Chapter 154: Ch 154: CreepyPasta#16: Mermaid Grave
Rejuvenation.
It’s the dream of humankind, but no one has succeeded through science yet,
so in reality, no one has truly experienced becoming younger.
But in this ghost story world, I am experiencing it... that very rejuvenation!
...Though my height has been cut in half, mind you.
"Achoo—"
"Hey, be careful. Kids get cold easily, you know."
I fell into momentary silence as I watched Agent Choi grinning under a
blanket.
It was so absurd that I was speechless.
’This doesn’t feel real.’
I’m... eight years old!
Being in the body of a lower-grade elementary schooler felt bizarre.
All those cartoon protagonists who instantly adapted to being kids again
were total liars. A child’s senses were magnified several times over, and
their stamina surged in strange ways.
I thought I’d waddle clumsily because of the shorter reach, but to my
surprise, I didn’t.
"It’s because it’s a dokkaebi trick," explained Agent Bronze smoothly.
Of course, that’s only a clear explanation if you’re a veteran of the <Dark
Exploration Records>. To a rookie like me, it was anything but.
So I responded as expected.
"D-Dokkaebi trick...?"
"You can think of it as a supernatural phenomenon that deceives reality. It’s
not a Disaster, and it can’t be used for anything malicious. It’s a ’trick’,
after all."
Hmm. That was a pretty good explanation.
I glanced at the dokkaebi flame embedded in my arm and recalled the
<Dark Exploration Records> entry I was familiar with.
========================
Dokkaebi Trick
A mysterious ability used by some agents of the Supernatural Disaster
Management Bureau.
Occasionally manifests when an agent is issued a spiritual item tied to
dokkaebi lore.
Abilities drawn from traditional dokkaebi myths—like transformation,
concealing objects, showing illusions, or conjuring fire from thin air—
may appear depending on the compatibility with the agent.
========================
"As you might’ve guessed, the Disaster Management Bureau is quite deeply
tied to the dokkaebi. So, you can just assume that the team leader of Black
Tortoise Team 1 also uses a dokkaebi trick."
He’s telling me outright that there’s deeper lore and that I’ll learn it once
I’ve put in more time. Much appreciated...
"Oops, Jaekwan-ah, you’re saying too much! What should we do, hoobae-
nim? You might get your memory wiped!"
"..."
"Hiing. You didn’t fall for it."
Agent Bronze pressed a finger to his temple. Seeing a child make such a
world-weary expression was incredibly uncanny...
"If Agent Choi... says something not directly related to the mission, you
don’t have to respond."
"Hey! That’s too harsh. Fine, I’ll stick to mission talk!"
Agent Choi’s grumbling was slightly less annoying in child form.
"Anyway, so a dokkaebi trick is, at its core, an illusion~ We’re not really
children of the New Nation, so don’t forget that."
"Yes."
Okay, I get what you’re saying...
"But senses fool the body, and the body fools the mind."
Agent Choi leaned in with a sly smile.
Wearing the face of a child but making an adult expression—it was eerie
and vaguely unsettling.
"While you’re in this form, your emotions will be harder to control, your
fitness will surge, and your strength will be weaker."
Because you’re a child.
"That’s why it’s a two-person team job. When you’ve got another child-like
teammate nearby, it grounds you. You try to take care of each other, and that
brings out your adult self a bit more."
"..."
Makes sense.
"A trick is just a trick. Make sure you don’t get swallowed by it!"
"Yes...! I’ll be careful!"
"Aigoo, our rookie gives such good answers."
Around then, the Disaster Management Bureau’s transport vehicle stopped.
Due to the constraints of our new physical forms, bicycles weren’t an
option. This time, a van was assigned to transport us.
The destination was quite far, after all.
"We’ve arrived."
Tak.
The door opened, revealing...
Shwaaaaa...
The sea.
On a chilly early spring day, the beach without sunlight felt somber and
majestic.
If someone said a ghost story about children going missing happened here,
anyone would nod without question...
"Not there. Over here."
"...?!"
I turned my head to follow Agent Choi’s gesture.
It was... an old, massive seafood restaurant.
’Holy shit.’
A huge neon sign with a tail-flicking amberjack shimmered boldly
overhead. Extremely avant-garde.
But taped to the glass door was a notice.
[Closed Today]
Nevertheless, the three of us children approached the door and placed our
hands on the handle.
"We’re about to enter the Ocean Palace."
* * *
Entry location.
A children’s playroom attached to large seafood restaurants or fish markets
dealing in marine life.
