NOVEL NEXT Chapter 18
Episode 18
It seemed the threat of death was genuine, as the Cube began to shake.
Yu Da On was the first to stand up and pointed towards the exit with her finger.
“That way!”
Debris was pouring down like crazy, and as Jang Chae Yeon flailed her arms to block it, stones crumbled and fell to the ground.
—Boom!
The exit of the Cube was about to collapse, and Yu Da On jumped in, bracing herself against the falling debris.
There was a sound from her body that shouldn’t have come from a human, but she ignored it and turned to look at us while Jang Chae Yeon waved her hand to push the rubble away.
“Are you okay?”
“Not yet! Just move forward!”
Yu Da On shouted as she hurried ahead.
As we escaped the Cube, what lay before us was a collapsing city.
Buildings were crashing down with a deafening roar, falling into an endless pit from which ominous black light was spilling out.
Where should we go?
Cross this crumbling building? That would be insane.
Neither Yu Da On nor Jang Chae Yeon were superheroes from a movie.
If we got trapped under the debris, we would die without a doubt.
—Thud…
The entrance of the Cube collapsed behind us, and Yu Da On and Jang Chae Yeon were both looking around in panic.
Surely, they were thinking the same thing as I was.
Have I missed anything?
The Cube’s problems—something I was overlooking.
The sound of destruction echoed, indicating that time was running out.
I desperately scanned the surroundings.
Soon, the boring explanation of the Cube that I had seen countless times appeared before me.
[Name: Cube]
[Age: Year of Manufacture XXXXXXXXXXX]
[Specialty: Reality Alteration and Absorption]
[Talent: X]
[Background: The Cube created from that far-off place possesses the ability to alter and absorb reality. It is still unclear whether it absorbs by altering reality or changes reality by absorbing. Currently, what has been absorbed by the Cube is a city.]
[Vulnerability: //////////////////]
The weakness was still nowhere to be seen.
Thinking alone in a situation like this yielded nothing.
Quickly, I looked at Yu Da On and Jang Chae Yeon and shouted.
“Alter by absorption, absorb by alteration! Currently, what the Cube has absorbed is a city! What’s the way out?!”
“What nonsense are you spouting?!”
“Huh?!”
Jang Chae Yeon and Yu Da On responded one after the other. They also looked puzzled.
“Quickly!”
—Boom…
The sound of something crumbling grew louder.
“I… I don’t know…!”
Jang Chae Yeon shook her head with an exasperated expression.
“No, what do you mean by ‘absorb’ and ‘alter’—are you a vacuum cleaner?!”
Then, Yu Da On clutched her head with both hands and screamed, “Aaaaah!”
Wait, a vacuum cleaner?
[Currently, the Cube has absorbed a city.]
“What happens if the vacuum cleaner gets full?!”
“Have you lost your mind, Kim Jae Heon?!”
“Hurry!”
“What are you asking for?! You need to empty the trash bag!”
Yu Da On shouted back, and suddenly a ridiculous hypothesis popped up in my head.
The Cube alters reality by absorbing it.
By absorbing this city, reality is altered.
Conversely, if reality is altered, does this city get absorbed?
So how does it get disposed of when emptied?
Does it just fall into a void of nothingness?
Even so, isn’t ‘packaging’ needed to drop it into the void?
When we empty a vacuum, we don’t just dump it on the floor—we empty it into a trash bag first!
What if this action is a process to dispose of the trash at once?
How can I survive during that process?
“A hole!”
“Excuse me?!”
I gazed at the sinking buildings.
“We need to make a hole in the trash bag to escape!”
“What on Earth are you saying?!”
“We have to sink together and then get out!”
Yu Da On’s expression turned to one of horror.
“Is there any basis for that?!”
“No! But besides this, I can’t think of a better way!”
Please, someone come up with a better idea than mine.
“Ugh, fine! …Alright!”
But it seemed there was no one like that.
Yu Da On clicked her tongue and grinned fiercely as she rolled up her sleeves.
“…I believe in you.”
Then, Jang Chae Yeon muttered quietly, standing still, looking at me.
“So, we just wait for it to sink like this?”
“Exactly.”
I pulled out a handgun from my jacket.
[Critical: 1]
“I’ll shoot and share my vision, so Chae Yeon, you tear that place apart with all your might.”
“Got it. Even if it means I die, I’ll do it.”
“Don’t die, okay?”
Jang Chae Yeon nodded calmly.
“What should I do?”
