The Day.
Just moments before the world began to crumble.
Before the white smoke rose into the blue sky.
Only a few minutes remained.
They appear in the rifts between time and existence.
Chapter 1: Shadows of Phase – In the Blink of an Eye
"Rion. South Wing, 78th floor localized. Targets... approximately 150."
Alto’s voice crackled with the static of the phase field, vibrating directly into Rion’s inner ear. Rion shifted his consciousness, sliding it a fraction of a second out of sync with reality, tuning himself to the "Shadow Realm."
In his vision, he saw them: a man sipping coffee without a care, a woman frantically making a phone call at her desk, and a young woman gazing out the window. They had no idea that their fates would be sealed in just 120 seconds.
"Beginning recovery. Alto, calibrate the transfer coordinates."
Rion focused his mind on the targets. His ability allowed him to instantaneously swap a subject’s body and consciousness with a "Substitute Afterimage"—a dummy.
These dummies would endure the coming impact, etching the undeniable "observed fact" of their deaths into the history of the physical world.
Rion fought the urge to be drawn into the clear, bright eyes of the young woman by the window. Her eyes seemed to reflect a hope for a future she hadn't yet seen.
"Rion, time is running out. 90 seconds."
Alto’s cold, calm voice pulled him back to reality.
"I know. Transfer preparation... complete!"
The moment Rion unleashed his power—
"Eh...?"
Mina, the woman by the window, couldn't comprehend what was happening. For a heartbeat, the world turned blinding white. In the next, she was standing somewhere else entirely. It wasn't an office; it was a vast, sprawling meadow filled with flowers of colors she had never seen.
"Where am I...?"
There was no one to answer. Around her stood dozens of others, all wearing the same expressions of bewilderment.
Chapter 2: Eden Second – Under the Two Moons
"Mission accomplished, Rion!"
Back on the mothership at Eden Second, Alto spoke while navigating a holographic display.
"Yeah. 153 souls. We saved her, too."
Rion stared at the night sky where two moons hung, his mind drifting back to Mina. They were the Chrono Salvagers—beings tasked with a special mission to rescue lives from accidents and disasters while strictly maintaining the laws of causality.
"Her name is Mina. She’s only in her mid-twenties," Alto added, checking the data.
"I see..."
Rion remembered the hope in her eyes. He wondered what kind of future she would build here, on Eden Second.
A few days later, Rion encountered Mina in the residential district.
"Um... excuse me. Was it you? Did you save me back then?" Mina approached him, her voice trembling slightly.
"I am merely a Salvager," Rion answered curtly.
He knew he should avoid contact with the rescued. They were severed from Earth's history, and as a Salvager, he was forbidden from interfering in their new lives.
"But in that moment... I felt like I saw you," Mina continued, undeterred by his coldness. "I was so scared. I thought I was going to die... but you saved me. I’m alive because of you. Thank you."
Tears of gratitude welled in her eyes. Looking at her, Rion felt a tightening in his chest. To him, rescue was a mission. He had always avoided the emotions of those he saved.
"I'm glad you're safe," Rion managed to say, his voice unpracticed but sincere.
From 그 day on, Rion found himself looking for her. Every time he caught a glimpse of her in the district, his heart raced.
Chapter 3: Forbidden Love and the Path Forward
Alto noticed the change in Rion.
"Rion, it’s better if you don’t think about her too deeply," Alto warned him one day.
"I know. But..." Rion couldn't suppress his feelings.
One night, Rion took Mina to a quiet forest far from the residential area.
"Wow... it’s beautiful," Mina gasped at the scenery illuminated by the twin moons.
"There’s something I need to tell you."
Rion revealed his true identity and the reality of Eden Second.
"In the history of Earth, we are dead. We can never go back. Our destiny is to live out our lives quietly on this planet."
Mina listened in silence. Her expression flickered with sadness, but a smile soon returned.
"I see... but I like this planet. The two moons, the strange flowers... and you. The person who saved me is here." She looked directly into his eyes. "I feel like I can be happy here, as long as I’m with you."
Her words filled Rion’s heart. "I want to be with you, too." He pulled her into an embrace.
A Salvager and the Rescued—their love was forbidden. Yet, knowing the risks, they could not pull away from each other.
Years passed. A new life was born on Eden Second: the child of Rion and Mina.
"Let’s name him Ao," Mina smiled, cradling the infant. "So he grows up with a heart as clear as that blue sky we saw that day."
Rion looked at Ao’s sleeping face and then up at the night sky. On that day, when white smoke rose into the sky of Earth, they had secretly caught lives that were meant to fall through the cracks of history. Now, those lives were building a new future in the far reaches of the galaxy.
Their story is not over. They are waiting across a span of thousands of years for the day Earth overcomes its conflicts and comes to find them.
"Mission Start. Next target: Year 20XX..."
Alto’s voice echoed through the ship. Rion said his goodbyes to Mina and Ao, descending once more toward the blue planet for another rescue. In his heart, Mina’s smile and Ao’s clear eyes remained—a warm, eternal light.
