Something felt off.
That is… um, walking around clothed, to be precise.
Now that I think about it, it seems… rather strange.
Even though I lived as a human for a much longer time, I’m already feeling uncomfortable acting human. Is it true that humans are creatures of adaptation?
No, but… to be honest, what can I do about this discomfort?
Putting clothes on wasn’t that bad; I never had a habit of walking around naked.
Still, there were reasons why I’d been unclothed for so long. First, right after this body transformation, I didn’t even know I could control its viscosity. Though I might’ve been able to at the time, it was better not to wear clothes if they were just going to get soggy. Perhaps it was also because the ones who captured me never gave me clothes, and no one ever questioned it.
Anyway,
the real reason I didn’t wear clothes until now is bigger than the ones I mentioned earlier. When I’m fully dressed, my vision narrows. The panoramic 360-degree view I had becomes restricted, as if I’m trapped in a box with holes poked in it. It’s incredibly suffocating. It doesn’t feel like I’m hiding my power—it’s more like my power’s being sealed, which makes it hard to endure.
How long has it been since I started seeing the world through the eyes of Jelly to feel uncomfortable like this? I don’t know. Still, the all-encompassing whiteness everywhere makes me think I’ll adapt quickly.
If I have to re-adapt to Jelly’s perspective again after this, I might feel a surge of anger toward Kim Cheon-soo, or rather, the common folk.
“Uh, are you not hearing me? Hmm… why is this happening? Did it break from the cold? Can you stop for a second if you can hear me?”
Han Seori’s tiny voice reverberated to Jelly.
While I was lost in thought, it seems Han Seori had been trying to contact me.
Her serious tone froze me on the spot.
Then, a relieved sigh from Han Seori followed with a whisper:
“Looks like it isn’t broken after all. Were you lost in thought…? Ah, anyway, I guess you can’t reply.”
Being unable to speak isn’t all bad. I didn’t have to admit I was thinking about how going around naked might be more convenient… or struggle to come up with excuses.
If only I had a notepad, I might’ve written a response. But alas, I don’t.
As I pretended to listen, she let out a somewhat awkward laugh before speaking.
“To get to our destination from here… uh… turn right. It’s a little hard to explain with all the snow everywhere.”
It seems I wandered off course during my daydreaming. Now I feel like someone who leaves their GPS on but ignores its directions.
Still, why can’t we go back to the old method of arrows pointing the way? There must be a reason she’s avoiding that.
Han Seori is way too smart for that to be an accident, right?
…Could she really have forgotten?
While feeling somewhat uneasy, a good idea seemed to occur to Han Seori and she spoke with a smile.
“Hey, can you stretch out your right arm forward? Yeah, that’s right.”
Following her instruction, I extended my arm and the loose fabric fluttered, letting the cold wind tickle Jelly.
Shivering, I waited a moment and then received the next cue.
“Okay, now slowly stretch your arms wide. Great, you’re doing it slowly… Let me see… Ah! Stop!”
I froze like an ice sculpture at her command, and Han Seori chuckled approvingly.
“That’s the right direction. Keep going straight until I say otherwise.”
Though it’s becoming somewhat familiar to get praised for such simple tasks, Jelly can’t help but feel slightly excited.
Sigh.
If only my section chief acted like Han Seori, everything would be much better.
Thinking about it, though, if Han Seori were bossing Kim Cheon-soo around like this… life might have been tough for me if I hadn’t ended up in the Singularity instead.
But it’s still better than dealing with the section chief.
There’s a reason for that.
Han Seori… she’s pretty, after all.
And this isn’t about looks being everything. It’s just that humans naturally feel drawn to beauty.
The gentle manner Kim Cheon-soo and Han Seori treat me probably comes from my cute appearance, right?
If I looked like some monster from a novel or game, would things be different right now?
…I don’t know.
I haven’t peeked inside Han Seori’s mind to confirm, so my assumptions could be wrong.
At any rate…
I turned in the direction Han Seori indicated, keeping Jelly extended.
Just as I was about to move in that direction…
“Something’s coming…”
Han Seori’s voice shrunk faintly as I heard footsteps approaching.
Crunch, crunch.
Soft footsteps trampling the pristine white snow approached.
Although Han Seori mentioned we might encounter people in this area, I thought it was unnecessary worry. But it seems I was wrong.
As cold sweat trickled down Jelly, I continued shuffling my feet as though I hadn’t seen them.
But did that provoke them instead?
“Hmm? Who’s this over here?”
“Judging by the height… it’s a kid.”
