NOVEL NEXT chapter 29
29 – Episode 29 – Another world behind the gallery
Title) Hey, remember the old gallery’s named?
GrannyLoveDog, BrushPastAndGrowHuge, DegradedBeastPass, UnderworldWorshippingPantyTribe, EarHaraDickGap, etc.
There were all kinds of freaks ㅋㅋ
ㄴReal talk, if you add Juddak and Padak to that, it’s perfect hell ㅋㅋ
ㄴAren’t they there?
ㄴWho are they?
ㄴThey were ‘named’ from the past. Yeah, yeah.
ㄴAh ㅋㅋ them?
“Wait, what’s going on?”
The comments ended abruptly at this point.
Did the cat accidentally press the button while someone was typing a comment?
Subsequently, it subtly transitioned into a different topic, as if no discussion of such a kind had happened.
“So, what’s the issue?”
Is this a practical example of the first method out of the two that will piss people off – leaving a conversation hanging?
Regardless, it successfully pissed people off.
‘Why did this happen?’
Did someone delete the post in the middle? Was it a bad server? Or a hacker? Or was it self-deleted?
Even whether the post was deleted remains unclear.
There’s no way to know the sequence of posts on the gallery.
To make matters worse, there’s no time stamp on the posts, so there’s no way to know the truth.
When such a situation arises, there was a set solution.
– Bad server
Title) while reading an old post
There’s a blank space among the gallery posts?
– What are you talking about?
– Blank? Space
– What the heck is this, you nerd lol
– Bad server) It’s as if the post completely disappeared, the topic suddenly changed
– Woah
– But doesn’t that happen often?
– Changing topics is not like everyone agrees to change it at some rally cry
– True lol they don’t agree to change it
– So what did you see, bad server?
– I… It’s a picture… Doesn’t it look like a grandma…?
– aaah!!!!!!!!
– Is it gallery folklore???
– Spooky!
– The gallery ghost stories are so scary;;
– Oh, I ought to sleep with my mom tonight…
– For real, it scared me sleepless…
– What about those who don’t have a mom?
– You don’t have a mom?
– ?
– No, I just asked;;
– Yeah… don’t have;;
– I thought as much, hahahaha
– You bastard, hahahaha! Where do you live?
– Hilarious, did you feel interrogated?
– If you don’t have a mom, then sleep with your dad, right?
– What if both are not there?
– Can’t you just adopt from somewhere?
– Seriously, is there anyone with two or three dads?
– Is he really an idiot, hahahaha!
– How can someone have three dads?
– How can such a bastard exist, hahahaha!
– Juddak
Title) What the hell is a gallery ghost story?
– Seriously, what is it?
– Direct trade killer, a painting that kills you after three views, a comb-pattern pottery man who occasionally appears, and posts that appear and disappear in a gallery where nobody is around at dawn?
– Also, an old lady and old man who occasionally appear.
– Ahhhhh!!!!
– They all are equally scary, hahahaha
– But this isn’t a ghost story, it’s a horror mess, hahahaha!
– Anyway, it’s a ghost story, hahahaha. I can’t be the only one scared, hahahaha!
– Please just go die alone!!!!!!!
– I wonder what Juddak saw
– For real, hahahaha!
-Actually, Juduk did not see anything… what he is talking about is not true… if the gallery did not exist…
– aaah!!
– A spooky story about a gallery
– Juduk
Title) Seriously, the old posts are weird
Really!!!!
– Not again… Just eat your meal…
– Has Juduk gone mad? Lol
– Juduk who locked eyes with something spooky
– Is Juduk doomed?
– Our shortest doomed Juduk Lol
– Could it be the reason Juduk picked the elf…?
– Because Juduk is also doomed?!
– Two dooms Lol
– After all, losers do have something in common, right?
– They should play chess or something Lol
– Plant druid) I’m not doomed…!
– A person who has an extraordinary love for plants
– A person who cultivates plants from morning until evening…
– A person who talks about plants all day…
– If this is not being doomed, then what is?
– Seriously Lol How can a person cultivate plants all day long?
– Juduk) I said it’s real, but you won’t believe me
– We do believe, of course we do Lol
– A gallery only I can see
– aaah!!
