Chapter 120
In a gray room, Iris, Noah, Jess, Nero, and Lily lay bound on beds placed at regular intervals. Gags were shoved in their mouths, and magic-sealing collars were fastened around their necks.
‘This is all my fault…’
Tears, she couldn’t tell how many, streamed down Lily’s cheeks.
‘If I hadn’t been taken hostage…’
Jess, known as the Red Queen, the Iris who had toppled an arena, the Noah who had awakened and become several times stronger, and Nero, who had trained for a long time under that Noah.
The fact that they were all easily caught by the enemy was partly because Lily was a hostage, but there was another reason.
“Oh? I thought at least a limb would be missing… but you’re all much better off than I expected.”
A man with slightly curled mustaches quietly stepped into the laboratory. He stood next to their restrained beds, and after the researcher who was writing something bowed respectfully, he spoke in a polite voice.
“They’re of excellent quality. Hard to find materials, even if you throw money at them.”
“Even if they’re defective products, they can still fight on par with combat weapons. It’s only natural.”
The mustached man grinned, showing his teeth.
“Lucky for me, very lucky. Just as we’re wrapping up the experiment, top-notch materials like these come in.”
With a sinister smile, he tapped the edge of Jess’s bed like playing a piano. Jess’s pupils dilated in response.
“Grrr…”
As she made a growling sound, the man’s laughter deepened, akin to a housewife admiring fresh vegetables or fish.
Gazing at Jess with a sinister smile, the mustached man suddenly twirled around and asked another researcher.
“How many expired specimens do we have?”
“At least over ten.”
At that, the man’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Are you saying all ten were disposed of by them?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Wow…”
The man blushed as if facing his first love, giddy with excitement as his mustache twitched uncontrollably.
What they were researching was a type of combat weapon stronger than an imperial knight.
A mass-produced combat weapon at the knight level. Just the mention of it smelled of blood.
Perfect results inevitably require lots of trial and error. Defective products arose during that process, and Noah’s group fought against those defective products.
No matter how defective they were, they were still results at the knight level.
They would be somewhat troublesome, but not terribly so. The problem lay in the number of defective products.
‘Those horrific things were defective products?!’
Noah recalled the dreadful creatures that had surged endlessly like waves. Those ‘things,’ in various forms like beastmen, monsters, and humans, were strong enough to defeat even Nest executives with one hand.
The reason they were caught was not only that Lily was taken hostage but mainly because of those creatures that kept emerging.
Noah bit down on the gag, deep in thought.
‘I can’t just sit here and become a human test subject. I need to find a way out of here.’
As Noah’s thoughts sparked, the mustached man approached him.
“Huh, I see you have resolve. Planning to escape, are we?”
“…!”
“But you’d better drop that thought.”
The man’s eyes, now close-up, were filled with madness.
“You’ve fought personally, so you know best! The power of ‘Invizel,’ the Demon King’s ultimate weapon! Each drop of your blood will be used for that final weapon!”
He began to shout passionately only to switch to a chillingly soft tone.
“Ahh… Now you understand, don’t you? How great you are going to become.”
Noah fought back nausea, shutting his eyes. He didn’t want to look into the eyes of that filthy man any longer.
The man, completely worked up, started to murmur about the greatness of the specimen ‘Invizel’ like a chant.
“Even if you stab its heart or behead it, it won’t die, and it can use any weapon with finesse. And yet it’s so loyal without a single wit!”
As the man’s words continued, the other researchers’ eyes turned red with excitement as they imagined the glorious path lying ahead of them.
“That noble -…”
Just as the man was about to deliver yet another praises,—
Bang!
The firmly shut laboratory door swung open violently, crumpling at the seams. A blood-soaked, pale-faced researcher rushed in.
“…! What’s going on!?”
The atmosphere shifted, and the man’s face turned cold as ice.
“R-run… ah…!”
The researcher couldn’t finish his sentence before collapsing forward. His eyes rolled back, and his body went completely still. He had simply breathed his last.
The atmosphere in the lab became as chill as a morgue.
“Get a hold of what’s happening and report back immediately!”
“Understood!”
