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One throwing-a-tantrum rookie, two teary-eyed superiors.
All three were eight years old.
The situation was deteriorating smoothly.
‘Damn it!’
Instead of explaining, I'm just being overwhelmed…!
Feeling like I wanted to bite my tongue, I tried my best to explain the reason for my "No, let's look more," but I was already on the verge of being influenced by the two of them.
Since tears are contagious among children…!
“A-At first, you said we were only staying for two days because of the rules even though there was more time. So I thought there was still time left to explore safely before it gets Contaminated….”
“…That’s true.”
“Then I want to look for even just one more person. They might be there, and we just haven't found them yet!”
Agent Choi-child sniffs.
“S-Should we? Then maybe two more days….”
“Agent!”
Agent Bronze-child, his eyes bloodshot, stepped forward and glared at Agent Choi, then turned to me and spoke firmly.
“Absolutely not.”
I really want to snap back, ‘And why not!’
“And why not!”
This is driving me crazy.
Agent Bronze also shouts back.
“Because it could be dangerous! An Agent’s life always comes first. If you overdo it while breaking the rules….”
And then his voice gets swallowed by his nose.
“I-I’ve seen Agents die doing that. There are many Seonbaes who never made it back.”
“…….”
“So, we shouldn't have started in the first place. It’s right to follow the rules.”
‘……Phew.’
His words also make sense.
Then Agent Bronze glances at my arm.
“Don’t forget that that arm needs to be recharged once every three days.”
“I brought a separate one for charging! T-Then how about this? Just one night, let’s stay for just one more night.”
Agent Choi said, holding up his index finger.
“And if we aren’t certain there’s a kid worth rescuing by tomorrow afternoon, we just leave. Okay? Delaying a mission by half a day… is really just adding a line to the report.”
“…….”
We both reflexively looked at Agent Bronze.
“Jaekwan-ah….”
“Agent, um….”
“Do as you please.”
And then Agent Bronze shut his mouth.
Leaving only these words.
“I never agreed to this.”
It certainly seemed that way.
His face was flushed red, unable to hide his sorrow and sense of injustice.
But since it was also a silent declaration that he wouldn't argue anymore, Agent Choi immediately wrapped things up.
“Good. Then we’ll look for just one more day!”
The three children promised that if it still didn't work out, they would give up and leave immediately.
Then we scattered to the children's sleeping quarters in our respective assigned areas.
Agent Choi went near the palace, Agent Bronze near the central fountain, and I… toward the village entrance.
The maddening part was that our paths overlapped, so I ended up walking with Agent Bronze.
“…….”
“…….”
“Um, I’m sorry….”
“…It’s fine.”
Agent Bronze says with a sigh.
“Considering other cases that were transformed by Dokkaebi's Trick… this ended quite rationally.”
“I-Is that so?”
“Yes. There have been Agents who wailed and rolled around fighting amongst themselves.”
I-I see.
“…That’s why rules are necessary. In these supernatural situations, it’s important to follow regulations even if they don’t seem to make sense. Because in the end, you’ll find that it was the right thing to do.”
Agent Bronze took another breath.
“Of course, Agent Grapes is not at fault. It’s something every Rookie Agent goes through once. But since the person in charge couldn't explain properly and just went along with it…!”
“…….”
You have a remarkable talent for silencing a rookie who successfully negotiated for one more day thanks to that person in charge….
Anyway, Agent Bronze’s expression was still not great, but by the time we scattered to our destinations, the mood had recovered enough for him to give me advice.
“The children will all fall asleep before midnight anyway. Don’t waste your strength, Agent Grapes, and get some sleep.”
“…Yes.”
In Sparkling Dragon Palace, day and night change based on the tolling of the city’s clock tower.
When night falls, drowsiness comes in accordance with a child's sleep cycle; everyone falls asleep before midnight and wakes up to cheerful music when the sun rises.
It was a supernatural structure befitting a ghost story.
I walked through the enchanting red-gold light into the village covered in soft navy blue and white sparkles, and entered the lodging I was in charge of.
A sign at the entrance informs me:
For Children
Dreamland Bed
Inside, in a massive space decorated cutely like a young child's bedroom, there were about a dozen fluffy beds with canopies draped over them.
…The children in the bedroom were already asleep.
Since I had been searching for children to rescue until the very last moment, I had already pushed the time to its limit.
Drowsiness washed over me as well.
“Phew.”
