The Human Exchange
The Human Exchange
What does it feel like to become a transparent human?
All I had to do was walk up to a monster and stab it once. Simple work. Thanks to Han Seah’s stat buffs, I was easily wiping out the monsters in this area. But it wasn’t exactly a fun hunt.
The reason I felt good was their looks. Human-shaped monsters. But not human enough. They looked like someone had randomly ripped off limbs from several people and sewn them back together. A monster with arms of different lengths. One with three legs. A creature that kept wandering the hallway with someone’s arms and legs awkwardly mixed together.
Honestly, it wasn’t scary, it was just unpleasant. I wondered why they bothered with such a twisted design. Of course, being game monsters, I didn’t hesitate to finish them off. Stab them, they die, and experience points drop. That was all they were.
But the last one I faced was a little different. The deepest part of the area. The boss monster. It was human one, but twisted beyond recognition. It looked like several humans fused into one body. Arms and legs stuck out everywhere, and human shapes twisted and overlapped in places. It was like a pile of dozens of human bodies turned into raw meat.
Even with the knife stuck deep in its torso, it twitched and moved. I didn’t know exactly where the weak point was, so I had to stab whatever flesh was visible. Honestly, it felt less like a tense boss fight and more like butchering a tough slab of meat.
When it finally stopped moving, the first thought that came to me wasn’t satisfaction. Ah, it finally died. That was it.
After clearing all the monsters in the area, at the end of the zone, I saw a huge door. It was a black door, just like the one I found in the first exploration. Checking the minimap showed no path ahead. That meant this door, like the last one, connected to a hidden area.
…Should I go in anyway…?
If there were rewards inside, that would be great. Even if there weren’t, it wouldn’t be a loss. I reached out without hesitation and pushed the massive black door. With a grating sound, it opened.
What poured out wasn’t the stench of monsters or cold air. It was silence.
The room was filled with fancy furniture, unlike before. It looked like someone had simply moved a noble’s personal study here. In the center sat a table covered in red velvet, and on it sat a woman.
The veil she wore partially covered her face, but the red lips and soft curves that showed through created a mysterious allure. The complex ornaments flowing over her neck and shoulders proved she wasn’t just some dungeon explorer. Most importantly, the bold dress line that emphasized her chest was enough to catch my eyes.
“Oh my… You are a rather special visitor this time.”
Her gaze behind the veil was on me. Even though I couldn’t see her eyes, I felt she was looking right through me.
“…”
I instinctively checked my status window, but nothing appeared. Just like when I met Dominion. I couldn’t say for sure what it meant yet, but I knew I was lacking information.
“You don’t need to be so wary.” The woman smiled gently. “At least I don’t bite visitors like the kids out there.”
She gracefully picked up a teacup. Steam rose from the black tea. But I thought ordinary tea couldn’t exist in this dungeon.
“Would you like to sit down?”
A red velvet chair slid over and stopped right across from the table. As if it had always been meant for me. I stared at the chair for a moment. It might be dangerous. But the moment I entered this space, that thought became meaningless. Just like when I met Dominion. If the person I was dealing with was really the one I thought, nothing would change by being cautious now.
I quietly sat down in the chair.
“Fufu.” The woman let out a small laugh. “You’re bolder than I expected.”
“No.” I shook my head while looking at her. “It just seemed like there was no choice.”
“Oh my.” The corner of her lips curved softly. “I like that.”
She set the teacup down and folded her hands. “Most humans think they have a choice.”
It was a strange thing to say. But somehow it didn’t sound like a joke. After a moment of silence, she spoke first.
“My introduction is late.”
The red lips beneath the veil formed a curve. “Visitors who have come here call me by many names, but…”
She lightly pointed to her chest with her fingertip. “Please call me Carnis for ease.”
Carnis. An unfamiliar name. But strangely, the moment she revealed her name, it felt like more than just a name. As if the name itself held a power and concept.
“However…” Carnis tilted her head slightly. “It’s quite intriguing.”
Her gaze slowly swept over my body. Or rather, something around me.
“No one has entered here alone before.”
“…Does that mean I can’t enter normally?”
“Yes.” She nodded without hesitation. “This place is for trading humans.”
“…You trade humans?”
“Fufu.” Carnis laughed. “To put it in an easy way for you to understand…”
She lightly flicked her fingers. Snap. Suddenly, giant windows appeared in the air. Like glass display cases.
“…”
My eyes naturally went toward them. Inside the cases were various humans. A knight in armor. A man bound with chains. A girl sleeping in a glass tube with her eyes closed. And next to them, numbers and characters written like product descriptions.
“What is this?”
“Product list.” Carnis answered casually.
“Product?”
“Yes.” She took a sip of her black tea. “Visitors want to change the humans they raise into a more appealing form.”
“…”
“Maybe younger bodies.”
“Stronger limbs.”
“Or more beautiful faces.”
She said it so naturally. As if talking about products.
“So I broker the trade.”
Suddenly, the twisted arms, stitched-together legs, and the pile of meat mixed with dozens of bodies flashed through my mind.
“…Are the monsters outside related?”
Carnis’s lips lifted slightly at my question. “You’re quick.” She admitted without shame. “They’re byproducts from processing the products.”
“…Byproducts?”
“Parts with no value.”
“Failed combinations.”
“Or materials slated for disposal.”
She said it calmly. “If left outside, humans will handle them themselves.”
A chill ran down my spine. But Carnis’s voice held no malice or madness. It was almost as if she was just explaining an obvious fact.
“……”
Silence passed. Carnis watched my reaction with interest and laughed softly.
“Then shall I analyze your product value first?”
Carnis reached out. The moment her fingertip brushed the air, a sensation of something inside me flipping over came over me. Like my skin, flesh, and bones separating layer by layer and unfolding before her. Of course, my body wasn’t actually torn. But Carnis’s gaze was already looking inside my body.
“Hm…” She murmured slowly.
“Face is average.”
“Limbs are average too.”
“Male parts…” She stopped mid-sentence. “Small… fast climax…? Did you have such a rare trait?”
“…”
For a moment, my head went blank. Did I hear wrong? No. She definitely said that.
“Wait a second.” I felt an impulse to correct the existence above me for the first time in my life. “Isn’t that an insult instead of product value analysis?”
“Oh my.” Carnis covered her mouth as if surprised. “Sorry. Too rare a case, I guess I slipped up.”
She didn’t look sorry at all. It was like a researcher who found an interesting sample.
“Anyway…” She looked at me again. This time with a more serious gaze. “It’s strange.”
“What is?”
“Your body itself is normal.” Carnis said slowly. “Even some parts are below average.”
“…”
“But.” Her voice lowered. “Your product value is anything but normal.”
At that moment, the playful atmosphere vanished like a lie. Carnis propped her chin on her hand and stared at me. Precisely at the parts she had just evaluated.
“Did you know?” Carnis laughed softly. “Among the things traded at the highest prices among visitors, your small male parts are one of them.”