“WHAT ARE YOU DOING COMING HERE?!?!”
As Han Seori slammed her desk in what seemed like a spasm, Kim Cheon-soo, who had already been uneasy due to the palpable tension, slowly rose from his seat. Meanwhile, Han Seori pressed hard on her temples, her frustration boiling over.
“People are lacking, so why are you sending them here?! Furthermore, when I said to follow procedure, I meant not to come at all! Why aren’t you listening? WHAT is going on!!!”
She had previously given an excuse about following procedures to detach those who wanted to come along with Lime. Knowing well that simply saying no would only escalate the situation, she thought her approach was rational and free from side effects.
However, the situation didn’t unfold as she anticipated.
To begin with, she had optimistically assumed that, at most, one or two people would end up coming. After all, the lab had been crying out about its shortage of personnel; surely they wouldn’t let any members leave unless under unusual circumstances, right?
Especially the Far End Laboratory, which had already experienced personnel losses. Wouldn’t a functional lab try hard to retain everyone intent on leaving? Not doing so would essentially be dereliction of duty.
But despite her expectations, people began to arrive, claiming they had received permission, all influenced by Lime and Sosik. She was flabbergasted, unable to comprehend whether the people coming or the people sending them had lost their minds. Was the lab’s management really this incompetent? Could this be some scheme to lure Lime or Sosik away again?
Han Seori felt as if her temples might explode, the pressure growing unbearable. When she raised her hands to them, it felt like they might burst any second.
Just one issue, however, was simpler than she thought.
The disappearance of many singularities within the lab was a significant factor. The ones that moved had either died fighting amongst themselves or were forcibly eliminated. Thus, the research facility was now populated almost solely by stationary singularities or those that had no intention to move.
As a result, the management required much less effort. Not just less, but dramatically so.
What’s more…
“…So this incident happened because the stolen singularities were being tested?”
“Huh, it wasn’t stolen—it was temporary custody—”
“Cut the crap, damn it! What have you done while I was gone?!”
“Su, suppress… I’ll handle it.”
“Did you think this could be contained?”
“F, if we exclude those caring for the derivative entity, almost no one in the lab knows it even exists. So… if we silence them—”
“Would that work?”
“…Probably, it will.”
The battered man gave a bitter smile, filled with false confidence. The ones obsessed with the derivative entities and the singularity called Lime, if offered to have their desires fulfilled—would likely be ecstatic. Knowing they were at fault, they’d cover up their mistakes to avoid disapproval from these beloved singularities. It was a great solution. Especially because it was what they wanted anyway, so there was no need to intervene directly.
This was something Han Seori didn’t know, and it was driving her head to the brink.
While Han Seori was dealing with an unknown (and unpleasant) source of stress, Kim Cheon-soo, who had quietly slipped away, returned breathlessly with Lime tucked under his arm.
Kim Cheon-soo placed Lime into Han Seori’s arms, and as if struck by some enchantment, the volcano that was about to erupt within her calmed down. She let out a faint sigh and held Lime tightly.
Lime, who had been dragged out of bed, looked slightly stunned but softened after catching the desperate expression in Kim Cheon-soo’s eyes. Letting out a small giggle, Lime’s jellified form wobbled and embraced Han Seori.
As Lime embraced her, Han Seori, suddenly recalling how Lime had gently shoved her away not too long ago, began to sob a little and tightened her grip on Lime.
“Ugh… Lime.”
Han Seori felt the cool sensation of Lime’s soft and squishy body calm her to the point where it was as if the prior outburst had never occurred. Beside her, Kim Cheon-soo heaved a sigh of relief but began to ponder.
While it was nice to see a side of Han Seori he hadn’t seen before, was this truly alright? Wasn’t it, well… a bit off?
Kim Cheon-soo wondered if Han Seori might need some form of counseling. Then, as if acknowledging her actions, he gave a thumbs-up to Lime, whose head softly jiggled in return, forming the shape of pudding. Kim Cheon-soo sighed again, looking askance at the pudding with a slightly irritated gaze before nodding.
‘How much does Lime love pudding?’
He muttered under his breath without forgetting.
Lately, he had begun to feel unsure whether his role was to manage singularities or to be a pudding factory.
