Chapter 76

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Translator: True Detective

Chapter: 76

Chapter Title: The Purified Hanmaum Saetdol Apartment

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Hongran went berserk the moment her seal was released.

She scorched everything in front of her, claiming there was plenty to burn, and turned the human tree into a human torch.

In just two minutes after being unsealed, 99 percent of the anomalies gathered in the central clearing had been incinerated. The shaman who had been ranting nonsense with his head embedded in the tree woven from humans spewed smoke from his mouth and let out a scream.

"Wh-what... What the hell is this...!"

The preacher of the Dream Sutra was a disaster-grade anomaly.

Even judging purely by individual threat level, Hongran held the clear advantage.

Luckily, he'd crossed over from beyond the door with some alien crop, planning to lead the entire world into a dream realm—only for Hongran's flames to burn it all away in one go.

The demon Andromalius was the same, and so was that Black Yao Society cult leader.

With so few catastrophe-grades around, disaster-grades sometimes forgot that stronger beings existed.

"That's why I kept telling you to hold back from the third floor onward. Playing with fire is more fun when you've gathered a huge pile of kindling and burn it all at once, right?"

Hongran burst into ecstatic laughter.

Who knew how long she'd been holding back? She'd been singing pleas to unseal her since the third floor, and now that she'd torched nearly all the anomalies, she finally seemed to release her pent-up stress with laughter.

Oh no, her favorability went up again.

I'd been trying to keep it in check, but Hongran's favorability had already surpassed 80 percent. She joined late, yet her rating was higher than Ha-eul's.

If it hit 100 percent like this, we'd probably end up in a Hongran marriage ending. I was suppressing it as much as possible, but if it rose on its own, there was nothing I could do.

At least Sowol seemed to have noticed something and stopped increasing her favorability, focusing on supporting me instead. The Ghost Kings, though, were willful and hard to handle.

"Fixer. What was that just now...?"

"A catastrophe-grade anomaly belching."

"Gasp. C-catastrophe-grade? Catastrophe-grades can... wipe out disaster-level anomalies in one go...?"

"That's why they're catastrophe-grade."

You couldn't lump disaster-grades, which caused city-wide damage, with catastrophe-grades, which wreaked havoc on a national scale.

Agent Yoon Ha-seo hiccuped in shock at the power of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a catastrophe-grade anomaly she'd only heard about in stories, while Agent Ahn Jae-seong's face had turned pale as a ghost.

Even for Anomaly Management Department agents who dealt with anomalies frequently, catastrophe-grades were rare encounters worthy of surprise.

"That kind of power... in an individual's hands..."

"Pardon? You wouldn't try to take it away, would you? The Ghost Kings wouldn't stand for that."

"N-no. That's not what I meant. I'm not saying to seize it, Fixer. Just... it's too dangerous. You have to admit that much."

I understood Agent Ahn Jae-seong's concern.

From the department's perspective, having two anomalies capable of national-scale destruction attached to one person would make isolation tempting.

In their eyes, I probably looked like an anomaly wearing a human skin too.

"Don't worry. I'm on humanity's side, just like you all—fully human."

"...Yes, sir."

Agent Ahn Jae-seong nodded with eyes screaming disbelief.

What part was so hard to believe? Surely not that I was human?

Still, my words raised his favorability by 2 percent, so he wasn't harboring ill thoughts.

"Let's handle the remnants first. They're trying to flee."

"Right! No you don't! Jae-seong, let's go!"

"Yes, ma'am..."

Agents Yoon Ha-seo and Ahn Jae-seong charged toward the surviving anomalies attempting to escape the central clearing.

Even if killing the dream placenta would halt all anomalies, watching the stragglers flee felt unsatisfying. Better to eliminate every visible one.

The ricebowl ghosts vented their complaints at the crawling anomalies on the floor.

With hundreds of anomalies reduced to ashes in an instant, they demanded targets for their rage.

These petty ghosts had grown impatient after I handed them power. On the fifth floor, they'd endured so well they lost their house without complaint, but now they'd tasted violence.

That's why high-intelligence anomalies were scary—they changed rapidly under human influence.

"Come on, everyone! You rampaged plenty on the seventh and ninth floors! Stop yelling! There's still one left over there—take it out on him! Don't kill him, just vent until he's on the brink."

I pointed at the man crawling out half-burned from the human-patched tree.

He was the culprit who turned Hanmaum Saetdol Apartment into an anomaly den and massacred residents. An enemy of humanity that had to be eliminated—a hopeless zealot.

His name was visible now, separated from the dream placenta.

When fused with the anomaly, he'd appeared as the "Preacher of the Dream Sutra," but Hongran's karmic flames had severed that, reverting him to human form.

"W-wait! Hold on! Hear me out—you'll understand. I just wanted salvation...! They all loved it! Their bodies hurt a bit, but they dreamed the best dreams!"

Seol-yun poured out excuses, but the enraged mob unleashed their fury on the terrorist without mercy.

