# Chapter 32
Jaekyung, who had received emergency treatment with Iyeon’s bandages during their chance meeting, couldn’t go to a regular hospital due to being tracked. He barely managed to get treatment with the help of an acquaintance—not a licensed doctor.
From what Jaekyung shared, the so-called ‘Bonus Mutant,’ suspected to be a superpower mutant, was not only connected to this research institute, but also…
“This place… experiments not just on mutants but on people too?”
“That’s my assumption.”
Mutants are not animals. Since they’re not Earth creatures, they weren’t treated as living beings.
Beyond being exempt from legal repercussions for killing these uninvited intruders that suddenly appeared on Earth, it was even considered necessary. Experimenting on mutants to obtain results and analyzing them was part of the effort to survive against them. There were no rights that needed to be guaranteed for monsters.
But humans were different.
“Then the place Jaekyung-ssi is trying to go now is…”
“Yeah.”
Jaekyung nodded with a serious expression.
“It’s where the mutants are stored.”
“What?”
They had been moving smoothly but suddenly hit a bump.
“Not where people are being held captive?”
“People? Well, they’ll manage on their own.”
“Didn’t you say they were imprisoned while unconscious?”
“It’s fine. People don’t die easily.”
What on earth is this guy talking about? Despite Iyeon’s cold stare, Jaekyung calmly maintained his position.
“They’re not people I know, so why should I care? Don’t be meddlesome in a place like this. The law doesn’t apply here.”
“Still, knowing about it and just ignoring it doesn’t seem right. Hey, say something quickly.”
The nation’s hero, Mugunghwa Tier 5, answered solemnly.
“I’m not particularly interested either.”
That was something to be proud of. With his back to two social rebels who showed not even a speck of cooperativeness, Iyeon sighed heavily as he approached the computer and picked up his goggles.
“Hyegang, are you done?”
– I can do the basics. If we had a bit more time, I could clean them out completely…
“I’ll connect it again if we get another chance.”
After detaching the goggles from the computer and putting them on, Hyegang displayed the research institute’s map. It was a map showing only the basic building structure, without any descriptions of the rooms.
The structure was so complex, like an ant hill, that even though it consisted solely of geometric shapes, it couldn’t be taken in at a glance. Just looking at it made his head spin.
“Why is it so complicated?”
Iyeon clicked his tongue and checked their current location. The entrance area of the massive research institute. Even spending the entire night wouldn’t be enough to search the whole place.
He needed a collaborator.
“Jaekyung-ssi.”
“Hmm?”
“I’ll help you with the mutant escape, so please help us rescue the people too.”
Iyeon’s chosen method was to present an offer that couldn’t be refused.
“This is a very good opportunity, so you’ll regret it if you miss it.”
Jaekyung was obsessed with mutants but wasn’t a fool. The negotiation was quickly settled.
“The lab where people were taken is quite far from here. By the way, are you guys good at fighting?”
“Huh?”
The intent behind the sudden question soon became apparent. They encountered two researchers in white coats beyond the white corridor.
“Who are y—”
Before they could finish their sentence, Sano silenced them with an iron mask.
After binding the researchers who were mumbling something with bloodshot eyes to the floor, Sano lightly jumped over them. Mungchi followed gracefully. Iyeon shrugged his shoulders and looked at Jaekyung.
“They’re good at it.”
“I see…”
Jaekyung muttered with a dazed expression at the overwhelming power difference. As Iyeon was also about to stride past the men, one of the bound researchers struggled and lunged at him, the forceful movement about to headbutt Iyeon’s ankle at that moment.
Zhing.
A red laser drew a line on the floor right in front of the researcher’s crown. Smoke rose from the black line on the pristine white corridor floor. The ends of the hair that had brushed against the laser crumbled, scattering debris.
Iyeon, holding a hot pink rod, lightly twisted his wrist.
“This is a real laser, you know. It’s dangerous if you get hit, so please stay still.”
“Wow, what’s that?”
Iyeon smiled as he twirled the rod.
“It’s Mungchi’s toy.”
