Chapter 101

It goes without saying that I don’t enjoy getting beaten up.

However, when playing as the Medic, the fastest and most effective strategy was to get thrashed by the guards right from day one.

Cell-X featured a unique system exclusive to the Medic role.

It revolved around two stats: ‘Suspicion’ and ‘Affinity.’

Unlike most games where you only need to manage affinity, here you had to keep an eye on the suspicion level as well.

These stats were tracked individually for each NPC, ranging from a minimum of 0 to a maximum of 100.

The events that occurred and the ending you reached depended on these figures.

If a guard’s suspicion level was high, there was a strong chance of triggering an event where you’d be dragged to a blind spot—away from security cameras—and beaten.

On the other hand, if the guards’ suspicion level was too low, it became difficult to build affinity with the Creatures, no matter how well you treated them.

They would suspect you of being in league with the guards.

To achieve the True Ending as the Medic, you needed to maintain a balanced level of suspicion and affinity with the guards, while achieving zero suspicion and maximum affinity (100) with the Creatures.

The guards required particular caution.

It wasn’t just high suspicion that was dangerous; scenarios where both suspicion and affinity were high—or even just affinity alone—would all lead to a Bad Ending.

In short, the guards were tricky figures; you couldn’t treat them too well, yet you couldn’t treat them poorly either.

“Getting beaten up right at the start is a smart move for the long run.”

Sustaining injuries inflicted by the guards actually boosted the Creatures’ affinity toward you.

Since gaining the Creatures’ favor was difficult in the early stages, this method was the best option all around.

“You’re always so bold, Roasted Chestnut.”

Dominic described my approach using polite phrasing. It certainly wasn’t a compliment. But as long as I could escape this place quickly, I didn’t mind taking a beating.

Stepping out of my quarters, I saw a dimly lit corridor.

Even with my flashlight on, it only illuminated the immediate area; the space didn’t feel truly bright.

I walked quietly down the hallway, which was heavy with an eerie atmosphere.

The prison was divided into inmate blocks and guard blocks, and the Medic’s quarters were tucked away in the farthest corner of the guard block.

My destination was the guards’ break room.

Unless they were on duty, the guards usually spent late nights there playing cards or smoking.

I planned to go there and pick a fight.

Walking down the corridor with nothing but a flashlight in hand, I sent a message to Captain Kwak.

Since I was bound to get beaten up today, I sent a message asking him to visit tomorrow instead.

‘Come to think of it, Dominic is a guard, too.’

I found myself curious about Dominic’s stats.

Of course, since he wasn’t an NPC, his suspicion and affinity levels wouldn’t affect the ending.

Still, thinking I might be able to see the numbers, I took a quick look at Dominic’s stats.

…Huh?

I was momentarily stunned by the unexpected sequence of numbers.

‘The maximum is supposed to be 100, right? Why is the suspicion so high?’

Having checked the stats expecting zero suspicion and maximum affinity, I couldn’t help but be flustered.

“Roasted Chestnut.”

Like a guilty conscience betraying itself, my heart sank the moment Dominic called out to me. I cautiously replied to ‘Suspicion 999.’

“…Pardon?”

“What are you so curious about?”

Could it be that checking stats also required using one’s real name?

I wondered if I’d been subjected to a real-name requirement for the second time—following character registration—but Dominic spoke with a hint of amusement in his voice.

“You seemed to want to check my stats, so I brought it up.”

“Well… actually, a medic can see things like that.”

As I honestly confessed about the numerical error, Dominic let out a low chuckle.

“You’d find it difficult to measure me with something like that.”

Dominic was an existence that defied measurement—an anomaly in himself.

It was presumptuous of me to try and gauge him with such superficial metrics.

Any lingering sense of hurt toward ‘Suspicion 999’ vanished completely.

Dominic soothed me as I reflected on my mistake.

“If you’re curious, just ask. I’ll answer whatever you like.”