Seol-yun flailed his arms in resistance, but he couldn't fend off the collective beating from the horde of ricebowl ghosts and was trampled helplessly.

"Agents. Leave him to the ghosts for now. Let's find the dream placenta."

Agents Yoon Ha-seo and Ahn Jae-seong extracted and neatly arranged the damaged corpses from the burned anomalies.

The victims' remains would be identified by the department later for proper funerals.

"There it is."

A pink, jelly-like mass slithering across the floor.

We'd found the extremely squishy-looking dream placenta.

It had crept silently through the anomaly corpses, trying to escape the clearing without detection—but it couldn't evade my eyes.

As expected, ███ remained unreadable this time too.

Was the system outright blocking the info?

The Anomaly Management Department censored direct mentions of ███ as well.

'Meaning it's dangerous just to read or perceive it.'

Something from beyond the 'door.' ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Maybe a god-like entity akin to the Ghost Kings?

Though disaster-grade, the dream placenta had no offensive capabilities on its own.

It likely latched onto humans or living beings like a parasite, birthing dream seeds to grow its power.

It seemed utterly harmless at a glance, but this was an alien anomaly.

One that had trampled Agent Kim Seong-ho's dignity, no less.

"Should something like you even get a chance?"

The dream placenta writhed as if begging for mercy.

"Hongran, burn it."

Whoosh.

As the dream placenta burned, all remaining anomalies froze and withered away.

The infected residents quarantined by the department and those in the elevator were likely freed as well.

The quest completed naturally upon the dream placenta's annihilation.

Problem solved.

Or was it really?

"Please... I just... received it..."

After dealing with the dream placenta, we found Elbezzang—no, Eve—stomping on a sobbing Seol-yun, whose limbs were twisted unnaturally, interrogating him about opening the door.

Despite Eve's pressure, Seol-yun insisted he'd only received the dream seed from "someone" and hadn't opened the door himself.

His status made his claims seem truthful.

Was there truly a separate culprit who opened the door? Then Seol-yun was just an anomaly that crawled through and committed these atrocities?

"Wh-when... have you been... watching...?"

"Probably since you were twisting his fingers?"

"...Ah."

Eve, who had been stomping Seol-yun, met my eyes and quickly lifted her foot from his chest with an "oh no" expression.

She bowed her head deeply, ears red, sputtering excuses.

"Uh... I-I was interrogating him... N-needed information..."

"That's a great position. Of course we interrogate villains. Go on, don't be shy."

"Eek... Y-yes..."

At my urging to continue, Eve glanced around nervously before reluctantly growling at Seol-yun, baring her teeth.

"If you didn't... open the door... then tell me who the human that did... before I gouge out your eyes and chew them up."

"A-arggh, it's true! I really don't know! He was covered head to toe in a black silhouette! He had to be a sorcerer... It's a technique they often use... That's everything. Please..."

"Sorcerer...?"

A sorcerer opened the sealed door, retrieved the dream placenta from beyond, and handed it to Seol-yun?

Why? What was the motive?

"What was his goal? Why did that sorcerer... approach you...?"

"Guh...! It hurts...!"

"Answer quick... or your wrist comes off."

"He... well... Honestly, I don't get it either! He heard my goal and said it sounded fun, so he wanted to help! Didn't ask for anything in return... Just said to summon him back once the Dream Sutra's utopia was built... That's it! He wanted nothing else!"

No motive...?

Just for the fun of seeing the Dream Sutra's utopia, he opened a door hidden in the deepest back alley of the hidden world, pulled out an alien disaster-grade anomaly, and handed it to a willing recipient?

This was horror incarnate.

A psycho who committed such acts for amusement.

"Fixer! Things are mostly wrapped up here! The ricebowl ghosts seem exhausted and dispersed too."

As I interrogated Seol-yun, the agents called me over after gathering the victims' remains.

The ricebowl ghosts had all vanished. With the dream placenta gone and their goal achieved, they'd returned to their places.

Time to hand cleanup to the department and head out.

I placed a gentle hand on Eve's shoulder to calm her lingering rage.

She flinched and glanced up at me.

"S-sorry... When I get excited... I-I don't see what's around me..."

"It's fine, Elbezzang... No, sorry. I meant to call you Eve."

"Elbezzang...? No... Eve? That's for me...?"

"Yes. Everyone calls you Eve. It's a pretty name. I'd like to call you that from now on—okay?"

"Uh... Eve... Eve...? E-Eve... Yes. I like it... Eve. I love it..."

Good, she liked the name Eve.

Perfect. Eve it is from now on.

"Then, Eve. Let's head out. The department's better at interrogation anyway. They'll extract more info."

"Yes... Okay..."

Eve nodded, fidgeting with her hands.

She had something to say.

But seemed too shy.

What was it?

I checked her status and realized her request.

"Your legs hurt, right? Hop on my back."

"Uh, th-that's... Yes... Felt bad asking..."

Eve was limping. That explained her hesitation.

She'd overdone it lately. A piggyback was in order.

"Up you go."

"Yes... Thank you..."

