In the deep night, just before dawn when everyone was asleep, a change occurred in the courtyard of Sehee Research Center.

A bloodied Western woman and several Golden Reapers appeared, lying on a marshmallow-like bed.

The Golden Reapers glanced down at the woman, who was groaning in pain from a high fever, and after leaving one behind to stand guard, the others began to scatter in all directions.

'We need to find someone to help with the treatment!'

The Golden Reapers dispersed to find someone who could summon the square car that comes when people are injured.

One of the Golden Reapers headed toward the sleeping quarters, following the call of the youngest.

When the Reaper disappeared, I was utterly shocked.

After the Reaper pushed me away and vanished, consumed by the black sphere, my mind went completely blank.

I couldn’t speak, I couldn’t move.

It was like being struck hard in the head—I couldn’t do anything.

My head was filled only with questions.

'What just happened?' That was the only thought echoing in my mind.

At the end of my gaze, where the Reaper had stood, nothing remained.

But on the marshmallow-like surface, small footprints went thump, thump.

Seeing that strange phenomenon, my thoughts began to return slowly.

'Small Reaper footprints. Of course, the Reaper is invincible.'

Step by step.

As the footprints advanced, the Reaper began to regenerate.

Starting from the small ankles, bit by bit, until finally, even the antennae on top of the head!

The Reaper had returned!

Unable to contain my excitement, I sprinted down the marshmallow-like path toward the Reaper.

At the end of the marshmallow path, I hugged the soft Reaper tightly.

There were so many things I wanted to say, but for some reason, no words came out.

I just held the Reaper close, fully feeling the returned Reaper in my arms.

The Reaper looked slightly annoyed but didn’t push me away.

At that moment, seeing the Reaper reappear, the giant pig, seemingly sensing an opportunity, opened its mouth wide and spewed fire.

A torrent of heat, so intense it seemed to burn even the air, came rushing toward us.

It was a massive, fierce blaze—so hot that for a moment, I thought, Is this how I’m going to die?

But the Reaper, seemingly irritated by the pig's attack, clenched its fist with a squeeze.

Then, a large black sphere appeared, swallowing all the flames.

The Reaper then firmly grasped my hand, looking me in the eye, as if to say, "Don’t worry."

Seeing the Reaper’s calm expression, I could feel my heart, which had been pounding wildly, gradually settling down.

The battle dragged on longer than expected.

The Reaper barely had to move a muscle—just stretching out a hand and clenching it created black spheres that mercilessly tore the giant pig apart.

Not wanting to disturb the Reaper, I held my breath and silently marveled.

Unlike before, when the pig had devoured the black sphere and countered the attack, the Reaper now maintained the black spheres only for a very short time.

Each time the black sphere appeared and vanished from the air, the ominous sound of something cracking echoed through the space.

It was like the roar of the afterlife.

But the giant pig, despite its monstrous size, moved unexpectedly, dodging the black spheres.

The giant pig stirred up whirlwinds in the air, teleporting to different locations to avoid the spheres.

It was as if it was opening dimensional gates.

Of course, not all of the Reaper’s black spheres could be dodged by simply slipping through those gates.

Although the pig couldn’t avoid everything, its incredible regenerative ability allowed it to recover even after partial hits, making its evasion almost flawless.

But the pig wasn’t simply running away either.

It spat fire or suddenly charged at us.

Each time that happened, the Reaper would grasp my hand to calm my frightened heart.

The Reaper was so kind.

Overall, the Reaper seemed to have the upper hand.

No, there was a clear gap in power.

After all, the Reaper hadn’t moved a single step during the fight.

Every time the pig attacked, it was nullified by a single gesture from the Reaper.

The Reaper, focusing with such power, was truly impressive.

Standing still beside me, waving its arms effortlessly, while the giant pig dashed around, looking for an opportunity.

It was clear who held the advantage.

Yet, despite the clear superiority, a slight trace of anxiety crossed the Reaper’s face.

It was a strange expression, not fitting the current situation.

Was the pig too good at dodging?

There’s no need to be in such a hurry….

At the break of dawn, in a corner of Songpa-gu, at Sehee Research Center.

As the first light of dawn began to faintly illuminate the sky, a security officer started his patrol.

His footsteps echoed through the dark, deserted hallway.

The hallway was shrouded in shadows, with only the faint green light of the emergency exits casting a dim glow on the dark walls.

The early morning darkness wrapped around the research center like a thick curtain, swallowing both light and sound.

Dew gathered on the windows that absorbed the pale blue light, and the tiny droplets reflected the faint morning light, offering a hazy view of the outside world.

With no researchers around yet, the interior of the center felt eerily cold, contributing to the chilling atmosphere.

As the security officer passed by a containment room, holding his flashlight, a soft piano melody could be heard in the distance.

The mournful tune, though beautiful, echoed through the heavy air, matching the dark, eerie corridor perfectly.

