The Father's Mad Experiment
Why is hyung here? "We'll get you to your destination quickly and safely."
"Ahaha... thanks."
Min-su gave an awkward smile as he climbed into Jeong-yeon's limo, which had arrived at the drop of a hat after one phone call. Following behind him, Rijette, Silvia, and Idaine—who were all coming along—boarded the car as well.
Maybe I should've just taken a taxi.
He'd asked Jeong-yeon if she could give him a ride to Shin Yu-bin's house, but now that he was actually sitting in a limo, it felt overwhelmingly burdensome. Still, there was no way he could hail a taxi with these three eye-catching women in tow.
Jeong-yeon took a seat in the passenger side next to the separated driver's compartment. Only then could Min-su finally bring up the topic.
"Silvia. Can you explain the reason now?"
The sudden decision to ride in Jeong-yeon's car straight to Yu-bin's family home stemmed from Silvia insisting they had to find her as soon as possible. They'd set off right away due to her urgent tone, but he still hadn't heard the full story.
"It'll be quite a long tale."
Come to think of it, he knew everything about Silvia, but he'd never heard much about her apostle, Yu-bin. Was something wrong at Yu-bin's house?
"You might find it surprising, but Yu-bin is the daughter of a wealthy family. In the terms of my old world, she's like the child of a lord."
He had no idea what a "lord" meant exactly... Yu-bin was a rich girl? Then why'd she let me pay for everything back then! Rich people are supposed to be stingier. But she didn't look flush with cash—her clothes were even kinda ragged.
"That's because Yu-bin ran away from home."
"She ran away?"
Yu-bin's family was not only affluent but also seemed to have a reasonably harmonious home life. About a year ago, though, her mother passed away. Losing a parent is devastating enough on its own. But to make matters worse, her father changed completely after his wife's death. He became obsessively fixated on bringing back his already-deceased wife.
"I don't know who it is exactly, but it seems he serves some constellation. He tried to raise Yu-bin as an apostle to gain that constellation's recognition."
"Recognition from a constellation? Can constellations even revive the dead?"
"Of course not. No constellation, no matter how powerful, can bring back someone who's already gone. That's why Yu-bin left home."
With her mother gone and her father transformed into someone unrecognizable, Yu-bin couldn't endure it. So she ran away, vowing to climb the Tower on her own power. Clinging only to rumors that revival items could be found in the ultra-high floors no players had reached yet.
"That's where you met Yu-bin, then."
"Yes. I couldn't just leave that reckless girl to fend for herself when she wasn't even taking proper care of her body and knew so little about the Tower."
As Silvia's apostle, Yu-bin climbed more smoothly, but the pocket money she'd taken when she ran away eventually ran dry. So she sold items from the Tower. To make legal money as a player, she joined the education program—and that's how she met Min-su.
"I thought even if I vanished, she'd keep climbing the Tower... but it seems she's gone back home."
Was it because she heard Silvia's song that day, when she thought her goddess had disappeared?
"I never imagined she'd return home."
But Yu-bin had decided to go back.
"Why do we need to find her so urgently, though?"
Min-su was puzzled. Even after running away for so long, wouldn't she just get a scolding if she returned? Her father's odd state didn't seem dangerous.
"As I mentioned earlier, her father is obsessed with turning Yu-bin into an apostle for the constellation he serves. According to her, he dragged her to the mansion's basement every day."
"The basement...?"
That word felt ominous.
"He called it a... laboratory, I think. There, he put her in a tank for 'training.'"
Laboratory. Tank. This sounds like...
"Human experimentation, junior?"
"Isn't that the kinda thing black mages do?"
Idaine and Rijette, who had been listening intently, darkened as well.
"Do you know how horrific the things a mortal bewitched by a god can do? We must find Yu-bin as soon as possible."
"Thanks for the ride."
"Following Min-su's orders is my duty."
What the hell did Arpa hyung do to make her this devoted?
He was grateful, but the pressure made it impossible to get used to.
"I'll wait nearby, so call if you need me."
With an S-rank player's escort, Min-su stepped out of the limo with the two goddesses. A massive mansion came into view.
"Yu-bin......"
Silvia closed her eyes briefly. Golden energy flowed around her. Though she'd lost her divine power, she could still wield the authority Min-su had entrusted to her.
"She's here."
Silvia pointed toward the interior of the mansion.
"Min-su, that way."