I picked one of the empty beds and lay down. The impossibly fluffy and warm bedding wrapped snugly around my head and body.
And briefly, the disgraceful display I just put on flashed through my mind… wow.
I threw a tantrum? Me?
‘I don't think I was even that bad when I was actually young.’
And considering their personalities, I think it would have been the same for Agent Choi or Agent Bronze, not just me.
Perhaps because Dokkaebi's Trick is a deception rather than true rejuvenation, it felt like being strangely transformed into the "concept" of a child.
So the important thing now is to proceed calmly without being influenced by the exaggerated characteristics of this child's body.
Because in the end, the goal hasn't changed.
I made a slow resolution in my hazy state of mind.
‘…I’ll wake up early and start searching right away.’
Just one person.
I felt like maybe, just maybe, I could take at least one out with me….
…….
…….
[Grapes-ie.]
…Hm?
[Grapes-ie. I think you’re going to be a very good Agent. Your arm thinks so too.]
I heard a nostalgic and warm voice from somewhere.
No, listening to it again, it sounds reliable and strong as well.
What is this?
[It’s your dream.]
I suppose so.
Come to think of it, I did fall asleep.
A shimmering light wavered before my closed eyes. Like a warm flame….
[And in dreams, thoughts that you can’t have in reality are bound to surface. Because you’re free from the constraints of reality.]
…….
Things that don't come to mind in reality.
Certainly, since I've been carrying out the rescue mission while turned into a child to meet the entry conditions, I can review the things I missed now.
In the dream, I calmly brought up several questions.
Adult suspicions.
For example….
‘Why is it that more than half of the children the Agents meet change every time they come?’
If every single child changed, one could rationally guess the setting as ‘Given the nature of this supernatural phenomenon, there are several similar places.’
But more than half the children changing is completely different.
To put it another way, it means more than half of them disappear from here.
At least in a form where they can't meet an Agent.
And….
‘Why don't the Agents feel suspicious about that?’
Two chilling but simple and clear possibilities also come to mind at once.
Either they themselves are being influenced by this ghost story.
……Or there are facts they are deliberately hiding from me, the rookie.
Or both.
‘If so….’
…Don’t I have something useful for this situation?
An Item to supplement my realization.
Even without having to ask the other two.
[Indeed! You are clever, Grapes-ie. A wise idea is a treasure for all ages.]
[Don't forget what you gained in your dream when you wake up tomorrow.]
I felt as if a wrinkled hand stroked my head encouragingly.
Ah, thank you. Elder.
…….
…….
“Ah.”
Giggle!
I heard the sound of bells and children's laughter.
A new golden morning had begun.
“Let’s go see the Mermaid Princess!”
“I want to play tag.”
Children were waking up and leaving the bedroom, chatting energetically.
Normally, it was a situation where I should immediately chase after them and dig for information, but my mind clearly recalled one idea.
Something I had concluded in the dream I had last night.
“…….”
I reached into the inner pocket of my thick coat and pulled out what I had carefully brought so it wouldn't break.
It was the ‘Children's Detective Syrup’. The syrup I had manufactured by pressing the emoticon button in the Dream Incubation Room.
Daydream Inc. called it this:
Detection Potion
: When consumed, it clears your eyes so you can see what you need most right now.
If I drink the Detective Syrup, I’ll be able to see children I can rescue immediately.
Since my mission goal, my ‘most needed thing’ right now, is rescuing children.
‘Okay.’
Normally I would have calculated this and that… but even so, this is about saving kids, and if I went that far, I’d feel like a piece of human trash.
‘I also needed to check the effect at some point.’
I opened the sealed cap of the syrup and gulped it down.
As written on the label, the syrup with its artificial cherry scent and sweetness slid down my throat….
“……Phew.”
I put away the empty bottle.
I didn't feel a wondrous, eye-opening change like with the Regeneration Potion, but my heart raced and I felt calm.
‘Now let’s check.’
I checked the children remaining in the common room and the children running in the streets through the window alternately.
Trying to find a ‘child that catches the eye’.
But….
“…….”
Why isn't there anyone?
Not the child running out, nor the child laughing and playing at the fountain in the distance.
They are just children. Nothing stands out particularly.
Just as a chill was about to run down my spine, wondering if there really was not a single candidate.
‘…Uh?’
I felt a presence from somewhere else.
Something distinctly bright caught the edge of my vision.
“…….”
