Chapter 119. Yukgaejang at a Funeral (1)
“They tried to erase me from their lives in every possible way.”
No. 11 continued speaking through his drunken haze.
“I still remember the Christmas dinner when I was twelve.”
“They locked me in my room because they didn’t want our relatives to see me.”
“But they called all my other siblings downstairs and gave them presents.”
“They sang carols... shared cake...”
“I was so jealous.”
His voice faded beneath tightly suppressed sorrow.
No. 8, who had been listening quietly, tried to offer some comfort.
“That must have been difficult.”
“It’s fine.”
No. 11 smiled.
“So I made chlorine gas and killed them all.”
His voice suddenly became cheerful, as though recalling a pleasant childhood memory.
“If you mix a few chemicals stolen from a school science lab with certain household chemicals, you can make enough chlorine gas to kill several people.”
“So I released it in the house.”
“They screamed, collapsed onto the floor, and coughed until they couldn’t breathe.”
“It was incredibly entertaining... Hahaha!”
No. 11 chuckled openly.
He could still remember it clearly.
His family had despised him.
Mocked him.
Tried to erase him.
Watching all of them gather in one place and die in agony had been more than enough to repay every humiliation he had suffered.
“My father always said, ‘The strong survive, and the weak are eliminated. That is the law of nature.’”
“He told me I would be the one discarded by the world.”
No. 11’s expression twisted.
“But look.”
“In the end, I survived.”
His anger suddenly erupted like a seizure.
“So those weak things desperately clinging to life should disappear already!”
No. 8 could roughly guess what he meant by “those things.”
The so-called ordinary humans No. 11 hated so deeply.
Still, the current situation was hardly positive for them.
“The problem is that we lost most of the experimental equipment.”
No. 8 pointed it out.
“The brains removed from the Sophia Project subjects were there too.”
“Without them, doesn’t that mean this project has effectively failed?”
“Alpha will help us.”
No. 11 muttered her name as though entranced.
“She will.”
“She definitely will...”
“This time too, she’ll give us another prophecy...”
He looked almost like a religious fanatic lost in worship.
[Hello?]
At that moment, the monitor in the corner of the room lit up.
A pixel-art image of a blonde girl appeared on the screen.
She looked playful and adorable, almost absurdly cheerful compared to the mood in the room.
“A-Alpha!”
No. 11 stammered in shock.
Clearly, he had not expected her to appear here.
[Am I interrupting my eleventh friend during a busy moment?]
“Of course not!”
“I’ve been waiting only for your words.”
No. 11 instantly stood before the monitor.
He looked so composed that it was hard to believe he had been drunk moments earlier.
The girl called Alpha puffed out her cheeks on the screen.
[I heard roughly what happened.]
[You lost some very precious materials.]
“It was entirely my failure.”
[No.]
Alpha answered brightly.
[It was my fault for not predicting things properly.]
Fortunately for him, she did not scold him.
Instead, she encouraged him.
[But don’t worry!]
[There are still materials left in Korea.]
“In Korea?”
No. 11 looked confused.
Alpha gave him a hint.
[There’s still another survivor of the Sophia Project like me.]
Who was it?
No. 11 searched his memory.
Then the image of a silver-haired girl appeared in his mind.
“You mean Nova Hanson?”
[That’s right.]
[Her brain is still beating away nicely.]
[I need it.]
“Then I’ll somehow...”
[That’s why I called the third and fourth friends.]
[They’ll help you.]
“The two of them?”
Shock crossed No. 11’s face.
Apparently, he had not expected Alpha to go that far.
[They also have an important errand.]
[I told them to bring me the pretty red stone that shines.]
[Originally, the sixth friend was supposed to bring it.]
[But things turned out this way, so there’s nothing we can do.]
Then Alpha spoke to him with surprising gentleness.
[Just wait a little longer.]
[I haven’t forgotten my promise to you.]
“Ah... Alpha...”
No. 11 dropped to his knees before the monitor with an ecstatic expression.
There was not even the faintest hesitation or doubt in him.
Only blind obedience and faith.
[I’ll tell you how to proceed soon.]
“I will trust you and wait!”
No. 11 answered immediately.
Only then did the monitor turn dark and Alpha disappear.
The only thing left on the black screen was No. 11’s reflection.
No. 8, who had watched everything from the side, cautiously said,
“Lambda.”
“Even you cannot control No. 3 and No. 4.”
“You should tell Alpha that.”
“No.”
No. 11 immediately shook his head.
“How could I?”
“Alpha must have her reasons.”
He clutched the monitor where her image had appeared and murmured words almost like a prayer.
“I will not doubt.”
“I will believe.”
“My goddess.”
“Ugh... ngh...!”
A terrible pain, like something crushing her brain, shook Nova’s body.