‘In that case, Dominic, exactly where do your suspicion and affection for me fall on a scale of 0 to 100?’

…Since I couldn’t exactly ask that, I simply replied that it was fine.

The hallway grew gradually brighter as we neared the guards’ break room.

I stowed my flashlight in my inventory and pondered as I walked.

In the game, the event would trigger the moment you entered, but that wouldn’t be the case for a real-life trial.

I was agonizing over what lines to deliver to trigger the event correctly when I found myself near the break room.

Loud laughter drifted from behind the door—the sound of guards chatting while playing a game.

I was hovering uncertainly outside the break room, having not yet decided on my opening line.

“What is the matter?”

A cold voice rang out from behind me. Startled, I turned around, and the first thing that caught my eye was a gray metal mask.

The Chief of Security was looking down at me.

Ding—a sound signaled a change in stats.

Thinking, ‘Suspicion must have gone up,’ I glanced at the system window.

“…?”

I witnessed the peculiar sight of both suspicion and affinity rising simultaneously.

It made sense for suspicion to rise; after all, I had been standing in front of the guards’ break room since my very first night in prison.

But it was baffling as to why my affinity had gone up.

‘Is it a glitch?’

Perhaps it rose because he was excited at the prospect of hitting me.

In any case, the affinity had only increased by one point, and getting hit was the more pressing matter right now.

After some deliberation, I decided to use a provocation skill.

“I’ve come to lodge a complaint about what happened today…!”

Despite the bold words, my voice trembled slightly.

The lips visible beneath the mask immediately curled into a sneer.

“You’ve come to lodge a complaint?”

Mockingly repeating my words, the Chief of Security flung open the break room door.

Then, he gave me a rough shove inside.

These men dealt with creatures, so their strength was immense.

I nearly toppled over; I stumbled and took several unsteady steps before finally regaining my balance.

Then, I awkwardly lifted my head.

“…….”

Every guard in the break room was looking at me.

Even though half their faces were hidden behind metal masks, I could feel their piercing gazes.

“Huh? Isn’t that the doc?”

One of the guards tossed the playing cards he was holding onto the table and spoke up in recognition.

The Chief of Security, closing the break room door behind me, answered on my behalf. “So, you want to lodge a complaint about what happened today?”

At the Chief of Security’s words, the guards burst into laughter in unison, then stood up one by one, snickering.

Figures with imposing physiques loomed over me.

At this point, I felt a twinge of regret.

Unlike in the game, the realization that I would have to take the blows myself made me feel the pain before it even happened.

‘The restroom? Or the shower room?’

Since the guards’ break room had surveillance cameras, I figured I’d be dragged to one of those two places for a beating; I was wondering which one it would be.

“Whoa, hey, guys. Hold on a sec.”

One of the guards suddenly sprang up from a dimly lit corner.

‘There was another guard?’

The guard, having hurriedly stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray, strode toward me with long, confident steps.

He, too, had half his face concealed by a black metal mask.

However, I could see red hair peeking out from beneath his cap.

Thwack. The red-haired guard threw his arm around my shoulders, almost slamming into me.

“I’ll make sure this greenhorn doctor gets a proper orientation today—from one rookie guard to another. You guys just take it easy.”

He spoke with the swagger of a thug, then put me in a headlock and gave my head a sharp, painful rap with his knuckles.

It hurt enough to bring tears to my eyes; when I let out a groan, the guards laughed mockingly.

One guard tapped my stomach with the back of his hand and said:

“Doc. Pay close attention to your training. Let’s get along starting tomorrow, yeah?”

Amidst their snickering laughter, I was dragged away, my arm held tight by the red-haired guard. He remained silent even after stepping out of the break room.

We walked quite a distance away, eventually entering a dark corridor, before I finally spoke up.

“Captain Kwak…?”

Only then did Kwak Hanmuk whip around to look at me.

He removed his mask. His gray eyes were hard and unyielding.

