Chapter 50

On the day of the operation.

Hmm, calling it “the day of the operation” makes it sound like we’re about to do something huge, but maybe it’s not that big of a deal.

Anyway.

“Let’s get going soon.”

“You look cheerful, Doctor.”

“Of course! It’s the day I get to mess with that annoying jerk again!”

The Doctor’s expression was much brighter than it was at dawn yesterday.

It seemed he was pleased with the idea of messing with Curs, who had ransacked his lab.

‘By the way, we found him earlier than I expected.’

I thought he’d hide even deeper after getting caught once.

Whether Curs is an idiot or the Doctor is just that competent, I don’t know, but since we found him, I guess it doesn’t matter.

“Come on, get in, get in! Be careful with him, he’s precious!”

*Grrr*

“Yes, yes. Thank you for lending us your precious ride again today, Doctor.”

The Doctor was in a hurry, barely exchanging greetings before rushing us.

Somehow, it feels like he cares more about that thing than me. Is it just me?

It felt like watching someone care more about their Lamborghini Huracán than their runaway daughter.

“Ah, before we go, I have one question.”

“What?”

“What if we get caught when we go in? It’s our first time, so I get it, but I doubt they’ll fall for it twice.”

At my words, the Doctor’s expression twisted.

It was as if he didn’t like what I said.

To exaggerate a bit, it was like he was treating me like an idiot.

‘…What part of that didn’t he like?’

The part where I said we might get caught? Or the part where I said Curs wouldn’t fall for it twice?

The Doctor’s mind is harder to read than a child’s right before starting elementary school. Sometimes, I just want to bang my head against a wall.

And that time is now.

“Ouch?!”

“Keep a pretty face, will you?”

“Tch, you’re just a creation of mine!”

“Want to get beaten to death by your own creation?”

“Ugh…”

Seeing the Doctor pouting after getting punched on the head felt refreshing.

It was like a long-standing frustration had been lifted.

“But, but it’s true! Thinking like that just proves you’re not an idiot!”

“You don’t have to twist your words to ask for another beating.”

“Eek, no violence! No violence! I didn’t create you to be so violent!”

“Says the one who told me, ‘Kill the magical girl, Monster Girl! Hahahaha!’ the moment I opened my eyes.”

This is just too much, even for someone with no conscience.

Clicking my tongue, I raised my fist again, and the Doctor let out a pitiful scream, hiding behind the monster.

How cowardly, running away like that.

“Anyway, it’s true, isn’t it? You could easily kill that guy like twisting a child’s wrist!”

“…Hmm.”

I was momentarily speechless at the Doctor’s confident words.

It seemed he had no doubt that his creation could lose to someone like Curs.

“Don’t blame me if I lose.”

“You can’t lose. I didn’t create you to be weak.”

“Such confidence.”

Way more than me, the actual person involved.

“Alright, enough chit-chat. Let’s go.”

“Yes, yes, I was going to go anyway.”

Ignoring the Doctor’s nagging, I slipped into the monster’s body.

It’s always fascinating, no matter how many times I see it.

This monster is truly something to envy.

***

And so, we successfully infiltrated Curs’s lab in the Lamborghini—no, the monster.

As expected of a high-performance monster.

I tapped the monster’s arm, and it snorted, as if it knew how great it was.

‘Now, let’s activate the Despair Circuit—’

*Thud!*

“…Huh?”

A loud weight dropped, and thick despair began pouring into the surroundings.

See, I knew it. No way they’d fall for the same trick twice…

While mentally cursing the absent Doctor, I tapped the monster’s arm.

Come on, let’s go back. Today’s just not our day.

*Grrr*

“Huh?”

*Grrr, grrr*

“You can’t move because the despair is too thick?”

I sighed briefly at the monster shaking its head.

Looking around with eyes adjusted to the darkness, I saw walls blocking every direction.

In short, we’re trapped—no, captured, is that the right word?

‘Maybe Curs is smarter than the Doctor after all…’

If the Doctor knew what I was thinking, he’d be furious, but given the situation, oh well.

I don’t know what Curs is planning, but it seems he’s still bitter about what happened with Emerald last time.

[Well, well, who do we have here… It’s you, isn’t it?]

“Long time no see.”

A familiar voice came from the speakers in the room.

Oh, hearing it like this, it sounds just like the voice from the anime.

Feeling a reflexive sense of familiarity, I greeted him.

Though Curs didn’t seem to share the sentiment.

[…You’re quite calm for someone who’s been caught.]

“Impressive. You caught me.”

[I don’t know what you’re planning, but even your capable monster friend won’t be able to escape this room easily.]

This guy is pretty competent.

I patted the monster, who was shaking its head uneasily due to the thick despair.

Calm down, calm down. It’ll be fine.

‘By the way, why is it so uneasy with all this despair around?’

Isn’t despair like a meal for monsters?

Tilting my head in confusion, the monster began scratching the floor.

It was a reaction similar to a dog suffering from high-frequency noise.

[Even for a monster, there’s a limit to how much despair it can hold inside. You must feel it too, right? The overwhelming amount of despair that exceeds your capacity.]

“Ah…”

I think I know what you mean.

Just like how humans need to eat to live, but they don’t eat until they burst.

And it’s the same for monsters.

Even with despair all around, if it exceeds their capacity, they’ll feel uncomfortable.

In that sense, for a monster that consumes despair, this place must be uncomfortable to even breathe in.

‘Though I feel perfectly fine.’

For me, this place is like a room full of snacks.

Sure, the concentration and amount of despair are overwhelming, but I could easily devour twice this much.

[By the way, there are quite a few experiments I’d like to try on you.]

“Like what?”

[Durability tests, regeneration, maximum despair capacity, internal organ arrangement and distribution, differences from magical girls, and so on.]

…So you just want to dissect me.

I frowned at Curs’s calm yet gruesome words.

It was clear he was full of malice toward me.

‘I haven’t even done anything, why is he so sensitive?’

In the original work, he seemed like a fanatic following the Apocalypse, but now he just seems petty.

Maybe his lab got wrecked, tsk.

And it’s not even my fault the underground lab got destroyed.

Who told you to put a monster in such a fragile test tube?

It’s your own lack of safety awareness that caused this mess, why blame me…

[It was quite amusing to see Doctor Sung-Ending run away with his tail between his legs. For all his achievements, the power he wields is rather pitiful.]

“Is that supposed to provoke me? How childish.”

Tsk tsk, I clicked my tongue and sat down nearby.

Would it kill you to have a chair in this room?

I mean, seriously, no chair? That’s just too much.

[If something like this provokes you, that would also be interesting. I plan to analyze, disassemble, and reconstruct you, then create a new being based on that.]

Curs’s voice was filled with a strange desire.

Well, when I first saw those grotesque lifeforms mixed with humans and monsters in the underground lab, I was pretty fascinated too.

If the Doctor created a monster that looks human, maybe Curs will create a human that looks like a monster.

‘A monster using hope energy like a magical girl…’

“Pfft…”

Imagining a monster shouting ‘Emerald Splash!’ made the corner of my mouth twitch.

Pfft, pfft hahaha… A monster shouting ‘Emerald Splash’ and firing hope energy cannons… Just imagining it is hilarious.

Adding to that, picturing the real Emerald and the monster Emerald facing off, the suppressed laughter finally reached its limit.

“Pfft, ahahahaha…!”

[…]

“Ugh, ha… Really, this is hilarious.”

I laughed so hard tears almost came out, and my stomach started to ache a little.

Honestly, I can’t even remember the last time I felt such pure joy.

‘Wait, more importantly…’

…Why did he suddenly go quiet? This is making me uneasy.