Ch.23Knowledge is Poison

Seok Hyunmin placed his foot on a protruding part of the spire.

Clank.

Metal fragments fell from inside the rounded pile of debris, but the overall structure remained solid.

It must be sturdy enough since someone was sitting cross-legged up there.

Plus, the gravity in this space was like being on the moon—his body felt light. Even if he fell, the impact wouldn’t be too severe.

He grabbed the metal pipe above and climbed the tower like he was scaling a rock wall.

“Phew.”

A difficult and precarious task.

Just now, his foot had slipped, and he nearly fell.

Glancing down briefly, he could see Yoon Daju fidgeting anxiously.

“Oppa… just come down.”

Am I doing something wrong?

“I said come down!”

“Just be quiet for a bit! I need to check something!”

Right. He just needed to verify something.

Though he wasn’t sure what it was. But he had to see it clearly.

Having made his decision, Seok Hyunmin grabbed the satellite wing section firmly and pulled himself up.

Crack.

Suddenly, the entire tower shook, and a white afterimage brushed past Seok Hyunmin.

A spacesuit covered in dust.

The helmet reflected starlight, and through it, empty eyes were visible.

Inside the torn spacesuit were pipe-like tubes packed tightly.

The cross-legged posture collapsed, and the astronaut fell with arms hanging limply.

Thud.

The universe trembled.

“Stop it now! Something’s not right!”

Yoon Daju was on the verge of tears.

“What did you see up there? Weren’t we originally here to find supplies?”

“I don’t know. I saw something, and I need to see it. With my own eyes.”

Seok Hyunmin muttered quietly, then slowly looked up.

The sky viewed from here was different from the one seen from below.

In the empty night sky of space, something vibrant was now writhing.

Its appearance was so lovely and comfortable that it was unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable unbearable

Seok Hyunmin’s body had once precariously relied on a few metal pieces, but not anymore.

As if by miracle, he found a place to sit atop the tower.

Time to embark on a journey.

Everything changes and has no distinct form.

If so, perhaps chaos is the true nature of all things.

The spacesuit enveloped his body.

Crash!

“Come down, you crazy bastard!”

Screaming, Yoon Daju tore at the metal tower.

Metal pipes and plates fell with a clatter.

“Come down!”

But the spire was so massive that this wouldn’t be enough to bring it down.

Yoon Daju closed her mouth and began to think coldly.

Should I climb up and pull him down?

No. That’s too dangerous. Both of us could get hurt.

Then should I throw the fallen metal pieces to hit him?

There was no time to deliberate.

A spacesuit that appeared from somewhere was quickly enveloping Seok Hyunmin’s body, already covering him up to his waist. She had the feeling that if the helmet covered him too, something terrible would happen.

Clang!

The first attempt failed.

She narrowly hit the solar panel next to Seok Hyunmin.

Again.

Thwack!

This time she hit her mark. She had worried because the metal piece was quite heavy, but that was a foolish concern.

Even with blood flowing from his torn head, Seok Hyunmin didn’t open his eyes.

“Damn it…”

The spacesuit was gradually taking over its host’s body.

Yoon Daju crouched down and wailed.

“…What am I supposed to do! What do you want me to do?”

Above her head, something writhed vividly in the void. It seemed like some kind of consciousness.

Suddenly, streams of starlight poured down, and the spire vibrated.

No. More precisely, the ground was shaking.

“What am I supposed to do!!!!”

After screaming wildly, she suddenly froze. A soft, warm sensation on her shoulder. Yoon Daju slowly turned around.

“…Oppa…?”

“Go press the elevator button.”

“Huh?”

Sniff.

“Then what about Hyunmin oppa?”

“We’ll take him with us, of course.”

* * *

Only Seok Hyunmin and I remained.

As I slowly approached the spire, letters appeared before my eyes.

■ ■■■ ■■■

■ ■ ■■■ ■■ ■■■■ ■

■ ■ ■■■ ■■■ ■■■ ■■■ ■■■■

Broken letters filled my vision.

I already knew what they were from my phone.

– It’s probably a Memetic Kill Agent too

– Not made by humans, but something older

– To be precise, Memetic Kill Agents copied these things

■ ESC■■

■ ■

■APE■

■ ■ ■

■■ ■

■

I ignored all the occasional visible letters.

Curiosity is the bait they most like to use.

■curiosity ■■enlightenment■reincarnation ■■■■ Memetic Kill Agent ■ ■

■seven■ ■truth■

“……”

– Me: Is there a way to decode it?

– You need to bring them back and erase the memory of seeing it

– But the problem will be bringing that person back

– It’s like trying to take back prey that’s almost completely in its mouth

■

■

@@@@@19)BodyGalleryUserCleavageVerification3SecondsDeletion@@@@@■■■

■■■■■■■■■

■ ■■ ■■

“Wow.”

For a moment my eyes were drawn to it, and I was almost in danger. I could have been caught up in it too.

I needed to ignore such temptations as much as possible and find and read its essence.

