Chapter 20
Translator: True Detective
Chapter 20
By the Rules
The communications soldier's words were enough to freeze everyone in place.
The news that communication with Outpost No. 4 could not be established.
It meant, quite simply, that something had gone wrong there.
"Umm..."
Captain Kim, who was accompanying us, let out a low groan.
Normally, he wouldn't join the operations personally, but since this was our first mission, he had come along.
As such, he was also the commanding officer for this operation.
"...What do you think?"
However, he asked for our judgment first.
Perhaps it was because there would be many situations in the future where we would have to go on missions by ourselves.
The one who stepped forward most confidently at that question was Kim Ji-hoo.
"We must move forward. Since this is not our final destination, it is only right that we take the initiative to shoulder the risk."
"...I agree with those words. Did we ever really have a choice anyway?"
Everyone let out a hollow laugh at my remark.
Everyone gathered here was a person who had come with their own purpose.
People who had something they needed to achieve, even if it meant disregarding their own lives.
Yet among such people, only Kim Ji-hoo, who had stepped forward purely out of a sense of justice, remained upright.
"...Very well. We cannot retreat."
At the owlbear old man's words, everyone finally shook off their tension.
The change in the atmosphere was palpable.
Right, this is how it should be. If they hadn't at least prepared themselves with this much resolve, they would have returned to the quarantine facility long ago.
Just as the mood was heating up, Min Ah-ji raised her hand.
"...Wait a moment."
"...What is it?"
"I smell something. A fishy smell... Ugh!"
Min Ah-ji suddenly made a gagging motion.
At those words, the intellectual orc mister frowned.
"...The scent of blood."
Rattle, rattle.
The two-and-a-half-ton truck advanced toward Outpost No. 4.
The weather was damnably overcast.
A moment where the headlights cut through the thick, low-hanging fog.
Even though not a single person here was unprepared, the truck was chillingly silent.
* * *
The silence continued until we reached Outpost No. 4.
"...We have arrived."
Once we reached our destination, even the rattling truck came to a stop.
Captain Kim spoke in a voice that showed no trace of trembling.
"...Let's disembark."
At those words, everyone poured out.
No one uttered a word, yet their momentum was sharp.
Among us, the owlbear old man and Min Ah-ji, who had gained sensory abilities, focused on guarding the perimeter.
"Uu-ugh...!"
In the meantime, Min Ah-ji kept dry-heaving as if the smell of blood was that thick, but...
"Are you all right?"
"...I'm, I'm okay."
She didn't give up and continued to keep her sense of smell sharpened.
Two facts were discovered through their efforts.
"...I can't pinpoint a location. The smell of blood is vibrating from everywhere..."
"...It is the same on this side. I still don't hear any specific sounds."
It was information without much substance, but it was always better than nothing.
"...Everyone, let's enter the outpost while guarding the surroundings."
"...I will take the lead."
The owlbear old man moved forward slowly, holding the riot shield in front of him.
We followed behind him, keeping a wary eye on all sides.
'...It's eerie.'
Perhaps because of the thick fog, the appearance of Outpost No. 4 was as spooky as a haunted house.
An atmosphere where it felt like something might happen at any moment.
Overwhelmed by that atmosphere, we reached the door of the outpost.
Bang, bang!
The owlbear old man knocked on the door and spoke.
"Is anyone inside!"
But no answer came back.
Just in case, he knocked a few more times, but as expected, there was no reply.
"...Let's enter, old man."
"Understood."
The owlbear old man raised his sledgehammer high.
And then...
CRAASH!
With a massive boom, the door to the outpost was blown away.
Simultaneously, the owlbear old man entered with the riot shield out front.
The orc mister and Min Ah-ji followed behind him, securing the space.
Their movements looked quite professional for only having a week of training.
Just as everyone was tense with their fingers on their triggers, the owlbear old man raised his hand.
"...It's empty."
At those words, everyone lowered their muzzles.
It was as the owlbear old man said.
The interior of the outpost was empty.
Since it wasn't a very large place anyway, we could check everything at a glance.
"...Let's search the interior for now. I'll try to repair the door, if you please."
Captain Kim said that and took out a toolbox to tinker with the door.
Well, it didn't exactly look like an easy job.
