Aku tiba-tiba menerima kritik atas larutan mandi yang kubuat dari 500mL darahku sendiri dari Braun. ‘Aku hampir menoleh ke arah bak mandi.’ Sambil menjaga kepalaku tetap tegak, aku bertanya, “Apa maksudmu dengan ‘unik’?” – Persis seperti yang kukatakan! Hmm, larutan mandi itu kan ada berbagai macam, ya? Garam, minyak, bubble bath… Milikmu, Tuan Rusa Kecil, cukup berbeda dari ginseng, meski ada juga kemiripannya. Hei, ginseng itu berasal dari cerita hantu, dan aku ini manusia… ‘Sudah jelas pasti beda, kan?’ – Oh… begitu. Sekarang aku mengerti. Saat kudengar suara kecupan bibir seolah sedang mengecap anggur berkualitas, Braun menjawab. – Tuan Rusa Kecil, larutan mandimu ini campuran. Secara harfiah, artinya campuran—istilah yang sering dipakai untuk kopi atau koktail untuk menggambarkan penggabungan bahan demi rasa baru. – Benar. Sepertinya berbagi komponen yang sama dengan ginseng, meski dalam bentuk yang berbeda. Apa ini yang dimaksud kontaminasi cerita hantu? Aku teringat sersan Tim Keamanan—bagaimana wujud manusianya robek dan berubah menjadi makhluk mirip serigala. Apa aku juga mulai mengalami kontaminasi dan perambahan fenomena paranormal? – Kontaminasi? Itu cara bilang yang ekstrem dan negatif. Bukankah hidup itu proses perubahan? Saling memengaruhi dan bertransformasi—di situlah letak kesenangannya! Secara naluriah, aku menunduk memandang tubuhku. Jika ada tanda-tanda ‘pengaruh hantu’ yang terlihat, kemungkinan besar itu… “Apa menurutmu tato yang jadi penyebabnya?” – Hmm, menelusuri asal usul sesuatu yang sudah tercampur itu cukup sulit. – Ada penikmat yang bisa menebak kebun anggur hanya dengan mencicipi setetes anggur, tapi aku tidak pernah suka hal yang sok begitu, bahkan sebagai pembawa acara talk show. – Lagipula, tidak perlu khawatir, Tuan Rusa Kecil. Kau tidak akan bertemu versi barumu minggu depan atau semacamnya! Secara teoretis, itu tampaknya benar. ‘Hidup dan bekerja di sini pasti membuatku mengalami sedikit kontaminasi hantu.’ Tidak ada gunanya panik soal itu. Lagipula, semakin kuat dan beragam kemampuan supranatural seseorang, semakin besar pula risiko dimakan oleh kemampuan itu. Menyeimbangkan risiko itu sangat penting. ‘…Meski kurasa aku belum sampai titik yang perlu dikhawatirkan soal keseimbangan.’ Tetap saja, ini sesuatu yang harus kukelola di masa depan. Untungnya, salah satu fasilitas yang kini bisa kuakses sebagai supervisor khusus memantau perubahan semacam itu. Aku akan mengunjungi tempat itu setelah selamat melewati cerita hantu ini. – Hmm. Ada juga sesuatu yang sangat unik dari larutan mandimu… Oh, sekarang sudah larut semua. Braun menghela napas panjang dan puas seolah sedang mencoba menganalisis larutan mandi lebih dalam. – Aku sangat menikmatinya! Setidaknya satu dari kami menikmatinya—itu melegakan. Bak mandi berkilauan dengan lampu neon, berkedip sesaat seolah sedang berpindah saluran TV. Braun bersandar di dinding bak, tubuh bonekanya memancarkan energi yang hidup. – Bagaimana kalau kita keluar