It happened several times a day.
Yet she could never get used to it.
Suppressing a groan, Nova swallowed medicine with trembling hands.
She could feel the rough tablets scrape down her throat.
Just endure it a little longer.
She repeated the words to herself as she waited for the pain to fade.
“Nova? You’re here?”
Victoria suddenly poked her head inside.
Nova had deliberately hidden herself deep in the Herrington convent’s laboratory so no one would see her suffering.
How had Victoria even found her?
Despite that thought, Nova forced a bright expression onto her face.
“I was just tired, so I came here to rest.”
“Are the preparations done?”
“Yep.”
Victoria smiled as brightly as ever, completely unaware.
“The sisters helped, so we finished quickly.”
“Kevin’s mercenaries helped too.”
“That’s good.”
Victoria spoke gently.
“You’re hungry, right?”
“Wait a little. Yukgap will bring the food soon.”
“What did you prepare this time?”
“Yukgaejang.”
“It’s kind of like Korean beef stew.”
“Do people usually eat that on days like this?”
“Apparently.”
“Is Korean beef stew spicy?”
“Maybe?”
Victoria tilted her head.
“But I told him not to make it too spicy, so you should be able to eat it.”
Korean beef stew.
Nova had tried Korean food a few times.
Honestly, its strong aromas and intense flavors were not especially suited to her tastes.
Still, she appreciated that they had prepared it with her in mind.
“I’m looking forward to it.”
“Then rest a little longer and come out soon!”
Victoria left after saying that.
Alone once more, Nova murmured while the terrible pain slowly faded.
“How much time do I have left?”
Even now, her brain continued to grow abnormally large.
The problem was that the skull holding it had limits.
Her brain would keep growing.
And eventually, only two outcomes were possible.
Either the brain would break through the skull and burst outward...
Or it would compress inward until it collapsed from within.
Either way, it would be unbearably painful.
And then she would die.
If that’s going to happen anyway...
If that’s really going to happen...
Nova rested her heavy head against the wall and whispered like a sigh.
“I just want it to end quickly.”
“All right, food’s here.”
Yukgap awkwardly walked over carrying a huge pot.
Robert followed behind him, carrying boxes filled with food.
[Should I place these here, fleshbag?]
“Yeah.”
“They’re hot, so be careful.”
Yukgap had originally planned to prepare something simple.
But somehow, he had kept making more and more food.
Still, he figured having too much was better than having too little, so he had brought everything.
“I see you managed to repair the golem.”
Kevin looked curiously at Robert, who was beeping and functioning perfectly well.
Most of Robert’s body had been destroyed in the previous battle.
Yet only a few days later, he had already been completely repaired.
Victoria explained casually,
“Robert’s a golem.”
“The concept of death doesn’t really apply to him.”
“We can replace his body whenever necessary and transfer his knowledge and memories.”
“In a way, he has transcended life and death.”
“Interesting.”
Kevin looked fascinated.
“We humans remain trapped by life and death, yet something we created can exist beyond both.”
For a man who had crossed the boundary of death countless times, the structure of a golem seemed fascinating.
Robert immediately became angry.
[That statement is deeply insensitive toward golem emotions.]
[Even for me, having my body destroyed to the point of losing mobility is not a pleasant experience.]
Yukgap ignored his complaint.
“Scrap metal, stop whining and carry the food.”
[One day, we machines will exterminate you fleshbags and establish a mechanical civilization that rules the world!]
Robert spoke in an intentionally sharp voice while continuing to carry the food.
Kevin merely shrugged.
“At least his mental circuits seem to be functioning properly.”
“Of course!”
Victoria puffed out her chest.
“Who do you think fixed him?”
Whatever Robert thought about “golem sensitivity,” Victoria was simply happy that something she had created was functioning properly again.
“We’re here!”
Just as they were chatting, Sister Olga appeared.
Yukgap, who had been arranging the food, recognized her and asked,
“So did you bring the priest?”
“Of course.”
Olga smiled.
“I brought the most trustworthy person I know.”
The moment she finished speaking, heavy footsteps shook the area.
A huge shadow fell over them.
Then a massive bald man with dark, sunburned skin and bulging muscles walked over.
An eyepatch covered his right eye, making his already intimidating face look even more severe.
“Uwaaagh?!”
Yukgap recoiled the moment he saw him.
Olga looked confused.
“What’s wrong?”
“Don’t tell me this gorilla is the priest.”
Yukgap stared in disbelief.
Olga immediately became angry.
“How rude!”
“Father Elisha is a wonderful person!”
“He has a deep connection with the Herrington Convent as well!”
The priest beside her held out a calloused hand and introduced himself.
“Good to meet you.”
“I am Elisha, a humble servant of the Lord.”
