Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: CASE-3P-232 [Clinging Flesh]
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A villa completely covered in flesh, just like the meat clinging to Lua’s Hamburger shop, caught my eye.
"Those things are the reason the Owner..."
I closely observed the repulsive creatures that made my skin crawl just looking at them.
The twitching lumps of flesh moved as if they were a single organism.
Given their size, taking them out one by one seemed impossible.
"...Should I just burn them all to ash?"
The simplest solution was overwhelming firepower to wipe them out entirely, but that would obviously reduce the building to cinders too.
I had no intention of repaying kindness with betrayal, so I was racking my brains for a better way when...
"Arf! Arf—!!"
A dog out on a walk with its owner nearby spotted me and started growling and barking furiously.
"What's gotten into you all of a sudden!?"
"Arf arf!! Grrr!!"
The owner hurriedly tried to calm the panicked dog.
"...I shouldn't think out here. Better do it inside."
At this rate, the owner looking up at the sky would spot me. I quickly pried open the window to Moonlight Villa Room 403, where the Owner lived, and slipped inside uninvited.
"Ugh, gross..."
The flesh clinging to the outside had been bad enough, but the interior was several times worse.
As if sensing an intruder, the flesh in the living room began writhing and thrashing wildly.
The good news? They were trembling in fear of me.
"...Alright, time to search."
According to cliché, massive things like this always have a core—some kind of nucleus.
"Hm?"
As I scanned the living room intently, I spotted a family photo hanging above the TV.
"So you weren't naturally silver-haired after all..."
The Owner was smiling with jet-black hair in the picture.
With my own hair chopped short, I'd naturally assumed her silver hair was just like that too.
"Who's the one below? A little sister?"
Excluding who looked like the parents, there was a girl who seemed like a younger sister, beaming brightly.
She appeared about my age at a glance.
"No time to slack off. Let's move."
I snapped out of my brief distraction and headed past the flesh-covered living room—empty otherwise—to check the bathroom.
"...Just cosmetics."
Nothing there, so I skipped it.
The only spot left was the firmly sealed bedroom.
Even the flesh trying desperately to flee from me was blocking this door like its life depended on it. Suspicious.
"Out of the way, you creeps."
I extended my claws and scraped away the flesh barricading the door. Their efforts scattered pathetically.
Click— As I flung the door open, a scene far more horrific than the grotesque flesh awaited.
"What... is this...?"
Hundreds of bright yellow eggs dangled from the walls.
Inside the largest one floated a person, bobbing gently.
"......"
If I hadn't found the Owner yesterday, would she have ended up like this too...?
"I'll get you out right now."
I slashed the egg's outer shell with my claws. Amniotic fluid gushed out like a waterfall, and the trapped man collapsed to the floor.
I checked his neck for a pulse—breathing steady, blood flowing fine.
"Good. Now then."
I carefully propped the man against the wall and scanned the room for what looked like the core.
"Found it...!"
There, in the corner of the bedroom, was a pulsating, crumpled bright yellow orb.
The flesh had tried so hard to hide it. That had to be the main body.
"You nearly kept our Owner from running her shop!!"
I unleashed my killing intent at the thing that had tried to murder her and lunged, swinging my claws.
Slash!! The sharp talons cleaved the yellow orb in half, spewing foul mucus.
"Kieeeek!!"
The flesh blanketing the building convulsed in unison, shrieking.
With the core destroyed, they burst like popping pimples one by one, vanishing completely.
"...Ended anticlimactically."
I shrugged and approached the fallen man, nudging his shoulder.
"Hey. Mister."
"...Ugh. Cough!"
Had he swallowed too much of the anomaly's fluid? He hacked and dry-heaved for a good while.
"Hmm."
To wrap this up perfectly, I needed to save him too. As I pondered intensely...
"Everyone, get ready! Don't forget to control the surrounding civilians!"
"...Huh?"
A commotion erupted outside the window.
"We're commencing the suppression operation for CASE-3P-232. Rescue and isolate any civilians on sight!"
""""Yes, sir!""""
Disciplined footsteps approached. I stood on tiptoe at the bedroom window to peek outside.
"Soldiers...? No, not quite?"
People in pitch-black suits, armed with guns, shields, and weapons straight out of a sci-fi flick, swarmed into the building.
"Management Bureau?"
Was that the group the convenience store grandpa had mentioned before chasing me off?
"...Wait a sec!"
Did that mean they were here for me?!
A chill ran down my spine. I ditched the unconscious man and shot up through the window.
I kicked up a gale as I rapidly put distance between me and Moonlight Villa.
The black-clad figures didn't pursue, so their target must've been the flesh parasite.
"...Phew. Close call."
Now that I wasn't human anymore, getting my identity exposed was something to avoid at all costs.
No matter how strong I was, I couldn't overcome human greed entirely.
"Wings, good wings!"
These wings truly proved the saying: "The flying man beats the running man."
Without them, I'd be crawling on the ground like a lizard...
"That'd just be a lizard..."
I was a dragon, damn it. No way did I want to flee on foot.
"Phew... At least the job's done."
I patted my flat chest, recalling how I'd eliminated the threat to the Owner.
Now she could work without her body feeling heavy.
Anyway.
With that, I flew back to Lua’s Hamburger to check on the Owner.
"...Should be fine to go in, right?"
I arrived at the burger shop and peeked through the window to assess the situation.
No sign of the Owner in the main hall, so she was probably in the kitchen...
