“No… not the alias, your real name.”
“Park Deun-deun.”
“Hmm… alright. Well, names aren’t really that important between us anyway. Whoa, this feels strange. Running into another test subject in human form like this outside.”
That was true for me as well.
I never thought I’d meet another test subject outside like this, without being injected with stimulants, without being in monster form, and without being forced into fighting.
Gu Seoryong awkwardly retracted the extended hand and crossed their arms.
“So? Is Deun-deun here just to make money at the arena?”
“To retrieve a stolen item.”
“Huh? What got stolen? Who would dare?”
“An alloy bracelet… no, it’s a necklace. A family heirloom.”
“Eh?”
When I revealed my purpose without any reason to hide it, Gu Seoryong’s eyes widened in surprise.
“CXI has something like that? That’s surprising, a family heirloom.”
“Do you not have one?”
“Which? The heirloom? The parents? I lack both.”
“Were you born without parents?”
“I’m from an orphanage… Anyway… If it’s a family heirloom, it’s understandable you’d come all this way to find it. So, why the arena?”
“They asked for an entry fee.”
“Aha~ So, you joined the arena to earn the entry fee? Aha-ha! That’s hilarious, going to the arena just to earn a hundred thousand won.”
Gu Seoryong laughed heartily and started reducing their laughter, snapping their fingers repeatedly, which seemed more like a habit rather than an activation trigger for their abilities.
“If it’s a stolen item, it’s probably at the black market around back.”
“It doesn’t seem to be there. The one who stole it said he would put a chain around someone’s neck.”
When I relayed what the brazen thief had said earlier, Gu Seoryong’s expression contorted slightly.
“Looks like he was planning to gift it to a mistress he fancied… Do you know what this thief looks like?”
“He seems to be a loan shark.”
“I’ll find him and bring it back for you. You can dispose of the body however you want—leave it or eat it.”
At this rather monstrous kindness, I nodded, and Gu Seoryong looked at me with a thoughtful expression.
“It seems you didn’t come to know about me… but if you’ve come as far as Nine-Dragon Castle, you must know what kind of place this is, right?”
“It seems to be your lair.”
“Lair! Ahaha! A word that might make sense between us! That’s good, it is my lair. And… you can likely find whatever you want here.”
“Whatever I want?”
“That’s right. Whether it’s rice cakes, food, medicine, or fun… anything.”
Gu Seoryong put the other hand on my shoulder, wrapping their flexible limb around me like a snake.
“What do you say? We seem to match well in many ways, don’t we? And we have lots of questions about each other, don’t we?”
“What exactly are you getting at?”
“I mean, since we’ve met by chance, let’s just have a chat, shall we? I’ll show you around my lair.”
“Sounds like a hassle.”
“Hmm, I like that. I don’t fancy stupid men who readily agree when lured.”
“Your fingers are tickling.”
I twisted the finger of G3—now revealed to be Gu Seoryong—that was wriggling uncomfortably on my chest.
That caused G3 to shed one of their fingers like a discarded lizard tail, quickly regenerating it while backing off from me.
“Hmph… I like violent men even more, as it turns out.”
Gu Seoryong licked the blood from their newly grown finger with their bifurcated tongue, while I stared down at the squirming finger in my hand before swallowing audibly.
Just as hunger was setting in… Gu Seoryong doubled over in laughter upon seeing my expression.
“Ahaha! That’s right, it’s about time for hunger. How about it? There’s plenty of delicious food inside. Would you care to eat?”
“Are you offering food?”
“As much as you like… eat until you’re full.”
“While I eat, you can fetch that thief, correct?”
“Hmm.”
Free food is always a good deal.
I can take the necklace after eating.
Thinking it wasn’t bad, I nodded, prompting Gu Seoryong to clap their hands and burst into a broad smile. At their signal, men in suits waiting outside the tent entered.
“Who, who, miss… who is this person?”
“He’s my guest… hmm, a former classmate, you could say. An old acquaintance I didn’t recognize right away because they’ve changed so much.”
“Classmate of Miss Gu…?”
“That’s right. The two of us are going to have dinner, so please clear the entire third floor.”
“But there are customers…”
“You fool! Do you think Miss Gu doesn’t know that! I’ll make it clear to you—now vacate the floor, Miss Gu.”
“And you over there, find anyone among the money lenders who came today with an alloy chain necklace and bring them to me.”
“Yes, understood!”
As the suited men rushed out of the tent, Gu Seoryong emitted a wave that urged me to follow. I followed Gu Seoryong to an architecture corner of the makeshift arena.
We boarded an outdoor elevator marked “Management Office,” which went up to the third floor rooftop of the two-story building. There, the suited men were clearing out some noisy guests.
“Damn it! How can you treat me this way when I’ve spent so much money here!”
“They’re not interested in small fry like you—call out Gu Seoryong instead!”
“Shut up and get out already! We said you’ll get your money back!”
“Eh? That’s strange… I clearly told them to vacate it completely.”
“Miss Gu…! It’s, it’s… now…”
“How embarrassing to make such a fuss. Sorry, let me sort this out.”
Gu Seoryong walked with clicking shoes, snapping her fingers. Immediately, the suited men and the guests who appeared to be patrons collapsed on the spot, twitching, their eyes rolling back.
Seemingly, Gu Seoryong’s special ability of pain and hallucinations was inducing the feeling of suffocating in fire.
She kicked the fallen people aside and sent them plummeting three stories down.
“Kya-ah!”
“What the—”
“There’s someone falling!”
As the cries came from the ground, the music quickly drowned them out.
