Because he had worked at high intensity for several extra hours compared to usual, the moment X returned to his bedroom, the exhaustion he had been forcibly suppressing surged over him like a tide.
He barely had time to think. After a quick rinse, he collapsed onto the soft bed. His eyes closed, and he fell into deep sleep almost instantly.
Inner Lobotomy Corporation, Control Department – Main Rest Area.
The heavy fatigue brought on by overtime vanished without a trace, replaced by a refreshment so complete it felt almost artificial.
Rejuvenated, X flipped nimbly off the large sofa in the Control Department and landed steadily on his feet.
He looked around at the now-familiar yet still cold and lifeless surroundings, and an odd sense of nostalgia suddenly rose within him.
What he missed… was the feeling of sleeping.
Ever since DAY12, after unlocking the "Inner Lobotomy Corporation" map, he had not truly slept once.
Perhaps due to the special mechanisms of this place, even though there was no sleep here, once he left and returned to the real world, he genuinely felt no lingering fatigue.
And so, he simply… missed that feeling of consciousness sinking into darkness—thinking nothing, doing nothing—utter, perfect Relaxation.
"…I was planning to calm down and talk to her in a few days."
X subconsciously raised a hand and touched the Crown of Thorns that had reappeared on his head, his expression complicated.
At heart, he was still fairly traditional. Since he had already done that with her, he felt he ought to take responsibility.
The problem was… how was one supposed to take responsibility for an Abnormality?
Marry her?
Or establish some form of relationship that went beyond manager and Abnormality—something more intimate?
Just thinking about it made the whole thing feel absurd.
Without realizing it, X found himself once again standing in front of that familiar containment door, hesitating.
His hand rested on the cold handle. He neither released it nor pushed forward, simply gripping it stiffly, unmoving.
After a long while, X finally let out a deep sigh, as if having made up his mind.
"Alright… running won't solve anything. I have to face it sooner or later."
Muttering to himself in an attempt to convince his own heart, he suddenly exerted force and opened the door—
Passing through the light within, and after a bout of bizarre distortion, X 's vision cleared.
He found himself standing before the abandoned monastery.
This seemed to be the first time he had truly seen the monastery from the outside.
Turning his head and looking out, X realized that what he had previously glimpsed through the windows—the massive, bone-white "trees"—were in fact an enormous skeletal frame.
Yet within this dead forest, it did not feel out of place. Instead, it resembled a headless giant who had passed away peacefully in his own home, merging seamlessly with his surroundings, exuding a strange sense of harmony.
The monastery itself was situated precisely within the chest cavity of this colossal skeleton.
That was why, when he had looked out through the windows before, he had mistaken those massive ribs for white trees in the forest.
And at some point, One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds was already standing behind him.
She reached out and gently took his slightly stiff hand, cradling it warmly in her own.
"Welcome back."
Her soft voice flowed into X 's ears from behind.
"Looks like today's work was rather exhausting for you."
X turned to look at her.
On her face, there was no anger or embarrassment like enemies meeting again, nor any longing or joy like lovers reuniting.
There was only a faint smile—like that of old friends meeting once more. Calm, warm, and restrained just enough.
Completely different from how she had been two days ago.
Seeing this, X suddenly felt that all his worries, entanglements, and heavy sense of responsibility had been utterly unnecessary.
There was no need to spell things out. No need to dig deeper.
Perhaps… maintaining things just as they were—preserving this unspoken understanding—was enough.
"When you've been alone for a long time, having a guest who comes by often to chat and pass the time is quite rare…"
One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds led X back into the monastery, seating him in the place she had clearly reserved for the two of them.
"Once you've tasted that kind of enjoyment, even an interruption of just one day becomes hard to endure."
"…"
"Actually, what happened the day before yesterday really was my fault."
After simply pouring the tea, she spoke softly, a trace of genuine apology on her face.
"If you didn't like that, then I apologize to you, my dear X ."
"No, it's not that I didn't like it… I can accept it, actually…"
X instinctively shook his head, but immediately realized how easily those words could cause misunderstanding and hurriedly corrected himself.
"Uh… no, that's not it… I actually liked it… no—also not that!"
His words tangled together as he flusteredly explained:
"It's more like… not that fond of it… yes! But definitely not to the point of disliking it either…"
If he said he liked it, it made him sound a bit lecherous—too direct.
But if he said he didn't like it, then both his rational mind and his instincts would probably rise up in rebellion.
Beautiful looks.
Gentle personality.
White hair and an impressive figure.
Anyone who said they didn't like that could only be described as built different.
"Hehe~"
Seeing through X 's inner struggle and embarrassment, One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds covered her mouth and laughed softly.
"At times like this, you're always a little cuter than I expect~"
"Alright, alright…"
Facing her teasing, X helplessly took a sip of tea to hide his embarrassment, smoothly changing the subject.
"Actually, the reason I came back this time is because there's something I wanted to confirm with you."
"About that employee who suddenly died in your containment unit today… was that your doing?"
"Huh?"
Her playful expression froze. Her face filled with genuine confusion.
"So that child… wasn't you deliberately showing off to me?"
"I see… that explains it."
Hearing her suspicion in the opposite direction, X couldn't help but feel amused and helpless.
So the two of them had actually been suspecting each other?
"That employee only died after entering your unit."
X explained.
"And after I rewound time… once I stopped assigning her to any work, nothing happened to her again."
"Only you would know exactly what happened at that moment. Did you notice anything unusual?"
"Hmm…"
Now that she understood the seriousness of the issue, One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds set aside her smile and began thinking carefully.
"At that time… I believe I did see something."
After a moment of contemplation, she nodded firmly.
"…Yes."
"A blue shadow appeared just as that child was about to speak to me."
"If you want to investigate this matter further, you could try starting from there."
"A blue shadow…?"
X froze. To be honest, he hadn't expected to find any real clue at all.
But if there was a lead, then that was already a good thing.
"I understand."
X stood up, a heavy weight lifting from his heart.
At the very least, the nun before him was still exactly as he understood her to be.
That pure, white moonlight was still as spotless as ever.
…Wait. Something about that metaphor felt a little off.
"Thanks, Sin… see you tomorrow."
"See you tomorrow~"
One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds said nothing more, simply smiling and waving goodbye to X .
Perhaps because she had been "too full" a couple of days ago, she didn't try to keep him this time—remaining as dignified and elegant as ever.
It was hard to imagine that such a serene nun was the same person who, just two nights ago, had done something so wild and bold.
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