Humanity Protection Company

Illustrations: None.

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"...Huh?"

"Now?"

Dr. Kim and the researcher quickly turned their heads to look into the containment room.

-Unlocking the chains. Hold him steady so he doesn\'t fall.

-I\'m supporting him. Hurry up.

One guard aimed a key at the last chain connected to the wall. The other guard supported the tightly bound subject, holding him up like a crutch.

The restrained subject continued to stare at the lectern with dilated pupils. As the chain was unlocked with a click and his body tilted towards the guard, his eyes remained fixed on the book.

No one touched "36 Reasons I Should Die."

Then, what was that sound...?

"Wait-"

The researcher urgently grabbed the microphone and shouted, but it was too late. The sound was heard again.

Rustle-

This time, even the guards heard it. They froze in their positions, looking at the chains and the subject. One asked in a low voice.

-Did you turn the page? We heard the sound of a page turning.

"No, we didn’t! Did you touch anything on your end?"

-No. We only touched the chains and the subject.

"Understood! Then, first, put on your sunglasses and close your eyes-"

Rustle!

The lectern trembled. It seemed as though the edge of a page was fluttering at the top. In an instant, it passed the corner of the book\'s back cover.

Someone had read the book to the end.

Splash!

The subject\'s face turned bright red. Blood spurted from his mouth like a fountain, and his tongue, shredded and bloody, fell out. With a bloodstained face, the subject smiled.

-Heh, heh. Ugh.

-F*ck!

The guard supporting the subject shoved him against the wall, sitting him down. He quickly pulled out a handkerchief and stuffed it into the subject’s mouth, holding it firmly with his fingers to prevent him from swallowing it.

-We already administered the sedative!

As blood soaked the handkerchief, the other guard, who had reattached the chains, asked while facing away from the lectern.

-What do we do? Do we prioritize extraction or emergency treatment?

The containment room turned crimson in an instant, and the laboratory was filled with shock.

The new employees gasped and stepped back. Yeonwoo, Park Sangjoon, and Seoyeon backed into a cabinet, the cold metal pressing against them.

In contrast, Song Siwoo, Han Changseong, and Kang Yeol stepped forward.

"I\'ll handle the first aid. Where do I go?"

"I\'m calling 911. Why isn\'t the signal getting through?"

"Is there anything I can do?"

But the researcher paid no attention, staring at the lectern with a pale face, biting his lip until it bled. He swallowed the blood and spoke, the metallic taste lingering on his tongue.

"Proceed with emergency measures."

-Understood. Turning on sunglasses. Stop the bleeding.

-...Yes.

Click!

The guard pressed a button on the side of his sunglasses. The laboratory was instantly flooded with bright light. But that wasn\'t all.

Beep!

An electronic sound blared from speakers attached to the sunglasses.

With his sight and hearing blocked, and his mask covering smell and taste, the guard was left only with his sense of touch, standing motionless in the containment room.

Dr. Kim tapped the researcher on the shoulder.

"That was a timely response."

"We just completed the emergency measures. Now we need to proceed with follow-up actions."

The researcher smiled wryly, typing furiously on the keyboard. He adjusted and pressed buttons on the equipment, seemingly sending communications somewhere.

At that moment, a loud voice erupted.

"What are you doing! Someone is dying!"

It was Song Siwoo, the former firefighter. Squinting against the bright light, he pounded on the glass wall.

The white light made it hard to see, but it looked like the abandoned subject had collapsed sideways, vomiting blood.

Even at this moment, the golden hour was passing.

"If we start emergency treatment now, we can save him! Where do I need to go?"

The researcher and Dr. Kim ignored the urgent shouts with somber expressions. The researcher spoke in a low voice.

"It\'s too late. We can\'t save him."

"No, we can save him. If we stop the bleeding and secure the airway, he can survive. It\'s not too late."

"It is too late. Once affected by this anomaly-"

"When it comes to saving lives, there\'s no such thing as too late!"

Bang!

Song Siwoo slammed his elbow against the glass window. It didn’t budge. It wasn’t a material or thickness that could be broken by hand. He glanced around the lab with squinted eyes.

