NOVEL WEB Chapter 55
“As soon as I got home, I chucked my bag into the corner and stood in the middle of the room to tidy up. I can’t bring this dirty stuff to the Boss’s hotel.”
Then I took out two black marbles that I had kept safe in the drawer, popped one in my mouth, and crunched it down.
Just like that, the marble vanished without a trace, and black mist began to seep out.
The black mist obscured my vision, but soon I found myself arriving at the hotel where he was staying, coupled with a dizzying feeling.
“Boss…”
“Ah, Blanca… Whoa. Your expression is something else. Did something bad happen?”
“I’ve really had too much going on… I’m so exhausted…”
After forcing my queasiness down with diphenhydramine, I practically collapsed into his arms.
“Hmm… Yeah, you really do look tired. Want me to get you a treat?”
“No, just let me be for a bit…”
He gently patted my back, saying he didn’t know what was going on, but that I’d worked really hard.
Being in his arms felt like the stress of the day melted away like snow under the sun.
I probably could have achieved the same effect by breaking down stress compounds and releasing happy hormones. But this warm sensation that fills the soul was something else entirely.
If all I wanted was to feel happy, I could simply synthesize serotonin. I’d often done that when I felt down in the past.
But such happiness felt rather hollow.
To truly feel fulfilled and warm happiness, it was best to be embraced by someone you trust and respect.
“Hah… Thank you, Boss.”
After a while of being held, I pulled away, thinking I’d had enough, and expressed my gratitude politely.
“I’m just glad I can help in some way, Blanca. So, what exactly brought you here?”
He asked me what had happened to make me come by.
A bit embarrassed, but since he was curious, I confessed everything without holding back.
“I wasn’t too happy with how the suit looked. Hmm, then… how about thinking about it the other way?”
“The other way…?”
“Even if the appearance isn’t to your liking, everything else you requested has been fulfilled, right?”
“That’s… true, but it’s still clothing. If it looks like that, what am I supposed to do with it? It’s a fashion fail…”
He told me to accept it, but that was easier said than done. He smiled good-naturedly at my complaints.
“You can’t have everything, Blanca. When you gain something, you lose something, so don’t think too much about it. And… so you’re paying attention to fashion now? That’s a good thing. You’re becoming more human.”
“Becoming more human or whatever, who would stroll around in their birthday suit?”
I puffed my cheeks in protest, but he said that was proof I was indeed human. I can’t out-argue that.
“Fine, urgh. I’ll try to accept it, Boss. Oh, can I use your room? I want to do some catnip.”
“You can, but… it won’t really have any effect on your body, right?”
“Come on, you see me up close all the time. I’m fine, really. Humans could ruin their lives on drugs, but I can handle it just fine.”
While trying to reassure him, I suddenly realized I hadn’t seen some things I was supposed to and asked him.
“By the way, where did Wei and Hanchō go?”
“Wei and Hanchō are probably scouting around the military and research facilities. They’re planning to raid right after the Academy, so they’re checking the routes beforehand.”
“Ah, they went there… Got it. I thought they were captured again. That jerk Hanchō got pulled away last time when there was a bounty on him while he was smarting off in front of the Heroes.”
After loosely bad-mouthing Hanchō for 15 minutes, I asked him not to let me in the room and was about to close the door when he lightly warned me.
“Oh, stay away from the window.”
Why? I was about to ask that but held back. Instead, I asked a different question.
“Did today’s fortune warn you about something?”
“Yeah. It said to avoid the window. I don’t know if a bird is going to crash or if the glass is going to break suddenly, but something feels like it’s going to happen over there.”
If today’s fortune said that, there must be a reason for it. I noted it and closed the door.
I said I would do some catnip, but in reality, I just wanted to sniff some nepetalactone. There was a reason I didn’t synthesize it myself.
It’s a compound that only works on olfactory cells.
It has no addictive qualities, side effects, or any negative influences, just a materialized paradise reserved solely for cats and their relatives.
