Chapter 14 - The Unidentified One II

Sure enough, SG Net was in an uproar.

-Anonymous: All the constellations suddenly went silent. Did they cut me off?

-[Three Thousand]WitchTrialJudge: I asked our guild members and confirmed that none have received any constellation messages since yesterday. The most recent contact any member received was 28 hours ago. I ask other guilds to share their current situations as well.

-dolLHoUse: Anxiety.

-Anonymous: Guys, I'm scared. What's happening...?

-Goryeojang: Fucking morons. You spend all day singing the constellations' praises, then two days without contact and you're whining like brats who've lost their mommy. What the hell are your balls for? Making egg soup? Upvote if you bet these fuckers don't even have yolks in their balls lol.

└Anonymous: Fuck, this lunatic gets better at pissing people off every day. Where the hell do you actually live?

└[Yuldoguk]SwordEmpress: My sword cries out.

Sim Aryeon being Sim Aryeon was nothing new, but the unrest among the awakened was alarming.

I knocked at the door, but there was no response.

"Wait here. If you sense anyone watching us or approaching, shout immediately."

"Yes, Boss."

Struggling to hide my unease, I entered the apartment. I had known the front door's passcode for dozens of runs.

A dark living room.

In her private sanctuary, where four monitors spread a carpet of watery blue light and dozens of aquariums surrounded her like ramparts, the Saintess lay dead.

"..."

My mind went cold.

'Strangulation.'

Since she tended the tanks, the Saintess always kept towels ready. There was a towel rack in the living room, too. She had hanged herself from it.

'Suicide.'

There were no signs of resistance. But I knew that whatever happened, however desperate things became, the Saintess was not someone who would ever take her own life.

That wasn't an emotional judgment based on the idea that she simply wasn't that sort of person. It was a truth established through observation over dozens of repeated runs.

'Murder disguised as suicide.'

The Saintess was the very heart of my project.

The constellations had vanished in an instant. The conscience attached to the awakened from outside rather than within—their ethical line of defense—had been severed.

And that wasn't all. The communications network through which we exchanged information nonstop with other guilds, using the constellations as messengers, was gone as well.

We could no longer play our trump card when we needed someone's trust: "The constellations vouch for our identities."

'No sign that the security measures activated.'

I had taken extraordinary care to keep the Saintess safe.

Had all those painstaking defenses been neutralized at once?

'Without even giving her time to send me a single line?'

I approached one of the aquariums. Moving the tank aside revealed a USB drive hidden beneath a recessed section of the metal bookcase.

An arrangement we had made in case the worst happened.

I plugged the USB drive into the computer and opened the text file.

──────────

Hello, Mr. Z.

If you are reading this, I must be dead.

My death came without any warning. None of the data I have observed through [CLA] thus far contains any factor that could bring about my death.

The CCTV may have captured something, but if the culprit killed me this discreetly, it is difficult to expect any meaningful evidence to remain.

As you know, Mr. Z, our most pressing problem now is this: the disappearance of the transcendent beings has loosened the invisible reins on the awakened.

The only transcendent being we can currently operate is the anonymous one known as N's creator.

We must post an announcement on N under this name, spreading the false information that "a being that interferes with the activities of the transcendent beings has emerged." I believe staging an attack on N that temporarily takes it offline would lend this credibility.

Nevertheless, preventing confusion among the awakened will be impossible.

I can only apologize for my inadequate strength.

I pray that you will find the strength to keep going next time, too.

- Respectfully, S.

──────────

These were the Saintess's last words.

In case someone else discovered them, she had called me "Mr. Z" rather than "Undertaker."

She had abbreviated Clairvoyance as "CLA" and referred to SG Net as "N." Instead of "constellations," she had used "transcendent beings."

In "find the strength to keep going next time," "next time" undoubtedly meant the next run.

It was a farewell letter utterly characteristic of her.

I checked the text file's creation date. A full year and six months ago.

'So she really was killed by an unexpected attack.'

If, against all odds, this had been suicide, she would have revised the letter.

And if it wasn't suicide, there were only two suspects.

The first was me.

"Oh, Boss. Is the Saintess doing well?"

And Seo Gyu.

I left the apartment and gazed at him in silence.

"Seo Gyu."

"Yes?"

"Have you ever told anyone else where the Saintess lives?"

He looked startled.

"What? No! Why would I tell anyone? You made such a point of telling me never to let anyone know!"

Could I really trust him?

Seo Gyu and I had traveled together for quite some time. But if asked whether I trusted him enough to stake my life on him, as I did the Saintess, our relationship was still shallow enough that the answer was no.

"Two days ago, you checked out and went outside for a little while, didn't you?"

"Y-yes... But why...?"

"And Go Yori spent that entire day in the dormitory."

"Did she?"