But then, thinking about the past—when his life was often on the line and the time spent on the verge of death underwater—it was, undeniably, a much happier problem to have. Still, the feeling remained strange.
In any case.
As Han Seori calmed down in Lime’s embrace, stress relieved, the process to accept those coming from the Far End Research Facility smoothly moved forward.
Han Seori wasn’t unprepared; it was the motive of the lab that remained baffling. The town being developed was already designed with the anticipation that more people might arrive.
She hadn’t predicted they’d arrive so quickly, though.
Nevertheless, despite not fully understanding the motives of those arriving, Han Seori decided to house them outside rather than inside the compound, as they might potentially cause trouble within.
Especially since she herself, along with Electric Scent and others, was already busy, it was impossible to monitor each person individually. This made her decision an inevitable one.
Of course, dissatisfaction could not be avoided, but Han Seori paid little attention to that.
‘Who held a knife to their throats and forced them to come?’
That one sentence would suffice.
If someone wanted unlimited access to Lime while imagining a peaceful research facility, they’d soon realize it was a difficult choice.
Yet, even after coming, it wouldn’t be easy for them to leave.
Everyone who arrived received three skulls from Han Seori, but none chose to leave. Han Seori, too, wouldn’t turn anyone back who followed the procedures she’d asked them to fulfill.
Thus began the odd cohabitation of those who had defected from the middle-school-disease group and those who had left the Far End Research Lab.
“…Is this really going to be alright?”
Han Seori briefly worried later, though her plans stayed unchanged.
Ironically enough, the late hesitation of Han Seori didn’t matter. The people who came from the Far End Laboratory and the defectors from the middle-school-disease group strangely bonded through a shared feeling of solidarity. Since all had come for the same reason—Lime—it wasn’t too hard for them to mingle.
“YOU, you’re alive?”
“…We haven’t met in a while.”
In fact, sometimes rare reunions happened as well. And these meetings only highlighted the authenticity of the group of defectors.
“Damn, I knew it wasn’t you who did that.”
“Hey, hey, really?”
“Man, before you could even say anything, you disappeared. I thought you were running scared.”
“…Had I not run, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”
“…Yeah. At least you’re alive, that’s a relief. Never expected to meet you here. Is it all thanks to Lord Lime?”
“Uh?”
“Wait, are you also—”
“Yeah, me too.”
Had Han Seori seen this, she would have been astonished. There was a subtle difference in perception between the two groups, but overall, the atmosphere was harmonious.
And surprisingly, the ones welcoming them the most were Lime.
When the town was ready, Lime’s eyes sparkled with excitement as they naturally craved to explore it. Han Seori had to allow it since hiding Lime entirely wasn’t an option. It wasn’t because she feared Lime would shove her away again if she refused; definitely not.
Thus, when Lime, accompanied by Kim Cheon-soo and Electric Scent, went on an outing, they were greeted with two very different, but equally ecstatic, forms of adoration.
Those from the Far End Laboratory approached them with a gaze almost akin to fanaticism. Some even cried and sobbed upon touching Lime. It felt like Lime could have statues erected in someone’s home with no surprise.
In contrast, the defectors reacted more tamely. While the lab-goers were like zealots, the defectors gazed with what seemed to be admiration for something reliable.
Of course, “tamely” is relative; compared to the lab-goers, they were calm, but they were still very enthusiastic considering they had come here to lean entirely on Lime.
It might have been chaotic, but Lime seemed delighted with the “adoration” and began venturing out more frequently.
Wandering the streets and soaking in the praise that wasn’t really praise, Lime seemed fully immersed. Kim Cheon-soo, who had brought Lime along, seemed somewhat taken aback by their reception, but Lime didn’t seem to notice.
This worried Han Seori slightly.
“Is it really alright?”
Absolutely not because she feared Lime would like them more than her but rather because she worried someone would try some mischief, despite Kim Cheon-soo and Electric Scent being present.
So Han Seori limited the amount of time Lime spent outside. Staying overnight was strictly prohibited. Luckily, Lime seemed to adore their own bed too much to consider staying out.
A strange peace, uncertain in its duration, found its place.
—
As time went on, the strange coexistence of those from the Far End Research Laboratory and the middle-school-disease defectors only grew stronger. Their reasons for coming together were clear, and their mutual admiration for Lime created a bond stronger than many could anticipate.