They left Noah’s group behind and exited the lab in perfect order. The mustached man also quickly followed them out.
Soon after—
“AAAAAAAH!”
“D-don’t come any closer! AAAAAAH!”
Horrific screams erupted from beyond the shattered door. The bound group could only swallow dryly, forced to listen to the brutal sounds.
Time slipped by.
“Oh dear, not here either?”
A woman’s voice rang out. Everyone turned their attention to the latest arrival, a beautifully dressed lady, her waist-length dark blue hair, and azure eyes striking.
The elegantly dressed woman was anxiously checking her wristwatch. The problem was that her fists were drenched in blood.
“Oh no… I can’t be late. This stain just won’t come off.”
She pulled out wet wipes from her small bag and tried to clean the bloodstains on her clothes, pouting in frustration when it wouldn’t come off.
“Oops! There are others here! I don’t know why you’re tied up, but I can just ask you!”
With that, the woman stepped closer to Noah.
“Excuse me, which way should I go to get to Bucheon Station?”
As a flood of incomprehensible information hit him, Noah’s brain froze.
“Ah, you don’t know? W-well, what should I…?”
“Ugh! Ow!”
Regardless, there was no other way to escape this predicament but through this woman, so Noah spoke in desperation. Surprised, the woman gasped.
“Oh! I just realized you have a gag in your mouth! Can I help you?”
When Noah nodded, the woman closed her eyes tightly and swung her clinched fist down onto the edge of the bed, shouting.
“Hey!”
Crash!
The bindings, including the bed, shattered into pieces and scattered across the floor. Noah, stunned, looked up at her.
“Uh, so how do we get to Bucheon Station now…?”
Just then, the woman’s face began to melt away unexpectedly. Noah stumbled back in horror.
Splat!
The woman liquefied, spreading across the floor as if someone had spilled water. She was unable to withstand the blood of the Gag Residents.
“What the..?”
The shape of the flowing woman seemed eerily familiar. It resembled how the ‘defective products’ had dissolved when they were defeated.
‘That could have been a disaster…’
It finally registered with Noah that the woman, whom he couldn’t understand, was actually a product of the experiments.
‘We need to get out of here as quickly as possible.’
Why she took on that form, why she had helped him, and why she suddenly dissolved—all those questions swirled in his mind, but now wasn’t the time. Noah hurriedly began freeing the others tied to the bed.
*
At that moment, Lian had finished getting everyone out and had ventured deep into the laboratory searching for Noah, only to find himself lost.
“Where on earth am I now…?”
Given the chaos in the research facility, Lian could wander around without running into any researchers.
The specimens feeding on Lian’s blood were rampaging. Still, Lian couldn’t help but wonder where he was.
He decided to wander around and try to catch a researcher to introduce to the Demon Sword.
[ Partner, I sense several presences through that door over there. ]
Lian followed the direction the Demon Sword pointed and moved straight toward the firmly shut door. Just when he was about to open it, he stopped in his tracks.
‘Gargandoa, does it really have to be this way?’
[ If we get out of here, who knows when I’ll get a chance to shine! I just want to show off my magnificent self… cough, I mean, your great self! ]
The reason he halted was because the Demon Sword was taking control to show off its stylish moves like it did against the giant spider. Lian could reclaim control easily if he wanted to, but since the sword was just about to whine, he sighed and let it take the lead.
The sword, filled with enthusiasm, began to move Lian’s body elegantly, paying attention to every little detail.
The Demon Sword had passed through the hands of many, some of whom held noble status.
Thanks to those memories, Lian moved with all the elegance of a noble scion. Even the subtle smile he wore resembled that of an aristocrat always hiding behind a mask.
Click.
As a researcher rushed out, the unlatched door swung open smoothly, and Lian stepped inside with a composed stride.
“…! Who are you?”
Inside, assistants handling the tasks turned to Lian in alarm, but upon seeing the clearly noble appearance, they cowered like lambs.
There was one more person equally shocked.
“Y-Your Excellency?”
The knight from the Duke’s House, trapped within the glass room, was left aghast at the sight of Lian’s face.
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