Gu Seoryong sat on a cleared table, gesturing for the nearby suited men to come closer and extending her hand. A suited man brought a menu from a bar table on the roof and handed it over.
“Bring everything from here to here. And all of you, this conversation is now off-limits.”
She snapped her fingers again, and a silencing ability took effect on everyone present. The suited men cursed with the silenced affliction brought food and drinks without further words.
“Are you hungry? Don’t hesitate, eat quickly! We’ve just gotten a decent chef recently.”
“Hmm.”
I sat opposite to Gu Seoryong and started eating. The food was surprisingly delicious, leaving me in shock.
I was chewing with my hands on the roasted pig leg when Gu Seoryong burst into laughter while elegantly eating pasta with fork and spoon.
“Ahaha! You must’ve been very hungry! Are you walking around famished?”
“I eat enough.”
“In the future, if you’re craving anything, just let me know, and I’ll make sure you eat your fill of anything you want.”
“I’m not going to fall for such a lie.”
“Eh? This isn’t a lie.”
“Even in restaurants promising unlimited rice, the rice usually stops coming after twenty servings.”
“Hmm? Unlimited rice? Ahaha! Those cheap restaurants are nothing like me.”
Gu Seoryong rested their chin on the table and watched me eat, licking their lips.
“If CXI ever asks me to share a meal, I’d make sure you eat enough, wouldn’t I?”
There’s no way. Remembering similar experiences, I mentally dismissed Gu Seoryong’s words. There are plenty of establishments claiming “unlimited rice,” but they eventually cut you off after a certain point.
That’s how society works—icy cold.
As I continued eating in silence, Gu Seoryong seemed to realize that I wasn’t falling for their words and changed the subject.
“There’s not just food here, but plenty of entertainment. You’ve already seen the arena, right? The black market has a variety of interesting goods, great atmosphere, and it’s also exciting.”
“It’s noisy.”
“Ahaha! It’s the music from the outdoor club over there. But once you get used to it, it’s not bad, right? Don’t you find this rhythm really nice?”
When I remarked about it in a single word, Gu Seoryong pointed behind me with her fingers. The adjacent playground next to the arena space was now functioning as an outdoor club. From a distance, many people were seen dancing to the music.
“It’s something like monster vibrations.”
“Not at infrasound levels, but somewhere around the range of infrasound vibrations. How’s it? I designed it to be similar to the sounds produced during monster courtship.”
“Now that you mention it, it does feel similar.”
“Ah, you know the feeling? You must’ve been courted before, huh? I thought CXI was rather young. Was it before or after you left?”
“Just an observation.”
“Hm~? Does that make your body feel warm? There seems to be a slight effect on humans as well. Between monsters, it’s practically like whispering seductive words right into your ear, isn’t it?”
“Not particularly.”
As I responded nonchalantly, I noticed some people in the club dancing, shedding clothes and coupling. That piqued my curiousity, leading me to ask Gu Seoryong.
“Can monster vibrations have effects on humans other than fear?”
“Hmm~? Those people there? They’re just high.”
Upon hearing that, indeed, people nearby were handing bundles of cash to a suited man, who in turn handed over mysterious slips of paper. Those who licked the slips were completely unfocused, gasping and laughing endlessly.
“Do you find it interesting? How about trying it? If you take about ten sheets at once, even beings like us might feel something.”
“I’m not interested.”
“Hmm… you can always try it later when you want rice cakes. It feels incredibly good.”
“It probably won’t taste good.”
Drugging rice cakes… how absurd… rice cakes should only be eaten with honey. Maybe soy sauce could be permissible… While pondering over this fact and gnawing on the bone-like pig leg, I responded to Gu Seoryong’s incessant chatter.
“Have you ever played card games? Want to go to the casino after eating?”
“Is the casino the noisy place located underground?”
“That’s right! The underground casino. Watching the madness down there is quite an exciting experience, right? As a monster, you’d understand… human screams, cheers—these intense emotions are quite sweet, just by licking them.”
True enough, I nodded and gulped down some carbonated drinks. Realizing it was alcohol, I frowned, and Gu Seoryong showed me the wine bottle nearby.
“Ahaha! How is it? Tasty? This is something called Dom Pérignon, quite expensive even before the Monster Era…”
“I don’t like alcohol.”
“Hehe, I guess… even I didn’t find it particularly delicious.”
“Is there any cola?”
As I expressed my displeasure, Gu Seoryong immediately flipped the wine bottle upside down, spilling its contents, and tossed me the nearby cola bottle. The glass cola bottle was deftly opened with my fingers, making a “pop,” and I swiftly drank it all down.
“Hmm, it seems it’s been quite a while since you escaped the research facility?”
“It hasn’t been long.”
Seeing this, Gu Seoryong remarked about how adept I was at controlling my strength, and it made me curious about how long Gu Seoryong had been here since leaving the facility.
I put down the bone I had been working on and asked.
“How about you? How long has it been?”
“Hmm, the first thing you ask a woman is this? Hmm… Let me see…”
Gu Seoryong raised a fist, proudly extending her index and middle fingers, then stuck out her split bifurcated tongue next to them.
“About four years? And you?”
“Hmm.”
I thought back to the day I’d woken up in W City.
It hadn’t been long, a time perhaps short or long depending on how you viewed it.
“It’s probably not even six months yet.”
“…That’s all?!?”
Gu Seoryong looked astonished, then threw the wine glass next to her at me. Catching it, I quickly emptied it, causing Gu Seoryong’s expression of disbelief to deepen.
“Ugh… I can’t believe it…”
“…”
