episode_0327

“On the day of the promotion test, the task of capturing the ‘original’ begins.”

I think about it sometimes.

How did it turn out like this?

When you feel that things are going differently than you initially thought.

People often wander around trying to find out why the water stream is twisted.

It’s different from regret.

Because I don’t know why.

A vague sense of unease, not knowing where things went wrong.

It makes people retrace their steps.

… … .

‘Ah… I want to go home.’

Affiliated with the Hunter Association and Potion Dispensary.

A woman who was nicknamed ‘Flounder’ by her colleagues because she always lived her life being mindful of others.

She too looked back on her past and fell into deep doubt.

Back in March of this year, when ‘Haljami’ first started working here… I felt like I had the world.

Friendly boss, state-of-the-art facilities,

There isn’t much work that pays a high salary.

It felt like there was a lot of money left over, since it was the place where the famous [Galaxy Potion] was invented.

I was proud of myself for getting in despite the crazy competition.

I thought that from now on, only a field of flowers would spread out before my eyes.

No it wasn’t.

Wow!

The sound of a glass bottle breaking.

Some people say that sound is cheerful.

‘Flounder’ also had similar thoughts.

Until a shard of broken glass stabbed her cheek.

Chaeng-geurang!

The pharmacist’s office is dark with the lights off.

‘Flounding’ closed his eyes as the glass test tube flew towards his face.

I heard the cheerful sound of glass breaking,

He brushes away the shards of glass that have settled on his shoulders like dandruff with a familiar gesture.

She, a B-class hunter, was not injured when she was hit by a glass bottle.

If you time it right and use ‘Body Strengthening’, you can even block a kitchen knife.

It just makes me feel bad.

I know you’re going to throw a glass bottle at someone’s face.

She lowered her head and looked around with her eyes wide like a flounder.

“Haa…! Haa…!”

The person who threw the glass bottle… is a man who appears to be in his early 20s.

An ordinary-looking young man, but with a hunched back like an old man.

He swears and pulls out his shoulder-length hair.

“Do you think I’m getting paid to do this kind of work?… Flounder Researcher.”

“Yes, Chief Jojesil.”

“Say that again.”

The young man called the pharmacist speaks.

The messy office seemed to reveal his mental state, and on the only intact table was a trophy lined up with ‘test tubes containing red liquid’.

An antique wooden table.

The head of the pharmacy, his anger suppressed, carefully picked up one of the test tubes on the table.

‘Chief Jojesil… You look younger than the last time I saw you.’

‘Flounding’ and the chef sit at a long table between them, as if they were drawing a line between them.

Even though they were having a conversation, the young man didn’t even glance at her… ‘Flounding’ quietly lowered his eyes.

“… … Let me say it again. We have been out of contact with [the facility] for several days. The staff who went to check on us have not returned…”

Chaenggangㅡ!

Another flying test tube hits his head.

This time, ‘body strengthening’ is delayed, and blood flows from the torn forehead.

I think he’s good at throwing without even looking at me.

Why can’t you just take off your clothes and go play baseball?

I think about it like that.

‘What on earth does that facility do… I guess only the team leaders know about it anyway.’

[facilities].

Instead of an externally clean potion dispensary,

A secret research facility that does ‘what needs to be done’.

The [facility] is also trying to restore the eternal life project of the now-defunct ‘Hanbit Orphanage’, but there has been no result even after several years.

Who would have thought that an orphanage survivor would have amnesia?

[Facility] was supposed to be put in there, but Chief Ko Young-in opposed it, saying it was a human rights issue, and in the meantime, that monster bitch Ban Harin stepped in and started protecting it, which is why it ended up here.

Nothing works out.

It was as if something invisible was interfering with his plans at every turn.

The head of the pharmacy thought so.

“Haa… Next is ‘original amount’, then [facility]. How much money has been allocated to [facility] so far. Why is this happening…”

Now, even [the facility] has lost contact.

The sight of him mumbling while pulling out his hair is disgusting.

‘Flounding’, who had been hit by a glass test tube, wiped the blood flowing from his forehead and held back a sigh.

Why is a new employee who started in March of this year being subjected to emotional abuse in the head of the pharmacy’s office?

Because her boss dumped the work on her.

At the boss’s words that reporting is also work, I was pushed into the pharmacist’s office.

So I’m getting hit with a glass bottle instead of my boss’s son.

“Director of the pharmacy.”

At that moment, the office door opened and a middle-aged man came inside.

The team leader of the department next door.

He glanced at the ‘flounder’ with its forehead torn in a glass test tube, then walked past it as if it didn’t exist and approached the compounding manager.

“Next month’s promotion exam, ‘Wonak’ has submitted his application. It’s a C-level exam.”

Original.

A term referring to the hunter who became the raw material for [Galaxy Potion].

