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“Ahhh!”

“Geez, so loud!”

Park Ye Eun screamed as she ran with us, and Song Ah Rin shot her an annoyed look.

Despite her frantically screaming, Park Ye Eun somehow managed to keep pace with us.

Wait, no, it wasn’t really keeping pace.

Unlike me, who was starting to breathe heavily, she was screaming at the top of her lungs and not even panting, which seemed to indicate she still had plenty of energy left.

She definitely looks like she could run better than this.

With a quick motion, I grabbed the collar of Song Ah Rin’s shirt, and she flinched, shaking my hand off.

“How do we get out of here?!”

“Are we supposed to run to get out?!”

I quickly glanced at our hands as we rushed forward.

At first, I thought they were just hands; how troublesome could that be?

But the real problem was that it wasn’t just hands.

-Bam!

A long-nailed hand lunged at me, and as I swatted it away, it bled before disappearing into the wall.

Now, that was a problem.

It was the fact that amidst the seemingly normal hands, there were occasionally some that were definitely not normal.

In this case, the best strategy was to break through as quickly as possible.

“Ye Eun! Which way is the exit?!”

“Um, well…!”

Park Ye Eun rolled her eyes in confusion at my words, and Song Ah Rin glared at her, shouting.

“If we don’t hurry, we’re all gonna die! Move it!”

“I can’t see the way with all these hands in the way!”

“Why don’t you know your own way home?!”

“I just lost my parents not that long ago!”

At those words, Song Ah Rin shut her mouth, and there was a brief silence.

“…Uh…”

“Sorry. She may look pretty, but she doesn’t mean to hurt you with her words.”

“…”

This time, Song Ah Rin looked like she had nothing to say as she pressed her lips tightly together, while Park Ye Eun took a deep breath and pointed at a path with her finger.

“Over here!”

“Got it!”

Park Ye Eun took the lead and started sprinting, and we followed after her.

We dashed through the dim corridor, trying to avoid the shadows of hands as fast as we could.

I wondered if everyone else had managed to get out.

After how long we had run, we reached the place where we had encountered the other people before.

Fortunately, there were no traces of Yu Da On and Aileen, and the wall that had been there was also gone.

Did we actually succeed?

As we sped through the corridor like we were gliding, a hand suddenly popped out of the wall.

A long-handed palm with sharp nails lunged toward Song Ah Rin.

-Bam!

I quickly raised my gun and fired at the hand.

The hand staggered as it started to fall.

But if they keep popping up like this, I’d never know when to respond—

“Behind you!”

At Song Ah Rin’s urgent voice, I turned around.

A hand with long nails stretched out right in front of me.

I twisted my body to dodge, but it was already too late.

-Swish!

With a slicing sound, I felt a burning pain at my side.

“Urgh…!”

“Hey!”

“Brother!”

The horrific pain made me wince.

However, if I stop here, it would literally be the end.

I pressed a hand against my wound and kept moving, shouting.

“If we stop here, we’re dead! We have to run faster!”

Song Ah Rin’s eyes widened at the sight of my wound, and she covered her mouth as she pointed at it.

“You’re… bleeding…!”

“Don’t talk about it! It’s scary if you see it!”

What a deep gash that I could even feel it with my hand.

Looks like I might have to visit the Management Agency’s medical room after this.

Pain made my face contort, and my steps began to slow inherently.

I needed to keep going. I couldn’t stop like this.

“Hey, pull yourself together!”

“I’m trying to…!”

Song Ah Rin desperately supported me.

“If you fall here, we both die! I’ll die with you, so get up quickly!”

“I’m… I’m moving…!”

Song Ah Rin started to drag me along.

My blood was starting to stain my pants.

The pain was starting to feel like my body was gradually sinking like a waterlogged sponge.

“Something’s off. This doesn’t seem like the kind of injury where I’d bleed this much… Oh, wait…! Is this area…?”

Mumbling to myself as Song Ah Rin continued to pull me along.

Seriously, even with a wound this deep, I shouldn’t lose this much blood.

There’s something on those nails. Or maybe someone is playing tricks.

While my hazy mind wandered, I had one question come to my mind.

Why did Kim Chan Ho come to this nursery?

Simply for revenge on the Management Agency? That seemed too petty and incomprehensible.

He must want something from this nursery.

A pinwheel.

Where did he even get a pinwheel from?

How did he learn how to use that pinwheel?

It was like someone who already understood how to use the isolated objects…

<For now... I heard Mr. Kim Wan Woo managed the isolation objects incredibly well, even when the basement was flooded.>

Amidst the compliments, the branch chief’s words from when he summoned me and the reincarnator suddenly flashed in my mind.

It might be a leap in logic.

What if the reincarnator went underground to learn the usage and escape of the pinwheel and other isolated objects before the flood happened?

“…Song Ah Rin.”

