Yoo Daon smiled confidently.
-Bang!
Of course, that smile ended just as she took a body slam and went flying backward.
So that's what happens when a person gets embedded in an iron door.
Not long after Yoo Daon ended up plastered against the wall in a spread-eagle position, she let out a groan and stood back up on her own two feet.
"Even if your body recovers, that doesn't mean you don't feel the pain, right?"
"The world isn't that forgiving."
Yoo Daon staggered toward me. With every step she took, a series of cracks echoed from her body. Was she resetting her bones or something inside?
While Yoo Daon approached me, the adult form did nothing at all. It simply alternated turning what was presumably its face toward me and her.
"For now, I think I can buy us some time."
Yoo Daon stretched languidly, then interlaced her fingers and extended her arms like she was warming up before saying it.
I'd mentioned it last time too, but with her clothes in tatters like that, parts that shouldn't be visible were on display, making me wonder if it was okay to even look.
"The problem is I can only buy time. I can instinctively tell my body is recovering, but I don't think I can actually beat that thing."
"Yeah, it looks that way."
If I compared it to a game, it was like a monster with infinite health but only about 5 attack power. Talk about a total training dummy.
"But I can definitely stall it. I can at least cling to it and do something."
It was a reliable tank, sure, but that didn't mean it was without risks. It could parasitize like before, and endless regeneration didn't make it invincible.
"Either way, no harm in ending this quick."
I stared at the adult form, which remained still. Was it sizing us up?
I looked at the adult form once more.
[Name: Butterfly's Life – Incomplete Adult Form]
[Age: ? ? ?]
[Talent: Parasite Production]
[Abilities: ? ? ?]
[Background: This entity was one step away from magnificent evolution, only to have it thwarted by a mere insect.]
[Weakness: A butterfly that fails to emerge from its chrysalis on its own power is doomed to die without ever spreading its wings.]
I paid close attention to the weakness section.
A butterfly, huh.
Did that mean it hadn't fully recovered its strength yet?
I shared my thoughts with Yoo Daon, and she nodded in agreement.
I hadn't specifically mentioned seeing the weakness, but she seemed to grasp what I meant on her own.
"I get what you're saying, but we probably won't have time to think it through properly."
She positioned herself in front of me, putting me behind her.
Slowly, the adult form began to float forward. At the pace of a person's stroll.
"I'm counting on you. Roast it, fry it, do whatever—just focus on taking that thing down while I buy time. Use any means necessary."
With that, she boldly strode forward and collided with the adult form once again.
-Bang!
Yoo Daon's body smashed into the ground, but she sprang back up like a coiled spring and charged at it again.
What am I supposed to do if she suddenly dumps this on me?
I had to resolve this fast.
I had no idea how long Yoo Daon could hold out, and I didn't want to let her suffer any longer than necessary.
I pulled out the manual in the darkness.
[Employee Manual]
BB-Containment Procedures
1. If containment fails, the systems inside the containment chamber may shut down. In such cases, physically subduing the containment object is recommended.
2. Weapons for subduing containment objects are provided in each chamber, tailored to the staff member's capabilities.
To access the weapon, pull the lever near the entrance. The moment you read this, the lever will become visible to you.
Why didn't you tell me about this sooner?
I forced myself to ignore the crashing sounds and dashed toward the entrance.
Just as the manual described, a lever was now visible that I hadn't noticed before.
"Ah, screw it."
-Creak!
I pulled the lever.
Click. Something locked into place, and an object dropped from above my head.
It wasn't a heavy impact, so it felt light.
I bent my knees and picked up the item.
"...Butane gas?"
It was a canister of butane for a portable gas burner. Brand new, complete with a red cap.
"...This is the best you've got?"
I cursed under my breath without thinking and examined the butane gas.
[Name: Butane Gas]
[Age: Manufactured in the 1990s]
[Talent: None]
[Abilities: None]
[Background: This butane gas was produced in the early 90s by a specific company attempting to create infinite gas. However, they never anticipated that it wouldn't dispense gas but an unquenchable flame instead. As a result, the item is currently contained within the Management Bureau and deployed to assist personnel as needed. To use, shake vigorously, then open the cap.]
[Weakness: Shaking it too much causes the flame to shoot backward.]
...
Was this for real?
Whose brilliant idea was it to pair this with me? I work for the Management Bureau, but sometimes—no, almost always—I can't fathom what goes through these people's heads.
And if it backfires, I'm the one who burns.
Not the time to dwell on it, though.
I slowly shook the butane gas as I approached Yoo Daon and the adult form.
True to her word, Yoo Daon was holding it off with everything she had.
Whether she was blocking it or just taking the hits, I couldn't tell.
-Bang!
Yoo Daon got hurled my way and groaned as she got back up.
Her grotesquely twisted shoulder and legs snapped right back into place like nothing happened.
"Found something?"
"For now, yeah."
When I showed her the butane gas, she looked puzzled but advanced again.