Are they plotting something again?

The head of the pharmacy flinched and clenched his fist.

“… … Original. My original… What’s on the test?”

“C-class is a written test, a basic physical test, and then a [Crack Field] survival test. Randomly out of the three [Crack Fields] designated by the association…”

“Catch him. Catch him and put him in [facility].”

It is a promotion exam hosted by the association.

Unlike the previous [Cheorwon Crack Field] where they tried to kidnap the ‘original solution’, this is a stage where the potion dispensary, which is part of the association, can intervene at any time.

The pharmacist looked down at the wrinkle-free back of his hand and lowered the corners of his smirking lips.

An eerie laugh.

A smile that looks dangerous, like someone who has no future.

“It should have been like this from the beginning… It’s been dragging on for 3 years… Now, it’s time to put things back the way they were.”

The middle-aged man who finished the report looked at the pharmacist with displeasure…

Looking at the sight of the young man who had become the director of the pharmacy, I absentmindedly touched my wrinkled face.

There were no longer any moral humans here.

They just fade away or fade away together.

“… … Then, let’s go and draw up a detailed plan.”

“I’ll go help you too, so hang in there a little longer. Once the ‘original amount’ returns to its original place, I’ll prepare it for you to use first.”

“Yes!”

The departing footsteps grow distant.

The ‘flounder’ left alone.

“… … If you have nothing more to say, then go.”

“ㄴ, yes! Thank you! ”

She hurriedly left the place at the congratulatory address of the pharmacist, who was in a good mood.

In the end, only the forehead was torn by the glass bottle.

… … .

… … .

Belonging to the Potion Dispensary [Material Supply Team].

A woman who is teased and called ‘flounder’ by others.

Her job is to check and classify the ingredients that come into the potion lab.

… … .

‘Three boxes of demon blood, two boxes of solvent, and one and a half boxes of purgatives… These came from the hunting guild. Today is the day to make the antidote potion.’

Time goes by.

I think it was from May.

The supply of materials for [Galaxy Potion] has stopped.

The head of the pharmacy, who had always been kind to his employees, began to get a little angry.

Eight employees from a neighboring department entered the [Cheorwon Crack Field] and went missing.

… … .

‘2 boxes of demon blood, no solvent… Are you only planning to make the minimum quota today?’

Time goes by.

A steady downhill slope.

Employees disappearing one by one without a sound.

The voices of employees are reduced.

… … .

‘3 boxes of blood, 1 box of solvent… Sent from a place called [Facility].’

Time passed.

[Galaxy Potion], whose materials were depleted, eventually entered the process of discontinuing production.

And soon after,

Chief Ko Young-in brought in something called [Eun-gang Potion].

Now the potion dispensary has lost its presence and is like an empty castle blowing in the wind.

… … .

‘2 boxes of blood, 1 box of internal organs. 3 boxes of solvent… This time, they were sent from [Facility] again. No matter what ingredients I use, they can’t keep up with [Galaxy Potion].’

Time just passed.

Now I don’t know what’s what.

How did it turn out like this?

Where did it go wrong?

I couldn’t figure it out.

… … .

“Hey, flounder. You go to [the facility].”

And, finally,

Only time passes by,

It was his turn.

“Team Leader… Do you really have to go? The employees you sent earlier aren’t coming back either. I told you something happened…”

“So you’re telling me to go check it out? Should I, as the team leader, go? Anyway, these days, they talk back… Tsk tsk tsk.”

I lived a life of being pushed around.

‘Flounding’ headed to the [facility], unable to resist the team leader’s orders.

Boohoo…

I drove a passenger car.

A potion dispensary located near the Hunter Association’s Seoul headquarters.

From there, all the way north… in the mountains bordering the border,

There was a villa that had lost its owner.

“Is this it… It’s really scary. Isn’t there a ghost? It was really bad to send him alone because there was no manpower.”

Arrived with an anxious mind.

‘Flounder’ got out of the car and approached the villa.

Squeak…

The villa was in ruins.

The pillars were sharply cut off, and the villa collapsed like dominoes, burning down and leaving only ashes.

Abandoned cottage.

One day, Kim Ha-yang, the leader of the [Changcheon Swordsman] guild… arrived at the place while chasing after the sponsor of the orphanage.

Did you bury the ‘non-human’ in the villa?

Knock knock.

‘Flounding’ pushed the floor of the cottage’s barn to the side,

I went down to the basement through a hidden staircase.

… … .

In a hunter society where skills exist, creating underground facilities was surprisingly easy.

The further down you go, the more your breathing becomes rapid.

‘Floundfish’ went down the stairs with heightened alertness.

Footprints remain in the dust accumulated on the stairs.

Traces of those who came to check out [the facility] before her.

But there are only footprints going down the stairs,

There is no return.

