The Limits of the Flower
I slipped off my lab coat and draped it over the chair before heading toward the site of the skirmish. The alleyway was a fifteen-to-twenty-minute walk from the trailer I’d parked in the university lot. White hazmat-suited agents were already cordoning off the area, preventing civilian access.
“Thanks for your hard work.”
“Good afternoon, Doctor.”
I gave them a polite nod. They returned crisp salutes. I passed between them and stepped into the restricted alley. The scene that greeted me was one I still couldn’t get used to, no matter how many times I saw it.
A nauseating stench of decay hung in the air. Bodies so thoroughly melted that their original shapes were unrecognizable.
“Senior! Please put on your gas mask!”
“Ah, sorry. I forgot.”
“Even so, how could you forget at a site contaminated with toxic substances…?”
Min-jeong, who had followed me with a worried smile, handed me the mask. I took it and slipped it over my face. Breathing immediately felt easier.
“Alright, then…”
I accepted protective gloves from a nearby researcher, pulled them onto both hands, and began examining the pursuit team’s corpses. They had rotted into shapeless sludge.
“…What kind of poison could melt human flesh this badly?”
“I’m not sure either.”
I peeled away a small piece of flesh from one of the bodies. The mushy, mud-like meat came off without much resistance. Beside me, Min-jeong wrinkled her nose and took a step back, covering her mouth even though it was hidden behind her mask.
I inserted the sample into the analyzer. The device hummed briefly, then displayed the results on its screen.
> SAMPLE INTEGRITY: 12%
> TOXIN COMPOSITION: UNKNOWN
> DECOMPOSITION RATE: EXTREME
> VERDICT: ANALYSIS IMPOSSIBLE
“As expected.”
They had clearly gone to great lengths to leave no traces. Still, the analyzer’s output told me exactly how these men had died.
First, the unknown toxin infiltrated the victim’s body. Most likely delivered by injection, though I couldn’t be certain. Once inside, it began breaking down cells from the ground up. Initial symptoms were muscle paralysis. The victim would lose control of their limbs, then their tongue, rendering speech impossible.
The second stage was full systemic collapse. This must have been excruciating. Muscles, organs, even bones slowly, agonizingly dissolved from within.
The third and final stage was death. By then the entire body had rotted beyond any hope of medical intervention.
“It’s like radiation poisoning.”
“………”
A living organism capable of producing a toxin with effects comparable to one of the most dangerous substances known to man. Just how far did the Flower’s capabilities extend? The more I learned, the more fascinating the creature became.
“Whew. Not much to salvage here.”
“Are you… finished?”
“Hahaha. You’ll have to get used to this eventually, Min-jeong.”
“S-sorry.”
I teased her lightly, then moved past her to survey the scene from a wider angle.
“……”
A perfectly cleaned battlefield. Not a single bloodstain or stray hair remained. Amid the clamor of voices and the revolting stench, I rested my chin on my hand and pondered.
“…A way to catch those things.”
“So you call me out of the blue, ask for help with zero explanation, and expect me to just roll with it?”
“I’m explaining everything right now, aren’t I?”
Seo-hee grumbled as she carried Chae-yun into my room. I gave her the shortest possible summary of what had happened. For the first time, her expression turned genuinely serious as she processed it.
“…By the way, is she going to be okay?”
“She’ll be fine. She used up all her energy recovering from a fatal wound. Give her a little time and she’ll wake up.”
“That’s a relief.”
I felt a pang of guilt looking at the scar on Chae-yun’s neck. She’d ended up like this because she’d helped carry out my reckless plan.
“Isn’t there a faster way to heal her? We need her awake so we can talk strategy.”
“You could always fuck her.”
“…Excuse me?”
I thought I’d misheard and asked again, but Seo-hee continued in a calm, matter-of-fact tone.
“We don’t get nutrients from food the way humans do. We move our bodies, Chae-yun pokes people’s heads with her tentacles, I produce venom, that sort of thing.”
“…..”
“But there’s a much more efficient way to absorb nutrients than eating. It’s…”
“Stop. I don’t want to hear any more.”
I shook my head vigorously and waved her off. The last thing I wanted right now was to thrust my hips like some horny monkey. More than that, the thought of using Chae-yun’s injured body for my own benefit felt deeply wrong, even if it was supposedly for her sake.