"But with [Presence Concealment], she could leave without the other party members knowing. If she followed you out, the risk of being discovered would be much lower."

"Boss, what have you been talking about...?"

"The Saintess's home has countless defenses you don't even know about. One scans and stores the shoe prints of everyone who enters. That data is updated weekly."

It was a lie.

But neither my expression nor my tone wavered in the slightest.

"Why are your shoe prints in the Saintess's home?"

"..."

Silence.

"That's strange."

An unfamiliar voice emerged from Seo Gyu's mouth.

"I didn't have any information about that."

A gunshot rang out.

Seo Gyu's body fell like a reed.

He had drawn a pistol, aimed it at the roof of his own mouth, and fired in an instant.

Red blood seeped into the asphalt road, cracked like eczematous skin after years of neglect.

"..."

I clenched my fist.

Calming my heart once more, I accessed SG Net.

[Unable to connect to the site.]

The Seo Gyu who had died before my eyes was the real Seo Gyu.

The likelihood that he was a marionette controlled by Puppeteer, an apostle of the God of Alienation, or some other being had dropped drastically.

The two pillars of the command center that could exert influence over awakened nationwide—the Saintess and Seo Gyu—had collapsed in an instant.

By then, my mindset had already shifted to gathering as much information as possible for the next run.

It was familiar territory.

I drew my sword and headed for the guild lodgings.

The two-person team that should always have been standing guard was nowhere to be seen.

"..."

It was quiet.

There was no one in the clearing where the members should have been training. Instead, Sim Aryeon lay dead.

Untouched food sat in the dining hall. The wheelchair normally used by a guild member I cherished rolled alone, bereft of its owner.

I sensed no one in the corridors or the dormitory. But here and there, German words were scrawled like graffiti on the pillars and walls.

[Do not trust the pink hair.]

I went out to the clearing and sank onto a bench.

Summer. The cicadas' siren alarms rang out fiercely.

When I noticed, Go Yori was already sitting demurely beside me on the bench.

"You're back, Guild Leader?"

"..."

"Whew. This summer really is hot."

Go Yori fluttered her outer garment to stir a faint breeze. Behind her, the cicadas' cries receded like a whiteout.

"Your ability wasn't [Presence Concealment] after all."

"That's right."

She acknowledged it simply.

I murmured,

"[Presence Concealment] was only the surface. Your presence merely grew fainter as a consequence of your ability activating. Judging by the situation now... your true ability is [Perception Disruption]. No, something in the [Perception Manipulation] category."

"Oh, that's right."

Go Yori smiled brightly.

"You're truly incredible, Guild Leader! I thought so when we first met, too. You really are amazing."

"... I should have realized something was wrong long ago."

I thought back once more.

To how the people around Go Yori—CookingQueen—had viewed her in the previous run.

["CookingQueen? I haven't observed her for very long, but she wasn't a bad person. She takes good care of her guild members and even volunteers every Sunday. Personally, I don't think there's anyone among the awakened with a more trustworthy character than CookingQueen."]

Witness 1. The Saintess.

As her farewell letter on the hidden USB drive alone made clear, the Saintess was more cautious than anyone.

She was the person who had arranged our meeting in the first place by considering that there might be a regressor in this world.

And someone like that had judged a person she admittedly hadn't observed for long to have the most trustworthy character?

That alone was suspicious.

["Oh, CookingQueen. I know her. She's a fantastic member. I've seen every sort of shit imaginable running SG Net, but I've never once seen her cause trouble. Does that mean she's boring? Not at all. She posts lots of funny stuff, and she doesn't act superior. Man. If every member were like CookingQueen, I wouldn't have to suffer like this..."]

Witness 2. Seo Gyu.

Seo Gyu had testified that Go Yori posted lots of funny stuff.

But wasn't that strange?

I had never once seen CookingQueen write anything funny.

-[Contentment]CookingQueen: Do you want peace of mind? Join the Contentment guild! Our main base is Seoul!

-[Contentment]CookingQueen: Words reflect our thoughts, and thoughts soak into us like misty rain on a cloudy day. Why not try using language that's a little clearer and brighter?

-[Contentment]CookingQueen: My brother, if you have a secret you cannot tell anyone, please come to me for counsel anytime. People can kill other people, but we also live through one another.

-[Contentment]CookingQueen: The curses you heap upon others will inevitably return to you someday. Why not take a little more time to reflect on yourself? I am certain you still have a bright nature within you, my brother.

A writing style without a shred of humor.

Nothing but an upright, righteous, proper attitude.

In other words, an image belonging to precisely the sort of person I, Undertaker, typically liked.

"Go Yori."

"Yes?"

"Isn't your ability to show each person the version of yourself they would like most?"

"..."

To the Saintess, who valued ethics, she appeared moral.

To Seo Gyu, who liked a bit of fun, she appeared humorous.

