Chapter 315
"Then you should’ve just said so earlier. Why drag it out?"
"Well, I’ve still got a conscience, you know. I mean, asking you to fight when you’re all torn up like that feels kinda~ wrong."
"Cut the crap and move!"
Honeybee hesitated for a moment, lowering the hand that had been supporting him. She asked with concern.
"J, are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
A lie. It hurt. The monster's thoughts kept pouring in, driving him to the brink of madness. Pain. Uijae shook his head in frustration and shouted.
"…Shut up!"
Gasp—Uijae jerked his head up. Pain. The two of them stared at him in alarm. Pain. Goddamn it. Uijae bit down on his lip and bowed his head.
"…I’m sorry."
Gyugyu rubbed his chin.
"Okay, so you’re not fine at all, huh?"
"See? You’re taking responsibility."
"Can I just trap him inside the barrier~?"
"Do whatever you want! It’s about to break. One, two…"
Crash—!!
The transparent wall shattered into pieces. As Gyugyu pulled Uijae back,
Clang!
A piercing clash of metal rang out right by his ear. Honeybee had blocked a razor-sharp blade with her slender rapier. Screeech—sword against sword, grinding and sparking like they were locked in a deadly tug of war. Her thin blade moved with a dancer’s grace, deflecting the monster’s vicious strikes. Honeybee shouted.
"Get those two out of here, now!"
"Hornet, can you handle it on your own?"
Even as she dodged and parried attack after attack, she managed to turn her head. A sharp smirk lit up her face.
"Hah… what do you take me for?"
Gyugyu let out a crooked grin.
"Fair enough."
"And…"
The monster let out a thunderous wail, and the ceiling lights flickered violently again. Under the flickering glow, Honeybee’s straight back cast a long, dark shadow. Then, under a sudden burst of light, the tip of her rapier gleamed. Grit, the sound of teeth clenching followed.
"I’ve got… a score to settle with that thing!"
Clang, clang, clang! The metallic sounds rang out again. With Uijae leaning heavily on him, Gyugyu dashed toward Jeong Bin. With a flick of his fingers, the barrier vanished. Jeong Bin, startled, turned to them.
"Mr. J, how did you get up here? Weren’t you in the interrogation room?"
Holding his head as if it might crack open, Uijae managed a strained reply.
"I heard a mutated one showed up, so I came. We need to get out of here now! That thing’s targeting you, Jeong Bin!"
"But…!"
Jeong Bin hesitated. His eyes wavered, flicking between the monster and Honeybee locked in combat. Gyugyu shrugged.
"I get that he's your teammate, but in that state, he needs to be put down~ Got any other ideas? He’s not your teammate anymore, right?"
"……."
"Leave him be, and who knows how many people’ll die. Civil servant."
Gyugyu grabbed Jeong Bin’s arm.
At that moment—shhk, the sickening sound of something sharp piercing flesh. Uijae turned his head. The monster’s scream grew louder.
Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain!
Honeybee’s arm moved in a smooth arc, drawing her rapier cleanly out of the monster’s body. A flawless, unhesitating movement. White blood scattered, splattering the wall where the blade had traced its path. She didn’t stop. She stepped in again, preparing to finish it off completely.
And then—
Thud! A rough hand shoved Uijae and Gyugyu aside. Jeong Bin pushed past them and dashed forward.
"Wait, Miss Honeybee!"
For the briefest instant, time froze.
Jeong Bin, rushing forward.
Gyugyu, reaching out reflexively from where he’d been shoved,
but his hand grasped nothing—just empty air.
Jeong Bin cried out desperately.
"Please… spare his life!"
Honeybee halted, just as she was about to drive her blade into the creature’s throat. Her blade wavered for a moment.
And in that same instant, the monster blinked its milky white eyes.
Team leader.
The team leader is coming.
Team leader, I’m here.
There’s something I need to tell you!
Please come here!
The monster thrust both arms forward, now transformed into jagged blades. It lunged forward, mouth gaping open, packed with sharp teeth.
A chilling premonition drove Uijae’s body into motion. He pushed off the floor with force. The marble cracked beneath his feet in the shape of his soles.
He blew past Gyugyu and snatched the back of Jeong Bin’s collar. Jeong Bin turned around with a startled look, but Uijae didn’t answer—
I want to eat him!
I want to eat the team leader!
