Chapter 4
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 4
Chapter Title: I Told You, Right?
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First, I needed to check the Management Bureau's current situation.
Was this just a single entity's containment failure, or something more?
Of course, the Management Bureau is sturdy.
Even if one internal containment entity broke free, it wouldn't immediately release the others.
What if there's someone who could blow up the entire Management Bureau building right after a containment breach?
Don't worry. The Management Bureau isn't run by idiots.
Those types are isolated alone in deep ocean labs or vast desert facilities out in the middle of nowhere.
Then why did a containment failure happen?
Truth is, I already knew the reason.
Almost all of Gangwon Province Management Bureau's forces had been wiped out fighting the Anomalous Artists. I was the only survivor there.
The timing couldn't have been worse. There was no other way to explain it.
"So... could I get a situation update?"
"Ah, of course!"
[Containment Area A: Safe]
[Containment Area B: Danger]
[Containment Area C: Containment Failure]
[Probability of leading to secondary containment failure: 54%]
[Survivors in facility: Unknown]
[Management Bureau rescue request: Impossible. Communication equipment repair needed]
[Time until regular report to headquarters: 1 hour 25 minutes]
"Hmm, doesn't look great, does it?"
A secondary containment failure means the probability that the escaped entity frees another variant entity.
Steadily climbing from 54%... the situation isn't good.
Unable to identify survivors means part of the Management Bureau's surveillance system has already been destroyed or hijacked. That's equally hopeless...
"Rescue request impossible?"
This was the most problematic part.
With the broadcast equipment destroyed, we couldn't send a rescue request.
In 1 hour and 25 minutes, when the regular report was due, headquarters would know something happened... but that would be too late.
Extra forces don't come rushing in the moment something blows up. Assessing the situation and assembling the right team takes time.
But Gangwon Province and nearby branches had already lost all their forces. Sending troops from Seoul, where the Anomaly Management Control Department headquarters is, would take time.
"So, time until the Mobile Special Task Force arrives... about half a day?"
"Yes. We can't expect reinforcements from outside for a while."
I quickly ran the calculations in my head.
Probability of no additional containment failures within half a day? Unfortunately, close to 0%. A conclusion drawn from experience playing as Management Bureau personnel several times.
Sigh, this complicates things.
Here we had ten battered Isolation Team 3 survivors and one baby goddess. Against a catastrophe-class variant entity, the 'Renaissance Virus'.
But retreating wasn't an option.
Honestly... it wasn't for Gangneung citizens' lives or the Management Bureau forces arriving in half a day.
It hadn't even been a full day since possession. In this world full of anomalies, charging ahead recklessly gets you killed for sure.
I just saw a chance worth taking a shot at.
Catastrophe-class containment or not, it's ultimately an Anomalous Artist's creation, right?
So, if I get that far, I win for sure. I had that confidence.
"In the end... we have to handle this ourselves."
"Ourselves, you say?"
But the agents didn't seem convinced.
Their troubled gazes held the distrust of defeated remnants who'd already tasted defeat once.
"To contain a catastrophe-class entity requires at least 100 Mobile Special Task Force members and 10 Isolation Team personnel with variant abilities. With our numbers..."
"If we just reach the variant entity, I can handle it. Believe it or not, I'm a pretty capable Anomalous Artist."
"...I'm sorry. Even so, we can't gamble recklessly in an uncertain situation. If we leave the control room and get wiped out, Gangneung is done for."
"Hmm..."
With them rejecting the proposal out of concern, it felt awkward to push further. They weren't wrong.
The Management Bureau's top priority is always maintaining the status quo.
It's natural for a group tasked with protection to be conservative. They prioritize safety, so no radical gambles.
"But if we sit here and another containment failure hits?"
"..."
The agent couldn't respond.
I understood. It was like asking if they'd rather wither slowly or burn brightly.
Even knowing inaction means death, few jump into the flames willingly. So I decided to wait a bit.
The awkward standoff was broken by Han Yura, leaning against the wall.
"Ugh...!"
"Team Leader?! Are you okay?"
"Yeah, thanks to you, my head's clear again. Thanks."
Pushing away the agent checking her condition, she turned her faintly glowing red eyes toward me and asked.
"How old are you?"
"Thirty..."
I hesitated on how to answer. No way they'd believe my previous life's age straight up.
145cm tall.
Standing among the burly Isolation Team agents averaging 180cm, would anyone buy me as 31? Even I wouldn't.
"Thirteen."
Hiding a twinge of guilt, that's what I said.
Han Yura smiled faintly at the answer.
"Hear that, Kim Beom-su?"
"Ah..."
"A thirteen-year-old kid came down to basement 15 risking her life. If even a brat who hasn't shed her baby fat can do it, can we adults hesitate?"
Han Yura picked up her gun and stood.
She rotated her formerly marbleized left arm, wiggled her fingers to check. Judging herself ready, she approached.
