Nightmare's Experiment
Lee Harin’s face twisted in an instant. The air around them grew thick with malice.
Tentacles erupted from the shadows stretching all the way to the horizon and shot straight toward Nightmare, tip aimed like a spear.
“…Siwoo, go home first.”
“No way, wait—!”
Before Siwoo could even protest, a tentacle coiled gently around him and yanked him sideways into the darkness.
The destination was Siwoo’s room, hovering directly above the bed.
Harin was certain she could manage basic emergency care on her own.
After all, ever since she had absorbed the Demon King Army’s power, she hadn’t even tried to use a magical girl’s mana.
“…Heh.”
Nightmare ignored her completely and simply stared.
Both of them began drawing in their mana.
“Break Up.”
“Nightmare, Transformation.”
A burst of purple light flashed across the rooftop of the building, and the two Demon King Army executives materialized.
Nightmare, however, did not move the moment her transformation was complete. She simply watched Harin, as though even this much resistance could be crushed underfoot at any second.
And in truth, it could.
“…!”
Harin held back, keeping her distance while the tentacles continued to point at Nightmare.
“Finally showing yourself, Destroy. Are you about to give up on playing nice with that friend of yours?”
“Shut your mouth.”
Harin countered sharply.
She still couldn’t form any relationship with ordinary people, and civilians were even further out of reach.
The only person she could call close was her childhood friend Jung Siwoo.
But even one person was enough.
No matter what else she remembered or forgot, she believed their friendship was real.
“Hm. Do you really think Jung Siwoo sees you as a good friend? I don’t believe so.”
—Kyik.
A mocking chuckle sounded right beside her ear.
Harin clenched her teeth so hard her jaw creaked.
Clearly, Nightmare was about to unleash her ability.
Only by gripping her sanity tight could she avoid being swallowed by the nightmare.
If she lost control…
“Shut your mouth, Nightmare.”
“Hm. How interesting. Threatening me like that—does it make you feel scary? You should try being a little gentler…”
“Keep your mouth shut…”
“Jung Siwoo would like you just a little, you know.”
Nightmare had just struck Harin’s sore spot.
“…What did you just say?”
Harin’s eyes blazed. Inside the purple irises, a hidden red light flared.
A thick, unfiltered wave of killing intent exploded outward. Her fingers twitched uncontrollably.
“Probably not just brainwashing being undone. You were slaughtering people, found him, chased him down. Then a crack formed and your brainwashing became unstable.”
“Shut up!”
“Even if he seems to accept you now, is that really sincere? Have you ever wondered if he’s only letting you in because he’s afraid of you?”
“Shut your mouth!”
—Slap!
The tentacles that had burst from the shadows twitched, then whipped toward Nightmare with terrifying speed.
But—
—Kaaang!
“Oh my, you’re bold.”
A small, translucent hexagonal shield appeared before Nightmare’s face. The tip of the tentacle shattered against it.
At the same time, stars of every color began to rise, their dreamy aura wrapping around her.
“Ghk…!”
A sudden, skull-splitting headache made Harin clutch her forehead and twist.
“You… you bastard…!”
Heh. You didn’t forget that I brainwashed you, did you?
—Kik, kik.
Another mocking voice echoed in her ear, and the pain at her temple grew worse.
“Human trauma is terrifying. Even in the short moments of life, grief and pain make you writhe without realizing it.”
“You… you bastard…!”
“You’re the same, and Jung Siwoo is the same too, aren’t you? Let me see…”
A sadistic smile curved Nightmare’s lips.
“Shall I show you how delicious a nightmare can be?”
“Shut your mouth!”
Energy spheres crackled around Harin and launched at Nightmare in an instant.
—Kwakwakwang!
The explosion filled the night sky. Sirens wailed in the distance.
Heh.
The stars stretched into nebulae and hurtled toward Harin.
—Kagagagang!
Harin thrust her tentacles forward, shredding the stars and closing the distance in a single charge.
Every step brought the sound of stars and tentacles colliding and shattering.
Then, right in front of her face, she forged a sharp blade of mana at her fingertips and thrust it toward Nightmare’s heart.
—Whoosh.
“Ghk?!”
A light flick of Nightmare’s hand sent Harin crashing to the ground.
Her head felt like it was splitting apart. Her heart pounded as cold sweat poured down her back without permission.
“Ah… ugh…!”
Her vision blurred. A voice laughed at her.
