NOVEL NEXT Yerin POV:
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Suddenly, the Gray Reaper leapt forward and clutched the book tightly with both hands. Golden flames burst forth from the Reaper's body.
The book began to burn, and the flames started spreading to the Reaper holding it.
What should I do?
Should I forcibly separate the book from it?
Not knowing what to do in this situation, I was fidgeting when James' calm voice came from beside me.
"As expected, the Gray Reaper is special."
Wondering what he meant, I turned to see James gesturing at the Gray Reaper, telling me to observe closely.
"Doesn't it look less like the Gray Reaper is burning, and more like it's absorbing the flames?"
Looking closer, the flames that spread from the book did seem to be getting absorbed into the Gray Reaper's body.
And somehow, the Reaper's face also looked serene.
"Normally when Objects touch that book, they burn in agony until turning to ash. Even the constantly regenerating Objects can't regenerate if touched by those flames. But the Gray Reaper doesn't seem affected at all."
James added in a small voice, "This is just a hypothesis, but perhaps the Gray Reaper isn't actually an Object."
"The anti-Object ammunition I designed and is being produced in America mimics the flames of that book..."
"So what should we do about the Gray Reaper in this state?"
"I don't know. This is the first time I've seen an Object react this way. Normally they either try to tear up the book or are terrified of it, but the Gray Reaper seems to be neither."
I guess we have no choice but to keep observing.
Is it just me, or does the Reaper seem to be gradually turning white within the golden flames?
***
Reaper (MC) POV:
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Unlimited flames!
For me, who feels like I can do anything as long as I have flames, anything that provides the flame is quite appealing.
But unfortunately, while it had flame, it was too little.
The amount flowing in at once was so small that it didn't seem very useful.
Comparing the absorption rate over time, it was about 1/100th of Yerin's?
It seemed better to just stand still among ordinary people than this book.
Because people would either be scared or find me cute, even if I just stood still among them.
It could be seen as emergency rations in preparation for when there are no people around...
But still, it doesn't look very good.
Physical things are inconvenient to carry around!
As a frequent ghostification user, if I weigh whether this emergency ration is more valuable than ghostifying, of course ghostifying is much better.
However, there was a fatal flaw in leaving it in the Sehee Research Institute isolation room and eating it whenever bored.
It's tasteless.
The emotion contained in the flames has no taste.
What kind of emotion is this anyway?
Since the book is not human, I can't tell what emotion this is.
Pure flame containing only one emotion.
Compared to when I was human, it feels like sucking on inedible plastic.
Rather than eating this, it seemed much better to just go outside the Research Institute and startle one person.
Flame from Yerin is still the best.
I cut off the flame coming from the book and threw this useless book at the man looking at me with an intrigued expression.
The man carefully received the book I threw with a puzzled look.
Monopolizing all the golden rabbit pudding is the ultimate plan.
So now I have to go get more pudding.
Judging from the stench in the air, I had a rough idea of which direction the killer rabbits would be.
I looked towards the center of the factory where the stench was emanating from.
The rabbits must be living where that endless stench is billowing out.
***
Yerin POV:
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The Reaper, having lost interest in the book it had casually tossed into the air, turned its head and stared intently towards the center of the factory.
Well, the pudding factory occupation incident hasn't ended yet.
Still, it's the first time I've seen the Reaper this diligent.
It must really like that pudding.
Thinking that the usually indifferent Reaper is actually thinking about pudding was a bit amusing.
As soon as James received the book, he picked up his bag to carefully store it away.
"Alright, we can't be sure how long this place will remain safe. Let's escape quickly."
At James' words about escaping, I pointed at the Reaper staring fixedly at the factory center and said,
"It seems the Reaper wants to resolve this pudding factory incident?"
James shook his head firmly.
"No matter how powerful the Gray Reaper is, retaking the factory is impossible."
"Isn't there no Object the Reaper can't handle?"
James seems a bit clueless, there's nothing the Gray Reaper can't do!
Though the Reaper didn't turn its gaze, its antenna above its head was slightly tilted towards us, as if interested in my story.
T/N: I think it's not an antenna like a cockroach has. You know, in anime characters, there is something like a single strand of hair in the top middle of the head. Maybe something like that (Ahoge?).
"Still, retaking the factory will be difficult. A troublesome one has settled in the factory center. It's an Object that Koreans are more familiar with. The Object that has taken over the factory now is the famous 'Lophiomus'."
