Chapter 46: The Ideal Leader (３)

****

“Dr. Chae. Are there any soldiers to spare on site? Or do you know how to fire a gun?”

“Ah. I came from a defense industry company.”

So she’s never fired one. Instead of answering, I picked up the rifle that came with the special ammunition set. The black tentacle monster was still rampaging in front of me.

“I’ll explain as we go, so listen carefully, Dr. Chae. And—aren’t you going to record this?”

Dr. Chae hastily pulled out her phone and started filming. I checked the rifle’s chamber.

The chamber was intact.

FR-105. The Foundation’s anti-materiel sniper rifle, chambered in 12.7mm. It’s fitted with recoil compensation systems for front-back and up-down axes.

The stock also has a shock absorber. It’s a somewhat complicated rifle for field use, but thanks to that, I can fire it with this body.

*Click.* Weapon inspection complete. I released the safety on the anti-materiel rifle.

“Listen carefully, Dr. Chae. Have you ever heard of a data analysis method called brute-force analysis?”

“No.”

Brute-force analysis.

To put it simply, it’s like solving a probability problem by enumerating every possible case. It’s an analysis method that directly tries every applicable possibility.

“We have no other options, so we’ll try it this way. From now on, I’ll fire one round of each special ammunition type and check the monster’s reaction. Please record it carefully, Dr. Chae.”

I loaded the first special round into the rifle.

“Osmium.”

*BANG!*

The black balloon monster was within 50 meters and wasn’t particularly fast. Hitting its main body wasn’t that difficult.

The bullet struck the monster’s body dead-on. Some black liquid splattered, but there was no special effect. The monster didn’t react much either.

“Continuing. Sulfur.”

I haven’t used it myself, but it’s said to be effective against ghosts and similar anomalies.

*BANG!*

No effect this time either.

“Graviton round.”

“Thermite.”

“Wisteria blossom.”

“Meteoric iron.”

Even if this one worked, it’d be a problem. Meteoric iron is quite difficult to procure in bulk.

“Pine needle.”

“Uranium.”

“Hmm…”

I reloaded the sniper rifle. It seemed there was no substance with any real effect. At least not among the special rounds we’d brought.

“No effect at all.”

Dr. Chae shook her head.

But. My opinion differed slightly. I could clearly see the monster reacting to something. It didn’t seem to be taking damage from the bullets, but there was some element it was responding to.

“Didn’t you see the monster flinch?”

“It doesn’t seem to be because of the bullets.”

“Think a little harder. Ways to kill a god aren’t limited to chemical means, are they?”

Dr. Chae thought it over. She seemed close to the answer, but… we don’t have time to wait.

“We’re out of time, so I’ll just explain. Shamans shake bells during their rites, don’t they? It’s to drive away evil spirits and minor gods. Judging by its reactions, this monster is probably responding to the sound of shell casings bouncing or bullets ricocheting off the steel door.”

“Ah.”

“Move, Dr. Chae. Play metal-frequency sounds from the speakers in the containment cell, cycling through different frequencies. And—there should be a gong in the containment cell storage room…”

“Yes, understood!”

Now that I’d given the order, there was a purpose. Even if it turned out to be wrong, it was worth attempting. Dr. Chae ran off somewhere.

Let’s find a gong.

****

About ten minutes had passed since I arrived.

In the rites shamans perform, the gong symbolizes the earth, and the bell symbolizes the sky. Of course, I don’t need to know the specifics right now.

Still in my tactical gear, I carried the gong and moved to the front of the containment cell. A few soldiers glanced at me, but most continued their work.

“This is Dr. Geum. Initiating containment procedure!”

*CLANG!*

The effect was tremendous.

The sharp metallic ring echoed through the super-massive containment wing. The noise, amplified by the large speakers, sent the monster crashing to the floor, where it began convulsing.

“We’ve got it pinned down for now. Call the Metaphysics Division! We’re containing it as is!”

I struck the gong a few more times. I didn’t know exactly why it worked, but it seemed significantly weakened.

The black monster began slowly retreating under the gunfire. In a moment, it would be sealed inside the containment cell. *BANG, BANG.* I kept striking the gong…

*SKREEEEEECH.*

The massive iron door of the super-massive containment cell slammed shut.

