29-164

EP.164 – Protagonist Buff 

A sharp, acrid mix of dust and hot metal stung my nose. 

“Cough! Cough! …Huh?” 

Reflexively squeezing my eyes shut, I blinked them open again after a hacking cough and could hardly believe what I saw before me. 

In the silence that followed the deafening crash, the towering man radiating killing intent who had been lunging right at me just seconds earlier… was gone. 

In his place, jutting hideously from the pavement, was a mass of twisted scrap metal the skeletal remains of some hulking machine. 

It was the corroded, weathered carcass of an old industrial air‑conditioning unit. 

“…That was what fell…?” 

Still sitting on the ground in shock, I watched Gideon brush dust off his tactical vest. 

“Commander, are you alright?” 

His snake‑like eyes swept the impact point and the building’s crumbling outer wall before he turned at Naeun’s voice. 

“Yes. Your shout just now let me dodge in time.” 

“That was close. Who’d expect an AC unit to fall right then…” 

“What’s your take on what just happened, Kelpie?” 

“Sir? Well, it was dangerous. A freak accident almost killed you.” 

“Was it really an accident?” 

“…Sir?” 

Most people would chalk it up to pure coincidence but Gideon thought otherwise. 

Even if this neighborhood’s old and run‑down… exactly at the moment before impact, it drops between us? 

“…Too perfect on the timing.” 

It felt uncomfortably like something had intervened purposely to protect the man in front of him. 

Naen’s gaze followed Gideon’s to where I sat dumbfounded. 

If I had been just a step forward, I might’ve been the one crushed instead. 

That absurd “coincidence” had spared me. 

Still  

“Maintain perimeter. Between those anomalous readings just now and this, anything could happen.” 

“Yes, sir. Then…” 

At his calm order, the agents straightened in renewed alertness. Naeun opened her mouth to report further  

BZZZHHT! 

Every high‑tech device the Bureau agents carried erupted into shrill static at once. 

“Ghh! Communications jammed!” 

“Equipment failing! All systems going down!” 

The shouts sowed chaos through the alley. 

Gideon began to bark orders  

[Pu‑huhu.] 

A young girl’s voice  

grating in a way that clawed at the nerves poured from every earpiece in the unit. 

“That voice…!” 

As Gideon’s head snapped toward its source, every gaze fell on the empty air behind me. 

Then, like a faulty old TV, the space itself fizzled and broke apart in shards of red‑black static. 

The fissure widened and through it stepped a girl with a carefree smile, and a woman with a cold, unreadable face. 

Basking in the hostile glares like spotlights, Child stretched languidly as though waking from a long nap. 

“Mmm~ Haven’t breathed outside air in ages.” 

“Child!” 

The name came as a bark from Gideon laced with old hatred. 

“Well, well, if it isn’t the Bureau’s dogs. Turn out in force just for little old me? Don’t you have better things to do?” 

“And what’s your angle, showing yourself so readily now?” 

As Gideon’s words snapped, Child’s eyes slid to me, still on the ground. 

“Tsk. Sitting there slack‑jawed. Is that really the face of a protagonist?” 

Before I could bite back, Lizetta was at my side, hauling me up by the arm. 

“My lord, are you unharmed?” 

“Uh, y‑yeah… I’m fine…” 

I barely heard myself still trying to process the scene. 

“You’re awfully smug. Still think you’ve got the advantage?” 

Gideon lifted a hand to cut off any reply, and barked new orders: 

“All units, priority target is now anomaly ‘Child’! We take her this time!” 

Dozens of barrels swung toward her and me. 

“Uh this is really dangerous, isn’t it?!” 

“It’ll be fine.” 

She punctuated the calm answer with a pat to my shoulder  

 and immediately, startled exclamations erupted among the ranks. 

“T‑this is !” 

“What’s going on?!” 

“No energy signatures! Our weapons are dead!” 

From every high‑tech rifle, only pale blue sparks fizzed uselessly at the muzzle; none would fire. 

Targeting HUDs flashed nothing but strange error codes. 

“See? Told you the tables have turned.” 

She flashed me a smug grin. 

Seohyun, standing back, suddenly moved  

“That little brat…!” 

Her judgment overridden by urgency and anger, she yanked a capture‑wire gun from her belt. 

“What are you all doing?!” 

“Seohyun, no! Don’t move rashly!” Naeun’s shout cut through the alley  

but Seohyun’s finger was already pulling the trigger. 

Pting! 

