Became a Failed Experimental Subject Chapter 9: Will Die

“Grrrr...”

Why does gukbap taste so damn good?

The crisp snap of jeongguji—or chives, or whatever na that green has depending on who you ask—was so clean, so sharp in its freshness that it lifted the heavy broth like a breeze in a fog.

Though I wasn’t sure if “fresh” was the right word, or maybe it should’ve been “clean,” the truth was that the deep, salty, dense warmth of it all filling my belly left behind a kind of solemn contentnt that was almost impossible to describe in words.

“Um... isn’t that hot for you?”

“It’s warm.”

Even the thick stoneware bowl felt perfect.

It made regulating my strength easier, and the heat—just right—let keep drinking the broth endlessly.

Ten bowls today.

I held back a little, but maybe because I’d monsterized earlier, I was still hungry.

“Thank you for the al.”

“Seriously, who slams down gukbap like it’s makgeolli...?”

I wanted seconds. Maybe thirds.

But I didn’t have the money.

After paying, I stood up and headed back toward the rendezvous point.

Back into the truck, we loaded the monster carcasses, and propped up the crumbling fra of the collapsed building with whatever we could manage.

With that, the day’s work was over.

Today, maybe because the building that fell had more floors than usual, Lee Han-yeong was still subrged sowhere deep below, diving through the lower levels.

“Whew... no more survivors. Sorry for slowing you down—since I couldn’t use the drill.”

“No worries. Thanks to Bongbap, we had no issues.”

“Yeah, if anything, it made my job easier. Bongbap here makes everything simple.”

“Since we did more work today, pay us more.”

There was no need to head to another site—everything had been wrapped up here.

That’s the good and the bad thing about high-rises.

No ti wasted running around from location to location, sure.

But less monster corpses. Less pay.

“Today’s timing’s kind of weird. It’s too late to start on another site, but too early to call it a day.”

“Honestly, that’s fine with . Let’s all go ho early and get so rest.”

Even though we’d finished up early, everyone seed worn out.

There was a general sense that we’d all call it here.

And I—

I was already suppressing my presence, feeling the source of their exhaustion press against every fiber of my body.

The ultra-low frequency—a wave from a monster that stiffens human bodies.

Sothing was out there. Far off. So far that no human equipnt could detect it.

It was searching for prey.

“...Haaah.”

The sensation was like being subrged in filthy water—

That blend of claustrophobia and disgust forced a breath from my lungs.

I couldn’t gauge the monster’s exact strength through its pulse.

Which ant one of two things:

It was on par with —

Or stronger.

A real Despair-Class monster had co to W-City.

Still, even with a Despair-Class monster in the picture, I wasn’t particularly worried.

The Heroes who’d been chasing —

They’d been on edge about a Despair-Class showing up.

So they’d respond quickly if sothing hit the city without warning.

There were even Heroes capable of delivering serious damage to a Despair-Class like .

That didn’t bother .

What did bother was the feeling of pressure—

Not fear, just discomfort—

As I did my best to erase every trace of myself.

It felt like trying to split a single strand of hair down the middle, vertically,

Cutting at a steady pace, never stopping,

Intercepting every bit of presence as it tried to leak out.

“Bongbap?”

“...Mm.”

The voice of Lee Han-yeong, close by, broke my focus.

Like soone had yanked a hair mid-cut, it threw off—

Even though I recovered instantly and silenced my aura again,

A crack had opened.

And along with it, the damp pressure that had filled my body vanished.

Had it... left?

“Um... Bongbap?”

“Mm. What is it?”

“Do you... maybe have ti later today? Once I drop off the last of the waste crew, my shift’s done...”

“Mm.”

What’s this about?

Stacking one question atop another, I looked down at Han-yeong.

She blinked quickly, then pulled sothing from her pocket and held it out to .

“Do you... like alcohol, Bongbap? This is a coupon—free dumplings. I was thinking, maybe later we could—like, you like ran, right? I heard the beer there is really good too!”

So it was an invitation to grab food together.

Restaurant recomndations were always welco.

