Chapter 110: Paradox Paradigm Paraseism (1)
Chapter 110: Paradox Paradigm Paraseism (1)
“It’s been a while since I’ve been here.”
A vast plaza, empty and wide.
The only thing that stood out was a stone pillar rising from the center; otherwise, there was truly nothing.
In the past, there had been plenty of stone fragments scattered about—the result of some fool swinging a hammer to create them on the fly—but now it was just an ordinary plaza, devoid even of those remnants.
I tried to reminisce about the past while looking around until the appointed time, but the emptiness only made it tedious.
To think she chose a place like this for a meeting.
I understood that there weren't many suitable locations nearby, but if that were the case, we could have just come together.
Instead, she gave me some line like, ‘Women have a lot to prepare for, you know.’
She probably meant it as a joke, but considering what was about to happen, it felt ominous.
“Whatever happens, happens.”
Muttering to myself, I sat down with my back against the central pillar.
How many minutes had passed while I waited?
Squelch.
In the silence, devoid of even white noise, a sound reached my ears. The sound of something sticky moving.
“You’re here.”
I spoke to the air and turned toward the source of the sound.
Nurses of various colors were marching toward me in perfect rank and file.
“…They certainly have personality.”
They weren't just the usual white or black ones I’d seen frequently during my stay here.
From every color of the rainbow—red to purple—to metallic textures, matte finishes, and even transparent ones.
Each flaunted its own individuality while marching in unison like a disciplined army.
Were there always this many Head Nurses?
The number looked like it could easily make up an entire company.
Considering that more than half of them were likely still working back at the branch, the sheer scale of their numbers was staggering.
As they slowly entered the plaza, the moment the end of the column cleared the entrance, they scattered to the left and right, disappearing rapidly.
An encirclement?
As if anticipating combat, the Head Nurses manifested their respective weapons and dispersed with speed.
With the nurses gone, the space they left behind was empty. From the long stretch of the street, she walked toward me in her leather outfit.
The glass inside her Gas Mask was fogged up from her breath, making it impossible to read her expression. The leather belts that usually cinched her body tight were all unbuckled, trailing long behind her on the ground. The many pockets characteristic of her techwear were stuffed with gleaming objects.
She was in full combat mode.
It seemed she truly intended to fight.
How did it come to this?
I recalled the conversation we had yesterday.
* * *
“Uncle. Can you spare some time tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow? I’m scheduled to head back after work tomorrow.”
When I first received the mission, I thought it would be impossible to finish within the deadline, which is why I dragged Oxymoron into it. However, due to several overlapping variables, I managed to finish both the report and the inspection on schedule.
I still didn't know what Hyun-seok was thinking when he assigned the inspection to me, but imagining his face when he read the report made me feel a bit mischievous.
“Don’t just start smiling in the middle of a conversation. I’m asking because tomorrow is our last day here.”
“The flight isn't until later, so I don't mind, but does it have to be here?”
“Yes, because it’s something I can only do here.”
Something that can only be done here.
I searched my memory for a moment, but nothing came to mind.
There was nothing around here, so what could it be? The Management Bureau branch had its own forms of entertainment, but those were just amenities for long-term staff. I could find plenty of similar things back in Seoul.
Something only found in this vicinity… and a place worth spending time at…
“Are we going back to that Old Man’s restaurant? You already said your goodbyes. Is there something weighing on your mind?”
The only thing that came to mind was the restaurant we’d become regulars at.
It wasn’t that the Bureau’s cafeteria was bad, but perhaps because they tried to cater to staff from all over the world, the food lacked a certain kick. That’s why the employees often frequented local spots.
“No, it’s something much simpler.”
With those words, Oxymoron leaned her face close to mine.
From behind the lenses of her Gas Mask, she spoke with a radiant smile.
“Please fight me for real.”
* * *
“I didn’t get an answer yesterday.”
Yesterday, she had only brushed off my question with a smile.
Since there was no way we would engage in a fight to the death, this was clearly a spar. However, I didn't understand the reason.
If it was a spar, she could have just filed a formal request with the Management Bureau. Modern Heroes weren't very interested in honing their strength, so it wasn't used often, but there were still martial artists who revered power, and even among the new Heroes, there were Irregulars like Baek Si-hyun.
If she wanted to use the Operating Room as the stage, she could have just specified the location.
So, for me, following along with this sudden request…
“Uncle. Right now, you’re wondering why this isn’t a spar, aren’t you?”
She spoke.
Her voice was somewhat devoid of emotion.
Startled by her toneless voice, I tried to read her expression.
But that attempt was blocked by the Gas Mask she wore.
“…Oxymoron?”
“I am not Oxymoron.”
She approached.
Dragging her belts behind her.
“I am Liv. The owner of this Operating Room. The surgeon. And…”
She took a scalpel in her hand.
“The little girl who was saved by a certain Hero in this very place.”
She lunged.
The battle began.
Clang.
A faint metallic ring echoed in my ears.
It was the sound of me hastily summoning my hammer to block the scalpel Oxymoron had suddenly swung.
“Tsk.”
I clicked my tongue at the sound.
What on earth was going on?
I had blocked the attack reflexively, but I still didn't feel like attacking Oxymoron.
“Hey! What do you think you’re—”
A chill ran down my spine.
Something was coming.
The moment I felt it, my body reacted faster than my thoughts. I jerked my head aside and raised my hammer to my neck.
Clang.
The metallic ring echoed in my ears again.
A silver flash dominated my vision.
The scalpel in Oxymoron’s right hand had been aimed straight for my carotid artery.
