Editor’s Survival Guide - Chapter 97
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Editor’s Survival Rules Episode 97
ep16. Because I Made You (1)
* * *
The otter cafe opened as scheduled.
Jae-gyeom and Yu-ju smiling with thumbs up in the colorful otter zone.
They’re excited, those guys…
“Yu-ju is busy managing the cafe and Jae-gyeom is busy helping her, right?”
Baek Sa-ra showed me photos of Jae-gyeom and Yu-ju as she spoke.
“So that’s why you came instead?”
“Yes, Yu-ju asked me to deliver this to Otter-nim.”
I sat on the hospital bed and opened the paper bag Baek Sa-ra handed me.
Inside were otter cookies, otter cup holders, otter stickers, and a ☆Otter Has Stopped☆ towel.
These were the otter cafe special items that Ha Yu-ju and her gang had put their hearts into making.
“I’m grateful they thought of me, but I still feel like I’m being teased every time I receive these…”
“Enjoy it, Otter-nim. Everyone likes them.”
When I muttered timidly, Baek Sa-ra smiled and replied.
Today marks the third day since I came out of the “National Central Museum Overseen by the False God.”
Right after coming out, I was almost in a state of exhaustion and slept like the dead until yesterday, finally regaining my senses today.
Naturally, my physical condition is still poor, so I haven’t been discharged yet.
“Still, it’s fortunate it wasn’t canceled.”
“Yes. The section chiefs said since we already prepared everything, we should go ahead with it.”
I nodded at Baek Sa-ra’s explanation.
Actually, this otter cafe almost got quietly canceled.
The issues related to the aftermath of the “National Central Museum” were too serious.
“But aren’t they holding a funeral for Team Leader Kang Seung-cheol?”
“No, the casualties from the “National Central Museum” already had funerals without bodies last year. So they won’t hold another one separately.”
“I see…”
First, Team Leader Kang Seung-cheol’s remains were recovered after almost a year.
It was both heartbreaking and fortunate.
It was also bewildering in a way.
Despite all that time, Team Leader Kang Seung-cheol’s body maintained its appearance from when he was alive.
So his body is currently being examined by the Research Department.
“The excavation of remains is still ongoing?”
“Yes, they just finished clearing the corridor area. It’ll take at least another day to recover all the remains piled on the rooftop. Classification will take much longer than that.”
Moreover, the substance blocking the exit of the “National Central Museum” was, as I expected, the corpses of victims.
The bodies had hardened when mixed with the “False God’s” gastric fluid, but when the “National Central Museum’s” core stopped operating, the substance clinging to the bodies disappeared, leaving only half-melted human bones.
Recovering all those bodies and identifying them was also part of the Management Bureau’s work.
“So other departments seem to be in emergency mode too.”
“Other departments?”
“Yes, the “National Central Museum” was an area that couldn’t be monitored, so they couldn’t even count the casualties. But this time, too many victims were added at once, so it seems quite troublesome.”
“Ah…”
The Management Bureau has various departments besides the Field Control Department and Research Support Department.
Like the General Affairs Department that compiles the Management Bureau’s statistics and performance, or the External Cooperation Department that communicates closely with other agencies to conceal the existence of the Special Zone.
These departments had been counting the victims of the Special Zone and covering up their disappearances to prevent them from becoming visible.
But this time, hundreds of victims were added all at once, so they seem to be frantically trying to handle it.
Because of this, the Management Bureau’s situation was quite chaotic.
So the Otter Rescue Association was also going to tactfully give up the event, but the otter cafe still opened successfully thanks to support from the section chief level, as Baek Sa-ra said.
“The section chiefs are amazing too. To allow an event cafe in the midst of all this.”
“It would be a loss for good things to be buried by bad things. Since it already happened with “Ant Hill,” they said to just go ahead this time. They said it would be nice to commemorate this rare achievement.”
Right. There’s no need to focus only on heavy matters.
No, at times like this, it’s necessary to change the atmosphere.
So the otter cafe opened grandly today, later than scheduled.
“And while I’m here, we’re trying to get permission for Otter-nim to carry firearms.”
“Firearms?”
“Yes, it seems you should carry them now. You had a hard time this time too. Especially when dealing with the Contaminated Ones.”
“…”
I don’t intend to ask, ‘Do I have to shoot people now too?’
I just didn’t shoot guns, but several people have already died through me.
Of course, they were all people who attacked me first.
I just survived there.
It was self-defense, so I think I don’t need to feel guilty.
So I’d rather not think about it if possible, but actually, I couldn’t easily shake off their afterimages.
When I was alone, moments of death kept coming to mind.
“You’re tired, aren’t you?”
When I remained silent, Baek Sa-ra looked at my complexion and spoke.
“You need to rest more, so I’ll be going now.”
“Ah…”
I unconsciously reached out toward Baek Sa-ra as she stood up.
Then I was startled and withdrew my hand, but it was already too late.
Baek Sa-ra was looking at me with wide eyes.
Baek Sa-ra looked back and forth between my face and hand once, then smiled and asked.
“Should I stay a bit longer?”
It was obviously a joke.
Baek Sa-ra’s style of joke, thrown knowing I would decline.
Normally, I would have naturally shaken my head.
But right now, I couldn’t readily say it was okay.
So after hesitating ten times, I looked up at Baek Sa-ra while enduring the shame.
“…”
At that moment, the smile disappeared from Baek Sa-ra’s face.
Belatedly thinking the atmosphere was strange, I shifted my gaze away again.
Then as I pondered what to say to recover, Baek Sa-ra opened her mouth before me.
“I…”
Clatter-!
“Seo Do-un, do you have time now?”
The door opened simultaneously.