But... if alcohol was involved, I wasn’t exactly thrilled.

Plus, there was a place I’d been aning to try today.

“I don’t like drinking.”

“Oh...”

“I’ve already decided what I’m eating tonight.”

Those beautiful words—all-you-can-eat.

I’d made up my mind. I was going.

Unlimited. Was it truly endless?

Could I fill my stomach for cheap and leave satisfied?

With that delicious expectation warming my insides, I turned down her offer—

But since I did want that dumpling spot info, I added:

“I like dumplings. Let’s go next ti.”

“Eh? N-next ti?”

“Didn’t you just ask if I’d go eat with you?”

“Oh! Yeah! Next ti! So then... this weekend? Um, Bongbap, you don’t have a phone, do you?”

“Ask the boss. I always wait by the truck spot.”

“Okay, okay! H-here’s the coupon! You have to co, okay?”

“Mm.”

I took the dumpling coupon and slipped it into my pocket.

Waved at her as I hopped onto the truck.

The place to ride the monster corpse disposal truck never changed.

Once the corpses were unloaded, the job would be over.

I figured the day had co to a close.

“...Hmm.”

In the now cramped cargo area of the truck,

Sitting atop a bag stuffed with monster remains,

I frowned.

A sensation. Not bloodlust—

But pressure descending fast.

A Despair-Class monster.

And it was headed exactly where I’d just been.

Had it started the hunt already?

No alarms were sounding.

Sothing about it felt off.

The site of the previous attack—there weren’t many people left there.

Why would a monster that preys on humans go to a place like that?

The answer was simple.

Its prey wasn’t human.

Its prey... was .

The faint presence I hadn’t quite managed to hide—

That trace of weakness I accidentally let slip.

The monster had picked it up.

The Despair-Class, like , must’ve felt it too—

That tiny, abnormal aura leaking from sothing that should’ve been hidden.

Another Despair-Class, or sothing just slightly weaker.

If it was in hiding, it had to be wounded.

It had co to W-City... chasing my scent.

Because to a Despair-Class, humans didn’t even compare—

A fellow Despair-Class was the ultimate prize.

The essence of evolution itself.

“See you this weekend!”

I imdiately placed a hand on the truck’s side rail.

“...I’m getting off.”

“What?”

“I’ll leave unloading to you. Actually, take today’s pay too. If I don’t co back, just spend it.”

“Wait, what are you talking about? B-Bongbap?!”

I leapt from the truck—feet slamming into asphalt—and soared into the air.

Landing on a rooftop high above, I saw them below:

Two workers in the cargo bed, eyes wide in stunned silence, staring up at .

No ti to waste.

The Despair-Class was in front of Lee Han-yeong.

Pushing off the roof, I kicked into motion—

And let the transformation begin.

The sirens began to wail through the alleys between buildings.

Two of them, now.

Their blaring cries grew closer.

And closer.

****

“Despair-Class monsters—two of them! Both of them—at the sa ti! They’re... they’re closing in!”

Yoo Anna clenched her teeth.

The worst-case scenario had finally arrived.

So Code Zero hadn’t vanished after all—he’d simply been hiding.

Which could only an one thing: Code Zero was stronger.

He must have been °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° lying in wait, aiming for Code Alpha’s blind spot.

From this mont on, W-City was about to beco the battlefield of two Despair-Class monsters.

It had begun.

The erasure of civilization that inevitably followed when two of their kind clashed.

“Request backup from adjacent cities! Evacuate all nearby civilians! Where’s the hot zone?! Contain the destruction to a single sector—minimize spread at all costs!”

“What’s the plan?”

“There’s no ti! Even if the Heroes mobilize from the next city, they won’t get here fast enough! Abandon the sector, have the Heroes form a containnt ring!”

All of W-City’s Heroes would converge, creating a tight periter around the two monsters, sealing them inside a single battleground.

To a Despair-Class, a lone Hero would be nothing more than easy prey.

But if a Hero approached during a battle between two equals—even a tiny disruption could tip the scales.

A nuisance.

