Ch.37Timeline

A massive mechanical device located on [Floor 13A1].

Researchers in white coats were busy with final preparations.

“High drug compliance and low tolerance.”

“Memory erasure and self-awareness cleansing complete.”

“Brainwashing complete!”

“Now proceeding with self-awareness check!”

The Professor quietly observed the device.

A machine that craves human suffering instead of bringing desires into reality.

A man in white approached the Professor and reported the progress.

“All recovery agents have been transported. Brainwashing was perfectly executed, and we’re now in the final inspection phase.”

“Good work.”

Like a symbol of the imminent transformation, a massive gear rotates.

The Professor closed his eyes and liberated his consciousness.

As always, a familiar vision of the future unfolded before him.

Released anomalous entities slaughtering innocent humans.

Lakes burning, and the last fortress of survivors on the brink of falling.

Beyond that, only empty void remains.

Humanity’s story ended in defeat, soon to vanish without a trace.

Complete silence.

The sound of the target sobbing mixed in.

“Huu…hic…”

Step.

Step.

The Professor approached the target with slow steps.

The target hung their head low, hiding their expression with their hair.

Rustle.

An old, wrinkled hand brushed aside the young, flowing black hair.

“What is your purpose?”

“Don’t know, hic! I don’t know.”

“Your name?”

“……I don’t know.”

“Then tell me what you’re supposed to say.”

The target’s vacant eyes stare at the mechanical device.

“Chains…”

“More specifically.”

“I want chains that can bind those who stand behind the door.”

Whatever they are called, names don’t matter.

What matters is knowing about them, being able to bind them with chains, and wanting to bind them with chains.

The Professor continued asking.

“How much do you want?”

“I want one link…hic. I don’t want more than that.”

“Good. After you get on the machine, just say that.”

A particularly loud researcher announced that the time had finally come.

“Chen-Morgus procedure ready!”

Those bound in chains are seven in number.

They were also teachers and enemies of all things. They establish rules through inaction.

They know how to live without being bound to anything, playing above fate, continuing life without depending on space and time.

The entire universe is me, and I myself am the universe. What need is there for principles and order?

Thus, the first being realized something, tore his flesh, carved his bones to make links, and melted his tendons to make glue, binding them firmly together to form a massive chain.

He drove six pillars into the bodies of his six brothers and bound them with chains, which they could not break free from.

The Professor silently watched the entire process.

First, the brainwashed target. A frail girl, naked, sits in a rectangular area on the left side of the machine with her hands clasped.

“I want…one link of the chain…”

Thud.

A piece of metal dropped in the right area.

Two researchers rushed to pick it up.

“First attempt! One link recovered!”

“Good. Prepare the recovery agent immediately.”

The researchers prepared for the next step as they had been trained.

After a brief interval, a terrible scream echoed through 13A1.

“Aaaaargh!”

The girl’s shoulder down to her arm had cleanly disappeared.

The naked girl thrashed about in a pool of blood flowing from her body.

“Huaaak. Haak. Aaaaargh!!!”

“Administer recovery agent.”

The damaged body restored incredibly quickly.

The researchers applied a gel-like dark red “recovery agent” to the wound.

The blood bubbled, and new flesh grew immediately.

“Second attempt!”

“Chain…I want one…hic. One link.”

This time, her lower body completely disappeared.

“Aack!!! Huaaaaargh!!!”

“Administer recovery agent.”

“Third attempt.”

“……I want one link of the chain.”

“Cough, kuhak…!”

“Recovery agent.”

“Is this the 4th round now? Starting immediately.”

“You…bastards…”

“Administer one dose of amnestic and check brainwashing status.”

“Aaaaargh!!!”

Watching the entire process, the Professor muttered to himself.

Who knew it would be this valuable.

A being with almost perfect anomalous resistance.

A human with the highest level of anomalous observation aptitude, able to access almost all information.

Is that what it takes to produce just one chain link?

A female researcher made her presence known.

“Professor. Please provide your interim assessment.”

“Hmm…it seems the recovery agent can maintain the target’s condition stably. It’s heartbreaking, but unavoidable.”

“How should I note the future direction of the experiment?”

“Procedure would be a more accurate term than experiment.”

“Yes. Understood.”

“The goal is to continue securing chain links to create a complete chain. That way, we can rebind the released entities and prevent humanity’s extinction.”

“All confirmed.”

“And one more thing.”

“What is it, Professor?”

“After completing this procedure, I plan to hand over the target’s identity to the Foundation. With both resistance and observation aptitude, they would be helpful in investigating many anomalous entities.”

“Understood.”

The researcher noted down everything the Professor said and left.

Left alone, the Professor shifted his gaze around, eventually looking at the left corner of the machine.

Broken letters gathered to form meaning.

[Cost] ↔ [Request]

The first sentence.

Content that anyone with top 1% observation aptitude could see without difficulty.

Traces of people using the machine could also be found.

However, not many people can read the second sentence.

This is probably why the traces suddenly stop.

[Exchange efficiency may vary according to individual value.]

And the final third sentence.

No one has ever read this. He is the only one who can read it.

[Requesting something that doesn’t exist in any worldline may lead to unexpected results.]

