Lost in Eternal Blindness
Shin Na-o thought she had gone blind for some reason. It was utterly bizarre for a vampire who could regenerate even a severed head to become sightless like this.
But with nothing visible, she had no choice but to assume that was the case.
"Is anyone there?"
Shin Na-o wandered through the darkness. How much time had passed as she hoped someone would help? She'd given up counting midway. Even a vampire who could live for eons like her didn't have a mind sturdy enough to endure eternity. The endless waiting terrified her.
So she had no choice but to search for a needle in a haystack. Sightless, she groped along the ground as she walked. She walked on two legs. She crawled. She moved like a beast. Trying to embrace the whole world in place of her eyes.
But she never once found a trace of human warmth.
"Is anyone there?"
Suddenly, Shin Na-o grew afraid. What if she searched the entire world and found no one? What if she scoured everything and discovered she was truly alone?
That's why she had to keep walking. Maybe it was better this way, not being able to see. At least while blind, she didn't have to face the truth of her isolation.
Facing the truth terrified her. She didn't have the mental fortitude to withstand witnessing it.
Please, just one person... Anyone, be there...
She touched the ground, felt it, clawed it, dug into it, licked it. It tasted like blood.
Blood?
"That's all of it."
Miyeong was saying that. Somehow, the darkness had lifted. In front of her eyes, Miyeong held a cup-like thing, and Na-o was in the middle of drinking from it. The cup contained a bright red liquid. The sweet taste of blood she'd had before.
Mayuri's blood.
Uh...
"...Miyeong?"
"They said too much could cause you to rampage, so we're providing only a small amount."
The maid said it with a businesslike expression.
Na-o blinked in bewilderment. Without thinking, she asked Miyeong,
"Are you really Miyeong?"
"I am."
"Tell a pun."
"When asking for help, people say, 'lend me a hand.' So if you shorten 'lend me a foot' to four letters? Foot Rental Person."
"..."
It was Miyeong, alright. Na-o regretted confirming it this way. It was so ridiculous that all the terror from moments ago vanished in a puff.
To feed the girls my blood, I needed to draw it first. Doing it alone was too scary, so I called Miyeong.
"Calling me was a wise choice. Phlebotomy isn't as easy as it seems."
Miyeong said that while checking the needle.
"Uh, you know how to use a syringe, Miyeong?"
"First time trying."
"..."
"But it doesn't seem too hard. I've handled plenty of human bodies."
She was a monster who'd cut off heads and squeezed people dry, after all. So she seemed to have a solid understanding of human anatomy. Not quite on Lisa's level, but still.
Entrusting it to her proved her handiwork was top-notch. She slid the needle into my arm painlessly and drew just the right amount.
"It's not a huge quantity, but you should rest today anyway. And no more draws for at least a month."
Miyeong said. I'd already burned through a ton of mental energy summoning the girls. Following her advice, I'd stay home and chill today. The office could just be closed for the day.
While I lounged in bed, Miyeong fed my blood to the others.
"...I wanna eat something tasty."
Ari strode over and said that. What a relief. I'd been worried she might not snap back.
Her blood really restores everything.
Physical wounds, mental corruption, status ailments—maybe even mutations. The bond effect with Na-o was even more high-performance than I'd thought.
Still, it didn't seem like a power that erased everything as if it never happened.
I handed Ari my phone, and she ordered a massive amount of delivery food. She ate nonstop, barely pausing. Like she was possessed.
"You're eating too much..."
I knew her stomach had no limits, but usually she just ate a bit more than others. Today was excessive. I could guess why.
'Erosion' shows the victim their deepest fear. Ari must've starved half to death in the hallucination it inflicted.
Pretty straightforward. No big deal—just keep the deliveries coming. From experience, Ari bounces back quick. A few days of splurging should do it.
The problem was the other two.
"Ugh, look at all these delivery containers. Lisa, can you toss 'em?"
"No."
