Chapter 74: Chapter 73: Am I the stupid one?

“Will this really be alright?”

“…Probably.”

“Looks like even you are aware this is a bit strange, Doctor.”

“To some extent… I admit it.”

Muttering that, Han Seori stretched.

Watching her, Kim Cheonsu let out a small sigh.

Of course… he also had a feeling 7496-KR would be able to pull it off.

Thinking it over, this reasoning seemed flimsy… but somehow, it felt like it would work out.

‘…Huh?’

Something’s strange…

“Agent Kim?”

“Ah, yes. Yes.”

Brought to his senses by Han Seori’s voice, Kim Cheonsu pressed his eyes like he was tired.

However, it wasn’t just a feeling - clear signs of fatigue showed on Kim Cheonsu’s face.

After all, he was the one who had been driving back and forth day and night, so it would be strange if he wasn’t tired.

He scratched his head with a slightly dazed look.

He felt something was off, but unable to grasp what it was… like having a sneeze interrupted midway, he had an indescribable feeling.

Eventually, Han Seori’s voice, tinged with worry, reached his ears.

“If you’re tired, get some rest. For the time being… there’s not much we can do anyway.”

“…Is that so.”

“Yes. Rather, things will get busy once your eyes are open, so sleeping is advantageous.”

“…Then I won’t decline.”

“Please do that. Ah, could you turn on the heater?”

“Yes.”

Feeling something inexplicable, he decided it didn’t matter and turned up the heater’s temperature.

Although he had nominally come out for work, the current situation itself… felt quite welcome.

So much so that he felt grateful to 7496-KR, whom he had been worrying about just a moment ago.

‘Right… she’ll return safely.’

Hopefully, not too quickly but adequately late.

Smirking inwardly, Kim Cheonsu fell asleep at once, aided by the warm temperature.

Confirming that he was asleep, Han Seori looked at the screen.

There, 7496-KR, who had arrived at the research center entrance faster than expected, could be seen.

Han Seori, who remotely opened the door before it closed, left a message for the slime girl.

A sentence as concise as possible.

Han Seori was certain the slime girl would understand it.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to solve the test Han Seori had made.

‘…Could it be?’

What if what she was hiding wasn’t that she was a genius… but something else?

Entertaining a certain possibility, Han Seori quickly erased it from her mind.

While it’s not impossible… what does it matter?

Whatever it was, it was a gesture that the slime girl wanted to communicate in her own way, so Han Seori decided to think positively.

…And.

Doesn’t it seem more likely… that she’s a genius?

So.

‘She’ll do well.’

She took in the screen, which was getting darker.

Soon, when that light disappears… the connection will be cut off.

In fact, it wasn’t strange for Kim Cheonsu to worry.

Rather, it is normal to find her faith strange.

After all.

Securing that sealed research center now… all depended on that small slime girl.

The choker left on the slime girl wouldn’t be able to provide assistance either.

She was aware it was a radical move, to the point where not being called crazy would be a stroke of luck.

But it had to be done.

Thinking it over, Han Seori felt a bit of bitterness.

While her own efforts played a part in getting this approved.

…It seemed the chaotic situation caused by “that group” also had a hand in it to some extent.

She wasn’t exactly grateful.

After all, the reason she was going this far was because of “that group” in the first place.

To Han Seori, who was watching the screen getting darker and noisier, it felt like… looking at the future.

Putting together the information she had heard, something was off.

They had managed to control the situation well so far… but somehow, it felt like something was about to happen.

…Then.

The right thing would be to prepare.

Thinking this was absolutely necessary.

Han Seori closed the screen, which had completely lost connection.

Now, really.

The task had fallen on that small slime girl.

Feeling a bit flustered, I first assessed the situation.

No one had exploded right away, including myself… so I could say there was some room to breathe.

Of course, my body had… swelled up and gotten lighter, but that much, well… it was something I could do even without facing this situation.

Anyway.

For now… it seems the connection with Han Seori has been cut off.

The choker, which had been enthusiastically emitting light until a moment ago, shows no reaction now.

Even poking it with my jelly gave no response, so… it seems to be broken, or there’s some other reason.

As my neck was slightly choked due to the swelling, I wanted to take it off, but I left it alone, not wanting to face a predicament after carelessly removing it.

Next.

Let’s see what happened to me and the “Trio.”

Among them, Daesik seemed to be in the worst condition.

It’s not that he had swollen up enormously and was about to burst… but with Alice intact, the sight of Daesik swelling up and coming out from inside…

It felt like watching a scene from a horror movie.

Good thing it’s a doll - if that were a person… wouldn’t it be even more horrific?

In the first place, they say humans can’t enter here, so that won’t happen.

The rest were… more or less the same.

Our swollen bodies gave us a strange sensation of lightness, almost as if we might bounce or float away at any moment.

Somehow, it feels like being underwater.

Looking now, rather than the body expanding, it felt like an attempt to balance something that had failed.

And as if my guess was correct.

Our bubbling and swelling bodies soon stabilized, and the Trio and I returned to our normal bodies.

I’m not sure what it was, but it seemed to be resolved, so the Trio and I went inside.

There was nothing else to do anyway, as the exit had closed.

But.

…It seems the connection has been cut off.

What if I feel like giving up?

Surely they won’t keep it closed forever until it’s resolved…?

Following a very small sound I had been hearing for a while, we went further in.

It was my first time coming here today, but the familiarity of the structure is impressive.

Do people who manage anomalies… find mental stability in the same structure?

That’s how similar the structure is.

Well… how would a mere slime like me understand the thoughts of such intelligent people?

But.

Thanks to that, it’s a bit eerie.

It’s like… a feeling that this is what my place would look like if it were ruined.

Feeling awkward, I readjusted Sosik, who was clinging to my back, to the front.

Couldn’t hug the jiggling Daesik, after all.

Meanwhile.

*Tap tap tap…*

The small sound that had been faintly heard began to grow louder.

Come to think of it, that was strange.

Whatever that sound is.

…Isn’t it odd in itself to hear any sound in a facility where there are no people?

Without realizing it, I had approached the source.

Ah, wait a minute.

I looked up.

Then.

The knowledge pouch says, “So you’re finally looking here?” and perks up.

…I just had to follow this, didn’t I?

As it can’t be understood with common sense, it must be the doing of that anomaly thing.

And my knowledge pouch is a high-performance anomaly radar.

Thinking like this, I gained confidence that entrusting it to me might unexpectedly be a good choice.

So, with the Trio, I proceeded in the direction the knowledge pouch indicated.

Before long.

A huge door appeared.

The knowledge pouch was pointing beyond this massive door.

And the noise that had been continuously heard was also coming from beyond it.

With a shrug at the journey ending more plainly than expected, I stood in front of the door.

But.

No matter how long I waited, the door didn’t open.

Blinking, I finally recalled that the choker’s light had gone dark.

Realizing my mistake, I placed my hands on the door and pulled left and right, but.

…As expected.

The door doesn’t budge an inch.

I could feel the Trio’s strange gaze piercing me.

Hey.

You can’t open it either.

It is utterly ridiculous, I tell you.

…By the way.

What do we do now?

It’s… not opening.

I already miss Han Seori.