Chapter 78
ㅡTHUD, THUD, THUD!
The pounding footsteps feel like they're shaking the ground. For a bastard with legs as thick as elephant trunks, he's running way too fast!
I can feel adrenaline surging through me. I shoved Kim Seongjin into the seat and shouted for him to start the engine and get going, fast. While doing that, I lunged to get into the car myself.
But we're way too close to that monster to begin with...!
"Fuck, fuck! Fuck!"
Kim Seongjin cursed as he started the engine.
The moment I tensed my legs and tried to leap up.
ㅡGRAB!
A huge hand grabbed my leg and yanked me in one motion!
ㅡWHOOSH!
"Kraaagh!"
"G, grong!!"
I felt weightless, and the next moment I was falling and rolling across the ground.
I quickly checked my body.
Broken anywhere?
None!
Thankfully, he hadn't used me like a club and smashed me down—he'd just thrown me!
But!
"Aaaaagh!"
Kim Seongjin is screaming, and the monster is trying to open the truck door. If Kim Seongjin gets caught now, it's over.
I immediately drew my pistol.
"Kim Seongjin! Go! Fast! Step on the gas!"
Shouting that, I pulled the trigger.
ㅡBang!
I aimed for the back of its knee, which looked like the weaker spot, and fired, but as expected, the bullet bounced off its skin.
But maybe because I fired, the monster turned to look at me.
Seeing that grotesque face, I aimed for the inside of its mouth this time and pulled the trigger.
ㅡBang!
The bullet fired again went into its mouth.
"Grrrraaaagh!"
Could the inside of the mouth really be that weak? The thing shrugged its shoulders and, clutching its mouth with one hand, charged at me. Good, very good. If I can lure it over here like this, that's enough. If I get it to come to me and then shake it off, I should be able to get into the truck somehow!
But then, at that moment.
ㅡTHUD, THUD, THUD!
Another monster burst out from inside the factory!
"Fuck!"
It sprints full speed toward the truck.
I can't shake off two of them.
"Kim Seongjin! Get going!"
Maybe my shout got through.
ㅡVRRROOOOM!
With a deafening roar, the truck begins to move forward. The butcher monster ran thundering along on those elephant-like thick legs, but it couldn't catch the truck. In the end, it gave up the chase and turned toward me.
And just like that, the two monsters come running at me.
"Go, Kim Seongjin!"
I'll die this time, but next time I'll live too.
Then escaping together will be possible too.
"You bastards! Come here!"
I aimed at the charging monsters and fired. Sure enough, their mouths really are weak—they're running while clamping a hand over their mouths.
I ran too.
I'm not going to stand still and die. I'll run and run, see everything I can along the way, and then end it all in one go.
With that thought, I sprinted, but the butcher monsters were far faster than I imagined. Their thick bodies must be packed with muscle, because they were unbelievably explosive.
In the end, the distance between them and me closed.
"Grrrulk!"
"Kheung! Keheung!"
The monsters, making those bizarre noises, are closing in.
They're not holding butcher knives like last time. They won't be able to stop me from killing myself. The moment I shoved the muzzle into its mouth—the easiest way to do it.
ㅡBRRRRROOOM!
The engine sound.
"Ah."
I saw the truck reversing at full speed.
The back of the truck slammed into the two monsters.
ㅡKWAANG!
The two monsters that collided are sent flying back.
At the same time, Kim Seongjin stuck his head out the window.
"H-Hurry up and get on!"
"This guy's a total badass!"
And he came to save me!
"I-I'm a World Politics Board regular, you know! Y- You think I'd just leave you behind?!"
It was as if I could see his teeth, white like rice noodles, through that gaunt face of his!
"Kha! I thought I was a goner!"
As soon as I got on, Kim Seongjin stomped the accelerator. The feeling of the heavy truck surging forward sent a thrill through me. Looking in the rearview mirror, I could see the two monsters getting up, about to run after us, then giving up.
