Editor’s Survival Guide - Chapter 198

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Survival Rules for an Editor 198

ep27. A Simple Solution (5)
Cha Si-eon examined my memories from my perspective to confirm that my body and the Body Snatcher’s had been swapped.
If I could grasp facts accurately that my current body couldn’t perceive, then I could indirectly prove that our bodies had switched at that moment.
Similarly, right after The Guide consumed Yeon Ga-ram’s head, we asked The Guide for Yeon Ga-ram’s phone unlock pattern.
We needed to verify whether The Guide’s claim—’Because I ate Yeon Ga-ram, I know what’s inside his head’—was actually true.
At the time, this question had been used merely to support The Guide’s assertion.
But it could also serve as indirect evidence that The Guide existed outside of my interactions with it.
The Guide knows facts I couldn’t possibly know, and it could prove that through Yeon Ga-ram.
“You said before that ‘because I ate Yeon Ga-ram, I know what’s inside his head,’ right?”
“You remember my words precisely! I’m delighted—it suggests our conversation held meaning for you.”
“But you spat Yeon Ga-ram back out. Can you still access what’s inside his head?”
“To answer directly: yes. Yeon Ga-ram and I were one, if only briefly, and the bond formed then doesn’t vanish simply by separating again. Those with souls are bound by mere brushing of sleeves. How much more binding, then, is the direct consumption—the most sacred and powerful connection one life can forge with another!”
There’s a lot of unnecessary preamble, but the point is: it’s possible.
“Team Leader, you heard that exchange, didn’t you?”
-Yes, I did.
“If what it says is true, Yeon Ga-ram should be able to validate The Guide’s credibility.”
-Only as it pertains to Yeon Ga-ram’s own information.
“Right—if The Guide’s information about Yeon Ga-ram checks out perfectly, it doesn’t mean all its other information is correct. But it could serve as evidence to counter the conspiracy theory that ‘The Guide is a fabrication with no substance, created by Seo Do-un.'”
What worried Kwon Mu-seop and Cha Si-eon most right now.
It was the staff’s skepticism toward this unprecedented Type 5 Special Zone.
Up until now, Special Zones had been nothing but enemies.
Then suddenly this worthless Special Zone called The Small House appeared and began cooperating with the Management Bureau.
Suspicion was inevitable.
And since I was the only one who could communicate with The Guide, doubts only multiplied.
So we were still holding back on full disclosure of The Small House’s information, and as long as that information remained classified, The Guide’s data couldn’t be officially utilized.
What mattered now was breaking this deadlock where only The Guide stood isolated.
I’d even considered asking Ryu Dan-a for help.
Ryu Dan-a was a Contaminated Person who could interpret the Special Zone’s script.
But Cha Si-eon opposed it because of Ryu Dan-a’s ulterior motives.
Ryu Dan-a hated the Management Bureau.
Before, she’d tried to mislead us with subtle lies.
On top of that, she harbored quiet resentment over nearly dying—coughing blood and collapsing.
When I visited her after she recovered, Ryu Dan-a had griped at me, annoyed: ‘You deceived me, and you’re not even cute about it.’
I couldn’t expose The Guide’s existence to someone like that and ask for cooperation.
Worse, if Ryu Dan-a saw The Guide and spouted some nonsense, it would be my neck on the line.
Too many risks either way.
So The Guide would’ve stayed buried—but what if Yeon Ga-ram participated instead?
Of course, Yeon Ga-ram wasn’t exactly forthright either.
But at least he belonged to the Management Bureau, and his lies were mostly instinctual evasion—easy to see through.
“I don’t think Yeon Ga-ram can completely prove The Guide’s objectivity and validity. But as a kind of safeguard, it could at least serve as a speed bump.”
Even a speed bump like that would let us prepare for the next step.
I pressed my point again.
Convinced of my intention, Cha Si-eon answered shortly after.
-I’ll request cooperation from Response Team 4.
* * *
The cross-verification of The Guide through Yeon Ga-ram was scheduled for the very next day.
