Chapter 06

 D-7 Anemone’s Monologue

“Yes, I will be in your care.”

I moved my frozen knees and barely managed to sit up properly as I spoke.

Section Chief Batori looked at me with interest for a moment, then stretched her lips into a long, distorted smile.

Whether it was a greeting or something like a pre-meal courtesy, I still couldn’t tell.

“Fufu… your complexion is quite neat. The faces of those who stay here too long tend to fade quickly. I hope you can keep that first light for a long time.”

“T-thank you…”

I tried to respond properly, but no suitable words came out in the end.

Watching me stumble over my words, Batori covered her mouth and smiled softly with her eyes.

Her movements were so smooth that they felt almost inhuman.

From her neck and waist to her shoulders and fingertips.

It was like brushstrokes cutting through the air with movements lighter than air itself.

“…Now then, Assistant Son. Have you shown the other bloodline members?”

“Section Chief Mok will return from leave soon, and Section Chief Sik will probably be seen before leaving work this evening.”

Her soft yet cold voice pierced my ears.

It felt like refined ice gently rubbing against my skin, only to slowly cut it open in the end.

After hearing Son Assistant Manager’s answer, she picked up an unidentified drink placed on the railing of the isolation room and took a sip, then nodded slowly.

Her dark crimson eyes sparkled even more beneath her long eyelashes.

“Good. Let’s have a chat over tea sometime later.”

She slowly raised the tablet she was holding up to her face.

Even the slightest movement of her wrist was graceful.

If I hadn’t just seen her grotesquely tearing her own shell and transforming, she would have been the most beautiful being I had ever seen.

“Then I’ll be busy… you two continue.”

She turned away just like that.

As if her words, steps, and gestures were all lighter than air.

Beyond the massive isolation chamber, what she was looking at was a colorless mass pulsing like a heart.

The writhing mass had form, but it was impossible to interpret.

It was unclear whether it was eyes, holes, emotions, or disease—countless strange structures fluttered across it.

She looked at it calmly, as if admiring a piece of art.

The moment my gaze tried to follow hers and recognize it—

“Hey, Haeil.”

Beside me, Assistant Son slightly tilted what was supposed to be his head and spoke.

“Ah, yes, Assistant Son.”

“Let’s start your first practice. The director also gave instructions, so don’t go too hard—let’s go with the most docile dimensional entity.”

I slowly nodded.

His hand, or rather the fist that served as his head… I didn’t even know anymore.

Anyway, it gave a heavy thunk gesture.

“Follow me.”

We began walking along the corridor of the extraction facility.

The corridor was quieter than before, and the air was mixed with machine oil, faint disinfectant, and something like a blend of flesh and dust.

It didn’t sting the nose, but it crawled down my spine like a snake.

While walking with Assistant Son, he casually spoke during a brief silence.

“By the way… from what I saw earlier, Section Chief Batori seems to like you quite a bit.”

I forced an awkward smile.

“Really? I’m honored.”

Inside, I wanted to bury that “honor” underground.

Her beautiful face came to mind.

Shining skin, elegant fingertips, calm voice.

And then the split face—revealing a gaping mouth filled with something monstrous.

“…She likes me? Is that serious? Or is it like a pre-meal appetizer?”

“She doesn’t say things like that to just anyone.”

Assistant Son tilted his head slightly and continued.

“If you get used to her tone and atmosphere, she’s actually a pretty decent boss. She takes care of the team in her own way. Well… sometimes she feels like a mosquito that sucks blood, though.”

‘Not feels like a mosquito… she literally looked like she was drinking blood…’

I kept my smile.

“Thank you for saying that. I’ll do my best.”

I said that, but inside my mind her face was already splitting open again, revealing that huge mouth and crimson eyes devouring me.

Every step following Assistant Son made me feel nauseous, but I didn’t break my polite expression.

Basic courtesy is essential for survival.

“The first one will be D-7. D-7 is the dimensional code, and the entity’s name is Anemone’s Monologue.”

