“So, this is the footage from that time.”
“Oh, yes. This is the CCTV screen from the office during the incident.”
Natsuko, with a deadpan expression, kept firing questions at the man beside her.
“Who else saw it besides me?”
“Only the security guard on duty in the CCTV room and myself.”
“What happened to the guard?”
“It seems he was quite traumatized, so we decided to let him rest at home for a few days. I granted him paid leave at my discretion.”
“Right… I got it. You can go now.”
“Oh, yes. And please be careful when watching that footage. It doesn’t seem to have any psychological effects, but the content is rather horrifying.”
“Uh-huh.”
The man who had been with Natsuko left the room, looking more anxious than a cat in a room full of rocking chairs, as if he wanted to escape the video playing in front of her at any second.
Natsuko quietly sat down in front of the computer and stared at the file displayed on the desktop.
The CCTV footage from the basement at the time of last night’s horrifying incident.
Natsuko pressed the play button quietly.
What appeared on the screen was the basement where the incident took place.
“Is that the employee?”
One employee stood out like a sore thumb, fidgeting nervously.
He must have discovered that… B-grade Hunter from the underwater world.
Since it was recorded at an angle from the side, unfortunately, the computer screen he was looking at was out of view.
“Should I increase the number of CCTV cameras?”
The man continued fidgeting nervously until he finally called for his supervisor.
When his supervisor arrived and looked at the man’s screen…
“■■■■■■■■!!”
He started babbling something.
The video was silent, so it was impossible to tell what he was saying, but that didn’t bother Natsuko.
‘Poisonous Manipulation.’
[Skill ‘Poisonous Manipulation’ activated.]
“This, this is…! You there!! Everyone come look at this!!”
Suddenly, everyone in the office, even the guard at the door, rushed over to see the screen together.
At this point, Natsuko felt a significant sense of unease.
It made sense for a subordinate facing an emergency to report to a superior.
But for the supervisor to suddenly call everyone over to view the screen together? That was plainly absurd.
‘They were enchanted by something.’
As far as she knew, the “supervisor” in that room wasn’t stupid enough to make such an irrational decision in this situation.
So the conclusion was simple. Someone in the footage had enchanted them.
That would explain things.
‘No, wait.’
Even if that were true, it raised questions.
When a mental barrier skill and a mental attack skill meet, the result is akin to ‘subtraction.’
For example, if someone has a mental barrier skill at a level of around 60 and receives a mental attack with a magnitude of 80, they would be enchanted to the extent of 20.
Here came an irreconcilable conundrum.
According to Natsuko, the disparity between the mental barrier levels of the “supervisor” and the employee who called him was enormous.
If the “supervisor” had a mental barrier level of 50, the employee would have a level of 10.
For that supervisor to suddenly make an irrational judgment due to a mental attack—meaning a mental attack level of around 51—while the employee received that with a mental barrier of 10…
‘He should either go insane and start rampaging, or commit self-harm, or show some form of behavior.’
There was no way he could just be fidgeting in his seat and call for the supervisor.
Moreover, even when the supervisor called everyone over to look at the screen, he didn’t show any unusual behavior.
He only seemed restless.
Plus, the actual mental attack hadn’t even commenced yet.
Natsuko recalled the words of the subordinate who handed her the video.
“It seems he was enchanted by a mental attack at the 5 minute 58 second mark. Until then, there was nothing noticeable.”
That “5 minute 58 second mark” was undoubtedly when our Yu Parang decided to pull out the Kraken and poke at the machines.
“Sigh…”
Natsuko pressed her forehead and sank into her chair.
Her head ached.
Why on earth did this “supervisor” act this way?
Was it just a momentary lapse in judgment?
Were there mental attacks that affected individuals differently?
Or could it be that there exists a mental attack that ignores status windows and mental barriers?
‘No.’
Natsuko shook her head vigorously.
There couldn’t possibly be such a thing.
A subtle mental attack that applies differently to each individual.
While this too was unprecedented in history, it was still a much more plausible explanation than the other two.
The content of the attack was likely akin to bewitchment.
