KEG 100

The last time I saw him, he was dead, his head had turned into a flower. What if he turned into a monster or went back toward the village? What would I do then?

“What’s in it for me to go with you?”

If he’s useless, I’ll discard him.

I’d already discarded him once. There was no reason I couldn’t do it again.

“…You haven’t been in the village very long yet.”

“No.”

“In that case, there must be a lot you don’t know. Wouldn’t it save time to travel with someone who does?”

That wasn’t wrong. But the bigger issue was how to trust the person who was supposed to save me that time.

“Let’s set a password.”

Won Orim was the one who first suggested setting a password.

“A password I can say whenever I start acting strangely or when strange commands come from inside my head.”

“Strange commands?”

“Yes, ever since I came here, I keep hearing strange voices in my head.”

Won Orim tapped his head and continued talking about the voices in his head.

“This is a safe and happy paradise. Increase the number of flowers wreaths. Live for the village. Things like that.”

They were words bordering on brainwashing.

With so many people lying in the fields, their bodies covered in flowers, how could this possibly be paradise?

The one who created this place didn’t build a paradise for humans. It must be their own personal paradise.

“Hahaha! Look at this! I’ve got more flower wreaths!”

“Wow~! That’s amazing! You look great!”

As I was talking with Won Orim, villagers passed by.

It was a conversation between someone with five flower wreaths and someone with ten. Their sole concern was the flower wreaths, and they didn’t say a single negative word.

“…How are you managing to keep your sanity? ”

Watching the people who had lost their minds, I asked Won Orim. If those people had gone crazy because of those words I couldn’t hear, wouldn’t it be normal for Won Orim to have gone crazy long ago?

“This is just my guess, but I think it might be because our flower wreaths are incomplete, making us a little different from the villagers.”

Won Orim fiddled with the half wreath on his head.

“Do you know why I spoke to you?”

I couldn’t guess the reason, so I just stared at him.

“That’s right, that face. That blank, expressionless face! No one in our village makes such a grim face. You stood out even from a distance.”

“Yes, I’m sorry my face is a mess.”

“Nooo~! I wasn’t insulting you~! Just look at people’s expressions!”

I focused a little harder on the faces of the passersby. Even upon closer inspection, their faces were slack, like they were high on something. Compared to that, Won Orim actually looked relatively sane.

“Tell me about ‘today’s secret phrase’ and ‘your oldest memory.’”

“I don’t know. I’m sorry.”

This time, the answer came within three seconds. It was a different reaction from the Agent Won outside the preparation room, the one who had been lying on the floor and stalling for time by asking questions.

I was about half-convinced he was still in his right mind.

“Won Orim. You’re an Esper. Can you use your powers?”

As far as I could tell, there were almost no Awakener in this village. If that was the case, the mere fact that he could use his abilities in a space like this would be a major asset.

“Esper…?”

Damn it, he doesn’t even know that?

No answer.

I wasn’t an Esper; I didn’t even know how to use abilities. I might know how to apply them, but…

“What part don’t you know? Monsters? Gates?”

“Monsters… Hmm, it kind of sounds scary…”

How the hell did that damn flower mess with this guy to turn him into such an idiot?

This village didn’t even have the most basic defense against monsters. That meant I could interpret that monsters didn’t exist here.

If there are no monsters, there are no Awakeners either.

Mana stones, guilds, dungeons, contaminated energy. A peaceful world devoid of all these things.

It was just like the world everyone longed for, the one before the Dungeon Break.

“…Do none of the people in this village have any abilities?”

“Probably not…? I’ve never seen anyone use superpowers or anything like that.”

Then that was settled.

Even if a big bastard showed up, I could just beat them down with my fists. As long as they weren’t an Esper, I could definitely take them down.

“You probably don’t remember, Won Orim-ssi, but you used to be a security guard. When you can’t remember, [Read on]just act on your body’s instincts. I’m sure you’ll fight well.”

Won Orim, a former close-range fighter, looked like someone who had trained for a long time.

No matter how the flowerd had damaged his brain, even from here, his physical strength was evident beneath his clothes. At the very least, he wouldn’t be a threat capable of tripping me up.

“I’d like to investigate that flower in the center. Please guide me there.”

At my request, Won Orim led the way to the administration office near the giant graphite flower in the plaza.