sekarang? Aku berjalan mendekat dan mengangkat Braun keluar dari bak. Boneka itu terasa lebih mewah dari sebelumnya, meski ukurannya tidak berubah. Tetap saja, suara Braun terdengar lebih tajam, lebih jelas—lebih bersemangat. Aku menutupi boneka itu dengan handuk, melindunginya dari pandangan, lalu bertanya, “Merasa segar kembali?” – Hmm, rasanya seperti kembali ke masa jayaku, saat aku paling aktif… Meski tidak sedramatis transformasi saat aku menggunakan ginseng terkontaminasi, Braun jelas ‘terlihat muda kembali’. Dan saat kutarik handuk yang menutupinya, aku melihat sesuatu yang belum pernah kulihat sebelumnya. Ada secarik kain kecil di belakang lehernya, tempat yang tampaknya pernah ditempeli label. ‘Jadi tadinya ada label utuh di sini?’ Itu tampak seperti sisa yang pulih selama peremajaannya. Aku mencatatnya dalam hati. – Ah, aku merasa luar biasa. “Syukurlah.” Setelah mengeringkan boneka itu, aku menaruhnya rapi di atas meja yang dilapisi handuk. Persiapan sudah selesai. “Aku mau minta tolong.” – Ah, aku sudah menduganya! – Lagipula, mana mungkin aku menolak teman yang baru saja menyiapkan mandi untukku? Kau mungkin mau meminjam topengku untuk lebih banyak orang, kan? Dengan Braun yang segar kembali, dia kini bisa mengeluarkan kemampuan yang lebih kuat. – Bagus. Berapa banyak orang yang kita bicarakan? Mengikuti instruksi di pemberitahuan perusahaan, aku menuju lokasi lain untuk bekerja. Itu adalah gedung taman kanak-kanak swasta yang terbengkalai, sudah dipenuhi personel perusahaan. “Kamu sudah di sini,” sapaku hormat. Berdiri di dekat pintu masuk taman kanak-kanak yang kurang bersih, aku segera melihat rekan satu reguku berdatangan. “Semoga yang kena itu orang-orang itu, bukan kita.” “Tolong… sekali ini saja…” Terima kasih sudah berbisik, meski jujur, kurasa tidak ada yang peduli kalau pun tidak. Semua orang memasang ekspresi cemas yang sama. “Roe, Roe! Lihat orang di sana yang pegang kaki kelinci? Katanya itu jimat keberuntungan.” “Menurutmu? Ekspedisi lalu, ada yang pakai barang mirip dan tetap tewas seketika.” “Ya, Asisten Manajer Eun benar. Katanya barang-barang seperti itu tidak mempan di sini. Pemilihannya ‘adil’ dan tidak bisa dihindari.” Aku melirik Supervisor Park, yang meski pucat, berusaha memaksakan senyum. Dia tampak seperti sudah menyiapkan diri tapi masih sangat gugup. “Apa perusahaan keberatan kalau aku coba hal serupa? Biar tidak terpilih jadi tumbal?” “Ah, menyiapkan penangkal untuk menghindarinya?” “Kira-kira begitu.” Supervisor Park tertawa dan menepuk punggungku. “Oh, Roe, tentu saja tidak! Semua orang melakukannya!” “Aku berani bertaruh gajiku bahwa semua orang di sini menghabiskan tiga hari terakhir mencoba segala cara untuk lolos dari ini.” Berani sekali, Asisten Manajer Eun… Eun Haje menyeringai tipis. “Menurutmu bagaimana mereka tahu semua itu tidak mempan? Banyak yang mencoba dan tetap jadi tumbal.” “Kenapa, Roe, kau juga mau coba sesuatu?” Setelah ragu sejenak, aku mengeluarkan Braun dari sakuku.