Then more monsters rushed out from inside the factory, but they all stopped running and gave up too.
Even monsters can't run faster than a truck, huh.
Let the police monsters handle it.
"Th-those guys! Those guys gave up! Hah, haha! Hwahahahaha!"
Kim Seongjin burst into mad laughter.
"We can get out! We can go back now! Aaah! Aaaaah!"
Even if you won first prize in the lottery, you still wouldn't feel joy like this.
Of course, nothing was certain yet. But for him, who probably hadn't felt anything like joy over the past few days, I just stayed quiet.
"Groong! If I get out, you're going to wipe my memory, right!"
Kim Seongjin said as he drove expertly.
"So you do want memory erasure after all?"
"If I don't, I'll go insane... S-sincerely, I can already feel that something's wrong with me. I- I have to. For everyone's sake."
"Good choice. Do you have family?"
"Y- yeah! Though we've been apart for a while! Ah, maybe it's because I got too immersed in World Politics Board activities...!"
I suppose.
"To ordinary people, we'd look like a bunch of lunatics."
"Y- yeah! They never believe a word I say! B- but this time I realized it!"
"What?"
"That there's no need to know the truth... It's better to just live in ignorance! I made a huge fuss trying to tell them something like this for no reason, and in the end I ruined my relationship with my mom and dad!"
"You've grown up."
Indeed.
Ordinary people don't need to know about the hidden side of the world. And individuals, even less so. Telling your family about something like that is the same as causing them pain.
"I hope you get to reunite with your family, Kim Seongjin."
"Thanks... B- but are you going to keep doing this kind of thing? You don't even seem that much older than me..."
"Age is meaningless. And as for an agent... sometimes you end up with no choice but to do it. Well, cases like this are fairly common. You'd be better off just forgetting about it."
"Right... th- then what do I do from here?"
The truck continues tearing across the wasteland.
A blood-red world.
There's nothing in sight.
"Who knows. From here on out, it's completely unknown territory. We can only hope this truck can take us back to reality."
"And if it doesn't?"
"Then we'll have to find another way."
"..."
And so, I enjoyed the drive with Kim Seongjin.
Aren't the police monsters coming?
And there might be something like a village of these butcher monsters too.
"Ah!"
How much time had passed?
Something unusual happened.
Ahead of us, a black veil began to appear. It didn't feel like a wall blocking the way, but like a boundary separating this grotesque world from another.
"Is that it?! If we cross over there, can we return to the original world?!"
Kim Seongjin said excitedly.
I can't be sure.
"I hope so, Kim Seongjin. Let's part ways here. I'll get off, and you go on beyond there and see it through to the end."
"What?! What are you talking about?! We should go together!"
"There's no guarantee that's an exit. No one knows what's beyond it. In that situation, both of us going in would be like putting all our eggs in one basket."
"That..."
"We don't know anything anyway, Kim Seongjin. It's a gamble. You go on through."
"And you! What are you going to do?!"
"First, I'll head back and update the notebook in the bathroom."
"What?!"
Kim Seongjin stepped on the brakes.
"You're going to go to that dangerous place and write in the notebook?! Are you insane?!"
"It is a crazy idea. But if I don't write it down, who will? You're the only one besides me who figured this much out. I have to record it. I can't bring you back with me, after all."
We came this far together in the first place so we could shake off the monsters and then return to the factory.
Now that I know about this route, there's no need to escape right away. Besides, I don't even know whether this is an escape route in the first place.
"B- but...! You could just go!"
"I'm an agent. If someone falls again next time, I need to make it so they can struggle on their own. If I write down the shelter you made too, it'll help them survive longer."
"You bastard..."
Tears stream down from both of Kim Seongjin's eyes.
"You damn World Politics Board regular, what are you crying for? I'm leaving. Once you're out, keep trying to contact me through the number I gave you. If I made it out, I'll be able to receive it."
"Ghk...! Got it!"
I got off the truck.