The launched harpoon jerked to a stop mid‑air, as though snagged on nothing. 

“What ?!” 

Frozen at the impossibility, she barely had time to flinch before the wire moved slithering like a snake with a will of its own  

and, looping in a mad weave, it whipped back into its firer. 

“Ghhah!?” 

She crashed to the ground bound in her own cable  

 and then it cinched tighter, worming in mercilessly. 

“Naeun!” 

“What the hell how is every piece of gear ?!” 

“You know the ‘protagonist buff,’ right?” 

As Gideon stared, stunned, Child stepped in, sounding almost pleased. 

“In fiction, the hero’s saved at the last second, lands in a lucky branch when falling off a cliff, 

miraculously dodges bullets… 

Wrap it all up as the ‘protagonist buff.’” 

She pointed at me. “And this guy has it. Right now. Strong.” 

Gideon’s face twisted in fury. “What an absurd excuse you expect me to believe that?” 

Naeun, on the other hand, stayed calculating. 

“Then… the conveniently‑timed AC drop was ” 

“Part of the buff, obviously. He’s in danger, the world jumps to save him.” 

“You ! Maybe mention that before kicking me out into this?!” I yelled, indignant. 

She just shrugged. “Not like I had time to explain when we might be found any second.” 

“That’s your defense?!” 

“Anyway, not finished.” She dug a finger idly in her ear, tipping her chin toward the writhing Seohyun. 

“See that? Leave her like that, something’s gonna break. Don’t want that, do you?” 

“Well… no, but ” Even enemies, I didn’t like seeing someone mangled. 

“Then just think you’d like that wire to loosen a bit.” 

Almost without realizing, I looked at Seohyun and thought, …just a little. 

“…Huh?” 

The tension on the wire eased the metal seemingly gone slack  

not free, but loose enough to let her breathe. 

“Ta‑da. Works on command. Handy, huh?” 

Gideon and Naeun both stared, aghast. 

If that was true, the ‘buff’ was near‑omnipotent. 

“What now, Commander? At this rate ” 

“Tch.” 

Yes it was powerful. But he could not let Child slip away after chasing her this far. 

“The buff’s source is that man. Child can’t use full power outside her own dimension. We separate them, we have a chance.” 

“I’ll target the conduit, then.” 

“Right. I’ll take her ” 

“Still not getting it, are you?” 

Her voice sliced across his, killing the last gleam of a plan. 

“You’ll never get past nipping at my heels.” 

She stamped her foot, almost lazily  

KRR‑KRA‑KOOM! 

The asphalt turned to clinging mud, sucking at boots; 

concrete walls sprouted jagged spikes to choke off escape. 

In seconds, the alley was a prison. 

“This… this is impossible…” 

In theory, her power shouldn’t reach into realspace. 

In practice it had. 

“Dimensional corrosion. This world’s already more than half bled into mine. I can use my abilities here just fine.” 

She’d engineered the corrosion from the start. 

Realizing the battle was already lost, Gideon heard her gloating whisper: 

“So? Keep fighting, or tuck tail and run?” 

“Grhh…!” 

Grinding his teeth, he forced himself to think like a commander. No chance. Not now. 

“All units, withdraw from this dimension.” 

As he said it, Child jabbed a finger toward bound Seohyun. 

“Oh, and she stays. My new toy.” 

Pinned by her own unresponsive gear, she couldn’t even reach her escape device. 

Gideon glanced at her once, jaw tight then gave the order. 

“…Prepare jump.” 

“Commander! What about Seraph?!” Naeun’s voice cracked. 

“Sentiment here would only cost more lives, Kelpie. Stand down.” 

Biting her lip, Naeun’s eyes blazed with impotent fury as she obeyed. 

One by one they vanished into blue light the last being Naeun, casting a hopeless look at Seohyun as she went. 

In the sudden stillness, only me, Lizetta, Child, and the captive remained. 

“Pfft hahahaha! That felt so good!” 

Child’s shrill laughter echoed off the walls. 

“That’s every obstacle gone. How about a thank‑you for the glorious Child?” 

She puffed out a chest she didn’t have; I only looked back, skeptical. 

“…Still doubting me? Rude.” 

She pouted for a moment, then shrugged it off. 

“Anyway first, we check our spoils.” 

She pointed at Seohyun, and I slowly walked toward her, crouching down. 

Even trussed up, her eyes burned with unbroken hate. 

I held her gaze for a long moment… and reached out a hand.