It was a night in early winter, close to midnight.

The temperature was 2 degrees Celsius. The red light of the traffic signals bled long across the rain-slicked road, and wet leaves on the street trees flipped in the wind. The cold air was thick with the smell of earth and exhaust. Where the bus had departed, only ripples remained in the puddles.

In the moment of trying to help someone, the sound of tires scraping the wet pavement tore through the night.

Honk, hooonk—

A horn. Headlights bleaching the world white.

Crash—!

The field of vision tilted. From eye level against the ground, the traffic lights blurred like strange stars. The chill of the asphalt seeped into the skin, and the smell of iron came from somewhere. Each time a raindrop hit the cheek, the sound of someone shouting in the distance cut in and out. Every time a breath was drawn, the inside of the chest tightened sharply. Once, and then once more. The gaps between breaths grew longer. Even the approaching sirens became muffled, like sounds ringing underwater.

And then, silence.

The rain no longer reached. There was no pain, no cold.

A hazy space where thin mist flowed at ankle height. Neither ceiling nor horizon was visible. In the center stood a man in a gray coat. A silver dog tag glowed faintly over his black inner layer. The man stopped his finger while reading a ledger.

His gaze caught on a single name.

The man slowly raised his head.

Disheveled dark brown hair, blonde resting on the nape of his neck. A straight bridge of the nose and languid eyes. It was Joo Yunhyeok, who had ended his life at twenty-four, five years ago. However, the brown eyes of his living days had turned red, and the white sclera was as black as ink.