episode_0022

Apple pulled a cushion over and sat across from Club.

She placed Number 13’s smartphone, which Club had entrusted to her, on the table.

“As you instructed, I tried to check the contents of this smartphone, but it seems a highly skilled individual has placed a strong protection on it.”

“Ah… that’s right. There’s definitely an excellent genius scientist in the villain organization [Abyss]…”

Club recalled the stories of the old Abyss remnants she had interrogated previously.

Although the hideout they eventually confessed to after resisting for so long was already completely abandoned, and it was impossible to know where the remaining members were now.

At the very least, she knew their descriptions and characteristics.

There were four remaining members in Abyss now: the woman called the boss, Number 13, the strategist, and the genius scientist named Dorothy.

Perhaps the woman Club had missed recently, the short-haired woman with dark circles under her eyes, was that genius scientist. Club had clearly heard Number 13 call her that.

‘…I let an important one get away….’

A feeling of regret resurfaced, but there was nothing she could do.

“――So―――first of all――”

Apple’s explanation continued.

There were many unfamiliar terms, but it wasn’t as difficult to understand as she had thought.

Anyway, there was a protection that even someone as skilled as Apple couldn’t overcome, and if they tried to forcibly extract the data, there was a possibility that everything inside would be formatted.

So, they had to proceed more carefully, more slowly… that seemed to be the meaning.

‘……Huh….’

‘Why is it… my head feels… a little heavy…?’

Was it because she was listening to something a little difficult? Or perhaps the fatigue from the commotion that day hadn’t fully worn off yet?

Even though she knew it was impolite, she felt a little dazed… her head felt heavy… and sleepy….

“Club-ssi, you like this kind of drink, don’t you? …You can have more. There’s plenty.”

“Ah… yes…”

Club nodded blankly, and Apple took the empty cup from her hand, refilling it with a fresh drink.

Mixing in ice――and some strange, unknown liquid, cleverly, out of Club’s sight.

“Here, Club-ssi. There’s plenty, so drink as much as you like. It’s good to drink it cool and gulp it down.”

Apple smiled kindly and said that as she handed the drink to Club.

Following that, some explanation continued, but for some reason, her head felt hazy, and she couldn’t properly hear it.

‘I have to drink it… I have to drink it… because she told me to…’

‘Ah, delicious…’

* * *

…………………………… ………………… …………

Club sprang up from her seat. As her body rose, the blanket covering it slid off.

At some point, she had apparently fallen fast asleep on Apple’s bed.

“Are you awake, Club?”

“Apple-ssi… I, surely not…”

“Hehe, it seems you were a little tired.”

Club felt her face flush instantly.

Good heavens. It seemed she had fallen asleep while listening to Apple’s explanation. She couldn’t lift her head from embarrassment and apology.

More than anything, Apple, who was smiling as if not at all angry about this situation, was truly amazing. Because of that, her embarrassment only grew greater.

“I’m sorry. I, I don’t know. How I fell asleep… How long was I asleep?”

“About 30 minutes. And it seems the drink I gave you had a bit of a strong alcohol content. If I had known you were weak to alcohol, I would have been more careful.”

“No, that’s… Agh…”

This shouldn’t be happening. Club wasn’t good at drinking, but she didn’t think she was particularly weak either.

But even if she wanted to argue, looking only at the result, she had indeed gotten drunk and fallen asleep…

“…..?

Suddenly, she felt a little strange in her body. Like she had a slight fever. And as if her skin had become more sensitive.

Had her condition improved after waking up? She felt a little more energetic… and refreshed…

‘Why is it? My underwear feels a little… stifling….’

“Club-ssi, do you like cats?”

“Huh? Oh, yes. I do. I have four of them back at my family home.”

Suddenly, Apple changed the subject, and Club diverted her attention from that strange feeling. Apple was holding a book titled ‘Cat Rearing Methods’ or something similar in her hand.

“Are you planning to raise a cat? Pets are allowed in the base dorms, so I think it’s fine.”

“Hmm. That’s right. But the one I want is a rather large cat.”

? When it comes to cat sizes, aren’t they all pretty much the same?

Anyway, she likes big cats. It doesn’t quite fit her gentle appearance, though.

“After taming it a bit, it’s quite cute. I think I’ll be seeing it often from now on, and I’m already looking forward to it.”

“…? I don’t quite understand, but is that so?”

Taming? Is she talking about a stray cat? …I always wonder, I really don’t know what this person is thinking.

In any case, the matter with Apple concluded that way. Although she had fallen asleep, there hadn’t been much important content anyway, and it seemed all she needed to know was that they failed to obtain information.

By the way, she had expected a little something.

It was a shame there was no result.

“Huh…?”

Club, who had left Apple’s room and returned to her own, somehow noticed a slight stain remaining on her underwear.

Her genitals also felt a bit stifling and unclean. She didn’t quite understand what had happened to her body, but she also felt a little bit, somehow, aroused.

Ultimately, that night, she ended up masturbating rather thoroughly for the first time in a while. She came three times… whereas normally, once was enough.

