< 113. Shock and Terror (11) >
***
Again the smell of blood stirred inside my skull.
As time went by, I forgot about it to some extent, overcame it to some extent, and thought I had resolved it to some extent. But because of the nightmare, it was vividly relived. It was showing off its presence by tearing through my head like a raw thing dripping blood.
In the midst of all this, the ominous demand she made aroused extreme rejection in Minjun.
“I’m not stupid. It’s obvious why I’m asking for that. Are you doing something similar to that time?”
Dying or dead homunculi are visible everywhere in the secret laboratory.
Del took a deep breath, seeming nervous. Then he spoke in an earnest tone. His eyes were filled with deep emotion.
“It’s not what you think it is. I’m trying to save you.”
“Then explain.”
“···I can’t tell you in detail.”
Minjun speaks bluntly.
“Think about it from the other person’s perspective. The ex-wife who committed ‘that kind of thing’ in the past is now asking for the biological samples that she had been stealing little by little without telling me. But she can’t explain the detailed reason? In this situation, who would just say, “Okay, I understand,” and hand it over right away?”
“I can’t explain why, but I can explain my intention. I’m trying to make up for what I did back then. This is my atonement.”
“You beat someone up so badly that you stabbed him with a knife as an apology. Is this the Endellion way of apologizing?”
“I know it was a terrible thing. But… there was a reason.”
“Yeah, I was crazy. And for a great reason.”
Dell eventually gave up. He was already running out of time. He had no choice but to mention other matters before leaving.
“I hope you understand my sincerity. I’m just trying to help you, after all.”
Then he speaks without giving me a chance to respond.
“There’s going to be another tax audit. And it’s only going to be for you.”
Minjun gritted his teeth. If it were true, it seemed like he was trying to control the sudden surge in his account balance in some way. But then Dell added something unexpected.
“It could come at a much shorter notice than before. It could probably start as soon as you get the notice.”
“···Those damn kids.”
“But you know what? They can give short notice to the inmates, but they can’t do that to the district office.”
Minjun seemed to know his ex-wife’s intentions.
“As long as I’m in this position, the IRS needs to give me advance notice before sending investigators to Earth. At least a few days in advance. I’ll let you know when the time comes. It’s important to prepare now, but it would be helpful to know the exact timing a few days before it happens.”
Del was proving that he came to Earth because of Minjun. This time, he asked a question.
“How’s the goblin thing going?”
Now that I think about it, it’s been a while since I received an update from Jenkins. It’s probably time to check the status.
“You’d better hurry. There’s something strange about the committee’s movements these days. Instead of having the prisoners do it, they’re sending regular staff to some levels to do it. Yeah, collecting genetic samples. Do you know what kind of cases this is coming from?”
The mission has a very high chance of success, is close to that point, and there is little to no risk involved.
Then, instead of having irregular workers do the work, regular workers are dispatched directly. In this way, the freedom of the prisoners becomes a little further away.
“This kind of remote dimension is low on the priority list, but I can’t afford to be carefree. If I’m not careful, I might end up losing the credit to the regular employees. I can buy some time by suppressing their dispatch requests, but it’s impossible to completely block them.”
Dell finally gets his last word out.
“And the fragments of Asif-1.”
“You got a tip?”
“Yes. But I’m not sure what form it will take. It could be hidden in the soul of an intelligent being, or it could be inhabited by an object. In the latter case, it’s most likely a sword.”
Minjun naturally thought of the Ego Sword.
“I can’t officially step forward, but I plan to investigate behind the scenes. If anything comes out, I’ll let you know. If you’re going to take credit for it, it would be good to leave evidence that you were involved from the beginning.”
From earlier, Dell had been listing several ways to help Minjun. In case the first plan failed, there was a second plan, and another, and another. It wasn’t a roadmap that could be drawn up overnight.
nevertheless.
“······”
Minjun still couldn’t completely trust Dell. His wounds and sense of betrayal were that deep.
Moreover, she is of an ancient race, and is both their royalty and now a member of the Council.
So the prisoner decides to put the frying pan story aside for now. If both the sinister cooking tool and the Ego Sword are indeed fragments of Asif-1, it won’t be too late to open one of them first and observe her and the committee’s reactions.
The other one is left for insurance.
and···.
‘Anyway, the story about the Ego Sword will soon reach Del’s ears. The police investigation has already begun.’
It’s not a bad idea to hit the player if she notices.
He asks as if he doesn’t know.
“What clues are there to determine that it is a fragment of Asif-1?”
Dell frowned slightly.
“That’s the problem. The truth is that the information we have is very limited.”
They put up a bounty without even knowing how to find it. There was a reason why the amount was set so high.
“First of all, no matter how small the fragment is, it is certain that it has a self. It may be asleep or awake, but···.”
“Then it would be almost impossible to find them while they’re asleep.”
“That must be the case. If it can wake up and talk, we need to figure out what that entity wants. If it’s Asif-1, there’s a high chance it has some strange obsessions.”
“which?”
“To put it simply, it can be defined as an obsession with salvation.”
A sense of mission to save someone.
“Salvation? What exactly does that mean?”
“I think it can be understood as a concept of saving others from suffering and giving them happiness.”
The obsession is said to usually be directed towards the intelligent beings surrounding the fragments.
“If it resides in a person, it will touch the host’s subconscious and lead to action. If it’s hidden in an object, it will evolve to fit that function. If we imagine it based on the most likely sword…”
She squinted her eyes.