"L- let's both stay alive and see each other again! If you come back, I'll add you to the World Politics Board messenger group!"
"I'm looking forward to it."
ㅡVROOOOM!
The truck moves off.
ㅡWHOOSH!
As expected, the truck disappears as it passes through the black veil.
I don't know what will happen to him.
But I still haven't escaped yet, and if I regress, his escape will be erased too. If he got out safely, that's a relief, but if he ended up somewhere strange, then that's truly unfortunate.
More than anything, my body left behind in the factory is bothering me a lot. I can't go back until I'm certain about that.
"Let's move."
I immediately took cover. Even though it was a wasteland, long fuzz-like weeds were growing everywhere, so hiding my body was easy.
How much time had passed?
ㅡVROOOOM.
Vehicles came speeding in from the direction of the factory.
Of course they'd come check.
The monsters who got out of the vehicles looked around. Then, barking something at the black veil, they got back in the cars and returned.
Only after all the cars disappeared from sight did I move back toward the factory.
* * *
I returned to the factory.
I'm hungry and thirsty.
But I've been through this level of deprivation plenty of times. It was the same during the giant incident, and during the vampire incident too. Enduring hunger and thirst is still hard, but it's definitely something I can do.
There are no vehicles like the ones I saw earlier.
Were those the police monsters that came as backup?
Looks like they all went back.
For now, it seemed like factory working hours, so sneaking in was easy. I headed straight into the bathroom.
The notebook.
The notebook is still there.
I immediately wrote a note in the notebook. The letters are being written. Does that mean my body is still there? Anyway, after writing down the information needed for survival and escape,
I went out of the bathroom.
Just in case, I went to the place with the pile of rubble and gave my body a full blast of the scent enchantment. At this level of stink, I'm safe.
Then I went straight to the body storage room.
Would my body still be there?
"..."
I stepped inside the door with tension in my chest...
It's there!
The corpses are still hanging there!
I almost shouted in triumph, but held it in. But how could the corpses still be there until now? Some time had passed since then.
I figured they would have started working by now... Ah, could it be because they suspended factory operations due to the earlier escape incident?
And if the police monsters came, these bastards might've been unable to work because they were being investigated.
Either way, it's good for me.
First, let's unload the corpse.
But how do I unload this? It's higher than I thought, so it looks a little hard to take the hook off. But if I move this rail, it'll make noise.
No choice.
ㅡGRIP!
I yanked the corpse with all my strength, and the hook tore through the trapezius where it was caught, dropping my corpse to the floor.
To mutilate my own corpse like this... Normally I should feel sick, but right now I feel murderous toward this body. Seeing the damaged part is so refreshing I could cry.
The body itself does look real.
Anyway.
There's no time.
I checked outside once, then hoisted the corpse onto my back.
I have to get to the shredder like this.
I walked carefully, trying not to make a sound. I know where the shredder is. If I can just get there, I can throw it in.
When I reached the shredder...
"...Ah."
I couldn't help but gape.
The shredder is stopped.
How do I turn it on?
But even if I do, there's still a problem.
If they hear the noise, the monsters will come...!
Fuck it, there's no other way!
I boldly pulled the lever beside the shredder!
ㅡKUGUGUGUGUGUNG!
The motor starts turning and makes a loud noise. As expected for something this big, it let out an enormous roar. If a sound like this suddenly starts up, of course the monsters will notice.
I waited anxiously for the shredder to fully start up.
Turn faster already!
Spin with some real power!
At that moment.
ㅡTHUD, THUD, THUD!
Maybe it heard the noise, because one of those monster bastards appeared!
"Bark!"
A bizarre cry!
"Fuck!"
There's no choice now!
Just before the monster rushed over and grabbed me...
ㅡWHOOSH!
I threw the corpse into the shredder!
And then.
ㅡKRRRRRRRRCH!!!
.
.
.
ㅡDING.
.
.
.
[You have escaped from 'Hanseol Human Flesh Factory'.]
[You gained 300 points as a reward.]