Chapter 354
Chapter 354
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: 354. Since I'm Here
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"..."
"..."
Yoo Daon and the childhood friend stared intently at each other, and soon Yoo Daon quietly opened her mouth.
"Jaeheon-ssi, who is this kid?"
"This one here."
The two stared at each other before turning their gazes toward me.
"..."
What should I even call this?
Actually, this friend is the Manual.
Or my childhood friend.
Or...
"Min Noa."
The first to speak was the childhood friend.
She puffed out her chest confidently and looked at Yoo Daon.
"I'm Min Noa."
So she's going with that fake name after all.
"..."
Yoo Daon, having heard that, stared at the Manual and tilted her head.
"But the smell..."
"Smell?"
"Yeah. The smell is kinda... um... sorry if this comes off rude..."
Yoo Daon closed her eyes and sniffed.
"The musty smell of old paper..."
"..."
The Manual looked up at me with a sullen expression, and as our eyes met, I turned to Yoo Daon.
Yeah. Time for an appropriate response.
"Daon-ssi."
"Yes?"
"It's cheap."
"Hahaha!"
"Hey!"
"Ow!"
Min Noa kicked my shin, and while I hopped around clutching it, the two of them kept staring at each other.
And, as expected.
"...What..."
"Ah... why the hell at dawn again..."
"Yawn..."
The commotion woke the other three.
"...Who is that...?"
"What."
"Huh!"
Their reactions to seeing Min Noa and Yoo Daon were all different.
Jang Chaeyeon and Song Arin eyed Min Noa warily, while Park Ye-eun looked at her with delight.
"Already starting?"
"This guy's incidents don't give a damn about the dawn..."
"Noa!"
Ignoring the mutterings from Jang Chaeyeon and Song Arin, Park Ye-eun rushed over with a beaming smile and scooped Min Noa up, spinning her around.
"Oh my god, popping up out of nowhere again! Did something dangerous happen to oppa?"
"Wait..."
"Or what? Did you come because you were worried about us? Oh, you're so cute...!"
"Wait a sec!"
Min Noa spun through the air, letting out bewildered cries.
She looked my way, but there was nothing I could do.
You're older, so humor your little sister a bit.
"So who is she."
"Someone you know, huh."
"..."
Song Arin, Jang Chaeyeon, and Yoo Daon were staring at me, so I figured it was time for an explanation.
*
After hearing my explanation, they all stared at the Manual with expressions of varying shock.
"So the Manual you carry around being 'alive' meant actually alive?"
"Yeah, pretty much."
"Why didn't you say anything?"
I looked around at Song Arin's question.
The Manual with her arms crossed, staring at me, and the four others seated at the table, looking up at me.
"Because I figured it'd turn out like this."
"Ha, really. Heh. Really..."
Song Arin pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head, while Jang Chaeyeon looked at me.
"So you've been living with that kid every day?"
"Living's a bit much—she's just a book, after all..."
"We've been together except for personal time."
The Manual nodded, cutting me off, and the others turned to her.
"No choice about it."
With her eyes closed, she nodded in an oddly proud manner.
"Eating together, sleeping together..."
"Because it was a book."
"You're phrasing it like you wouldn't have if she wasn't a book."
"Of course."
If you weren't a book, I'd have handed you straight to the branch chief or bought another house.
"Ha, really..."
Song Arin shook her head in disbelief, while Jang Chaeyeon stared hard at the Manual before pinching her own brow.
Yoo Daon...
"..."
"...Daon-ssi."
"Yes?"
"Nothing."
She was just smiling silently, which was a little creepy.
"...Anyway."
The Manual cleared her throat and looked at me.
"The reason I came out like this..."
"Something went wrong."
"Right."
She nodded at my mutter.
"The play has started."
"Any advice for me?"
"...Act 3 is new territory for me too."
"Oh?"
"Because usually by then, either you're dead or the culprit is."
The Manual's gaze flicked briefly toward Song Arin before returning to me.
Usually at this point, it's either Song Arin who's dead or me.
But the fact that the Manual had come out in front of me meant something seriously bad had gone down.
"..."
I had a rough idea of the situation.
I drew back the curtain and peered outside.
Dawn, with no sign of people.
"..."
Not a soul in sight.
I looked at the road.
Not a single car passing by.
Literally, no one at all.
"Hey, come with me."
"Got it."
The Manual shuffled over to my side at my words, while the others looked at me in confusion.
"Uh, where are you going?"
"There's no one outside."
"Can I come too...?"
Yoo Daon raised her hand, and the others nodded as well.
"It's dangerous."
If it's a mental attack, the others are at risk.
"I'll be fine."
"Arin-ssi, stay here and watch for any variables."
