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The middle-aged man in splendid clothing failed to meet my expectations and collapsed to the floor like a hedgehog.

If only he had blocked 1,000 needles, he would have been truly impressive…

Of course, the next time there would be 10,000 flying at him, turning him into a hedgehog again.

The Blue Reapers were embracing each other, relishing their victory.

They were facing each other with rarely seen cheerful expressions, smiling together.

The Blue Reaper, who had lost an Attached Human, slowly approached the collapsed form of the Attached Human, kneeling beside them and looking down with a fresh smile, as if to say, “It’s all over now, let’s go back together.”

However, the Attached Human had already lost consciousness and could not see that expression.

The Blue Reaper, who was gently patting the Attached Human’s cheek with a loving expression, quickly glanced around to check if any other Blue Reapers were watching.

Confirming that the other Blue Reapers were intoxicated with joy, the Blue Reaper pulled down their hat and leaned in close to the Attached Human’s cheek, hugging tightly before letting go.

With a slightly embarrassed smile, they stood up.

But what the Blue Reaper discovered upon standing was that they were surrounded by nine other Blue Reapers.

< ! >

The other Blue Reapers, witnessing the brave act of their companion, were expressing slight envy, showering compliments of “[Amazing!].”

The Blue Reaper receiving praise pulled their hat low, feeling a mix of embarrassment and pride.

But amidst the delightful chatter of the Mini Reapers, a discordant note rang out.

“It’s meaningless.”

A figure that looked exactly like the middle-aged man who had died slowly emerged from the darkness of the corridor.

Though it was an Object, its presence felt so weak that resurrection seemed impossible. How could it have come back?

Suddenly curious, I checked the destruction conditions.

[Cease of vital activity.]

It was a destruction condition remarkably close to that of a living organism for an Object.

Now that I think of it, the corpse of the man turned hedgehog was still sprawled on the ground.

Was it not resurrection but a twin?

The man had tried to say something in a deep voice, but the Blue Reapers quickly began to arrange strings in the air.

<1,000 needles made of water!>

Unfortunately, this time they didn’t even make an attempt to block and just collapsed.

“It’s meaningless.”

“It’s meaningless.”

But from the other side of the corridor, more middle-aged men began to appear, all identical to the one that had fallen.

The scene of identical figures filling the corridor and uttering the same words was terrifying.

The Blue Reaper, looking slightly flustered, began writing strings down again.

[Bed made of water!]

[Protect us!]

As the Attached Human was placed on the bed, a large droplet of water emerged, enveloping both the Blue Reaper and the Attached Human.

At the same time, the doppelgänger men charged toward the Blue Reapers.

As the distance between the Blue Reaper and the men narrowed, I sensed something strange.

It felt as if the doppelgängers possessed something uncannily similar to the firewood the Blue Reaper had.

It was eerily similar to warped reflections seen through a distorted mirror—ominous firewood.

*

Rachel was moving down a remote mountain path based on the clue she had obtained.

Walking along a steep slope with few signs of human presence, Rachel progressed forward with a worried expression.

“The Association has still been searching the village, so we should arrive first, right?”

Breathless, Rachel began to chatter away to the Golden Reaper about the current situation.

It was an action meant to hide her anxiety over her family’s potential danger.

The Object Association was incredibly reliable, but Rachel felt uneasy.

The Association’s most crucial purpose was to “ensure the Object Crisis doesn’t spread further,” which would unfortunately lead to casualties.

But contrary to her expectations, a massive number of Association vehicles were already lined up near the base of the “Eye Church.”

And incessant gunfire filled the forest.

Suddenly hearing the gunfire, Rachel felt overwhelming anxiety.

It was as if something terrible had happened to her family.

To assess the situation, Rachel crouched down and slowly made her way toward a high hill.

A cult and a shootout.

Thinking of those two elements, countless terrorist organizations flashed through Rachel’s mind.

Was a dangerous religious group engaged in a shootout around the building?

However, the scene that unfolded when she reached the hill was remarkably different from what she had imagined.

A middle-aged man in magnificent attire was continuously rushing out from the building’s entrance and windows.

He was the man introduced as the ‘Leader’ in the pamphlet Rachel had seen.

“What the hell is this?”

The clone-like identical leaders kept rushing toward the Association agents, only to become lifeless.

No matter how many there were, they were powerless against bullets.

How long had it been? Eventually, the seemingly endless wave of leaders also came to an end.

As the gunfire subsided, the forest fell into silence.

There were no hostage situations or injured civilians to be found.

“Finally, it’s over.”

Rachel tightly embraced the Golden Reaper and seemed ready to dash toward the Association.

However, the Golden Reaper, with a tense expression, stopped Rachel’s actions.

“Reaper? What’s wrong?”

Seeing the normally cheerful Golden Reaper suddenly stiffen, Rachel felt an uneasy feeling.

*

A man in a rugged steel helmet, unscathed, was gazing down at the derelict concrete building.

He was the Team Leader No. 1 of the American Object Association’s Special Task Force.

Team Leader No. 1 could not hide his curiosity as he gazed at his detector and muttered to himself.

[Mental Pollution Index is completely absent. Unusual for a cult.]

The man’s voice echoed strangely from within the confines of his helmet.

Certainly, being a Special Task Force with ample access to anti-mental pollution equipment, this situation seemed somewhat pointless.

He considered the possibility that it might be a more commonplace event not related to the Object, but duty was duty.

Such external matters could be thought about after resolving the mission.

[Team Leader, the rescue operation has been completed successfully.]

Suddenly, a completely different voice echoed within Team Leader No. 1’s helmet.

[Then it’s time to begin the suppression operation. Prepare for combat on your side.]

