Beacon of Light in the Dark Sea

Chapter 77

Suddenly, Jihyun grabbed Yoo Geum-yi, who was right next to me, and made her lower her body. Seeing this, Kim Ga-young and I, who were just coming out of the stairwell into the corridor, completely froze. And just like the two of them, we quietly crouched down. Ga-young and I crawled over to Jihyun, who had lowered her body.

Whats going on?

Is someone there?

Jihyun quickly whispered to us.

Someone was on the opposite side of the 4th floor just now. Dont stand up.

Since the building had a -shaped structure and the center was open, anything above shoulder height could be seen by someone at any time. Jihyun kept scanning the corridors up and down, and I thought it was because the structure of this building was unique, but it seemed that wasnt the case. If someone was there but not armed to attack us, why did we need to hide? Yoo Geum-yi seemed to think the same thing.

Why do we need to hide? It could be a researcher who couldnt escape.

Yes. And it could also be the bastard whos been making corpses until now.

Ah. Right. Damn it. I thought they would have escaped faster than us. They could be wandering around this area.

Who was it? What did they look like? Were they tall? What color was their hair? Was it someone you knew?

Kim Ga-young, with her head bowed low, bombarded Jihyun with questions, but Jihyun shook her head.

It was too brief, so I couldnt see properly either. It was one person, and they seemed tall. They probably didnt see us either. Its best not to run into them.

At Jihyuns strong request, we eventually decided to lower our bodies as much as possible and go to Room 210. Fortunately, Room 215 was right next to us. I was inwardly rejoicing that we only had to carefully pass 5 rooms, but the problem was that the distance between the labs was unexpectedly long. We walked with our backs bent, and when our backs started hurting, we walked on all fours as if crawling. This is also crazy. Cant we just run?

Only after wiping all the dust in the corridor with peoples clothes and palms did we finally arrive in front of Room 210. Yoo Geum-yi raised her arm and lifted only her index finger to press it against the fingerprint sensor next to the lab door, and the door opened. We quietly entered the lab while keeping our bodies lowered and immediately closed the door.

After confirming that the lab door was completely locked, Kim Ga-young arched her back. There was a cracking sound. Groaning, Ga-young turned her neck to the side and said,

My bodys going to fall apart.

Yoo Geum-yi, who had entered the lab, ignored the office and rushed straight inside. Beyond the office with computers, separated by a door, were the animal room and operating room.

Yoo Geum-yi looked at the jellyfish confined in a glass tank and manipulated the buttons next to it. Jellyfish with countless tentacles were swaying inside the huge tank. Even though hardly any light reached the tank, the jellyfish naturally glowed and flickered in the darkness. It was as if numerous alien flying saucers were trapped inside. An enormous number of jellyfish swayed in the large aquarium tank. Its beautiful.

There was a jellyfish aquarium not far from the dental clinic in the central district, but judging by the length of the tentacles, these creatures seemed to be a different species. Those ones had really long tentacles. When Yoo Geum-yi pressed some buttons, the jellyfish slowly began emptying from the tank.

Im releasing them outside. By adjusting the pressure. These creatures can only live in deep-sea environments.

So that aquarium tank environment is identical to the deep sea at several thousand meters? It was completely different from the laboratory of my friend who was in the biology department. In my friends lab, creatures like mice, rabbits, dogs, and pigs were stored in their respective cages, with the square cage containers packed tightly against two or three walls like playing Tetris with the creatures. This was the first time Id seen them stored like this.

Yoo Geum-yi went further into the lab and released the jellyfish in another tank. Four aquarium tanks were slowly being emptied. Is it over? However, when Yoo Geum-yi turned the corner towards the wall, a human-sized metal door appeared.

Jihyun was surprised and tried turning the doorknob, but the door was completely locked. Yoo Geum-yi jumped up and swept her hand over the top of the nearby drawer. In Yoo Geum-yis hand that landed on the floor was a single key, along with dust.

Its the lab next door. Originally, they were connected and used together, but our professor and the professor next door fought, so they blocked it off with this door.

Then Yoo Geum-yi used the key to open the door. Surprised by her familiar actions, I asked,

Arent they on bad terms?

Yoo Geum-yi shook the jellyfish character keychain in her hand and grinned.

The professors fought. Not the researchers. When we were busy, they would feed the creatures in the aquarium tanks, and when they were on vacation, we would manage the cells they were raising so they wouldnt starve to death.

Is that really allowed? When Yoo Geum-yi entered the next lab, there were several aquarium tanks filled with thumbnail-sized creatures. Translucent creatures the size of thumbnails, resembling miniature transparent light bulbs, were moving very slowly inside.

Yoo Geum-yi pressed a few buttons on those aquarium tanks as before and began emptying them. Jihyun stared blankly at Yoo Geum-yi, wondering what they were, and asked,

What are these?

Theyre Yuzuru animals.

Are they really animals?

Yes. Theyre comb jellies.

Are those also jellyfish? They dont seem to be. They look completely different from the ones we saw earlier. While Yoo Geum-yi emptied the three aquarium tanks in that lab, we looked around the laboratory. The structure of the opposite lab was similar. There was an operating room and an animal room, with an office beyond the door separating them. The two animal rooms were connected.