The reason I don’t do it often? When I do, I feel like a real beast, and when 15 minutes pass, a big reality check hits me.
If it weren’t for that psychological factor, I might have been high every day. Well, maybe not every day.
If I felt too good, the hate would simmer down. That might have caused a significant issue with carrying out my duties.
Besides, it wasn’t always a delightful experience.
Spraying the nepetalactone synthesized from my palm, I took a deep breath.
Determined not to waste a single molecule, I inhaled as deeply as I could, filling my lungs.
With every breath, it felt like my consciousness was drifting away and melting away into bliss.
Even with my eyes closed, colors sparkled bright before me, merging, blazing, and freezing in a dazzling loop.
Red, blue, and the pastel hues twisted and rolled, filling the sky.
Unexplainable joy and bliss washed over me, with the sound of my heartbeat resonating like a grand symphony’s big drum, booming and rhythmic. No, it felt like a grand concert.
It was a beautiful symphony, a mix of electric guitars, brass instruments, percussion, and synthesizers.
Ah, heh. This winter dust feels so warm, it’s absurd.
Through the melting sky, a kaleidoscope descended upon me, pulling me into that kaleidoscopic world.
Triangles, squares, and unnameable shapes, lines, surfaces, and realities. Their appearances continuously changed colors, times, and meanings.
The scenery was so dizzying and blissful that I couldn’t help but roll around, wanting to be free like them.
Spinning. Twirling. The world spins. I spin. The world spins double.
Nyaaaah! I can’t express this feeling! I let out a loud cry, hoping someone could understand this explosion of emotions.
Nyaaaah! How great would it be if the Boss could share this experience with me?
Then suddenly, the entire world spun wildly, then abruptly stopped and shattered, revealing a small Jinhyeon. Ugh. What’s going on? Right when I’m feeling great. Want a smack?
Ugh, let’s hit him. After rolling a bit, I chased after the little Jinhyeon as he scampered away into the dark.
“Hey, come here! Die, die! Got you! Ah, he disappeared? There you are! Die!”
As I caught the little Jinhyeon and threw him down hard, he vanished without a trace, leaving only a red stain.
Hehe, serves you right.
Nyaaah.
I rolled around on the ground, rubbing my body everywhere. I felt all scratched up. Too happy, so I’m itchy.
My lower belly felt itchy too.
I wanted to scratch, but no. If I do, it’ll definitely mess everything up.
Ah, ugh. There was something I was clearly thinking about, right? With my happiness-fogged brain, I tried hard to remember, but suddenly, my thought slipped from my mind and landed on the floor.
Gasp.
When I picked it up again, I finally recalled it.
Ah, right. It was an unpleasant thought. So, what was he saying?
Was it about mating? What was that about? I couldn’t decipher the thought and tossed it aside.
The thought soared beyond the horizon, bursting into a huge mushroom cloud.
It burst so loudly that I could literally hear a pop!
Wow. I was so shocked that I nearly jumped out of my skin, thought my heart was going to drop.
But, seriously. Has something like this ever occurred during a hallucination?
My sober self, who had been crammed in the corner, splashed cold water right in the middle of my bliss.
Even the sky and the earth glared at my sober self, but sober self insisted on saying something.
“Hey, can’t you hear the eardrums screaming?”
“Yeah. I think I can…”
…Wait a minute.
If this isn’t just my imagination, but something really exploding…
What’s blowing up?
My brain, drenched in fantasy, finally registered the situation and quickly broke down the nepetalactone, returning to my sober state.
What’s blowing up? A bomb? A lab? A shell? Did a plane crash? A thousand scenarios raced through my mind.
I needed to check if the Boss’s safety or Wei’s life was in danger.
Just as I was about to head to the window, I recalled something the Boss had said.
“Be careful near the window.”
As I paused for just a moment, a half-mangled Hunter crashed through the window and into the room.