He yanked the back of Jeong Bin’s collar hard, pulling him away.
A massive jaw snapped shut right in front of Jeong Bin’s face. As if that weren’t enough, the monster gnashed its teeth a few more times, opening and closing its mouth like it was testing the bite. Uijae kicked the creature square in the jaw with all his strength. Crack!—the sound of bones breaking rang out. The monster let out a shrill shriek, clutching its mouth.
Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain!
Gritting his teeth, Uijae dragged Jeong Bin back.
“Gyugyu!”
“Got it! Look at that… almost got your handsome head chomped right off. Would’ve been a real shame to lose that face.”
Gyugyu grabbed Jeong Bin and pulled him to safety. Uijae steadied himself, ignoring the pounding in his skull. The monster’s rolling white eyes locked onto him. It was crying. White tears dripped heavily onto the floor.
Why? Why? Why? Why?
Why are you stopping me?
And you... even you...
The monster stared at Uijae quietly, tilting its head as if examining a curious animal. The savage hunger from just moments before was gone—there wasn’t a trace of violence in its expression now. Gyugyu’s murmur came from behind him.
“…Its behavior changed all of a sudden.”
Dread surged in Uijae’s chest. He didn’t want it to be found out. What? His condition. His body. He clenched his fist. It was slick with cold sweat. And the moment he raised it—
Splurt.
A gush of hot white blood poured down on his head.
Uijae looked up. A sharp rapier had pierced straight through the monster’s neck. As it was withdrawn, the once-upright monster collapsed in a heap. A hiss escaped its gaping mouth like air leaking from a balloon. Honeybee flicked her rapier, spraying white blood off it, her face calm and cold.
“Opening.”
“……”
“Sorry, Team Leader Jeong. I couldn’t honor your request.”
Jeong Bin was gasping for breath, still held by Gyugyu. His face was pale, save for the one cheek flushed red where he’d been struck. Honeybee hopped over the twitching body of the monster and walked over. From her inventory, she pulled out a towel and handed it to Uijae.
“Oh my, look at you, soaked in blood. At least use this.”
“Ah, thanks.”
“How’s your body? You looked okay when you moved earlier.”
“Yeah, I’m doing better now.”
“That’s good, then. You did well ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) just now.”
Honeybee gave Uijae a thumbs-up, then passed by him, heading toward the back. With one hand on her hip, she glared at Jeong Bin.
“You do realize you almost got eaten, right? I don’t know what came over you, acting so out of character, but maybe next time, try using your head a bit more?”
“…I’m sorry. This was entirely my mistake.”
Jeong Bin bowed his head deeply. Honeybee crossed her arms and replied with a huff.
“Fine. I get why you did it.”
“Well, nobody died, so it’s no big deal~”
Gyugyu patted Jeong Bin’s shoulder, only to get smacked on the back of his hand by Honeybee and quickly pulled away. Of course. Honeybee had just killed a mutated comrade with her own hands. Uijae sighed, rubbing the towel through his hair soaked in white blood. Jeong Bin wiped his face with his palm, then lifted his head. Though he didn’t look entirely at ease, some of his composure had returned.
“…We should start the cleanup. Thank you for your help.”
“Was the person who mutated this time… showing any signs beforehand?”
“No, not at all. No whitening of the skin or hair, no partial transformation. It was completely out of the blue…”
Honeybee stepped up to the monster. She lowered her voice and whispered in Uijae’s ear.
“This thing… is the same as the one I saw.”
“……”
“The one that killed Team Leader Jeong in the previous world.”
“…So we prevented his death this time?”
“Hmph, I hope so.”
Uijae crouched down in front of the monster. It was still wheezing, struggling to breathe. Its breaths were growing more sparse—death was clearly near. Uijae brushed back the fur covering its head. The monster’s dull, white eyes slowly turned to him.
Why?
Why did you stop me?
Uijae didn’t respond. He withdrew his hand and stood. The monster gave one final twitch of its limbs.
Team leader…
“……”
And a pair of gray eyes had taken in the entire scene.
Hmm. Gyugyu let out a soft hum and gave Jeong Bin’s shoulder a sly pat.
“Hey, you know how people who are mutating usually have parts of their body turn white, right?”
“…Yes, why do you ask?”
“Oh… nothing major.”
His gray eyes narrowed.
“Just that… doesn’t J’s hair look whiter than it used to?”