It was a strike backed by a clear intent to kill.
She was definitely serious.
I looked up to see her face one last time, but all I saw was the dark, black Gas Mask.
It seemed I had to steel myself.
Simultaneously with that thought, I shifted my mindset. The person in front of me wasn't an old friend, but someone trying to murder me.
Thump.
With that thought, my Limiter was released, and I immediately swung my hammer.
Crack.
The sound of a bone breaking.
“Ugh.”
Her voice, suppressed in pain.
Perhaps she hadn't expected me to counterattack immediately. She tried to retreat quickly, but The Hammer was faster, and as a result, her arm was broken.
Normally, the battle should have ended there. But Oxymoron was a veteran in her own right.
Even as her arm broke, she threw a syringe to keep me at bay and used the momentum of The Hammer to escape backward.
Not a bad choice. However.
“Too slow.”
I immediately kicked off the ground to catch up to her.
Because my sprinting speed was faster than her retreat, I closed the gap.
I was in an awkward posture from the sudden dash, but I was already accustomed to swinging The Hammer from such positions. My body naturally found its stance.
And just like that, I swung The Hammer toward her body.
I aimed for her arms or legs.
Parts that could neutralize the opponent and end the fight.
I’ll end this in one go.
Even though I had recognized Oxymoron as an enemy and shifted my mindset, that was still how I thought.
Killing Oxymoron was out of the question; therefore, I would end the fight quickly—
Squelch.
Something red surged up from the ground.
Our eyes met.
A nurse stood in my way, grinning at me.
…I see. The nurses could move freely within the Operating Room.
Even if I realized that, there was no way to react.
I was in a state of extreme acceleration to finish Oxymoron quickly.
Furthermore, the red nurse had manifested right in front of me, seemingly unconcerned about the collision.
Nothing for it, then.
I kicked the ground again.
To accelerate even more.
I was familiar with the Red Head Nurse. When I overslept in the morning, she would bring me breakfast and glare at me. That’s why it pained me to crush her, but…
Forgive me.
I slammed into the Head Nurse.
Pop.
With a sound like a water balloon bursting, sticky mucus splattered everywhere.
I felt resistance.
The Resistance created by forcibly breaking through something viscous.
It wasn't just a feeling. My charging speed actually decreased. And then, Oxymoron’s counterattack began.
Squelch. Squelch. Squelch.
With those bizarre bubbling sounds, they appeared from everywhere.
Some rose from the ground.
Some ran from afar.
As their master fell into danger, perhaps their instincts had awakened; they abandoned their human forms and were rushing toward me, half-transformed into squelching slime.
I have to end this quickly.
Part of me didn't want to engage in a life-or-death struggle with Oxymoron, but if those things gathered, it would become more troublesome than I thought.
Even a single Red Head Nurse had offered significant resistance; now, they were surrounding me from all sides.
So, the moment I accelerated again to end it quickly—
Squelch.
Along with the sticky sound, I felt a strong pulling sensation from behind.
It wasn't strong enough to stop my charge, but it was enough to slow me down. I quickly turned my head to identify the source of that force.
A grinning red fragment.
Even though its body had been torn to pieces, it had stuck its remaining arm to the ground and grabbed my leg to protect its master.
As if it had fulfilled its role, it simply grinned.
My attention was drawn to that face, and my actions were delayed for a moment.
In terms of time, it probably wasn't even 0.1 seconds.
However, that brief moment made a huge difference.
They arrived.
Each carrying their own weapon.
Bone saws, scalpels, osteotomes, powerful defibrillators, pliers, mallets, drills, cleavers, chainsaws, and medical tools like high-frequency generators.
They began to use them for purposes they were never intended for.
Tools meant to heal people were now being swung to destroy me.
Of course, that doesn't mean they actually touched my body.
The five highest-ranking nurses were roughly lower A-Rank, and most of the others were mid-tier B-Rank.
The difference in skill was far too obvious.
If they were upper or top-tier A-Ranks who could hold their own against an S-Rank, it might be different, but five lower A-Ranks didn't mean much.
The chainsaw swung by a Black Nurse only grazed my hammer and left a minor scratch on my arm, and the defibrillator a Gray Nurse brandished wildly didn't even touch me.
Truly, they were meaningless attacks.
But there was meaning in the action itself.
Over a hundred intelligent entities lunged at me, unable to inflict a proper wound and bursting by the twos and threes whenever I swung my hammer.
Yet, they held me down.
Me, one of the four top-tier combat S-Ranks.
Me, who had reached the pinnacle of heroism.
There were probably several reasons for this.
The fact that they handled their weapons well enough to impress Baek Si-hyun.
The fact that they kept coming forward without fear of death.
The fact that their attacks weren't simple, unlike other mass-summoning Heroes. And the fact that their coordination was better than most partners.
Regardless, they succeeded in pinning me down.
And once again, a silver flash flew toward me.
Numerous syringes, imbued with the power of a top-tier Hero and qualitatively different from the nurses, flew toward me, piercing through the nurses' bodies.
Oxymoron.
It seemed she had healed her arm.
That meant the nurses in front of me had fulfilled their roles.
I shook off a few syringes stuck in my body and looked around.
About half of the Head Nurses remained.
Oxymoron had restored her broken arm.
My condition…
A few minor scratches on my body.
Damaged clothes.
And, whether the medicine in the syringes Oxymoron threw was a sedative or a tranquilizer.
I was starting to feel a bit sleepy.
Hmm.
All things considered…
If I’m unlucky, I might actually lose.