Soon the mocking laughter turned into screams. Cruel hallucinations flashed before her eyes.
“No… no… I…”
People pointing at her, laughing.
People screaming as they fled her.
Magical girls showing deep hostility.
And—
“Siwoo…!”
The Siwoo clinging to the wall in fear, trembling.
The Siwoo looking at her like a monster.
The pain in her head intensified.
But the thing that hurt even more was the truth.
She had once looked at Siwoo that way.
In the memory of when brainwashing had made her try to kill him.
Her mind went hazy again.
“No… no…”
“Look. You were terrified of him like that. Do you really think you’re not terrified now?”
“Shut… shut up…!”
Through the cracks in her mind, Nightmare’s voice seeped in.
Her instinct warned her not to listen, but she had already absorbed the words without filtering her chaotic reason.
“Hmm… Maybe you accepted me out of fear because of your own existence.”
“…!”
Harin said nothing.
If she spoke, she would only be contradicted.
So instead she clenched her fist tightly.
At the same time she kicked off the ground and swung her fist at Nightmare.
—Kwaaang!
Blocked by the translucent shield, but at least their eyes met.
Through the opaque visor, Harin saw her own face reflected in the faint light.
The purple eyes and hair that had been pointed at like a monster in the hallucination.
She hadn’t liked the look of them right after seeing the illusion, but there was no other way.
She had no intention of thinking about her magical girl powers again.
Besides, the treatment she had received under the guise of recovery had probably been useless for a long time.
It had only felt better when she held Siwoo’s hand for a long time.
The more she used her power, the more she became a monster. But she had no choice.
“You don’t want to hear it, but you’re just like me. From the purple suit, to the visor, to the eyes, the hair, even the source of the power.”
“Shut up!”
“You keep rejecting it, but you’re already wearing that monstrous form, aren’t you?”
“Shut your mouth!”
—Kwaaang!
Harin struck the translucent shield again.
Her teeth gnashed with rage.
But Nightmare only smiled lightly, as if she found it pitiful, and pulled her right leg back slightly.
Stars and nebulae that had been floating around her began to be absorbed into her right foot, creating an ominous flow of energy.
“Ghk…!”
Harin tried to back away in panic, but her feet were rooted to the ground.
She tried to gather mana in front of her body to form a shield.
“Nightmare Finish.”
With a smile, Nightmare thrust her leg forward.
—Perak!
The condensed nightmare mana slammed into Harin’s abdomen.
“Ciao.”
—Kwaaang!
“Keugh…!”
Far away, Harin slammed into the wall. Blood spilled from her mouth.
Then she collapsed to the ground among debris, barely managing to push herself up and face the approaching Nightmare.
“Ghk…!”
“Hmm.”
Nightmare stopped right in front of her, looking down at the fallen Harin in silence.
Then, with a subtle smile, she spoke.
“Good. If your friendship with Jung Siwoo is truly real… let me propose a little wager.”
“What…?”
Ignoring Harin’s question, Nightmare simply bent down.
She grabbed Harin’s hair tightly, forced her head up, and locked eyes with her.
Instead of the usual gentle, subtle smile, a cruel smile filled with enjoyment appeared at Nightmare’s lips.
“I’ll implant a very powerful nightmare into you. One that you cannot endure with a clear mind and that will devour everyone around you. The biggest victim will be Jung Siwoo, who lives with you.”
“What…?”
“If you writhe in agony from the nightmare and it poisons Jung Siwoo’s mind even a little… and he still doesn’t abandon you…”
Nightmare paused, then smiled again and continued.
“I’ll acknowledge that precious ‘friendship’ of yours.”
“Damn…!”
“Oh dear, what a shame. It doesn’t exist for me. And…”
A black-purple crystal formed in her palm, scattering ominous mana.
“After all, you have no right to choose.”
—Puk!
The nightmare essence Nightmare created sank into the purple crystal glowing inside Harin’s heart.
Dark mana flowed through her nerves. A burning pain spread through her body.
“Ugh… nggh…! Gaaaaah—!”
Harin writhed in agony.
Hahaha. That’s it. Feel the nightmare color your body and prove it.
Nightmare laughed wildly.
“Dreams shouldn’t exist in this world. Only nightmares should.”
She continued.
“Just despair, nothing but despair.”
[Mad Blood (Rumi Kalma) has been implanted with Nightmare's Essence. Brainwashing level: Critical. Probability of full control lost: 87%]
The night sky trembled with the weight of what was about to come.