30
Ch.30 Free Meal
“No... Not the alias. Your real name."
"Park Deun-deun."
"Hmm... alright. Well, between us, human names aren’t that important anyway. Wow, this feels weird. Meeting another test subject in human form out here like this."
The same went for me.
I never expected to meet another test subject outside the lab—no stimulants, no forced transformations, no fights.
Gu Seo-ryong awkwardly withdrew her outstretched hand and crossed her arms.
"So? Did Deun-deun come here just to make money in the arena?"
"I came to retrieve something that was stolen."
"Ohhh? What was stolen? Who’d dare?"
"An alloy chain... No, a necklace. A keepsake from my parents."
"Oh?"
I saw no reason to hide my purpose, and Gu Seo-ryong’s eyes widened in surprise.
"CXI has something like that? How interesting—a keepsake from your parents."
"You don’t have one?"
"Which one? A keepsake? Or parents? I have neither."
"You were born without parents?"
"Orphanage kid. Anyway... If it’s a parental keepsake, I can see why you’d come this far. But why the arena?"
"They said I had to pay an entrance fee."
"Ah~ So you joined the arena to earn the fee? Pfft! That’s hilarious. An arena fight for just 100,000 won?"
Gu Seo-ryong burst into laughter, then gradually quieted down, flicking her fingers—snap, snap—a habit, not an ability trigger.
"If it was stolen, it’s probably in the black market out back."
"I doubt it’s there. The thief said he’d put it around someone’s neck."
When I repeated the thief’s words, Gu Seo-ryong’s expression twisted slightly.
"So he was planning to gift it to some favorite prostitute...? Do you know what the thief looks like?"
"Seemed like a loan shark."
"I’ll find it and bring it to you. You can dump the corpse or eat it, whatever."
Her monstrous kindness made me nod. Gu Seo-ryong then studied me thoughtfully.
"...What’ll you do after you get it back? Got anywhere to go?"
"I plan to sleep in the park."
Her eyes gleamed like a snake eyeing prey.
"No place to go, no money? Do you know what they say about situations like this? This is like finding rice cakes!"
"You like rice cakes?"
"Hah! In many ways. You like them too?"
"I’ll eat them if they’re there."
"Hmm~ Then we might really get along."
She stepped closer, adjusting her body’s proportions. Sensing no hostility, I kept my hands at my sides as she whispered,
"You don’t seem to know much about me... But if you come to Guryongseong, you know what this place is, right?"
"It seems like your nest."
"Nest! Hahaha! That’s a word only we’d understand. Exactly—this is my nest. And... It has everything you could want."
"Everything I want?"
"Yeah. Rice cakes, food, medicine, fun—anything."
She draped an arm over my shoulder, her mollified limb coiling like a snake.
"What do you think? We might really click. Don’t you have questions for me too?"
"What are you trying to say?"
"Let’s talk. I’ll show you around my nest."
"Sounds bothersome."
"Oho, I like you even more. I hate dumb men who follow me around too easily."
"That tickles."
I grabbed her wriggling fingers and twisted.
Snap. She shed one like a lizard’s tail, regenerating it instantly as she stepped back.
"Hah... I like violent men even more."
She licked the blood off her new finger with a forked tongue. I stared at the twitching finger in my palm, then swallowed.
It was almost time to get hungry...
Gu Seo-ryong laughed, clutching her stomach.
"Hahaha! Right, it’s about time to eat. How about it? I’ve got plenty of delicious things inside. Want a meal?"
"You’re offering food?"
"As much as you want. Eat till you’re full. I’ll have that thief brought to you while you eat."
"Hmm."
Free meals are always right.
I could get the necklace after eating.
Seeing me nod, Gu Seo-ryong clapped her hands. The suited men outside rushed in.
"B-Boss...! Is this person—?"
"My guest. Hmm... A colleague, you could say? Someone I knew before. Changed so much I almost didn’t recognize him."
"Your colleague...?"
