Chapter 61
That's right! If it's the Bureau, they'll have some way!
I clenched my fists.
The only thing I can trust now is the Bureau!
Why are you the one saying that!
The nun got angry, but the truth is I'm a newbie agent too, and I don't know much. I've experienced a ridiculous amount, but I know almost nothing—a complete, fresh rookie.
It can't be helped. I'm a rookie, so I don't really know. From what I can tell, if you want to know more about the Bureau, it seems you have to put in the years.
Then how can you be so sure there's a way?
Well... if it's the Bureau, it should be possible, right?
This situation is pretty terrifying, but if it's the Bureau, there must definitely be a way. After all, they must have had such a method to keep the world going until today.
It's different from the giant crisis, where the corruption spread in an instant. Right now, the Bureau headquarters is still fine. Which means there should be some solution. Some way to deal with even that kind of demon.
Even if a rookie agent like Groong can't do it, the giant organization called the Bureau can.
Haa. You're really not very convincing.
More than anything,
I want to see with my own two eyes how the Bureau handles a top-class crisis like this.
Hearing vague information about the Bureau from other people is nothing compared to actually seeing it myself.
I need to know more about the Bureau.
The Bureau will probably show us something.
Then what, are we supposed to just stand here and wait? Until the Bureau handles it on its own?
If I didn't have regression, maybe I would. But even if it means taking a risk, I have to see the scene where things happen.
I can't do that. I'm an agent, after all. I'll head out and rejoin my team right now.
First, let's link up with Jaaldi.
She's a deputy director and knows a lot about the Bureau. If this incident gets resolved, Jaaldi will definitely be there.
It'll be dangerous to move now too. The revived ghouls, and that demon.
I'll manage somehow.
Hmm... fine. I'll go with you partway, but after that, we'll split up.
You don't want to contact the Bureau?
That's part of it. And I need to let the Vatican know about this incident too.
Understood.
That was the compromise I reached with the nun.
If it were only vampires and ghouls, the nun would have been able to shine too. But this is kind of curious. If it's the current nun, she should be able to use that crusader-summoning ability, so why isn't she using it?
Ah, maybe she's not using it because she doesn't have anti-air capability.
That made some sense.
Let's go.
Yes.
Preparations were complete.
I went outside the church with the nun.
But isn't this church building actually a cult building?
It wasn't when it was built. That's why we can use it.
I see.
Do you know where we're headed?
Honestly, the place was in complete chaos right now, so nobody knew where anyone was. They might have scattered in all directions. The fake Bureau might even have been wiped out.
Still, if we go to where we were originally, maybe we can find a rally point or some traces.
I'm not sure, but I'll go to where we started.
All right.
So I moved with the nun.
Keh-heeeek!
Kyaaaak!
Ghouls rushed in from every direction. But as long as the nun was here, their assault was meaningless.
ㅡswish!
The nun gripped the glowing cross like a baseball bat and swung it wildly. The ghouls touched by it burst apart.
Haa...! They don't even turn to ash!
Are they supposed to turn to ash when they get hit by that?
They'd turn to ash and scatter. But right now they're just bursting apart and flying away. Even that seems to be regenerating slowly.
I could see the ghouls' flesh writhing.
Immortal.
In this red domain, the ghouls protected by the angel couldn't die. Maybe it was some kind of localized, weakened regression ability.
With the nun's help, I moved quite a distance.
Let's split up here. Don't die.
Thank you, Sister. Thanks to you, I got here easily. Once this is over, I'll treat you to a meal sometime.
No need. Then.
Yes.
The nun split off from the party.
I looked around and ran again.
Huff!
Weird sounds echoed from all around. But with gunfire mixed in, it seemed the fake Bureau hadn't been wiped out yet.
If they weren't wiped out, then our team should still be alive too. It was a real shame Mr. Quras's head got blown off... but everyone should still be alive somehow.
ㅡratatatat!
The gunfire was getting closer and closer.
It must be the fake Bureau guys.
Normally, the sensible thing would be to detour here. But I can't help thinking: what are the fake Bureau agents who've survived this scene doing? Could finding that out be a clue? Come to think of it, don't those guys seem to have better intel than our Bureau?
