Pretending to Be Human Is Exhausting Again Today - Chapter 140

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Pretending to Be Human: Episode 140
I couldn’t proceed with the mission in this state. First, I needed to confirm whether something of unknown identity was still lurking nearby.
The Squad Captain removed his robe as he spoke.
“Everyone, remove your masks. I need to see your faces.”
The members silently removed their masks.
The Squad Captain lit a small lantern hanging from his waist and examined each face one by one.
Fortunately, nothing seemed amiss this time. Everyone was breathing.
“Who’s missing? Platoon Commander, check immediately!”
At his urgent command, the Platoon Commander responsible for the southern perimeter stepped forward.
“One of our squad members is missing.”
“Can you determine when the substitution occurred?”
“I’m not certain, sir. My apologies.”
The Platoon Commander lowered his head with a troubled expression.
The member had been perfectly fine when they left the Capital for the mission. Though they hadn’t conversed during the operation itself, he distinctly remembered sharing rations with him on the way.
That meant the substitution had occurred shortly after entering the Monos Direct Territory.
‘We rode without rest through the surrounding cities to leave no traces. The substitution happened during that time? How is that even possible?’
The Platoon Commander overseeing the western sector posed a question to the bewildered Squad Captain.
“Shall we proceed with the mission? We have thirty minutes until the scheduled time.”
It was a question befitting the Golden Hand—one that demanded mission completion regardless of circumstances.
The Squad Captain fell into contemplation. Should he verify the uncertainties here before departing, or should he push forward and complete the mission?
Or as a last resort, he could regroup today and postpone the operation until tomorrow night.
Which method offered the greatest chance of success?
‘Zeras fell victim to something of unknown identity. Based on the circumstances, that black entity is the cause. The fact that it doesn’t attack suggests its pure combat strength isn’t particularly high. But blades don’t work on it. That means we lack proper countermeasures as well.’
Just as complex deliberations swirled through his mind, a voice called out from the direction of the village.
“Captain—”
“…!”
The members lowered their stances and gazed toward the source of the voice.
Beyond the dark grass, silhouetted against the faint moonlight, an Intruder weakly waved his hand.
“That person is….”
The Platoon Commander beside the Squad Captain, who had heard his murmur, answered.
“The missing member.”
Silence hung among the members. They all stared at the dim figure of the Intruder.
He wore comfortable white tunic and white trousers. Standing at a distance, he waved his hand as if calling to a friend, but his expression was indiscernible from this range.
The leisurely stance in the heart of the dark forest seemed like an incongruous image superimposed over reality.
“Captain, I’ll join you shortly. I’m heading your way—”
The speech was unnaturally stilted. The Squad Captain, who found it sounding like an act, furrowed his brow and asked the Platoon Commander.
“Platoon Commander, is that member’s voice truly his own? Could he be acting?”
“It seems to match. Though the distance makes certainty difficult… at least, the appearance is confirmed.”
‘He wouldn’t bring someone else and have them impersonate him. So either it’s him, or he’s being coerced.’
The emotionless Golden Hand seemed unlikely to betray a comrade merely under threat.
The Squad Captain raised a hand above the undergrowth instead of answering.
A glove adorned with golden thread glimmered faintly beneath the moonlight. Soon, the Squad Captain’s thumb and index finger crossed in deliberate motion.
It was the Golden Hand cipher meaning ‘reveal your affiliation’.
The member, who had hesitated for a moment, spoke again.
“Golden Hand, Second Platoon, Gofrik.”
Though slightly faltering, the name and affiliation were accurate.
The Platoon Commander, witnessing this, spoke one final time.
“I’ll verify it myself. Please provide cover.”
“…No, it could be a trap. Since they’re walking toward us anyway, we’ll wait. The rest of the platoon, prepare for interception.”
There was still about ten minutes before the operation’s scheduled start time.
Sacrificing one member’s life would have been simple, but revealing the identity of this uncertain enemy at this moment was crucial.
The Squad Captain waited for Gofrik to approach.
“Captain… sir.”
As he drew closer, his face became clearly visible.
In that instant, the Squad Captain’s expression twisted.
“Attack!”