What if the flesh took her when they vanished?
"Th-that can't happen!"
"What can't?"
"Kkibbit?!"
A languid voice from behind made my tail bristle as I leaped back and smacked my head into the signboard.
"Kkiheeng! Ow, Owner...!"
"Why are you sneaking peeks at my shop?"
I turned and looked up. There was the Owner, shopping bags on her arm, chuckling softly.
"It's nice and cool outside, but chilly. Come in."
"Eep..."
She stroked my hair and nodded toward the door.
"Pardon the intru—ack?!"
"Heave-ho... Hm? Lighter than you look."
As we entered, she pulled out a chair and hoisted me onto it effortlessly.
Clueless about the situation, I narrowed my pupils to slits and wagged my tail erratically when...
"Here. Wanna see this? You can read, right?"
The Owner held up her phone with the news.
The news was straightforward.
A massive flesh anomaly invisible to ordinary people had appeared in Yongsan-gu, causing missing persons.
The Management Bureau would investigate and deploy forces within hours...
"The news was about my place. Without you, I'd probably be one of those missing people listed."
The Owner dimly realized what had happened that morning and thanked me.
"Thanks. You saved my life."
"Ehehe..."
I purred at her head pats for a moment.
"...But, 2071? Isn't that wrong?"
The date on the news jumped out at me.
I'd been hit by the meteor in 2025 for sure.
...But 2071?
That's nearly 50 years later.
"Huh? It's 2071 this year. What're you talking about?"
The Owner tilted her head in confusion.
Her snowy white hair swayed, giving off a cool yet warm vibe.
"Eh...? Uh?"
My mind blanked; my eyes spun.
So, 50 years passed while I was hit by the meteor and reborn as a dragon?
That explained why Yongsan-gu was so peaceful unlike Mapo-gu.
But then why was Mapo-gu still a mess?
Too many anomalies?
Even I thought Mapo-gu had a lot of anomalies...
"Hey? Little one? Lizard? Chopstick?"
"Y-yes!? You called?!"
The Owner snapped her fingers in front of me, snapping me out of it. My wildly thrashing tail and horns finally calmed.
"What was that? Hurt anywhere?"
"N-no... I'm fine. It's nothing!"
Feeling her worried gaze, I hurriedly brushed it off and played it cool.
Yeah, even if time passed, being reborn was fine.
No parents, no friends back then—no big regrets.
"Hmm..."
"...Ming?"
The Owner pondered quietly, then ruffled my hair roughly. Her lips curved into a smile.
"Our little one. More clueless than she looks?"
"...Eh?"
"Don't worry. This big sis will fill in the gaps."
She fetched a mini chalkboard from somewhere and started giving me a quick rundown.
This was Yongsan-gu, Korea, etc.
She was born in 2044, name Mi-ra—full name Lee Mi-ra.
"My name's Mi-ra. Lee Mi-ra."
"Mi-ra...! Mi-ra Owner...!"
I muttered it repeatedly to never forget.
"Listening? Bored? Should I stop?"
"N-no! I'm listening!"
"Good. Anomalies like you started appearing after the 2025 meteor strike in Mapo-gu..."
The info was shocking.
In '25, a meteor from space hit Mapo-gu, spawning anomalies.
"Before my time, so I don't know details, but Korea was nearly wiped out until around 2040. Now the Management Bureau keeps it peaceful."
"...Management Bureau."
"As long as you avoid Mapo-gu, Korea's pretty peaceful. Yongsan-gu too."
The short but informative lesson ended. I blinked dazedly at her.
"Oh right. What's your name? Feels wrong not knowing my savior's."
Mi-ra Owner met my eyes and asked. I almost gave my old male name naturally.
"My name is... name... garung?"
But oddly, my old name was erased like with an eraser—I couldn't recall it.
Just that it felt hard and stiff.
"What was my name...?"
"How should I know? Think hard."
"Meee...? My name...!! Shaaak!! Why can't I remember!?"
I scrunched my brow, rubbed my philtrum with my tail—no dice.
"How about I name you then?"
"Pardon?"
"No reason. Just wanna if you don't have one."
"...Yes!"
The Owner smiled faintly, offering to name me.
A name from the hamburger goddess herself...!
Come to think of it, living with my old male name felt off now.
For such a cute dragon girl, a boy's name didn't fit.
Anyway. Eyes sparkling, I awaited her choice.
"...Lua. How's that? From our shop name—Iru-a."
Iru-a. The Owner named me Lua.
"Love it! Lua...! Iru-a! Ehehhe!"
"Like the name?"
"Yes! So much! Lua! Iru-a!"
The cute name had me wriggling excitedly.
Iru-a of Lua’s Hamburger...! Hehehe...
Feeling like the shop mascot, my lips quirked up. The Owner smiled fondly, petting my head.
"...Good. You saved me again, so burger as thanks."
"Nyat?! Really?!"
"Made a special trip to the mart for an off-menu item."
Swish. She lifted the shopping bag from the floor.
"Off-menu...! One-of-a-kind burger!!"
Even better than yesterday's?!
I wriggled cutely, drooling in anticipation.
"Hehe...! Burger! One only I can eat... weung?"
Listening obediently to the appetizing kitchen sounds when...
Drip— drip—
A man in a drenched black raincoat pushed open the door and entered.
"What the heck is that..."
Today's weather was sunny enough to sting the eyes—no rain in sight.