Chapter 23
Chapter 23
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: Lie
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Project Ark's first selected subject is 'Someone's Paper Shredder'.
Heading to the shredder's containment room with the Princess.
"Princess, what if the anomaly tastes bad? Will that be okay?"
"Hmm. As long as it's not disgustingly bad, it'll be fine. I can force down even unappetizing stuff if I try."
The Princess's steps were strangely light and bouncy.
Just like a kid who'd heard they were going out to eat with their parents.
I wonder where the Princess lived before coming to the research institute.
From what I'd heard, she was first discovered by some civilian.
Agents dispatched on that civilian's report brought her to the institute.
"What were you doing before you came to the research institute?"
The Black Princess believes she's human.
Suddenly, an image flashed in my mind of her attending school like a normal kid.
"I lived in the Backrooms."
"The Backrooms?"
"Yeah. It's a space made entirely of beige walls and ceilings. You don't know it?"
"Of course I do."
The Backrooms the Princess described matched exactly the features of what people commonly call the Backrooms.
Its official name among researchers is Level 0.
'Even though she looks human, she's still an anomaly after all.'
Not much is known about Level 0, but there's one widely accepted theory.
All anomalies are born in Level 0.
Even the Black Princess, who looks like a human girl, must have been born there.
'Still, she's unique in one way. Unlike other anomalies, she doesn't lie.'
There are rare anomalies besides the Princess that claim to be human.
Ask them about their past, and they spit out plausible answers.
Born in some region, attended such-and-such school—they rattle off believable histories.
But investigate those names, and they turn out not to exist in reality.
That's why asking anomalies about their past is pointless.
My curiosity was piqued by the Princess, who boldly admitted to coming from the Backrooms without a hint of deception.
"How did you get from the Backrooms to here?"
"I came through some hole. That hole was connected to Earth."
"Hmm. I see."
The reality we live in is called Level 1.
The exact mechanism by which anomalies travel from Level 0's Backrooms to Level 1's reality hasn't been figured out yet.
A hole connecting Level 0 and Level 1.
I should tell my colleagues in parapsychology research about this.
"Oh, right. I was actually born on Earth originally."
"Huh?"
The Princess said it as casually as if she'd forgotten her umbrella on the bus.
I turned to look at her, and she gazed right back at me.
"Born on Earth? What do you mean by that?"
"I used to live on Earth. Then one day, I fell into the Backrooms."
I stared straight into the Princess's eyes.
Her black reverse pupils were unrealistically dark, like they might suck me in.
"So you fell into the Backrooms and then came back to Earth?"
"Yes, that's right."
"...How long did you spend in the Backrooms?"
"Um... about 10,000 years?"
Of course.
Princess, humans can't live for 10,000 years.
No wonder she didn't seem to be lying about her past.
Her lie must be the part about being from Earth.
Still, my curiosity lingered, so I pressed further.
"So where on Earth did you live?"
"South Korea."
"I see. Do you remember your name from back then, or anything about your parents? Anything at all that comes to mind—even the tiniest detail."
"...I don't remember. It's been too long."
A shadow fell over the Princess's face.
Damn. For an anomaly to make such a sad kid face...
'Don't fall for that pitiful expression.'
She's from Korea, and conveniently landed in Korea when she returned from the Backrooms.
Remembers nothing about her name or other personal details.
Spent 10,000 years in the Backrooms.
'And she expects me to believe she's from Earth after spinning that tale?'
On top of that, the Princess has strength that overwhelms the Philosophy Doctor and a mouth that devours anything.
The odds of her claim being true are astronomically low.
Like hitting the lottery jackpot five times in a row.
'Well, whether she's from Earth or not is a minor detail.'
Everyone already knows the Black Princess is an anomaly.
Of course she's not from Earth.
"It's okay if you don't remember. Everyone at the institute likes you anyway."
"...Really?"
The Princess looked up at me with an expressionless face.
For some reason, that blank look seemed heartbreaking, so I reached out and gently took her hand.
"Of course."
Her hand felt cold in mine.
I squeezed it tighter, hoping to share a bit of my warmth.
'Not everyone likes the Princess, though.'
The Black Princess is an anomaly.
There are countless people at the institute who hate anomalies.
Still, public opinion about the Black Princess has improved a lot lately.
Quite a few people like her now because she once saved their lives.
'Above all, I like the Princess.'
At first, it was just simple curiosity.
Cute appearance, immense strength, regeneration ability—it was all academic interest.
But now it's different.
'The Princess is a good anomaly.'
If anyone heard me call an anomaly 'good,' they'd tell me to get a psych evaluation on the spot.
But I'm perfectly normal.
No matter what anyone says, the Princess is a good anomaly.
Before I knew it, we'd arrived at the containment room while chatting.
Anomaly specimen: Someone's Paper Shredder.
It looks just like a common office paper shredder.
Initially classified as an anomaly object due to its appliance-like appearance, it was later reclassified as an anomaly entity after being confirmed to possess a will of its own.
"Hello. How's the containment going?"
"Oh? Researcher Lee Sehwa. Nice to see you. Containment's going great. We just hit the 100-day mark without incident. Haha!"
I greeted the researcher standing in front of the containment room.
He straightened his shoulders and let out a big laugh.
"Wow, 100 days without incident. Impressive."
Containment procedures for Someone's Paper Shredder are incredibly simple.
Enter the containment room and type random text on the old manual typewriter placed in front of the shredder.
Occasionally, the shredder will rumble.
When that happens, pull the paper from the typewriter and feed it into the shredder.
"Time for the shift change?"
"Yes. Ten minutes early to time it right."
The containment procedure itself is simple.
The problem is that it has to be done 24/7.
Currently, researchers run three shifts, taking turns performing the procedure.
"What was the incident this thing caused when it escaped last time?"
"Ugh, don't remind me. It suddenly teleported to Director Kwon Saeron's office and shredded all the documents in there willy-nilly. I got chewed out for negligence. Never want to think about it again."
The researcher sighed deeply.
There was a good reason for making this our first Project Ark subject.
'It shreds your documents as revenge.'
If you ignore the shredder's rumbling and don't feed it paper, it escapes the containment room and teleports to a random nearby location with documents.
Once out, it teleports nearby papers into its shredding slot and destroys them indiscriminately.
The worst part is that it prioritizes documents people consider important.
In a research institute full of stored files, it's a massive headache.
"By the way... you're here with the Black Princess. Is something up?"
The researcher asked cautiously.
I smiled and replied.
"Looks like you won't need shift changes anymore."
I explained the new project to the baffled researcher.
His eyes widened as he listened.
"Y-You're really going to do that?"
"It's a project pushed by Director Kwon Saeron."
"Ah, I see. That explains it."
The researcher nodded in understanding the moment he heard the director's name.
We all entered the shredder's containment room together.
"Shift change! Finally free!"
The researcher who'd been typing on the typewriter for eight hours stood up.
Rumble, rumble.
Right on cue, the shredder rumbled, demanding food.
"Here you go, Princess. Eat that."
Paper Shredder. Now it's your turn to be eaten.