While Yoo Geum-yi busily ran around the two laboratories, we toured the office on Yoo Geum-yis side. Each researcher had their own desk and computer on it. The desks were decorated according to each researchers preferences. On one persons desk, there were jellyfish dolls and characters piled up, while another person who seemed to have surfing as a hobby had put up their surfing photos on the desk, and on another persons desk, shark dolls of various kinds completely occupied the desk surface.

As I was staring at the shark dolls with a dejected expression, Jihyun, who had been sauntering around the office like a lion, discovered a lithium fire extinguisher in the corner and brought over the RESCUE BAG next to it.

She wiped off the layer of white dust with her hand. Judging by Yoo Geum-yis expression as she wandered around the animal room, it seemed like she had just learned that such a thing existed in this office. Jihyun turned the bag upside down and shook it vigorously on the floor. A portable toilet, emergency blanket? Theres a flint. Oh. Its a rope. Hand warmers, blankets, raincoats, wet wipes, a few pairs of gloves, a few masks, and a radio. They even put a radio in the rescue bag? It was my first time seeing the actual contents.

Jihyun kicked away all the items as if she couldnt find what she was looking for and sauntered around the lab again. Kim Ga-young, who had been browsing other peoples desks, found some antipyretic painkillers and let out a small cheer, saying, Yes! Then she distributed a few pills to each person and took some herself. As Kim Ga-young swallowed the pills with a carbonated drink someone had left behind instead of water, she said,

Ah. This is it. This. How fortunate it is to be born in a world with painkillers.

Then she sat on a chair whose owner was absent and carefully rubbed her swollen, heavily bruised, and injured calf. While Yoo Geum-yi was in the process of helping the marine creatures escape, she asked Jihyun, who was acting like a paranoid lion,

Do you need anything?

A Sig Sauer or Glock.

Those are gun names, right? In the laboratory? You might as well ask for anthrax.

Do you have it?

Of course not! But we do have surgical knives and hydrochloric acid.

Give me both. Right now.

Yoo Geum-yi, who had been looking at the glass tanks, headed to the operating room located next to them. I followed Yoo Geum-yi and asked,

Why do you have hydrochloric acid here?

We need to adjust the pH concentration.

Ah. I see. But I never thought that surgical knives could be in the lab. Well, it is a place with marine creatures. Oh. Then maybe

Do you have anesthetics?

We do, but not for human use.

If you use the ones meant for fish on humans, doesnt it become for human use?

Jihyun asked me that question, and I was momentarily taken aback. You cant use the ones meant for fish on people, right? Or can you? Im not sure.

Well. No. Ive never tried using them that way.

According to Yoo Geum-yi, they use a method of dissolving a certain amount of anesthetic in water to anesthetize marine creatures. Oh. Thats interesting. Will I ever have the opportunity to handle fish teeth? Yoo Geum-yi took out a surgical scalpel from the surgical kit and handed it to Jihyun.

I also ended up receiving a scalpel while standing next to them, and in the process, I accidentally dropped the scalpel on the floor. As soon as I hurriedly picked it up from the floor, I remembered the condition of my hands and the sterilizer. While I was dumbfounded by the thoughts that came to mind, Yoo Geum-yi busily put on gloves, took out a brown bottle from the reagent cabinet, and placed it on the office table.

This is hydrochloric acid, so make sure to wear these gloves. These are acid-resistant safety gloves. And, and where did I put the masks?

Jihyun was looking at the blade of the scalpel, and I asked Yoo Geum-yi in a flustered voice,

Hydrochloric acid You dont handle it while wearing a mask?

We just wear gloves when handling it. We dont use it much.

Hydrochloric acid fumes can even corrode teeth. These researchers. While Kim Ga-young rummaged through the researchers drawers and forcibly stuffed a small piece of chocolate, the size of a finger, into each persons mouth after discovering a bundle of snack chocolates, a small voice was heard.

[Fingerprint does not match.]

[Fingerprint does not match.]

Thats how it sounded in Korean to my ears. As soon as I heard that low, neutral voice, it felt like the hair on the back of my neck was standing up. Why was there such a voice? Is someone trying to enter this lab right now? Did I mishear it? As soon as I had that thought, as if mocking my thoughts, the voice was heard once more.

[Fingerprint does not match.]

The lab door and walls are completely opaque from both the inside and outside. Yoo Geum-yi habitually tried to speak towards the door without realizing it, but Jihyun and I rushed over and covered Yoo Geum-yis mouth with our palms.

Kim Ga-young quietly pointed to the lab door with her palm and made an X-shaped gesture. Then Kim Ga-youngs head nodded towards the animal room and operating room. Yoo Geum-yi, still wearing gloves, picked up the hydrochloric acid bottle and went from the office through the door to the animal room, and from the animal room through the connected metal door to the adjacent animal room. Yoo Geum-yi asked Jihyun in a voice as low as a whisper,

Should I ask who it is?

Absolutely not. Dont let them know were here at all.

Could it be a colleague or junior from the same lab?

Then they would have come in.

Oh. Right? Then who is it?

Since we had been making no noise, that neutral voice coming from outside the door continued to be heard in the quiet laboratory.