"...Huh?"
I blinked. Did Lisa just say no?
"You don't wanna?"
"No, I don't."
"Then I'll take care of it... Lisa, you do the dishes in the meantime?"
"No."
"S-sorry..."
I had no idea why, but Lisa seemed seriously upset. Panicking, I apologized. She had knives, after all. What if she stabbed me on a whim?
...I'd actually been chased by her in an erosion hallucination before.
"Th-then rest up. I'll handle the trash."
"No."
"????"
Even resting was a no? I looked at her face—no trace of her usual smile. Lisa without her perpetual grin was kinda scary. Isn't an always-smiling person getting mad the scariest?
Coward Mayuri. Chicken Mayuri. But still, universe's cutest girl.
"D-do whatever you want, then..."
"Okay."
I headed out to sort the trash. Lisa followed. Na-o tagged along too.
"...?"
While out, I swung by the convenience store. Lisa followed. Na-o too.
The sink was piled with dishes, but I was too lazy—later. Kinda tired anyway, so I watched some anime. Lisa sat next to me. Na-o joined.
"Na-o, didn't you say you'd seen this?"
"Wanna watch again."
Went to the bathroom. Lisa followed... Na-o too...
"...How long are you two gonna follow me?"
Our house had three bathrooms. Yet here we were, three people crammed into one. Plenty of space for one each—why this?
Only I had business there, but with two watchers, I couldn't even go.
"We're worried about you, Mayuri."
"M-me too..."
Na-o, don't lie. It's obvious. I'd heard some dogs get separation anxiety. Did we have cats and dogs now?
Everyone but me seemed to have PTSD from it.
What hallucinations did they see to end up like this?
Probably some horrific ordeal sparking the anxiety. Hard to handle carelessly. Asking what they'd seen felt wrong too.
Weird. Monsters could get PTSD? At least it wasn't severe—no staying indoors forever, no fits, no paranoia, no harming others. From a cosmic horror view, super mild aftermath.
Time would heal it, probably.
"Mayuri, you in there, right?"
Her knocking while I showered was awkward, but whatever. Gotta endure.
"Mayuri, I can wash you."
"...Let me shower alone."
Ari, Lisa, and Na-o weren't great, but holing up wouldn't help. So we all went to the office.
Went to work, but no commissions for a bit.
Universe's cutest girl Mayuri had nothing but the cute girl mod, otherworldly beauty, and grit. Like the saying, no man is an island.
I survived thanks to Ari, Lisa, Na-o, and the rest.
'Erosion' was basically Yeoul's win. 'Murder Hotel'—I just landed the finishing blow, staff did the heavy lifting. 'Eight-Foot Ghost' was Taemi. 'Fox That Devours Nightmares' got Taemi's help. 'Kunekune' and 'One Person Factory Manager' had Lisa; 'Carnival Chef' had Ari.
Truth is, solo clears were rare for me. Better hold off commissions till the staff recovered.
♪♬♪♪♩
Lazing at the office, the phone rang. Caller: Woo Jin-ho.
"Director, how's your health?"
"I'm fine. Sorry I bailed early from exhaustion and couldn't stick it out..."
"No need. Thanks to you resolving it, the demo went smoothly."
Woo Jin-ho said that. I relaxed hearing it.
"Must've been rough. Any sleep issues or mental strain? These leave heavy aftereffects—I know a great doctor."
"Nah, I'm good. Mentally healthy too. Slept like a rock last night."
"Glad to hear it."
Woo Jin-ho sounded genuinely impressed. Come to think, I'd been through enough for nightmares or PTSD. But I felt surprisingly okay. Why?
Oh, Yeoul keeps invading my dreams, overwriting them. No room for nightmares.
"Good you're healthy. If you're up for it, could you visit sometime? The company rates your performance high—we'd like to hand over two Muksi Saengmyeongche."
"Not one, but two?"
I was a bit flustered. For real?