– A person who sees strange things alone
– But there was also Juduk who said he saw something, right?
– That guy Lol
– Lol Remembering this is crazy
ㄴWhat’s going on?
ㄴUgh, another gallery newbie
ㄴTsk tsk, you don’t even know this?
ㄴTeach us too, not just keep it to yourselves
ㄴEven asking respectfully couldn’t suffice, ‘tell us’ ????
ㄴWow, such impudence, lol
ㄴThis is why gallery newbies, tsk tsk
ㄴI want to learn from the seniors!!!
ㄴActually, I don’t know either lol
ㄴThis *sshole lol wants to back out?
ㄴLmao lol
ㄴFrom senior, acting like such a *sshole lol
ㄴJust a freak who went nuts causing a rampage and then disappeared
ㄴThere was also a gapjil who compulsively deleted all the posts on the gallery
ㄴFor real lol
ㄴI thought that guy was genuinely nuts
ㄴThe posts the newbie saw might have disappeared for that reason
ㄴOr a gapjil belonging to a certain power might have deleted it outright
ㄴQuite a lot of gapjils censoring beyond expectation, yeah
ㄴActually, the current atmosphere is quite strange lol
ㄴAllowing noticeably free posts lol
ㄴHigh chances are nothing special, yeah
ㄴHigh chances are it’s nothing special, yeah
ㄴYou lose if you care too much lol
ㄴIn gallery, those who care too much tend to lose, it’s a cliché lol
ㄴFor real, even grandmas know that those who care lose lol
ㄴ?
ㄴHuh?
ㄴWhat?
ㄴWhat’s happening?
“No, why!!!!!!!!!
Please, stop!!!!!!!
Even today, the peaceful yet unruly gallery stirred with embarrassment from the senior community center meeting.
“Is it nothing?”
Judak scratched the back of his head.
He felt like a creature unnecessarily overreacting.
Was he prematurely judging and deducing like Conan, not knowing what happened in the gallery?
“Hmm.”
After all, the gallery is a place where countless strange happenings occur. It’s alright though.
That’s probably not a big deal.
He casually moved on to the next page.
He was then greeted by questions about whether the newly purchased bikini suits them and conversations about deep chest debates!
“Oh. This salacious post is sweet.”
Due to the gallery’s full of provocative figures, his hands became busy.
Minor happenings in the gallery were quickly forgotten in Judak’s mind.
***
While the influence of the gallery was growing and the whole continent was noisy, there was a particularly quiet place.
The reason it was quiet was because they couldn’t attract attention on the continent.
They weren’t in the flow of the times, their trends had passed, and they were outdated.
That’s right, the Academy was now a trend fallen behind the times.
“Celias. We are going to ruin, what should we do?”
“Even if you tell me about it, it won’t change anything. I am merely a nun. All I have done is bear the burden of the saint who receives the blessing of the God of Light, Ellis.”
Nerissa, the academy’s president, complained, but the saint did not move a bit.
Well, it’s because this isn’t something that happened once or twice, but it happens every day as part of their routine.
Saint. Celias was engrossed in the book as if there was nothing in front of her.
Sarok. Sarok.
As she turned the pages slowly, she savored every word and engraved the sentences in her heart.
She sipped a cup of tea while savoring the book leisurely.
The more she savored the book, the more Nerissa, the head of the academy, burned inside.
“Celias?”
“Ah, Chancellor Nerisa. You’re still here? It’s the perfect time for deep thought and reading, I found myself engrossed without realizing it.”
Celiase’s gaze drifted beyond the window.
The sunset was tainting the sky with a rich red hue. It was early evening, the transition period when day gave way to night.
Before supper. A period where slight hunger competes with the body’s growing laziness.
A great time for anyone to immerse themselves in contemplation.
Yet Chancellor Nerisa seemed far from leisurely.
The Academy was crumbling in real time. How could she afford any calm?
“Celiase. Or should I say… your holiness. Is there… anything amiss?”
“Whatever do you mean?”
“Could there be a prophecy? Of a demon’s rebirth, or an impending threat to the continent, or some ominous revelation?!”
“When you speak that way, Chancellor Nerisa, you sound like a doomsayer. Might I suggest you refrain from such dreadful talk and exercise caution in your words?”
