Chapter 138
Screams from the test subjects echoed throughout the facility.
The sharp cries piercing the ears were enough to horrify anyone, yet the people here didn’t even react anymore, as though they had grown accustomed to it.
Faced with such a desolate sight, I was momentarily left speechless.
Even when I came here with Biden before, it wasn’t this bad.
This place was another hell created by humanity itself.
At present, I had infiltrated the laboratory where No. 66 was imprisoned.
My purpose was to build favor with her before her escape, scout escape routes, and prepare several things in advance.
And right now, I was regretting that decision a little.
Even back when I came alongside Biden, the place already made me sick to my stomach, but now I realized that what I saw then had only been a fragment of the laboratory’s true nature.
Even someone like me—whose tolerance had become as hardened as an average Demon’s through inherited memories—couldn’t help but grimace.
Could human beings truly do something like this to one another?
Every experiment taking place here was inhumane, cruel, and accompanied by endless screams.
What was truly shocking was that not a single Demon existed among the researchers.
In other words, they committed these horrifying acts entirely of their own free will, without their minds corrupted by demonic energy or consumed by violent urges.
At that moment, someone smacked the back of my head.
Smack!
My head jerked forward.
“You bastard, spacing out again. I told you to stay alert. You wanna end up like one of those test subjects?”
“……Sorry.”
The person who hit me was a researcher in his thirties wearing a white lab coat.
Based on the information I gathered before infiltrating this place, the man was the senior researcher supervising the identity I was currently impersonating.
How did I know that?
Because before changing my appearance with the Deceiver’s Mask, I gathered enough information first.
I’d be staying here for roughly a month, so getting caught over some tiny detail would be troublesome.
That was why I deliberately took on the identity of an incompetent rookie researcher.
The scale of the laboratory was enormous.
There seemed to be nearly a hundred researchers alone.
At that moment, the senior researcher spoke to me.
“I told you not to daydream. Bring the documents and follow me.”
“Yes, sir.”
I followed the bastard deeper into the laboratory.
The daily routine of a new researcher who had only joined three months ago wasn’t particularly impressive.
Basically, I just followed my superior around and wrote down whatever they told me.
Of course, that also meant endless errands and miscellaneous chores, but honestly, I was satisfied.
After all, it gave me more opportunities to approach the test subjects.
Besides, I knew absolutely nothing about scientific research, so my current position suited me perfectly.
Even if I made mistakes, people would simply brush it off because I was new.
As I walked behind the senior researcher, we eventually arrived at the experimental wing where the test subjects were kept.
The moment I saw the surroundings, I fell silent once more.
This place……
“You’ve never been here before, right?”
“No.”
“This is the experimental wing for the Avatar Project. It’s a relatively recent project.”
This was the research wing responsible for creating Avatars.
Elite mobs capable of descending into overwhelming power by receiving a Demon’s soul while in a demonic state.
I already knew of their existence while gathering information, but the scale far exceeded my expectations.
At this point, this is basically a factory.
Behind countless glass tubes, Demons connected to respirators rested with their eyes closed.
There had to be dozens of them here alone.
Don’t tell me all of them are Avatars?
What would happen if this many forces infiltrated the Academy and went on a rampage?
I didn’t even want to imagine it.
“Hard to keep your composure, huh? That’s because of the demonic energy the Demons emit.”
“Ah.”
“Don’t get too scared. They’re all in a coma state anyway.”
“A coma state?”
In the game, those bastards walked around perfectly fine.
To begin with, they normally behaved no differently from regular Demons, only transforming into Avatar states as a self-destruct mechanism or awakening when cornered.
Don’t tell me the experiment still isn’t complete?
The senior researcher continued.
“The experiment still isn’t stable, so controlling the descent is difficult. That’s why they’re kept in comatose states like this to maintain control.”
My prediction was correct.
“I see.”
That was at least somewhat relieving news.
I originally intended to wipe out all the Avatars anyway, but the speed of the research was progressing far faster than expected.
It had only been a month since Biden started supporting them.
“By the way, you need to be careful with every little thing in this area.”
As he said that, he gestured somewhere with his eyes.
The place he indicated was none other than the Undead responsible for the laboratory’s security.
I immediately understood what he meant.
There are definitely more Undead here compared to the other research wings.
Other sections only had one or two Undead at most, but this place had over five.
And their ranks looked relatively high as well.
However, there was one thing the senior researcher didn’t know.
The Undead guarding this place were merely decorations.
The real threat always lurked behind the stage, calmly observing everything while waiting for the perfect moment to rip out someone’s throat.
At that moment, someone suddenly appeared before us.
The senior researcher jumped in shock and fell backward.
“Gah!”
As he irritably looked up at the figure before him, his complexion instantly turned pale.
“My apologies. Did I startle you?”
