No matter how dynamic my life had been, this was the first time I’d ever grabbed a severed wrist with my bare hands.
The impostor pretending to be “the caretaker” had been making a scene about losing its wrist, but the moment I pulled one out of the black plastic bag, it froze like a machine that had just glitched.
{Excellent! Those who attempt to trade using what belongs to others are always so appealing.}
Every time it spoke, half of its mouth moved while the other half stayed still, creating a deeply unsettling effect. The lump had been more grotesque in appearance, but this thing was far more mentally disturbing. Maybe because half of it still looked human.
{Good. What shall we trade? I can answer anything you wish. If it is worth a wrist!}
“I want to know the location of the real ‘the caretaker,’ not you.”
{OfcourseIknoweverything.Thatinformationisworthonewristalone!}
“Don’t suddenly talk fast like that. It’s creepy.”
{Is that also a trade?}
“No. That’s a favor.”
Minsu whimpered with his snout still held in my hand. If I let him go, it didn’t feel like he’d stop at just tearing off the impostor’s wrist. I held his warm, solid body tightly in my arms. Even though he could easily break free if he wanted to, he didn’t struggle—he seemed to like being held.
{“The caretaker” is currently in Unit 1101.}
With only half of its lips raised, the impostor told me the real location. Then it snatched the wrist from my hand and attached it to its own arm—the one Minsu had torn off. Without any stitching, the wrist missing two fingers fused perfectly into place.
{But it is missing two fingers.}
“That’s the trend these days.”
{Would you like to sell your fingers?}
Honestly… if Minsu really did something to my body, this might actually be a profitable deal.
I hadn’t tested how my body recovered from losing parts yet, but considering the Anomaly Control Department had been ready to cut off my limbs without hesitation, there was a good chance it would regenerate.
But healing easily didn’t mean it wouldn’t hurt.
When I got hit by those hydrochloric-acid BB pellets, the pain had been unbearable. If anything, it felt even more vivid.
You’d have to be out of your mind to offer your own fingers just to get something out of it.
And I was, unfortunately, still sane.
So I didn’t put my fingers up for trade.
Aside from the location of the real “the caretaker,” there wasn’t anything else I urgently needed to know. But even after the deal was over, the impostor didn’t move out of my way.
{If not fingers, then something else. A few strands of hair will do. Let us trade!}
“I’m not curious about anything anymore.”
{Won’t you become a resident? You must stay here. If I sell you, I might be able to return “the caretaker.”}
“What the hell are you talking about? I’m not interested in trading. Move.”
{Aren’tyoucuriousaboutanything?Iknoweverything.Whyyouarespecial.Whatthatdogyouareholdingreallyis.Andwhyareyourparents—}
“I said don’t talk fast. Actually, just don’t talk at all.”
I finally let go of Minsu’s snout. If the impostor kept clinging to me, I was ready to just give the command: bite.
{Whereyourfriendsarewandering.Wherearetheytrapped.Whatdidtheybecome.Whethertheycanreturn—}
“I’ll figure that out myself, so stop following me.”
{Ah, such a shame! Ah… I want to stay with you. I want to eat you. If you become our resident, if you live here forever!}
“You want your other wrist torn off too?”
The impostor stayed in place, repeatedly chanting for me to “move in.” But when Minsu bared his teeth and growled, it didn’t dare follow me any further. It seemed to understand that its newly attached wrist could be ripped off again.
{You gave it a name?}
The moment I said Minsu’s name, the impostor’s face twisted violently.
{I want one too. I want a name again. Won’t you sell me a name? A name, a name, a name…}
Its face, fixed on Minsu, distorted further. It had been wearing human skin, and even if half its face was strange, it still looked human—but now everything collapsed at once.
I couldn’t bring myself to turn my back on it. The moment I did, it felt like it would leap at me like a mad thing. For now, it stayed still out of fear of Minsu, but its eyes were entirely fixed on me.
{I want it back again.}
As I backed up the emergency stairs, Minsu licked the hand holding him. I couldn’t be sure in this form, but it felt like he was showing off that he had been given a name.