The name “anemone” came to mind, but it didn’t fit this bizarre place at all.

“Is it… safe?”

“Yeah. Very calm, very obedient, and clearly responsive. As long as you follow the procedure, it’s very efficient.”

Procedure.

A word I had already heard many times.

The fact that even in this unknown place there were clear rules gave me a little cold comfort.

“For reference, this entity reacts when you correctly recite a specific recorded sentence. It’s like a ritual. Think of it like reciting poetry.”

Sentence. Poetry. Ritual.

As I tried to make sense of such mismatched words, Assistant Son waved his head-hand lightly.

“Don’t worry. Just follow the manual. The manual.”

We arrived in front of Isolation Room D-7.

There was a thick glass window on the door, but the inside was blurred like dense fog and couldn’t be seen clearly.

Still, I could feel something waiting behind the door, piercing my skin.

I slowly took a breath.

Behind this door, the first dimensional entity I would face was waiting.

“Ah, read this before you go in.”

Assistant Son handed me a paper from the desk in front of the isolation room.

I gave a short nod and looked down at it.

==========
[Dimensional Entity Management Profile: D-7]
Entity Name: Anemone’s Monologue
Entity Code: D-7
Type: Composite (Biological / Conceptual)
Danger Level: D-class (includes cognitive contamination and unconscious mimicry risk)

[Details]
Ritual-based interaction
This entity only manifests responses through a “ritual” of repeatedly recited sentences, and only when cognitively linked.

Cognitive parasitism
In a cognitively linked state, it transmits signals directly to the manager’s cerebral cortex without vocal organs. During this process, it attempts to synchronize the manager’s thought patterns, eventually leading to parasitism.

[Extraction Mechanism]
After forming a cognitive link through the designated ritual phrase, energy is extracted at the moment the entity’s signal resonates with the manager’s brainwaves.

[Management and Extraction Manual]
Minimize visual and physical contact with the target.
The isolation chamber must be built with reinforced glass at least 20cm thick, with a one-way structure allowing only external viewing.
During extraction, all signals other than the ritual must be treated as environmental noise, and unconscious mimicry is strictly prohibited.
If any cognitive contamination is detected, immediately stop extraction and leave the chamber.
Residence time inside the chamber must not exceed 2 minutes.

[Special Recommendations]
For new managers, assign a secondary supervisor who can maintain linguistic consistency to prevent cognitive contamination.
If signs of synchronization appear (hallucinations, thought confusion, etc.), immediately remove the worker from duty and conduct psychological evaluation.

I swallowed hard in front of the door.

Assistant Son added an explanation.

“Did you read the manual? This one is classified as one of the safest entities in our team. But the response rules are a bit tricky. You have to recite the exact phrase.”

“The exact phrase is…?”

“Here.”

On the Post-it he handed me was a three-line sentence repeated neatly:

You cannot see me.
I do not see you.
We are not alike.

“Just repeat this three times. Even the tone matters, so try following me.”

Assistant Son tilted his head-hand and began reciting in a slow, monotonous, mechanical tone.

Suppressing my curiosity about how he was making sound without vocal cords, I cleared my throat and repeated after him.

But the lingering voice of Section Chief Batori still trembled faintly in my ears.

Soon, the isolation door slid open.

“Go in. Don’t exceed 2 minutes. Come out immediately when the door opens.”

My heart pounded at the reality of actually doing extraction.

I nodded and stood in front of the door.

Cold sweat ran down my neck.

I was certain something was waiting inside.

Something that had been waiting, as if for someone other than me.

As I stepped inside, my vision distorted in an instant.

The chamber felt like the inside of a warped glass sphere.

Every surface was blurred like mist—ceiling, walls, floor, even my shadow floating strangely.

And in front of me—

A head.

A severed human head placed on a metal stand.

But instead of pain or a scream, flowers were blooming from it.

Three large flowers like sunflowers grew from its eyes and mouth.

They resembled anemones, but the petals were thinner and longer, with blood-colored specks scattered across them.

