Chapter 277: Ch 277: Black suit and animal mask
Right now.
What in the world just happened?
"..."
In the silence, I stared at the ’someone’ who had appeared behind me.
A black suit and an animal mask.
The moment I saw that distinctive attire, I recognized their affiliation. After
all, I was dressed in the same style of Exterior.
’A Field Investigation Team employee from Daydream.’
But the moment I glanced down at my own clothes.
I sensed a subtle difference.
The way his hair was styled.
The way his suit was tailored.
Impressions, based only on feeling, that ’this is somehow different from the
present.’
That style, more classic than my own.
[Oh my, the era is different.]
That’s right.
The employee before me was clearly not a person from the 2020s.
A person from decades ago.
That... distinctive Wolf Mask.
"..."
I knew a famous figure from the past in the <Darkness Exploration Record>
who fit that exact description.
’...The Elite Team B Leader.’
J3.
The Security Chief’s past.
A fleeting moment from the past that had brushed by when I took the
Nostalgia Candy was now standing before me as a vivid, continuous entity.
I faced it, frozen.
And...
"You’re not answering. Should I just call you Employee Yong?"
"...!"
At those words, a sense of reality struck me again.
Wait a minute.
’Where are the others?’
I reflexively looked toward the opposite aisle of the library where the rest of
my party had been, but there was no one there.
Only a silent passage of bookshelves continued on, feeling alien.
’...!’
I’d lost them.
An eerie premonition washed over me.
And in this space, the only human presence was the man in the Wolf Mask
before me.
"..."
I was beginning to understand.
’This is an Anomalous Phenomenon.’
That this man in the Wolf Mask was also a bizarre being created from J3 by
the history of this ’Hanbit Library,’ of Segwang Metropolitan City.
’Don’t provoke him.’
For now.
-It’s safer not to make loud noises in this place.
I would respond as a Daydream employee who had entered a ghost story.
’I won’t mention J3.’
After taking a deep breath, I took out a piece of paper and scribbled on it
with a pen.
The man in the Wolf Mask stared at the paper.
-This was a library, so I’d prefer we communicate through Written
Conversation.
Then I offered him the pen.
To him.
"..."
"..."
The man in the Wolf Mask did not take my pen.
Instead, he smoothly pulled a pen from his own breast pocket and wrote on
the paper I had offered.
-A library, you say.
Could it be...
-Did you not know this was a library?
The man in the Wolf Mask only showed the lower half of his face, which
was smiling faintly.
-Where were you just before this?
-Well now. I’m sure I entered a subway station to explore a vending
machine Darkness, and the next thing I knew, I was turning a corner in this
maze of books.
"..."
-You seem accustomed to this environment, Employee Yong. Were you in
the middle of exploring this labyrinth of bookshelves?
-Yes.
I wrote calmly.
’There’s no need to correct him and say my codename is Roe Deer.’
As long as the Security Chief was in this state, I had to maintain a friendly
relationship as gently as possible and somehow, safely...
-Then which team does Employee Yong belong to?
-Team D.
Right. I’ll just say I’m a newly assigned rookie.
But at that moment.
-Team D.
The gaze from beyond the Wolf Mask changed.
’...Huh?’
And I felt my mind go blank at the reply that followed.
-There’s no such team.
"...!!"
Immediately after, a chill ran down my spine as I realized why things had
turned out this way.
’A difference in the established lore...!’
Let’s look at the <Darkness Exploration Record> from the period when this
Team B Leader was ’registered.’
’That was when the lore of Daydream was just starting to be fleshed out.’
It was a time when the company’s details weren’t as complete as they are
now. A time when searching for ’Daydream Company’ would bring up just a
single document page.
Do you know how the employees were classified then?
Daydream Company
A nefarious company that extracts raw materials for medicine by pushing
countless employees into ghost stories like they are machine parts.
The employees, who thought they had joined a major corporation, met
countless gruesome deaths inside the ghost stories.
