Before I open my eyes.
I heard a ringing in my head.
Instructions.
-You have been assigned to a new position. Please follow the researcher’s instructions. You have been assigned to a new position. Please follow the researcher’s instructions… .
“hello.”
I opened my eyes.
“Nice to meet you. I am your… assistant.”
The first thing that appears is a mask.
Not a face transformed into a flowing mosaic, but a coated paper mask covering it.
It wasn’t the mask of the field investigation team I was familiar with. It looked like a child’s crayon drawing imitating it.
But I know that animal.
“I’ll try my best not to be annoying. … It’s called a raccoon.” badger.
I knew this guy in his security team uniform… .
Team D, Chief Park Min-seong.
My senior.
“Please take care of me from now on.”
And they don’t recognize me.
“I’ll just give a brief introduction today….”
It’s a given.
The current state and the previous appearance of Kim Sol-eum have nothing in common except for their physical dimensions, and the other party has never seen this appearance.
But right after that, something unexpected happens.
“…why.”
Someone else’s voice.
I knew who it was from the accent, from the slow, uninspired tone of voice.
I saw a thin human figure wearing a security guard uniform, his hat pressed down, standing in front of the door… .
“Why are you here?”
J3.
” Supervisor?”
“You shouldn’t be here….”
….
I try to open my mouth, but realize that my vocal cords are out of place and I have no idea where my melted body is… .
Smoke creates words.
employment contract
“… you told me you were quitting.”
New employment contract
: Permanent employment
“….”
I put down the smoke.
“Sir, what does resignation mean….”
The human wearing the badger mask is frozen in place with a look of bewilderment.
The anxiety, the wonder, and the hesitation to guess the situation expressed in the subsequent gasping breaths… .
And finally, as if he had guessed the shocking truth, he took a sharp breath.
It came to mind.
A mutual acquaintance of the two, who recently left the company without incident.
And those who lost contact.
“…roe deer?”
There was no answer.
“….”
The man in the badger mask looked at me frozen.
And then he looks back at the man in the security uniform.
The security chief does not deny it.
Instead, he opened the door and exited the space.
Click.
The sound of an iron door locking.
“Ah, no… no. No, I, I…. That….”
The sound of catching one’s breath.
It comes from a badger mask.
The pollution symptoms try to break through due to the disturbance, but are hidden by the mask.
After more than 40 seconds, the raccoon mask, who had completely shaken off his identity as a teacher at ■■’s affiliated kindergarten, takes a deep breath.
And I hear.
“Okay, it’ll be okay.”
The sound of footsteps approaching.
“Being on the security team means, well, you can communicate, right…? There has to be a way. I recovered, too… Right?”
I moved the smoke.
Impossible
“…!”
Contamination is when a being that was originally human is transformed by a supernatural phenomenon.
Recovery from pollution means restoring the original human body and mind.
and.
“Deer.”
Impossible
I don’t have any electrons.
“…Soleum-ah.”
….
I tried to form words again, then blew the smoke away and into the gas mask.
Because I somehow felt reluctant to do it.
A desperate voice is heard.
“Um… yeah, does it feel weird to hear your real name?” It’s nothing.
“Aren’t there any negative reactions? Like confusion… It’s natural to have those. So….”
A strange reaction to the original name is a typical phenomenon of contamination.
It has nothing to do with me.
“Sol-eum….”
widely.
Chief Park Min-seong, who was about to call again, suddenly flinches and grabs his wrist tightly.
Wristwatch for security team control.
Tick, tick.
The sound of a clock ticking.
And the notice, which I had not heard before, now sounds faint to me, even to me, who shares a similar contractual relationship.
1 A risk of violating safety rules has been detected. 7 seconds will be deducted from the remaining time until re-education. 71 seconds, 70 seconds, 69 seconds… .
It’s similar to the guidance that rings in my head.
Restrictions governing the speech and actions of security team contaminants.
Perhaps it was because he realized that he had violated the safety rule of not referring to others by their ‘real names’ while on duty.