“…Do you like her?”
“…..No, I don’t.”
“Dumbass.”
Seo-hee spat the insult after watching me fumble for an answer with my head lowered. I couldn’t even respond.
“Then let’s think about this first. That unknown light at the university can detect us. So what do we do about her?”
Seo-hee closed her eyes in thought, then pointed at Chae-yun, who lay sleeping on the bed.
She was right. Chae-yun’s current residence was the university dorm. If she didn’t return, it would be as good as announcing, I’m a brain-eating monster. But staying away would raise the same suspicions.
“…Yeah. This is driving me insane.”
“Even if we say she’s staying out tonight or tomorrow, the problem remains. Not coming back is suspicious. Coming back is also suspicious.”
“…I’ve got nothing.”
We racked our brains together, but no good ideas surfaced. Chae-yun was usually the best at this kind of thinking, but right now she was unconscious. The impasse felt suffocating.
At that moment, Seo-hee, who had been groaning in frustration, suddenly snapped.
“Ugh, seriously! Sitting here thinking isn’t getting us anywhere. Just close your eyes and fuck her already!”
“Wow. You really have a way with words.”
“………”
She glared at me.
“No choice, I guess.”
She muttered it under her breath, then stepped close, brought her face right up to mine, let out a long sigh, and kissed me.
“…..”
Our first kiss had been one-sided and forced. This time, when she grabbed my head and took the lead, the sensation was entirely different. Her tongue slipped into my mouth, exploring everywhere. Our tongues tangled, saliva mixing in wet strands.
“….Hey! What the hell are you doing all of a sudden?!”
“You were so eager to pound away before. Now you’re playing hard to get?”
The brief rush of soft pleasure snapped me back to reality. I pushed her away. Seo-hee wiped the saliva from her lips with her sleeve and stared at me.
The situation was dire. The pursuers I’d thought were distant had closed in until the blade was at my throat. Chae-yun had nearly died. If Seo-hee had answered the phone even a few seconds later, she really might have been killed.
Just hours ago, the terror of I might actually die had gripped my chest. And when I was left alone while Seo-hee rescued Chae-yun, I had been genuinely afraid. After experiencing that fear, I couldn’t treat this problem as lightly as before.
I was scared. I didn’t feel like enjoying anything right now.
Seo-hee stared at me for a long time, then extended her fingernails, sharpening them into needle-like points. She gently pricked Chae-yun’s neck and began injecting some kind of fluid.
“What is that?”
“Nutrients I extracted from your saliva.”
“You can do it that way?”
“Normally your semen would be best, but I’m not expecting much from a guy acting like a corpse. This is just because I’m frustrated.”
“……”
Seo-hee clicked her tongue, withdrew the needle from Chae-yun’s neck, and returned her nails to normal size. Then she flopped down beside her.
“I’m tired too. I’ll sleep here tonight.”
“…Okay.”
“Chae-yun should wake up around dawn.”
“Thanks.”
“…And you.”
Seo-hee, who had been speaking while facing the wall, rolled over and looked straight at me.
“Stop acting so half-assed. It’s annoying to watch.”
“………”
After that aggressive parting shot, she turned away again and muttered, “I’m going to sleep.”
Half-assed. That was me, alright.
I scratched the back of my head, got up from the bed, pulled a blanket from the closet, spread it on the floor, and lay down.
“…Damn it.”
Sleep wouldn’t come. My mind was too restless.
“No, no, no. That wasn’t my fault. You know that, right? Yeah?”
“I wouldn’t know, Team Leader.”
“Wait, think about it again. You might still need me for this operation, don’t you? Just once. Reconsider it just once.”
“…Hmm… Nah. I don’t think we’ll need you after all.”
“Wait—”
I pulled the trigger on the small pistol in my hand. A sharp crack split the air. In front of me, the team leader’s body instantly turned into a lump of fat and gore.
“Handled?”
“Ugh… I thought I’d be fine with it, but it doesn’t feel great.”
I dropped the gun to the floor and wiped the blood splattered on my face with a handkerchief.
“From now on, you are the new leader of the ‘Ancient Weapon Research Team.’ Dr. Luke.”
“Oh. It’s been a while since anyone called me by my English name. Feels strange.”
“………”
I’d ended up eating the boss’s brain on impulse. Maybe I should try making one… Could be fun.