An extinction-level supernatural disaster.
Se-gwang Special City.
And the sealing that deletes it from reality.
Agent Haegeum listened to our explanation with surprising composure.
Given that it was technically “Director Ho’s project,” I had hesitated whether we should tell a government operative the truth at all—but in the end, I decided honesty was better.
Better to build trust than get caught lying.
Besides, with a veteran team-leader-class agent who already understood the broad outlines from the Segwang Industrial High School incident, any attempt at evasion would probably end badly. And...
If things went well, maybe we could even get help.
When the story was finished, Agent Haegeum’s brow twitched once before she let out a sigh.
“I see.”
“......”
“The Agency... made one hell of a decision.”
“Sis, should we report this to upper command...?”
“No. Not yet.”
Her expression was complicated, but her tone was firm.
“The fewer people who know more about that ‘Special City,’ the better. If the erasure of cognition is real...”
“......”
“...Agent?”
“Nothing.”
Agent Haegeum cut herself off.
“Just remember it that way for now. ...And when you go in to explore that Special City—contact me.”
“......!!”
“In an emergency, it’s better to have at least one place you can call for help, you reckless idiots.”
“Hey—ow, Sis!”
“You’re a senior now and still dragging the kids into this kind of mess? Honestly.”
After smacking Agent Choi on the head, Agent Haegeum looked at Agent Cheongdong, who stiffened like someone bracing for impact, and instead patted him on the shoulder.
“You’ve worked hard.”
“...?!”
And finally... she looked at me.
“Agent Podo.”
......
“Are you trying to become human—or were you one to begin with?”
Multiple correct answers.
At least, I hope so.
“...Really?”
Agent Haegeum grinned.
“If you’ve got reason, communication, and compassion, that’s human enough.”
......
“Besides, you used this thing.”
She tapped the sword hanging from her belt.
The Marked Sword, after having once been wielded, no longer looked like a simple elongated silver blade to me.
That vast, uncontrollable force of damnation was burned into my mind—assuming I even still had one.
Come to think of it—
Question: State of the lost hand in Segwang High School.
“Well, the Will-o’-the-wisp’s working overtime.”
Apparently the hand Agent Haegeum now moved with was being replaced by the Will-o’-the-wisp itself.
Just like I once was.
“Then that’s enough for now. Got work to do.”
The ever-busy Agent Haegeum finally stood.
“Call me if you need anything.”
She left behind a contact number and departed.
...Looks like we’ve unlocked a new party member.
It seemed likely that during our next exploration of Se-gwang Special City, Agent Haegeum would join us.
Even though it wasn’t exactly the time for excitement, I had to calm my heartbeat a little.
And then, back in the fox counseling room, we met the rest of the existing exploration team.
“Roe Deer.”
Section Chief Lee Jahaeon had arrived and was waiting.
Since he’d accompanied us and provided major physical support during the Segwang High School conclusion, I figured that was what he came to discuss.
Purpose of visit (inference):
To share exploration results.
“It isn’t.”
Huh?
The reptilian alien muzzle, the lizard head that served as his face, curved faintly.
“Our repayment has arrived.”
“Our repayment”... meaning—
...!!
—I wish to regain a human body.
—It is possible.
That one.
My human form.
***
A short time later, following the cryptic explanation—“It may influence you”—I left the fox counseling room and went to Section Chief Lee’s quarters.
On the table, he placed the “item.”
“A requested item, in repayment.”
It was a sealed square box.
◎ Egg Mood Light ◎
That was the printed name. The front showed a cute beige, egg-shaped design—like the kind of mid-priced novelty lamp people send as a birthday gift through messaging apps.
Soft material, cute mascot-style shape.
But if this was repayment, then it clearly wasn’t an ordinary trinket.
An item.
A supernatural phenomenon classified as a ghost story, and one that would return me to human form.
And if it came from the “Cosmic Shopping Mall,” that guaranteed it wasn’t lethally dangerous.
State of 130666: Gratitude.
“Yes.”
Question: How to use.
“You can learn from the enclosed manual. Would you like an oral briefing?”
Deferred.
“Yes.”
