Chapter 17: D-XX The White and Chubby Furball (1)

“I….”

I hesitated for a moment.

The three names tangled together inside my head.

The Broken Violinist, The Portrait of a Dismantled God, and The White and Chubby Furball.

The name of the last one seemed especially harmless.

Because of that, it might actually be the most dangerous.

Even so, I answered.

“I’ll choose The White and Chubby Furball.”

Silence.

At that moment, all the team members looked at me simultaneously.

Manager Myeon smiled with his seven faces, and Director Mok gave a slight nod.

“Good choice.”

With a heavy resonance, Assistant Manager Son nodded with his fist, no, with his head, no, with his fist-head.

That enormous fist moving in a straight line conveyed a strange sense of reassurance.

“Let’s examine them one by one.”

With Director Mok’s words, the team members began moving one after another toward the entrance of the Extraction Room.

I followed them while cautiously observing my surroundings.

The entire team was mobilizing.

For Extraction Team 1 to move as a complete unit was clearly something unusual.

‘Why…?’

The question lingered in my mind.

Eventually, I spoke quietly.

“I have a question.”

The five superiors did not stop at the same time, but each reacted slightly in their own way.

Supervisor Shik growled something quietly, “Grrrrr,” and Assistant Manager Son tilted his head.

Manager Myeon looked at me with the face on the back of his head and gave a slight nod as if to say he was listening.

Director Mok silently turned his gaze toward me, and Manager Batori showed a peculiar smile.

“…Is it normal for the entire team to move together like this?”

“It has to be. It also serves an educational purpose.”

Director Mok replied.

His voice was damp and quiet as always, yet it carried a strangely convincing weight.

“The detailed information regarding dimensional entities is not completely determined by the Adjustment Department. It is only completed after Extraction Team 1 observes them directly.”

He paused and slowly turned his body toward me.

A root extending between his knots swayed gently in the air.

“What we see, hear, and feel today. All of those sensations will later become the standards for Extraction Team 2, the Refinement Division, and the Fusion Division.”

“Then…”

“You may think of it this way. Everything that happens from now on will serve as material for determining whether it can become a product of Limited Company Where the Dead End Up with Ghosts.”

It wasn’t simply about extracting energy from a monster.

It was also about evaluating the monster’s “value.”

Manager Myeon smiled softly with the face on the back of his head and added,

“Mr. Jeong, extraction is not only about extracting something. We must also decide what to leave behind and what to bring back with us. Make sure to record it properly on the tablet.”

I reflected on his words.

What to leave behind and what to bring back.

Perhaps it resembled the gesture Manager Batori made when she coveted memories.

Lifting part of a body.

Pulling something out from inside.

And leaving nothing inside the remaining shell.

We resumed walking.

The Extraction Room was getting closer.

And The White and Chubby Furball was surely waiting for us inside.

‘I thought that from now on, all I’d have to do was follow the manuals.’

Extraction Room.

As I repeated that still-unfamiliar name over and over in my head, I moved forward one step at a time through the corridor.

A long hallway lined with overlapping metal doors.

When one door opened, there was another.

After passing through that one, a ramp appeared accompanied by mechanical sounds.

And after descending that ramp, another long corridor illuminated by red lights stretched out before us.

There was oxygen, but the air felt heavy.

The lingering traces left behind by dimensional entities floated through the air.

A strange smell penetrated my lungs, making me feel less and less like I belonged to this world.

“We’ve arrived.”

Manager Myeon stopped.

At the end of the corridor, a red warning light rotated slowly.

Beyond the thick containment glass and reinforced metal frame, a cold white mist spread faintly.

Something inside it was moving slowly.

At first, I couldn’t see it.

I could only perceive a faint disturbance behind that blurry fog.

“Huff, huff… huff huff huff…”

An unfamiliar breathing sound could be heard.

A strangely high-pitched and slightly damp panting.

Thump.

At that instant, something round and red suddenly appeared on the other side of the glass.

Two bright red eyes.

Round like drops of water.

And beneath them, a long scarlet tongue hanging out.

“Huff huff… huff huff…!”

When I saw it for the first time, I took a step back reflexively.

Not because I was truly frightened, but because it was so unexpected.

White fur.

Incredibly fluffy, soft, and long fur.

Its entire body was covered in hair to the point that its face was invisible except for its eyes and tongue.