There was no wind in the sealed chamber, yet the flowers swayed.

The moment the door closed behind me, all petals turned toward me at once.

I gripped the tablet tightly and began reciting as calmly as possible.

“You cannot see me.”
“I do not see you.”
“We are not alike.”

My voice almost cracked, but I managed to repeat the three lines three times.

At the end of the third cycle, a faint click sounded from the wall.

Relief washed over me as I looked toward the door—but it did not open.

‘Do I have to do it again?’

The glass window was one-way, so I couldn’t see Assistant Son’s reaction.

Then suddenly, the air inside the chamber changed.

……

No sound.

No voice.

Instead, the three anemone-like flowers began to twitch at once.

Petals trembled, and from that face without lips or vocal cords came something like a whisper.

Not words.

A vibration.

Something deep inside my subconscious began to rise.

A sentence formed.

You are looking at me.

A phrase I had heard before.

One I somehow already knew.

I am looking at you. We are becoming alike.

It was the ritual phrase.

But instinct screamed not to follow it.

A warning hammered into my brain:

Unconscious mimicry is prohibited.

I clenched my teeth.

“No… you cannot… see me.”

Or… you can see me.

“I… do not see you.”

Or… I want to see you.

“We… are not alike.”

Or… we should become alike.

I could no longer tell whether the words coming out of my mouth were mine.

They felt like they were rising not from my mind, but from my organs.

And then—

The flowers stopped.

The inner stamens wriggled like tongues, then froze.

The blood-specked petals stared at me like eyes, then slowly closed.

The atmosphere in the chamber settled.

Inside the connected tubes along the walls, the reddish fluid suddenly turned bright blue.

As if the entire system inhaled sharply, the tubes shuddered, and the liquid flowed faster, filling the glass with radiant light.

An engine-like hum echoed through the chamber.

Then a mechanical voice came from the ceiling:

[Energy extraction complete. Containment maintained.]

With a release of air pressure, the door opened.

I ran out immediately.

My neck felt like it was burning, but I didn’t look back.

As soon as I exited, Assistant Son’s fist-like head opened slightly as if relaxing.

“Oh, that was very good for a first try.”

I panted heavily outside the door.

My hands were shaking, and my stomach churned.

He tapped his fist-head lightly, then laughed.

“That guy sometimes gets annoying.”

“…Excuse me?”

I was still catching my breath.

“In the original manual there are notes and examples, but I only gave you the summary. It explains how it tries to twist language and distort the manager’s speech patterns.”

So the A4 sheet I was given… wasn’t even the full manual?

It was a summary?

That he made himself?

“It tries to induce unconscious mimicry. Think of it as a little prank.”

Assistant Son gave a thumbs-up with his head.

There was a strange sense of pride in that absurd gesture.

As if it was funny that I managed to follow everything perfectly even in that situation.

“Good work, Haeil.”

He patted my shoulder lightly.

Not with the head-hand, but with his real right hand.

“Our new recruits are all pretty sharp these days. I thought I could trust you even with the summary, and I wasn’t wrong!”

That fist-head tightened and loosened again.

The praise carried clear malice beneath it.

What would have happened if I failed?

‘…This bastard.’

I was starting to wonder if there was a brain inside that fist-shaped head.

It felt like I was slowly adapting to this insane environment.

Fear was mixing with anger now.

“You handled it well. You’ve got potential.”

“Yes, thank you.”

“Congratulations. Honestly, I was testing you a bit—but this is enough for full approval.”

My head was hot, sweat running down my back, while a monster supervisor praised my mental strength.

And he had a fist for a head.

I closed my lips tightly and bowed.

“Thank you… Assistant Son.”

And inside, I muttered:

I want to quit.
I really want to quit.

But I don’t want to see that baby monster from HR again either.

I forced a smile and nodded.

“Thanks to you, I’ll work even harder.”

Ah.

Ms. Ji-hyun, are you happy there?

As for me…

This place is not very happy.