Chapter 47
Bing Seol Hwa looked at the woman before her and spoke.
“Is this all that’s being researched here?”
“Yes. There’s no need to conduct any other studies. The research might touch on some sensitive areas, but it’s legal and doesn’t pose any ethical issues, so there’s no need for concern.”
She couldn’t believe it. Was this really all that her father had been trying to hide from her? No, knowing him, he wouldn’t have bothered to conceal something as trivial as this. If there was something worth hiding, it wouldn’t be something so insignificant.
Moreover, there were Baek Seung-hyun’s words to consider. He had mentioned that there was something related to him at this research facility. There was no way he would lie to her. There must be something hidden here.
The problem was that she had no way to uncover it.
The woman in front of her claimed that this was all the research being conducted, and Bing Seol Hwa had no concrete evidence to refute her.
Even if she wanted to find fault, the experiments were indeed risky but didn’t pose a significant problem. Those magical girls lying there had chosen to participate themselves.
But if there was something peculiar, it was the mystery of who those magical girls were and why their activities had been concealed.
Perhaps the clue lay there. Bing Seol Hwa thought as much. If so, then there was no point in staying at the facility any longer. It was more urgent to investigate who those magical girls were and what they did.
…Ideally, she would speak with them directly, but judging from the situation, that didn’t seem likely to be allowed.
Bing Seol Hwa pretended as though her curiosity was satisfied and informed the woman of her intention to leave the research facility.
As she watched Bing Seol Hwa leave the facility, the woman whispered softly, just enough so that it wouldn’t reach Bing Seol Hwa’s ears.
“She’s sharp. Doesn’t seem like she believed me at all.”
***
Bing Seol Hwa spent the next few days investigating the magical girls who were subjects of the experiments. During that time, the Unicorn’s forces continued to appear, but no large-scale invasions like those in Seoul and Busan had yet occurred.
The time was approaching when she would have to face the Unicorn directly. Before that, she needed to tie up any loose ends. It’s always more dangerous to have enemies at your back.
Immersed in her investigation, Bing Seol Hwa was suddenly stunned by unexpected news.
The entire research facility had been completely destroyed, leaving no trace, by a monster.
“What?”
And the monster responsible was suspected to be the Black Knight, who had not caused any casualties until now.
***
Three days had passed since I had tracked Bing Seol Hwa and identified the location of the research facility. Now, in my transformed monstrous state, I stepped inside the facility. Over the past three days, I had thoroughly observed the presence inside the facility. There was no hesitation.
The facility’s numerous security systems were meaningless before me. However, the nature of those security systems was rather insidious. Using magical energy to create security measures, really?
“This is quite a mess you’ve made of the facility, isn’t it?”
Before me stood a woman wearing large glasses and a white lab coat. I already knew her. While this facility hadn’t appeared in Magical Girls Never Fall, she had.
She had appeared as a villain in the original story. Her name as a magical girl was… Alchemist, if I remembered correctly. Alchemist—quite a name that invites various thoughts.
The woman smiled slightly and looked at me.
“Haha… Seeing you like this, it’s truly impressive. You are the Black Knight, right? They weren’t lying when they said you’re the strongest monster in Korea. I wouldn’t stand a chance against you.”
She wasn’t wrong. As a magical girl, Alchemist’s own magical power barely reached the B-rank level. But I wasn’t fooled. Her true strength wasn’t about raw power.
[Cut the nonsense.]
The Alchemist adjusted her large glasses and spoke again.
“Magical girls? Could you come over here and deal with this monster?”
At her words, a group of magical girls flew in and surrounded me. They were magical girls whose powers had been enhanced by the Alchemist.
No, they weren’t just enhanced; they had undergone various modifications through her secret research.
She had tempted those magical girls who sought power, subjecting them to drugs and modifications to make them follow her commands. Reports of significant issues in their daily lives had surfaced as well.
Well, what mattered to me was that these magical girls were strong, even among B-rank magical girls. Not only had their magical power increased, but their overall abilities had been enhanced through modifications.
Yet, to me, it was all just laughable.
[Are these magical girls your best effort?]
After all, no matter how many of them gathered, they stood no chance against me. At least, not unless they were at Bing Seol Hwa’s level; otherwise, a proper fight was impossible.
At my words, the Alchemist opened her eyes wide as if hearing something unexpected, then let out a light laugh.
“You seem to know quite a bit. Fine, if that’s what you say, I’ll give it my best shot. Come out!”
With a thud, grotesque creatures crawled into view. They bore a magical power similar to monsters but weren’t true monsters. They were merely ordinary humans transformed to resemble monsters using the Seed of Darkness.
That was the true nature of this research facility. The role of the magical girls modified by the Alchemist was to secretly capture monsters. And using the data from these captured monsters, the Alchemist conducted these inhumane experiments.
…I felt like vomiting. I gritted my teeth to suppress the nausea and gripped my sword.
I was surrounded by magical girls and those creatures. But more troubling than that was the overwhelming nausea and headache I felt. It reminded me of how I felt during my first battle with Bing Seol Hwa.
Wait, if that’s the case, does it mean…? Could Baek Seung-hyun’s past have been…?
—’People I knew died. Just for @#@^$#@!#$… Losing all dignity as human beings.’
My head ached. Memories rushed in uncontrollably. I gripped my sword tightly and poured my magical power into a single strike.
One strike was enough. It was sufficient to deal with the magical girls and those creatures surrounding me. In just one slash, they all turned into mere pools of blood.
Suppressing the splitting headache, I slowly approached the Alchemist. She, unable to comprehend what had just happened, stared at me with a blank expression.
“Wa-wait. This is a lie, isn’t it? How could the things I modified fall in a single strike…! Don’t be ridiculous.”
Slowly, the Alchemist began to back away. Rationally, I knew I should capture her alive. That would be more beneficial in many ways. But the throbbing headache and the flood of Baek Seung-hyun’s emotions demanded that I kill the Alchemist right here and now.
Why? Why was this happening? I swung my sword once.
And one of the Alchemist’s arms was severed.
“Guh, gah, agh! It hurts…!”
…Now that I think about it, killing her might not be a bad idea. After all, keeping her alive would be pointless, as she eventually joined the New Humanity Association in the original story. I glared at the writhing figure before me.
They suffered far more than you. They were in far more pain. They were…
The Alchemist pulled out a small pill. I recognized it immediately. That pill was the final product of her research.
Simply put, it was a pill created using the Seed of Darkness… designed to evolve one into a superhuman.
To put it more clearly, it could be summarized like this:
A pill to transform a magical girl into a monster.
That pill, undoubtedly, was the most horrific result of the Alchemist’s research. It was the very reason why Bing Seol Hwa met her demise in the original story.
When a magical girl’s soul was engulfed in darkness, that pill would corrupt and amplify her magical powers, blending them with monstrous strength.
The Alchemist swallowed the pill without hesitation, a testament to how desperate she had become. But instead of analyzing the situation, I first felt an overwhelming sense of disgust.
Her body began to change. The light that once emanated from the Alchemist was forcibly absorbed by the darkness, turning her into a chaotic being.
The Alchemist before me was no longer a mere B-rank magical girl. She was something far beyond that. I could only cautiously assume that she had just crossed into the realm of S-rank. Although, it seemed closer to the boundary between A-rank and S-rank.
In any case, when I came to, I found myself staring at a pale-skinned monster in a glowing dress, still wearing her lab coat.
[-Hee, heh, hahaha… This feels… this feels great. Is this what it feels like to become a god?]
Without saying a word, I gripped my sword tightly.
—
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