I opened the box right away and lifted the instruction sheet lying on top.
Thank you for purchasing the Sunlight Edit Shop Egg (Continuum) Mood Light series!
This series lets you witness the growth and birth of life within the egg through the lamp’s soft light and shadows. The resulting being can be used independently.
Use the observed creature’s nerves and muscles yourself! Enjoy the wonderful special effects!
※ Caution: Never wake the result.
Ah. This one.
It hadn’t been on the wiki.
A kind I like, actually.
The sort of harmless “haunted consumer product” ghost story perfect for killing time at work.
And reading through, I could guess the type of cliché.
So it’s not just an egg-shaped lamp—it’s literally an egg where something hatches.
And whatever life grows inside it—
The resulting being can be used independently.
Use the observed creature’s nerves and muscles yourself!
—apparently I could use as my own body.
...A bit grotesque in phrasing, but still.
Given my current state, I was the grotesque one. Having survived this world of ghost stories, I could stomach worse.
Heh.
I turned the page—and a sticker blocked the next part.
Hm?
It was some kind of certification seal.
<Authentic Product Guaranteed by Delusion Home Shopping!>
Bright colors, flashy fonts—totally out of place against the manual.
So it was from that line!
That meant the effect would be dramatic. Their products always emphasized spectacular transformation or irresistible appeal.
Like that Bloodlust Aquarium I’d bought for Brown.
—Oh, I remember that, Roe Deer! Your first gift to a friend. A memorable item indeed.
—But... hm. So another item from that home-shopping program finds its way into your hands.
There was something faintly disapproving in Brown’s tone.
Aren’t they on decent terms, though?
They’re both broadcast-realm ghost stories, after all.
That home-shopping teddy bear had even appeared as a guest on the late-night talk show.
I could almost remember being the one who arranged that invitation, back when I’d been thoroughly contaminated by the show....
—Of course. TV shows and advertisements are symbiotic. Though, naturally, there is a hierarchy.
—A leading actor can’t be replaced by background props!
...So the late-night talk show was the “lead actor,” and the ads were “background props”?
—Haha, “just props,” you say? A little rough, but witty! Not wrong, either.
—Advertisements drive the viewers to stay for the next segment and fund the production of the show itself. That is their noble purpose, and as a humble host, I am grateful for them.
—However, that home-shopping program seems to have forgotten its place lately.
I... see.
Apparently Delusion Home Shopping had managed to irritate the legendary host himself.
I flipped the page before the conversation could turn into “Would you like to visit the talk show and investigate further?”
Maybe I should avoid buying from them again. But for now, let’s keep reading. I’ve waited long enough.
—Indeed, Roe Deer. I’m curious too!
Phew.
I carefully peeled the sticker off and stuck it to a blank spot, revealing the rest of the manual.
Now it was finally getting to the real instructions.
Materials required:
2 ml of blood from the organism to be cultured
3 cm of body hair from the organism to be cultured
100 ml of saline solution
Body parts of the target organism?
Hmm.
Question: Any limitation on organism designation?
“None. Do you require that the sample come from a being with specific physical traits?”
That’s the thing.
Growing someone else’s body to use it feels a bit wrong.
Whether living or dead.
I glanced sidelong at Section Chief Lee.
Come to think of it—why did I appear human in Segwang High School?
And why black-haired? The question flickered and passed, overtaken by more pressing concerns.
Using my current blood and hair is... questionable, isn’t it?
If they could even be called that—they were closer to bodily fluids and byproducts.
I certainly couldn’t go fetch the blood and hair I’d had when I was Kim Soleum.
Back when I was human, I never thought to preserve those things for later.
Even in this ghost-story reality—or rather, especially in this world—it’d be madness. Lose those, and who knows what could happen.
Of course, there might be someone crazy enough to have kept them....
......
Hm.
Probably.
Kwak Jaegang.
Looks like it’s time for another visit to the company.
***
“Employee!!”
Tap, tap.
I signaled my presence inside the transport case.
Late night. Through Section Chief Lee’s arrangement, I arrived at the research team’s office without drawing attention. Inside waited only Kwak Jaegang, face flushed red.
