“…The world?”
This board?
I questioned her, unable to make sense of it, and she let out a soft laugh in a low voice.
“This world is like a meticulously crafted board. Just like what you’re looking at now.”
My displeased gaze dropped to the board.
“This world is sustained because all the beads are in their rightful places. Normally, this is referred to as order, destiny, or natural law.”
The blue beads embedded in the board shimmered erratically, reflecting the flickering candlelight around them.
“But now…”
The old woman reached out and plucked one bead from the center.
The sudden absence left a gap, causing the surrounding beads to clash and shift out of alignment.
“Oh dear.”
She swiftly snapped her fingers again.
A black bead replaced the missing one in the center.
“And this is how things have been overturned.”
Though she didn’t elaborate further, it was clear enough to me. The blue bead she removed represented Eloise, and the black bead that replaced it was me.
My eyes narrowed.
“But you see, an ‘outsider’ inherently represents an impurity in this world. Like this black bead among the blue ones.”
I widened my eyes as the scene unfolded.
Among the translucent, light-reflecting blue beads, the black bead absorbed all light and began to taint the surroundings.
The blue beads closest to the black one slowly turned murky and dark.
“This is…”
“When an existence that doesn’t belong stays here too long, the world loses balance and collapses.”
“What does that even mean? It’s not like I came here by choice—”
“But you already know, don’t you? That you’re distorting this world.”
“What?”
I scowled but flinched when I met the gaze I could feel through her hood.
It was the thought that crossed my mind—
…The original story.
Every deviation from the original plot.
As I fell silent, the old woman shrugged nonchalantly, as if asking if I didn’t already have some idea.
“There’s a saying that even the smallest flap of a butterfly’s wings can cause a storm on the other side of the planet.”
The butterfly effect.
A small cause leading to massive consequences.
I stared down at the board.
By now, the darkness spreading from the black bead had tainted half of the other beads.
So, I’m the one making it like this?
I felt stunned.
The only changes I’d made so far were minor ones—like altering Ian slightly and causing some events to deviate from the original plot.
But the sight of the black bead corrupting the others wasn’t something that could be explained by such trivial changes.
It looks like I’m about to destroy this world or something.
I glared at the beads, feeling unsettled.
The old woman tilted her head with a hum, then smiled slyly.
“Change happens very slowly, often without anyone noticing.”
“So, you’re saying I’m bringing disaster to this world? That’s absurd.”
“No one knows for certain.”
“…”
“Because you’re an ‘outsider’ who doesn’t belong to this world.”
Her calm response, as if mocking me, was infuriating.
That word again—outsider. I’m so sick of it.
I sighed and ran a hand through my hair.
“So, what am I supposed to do?”
I had asked her for a solution, but all she gave me was this ominous board.
Even with my sharp tone, the old woman showed no sign of being fazed, her smirk unwavering.
“There is, of course, a way.”
“A way?”
“Before it gets to this point.”
The sharp sound of her snapping fingers echoed again.
The black bead that had been corrupting the others turned blue, matching the surrounding ones.
Immediately, the ominous darkness dissipated, and the other beads regained their original translucent glow.
“To keep things from spiraling out of control, everything must be restored to its original state.”
“…Restored? How?”
“If you’ve read the cursed book, you must know. The spell must end with a ‘knot.’”
‘Yes, I read that, but… I don’t know how to do it.’
“…The ‘knot’? What exactly is that? What am I supposed to do?”
I had to know that much to do anything at all. Judging by what was in front of me, it seemed like I was supposed to return the original Eloise to this place.
But is that really the right answer?
As that thought crossed my mind, an indescribable mix of emotions surged within me.
However, seeing the old woman’s ever-curving smirk, I could tell she had no intention of giving me a straightforward answer.
“Well,” she began, “there are many ways to tie a knot, you know. Did you know that on the eastern continent, they create intricate crafts using traditional knots? My favorite is the butterfly knot—”
“Hey.”
My lowered voice cut her off, and she straightened up with a mock expression of realization.
“The solution is simple: the final remaining presence in this world must not be an ‘outsider’ but a ‘member.’”
She shook the blue bead she had removed earlier.
I, on the other hand, felt utterly confused.
The cryptic nature of her words made it impossible to interpret everything.
Noticing that I didn’t fully understand, she chuckled ominously, “Heh heh heh…”
I looked at her with disbelief.
Then, as if she were considering something, her hood swayed slightly. Finally, she rested her chin on one hand as though she was being generous.
“Very well. I’ll give you one more clue. Do you remember what I told you last time? That desperation can create miracles?”
“Desperation sometimes brings about miracles. Humans are capable of extraordinary things, after all.”
I easily recalled those words and nodded.
“…Right, you said Eloise created a miracle.”
“That’s correct. So, don’t you think your desperation could change many things as well?”
I felt as though her gaze under the hood had shifted to my wrist.
“So, this desperation—”
“Alright.”
As I tried to ask more, she interrupted me lightly, clapping her hands.
“Time is up again. You’ll have to go back.”
“What? No, wait—”
“Well, I hope we meet again in a different form next time.”
Leaving me with yet another ambiguous remark, she twirled her fingers.
A fierce wind blew, just like last time, and I was suddenly pushed out of the building.
“Hey! Wait! At least explain—”
Whoosh.
When I came to, startled by the howling wind, I was back at the entrance of the alley where no path could be seen.
❖ ❖ ❖
“Hah…”
After meeting the old woman, I found myself even more bewildered than before.
“So, what the hell am I supposed to do?”
I stared at the scattered papers strewn across the desk in my office with a troubled gaze.
I had scribbled down words like outsider, knot, member, but the most critical connecting pieces felt missing.
What was I supposed to do? How was I supposed to resolve this?
“I’m not a wizard, nor do I have superpowers.”
The only thing I could guess was that, if things continued this way, something irreversible might really happen—just as the old woman had warned.
“Ugh…”
As I ruffled my hair in frustration, my gaze fell on the divorce papers buried under the other documents.
“……”
Was I really supposed to separate from him?
If what the old woman said is true—that I’m truly distorting this world—then leaving as soon as possible might be the right thing to do.
Hesitant, I picked up the papers and stared at them blankly.
Knock, knock.
“Eloise, are you in there?”
“Gasp!”
• • •
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