Among the Incomprehensible
Incomprehensible.
Impossible to understand, impossible to explain.
Is there any word more fitting for Abnormalities?
Born from humans yet they harm humans. Born of emotion yet drowned in that very emotion. Bizarre phenomena and objects beyond all reason.
That is what Abnormalities are.
And if there is one regrettable detail, it is that our company is an eco-friendly, high-efficiency energy firm that uses those things.
We manage Abnormalities to extract the high-efficiency energy known as Enkephalin, and depending on the grade we can even be issued E.G.O equipment far superior to ordinary gear.
Of course, the phrase “eco-friendly high-efficiency” does not include the lives of hundreds or thousands of employees.
This is a company that ranks Abnormality grades by efficiency rather than danger, after all.
Even the lowest ZAYIN-class can, under the right circumstances, prove more lethal than most high-grade Abnormalities.
In this world, a life is cheap.
And right now I am on my seventh day of being ground down by Lobotomy, counting from the first day I managed One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds.
Since that first day nothing particularly dramatic has happened.
Every morning our precious Team Leader Mir causes some disaster; Deputy Team Leader Doyun clutches the back of his neck while cleaning up the reports she abandoned; and Senior Nova, the self-proclaimed philanthropist, casually spouts remarks that treat human lives like pebbles.
Meanwhile Yuri and I sit off to the side snacking, watching the spectacle, then head off to manage our Abnormalities.
It is a surprisingly cozy workplace.
For the first week ZAYIN-class Abnormalities were assigned for new-employee acclimation, so I was given One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds while Yuri took Fairy Festival.
And before we knew it, day seven had arrived.
“It’s your turn this time, Han-ssi.”
Yuri said, eyes on her tablet.
Time really does fly.
I rose from my seat.
“…I’ll be right back. The Ordeal’s about to start, so I need to finish quickly.”
Ordeals.
The leftover dregs of emotion that never became Abnormalities.
Dawn.
Noon.
Dusk.
Midnight.
White.
The higher the grade, the greater the scale of devastation.
Fortunately we had only dealt with the weakest Dawn Ordeals so far, but high-grade Ordeals force even veteran employees to stake their lives.
That is why every team tries to finish as much work as possible before an Ordeal begins, filling their quotas in advance.
Click.
The containment door opened.
Under the dim light, One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds floated quietly in the air.
By now the sight felt almost familiar.
I sat in the chair as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
> Instinct Work in Progress…
The counter climbed slowly.
Even this screen had become familiar.
At first, simply pressing the button had made me tense.
Beep.
The work-complete chime sounded.
“…I’m jealous. I got bitten again…”
“Bitten again?”
“…Just a little.”
Yuri rolled up her sleeve.
Faint teeth marks showed beneath the bandage—traces left by Fairy Festival.
“Does it hurt a lot?”
“The itch is worse than the pain…”
“That’s even scarier.”
“I know… It really feels like it sees me as food.”
Yuri muttered gloomily.
“Today it seemed more like it was just checking my condition…”
I gave a small laugh.
“Still, we made it through another day safely.”
“Yeah.”
Yuri smiled faintly.
“It feels like only yesterday we were first assigned here, yet it’s already been a whole week.”
“…It has.”
“You’re amazing too, Han-ssi. At the beginning I made so many mistakes and got scolded so much…”
“Not at all. I only made it this far thanks to you, Yuri-ssi. Looks like our side’s quota is filled—shall we head back? Luckily this week seems to be ending without incident.”
I had grown complacent.
Blinded by familiarity, I had deliberately ignored how absurd it was that not a single clerk had died yet.
In Lobotomy—especially a branch packed with somewhat dangerous Abnormalities—a zero-death count among clerks was an unreal number, and I knew that better than anyone.
And then—
BEEEEEEEEEP—!!
An ear-splitting alarm tore through the corridor.
In that instant the peaceful week we had been living came to an end.
Corridor lights flooded red.
The trumpet announcing an escape.
Screams of clerks.
Shouts of agents and the thunder of running feet.
Every sound crashed together into dissonance.
Ah…
Harsh static crackled from the public radio.
A brief silence.
Then frantic voices poured out.
The uproar beyond the corridor grew louder.