“Haha, how long has it been! Not since you went into the annex last time, right?”
Right.
That was when I’d met Director Cheong and nearly gotten myself killed....
And come to think of it, the one who’d tipped me off about Cheong’s arrival had been this very Kwak Jaegang.
Question: Any retaliatory measures from Director Cheong?
“Eh? Oh, me? Hahaha! My, that’s thoughtful of you to worry... Nothing serious happened.”
Hm.
“Superiors like that tend to leave dutiful researchers alone. It’s just how they are.”
The way he smiled—eyes gleaming with the single-minded mania of a scientist who saw nothing but his work—made it clear. If his research weren’t about ghost stories, he might’ve contributed something useful to society. Unfortunately, it was.
And ironically, that obsession might help me now.
Request:
Blood and hair of former Field Exploration Team D-Unit, Senior Staff Kim Soleum.
“Hmm? What are you—”
Kwak Jaegang stopped halfway through his feigned ignorance.
Poke.
My vapor jabbed the stump of his missing pinky.
“...Well, during recruitment physicals, we naturally collect small samples. For research purposes only, of course!”
Eventually, he fetched the requested materials.
“Here—samples from D-Unit.”
I checked the screw-cap vials he handed over.
Each was labeled with date and name. Inside the box: hair, blood—and occasionally bits of flesh or nails.
Flesh I understand, but fingernails? From where?
I eyed the one marked with Section Chief Lee’s name, briefly wondering whether those were lizard nails or not, then simply took what I needed.
D-Unit, Kim Soleum / Hair
D-Unit, Kim Soleum / Blood
Now to go back and use the mood light—
“You’re going to use it, right? Where? How? On darkness? For duplication? Analysis? Qualification? Curse? I’m dying to know.”
......
“Please, let me observe. Please.”
Exhausting.
But since Kwak Jaegang and I had already “pinky-sworn,” he wouldn’t dare try anything reckless.
Maybe having an expert present wouldn’t hurt.
Directive:
Until completion—no noise, no interference.
“Hahaha, yes!”
Condition: Permission from Section Chief Lee.
“...You. Need anything?”
“No.”
I had no idea how he managed it, but somehow Kwak Jaegang secured the lizard’s approval and followed me all the way to the quarters.
Sigh.
Directive: Remain silent.
“.......”
Once the room was quiet—
I gently lifted the mood light completely out of its box.
The soft white egg-shaped lamp had an opening groove at the bottom; I opened it and poured in the blood and hair.
And then...
Connected the wire. Activated it.
This process must be conducted in complete darkness or shadow.
Just as written, the light flickered to life in the dark.
...!
Like candling a fertilized egg to inspect its veins, I could see blood vessels and cells through the reddish glow.
And they grew.
“......”
It looked halfway between a chick developing in its shell, a lab culture expanding, and the birth of an alien lifeform in an SF movie.
The important part was that as the shadow expanded, it revealed more detail—nerves, blood vessels, organs—taking shape inside the lamp.
[Oh, Roe Deer. I think that’s a hand! Look—it’s flexing its fingers!]
It truly was mesmerizing.
Like watching a biology education video from a century in the future on fast-forward, the life inside grew and formed.
A small bipedal being, roughly the size of the lamp.
Fully developed.
“......”
♫
With a brief recorded chime, the lamp’s color shifted to green.
Completion signal.
Done.
I reached out, opened the lamp, and poured the contents onto the towel I had prepared.
Then—
“...!!”
The mouth of the lamp warped wide, impossibly wide—and from within, it expelled a full-sized human body.
Kim Soleum.
A physique identical in height and build to my previous self.
“It’s really Kim Soleum! Incredible—such a method exists...!”
......
I drew a deep, shaky breath.
Because—
Question: Facial appearance evaluation.
“Eh? Well, rather good-looking! Hahaha! Don’t tell me you doubted your own face?”
No. That’s not the issue....
What he saw as “Kim Soleum’s” head—
......
Looked different to me.
......
It’s a lizard head...!
What stood before me was Kim Soleum’s body, wearing the reptilian alien head.
A lizard!
What the hell just happened.