Meanwhile, Clone No. 3 was crawling silently along the ceiling on the second floor like a snake.
The main body—me—was lying on a bed, controlling it remotely as if piloting a drone.
‘This is seriously tricky.’
Clone No. 2 was up in the ceiling ventilation duct above my head, struggling to crawl along while holding a phone for Kalia.
Clone No. 3 was moving beneath the floor, heading toward the central control room.
Controlling multiple clones simultaneously felt similar to playing a two-player game by holding two gamepads with both hands and feet.
What if I had to move my main body too? It would become even more complicated.
Nothing was ever easy.
‘Please, just keep eating donuts or something…’
From my experience, guards during this time were either asleep or slacking off—it was almost routine.
I reached the ceiling of the target location.
Through the gap in the vent cover, I could hear someone humming a tune.
I took out a screwdriver and began loosening the screws holding the vent cover in place.
When the last screw came off, I opened the vent cover and looked down.
Calling this place a “central control room” was an exaggeration—it was more like a slightly larger duty room that doubled as a security office.
In front of several monitors displaying CCTV footage, a guard was sitting and eating a donut while watching TV.
The last time I came here, there were two guards, but today there was only one.
I landed softly on the floor.
The guard, with donut crumbs around his mouth, turned his chair around in surprise at the sound.
“Hm? What’s that… Ugh! A ghost…!?”
“That’s right! A ghost!”
I raised the alloy hammer that I had received from Clone No. 2 and struck the guard’s forehead with all my might.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Aaaargh!”
Oh no, I made a mistake!
I hit him from the front, so the sneak attack skill didn’t activate!
The guard screamed, so I quickly jumped onto his chair and covered his mouth with my left arm.
However, even with his injuries, he resisted, trying to shake me off and biting my arm to free himself.
I was losing in terms of strength!
He reached out toward the gun on his desk.
“Die! Die! Die!”
I rotated the hammer and struck his crown with the sharp backside.
With a sickening crack, the hammer lodged into the guard’s skull.
When I pulled the hammer out, thick blood trickled down the handle.
‘This feels disgusting…’
The guard was dead.
It was a horrific sight.
But should I really stop at just feeling “disgusted” when faced with someone slumping lifelessly, blood pouring from their head, and their eyes rolled back?
I didn’t know.
It seemed certain that something was wrong with me.
I was scared that the sound of his scream might have leaked outside, so I cautiously opened the door to check the surroundings.
There was no sign of anyone nearby.
When I searched the guard’s body, I found the key and keycard I had been looking for.
I headed toward the large key cabinet on one side of the control room wall that I had been eyeing for some time.
‘I thought they stored security-related items in there.’
I opened the key cabinet with the guard’s key and found the items I was looking for.
‘A pendant switch! And the key to release restraints!’
With this, the first step of the plan was successfully completed.
I quickly sent the items to Clone No. 2.
There was another unexpected find.
While rummaging through the desk, I discovered a white first-aid kit.
I opened the status window to check the items.
<ITEM STAT>
[Self-Defense Handgun ☆]
A cheap handgun available for purchase on the market.
Used to ward off low-grade monsters.
Many consumers who purchased this product reportedly used it to relieve their inner anguish.
…
[Emergency Healing Potion ☆☆]
An inexpensive recovery potion stocked by corporations and police stations.
Enhances cell regeneration and provides pain relief.
Even in harsh conditions, don’t rely solely on this potion—it’s better to go to a hospital.
*Reduces pain experienced within a short time frame by about 30%.
…
‘I can even see the descriptions.’
The handgun came with two extra 10-round magazines, excluding the loaded one.
The healing potion was a bundle of five small vials.
It had a structure where you could uncap it and inject it directly into the body.
‘For now, I need to buy some time.’
Killing the guard didn’t mean everything was over.
I needed to take measures for what would come next.
However, I didn’t know how to handle the surveillance camera systems or any other tech.
Instead, I had one good solution.
‘Since it runs on electricity, I just need to break it.’
I unplugged the cords, then cut through the terminals and wires with a box cutter.
After that, I packed the items into a plastic bag and locked the door.
This should buy me some time.
‘Oh, the donut!’
I bit into the donut the guard had been eating and crawled back into the ventilation duct.
While Clone No. 3 was dealing with the guard and retrieving items, Clone No. 2 arrived at the room where Kalia was being held.
It unscrewed the bolts and removed the grill on the vent, then jumped down to the floor.
“Hmm… you’re here already?”
Kalia opened her eyes at the sound of movement.
I grinned sheepishly and showed her the key to the restraints.
Clink!
As I inserted the key into the restraints, a mechanical sound turned from inside, signaling that something was operating.
Moments later, the restraints that had kept Kalia bound for so long finally released.
“Ah… It’s been such a long time. Yeah. This feeling of mana circulating…”
She stretched out her arms and legs with a refreshed expression, loosening her body.
A cracking sound echoed as her joints popped.
I hadn’t noticed it when I was watching her from the ventilation duct, but Kalia seemed to be a head taller than me.