Situation resolved.

I looked around at the people gathered above. Five Foundation researchers were waiting at the scene where we’d fought the monster.

Why hadn’t anyone found a solution to this thing? It wasn’t even that complicated.

“Where’s the nearest conference room?”

“Uh…”

No one answered hastily.

Fair enough — I’d have done the same in their shoes. Answer too quickly and you might get stuck with the blame, saddled with the work, or cursed out by your colleagues.

I paused for a moment.

“I understand it’s difficult right now. I’ll come back tomorrow. Until then, find me a team to report on this failed containment.”

“Ah, understood!”

The researchers gathered there nodded.

****

The Pitch-Black King. That was the name given to that monster. Not a name the Foundation had assigned — apparently it appeared in some ancient text.

The black monster contained in the super-massive containment wing.

About the size of an elephant. A balloon-like mass of tentacles, eyeballs, and mouths, floating idly in the air. Though it always kept its tentacles touching the floor.

Surprisingly, it had a cult. Though I couldn’t fathom why anyone would worship a monster like that, or what the purpose of those who worshipped it might be.

The Foundation was capturing and killing the monster’s followers wherever they were found, but the opposition was a fully underground anomalous organization, so results were reportedly unimpressive.

This was the Metaphysics Division’s conference room.

“Then. Please present.”

Dr. Chae rose from her seat. In front of the room, a plain PowerPoint with black text on a white background was displayed.

“Hello, I’m Dr. Chae.”

“Yes.”

“I’ll skip the pleasantries and get straight to it.”

“We refer to this anomaly as the Pitch-Black King. Similar anomalous instances have been observed multiple times across the globe.”

I nodded.

“One notable point… the Pitch-Black King and its associated symbols are repeatedly referenced across multiple eras and locations.”

So there was a reason they’d found it in historical documents.

“It’s primarily referenced through mediums like works of art. Of course, the cultists have no shortage of murders or human trafficking either…”

As in this incident.

“But the most important thing is this. In 1890, a novel titled *The Pitch-Black King* was published in England, then banned and recalled by the authorities for being grotesque and harmful.”

A little thought was all it took to connect the dots.

The Pitch-Black King was related to a cognitohazard. It almost certainly had something to do with that white fog that had hidden Yulje-myeon from the world’s eyes a few days ago.

“A cognitohazard?”

“It’s complicated. The Pitch-Black King is a kind of Elder God with a close relationship to human culture. Whether it’s a cognitohazard, I’m not sure.”

I tapped the table with my fingers. Interesting content, but not what I wanted to hear. I let out a small sigh.

“I’ll take the rest in report form. Why did yesterday’s containment fail?”

“That’s—”

“The super-massive containment zone had sufficient means to control this anomaly. There were causality distortion devices and reality adjusters. Why did containment fail yesterday?”

“…”

I knew the reason.

They’d underestimated the anomaly. The monster had been swept up in a nuclear blast, weakened by radiation, dying from toxic gas.

They must have thought a half-hearted effort would be enough.

“You skipped several things that absolutely must be verified when dealing with demigod entities.”

“Th-that’s correct.”

“People’s lives are at stake here. If the monster hadn’t been so severely weakened, this could have become a major incident.”

“…”

“Well, I won’t nag any further. Even if this is routine work, please be mindful of safety. All these people nearly died, didn’t they?”

I was right. The researchers from the Metaphysics Division gathered in the room nodded, having nothing to say. I gave a businesslike smile.

“That concludes the meeting. Everyone, get back to your work, and send whatever reports need sending.”

I clapped my hands, and the researchers dispersed.

***

[Health Report: An Yuri]

[Filed by: Dr. Cheon]

[An Yuri is alive and well. Her recovery rate is exceptional; it appears she can continue to survive on the artificial heart alone.]

[However, the shock of losing both her heart and her anomalous ability seems considerable. She occasionally shows irritability or aggression toward Foundation staff.]

[P.S. Anomalous energy was detected in the heart containing the extracted mana core. If carried around, it might be possible to use something resembling magic.]

[P.P.S. The Hero is a bit pitiful.]