A handsome middle-aged man wearing a butler’s uniform spoke in a pleasant low voice.
His eyes glowed crimson.
I thought the Aura felt familiar, but I never expected to encounter that bastard here again.
The being before me was someone I had already met.
The head butler who managed Biden’s fortress, Necropolis.
So he was the one overseeing this research wing.
After helping the senior researcher back to his feet, the butler’s gaze turned toward me.
“Hmm. Are you a newly assigned researcher?”
His crimson gaze pierced into me as though trying to see straight through.
Did he sense something from me?
The Authority of Deception was flawless.
Could it be some kind of instinctive intuition?
Thinking back, Instructor Kang Je-seok often suspected me based on strange instincts too.
At that moment, the senior researcher stepped between me and the Vampire butler.
“Did this kid perhaps cause some inconvenience?”
He forcibly pushed my head down in a bow.
“He only arrived three months ago, so he’s still inexperienced. If he somehow offended you……”
“No, it seems I was mistaken.”
The butler disappeared instantly after saying that.
The senior researcher looked at me sharply.
“What exactly did you do?”
“I didn’t do anything. I stayed right beside you the whole time, didn’t I?”
“That’s true…… but then why was that Vampire interested in you?”
“Maybe my blood smells tasty?”
“Whatever the reason, stay away from the Undead. They may seem capable of conversation, but in the end, they’re monsters that crave the life force of the living.”
Hearing that, I glanced at the researcher before me.
To my eyes, the Vampire butler and these researchers weren’t all that different.
I didn’t show it outwardly, but honestly, they disgusted me.
Still, does that bastard really have some kind of animal instinct?
Though he seemed to vanish immediately, the Vampire butler was actually clinging to my shadow and following me.
It seemed he found something suspicious about me.
But what exactly tipped him off?
Whenever creatures with absurdly sharp instincts appeared, things became extremely annoying.
If it were up to me, I’d kill him immediately, but I couldn’t do that.
He wasn’t some ordinary Undead—he was practically Biden’s right-hand man.
If I touched him carelessly, Biden himself might show up here.
Of course, he might currently be too busy dealing with the Heavenly Demon to come, but there was no reason to stir up trouble right now.
The time to target him would be when I destroyed the Avatar Project.
The problem was that he seemed to suspect me based purely on instinct.
I recalled information regarding Vampires.
Vampires.
Not quite as troublesome as Demons, but still highly dangerous enemies.
Since they were already dead, they charged fearlessly like berserkers without any fear of death.
Compared to humans, their base physical abilities were vastly superior, and their abilities were so versatile they could practically be called omnipotent.
Blood Manipulation that controlled blood itself, shapeshifting magic that let them transform freely, mistification that nullified physical damage, and more.
Of course, being Undead, they also possessed fatal weaknesses.
Sunlight—
And blessed silver.
And I possessed Solis, the power of the sun.
It was one of the most important assets in my future plans.
Then suddenly, a possibility crossed my mind.
Wait.
Could the Vampire butler suspect me because of Solis?
The power of the sun was pure poison to the Undead.
And animals instinctively sensed things that threatened their lives.
Besides, that butler was clearly a high-ranking Vampire.
Maybe he reacted to the power of Solis I carried.
I’ll need to conceal Solis more carefully from now on.
In any case, there was nothing I could do about the Vampire butler tailing me right now.
He wasn’t idle either, so after following me for a while, he’d eventually lose interest.
Until then, I just needed to be careful.
Afterward, I continued touring the laboratory with the senior researcher.
I recorded complicated figures, documented experiment results, and personally observed the experiments being conducted.
Experiments combining magical beasts and humans, crossbreeding, and even research aimed at summoning Demons without sacrifices.
Every single one of them was capable of throwing the world into chaos.
After visiting several research rooms like that—
I finally achieved the purpose for which I came here.
The laboratory where No. 66 was imprisoned.
More precisely, the laboratory where my clones were being created.
The door opened, revealing a familiar sight I had seen before.
Countless test subjects resembling me trapped inside glass tubes.
All of them looked vaguely similar to me, and merely seeing them instinctively provoked disgust.
“Record the data properly. Some of the specimens here are about to begin new experiments.”
“New experiments?”
I paid close attention to the senior researcher’s words.
“One of the test subjects here has produced exceptionally good results. They’re planning to isolate that one and begin an entirely new project.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. The senior researchers managing this place are in complete chaos because they’re short on manpower.”
I see.
I smiled inwardly.
“Just saying this in case, but don’t even think about transferring over there. The experiments there are extremely dangerous, and researchers sometimes get dragged in and killed too.”
“Come on, there’s no way I’d leave a stable position for another department. I haven’t even adapted to this place yet.”
“Really? Then that’s good.”
A few days later, he would curse me out while hurling every insult imaginable at me.