Song Arin straightened up, but I held up a hand to stop her.
"If it's physical, Chaeyeon-ssi and Daon-ssi handle it. Arin-ssi, you cover any mental stuff."
"...Where to."
"Not far. I'll be right back."
Normally you'd stick together in a situation like this.
I was just going out for a quick recon.
"Then why take her."
"Because she's a book."
"...I'm not a book, you know?"
"You eat?"
"No."
"Sleep?"
"...No."
"Do mental attacks work on you?"
".....No."
"Told you, book. Let's go."
I muttered like it was no big deal and dragged the Manual out with me. She grumbled as she stuck to my side.
"Anyway, we'll be back soon."
"Ah, this is really making me anxious."
"Don't worry."
I had no plans to go far.
*
Stepping outside, the dim dawn light greeted us.
"Let's go."
"Yeah."
I went down the stairs with the Manual.
"..."
Tilting my ear, I began to hear faint music.
Good thing I came out alone.
"You're really okay, right?"
"Whoever said a book has ears just for decoration."
"Sorry. But—"
"I get it. You were joking on purpose to calm the others down."
I patted the shoulder of the muttering Manual, who seemed a bit offended, and gazed at her. It was like she'd read my mind—I had nothing to say.
"No one else here, so we can be a little more real."
"I'm always real."
"Yeah, yeah."
The Manual looked at me with a sigh.
"Anyway, the reason I could come out is because anomalies are popping up everywhere around here."
"Feels that way."
"Looks like the whole area's been anomalized."
"..."
If even the apartments inside the Management Bureau were like this, other places had to be worse.
We walked in silence until we reached the first floor.
"We'll take the elevator back up."
"What, tired already?"
"No point wasting stamina."
I answered as I peered outside.
Nothing but silence.
No one speaking, no one moving about.
"What do you think?"
"Probably..."
The Manual trailed off before continuing.
"Anyone still right in the head or sharp enough to notice won't step outside."
"And?"
"Conversely, the ones already enchanted would've headed straight for the theater."
"Theater?"
At my question, the Manual looked up ahead.
Faint classical music drifted through the entire apartment complex, and a mild headache continued nagging at my head.
"Yeah. The theater."
"From experience?"
"No. But I've spectated enough experiences to make an educated guess."
"...So how do I usually bite it against the troupe?"
"You're seriously asking me that."
The Manual gave me a hurt look before sighing.
"Nah. But you have reason to know yourself."
With that, she slowly continued.
"Usually... you die a lot in Act 1."
"Ah."
"Most common? Song Arin sacrifices herself to save you, or you both go down together nice and friendly-like. Or you save Song Arin and die."
"What about now?"
"You two have teamed up and escaped before, but Song Arin joining the HR Team? Never happened."
The Manual spoke in a flat tone.
"It's always been that way."
"Yeah."
"Anyway."
She finished and looked at me.
"Honestly, you and the troupe never tangled this much."
"Really?"
Lately, it felt like they were at the desperate-suitor-who-can't-take-a-hint level with me.
"You got twisted up through those kids. Wasn't supposed to go this deep. Creatures that parasite off others..."
The Manual sighed, glaring ahead with clear annoyance.
She had to be getting something wrong.
"Nah. Actually, it's a good thing."
"What?"
"Flip it around—I'm the one getting help from the HR Team folks."
Without Yoo Daon, Jang Chaeyeon, and Song Arin, I'd have needed a hundred lives and still come up short.
That's how I'd made it this far.
"..."
The Manual, hearing that, radiated displeasure from head to toe, her brow furrowed.
"Why, what now."
"Nothing."
Better not say it.
I sighed and looked ahead.
The music kept playing.
Then, suddenly, the neighborhood broadcast crackled to life.
The familiar ding-dong sound rang out.
-Ah.
Someone leaned into the mic.
-Everyone. The performance is beginning.
-Isn't it beautiful?
A message pinged in right away.
It was from Mom.
"The play's spreading."
"..."
The Manual muttered calmly, and I just stared at my smartphone, at a loss for words.
"Anyway."
She looked at me and spoke up.
"Let's go. No info on Act 3, but I know what the troupe's after."
"What?"
She headed toward the elevator.
"A ritual."
"What kind?"
"Summoning a monster beyond cognition through the play."
"..."
"Don't worry."
She smiled at me and pressed the button.
-Ding!
The elevator doors opened, and she flashed a confident grin.
"I've got you. Even after you die, I'm the one sticking with you."
"Not much of a comfort."
"Such a grump."
She chuckled and hit the button. I followed her in.
The doors slid shut,
-Clang!
followed by the sound of windows shattering and people falling.