Eve carefully climbed onto my back.

Thankfully, Sowol said nothing, just watching quietly...

Soon, Agent Ahn Jae-seong approached, binding the unconscious Seol-yun and slinging him over his shoulder.

"Agent Park Jae-hyeon just checked the central clearing. The apartment's back to normal. You can exit via the first floor."

Good—Seol-yun's defeat had restored the twisted structure.

Anomaly traces still littered the halls, requiring the department's sanitation team for full decontamination, but the immediate crisis was averted.

"Oh, Eve. One moment. Wear this before we go out."

I draped my overcoat over her head.

To me, she was just a shy girl, but Eve was a bona fide disaster-grade anomaly.

The response team knew she was harmless, but to others, she'd terrify. Better to cover her face to avoid rumors.

"Yeah... Better to hide an ugly face..."

"Pardon? Nonsense—I think you're pretty, Eve. Don't feel down."

"Wha...? P-pretty...?"

"Never mind. Let's go."

I ignored Eve's plea for another affirmation and carried her out of the apartment.

It was already dark night outside.

Black vans crowded around Hanmaum Saetdol Apartment, with hazmat-suited personnel rushing in.

The sanitation team had begun internal cleanup.

"Fixer! You're out!"

Agent Park Jae-hyeon, waiting at the entrance, waved upon seeing us.

Beside him, Agent Yoon Jae-beom was under a blanket getting vitals checked.

"Post-incident processing is all on us. The captured criminal will face internal review too."

Park added that shamans behind such incidents were officially declared dead and worked to death internally.

"Rewards for this will be paid tomorrow. Expect a direct call from the department—seems they have more than just cash prepared."

"Looking forward to it."

Giving me a tool-type anomaly, perhaps?

Whatever it was, fine by me.

"Um, Fixer...?"

"Yes?"

"B-before you go, I wanted to thank you properly. You saved my life. Thanks to you... I can go camping with my kids this weekend. Without you, I would've broken that promise. Truly, thank you."

Agent Yoon Jae-beom bowed deeply in gratitude.

With onlookers around, receiving a bow from an elder felt off, so I quickly helped him up.

"I'll repay this favor... no matter what. And please pass my thanks to... whoever helped me. Without them... I'd have given up on surviving."

"Got it. I'll relay it."

Not knowing Eve was on my back, he asked me to thank the elevator ghost too.

"We'll be off then. Exhausted."

"Yes! Great work, Fixer! We prepared a car—take it."

"Shall we?"

"Wait!"

As we headed for the department car Park had called, Agents Yoon Ha-seo and Ahn Jae-seong ran up from mental evaluation.

"Fixer! I'll never forget this. Thanks for the courage!"

"Me too... Gained a lot of experience thanks to you."

They bowed sincerely.

I'd just done my job, yet their heartfelt thanks embarrassed me.

"Alright. Stay healthy, everyone. See you next time."

"Yes! Safe travels!"

We left the waving agents behind and headed to the Fixer Office.

"Um..."

"Yes? What is it, Eve?"

"Tomorrow... if you're free... Would you... go downstairs with me...?"

"Downstairs?"

"Yes... Something I want to show you..."

Downstairs—what did that mean?

Probably not the real world.

'Her dwelling, maybe?'

I agreed for now.

No harm if Eve wanted to show me something.

Back at the Fixer Office, Eve took the elevator to the sixth floor.

Looking half-asleep, she murmured goodnight and vanished into the dark hallway.

"Phew. Finally over."

"Uncle, you're late today."

"Huh? Yu-ha? Still up?"

"Yeah. Couldn't sleep. The others are asleep. But, Uncle."

"Yeah? What?"

"Another guest came while you were out."

"What? Another one? So many clients lately. End times."

I hung my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠coat on the chair, grabbed orange juice from the fridge, and listened as pajama-clad Yu-ha described the afternoon visitor.

"He was a 21-year-old college guy. Wore glasses, super skinny, seemed really timid."

"Anything distinctive?"

"His eyes were a bit off. You know that dazed look some people have?"

"Mm. Got it. Glazed over, right?"

"Yes! Super shy, kinda otaku vibe too."

"Otaku, huh. So, the request?"

"His computer keeps talking to him. Started with simple greetings, but now it follows his every move like surveillance."

"Huh?"

What fresh anomaly was this?

A computer obsessed with chatting up an otaku college kid?

On the surface, it sounded like an anomaly born from someone's dream and hope.

"Apparently, his university has an AI promotion club?"

"Ah. AI's gotten good lately."

"Yeah. They tried making something like commercial AIs, and that seems to be the issue."

College club-level AI matching commercial ones was near impossible.

This was anomaly work.

"Unique case."

"Threat level's low. So, could we handle it?"

"You three?"

"Yes! Seems doable... No?"

"Even if you could, can't send three high school girls into a college otaku den alone. I'll tag along if you want."

"Yay! Uncle's coming too!"

We set for a weekend visit to the client's club room.

Time left, so a break was fine.

We'd pushed hard lately. Time to rest.