Chapter 45
Chapter 45
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 45
Chapter Title: Get Up
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Get up.
-All personnel, please evacuate.
-There has been an incident at the facility, and we are taking action... There have been some casualties...
-Suppression and Rescue teams are being dispatched.
"What the..."
The researcher barely regained consciousness.
He was inside the elevator.
It didn't seem like much time had passed.
The test subject was still munching on the snack she'd put in her mouth.
He had only lost consciousness for a moment.
He pushed himself up, using the elevator wall for support.
Then he pressed the button to open the doors.
What he saw were bodies strewn everywhere.
All of them had been killed by a hole through the head.
Who could have done this?
Without a doubt, it was this child.
"Haha..."
He was glad she seemed to have enjoyed her snack.
The only problem was, he couldn't deny it if someone called her a monster now.
And that they were being pursued.
Was she really a monster?
Or an Awakener?
If she was an Awakener, she was at least human.
But it was strange for a human to get into this facility, let alone survive.
"Anyway, this is a huge problem. There's no way out."
Blast doors had come down, blocking the hallway.
They were meant to stop magical beasts from escaping in an emergency.
All the exits were blocked.
The test subject was still leaning against the inside of the elevator.
Waiting, as if telling him to get back in.
"The elevator won't go above the first floor. It seems to be working, though."
Did she understand him?
Still, he tried to explain.
She was clearly stronger than the researcher himself.
Just moments ago, he had thought she was someone he needed to protect.
Is she really a monster?
She killed them all.
The presence of the corpses created a grim atmosphere.
The test subject smiled.
She pressed a button.
And the elevator doors closed.
"You can't get outside that way... but..."
She was gone.
The test subject was beyond his comprehension.
At the very least, it was clear she wasn't an ordinary girl.
He didn't know what she was doing.
-Rescue team is entering.
There was no way out by going down.
It would only corner her further.
There were only magical beasts locked away down there.
-Please evacuate to a safe location until the rescue team arrives.
The announcement blared loudly.
A rescue team to save the researcher.
But what were they rescuing him from?
Probably the test subject who had just taken the elevator down.
"Ugh."
The researcher slumped against the wall.
Getting hit by the golf club was one thing.
The spot where he'd been kicked throbbed painfully.
It was difficult to even walk.
Damn that director.
But there was no need to curse him.
He was already dead.
"...Damn it."
Compared to what had been done to the test subjects, this was nothing.
The other test subjects, maybe.
But that child...
He should have done something sooner.
This was the result of his complacency and laziness.
He had expected the result to be a tragedy.
But things were flowing strangely.
The one who was dead wasn't the researcher, but the director.
The Suppression Team wasn't the type to be taken down so easily.
What should he do?
Wait for rescue like this?
If he did, he didn't know what would happen to that child.
What if she really was a monster?
What if she went on a killing spree the moment she got outside?
-I'm telling you, she's a monster.
Looking at the director's corpse reminded him of a past conversation.
-A monster, I said, a monster. She goes around killing people, you hear me?
She was locked up here because she killed people on the outside.
That's what it had sounded like.
If that was true, he had to question his decision to save her.
B1.
The elevator stopped.
Did she get off?
What was she doing?
After about thirty seconds, the elevator started moving again.
B2.
The second basement floor housed magical beasts that were being kept for upcoming experiments.
He didn't know what she was doing down there.
B3.
B4.
B5.
This time, it went all the way down to the fifth basement floor.
The problem was that he had no way of knowing what was happening.
The researcher still didn't know much about the test subject.
He had never seen her this active before.
She usually just stayed still in her room.
The sound of the siren didn't stop.
B4.
The elevator stopped again.
After about five minutes, it started moving again.
B3.
The elevator stopped once more.
Was he imagining the strange noise he thought he heard?
B2.
B1.
It was coming up.
This time, it didn't stop along the way.
1.
The elevator arrived.
The doors opened.
*Crunch.*
A girl walked out, eating a chocolate bar.
It was the kind of food you get by just pressing a button.
"Ah. Were you hungry?"
Was it for such a simple reason?
That food should have been mixed with drugs.
For her health, it would be better to eat something else.
"Drug."
The test subject opened her mouth.
Unless he was mistaken, she had definitely spoken.
It was a shock to find out she could talk.
"Dru-drug?"
She nodded.
Was she asking for the drug?
There were several kinds of drugs.
He tried to figure out which one she wanted.
"......"
The test subject lifted her white lab gown, revealing scars.
She pointed to the needle marks with her finger.
With one hand, she mimed giving an injection.
While smiling.
Then she held out her hand.
"You're asking for the drug?"
She nodded as if to say, "You finally get it?"
A hint of madness flickered in her smile.
He had a good idea which one it was.
The new drug, said to be made from a ground-up dragon.
It was said to be highly addictive.
He wondered why they had to go so far as to grind up a dragon to make such a thing.
Those who had used it said there was nothing better.
As far as he knew, they had all died the same day they used it.
He only knew this because he'd overheard it in a facility like this.
Come to think of it, she hadn't died.
Even large magical beasts died not long after being administered the drug.
"Drug."
This time, the smile was gone.
It seemed she wanted to convey that she needed it seriously.