In the dimly lit containment room, a blue lizard was slowly and deliberately playing the piano.

Even knowing the lizard played this song every dawn, the haunting melody still sent chills down the officer’s spine.

Ahead of the security officer, a golden glow bobbed and flickered, like a bouncing light.

It was the characteristic glow of a Golden Reaper.

‘But isn’t this the time when the Golden Reapers usually sleep?’

Puzzled, the officer shone his flashlight in the direction of the Golden Reaper.

The glowing orb, moving faster than usual, seemed to notice the light and hurriedly approached, accompanied by the sound of small, quick footsteps.

The Golden Reaper, looking unusually urgent, rushed over, grabbing the hem of the officer’s pants and tugging at it.

The Reaper’s expression was one of desperation.

The officer, realizing the Golden Reaper was in a hurry, radioed in that he had encountered a Golden Reaper and lifted it onto his shoulder.

Following the Reaper’s lead, the officer ran briskly down the hallway.

In the courtyard where the Reaper had led him, he found three or four Golden Reapers standing around, along with the bloodied body of a Western woman lying on the ground.

Though her wounds had clearly been severe, the woman appeared to be in a stable condition, though she seemed to be suffering from a high fever and was in urgent need of treatment.

The officer reported the injured woman to the security office and called an ambulance.

After making the call, he turned back to the Golden Reaper, who was standing in front of the woman, gesturing as if trying to explain something.

“Seems like you’re talking about a square car… Do you want me to help treat her?”

When the officer asked, looking down at the Golden Reaper, it tilted its head, confused.

“I don’t know what you mean exactly, but the ambulance is on its way, so it should be fine.”

The officer, giving up on understanding the Reaper’s gestures, checked the area for anything else out of the ordinary.

That’s when he noticed a dirt-covered baby Reaper piggybacking on one of the Golden Reapers.

Alarmed, the officer quickly radioed that the baby Reaper was being moved outside by the Golden Reapers.

The Golden Reapers, meanwhile, were affectionately petting the baby Reaper, smiling gently as if they were caring for a younger sibling.

They fussed over its hair, brushing off the dirt clinging to its body.

The baby Reaper was basking in all the attention.

[We are receiving reports now from Colorado, where the ethereal barrier has caught fire.]

From the mini TV in the courtyard, meant for the gray Reaper to watch the news, a breaking news alert blared.

The screen showed the ethereal barrier burning in America, with fire raining down from the sky.

As the sound of the approaching ambulance grew louder, the Golden Reapers glanced at the news briefly, waved at the officer, and then melted away into the air.

Left behind in the courtyard were the increasingly loud sounds of the ambulance, the unconscious woman, and the lone security officer.

Crunch.

With a strong clench of my fist, the space around me compressed, crushing everything within it.

But the giant pig, like a slippery eel, escaped the sphere’s range, circling us and eyeing Yerin and me.

This Object was irritating in a different way than the Aggui I encountered in Songpa-gu.

The Aggui’s condition had been a cryptic riddle, difficult to solve. But this one—its condition was clear, but it was impossible to catch, making it frustrating.

The longer the fight dragged on, the more anxious I felt.

Turning my head, I saw Yerin, who looked utterly exhausted.

She had been severely injured and hadn’t slept properly, so it was no wonder she looked worn out.

Yerin’s logs were regenerating at an incredible rate, allowing me to keep fighting for a long time, but we couldn’t keep this up forever.

I needed a plan.

At the very least, I had to catch the pig while Yerin still had enough energy to stay conscious.

Should I throw it into a sinkhole like I did with the Aggui?

But this one could tear through space and teleport—there’s no guarantee it would stay put like the Aggui did.

Should I create a black sphere so large it’s impossible to dodge?

I don’t have enough logs for that. I’d have to play with Yerin all day to gather enough energy for a sphere that size.

As I was about to summon a bunch of Golden Reapers to bind its feet and finish it off with a black sphere, taking them down with it, Yerin suddenly held something up to me.

“Reaper, look at this. It’s a mini Reaper I’ve never seen before!”

On Yerin’s palm, a Golden Reaper was holding out a mini Reaper, identical to itself in size.

Dangling from its armpits, the mini Reaper had two small leaves sprouting from its head.

“!”

It felt like being introduced to a child I didn’t even remember having.

When did this happen?

As I stared at it intently, the baby Reaper rubbed its eyes and blinked sleepily at me, then smiled brightly when it saw my face.

As the Golden Reaper handed the baby Reaper to me, it flopped over in my palm, unable to stand properly.

Yawn.

Then, with a sleepy yawn, it communicated its abilities to me.

What it could do.

And what it couldn’t.

This new baby Reaper seemed pretty smart.

As I listened to the explanation of its powers, I couldn’t help but be impressed.

Amazing.

I felt like clapping my hands for this ability.

Its abilities seemed even better than mine, better than what I used to kill the navy-blue moon.

Yes, with this ability, we can kill that slippery pig!