While discussions among the Violets were taking place on the surface, not all of them were present.
There were quite a few Violets lying down with no motivation, some heading out to attend classes mechanically, and others too preoccupied with other tasks to pay attention.
Violet No. 84 belonged to the last group.
Separate from the abduction operation, there were still people stationed in the underground facility.
Violet No. 84, who had been sleeping in a crevice between the underground facility walls, woke up groggy and was thrown into mental chaos upon remembering the destruction of the school.
Before she could recover, she was hit with a second blow—a physical shock triggered by No. 2 pulling the trigger in her head—and her thoughts momentarily halted.
“Ugh…”
I roughly brushed off an unknown bug crawling on my head and tore open a chocolate bar to shove into my mouth.
Soon, it would be time for the shift change.
The scientists here, regardless of day or night, stare at their computers or scribble things on the chalkboard.
Of course, since it was morning, these people would probably be heading off to rest soon.
The speakers inside the underground facility buzzed with a faint hum.
That sound was the preparatory tone played before an announcement was broadcast.
Because the research areas were divided into multiple sections, announcements were often made here.
They were usually about mundane things like gathering for a meeting or attending an upcoming demonstration.
But today, things seemed a little different.
Thinking it was nothing important, I was about to get some more shut-eye before my shift when an unfamiliar announcement followed.
“All personnel, move to your designated stations. The September experiment will proceed according to the previously outlined protocol.”
I blinked in confusion and focused on the voice.
“Phase 1 initiation. All systems are stable. Observation will continue.”
A sharp sound echoed from somewhere down the hallway.
It sounded like the noisy whir of an electric motor or the screams of thousands of mice at once.
This unsettling noise came from the pipes installed in the facility—that is, from the particle accelerator.
“Phase 2 initiation. Etherium collision protocol commenced… Energy supply is stable.”
The sound, which pierced sharply like a scream, suddenly changed into a heavy, wave-like rumble.
Then, the lights in the hallway began flickering uneasily.
“Artificial Gate formation initiated… Connection with the second dimension established. Spacetime stabilization procedure ongoing. Filter adjustment complete. Wave pattern is Alpha… Progressing as expected. Just a little more focus.”
Suddenly, the sound stopped.
Why?
“Unified magic formula deployment underway. Output is set to 10% as planned.”
My eyes widened.
From the floor, a soft, shimmering blue magical light began to rise like a mirage.
The entire hallway filled with it.
Etheric light particles scattered and coalesced.
They trembled, stilled, sparkled, and then faded back into darkness.
The particles of light danced in midair.
And then, I felt a sensation as if I were being sucked into something.
What was this?
‘Huh?!’
No, my body wasn’t being pulled in!
My body was still within the wall!
Then what is this?
What’s happening?!
Panicked, I immediately attempted reverse generation.
At the same time, I sent a warning to my counterparts outside.
「…Something’s wrong! Right now, here…!」
But it was too late.
A massive mental shockwave, originating from somewhere within the facility, engulfed No. 81, us, and me.
A clamorous silence enveloped us.
A screaming stillness swallowed our minds.
A wailing quiet wrapped around our bodies.
It grew distant.
It disappeared…
“Where is this?”
When the Violets opened their eyes, they realized we were in a completely white, empty space, like snow.
“Huh? Why is No. 81 here? Aren’t you supposed to be underground?”
“Yeah, wait a minute. Why is No. 2 here? You’re supposed to be outside…”
Looking around, all of the Violets, from No. 1 to No. 102, who had active consciousness, were gathered here.
A total of 102 Violets glanced around, surveying the area.
“Where is this? Is this reality?”
Someone started to speak but quickly fell silent again.
Anyone could tell this place was excessively surreal, even at first glance.
There was no scent, no sense of airflow.
When we felt the floor, there was no texture.
It felt as if we’d fallen into an infinitely sprawling blank canvas.
Even the use of our inventory was impossible.
This situation meant we were in an entirely different world.
The fortunate thing was that our consciousnesses were still connected within this enigmatic space.
Had our connections been severed, we would’ve been truly terrified.
