Branch K-02, part 3 (after battle)

…You hear beasts crawling around somewhere?

There certainly is the sound of something moving along the floor.

Nnh… Ghhhgn…

Are those Abnormalities?

Take a closer look - they aren't Abnormalities. See that emblem…

Ishmael whispered softly to us.

Upon closer inspection, I could spot the emblems she mentioned. They were the ones worn by the Inquisitors.

E.G.O Corrosion has wrested them.

You mean that nauseating state…?

I think it happened to me in battle once when I was on the verge of a breakdown… It was like I was being devoured.

Although it's not quite like consumption in the conventional sense… I do suppose that it is a serviceable analogy, seeing as it eats away at your essence.

…And in observation, unlike the last floor, this place does not seem to be exclusively for torturing prosthesis users.

It would be fair to say that its purpose is to induce Corrosion unto oneself.

Urg… Ghh… Arrh…

Staring at those beings stumbling about…

It evoked complex feelings that made me sigh.

Is my artificial head really worth raging over, so much so that they would transform themselves into something far more hideous than having a clock for a head?

Choosing to lose themselves, being possessed…

What about when they claim the Golden Bough after going to these lengths…?

Will it even be used for their benefit?

Then, it occurred to me.

Am I really so different from those unsightly zealots…

…when I'm searching for the Golden Boughs without even knowing what they'll be used for?