“If we’re lucky enough to survive, then Yu Da On, please retrieve the Cube. It definitely won’t want to be retrieved quietly.”
“Understood.”
Yu Da On nodded.
—Boom…
The ground began to crumble beneath us.
“Whew…”
My heart raced with tension.
If my thoughts were wrong, we would be heading straight for the afterlife.
Actually, I might be thankful for going to the afterlife instead.
I took several shuddering breaths.
I glanced at the other two.
Yu Da On was stretching, while Jang Chae Yeon stared blankly at the falling ground.
I felt like I was the only one tense here.
“…It’s coming.”
Jang Chae Yeon murmured softly.
The ground started to collapse rapidly.
Soon, with a sense of weightlessness, the three of us fell into an endless darkness.
My mental preparation was already complete.
I lifted the handgun I grasped in my hand and narrowed my eyes.
[Critical 1 -> 0]
Once again, the world slowed, and a small red light shone from the floor into my eyes.
—Bang!
In a daze, I fired my gun and prepared for my next move without delay.
[Coordinate Tear – 2 left]
This time, the world transformed into a grid.
I looked at the spot I had shot with the gun earlier.
Once again, it was crumpled like wrinkled paper.
I quickly pointed my finger at that spot, and Jang Chae Yeon took a deep breath, glared at it, and extended her fist to punch it hard.
Blood started to drip from her nose.
—Boom!
With the sound of a balloon bursting, our bodies were rapidly pulled toward the source of the noise.
I looked at Jang Chae Yeon.
She was bleeding but nodded at me,
I looked at Yu Da On.
With a thumb up, she seemed to say, “Just trust me,” as she fell downward.
Then Jang Chae Yeon followed suit, and I fell last, as though being sucked in.
—Thud!
“Oof!”
As my back hit the ground, the impact knocked the breath out of me.
I coughed repeatedly and sat up, refreshing air filling my lungs as I took in my surroundings.
The hotel that had just collapsed and the familiar scenery surrounded me.
It seemed we had somehow escaped.
But that was not everything.
Sure enough, at the corner of my vision, I saw the Cube floating ominously with a strange hue.
In that moment, someone zipped past me.
It was Yu Da On.
With agile movements, she dodged the falling stones and ran towards the glowing Cube.
Then, in an instant, the Cube glimmered oddly and shot a beam straight through Yu Da On’s forehead.
Without even a scream, Yu Da On collapsed into the air.
The Cube spun in the air as if to taunt me.
“Was that fun?”
But I just sat there and did nothing.
—Wiggle,
Soon, Yu Da On twitched a few times and then stood up, reaching out to grab the Cube.
The Cube trembled in her grip as if startled, but Yu Da On held it firmly with both hands.
—Boom!
After a few movements, the Cube exploded in her hands, and thick smoke billowed up.
“Da On!”
I rushed towards her, holding back the rising cough, only to be relieved as I saw Yu Da On emerge from the smoke looking unscathed.
“This thing explodes, huh?”
With her hands blackened, she held the Cube, which vibrated a few times in her grasp before settling down.
Her hand returned as if reversing time.
“…Oh my.”
Seeing that, I just collapsed onto the ground.
“Are you okay?”
“My eyes hurt.”
“My hands hurt. I just had an explosion, you know?”
“That’s a joke, right?”
“I also have a nosebleed.”
Yu Da On looked down at me, and soon Jang Chae Yeon also walked over, looking down at me too.
“…Can we please take a break?”
In conclusion, we were once again taken to the Management Agency with great care.
*
“Hey, you really don’t want to work for the Isolation Team, right? If you tempt me this much, I can’t help but be confused.”
“Please stop with the insane nonsense. Who in their right mind would shorten ‘Human and Isolated Object Incident Response Team’ to ‘HR Team’?”
“What a shame.”
The man in sunglasses, whom I had met last time, sighed heavily while tossing the Cube up and down.
In my view, that was a bomb, but for him, it seemed like a toy.
“Before we talk about the Cube…”
The man clasped his hands and looked at me.
“The Management Agency has decided to reward you for resolving this incident.”
A bag was presented before me.
“Ah. I’ve decided not to accept anything from the Management Agency anymore.”
“Open it up.”
In the end, I had no choice but to open the bag, and seeing the bundle of cash inside, I could only lower my head deeply.
“I just did what I had to do.”
Loyalty to the Management Agency.
Love for the Management Agency.
Eternally together with the Management Agency.