In this way, I witnessed a specific mechanism that was not specifically written in the .
But it doesn’t matter.
The important thing is….
-You have been assigned to a new position. Please follow the researcher’s instructions.
It’s work.
“….”
“….”
What should I do?
In silence, it was only then that I began to look around the place I was in.
A rusty iron door. A closed space. Similar to, but not quite, room 666 on the 13th basement floor of the annex.
But I can recognize it somewhere.
-Bayside isolation room in the main building of Daydream Co., Ltd.
Previously, when I was a human, I visited that place to be disciplined and cleaned.
It was also the place where he lost consciousness after clearing ‘Hungry Hangman’ and was transferred together with Chief Park Min-seong.
An isolation corridor that can only be accessed from the security team’s rental warehouse, and an isolation room inside it… .
But it feels like it.
This place is much deeper inside than the isolation cell where the ‘Hungry Hangman’ was isolated when he was rescued from the darkness.
Deep inside, even deeper than the place we visited for disciplinary cleaning… … we know with our worker’s instincts that it is located in the central isolation area.
And the shape of this secret room.
I ran my fingers over the lamp on the desk.
Lamp, wooden desk, bed, towels.
I know you.
‘House.’
The interior was identical to the room where Kim Sol-eum stayed at the residence.
He obsessively collected every single prop.
A fit that feels almost magical, ritualistic.
The compositions seem to be trying to please and not to offend the dark feelings that are fixed in the employment contract.
At the same time, I feel like he is expecting my reaction… .
‘Is this Kwak Je-gang’s doing?’
That’s what the researcher would do.
I ran my gloved fingers across the desk.
Should I be angry?
My crushed and melted brain tries to think like it used to, but it’s difficult…
‘So, from now on, I’m in charge of security for the isolation room in the basement of the main building, not the 13th basement floor of the annex?’
This is not difficult.
But if that’s the case… .
I don’t need that person.
“…!”
I stared at the raccoon mask.
I can feel the nursery rhyme of the badger mask.
I ask him, his posture stiff.
Request for introduction of duties
“…Working with Mr. Roe deer is my job.”
Inappropriate title
Reason: Unofficial
“…ah.”
The man wearing the raccoon mask turned his head and looked at the CCTV in the corner and let out a small sound.
The CCTV does not have any hearing function, perhaps due to concerns about contamination, but one can feel the gaze of observation from beyond.
I am watching it.
And there is no need to necessarily assure the researcher in charge about the current status.
The raccoon’s words change as he realizes the meaning of the warning made by the smoke.
“Then… what should I call you? Haha, let’s think of it as giving yourself another nickname. The original Deer was also the deputy….”
The voice that had been bright becomes slightly blurred and then returns again. “Um… Do you have another favorite animal?” Favorite animal.
I waited until something occurred to me.
But I don’t feel any emotion.
Unknown
“….”
….
“Okay. Then I’ll think about it carefully.”
I heard a voice clearing its throat.
Request for introduction of duties
: Include specific examples
“Ah, um, so… if you take the job, I’ll accompany you around. I’ll make sure you don’t experience any inconvenience.”
The man wearing the badger mask speaks kindly.
however….
“If there’s anything uncomfortable, you can tell me first. Or the security guard…!”
What are you holding in your hand?
“…!”
The man wearing the raccoon mask, sensing my gaze, hurriedly tries to hide what he was trying to put in his pocket, but then carefully takes it out again as if he realized something and shows it to me.
A syringe-shaped object.
It resembles a dream collector, but its purpose seems to be opposite.
Injector.
For subduing special department personnel
The other person slowly nods his head to the words I wrote.
“Don’t worry. I won’t press it. Really. Really….”
why?
Recommended for use in appropriate situations
“…For example?”
▶Collapse of bipedal form
▶Unable to control smoke
▶When you feel extreme anxiety
“…when you look anxious?”
▶When you feel extreme anxiety
Criteria: Emotions of the user of the control tool
“…. haha….”
A sob comes from the badger mask.
