The Jelly Alien Will Save You! Chapter 40

* * *

A bitter wind blew across the roof, but from a certain point onward, the cold could no longer be felt. 

 

After being consumed by the contamination, there were many such things that Kwon Bora could no longer understand.

 

The fact that, at some point, she became unable to tuck away her tail.

 

The fact that, at some point, the time she spent as a whale began to grow longer.

 

The fact that, at some point, she began to lose more and more of her memories of the guild members.

 

‘I shouldn’t do that….’ 

 

Not that, of all things……. 

 

She blinked her eyes slowly.

 

Suddenly, an irresistible drowsiness consumed her body.

 

Kwon Bora, who had curled her hunched body with her tail, fell straight into a deep sleep.

 

A moment later.

 

Shhh— Shhh— 

 

The sound of breathing approached her side.

 

The figure in the yellow hazmat suit closed the valve of the anesthetic gas.

 

Shhh— Shhh— 

 

He took a photo of the sleeping Kwon Bora and picked up a voice recorder. 

 

“YS-02. Status stable. The duration of Calamity-fication was 10 hours and 21 minutes, which is 11 minutes longer than the previous instance.”

 

Shhh—

 

“Seeing as she can no longer humanize her tail, it appears the contamination has progressed further.”

 

He pulled out a tablet and entered several figures.

 

Heart rate, body temperature, residual humanization ratio.

 

[Humanization Maintenance Rate: 27%]

 

“The humanization maintenance rate is continuously dropping over time.”

 

Soon, the figure in the yellow hazmat suit turned off the recorder and cleared away the food placed in front of the dolls.

 

That way, when she woke up tomorrow, she would mistakenly believe that the guild members had finished all the food she brought them.

 

She must not realize yet that the guild members were actually all just dolls.

 

Because a rampage would make the figures unstable.

 

Stabilized contamination and controlled erosion. That was what they wanted from Kwon Bora.

 

* * *

 

I intended to fly to Unnie’s side immediately in my spaceship.

 

At least until I went tumbling out of the warehouse and crashed into the door.

 

“Where are you going?”

 

Cha Haeeon, who was coming in holding something halfway between a chicken and a duck, asked.

 

“…I don’t know either.”

 

I answered, half on the verge of tears. 

 

I felt pathetic for crashing into the door when I didn’t even know where I was going.

 

I sniffled as I brought back the memory.

 

“It was a place like a company. On a building made entirely of glass, it said ‘RUST GAM,’ but the rest was collapsed, so I couldn’t see it… And… and…”

 

“I get it.”

 

Speaking soothingly, Cha Haeeon plucked me out of the spaceship like he was pulling up a radish.

 

He dusted off the spaceship, set it back upright, and then put me back inside it.

 

“You’re saying you’re going to the ‘Trust Games’ office building?”

 

“You know where it is?!”

 

“Mhm.”

 

Cha Haeeon spoke leisurely as he untied his boot laces.

 

“Tell me where it is. I have to go there. Because, because…”

 

But the words couldn’t be finished in the end. It was because I couldn’t explain the reason to him.

 

It was at that moment.

 

“You probably won’t be able to go, though?”

 

Cha Haeeon stated flatly, as if there were no need to even listen.

 

“Why?!”

 

When I asked in a shrill voice, he shrugged his shoulders and spoke.

 

“In that company, you can only move upward if you get promoted. If you don’t get promoted, you can’t even go home until you die; it’s a place where you have to work forever as an intern.”

 

“What?!”

 

“Those are the rules of ‘Trust Games.’”

 

“Even though I’m just going to the roof?”

 

“To get to the roof, you’ll likely have to make it all the way to the CEO’s office.”

 

“What kind of rule is that…?”

 

With a face full of despair, I racked my brain.

 

“Instead of going up inside the building, can’t I just take the emergency exit stairs?”

 

“If you want to fall into an eternal maze, you can do that.”

 

“I… I don’t want that…”

 

Cha Haeeon stroked my head once as if pressing down on it.

 

Then, he held out a mutant.

 

“…”

 

I pouted as I purified it.

 

As the strangely shaped mutant turned into a duck, a seed dropped onto the floor with a thud.

