“…None.”
“That’s correct.”
To Park Jin-soo’s murmur, Lee Sang-yong replied with a lackadaisical tone.
Upon hearing Lee Sang-yong’s indifferent voice, Park Jin-soo glanced at him while brushing off the white substances from his hands.
Once 7496 – KR disappeared from his sight, he reverted to his usual irreverent attitude.
Yet, a hint of longing for the now invisible 7496 – KR flickered in his jaded eyes. Were someone to see only that, Park Jin-soo might have thought Lee Sang-yong felt emotions similar to his own.
But Park Jin-soo sensed the sticky emotions hidden behind his longing and adopted a subdued tone.
“Hey, you there.”
“Yes, sir? What’s wrong?”
“It’s better not to entertain unreasonable thoughts.”
“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
Lee Sang-yong shrugged as if to ask what the problem was.
Seeing his audacious face, Park Jin-soo sighed inwardly.
Although they now claim some lofty and plausible cause, he had never considered the foundation of their organization solid.
In truth, most people here were criminals who had committed major offenses against ‘The Foundation’ and fled.
Escaping from the Foundation and blending into ordinary society was impossible.
There weren’t many options for those who ran out of concern for their lives.
Thus, this group, which began for self-consolation, ended up engaging in all sorts of activities under the pretext of securing safety from the Foundation.
Among various activities, the most significant was accepting others in similar predicaments into their ranks.
In fact, they did not hesitate to pull others into the same situation if necessary.
The more allies, the better.
Especially if they had control over them.
After all, those who cooperated out of necessity often ended up sinking like someone trapped in a swamp, into “Call of Twilight.”
And how many of those ensnared in this swamp were truly decent people?
They might claim they were wronged, but in truth, they couldn’t resist their desires and had stepped into this mess voluntarily, so their claims of injustice seemed unwarranted.
Of course, there were genuinely wronged individuals among them.
A prime example was the current Lee Yoo-jin, who was with Lime.
She was sent to an almost certainly fatal place because of her superior’s mistakes, making her one of the unfortunate ensnared souls.
If this group belonged to those genuinely trapped, there were naturally those at the other extreme.
Among them were Park Jin-soo and Lee Sang-yong.
If they were to be categorized, one might describe them as the abnormal s*x fiend and the mad scientist.
Therefore, it was only natural that such a loosely patched together organization couldn’t foster mutual trust among its members.
Rather, it resembled a business-like alliance to avoid being harmed by the now umbrella-like organization.
Though, some exceptions did exist among them.
At least, Park Jin-soo and Lee Sang-yong weren’t among them, so Park Jin-soo found Lee Sang-yong extremely repulsive but didn’t voice it aloud.
Not outside, but inside the “Singularity,” provoking him would be unwise.
Of course, if Lee Sang-yong did something to provoke Park Jin-soo, unforeseen consequences might arise.
Nevertheless, Park Jin-soo cautiously approached matters, just as Lee Sang-yong did with him.
In conclusion, Park Jin-soo chose not to delve into Lee Sang-yong’s eccentric tastes and actions, silently turned away, and stepped out of the cave.
Time didn’t flow for the world while Lime was awaited, but it did for Park Jin-soo, so he felt weary.
Watching this, Lee Sang-yong followed while smacking his lips with a tinge of regret.
Upon exiting the cave, a silhouette already on the platform came into view—it was naturally Lee Yoo-jin and Lime.
Lee Yoo-jin appeared exhausted, sitting with a weary expression, while Lime excitedly examined something in her jelly-like hand.
“…Seems like they’ve already found one.”
“That’s true. Hmm.”
Why is he smirking like that again?
Park Jin-soo couldn’t understand Lee Sang-yong.
How could he do such a thing to a “Singularity”?
No matter how he thought about it, Lee Sang-yong didn’t seem to have his senses intact.
Yet, there was one intriguing aspect.
If a human-like “Singularity” and a human were to interbreed, what would result?
Would it even happen?
The two individuals, who otherwise appeared similar, erased their somewhat creepy expressions and approached Lime and Lee Yoo-jin with the casual demeanor of friendly next-door uncles.
Observing Lime, who scrutinized the platform’s components, they sighed admiringly.