Simultaneously, the members hurled their daggers in unison.
“…!”
Gofrik, suddenly bristling with daggers, collapsed to the ground.
At that moment, something black that had been lurking in his shadow seeped away into the opposite undergrowth like mist.
Its form was far more indistinct than before.
The Squad Captain ground his teeth and approached Gofrik’s corpse.
Then he kicked the head roughly. Gofrik’s head rolled as if it were a ball.
“Squad Captain?”
“Look at this. It’s a doll.”
“…Gasp!”
The Platoon Commander, who followed shortly after, widened his eyes upon seeing the corpse’s condition.
Gofrik’s body was no longer human. A crude scarecrow woven from straw and wood had taken its place.
Transparent threads were connected to the arms and legs, and they hung severed and swaying. Apparently, these threads had been used to manipulate Gofrik.
The problem was the head.
‘Madmen, the lot of them.’
The head the Squad Captain had kicked was unmistakably Gofrik’s own. His eyes were open, his neck cleanly severed.
In other words, the unknown entity had murdered Gofrik, then attached his head to the scarecrow to ‘impersonate’ a human.
Even the Golden Hand would have been appalled by such brutal craftsmanship.
‘But ultimately, there was no trap. Then why go through such tedious trouble?’
He couldn’t fathom why they’d swapped out the running member, nor why they’d desecrated the corpse so thoroughly.
If the goal had been to kill the members, ambushing them while their attention was diverted would have been far more efficient.
‘Attention… wait.’
Then, the Squad Captain realized he had focused far too intently on Gofrik. He spun around urgently.
The faces of the members waiting beyond the undergrowth came into view.
…I had clearly instructed them to remove their masks, yet somehow two of the operatives were wearing them again.
“…Remove your masks.”
The two operatives did not obey the Squad Captain’s command.
Fury surged within him, and clenching his teeth in bewilderment, he drew two daggers from his belt and hurled them at the two operatives.
As the blades sank in without resistance, the two operatives’ bodies crumbled once more.
“Screeeech!”
An unidentifiable cry echoed as something dark vanished beyond the undergrowth.
“S-Squad Captain, sir.”
Two had fallen after Gofrik. Even for members of the Golden Hand, maintaining composure in the face of such an ominous occurrence was impossible.
The Squad Captain spoke to the Platoon Commander, whose expression had grown anxious, his voice sharp with irritation.
“We enter full alert status immediately!”
“What about the mission?”
“The enemy is nearby. We handle them first, then the mission!”
Now that they had confirmed the enemy struck the moment anyone let their guard down, dividing their forces to complete the mission was out of the question.
At the Squad Captain’s order, the operatives drew their weapons again and scanned their surroundings.
Then the Platoon Commander muttered absently.
“Then… where did those two bodies go?”
All they had found were piles of clothing and dark silhouettes. The corpses of the two operatives had vanished without a trace.
The moment the Squad Captain began to wonder about this himself, a voice came from above.
“Captain.”
“We are prepared as well.”
The voice was halting and unnatural, much like Gofrik’s had been.
The Squad Captain looked up and found himself unable to close his mouth at the sight before him.
‘…Good heavens.’
The two operatives who had just vanished were flying through the sky.
Their arms fluttered like wings as they drifted weightlessly beneath the moonlight.
As if they had become angels themselves.
“…!”
One of the operatives, without waiting for orders, began hurling daggers. But in his panic, he could scarcely land a hit.
Two corpses soaring through the heavens.
Moonlight dimly illuminating the surroundings.
And comrades vanishing one by one.
The Squad Captain had just sworn to root out the enemy, yet that conviction was growing increasingly uncertain.
What was the enemy’s true objective?
Could they complete their mission?
Would he too end up in such a grotesque state?
As doubt and terror seized his heart, it was then—
—that faint cries began to emanate from the undergrowth surrounding them.
“Screech, screeeech.”
Searching for their next target, pairs of crimson eyes began to emerge one by one from the darkness.
Five, ten, twenty… countless beyond counting.
‘To have drawn this close without sensing even a whisper of their presence.’
The Squad Captain’s voice trembled as he spoke.
“…Retreat. Everyone, we’re retreating.”

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