Chapter 126
"Aren't they just students?"
“Why would students be here when the only thing here is the teacher's office? They're not even teachers."
"Maybe they came here to evacuate..."
"But there hasn't even been an evacuation order. Rather than wasting time saying nonsense, shut up and find a weapon."
Thump, thump, thump...
As Yu-Hyun and Min-Seo engaged in meaningless conversation, the sound of footsteps drew closer. I held my breath and listened carefully. I wasn't sure who the other party was, but they weren’t alone. There were multiple footsteps, and they were irregular. At least two people were coming up the stairs.
However, we had three people on our side. Min-Seo could handle most situations independently, and I would help her if she couldn’t. Moreover, Yu-Hyun had the ability to distinguish taxidermied creatures from regular people, so most enemies wouldn't pose a threat to us.
"I think I can see something... Ah." L1tLagoon witnessed the first publication of this chapter on Ñøv€l--B1n.
Min-Seo had been leaning her head over the railing when she suddenly looked up and saw Yu-Hyun.
"Get ready. You know, that eye thingy."
"Eye thingy? You know the blessing has a name, right?."
"Ah, whatever. Anyway, get prepared to use it."
"I’m a complete tool to you, aren’t I..."
Yu-Hyun grumbled and drew a circle around his eye. I didn't know the name, but it seemed like he could distinguish taxidermied creatures through the help of that blessing. Did he use that blessing when distinguishing the Voodoo Cult dolls during The Starless Night? Probably not.
According to the testimonies of those who survived that day, Yu-Hyun could identify the Voodoo Cult with his naked eye. Anyway, we greeted the two people coming up the stairs, anxiety evident on our faces.
It was Jin-Seo and Ha-Yeon. They were familiar faces, but we couldn't let our guard down since a taxidermied creature could appear at any moment.
Yu-Hyun first looked at Jin-Seo.
"Jin-Seo is... fake. Ha-Yeon is..."
Pzzzk!
At that moment, sparks flew from the circle drawn around Yu-Hyun's eye. The circle emitting a brilliant light disappeared as it turned into ashes. Yu-Hyun grimaced in pain and covered his right eye with his palm.
"Ah, damn it, I overused it!"
"Huh? You fucker! If there was a limit, you should have said it earlier!"
"Hey, I didn't expect to reach the limit this quickly!"
"You crazy bitch...! Anyway, you said Jin-Seo is a taxidermied creature?"
"Yeah, but I don't know about Ha-Yeon. My eye hurts so much, ah..."
Min-Seo took a stance.
"It's okay. I can beat Jin-Seo even with my bare hands."
Jin-Seo looked up at us from below the stairs. Her gaze was vacant. In her right hand, she held a sword she had used for sparring on the sacred training ground. Perhaps because it was in Jin-Seo's hand, the dull sword looked more threatening than a real one. I got the chills even though I knew the Jin-Seo in front of me was just a taxidermied creature.
"Min-Seo,” Jin-Seo said as she slowly closed the gap between us.
The sword she held dragged on the ground, making a sharp and chilling sound.
Min-Seo smiled and drew a blessing array, then spat at Jin-Seo.
"Don't you dare say my name. I’m disgusted."
"...Now is not the time for us to fight."
"Shut up, you orphan girl. I’m glad I don’t have to watch my language because you’re a taxidermied creature."
Ha-Yeon tried to stop the fight with a trembling voice. "Huh? Why are you guys suddenly trying to fight... And what are you guys doing, not stopping them...!"
Judging from the way she acted, it seemed like she was the real Ha-Yeon, but at the same time, it also seemed like she was not the real Ha-Yeon at all.
"..."
I assessed the situation and went into deep thought. Jin-Seo dragged her blade across the ground as she approached Min-Seo, and Min-Seo entered into a fighting stance.
Could Min-Seo defeat Jin-Seo? If so, that would be great, but if Min-Seo lost, I would inevitably have to engage in battle as well.
However, Jin-Seo couldn’t just be beaten with the help of blessings. I confirmed that during the sparring session this morning. If I used Bossou's power, I might be able to win, but I had just used Bossou's power a moment ago. I was afraid of the drawbacks. I was not one to shy away from putting my body on the line, but I didn't want to harm myself any more than necessary.
I couldn't just wait for Min-Seo to lose and then intervene either. Whether I stepped in now or later, the result would be similar. I had to think and find a way to defeat Jin-Seo without using Bossou's power. I had to combine all the information I had gathered so far to come up with the best conclusion.
Numerous pieces of information, the habits of the taxidermied creatures, Yu-Hyun's abilities, and Jin-Seo's personality floated in my mind. I organized them and tied them together as one.
"...Yu-Hyun."
He was still clutching his right eye, groaning in pain. Yu-Hyun looked up at me with his bloodshot left eye. I gave him my instructions.
"Why do you pick fights with me when I’m around?"
“You should ask your mom. Oh, right, you can't."
I put myself between them, intervening in their heated conversation, and mediated the fight.
"Damn, that's long. Hey, Ha-Yeon."