What does this one sentence mean?

This machine doesn’t create something new.

It takes something that exists elsewhere and brings it into the current reality.

“Starting the 5th round. Researchers, please prepare.”

“Please…I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry…save me…”

“Administer amnestic and verify brainwashing again.”

“No. Please. No!!!”

“Starting 5th round again.”

“……”

“Verify brainwashing,”

“I want it. Chain. One link…”

“Retrieve the link. Administer recovery agent to the target.”

“Hic. Nnnngh.”

Another chain link came over.

The Foundation doesn’t know.

This isn’t for binding.

Rather.

It’s for liberation.

“What’s this.”

The Professor hurriedly checked.

The appearance of is not visible.

There’s no either.

Causality is being erased.

“How?”

transmitted the final information

Now the researchers would notice something wrong

Confusion spread among the people.

“Experiment aborted! Higher-ranking personnel evacuate to the main base first!”

“Experiment aborted!”

The Professor watched the confusion with a hardened face.

What he had seen in the future was clearly destruction.

But not like this.

Something unrelated to the recent procedure, his goals, or his plans was erasing the story.

The Professor thought.

I can clearly foresee the future, so how did this situation happen?

Why has a future he couldn’t see appeared?

The answer, surprisingly, was in the elevator.

[ARRAY]

[Set coordinates here. A-Z]

[Set floor level here. 0-]

[Set timeline here. 0-14]

A bit more.

Yes.

There were a few more sentences below.

[Requests or queries without authorization may be rejected.]

[Caution: Input content will be combined and reflected according to specific rules, regardless of order.]

Just a bit more.

The answer is here.

[Time interference cannot affect higher narrative layers.]

“! Quickly !!!”

was covered by a black box.

Black flames were burning the entire floor.

Everything was disappearing in an instant.

The Professor put his hand to his forehead and sighed.

The target they had secured had brought something from outside the apartment.

It had taken a piece of the more terrible destruction scheduled for the future and transported it here.

That’s why this timeline is collapsing. It’s becoming as if it never happened.

Seven.

Everything back to normal.

When he opened his eyes, the Professor was in his office.

Ahem.

Someone was clearing their throat outside the door.

The Professor, with his back to the door, looking out the window, responded briefly.

“Come in.”

The man did as told.

“Professor. We just completed the recovery agent acquisition operation. The number of sacrificed personnel is 13.”

“I know.”

“We’re also tracking the woman you mentioned. We should be able to secure her soon.”

“……”

“Um, Professor? Is there a problem?”

“No. It’s nothing. Just keep up the good work.”

“……Thank you.”

***

I returned to the 7th floor.

As soon as the elevator doors opened, the first person I encountered was Heo Yoon, who had come out after hearing the sound.

“Dabin? What’s this. Where have you been?”

“Ah……”

“What’s wrong with you? I’m asking where you’ve been? I don’t think I saw you leave. Did you sneak out somewhere alone!”

With my mouth half-open, holding back tears,

I could only say one thing.

“Thank goodness.”

“……What are you saying? Hey. Wait a minute.”

Heo Yoon grabbed my arm and used it to wipe my eyes.

“Wipe your tears. Come in first. We were just about to gather for a meeting, and Daju was looking for you for a while.”

Room 701.

I felt happy but also dumbfounded.

Did everything really return to the past?

This simply?

Everyone is safe.

Seok Hyunmin. Heo Yoon. Daju is fine too.

As I awkwardly entered the apartment, I made eye contact with Choi Serim again.

“Dabin.”

“……”

“Remember what I told you before?”

“Huh? Which one?”

I was startled for a moment.

Was there something she told me at this time?

I thought it was about being careful around Yoon Daju…

Choi Serim smiled gently and spoke quietly.

“Again. From the beginning.”

“Ah……”

Does she know everything?

“It couldn’t have been easy. And it wasn’t a trivial matter either.”

“What? No. It was resolved more easily than I thought. I went to the 6th floor and that…”

My heart swells.

The others look at us strangely.

“There was a characteristic about timelines so…”

“Dabin.”

“Yes…?”

“What I mean is, now there’s only one you here.”

Isn’t that obvious?

“What do you mean?”

I asked with wide eyes, but Choi Serim just smiled without answering.

“Only you could have done it.”

My head fills with question marks. What is she talking about? How does Choi Serim seem to know everything? Endless questions arise.

And then at some point.

Blink.

My memory became hazy.

After being momentarily dazed, I came back to my senses in Room 701.

“Huh?”

It’s morning. Did I walk through the corridor while drowsy because I woke up too early? My memory is extremely fuzzy. Come to think of it, I think I heard there was a meeting yesterday…

Before I could grasp the situation, Choi Serim placed her hand on my head.

Pat pat.

“Um, sis…?”

“Well done.”

“What? What did I do well all of a sudden?”

“Nothing~ Just saying, Dabin.”

Hehe, she laughs while continuing to pat me.

Pat pat.

A pleasant scent tickles my nose.

Is this what they call the scent of life?

An extremely calming and comfortable feeling…

Before I knew it, I had closed my eyes.

“Sis……”

“Well done.”

“Well done, Dabin.”