Abnormalities are entities that cannot be destroyed.
Even if killed, they will simply revive within their Containment Room.
Just like now.
Arthur turned around.
Another Guide was already sitting in the chair.
The new Guide glanced at the identical corpse slumped in the corner, his expression tinged with helplessness—but there was no surprise in his eyes. If anything, he looked accustomed to the sight.
Then he noticed Arthur watching him.
He smiled gently, just as he had during their first meeting.
"Hi, Arthur. Is there anything I can help you with?"
Arthur silently holstered his weapon.
There was no need for greetings anymore.
No matter how diligently the Guide had helped him survive in Terraria, after witnessing both his own death and Byrd's, Arthur fully understood something:
Within Lobotomy Corporation, G-01-05 was undeniably an Abnormality—
and one that could kill people if they weren't careful.
Arthur stared directly into the Guide's eyes.
"Tell me," he asked quietly, "how does it feel to look at your own corpse?"
"To be precise, that's not my corpse," the Guide corrected with a gentle smile.
"That's Andrew. I'm Brian."
He paused, then continued calmly.
"And to answer your question—I don't feel anything special. Andrew was simply too pessimistic."
"Even if it's not you," Arthur pressed, "looking at a corpse identical to yourself… you feel nothing?"
"Of course not," Brian replied without hesitation. His smile never wavered.
"Each of us has gone through countless cycles of death and rebirth. For us, this is no different from clocking out after work."
[Observation Level Increased]
[Current Observation Level: 2]
[Management Guidelines and basic Anomaly information unlocked]
As the system prompt appeared, Arthur's gaze sharpened.
This was what he had come for.
Open system panel.
In the next second, a blue data stream unfolded before his eyes.
[Data Update Complete]
Anomaly Name: Calm Guide – Brian
ID: G-01-05
Observation Level: 2
Containment Level: ZAYIN
Qliphoth Counter: 34 / 35
(When reduced to zero, containment will fail or a highly dangerous anomaly will occur.)
Max PE-BOX Production: 12
EGO Equipment: ?
EGO Accessory: ?
Damage Resistance: ??
Attack Method: ??
Management Guidelines
G-01-05 is "almost" omniscient within its world.
Regardless of any sounds heard inside or outside G-01-05's Containment Room during work, do not attempt to open or leave through the security door. Doing so will result in permanent disappearance from Lobotomy Corporation.
If a voodoo doll resembling G-01-05 is obtained, do not throw it into lava under any circumstances.
G-01-05's name is randomly generated from 35 possibilities. Different personalities will affect events within the Containment Room.
Whenever a G-01-05 instance dies, the Qliphoth Counter immediately decreases by one.
G-01-05 will not actively breach containment. However, when the Qliphoth Counter reaches zero, a ████ anomaly will occur. Suppressing it will reset the counter.
Arthur flipped through the guidelines in silence.
A ZAYIN-class Abnormality with six management rules—
more than some H-class, even rivaling W-class entities.
Absurd.
Fortunately, none of this truly shocked him.
As a former Terraria player, he already understood most of the key implications.
Still, one detail confirmed his suspicions:
The world beyond the door wasn't an illusion created by G-01-05.
It was real Terraria.
Leaving through the security door meant complete transmigration.
A possible escape route…
A dangerous thought surfaced—but Arthur's expression didn't change.
"Arthur, do you have any other questions?"
Brian continued casually, smiling.
"After all—they say there's someone who tells you how to survive here… Oh, right. That's me."
Arthur barely listened.
"What exactly do you know?" he asked absentmindedly.
"Hm," Brian replied thoughtfully. "For example, I know you desperately want to leave this place."
"Isn't that obvious?" Arthur replied coldly. "Who here doesn't?"
"That's not the kind of leaving I mean," Brian sighed softly.
"Arthur… you desperately want to leave this world. So much so that you're almost going mad."
"..."
Arthur froze.
His gaze shifted from the system panel to the Guide's face.
For the first time in three months, something dark surfaced in his eyes—
anger, irritation, ferocity.
If anyone from the Training Department were present, they would be shocked.
Senior Arthur—the calm, indifferent, almost normal man—
had finally cracked.
"Am I wrong?" Brian asked, genuinely puzzled.
"You… don't want to go back?"
Arthur laughed.
A hollow, bitter sound.
"Heh… Then tell me," he said slowly,
"how the hell am I supposed to go back?"
Since the day he inexplicably transmigrated into Lobotomy Corporation, Arthur had wanted nothing more than to return.
Like a miner buried deep underground, yearning for sunlight—
he missed that imperfect but safe world.
But over these three months, watching colleagues die again and again—
in Containment Rooms, in corridors, everywhere—
Arthur understood something cruel:
Going home was already a luxury.
So he buried that desire.
He disguised himself as a perfect employee.
Because only by doing so—
only by becoming part of Lobotomy Corporation—
could he keep himself sane when facing those utterly repulsive Abnormalities.