After finishing my thoughts, I cautiously moved toward the gunfire while staying behind cover.
That was how I found the fake Bureau agents.
ㅡratatatatat!
They were firing away with all their might.
Their target was the vampire angel floating in the sky.
No, they're actually exchanging fire with that thing?
Can bullets even work on that? Doesn't its head explode?
Suppressing my fear, I looked up at the vampire angel.
"..."
A translucent, blood-red barrier was stopping the bullets. A barrier... It must be putting one up because getting hit would be bad, right? For an angel, it looks pretty human.
"Shiiit! Die, die already!"
"Don't give up and keep firing! The barrier might break someday!"
The fake Bureau agents kept taking cover and firing, their fighting spirit blazing. This, too, looked human. More than that, it almost felt like burning conviction.
They may have taken my brain, but the way they were facing down such a powerful monster even at the cost of their lives was truly heroic.
"There was that kind of power in Groong!"
"You crazy freak bastard!"
Huh?
What?
"Hey! Still not registered?!"
"Y-yes, yes...! It won't register in the database! Communication is impossible too!"
"Damn it...! We have to let them know Groong's identity!"
What the hell are these guys saying now.
"Looks like we'll have to run straight to headquarters and report it ourselves!"
"Not now...! The moment we leave here, our heads will explode! Whatever it takes, if we want to take Groong's information with us, we have to survive! Hey, keep shooting! As long as we're firing, that bastard can't attack!"
Listening to that bizarre conversation, I felt intensely dizzy.
These bastards.
Why are they shooting at the vampire angel in the sky and bringing up my name?
Why the hell are they mistaking me for that thing...?
My stomach churned.
"W-we're almost out of bullets! We need to make a decision!"
"This is it...! Scatter and retreat! Don't think about what comes after! We have to get this information to headquarters no matter what! Come on, let's shout once! Long live the Bureau!!!"
"For humanity!!!"
One thing was clear in this bizarre chaos.
It was only that I couldn't let these fake Bureau agents get away.
ㅡratatatat!
The K2 spat fire. Holes were punched through the heads and torsos of the fake Bureau agents just as they were about to scatter.
"H, huh?!"
"What the hell!"
"Groong! It's Groong!"
"What! Groong is up there...!"
"There are two Groongs?!"
ㅡratatatat!
The voices full of confusion were cut off.
All the men in suits collapsed, leaving behind only an empty silence.
"What... the hell."
Why are they calling me a vampire angel?
I'm the same as that thing?
That doesn't make any damn sense, you son of a bitch!
"Ugh!"
I barely held back the nausea surging up. I couldn't waste precious garlic here. Right, garlic. Garlic... the garlic vampire hunters love best of all... Ah, yes. If I really get to meet them, let's bring a sketchbook. We'll all draw together in the sketchbook. Of course, we won't need crayons—minced garlic will do. Death to vampires! Long live the vampire hunters! Let's shout those chants together and have some fun.
There had to be a reason those bastards were mistaking me with the vampire angel.
But nothing was coming to mind.
No, wait.
That mosquito of a bitch... was horrified when she saw me.
She knew something related to this! There had to be some clear reason! Why she was equating me with that angel!
As I tore at my hair, I remembered what Mr. Spangdal and Mr. Jamtree had said earlier. That the fake Bureau's words are nothing more than random, empty noise.
I don't believe that.
In the first place, our Bureau has suspicious aspects. A lot of them. I don't know whether those two seniors really think that, or whether they're trying to fool me, but one thing is certain: the fake Bureau I've personally seen and experienced is not some group that spouts random nonsense like that.
Above all, there are real humans like Jinseop. Well, even if the fake Bureau are monsters, they might still be able to bewitch real people and turn them into their own.
Either way, as long as a real person is involved, it's not random nonsense.
Then.
That would mean the vampire angel really is the same kind of being as me.
"Kieeeek!"
I shot down the ghoul that appeared.
I can't think any further right now. In the first place, this is a problem that can't be solved just by thinking. Win or lose, I'll only be able to find out by resolving this situation.