I turned my eyes to check it.
The opposite pocket of my coat.
It was where the Item I bought at the Faceless Market in the Manhole was kept.
‘Why this….’
I reached in and pulled the object out.
It was a piece of paper with four old stamps printed on it.
It looked like a charity seal or an advertisement seal made with reduced unit costs, and each faded picture on the stamps depicted old Korean streets.
And if you looked closer, you could see things that weren't human in the background.
Pigeons, rats, stray cats, sparrows, cockroaches.
Creatures that coexist on human streets.
Street Stamp
: A mysterious stamp that allows you to disguise yourself as one of the animals commonly seen on the streets of Yeongdeungpo-gu, Korea, in the 20th century.
Produced by Today's Artifacts Dealership.
…I had intended to bring it in case I needed to run away while spying or to hide myself, but I had broken into a cold sweat when Agent Choi
recommended it in reverse.
And I sweated again while picking out items that didn't originate from Daydream Inc. for exchange.
Anyway, the essential ability of this item is ultimately that.
‘The ability to turn into a non-human street animal.’
Does it look pretty good?
Of course, there is a fatal side effect.
However, if you receive the effect of the stamp continuously for more than 2 hours, your body may mutate into something within the stamp.
It wasn't a comforting story about actually becoming that animal.
It meant that characteristics of those animals would appear all over the human body as if infected. Like a biological disaster horror game.
Imagine a pigeon's beak or a sparrow's eyeball growing next to your jaw.
‘Ugh.’
Just thinking about it was horrifying, so I resolved once more never to exceed the usage time.
But… in a ghost story where the entry condition is ‘the appearance of a child,’ taking the form of an animal is ‘what I need most right now’?
I felt reluctant, but at the same time, I had a bad feeling.
A hunch that something was unusual and I had to check it.
‘…Even if Daydream scams with other things, they wouldn't scam with potions.’
It must be because the effect was so certain that there was no need to.
‘Fine.’
If something feels wrong, I can just spit out the stamp immediately and return to my child form.
After taking a light breath, I tore off one stamp and put it in my mouth.
“…!!”
My vision dropped.
Even more drastically than when I became a child, right to the floor.
My back bends, and I stand on all fours.
The strange sensation of fur, ears pricking up, and long whiskers.
‘Is it a cat?’
I lifted my head.
Being a pigeon might have been more useful since I could fly. Anyway, psychologically, it was a relief to have avoided being a cockroach or a rat…….
…….
‘Uh.’
The golden city crumbles from my view.
The enchanting blue sea, the storybook brick houses and boulevards sparkling like heaven, the beautiful banners—they all lose their light, fade in color, and break down.
And instead, grotesque things begin to appear. Rusted metal pipes, streetlights flickering while broken, half-destroyed buildings, graffiti made of blood and filth. Bumpy,grotesque,ulcer-
likemassesfillthegapsbetweenbricksandstreetlightsandpulsate!Thisentirespa ceisinfected!It'sstrange!It'sstrange!They're everywhere!I'm contaminated...
Spit it out!
I have to spit out the stamp. Something is wrong here….
…….
No.
‘That’s… not it.’
It's because of the shock of falling from an enchanting place… to a terrible one.
I am not contaminated.
“Huu.”
I caught my breath.
The sudden panic ended as I adapted to the environment. Shivering, I looked around with a cold mind that had escaped the state of a child.
Grotesquely collapsed civilization and masses of biological tissue infected everywhere in the city.
This is a description I know.
Right. ‘Sparkling Dragon Palace’ wasn't a ghost story unrecorded in the Dark Exploration Records.
It was just that it wasn't in the form I knew.
What I knew was….
……A terrifying ghost story of Daydream Inc.
==========
Dark Exploration Record / Ghost Story
[Mermaid Tomb]
: A ghost story appearing in the <Dark Exploration Record>, Daydream Inc.’s Identification Code is Qterw-C-1642.
A ghost story about wandering through a grotesque city submerged under the sea.
Victims are chased by a swarm of cryptids, and if caught, all their blood and mucus are sucked out until they die.
==========
This.
The city is already in ruins, and from the records left in various places, it can be inferred that it was destroyed by a Biological Disaster.
It’s also a delicacy to see the contrast between the ruins of a once beautiful city and the current apocalypse destroyed by a miserable and horrific Biological Disaster.
It is said that it was registered in the database as ‘Mermaid Tomb’ because the city’s records describe the Biological Disaster as merfolk.
