Chapter 122: Chapter 121

【# Apocalyptic Creature Management Record 045

Entity Name: ■■■

Management Level: Yellow Sulfur (Level 3)

Friendliness: Friendly

■■■ observed Test Subject T and developed an attachment to them.

Wishing to form a deeper social connection with Test Subject T, ■■■ disguised itself as Test Subject T’s close friend, Test Subject Q, and approached.

While masquerading as Test Subject Q, ■■■ continuously manipulated Test Subject T to ensure they never left the lab.**

As they ventured further into the party room, Son Nalim realized they weren’t alone.

“Haa... haa... Rui-unnie, you smell so good…”

A girl was sniffing the nape of Rui’s neck, clinging tightly to her.

This was a virtual reality world—just data avatars in VR. There was no way scent simulation was possible here. Yet, the girl calling Rui “unnie” kept sniffing audibly.

“...Rui?”

“...Hello.”

Rui, her eyes hollow and distant, looked over at them.

There were four others already present in the room.

In other words, all the collaboration participants had gathered in this party room.

Except for Rui, the other three had regressed.

Anna, in Mental Degradation Level 5, had her nose buried in Rui’s neck.

“How did this happen to you…?”

“...I don’t know either.”

Well, Rui had watched Anna slowly regress into her current state, but it wasn’t something she wanted to process or understand.

“It’s just… I’m so nervous I can’t breathe…”

That was the first thing Anna had said to Rui.

Anna had always whined about wanting to collaborate with Rui, but when the moment finally came, this was the result.

Like an inexperienced, awkward youth encountering their ultimate crush, Anna had no idea how to interact with her favorite VTuber.

Terrified she’d die from happiness, Anna seemingly gave up her humanity to protect herself—regressing entirely into a childlike state.

That brought them to the present.

‘Mental Degradation Level 5 means Anna’s avatar must be entirely AI-controlled now.’

In Shina’s case, the AI occasionally took over. But for Anna, it seemed the AI had completely seized control.

So the childlike Anna rubbing her face against Rui’s neck wasn’t really Anna at all—it was the AI.

It had to be.

That explanation was the only thing that made sense.

“So, how did everyone end up gathering here?”

“I started at the same point as Anna and met the other two on the way.”

“No, I mean… why is everyone still here?”

“Oh, that. I’ll explain.”

Rui pointed upward with her finger.

Now that she mentioned it, the party room had an absurdly high ceiling.

It had to be at least the height of a 4th or 5th floor of a building, maybe more. You’d have to crane your neck all the way back to see the top.

And up there, a wide-open passage was visible.

“Wait, are we supposed to go up there?”

“I’ve searched everywhere here, and that’s the only way out.”

“But how are we supposed to get up there?”

Son Nalim scanned the surroundings. There were no stairs, elevators, or even a rope.

“Not that there’s no way.”

Rui gestured toward some chairs.

Amid the scattered decorations, five chairs stood upright. Upon closer inspection, they were bolted firmly to the floor.

Nalim sat down in one of the chairs curiously, and Rui followed suit.

“Try sitting down,” Rui instructed.

Everyone took a seat, filling the remaining spots.

A low mechanical hum echoed, and a ladder began descending from above.

“Ah!”

Son Nalim instinctively stood as the ladder came into view, but the moment she did, it stopped and retracted back up.

“Huh? It’s going back up?”

Son Nalim’s eyes widened.

Here’s how it worked:

Each of the five chairs had a pressure-sensitive switch.

When all five chairs were occupied, the ladder descended.

If anyone left their chair, the ladder retracted.

“At least five people need to stay behind to solve this puzzle,” Rui concluded.

That’s why Rui had been waiting for others to arrive.

Son Nalim stared at the ladder, running calculations in her head.

‘The ladder doesn’t move too fast… but could I reach it before it retracts?’

After running the numbers several times, she shook her head.

