Chapter 165: Crisis Detection
Gravity is something you cannot defy.
I learned that lesson painfully once, right after I lay down to sleep after a meal and came down with gastritis.
Since my parents were both working at the time, I eventually recovered thanks to the care of my younger sister and my childhood friend, but I think that was the first time I truly realized how significant gravity was inside my body.
What I ultimately learned was that you shouldn't lie down after eating. Mainly because stomach acid comes up.
"Gravity applies to all beings, right?"
"What are you talking about?"
Jang Chae-yeon, who was gathering iron pellets, looked at me with a puzzled expression.
"It seems we can test it out now."
Jang Chae-yeon looked at me quietly for a moment, then nodded.
"Sure. If that's what you want to test."
She didn't seem to understand what I meant, but she wore an expression that said she did.
"Mr. Daon, Ms. Arin."
"Yes!"
"I'm going to hit it with a big one, so please block well for me."
"Yes!"
"Got it."
Yu Daon and Song A-rin nodded.
"And, Mr. Daon."
"Yes?"
I wondered if I could ask this of him.
While I hesitated briefly, Yu Daon looked at me with a gentle smile.
"Please, say anything."
"..."
"If it's what Jae-heon wants, I can accomplish anything."
Every time I see that expression on her face, it makes me wonder if what I'm doing is really right.
"...Just once, could you take a hit like before?"
"Ah, you mean let a body part get eaten? Any part is fine?"
"Correct. You just need to endure it once when I give the signal."
"That's not a difficult task! I was worried you might ask for my head or something, which would be a bit awkward... but it seems that won't be necessary! Any part seems fine!"
Yu Daon smiled and nodded.
"And Ms. Arin, please keep an eye on Mr. Daon."
"...Tch."
Song A-rin looked at me and let out a sigh.
"Fine. Got it. Hey, black-hair. You heard him? I'll provide perfect backup."
"Please don't fight."
"Hey! We don't fight!"
"That's right."
So, what I saw just now wasn't a fight but a friendly conversation?
"I'll leave it to you."
At my words, the two nodded.
"Let's go, Ms. Arin!"
"...Yeah."
Yu Daon ran ahead to draw the enemy's attention and dodged attacks, while Song A-rin skillfully fired her pistol, planting bullets into the monster's joints.
Whenever an unavoidable attack flew towards Yu Daon, Song A-rin would pull her hand back.
As if controlled by strings, Yu Daon's body braked, and she swiftly moved backward.
"Thank you!"
"If you're grateful, use prettier words!"
Yu Daon laughed, and Song A-rin clicked her tongue.
Yu Daon, who seemed to have eyes in the back of her head, created angles for Song A-rin to shoot, and Song A-rin, who perfectly grasped her intentions, moved accordingly.
To anyone watching, it was perfect coordination.
If they can fight like that, why can't they just get along normally?
"It might be time to get eaten soon!"
Yu Daon shouted and looked at Jang Chae-yeon.
The pellets she had gathered had now merged into one giant iron ball.
A ball of iron compressed purely by force.
"Ready."
"Now!"
"Yes!"
Yu Daon, who had been dodging its attacks, deliberately brought her arm to its leg.
In an instant, her arm disappeared like an eraser, leaving only her empty sleeve dangling.
<!Ugh-heuk!>
The creature retched as if vomiting something out,
and Yu Daon's arm returned.
"Ms. Chae-yeon!"
Hearing me, Jang Chae-yeon pulled her arm back.
Following her movement, the iron ball also pulled back.
-Screeech!
As she threw her fist forward like hurling a baseball at full speed, the large, condensed iron ball slammed into the creature's mouth at a terrifying velocity.
-BOOM!
<!Guhk!>
The creature let out a bizarre sound, bent its body, and twisted itself while screaming unintelligibly.
<Paaah!>
"It says it hurts," Yu Daon muttered calmly, observing the scene.
<!Heh-hegk!>
Soon, it vomited out the iron ball.