***
13. It is not recommended to remain at the entrance of the Baekju Apartments building for long. The entrance is a space used by many residents. At the entrance, you may encounter any resident except for the resident of Unit 1101.
13-1. The resident of Unit 1101 cannot leave Unit 1101. Unit 1101 is managed by Dore Co., Ltd. Approaching the resident of Unit 1101 is strictly prohibited.
Fortunately—or unfortunately—the rules sheet created by Dore did include information about Unit 1101. It seemed the resident there couldn’t roam freely inside Baekju Apartments and was always confined to that unit. Judging from the notes, the resident itself didn’t seem inherently dangerous.
The rules clearly said not to approach the resident of Unit 1101, but now that I knew “the caretaker” was there, I had no choice. I had to meet him to return to reality.
Carrying Minsu, I climbed the emergency stairs, panting. Hauling a dog as heavy as a boulder up eleven floors was no joke. It was about twenty times worse than the Stairway to Heaven machine at the gym.
{I can walk on four legs, you know. That’s why I came in the form of a dog.}
“I’d love to put you down, but you keep eating weird things the moment I do.”
{That’s because they threatened you, Iru.}
“I appreciate you protecting me, but seeing you eat random stuff in that form is not something I can handle mentally.”
{Then would it be fine if you weren’t sane?}
“You’re the one who’s not sane… I’m tired, so stop making me talk.”
Minsu actually listened. He ignored everything about not eating random things, but the moment I said I was tired, he shut his mouth completely. He seemed worried about me, but at the same time, he clearly enjoyed being held.
{There’s something I need to tell you, Iru.}
Just as we finally reached the door of Unit 1101, Minsu, who had been quiet, spoke again.
{From what I’ve observed, you’re popular, Iru.}
“I do get hit on randomly on the street sometimes.”
{…You do?}
“I’m good-looking, after all.”
{…….}
I thought he was about to say something important, but what came out was painfully obvious. I’d been getting attention for my looks since kindergarten.
{What I mean is… not with ordinary humans, but with those who used to be human.}
“You?”
{Including me. I think beings like that can’t help but be drawn to you instinctively.}
“Why? Do I meet some kind of aesthetic standard inside anomalies?”
There was no way the aesthetic standards of a place where faces were replaced with geometric shapes or bodies were half tentacles would match reality.
Minsu suddenly jumped out of my arms and shook himself off.
{Of course, you’re excellent in appearance too. But there’s something else.}
“What is it? Just get to the point.”
{When you’re nearby, I don’t feel empty.}
What the hell does that mean?
Minsu circled around me, rubbing his body against my leg. Thanks to me carrying him the whole way, his sleek black fur didn’t have a single scratch.
{Everyone will want to stay with you. So can you swear something to me? That you won’t give a name to anything else…}
Even after I’d carried him around so carefully so he wouldn’t get hit by acid BB pellets, the word swear came out of his mouth again without a hint of shame.
I let out a hollow laugh and grabbed the doorknob of Unit 1101. Even though there was a keypad installed, it wasn’t locked—the door opened easily.
“Do we really need to bring up swearing?”
{So you won’t swear?}
“No, listen. You’re enough for me.”
I’d already become the ultimate traitor to the nation just by giving him the name Minsu—why would I go around naming other things? At that point, I wouldn’t just be a traitor—I might as well be the cause of the world ending.
“I don’t need to swear. I’m not going to give out names carelessly.”
{…….}
“I started calling you Minsu because you’re special.”
It was true—I’d only done it that one time out of sheer desperation.
Now I knew anomalies were real. And thanks to Jeon Jiho, I knew that giving names to entities inside anomalies was dangerous.
If you didn’t know the risk, sure—you’d name things casually.
But once you did?
Why the hell would you do it again?
Unless you wanted to end up on some survival reality show, the smart move was to avoid dangerous things as much as possible.
But Minsu seemed to interpret my words a little differently.
{You’re special to me too, Iru.}
Seeing a giant black dog act shy made me feel like something had gone wrong somewhere, but I had no idea where to even begin fixing it. So I just threw open the door to Unit 1101.
Right now, the only thing on my mind was getting out of Baekju Apartments as fast as possible.