With a strange expression, Jang Yijung tossed something. It was my mask. I hurriedly picked it up and put it on.
After that, with his help, we cleared the debris and pulled Yeom Hajae out.
Once we got outside, I saw a hallway with a restroom attached. It seemed the section connecting the hall to the hallway had collapsed, splitting the hallway in two.
The place Yeom Hajae and I had been trapped in was somewhere around the midpoint of that.
In the hallway, just as I'd heard, there were over ten people. They ranged from perfectly fine to injured.
What was surprising was that most of them still hadn't taken off their masks. Even with the mask on, it was a relief I didn't stand out.
The people who saw me and Yeom Hajae made blatantly disappointed faces.
“They said a rescue worker was coming…”
“Are you sure you reported the location right? Try again.”
“Right now there's, there's no response at all…”
It seemed to be the person I'd communicated with earlier. They were getting chewed out by someone who looked like a superior.
While people were busily clutching the radio, a stubborn-looking middle-aged man opened his mouth.
“Can't we get out if we just clear those rocks?”
It was the man who'd tried to shove Yeom Hajae. He had a bandage on his arm, maybe injured while dodging.
That son of a bitch.
To think he was still alive.
Come to think of it, this whole mess was on account of that man.
As I was hurling curses inwardly, someone else stepped in to stop him.
“You can't go touching it carelessly. It could suddenly collapse.”
“That guy cleared it just fine! Just have him do it.”
The man pointed at Jang Yijung. At once attention focused on Jang Yijung, but Jang Yijung rolled his eyes as if uninterested.
Cleared it just fine?
Now that I looked, only the section where I'd been trapped had had its debris precariously cleared.
The commotion during the radio call suddenly came to mind. Had he recognized my voice over the radio and moved? How did he know the location?
For now I roughly sat Yeom Hajae down in one corner.
“Hyung…”
He'd be justified in losing consciousness, yet he still had his eyes open. On top of that, maybe because he'd seen me put on my mask, he kept recognizing me as Kim Cheolsu.
As I was deliberating what to do with this guy, Jang Yijung approached my side.
“What's going on?”
“It seems he's gone into some kind of delirium.”
“…That's not what I mean.”
“?”
Jang Yijung whispered.
“There was something you originally set out to do, wasn't there.”
“Ah.”
The killing, you mean. From Jang Yijung's standpoint it'd be puzzling, sure.
But what could I do.
I couldn't kill Yeom Hajae.
Over the past week, there were things I'd figured out about the system. That the Karma value decreases in proportion to how much pain I feel. And that when the Karma value drops, an “achievement” is randomly unlocked and a reward is granted.
And…
When I'd hurt a person as a test, I really thought I was going to die.
Attack someone using my ability and I become unable to use my ability; injure someone using a weapon and a penalty gets slapped onto my body itself.
In short, that subtly elaborate system wanted to beat up only me, and me alone.
Bring in an exorcist for a rite, bring in a shaman for a gut ritual, and the system still wouldn't come off. So for now, I had to clear the quests as instructed. While harming people as little as possible…
Since I couldn't explain it like that, I answered simply.
“Ahh. I forgot. What do I do about this…”
As if the possibility of killing him right now hadn't even crossed my mind.
Jang Yijung made a subtle expression. He plopped down beside me and a brief silence passed. The one to speak first was Jang Yijung.
“…Why are you even here?”
“Who knows. I wonder what son of a bitch shoved my back.”
“…”
Jang Yijung rephrased and asked again.
“I'm asking why you're in that organization if you're not even going to kill people.”
What are you saying in the middle of the Association, you? With Yeom Hajae sitting right beside us with his eyes wide open.
“Haha, you joker. What we kill is monsters, isn't it?”
I didn't answer Jang Yijung's question and played it off.
“…It's strange.”
“The strange one is you, Yijung.”
I quickly pulled a lollipop from my pocket. I unwrapped it and shoved it straight into Jang Yijung's mouth.
Cut the nonsense and eat this.
“…”
Having failed to get a proper answer, Jang Yijung held the candy with a sullen face.
Beyond the wall, the faint cries of griffins could be heard.
I rolled the eyes I'd left fixed on empty air. Others wouldn't be able to see it, but right now a system window floated before me.
Speaking of the system, it just reminded me.
[Quest: Settle your karma.
!If the quest is not completed within a set period of time, a penalty will be applied.]
[Karma: 59400]
Come to think of it, it'd been quite a while since my Karma went down. I'd been bedridden after getting beaten up, and only came to yesterday. Just about three days…
Three days. Hadn't I gotten a penalty after about that much time passed before, too? An ominous premonition grazed my spine.
That's when.
“Officer, my foot. I've never seen a guy like that, I'm telling you?”
At the loud voice, my head turned on its own.
In front of the restroom, two men were arguing. The Hunter I had an acquaintance with, and the middle-aged man with the bandage on his arm. The middle-aged man whipped his head around and glared this way.
Then, huffing and puffing, he came toward Jang Yijung and me.
A shadow fell over the face of Jang Yijung, who sat leaning against the wall.
