[Lobotomy Corporation] I'm an Abnormality...

Let's go catch the cult... EP.20

"Ahem, I'm finally a bit calmer... Ah, I'm outside the 'Nothing There' containment cell?!"
"Excuse me...?"
"Hieee! You're the 'Little Girl'! Don't come near me!"

Huh, this feels like a scene I've seen somewhere before.

To prevent a second Louis incident, I quickly spoke up.

"Calm down. Take a deep breath."
"Hsss- hoo..."
"You're doing great."

Their hands and feet are still trembling, but I can see them stabilizing with each deep breath.

I don't know what I'm doing, babysitting a child or something.

Well, I guess my current appearance is somewhat childlike too.

But my spirit is a tough guy, so I'm fine. Probably?

"Phew... I think I'm okay now. Thank you."
"It's a bit strange to thank an Abnormality, but... Anyway, I'm glad you've calmed down."

They say they've calmed down, but the fear is still there, huh? I can see their legs shaking.

Is there anything to be scared of here... it's just 'Nothing There' at most.

Oh.

As I turned my head to look behind me, I finally understood why Louis and Michael were so scared.

The angel or demon thing Michael was talking about earlier, it must have been this.

A large, monstrous form of 'Nothing There' was clinging tightly to me from behind.

It wasn't exactly hugging me, or I would have passed out.

Since it wasn't saying anything, I thought it was just hiding quietly...

"Um, Mr. Michael ."
"Gasp. Yes, yes!"

They seem to be overly polite, but maybe that's better.

"By any chance, does the company have an Abnormality like 'Do you know the Way'?"
"Huh? What do you mean..."
"I just wanted to see one personally. Well, if you don't know, it can't be helped..."
"Hieee?! No, wait! I'll show you right away!"

...If Michael didn't know about the cult leader Abnormality, I was just going to go back to my containment cell, but it's a good thing they knew.

Honestly, someone almost died in front of me, so a little warning wouldn't hurt since I'm already out.

Besides, if I'm with Michael, I won't get scolded for sneaking out.

I was planning to return to my cell, but Michael insisted on guiding me, so I followed.

Does my conscience prick me? Honestly, yes, but... when else would I get to roam around the company freely?

And so, with Michael as my guide, a little journey to meet the cult began.

"Um, but Miss."
"Can you use a more normal title instead of that strange one?"
"Is, is that thing coming with us?"

Michael asks, glancing behind me repeatedly.

...Seems like my words were lightly ignored.

"If you're talking about the red blob of flesh, I can't really do anything about it..."
"I, I see..."

'Nothing There' has been following me closely since earlier.

I told it that it could go back to its containment cell, and it looked visibly dejected and returned to its cell.

Yeah, that was fine until...

It must have been really sad about not being able to follow me, because it started smashing its cell walls and causing a ruckus... so I just told it to come along.

- Bang.

As we were walking down the hallway, the door of a nearby containment cell suddenly burst open, and a figure leaped out.

...

...

...

"..."
"Hey, why'd you stop? It was getting to the good part."

A black-haired man frowned.

I fiddled with the small teacup in my hand and asked quietly.

"There's something I'm really, really curious about. Weren't you here to suppress me?"

The man's expression twisted slightly, as if troubled.

"Ah, about that..."
"That's exactly what I want to know. Why wasn't the light withdrawn from you?"

Before the man could speak, a blue-haired woman standing beside him interrupted.

"We're still at the beginning of the story. You're so impatient."
"I think I'm quite patient compared to a certain child who curses people just because she doesn't like them."
"Ugh. Are you done talking now?"

As their voices rose, the man stepped between me and the woman, as if trying to mediate.

"Woah, woah. Calm down and let's finish hearing this Miss's story. I don't know much about the time when you guys were around, so I find this story very interesting."

I glared at the woman. Look at that smug expression.

"Ugh, I'm only holding back because of your face, mister. Oh, and we're out of macarons."
"Was I already old enough to be called mister? I didn't realize."
"Be quiet. I'm still full of energy."

I don't know why the man is getting caught in the crossfire, but right now, macarons are more important.

"Um, macaron refill..."
"I'll get you some after you finish the story. Someone interrupted us, remember?"
"...'Finish the story, finish the story.' Are you actually planning to get them?"

As I looked at him with suspicious eyes, the man grinned and placed a macaron on a plate.

"That's one thing, this is another. If you finish the story quickly, I'll get you more."
"...You promise?"

I quickly popped the macaron into my mouth.

Hmm, strawberry flavor.

"Yeah, yeah."
"Spare me that patronizing tone, like you're soothing a child."

The man chuckled, finding something amusing.

"Where was I... Oh, now I've forgotten!"
"That's not our fault."

The woman beside him kept interjecting.

"Seriously, you never let anything slide. Hmm, we were on our way to deal with the cult, right?"

...

...