Became a Failed Experimental Subject-Chapter 11: It Was Delicious

Yu Anna flew toward the monster and attacked with both feet.

A dropkick at super-acceleration, physical force paired with a shockwave—chunks of the monster’s body were torn away by the impact.

In that brief opening, Yu Anna immediately grabbed the corpse the monster had been chewing on and pulled it free.

Heroes who lose to monsters can’t even leave a corpse behind, so they do everything they can to retrieve each other’s bodies.

It’s a matter of mutual respect—even if all that remains is a chest and a right arm...

At that moment, Lee Han-yeong’s right hand opened, and something dropped out.

Yu Anna caught it reflexively—even in death, she had been clutching it tight. She checked it quickly and saw that it was a button-shaped, ultra-compact cam that all Heroes were required to wear, and she slipped it into her pocket.

At that exact moment, the Despair-Class monster shot past her with terrifying speed.

Startled by a speed she could hardly register, Yu Anna raised both hands to block its path.

And because of that, she lost hold of the corpse—the monster snatched Lee Han-yeong’s body.

“Ah...!”

Like it was mocking her, the monster bit into Lee Han-yeong’s arm midair and shook its head.

The remaining torso tore free, and Yu Anna caught it, carefully laying the body down on the nearest rooftop.

Boiling rage surged inside her.

This is, after all, a monster—the enemy of humanity.

This thing protecting humans? What a ridiculous fantasy.

“Crunch... crunch...”

The sound of bone crushed between molars—Yu Anna stood atop the opposite rooftop, facing the monster that stared her down.

“Haaaaa...”

She steadied herself in the stance that allowed her to launch forward at the fastest speed possible. The infinite solar furnace burning inside her heart, that energy channeled directly outward in a straight-line burst—

Yu Anna’s strongest technique, the one she had named Flare Drive, the move that delivered her maximum possible output.

“DIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEE!!”

The human bullet shot forward, faster than light, triggering a sonic boom as it ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ crashed into the monster.

But the monster ignored Yu Anna completely and sank into the ground.

Literally—into the ground, like it was submerging.

It was an ability from her memory.

Lee Han-yeong’s ability—Fluid Swimming.

One of the highest-rated abilities among rescue-unit Heroes, a power that allowed the user to sink beneath solid surfaces and escape underground.

It had stolen it—from Lee Han-yeong.

“That’s not an ability someone like you should have...”

Rage pushed past her limits, blazing through every part of her psyche, igniting her own ability.

The human sun—Yu Anna spun the intense heat swirling around her body like a drill and plunged straight into the earth.

“The power we use to save humans! Don’t you dare waste it on running away!”

This monster—this time, she would kill it no matter what.

Yu Anna, who had already once won the chase on the surface, now began a desperate pursuit underground.

A Despair-Class monster versus an S-Class Hero.

A human strong enough to take on a Despair-Class singlehandedly—and a monster that could destroy an entire city on its own.

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They tore through the subterranean world beneath W-City in utter chaos.

****

[...I apologize for failing to eliminate the Despair-Class monster.]

A ramen shop, in one of the few intact districts amid the ruined city center.

I was eating ramen while listening to the sound of the television.

According to the news, the aftermath of the battle between a Despair-Class monster and an S-Class Hero had left behind massive scars.

They say an entire district was scorched—thankfully, the shelter where citizens had been evacuated suffered no damage at all.

The survivors now stood outside the shelters, facing the wreckage of the city, and here they were, putting a Hero in front of the camera and making her apologize.

Apparently, the underground of that district had completely melted, so construction work on the land base was going to be essential for a while.

But still—people these days are so used to moving and settling quickly that it’s almost a habit.

Even if there’s property damage, as long as there’s no loss of life, they can recover eventually.

[Are you seriously telling us this was a Despair-Class monster? Communications from the Heroes stated two Despair-Class monsters fought each other! How does that make any sense—only one district got destroyed?!]

In fact, in other cities, people were already starting to question it—saying that if it really was Despair-Class, how could only one district be damaged? Wasn’t it just Disaster-Class monsters?

If four Disaster-Class monsters had gone berserk, the idea that Heroes had successfully lured them into a single area to contain the damage was at least plausible.

But if it had really been two Despair-Class monsters plus two Disaster-Class, and it all ended with just one district damaged?

That made absolutely no sense.

[Yu Anna, you’re an S-Class Hero. Wasn’t that just you blowing off steam in the district?]

[Most of the destruction came from high-heat related abilities! According to official reports, Code Zero and Code Alpha each had lightning and wind-based powers, didn’t they?!]

[Please explain this, Yu Anna!]

[That monster you fought—the Black Cat—is reportedly protecting humans! Wasn’t it you who provoked it and made the damage worse?!]

Frrrrrrrrrp!

I slurped the noodles into my mouth while watching the news with interest.

Other people in the shop were also eating ramen while murmuring about Yu Anna.

At that moment, she slammed the table to draw everyone’s attention, then turned on the large TV next to her.

[Let me say again: the entity present there was, without doubt, a Despair-Class monster. However, it was a special case.]