The playroom must have a floor area exceeding 49m2 and must contain a
red cylindrical slide.
Additionally, murals related to an underwater kingdom must be visibly
present on the walls.
(When murals in such playrooms were replaced, distorted and vaguely
similar underwater images began appearing irregularly. Complete
prevention of entry is presumed to be impossible.)
"Confirmed."
"Good."
With his now-shorter arms, Agent Bronze pushed aside some toys,
revealing a wallpaper-style poster underneath.
The Mermaid Princess, smiling fish, coral, clams, and a cute shell-shaped
castle.
Next to it sat a red slide-like playground structure and a ball pit.
"Whoa, nostalgic. Places like this really never disappear. I guess the
demand’s consistent?"
"Enough chit-chat. Let’s get ready."
"Yessir."
Even the bickering sounded more endearing in children’s voices.
"Hoobae-nim, you read the instructions, right?"
"...Yes."
"Good. Let’s do this."
Following the others, I stood at the base of the red slide.
Entry method.
With eyes closed, climb up the slide from the bottom.
During this process, you must hold a strong desire to enter the underwater
kingdom depicted on the wallpaper.
Possessing a related item (e.g., a seashell) increases the likelihood of
success.
Then, recite the incantation.
"Twinkle twinkle, Ocean Palace, I’ve moved into the Ocean Palace."
With eyes shut, we entered the cold, smooth black tunnel of the slide.
The incantation appears irregularly in the form of graffiti on the walls or
floor of playrooms that meet the entry conditions.
At times, it is found illustrated in detail under the title ’How to Go to the
Twinkle Twinkle Ocean Palace’ on bonus pages of comic books placed
within the playroom.
"Twinkle twinkle, Ocean Palace, I’ve moved into the Ocean Palace."
I kept climbing upward.
From in front and behind, high and clear children’s voices echoed as they
repeated the chant.
A strange feeling.
It was dark.
We kept chanting.
"Twinkle twinkle, Ocean Palace, I’ve moved into the Ocean Palace."
The slide wouldn’t end.
Instead, the incline grew steeper and steeper, until I had to cling to it just to
keep climbing.
I could hear the kids panting behind me. It felt like I might cry, but I held it
in.
If the incline begins to steepen precariously, this indicates that the entry
ritual has succeeded.
There are no recorded outcomes for individuals who fail to maintain their
grip and slide back down at this stage.
How much time passed?
Eventually, I found myself clinging as if to a cliff.
"Twinkle twinkle, Ocean Palace...!!"
Then, I dropped forward.
"Ack!"
Just like falling off a cliff, or plunging down a rollercoaster.
My small body tumbled downward.
"Hicc!"
When the little body couldn’t take it anymore and let out a scream, the
moment I opened my eyes—
I saw a fantastical sight.
T/N: Just so you know, the term used for ’Ocean Palace’ could also be
translated as ’Dragon Palace’ ̄_(ツ)_/ ̄
"...!!"
A city out of a dream.
Bathed in golden light, a vast blue sky—or rather, waves of aurora light
flowed across the void above.
No, not the sky. It was the ocean.
Beneath the dazzling, undulating sea were golden pipes and ivory-brick
houses lining elegant, fairy tale-like streets.
Sparkling coral reefs, colorful streamers and decorations. Golden speakers,
ornate floral and wave-patterned metalwork shimmered from every
streetlamp.
And high above, a beautiful palace adorned with pearls and gold in
shimmering hues of blue.
"Ah...!"
Somehow, I was no longer falling.
I floated, gently drifting downward like flying through a dream, toward the
stunning golden city below.
Drifting.
The two children who had come with me floated beside me.
As we descended, the city’s central white fountain came into view, and a
banner rippled above it in gold, blue, and red.
To Our Newest Children Moving In
Welcome To The
Twinkle Twinkle Ocean Palace!
And then.
"A new friend!"
"Wow, more came!"
More than twenty children came rushing down the beautiful boulevard
beneath the banner.
All of them were smiling from ear to ear.
Clean, pretty hair and clothes. Dressed like fairy tale princes and princesses,
like the stars of a birthday party.
"Three of them came?"
"I like this one!"
"...!"
When one child grabbed Agent Bronze’s arm, he flinched in alarm, but the
child just giggled brightly.
Laughter and glittering euphoria filled the air.
"Where... is this place?"
"This is Twinkle Twinkle Ocean Palace! It’s sooo much fun! It’s really
great!"
The child chattering to me beamed and began leading the way.
Like they had nothing in the world to worry about.
Like their parents had sent them to some amazing camp, and they were
making new friends in paradise.
