in a dark and quiet place.

“Did I make a wrong request before I left?”

I asked them to enjoy the festival.

I told them to be happy to their hearts’ content.

“Mother and Father are pretending to be happy outside to fulfill my request.”

And the citizens are also enjoying the feast.

“That’s why they can’t say they’re sad even when they are.”

Just like Isabel had been until now.

“They look so tormented.”

Isabel made up her mind and asked again.

“I don’t want to see anymore. It’s too painful. Please take me away now.”

“That can’t be done.”

The woman shook her head.

“There’s still a lot to see. Take everything in.”

The screen changed again.