So I was reviewing the verification method I’d discussed with Cha Si-eon, alone in my room.
A message from Yeon Ga-ram came in the dead of night.
-What is it.
“…….”
Three words from Yeon Ga-ram left me lost in thought.
Yeon Ga-ram is…… no, don’t try to understand. Accept it.
He’d have received operational orders, so he can’t refuse to cooperate with me.
But if he keeps growling and acting difficult, that’ll be a problem.
So think of him as a writer instead.
Yeon Ga-ram is a writer whose manuscript work won’t progress and whose irritability shoots through the sky.
A writer named Nabbit whose desire for recognition explodes rather than evasion.
With this reasoning, I replied to his message.
* * *
The next day.
Yeon Ga-ram appeared with the happiest face I’d ever seen on him.
“Did he eat something bad or something?”
Jae-gyeom muttered, watching Yeon Ga-ram grin so wide his ears nearly touched.
But I pretended not to notice, turning away from Jae-gyeom’s bewilderment and Yeon Ga-ram’s smugness alike.
The truth was, Yeon Ga-ram shouldn’t be smiling like this right now.
Being able to verify The Guide using information from his own head meant The Guide was essentially hacking Yeon Ga-ram’s brain in real time.
Yet Yeon Ga-ram was plainly delighted—thrilled that he’d been entrusted with a role ‘no one else could do,’ one on which ‘the Management Bureau’s very fate rested,’ one that was ‘indispensable and irreplaceable.’
It felt like I was deceiving a child…….
A strange guilt stirred, but I hadn’t actually lied to him, and he looked happy, so I decided to let it slide.
“Hello, sir. What can I help you with today?”
“Today we’re going to see if you can really read Yeon Ga-ram’s thoughts.”
“Gladly. I can reveal all of Yeon Ga-ram’s transparent and shallow innermost self, every trait of the Special Zone Characteristic!”
This creature really had harsh words for Yeon Ga-ram.
Was it looking down on him?
Hmm, now that I think about it, it doesn’t look down on just Yeon Ga-ram.
It’s spoken harshly to me too, depending on its mood.
I noted The Guide’s strong self-awareness anew and continued.
“Now Jae-gyeom and Yeon Ga-ram will go into the next room. There, Jae-gyeom will ask questions and Yeon Ga-ram will answer—all of it in writing. Yeon Ga-ram will write his answer thirty seconds after seeing the question. Your job is to tell me Yeon Ga-ram’s answer before those thirty seconds are up.”
“I understand. You want to check if Yeon Ga-ram’s answer—what I read from his mind—matches what he actually writes, correct? Excellent. The Special Zone Characteristic is ready.”
The Guide was quick to understand too.
I nodded at Jae-gyeom and Yeon Ga-ram, and the two of them took their notebooks and went into my bedroom.
Moments later, The Guide’s answer appeared on the screen.
“I’ve read the first question. Yeon Ga-ram’s answer is ‘red,’ and his reason is ‘because it’s the main character’s color.'”
“I’ve read the second question. Yeon Ga-ram’s answer is…….”
The Guide answered without hesitation, and I jotted down everything I saw.
Jae-gyeom was probably asking questions that warranted short answers, but The Guide added extra commentary today too.
Still, thinking it was all a clue, I wrote down every word.
By the time my right arm grew sore, we’d finished twenty questions.
And Jae-gyeom and Yeon Ga-ram emerged back into the living room.
“Are you done writing?”
“Yeah.”
“Then let’s check the answers. Team Leader, we’re ready!”
-Understood.
We took our seats in front of the CCTV so the Situation Room could see everything.
Then we each opened our notebooks to the first page and compared.
First question, then.
“What’s your favorite color?”
“Red.”
“I’ve read the first question. Yeon Ga-ram’s answer is ‘red,’ and his reason is ‘because it’s the main character’s color.'”
As expected, Yeon Ga-ram had written a short answer, but The Guide’s response was far too long.
Jae-gyeom looked at the answer I’d written and turned back to Yeon Ga-ram.
“Is that reason right?”
“Huh? No, it’s not.”