We wandered the white space for quite some time, but even the laws of physics didn’t seem to apply here.
“I’m back again…!”
“Are we possessed by ghosts or something?”
One Violet sprinted in the opposite direction from where we were gathered.
She was trying to determine the extent and boundaries of this place.
But somehow, while running, she ended up back where the Violets were gathered.
“This is so strange… How long have we been here?”
“I don’t know. Maybe about an hour?”
In this bizarre space, even the concept of time couldn’t be distinguished.
“What’s the last thing you remember?”
“No. 81 and No. 23 were observing the internal experiment. It was pretty chaotic.”
“Have they already completed their plan? Were we swept up in it and killed?”
“Waaah!”
A few saddened Violets plopped onto the floor.
The other Violets tried to explain the situation as best as they could.
“That can’t be. They only started recruiting people yesterday. It’s unlikely they’re already done. Plus, they said ‘output 10%.’ I don’t know what that means, but it’s not 100%, right?”
“Really? Then how long are we supposed to stay here?”
“Well… we don’t know.”
Not knowing anything meant there were no answers.
In this monotonous white space, only we were visible.
Sitting idly grew boring and tiresome.
The Violets, now bored, decided to play together.
“Everyone, take off a button.”
“Our clothes are still intact even in this situation.”
To pass the time, we divided into groups of five or six and played a guessing game with buttons.
The game was simple: guess whether the button would land heads-up or tails-up when tossed.
Of course, it wasn’t the typical guessing game where you hide something in your hand.
Since we all shared our thoughts, playing strategic games was impossible.
If we wanted to have fun, we had to either work as a team or play games heavily reliant on chance.
No. 10 tossed a button into the air.
“Heads!”
The button spun silently in the air before landing on the floor.
It was tails.
The other Violets laughed and approached No. 10.
“Come here!”
“Gotcha!”
-Thud thud thud!-
“Argh!”
Having lost twice in a row, No. 10, now teary-eyed, winced as her back was patted.
Because the game relied purely on luck, it wasn’t uncommon to lose repeatedly.
But it didn’t matter.
“Why?! Why was it tails?!”
When No. 11 lost, No. 10, who had been whining earlier, grinned and ran over to smack No. 11.
“Eeeek!”
We were so absorbed in the game that we lost track of time.
Then someone approached and spoke.
“Let me join too…”
“Huh?”
Feeling a nudge on her side, No. 15 turned her head and found a small girl standing next to her.
The girl wore a white dress and, from her petite size, looked like an elementary schooler.
“Who are you?”
The girl shyly answered.
“I’m Violet.”
As I quietly observed her face, I noticed she resembled us.
She had long, flowing golden hair and red eyes like a rabbit.
Was I ever this adorable?
How curious.
Even the Violet clones who had been focused on the game gradually began glancing at Number 15.
It was surprising to think that such a small Violet existed among us.
“Ah, I see. Nice to meet you. I’m Violet too. Violet Number 15. What number are you?”
The mini Violet proudly raised her right hand and held up a single finger.
“Me? I’m Number 1!”
What was she even talking about?
Question marks seemed to appear above the heads of all the Violets.
The bewildered Number 1 approached the mini Violet.
“Hey, what are you saying? I’m Number 1. Look closely!”
Number 1 rolled up her sleeve to reveal the number “1” engraved on her left arm.
At the same time, the other Violets began to gather around her.
The mini Violet shrank back, frightened.
Since she was wearing a sleeveless dress, her number could be checked immediately.
“Where’s your number?”
It wasn’t there.
Her left arm was completely clean.
Why was that?
More importantly, I couldn’t read her thoughts right now.
She wasn’t connected to us.
Sensing something was off, we surrounded the mini Violet.
Though unarmed, everyone clenched their fists, ready to defend against her.
“You don’t have a number. Are you really ‘Violet’? Feels like you’re not one of us.”
The mini Violet, who had been glancing around clumsily, suddenly looked at her own left arm and gasped in surprise.
“It’s true!”
“See? So, who are you?”
As we threatened her with a menacing tone, the shrunken mini Violet slowly opened her mouth.