It was a sound that was hard to tell whether it was crying, laughing, or relief.
“It’s still the same. Right?”
….
“Yeah… yeah, it’ll be okay.”
And somehow, as if relieved, as if my mind was at ease, the vibrations and movements subsided.
And then he stretches out his arm as if to pat my shoulder… but soon puts it down.
….
Click.
“Supervisor, we….”
The door opens and the security guard comes in.
There is no sign of rejection in the body’s reaction, so it is hard to conclude that he went out because he could not accept the unexpected situation.
Instead, he walks forward without hesitation, making the raccoon mask flinch.
And then I stretch my left arm out in front of me.
“Supervisor?”
“excuse me.”
In the outstretched left arm, round things appear.
Nostalgia candy.
“Want to eat this…?”
….
Can’t eat.
I have no mouth. I don’t know where there is an organ that can be called a mouth.
Maybe it wasn’t made in the first place because it wasn’t needed.
I just believed it existed.
Above all… I can’t take off the gas mask.
“….”
Quietly, he pushed the other person’s hand away with his gloved fingers.
Impossible
“I see….”
The security guard takes his hand back and stands still, as if lost in thought.
And ask.
“What darkness did you enter…?”
Wish list
“….”
I scattered the words before I saw the raccoon mask.
J3 didn’t ask any more questions.
He simply lifted his hooded head quietly. Then, through the collapsing mosaic-like structure… .
I can see the face.
‘…!’
“Deer, calm down…!”
what?
Why is it visible?
“Are you… in pain right now…?”
Even the voice is clear. I can distinguish it. I can recognize it! What is it? Why? Maybe I just didn’t recognize it, but there is another truth… … .
….
ah.
I get it.
“Why is there smoke…!”
This is because the opponent is closer to a ghost story than a person.
The taint of the security chief is so strong and deep that no matter how much he is removed from the security team curriculum, he still exists on the edge of existence.
This is meaningless.
“It doesn’t seem like it hurts….”
But, nevertheless… .
“Then it’s okay….”
I slowly felt the strange tingle I had felt in the elevator resurface.
The security guard comes into the smokehouse nonchalantly, raises his hand in an awkward manner, and pats me on the back.
It feels like it’s been a long time since I’ve done this.
“…It’ll be okay.”
….
I inhaled the smoke. Black plumes of gas swirled from the floor, and were withdrawn.
The security guard takes a quick look at the nostalgia candy.
“Hey, let me get you something else….”
I shook my head.
The Nostalgia series is not required for work.
Now is the time to listen to what is needed.
-It’s your shift. Get up. It’s your shift. Get up… .
Because it’s time.
Business briefing required
“Ah, that’s….”
[Aha, you are passionate!]
“…!”
The two figures’ heads quickly turn in the direction of the sound.
[Haha, I called you right on time, didn’t I? Good morning. It’s not really morning, it’s just a small talk to start work.]
There’s sound coming from the CCTV in the corner.
The security guard came and stood in front of me.
[Oh, and the speaker and recording functions only work during a conversation like this. It’s been a while since I’ve seen such ethical and considerate working conditions. Hahaha!]
“Are you in your right mind….”
[Well, anyway. As the researcher in charge of the work, I will explain it very clearly.]
I shook my head at the security guard, but he just stood there silently.
Only Kwak Je-gang’s voice coming from the CCTV resonates loudly in the closed room.
[This is an important task that is directly related to our company’s goal. That is… to efficiently produce a lot of good potions.]
[And isn’t there a prerequisite for that?]
The obvious explanation follows.
[Smooth supply of darkness suitable for extracting the raw material of potion, ‘Dream’!]
[A horror story about a company that can ‘manage’ dreams by periodically sending in humans.]
Just as if something ridiculous was going to come out.
[And someone powerful has to consistently bring such horror stories to the company…]
The agitated breathing of those who study darkness is heard.
[One of them is you.]
….
[Please suppress the ghost stories that are useful in the company. So that we can effectively produce dreams.]
A new task has begun.