NOVEL NEXT Chapter 233
Episode 233. Attempt to Smuggle Dangerous Items (4)
[Recovery of Dr. Chloe]
[Author: Recovery Team 1]
[We have recovered a humanoid supernatural phenomenon believed to be Dr. Chloe. Although she is not currently in human form, she can speak, so we will refer to her as a humanoid supernatural phenomenon.]
[Dr. Chloe is currently in the form of a small dog-sized creature and can communicate verbally. She claims to be Dr. Chloe, so we’ll go with that.]
[Bringing her to Facility No. 1 might kill her, so we’re sending her to the Seoul Branch. Please prepare for isolation or medical treatment.]
[Recovery of Dr. Chloe. Reply.]
[Author: Advisor An]
[Confirmed.]
[As soon as Dr. Chloe is secured at the Seoul Branch, bring her to the Administrator immediately.]
The Research Department Head was standing in front of my office desk. The ambiguous expression on their face today suggested something terrible had happened.
The Research Department Head’s expression wasn’t exactly dark today, but there was a strange playfulness to it. Or maybe it was irony.
It was kind of scary.
Tiring from the morning…
“Good news and bad news.”
I squinted slightly and looked at the Research Department Head. It must be something really terrible.
“Tell me the good news first.”
Lee Se-ah nodded.
“First, the good news. Dr. Kim’s daughter’s IQ increased by about 20 points yesterday. Her brainwave tests are also closer to normal.”
“And the bad news?”
“The patient just screamed until her voice gave out. She screamed for about four hours until her voice was completely gone, and we still don’t know why.”
Something terrible did happen.
Why on earth?
The Research Department Head shrugged. I thought there might be side effects, but I didn’t expect this kind of side effect.
“Did she scream a lot…?”
“We thought it might be pain from the procedure, so we administered narcotic painkillers, but she kept screaming regardless.”
I thought about it for a while, but I couldn’t figure out why. Why? I’ve never seen anyone scream in pain after receiving the Popo Serum.
Maybe it’s because it was administered to someone who was almost dead.
“Any guesses?”
“Narcotic painkillers can relieve pain, but they don’t usually stop panic or fear. For some reason, she might have felt extreme fear.”
“What about emotional pain?”
“That can also be blocked by narcotic painkillers. The doctors think it might be some kind of panic attack. We’re not sure, though.”
I sighed.
“Let’s use painkillers and anti-anxiety meds for now and try to find the cause. It would be good to do a brainwave test during a panic attack.”
The important thing now is to ask why she was screaming. If her IQ increased by 20 points, she might be able to communicate.
The subject, or patient, of this experiment was Kim Han-byeol. She had been moved from the Humanoid Research Department’s isolation room to a hospital room.
Dr. Kang was standing in front of the hospital room.
“Ah, Administrator. Hello.”
“Yes.”
“Isn’t this experiment too small for Dr. Kim to oversee personally? It’s just treating one patient, so you didn’t have to come if you were busy.”
I shook my head.
“I’m just personally curious. We haven’t experimented much with the Popo Serum, right? It’s also something that should be recorded in the Foundation’s records.”
I put on a white coat and walked over to the patient. Her expression was dark, like someone who had lost everything.
“Hello. How are you feeling?”
“Tall… person?”
“Yes.”
“Kill me.”
“Uh, why do you think that?”
The patient thought for a while but couldn’t give a proper answer. She moved her hands and feet.
A face trapped in a square, a narrow square. Was she expressing that she was trapped?
“Can’t… move.”
“Uh… We’ll help you once we figure out the cause. Please wait a little longer.”
I turned around and looked at Dr. Kang.
Dr. Kang also nodded with a dark expression, as if he already knew.
We moved outside the hospital room, and Dr. Kang seemed to have a lot to say.
“She’s been like this the whole time. After administering anti-anxiety meds, she hasn’t had panic attacks, but she keeps repeating that she wants to die without being able to speak properly. We might need to use antidepressants… She’s under close surveillance due to suicide risk.”