Among the employees used for raw material supply, only those who
excelled in high-level explorations could belong to the Elite Teams,
designated by the letters A, B, and C, and be promoted to executive
positions in the company.
That’s right.
The Elite Teams.
And the rest.
In other words, all Daydream Inc. employees who were not classified as A,
B, or C were nothing more than expendable units to be ground up in ghost
stories.
There were no ranks or promotions for these employees in the first place.
They were all just employees. Just rank-and-file workers with experimental
code numbers written next to their names on documents.
It faithfully embodied the chilling essence of the ghost story: ’I thought I’d
joined a major corporation, but I’m actually a lab rat.’ That was what the
employees of Daydream Company were...
’And there were already ghost stories created based on this lore.’
To satisfy the continuity of those stories...
5.1 Daydream Company (Early Period)
A nefarious company that extracts raw materials for medicine by pushing
countless employees into ghost stories like they are machine parts.
Everything had been designated as a thing of the past.
’Daydream before it became an incorporated company.’
Daydream Inc. had grown from a vague past setting that only had the
characteristics of a ghost story into a power in the world-building, with
added details as it took on the aspects of a massive pharmaceutical
company.
’....’
I can feel it. A gaze.
The gaze of the past Elite Team Leader, looking at me.
A piercing stare, as if trying to determine whether I was something merely
imitating a person.
...And I know.
The specific classification method used for the early Elite Teams.
5.1.4 Team B (Early Period)
An Elite Team of Daydream Company.
A team for employees who repeatedly demonstrate an outstanding ability to
find the correct answer in true/false or either/or situations.
And that man is the leader of Team B.
I know that a clumsy lie won’t work.
Therefore.
-It exists.
It’s better to face it head-on.
-In my time, employee teams exist all the way to Team Z. Because I am a
Daydream employee from the year 202■.
"...!"
I tell the truth.
-And I’ve heard stories before. ...That decades ago, there was a team leader
in the Elite Team who wore a Wolf Mask.
I looked at the man in the Wolf Mask.
-I guessed from the differences in your speech and information, but could it
be... that you are that Team B Leader?
The man looked at me without a word.
Then, just as cold sweat began to bead on the back of my neck, he picked
up his pen again.
-That’s right.
Hoo.
-A library is a space of connection, where knowledge of the past reaches the
future.
-So I surmised that perhaps the timelines of the past and future have met in
this mysterious library ghost story.
The man moved his pen leisurely.
-A rather interesting guess.
-Or you were just exercising your imagination, which you yourself don’t
believe, under the guise of a guess.
I almost swallowed hard.
...The Wolf Leader’s hand pats my back....
-I’m not sure about that myself. I suppose we’ll have to find out from now
on.
-I’m counting on you, Employee Yong.
And so, a strange partnership began.
We are walking through Hanbit Library, a great cavern of bookshelves,
muffling our footsteps.
The Wolf Leader, having familiarized himself with the ’Library Rules of
Use’ on the floor that I had pointed out and he had confirmed for himself, is
walking in silence.
I can sometimes feel his gaze on me.
-Hmm. Should I just call you Leader?
-Yes, Leader.
Naturally, I couldn’t ask the Wolf Leader his name. If I did something as
suspicious as asking for a real name inside a ghost story, our relationship
might truly turn hostile.
Still, walking alongside a past, pre-Contamination Security Chief, a famous
employee from the <Darkness Exploration Record>, felt stranger than any
ghost story.
The tension.
...Get a grip.
’I have to find the others.’
I looked down at the Yarn I held in my hand.
...The Wolf Leader had recognized the purpose of this Yarn as soon as he
saw it.
-Did you tie that to the entrance of this library before coming in? Like
Ariadne from Greek mythology.
-That’s right.
-Then let’s keep using it.
...And so, from the fork in the road where my party had vanished and I had
met the Wolf Leader, I had hooked the Yarn into a suitable crevice of a
bookshelf and was now walking down the opposite path, the one where my
party had disappeared.
’If by some chance the others see this Yarn, they’ll be able to follow it.’
