The antenna atop my head began to glow brightly.

The strands of hair sticking out from my head emitted such an intense light that it pierced through even when I tried to cover them with my hand!

Once again, this rebellious hair of mine is getting special treatment.

I wiggled my antennae back and forth, casting the bright light across the alley and shifting the shadows with it. Seeing the flickering, glowing antenna, the Golden Horn Reaper sitting atop Junior Two couldn’t resist and jumped onto my head.

Honestly, I thought the ability I got after dealing with Agu would be useful for luring Golden Reapers, like some kind of bait. But no, it seems like these antennae have other uses.

The Golden Horn Reaper spread its little arms wide, trying to catch my swaying antennae as it jumped around on my head.

I waved the antenna just out of reach, and the Reaper became even more determined, leaping and stumbling as it chased the light.

At first, I thought it was a cute, firefly-like lure similar to Agu’s glowing lanterns, but I realized it had another hidden purpose: a tracking ability.

And not just any tracking ability. It was the one I had desperately wanted since the Black Butterfly incident—the ability to trace the source of Objects. Though it was somewhat degraded, only giving me the general direction of the source, it was still a handy skill.

I shone the glowing light on the boy’s corpse, and instantly, I could sense the direction where the Object responsible for this mess resided.

Somewhere about 120 degrees in the direction of the alley’s exit.

As I finished tracking, the glow from my antenna began to fade, returning to its normal state.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t use the ability multiple times, so I had only one shot to get it right. Finding the exact location in a crowded city with only a 120-degree angle to go on seemed like an impossible task.

What should I do now?

As I was lost in thought, distracted by controlling the antennae, the Golden Horn Reaper took advantage of the moment to bite down on it.

Why does everyone keep biting my antenna? First Yerin, and now the Golden Reapers, all trying to nibble on it like it’s some kind of delicious bait.

I let the antenna sway back and forth, and with it, the Golden Horn Reaper swayed in the air, looking utterly delighted as it floated around.

It looks fun. Maybe I’ll ask Agu to let me try it later.

Suddenly, an idea struck me.

If I got this ability from Agu, then Agu must have it too, right?

I had fought and defeated the Tentacle Agu, but even the Marshmallow Agu should have something similar.

Snap! I clapped my hands and spread my arms wide.

Summoning Agu from the Mini Reaper Garden, the massive white creature appeared, but the narrow alleyway squished its round body into a distorted marshmallow shape.

Qrrr…

The squashed marshmallow Agu let out a pitiful squeak before its body split into several round orbs, which rolled around before sprouting arms, legs, and tails, transforming into Mini Agus.

Now doubled in cuteness, the smaller white Agus wobbled around.

Qing!

The tiny white Agus let out an adorable cry.

The man dreamed of a long-forgotten past.

A dream of the moment his entire life had been irrevocably changed.

[How about a contract with me?]

In his dream, he recalled the moment he had made a deal with the mysterious Object that introduced itself as a "Demon of Contracts."

However, the details of that contract were hazy, as if erased from his memory.

Perhaps one of the terms of the contract had been to forget the specifics.

But ever since that moment, the man had become a different person entirely.

The madness that had once dominated his mind vanished, and everything he touched turned to gold.

He succeeded in everything he did, and anyone who tried to stand in his way disappeared.

The city flourished alongside him, while those who tried to betray him were driven mad by their own insanity.

Government officials who dared suggest placing police in his city simply went missing.

And then, the city was plagued by deranged individuals who drew red circles with their own blood.

It was then that he realized the madness hadn’t disappeared—it had simply transferred to others, and his success came from reaping the fruits that others were meant to sow.

At that moment, a twisted smile spread across his lips.

‘Yes, this is exactly the kind of contract I wanted.’

Mass suicides, massive gas explosions, even the deaths of his wife, son, and daughter—all of it had ultimately served his interests.

He couldn’t recall the exact terms of the contract, but he was certain it was overwhelmingly in his favor.

Life was so easy and comfortable, and I didn’t even have to pay a price!

“Mayor! You need to wake up!”

The man was snapped out of his dream by an urgent voice.

He awoke from his rare, long-held dream to find himself back in reality.

He was lying on a plush sofa in his mayoral office, located in the tallest skyscraper at the heart of the city.

Still groggy, his vision slowly focused on the sleek furniture and framed artwork around him, and the panicked face of his secretary came into view.

“What’s going on?”

“The city is in total chaos! We need to evacuate, Mayor!”

His secretary, eyes wide with fear, trembled as she urged him to leave.

But unlike the frantic woman, the man calmly stood up from the sofa and walked over to the window, which offered a panoramic view of the city below.

What he saw was complete destruction and mayhem.

Even the man, who believed that everything in the world happened for his benefit, couldn’t hide his shock.

“How… how could this happen to my city?”

Everywhere he looked, twisted Objects were slaughtering people, explosions rocked the streets, and buildings were collapsing.