* * *

……………………… …………… ……

Squeeze squeeze.

“Alright, shall I go out?”

Similarly, at the 7th Unit’s base. Evening time.

Having finished dinner a short while ago and waited for it to digest, Spade finished preparing to go out while tying her shoelaces.

The outfit she was wearing was her favorite crimson short-sleeved, short-pants tracksuit.

She was about to go for a jog, which she never missed unless she had patrol duty or other errands.

“Ah, Senior-nim, are you going out now?”

“Yeah. Exercise. Club, do you want to come too?”

“I’m on patrol today.”

Even if she didn’t have patrol, she had no intention of going along.

Spade’s jogging was quite rigorous to simply call it jogging, so after joining her once last time, Club had never gone with her again.

It didn’t matter anyway, as she was used to running alone.

Spade left the 7th Unit base alone, without any particular disappointment.

* * *

The night air was cool and felt good.

Until recently, it had felt rather chilly, but now, though cool, it wasn’t cold even in short sleeves and shorts.

It was perfect spring weather, but thinking that in just a few more weeks it would be full-blown summer made her feel a little regretful.

“Hoo, hoo, hoo, hoo….”

With regular breaths, Spade ran down the dark street in an exemplary posture that looked like it belonged in a textbook.

With every stride, Spade’s healthy body stretched forward, scattering drops of sweat.

Having finished her meal and waited for it to digest, it was already quite late… and there weren’t many people passing by on the street.

If she went towards the bustling downtown area, people would still be walking around noisily at this hour, but there was no need to run on such a course for exercise.

‘Here… left.’

An Awakened’s body is fundamentally stronger than that of ordinary people.

The magic power received from their constellation permeates their body, maintaining it in a healthier, more ideal state than ordinary people, though there are individual differences.

Therefore, Awakened individuals’ appearances are inevitably maintained more beautifully than ordinary people.

It’s difficult to accurately determine whether that’s due to the Awakened’s own desire, or the constellation’s inherent will to keep the human they chose beautiful.

‘Here again… left… then right….’

‘Past this alley….’

Spade ran steadily, moving forward through a dark alley with no streetlights, relying only on the moonlight.

She had passed not only the bustling downtown area but also ordinary urban districts and entered a dilapidated neighborhood, which was no different from the remnants of the ‘Great Disaster’ that had occurred in the past.

No one should be living in this abandoned street, but occasionally, vagrants with nowhere to go secretly settle down and live there.

Although Spade was a hero, it wasn’t a suitable place for a young woman in her prime to wander alone…

Thump thump thump thump thump

Skid…!

Pant, pant, pant, pant, pant…

Spade, who had been running without slowing down, came to a graceful halt in front of a certain abandoned building, dragging her feet lightly.

She placed her hands on her knees, caught her perfectly accelerated breath, and subtly looked up at the building before her.

“Ar…rived?”

She murmured to herself without realizing it.

Even as she did so, her oxygen-deprived mind blankly pondered.

…………Huh.

……Why did I come to a place like this?

* * *

Clank――

Creeeeeeak… Thud.

‘……What is this place….’

‘For some reason… it feels familiar….’

Spade, despite her nervousness, entered the abandoned building she had arrived at.

It was clearly an abandoned building no matter how she looked at it, but surprisingly, it didn’t smell particularly dusty.

No, rather, seeing the lights dimly lit here and there, could this really be called an abandoned building…?

‘But how do I know this place?’

She felt a little strange. And also this current situation, where she had entered this suspicious building, seemingly possessed and defenseless.

Although Spade was an A-class hero and capable of dealing with any sudden situation, she was being excessively careless.

Clink, clink, clink, clink…

Despite feeling strange, Spade’s feet moved naturally, ascending the rusty iron staircase.

It was supposed to be an abandoned building, but there were no significantly broken parts to be seen.

The places where windows should have been were almost entirely blocked with iron plates, to the point that no wind blew in, making it feel cozy.

Of course, with only very sparse lighting, the surroundings were completely dark… making her feel a little scared…

‘No… I should be scared, that would be normal….’

Yet, strangely, she didn’t feel scared.

Only an unusual sense of nostalgia and déjà vu.

She had definitely thought it was a place she was seeing for the first time… but she knew this place well.

‘Right, it wasn’t the first time.’

She had definitely come here many times.

Why…? But why are her memories hazy…?

Clink, clink, clink, clink

Clink…

“Ah…….”

She ascended the rusty iron staircase, where sounds echoed, and arrived at a certain floor.

What she saw straight ahead was a heavy-looking door.

Other places either had no doors at all or they were open, but this door alone was tightly shut. What’s more, it felt strangely new.

Right, surely beyond this…

Spade, who had been staring at the door for a moment, swallowed once.

As if possessed by something, she walked straight forward… and opened the door.

Beyond the door, then,

“You’re finally here? I thought my neck would break waiting for you, Spade.”

In that space, barely 8 pyeong wide, within.

The villain Number 13, whom she ought to hate, was lying on a bed looking at her smartphone.

She greeted Spade, who had just entered the room.