"Should I hold it down?"
"It shoots fire."
"Getting burned hurts like hell."
So taking a beating doesn't? Had this woman really turned into a human punching bag?
"Just a sec."
I shook the butane gas a few times, stood beside Yoo Daon, and popped open the red cap.
-Fwoosh!
An immense wave of heat surged forth in an instant.
A blaze like an explosion. If I had to describe it, it felt like a fireball conjured by science.
The flames struck the adult form head-on as it headed for the entrance, engulfing it completely.
The adult form writhed in the fire. Its wings fluttered, its body shuddered violently—anyone could see it was in agony.
But I couldn't stop. Complacency always kills.
I roasted it with fire for another three minutes or so, until its movements seemed to cease. Only then did I close the cap and check on it.
-Sizzle...
The smell of protein burning filled the air.
The adult form was still flapping its wings in place.
The only change was scorch marks across its body.
What was terrifying was that it could still fly in that state without collapsing.
And then—
Whack!
Yoo Daon shoved me aside and vanished from my sight.
-Bang!
One wall of the containment chamber caved in, Yoo Daon's neck gripped in the adult form's hand as it pinned her there.
It hadn't been that fast before. What the hell?
"Guh, ack!"
Yoo Daon flailed and hammered the adult form's arm with her fists repeatedly, but it didn't budge an inch. It just stared at her before—
Snap.
—snapping her neck and hurling her far away.
Yoo Daon flew like a ragdoll, and before I could react, the adult form was right in front of me.
"What the—"
-Thud.
This time, the adult form seized my neck.
My breath cut off instantly, and my legs started kicking wildly without me even realizing.
Why? How hadn't it died? Did the Management Bureau screw up?
"L-let go of him...! Kyah!"
Yoo Daon, already back to normal, lunged and wrapped her arms around the adult form's upper body, straining with all her might. But a single swipe from it sent her flying off again.
She'd never been meant to beat it anyway—just to draw its aggro.
I felt the adult form's grip tightening.
My consciousness began to fade.
Was this how it ended?
Then another thought hit me.
What if the butane gas wasn't meant for the adult form?
What if it meant I couldn't solve this on my own?
In my dimming awareness, I shook the butane gas, pointed the nozzle at the ceiling, and flicked the cap open with my thumb.
-Fwoosh!
Flames erupted just like before.
Only this time, they shot toward the ceiling, not the adult form.
The fire hit the ceiling, triggering a mechanical voice from the speakers.
[Fire and containment object detected in containment chamber. Initiating forced suppression. All personnel inside must evacuate immediately. The Management Bureau assumes no responsibility for issues arising from delayed evacuation.]
-Hiss!
As soon as the announcement ended, a chill ran down my spine.
It felt exactly like the sensation from the containment control room.
Darkness fell before my eyes in an instant. When my vision cleared, the adult form's wings had already been sliced off.
Deprived of its wings, it collapsed to the floor, dropping me as well.
[Commencing containment procedures. 10, 9, 8, 7...]
Whatever this was, staying put wasn't an option.
I sprang to my feet and prepared to sprint for the entrance.
I glanced at Yoo Daon—she was unscathed and running for the exit too.
<6>
The entrance wasn't far.
<5>
I nearly tripped over the chrysalis debris but managed to steady myself.
<4>
Yoo Daon waved frantically at me from the door.
<3>
The door was right there. We'd make it.
<2>
Something grabbed my ankle, and I face-planted.
<1>
Looking back, the adult form had my ankle in its grasp and was desperately climbing onto me.
"No!"
I heard Yoo Daon's scream.
[0. Forced containment procedures commencing. Once physical access is enabled, please assist in collecting remaining debris and bodies.]
The world went black.
It wasn't that I couldn't see.
Open or closed, my eyes saw only darkness. Like someone had draped it over my vision.
-Crunch... crunch...
The sound of something being chewed echoed.
Like chewing something with a hard shell.
Occasional frantic flapping, as if resisting fiercely, but it soon faded into nothing—
-Gulp.
—followed by the sound of swallowing.
I rolled my eyes desperately. I had to think of some way to survive this.
Then, my gaze met something looking at me.
Its shape was unrecognizable, but I could tell it was smiling gleefully.
[Name: ? ? ?]
[Age: ? ? ?]
[Talent: This is fun.]
[Abilities: Didn't expect you to make it this far.]
[Background: Since it's fun, I'll let you go this time.]
My eyes began to malfunction.
Or maybe not. Perhaps it was communicating through them.
[Weakness: How about solving it with your own power next time?]
Suddenly, the pressure pinning me vanished, and the lights in the containment chamber flickered on.
Where the adult form should have been, there was nothing.
As if nothing had ever been there to begin with.
...
This time, I didn't pass out. A brutal migraine just kept me from lifting my head.
"Jaeheon! You okay?"
Relief washed over me as Yoo Daon rushed over, calling my name and helping me up.
Still, somehow, we'd survived.