"Lophiomus? Why is Lophiomus, which fell into the Songpa-gu sinkhole, suddenly here...?"
"Of course it's not that Lophiomus. But the Object in the factory could be called a Lophiomus subspecies, as it resembles that Object."
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Watching the Reaper's antenna swaying like a tail, I countered,
"Didn't the Gray Reaper already defeat Lophiomus before?"
James shook his head vigorously and said,
"The Lophiomus subspecies that has occupied the factory now is a much more threatening creature compared to Lophiomus itself. And like Lophiomus, even if it can be exterminated, there is another problem."
"Is there a problem other than extermination?"
"Let's recall our objective. Exterminating Lophiomus is not the goal. Retaking the factory is the goal. Did you forget what happened to Songpa-gu when the Gray Reaper dealt with Lophiomus?"
"A sinkhole was created. Ah, so the factory will collapse."
"Exactly. If that happens, even if the extermination succeeds, the retaking will fail."
It was a logically valid point.
But in fact, our opinions didn't really matter much.
The Gray Reaper's antenna stood up straight, seeming to lose interest in our conversation.
Tak tak~
And the Reaper began moving forward with those cute footsteps.
I pointed at the Reaper's figure.
"We have no choice."
James picked up his bag and started following behind the Gray Reaper.
The timid-looking man also tagged along behind James.
"Boss? Shouldn't we escape first without it?"
The man let out a flustered voice as he watched me and James following the Reaper.
"The factory is still too dangerous for that. Since there are quite a few rabbit dolls left, we have no choice. In fact, we don't have a choice."
Dejected by James' ominous story, the timid man had no option but to trudge along behind us.
***
James POV:
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Clutching the bag containing Book Zero tightly, we advanced towards the center of the factory following the Gray Reaper.
The deeper we went into the factory, the thicker the unpleasant smell of blood became.
It was as if an interior had been arranged to intimidate anyone entering.
Things like human intestines and flesh were hung everywhere our eyes could see.
The ones where flesh was thinly spread out and arranged into patterns looked like grotesque tapestries.
I was admiring it in my own way.
"Remarkable."
The rabbit dolls were mere robots, yet they had distorted themselves and constructed this interior with some sense of aesthetics!
It was something I could never have expected.
Was there a lack of consideration for the designed robots?
Or was it caused by that black liquid that contaminated the rabbits?
The interpreter had turned deathly pale, making an expression like he was about to faint.
It seems he'll faint again soon.
If he faints, I'll have to carry him and run again this time.
When we arrived at the logistics warehouse where the pudding was packaged, what greeted us were torn pudding boxes.
The boxes had spilled their contents all over, scattered around.
All the puddings had been ripped open and splattered on the floor, trampled with rabbit footprints.
Those traces made me feel rabbits' hatred for the pudding.
The Gray Reaper stopped walking and looked down at the massive amounts of pudding ruthlessly discarded on the floor.
Oh-Yerin was stroking the Gray Reaper with a worried expression.
Something's strange.
The Gray Reaper was expressionless for sure, but it looked extremely sad.
Is this a kind of mental contamination too?
Instead of the spilled pudding containers' contents, they were filled with mangled chunks of flesh.
The Gray Reaper, looking extremely enraged, raised its head.
Looking around, the rabbit dolls had already surrounded us.
As the rabbit dolls charged with glowing eyes, the Gray Reaper spread its arms out to the sides.
At the same time, Golden Reapers spread out in all directions.
The small, plump, hopping, bone-leaving-no-remains vicious swarm of golden locusts rushed towards the rabbits.
***
Yerin POV:
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All the rabbits making human pudding were dead.
It was a moment of victory, but the victors, the Golden Reapers, looked rather sad instead.
It was quiet around, but full of wailing.
Because the Golden Reapers were endlessly shedding tears while looking at the human puddings.
They all sat down in front of the pudding containers, unable to even touch them, just crying.
Their crying was so sorrowful that it made me uncomfortable.
"There, there. It's okay."
Since their crying subsided a bit when I stroked them, I went around stroking the Golden Reapers' heads.
Unlike those Golden Reapers, the Gray Reaper had its gaze turned towards the sky, looking at something.
What is it looking at?
I also looked up at the sky following Reaper's gaze.
There's something there.
Something seems to be floating high near the ceiling, bobbing up and down?
Surrounded by bubbles, flying through the sky....
Pudding?