Its mouth was hidden beneath the fur, but judging by the protruding tongue, it was possible to roughly tell where it was.

‘…A lion?’

It was about that size.

A slightly chubby lion.

“Huff… huff huff…”

The White and Chubby Furball continued panting nonstop.

It sounded like a feverish puppy sitting on a hot floor.

Though clearly, this was not a puppy.

“This is… the White and Chubby Furball?”

I muttered without realizing it.

Assistant Manager Son slowly nodded with his fist, no, his head.

“That’s right. You chose well, Mr. Haeil.”

“I chose… well?”

“Yes.”

He said with a quiet laugh.

“The Portrait of a Dismantled God is Rank A. It’s too much for Mr. Haeil to face directly.”

“…Ah.”

“The Broken Violinist is Rank C. We’ll examine that one separately afterward.”

Assistant Manager Son pointed beyond the glass with the fingers on his head.

“The White and Chubby Furball. This one is Rank D, making it the easiest to handle.”

Then why the hell did they give me a choice?

Were they giving me a chance to try dying once?

I looked at the thing beyond the containment cell.

“Huff… huff huff…”

The entity was pressed against the glass as if it had its forehead resting on it while panting.

Its two eyes were red and round.

Its tongue remained extended, moving wetly.

Its fur was long, white, and denser than that of most animals.

And then—

‘…Huh?’

The longer I looked at it, the more something felt strangely—

‘…kind of cute.’

It was strange to think something like that in this situation.

But that was genuinely how it felt.

It was adorable.

Its eyes were so round they looked like toys, its tongue hung limply, provoking a strange sense of pity, and its fur looked so fluffy that, honestly, it made you want to hug it.

‘Is it okay for me to think that?’

On the other hand, that frightened me even more.

Because, in this unfamiliar company, the moment an unfamiliar existence seemed “adorable” to me, I was no longer able to tell whether it was a distraction or whether I myself was becoming influenced by this company.

Manager Batori silently stepped beside me.

Although she was looking through the glass, she smiled only with the corners of her lips.

“Mr. Jeong Haeil.”

“Yes.”

“Make sure to record those emotions carefully.”

“…Excuse me?”

“Because what we know about this dimensional entity…”

She took a sip of the blood in her tumbler and crushed an ice cube with a crunch.

“Begins from this moment onward.”

I nodded silently.

At that moment, “that thing” on the other side of the glass tilted its head slightly.

Our gazes met.

Or rather, those two round red eyes stared fixedly at me.

“Huff?”

Then it let its tongue hang out a little farther.

Originally, today’s plan had been to go to work, review the manual, write reports, and, if an extraction became necessary, remain in the designated position and carry out the prescribed actions.

That was the plan.

Follow the manual.

Stay within the manual.

But now, were we going to create the manual?

What we, what I, had to do now was gather initial information.

No one knew this thing yet.

The first encounter.

The first observation.

There was no manual.

There were no standards.

And if we failed, there would be no way back.

My mouth went completely dry.

My fingertips trembled slightly.

That small tremor climbed through my arms to my shoulders and eventually became a suffocating pressure in the center of my chest.

‘…It’s normal to be afraid. In fact, it’s the right thing.’

A name that sounded completely harmless.

The White and Chubby Furball.

But things like that were always the most terrifying.

In the same way that a person approaching with an innocent smile can be more dangerous than someone who is simply large and intimidating.

Appearing harmless actually means that you know nothing about it.

“……”

At that moment, Manager Batori, who was passing by me, stopped.

She slowly turned her head.

“Are you afraid again?”

I looked up reflexively.

She held a different tumbler from yesterday’s in her hand, and a red liquid swayed quietly inside it.

“A little.”

I answered honestly.

Even if I tried to appear calm, she already knew everything.

She had been inside my head.

The trembling from a moment ago.

The changes in my breathing that even I hadn’t noticed.

Those red eyes had seen all of it.

She smiled faintly.

As always, that smile was strange and elegant.

She slowly placed a hand on my shoulder.

“Precisely because you’re a human capable of feeling fear, you turned out to be even more delicious.”

“…Excuse me?”

“No, no. Fufu. That was a slip of the tongue.”

Her soft fingers tapped lightly on my shoulder.

The touch was strangely cold, and for some reason, it helped me regain my composure.

Then she said,

“It’s fine. We’re here.”