“Good luck! To have already found one.”
“Jealous, aren’t we? We didn’t find anything.”
At their rather soulless admiration, Lime turned toward them gleefully with her newfound great discovery.
Oh… Why are you approaching like this all of a sudden?
Pretending to treat her as a human, the two involuntarily took a step back upon her approach, as it felt like being approached by a “Singularity” without any apparent reason.
Unaware of this, Lime, filled with joy and pride, bragged about her discovery.
Although unable to articulate it in words, her movements betrayed her excitement, giving away her intentions instantly to the two.
Sensing this, Park Jin-soo marveled at how Lime understood everything thoroughly, contrary to just nodding along.
Moreover, seeing her childlike pride in bragging left an impression on him.
Though unclear about the intentions of the higher-ups in his organization, Park Jin-soo was consumed with the desire to escape this wretched place to study Lime intensively.
On the other hand, Lee Sang-yong was captivated by some unimaginable and revolting thoughts.
A “Singularity” that exhibited human-like reactions…
Perhaps everything he had lived for until now had led to this day.
Meanwhile, Lee Yoo-jin, observing these two and the Singularity, seemed to feel a peculiar emotion that couldn’t be labeled as either positive or negative.
While the two were pleased by Lime boasting about her component, they soon cleared their throats and softly summarized the situation.
“Let’s rest here for today. We have no idea how much time has passed, but everyone looks tired.”
“That would be best.”
Excited just a moment ago, Lime nodded silently.
It seemed she was satisfied by the response from the two men, something she hadn’t received from Lee Yoo-jin.
Finally, Lime inserted the component into the platform’s device with a contented expression, while the others prepared for a rough night.
…They treated Lime like a child, so giving her the tough tasks would seem inappropriate.
Anyway, I suppose this was the kind of response I was hoping for.
What was that person’s name again? Lee Yoo-jin?
I wish she would’ve been a bit more delighted for me.
Isn’t she also eager to leave here?
I don’t know.
Still, it’s fortunate the two were happy.
It wasn’t as though the shine of my great achievement faded, but I felt content nonetheless.
And anyway, we still had to find three more, so the journey ahead was long.
Although I’d love to search all day, the three are human, so it’s inevitable that they’ll get tired.
Just reaching here was a challenge, and the cave is pretty deep, after all.
If I hadn’t found this, they might’ve kept searching without rest until they found at least one, so technically, they’re resting thanks to me.
Thinking that made me feel even better.
Anyway.
After sufficiently observing the device, I made my way to the still blazing campfire.
There, skewered mystery food, placed either for consumption by the original inhabitants of this place or for visitors like us, awaited.
Reflecting on it, these aspects are often overlooked in games and movies.
Just like not showing how idols use the restroom.
It feels subtly realistic.
Such elements should ideally be part of the adventure, but borrowing the format of a game made it feel somewhat awkward.
Thus, with the strangely flavored food consumed, the group crawled into their pre-prepared sleeping bags.
In the process, Lee Sang-yong vanished to check on their captives, claiming he wanted to ensure they weren’t up to anything suspicious.
Hm.
Hearing his words about keeping watch gave me a sudden thought.
Should someone take the night watch?
Chill-inducing memories surfaced, causing a ripple through Jelly.
…Nnh.
Babies don’t understand things like night watch.
I am the one who torments the night watchman, not the one who stands watch.
Retreating into my sleeping bag to escape reality.
I worried if someone might suggest taking the night watch, but nothing untoward happened.
How much time had passed since Lee Sang-yong disappeared to verify the bound captives?
Lee Sang-yong had returned, and the campfire area was filled with the crackling sounds of the fire and their breathing.
I also intended to retreat into my sleeping bag, but…
I didn’t feel sleepy.
Even if I were made to sleep, would I actually need it?
Sleeping seems more out of preference than necessity, with more entertaining things ahead.
There’s no way I’d sleep.
After a brief consideration, I confirmed the others were asleep and quietly stirred to get up.
…Isn’t it natural for a child waking up at night to wander around?
Therefore, shouldn’t the adults be up?
As a good baby, I wouldn’t cry; instead, I’d look around more.
Wouldn’t the others be happy if I found more components?