Min-Seo tapped Ha-Yeon's shoulder with her toe.
Ha-Yeon was startled and raised her head.
"Yes? Pant, pant. What?"
"You just saw that, right? The Jin-Seo you had just come with was a taxidermied creature. Then what would you be?"
"...I’m myself. I'm not a dirty taxidermied creature like that...!"
"Then prove it. But how, you ask? You see, I've been thinking about it."
Min-Seo stopped talking and took a breath.
I had a guess about her method of distinguishing between taxidermied creatures. We’d just have to see the blood. By checking whether it was blood or sawdust and cotton that flowed through Ha-Yeon’s body, we could confirm whether she was a taxidermied creature or not–
“Take off your clothes."
...Was she crazy?
Min-Seo stood up with her arms crossed and looked at Ha-Yeon up and down with a sly smile. Ha-Yeon slumped down and took hesitant steps backward, looking up at Min-Seo with a bewildered and fearful gaze.
"Wh-what are you talking about?"
"If you’re a taxidermied creature, there should be some traces of added leather on your body or at least something out of place, right? If not, you’d be a human. Am I wrong?"
"That's nonsense..."
"Ah, stop hesitating and strip. If you're embarrassed, I could get the boys to cover their eyes. Or should I undress you myself?"
As Min-Seo approached Ha-Yeon, she took a step backward, trembling in fear.
I didn't understand why she wanted to undress Ha-Yeon. Before I could suggest that it'd be better to inflict wounds and see blood, Yu-Hyun suddenly grabbed her by the hair.
"There's nothing to see. This is a taxidermied creature."
Baaam!
Yu-Hyun’s thick forearms slammed Ha-Yeon's head against the ground. Ha-Yeon didn’t even get a chance to scream and immediately lost consciousness.
Bam!
Bam!
Bam!
Yu-Hyun repeatedly lifted Ha-Yeon's head and slammed it against the ground. It was such a sudden and unpredictable action that there was no time to prevent it from happening, even if I wanted to. Yu-Hyun and Min-Seo's actions were truly unpredictable.
Finally, chunks of sawdust started pouring out of Ha-Yeon's shattered head. Ha-Yeon’s head started bulging like it would burst at any moment. Without hesitation, Yu-Hyun threw her off of the staircase railing.
Puff...
With the sound of a deflating balloon, Ha-Yeon's swollen head shrunk. Black smoke spewed out of the head. As he looked at the rising smoke, Yu-Hyun's face was calm. Min-Seo and I stared at him in bewilderment. Sensing our gazes on him, Yu-Hyun chuckled awkwardly.
"You see, there was a scar on her hand that wasn't there before. So I killed it."
"A scar?"
Yu-Hyun opened his palm and showed it to us.
"There was a long scar on her left palm. I killed it right away because the real Ha-Yeon doesn't have any scars on her hands."
When Ha-Yeon used the blessing of purification, she injured her palm in the process. Although I healed Ha-Yeon’s wound, the healing array I had drawn was terribly sloppy, so a scar remained on Ha-Yeon's palm. In other words, the real Ha-Yeon also had the scar on the taxidermied version of her.
Fortunately, what Yu-Hyun had killed was a taxidermied creature. Yu-Hyun would have smashed her head without hesitation, regardless if it was the real Ha-Yeon or not. And he would have laughed casually after the deed was done.
He would say something along the lines of: Ah, you were the real deal. Sorry about that, but why do you have a scar on your hand?
Just thinking about that gave me the chills.
“A scar... hmm."
Unlike the calm Yu-Hyun, Min-Seo muttered with a serious expression as she looked at the taxidermied Ha-Yeon. The creature had turned into smoke and disappeared, leaving only the school uniform and white hair behind.
"I guess the appearance isn’t completely the same as the original? Just like the scar on Ha-Yeon's hand."
"Yeah, it seems like it. Kind of feels like a fun game of finding the wrong picture."
Come to think of it, the only remains of the taxidermied Jin-Seo left were the sword and clothes. But the rosary I had given her was nowhere to be found. The real Jin-Seo always wore the rosary that I gave her on her wrist. She even wore it when she exercised.
At first glance, the taxidermied creature looked real. But upon closer inspection, there were a few differences from its real counterpart. Why did the Satanist who pursued the ‘perfect taxidermy’ make such a mistake? If I delved into this, I thought I could find evidence of Satanist’s identity.
But currently, my mind wasn't working at all. The feeling of strangling the taxidermied Jin-Seo to death still lingered at my fingertips. I also felt a mixture of disgust and astonishment towards Yu-Hyun, who looked like he found this situation to be entertaining.
Yu-Hyun still had a creepy smile on his face as he stared at Min-Seo.
"But why did you insist on taking off the clothes? You could have just stabbed her with a blade to see if blood or cotton would come out."
"Ah, about that," Min-Seo replied nonchalantly. "I just was curious if vitiligo affects the entire body or not."
"Oh! I am a bit curious about that." Yu-Hyun genuinely played along.
"Ah..."
I bowed my head and covered my face. Being in the midst of this crazy duo made me feel like my sanity was slipping away.