“……”

“Those who observe first always take on the risk, but they’re also the ones who gain the most.”

“Yes.”

“So don’t worry. I’ll stay by your side so that you can be the first pair of eyes.”

She stepped forward.

The liquid in her tumbler swayed gently.

For some reason, the footsteps of the other team members advancing behind her felt reassuring.

I took a deep breath.

The trembling was still there, but it was okay.

They might be monsters, but at least I wasn’t completely alone.

The door opened.

A cold wind emerged from inside the containment cell.

More than wind, it felt like a presence spilling outward, or the very moisture of an existence.

I wanted to take a step back.

But I couldn’t.

Because all five of my superiors were already moving forward silently.

“Let’s go in one at a time.”

Manager Myeon’s voice was gentle, but firm.

The first to enter was Manager Myeon.

Then Director Mok slowly stepped forward while gathering up his roots.

After that, Manager Batori walked in with light steps and a soft smile.

Assistant Manager Son followed her with the same expressionless face.

Next, Supervisor Shik entered, dragging his chains with heavy footsteps.

I was the last.

I bit my lip silently.

Just before crossing the threshold of that place called a containment cell, a thick emotion that had accumulated deep within my chest began to spread.

Fear.

Terror.

Uncertainty.

‘We’re going to write the manual ourselves.’

Experience it first.

Decide it first.

Record it first.

Observe for the first time the nature, reactions, and danger level of a dimensional entity.

That was our job now.

One step.

And another.

I slowly entered.

The moment my feet touched the metal floor of the containment cell, the density of the air changed immediately.

The heavy metallic sound of the door closing behind me felt as though it were separating me from the world.

“Huff… huff huff…”

It was still there.

The White and Chubby Furball.

Or, more precisely, a biological entity made of fur.

Two round red eyes visible through a dense layer of long white fur.

A pink tongue hanging limply.

And it was looking at me.

More precisely, it was only looking at me.

“…Huff.”

A small, quiet sound.

A shallow pant, as though it were short of breath.

That gaze was so sincere that it was even more unsettling.

It wasn’t trying to read me.

It wasn’t trying to threaten me.

It was simply watching.

‘It recognizes me.’

At that moment, Supervisor Shik’s footsteps echoed more heavily behind me.

“Woof——!!”

“…Huh?!”

Suddenly, it started barking.

Or rather, it produced a sound similar to a bark, a deep and unpleasant noise like something breaking apart.

At the same time, the White and Chubby Furball’s fur puffed up all at once.

Like cotton candy charged with static electricity exploding outward in every direction.

Just like a hedgehog puffing itself up to intimidate an enemy, its body seemed to double in size instantly.

“Grrrroook, grrrrrrrr……”

Supervisor Shik growled in a low, heavy voice.

His breath made the air vibrate.

The atmosphere, which had remained calm, suddenly froze.

“Huu…”

Assistant Manager Son shook his head slightly and took a step back with the same expressionless face he had when he dumped food onto himself.

Without realizing it, I also stepped back half a step.

“Woof! Woof! Woof Woof——!”

The furball barked.

Its round red eyes narrowed.

Its tongue swayed as it hung out.

The weight of its body resonated like a vibration.

Meanwhile, two of my superiors, who remained standing in front without the slightest reaction, opened their mouths.

“Where did they find it?”

Manager Myeon’s voice rang out calmly.

He did not retreat even a centimeter.

On the contrary, his multiple faces observed the creature with narrowed eyes.

Director Mok answered,

“You already know where. On Fantastic Island.”

“Ah.”

Manager Myeon let out a brief exclamation.

Then he immediately changed the subject.

“It seems to like Employee Jeong.”

At those words, I turned my head toward Manager Myeon with a stunned expression.

“The first time it saw us, it only reacted to Employee Jeong. And furthermore…”

He left the sentence hanging for a moment and looked once more at the furball, whose red eyes were shining intensely.

“The fact that it displayed this level of caution as soon as it saw us means that it’s probably a matter of affinity.”

The furball continued barking.

“Huff… huff…”

And yet, its eyes remained fixed on me.

I swallowed hard.

‘Why me…?’

Without even knowing whether that was a good thing or a bad thing, I took a deep breath to calm myself.

The anxiety and emotions that were beginning to rise inside me pressed down on me once again.

Now, it really had begun.