Chapter 25
Did he read my mood?
"Your expression doesn't look good. Why so hostile?"
Jaaldi said as much.
He'd ripped out my brain, so of course I was hostile. Handing out the patient handbook was commendable, but that wouldn't wash away my grudge. They were my mortal enemies.
But for now, I needed to learn more about the organization called the Administration Bureau through conversation. This was an opportunity.
An opportunity to get even a little closer to their true nature without any major side effects.
"What does the Administration Bureau do?"
"You can think of it as an organization that responds to situations like this. It doesn't matter now that everything's already gone to hell."
"Is it a government agency?"
"You're quite curious. Are you blaming us for failing to resolve it? Sorry, but we don't have time. Let's stop the questions here."
"..."
A rather solemn attitude.
If he wasn't going to engage in conversation, what should I do? If I tried to force an interrogation in this situation, it wouldn't go the way I wanted. I'd have to tease the information out with a normal back-and-forth.
"The giants made an enormous flower."
"It's nearby. It looks like they're even sending radio waves into space."
"Yes. They are sending radio waves."
"For what reason?"
"It's a form of communication."
"Communication?"
"He's trying to bring down alien giants."
Alien giants...?
Just hearing that was terrifying.
"Alien giants? What are you talking about?"
"Explaining what they are seems pointless. Whatever they are, if they descend, it's all over. Even restoration will become impossible."
Restoration?
"Restoration...? Don't tell me you have some way to restore this world?"
"Well. I don't know whether it'll work."
What the hell?
What the hell are these bastards?
The giant wrecked our beautiful blue planet, Earth, and they can restore it? Did an organization like the Administration Bureau really have that kind of power? A gag troupe whose director-level guy got one-shotted by the hospital director?
"Whatever happens, we're planning one last stand. For that, we need the cooperation of your survivor group."
"Cooperation..."
"The three of us are planning to attack the flower. In the meantime, we'd like you to draw their attention."
I wasn't so dense that I couldn't understand what he meant.
"You want us to be bait?"
"Bait... Well, you could say that. We'll be the suicide squad."
"..."
"If we fail anyway, it's all over. If we succeed, we might be able to do something."
"No, but what are three people supposed to do? With the army already wiped out, there's no way three people can do anything."
It was suspicious beyond belief.
"A nun, a terrorist, and an agent. Quite the unusual combination, but if those three could really do something, the situation wouldn't have come to this."
Given Chief Lee Dohyung's case, I knew superhuman things like that existed, but even so, I didn't think the three of them could solve this disaster.
"It's a difficult task. But the only important question is whether we do it or not. We can't just sit around and die. You survived until today by doing that too, didn't you?"
After saying that, Jaaldi met my gaze.
"..."
He was right.
This agent named Jaaldi.
He was a lackey of the Administration Bureau, which I hated, but he had a mindset I could relate to. Right. You can't just sit there and die. If there's hope, you move.
"But, excuse me, brother."
The terrorist came over and said,
"It's been bothering me, but I'm sensing a very special aura from you, brother."
"What are you talking about?"
"This aura... perhaps you have an Islamic saint among your ancestors?"
"What? No, that's impossible. I'm Korean through and through."
An Islamic saint among my ancestors?
That's absurd.
"Strange. You don't seem to be a descendant of an Islamic ruler either... Hmm? No way. Could you be carrying an Islamic relic?"
"A relic?"
I'd never had anything to do with Islam in my life, so there was no way I would have a relic from over there.
Ah.
Come to think of it, there was the necklace I got from Mr. Kim Seonghan's wife. She was Arab too.
"Could you mean this?"
"Oh."
"Oh?"
"Oh! Ooooh! OOOOOOOOO!!!!"
The terrorist suddenly dropped to his knees and let out a wailing cry.
"This, this was still left! Woooooo!"
"What is this? Why are you doing this? What in the world is this...!"
"That is a fragment of the Black Stone! May I examine it?!"
The Black Stone?
"Go ahead."
I unclasped the necklace and handed it over.
"Kaaba! It really is a fragment of the Black Stone! Incredible! To think such a noble person was in Korea...!"
He was so moved that he was in tears, his whole body trembling. If it got any worse, foam might start coming out of his mouth.
"Allahu akbar!"
"Aah!"
For a moment I thought he was going to explode, but he wasn't.
It seemed to be nothing more than an exclamation.
"Brother! This is an incredibly precious relic! Whoever possesses it is my—no!—the true brother of all us Islamic jihad warriors!"
Is it really that much of a relic?
"I don't know much, but it must have been a relic impressive enough to move even you, Saladin. Still, I got it as a gift from someone, so I don't really know."
"That doesn't matter. For whatever reason, the important thing is that you possess it. It was given to you because you were worthy, brother."