Finally, ‘Floundfish’ came down the stairs, unlocked the tightly closed iron door, and went inside.

Rattling!

She entered the [facility].

The first thing I noticed was the numerous fingernail marks carved into the back of the iron door.

And the traces of someone filling the area around the only entrance.

Could it be that the iron door didn’t open?

But [the facility] is as quiet as a mouse.

Where have all the people who created these traces gone?

‘What is this? The air is cold… Is it because it’s underground?’

Fingernail marks on the wall. Footprints from spilled coffee.

Fortunately, there are no visible bloodstains.

[Facility] There are so many traces inside…

The stairs that ‘Halibut’ came down from were covered in dust.

She was reluctant to step inside [the facility] and was loitering around the entrance.

Blinkㅡ.

At that moment, the lights came on in the laboratory located in front of the iron gate.

There was a person.

It was so quiet that I thought no one was there.

‘But it’s still strange… Let’s call the team leader first.’

Beep-.

The ‘Flounding’ employee took out his cell phone and called the team leader.

The dial rings for a few seconds, and an irritated voice greets her.

– Oh, why? [Facility] Did you arrive?

“Team Leader! There’s something weird here! I can’t do it alone!”

– What? It’s a place that supplies potion ingredients, so what’s strange about it?

The team leader’s voice, which is usually annoying, is especially welcome today.

She mustered up her courage and stuck her head inside the iron door, suppressing her surging emotions.

“It’s too quiet!”

The sound of a pounding heart is loud.

I was prepared to run away at any moment and reported the strangeness of [the facility] to the team leader.

A very quiet underground research facility.

There are more than one or two suspicious parts.

“There’s coffee spilled on the floor. But only the liquid remains, and it looks unnatural, like the cup has been put aside…”

Knock. Knock knock.

A coffee-stained paper cup rolls in from around the corner of the hallway.

“… … There are sounds, but I can’t hear a single footstep even when I listen closely…”

Crunch. Crunch.

I can hear footsteps moving down the central corridor.

“… … … Oh, the air is… so cold…”

Wheeingㅡ.

The air conditioner installed in [the facility] is running, emitting warm air.

“… … On the hallway bulletin board, there is a strange ‘guide’ posted.”

As if, after a quick cleaning,

As if I was putting back the awkward parts one by one.

It wasn’t just the team leader on the other end of the phone who was hearing the woman’s voice.

Glance…

Roll your eyes.

Like a flounder.

Eventually she was able to discover it.

A view of the research facility beyond the iron gate, through the hole in the floor of the central corridor,

The passage leading to the basement.

There’s another basement in the [facility] that went down underground.

I couldn’t understand.

‘Floundfish’ looked at ‘that thing’ that looked exactly like the entrance to the basement of an orphanage.

“And…….”

– Hey, flounder. Why did you stop talking? So what do you want me to do?

“… … I want to go back.”

I kept my mouth shut.

I rolled my eyes like a flounder and looked around.

Crunch. Crunch.

The sound of footsteps moving around.

A paper cup rolling on the floor,

The sound of the air conditioner blowing.

However, there is still no sign of a person.

I don’t have the courage to enter the [facility], so I back away from the iron gate.

“Team Leader… This is really not right. Please let me go back.”

“Wait a minute. Wait a minute.”

“I told you it’s scary, Team Leader…!”

“Wait a minute! It’s definitely here somewhere… Ah, I found it.”

and,

The team leader speaks.

“Don’t worry, flounder. I found something useful.”

“What, what is that?”

“Guide to living together. I’ll read it to you. You have to be careful with paragraph breaks.”

The team leader says.

Not over the phone,

In the laboratory directly ahead, where the lights had been flickering earlier.

“Come in.”

Bam!

And then someone pushed my back.

The ‘flounder’ that was pushed forward enters the [facility].

Rattling!

The iron gate closes.

… … .

… … .

… … Sagakak.

Sagak.

Sagak.

sound.

The sound I hear.

“ㅡㅡㅡ! ㅡㅡ!”

The sound of nails scraping against the iron door from inside.

Sagak.

Sagak.

A dusty staircase with only footprints going in and no trace of returning.

Sagak.

square……

The door is,

It didn’t open.

… … .

… … .

『There is something called an ant hell. It is called hell because ants cannot fight off predators with their own strength. It is best to avoid hell.』

Until the promotion exam next month,

A little further ahead.

“Oh… why don’t you just flood the anthill with water?”

“I can’t have a serious conversation with you.”

Hot and sour.

Eunha returns from [Changcheon Sword Song].

She was touched by the soft cheek of the pumpkin bee ‘Fly’,

I had a cozy time touching the cheek of [Bug Princess] sitting on my lap.

Sagak-.

The sound of insects’ footsteps flows leisurely,

It was a peaceful day.