"Yeah. Clear out the third floor—we’re eating."
"But we have guests right now—"
"Idiot! You think I don’t know that?!”
“It’ll be done, Boss!"
"And you—find any loan sharks who brought in an alloy chain necklace today and drag them here."
"Y-Yes!"
As the suited men scrambled out, Gu Seo-ryong motioned for me to follow.
She led me to a building at the edge of the arena grounds—a two-story structure labeled Management Office. We took an exterior elevator to the rooftop third floor, where the suited man was forcibly clearing out noisy guests.
"The hell?! I’ve spent so much money here—this treatment is insane!"
"Don’t send lackeys—get Gu Seo-ryong out here!"
"Shut up and get out! We’ll refund your money!"
"Hmm? Strange. I told them to clear the floor."
"B-Boss...! We were just—!"
"Tch. How embarrassing. Sorry, let me clean this up."
Gu Seo-ryong flicked her fingers.
The suited man and guests collapsed, writhing as if suffocating in flames—Hallucination and Sensory Overload.
She kicked them off the rooftop.
"KYAAAAH!"
"What the—?!"
"People are falling!!"
The screams below were soon drowned out by loud music.
Gu Seo-ryong sat at a cleared table and beckoned to the suited men. One brought a menu.
"From here to here—bring everything. And you—earmuffs on."
Snap. Silence Curse—sound cut off for everyone present.
"Hungry? Dig in! We got a new chef recently."
The food was astonishingly good.
I grabbed a whole roasted pig leg and tore into it. Gu Seo-ryong laughed, twirling pasta with a fork.
"Hahaha! You were starving! You weren’t skipping meals, were you?"
"I eat enough."
"Tell me if you want anything else. I’ll get you whatever."
"I don’t believe lies like that."
"Oh? It’s not a lie."
Unlimited rice refill restaurants stop after 20 bowls. Society is cold like that.
I kept eating silently.
Gu Seo-ryong rested her chin on her hand, watching me.
"If CXI asked me to feed him, I’d do it endlessly."
Doubtful.
"There’s more than just food here. The arena’s fun, the black market’s got interesting stuff..."
"It’s noisy."
"Hahaha! That’s the outdoor club’s music. You’ll get used to it. That bass—feels good, right?"
I glanced at the club—a playground repurposed into a rave. People danced wildly, some stripping and mating openly.
"Can monster frequencies affect humans beyond fear?"
"Hmm~? That? They’re just high."
Loan sharks exchanged wads of cash for small paper strips—drugs. Users stuck them on their tongues, laughing uncontrollably.
"Interested? Try some. Ten at once might even affect us."
"No thanks."
"Hehe~ Let me know if you change your mind. It’s fun."
"Doesn’t look tasty."
Putting drugs on rice cakes? Unthinkable. Only honey belongs on rice cakes.
...Maybe soy sauce.
"Ever played cards? Want to hit the casino after eating?"
"That noisy place downstairs?"
"Yep! Humans go crazy there. Their screams, and cheers—were delicious. You’re a monster—you get it, right?"
I nodded, chugging a fizzy drink—only to scowl. Alcohol.
Gu Seo-ryong grinned, holding up the bottle.
"Dom Pérignon. Pre-monster era, very expensive—"
"I hate alcohol."
"Pfft. Yeah, it’s overrated."
"Got any cola?"
She immediately upended the wine bottle and tossed me a glass of cola. I popped the cap with a finger and chugged it.
"Hmm. You’ve been out of the lab a while, huh?"
"Not long."
She noted my fine-tuned strength control.
Curious, I set down the pig leg.
"How long for you?"
"My, that’s your first question to a lady? Hmm..."]
She held up two fingers, then split her forked tongue beside them.
"Four years? You?"
I recalled waking up in W-City. Less than half a year.
"...That’s it?"
She looked stunned, then threw a wine glass at me. I caught and drained it. Her disbelief deepened.
"Ha…. Unbelievable."