But...
"..."
These children.
They’re all missing persons.
All living entities confirmed within the scope of this supernatural disaster
are presumed to be missing children.
Verified age range spans from 5 to 11 years old. The majority display
expressions of deep euphoria and contentment.
"Ahahaha!"
The children burst into laughter as they led us, running down the grand
street, trying to get us to the palace in one go.
Still, like kids, they were easily distracted, looking around at everything.
"Look at this, look!"
Throughout the street, there were decorative dolls with gears winding inside
them, moving slightly.
Golden signs dangled from above.
Children,
Please take your honey!
There was a drinking fountain built into the belly of a colorful toy soldier
with a comical expression.
When the faucet was turned, honey actually poured out.
"If you carefully fill a bottle and leave it in front of the Mermaid Princess,
she’ll give you a gift!"
In front of the white ivory statue of the Mermaid Princess at the palace
gates, children placed their honey. The statue’s base would open and pour
out things like amazing toys, clothes, or fairy tale books—the kinds of
things they’d always wanted.
Waaaaah!
Children’s cheers and laughter rang out.
"Here, for you."
"...Thanks."
A younger-looking child in a blue dress handed me a pair of very nice-
looking shoes.
There’s a theory that this supernatural disaster is a manifestation of a folk
belief, one that stemmed from stories about pitiful children who disappeared
near the sea, said to have gone to the Ocean Palace.
"..."
I deliberately held the child’s hand and spoke quietly, with a worried tone.
"Um... I need to go see my mom now..."
"Mom? She’s coming to get you! Just play here and wait, okay?"
"..."
"You know, my mom’s really cool? She’s super good at sewing too, and
when she gets here, I’ll show you first."
Then, she laughed shyly again and ran off down the street.
"..."
...That child will probably never be able to show her mom anything.
– You’ll feel like you could just grab them all and take them out the moment
you see the kids, right? But you can’t get caught up in it. Got it?
I clenched my teeth.
– If you take the wrong one out, the kid dies.
In ’Twinkle Twinkle Ocean Palace’, when rescuing a long-term missing
child (over 1,000 days), they vanish like a bubble the moment they return to
reality.
You must confirm the date of disappearance beforehand.
But it’s reportedly maddeningly difficult.
– ...Each time we come, the group of kids we meet changes. But we’ve even
had cases where a kid not seen in the previous year showed proof of having
been here over three years.
Time flows chaotically here.
Some children who went missing yesterday in the real world may have
already been living here for five years.
Conversely, some children are from far in the past or even from alternate
timelines where different events occurred.
That’s why you must talk to each child, learn what year they were living in,
and confirm whether they’re a recent missing person, and only then can you
take them out.
The only saving grace is that agents’ sense of time hasn’t been warped.
Likely because, while the ’dokkaebi trick’ makes them appear as children,
they’re still adults inside.
– But we can still be affected by supernatural phenomena just like kids, so
staying here too long is dangerous.
Agent Choi, the mission lead, had declared this.
– Two days.
– ...
– We’ll spend exactly two days here and leave on the third. Got it? ...
Honestly, we could hold out longer, but the Bureau says two days, so...
– Agent.
– Yeah! That’s why I said only two days.
And so, from now on, the three of us in Black Tortoise Team 1 ’must find a
child who’s been missing in the real world for less than three years’...
...and only that child.
"..."
No good. Maybe it’s because I’m in a child’s body, but I’m too easily
swayed.
"Stay calm..."
I took a deep breath and got to work.
I had to meet as many children as I could in my assigned area within the
time limit, to listen to their stories.
And I can proudly say I did my best for those two days.
I spoke with each of the kids who greeted us, and even found the bedrooms
where kids who hadn’t come out to welcome us were staying.
But...
"...This is the end of this rotation’s rescue mission."
"..."
"..."
...We didn’t find a single child who met the criteria in two days.
Not one.
"Let’s return."
I lowered my head.
"..."
...There are things in life that don’t work out, no matter how hard you try.
’I don’t know this ghost story.’
Since I’d never seen it in the <Dark Exploration Records>, I didn’t have
any secret tricks or special methods.
It was safest—and right—to follow the rules of the Bureau and the plan laid
out by our superior.
’Besides, it’d be dangerous for me to stand out too much right now.’
So this was just...
"Don’t wanna!"
...
...?!
Wait.
W-Was that me just now?
"I don’t want to! We gotta keep looking!"
...It was me!
"...T-That’s."
What made it even worse, my superiors were starting to look distressed,
too.
...Because we’re in child bodies!