My gaze turned toward the inside of the outpost.
The inside was organized to a bizarre degree.
It was a scene that certainly didn't match the vibrating smell of blood Min Ah-ji had caught outside.
A half-finished paper cup sat on the desk, and in the corner, winter clothing that still seemed to hold some warmth was hanging neatly.
A perfectly ordinary, everyday sight, as if someone had been here just a moment ago.
However, that very ordinariness felt most extraordinary in this situation.
"......The warmth is still there."
I muttered while touching the paper cup on the desk.
The sweet scent of instant coffee brushed my nose. Heat that hadn't cooled yet was transmitted through my palm.
Evidence that just a few minutes ago, someone had been spending their time here, drinking coffee.
"Ms. Min Ah-ji, is the smell of blood still vibrating outside?"
Captain Kim asked while fixing the door. Min Ah-ji sniffed the air, looking back and forth between the inside and outside of the outpost, before nodding with a pale face.
"...Yes. It feels like the world is divided by a single door. Outside is like a slaughterhouse, but inside... it's too clean. That's what's even more skin-crawling."
The owlbear old man put down his shield on the floor and examined the situation board attached to the wall.
His sensitive ears trembled once more.
"I hear no sounds either. No traces of resistance, no screams. I don't even hear the friction of someone being dragged away. ...It's as if they've vanished like smoke."
I suddenly looked at the mirror hanging on the wall.
Reflected there was the figure of an angel with drooping wings and an anxious gaze.
Incongruity.
This entire situation we were experiencing was a massive lump of contradiction.
They said mimic beasts peel skin and share memories. If so, there was a high possibility that this organized scene was an artificial peace they had created.
Yoo In-ha, the naga beastman who had been lingering in the corner, pointed with a trembling finger at a logbook near the radio.
Captain Kim approached and opened the logbook. I also peeked my head in to check the contents.
In the logbook, ordinary records of the soldiers continued, until the very last page where some scribbled handwriting remained.
[02:40 - Heard a baby's cry near the sewer to the right of the outpost. Presumed to be a civilian survivor. Team 1 dispatched to check.]
"A baby... cry?"
It was the moment Yoo In-ha read that passage aloud.
Waaaah—! Waaaah—!
As if on cue, the sharp scream of a baby pierced through the fog from outside.
"....!"
The timing was too perfect. As if it had been waiting for us to read that log.
The owlbear old man captured the source of the sound.
"It's over there! Right in front of the outpost, inside the sewer across the street!"
The sound was heart-wrenching. That sound of a newborn baby crying as if it were about to pass out was enough to stimulate human's primal compassion.
However, none of the people here could easily move their feet.
This was the boundary of the blackout zone.
The warning that the officer had hammered into our ears came to mind.
Assume all suspicious persons are mimic beasts.
Shoot to kill without exception.
"...But, but should we really judge a newborn baby as a suspicious person?"
Someone said that. It was a female voice, but it was hard to specify who.
In fact, there was no need to specify.
Because deep down in our hearts, we all harbored agreement with those words.
No matter how much it's a world where immortal monsters run rampant, how many humans could pull the trigger after hearing the cry of a newborn baby?
I stole a glance at Captain Kim.
His hands were trembling uncontrollably, unable to move.
And it was the same for Kim Ji-hoo.
Since he had volunteered out of a sense of justice, it seemed he was greatly shaken by this temptation.
I was also greatly shaken by such a temptation.
No, I should have been.
I suddenly looked up at the halo.
The halo was emitting a brighter light than usual.
The difference was so minute that it was a faint change only I, who always lived with the halo, could notice.
And the wave of Holy Power that started from that minute change...
'...I need to get a grip.'
It steadied my mind.
"...Captain Kim."
"Yes, yes... This is why those bastards..."
"Hand me a grenade if you have a spare."
Captain Kim cautiously handed over a grenade. I strode forward and gripped the grenade I had tinkered with slightly during training.
I waded through the fog without hesitation and stood over the manhole where the baby's cry was coming from.
And then, click.
I pushed the grenade down into the manhole.
BOOM!
Even though a grenade had exploded, the baby's cry could still be heard.
Waaaah—! Waaaah—!
It means it's a monster.
I tossed the remaining grenades inside.
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