"An emergency hammer or a fire axe, damn it, of course, there wouldn\'t be any here. Then, anything sharp and metal-"

"Here. Step aside."

Kang Yeol stepped forward, holding a pair of scissors in a reverse grip. He had found them in a pencil holder cluttered with pens, knives, and awls.

He tested the scissors lightly, gauging the target point. Just as he pulled his arm back to swing,

"No! Stop! Don’t do it!"

The researcher screamed and jumped up, grabbing Kang Yeol\'s arm and clinging to it.

Kang Yeol\'s upper body wavered slightly, but he didn’t drop the scissors.

"Let go. We need to save him. And we just need to avoid looking at that book, right?"

"The fact that containment is broken is the problem! And you’re not even wearing protective gear!"

Kang Yeol hesitated.

The researcher had a point. Life-saving was important, but without knowing the exact dangers inside-

"Sir, please sit down for a moment?"

"What? This is no time to restrain me!"

"Yes, yes. Just move aside for now."

It was Han Changseong. He skillfully restrained the researcher with both hands, just as he would a drunkard. He nodded his head.

"What are you doing? Break the glass now."

"This is why newbies...! Stop it!"

Two conflicting commands.

Kang Yeol hesitated. And in the end, he made a decision. He tightened his grip on the scissors.

Just as the veins on his hand bulged and he was about to swing, Yeonwoo grabbed his wrist to stop him.

"Wait. Listen to me."

Yeonwoo thought as calmly as he could. Was it because he had experienced the human qualification exam? Despite the urgent situation, his mind was clear. His vision didn’t narrow.

He noticed.

Dr. Kim was observing the new employees with an analytical eye.

\'They\'re evaluating us in this unexpected situation.\'

So, what should he do? What actions would earn the highest evaluation? The answer was simple.

\'Act like a company employee.\'

Just like the researcher who was stopping Kang Yeol.

Of course, he also didn’t want to be in the same space as an anomaly that could kill people.

Yeonwoo cleared his throat and began to speak.

"Think about it. These people are the experts. There must be a reason they\'re acting like this. And there must be a reason why they divided the rooms like this."

"That’s..."

The resolve on Kang Yeol\'s face quickly faded. He spoke with a shaky voice.

"But we need to save him."

"We can\'t save him. He didn’t just bite his tongue. He was killed by the anomaly. First aid won’t work."

Just as someone who fails the Human Qualification Exam becomes a beast, anyone who reads "36 Reasons I Should Die" to the end will inevitably die.

Based on the name of the entity, the researcher\'s words, and his own experience, Yeonwoo concluded the same.

Yeonwoo\'s logical persuasion made Kang Yeol relax. His grip on the scissors loosened.

As Yeonwoo let go and stepped back,

"Damn it! I\'m telling you, we can save him!"

Song Siwoo jumped in, snatching the scissors. Gripping them like a hammer, he struck the corner of the glass window.

The loud impact of steel on glass and the cracking sound of tempered glass shattering filled the air.

The window instantly turned opaque, covered in countless fractures, breaking into tiny, sand-like fragments.

It happened in a flash.

"No!"

The researcher screamed but was unable to break free from Han Changseong\'s strong grip.

Crash!

With a light push, the glass window fell. It shattered into pieces as it hit the floor. Ignoring the glass shards cutting him, Song Siwoo dashed straight towards the subject.

"Stop the bleeding, prevent the tongue from blocking the airway, and secure the airway to prevent suffocation from blood or the tongue."

He ran, thinking of emergency procedures. He quickly closed the distance, reaching the wall of the containment room. Inevitably, he passed by the lectern and the anomaly placed on it.

In that moment, he stopped dead. He stopped mid-run, glancing at the book.

Did he look because he couldn\'t understand what the anomaly was? Or was he trying to grasp what caused the death? Or perhaps the curious sight of the book flipping on its own like magic captured his attention?

The title on the front of the book that had consumed another subject was seared into his mind like a brand.

"37 Reasons I Should Die."

Rustle-

The page turned. He couldn\'t blink. His neck and eyelids were frozen. The sentence at the center of his vision flowed into his mind through his eyes. The book was being read by a person.