“Move!! Get out of the way!”
“Block the Information Team direction!! Where’s the Team Leader?!”
“Send the clerks to the rear!”
Countless footsteps thundered past the corridor outside our position.
Clerks with deathly pale faces sprinted down the halls—some sobbing in panic, some frozen in place, some dropping their papers.
The agents, by contrast, moved fast.
Following the public radio orders, Training Team members with armbands grabbed their weapons and charged toward the Information Team corridors.
I stared silently toward the corridor.
The Red Hooded Mercenary.
The strongest WAW-class Abnormality.
Under the right conditions she could even defeat an ALEPH.
Firearm use, high-speed charges, specialized in anti-personnel and close combat.
Familiar data rose automatically in my mind.
And the conclusion was simple: if we meet her, we die.
Yuri carefully gripped my sleeve.
“…Han-ssi.”
Static.
Harsh breathing crackled over the radio.
"Damn it… why this line—"
"What the hell is Command Team doing?!"
"Hold Line Three!"
"Block the left!! Left side’s breaking!"
"Did anyone request support from the other lines?"
Bang!!
A gunshot.
A short scream.
"Shit!! She’s breaking toward the Training sector!!"
"Stop her!! Sto—"
Static.
The transmission cut off.
The corridor froze.
We were not alone here.
A handful of clerks who had taken shelter, fellow new agents who had joined with us—everyone stood rigid.
And then—
Thud.
Thud.
Footsteps of hard-soled shoes approached from far away, slow and measured.
From the far corner of the corridor in our sector, someone wearing a pressed-down red hood stepped into view.
A torn cape, bloodstained bandages, a gun in one hand and a scythe in the other.
“…Ah, we’re fucked.”
Killing intent sliced into my skin.
I could feel it. We could neither defeat nor even contend with that thing.
The Mercenary slowly raised her head.
Yellow glowing eyes appeared above the mask.
Bang!!
A gunshot rang through the corridor.
Crunch.
Someone’s life went out.
“Kyaaa!!”
Someone screamed.
People fled.
People fell.
People wailed.
The corridor became chaos in an instant.
Bang!!
Another shot.
This time a massive hole opened in a new employee’s chest.
Who was that again? The one who joined Wings to save his sick parents…?
Blood splattered across the floor.
The nameless coworker’s eyes slowly lost their light as he collapsed.
“…Fuck.”
My hands trembled.
My heart hammered like mad.
“Wolf… where’s the wolf!!”
The Red Hooded Mercenary slowly surveyed her surroundings, selecting prey.
Then her gaze stopped on us.
“Han-ssi…”
Yuri gripped the Fairy Festival E.G.O tightly—a green mace tipped with a fairy ornament.
Even though the tip shook violently, it still pointed at the Red Hooded Mercenary.
I drew Penitence, the E.G.O of One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds.
Unlike the game, it was a longsword with a black blade, a cross ornament at the tip, and a skull set into the center.
Run?
Too late for that.
She had already seen us.
A woman who lived only to tear the Wolf apart for revenge would kill us just as easily.
The Red Hooded Mercenary slowly raised her gun.
“Fucking hell…”
I reflexively grabbed the emergency radio Team Leader Mir had given me that morning, saying she had a bad feeling.
“Team Leader, Team Lea—”
Bang!!
A tremendous impact smashed my hand.
Crunch!!
The radio shattered outright.
And with it, our only hope shattered as well.
“Ugh…!!”
Yuri sucked in a breath.
The Mercenary slowly lowered the muzzle, as if the noise had been annoying.
It was over.
The public channel was already chaos, and the emergency caller was scrap.
Only the two of us remained.
Thud.
The Mercenary dragged her axe as she walked.
The sound of metal scraping the floor sent chills down my spine.
I clenched Penitence.
“…Yuri-ssi.”
“Yes…”
“When she fires, she charges—so roll sideways no matter what.”
Yuri nodded with a trembling face.
Bang!!
The shot rang out.
I shoved Yuri aside and threw myself to the floor.
KRAAANG—
The wall behind us exploded into fragments.
Dust and debris slapped my face; thick smoke blinded me.
“Cough…!”
I couldn’t breathe.
But standing still meant death.
The Mercenary closed the distance in an instant.