Thus, the employee called his supervisor over to “look at this together,” and the supervisor then called all the staff over for a “viewing” too.
A slight twist of perception in a chaotic situation likely obscured the fact that this was a mental attack.
‘So as a result, they all gathered to watch the footage, and a horrific outcome ensued.’
Natsuko rewound the video a bit and paused at 5 minutes 50 seconds.
‘Poisonous Manipulation.’
[Skill ‘Poisonous Manipulation’ activated.]
“Damn!! Isn’t there a self-destruct button or something?!”
“Why on earth would you not make something like that?!”
“W-wait! What is she doing?!”
“W-whaaaat?!”
“AAAHHH!!!”
A cry of confusion quickly morphed into a scream of agony.
It was 5 minutes 57 seconds into the video.
And at 5 minutes 58 seconds…
“■■■■■■■■■!!!”
‘What, what’s happening? Poisonous Manipulation.’
[Skill ‘Poisonous Manipulation’ is already activated.]
“■■■■■■■■■■!!!!!!!!!!”
Everyone simultaneously clutched their heads and screamed.
They began banging their heads against anything solid nearby—walls, floors, computers, even the heads of their coworkers.
They squeezed their eyes shut and shoved their fingers into their ears. As if they didn’t want to see, didn’t want to hear.
Blood began to seep out from every orifice.
Some bit into each other’s wrists, pulling out their veins like strings while laughing maniacally.
The “supervisor,” as if having made up his mind, stopped looking at the screen and headed for the center of the room.
Then came the cracking sounds—snap, crackle, pop!!!
He twisted his limbs backward at horrifying angles.
Despite being biologically impossible, the supervisor didn’t stop, bending his limbs as if he had all the time in the world.
His waist, neck, and several others.
He contorted all the joints in his body, creating his own unique form of art in the middle of the room.
Eventually, the supervisor became a ball.
He twisted and contorted his joints, forming a grotesque shape as if someone had stuffed him into a mold shaped like a ball.
Seeing this sight, one employee seemed inspired and attempted to bow before him.
While those whose bodies were still somewhat intact could bow without issue, the majority could not maintain their posture.
But even they, already smashing their heads and poking at every orifice, were having a hard time keeping themselves upright.
Yet soon one employee seemed to find the answer and bent his joints in a grotesque manner again.
He turned his limbs backward and arched his waist.
He even twisted his neck back as far as it could go.
Creating a posture of bowing with his belly up.
As if to claim, ‘this counts as bowing too.’
Others who were struggling to bow saw this and started to imitate.
With joyful faces. Grinning faces. Faces that seemed to have found redemption.
And in the room, everyone’s movement paused.
The human-made ball stood in the center.
Surrounded by followers bowing down to it.
Only the center of the shrine was illuminated, as if the human-shaped ball was being blessed by a divine light.
Then, the door opened and the man who had handed over the footage walked in.
It seemed the guard on duty was scared out of his wits and had called him, and he entered to assess the situation after receiving the report.
At that point, the video ended.
“……”
Natsuko quietly stared at the frozen screen for a moment.
Truly, she never imagined she would use expressions like this in her lifetime.
“……They’ve lost their minds.”
Natsuko offered a quiet lament as she expressed her feelings.
This was not merely monstrous behavior.
Natsuko herself could never inflict such a level of mental attack beyond the screen.
Is such concentrated power even permissible for a human to possess?
‘I need to inform Seo Sunwoo as well.’
If there’s a Hunter with such overwhelming capabilities, even Seo Sunwoo could be in danger.
Or perhaps he might already be under attack.
A shiver ran down Natsuko’s spine.
The thought of Sunwoo being enchanted and potentially turning against her was simply terrifying.
‘No. Sunwoo is still sane. He’s not enchanted. If there are signs, I can prevent it in time.’
She picked up her phone right there and called Seo Sunwoo.
About 30 minutes later, Seo Sunwoo appeared in the association president’s office, took the USB, and vanished.
‘Now, that’s done.’
If it were Seo Sunwoo, he would naturally take action after watching the video I gave him.
Natsuko whistled contentedly.