Yu Anna pulled up a graph comparing the pulse signatures of previously recorded Despair-Class events with the data from the emergency alert system during this most recent incident.

Then, she showed a series of videos—footage that captured me, as well as social media posts.

The image of a massive black panther filmed calmly in close proximity to people, doing nothing in response—and footage of previously documented monsters who had similarly behaved in a passive or “gentle” manner.

[Citizens tend to forget the true nature of monsters over time—but among them, some possess high intelligence and use it to deceive humans, drawing in more prey.]

“Ugh, damn...”

“Blegh...”

Frrrrp...

What followed was a gruesome, stomach-turning montage—guts flying, blood spraying, a festival of gore as the monster rampaged.

To me, it felt no different than watching a cooking show while eating, so I continued slurping noodles without a second thought—but the other people around me turned away from the screen.

[The Despair-Class monster currently being observed appears to hunt in the same way and is exhibiting abnormal behavior. I believed that failing to neutralize it immediately would pose a far greater risk later. I sincerely apologize for escalating the damage during pursuit. However—if we do nothing now, W-City could truly disappear beneath a single monster.]

Yu Anna then projected the footage of me transforming from the firebird into the tiger form, followed by the scene where I devoured Lee Han-yeong’s corpse.

[This monster is a Formless-Type that can transform into forms pleasing to humans. Hero Lee Han-yeong has already been hunted. How long must we allow this to go on? To fall victim to such a simple trick—humans! Being hunted by monsters!]

Her voice, filled with helpless fury, cut through the entire room.

Even the loudest journalists fell silent under the sheer weight of her presence.

[I once again apologize for prolonging the pursuit due to my own frustration. But I ask all citizens to please abandon the false belief that this monster is harmless. The instinct to suppress itself in order to reap greater rewards—it's reaching its limit. The Black Cat will, very soon, attack a human.]

And finally, Yu Anna added that the Heroes would devote themselves to the city’s reconstruction, then bowed and left the press conference.

Being a Hero must be exhausting. She really looked tired.

But still...

Why Black Cat?

I’m not even a cat.

“Ugh... this is bad... So it’s officially confirmed now that a Despair-Class monster is in W-City...”

“They say it’s acting abnormally, so things should be quiet for a while, but... maybe we really should move to another city?”

Everyone inside the ramen shop was murmuring to one another.

I, the only one still focused on my food, picked up another dumpling and ate as I thought.

Mmm, yeah—this place is famous for their dumplings... that crispiness, the juicy filling... really, it’s unbelievably good.

...They said the beer’s good too.

“Two beers, please.”

“Two beers, sir?”

“And one more order of dumplings.”

“Uh... are you sure you actually have money?”

I gave a small nod and, as the server blinked in confusion—like he found it odd that I was still sitting there and eating—I patted my pants pocket for him to see.

Apparently, I’d ordered so much food that he was worried I might try to dine and dash.

Can’t blame him. At this point, I’d already eaten ten bowls of ramen and twenty-two plates of dumplings.

Sorry, but I’ve got both dumpling coupons and actual money.

Even if I’m broke, I can still afford ten bowls of ramen.

“Here you are—your beers!”

“Mm.”

I downed the first glass the moment it arrived. I left the second one alone at first, but after a moment’s hesitation—wondering if I really shouldn’t drink both—I ended up just drinking that one too.

The beer that was supposed to taste so amazing... didn’t taste good at all.

What’s the point of alcohol, anyway? Why do people drink this stuff?

As I started feeling full, I went ahead and ordered one last plate of dumplings to finish.

Because of the injuries I took fighting Yu Anna—just to fulfill my promise and eat Lee Han-yeong’s two hands—my hunger had become worse than ever.

But that was a promise made with a dying human. So I had to keep it.

Once I finally felt full, I pulled all the bills and coupons I had from my pocket and handed them to the server, then stood up from my seat.

“Check, please.”

“Uh, sir?! J-just a moment!”

At that, the server frantically called out as he unfolded the money I’d handed him.

I turned around, wondering what was wrong, and saw him holding one of the dumpling coupons, pointing to the tiny text printed on the back.

“The coupon is good for one plate of dumplings each, sir...?”

“Mmm...?”

Which meant... I ate twenty-three plates of dumplings, so if I subtract two coupons, that’s twenty-one paid for...

I didn’t have enough money.

“...Is there any dishwashing to do, aside from the fake bowls?”

“No, sir?”

“Any heavy lifting I can help with?”

“...Sir?”

This is bad.

Scratching my face in awkward embarrassment, I realized I was in trouble.

Nothing to be done about it.

I carefully pushed past people and made a run for the exit.

“S-sir?! Sir!”

“Put it on my tab!”

“Hey! You bastard! T-THIEF! He’s running out! Dine-and-dash!”

“I’ll definitely pay you back!”

Now I had another place I’d have to return to someday and pay back what I owed.

Once I make some money, I’ll definitely come back and settle the bill.

Pushing gently through the crowd, I disappeared into the flow of people.