“Uh, hum.”
Han Seori stirred her sluggish body and got up. Rising from the foldable bed, she stood there for a moment with a dazed expression while staring at the mirror, then went into the bathroom to freshen up before coming out.
The effects of the drink she had consumed in a rush last night still seemed to linger.
Sitting on a chair and reminiscing about the events of the previous day, one thing kept coming back to Han Seori’s mind—her thoughts about Jelly Girl.
The more she thought about it, the more regretful she felt.
Could she have done better? That kind of regret lingered within her.
But what was done was done. There was no going back unless there was a Singularity that could reverse time.
Of course, a Singularity that convenient didn’t exist.
…Even if it did, for that matter.
It didn’t seem like it would lead to a good ending anyway.
That was the end of her lamenting.
With her notebook and identification card in hand, Han Seori left the room.
On her way out, there was the unfortunate event of encountering the Director, but because there were many people around, the Director was busy joking around and pretending to be friendly, so Han Seori’s mood wasn’t terribly dampened.
She arrived at the quarantine room where Jelly Girl was being held, as was expected.
However, the area in front of the quarantine room seemed somewhat commotion-filled.
Puzzled, Han Seori quietly approached the quarantined area, treading lightly.
She saw some familiar silhouettes.
“…Could be the suppression team members.”
They were likely the same people who had given Jelly Girl the terrible nickname “Damn Mucus.”
Realizing who they were, Han Seori absently scratched her head.
Could they have come here to get revenge for the incident in the Sewers?
…No, surely not.
If something wasn’t officially “secured,” then maybe. But messing with a formally quarantined Singularity like this didn’t make sense.
It was dangerous in itself and this place wasn’t sloppy enough to let such things slide…
…unless there was someone important overlooking it.
For instance… the Director?
Still… even if Jelly Girl seemed easy to underestimate, there was no way they’d openly gather like this to harm her.
Then why were they here?
Curiosity turned to puzzlement as Han Seori cautiously approached them from behind.
They were peering into the quarantine room, displaying the internal camera feed.
And naturally, Jelly Girl’s image appeared on the screen.
“Hm…?”
Han Seori unintentionally muttered aloud. Upon hearing her voice, the group who had been transfixed on the screen jumped in surprise and turned toward her. However, it seemed her attention was already on the screen.
The image showed Jelly Girl playing with a doll, squirming around.
It wasn’t just one doll—she had gathered the various toys that had been placed in the quarantine room and surrounded the central slime-like figure with them, as if reenacting something.
“They must be recalling what happened in the Sewers.”
“Oh, right… I think I saw that in the report.”
At the sudden voice, Han Seori realized the eerie resemblance between this scene and the memory she had.
…Though it looked menacing in description, the toys and dolls made the entire scene rather cute.
“Hmm, she seems to like it.”
Still…
“Why are all of you here?”
After turning off the video feed on the panel, Han Seori stared intently at the gathered group, almost interrogating them.
The group responded with a nervous cough, glancing at Han Seori’s face, then murmured softly.
“We were just curious to see what she looks like. Given how much trouble we went to capture her, we thought at least we could see her face, right?”
“Hmm… is that so? You’re not here to do anything improper… are you?”
At Han Seori’s dubious tone, they frantically waved their hands and shook their heads.
“Of course not!”
“Right…?”
They exchanged awkward smiles before disappearing down the corridor.
After confirming they were gone, Han Seori turned back to the panel, brought up the internal video feed again, and couldn’t help but smile.
“If they came here with bad intentions, a sight like this would probably change their minds, wouldn’t it?”
Still, seeing Jelly Girl enjoy her toys made Han Seori feel satisfied for setting them there, but at the same time, a bit uneasy.
She seemed to recall the events in the Sewers, so it was possible that she could remember Han Seori’s actions as well.
Still, what could she do?
“…”
This was the task Han Seori had to fulfill.
She stood there for a while mindlessly observing Jelly Girl playing, then moved on, her thoughts lingering behind.
At this stage of life, playing with dolls was hardly enjoyable.
It wasn’t even clear when she last played with one, but she impulsively gave the nearby doll a name, though frankly, nothing much came of it.