“You're a villain, aren't you? SmileClean or whatever it's called.”
“?”
“One look and I can tell. Look at the punk-ass yellow hair.”
Jang Yijung looked up at the middle-aged man with the same thoughtless face as ever. I didn't know what was going on, but for now I blocked his path. I was worried Jang Yijung would spout nonsense again.
“Sir, I think you're misunderstanding. This friend is my subordinate.”
“Subordinate?”
The man's eyebrows twitched.
“Then name your affiliation.”
“…That's.”
“Ha. You're in cahoots with that punk too, aren't you?”
“In cahoots, you say.”
“Aren't you? Then why can't you answer?”
We are in cahoots. And it's also true I can't answer because I have no affiliation. But I couldn't let the people listening to this conversation feel that way.
“…Well, that's.”
In any case, most of the others were wearing masks too. They probably didn't want to get caught up in any potential scandal. And.
“Like you said, there might be a villain here, so what'll you do if you make yourself a target?”
“!”
When I recited the current situation right back at them, people murmured.
“H-he's got a point… they said there was more in store, so what if there really is a villain among us…”
“That's why I'm saying these guys look like that villain! It was already weird, a guy claiming not to be an awakener with eyes all red.”
The middle-aged man wouldn't back down and kept being stubborn.
We have masks, so why is this happening? I turned to look at Jang Yijung. Jang Yijung held up one finger with a carefree face. Then his mouth moved soundlessly.
Mask, one.
He meant there'd been only one mask with the ability attached. I lost my words. You knew, and you carried on acting up like that?
But it was fine.
If we caved to the pressure and revealed our masks, the others would have to state their identities too, to prove their innocence. That was a development no one wanted.
In the end, as expected, someone else stepped up.
“That's enough. These two said they don't want to, didn't they?”
Feeling the censuring gazes, the middle-aged man flinched.
“Ah, no, I just…”
He couldn't press the matter any further and faltered. The situation was over.
All I had to do was stay still like this until the rescue team came—that was all, it should have been…
…My lips were itching. A little mischief should be fine, no?
The moment the middle-aged man was about to return to his spot, I couldn't help muttering, as if to myself.
“…From the look of him, seems like some odd-jobber who came here to wash dishes.”
At that, the man whipped around. I openly looked him up and down and smiled.
So it'd look polite to others but feel like mockery to the one hearing it, I whispered, audible only to the man.
“If I told you my affiliation, would you even recognize it?”
The man's eyes went wide.
“…!”
Veins bulged on the thin-haired forehead.
“Do you, do you know who I am…?”
As expected, the riled-up man shouted.
“You bastard, name your affiliation!”
“Oh dear, sir. Why are you suddenly like this. I said I can't.”
I clasped both hands together as if troubled.
“That bastard's your flunky, isn't he? I saw the whole thing, you two scheming earlier!”
“As I've said any number of times, he's my subordinate.”
“Stop it, mister.”
“Fuck, do you know what that bastard just said to me?!”
The man threw a tantrum, shaking off the people restraining him. He seemed unable to bear being singled out as the odd one.
The sight of him shouting with spit flying was laughable. To get this worked up over just a few words…
Fun.
I savored a small bit of happiness. The middle-aged man, declaring he'd rip the mask off himself, reached a hand toward me.
The moment I went to dodge the approaching hand—
Ding!
[Penalty triggered: 〈Flame of Purification〉 now active.]
At the window that suddenly appeared, my body froze.
“You trash bastard!”
Thwack!
I was struck by the arm the man swung. Thankfully, the mask didn't come off. The punch was like a cotton mallet, too, so it didn't hurt at all. But…
Drip…
Blood drops to the floor. When I wiped my nose, bright red blood came off. Soon a sensation I'd experienced once before arrived.
“…!”
A horrible pain like my whole body was burning.
“Wh-what the? I was only trying to hit-”
In an instant my mood was hurled into the abyss. I staggered and barely grabbed the wall to regain my balance.
Flame of Purification. Probably the penalty that triggers if I don't lower my Karma for over three days. I'd been so busy experimenting with the conditions for Karma rising that I'd forgotten. A clear oversight.
“Seo Sinwoo?”
“I-I'm fine… just startled for a sec.”
I could feel Jang Yijung beside me looking puzzled. I barely swallowed the blood surging up my throat and opened my mouth.
“Yijung. The, the restroom…”
Jang Yijung rose and draped a hand over my shoulder.
I went into the restroom supported by Jang Yijung.
I stood in front of the sink and turned the faucet. The plumbing didn't seem damaged, because water came out fine. Tossing off my mask, I plunged my face into the running cold water.
It was cold. It felt like my head was clearing a little at last.
“Hey, you…”
“Yijung.”
I spoke, breathing hard with effort.
“Hit me once.”
“What?”
“Quick.”
I had to lower my Karma for the penalty to end. I needed strong pain.
Hearing my words, Jang Yijung swept his hair back.
“…What kind of nonsense is that?”
Just hit me once. I know it's an absurd request.
Even so, I tugged at Jang Yijung's hand.
“Please, hit me.”