As Celiase responded, the Chancellor’s countenance fell, just like a chastened student.
“…I’ll be careful.”
“And… to answer your question, there have been no such revelations recently. The vestiges of the demon of antique days are also steadily erased by the hero. Hence, the continent is at peace.”
“I see…What a… relief.”
Nerisa forced a smile.
She found it hard to share the elation at the peaceful news of the continent.
What was the Academy?
In the days when demons existed, it was an organization built to resist and seal away those demons.
A place where all races gathered to share and learn knowledge but that was a tale of the old days.
The ambition to vanquish demons had long vanished.
The Academy’s original purpose was gradually forgotten, and now it was just an institution bearing its name.
It had lost its original form, transformed into a place for networking, similar to a social club.
A shift in the Academy’s focus for survival.
Academy life, specialized in camaraderie!
Although it was painted nicely as a social club for networking, in actuality, it was an echo chamber of acquaintances.
Its functions as a social group were hardly fulfilled.
The Academy was fervently treading the path to decline.
“Haah…”
Nerisa had a headache.
Hoping for the academy’s prosperity feels like cheering on the destruction of the continent.
And yet, the academy continues its decline when left alone.
From Nerisa’s perspective, there was no choice.
‘If it comes to this…’
Wouldn’t enhancing the function of social interaction be for the betterment of the academy’s future?
She gingerly gauged the saint’s mood.
“Celias. Perhaps…”
“What are you curious about, Principal?”
“Do you suspect any academy students are key figures of the gallery?”
“Among the academy students… You mean key figures of the gallery?”
Why on earth was that being asked?
The principal smiled broadly as if she had come up with a brilliant idea.
“Yes…! If there are any, I’m planning to borrow the gallery’s power and restructure the academy. Putting the academy in the hands of all the races!”
“Aha… You’re considering transforming the academy into a place to unify all races?”
“Saint, you indeed understand my heart! Have you by any chance noticed anyone?”
“Hmm… No, I haven’t. There were no suspects that came to my mind.”
“Ah.”
Nerisa was greatly disappointed.
If they could promote the academy in the gallery… and gather the nobles and wealthy offspring of each race, they could succeed!
The rumour that a key figure of the gallery was a female student of the academy must have been unfounded.
Still, she didn’t lose hope.
“Are there perhaps any prophecies related to the key figures of the gallery? I want to somehow talk with them…!”
“If it’s a prophecy related to the gallery… I’ve never received one to begin with…”
Why would the Lord give a prophecy about the gallery?
Above all… there didn’t seem to be a reason.
She laughed bitterly.
“And…”
“?”
“Ah… Never mind. It’s about time. How about we go out for dinner?”
“How about dining out? I know a place outside that serves delicious food.”
“The Dean always indulges in unhealthy food. Why not accompany me for a wholesome meal at the Academy?”
“Huh?”
“I am delighted to see you speechless from sheer joy.”
“Uh.”
The Dean, trapped in her grip, was then dragged off to the Academy’s dining hall.
The Holy Maiden alone could handle the Dean of the Academy with such impunity.
***
On the way back after finishing their meal.
Celiath walked down the quiet, empty corridor towards the faculty housing.
Her room was small, just about filled to capacity with two beds.
A room of modest scale, unbefitting her status as the Holy Maiden.
As she took off her robe, she murmured,
“A pauper…”
She opened a drawer in her desk and pulled out a book.
The cover was worn out and the pages had yellowed over time.
Although it looked like waste paper, or rags, she gently ran her palm over the cover.
It was a precious object that should not be damaged carelessly.
It was just an old diary left by her ancestor, from long ago, but its value was astronomical.
─The Prophecy of Calleas
In her hand was the ancient text known as The Prophecy of Calleas.
She, being a descendant of Calleas, preserved and managed this ancient scripture.
She carefully turned the pages and recalled the events of the day.
The question ‘Could there be a pauper at the Academy?’ kept revolving in her head.
Could there really be a pauper at the Academy…
“We’ll find out soon enough,” she said.
She carefully moved on to the pages where the last sentence was written.
It was a page with a brief sentence written on it.
─The pauper of Galeria is dead.