Chapter 18

"Be careful!"

Gangsan shouted at Chahaya's back.

What the hell is going on here?

Gangsan glanced at Handonhee, who was lying in the back seat, and then stepped on the accelerator. His hands, gripping the steering wheel, were drenched in cold sweat.

I never thought T. rex could count.

The hallucination Gangsan experienced was from the Cretaceous period, the age of dinosaurs. The false sensation of slicing through dinosaurs left a chill down his spine. His thighs were also cold from wetting himself. The dinosaurs, which could be sliced and decapitated hundreds of times but would still return unscathed, were more tenacious than any mutant.

Ever since he got lost in an outdoor dinosaur exhibition as a child, Gangsan had shuddered at the sight of dinosaurs. After falling asleep while searching for his parents, he spent the entire night screaming and running around the darkened dinosaur exhibition. The overly vivid imagination of a child made him experience the terror of being chased by dinosaurs, which led to his developing a phobia of them.

Even after growing up and awakening as a Mansheng species, the deeply rooted trauma was hard to overcome.

"Damn, this is fucking ridiculous."

Did the others also experience the Cretaceous hallucination?

I'm afraid of dinosaurs, but the others probably aren't. And why are they so injured...?

Shaking his head to clear his mind of unnecessary thoughts, Gangsan crashed through the barricades of the restricted area and turned the steering wheel towards the direction of the Comprehensive Guild.

***

Crack! Chahaya broke down the firmly closed door of the horror house.

The only ride with lights on amidst the stopped amusement park rides was the horror house. Since there were no lights outside the amusement park, it was highly likely that Seoon was here. Moreover, she wouldn't just sit still while they were going crazy. She would rather hide.

The clowns scattered outside in the rain were probably Seoon's doing.

Has Seoon escaped the hallucination?

The fact that Seoon had safely arrived at the mutant generation area meant she was in her right mind.

"Chaseoon!"

Chahaya's voice echoed through the dark horror house. Calling out to Chaseoon again, but there was no sign of her. The cautious Seoon might have hidden herself, thinking she was still in the hallucination.

Chahaya pushed the clown blocking the front aside with her sword. Even with a mask on, the stench was overwhelming. The air inside the horror house was filled with hallucination spores, as if the place itself had mutated.

Chahaya focused on her breathing to avoid being poisoned by the spores, but her vision kept distorting with each inhale and returning to normal with each exhale.

The blood-soaked house turned into a hillside wall, then into a school classroom with curtains fluttering in the spring breeze, changing like a film reel.

'What is this?'

Chahaya turned around, entranced by a smooth voice.

A student in a school uniform stood out in the darkness. Click, as the streetlight shone on the student's head, Chahaya realized someone was standing next to her.

Seoon, standing in front, frowned slightly and pulled down one corner of her mouth in dissatisfaction.

'You said you had something to tell me.'

Seoon glanced at someone standing next to her. A woman, whose face was only visible as a shadow, was holding her hand.

'I thought you had already left.'

Chahaya couldn't stop the words coming out of her mouth. Her mind was still there, but her current will wasn't reflected. It was as if she was trapped in a past shell.

Seoon noticed the woman standing next to her and laughed in disbelief.

'Just talk next time, I'm leaving.'

'Chaseoon.'

Chahaya freed her hand from the woman's grip and approached Seoon. The woman behind her complained, but Chahaya ignored it and turned Seoon around by the arm.

'Why?'

Seoon pulled her arm away and spat out angrily.

At least Seoon, who visited the salon twice a month, always had neat hair. Her flawless skin showed no blemishes, and her newly bought white shirts were pristine.

'If you have something to say, say it.'

'You seem to be getting along well with Handonhee lately?'

Seoon laughed openly, as usual. The slight upward tilt of her eyes added a touch of malice, which strangely made her plump lips more noticeable.

'Our circles of activity are the same, so it's natural, right?'

'Was the movie theater the same too?'

'...What do you mean? You and Yeonsu also went out often.'

Only then did Chahaya remember the woman's name. Whether her pride was hurt by being ignored, Yeonsu was already gone.

But why did I date Yeonsu?

She confessed, and I couldn't find a reason to reject her. Since Seoon was busy with her college entrance exams, I had a lot of free time.

'Was it more fun with that guy?'

Seoon's pupils flickered briefly.

'You and Yeonsu had a good time, so what's the point of asking?'

A few days ago, Chahaya suggested going to the movies with Seoon.

Since it was the sequel to a movie they watched together in their second year of high school, it was natural to watch it with Seoon again. However, Seoon flatly refused, saying she had to study, and Chahaya didn't ask again.

Having no choice, Chahaya went to the movie theater with Yeonsu and saw Seoon there with Handonhee. As soon as their eyes met, Seoon quickly left her seat.

If she came out to clear her head, there was no reason to avoid me.

'Chaseoon, stop acting like your name.'

'What?'

'You make people really upset.'

'You were with Yeonsu yesterday anyway.'