And I maintained my composure, knowing that even if the path became
confusing, I would realize it right away.
But a moment later.
I witnessed a shocking sight.
"..."
"..."
A familiar corridor appeared again.
[Good heavens!]
<Masterpieces of 2000s Horror Short Stories>.
We had returned to the starting point, where the book that someone in a
school uniform had dropped was still lying on the floor.
As if by magic, only the Yarn stretched out chaotically into both passages,
now forming two lines.
’Damn it.’
-It seems this place has a physically impossible structure. This labyrinth of
books.
I slowly nodded my head.
-And the flashpoint must be that book.
"...!"
-You keep looking at it. You wanted that book, didn’t you?
Damn it.
-I suppose so.
-I see. For now, let’s not touch it and keep walking. The same way we left
before.
"..."
I stopped in my tracks.
-Why have you stopped?
-Are you suggesting we keep walking in ’the exact same direction’ to
provoke the library?
The eyes beyond the Wolf Mask look at me.
A hint of curiosity.
-Yes.
Hoo.
-There are two kinds of ghost stories, you see.
-Those that are scary just because they’re there. And... those that are scary
because they’re watching me.
-This library seems to be the latter.
"..."
-This library is clearly the type that reacts to its users, so the more we repeat
an action that elicits a reaction, the higher the chance it will show itself
more overtly.
I hear a whisper.
"And you’re the arrogant type."
"...!"
"You’re just as clever, too. But I can also think of what you’re thinking, so
from now on, you don’t need to ask. Smart Employee Yong."
"..."
"Let’s go."
The Wolf Mask pulls his head away.
Suppressing a groan, I readjusted my grip on the Yarn and started walking
back in the direction we had come from.
My legs were about to give out.
’Think.’
But even amidst the tension, my mind was racing with urgent deductions.
One of the library’s rules of use.
Once you obtain one thing, leave.
Could it be that I have to touch that book to get out of this library?
No, I might be forced out automatically... and that’s the bigger problem.
’What about the others?’
My entire party vanished, and the Security Chief’s form has been
completely altered.
And...
Is it really okay to leave the Security Chief like this?
As I walked on with a troubled mind.
"Hmm."
At that moment.
Pat, pat.
The Security Chief patted my back, making me look past the fork in the
road.
The space I had stepped into just a moment ago...
Origin of the Incense Burner’s Path
"...!" Red traces were scattered about chaotically. The Yarn I had left
behind was strangely dismantled, forming odd letters on the floor... -There
it is. The ’reaction.’ ’Ha.’ It was a ridiculously perfect fit, but the full-blown
horror atmosphere was terrifying. Suppressing a sigh, I bent down to read
the letters.
Origin of the Incense Burner’s Path
"...." -What could it mean? This. -It looks like an anagram. I deconstructed
and reconstructed each letter, forming a single sentence... The words I
mouthed silently were, "...One Who Heads Towards the Path of Worship?"
"Well done." Click. When I turned my head, I saw the Wolf Leader pulling
a book from a corner bookshelf. The title, <One Who Heads Towards the
Path of Worship>, was written on its spine. "...!" The bookshelf opens.
Drrrk, with a soft grinding noise, the shelf from which the book was pulled
slides to the side, revealing a new passage. But... It’s red. It’s dark. A place
where, instead of the warm light of mood lamps, a red, hazy light source
heavily illuminates a dark cavern of bookshelves. And... ’...There’s a slope.’
Subtly, my line of sight is tilting downwards.
"...." The Hanbit Library wiki updates. The text that follows is...
The faithful one who has not satisfied their curiosity may enter a deeper
place. Pass the open place to the closed place to the shining place to the
door and meet the master of the Mirror Reflecting Truth Hanbit Library
Bow down
■■■■■■■■■■(censored)
Something was wrong. ’No.’ I frantically scribbled a memo to the Wolf
Leader. I think we took the wrong pa.... -Ithinkwetookthewrongpath.