“You would try to save someone by killing them or hurting them.”
“It’s a concept that’s hard to understand at first glance.”
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Here, Minjun decided to reveal his information.
As his story continued, Dell’s expression changed to one of interest.
Minjun explained about the contract organization called Abrams Helper Service, the killer codenamed Blade, and the Ego Sword and murders that were witnessed in Korea. Since he arrived on Earth today, he probably hasn’t gotten to know all of this information yet.
After her ex-husband finished explaining, Dell said.
“It does have some strange aspects, but it does meet the requirements as an ego sword of unknown identity. I’m also concerned about its suspicious abilities.”
After hearing at what point Minjun hit the wall, Del nodded and got up.
“Unfortunately, I don’t think I can stay much longer. There are hundreds of people from all over the world waiting for me. More than half of them are Elder Dragons.”
It was time to leave.
Minjun opened the door and saw her off. There was a strange atmosphere between them. Minjun was still wary and suspicious. His ex-wife’s eyes were filled with regret.
“I’ll look into it too. About that organization. For now, that’s the only place we can find clues.”
Just before stepping out the front door.
Suddenly he stops walking and asks.
“By the way, about that Breed Shifter earlier?”
It was a cash story.
Dell asks in a casual tone, as if passing by.
“You’re not saying that someone as quick-witted as you wouldn’t know that, right?”
“······.”
“You know but you pretend not to and push me away?”
What Dell did changed a lot about Minjun, but the two biggest changes were:
He no longer has deep relationships with anyone, and he does not yield his talents to anyone.
Instead of explaining the fact, Minjun stared blankly at his ex-wife. The silence contained many answers. Del looked at him with calm, deep eyes. She read countless memories from her ex-husband’s face. The years they had spent together were buried under a layer of skin and a cold expression.
“Yeah, is that my fault too?”
Whatever the intention, it still leaves a scar.
Minjun didn’t answer, and Del took a step outside and looked back. The prisoner looked away, so he didn’t notice Del’s gaze lingering on the bottom drawer of the desk.
She muttered softly.
“But on the other hand… I guess it’s a good thing.”
Dell left.
***
“Secretary··· Please··· have some···.”
The goblin held out a mug of herbal tea, but Cathy didn’t respond. She had been sitting in front of the counter of the Evergreen Bookstore, staring intently outside the store for several dozen minutes. Dong-cheol was taken aback when he didn’t respond.
“Hmm, hmm.”
Only when Lakefield coughed did he turn around.
“Oh, Dongcheol. Thank you.”
“yes···.”
But instead of touching the cup, he just stares outside. The enthusiasm of a detective on an undercover investigation boils over his face.
The old elf on the other side of the counter, Lakefield, asked.
“Is it true that there were guests in the office? I didn’t see anyone.”
The goblin intervened.
“I··· didn’t see anyone···.”
In order to get to the second floor, you have to pass in front of the bookstore. But the two of them said that there was no one there. Then, Cathy answered in a sensitive tone.
“I told you I was on the second floor and came down.”
Lakefield was completely incomprehensible.
“But, you told me to get off work? Why are you still hanging around here? Do you think that customer will ask you something when he comes down? Then you could have just gone up and asked him…”
The unidentified woman who called Minjun with a very annoying title. Cash was determined not to move until the guest, of whom she knew nothing but that her name was ‘Del’ and that she was presumed to be a quarter elf, left.
I felt like I needed to see with my own eyes that she left without staying ‘too long’.
Cassie couldn’t understand why she was doing this, but the urge to do so dominated her mind.
It was while I was looking out like that for a long time.
“···Huh? Really?”
The goblin let out a questioning voice.
Someone walked toward the bookstore without a single sound of footsteps. Judging from the route, it was clear that they had come down from the second floor and exited through the central entrance of the store.
The eyes of humans, goblins, and elves were all fixed on one place.
That moment.
A woman who was walking away from the entrance of the bookstore suddenly turned her head. Her gaze was directed at the people inside the bookstore.
Cathy, who met his eyes, was startled and picked up a random book from the counter. It was a book with a cover that was unclear where the pictures and letters ended, and was full of an unreadable alien language. Her face turned bright red and she buried her face in the book.
The goblin and elf could not see the cache in that state, but they did. The guest they did not know laughed as if it was fun. A leisurely smile spread across her lips. She stared at the cache in that state. As if observing.
After a few seconds, her lips parted slightly. Her tone was a light muttering, and she was a little far away, but her voice sounded as if she was whispering right next to her. A playful tone.
“···You held that book upside down.”
After saying those words, he looked away. He walked away and soon disappeared from their sight.
“Hmm.”
Lakefield let out a sigh.
“How did you know?”
He looked at the cover of the thick book. Cathy threw it on the counter, unable to move her hands or feet because of shame. ‘Why is a book I can’t even read here…!’
Meanwhile, Dong-cheol was having trouble controlling his pounding heart for a different reason than Cathy.
‘Ah… why is it like this?’
The moment the woman just stared into the bookstore.
The goblin felt the blood flowing back into his body. The instincts that had not responded even when he had seen the polymorphed dragon until she blew her pores were now running wild, stabbing at every nerve.
If I were to describe the feeling in words… it was a very dangerous, overwhelming, and overwhelming feeling, like I was standing before a great being.
“······.”
He just stared in the direction where the guest had disappeared for a long time.
< 113. Shock and Terror (11) > End