Then, countless somethings poured out of its mouth.
They were things beyond description.
Clumps of hair, pieces of skin, and bones.
"Eeek!"
Song A-rin jumped back in fright, and Yu Daon also pulled her body back with a stiff expression.
The monster continued to vomit them out for a long time.
<...Gi...ve... me... life...>
It muttered as it fell backward.
A horrific stench wafted through the air.
"..."
Yu Daon, who had been watching the scene, closed her eyes slightly, offered a moment of silence, and muttered.
"You suffered for a long time. Now rest in peace."
Her voice was so filled with anguish that none of us, including me, could say anything.
"...Shall we go?"
She raised her head after the moment of silence.
"..."
Jang Chae-yeon glanced at her as she passed by, and Song A-rin, after chewing on her lip, also passed her.
"...Ms. Daon."
"Ah, Mr. Jae-heon."
Yu Daon looked at me and smiled.
"Are you okay?"
"That's my line. Are you okay, Ms. Daon?"
"I'm fine, of course."
Yu Daon nodded.
"He was a pitiful person."
"That's true."
He probably never imagined he'd end up trapped in a hospital like that—
"He ended up like that because he never met you, Mr. Jae-heon."
"...What?"
My gaze naturally turned to Yu Daon.
"If he had met you, that person would have lived a different life, right?"
"...I don't think that's the case."
I'm not someone with that kind of power.
I've just lived doing what I can, trying my best.
"No."
But,
"If it's Mr. Jae-heon, you could have done it."
The certainty filling Yu Daon's face as she said this left me speechless.
It was something beyond mere trust; there was no other way to describe it.
"Something's coming."
Cutting through our atmosphere, the Team Leader muttered, narrowing his eyes.
Jang Chae-yeon gathered the pellets again and put them in her pouch, Song A-rin reloaded her gun, and Yu Daon clenched her fist.
-Tap-tap-tap-tap!
With urgent footsteps, the door opened,
and a nurse revealed herself.
Simultaneously, Jang Chae-yeon slammed her hand to the floor, and the nurse's body was smashed into the ground.
-Swish!
At the same time, Song A-rin swung her index finger as if playing an instrument, and the nurse's body twisted, pulling a key from its embrace.
"Thanks."
Song A-rin muttered, took the key, and looked at me.
"Let's go."
"Understood."
Song A-rin inserted the key into the door, which had somehow closed.
-Click!
With the sound of the key turning, the door opened.
A pungent smell assaulted our noses,
"Wow..."
The Team Leader muttered, looking down the corridor.
The corridor was devastated.
All the windows were shattered, and burn marks scarred the floor.
Clear signs that someone had openly wrecked the place.
"It seems they did come."
If I had to think of someone capable of causing such destruction, only two people came to mind.
But how did they get to where we are? The Manual is also weak on real-time information.
If I think about it...
-KWA-BOOM!
A sound of something shattering echoed.
"No need to wonder anymore."
If they're breaking things so openly.
"We just need to go towards the sound."
Before stepping forward,
I turned back to look at the patients.
Their gazes were fixed on the five of us.
"Ms. Arin."
"Yeah?"
Song A-rin turned to look at me.
"Is it right to leave the door open?"
"..."
Song A-rin's gaze turned to the numerous people in patient gowns.
"If they come out here, will they be able to survive?"
"I don't know."
But at least, the immediate dangers seemed to be gone.
"Who knows. If things get destroyed to this extent, this place might disappear, and they could return to normal."
"..."
Song A-rin's gaze lingered on them,
and she closed her eyes slightly.
After a moment, Song A-rin opened her eyes, her face pale.
"I've implanted a suggestion for safety. Even if they come out, they should be able to instinctively find a safe place."
"...Thank you."
"Don't mention it. I'm actually glad you're that kind of person."
Song A-rin muttered and stepped forward.
The five of us moved forward, looking at the completely shattered surroundings.
"...Jae-heon."
-BOOM! CRASH!