“Goyo.”

“Yes?”

“What were you just trying to do?”

“…Ah, well.”

It had been unexpected that Kwak Hanmuk was assigned the role of a prison guard.

After all, roles in Cell-X were never duplicated.

Since Dominic had been assigned as a guard, I had naturally assumed Kwak Hanmuk would have a different role.

‘Is it because he wasn’t active?’

After the event scene, Dominic hadn’t done a thing; he’d just stood there wearing his hat.

He had even teleported away from the guard’s post, so it seemed likely the system had glitched.

In any case, things became much easier for me thanks to Kwak Hanmuk being a guard.

I explained my plan to him.

“…So, I think it would work best if you inflicted a suitable injury on me.”

Upon hearing this, Kwak Hanmuk pressed a hand to his forehead and muttered.

“Goyo, you really are… a total nutcase.”

Then, he rapped me on the head with his prayer beads—snap.

“A nutcase like you needs another flick to the forehead.”

Having been hit by both his hand and the beads, I felt a bit aggrieved, but I took the knocks quietly.

Then, a little belatedly, I told him I was glad he was safe.

“My sanity isn’t safe thanks to a nutcase like you. A member of the TRA thinking about getting beaten up? You should be thinking about beating the hell out of others.”

“I’m sorry.” As I gave a polite, apologetic bow, the look in Kwak Hanmuk’s eyes finally softened a little.

“You promised Captain Mo you wouldn’t do anything dangerous.”

“What I did earlier didn’t exactly amount to risking my life…”

“Do you want another flick to the forehead?”

“No…”

Reading the room, I briefed him on the current situation.

I informed him that Je Hyun-oh, Won Taebeom, and CEO Cha had entered the area, shared news from outside, and briefly outlined the information regarding Cell-X.

Kwak Hanmuk narrowed his eyes as he listened.

“This is definitely a five-star difficulty trial. It might even hit six.”

While he looked genuinely troubled, I hesitated.

I had been wanting to ask for a while, but I was worried it might be an ill-timed question given the serious situation.

“What is it?”

He must have noticed my hesitation, as he asked the question himself; unable to hold back any longer, I spoke up.

“Captain Kwak, were you a smoker?”

“?”

“No?”

“Then what was that earlier?”

“I’m an intermittent non-smoker.”

“…….”

I didn’t quite grasp the difference between that and being a smoker, but my curiosity was satisfied.

So that explained why he had been staring at the ashtray on the roof earlier.

It was a trivial detail, but since it concerned Kwak Hanmuk, I made sure to commit it to memory.

“Oh, look, it’s wearing a hat now, too.”

At Kwak Hanmuk’s remark, I glanced at the Pudding Slime.

The softly shimmering guard slime looked absolutely adorable.

“Sometimes, accessories are added like this depending on the trials.”

“Is that so…?”

After spending a moment observing the slime, Kwak Hanmuk headed to the medical staff quarters with me.

He ushered me into the room and spoke in a stern, almost commanding tone.

“Don’t pull any stunts; just sleep quietly tonight. I’ll dig up as much information on the guards as I can for you.”

It wasn’t really the information that mattered so much as the suspicion and affinity levels, but…

Still, there was no point in arguing; Kwak Hanmuk wouldn’t budge.

I saw Kwak Hanmuk off and reluctantly lay down on the bed.

The Pudding Slime naturally climbed up onto my chest.

Back in Sla2Plate, it had constantly slept on my chest because of the straw bed; perhaps out of habit, it always made a sleeping spot for itself right there on me.

Since the slime was weightless and felt pleasant to the touch, I didn’t mind it at all.

I drifted off to sleep with the Pudding Slime resting on my chest.

That was how my first day in prison—a Sunday—came to an end.

And the next day, Monday.

As I began my weekly schedule as a Medic, I ran into Je Hyun-oh.

He was there as Creature Inmate No. 13 from Zone X.