The scene remained similar thereafter. They would walk down empty corridors for a while, and whenever research staff appeared, Sano would subdue them. As they walked without pause, Hyegang provided situation briefings through the goggles. Iyeon couldn’t understand any of the technical explanations, and the only things he could grasp were as follows:
– I’ve taken over the building system, but I haven’t managed the research system yet. I don’t even know how many layers of security they’ve put in.
“How much longer do you need to stay connected?”
– It’ll take at least 30 minutes.
After traversing the endlessly winding corridors for quite some time, they finally reached their destination.
“It’s here.”
Iyeon looked at the place Jaekyung was pointing to. The entrance to the laboratory was indistinguishable from the surrounding walls. It was so meticulously designed that not even the door seams were visible.
“How did you usually get in, Jaekyung-ssi?”
“I’d slip in with someone who had authorization when they were entering.”
Iyeon looked around the empty corridor. In this vast place, it would be difficult to chance upon someone with access rights, and even if they did, it would be hard to get their cooperation.
Well, it didn’t matter.
“Step aside.”
Since most building materials contain minerals, after all.
As Sano extended his hand, the entire wall where the door was located was breached. He had no need for access rights or anything of the sort.
“What kind of ability do you have that allows you to do this?”
To Jaekyung’s amazement, Sano merely glanced at him before entering the laboratory. Just as they entered, a researcher’s body could be seen being restrained by metal ropes that had sprung up from the floor. Iyeon followed in and smiled awkwardly.
“Our household member has a terrible attitude. Please understand.”
After everyone had entered, the wall was sealed again, returning to exactly the same state as before they entered. It was meticulous aftercare.
Upon arrival, the group quickly subdued the researchers who were panicking at the sight of people emerging from the floor, and naturally began their investigation.
– Oh, there’s a computer over there.
There were several monitors on a large table at the center of the laboratory. It seems having two or three monitors is standard these days. Iyeon rushed over in one breath and reconnected the goggles to the computer.
Beyond the table was a small observation room sealed with glass walls. A chair suitable for a person to sit on and messily sprawled wires. It wasn’t a particularly hopeful sight.
“I’ll look elsewhere.”
– Okay.
The laboratory, being a place that dealt with humans who seemed to be at the core of the research, had quite a lot of material. However, they were mostly already discarded documents with important parts redacted with black ink. Iyeon, who had been moving towards the corners and opening drawers, paused. Colorful gemstones emitting an ethereal light were neatly arranged and stored.
‘Are they selling jewelry or something?’
They seemed like ordinary gemstones. Iyeon picked one up and examined it from various angles but couldn’t find anything special about it.
“…”
After furtively looking around, Iyeon discreetly pocketed a couple.
There was nothing else of note in the drawers. They might not be empty now, but they probably weren’t empty before either. It would be troublesome if someone noticed.
Iyeon clicked his tongue and rummaged through the drawers, then extended his hand inward. He had merely swept his hand randomly, but with a clunk, the wall beside the cabinet opened, revealing another bookshelf.
“Did you see that?”
He turned to Sano triumphantly, but he was far away, engrossed in examining documents and didn’t even look back. Iyeon had expected him to just stand there sullenly, but he was quite diligent. Feeling dejected, Iyeon quietly rummaged through the bookshelf.
The hidden bookshelf contained more explicit documents. The dense stack of papers was filled with tiny text, and from this sea of print, Iyeon picked out a noticeable word. Mutant.
Iyeon pulled out all the adjacent documents. They were reports on each mutant that had undergone “education.” Long-eared Weasel, Flock Phoenix, Horned Squirrel, Sea Bat… Among the numerous reports, there were both mutants that Iyeon knew and didn’t know, but they all had one thing in common.
They were all lower-grade mutants between Level 7 and Level 9.
While flipping through what seemed like dozens of pages of reports, he stopped when he came across a striking phrase. Iyeon’s gaze rapidly moved back and forth.
「Matching failure. Re-experimentation required.」
Matching? What kind of matching are they talking about? While rummaging through the rest of the bookshelf, he discovered a yellow file holder. When he pulled out the thick bundle of documents, wrinkled papers fell out haphazardly.
It was some kind of list. The black letters on the paper were clearly reflected in his light-colored eyes.
“Gi-ryeok Extraction Log…”
It was different from the previous reports. This was an experiment conducted on superhumans.