So… the children of Sparkling Dragon Palace here are.
In the heart of the city lies a grotesque mass that is the Core of the Source of Infection for ‘Biohazard-Merfolk’, and Infected Larvae coming from this follow the explorer endlessly.
If caught, you become infected and serve as a host for the merfolk.
I stumbled along the completely destroyed street on all fours.
In various places on the dark deep-sea streets, I see corpses frozen in strange postures, moved by things like strange ulcer masses.
No… half living people, half corpses.
They move stiffly and limply like dolls.
‘Those water fountain decorative dolls.’
Children,
Come get some honey!
Decorative dolls in various shapes, from soldiers to elephants.
‘They were humans.’
They are people who were drawn into this insane ghost story and got infected.
Then the honey coming out of the faucets near their bellies….
In reality, it’s blood that that ulcer-like mass pumped out from human stomachs.
‘…Urgh.’
I ran.
Kicking off with four paws, I run through the ruins of this grotesque, sunken ancient city where contaminated life wriggles around rusted mechanical devices.
Thus, I arrived at the heart of the city.
…What had looked like a beautiful dragon palace….
Was a swarm of massive ulcer masses.
Thump, thump.
The pulsation reached even here—dirty vermilion, green, and pinkish-white flesh-like masses hung all over the collapsed giant buildings, standing tall like avant-garde sculptures.
And attached to the very front, a bumpy egg-sac-like thing with tentacles.
Looking at it with eyes that knew, I could recall a similar silhouette.
The statue of the Mermaid Princess.
The Infected Larvae extract blood and mucus from the host explorer and supply it to the cluster in the city center, and the cluster spits out Contagious Mucus and debris.
Debris is confirmed to be indigestible fiber and plastic, etc.
Right.
In ‘Sparkling Dragon Palace’, the toys, clothes, and storybooks the kids get when they offer ‘honey’ to the statue… were the old mementos of the people who went missing here.
The ghost story is just deluding the kids to see it that way.
And it was infecting the kids. Those horrific Infected Larvae, commonly called young merfolk in this Mermaid Tomb Dark Exploration Record, were ultimately….
Ultimately….
“…….”
No.
‘This is… this is.’
Let's return for now; I shouldn't meet the children in this state. I barely managed to turn my body, stumbling.
At that moment.
Uuuuuuuung!
Along with a strange sound, the mass of Ulcer on the ground shot mucus at me.
“…!”
It’s Contagious Mucus.
If that sticks, I’ll sprout a faucet too…!
‘Damn it.’
Fortunately, the cat knew how to run fast.
Moving as if I had perfectly adapted to the cat's body by some miracle, my four legs ran through the dusty and rusty alleys. Is this why Agent Choi recommended it?
‘Anyway!’
So, I mean.
What on earth should I do about this?
Should I inform the agents? If I do, how much should I tell them?
How should the rescue proceed? No, is it right for the agents to remain as children in this situation?
Is the form of a child truly safe?
The judgment that living here is better than turning into sea foam, now….
“This way. No Mer-child here.”
…!
“Move out.”
“Yes, Assistant Manager!”
I stopped in my tracks.
Three Human Figures just entered the alley.
Calm tone. Familiar words I’d seen in the Exploration Records. Calling each other by their titles.
…It’s Daydream Inc.
‘Was the Field Exploration team inside…!’
Right, since most of the long Exploration Records for the Darkness registered to that company were written by Field Exploration team employees, it’s only natural to encounter company people in here.
…If that’s the case.
Could I perhaps make use of them?
‘If they’re Daydream Inc. employees, they’d usually have at least one or two pieces of special equipment.’
I might find a way to break through this situation. Or at least an idea…!
Even if not, I absolutely needed to increase the number of cards I could play.
‘Let’s go.’
Holding my breath, I approached the alley where the masks and suits had brushed past.
“…like that.”
“Ah. This?”
Their conversation was caught by my keen hearing, and as I turned the corner, the three Human Figures finally revealed were….
…….
Familiar masks.
“…Hmm. Doesn’t look particularly useful.”
“Eh? Looks like it’d be worth some money. I’m taking it.”
Goat Baek Saheon, Pony Kang Yihak.
And….
“Be quiet.”
Butterfly, Team A’s Assistant Manager Jin Nasol.
“…….”
‘Damn it.’
It was a killer lineup.
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