Something strange is formed. ’Fuck.’ I tried to snatch the paper back,
suppressing a scream. But. "Just a moment." The Wolf Leader grabs the
paper first. "Hmm. So your voice works." "...." "We’ll keep communicating
by voice. Quietly. Never raise your voice." "...Yes." I immediately nodded.
"Don’t step on the Yarn. We’re going to turn around and leave slowly. Got
it?" And so, muffling our footsteps, we walked out of the passage with the
red rules of use. Still, the dark path created by the retracted bookshelf didn’t
disappear. It remained there, gaping like a void, with an atmosphere that felt
like it would suck you in. ’Hoo.’ That was close. "...." I shuddered and
closed the wiki. And so, this time, I followed the Yarn back to the starting
point. <Masterpieces of 2000s Horror Short Stories>. "Now you know for
sure, right?" .... "That not touching the book is not the right answer." This is
driving me crazy. There’s no backing out now. ’It’s better to check.’ This has
to be the trigger. In a mysterious library that bestows knowledge and
information, not checking the ’knowledge provided in response to curiosity.’
Isn’t that basically jumping up and down on a button that says ’please cause
an irregularity’? ’If I keep this up, the structure here will get even more
twisted, and that’s too dangerous.’ I don’t know what effect it might have on
the others... I have to check. "...I’ll check the book." In the end, I
cautiously approached the book, reached out... and picked it up. "...." "Let’s
read it together." I nearly had a heart attack. But the Wolf Section Chief’s
arm, holding one side of the cover, didn’t budge, so I eventually resigned
myself to the situation. ’This might be better, actually.’ If we get out, we’ll
get out together. "...Then, I’ll turn to the page with the ’information I
wanted’." Flip, flip, the pages turn. Trivial and spooky short horror stories
appeared before me, composed of text. I tried my best not to read them as I
kept turning the pages... and stopped at a familiar phrase. In the Dark
Shadow The ghost story of Sekwang Technical High School. "Hoo." After a
deep breath, I read the page. The familiar sentences I had once read as a text
file. It all happened on the day of our graduation. And the next moment.
The letters melted and swirled bizarrely before my eyes... "...." When I
opened my eyes again, I saw a school campus shrouded in darkness. Deep
in the night. I was standing on the athletic field inside the main gate of
Sekwang Technical High School. And the person who read it with me...
"Hmm." He was still in his Wolf Mask. ’Ha.’ It was a mind-numbing
situation, but first, I looked at what was still in my hand. The book. ’Wait.’
Isn’t this going to be judged as me taking it outside? In my alarm, I quickly
looked down at the book. Flutter. "...?" Something fell out of the book. A
faded, yellowish thing, as if it had been tucked between the pages. I
snatched it reflexively. ’A paper envelope?’ The old paper envelope, shaped
like it should hold cash, was light. It seemed to be empty. ’What is this?’ I
had no intention of opening it. But... The envelope opened on its own. "...!"
What shot out from inside was... a warm, blue light. Something familiar to
me. ’A will-o’-the-wisp.’ The kind emitted by a supernatural being of the
Disaster Management Bureau. The warm blue light swirled around the
envelope, and then, on the back, letters appeared as if burned into it by fire.
--- The fact that you’re reading this means you’re an agent the will-o’-the-
wisp can recognize, which must mean the rescue in Segwang Metropolitan
City has resumed. I pray that at least the students can be rescued. Don’t look
for us. We failed. ---Dispatch Rescue Team Blue Dragon "...!" [Oh, the
ones who provided their friends with a shabby workspace because they had
no budget. Could this be a memo left by those civil servants?] ...Yes. The
Emergency Rescue Squad was definitely an organization under the
Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau. This was clearly a trace left by
one of the agents. ’But...’ My eyes stopped on the unfamiliar team name.
’Blue Dragon Team?’ Then. "Disaster Management Bureau?" "...!" ...I heard
the voice of the Wolf Mask, who had been reading the text beside me.
"Employee Yong, are you... an agent of the Disaster Management Bureau?"
Dammit.