Crash!!
The axe came down.
If that hits, instant death.
Think… think, you former veteran—find a way to live.
I gritted my teeth and rolled sideways.
A few strands of hair were sheared off.
A fraction later and it would have been my head. Don’t stop.
“Han-ssi!”
Yuri swung Fairy Festival.
Crunch!!
The mace tip slammed into the Mercenary’s side.
Yet the Mercenary only swayed slightly.
We… we just confirmed we cannot deal meaningful damage to her.
So what we must do is… endure.
Until I learn why I was thrown into this world, I cannot die.
Click.
The Mercenary’s gaze turned toward Yuri.
“Yuri-ssi, behind me!”
Bang!!
The shot came first.
Yuri swallowed a scream and ducked.
The bullet punched through the wall behind her.
I did not miss the opening and swung Penitence.
Clang!!
The black blade collided with the crimson axe edge.
My wrist screamed.
Inferior strength, inferior agility—my only advantage was knowing her combat patterns.
But even that was uncertain now that this was reality.
The longer the clash of sword and axe continued, the more I was pushed back.
My arms felt ready to tear free.
The difference in raw power was absurd.
“Kh…!!”
The Mercenary shoved the axe forward.
I clenched my teeth and held.
In that instant Yuri swung Fairy Festival again from the side.
Crunch!!
The mace struck the arm holding the axe hard enough to make it jerk for a split second.
“Now!”
I drove Penitence upward.
Crunch!!
The Mercenary’s body was forced back.
It worked.
We can hold.
Hope lasted only that single moment.
Bang!!
A gunshot.
This time I could not react.
“You… were you going easy on us? Damn it…”
The bullet grazed my side.
Blood burst out.
The wound burned hot.
“Ugh…!!”
My legs buckled.
Like a true hunter, the Mercenary did not miss the opening.
The axe flew toward my face.
I barely blocked with Penitence.
But the impact was too heavy.
Sensation vanished from my arms.
My knees shook.
“Han-ssi!”
Yuri charged again.
But this time she was aware of Yuri; she swung the axe at the approaching girl and sent her tumbling away.
My breathing was ragged.
Yuri was in terrible shape as well.
I had no feeling in my arms.
Besides the gunshot wound in my side, every cut and bruise from the fight throbbed.
Still I could not stop.
“We… can… do this…”
Yuri gritted her teeth.
“If we just hold a little longer…”
I knew.
Team Leader Mir would have noticed by now.
She might not look like it, but she cares for her subordinates—she would come soon.
So we had to endure.
Just a little longer…
I raised Penitence once more and faced the charging Mercenary.
I barely caught the axe flying toward my shoulder on the flat of the blade.
Random axe swings came at both Yuri and me; I took the ones I had to take and blocked the lethal ones, simply enduring.
There was no room for counterattack. Only survival.
Once more the axe blade came; once more the sword edge stopped it.
My arms screamed.
My balance crumbled.
This is the limit.
“Ah… is this the end…?”
My body swayed.
Then the muzzle rose slowly.
Too late.
There was no way to dodge that.
Bang!!
My ears rang.
My body was shoved backward.
No—it was not me who was shoved.
Right in front of my eyes, Yuri’s body staggered.
Crimson blood slowly spread across her shirt.
Why…
My mind stopped.
The muzzle had been aimed at me.
Yuri had pushed me.
And taken the shot instead.
“…Yuri?”
“I-I’m… fine… d-don’t… worry… st-still… it… h-hurts… a… little…”
Yuri slowly collapsed.
That can’t be…
Yuri… Yuri appears in the sequel…
Then… did she… die because of me…?
In that instant the scene before my eyes overlapped with another.
Blood.
A fallen person.
Trembling hands.
Screams that tore at my ears.
Memories buried deep inside my skull were dragged forcibly to the surface.
Ah…
Again.
My breath caught.
Again because of me.
Again because I was late.
Again because I failed to stop it.
Again because I was complacent.
“Ah… ah…”
My fingertips shook.
My vision wavered.
I felt nauseous at my own pathetic self.
No.
I hate this.
Stop… just stop already.
“Yuri!!”
I screamed until my throat tore.
No answer came.
The blood kept spreading.
Again… I made someone die again…