“Don’t talk. You’re bleeding.”

“We need to go…! We must head to the Gangseo branch’s basement…! There’s nothing…!”

“Is this really the time to be thinking about that? Just shut your mouth and stop the bleeding…!”

Song Ah Rin’s voice trembled as she supported me.

“Get it together! Hurry!”

“I’m doing my best…!”

“No, you’re not!”

I needed to think. That’s the only way to pull myself together.

Desperately straining my mind, I pondered.

What if this pinwheel is in the basement of the Gangseo branch? And if the reincarnator handed it over to Kim Chan Ho?

Then why did Kim Chan Ho come here?

That piece of the puzzle just didn’t make sense right now.

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t find a reason for him to be here.

“…Ugh…”

“Come on, please. Huh? Get it together…”

Now, Song Ah Rin was practically in tears as she supported my shoulder.

As my senses dulled, I struggled to keep my body steady.

Is this the end?

If I’d known this would happen, should I have at least tried to block it with the manual?

As my head was filled with pointless thoughts,

“I’m sorry.”

“…Huh?”

A pink bridge flashed before my eyes like a sprinkle of petals.

Suddenly,

A terrifying strength lifted me as if I were a piece of paper.

“Wha…?”

Park Ye Eun was carrying me on her back.

“I just decided you were a heavy load! Now I’ll carry you!”

Heavy load? What does that even mean?

Regardless of my thoughts, Park Ye Eun started to run, deftly avoiding the hands.

“Only shoot the ones you can’t dodge!”

“…Got it…!”

“I’m off!”

Park Ye Eun began running at full speed.

“Hey, wait! Why is she so fast?!”

And right behind, Song Ah Rin followed, shocked.

Just as she said, Park Ye Eun was unbelievably fast.

It was almost as if carrying me made her even faster; she danced through the hands with light steps.

How long had she been running with me on her back?

“Over there! A person!”

Park Ye Eun exclaimed urgently, pointing ahead.

“…Who is it…?”

“Ah, no way! Everyone stick to the wall!”

Seeing that person made Song Ah Rin shout out in a panic, and she pressed herself against the wall, with Park Ye Eun following suit with me.

“Haha! Hahaha! Hahahahaha!”

The hearty laughter of a man echoed.

And something round rolled down at an incredible speed—

-Whoosh!

It tore through all the hands stuck to the wall.

The hands vanished in a cloud of blood.

“…”

“…”

It was unbelievable to say, but that was just a man rolling.

But even though I clearly saw the man, a translucent window did not appear above his head.

Just as Park Ye Eun and I exchanged confused glances, Song Ah Rin dashed out and shouted.

“Let’s run!”

“Ah, uh, yes!”

Park Ye Eun shouted in a daze and bolted out.

Soon, someone was straining their body at the door.

“Let go, Team Leader! Jae Heon is inside—!”

“Didn’t the Isolation Team just go in? Hold on tight!”

Behind them, Yu Da On was struggling as the Team Leader held her back, while Jang Chae Yeon spun in place.

“Hey, big brother! You’re badly hurt!”

Park Ye Eun exclaimed as she carried me, prompting the two women to turn their heads sharply.

“Jae Heon!”

“You…!”

The expressions of the two women went from white to pale.

“No way, why is there so much blood…!”

“Stop the bleeding, stop the bleeding…!”

In the flurry between those two, the Team Leader interjected.

“Stay calm! Calm down! The Management Agency will be here soon, first get the bandage! It’s in my car!”

Yu Da On hurried off to get the bandages while Jang Chae Yeon looked at me with a pale face.

“Stay conscious.”

“…I’m trying.”

“You’re doing well.”

Soon, Yu Da On returned with bandages, and blood seeped through the white cloth.

“…The bleeding should stop.”

And as she looked at me, Song Ah Rin remarked bluntly.

“Isn’t it better than before?”

“…”

She was right.

I was definitely bleeding less than before.

“How did… you know?”

“I’ll explain later. Just because the bleeding has stopped doesn’t mean you’re not in a state of anemia.”

Song Ah Rin spoke calmly, looking back at the two women.

“Right now, it’s okay—”

“I told you I’m going.”

Yu Da On cut off Song Ah Rin’s words, looking at her.

My vision was blurry, and I couldn’t see Yu Da On’s expression.

“…If I had gone, this wouldn’t have happened.”

“…”

I couldn’t tell what expression Song Ah Rin gave in response to Yu Da On’s comment.

“Rest.”

Then, seemingly unaffected by their conversation, Jang Chae Yeon took my hand.

Maybe because of my blood loss, her hand felt much warmer than usual.

“Chae Yeon…”

“I’m listening.”

“…This is intense…”

Park Ye Eun muttered, looking incredulous.

And just like that, I was carried off to the Management Agency Hospital.

That infamous yet notorious Management Agency Hospital.