Chapter 162.1

When you think about it, it’s strange.

The disaster that occurred when a Disaster Management Bureau agent once tried to forcibly load an infected child onto the escape pod.

Acute molting occurs. Ulcers erupt across the entire body, and all vital signs are lost.

Contamination spreads rapidly, resulting in death.

If this were the escape pod attempting to eliminate internal threats, the reaction was far too… deliberate.

It was more like the action of the infection source itself.

Right.

It makes more sense to interpret it as the doing of the ‘biohazard-merfolk’.

A punishment dealt to a host that dares to break away from the hive.

A retrieval of energy.

But this information was known only to the Disaster Management Bureau agents, while, conversely, more detailed intel about the escape pod was only available to the employees of Daydream Inc…

Fragmented information.

And that’s exactly why no one could’ve reasonably predicted what was happening now.

“Ah.”

A child raised a hand.

“It’s the Mermaid Princess!”

BOOM!

With a thunderous crash, a mass pierced through the ceiling and smashed into the terminal.

Kyarararara—!

A sound like children laughing—no, like ulcerated tissue colliding—filled the entire station.

Countless tumor-like tendrils, spewing horrid mucus, descended and braced themselves like feet.

Thud.

Thud.

Thud.

Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud!

Like spiderwebs hanging down, flesh masses that excreted mucus extended limbs like tentacles and clung to every wall of the shattered terminal.

From the massive infected hive came its most grotesque core was a monstrous shape that now coiled before the ‘Ocean Palace’.

Kyarararara!

It slammed its meaty mass down, blanketing the terminal.

THUD!

“Fuck!”

Baek Saheon stood frozen, screaming, then shoved back the employee who tried to push him forward and quickly retreated.

A company employee was snatched by the fleshy mass.

The sound of a skull cracking, blood and mucous being sucked out.

‘Gotta get out!’

Clutching the bag containing the conch shells, he bolted toward the escape pod.

But at that moment—

Someone grabbed the back of his neck.

“…!”

A young mer-child.

No, he’d already confirmed who it was through that halo, but had kept quiet until now…

‘Kim Soleum!’

The infected Kim Soleum slammed the back of Baek Saheon’s head to the floor.

“Agh!”

In that moment, a mass of flesh flew past overhead.

Baek Saheon swallowed hard.

‘Move recklessly and die.’

The infected mass had very clearly wrapped itself around the escape pod at the center.

Then Kim Soleum, with a strange expression, began looking up at the grotesque mass of infection.

‘What is he doing.’

“Why are you—”

The surroundings turned disturbingly quiet.

“……”

Baek Saheon frantically looked around.

…All the mer-children were looking up at the sky with the same expression, raising their hands.

“Princess!”

“It’s the Princess!”

The two agents also turned their eyes to the massive figure that had burst through the ceiling into the terminal.

Their gazes blanked.

A dazzlingly beautiful mermaid form appeared, as if sunlight had poured in from the terminal ceiling—

Filling the empty white space.

Beautiful.

Like a living statue of the Mermaid Princess, the enormous mermaid glowed with a divine aura.

Overwhelming awe, admiration, and enchantment filled their minds—emotions that one should rightly feel in the presence of a being so great.

TheemptywhitevoidisoverlaidbythebeautifulTwinkleTwinkleOceanPalaceAsmallgoldenfangshapedplazaglimmerslikeachapelFillitwithpraiseworshipandaffectionandlookuptoyourmasterchildButthereisnosuchthingasanescapepodhereThisisaplaceofprayerAplacetopraytotheMermaidPrincessand

“Damn it.”

Agent Choi lifted his suncatcher and barely managed to block his view.

Beside him, his hoobae mimicked the action and spat blood, having bitten his tongue to jolt himself back.

But again, the gaze from above…

“Elder!”

A flash burst from Agent Choi’s hand.

A flicker of light, burning within the lantern.

Red and blue fire pushed back the golden glow of the mermaid’s halo.

Dokkaebi House.

The Dokkaebi House blazed, creating a space of illusion.

Where the flames reached, tile-roofed houses wavered, and the shadows of dancing, singing dokkaebis flickered.

A fleeting moment where anomaly repelled anomaly.

“We won’t last long, during that time…!”

They had to sever as many tails as possible and get the children into the escape pod.

The mermaid—no, the fleshy mass—raged and tried to reach the escape pod again, but the space around it distorted, forcing it to circle near the ceiling. Now’s the chance…

Whoosh.

The adults in suits scrambled toward the escape pod.

Those wearing animal masks.

The employees of Daydream Inc.

“……”

Agent Choi’s eyes darkened.

At the same time—

‘I have to follow…!’

Baek Saheon was grinding his teeth, watching the same scene.

Now was the time to run, but the problem was that Kim Soleum still had his hand gripped tightly around Baek Saheon’s head, holding him down.

‘Fucking hell.’

Cunning flashed in Baek Saheon’s eyes.

Was there a way to push him off?

This little… Since the fucker looked like a child, maybe he’s physically weaker than him? No, wait. He’s contaminated. He might be even stronger.

Still, one thing was clear. Most contaminated individuals often lacked signs of human intelligence.

Madness and bizarre rules governed their minds!

“Excuse me. Shouldn’t you be more worried about the big one above me? She can’t come in right now. Shouldn’t you be cheering her on?”

The bastard was baiting him.

Ah. Did turning into a mer-child make him unable to understand words? Then Baek Saheon could just write on the ground!

But just as he tried to scrawl the same message on the dusty floor with his finger, the pressure pinning his head down vanished.

“…!”

It worked!

Baek Saheon shot up, ready to bolt… only for Kim Soleum to press him back down again.

“Argh!”

‘Why, again!!’

Then Kim Soleum began writing on the floor.

– Carry me.

“…?!”

– Carry me and run.

“What the actual f—”

A dazed Baek Saheon blurted out without thinking.

“To where?”

Kim Soleum turned his gaze.

Toward the opposite side of the escape pod.

The passage going out.

“…?!”

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