Though he initially appeared surprised, his expression quickly shifted dramatically.

What had started as shock and disbelief morphed into rage, before finally settling into a serene smile.

Believing that even this disaster was somehow part of his contract, the man’s mind cleared.

He adjusted his red suit and called to his secretary.

“We should leave. Is the car ready?”

“Yes, Mayor. Please, this way!”

As the man left his office, a massive white creature let out a haunting wail beyond the window.

Qooowoooo!

I commanded Agu to search for the Object’s true form, and with a confident Qew!, the creature began to move.

Riding atop the squishy, marshmallow-like Agu, we slowly set off.

Agu, the best transportation method—soft, cozy, and delicious if you got hungry enough to take a nibble.

The Mini Agus wobbled alongside us, using their short legs to track the sinister Object.

Waddle, waddle.

But as soon as we emerged from the alley, we were greeted by an explosion, followed by debris raining down from a collapsing building.

“Ahhh!”

Junior Two screamed in terror, and the Golden Horn Reaper clutched onto her tightly, clearly worried.

However, the falling debris was too large for the little Reaper to block on its own.

And as much as I wanted to rely on the Blue Reaper’s magic, I wasn’t confident that its fragile spells could hold back an entire building.

Just as I was about to spread my hands to widen the space and catch the debris, the leftover pieces of Agu gathered together again, reforming into the massive white creature.

With a mighty jump, the marshmallow Agu collided with the building, diverting its trajectory and causing it to collapse away from us.

Having successfully saved us from the falling structure, the white Agu let out a triumphant cry.

Qew!

On the streets of Eunpyeong District, near Seoul Forest, a tattooed woman walked alongside her younger sister.

“Sis, this thing is so heavy!”

They had planned to disguise their guardian as a stuffed animal, but the guardian’s enormous, rock-like body was too much for her small sister to carry.

“Guess I’ll have to do it.”

The woman sighed and easily hoisted the guardian into her arms.

“Wow, how can you lift that with one hand?”

Her sister looked on in amazement as the woman carried the large stone figure with such ease, making it seem more like a doll than a boulder.

The two had been out shopping for essentials, but as they walked, they came across a TV screen displaying a scene they couldn’t ignore.

A giant white Agu was letting out a wail.

Though the video was low-quality, likely filmed on a phone, it was hard to miss.

“Sis, that looks just like the thing you made!”

“A white guardian? Was there another alchemist around?”

The woman noted that the Agu seemed unusually light for a guardian, but she figured it must be an advanced technique she hadn’t yet mastered.

And atop the Agu, holding its antenna, was a gray figure.

The Gray Reaper…? Is there an alchemist working with Sehee’s lab? I might need to pay them a visit.

The woman made a mental note to visit Sehee’s lab as she left the TV screen behind.

A car sped away from the wrecked city’s outskirts.

Inside was the city’s mayor, clutching a lamp that emitted a sinister glow.

What in the world is happening?

His enemies had appeared before, and the lamp always burned brightly in their presence, but this time it was blazing more fiercely than ever.

The scale of the disaster was unprecedented.

Compared to what was happening now, mass suicides and collapsing buildings from earthquakes seemed like child’s play.

Thud!

But the car, which had been speeding smoothly, suddenly came to a halt.

It had been swallowed by a massive marshmallow.

Looking around, the man in the red suit realized what kind of threat was coming for him.

A yellow-eyed, gray-bodied Object was approaching.

Why is the Gray Reaper after me?

But he wasn’t worried.

My lamp is invincible.

He stepped out of the car, lamp in hand, and confidently faced his foe.

Junior Two was bewildered.

What exactly was going on?

She had come to solve a simple case, but her client had ended up dead.

Now she was riding a white marshmallow alongside a bunch of Reapers through a city in chaos.

Eventually, they arrived at a man dressed in a red suit—the city’s ruler.

The man held up an ornate lamp, similar in design to the one Watson carried.

The moment the lamp emitted its crimson light, Junior Two’s vision was consumed by red.

The White Agu, the Gray Reaper, even her own Reaper—all of them disappeared, leaving behind nothing but a strange red fog.

I can’t see anything.

This is terrifying.

I need to draw the red circle.

They’ll come if I don’t draw the circle.

I need to draw it quickly. The paint is in my belly.

Trembling, she pulled out a utility knife, ready to plunge it into her stomach.

But then, an overwhelming feeling of desperation surged through her.

It was a sad, tender, selfless emotion.

It felt like it was pleading with her, “Please, don’t do this!”

Startled, she saw the faint silhouette of her Reaper, clinging to her side.

Its horns glowed softly as it struggled, desperately holding onto the knife embedded in her stomach.

Wait… why am I doing this?

Just as she dropped the knife in shock, her Reaper lost consciousness and collapsed into her hands, weak and lifeless.