For now, I nodded.
"If only I'd known you a little earlier, brother!"
At some point, Saladin stretched out both hands, and I took them, dancing along with him. I couldn't make sense of the flow, but it was lively.
"Oh? Mr. Vampire Hunter. You were the owner of the Black Stone? Then why do you have so many crucifixes?"
The nun's expression darkened.
"I don't really know. It was just given to me as thanks."
"Heretic! Shut your mouth! This gentleman is the noblest of the noble! A heretic like you is not someone you can speak to so casually!"
"Seriously? This is ridiculous. Hey, Agent. You don't have time to be fooling around like this."
"..."
At that, Jaaldi stepped forward again.
"A brother of a crusader must have some backbone. So, Black Stone owner. Will you accept my proposal? When we attack the flower, all you have to do is draw their attention from another side."
"You mean you'll go attack that flower while I draw their attention?"
"Yes."
"What happens if you win?"
"The giants will fall. After that, we plan to attempt restoration. Of course, there's no guarantee we'll succeed. I might die. The crusader might die. And that nun might die meaninglessly too."
The Administration Bureau is my enemy.
But at the very least, this agent is trying to run toward the last hope, even if it means throwing away his life.
The Administration Bureau as an organization is a bunch of bastards, but... there are people like this agent in it too.
That was what I felt.
"I have just one question."
"What is it?"
"Agent Jaaldi. Do you happen to know Chief Lee Dohyung?"
"What?"
At my words, the sharpness in Jaaldi's eyes deepened.
"How do you know about the entity named Chief Lee Dohyung?"
"Huh?"
His aura turned feral in an instant. Jaaldi came right up to me and grabbed my collar. The entity named Chief Lee Dohyung? What was their relationship?
"Hey! What are you doing to my brother!"
At that moment, Saladin stepped between us and stopped Jaaldi.
"Agent! Even if we're allies for now, it's only temporary! If you attack my brother, I can break this alliance at any time!"
"Tch. Then you can be the one to persuade him."
With that, Jaaldi stepped back.
"Brother. Are you all right?"
"Ah... I'm fine. Thank you for mediating."
"Think nothing of it. Brother is the owner of the Black Stone. You are worthy of the respect of us jihad warriors."
Saladin's tone was incredibly friendly.
By this point, I couldn't help but sincerely think of Saladin as my older brother.
Is this what having an older brother feels like?
"I'm grateful you say that. Then may I call you Saladin hyung too?"
"Please do!"
"Saladin hyung! No, I'll call you Sal-hyung."
"Haha! I'm feeling great!"
Laughing heartily, Sal-hyung took my hand.
"Anyway, brother. We're trying to bring down that giant demon. I'd like you to help us."
"Of course! If Sal-hyung says so, I should help, of course!"
I had planned to help from the start.
If it was for information, it'd be better to get involved in this.
"Hwahahaha! Allahu akbar!"
"Ugh!"
For a moment I thought I was going to explode, but I wasn't.
"Agent! The brother will fight alongside us!"
"Worked out well."
"...I thought you were a devout man because you bought so many crucifixes. So in the end, you were a Muslim?"
But the nun's eyes are bad... no, are these two really on such terrible terms?
Anyway.
With this, I had a rough grasp of the situation. Survivors from the Administration Bureau and the other two organizations had joined forces to form a death squad. If I helped them, we'd see what happened, for better or worse.
"By the way, Sal-hyung. There's something I want to ask that agent."
"Hmm, so I just need to mediate from the side."
"Yes."
Saladin called Jaaldi over.
"Agent. Just now I mentioned Chief Lee Dohyung, and you reacted aggressively because of it."
"...Yes."
"Since we're helping anyway, I'll ask straight out. What the hell is the Administration Bureau? And what the hell is that bastard Chief Lee Dohyung?"
"..."
Jaaldi stared at me fixedly.
"Agent. Please answer my brother's question. He has already agreed to help our suicide corps."
"Understood. I will answer."
Oh...!
This is a good sign!
To think we'd be able to get information here!
"Before that. How do you know about the entity Chief Lee Dohyung?"
"..."
But he keeps adding the word 'entity'.
This part is a little strange.
"Well, fine. I'll explain that part."
I briefly explained what had happened to me until now. Of course, I left out the regression and only told them what I could say.
To sum it up, I happened to run into a vampire, survived by using my wits, then got chased by men in black suits and ended up drifting into the Weird Hospital, where I stayed. I saw Chief Lee Dohyung there. And then, after somehow making it back alive, the world turned into this mess.
The three of them went blank after hearing that story.
"Br, brother... what on earth..."
"Wow... what kind of person are you?"","..."","No, why."