The words she could speak seemed limited.
"You'll have to go to the lab for that... You have to go outside. It's in a different building."
Did she understand?
"It's in the main research building. You can find it on the lobby map. There's probably a lot of it there. Or it might be in the special materials storage... I don't know for sure. Sorry."
He provided as much information as he could.
The test subject smiled, satisfied.
"Thank you."
She thanked him.
Thanks.
So she knew how to say thank you.
She must be human.
Not a monster.
The researcher let out a laugh.
Even though the bruised spot hurt, he couldn't help but laugh.
"Yeah..."
She wasn't a monster.
He had made the right choice.
The choice not to throw a person into an incinerator.
Anyone would have made the same choice.
Anyone with a shred of decency.
"......"
The test subject looked at him as if she had something to say.
Her eyes were half-hidden by her hair, but she was definitely looking at the researcher.
"Heh..."
She smiled.
And then she spoke.
"[Rest.]"
Just like that, the strength drained from his body.
It was hard to believe he had been so tense just a moment ago.
And his eyes closed.
***
Researcher A was resting soundly.
Lying on the floor.
[230 hours, 12 minutes]
I have to replenish the time.
Before I told him to rest, I had 240 hours left.
Command Spell, was it?
It was something like that.
It became possible one day after I was injected with a ton of drugs.
Whatever I say, time gets deducted.
My first words were probably, '[Get lost].'
I said it to a researcher who brought something resembling food to my room.
But he really did get lost, and I couldn't eat for a while.
There was some trial and error before I realized my commands worked.
After that, I kept my mouth shut completely.
I'm not sure if I chose not to speak or if I couldn't.
Anyway, I think that's why I lost my mind even more.
In fact, I'm still out of my mind.
I know I'm not sane, but everything else is a blur.
Get lost, I told you to get lost.
What was that researcher carrying that made me say that?
I can't remember clearly.
The time evaporated back then, too.
About twenty hours vanished that time.
It's a system I don't understand.
Drug, drug.
Even saying a single word makes an hour or two disappear.
That's why I can't speak.
I think I might be able to communicate by writing.
It took a lot of courage just to say thank you.
But I wanted to express my gratitude.
"Hee."
Laughing is possible.
It doesn't consume any time.
*CRASH.*
A continuous banging sound could be heard.
The sound of something breaking through the blast door.
The rescue team is on its way for Researcher A.
I'm the only one left.
*BANG, BANG, BANG.*
The blast door was denting.
Something could be seen breaking through.
*KABOOM.*
The thick steel wall collapsed.
Behind it was a magical beast with a drill-shaped head.
It had no eyes and walked on six legs, but otherwise, it had a similar feel to a rhino or a hippo.
Its whole body was covered in wounds.
The elevator wasn't the only way to the first floor.
There were also transport tunnels for magical beasts, and stairs.
Ultimately, all the paths were connected.
They were blocked by blast doors, so I just needed them broken down.
I ordered this drill-headed magical beast to break through everything and come to me.
Saying a single sentence cost me over a hundred hours, but it seemed worth it.
I wanted to tell it "good job," but speaking would cost me time.
Right.
I have no time.
I need to get the drug.
Just as the researcher said, there's a place where it's stored.
They didn't just use that drug on me, so there should be a large quantity.
It's the lab they dragged me to every single day.
I plan to go there first.
-Please follow the instructions of the rescue team.
-Military forces are being dispatched.
The building shook as if there were an earthquake.
The reason was obvious.
I had released all the magical beasts that were caged in the building.
"[Break through.]"
*CRASH!*
The magical beast rammed its head into the adjacent wall.
Going through the hallways would take too long.
A blast door and a regular wall were about the same strength, so I could just break through.
[222 hours, 30 minutes]
About eight hours disappeared.
*Crash. Crash. Crash.*
The wall crumbled, and a path to the outside opened up.
The drill-headed magical beast charged outside.
Dust and the debris of the broken building were left behind.
-Military... upon discovery, do not... resist...
It seemed the speaker on the wall had broken.
It would be stranger if it hadn't broken after I destroyed the wall.
The announcement fizzled with static and then stopped completely.
The outside air began to flow in.
It was night.
The middle of the night.
I didn't know what time it was, but the air was cold.
I stepped outside the building.
I could see the escaped magical beasts running rampant.
In the distance, I could see some people in another building.
I couldn't tell if they were military forces, a rescue team, or insiders.
I know where I have to go.
The place I need to go is the lab.
The drug is in the lab.
"Ugh."
The strength left my legs.
*Thud.*
I fell again.
They wouldn't move.
This was how it always was.
But now I know a way.
"[Get up.]"
I said, get up.
Saying that really allowed me to stand.
I had muttered something similar when I saved Researcher A.
It was successful this time, too.
I pushed off the ground and stood up.
[217 hours, 46 minutes]
I can replenish the time with the drug.
"[Move.]"
[206 hours, 9 minutes]
Move, move, move.
I repeated it over and over.
Finally, my legs moved.
I know.
This is me forcing my body to move.
But I have no choice.
The moon was bright tonight.
The air was cold.
So, where is the lab building?
Where is the drug?
A sign kindly showed the way.