By Zephyria 
The wife had become an Aberration before the Management Bureau could even detect her. The husband had barely succeeded in locking her in the bathroom, as she had just begun to transform into an anomaly and could no longer steady her own body. From across the bathroom door, the sound of crying—claiming to be hungry—was heard incessantly. Every time he heard a cry that sounded so much like his wife, it felt as if his soul were being torn apart, yet the husband could not bring himself to leave the room.
He could not abandon his wife and return alone. He hoped that the rescuers from the place called the Management Bureau would never come.
According to the Procedure Manual, this room had been used to prepare human meat sashimi. The husband decided to carve out pieces of his own flesh to feed his starving wife. He did not realize that the very act of conceiving such an idea was evidence that Contamination was progressing within him as well.
The handwriting, which gradually became a chaotic mess of unrecognizable scribbles, ended with the following sentence:
My wife doesn’t cry anymore. Is she full now? I wonder if she’ll have more energy if I feed her more.
Song Hilda wiped her face with a complicated expression.
“The wife died because she ate the flesh the husband gave her.”
It wasn’t enough to be called devouring. However, for a newly transformed Aberration to continuously consume the flesh of another Aberration was no different from self-harm that violated the Core Spirit. The wife could not withstand that damage and eventually collapsed and died.
As the Enforcement Division agent hesitantly released the Restraint Device, the husband crawled clumsily toward the bathroom and embraced the crumbled corpse of his wife. He did so without knowing the truth—the reason why his wife had died a second time.
“Regardless of the story, an Aberration is an Aberration.”
An indifferent voice cut through the sorrow weighing down the small room, and the agent, who had released the Aberration out of pity, lowered their head.
“If it is difficult for you to kill him, I will do it instead.”
When Jeil Heon reached out to the Enforcement Division agent for the weapon, Song Hilda looked up.
“The Team leader is right. He is, but… before that, may I offer a prayer for them?”
“They may seem safe now, but Aberrations can flip their attitude in an instant.”
“I will take the risk.”
After looking down at her unwavering face for a moment, Jeil Heon stepped forward, taking the rifle from the agent.
“Taking responsibility for team members is the Team leader’s role.”
Under Jeil Heon’s protection, Song Hilda knelt before the couple. Regardless of the surrounding situation, the husband only held his wife’s corpse endlessly. As if trying to scoop up water spilled from a broken vessel.
“Your love did not lose its light even amidst endless suffering. I pray that you now lay down this burden and enter the peace prepared by the Lord.”
Following a low prayer wishing for the couple to wash away their sins and find rest, Song Hilda made the sign of the cross and closed her eyes. Then, a single gunshot rang through the room.
Usually, a sense of pride filled his chest upon leaving an Aberrant Realm, but today, a lingering bitterness would not fade. Even if they had discovered them sooner, he wouldn’t have been able to save the wife, but perhaps he could have saved the husband. At the very least, could he have avoided the tragedy of the wife being killed once more by her own husband?
Even after arriving home, his mind was cluttered with various thoughts. Unable to focus on his studies, he sat blankly while hugging a cushion, and Jeil Heon wrapped an arm around his shoulder.
“It’s natural to feel pity for the victims. Not losing that feeling is the proof that you are human. But don’t immerse yourself so deeply that you hurt yourself.”
“…The husband never knew until the end, right?”
“Sometimes, not knowing is a better choice than knowing.”
Leaning on Jeil Heon, Yoo Jiha organized his thoughts. The ruminations that had continued vaguely like a dim mist for several days had become a bit clearer after experiencing the Park Incident.
“Mister. About… the Smiling Man.”
“Yes.”
“How about telling him the truth?”
“….”
The hand that had been slowly stroking Jiha’s shoulder and arm paused. Jiha refined the words in his mouth calmly so they wouldn’t come out twisted.
Ignorance is not a blessing.
If, by any chance, Jeil Heon were to be harmed because of his own ignorance, Jiha wanted him to know the truth, no matter how painful or difficult it was. He did not want Jeil Heon to be the only one resting comfortably in ignorance.
“It’s a different case from the people at the Park Incident, so I’m not pitying the Smiling Man.”