A wall that could ruin everything.

In this war, the city itself would be sacrificed.

Flesh given up to protect the bones.

It was the best possible choice that humanity had.

It would cost them dearly.

But the cost of letting both Despair-Class monsters rampage freely would be far greater.

And then, the situation—

Got worse.

“W-wait—there’s more! Two Disaster-Class monsters! They’re near the Despair-Class signatures!”

“What?! Minions?!”

Two more Disaster-Class entities—

Which ant subordinate monsters had entered the scene.

If that was true, then the battle zone would spread even further—

The periter would break.

The Heroes would no longer be able to serve as a viable wall.

And if it kept on like this, there was no doubt what would happen—

One Despair-Class would be overwheld,

And the surviving one would face off against a depleted line of Heroes—

Alone, unstoppable.

No matter what they chose, the casualties would be imnse.

Unless...

Yoo Anna, who had been listening in silence with her eyes closed, suddenly stood and shoved the chair away behind her.

“We’ll take care of the two Disaster-Class monsters.”

“What? Are you out of your mind?! If you do that—!”

“Then their fight will last longer. And that... might be the only chance we get.”

If a Despair-Class and two Disaster-Class monsters acted together—

That would be even harder to manage than two Despair-Class fighting each other.

Unlike monsters, who consud anything in front of them,

Heroes were bound by a single, inescapable rule:

Minimize human casualties.

No matter the cost.

“If Despair-Class monsters hesitate to approach another of equal strength...

Then so will the Disaster-Class.”

That was the plan.

Let the two Despair-Class monsters tear into each other—

While Yoo Anna and the others engaged the Disaster-Class subordinates directly.

That was the only way to minimize damage.

To protect the city.

As Yoo Anna spoke, the other Heroes exchanged looks—grim, silent, resolved.

“Move fast. We don’t have ti.”

****

A wolf leapt through moonlight.

Its body soared across the ruinscape, landing atop the debris like a ghost returning ho.

It raised its head, sniffing the air, as if seeking sothing—

Or soone.

Below it, two smaller wolves crouched among the rubble.

Their mouths stained red.

They were playing with their food.

“H-hah... nnngh...”

They chewed through the legs.

Gnawed at the knees.

Tore into the lower body bit by bit, savoring each bite like a hard candy that you don’t want to finish too quickly.

The ground itself had been cratered—shattered like soone had sunk their teeth into the earth, dragging her down as she tried to escape.

I approached the scene slowly, silently, watching.

Growl...

Growllll...

The wolves raised their heads from the mangled body and stared at , jaws dripping with blood.

I looked down at the figure lying beneath them.

Lee Han-yeong.

Too late.

She was already at the edge of death.

As I drew closer, the wolves backed away cautiously, wary of my presence.

Above, the largest of the three—its body massive—tilted its head with curiosity, watching like a predator sizing up a rival.

Then it turned.

Even I could sense it—the periter forming around us.

The Heroes were closing in.

But the wolf didn’t seem troubled.

If anything, it looked pleased.

Like it had made up its mind to devour here and now.

“Bl...black...cat...”

Standing before Lee Han-yeong in my panther form, I stared down at what was left of her.

Her body was half gone.

But I could still sll it.

The fear.

The panic.

The helpless shiver of a human completely overwheld by a monster’s presence.

I hesitated.

Just for a mont.

And then, hoping that at least she might be able to die in peace—

I deactivated my transformation.

Growllll!

GRRRRRAAAHH!

The wolf monsters howled in confusion, disturbed by the unnatural phenonon playing out before them.

They didn’t rush .

Good.

I turned my eyes back to Han-yeong.

She was staring at —shocked.

Her body had lost too much blood, and yet—her trembling fingers reached out toward .

“...Ah...”

“You’re going to die.”

I took her hand gently.

And I said the words.

Because the light returning to her eyes—

The flicker of belief that maybe she could still be saved—

That was a cruelty I didn’t want to inflict.

Hope is pain.

I knew that better than anyone.

So I gave her the only rcy I could.

“I... know...”