– Since it’s an information lifeform, it will be shocked if its main body is observed

– Being observed itself means it’s being interfered with

– Me: ? What does that mean?

– Don’t you know the uncertainty principle? Are you a liberal arts major?

– Me: Even arts majors know it’s stupid to apply quantum mechanics to everything

– It would be easier if you approached it similarly, but you can’t, idiot

It’s much harder to try not to see something than to try to see it.

And searching for the content I wanted while doing so consumed tremendous mental energy.

■■■■■■■■■■■■

■■■■WORM■■■■■

■■■■■■■■■■■■

“Found it.”

I could recognize it at a glance.

The feeling hit me immediately.

As soon as I read those four letters inside, the spire collapsed.

The spacesuit turned to dust and scattered, and the cross-legged mummy fell to the ground and rolled.

Rumble-

“Huh!?”

“Get up on your own!”

Well, I’ve done my part up to here.

Leaving Seok Hyunmin, who had opened his eyes with a start, I tried to leap sideways to avoid the falling debris.

No. More precisely, I tried to, but my body wouldn’t move properly.

I’ve seen dozens of Memetic Kill Agents here.

I could endure them because I strangely had high resistance. Anyone else would have been captured immediately after seeing just one.

Now… I suddenly feel dizzy and like I’m going to die. The warmth under my nose suggests I’m having a nosebleed too.

The ground is shaking so much that it’s hard to stand, and to me, everything seems to be spinning.

And that thing. Isn’t it falling right next to me?

Crash!

I dodged the debris as I fell.

Looking up at the sky by chance, I saw three metal pieces casting shadows toward me.

A hand suddenly shot out from the side to shield me from them.

“Take my hand! Quickly!”

“Huh… who’s helping whom… this is ridiculous!”

“I’m sorry, so let’s go!”

I got up holding Seok Hyunmin’s hand.

No. To be precise, I was clinging to his entire body for support.

My body won’t move properly.

My words keep getting jumbled, and above all, my head is so light that I can’t think straight. Like being drunk.

Ah. It’s annoying to lean on a man like this.

If this situation had to happen, I wish I could have gone with Choi Serim unnie… tall, pretty, chic, with dark circles under her eyes, just my type…

“Unnie… heuung…”

“What are you saying?”

“I’m dizzy…”

I squinted and looked around.

“Oppa! Over here!”

Yoon Daju hurried out of the elevator and helped support me.

“Is she okay?”

“She’ll be fine after a while. But who is this person to you… to my oppa…”

“She seems drunk. Are you okay, mister?”

“Yes. I’m sorry about this time. You were shouting in front of the tower, right?”

“What else could I do but shout? You should bow to Dabin oppa later, and don’t talk to me anymore. I’m exhausted.”

“Is Yoon Daju sulking?”

“No! *cough* *cough* I’m not sulking!”

With that memory, drowsiness suddenly overwhelmed me.

“Ugh…”

When I opened my eyes again, I was on a bed.

The dazed feeling was completely gone, but I had a terrible headache. My stomach still felt bad too.

As I left the room, I could hear two people murmuring outside.

“Still, what we found out for sure this time is that she’s not an ordinary kid. She probably just gets a little sick even when exposed to top-grade Memetic Kill Agents?”

This voice was Seok Hyunmin’s.

“I get that, but what I’m asking is! You, Seok Hyunmin! If you’re okay? I’m not blaming you for almost dying after going to an unknown floor!”

This was Heo Yoon.

They probably took care of me while I was sleeping, but the atmosphere seemed somewhat tense.

“Just answer me straight.”

“Of course I’m fine.”

“I don’t think so, which is why I’m saying this. You’re not usually this talkative. You don’t usually work this hard either.”

“Maybe I’ve come to my senses this time?”

“They say people change when they’re about to die. Above all, what’s with the sleep-talking about ‘reincarnation’ and whatnot?”

“How would you see me sleeping, noona?”

“…What?”

Heo Yoon was momentarily flustered.

“Just answer my question.”

Ah. Right.

I came out to the living room and shared what I had learned in a voice still groggy from sleep.

“They say we need to erase his memory.”

“Huh?”

“If we don’t erase his memory, he’ll go back to that floor and die.”

“Who says so?”

“This.”

I took out my phone and showed them.

“An AI made by the Foundation.”

“Wait a minute. Hey!”

Heo Yoon frowned and shouted.

“This is a Memetic Kill Agent.”

“A Memetic Kill Agent?”

“Yes. Don’t you feel dizzy looking at it?”

That’s right.

This is why I hadn’t told anyone else.

Maybe I was still half-asleep, or perhaps the effects of the Memetic Kill Agent lingered. I felt a bit dizzy.

“Ah. It is one itself… but we can still get information from it. It was trapped in a network created by the Foundation… but noona, you know about the Foundation too?”

“Roughly.”

Waving her hand dismissively, Heo Yoon changed the subject.

“Continue what you were saying earlier. What do you mean we need to erase his memory?”