Depression is better than intellectual disability.
Or is it…?
Looking at this, maybe not.
“Here’s what I think. From what she just expressed, it seems like her mind is trapped.”
“Trapped?”
“The Popo Serum’s treatment might be incomplete, and the treated, normal mind might be trapped in the patient’s brain and body.”
“Ah. It could be a situation similar to locked-in syndrome. But then, how do we communicate with the mind trapped in the body…?”
There might be no way. The patient’s brain itself is imposing restrictions, and the treated mind might be bound to a brain that can no longer be treated—
Maybe she can’t even think freely. Was this why the patient screamed for four hours? I sighed.
“Let’s find a way to treat her.”
What we need at times like this is an ordinary person.
A somewhat rare find in the Foundation.
I looked at Paper Yang, who was glancing around nervously.
“Ah, I heard Dr. Kim got promoted a few days ago…! I don’t know the details, though.”
“Thank you. Please sit.”
It was a strange feeling. Paper Yang didn’t seem to know exactly what being an Administrator meant. She’d probably freak out if she found out…
I just nodded.
“We need your opinion on an experiment we’re conducting.”
“Okay.”
Paper Yang nodded and stared at me intently, ready to listen.
“One of the doctors has a daughter who’s sick. He tried to steal a supernatural phenomenon to treat her without permission. Of course, he failed.”
“That’s already terrifyingly worrying.”
I nodded.
“What should we do?”
“Hmm. Stealing company assets is a crime regardless of family circumstances, right?”
That’s not wrong, but I didn’t think it was that simple.
“The Popo Serum can cure most diseases, even death in some cases. That’s what Dr. Kim was trying to use.”
“Ah, that’s…”
“Of course, he failed to steal it, but there are dozens of Popo Serum injections at the Seoul Branch, and Dr. Kim’s daughter has a developmental disability.”
Paper held her breath.
“The Popo Serum does cure, but it can also cause personality changes. There are other side effects too. It’s not banned for no reason except for use on the dead, right?”
“That’s right.”
“So what happened?”
“We administered the Popo Serum to the child at Dr. Kim’s request.”
“What? You granted that request?”
I knew what the experiment concluded, but it might have been better not to say it.
“The results weren’t great. The illness didn’t heal properly, and the child is now suffering from severe depression and panic disorder.”
“Honestly, the Foundation isn’t usually flexible, but dangerous experiments that could harm others are approved right away…”
“Honestly, I was curious about the results. We’ve only administered it to the best humans, like the Special Forces or humanoid supernatural phenomena.”
Paper Yang shook her head firmly.
“This is definitely a problem. It seems wrong in many ways… I understand that it was a treatment the patient’s guardian wanted, though.”
“I see.”
“Still, I’m curious too. What happened? Why did the Popo Serum, which is supposed to cure all diseases, cause depression?”
“It’s still speculation, but it seems the patient’s mind was cured, but her brain wasn’t. A relatively intact mind is trapped in a brain that can’t think properly.”
“Ah, that’s terrible.”
“Well, it might get better. There’s still room for symptom improvement.”
Paper wrote down the conversation for a moment.
“Good work. Here’s what I think. There are some ethical issues, but since it proceeded as Dr. Kim wanted…”
“I think so too.”
“It does seem inhumane, but it’s not particularly cruel or problematic. It’s ultimately a question of whether depression or intellectual disability is better… Not something for me to judge.”
Hasti and the Hero were enjoying their daily lives for the first time in a while. After fighting alongside Dr. Kim and his promotion to Administrator.
The weather was clear.
The two were finally recognized as ordinary people. They received a residence outside the Seoul Branch and new ID cards.
Most importantly, they regained their freedom.
“Is this your first time exploring Seoul?”
“First time without Foundation surveillance.”
The Hero, Ahn Yuri, looked out the window. How long had it been since she thought of herself as an ordinary person? She couldn’t even remember.