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A fluorescent light was broken, casting a dimmer glow in the corridor, along with an unpleasant smell like something burning.

In a scene that looked like it came straight out of a dream, the silver-haired girl hastily closed the door again.

Hah. Hah.

The silver-haired girl placed her hand on her chest and began to take deep breaths slowly.

“It’s okay. It’ll be fine. A dream is just a dream.”

“In the dream, I stepped outside, but I closed the door, right? That dream isn’t foresight.”

With her eyes tightly shut and the dark blue fruit firmly gripped in her hand, she waited for the confusion, fear, and her breathing to settle.

“Human…”

The Mini Sprout Reaper looked up at her with a worried expression.

As long as the silver-haired girl didn’t eat the fruit, there was no way to help her, nor could they reach out to her.

They could only hope that the Attached Human would eat the fruit before it was too late.

*

In the facility, history classes were held about once a month.

It was merely a time when children gathered in the auditorium and watched a video, yet no one listened absent-mindedly.

[Human civilization faced an unexpected crisis.]

[It was a sudden attack from an object that was thought to be well-controlled.]

[Humanity could not adequately cope with that sudden assault and had no choice but to acknowledge defeat.]

[The survivors hid in the last fortress underground, holding onto a glimmer of hope.]

[Scientists tirelessly researched new technologies to combat the objects, while children prepared for the day of counterattack that would one day come.]

However, the silver-haired girl could not concentrate on the video at all.

“It’s the same. Just like in the dream.”

How could they hold the history lesson on the very day the fluorescent light in the corridor broke?

Could it truly be that the dream was prophetic?

The silver-haired girl’s mind became too cluttered, and the video didn’t register in her eyes.

Every time, the same exact video played, yet she’d always listened attentively enough to take notes on everything.

She had more than ten summary notebooks containing the same information…

The moment that thought crossed her mind, a sweet aroma from the fruit prompted a brief question to flit through her mind.

“Something feels off. Why do they show the same video every time?”

But that thought quickly faded, replaced by worry for her friends.

Nonetheless, a sliver of doubt remained in the girl’s heart.

That something was off with the “facility.”

*

As the last class of the day approached, the silver-haired girl felt a sense of calm instead.

“It’s all just like in the dream.”

Everything that happened today seemed just like a dream, except for her reactions.

Hah.

Inhaling the scent of the fruit hidden in her fist, the silver-haired girl cleared her thoughts.

She could no longer think of the dream as simply a dream.

“Maybe my second superpower has awakened.”

Now questioning the facility, the girl contemplated under the assumption that she had seen a prophetic dream.

“If the facility was really doing something like this, could I escape it with my weak acceleration ability?”

No matter how she thought about it, it seemed almost impossible.

As she spiraled through her thoughts, class ended before she realized it.

At that moment, the brown-haired girl approached the silver-haired girl, who wore a serious expression.

“I’ll go first. Don’t worry too much. You’ll come along soon!”

The brown-haired girl tugged at the corners of the silver girl’s mouth, pulling them up, and smiled brightly.

“Say goodbye with a smile this time.”

“Well, that’s…”

“?”

She wanted to bring up the prophetic dream immediately, but she just couldn’t.

“Okay, see you soon.”

The silver-haired girl shook her head and smiled with all her might.

*

In the dark of late night, the outskirts of Songpa District, in the upper levels of James Tower, a private room.

Even though it was late, James’s sharp gaze scanned through several reports.

Sitting comfortably on an upscale leather sofa, a Golden Reaper shone like a warm light instead of a lamp around James.

“Human, when are you going to take a break?”

The Golden Reaper looked up at James, sulking, as he showed no inclination to play now that he was home.

While he continued reading the report, James quickly noticed the sad expression and began to gently pat the head of the Golden Reaper.

“I’ll finish up soon. Just wait a little.”

“You have to hurry!”

Hearing James, the Golden Reaper grinned and started to crawl over the drink cup.

James chuckled at the sight, sipped his hot chocolate, and redirected his gaze to the report.

“Definitely an unexpected result. How fascinating.”

James muttered to himself as he tapped a part of the report with his finger.

The report James was looking at certainly contained unusual content.

<Report on the prevalence of metabolic syndrome in Mini Reaper Attached Humans>

<Existing statistics>

– A significantly high prevalence of metabolic syndrome was observed in the initial Attached Humans compared to the general population.

– Particularly, the incidence of diseases associated with refined sugar intake, such as diabetes and obesity, was notably high.

<Recent trends>

– Dramatic changes have been observed in the prevalence of metabolic syndrome among Reaper Attached Humans over the last six months.

– Remarkably, the prevalence has dropped to 0%, and many reports of complete recovery among existing patients have surfaced.

<Hypothesis>

– This may be related to the phenomenon where Golden Reapers perceive fractures and heal them the next day.

<Future research directions>

– In-depth research is needed on the healing mechanisms of Golden Reapers.

– Assessment of the healing effect’s persistence and recurrence potential.