No, not a kid.
…But that’s not the point.
Trying to avoid them, I quickened my pace, gripping Jelly tightly to keep my oversized clothes from slipping off.
“Eh? Wait a moment! Where are you going? That way’s dangerous!”
“Kid! We’re not bad people! We’re just here to help! Can you stop!?”
Do bad guys ever admit they’re bad?
And good people don’t go around labeling themselves as such.
…Oh, they didn’t exactly claim to be good people.
Anyway,
whether these folks were good or bad didn’t really matter to me. I didn’t want to become the mysterious blue-skinned alien in the snowy fields, so I sprinted away at full speed.
Still…
“Ki, Kid!”
“Ah, why is he so fast?”
If their self-introduction as “not bad people” was true, they began doggedly chasing me, which was inconvenient and somewhat bothersome. I understood why people would worry upon seeing a small silhouette wandering in this snowstorm, but still… I wished they’d just leave me alone.
As I awkwardly ran away,
“Can you count to three and then look behind you for a second?”
Could she be planning something clever?
Is some kind of tranquilizer being launched from the device near my face?
…Wait, would that kill them?
Though a disturbing thought flickered in Jelly’s mind, I followed her instructions with a “what-the-hell” attitude and counted to three.
Three.
Two.
One.
With a feeling akin to launching a spinning top, I glanced behind me.
“Hey! Bro! Call the cops before it’s too late!”
“Wha, what!?”
“Um, no, no, we were just trying to help!”
A strangely irritable voice echoed, not from Han Seori, but someone else.
The men froze like they’d been shot, startled by the voice.
Capitalizing on the moment they hesitated, I picked up even more speed, disappearing into the snowstorm.
After a while, the noise of them chasing behind me faded away, indicating they’d likely given up.
Letting out a relieved sigh, I hid behind a large tree nearby and examined my surroundings cautiously.
“Thankfully it worked out. Otherwise, we’d have had to use Plan B.”
What exactly was the “other method”?
Since I didn’t want to think about it, I suppressed Jelly’s curiosity.
Ah, not like I can talk anyway.
Still, the voice earlier was unsettling.
It felt like I’d called them “Bro.”
Honestly, if Han Seori hadn’t been watching, I might’ve thrown up.
Ugh.
Creepy.
Fortunately, all my efforts weren’t for nothing, as Han Seori delivered some good news.
“Anyway, you’re on the right path. Just turn around and go straight.”
Since it was a piece of good news amidst the chaos, I trudged forward across the deep snow.
Crunch, crunch.
A while ago, my weight was too light to leave any footprints, but now, with shoes on, I could see faint impressions in the snow. Though they quickly disappeared thanks to the blowing snowstorm.
Shivering, I shook the accumulated snow off my clothes.
Is this really Korea?
The sturdy young men I encountered earlier seem proof enough, but this blinding snowstorm was something I’d never experienced, not even in the military.
While feeling slightly dizzy from the severe cold, I noticed something quite far away—a place distinctly not white.
It appeared to be a cave with its pitch-black mouth yawning wide open.
Upon seeing it, Han Seori tensed up and said,
“That’s the last known location where we got a signal from Mr. Kim Cheon-soo.”
I hope he’s simply there.
Stepping into the somewhat warm (compared to the outside) cave, I hoped the universe would help me.
Hopefully… hopefully.
The strange scenery greeted me inside.
It seemed like Kim Cheon-soo had indeed been here.
There was an almost extinguished campfire that he presumably built.
…And brand-new toys were scattered all around.
That felt quite bizarre.
Like Kim Cheon-soo had gone crazy from the cold, played with toys, then bolted outside.
Though it felt like excessive MSG was added to the scene, it was still that vibe.
“Huh…”
Beyond that, and perhaps in sync with the uneasy tone in Han Seori’s voice,
it didn’t look like the situation was good.
I hoped Kim Cheon-soo had stayed here, but it seems like he chose to move around.
Without much interest in the toys, I turned around,
but my foot caught one of them.
Looking down, I saw a 4x4x4 Rubik’s Cube lying there, presumably someone’s favorite.
As I stared silently, I felt it would be a waste to leave something Kim Cheon-soo had brought along and picked it up carefully.
“He still likes cubes…”
No, it’s not like I particularly do.
Feeling slightly embarrassed, I turned to leave the cave.
There, I noticed a strange trail. Though it was fading as snow covered it, there were definite marks in the ground as if something had been dragged.
And…
For some reason, the direction of that trail made my knowledge reservoir perk up.