“Actually…”
“Actually what?”
“Actually, if I had to say… I’m Number 0.”
The mini Violet straightened her shoulders and grinned.
Her previously timid demeanor disappeared, and she looked at us with her bright red eyes.
The girl, crossing her arms, stared at us with an air of arrogance.
Her sudden change in attitude left all of us dumbfounded.
Seeing our reactions, she seemed to enjoy it, scrutinizing us with razor-sharp eyes and smirking mockingly.
When I met her crimson gaze head-on, a shiver ran down my spine.
What was that?
Those red pupils, those eyes—they weren’t the eyes of a girl.
They were the eyes of a snake.
The eyes of a predator.
Who—or what—are you?
“…So, Number 1, hug me!”
Self-proclaimed Number 0, the mini Violet, suddenly leapt and hugged Number 1.
Instinctively repulsed, I screamed.
“What the—! Let go! Get this thing off me!”
“Aww, don’t you like me? Hug me! Hug me!”
As she wriggled in my arms, I could feel her growing.
The other Violets tried to pull her off, but she wouldn’t budge.
It was as if she was glued to me.
She kept growing.
She was maturing.
Before I knew it, Number 0 Violet had grown to almost the same size as me.
Suddenly, the space around us began to tremble.
“Ahhh?”
We all fell over from what felt like an earthquake.
Even Number 0 Violet, who was clinging to Number 1, stopped growing, seemingly affected by the tremor.
Her form began to dissolve, scattering like bubbles.
“Aww, I ran out of time. Number 1, no, 1… I’ll see you again later…”
Number 0 Violet lightly kissed my forehead.
The space collapsed.
All of us fell again.
But unlike being sucked in, this time, we were propelled upward.
We soared.
The Violets opened their eyes, wide awake, in their respective spots.
“Huh? Why am I here?”
Violet Number 21, who had been attending a class, blinked in confusion.
The other students around her were either paying attention to the lesson or goofing off, looking at their smartphones as if nothing had happened.
As I focused my mind, the Violet Network buzzed with activity, stirred by our abrupt return.
Every Violet had returned to reality.
“Gah? We’re back!”
Violet Number 21, who had been carrying Ulric into the car earlier, looked around.
She quickly realized that the rest of us were in the same situation.
“How long were we in that strange space? An hour?”
“I’ll check. Oh, wait. It’s been less than a minute.”
“What? But we spent ages in there!”
“It’s true. It might’ve been even shorter. When I checked the clock before we fell into that weird place, the second hand was at the 20-second mark. But now, it’s only at 30 seconds.”
Though it felt like we’d been there for a long time, only a brief moment had passed since we returned.
Was the place we were in not part of reality?
“Do you remember anything from before we left?”
When Number 1 asked, everyone responded one by one.
“We were playing odds-and-evens when the space suddenly collapsed, right?”
“Yeah! It was during Number 12’s turn!”
Hearing Number 10’s words, Number 1 added her own.
“That’s right. My team was getting ready to hit Number 5. What a shame.”
We all chimed in one by one.
That strange space—it must’ve been some kind of mental realm.
It felt like a dream.
Other than wandering around and playing a game, there didn’t seem to be anything notable that happened inside.
But this experiment by the Council had made us realize how frightening it was.
To think they could incapacitate us, even if only for a short time.
It was dangerous.
We’d have to leave the minimum number of clones in the school from now on.
* * *
“Team Leader, I’ve observed something unusual while reviewing the wavelength propagation process. While most wavelengths matched the expected responses, a few deviated from the predicted values.”
“Explain.”
“There are roughly three cases. Two of them slightly exceeded the average range, though they’re still within acceptable margins of error. But the last one greatly exceeded not only the average but also the expected margin of error. I don’t even know how to explain it…”
“Come on, this isn’t the first time this has happened, is it? It’s just a temporary phenomenon that occurs at the start of wavelength propagation. There’s no need to worry about it.”
“Still…”
“I said, leave it. The calculations are flawless. If you’ve got time to nitpick this, focus on reviewing something else.”