They'd confirmed Yu-bin was inside. Now, how to get in.
Guards patrolled in front of the firmly shut main gate. One option: Claim to be Yu-bin's friend and enter through the front. But considering she wasn't answering her phone and her father's state was off, success seemed unlikely.
If peaceful entry failed, brute force it was. No matter how rich they were, they couldn't withstand his current power. He could even use his summoning ability if needed.
But this isn't the Tower—it's modern society. I can't just go smashing things willy-nilly.
That was villain territory.
Then Rijette approached and took his hand.
"Constellation?"
"Min-su. Today, I'll teach you a new way to use [Darkness]."
Squish!
She pressed his hand to her chest.
"C-Constellation?"
Whoosh—her body was enveloped in [Darkness] and vanished.
"Huh?"
His hand still felt soft, squishy warmth. But she was nowhere to be seen.
Poof!
Rijette reappeared.
"How's that?"
She flashed a playful grin.
"[Darkness Stealth]."
"This place is a real maze, huh."
The new [Darkness] technique let Min-su's group hide their presence and sneak into the mansion.
"The mansion's layout is like a labyrinth. ......That way. I sense Yu-bin's energy."
Silvia had never seen the mansion before, but she could pinpoint Yu-bin's location, guiding them deep inside. They hit a dead end at an ornate study.
"This wall... I sense Yu-bin beyond it."
"The wall......"
A grand bookshelf covered the entire wall.
Creak, creak.
"Looks like a hidden space behind here, junior. In cases like this, just smash the—"
"W-Wait! That defeats the purpose of sneaking in!"
Is this a game?! Min-su blocked Idaine, who was already powering up to pulverize the wall. Instead, he approached a shelf with noticeably fewer books than the others.
This has 'secret passage' written all over it.
He felt around the shelf. Click! As his hand touched a spot, a mechanical sound rang out, and the shelf slid back.
"Ooh, nice one, junior."
"...Let's go in quietly."
Behind the hidden door stretched a long staircase leading deep underground. At the bottom lay a vast space reeking of chemicals.
"This is straight out of a horror game's final stage."
Min-su's group cautiously advanced, scanning their surroundings. In the lab's center stood a massive tank. Inside, a naked girl floated with her eyes closed.
"Yu-bin!"
A breathing mask covered her mouth, wires snaked across her body. It was the exact scene of human experimentation straight out of fiction.
Min-su looked up at Yu-bin in the tank with a troubled expression. How to get her out? Could he just smash it? What if something went wrong? Maybe grab her dad and make him release her.
As he pondered—
"Who the hell are you?"
He appeared.
That's gotta be Yu-bin's father.
A middle-aged man with a cigar in his mouth. Sweat drenched his body—he'd clearly been deep in research moments ago.
"Thieves bold enough to come this far... I see. You're from Unicorn."
Unicorn?
He pulled a small black orb from his pocket.
"You won't even let me finish my research? No, I won't allow it. You can't take anything more from me!"
Crash!
He crushed the orb in his grip. An alien energy flowed into him. His body swelled rapidly. In seconds, he towered at 3 meters, muscles bulging unnaturally.
He didn't look normal at all.
"It wasn't enough to satisfy Him, but it'll suffice to crush you pests!"
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
He charged at Min-su like a freight truck. Min-su instinctively activated two authorities simultaneously, crossing his arms to brace. To offset the impending impact, even a little.
But—Boom!
"Guh!"
"......Huh?"
Contrary to expectations, no shock hit him. Instead, the man flew back, crashing far away.
As Min-su blinked in confusion—
"Another... failure? ...Am I doomed to protect nothing? I..."
The fallen man shuddered, rising again.
"Then I offer everything I have! Great [Overcoming Conqueror], I sacrifice myself to you—grant me the power to protect what's mine!!!"
Rumble!
A mystical force enveloped him.
"Min-su! That's divine power!"
"Summon me quick!"
The two goddesses shouted urgently. Power descended from above toward the man.
—[Overcoming Conqueror] looks down upon you.
The gaze of a great being fixed on them. Min-su felt his body freeze from that look alone.
Q-Quick, the summoning ability...!
What's going on? Can't gods exert power on Earth!? How is this possible!?
He couldn't oppose it with his own strength alone. As he felt the vast gap in their levels and tried to activate his power—
-[Overcoming Conqueror] waves happily at his little brother.
"......?"