Goodbye

ㅡClunk!

“Eugh….”

ㅡCrash!

“Ugh.. too noisy….”

ㅡWhoooosh….

“S-so cold..”

What on earth was going on? Unlike our usually peaceful mornings, this was a noisy, clattering morning all around. Where had Ophelia gone, the one who always gently pressed my cheeks or sat beside me and woke me in a calm voice?

ㅡRustle..

“Eh..?”

“Princess, are you awake.”

“Ophelia..? What is all this..?”

Somewhere, Ophelia had brought in some huge modular box or something and was neatly folding the few clothes in the dresser into it, while Suri sat on the windowsill with the window open, flapping its wings to air out the house.

Dangdaengi, with a mini broom attached to its butt, was bouncing around the floor, while Minyum was lifting furniture up and using it to stir up dust in every corner.

“H-huh..?”

The first thought that flashed through my head was simple.

“Ophelia.. am I not needed anymore..?”

“What do you mean?”

My eyesight was blurry, so I hadn't noticed, but there was even something like a mosquito net set up around where I was sleeping. A few pieces of furniture had already been removed, so the area was bare, and only my bed was left sitting there alone, like I had just woken up after sleeping at my grandmother's house during the holidays.

Of course, I don't have family to meet during the holidays, so I don't actually have any memory of experiencing that...

“So you're leaving me behind now..?”

“No, Princess. We're in the middle of moving. I tried to let you wake up only after you'd gotten enough sleep, but there was a bit of noise, so it seems you woke up first.”

“A move..! Moving?!”

Come to think of it, that was right. Last time Ophelia said our house was too small and that we needed to move, and that we should cut back a little on spending. After that, Ophelia went on buying me clothes like crazy, and even expensive rare metal and magic stones, so I'd completely forgotten.

“Moving.. where are we going?”

“It's H-City Apartment in Songpa-gu. I've already arranged a two-year short-term jeonse lease, so we're moving today.”

“Uh, uh….”

Honestly, hearing it didn't mean I understood it right away; I only caught Songpa-gu. Still, I roughly got the vibe. You know those expensive apartments with fancy-sounding names? They feel super upper-class, like outsiders probably couldn't even breathe near them.

“Did you call a moving company..?”

“No. There aren't many pieces of furniture that need to be moved from here to the new residence, and most of them are old or better off being newly purchased, so most of them were going to be discarded as waste.”

“Gasp..!”

Of course, bringing the furniture we used here to an expensive apartment might be a little ridiculous. But... still, it feels kind of weird.

“You're throwing away that dresser too?”

“Yes, that's the plan. I'm getting the desktop provided by Nova ready to take with us.”

I felt like I suddenly woke up completely. Looking around, a lot of the furniture scattered around had already been removed. The reason they'd put up the mosquito-net-like thing was so dust wouldn't settle on me.

ㅡRustle....

Beside me, I could see the computer with all the cables already unplugged and neatly bundled, and my phone, whose charging had been cut off because the multi-outlet power strip was unplugged, had dropped to 98%.

“Would you like to use the bathroom?”

“Can I skip washing up today?”

“I was planning to prepare a bath after we move into the new house.”

“Aha….”

When Suri's wingbeats let the outside air in and my body shivered once, Ophelia brought over clothes and handed them to me.

“Princess, the air is quite cold while we're airing out the room. Please change into these clothes for now.”

“Ah, yes.”

* * * * *

ㅡRumble….

The Porter truck was leisurely climbing up the steep hill. The things to move were just the computer, the new clothes I bought, and the ingredients I'd stocked in the small refrigerator.

“There's really not much luggage.”

“Yes, that's right. After we move to the new residence, we'll buy and arrange furniture suited to it.”

“Yeah.”

The old furniture had been neatly stacked in the disposal area with large-waste stickers attached. Now there was almost nothing left in the house; only the optional refrigerator, air conditioner, and gas stove remained.

“It's still okay for me to go back inside the house, right?”

“Yes, that's correct.”

“I'll go in for just a moment.”

Now that everything had been taken out, it felt incredibly empty. When I first moved in, it felt spacious, but as time went on I started feeling like it was getting smaller and smaller. With all the furniture gone again, it felt big. Or maybe my body had gotten smaller.

Standing in the middle of the spot where the mattress had been, I looked around the inside of the house with all the furniture removed. Had I already lived here for about five years? When I first moved in, I was so happy to have my first home. Back then, I definitely said I'd start making money right away and move to a new house as soon as the two-year contract ended.

Mold had grown on the wall where the furniture had been moved away, and there were a lot of traces of my use left here and there without me even realizing it. A yellow floor that felt oddly warm and familiar, and ivory wallpaper—I couldn't tell whether that had been its original color or just a mark of age.

I hadn't really cooked much, and yet the kitchen somehow looked full of wear. The window and frame, cleaned spotless after dust had piled up for ages.

The bathroom floor, made rough for some reason, and the wall tiles that had been shoved in carelessly, leaving them a little crooked. The tiny bathroom window for ventilation.

The sink whose lower half was especially dirty, the soft waterproof sky-blue toilet seat cover that had been there when I first moved in, and the corner of the bathroom mirror where I'd once stuck a Pocketmong Ttibutibu sticker, only for it to peel off from the humidity and leave sticky residue behind.

The suction-cup marks on the toothbrush holder that always had only one toothbrush hanging from it, even though it had room for three.

“The bathtub….”

Walking around the space that used to be my home while still wearing my outside shoes felt strange. Standing in front of the sink, I somehow felt like Ophelia would be outside timing me with a three-minute timer.