 

Cha Haeeon grabbed the duck by the neck and spoke as he walked into the kitchen.

 

“You’ll just have to patiently find a way to get promoted or something.” 

 

He talks so easily since it’s not his problem! 

 

Brother also seemed angry at Cha Haeeon, as he hopped up and down in his spot.

 

I hugged Brother and looked for the building where ‘Trust Games’ was located on the map.

 

It wasn’t marked as a Boss. Then does that mean it’s just an anomaly?

 

‘Trust Games…’

 

Trust Games was the developer and distributor of <Squishy Squishy! Planetmon!>.

 

Because of that, I knew a little bit about the place, but…

 

That didn’t mean I could somehow get promoted all the way to the CEO’s office.

 

‘You can only go up if you get promoted, huh…’

 

I recalled the abnormal phenomena I had resolved so far. 

 

Most of them were in the form of either following the rules or breaking them.

 

‘Break…’

 

To break. To crack. To make unusable. To tear down.

 

“…!”

 

I jumped up from my seat.

 

An idea worth testing came to mind.

 

Just in time, Captain Gong Juwon, who had finished his hunt, was opening the front gate and walking in.

 

With eyes burning with fire, I shouted toward him.

 

“I’m going to break it!”

 

“Pardon? Do you mean me?”

 

Captain Gong Juwon’s eyes wavered.

 

“No! ‘Trust Games’!”

 

Having heard that shout, Cha Hae-eon came outside holding the half-plucked duck. 

 

As I clenched my two fists while burning with resolve, Cha Haeeon spoke sarcastically.

 

“You’re going to try and break it with those fists?”

 

“Ha!”

 

I snorted.

 

Just what does he take me for?

 

“Of course I can’t!” 

 

How on earth could I smash a building with these squishy fists? 

 

However, I triumphantly placed my hands on my hips.

 

“I’m going to break the abnormal phenomenon of that place.” 

 

Therefore. 

 

“If I fail, I have to run away immediately, so both of you come with me. You two have to take me and run.”

 

At my boldness, Cha Haeeon let out a sigh as if he were speechless, and Captain Gong Juwon blinked his eyes, asking, ‘Me too?’

 

* * *

 

“Beep—” 

 

The bus dropped us off and departed.

 

The three of us looked at the building right in front of the stop.

 

The ‘Trust Games’ building looked as if it were on the verge of collapsing at any moment.

 

[RUST GAM]

 

Narrowing my eyes and looking closely at the logo, the letter T at the very front was barely visible. 

 

“Are you truly intending to go inside?” 

 

“Mhm.”

 

As soon as we stepped into the building, it felt as though we were passing through something mushy and gelatinous. It was a sensation I was used to by now.

 

Entering like that, the automatic doors slid open right before our eyes.

 

The first thing we saw was an empty lobby.

 

Captain Gong Juwon and I were completely terrified, our eyes darting around.

 

Gong Juwon moved first, tiptoeing cautiously.

 

“Captain Gong. Why are you trembling so much?”

 

“This is a zone where we have no data because even our unit hasn’t investigated it before……” 

 

“Cha Haeeon said it was no big deal.”

 

“I did?”

 

Cha Haeeon wore an incredulous expression, but I stuck close to his side and reprimanded Captain Gong Juwon for his timidity.

 

“Do you think you can properly serve in the military with that kind of mindset?”

 

Captain Gong Juwon said, looking a bit dejected.

 

“I apologize. I will correct my conduct.”

 

“Right, right. Hang in there.”

 

After nodding to him, I grabbed Cha Haeeon’s pant leg and shook it. It was a sign to move quickly.

 

Cha Haeeon looked down at me with an expression that said he had much to say, then let out a breath and moved his steps toward the elevator.

 

Ding—

 

The elevator doors slid open immediately as if it had been waiting for us.

 

I hugged Brother tightly to my chest and peered inside.

 

On one side of the wall, the company rules were hung in large letters.

 

[Company Rules]

 

1. Access to areas outside of your rank is prohibited.

2. Promotion must be proven through performance.

3. Unauthorized movement will be treated as a maze.