The Severed Arm and Buried Secrets
I headed to the Hero Association Hospital where Seo Chaerim was admitted, with even the shadowy Diana tagging along. Up until then, I hadn't been too worried about her. I figured it was just exhaustion or some minor scrape. So I planned to give her a light scolding when we met. But when I saw her in the hospital room, her right arm was gone. The patient gown, which should have had an arm filling it, hung limply empty. I was speechless.
"Hey. Your arm..."
"It's nothing, so don't worry about it."
Nothing? Her arm was gone. None of us knew what to say, frozen like we'd swallowed honey. But the one who'd actually lost it seemed unfazed.
"Which bastard did this?"
Hwang Yerang's voice was low and gravelly—I'd never heard her sound like that. Turning to her, I felt a chill; thick killing intent poured off her, prickling my skin. She looked ready to bolt out and murder someone right then. Even I got goosebumps.
"I let my guard down and got hit by a monster. That's all."
"Don't lie! No monster would target you!"
"It's true. I didn't expect it to come at me, so I couldn't dodge properly."
Seo Chaerim met Hwang Yerang's eyes straight on, and the tension eased a bit. If she insisted, what could we do? Probably a lie, though. For her, monsters were safer than regular people—they didn't see her as an enemy. So what the hell happened that she was hiding it even from Hwang Yerang?
"Chaerim."
Hwang Yerang approached and gently hugged her. She was crying. I'd only ever seen her rowdy and giggling like an idiot, so this was jarringly unfamiliar. Thinking about Seo Chaerim's situation, I got why they were so close. If your best friend steps out for a bit and comes back minus an arm in a hospital bed, anyone would lose it. And though not as bad as Hwang Yerang, I was shocked too—more than I expected. We bickered a lot, and sometimes she pissed me off enough to want to flick her forehead hard, but I'd never wished this on her.
Even when I asked what happened, she just repeated the monster story and clammed up on details. Sensing she had no intention of sharing, we didn't press.
"Chaerim. I'll... I'll fix this somehow. Somehow, so... don't worry."
"Yeah. Got it."
Seo Chaerim was the patient, yet she stroked Hwang Yerang's hair and soothed her like a mom. What the hell was Hwang Yerang even planning? She didn't seem in her right mind. I wanted to ask about the mutants, but it felt wrong in this mood, so I held back. To lighten the air, we chatted about trivial stuff like always.
"Oh, right. I need something—go buy it for me."
Seo Chaerim suddenly remembered, scribbling on a note and handing it to me like it was natural. Her bossy attitude didn't bug me given her state.
"Sure. Be right back."
Outside the room, I unfolded the note. No shopping list—just this:
"Got something to tell you. I'll send the others off. Come back alone in about an hour."
Something was definitely up. No idea why she picked me over her closest pals Hwang Yerang or Diana, but I killed time wandering nearby as instructed. An hour later, Hwang Yerang called, saying she was heading out and asking when I'd be back. I said I'd be longer, told her to go ahead without me since I'd crash at home, then stalled a bit more before returning.
"Awakened, huh? Nice. Finally got that power you always sang about."
"Honestly, it still doesn't feel real."
"Gonna join the Association?"
"Still thinking. That what you wanted to talk about?"
"..."
"Why the pause?"
"I figured out who was behind this incident."
The culprit behind the incident. Obviously a monster on the surface, but she meant something else. There was a black pulling the strings on this anomaly.
"Villain Alliance?"
"No. The Association."
"...What?"
Did I hear that right? The Hero Association caused the monster outbreak? I wouldn't have been this shocked if she'd said she was the culprit. Sure, it'd be huge, but this was next-level.
"Not that they meant to cause it, though."
"What the hell does that mean?"
"Don't tell Yerang or the others what I'm about to say. They couldn't handle it."
"Spill it."
Already a pro with one arm, she twisted off her water bottle cap and took a swig. After a pause, she spoke.
"The Association was using old experiment data from me to create an artificial ability mimicking mine. This mess? One of the test subjects escaped and went berserk."
I was stunned. Years later, still exploiting her power for human experiments? I'd figured the Association wasn't spotless—any big org has dirt, corruption, shady ties. But I thought the human experiments on her were ancient history, purged with those involved. This crossed a line.
"So, what now? Want help stopping them?"
"Why would I?"
"Huh?"
"Their experiments don't affect me. Just sharing what I found. Reference it if you're joining them."
"Kinda harsh, but... no sympathy as a fellow victim?"
"Poor things. I'd help if they were in front of me. But against the Association? After stopping the Villain Alliance, now we smash them too?"
"Leak to the press or something?"
"They'd never admit it—no proof. And even if it got out, heroes and the public would lose faith. Heroes might splinter, some turn villain from disgust. Total chaos."
No replacing the Hero Association. Whatever their sins, it couldn't collapse. But heroes were key—if top brass ran the experiments, maybe swap them out without tarnishing the org. Diana could assassinate them all in theory, minimizing fallout. Too reckless, and Seo Chaerim didn't seem keen, so I kept quiet.
"Anyway, your arm okay? No Yerang here, drop the tough act."
It'd been hours since it happened. I got Saint-healed, but she went standard hospital route. No painkillers could explain her stone-cold face—it was eerie, like she felt nothing.
"First time losing an arm, but it's not bad. Just feels empty?"
Not faking. She was dead serious. This girl was nuts. Made it all the more bitter.
"I'll tell the boss, so keep your mouth shut—especially from Yerang."
"Yeah, if she learned they made a fake you and it cost you your arm, she'd burn the place down."
Recalling her earlier vibe, yeah—she'd storm in raging. She got mad when I got hurt too, but Seo Chaerim stuff hit different.
"Yerang really treasures you, huh? More than just saving her life—it's obsessive. What went down between you two?"
If it'd been Seo Chaerim saving her, fine—but reversed, and Hwang Yerang was the clingy one. Her fixation bordered on pathological.
"What, want the old story?"
"Nothing else to do here. Spill."
I knew the basics; it'd be dark and depressing. Not my fave genre, but I wanted to hear. Seeing her arm gone boiled my blood—shocked me how much I cared. Joined the group on a whim, but now it felt like home. Comrades mattered. I knew it was heavy, prying into trauma was shitty. Still, I wanted to know them better.
Seo Chaerim sighed, pondering how to start. Then, casually as chatting weather, she began her past.