Chapter 238
Chapter 238
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 238
Chapter Title: Kukuru Island and the Special Training Survival (5)
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The surroundings were a stark white, as if all color had been drained away.
A white space where the floor, walls, and ceiling all blended into the same monotonous pattern.
If you asked a hundred people, all hundred would probably call it a laboratory.
And in that inorganic, stark white place stood a single girl with black hair, the only splash of color.
For some reason, she was about my height, and she was looking down at me where I lay, her eyes filled with worry.
But her face was strangely familiar.
So, in a daze, I spoke without thinking.
"...Ren?"
That was right. No matter how I looked at her, she had the exact same face as the Ren I'd met before.
No... if she looked this identical, it wouldn't be a stretch to say it was her.
However, unlike the real Ren, who always wore a tense expression, this one seemed quite gentle.
Looking at her like this, I could even see a hint of her brother, Raven, in her features.
"You're supposed to call me Sis Ren."
"Oh, uh, huh?"
"Haa, still, what a relief. I was so worried when you wouldn't wake up."
It seemed that I was supposed to call this Ren "Sis."
And apparently, I'd been unconscious long enough to make her genuinely worry.
Ugh, this is all so sudden, I have no idea what's going on...
My mind a chaotic mess, I nodded and glanced down.
'Huh, they're small.'
My vision was a bit blurry, but I could see hands that were smaller than my own.
Considering the unfamiliar surroundings... could this be a past I don't remember?
It could be a lucid dream, but there was evidence to support the idea that this was the past.
Namely, the fact that I had touched the Clear Moon Mirror right before this happened.
'In the original story, Alice and David touched the Clear Moon Mirror and witnessed pasts they themselves had forgotten.'
There, Alice learned a special secret about herself that even her family hadn't noticed.
David realized that the magic he thought he had developed on his own had actually been given to him by someone else.
And both experienced a kind of awakening, laying the groundwork to become even stronger.
Given that their potential and talent were top-tier, it had clearly been a tremendous help.
In other words, if the same thing that happened to Alice and David was happening to me...
This was likely a forgotten past of mine, a trial that would make me stronger.
Of course, I had no idea how I ended up in a place like this.
But I had a feeling that if I just waited, the reason would become clear.
"Ah, anyway! This is no time to be standing around. Let's go, quick. If we're late, those people will get angry again!"
"Ah, okay. I'm coming."
Would something troublesome happen if I just stayed here?
Urged on by Ren, I let her lead me toward a door.
The scene before me looked just like the underground laboratory in Nighthaven.
I had a vague idea of what was happening here.
But perhaps because I was so disoriented...
I didn't even question how I was able to speak so naturally.
I could only scan my surroundings frantically as I trailed behind Ren.
*
Two days had already passed since I'd been dropped into this mysterious laboratory.
Well... even if it felt like two days, it was probably just an instant in the outside world, so there was no need to be anxious.
Based on what I'd overheard, this place was apparently called Experiment Site 11.
And Ren and I were test subjects, undergoing all sorts of experiments. I had a feeling that was the case.
Putting myself aside, the fact that Ren was here... this had to be an experiment to create psychics, right?
Given that I couldn't use my psychokinesis, I suppose this was a past from before I became a psychic.
But I still couldn't shake this nagging feeling.
It was because I was so uncertain whether this was truly my own past.
'Hmm... I really don't know. Besides Ren, I don't recognize any of these faces.'
No, in the first place, I have no memories at all from before I woke up in Nighthaven.
Maybe I wasn't even aware of it, but I might actually be suffering from amnesia.
Considering my memories of the laboratory in Nighthaven, it wouldn't be that strange.
It seemed I hadn't just appeared out of nowhere; I was called the "Child of God" and had apparently been experimented on for quite a long time.
When I thought about the children in that lab, who seemed frozen in time...
It's possible I lost all my past memories in the process.
'No, but then why do I still have my memories from my past life? If they were going to disappear, shouldn't they all have disappeared?'
But that didn't resolve all my questions.
My body's memories were completely gone, yet the memories of my past life remained vivid. That was strange, too.
Could it be that memories from a past life are stored somewhere other than the brain?
Maybe there's such a thing as a soul, and those memories are engraved there...
As I was lost in thought with my eyes closed...
Someone suddenly approached without a sound and threw their arms around me, shouting.
"Baek-ah! What are you thinking about? You look like you're pondering something really deep right now!"
"Nothing... Ren... Sis, what's up?"
Ren, who was clinging to my chest and looking up at me, narrowed her eyes.
This girl, she gets incredibly annoying if I don't add "Sis"...
Half-resigned, I made sure to add "Sis" to my reply.
When I asked the clingy girl what she wanted, Ren answered with a bright smile.
