“Experiments? What kind of experiments?”

  “I’m not sure, but their earlier actions were clearly documenting the killing of Mihe. Whatever experiments they’re conducting, we’re now their test subjects.”

  At this point, the image of the chef with half a face flashed in Charles's mind. Had that guy died because he didn’t pass the experiment?

  “Do you think… these creatures are transformed Foundation personnel?”

  Richard’s suggestion sparked a realization in Charles. Memories of the SCP-096 experiment records surfaced in his mind. The Foundation had made a test subject interact with SCP-096 and observed the changes.

  If he layered that scenario onto their current situation, the recently deceased Mihe was the test subject, while they were playing the role of SCP-096. Everything suddenly connected.

  Why send their kind in? Why were other monsters locked away? This also explained why they hadn’t killed Charles and Richard yet.

  “Damn! Are these idiots outside treating us like relics? Are they out of their minds? Can’t they see I’m a living person? What kind of experiment is this?” Richard raged.

  “Stop shouting! Do you think they can understand? Whatever they’ve been through, they’re no longer human.”

  “So what do we do next?”

  “Wait. Since they see us as relics, they won’t conduct the next experiment for a while. We can gather more information from the next test subject.”

  “That’s too slow! I have another plan. Want to hear it?”

  “I know what you’re thinking! Just stay put and don’t move!”

  “Fine, fine, I’ll listen to you. This is so boring.” Richard’s complaining faded from Charles’s mind.

  The second day of captivity passed quickly. Charles planned to continue probing on the third day, but something disrupted his plans.

  In a daze, Charles was jolted awake. He realized his body was moving; he was sprinting down a narrow corridor. He had escaped!

  “Richard! What are you doing?”

  “Hahaha! What else? Of course, I’m running away! Are you planning to retire here? Buddy, hesitation leads to defeat!”

  “What intel do we have? Why are you running? Do you even know where this is?” Charles’s voice was laced with suppressed fury.

  “I don’t know, but since we know those things are transformed humans, what’s there to fear? I took care of the ones blocking the door; they were weak.”

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

  Charles felt a wave of frustration. He hadn’t expected Richard to act while he was asleep.

  But in this situation, he didn’t want to argue. Since action had been taken, they had to see it through.

  “What about the crew? Did you check those cells?”

  “Do I need to tell you? Of course, I checked! They were all a bunch of random things. They’re probably locked up elsewhere. Let’s get out first, then we’ll figure out how to rescue them.”

  Charles sighed, focusing his mind as he quickly scanned his surroundings.

  This was a corridor with various doors neatly lined up. His peripheral vision caught sight of computers and fax machines.

  Seeing those modern devices gave Charles a strange premonition.

  “Woo~ Woo~ Woo~” Suddenly, an alarm blared from somewhere, and red lights began to flash overhead.

  Charles gritted his teeth and quickened his pace; the Mihe had noticed their escape.

  “Look! There’s a map here!” Richard pulled down a map from the wall.

  That familiar texture and layout of various facilities made Charles’s fingers trace the text on the map: “Second Laboratory.”

  His earlier premonition was correct. If those creatures were Foundation personnel, then the place they were held must be within the laboratory.

  But there was no time to think about that now. After quickly confirming the location of the exit, Charles tossed the map aside and ran.

  The second laboratory was vast, with layers of corridors and passageways. Thankfully, Charles’s enhanced body allowed for impressive speed.

  After swiftly dealing with any Mihe they encountered, they soon approached the exit.

  However, luck seemed to have abandoned Charles. Just as they were about to escape, dozens of Mihe charged in from the exit, armed with various firearms and melee weapons, their yellow cross-shaped pupils glaring at Charles.

  In this situation, there was no need for words. Charles gritted his teeth, his bare feet pushing off the ground as he charged at the Mihe.

  Gunfire erupted instantly. Charles dodged a bullet with a quick sidestep and raised his prosthetic arm at the foremost Mihe.

  “Clang, clang, clang!” The sound of chains whirring echoed as the grappling hook shot out, piercing its chest. The injured Mihe let out a bone-chilling scream.

  With a powerful tug, the chain retracted, and their bodies collided.

  Using the dead Mihe as a shield, Charles advanced toward the enemies.

  As he roared, he hurled the corpse away and swung his chainsaw down onto the next creature.

  The other Mihe attempted to attack with firearms, but in this close-quarters environment, Charles’s agility was maximized.

  Whenever a gun was aimed at him, he swiftly dodged to the side, making them hesitant to fire.

  And when they switched to melee weapons, Charles welcomed it; he had never feared anyone in close combat with his enhanced body.

  He weaved through the Mihe like an eel, and they couldn’t handle him at all.

  Richard was right; these creatures didn’t possess exceptional physical capabilities. Even in their monstrous forms, their strength was comparable to that of an adult human.

  In no time, the Mihe began to fall, while Charles remained unharmed.

  Charles thought these monsters would be quickly defeated, but suddenly, a Mihe in a black robe emerged from the crowd, holding a miniature hourglass in its shriveled hand.

  As it flipped the hourglass, sand began to flow downward, and Charles instantly felt his body slow down.

  “That’s a relic! These Mihe are using relics too!”

  “Bang!” A gunshot rang out from the left, and blood spattered from Charles’s left thigh; he had been hit.

  Charles quickly rolled on the ground, and when he stood up, he was already holding a revolver.

  “Bang! Bang! Bang!!” Charles rapidly fired at the black-robed Mihe, but it seemed to be more agile than the ordinary Mihe, dodging his shots.

  Fortunately, he had achieved his goal; his sluggish body began to return to normal.