The Unsettling Experiments and the Scent of Truth

Unexpectedly, it seemed I had misjudged the situation.

Liliya’s reason for offering me the nutrient bar was simply that there was nothing else available to serve me here.

Not that I intended to complain, but even casualness should have its limits, shouldn’t it?

How could they possibly not grow tired of eating these?

Were both their taste buds still functioning normally?

“Mr. Liya, it’s in your hands now.”

Liliya tossed the documents onto an unknown apparatus and departed from the room, which could “tentatively” be called a reception area, without a backward glance.

‘As for the reason…’

“Please understand, Liliya hasn’t slept in days.”

Mr. Liya offered Colt an apologetic smile.

“Mr. Liya, surely you haven’t closed your eyes in days either?”

Glancing at the small bottles piled like a miniature mountain beside the computer, Colt suspected Mr. Liya might be in a similar state.

“No, I’m perfectly fine.”

“Also, those are actually all for Liliya.”

With a chuckle, Mr. Liya pressed a remote control in his hand, and a display screen descended from above.

“I will convey the rest on Liliya’s behalf.”

“Thank you for your trouble.”

Colt casually found a chair and sat down, just as the screen illuminated.

It appeared to be a recording of experiments conducted over the past few days.

The location on the screen must have been Test Site L7, where the monsters remained confined within their containment domes.

At that moment, the massive gates of Test Site L7 swung open, and numerous individuals were pushed inside.

Every single one of them wore black and white striped prison uniforms.

They were prisoners.

Even with the monsters still imprisoned within their domes, the prisoners, upon seeing the terrifying creatures, frantically pounded on the already sealed metal gates in sheer terror.

They hammered away, utterly helpless.

****

“Mr. Liya, could you explain this?”

Colt’s voice held a serious edge as she questioned him.

‘Was Liliya once again using living people for her experiments?’

“Please continue watching for now.”

No sooner had he spoken than all the containment domes housing the monsters sprang open.

The creatures writhed their repulsive tentacles, slowly oozing out.

“Hey!”

Colt sprang to her feet, yelling.

‘This is too much! These are living, breathing people!’

“Please calm down.”

“Those prisoners are still alive.”

Mr. Liya unhurriedly gestured for Colt to sit back down.

****

“Tch—”

Colt clicked her tongue, then settled back into her seat, her gaze fixed intently on the screen.

Once the monsters were unleashed, the prisoners fled in panic, scrambling along the walls of the test site.

Meanwhile, the creatures’ barbed tentacles relentlessly lashed out, scattering the escaping crowd like grains of sand.

Test Site L7 was vast, and initially, everyone managed to evade the monsters’ assaults.

However, as time wore on, more and more individuals began to falter from exhaustion.

One by one, they were ensnared by tentacles, then mercilessly devoured.

“Didn’t you say they were all still alive?”

Colt stood up once more, her eyes now glaring fiercely at Mr. Liya.

“Please calm yourself.”

“Those prisoners are indeed still alive; just watch.”

As he spoke, the footage on the screen began to accelerate.

Swiftly, all the prisoners vanished from view, having seemingly been consumed.

But then…

“Huh?!!!”

Colt’s eyes widened involuntarily, not in anger, but in sheer astonishment.

For something truly bizarre had occurred.

They were being regurgitated!

One after another, the prisoners were expelled.

Moreover, not a single one was dead; they were all still moving!

“What in the world is going on?!”

Colt stared at Mr. Liya, utterly dumbfounded, urging him to reveal the truth.

Mr. Liya, his back still to Colt, switched the screen with an unperturbed tone.

“Please observe another set of experiments now, paying close attention to the details this time.”

The scene flickered, as if everything had reset to the beginning.

Monsters encased in domes, another batch of prisoners brought in, the domes opening once more, the prisoners’ panicked flight, their subsequent consumption, and then, once again, their regurgitation.

Everything repeated itself.

However, there was one exception.

“Is there something special about this person?”

One particular prisoner was swallowed for a considerably longer time before finally being regurgitated.

“The truth will be revealed after the final experiment.”

“Please continue watching.”

Turning to face Colt, Mr. Liya pressed the remote control in his hand once more.

The screen reset again, and the experiment recommenced.

But this time…

Not a single prisoner was attacked.

The monsters merely undulated aimlessly around the test site, and no matter how much time passed, they never extended their tentacles towards the trembling prisoners huddled in a corner.

‘What on earth was happening?!’

Perhaps noticing Colt’s speechless astonishment, Mr. Liya approached her and produced two sealed test tubes.

“In truth, these three experiments were selected from thousands of similar trials.”

‘These experiments had been conducted thousands of times?!’

“The prisoners in the first experiment you witnessed were actually exposed to the liquid in this test tube.”

As he spoke, Mr. Liya handed one of the test tubes to Colt.

The label affixed to the test tube read…

“Bai? Xiaobai?!!!”

Colt exclaimed in shock.

‘What was going on?! Were these unknown liquids extracted from her?’

“The prisoners in the second experiment you observed were also exposed to the liquid in this test tube, whereas those in the third experiment were not,” Mr. Liya further elaborated.

“Were those monsters attracted by these unknown liquids?!”

Colt pressed him, her voice filled with urgency.

“Yes.”

“Furthermore, these liquids are actually a mixture of Xiaobai’s hormones, sweat produced by her superficial apocrine glands, and s*x hormones.”

“In other words, it’s her body scent.”

****

“Uh… Eh—?!!!!!”