As the employee finished his final sentence, the gigantic skull floating before him erupted in an intensely brilliant white light.
X had seen this scene before.
When a confessed sin was "accepted," this was exactly what would happen inside the containment unit.
Normally, such a reaction meant that One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds was very satisfied with the confession.
But a light this dazzling—even X , as the manager, was seeing it for the first time.
When the white radiance faded, X realized that he and the nun-clad One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds were now sitting cross-legged together in a corner of the containment unit.
Like detached spectators, they quietly watched the employee and the glowing skull.
"This child…"
One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds clasped the cross in both hands, lowering her head.
"He… confessed to me.
He confessed the monstrous sin he once committed."
"Since he suffers because of it, since he was willing to bare this evil to me, I granted him mercy and compassion."
Her voice was ethereal and gentle, yet carried a trace of exhaustion that was hard to notice.
"Since he feels remorse… I allowed him to forget those painful memories."
"Only those who are skilled at deceiving themselves can live a so-called 'happy' life."
"I have a vague feeling… that I may have done something similar in the past as well—
giving others false hope."
"But I feel that this… is not the right thing to do."
She tilted her head slightly, her gaze settling on X .
The pity in her eyes from before was gone, replaced instead by a hint of inquiry and expectation.
"So then—if you were to preside over this confession, what would you do?"
"...Bullying that leads to someone's death is, in itself, an extremely grave crime."
X looked at the employee—his eyes dull, having lost several years of memories—and spoke calmly.
"You could argue that he didn't intend to kill, that he was ignorant, that he wasn't the primary perpetrator in this incident…"
"But someone who neither opposed nor prevented the bullying was still a participant."
"The idea of 'ignorance absolves guilt' does not apply to him."
"You believe that years of torment from his conscience were already enough, and that letting him forget—so he no longer has to live with this pain—would help him.
Yes, for him, that is useful."
"But I remember that in the work logs here, the employees recorded a line like this—"
"'Enduring suffering is merely the beginning of atonement.'"
"When he confessed to you, he instinctively beautified his own actions, shifting more of the responsibility onto 'accidents' and 'others.'
That is not true repentance."
"Since that is the case, he still needs to face the punishment brought about by his own wrongdoing—rather than simply forgetting everything."
"As for what I would do…"
X looked at the employee, his tone resolute.
"I would make him remember this forever—until he truly repents from the depths of his heart, sincerely acknowledges all of his mistakes, and is willing to bear every consequence that comes with them."
"...Is that so?"
One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds fell silent for a long time, as though carefully savoring every word X had spoken, pondering each possible implication.
X , in turn, simply watched her quietly, waiting for her decision.
In the end, the white-haired nun smiled.
A faint smile of understanding—tinged with relief—slowly bloomed across her face, gentle as the morning light.
"Granting lost souls a false comfort called 'hope,' allowing them to briefly escape the pain and guilt before them…"
"In reality, it may be silently depriving them of the courage to truly face reality, to shoulder their past, and to draw strength from it in order to keep living…"
She nodded slightly, as if affirming the clarity she had just reached.
"That is what you mean, isn't it?"
As her words fell, another soft white light gathered in her hands.
The glow flowed and shaped itself, eventually forming a crown of thorns—nearly identical to the one upon her own head.
On closer inspection, however, the thorns of this crown were not as sharp as hers.
It seemed more like a symbol, a token—
a silent gift expressing her current resolve.
"Death itself is certainly painful.
But the suffering one must endure in order to continue living—the weight and torment of it—may not necessarily be any lighter than death itself."
"Thank you, X ."
One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds raised her arm and gently placed the crown of thorns upon X 's head.
"If possible… even if it's just casual conversation…"
She looked at X , that warm smile still on her lips.
"You are always welcome here."
"..."
Looking at that sincere, gentle smile, listening to that soothing voice, X suddenly felt—
These Abnormalities weren't nearly as terrifying as the manuals described.
At least, the Old Bones before him now was no less adorable than the department heads and employees under his command.
"…The honor is mine, Good Deeds."
A barely perceptible smile quietly appeared at the corner of his lips.
—
"…!"
His consciousness rose from the depths of sleep. X slowly sat up in bed, feeling an unprecedented sense of clarity and lightness.
His fingers ran through his hair, touching warm scalp—
but there was no sign of the slightly prickly crown of thorns he had expected.
"Hm? It's not there?"
X instinctively reached up to his head.
"That crown of thorns… should count as an E.G.O accessory, right?"
"Even though I can't physically touch it now, and it didn't actually come back with me to reality…"
"I can still clearly feel that my mental state is far better than it's been in days."
The fatigue and mental fog that had lingered in X 's mind—born of prolonged high-pressure work and constant exposure to abnormal information—had largely dissipated.
In their place was a refreshing sense of clarity and mental agility.
"It seems my guess was right. On the 'inner' side, I really can obtain accessories from Abnormalities just like the employees—and even use them to strengthen my own parameters…"
X pondered quietly.
This was undoubtedly a major discovery, one that suggested he had found a new path to personal growth.
"However…"
The Excitement didn't last long. X frowned slightly, involuntarily recalling the meaningful words spoken earlier by "B."
That mysterious existence clearly knew far more about the Inner Lobotomy Corporation than he did.
"I can't shake the feeling that… the 'Inner Lobotomy Corporation' isn't nearly as simple as what I've seen so far."