"I just came because I missed my Baek-ah!"
"I see... But you're heavy, so could you let go for a bit?"
"Nope, I can't!"
"Haa, fine..."
I gave a wry smile at her cheerful face as she clung to me like a cicada, showing no intention of letting go.
She was trying not to show it, but seeing her body tremble... had she just come from a painful experiment?
Well, if this comforts her, she can hug me all she wants.
I reached out and gently stroked Ren's back, gazing quietly at the ceiling.
'By the way, Baek... I don't know who named me that, but it's a pretty uninspired name.'
Here in Experiment Site 11, I was commonly called Baek.
I don't know who started calling me that, but it was probably just because my hair was pure white.
Seeing that one of the high-ranking researchers was of East Asian descent, I could guess where it came from.
Still, I much prefer Yuria, the name Greg gave me. Not that it would matter here.
In any case, after clinging to me for a while, it seemed Ren had finally managed to compose herself.
She slowly pulled away, a wide smile blooming on her face as she spoke to me.
"How was today? You had an experiment today too, right, Baek-ah? Did it hurt?"
"Mm... It was nothing. I was anesthetized."
"It still hurts even with anesthesia... You're so strong, Baek-ah!"
In truth, this was all just a reenactment of the past shown by the Clear Moon Mirror.
Any pain beyond a certain threshold was simply blocked from reaching me...
As if telling her it was fine to think that, I smiled faintly and patted Ren's head.
At that, she threw a fit, insisting that she was the older sister and I shouldn't pat her head.
Doesn't she realize that reacting like this just makes her seem even younger?
Honestly, being treated like a younger sibling by a kid like this felt a bit weird.
'Haa, so... what do I have to do to get out of here?'
While bickering playfully with Ren, that thought suddenly crossed my mind.
It was already my second day in this lab, but I still didn't know how to escape.
Considering what happened with Alice and David... a powerful enemy should probably appear.
But no matter how long I waited, no such foe had shown up.
Could the condition be to defeat all the researchers and escape the lab with Ren?
Unable to use my psychokinesis, that seemed impossible no matter how I tried, so I prayed that wasn't it.
So, as I let out a silent, frustrated sigh...
Ren, who had been sulking, called out to me, her eyes sparkling as if she'd just remembered something.
"Oh, right, Baek-ah! I learned how to do this recently!"
"Hm? What is it?"
"I've been keeping it a secret from the researchers... You have to watch carefully, okay?"
She glanced around cautiously, then brought her hands together as if in prayer.
She left a small gap between her palms and then furrowed her brow, concentrating hard on something.
What on earth was she trying to do? Ren was a similar type to me, so it probably wouldn't be anything amazing.
I watched her quietly, a little indifferently, as if to say, "Go on, then."
And then, just as something was about to happen between her palms...
A deafening siren suddenly blared throughout the entire laboratory.
"Ugh...?! Wh-what's happening?!"
"A siren? Is it an emergency?"
"B-Baek-ah... I'm scared..."
The roar was so loud that even I, who had been relaxed, jumped in surprise and scanned my surroundings.
I reflexively pulled Ren into my arms, my eyes darting around to assess the situation.
But it wasn't a false alarm; the siren showed no signs of stopping.
Since I don't know the layout of this place, moving rashly would be dangerous.
So, suppressing my presence, I hid under the bed with Ren.
"D-damn it...! What is this... Aaargh!"
"Run! If it catches you, you'll die... Aaaack!"
Clear screams echoed from not too far away.
Has an attacker shown up? Killing researchers... could it be a Fixer?
No, that couldn't be right. Maybe if this were reality, but this was just an illusion from the Clear Moon Mirror.
This was most likely part of a trial, created by slightly twisting my memories.
As if to confirm my fears, something appeared in the private room where Ren and I were hiding.
And when I saw it from under the bed, I could only mutter in disbelief.
"...No, this can't be real."
"Hii...!"
Its identity was none other than an otherworldly being, its form so blurry it was hard to make out.
In this world, it was commonly called an Invader... a demon that devoured everything.
Was it impossible to hide from an Invader?
The Invader noticed us immediately and slowly reached out its hand toward me and Ren...
In the next instant, my vision went dark, and I felt my entire body turn to ash and scatter.
Ah, so this is what it feels like to die.
The moment I understood that, all my senses came rushing back as if I had just surfaced from underwater.
"...!"
"Yuria!"
"Lady Yuria!"
When I came to my senses, I was lying collapsed in front of the Clear Moon Mirror.
It seemed that dying to the Invader had registered as a failure.
...Isn't the difficulty of this trial set way too high?
Frustrated, I reached a trembling hand toward the ceiling, then promptly lost consciousness.
This was my first attempt at the Clear Moon Mirror's trial.