Chapter 50
Chapter 50
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 50
Chapter Title: Portrait of a Mad Woman - 2
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Kim Junghwan and Yoo Euisul's assessment of me plunged me into serious contemplation.
I.
Was wondering if I was truly insane.
Any third party with no connection to me would naturally see me as a madwoman upon laying eyes on me.
And they had good reason to think that.
Banging my head on the ground at every opportunity, for one thing.
And worshiping some god whose name I'd never heard before... It was perfect fodder for treating me like a lunatic.
But it was unfair.
It was forced.
I didn't choose to believe because I wanted to; I was threatened with death if I didn't.
I had no choice but to be forcibly converted into a zealot, so being treated like a madwoman felt unjust from my perspective.
What made me feel even more ridiculously aggrieved was this.
Kim Junghwan and Yoo Euisul.
They weren't outsiders or third parties; they knew my circumstances all too well.
When Kim Junghwan first questioned me, I'd told him almost everything about my situation.
He must have reported it all to his superiors, naturally.
And Yoo Euisul, who was acquainted with Scheduled Hwan, the Awakener Association Chairman, would also know my story inside out.
Yet here they were, treating me like a lunatic anyway.
They say half-mad people are immune to mental attacks or something like that.
If strangers who didn't know my side of things called me crazy, I could brush it off...
But people I considered somewhat close doing the same? Ugh.
It stung a little.
To put it bluntly.
I was pissed.
"What're you doing? Hurry up and come on."
Yoo Euisul called out without even glancing back.
"...Coming."
"What's with your voice? Something bad happen?"
"Yeah, unfortunately. Something bad did happen."
"Like I care. You mentally sound?"
"Yes."
"Then quit dragging your feet."
"..."
I was the idiot for expecting her to understand.
I trailed after Yoo Euisul along the Namsan walking path.
The Anomalous Phenomenon had appeared at the summit of Namsan, apparently.
Gave me the chills.
The trees lining both sides of the path hadn't lost their greenery yet, but for some reason, they looked utterly lifeless.
As if they were already dead.
My memories of Namsan were blurry, like a poorly printed photo.
It had been over ten years ago.
And I was so young back then.
Still, one thing was certain.
The Namsan in my memories had never carried this gloomy atmosphere.
Lost in thought, Yoo Euisul suddenly asked me again.
"You mentally sound?"
"Yes. Um, I have a question."
"Shoot."
"Are Anomalous Phenomenon zones always this oppressively overcast?"
Comparing the one in Gyeonggi last time to this one in Seoul that I'd now entered on foot, I'd noticed something.
Anomalous Phenomenon zones.
Had no such thing as 'light'.
The only source of illumination worth mentioning was that grotesquely enormous full moon hanging in the sky.
If it hadn't been a full moon night today...
We wouldn't have been able to see the path at all.
For modern people, light was so commonplace.
Streetlights, convenience store glow, car headlights, and so on.
Light was everywhere you went.
But in Anomalous Phenomenon zones, aside from the full moon, there was absolutely nothing.
This place used to draw crowds as a landmark, so streetlights were installed every twenty paces along the path.
But none of them worked.
"Anomalous Phenomenon zones aren't cut off from electricity, right? It was the same last time and now—why leave the streetlights off?"
"Eliminating variables."
"What's the variable?"
"Using electricity at all is a variable."
"Why?"
As I kept pressing, Yoo Euisul scowled like I was annoying her.
"Use your brain a little. Say there's an Anomalous Phenomenon that feeds on electricity. What if the streetlights were on?"
"Disaster."
"Exactly. Get it now?"
Her patiently explaining despite that made it clear: she really was a tsundere.
But I still didn't fully get it.
"What about the trees, then? To eliminate all variables, shouldn't you clear them out too? There could be an Anomalous Phenomenon that feeds on trees."
"Spot on. Good point. You're right—we can't even predict what kind of Anomalous Phenomenon might show up. It could feed on trees like you said, or maybe streetlight glow is its weakness."
"But then why..."
"Perfect variable elimination is impossible from the start. So instead..."
"Leave it in its natural state, since that's easier to deal with."
"Smart cookie. Exactly."
I got the gist.
There was no definitive manual for resolving Anomalous Phenomena to begin with.
No need to destroy nature preemptively for variables.
Even simply put,
Adding man-made devices beforehand across various types was way more hassle than just leaving nature as-is and improvising.
My curiosity was mostly sated.
Suddenly, Yoo Euisul gave me an incredulous look.