Thus, she used Alice as a pillow and allowed herself to drift off.
“Drift off” might sound strange, but to put it in terms suitable for this body, it was akin to sleeping.
Surprisingly, resting this way led to something similar to falling asleep, and this body, though seemingly fueled by limitless energy, still felt mental fatigue since she was human at heart.
How long had she slept with Alice as her pillow?
Given the absence of a sense of time in this place, it might not have been very long.
Still, she felt somewhat refreshed and looked around her surroundings.
The scattered toys and squirming slime were still there.
Thinking about it, she had already named one of the new dolls she saw today, but hadn’t named this particular one.
It would be absurd to call it a trash can, but naming it seemed appropriate.
Even though she couldn’t actually call out to it.
Many name ideas passed through her mind, but none felt quite right.
Alice looked like Alice, but when staring at the slime, nothing immediately came to mind.
And calling it something like “Rinor” seemed ridiculous—there was this unsettling worry that it might one day eat her.
…Though if she ate it, it would likely disappear immediately, it was bizarre to think that names held power.
So…
“Daesik” might be an appropriate name.
It felt somewhat affectionate and even loyal.
Thus…
…What now?
Not knowing how much time had passed for her felt like an eternity.
It was only now, transformed into this body, that she realized how much smartphones or computers could melt time away.
But still, it would be nice to have one.
Though she had been trembling with fear not long ago, such thoughts felt awkward now, given the immediate lack of any real threats. Her suppressed curiosity was beginning to resurface.
Should she escape and run away?
Hmm.
After thoroughly searching the place while lying around doing nothing, she concluded there was no way out.
Wasn’t there a cliché about slipping out through a ventilation duct or something?
Whenever thoughts of leaving made her feel wistful, she inevitably reminisced about her “glorious days.”
And when did those glory days happen?
Ironically, the time she spent in the Sewers was when she’d prefer to look back on.
Though all she could ingest was flavorless stuff—rather, all she could absorb was flavorless matter—she had managed to evade armed people and still had the freedom to make her own choices.
The sweetness of freedom…
When she noticed, she was arranging the toys around her to recreate that time.
…Is this automatic hunting?
It might just be an excuse.
Anyway.
Looking at the arrangement she had set up, it felt surprisingly exciting.
In the center stood Daesik playing the crocodile’s role, while dolls led by Alice took on the role of the armed group that had come to hunt her and the crocodile.
They didn’t have weapons in hand, but this could still pass as a doll-play or soldier game.
It was clear people went mad when they had nothing to do.
Thinking that…
…But even though this trivial game felt fun, there was no denying it.
Of course, Daesik couldn’t eat anything, just like the crocodile hadn’t eaten anyone.
The operation began, and the dolls slowly moved toward Daesik.
…Of course, they were only moving because her sticky hand had directed them.
When the toys finally arrived at Daesik…
What are you even doing here?
Instead of sighing, only bubbling sounds came out.
Falling into self-contempt, she slumped on the floor just as the sound of the door opening reached her.
Panicking, she hurriedly tossed Alice into a corner.
The thought of being caught by an adult woman playing with a doll made her feel embarrassed.
Then…
“Phuh…”
The familiar woman gave a pleased smile and suddenly picked her up.
“I’m sorry about yesterday. I was overly excited… Anyway, seeing that you like my present makes me happy too.”
…Did she just watch me play moments ago?
How?
Oh, can you see me from outside… huh?
While bubbling in shock, the woman put her down and picked up the doll from the corner, placing it back in her hand.
“You can play with this as much as you want. I’ll keep bringing replacements if it gets damaged.”
No, that’s not…
This woman genuinely believed she understood.
Wait.
…Does this mean she suspects there’s a person inside this Jelly?
And yet, why is she treating me like this?
Regardless, the idea that revealing her true nature to such a strange group could lead to more terrible things made her slightly uneasy.
Even the seemingly kind woman gazing at her could…
…Still be part of this peculiar collective.
Even if she had the means to reveal her humanity…
Would it really be safe to do so?
The more she thought about it, the deeper her doubts grew.
Meanwhile…
Something large entered the room.