With the rescue team’s success using a cloaking Object, Team Leader No. 1 launched into a full-scale extermination operation.

Following the signal from Team Leader No. 1, the suppression team slowly began to approach the concrete building.

As the suppression team, which had been hiding in the forest, revealed themselves, the entrance of the concrete building swung open, and the fabulously dressed leader appeared.

“Suffering…”

Like a performer, the leader exaggeratedly waved his hands, and as he opened his mouth, “Do-doong” gunfire rang out, turning him into a corpse.

But this was just the beginning.

From the entrance and windows of the concrete building, the leader began to emerge endlessly.

It was an obviously bizarre phenomenon.

What had initially appeared to be a typical event unrelated to the Object Association had now clearly turned into an Object-related incident.

Like a moth flying into flames, the leader continued to charge forward.

One after the other, endlessly.

However, the seemingly continuous march of the moths eventually stopped.

As the gunfire ceased, a chilling silence enveloped the dense forest.

In the midst of that eerie calm, Team Leader No. 1 felt that it wasn’t going to end this way.

It was a developed instinct borne from countless battles with Objects.

He transmitted a command to remain on standby via signals, ensuring the suppression team stayed alert.

At the moment the suppression team, aiming their guns at the quiet entrance, was at peak tension, an anomaly occurred.

The entrance of the concrete building shattered, revealing a colossal leader.

Towering over at an impressive height of 5 meters, the leader was cloaked in white flames, looking down at the suppression team.

A deep sorrow filled the leader’s eyes, brimming with madness.

“Oh, poor wretches trapped in the flesh’s illusion.”

The sorrowful voice of the leader resonated like thunder, shaking the very ground beneath their feet.

It was a violent voice, tightening the listener’s hearts.

Upon hearing that voice, Team Leader No. 1 immediately ordered the resumption of fire.

The silence that blanketed the forest was shattered once more by the sound of gunfire.

But the outcome began to unfold in an incredible direction.

The ‘Large Object’ bullets, which demonstrated excellent power against Objects, seemed to lose their effectiveness.

How could the most powerful special bullets not penetrate?

This indicated that the leader who had just appeared was an entity they could not confront with their current equipment.

The moment Team Leader No. 1 realized this harsh reality, his voice rang out in desperation across the battlefield.

[Everyone, retreat immediately!]

However, as Team Leader No. 1 ordered a retreat and turned to flee, his legs wouldn’t budge.

The exoskeleton meant to assist various equipment was frozen in place.

“The flesh is but a prison for the soul.”

The leader approached the immobilized suppression team slowly due to the exoskeleton’s constraints.

When Team Leader No. 1 checked, the core component of the exoskeleton—the ‘Object Battery’—was engulfed in the white flames and burning.

“The Object exoskeleton has ceased operation. Drop the equipment and escape quickly!”

Team Leader No. 1 shouted as he threw off his helmet.

Bang. Bang.

Then he drew his pistol and fired toward the leader.

With the exoskeleton non-operational, the Special Task Force was bound to suffer significant damage, so he aimed to buy time, even if only a little.

Thud. Thud.

The footsteps of the approaching leader echoed slowly.

Just like the rifle fire, his pistol didn’t ignite the flames that burned the Object.

‘Is this the end?’

With a calm expression, Team Leader No. 1 awaited his last moments.

If he were to die, he believed he would die fighting an Object, so it felt like a fitting end.

The Special Task Force had already cast aside their exoskeletons and scattered in all directions.

Of course, if a 5-meter-tall monster began to chase them, many in the Special Task Force would die or be injured, but the damage was mitigated.

Team Leader No. 1 continued to shoot without stopping while gazing at the approaching gigantic leader.

*

The Golden Reaper began to recklessly dart down the mountain path.

A colossal fake human.

A harmful human cloaked in pain and despair.

Humans were in danger.

As he dashed around in a ghosting state, suddenly losing the ability, he tumbled and rolled on the ground.

The Golden Reaper looked down in bewilderment at his own body.

White flames clung to him.

Feeling unwell, he tried to brush them off with his palm, but the flames wouldn’t come off.

Giving up on removing the flames, he attempted to ghost again, but couldn’t.

What should he do?

Naturally, he should be able to ghost, and not being able to was frantic for the Golden Reaper.

Thud. Thud.

But upon hearing the loud footsteps, the Golden Reaper stopped panicking and darted toward the humans.

They were in danger.

Even without being able to ghost, he needed to help first.

There were humans who seemed like they would die any moment.

“I’m here!”

With a leap down, the Golden Reaper burned the firewood wildly, emitting light like the sun in all directions.

“Don’t look at the humans, look at me!”

Not being able to ghost made it unclear how to fight.

Yet the Golden Reaper emitted light so bright that one might mistake it for the sun falling in the forest.

Whether his efforts bore fruit or not, the gigantic monster turned to face the Golden Reaper.

Perhaps it felt that the Golden Reaper was slightly more threatening.

“Hurry and run away!”

The Golden Reaper smiled broadly at the fleeing humans.

At that exact moment, the gigantic monster’s fist slammed into the Golden Reaper.

Crack.

From the previously unbreakable body of the Golden Reaper, something cracked.

Ah, it must be because of the white flames.

As the fist pulled away, the Golden Reaper gritted his teeth and got back up.

The battered Golden Reaper became increasingly fragmented, like shattered pottery.

One of his legs was gone, and blood seeped slowly out from the cracks like wood.

“It hurts.”

But the Golden Reaper shone even brighter.

Even in a state where ghosting, time acceleration, and all other abilities were unavailable,

he could burn firewood to emit light.

He had to buy time until the humans could escape!

The Golden Reaper cheerfully watched the approaching fist once more, still smiling.