The graphite flower was surrounded by fence-like structures, making it difficult to observe up close. However, we could get close if we could just get past the guardhouse.

“Ah~ No ~ Go away!”

The caretaker sitting in the guardhouse, wearing four wreaths, blocked our path as we tried to enter the “Master’s Garden.”

“How dare you try to get close to the Master! That is sacrilegious!”

“Ah… Is there really no way? We really want to see it up close…”

Won Orim clasped his hands together and pleaded politely with the caretaker. But the caretaker just kept repeating that it was impossible.

I watched this for a moment, then looked around inside the guardhouse.

It was a simple, rough, makeshift space, like a construction site container office. Suddenly, a folding chair tucked away in one corner caught my eye.

“It’s not allowed for any reason. The Master ordered me to guard this place.”

“Is that so? I suppose everyone has different duties, then?”

“Yes, my duty is to guard this office…”

Smack!

I smashed the folding chair into the caretaker’s head.

“Ah! Ha Seongho-ssi!”

Won Orim screamed in shock. The caretaker fell face-first onto the office desk. When I placed my finger under his nose, I couldn’t feel his breath.

“Is he dead?”

“Aaaah! Why did you do that?!”

“He wasn’t making any sense.”

“Oh, come on…!”

Won Orim helped the caretaker sit and examined him from all angles. Then he let out a sigh.

“He’s not dead. His body hasn’t disappeared yet.”

“But he wasn’t breathing.”

“I don’t breathe either.”

I approached Won Orim and grabbed him by the back of the neck.

“Ah, you scared me! Why are you so rough…!”

“Don’t speak. I can’t hear it.”

I placed my hand where his pulse should have been, but I felt no beat. Nor could I sense any breath coming from Won Orim.

“There are plenty of people in this village besides me who don’t breathe or have a heartbeat.”

Is this place some kind of afterlife? Why can’t the dead just die? Why must they wear flowers on their heads and submit to the village?

The more I learned about this place, the more repulsive it became.

“I’m breathing.”

I was still breathing. My heart was beating, and the stench visit our siteof rotting flesh here was giving me a headache.

I couldn’t tell if this counted as proof that I was alive, but if I believed I was alive, then I was.

“I will not serve that repulsive flower as my master.”

I stepped forward and opened the gate of the administration office leading to the “Master’s Garden.”

As the gate swung open, I saw the same scene I’d witnessed in the ward’s hallway: a sea of black spores undulating inside. At the base of the flowers, a landscape identical to the flower field outside the village spread out before me.

So, all of that is people.

“Hey! You look like a newcomer, so don’t do that!”

“Get away! Don’t approach the Master so recklessly!”

The commotion in the office must have drawn attention; people were swarming in from outside.

“Won Orim-ssi.”

“Yes?”

I called out to Won Orim. Then I pushed him inside the administration office.

“I’m counting on you.”

Bang!

I shoved Won Orim inside and shut the door. From inside, I could hear the commotion of the crowd rushing in and Won Orim’s screams mixed with resentment.

But I didn’t have the energy to worry about it. Since he chased after me to help, I hoped he would prove his worth.

“Damn… this is disgusting.”

As I turned around to approach the giant flower, a pungent stench hit my nose.

It was an intense smell, like an awl piercing my brain through my nostrils.

“That’s…”

I saw a skeleton among the flowers. To be precise, a mummified skeleton that had been completely drained of life.

They said the 888th wreath would do this and that and leave them unable to move, but it just meant they’d die.

Upon closer inspection, I saw that the big and small flowers were connected by red fibers like nerve bundles. It looked as if they were absorbing nutrients.

“What a parasite.”

“Who are you referring to?”

Someone spoke to me.

“Are you calling me a parasite, or are you calling yourself parasite?”

I turned my head and saw a headless [visit our site]human sitting on the root of a flower, its black dress fluttering in the breeze.

“Wouldn’t the term ‘parasite’ be more fitting for you, intoxicated by the eternal life and illusions I bestow upon you?”

Black veins bulged beneath skin that was parched, pale, and devoid of any sign of life. Its hands and feet were completely black, with bones protruding in places.

Despite its flamboyant attire, it gave the impression of nothing more than a grim reaper.

“…kgh.”

At that moment, my vision wavered for an instant.

A metallic taste rose in my mouth, and I felt hot liquid trickling down my face and ears.

Fuck, that familiar, revolting sensation.