Maybe it was because I was small for a girl.
“This thing too! Let’s get rid of it!”
The cursed black switch the researchers used on the test subjects.
I brought it close to Kalia’s neck and pressed the button.
With a clicking sound, the dreadful restraint was unlocked.
“And you?”
“I already got rid of mine earlier!”
I handed Kalia the smartphone.
Her eyes grew as wide as lanterns.
“Oh? You managed to get this? With this, we can finally make contact!”
She quickly made a call to the Brotherhood.
Since it was dawn, I was worried they might not pick up.
After a moment, the call connected.
“Yeah, it’s me. Kalia. Sorry. I should’ve listened to you… Where am I? I’m currently…”
Kalia enthusiastically described her location to the person on the other end, using the information I had roughly pieced together so far.
After a brief conversation, Kalia hung up and brought good news.
“It’s all set. They said there’s a place matching the location I described. They’re gathering people and preparing to head here right away.”
“Wow! That’s great. They found it faster than I thought. Did they track your location?”
“The Brotherhood had been narrowing down a few specific spots among the labs those bastards use, looking for traces of me. Apparently, the place we’re in now is at the eastern outskirts.”
Wow!
I didn’t know why, but it felt like everything was going so smoothly.
At times like this, we needed to band together even more.
I raised my arms wide and began hopping around.
“Violet…? What are you doing all of a sudden?”
“Let’s do this! This!”
Kalia looked puzzled for a moment but then awkwardly approached me and wrapped her arms around me.
In an instant, I found myself in her embrace.
She didn’t stop there; she slowly began stroking my head.
I was slightly startled.
But it didn’t feel bad.
“Uh…? Wait… I didn’t ask for a hug…”
“What? Then what was with those outstretched arms just now?”
Seeing my expression, Kalia released me from the hug and asked.
“I meant let’s high-five!”
She shook her head.
“Violet, a high-five is when you raise your hand and hold it out, not when you spread your arms wide.”
“Oh… Is that how it was?”
When she demonstrated the proper posture in front of me, my mind went blank.
Was that how it was done?
Now that I thought about it, how many years had it been since I’d done something like a high-five with someone?
Kalia chuckled.
“Is this your first time doing something like this?”
“What? What are you talking about? No! I used to do it all the time with friends!”
“Alright, I’ll believe you.”
She offered me her shoulder, and I climbed back into the ventilation duct.
Kalia, seemingly strong, climbed up on her own without assistance.
Because the duct was narrow, she bumped her head when she raised it and cursed.
“Ouch! Damn it… Violet, do we really have to go back out through the ventilation ducts?”
“Sorry! We can’t open the door from the inside. This is the best way to get out…”
As we were moving through the ventilation shaft, I sensed something unusual.
My body stiffened.
“Violet? Is something wrong?”
“Hold on, Kalia, go back for a moment. Something’s off.”
I gestured for Kalia to retreat.
I had sensed something strange from the second floor.
“What are you talking about?”
“The lab staff are arriving for work at this hour! Wait here for a moment! Don’t come out!”
I sent the third clone to assess the situation, but suddenly, the door to the room where my main body was resting creaked open.
“Wake up, Violet~ Your big sister’s here~”
I quickly recalled the second clone.
When I opened my eyes, the Ponytailed Researcher was in the room, clutching a yellow envelope and staring at me.
‘Ahhh!’
The third clone, which had just exited the ventilation duct and landed on the second floor, began approaching the area where we kept the captured beasts.
Suddenly, with a clicking sound, the dark corridor was illuminated.
The lights on the walls and three elevator doors that had been silent until now lit up.
From beyond the quiet, the sound of elevators ascending could be heard.
The doors opened, and researchers poured out in droves.
Soon after, guards also arrived.
Why were there so many people showing up so early?
“Is there really a need to gather people this early? Is it because of that test subject being sent to the Academy?”
“What can we do? It’s the Director’s orders. They’re pushing the schedule ahead by a day and wrapping up the existing project.”
“Alright, listen up! You all got the message via messenger, right? Check the materials distributed to you and let’s move up!”
I quickly maneuvered the third clone to hide behind a wall.
The researchers crossed the corridor and took the elevator upstairs.
‘Oh no. There’s still a corpse left in the control room!’
This was bad.
I swiftly hid the third clone.
Meanwhile, in the main body’s hearing, the sound of a door opening suddenly reached me.
I hurriedly recalled the second clone and opened my eyes to see the Ponytailed Researcher standing next to the bed.
Stay calm. I couldn’t afford to drop the dumb act now.
“Uuuh… Sister… Wasn’t it tomorrow… that I was supposed to leave…?”
“That’s right, but we moved up the schedule by a day so our little Violet can step out into society sooner!”
“Wow…”
The hallway outside the glass door seemed chaotic.
There was a commotion of footsteps.
Researchers and guards armed with shotguns were busily moving back and forth in the test subjects’ accommodation area.
Alright.
First, I needed to figure out what was going on.
I gripped the hammer I had received through the clone transmission tightly under the blanket.