Whatever the reason, the Smiling Man had murdered not only his own biological mother but countless people—more than could be counted on two hands. Both during his life and after becoming an anomaly. Even if those he killed were criminals, the fact that it was murder did not change. To attach a reason to such atrocities to evoke human empathy would be an act that insulted not only the victims but also the many people who grew up upright in similar environments.
That is why the Smiling Man had to know. Who he had killed. What his sins were. The Smiling Man did not deserve to be peaceful in ignorance. He had to face his sins. That would be the greatest punishment he could receive.
“I don’t think he’ll repent or feel remorse just because he finds out, though…”
Since he was completely insane, he might not repent and instead react with indignant rage. …No, if that actually happens, am I bringing this up to Jeil Heon for no reason? Is this Jeil Heon’s problem and I’m just overstepping?
Jiha stealthily checked his expression. He began to regret it less than ten seconds after speaking, but fortunately, Jeil Heon’s gaze remained fixed on the air, darkened as if he were chewing over the words.
“I’m not saying I definitely want that to happen… I mean, if you think he’ll just throw a fit and get angrier at you, it’s probably better not to tell him, right?”
As he eventually mumbled timidly and half-withdrew his suggestion, Jeil Heon finally relaxed his expression and pressed a light kiss to Jiha’s forehead. It seemed he hadn’t overstepped unnecessarily. Jiha also felt a quiet sense of relief.
“I think this sometimes, but Jiha, who is twelve years younger, seems more like an adult than I am.”
“You shouldn’t think that ‘sometimes,’ you should think it ‘often.’”
“Hehe, it’s because Jiha is also as cute as a four-year-old.”
“Four years old again!”
Reacting instinctively with a surge of emotion, Jiha pounded him with the cushion, and Jeil Heon suddenly hugged his waist and tickled him. As they rolled around noisily on the sofa, bursting into breathless laughter, the gloomy mood largely vanished. As expected, ‘Mister Therapy’ was the best.
Jeil Heon acquired a piece of 202X culture.
「Instead of using a yeosong as a spirit messenger, why don’t you open an Instagram account yourself? I shall follow you.」
“Uh. I have a favor to ask. Can you sneak into the company’s research wing? The Tool you gave me last time wasn’t out of pure goodwill, was it? You used it to create a backdoor, right?”
「You speak as if it were something I owed you.」
It was just as he was about to explain that he needed a sample of the Aberrant Mother to tell the Smiling Man the truth.
“Um, are you the… Dokheukri-nim from Instagram?”
Customers at the cafe, who had been glancing over from the next table for a while, approached cautiously to greet them.
「You have seen correctly.」
“Wow! We’re both fans! You’re even cooler in person. I’m sorry for interrupting since you seem to be here with a friend.”
「This is my younger brother. Brother, you too should greet these lovely ladies who cherish your elder brother.」
“Daebak. The historical drama speech makes him seem like a real actor.”
“The younger brother is so handsome too!”
While Jeil Heon stood there speechless in disbelief, Mae-gu diligently took photos with the customers. The goblin, who was adapting far too well to human society, listened to the situation while sipping a hazelnut latte through a straw as if nothing were wrong.
「I shall not deny that one can infiltrate the Management Bureau using the Tool I gifted to your security doll. I also understand that you need a sample of the Aberrant Mother. However, it is surprising that you are not merely overlooking an Aberration like me entering the depths of the Management Bureau, but rather encouraging it.」
“You wouldn’t do anything to make Princess Gyeongsune sad.”
「…….」
Mae-gu’s expression became one of being completely caught off guard. For the first time, Jeil Heon felt a small sense of pleasure in breaking the composed face of this goblin, who had been poised since the age of fourteen.
When he first entered Mae-gu’s Aberrant Realm, he thought the place had been created for his sister, but after meeting the ‘Most Noble One,’ he realized his guess was wrong. Although he had hidden it from Yoo Jiha, clues were openly revealed everywhere.
“That Spirit wasn’t Princess Gyeongsune?”
To the speechless Mae-gu, Jeil Heon calmly laid out his hypothesis.