Yeon Ga-ram shook his head with a sheepish look on his face.
So Yeon Ga-ram wasn’t exactly forthright either.
But since it was a lie that didn’t harm anyone in particular, we decided to move on.
“Between a dog and a cat, which animal do you prefer?”
“Don’t like either.”
“Yeon Ga-ram’s answer is ‘don’t like either,’ and his reason is ‘because he has a fur allergy.'”
“Is the fur allergy true?”
“……Yeah, it is.”
Yeon Ga-ram nodded reluctantly.
We kept turning the pages.
Jae-gyeom’s notebook held trivial questions, Yeon Ga-ram’s held defensive answers, and mine held long, elaborate explanations that went on and on.
And our answers matched perfectly—not a single error.
“Why do you take so much interest in Baek Sa-ra?”
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
“The answer to the eighteenth question is ‘because she’s pretty,’ but on paper you’ll write ‘What nonsense are you talking about?’ with trembling hands.”
-Jae-gyeom, are you asking the questions right?
“Sorry, I’m going backward and can’t remember the questions…….”
“Why do you keep being stubborn with Seo Do-un?”
“What did I do.”
“The last question is about you, sir! The answer Yeon Ga-ram will write is ‘What did I do.’ He genuinely believes every action he’s taken toward you was justified. It’s strange—that Seo Do-un, not him. He thinks he’s being kind, helping you out today!”
“…….”
“…….”
“Ah, what! What!”
Yeon Ga-ram shouted for no particular reason.
I stared at him for a moment, then turned another page in my notebook.
“Furthermore, when Yeon Ga-ram sees this final answer of his, he will very likely shout something like ‘Ah, what! What!’ in feigned agitation. Short of an act of God, it’s certain to happen.”
“…….”
“I’d say the verification is done.”
“Yeah, pretty much.”
Jae-gyeom muttered, looking at the silent Yeon Ga-ram, and I nodded in agreement.
“Team Leader, I think we can…….”
That’s when I was about to ask Cha Si-eon his opinion.
“I can sense your sincerity, sir, in working to protect the Special Zone Characteristic’s credibility. I genuinely support your careful approach. But I fear we’ll wait endlessly like this, so with a heart full of support, I’d like to give you a small gift!”
What is it saying?
That’s when I was reading The Guide’s words aloud.
“Ugh……!”
Yeon Ga-ram beside me grabbed his eye and screamed.
“……!”
Yeon Ga-ram winced in pain, holding his eye with both hands.
“What’s wrong?”
“It hurts……!”
The eye Yeon Ga-ram was holding in pain was his left eye.
The one The Guide had consumed once before.
The moment I saw that, I shouted toward The Guide.
“What did you just do!”
“Don’t worry, sir. I’ve simply provided the simplest solution.”
A simple solution?
“Congratulations, sir. You now have a friend who can understand the Special Zone Characteristic’s language! You won’t be lonely anymore!”
“…….”
“Ah, ugh……! Mmm…….”
As I read The Guide’s words, Yeon Ga-ram’s groans subsided.
The pain seeming to fade, he lifted his head again.
“What was that sound just now…….”
Even as he was wincing, Yeon Ga-ram had heard what I was saying, and he muttered breathlessly.
Removing his hands, Yeon Ga-ram’s left eye was only slightly bloodshot.
I had no idea what had just happened.
Hesitantly, I asked Yeon Ga-ram.
“The letters on the laptop screen—can you read them?”
“Yeah…….”
Yeon Ga-ram hesitated, then stared at the laptop monitor.
Then he began reading haltingly, like a small child who’d just learned Hangul.
“Gift, a friend, appeared, as a reminder, I’ll teach……?”
Could he actually read it?
But the content…….
I looked back at the laptop.
New text was now glowing on the screen.
“As a gift to celebrate having made a friend, I’ll teach you.”
“The Raven that guided you, sir—it’s a newborn god.”
“And it’s dying right now.”
“Will you really let our dear Raven die like this?”
Reading those words, I understood at once.
The Guide was far more strategic than I’d given it credit for.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————