A horrific sound, unimaginable during our usual fights, was echoing.
"Yes, Team Leader."
"This feeling is really bad."
The Team Leader muttered with a face full of fear, staring ahead.
"There's something where that sound is coming from."
"There must be... something."
If the Branch Head and the Isolation Team are fighting to that extent, it's not just 'something'.
It must be a 'something' far beyond my imagination.
As we got closer to the source of the sound, the terrible noise reverberated louder, and the Team Leader looked at me.
"Jae-heon, what about waiting here?"
"Wait?"
"...That doesn't seem like a bad idea either. But originally, can we even be of much help in a fight against such monsters..."
The Team Leader muttered, looking ahead,
-BOOM!
The wall shattered, and a person came flying out.
"Eeeek!"
The Team Leader screamed,
The person who flew out of the shattered wall coughed violently and spat out blood.
"...Branch Head?"
It was the Branch Head.
She spat out blood several times, then made eye contact with me and widened her eyes.
"It's Mr. Kim Jae-heon and the HR team? I looked everywhere here but couldn't find you, so I thought you were really lucky and didn't get caught."
"We were trapped with the patients."
"I see, cough!"
She spat out blood with a 'Ptui!'
"Actually, the situation isn't good."
"It seems so."
"I confidently picked a fight, and I've killed or sent all the doctors in Gangbuk Hospital underground to a point where it wouldn't be strange, but..."
She muttered, looking ahead.
"The Director of Gangbuk Hospital is terribly troublesome."
-Thud, thud...
Footsteps were heard.
"Huuuuk...!"
The Team Leader took a sharp breath and pushed me.
-Rustle!
The Team Leader's hair fell out.
The moment I was pushed aside,
the wall shattered.
Soon, a person became visible through the hole in the wall.
Even though a battle fierce enough to cause this much chaos had occurred, his gown should have been dirty, but conversely, his stark white doctor's gown drew attention.
And,
"Eeugh..."
Yu Daon pinched her nose.
"Ms. Daon?"
"That... person, no. That thing..."
She muttered, furrowing her brow.
"The stench is overwhelming."
As her words ended, the Director's face was revealed.
It was identical to a human face.
Except the jaw was abnormally elongated.
The lower jaw hung down to the solar plexus, and it looked at us.
"...The best result has appeared."
It muttered incomprehensible words while looking at Yu Daon.
Yu Daon's body stiffened.
Soon, a semi-transparent window floated above its head.
[Name : Gangbuk Hospital Director]
[Age : 74]
[Specialty : - ]
[Talent : - ]
[Background : - ]
[Weakness : - ]
My eyes, as if it were natural, showed only limited information.
Jang Chae-yeon stood next to the Branch Head, and Song A-rin also stood behind me.
The Branch Head opened her mouth.
"Team Leader Heo Chan."
"...Yes."
Contrary to my expectation, she called the Team Leader's name.
"Seeing you after the Butterfly Dream Incident, it seems you've almost gone bald."
"That's... correct."
"After this case, you might become completely bald?"
"..."
The Team Leader's expression rapidly darkened.
"The Management Bureau is looking for a hair growth formula."
So even with the Bureau's technology, baldness can't be cured.
"HR team members, you can help, right?"
A semi-transparent window floated above the Team Leader's head.
[Name : Heo Chan]
[Age : 49]
[Trait : Complacency]
[Talent : Crisis Detection]
[Background : He did not say it. Crisis Detection means surviving by consuming one's own life force. Like a human lifespan, there is a part of the body that faces permanent death. It is the hair follicle.]
[Weakness : If complete baldness occurs, he will find it difficult to utilize his ability properly.]
"...Jae-heon."
"Yes, Team Leader."
"..."
The Team Leader bit his lip tightly.
"From now on, I'll provide full backup. I'll warn you about dangerous things. Go and fight!"
"What about your hair, Team Leader?"
"Shut up, you brat!"
The Branch Head clenched her fist, and the four of us drew our respective weapons.
It was time to escape.