Cha Si-eon also barged in, skipping knocking and courtesy.
So I answered that uninvited guest with a bright voice.
“Yes, I have time!”
“…?”
“…?”
Cha Si-eon and Baek Sa-ra looked at me with puzzled eyes at my delight.
Cha Si-eon had an expression asking why I was welcoming him, and Baek Sa-ra had an expression asking why I was welcoming that guy.
But I was genuinely glad to see Team Leader Cha.
Because Cha Si-eon was also a person.
Cha Si-eon showed his displeasure at my warm welcome with his eyebrows, then asked Baek Sa-ra.
“Do you have remaining business?”
“…”
“Ah, Baek Sa-ra. I’m sorry for keeping you when you must be busy.”
“…”
Baek Sa-ra silently looked back and forth between me and Cha Si-eon.
Then he nodded with his usual smile.
“Yes, Otter. Then I’ll see you again later.”
For some reason it felt like she was speaking through gritted teeth, but Baek Sa-ra smiled gracefully as she stood up.
Cha Si-eon stepped aside so Baek Sa-ra could leave.
Baek Sa-ra glanced at Cha Si-eon briefly as she left the hospital room.
But whether Cha Si-eon didn’t notice that gaze or ignored it, he just closed the door.
Rattle- Thud-!
Then he came over to my side and sat down, and well.
I’m suddenly curious.
How exactly did their Cinderella story come to be?
The stepsister is quite formidable, but it doesn’t seem like Cinderella would be particularly pushed around either.
“I came to report on the cleanup situation at the ‘National Central Museum.'”
Team Leader Cha, silently working as always today. No, Team Leader Cha.
“First, we rescued 12 out of 91 people who were staying in that Special Zone. Some of the rescued were in serious states of malnutrition and are currently receiving treatment.”
Starting with malnutrition…
“What was the cause of death for those who couldn’t be rescued?”
“Blood loss, evaporation of brain and organs, and starvation.”
Cha Si-eon’s voice was monotone.
But the contents he listed were anything but.
“Don’t tell me, was it because they ate the ‘Fake Rice’?”
“That’s what we’re assuming. The 12 rescued had stayed in that Special Zone for less than two weeks. Most hadn’t eaten the ‘Fake Rice,’ and even if they did, it was only small amounts.”
Animals eat food to create blood and flesh.
That’s why it disappeared.
When the ‘National Central Museum’ stopped, the blood and flesh that people had created by eating the ‘Fake Rice’ disappeared along with it.
“I thought it would naturally recover like with ‘Ant Hill.'”
I found myself making excuses without realizing it.
Then Cha Si-eon retorted as if it were pointless talk.
“Even if we had known the outcome, there was no better choice. If we hadn’t stopped the Special Zone then, we wouldn’t have been able to save even the 12 uncontaminated people.”
Right, that’s not wrong either.
I nodded at Cha Si-eon’s words.
“And Team Leader Kang Seung-cheol’s body is currently being examined by Analysis Team 2. His contamination levels are normal, but since the bodies of other contaminated people from the ‘National Central Museum’ also currently measure 0 contamination, it’s not considered a reliable result.”
“I see.”
“Another unusual point is that livor mortis formed on Team Leader Kang’s body after we recovered it.”
“Livor mortis…?”
Livor mortis is a type of bruising that appears on the skin when blood circulation stops after a person dies.
Those purplish bruises begin to form one to two hours after death and become darkest after ten to fifteen hours.
So there was no way new ones could form on someone who died 11 months ago.
“Does that mean that team leader was alive until just before?”
“We can’t be certain of that. Since it’s a space where common sense doesn’t apply, the possibilities are infinite.”
Cha Si-eon answered calmly, but I couldn’t stop speculating.
In July last year, Team Leader Kang Seung-cheol voluntarily entered the mouth of the ‘Fake God’ to find the core.
But Team Leader Kang Seung-cheol’s body when found again was remarkably intact.
Other people who were eaten by the ‘Fake God’ had their bones half-melted.
And the form of the ‘Fake God’ that Team Leader Kang Seung-cheol described was a ‘whale bone specimen.’
But the form of the ‘Fake God’ I saw was closer to a snake.
Whether it simply changed appearance or was replaced with a different entity is currently unknown.
Moreover, the place where Team Leader Kang Seung-cheol’s body was found was beneath the ten-story stone pagoda.
The very place where the ‘Fake God’ had been coiled.
“Is it possible that when contamination becomes extremely severe, one becomes a dangerous entity?”
I asked, hoping my ominous speculation was wrong.
But Cha Si-eon’s gaze, which had been looking at me, drifted to the side.
Cha Si-eon spoke while avoiding eye contact like that.
“That’s still unknown.”
Twinge-
Then, pain I had momentarily forgotten was felt from inside my organs.
Stomach cramps were happening again.
Not knowing what kind of signal this was, I muttered the words that came to mind.
“The ‘Hotel’ is…”
“…”
“Come to think of it, how did the operation on the ‘Hotel’ side go?”
I had asked Kwon Mu-seop but he didn’t answer.
There was nothing posted separately on the Management Bureau’s internal network announcements either.
So when I asked directly, Cha Si-eon carefully opened his mouth for some reason.
“That day, after Seo Do-un left, we modified the operation. So Agent Yeon Ga-ram was deployed to the ‘Hotel’ instead of Seo Do-un.”
They changed the order.
Since they had secured a core for once, it would be a loss to just withdraw.
Thinking it was a wise decision, I asked back.
“So did it succeed?”
“No, it failed. Both the core and the ring were destroyed.”
At Cha Si-eon’s answer, my stomach cramps stopped abruptly.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Ashira
Hmm so it has to be Seo Do-un touching the core then..