The constant mention of Yeonsu, Yeonsu was annoying.

'You... ...'

'What?'

Seoon's well-shaped lips slightly parted and then tightly closed. They were so tightly clenched that her plump lips puffed up.

'Do you like Yeonsu?'

'... ...'

Not even a sigh escaped her parted lips.

'Get lost, you fucking bastard.'

She suddenly swore and walked away. Despite hearing the curse without any reason, Chahaya couldn't help but laugh. Watching Seoon's retreating back, she called out.

"Chaseoon, let's go home together."

Chasing after Seoon with a friendly attitude, but the distance didn't close. Even though her strides were much longer, she remained in place. When the streetlight illuminating Seoon disappeared, she was no longer in sight. At that moment, she realized her vision was distorting and the space was warping.

Thud! Chahaya stabbed her sword into her palm. Blood flowed endlessly from the hand pierced by the sword.

She rubbed her mask with the blood-soaked hand. The stench of the spores was masked by the smell of blood, and her vision gradually returned to normal. A figure covered in a blanket was visible on the bed. Thinking it might be Seoon, she pulled the blanket off, but it was a wax figure with a knife in its chest.

Clunk!

There was no sign of movement, but something large fell. Chahaya immediately headed to the dining room where the sound came from. Upon seeing the tangled figures on the floor, she gripped her sword tightly. Among the mannequins with strangely bent joints, only one person was standing on two feet.

I found you.

Seeing Seoon, unharmed, she finally felt relieved. However, Seoon was standing still, holding a small mineral.

"Chaseoon."

Calling her name, but Seoon remained motionless like a mannequin.

A mutant that hadn't fully grown appeared under the overturned table, and Seoon was standing on a cluster of mushrooms. The crushed mushrooms were all red.

Do they have some kind of poison? Chahaya changed the direction of her sword to bring Seoon back. Regardless of what kind of mutant it was, she would crush it to pieces. Just as Chahaya closed the distance and tried to pull Seoon away,

"!"

Seoon stood in front of the sword as if protecting a child. Her speed was comparable to before she lost her ability, so Chahaya was too late to retract her sword. The sword, wrapped in cosmos, left a long gash on Seoon's arm. Despite the flesh being torn open to reveal white bone, Seoon remained expressionless.

Chahaya only managed to grab Seoon's unharmed arm after retracting her sword. Trying to pull her away from the table, but her feet were firmly stuck. The pressure was so strong that it felt like her feet would have to be cut off to move her.

Encountering a species that hadn't yet mutated was a first for Chahaya. She focused on the mineral Seoon was holding. The thread-like energy swirling inside the transparent mineral resembled the cosmos emitted by Mansheng species. It also looked like a parasite relentlessly trying to break out.

Could the mineral be the reason this species has such potential before mutating? The bigger problem was that the mineral was half-embedded in Seoon's hand, as if it had taken root.

Chahaya reached for the mineral Seoon was holding.

Trying to force her hand open and pull out the mineral, but she only managed to hold it like a handshake. It wouldn't be difficult to pull it out with more force, but she had seen minerals explode before. Without knowing what kind of energy was inside, she couldn't act rashly.

Red blood spread from the mad mushrooms Chahaya was standing on. The blood rising up their arms seemed like a poison spreading through their veins. The blood seeping into the mineral, the endpoint, was worrying. The trapped energy inside the mineral gradually expanded as it fed on the blood.

Flame, the sword Chahaya had stuck in the table burst into flames. She extracted the Venus attribute from billions of stars, but since it wasn't a frequently used energy, the firepower was too strong. Seeing Seoon's skin burn from her cosmos, Chahaya quickly changed the energy.

She should have controlled it carefully, but unfortunately, a Uranus-like energy emerged. The ice core made Seoon's hand, which she was holding, turn blue.

The frozen hands stuck together as if trying to become one. It was almost as if they would merge into one. As Seoon's elbow froze, Chahaya quickly raised her blade.

Thud, the wrist Chahaya cut off, bone and all, was still held by Seoon.

Chahaya cauterized her arm with flames to stop the bleeding and hoisted Seoon onto her shoulder. With the mushroom mutant burned away, the force holding her feet was gone, but the mineral, the core of the mutation, still needed to be dealt with.

The mineral would likely try to find another host within the time it was generated. Perhaps it attached to Seoon to avoid being destroyed.

If not, then...

Chahaya had made an excessive leap in logic. She started running down the hill, carrying the still dazed Seoon.

At least she was lighter than Gangsan or Handonhee, which was fortunate.

Seoon was holding her severed hand well.

"Chaseoon, if you lose this, you'll be my left-hand slave for life?"

I wonder what expression Chaseoon would make if she knew which hand was holding it.

Chahaya, running towards the entrance without any obstacles, laughed at the broken amusement park rides.

Hey! You crazy bastards! Snap out of it! The theme park is disappearing! Our guild can't afford to pay for this!

We had a grand field trip that we couldn't go on.