‘…It’s almost impossible. The distance between the chairs and the ladder is too great.’

The chairs were bolted down. Without a screwdriver to unscrew them and adjust their positions, there was no physical way to get closer.

“Five people will have to stay behind,” Laura said, watching the situation unfold.

Laura was still holding Shina’s hand.

“There’s got to be another way!” Nalim protested. “Like placing something on the chairs to weigh them down?”

“I’ve tried,” Rui interjected, shaking her head.

The pressure switches were calibrated for human weight. Even if objects of similar weight were used, the uneven cushions made them slide off. The armrests also got in the way, preventing large objects from staying in place.

“There’s no choice. We’ll have to split into two groups,” Laura said.

“Split into two groups…?”

“Yes,” Laura nodded. “Some will stay seated while others go up. There might be a rope or something up there to pull everyone else up.”

That logic made sense. If no solution was available here, there might be one above.

“So, how do we decide the groups?”

“It’s simple,” Laura said. “Anyone at Mental Degradation Level 2 or higher should stay.”

“Huh? Why?”

“Do you think children can climb a ladder that easily?”

Fair enough.

With that logic, the four participants with significant mental degradation stayed behind.

The remaining four—Laura, Rui, Nalim, and Sora, who was only at Level 1—prepared to ascend.

Since there were only five chairs, and one more needed to remain seated, they decided fairly through rock-paper-scissors.

In the end, Rui stayed seated.

“Well, then. Wait here while we check upstairs,” Rui said as the ladder descended.

Laura went up first, followed by Sora. Nalim hesitated as she climbed last.

‘Something’s wrong.’

The moment she stepped into the party room, Nalim had felt a vague unease. It wasn’t something she could put into words, but it lingered.

She tried to dismiss it as her imagination, but the feeling wouldn’t go away.

Soon, they reached the top.

Ahead of them lay a straight hallway.

“That looks like the exit.”

At the end of the hallway, an open door awaited.

In this game, doors acted as boundaries between spaces. Passing through often led to entirely different areas. If they went through this one, they likely couldn’t return to the party room.

“There’s no rope or anything here. Should we head back down?”

“Do we really need to?” Laura asked.

“What?”

Laura’s words made Nalim blink.

“If we leave now, we’ll gain an advantage in the competition, won’t we?”

“Wait, are you saying we should abandon them?” Nalim’s voice rose.

“That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

Laura smirked, crossing her arms.

“Rui’s a strong competitor. She managed to get here with someone as degraded as Anna. Eliminating her now would be to our advantage.”

“But that’s… so cruel! We came here saying we’d help them…!”

“Son Nalim, you’re misunderstanding something,” Laura said, shrugging.

“This is a free-for-all.”

She stepped closer to Nalim, their faces nearly touching.

‘Her eyes are so pretty…’

Nalim couldn’t help but think so.

“In a free-for-all, you can’t cooperate forever. This is the perfect opportunity.”

As Laura leaned in, her elbow brushed against Nalim’s chest.

“I refuse,” Nalim said firmly.

She hated leaving things unresolved or compromising her values.

Even if Laura’s logic was sound, this was unfair and cowardly. It wasn’t competition—it was exploitation.

“Suit yourself,” Laura said dismissively.

She turned to Sora, taking her hand.

“If we meet again, we’ll see.”@@novelbin@@

With that, Laura and Sora disappeared into the hallway.

Nalim stood frozen, only regaining her breath after they vanished.

“...I thought my heart would explode.”

The exit led to a school.

A long, seemingly endless hallway stretched before them.

Laura walked confidently, still holding Sora’s hand.

“Looks like it’s just the two of us now.”

Laura’s voice carried a playful tone.

“This works out better. Fewer people mean smoother operations.”

“You’re not Laura.”

Smack!

Sora slapped the hand holding hers.

No, not Laura’s hand.

The hand of whatever had taken Laura’s form.

“Who are you? Where’s Laura?”