James could easily draw a conclusion.

[The Golden Reaper recognized ‘metabolic syndrome’ and restored it through some means.]

James turned to the Golden Reaper, who was munching on cocoa through a Mini Reaper straw.

“How did you cure a disease caused by eating too much?”

‘?’

At first, the Golden Reaper tilted its head in confusion, not understanding what James said. However, as James used various words and examples to explain, the Golden Reaper began to comprehend.

“It’s a secret!”

But the Golden Reaper only giggled while covering its mouth with both hands.

*

I’ve arrived at the place where the spiral was deep in the Jelly Jungle.

“It doesn’t look like much has changed.”

The area still resembled a squished plastic bag that had hardened into a distorted form.

One notable change was that Golden Reapers wielding spears were bustling about the surroundings.

Those kids were signaling to the Mini Reapers approaching, saying, “This is a place mom has blocked off!”

As if they were doing it without being asked, they were doing a great job.

Did they pick up some know-how from guarding Sehee Research Institute?

I passed by those Golden Reapers and began to examine the spiral more closely.

“The gray liquid… hasn’t changed.”

Using the senses that encompassed the entire Mini Reaper Garden, I checked, and it seemed the water level of desire at the end of the spiral remained the same.

It appeared that the Mini Reaper Garden and the flow of desire were not connected.

That’s a relief.

After asking the Golden Reapers nearby to notify me if anything happens, I left that place.

Upon arriving at the Marshmallow Plains, I saw a large group of Mini Reapers gathering and creating something.

There was a massive operation involving not just Golden Reapers, but Black Reapers, Yellow Reapers, Blue Reapers, and Red Reapers joining in.

Giant Black Reapers stomped on the huge dough like it was nothing.

A Yellow Reaper was working alone, making a chef’s hat, outfit, and shoes for itself.

Golden Reapers were tearing off bits of dough and tossing them into the oven.

And Red Reapers were merrily breathing fire into that oven.

Are they making bread?

As I slowly approached, a Golden Reaper took out bread from the oven and smiled brightly, sending me a message.

“Want some, Mommy?”

On the tray the Golden Reaper offered was delicious-looking bread along with a white Hungry Ghost that had inexplicably been baked together.

Kyu-hing-hing.

However, it was sized perfectly for Mini Reapers, making it way too small for me to eat.

“It’s too small….”

“Aha!”

As I pointed that out, the Golden Reaper looked shocked and called over the Blue Reaper.

Then, Blue Reapers flew in on their brooms and started to weave strings in mid-air.

[Make the bread bigger, please!]

[Please turn it into a bread that gets healthier the more you eat it!]

As the magic from the Blue Reaper landed on the tiny bread, it instantly grew large.

“It’s a health-improving bread!”

I began to nibble on the bread the Golden Reaper offered, while watching the Mini Reapers’ baking operation.

The little kids wriggled around, making it entertaining to watch.

Once their baking was finished, the Mini Reapers each took a large piece of bread and scattered away.

They probably intended to eat with the Attached Humans, right?

I chuckled softly, imagining how surprised the Attached Humans would be after eating the bread made by the Mini Reapers.

I mean, the bread the Golden Reaper gave was sweeter than sugar, even a baguette!

Hehe.

*

After all today’s events came to a close, a graduation ceremony began for just one person.

The corridor running across the auditorium.

The brown-haired girl walked down the path only graduates could take, feeling her heart swell.

She could step onto the front lines for humanity!

As she walked down the corridor and looked down, she saw the silver-haired girl wearing a fine expression.

Though she had looked quite troubled just at lunchtime today, she now seemed quite alright.

In fact, her expression looked one of determination.

“I’m glad.”

For sure, the silver-haired girl would soon be joining the front lines.

Feeling a bit lonely, she kept walking, soon finding herself outside the facility.

The path, in contrast to the facility, looked worn down and smelled of blood.

‘?’

Feeling a bit strange and anxious, the brown-haired girl quickly shook off the feeling.

When she reached the end of the path, a man in human corps attire approached her with a brusque expression.

“Here, lie down on the bed.”

The man reeked of a strong smell of blood, and his face was filled with annoyance.

Furthermore, there showed no sense of duty that a member of the human corps should have.

How could such a man be part of the human corps?

The brown-haired girl held such a question in her mind yet offered no resistance, lying down on the steel bed.

Clang. Clang.

Thick steel restraints tightly held onto the girl’s body.

“Excuse me, what on earth is going on?”

As the brown-haired girl began to feel something was off and asked, the man replied in an equally brusque tone.

“What do you mean what? It’s slaughter.”

With that, the bed shifted, flipping the brown-haired girl upside-down.

“Huh?”

Caught off-guard by the sudden turn of events, the brown-haired girl could only let out a confused sound.

Then, the man pulled out a sharp knife and reached for the girl’s neck.

Just as the blade was about to touch the brown-haired girl’s throat—

Bang!

With a loud noise, the door flew open, and the silver-haired girl kicked the man away.

 

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