"...Asking crap like that—you haven't taken the Anomalous Phenomenon basics course yet, have you?"
I nodded like it was the most obvious thing.
"Not yet."
She sighed, genuinely irritated.
"What the hell have you been doing? Too lazy to move? You a pig? With those massive udders, yeah, you look like one."
"I-I was going to, but I didn't have time..."
"Excuses. Can't because of streams? Bullshit. I watched some of your recent broadcasts. You only go live after 7 PM. What were you doing at home before that?"
"..."
No rebuttal.
She was right.
I should've done the basics course ages ago.
I hung my head and apologized meekly.
"...Sorry."
"Whatever. Wasn't expecting diligence from you anyway. But..."
Tok.
Yoo Euisul strode up, flicked my forehead lightly with her finger, and continued.
"If you drop dead, it's not on me."
"..."
"I'm not invincible. I'll protect you if things get dicey, sure... but don't rely on me too much. Entrusting your life to someone else? I'd never do something that stupid, even on my deathbed."
For a moment,
It felt like a hammer blow to the head.
Ever since becoming a Fervent Devotee of Reflecting Myriad Stars,
My life was no longer my own.
Handing my life over to someone else
Had become second nature without me realizing.
I suddenly realized how complacent I'd gotten.
This was it, wasn't it?
Classic bus-rider mindset.
Not 'do it for me, Euisul-unnie' or whatever... I felt pathetic.
I thanked Yoo Euisul sincerely.
"I'll keep my head straight. Thank you, Euisul."
"..."
She stopped, turned, looking displeased.
I asked what her problem was.
"What."
"...Such a punk. Was just pondering how to get 'Euisul-unnie' out of your mouth. Why."
"Doesn't seem like it'll ever happen."
"Decided. Skip the Association. Learn about Anomalous Phenomena straight from me."
"...Pardon?"
"You heard me."
Uh...
One-on-one lessons from the top Awakener herself—should I be thrilled?
Not really feeling it, though.
Hard to say.
"Anyway, you mentally sound?"
"Yes. Why do you keep asking if I'm mentally sound since earlier?"
Not accusing her.
Genuine curiosity.
"Sigh. You'd know if you'd taken the basics course; no such questions."
"...Sorry. No excuse there."
"At least you have a conscience. Answer's obvious: Anomalous Phenomena mental attacks. I don't know the details, but they intensify up close, apparently."
"I get that part, but why constantly check my state? You can tell if an Anomalous Phenomenon's mental attack is strong or weak..."
"Can't tell. At all."
"...Huh?"
"Told you, I'm completely immune to mental attacks. Whether it's brain-exploding levels or just a dizzy spell, it's all the same to me. I just sense 'oh, mental attack incoming'."
"That's straight-up..."
Broken.
I held back on saying it.
It hit me anew just how cheat-like her ability was for resolving Anomalous Phenomena.
Not 'partial immunity', but 'complete'.
Hell,
Even facing the true form of some cosmic outer god overseeing the universe,
She'd stay perfectly sane.
...Not that I know if such things exist.
But considering Reflecting Myriad Stars was no mere illusion but a real, existing deity,
They probably did.
"Anyway, no dizziness or anything?"
"Nope. This cube protecting my mind is top-notch."
"Not the cube, it's you..."
"Pardon?"
"...Forget it. Too annoying. I'll explain later. We're almost there. Stay sharp."
As Yoo Euisul said,
In the midst of our chat, we'd reached the summit.
Upon arrival,
The air felt denser somehow, oppressively heavy.
The cause was obvious.
That thing radiating an unpleasant presence in all directions.
The painting, no doubt.
It floated in midair, and was there a hole in the frame or something? Thick, dark red blood kept oozing from the edges, dripping to the ground.
Yoo Euisul spoke.
"One more time. You mentally sound?"
"Yes."
Given how she kept checking,
Time for a firmer answer.
"Same as always. Current thoughts? Ugh, skirt's uncomfortable. Thighs rubbing feels weird. Shoulders ache. Happy now?"
"...Wasn't fishing for irrelevancies."
"Point is, totally fine."
I stepped past Yoo Euisul toward the Anomalous Phenomenon.
"In the name of Reflecting Myriad Stars, I shall inspect."
Mentioning Reflecting Myriad Stars by name on purpose.
Was my plea for protection from this creepy painting's influence.
Reflecting Myriad Stars.
If I lose it here, you're screwed too.
So protect me, please.
Amen.
No.
Myriad-men.