"This little lady's right. Staying here means we all die. Even in the control room, another containment failure would overwhelm us."
"But..."
"Remember the Management Bureau slogan? We're humanity's last bastion. If there's even a slim chance to resolve this... that's where we stake our lives."
Saying that, she crouched slightly to meet my eyes.
"You said if we reach the variant entity, you can handle it?"
"Yes."
"You're absolutely sure? Betting everything on it?"
"Yes. I'm not suicidal either."
It was the same in the original game.
No matter how young the goddess, she wielded absolute power in her domain.
I'm still a young goddess now. Half-baked, almost superstitious... but against a catastrophe-class, it's enough.
So I looked up at Han Yura with eyes full of conviction. Seeing my steady gaze, she gently stroked my head and replied.
"Good. Then I'll trust you and bet my life. A life that wouldn't exist without you is easy enough to risk."
"...In that case, I'll go with you too, Team Leader."
"Me too."
"Anywhere the Team Leader goes, we'll follow."
The 'strong leadership' from that earlier info window wasn't for show; everyone trusted and followed Han Yura.
"Thanks for believing in me."
Relief washed over me. Honestly, solo would have been iffy.
But something felt off.
Especially being treated like a kid by Han Yura, getting my head patted.
"But... I'm not a baby..."
"Huh? Thirteen's a kid, right?"
Han Yura lifted her gun slightly with a grin.
"So stay back and hide. We'll grown-ups protect you."
"Eek..."
It felt weird. I'm definitely a sturdy 31-year-old adult man! A 180cm Marine who'd fought ghosts...!
Hiding my flushed cheeks took a moment.
"We've got about thirty magazines of anti-variant explosive rounds left. We'll need to conserve them."
"Same for grenades. One per person."
"You, what's your name?"
"Baek Eunha."
"Baek Eunha? Pretty name. Anyway... no body armor?"
"Nah, I'm good. It wouldn't block the attacks coming anyway."
"Still, at least wear th..."
"Eek!?"
"Hey! Why are you naked underneath?!"
"Haha, circumstances."
"No way. Put this on at least!"
The Isolation Team prepped for battle with the bright vibe of friends packing for a trip.
But that was just to mask the grim mood. No one enjoys leaping into fire.
The moment they stepped into the corridor, smiles vanished.
Replaced by the quiet, steely calm unique to veteran Isolation Team agents.
"Corridor 1, clear. Moving in."
At first, it was fine. Few statues had reached the Management Bureau's deepest levels.
"Peanut, if you please!"
Krunch!
A satisfying crunch as Peanut pierced a statue's head. Tough against special rounds, they crumbled to dust powerlessly.
"Peanut? Cuter name than I expected."
"Hmph, it grows on you."
"...Yeah, Anomalous Artists have weird tastes."
The early floors were manageable.
We even had room for jokes amid fights.
But worsening as we ascended.
"Fifteen statues! Ugh, where are these things coming from?!"
The 'Renaissance Virus' host seemed to sense us. Numbers swelled as they closed in.
Peaking at basement 5, Area C where the Renaissance Virus was confined.
"Ugh, one special round magazine left! Not enough!"
"Same here! Can't break through like this!"
Statues swarmed, ammo dwindled. One rushed right up, mouth clenching in a scream, eyes locking on.
[Status: This statue is perfect. Even if it's your delusion, it's perfect anyway. Humans must be perfect. Join us and be perfect too...]
Krunch!
Peanut crushed it, but the tide wasn't turning. Scratches accumulated even on sturdy wooden statues.
We won't last like this.
Need to create a variable somehow.
"...But we've come far enough."
One more use won't kill me, right?
I'll suffer later for sure.
Whatever the price for a miracle beyond my power... didn't matter.
People trusted and followed me. Gangneung citizens lived peacefully outside.
Above all, I couldn't accept these statues' creed that humans must be perfect.
So I gathered starlight above my hand.
A soft wave of light spread. All statues froze. Intense zeal burned in their eyes.
What to replace their twisted ideology with? Han Yura's words came to mind.
Sprinkling starlight, I spoke.
"Humans... aren't perfect beings."
Viscous emotions surged, but I was fine this time. I'm no fool who falls for the same trick twice.
"So no need to chase perfection. What you're after isn't true perfection anyway."
As words ended, front-line statues knelt. Clutching heads, they sobbed like faithful denied their lifelong creed.
Of course, it didn't halt the info erosion.
Obsession with perfection overwritten by futility.
Statues' granted purpose vanished.
Predictable end for purposeless lifeforms.
"Rest easy, everyone."
Clenching my fist, over a hundred statues crumbled simultaneously.
Silence filled the corridor, only marble shards and plaster dust remaining.
Watching quietly, I spun half around.
"I told you, right?"
Grinning at the stunned team.
"That I'm a pretty capable Anomalous Artist."