To me, who believed a person's life ultimately depended on their mindset and attitude, she appeared upright and steadfast.

Each person saw someone different.

Like a magic mirror.

That was Go Yori's true nature.

That must also have been the secret behind her ability to win the affection of every awakened, however twisted their character.

"... That's our Guild Leader. You really surprised me this time!"

Go Yori clasped her hands and tilted her head.

But had she really struck that pose?

When Go Yori appeared to smile, was she smiling? Was she speaking politely? Did she have pink hair, tend the flower beds every morning, and maintain her diligent attitude?

It might all be a lie.

Now that I could no longer trust my perceptions, I had no choice but to discard every piece of information I had thought I knew about her.

"But [Perception Manipulation] can't be your only ability. You controlled Seo Gyu and made him kill himself."

"Yes. Believe it or not, I have multiple abilities."

"... Now I understand why the fairies were wary of you. What the hell is that waiting hall in Busan Station? People with multiple abilities are supposed to be rare, but you can hardly take a step without tripping over one."

"Ahaha. I know. Strange coincidences happen sometimes."

"Why did you do this?"

"Hmm, I could tell you. But even if I did, would you believe me, Guild Leader?"

No, I wouldn't.

At that moment, a tremendous roar came from the guild dormitory.

CRACK!

The concrete outer wall broke apart, and the building collapsed all at once.

A gigantic mass of flesh moved atop the rubble. In the blink of an eye, it swelled to the height of a seven-story building.

Red and blue veins throbbed ceaselessly, and strands of muscle lashed the air like tentacles, like tails.

"Guuuild Leeeadeeer."

"Booooss."

"..., ..."

"Doooctooor."

Whenever the tips of the tentacles writhed, they tore through the air with strange noises.

Those noises resembled the guild members' voices.

Pitch-black stripes were etched into the tentacles' surfaces. Each time a member's voice rang out, countless black patterns rippled.

"..."

A phenomenon that had never appeared in any of the previous eighty-eight runs.

I looked at the being who had made that difference.

"I'm sorry, Guild Leader."

With a little "Up we go," Go Yori rose from the bench and brushed off her skirt. Then she walked a few steps forward and turned back to me, her hands behind her back.

Her pink hair spilled to one side.

"I think it's better for everyone to be happy. I didn't want to make you sad, Guild Leader. Or anyone else. So I took great care... But unlike other people's minds, yours is too resilient. My ability ended up slipping for a moment."

"Let me ask just one thing."

I looked up at Go Yori.

"Did I kill the guild members? Under your control?"

"..."

Go Yori stared into my eyes.

"No."

"You're lying."

"Yes."

My sword swept out of its sheath and sliced across Go Yori's neck.

A diagonal line appeared. First, pink strands of hair drifted down. A little later than the pink, Go Yori's head slid free.

Before it had finished sliding, her lips moved.

"Let us become one, Guild Leader."

Behind Go Yori, red masses of flesh unfurled until they covered the sky.

That was the last scene I remembered from my eighty-ninth run.

5

After that day, I stopped making contact with Go Yori.

At least, I met her in person so rarely I could count the occasions on one hand. Across hundreds of runs, I became involved with her three or four times at most.

Go Yori's abilities remained unidentified. If I grew stronger than I had been in run eighty-nine, perhaps I would someday be able to subdue her—or so I reasoned.

I don't know whether that judgment was correct.

One thing is certain: the "red flesh" never appeared in any run except the eighty-ninth.

In runs where she didn't accompany me, Go Yori never caused any major problems. She was merely an utterly harmless awakened who would one day suddenly be killed by monsters or disappear somewhere.

["Let us become one, Guild Leader."]

What had those words meant?

Was the red flesh a monster? Or a contamination phenomenon? There was a crucial difference that prevented me from seeing it as the result of an awakened's corruption. In that case, was the red flesh another of Go Yori's unique abilities?

What did Go Yori truly look like, without the distorting filter of [Perception Manipulation]?

Sometimes curiosity welled up in me. But I felt no urgent need to delve into that mystery.

At least until I found a way to nullify [Perception Manipulation] completely, I had absolutely no intention of approaching Go Yori.

-[Contentment]CookingQueen: Do you want peace of mind? Join the Contentment guild! Our main base is Daejeon!

Still, whenever I happened to see the username CookingQueen on SG Net, I would quietly leave a comment.

-ZERO_SUGAR: It's wonderful to see you always working so hard^^..

Before long, a notification appeared informing me of a reply.

-[Contentment]CookingQueen: Thank you! Even with the world as it is, I believe good things are sure to happen if we keep faith in ourselves and hope in others. I wish you a happy day too, Zero Sugar!

"..."

Hmm.

I nodded to myself.

An admirable attitude, as always.

- The Unidentified One. End.