Bab 135
I suddenly found myself receiving a critique of the bath solution I had made with 500mL of my own blood from Braun. ‘I almost turned to look at the tub.’ Keeping my head steady, I asked, “What do you mean by ‘unique’?” – Exactly what I said! Hmm, bath solutions come in various types, don’t they? Salt, oil, bubble baths… Yours, Mr. Roe Deer, is quite different from the ginseng, though there are similarities too. Hey, that ginseng came from a ghost story, and I’m a human being… ‘Isn’t it obvious that they’d be different?’ – Oh… I see. Now I understand. As I heard the sound of the smacking of lips as though tasting fine wine, Braun answered. – Mr. Roe Deer, your bath solution is a blend. In literal terms, it means mixed—a term often used in coffee or cocktails to describe combining ingredients for a new flavor. – That’s right. It seems to share some component with the ginseng, though in a different form. Could this be referring to ghost story contamination? I thought of the Security Team sergeant—the way his human form had ripped apart and twisted into a wolf-like creature. Was I also beginning to experience the contamination and encroachment of paranormal phenomena? – Contamination? That’s such an extreme and negative way to put it. Isn’t life a process of change? Mutual influence and transformation—that’s where the fun lies! Instinctively, I glanced down at my body. If there were any visible signs of ‘ghostly influence’, it would most likely be… “Do you think the tattoos are the cause?” – Hmm, tracing the origins of what’s already mixed is quite a challenge. – There are connoisseurs who can guess a vineyard by tasting a drop of wine, but I’ve never liked that kind of pretentiousness, even as a talk show host. – Anyway, there’s no need to worry, Mr. Roe Deer. You’re not about to meet a new version of yourself next week or anything like that! Theoretically speaking, that seemed true. ‘Living and working here inevitably means I’ll experience some level of ghostly contamination.’ There was no point in panicking over it. After all, the stronger and more varied one’s supernatural abilities become, the greater the risk of being consumed by them. Balancing that risk was essential. ‘…Though I don’t think I’ve reached a point where I need to worry about balance yet.’ Still, it was something I’d have to manage in the future. Luckily, one of the facilities I now had access to as a supervisor specialized in monitoring such changes. I’ll visit that place after safely surviving this ghost story. – Hmm. There’s also something particularly unique about your bath solution… Oh, it’s all dissolved now. Braun let out a long, satisfied sigh as if he had been trying to analyze the bath solution further. – I thoroughly enjoyed it! At least one of us enjoyed it—that was a relief. The bathtub glimmered with neon lights, flickering briefly as though flipping through TV channels. Braun lounged against the tub’s wall, his plush body radiating a lively energy. – Shall we step out now? I walked over and lifted Braun out of the tub. The plush doll felt oddly more luxurious than before, though the size hadn’t changed. Still, Braun’s voice sounded sharper, more articulate—more vibrant. I covered the plush doll with a towel, shielding him from view, and asked, “Feeling reinvigorated?” – Hmm, it feels like returning to my prime, when I was most active… While it wasn’t as dramatic a transformation as when I used the contaminated ginseng, Braun had clearly ‘rejuvenated’. And when I pulled back the towel covering him, I noticed something I hadn’t seen before. There was a small scrap of fabric at the back of his neck, where it looked like a tag had once been attached. ‘So there was originally a complete tag here?’ It seemed to be a remnant recovered during his rejuvenation. I made a mental note of it. – Ah, I feel wonderful. “That’s good to hear.” After drying off the plush doll, I placed him neatly on a towel-covered table. The preparations were complete. “I have a favor to ask.” – Ah, I had a feeling that was coming! – After all, how could I refuse a friend who had just prepared a bath for me? You’re probably about to ask if I can lend my mask to more people, aren’t you? With Braun rejuvenated, he could now wield more powerful abilities. – Excellent. How many people are we talking about? Following instructions in the company’s notice, I headed to a different location for work. It was an abandoned private kindergarten building, already populated with company personnel. “You’re already here,” I greeted respectfully. Standing near the poorly cleaned entrance of the kindergarten, I soon saw my squadmates arrive. “Let’s hope it’s one of those guys who bites it, not us.” “Please… just this once…” Thanks for whispering, though honestly, I don’t think anyone would have cared even if you hadn’t. Everyone wore the same anxious expression anyway. “Roe, Roe! Do you see that guy over there with the rabbit’s foot? It’s supposed to be a lucky charm.” “You think? Last expedition, someone wore something similar and still got sent to the afterlife in one hit.” “Yeah, Assistant Manager Eun’s right. They say none of those items work here. The selection is ‘fair’ and unavoidable.” I glanced at Supervisor Park, who, though pale, was trying to force a smile. He looked as if he had braced himself but was still deeply nervous. “Would the company have any issues if I tried something similar? To avoid being picked as the sacrifice?” “Ah, preparing some countermeasures to dodge it?” “Something like that.” Supervisor Park laughed and patted me on the back. “Oh, Roe, of course not! Everyone does it!” “I’d bet my paycheck that everyone here has spent the last three days trying every trick in the book to weasel out of this.” Bold words, Assistant Manager Eun… Eun Haje smirked faintly. “How do you think they figured out none of it works? Plenty of people tried and still ended up as the sacrifice.” “Why, Roe, are you planning to try something too?” After a moment of hesitation, I pulled Braun out of my pocket.
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