I was talking about brushing my teeth. Because Ophelia always says I have to brush for exactly three minutes.

“The bathroom doorknob is ridiculously stiff.”

Outside air had come in, dropping the house temperature to 14 degrees.

“It's cold.”

Was this house always this cold?

* * * * *

“O-Ophelia..?”

“Princess, please get in.”

Ophelia had brought the car over. An extremely expensive car, too. And she was driving it herself.

“This is the personal car I recently purchased. I bought the best SUV available on the market.”

“H-huh….”

Ophelia opened the driver's door, got out, and guided me to the rear seat diagonally across from her. It was that famous Rolls-Royce. I don't know the model name, since I never had the money to buy a car and wasn't interested in them to begin with. Besides, I don't even have a driver's license.

“Ophelia, do you have a driver's license?”

“Yes, I do, but...”

Was she going out every time just to practice driving? Come to think of it, Ophelia seemed like she'd be able to take the test right away without any practice. The written test, of course—Ophelia can access the internet in her head. The practical test probably wouldn't be that hard either.

“Wow, it's so soft. And warm.”

“Do you like it?”

“Yes! But how much was this?”

“About 900 million won.”

“Gah….”

That's basically the same price as an apartment rolling down the road. Are cars really supposed to be that expensive..?

“Ah, you guys. You were already in here?”

ㅡBeep!

All the golems were inside too. So I was the very last one.

“When did we get so rich….”

“The loot from this Desert Mausoleum first mission has been continuously selling through the auction house. You could say it's Princess's achievement.”

“I-Is that so..?”

Come to think of it, I only really felt like we'd just cleared a dungeon—I hadn't thought about that side of things at all. So it was already underway.

“We're going to the new house?”

“That's right.”

“Heh-heh.”

It felt like I'd become one of those people I'd only ever seen on the internet, and my heart was racing. The house I used to live in does leave me with some memories and regrets, but honestly, it didn't feel like a place that was especially nice to live in.

[Insaenganmanghetda : Guys, I'm moving house

(mint twin-tails cone with a crown)

I'm the best]

-Kim Heukgan : Where are you going?

ㄴ Insaenganmanghetda : Why would I tell you thatㅡㅡ

-Gyahong : Send me the addressㅠㅠ I'll come for the housewarming

ㄴ Insaenganmanghetda : Seriously, I really don't need it;

-ㅇㅇ : Leaving Korea?

ㄴ Insaenganmanghetda : Nope, not yet..

ㄴ ㅇㅇ : The fact that it's 'not yet' means you do have plans, then

ㄴ Insaenganmanghetda : You never know lol

-Doshungjwak : lol, you're finally leaving that place

ㄴ Insaenganmanghetda : The old house wasn't that bad...

ㄴ Doshungjwak : Nah, that's not it ㅇㅇ

ㄴ Insaenganmanghetda : Facts lol

Maybe because the morning was so sudden, leaning back against the soft seat made me feel sleepy. On top of that, the car had heated seats, so it was really warm.

“My neighborhood….”

Looking at the scenery around me, familiar sights kept drifting by one after another. Roads I'd walked often, roads I'd only walked sometimes. Places I'd never really come to, and places I'd always just passed by after only seeing their signs.

“The convenience store.”

“Do you need something?”

“N-no.. it's nothing.”

And the place where I'd worked part-time, since it was close to our house.

“Just a moment, Ophelia. Could you take me to the place I'm about to mention?”

“Yes, understood.”

I took out my phone, searched for the convenience store, found the place where I'd worked, and showed it to Ophelia.

“Here. I want to go there once.”

“Understood.”

For some reason, if I left now, I felt like I'd never get another chance to visit the convenience store where I used to work. Ophelia skillfully drove the car toward the address shown on my phone screen.

“We've arrived, but if you need anything, I'll buy it for you.”

“No. It's not that I need anything.. I just wanted to see it. I'll be back in just a moment.”

“I'll accompany you.”

“It's okay! Ophelia, stay in the car!”

I unfastened my seat belt, quickly opened the car door, and went into the convenience store that was now close by. It was small and tucked away, but since it was the only convenience store nearby, a lot of people came here.

A white tile floor with occasional chips and cracks, and a counter desk that looked like it could be lifted up easily and let someone slip inside at any moment.

“Welcome... huh?”

“Hello.”

The female part-timer who greeted me casually and walked past was, unfortunately, a stranger I didn't remember.

I set the two 1+1 drinks I'd taken from the shelf onto the counter and asked the part-timer.

“How's the boss doing?”

“The boss..? I only started working here recently.. haha.”

“I see. Does he still scold you if you eat the throwaway food?”

“Huh..? Throwaway food..?”

The part-timer tilted her head, rang up the drinks, and inserted the card I'd handed over into the reader.

“Has the afternoon-shift part-timer changed?”

“Uh.. as far as I know, no..”

“Then it must be Jihoo.”

“Y-yeah, it's Jihoo, but.. why?”

“Give this one to that guy.”

Bena Mango Tangtang Water, the most delicious drink in our convenience store. My previous shift coworker Jihoo liked it that much. I like it too.

“Bye-bye.”

“B-bye-bye….”

ㅡDing-ding

The little bell that rang as I opened the door felt strangely familiar.

“Princess, you're back out? I was surprised when you suddenly moved.”

“Ophelia, try this. It's super tasty.”

“..I will gratefully drink it.”

“Ah, I want a sip too. I got thirsty from running.”

“Yes, of course.”

Goodbye, my neighborhood.