I kept moving.
Then, suddenly, this thought crossed my mind.
I had just annihilated the fake Bureau agents.
I had suddenly appeared and killed all the agents who were trying to retreat.
...This is.
Isn't this just like an anomaly?
Which means if I'm being equated with the vampire angel.
The Bureau I'm in...
* * *
The moment I was running around like that.
ㅡwhoosh.
I suddenly sensed someone behind me and quickly turned around.
I reflexively tried to shoot, but was that Mr. Spangdal?
"Alive...!"
"Mr. Spangdal?"
So you were alive.
ㅡwhump.
The moment I thought that, Mr. Spangdal pulled me into a hug.
A pleasant fragrance spread at once.
He must have sprayed odorless perfume, but once it touched my bare skin exposed through one or two layers of clothes, I could smell it. It definitely calmed me down a bit.
"I'm so glad... Groong. I thought you were dead."
He spoke in a very shocked tone, and it was hard to imagine this from Mr. Spangdal, who usually goes on about rookies dying quickly. But in fact, I already knew he had a kindhearted nature.
"I just barely made it."
"I'll hear the explanation later. Come this way. You know this is an emergency, right?"
After letting me go, Mr. Spangdal grabbed my wrist and led me along.
"Yes. One of those situations where one wrong move and you're dead."
"Exactly. If you don't want to die, keep your wits about you."
"I'm managing. By the way, hugging me so happily like that... as expected, nobody loves their juniors like you do, Mr. Spangdal."
"Sh-shut up. I don't have time for pointless talk right now."
Changing the subject, huh.
So you don't deny being happy.
"By the way, Mr. Spangdal. Does the Bureau have a way to resolve the current situation?"
"Yes."
As expected, the Bureau had a method.
"First, go inside."
"Yes."
And so, together with Mr. Spangdal, I entered the makeshift hideout.
"Groong."
When I went in, I saw Jaaldi sitting in the dark.
"Good to see you back. You survived."
"Yes. I somehow managed to survive."
"I'm sorry. I tried to rescue you, but I couldn't find you. And with that monster of a thing blowing heads apart like crazy, I couldn't go any farther either... You had a rough time of it on your own."
"No, it's fine. I moved away a little to try to survive too, so not finding me was only natural... huh?"
Jaaldi stood up.
One of her arms was missing.
"Team Leader Jaaldi! Your arm!"
"I barely managed to stop my head from getting blown off."
"Ah!"
As expected of the deputy director, she really did have some skill.
"That's a relief. But unfortunately, Mr. Quras was killed in action."
"Most of the Suppression Team was killed in action."
So Gorgodio died too.
"Then what about Mr. Jamtree?"
"Jamtree died too. He went down in a blaze of glory while trying to uncover information on that devil-like bastard."
"..."
It felt like something had dropped with a thud in my chest.
Mr. Jamtree was always kind to me.
And yet he died in action.
"He's that dangerous. We think of him as some kind of religious entity, and by Bureau standards he looks like he'll easily surpass A-rank."
"This thing. Can it be dealt with?"
At my words, Jaaldi nodded.
"It can. And we're already in the middle of trying."
"What?!"
They're already trying?
"Those kinds of religious anomalies have to be dealt with using something similar."
"There's something like that?"
"Yes. There's one sleeping in the underground containment facility. I've already had them bring it out."
Just what kind of terrifying being is that?
"Of course... it's a method we avoid using if at all possible. The side effects are severe, and it could bring about an even more horrifying future. It's one of the few things in the Bureau's history to have been used only a handful of times. But if a religious entity like that appears, there's no other choice. We have to use it."
"What kind of being is it?"
"A demon."
A demon?
"A demon?!"
"We're using the demon. Spangdal. Since Groong is here, take him with you. I'll hold this place."
"...Understood, Team Leader. It was fun while it lasted."
"Same here. If I die... leave the rest to you."
"Groong. Let's go."
Mr. Spangdal held out his hand.
I took his hand and moved.
"..."
The Bureau is keeping a demon in its service.
I need to see what that demon is like for myself.