A will-o’-the-wisp.
The one in the lantern the Bureau had loaned me after I lost my arm in the line of duty.
It had stayed by my side up until the moment I drank the Wish Ticket potion.
Sometimes I worried about how it had fared afterward, whether it had returned safely to the Bureau....
‘...Thank goodness.’
The fact that it was here before me now meant it had.
I watched the will-o’-the-wisp float out of the lantern and circle before the sliding paper door.
I was glad to see it.
But I couldn’t expect it to recognize me. Not with the state I was in now....
Whoosh.
The wisp darted straight through the paper of the door and smacked right into my forehead between the horns, nearly as if it had aimed. It would’ve been perfectly natural if a slapstick “thunk” sound had echoed.
‘W-wait.’
Flustered, I raised a hand to pry it off carefully—only for the wisp to climb up my horn and shape itself into something.
...A glowing blue flame giving a thumbs-up.
Then it melted onto my horn, streaming down like tears.
‘.......’
It recognized me.
“F-friend Will-o’-the-Wisp! You can’t behave so rudely....”
Gratitude: A good reunion.
“......!”
I let the will-o’-the-wisp wander about my horns, no longer resisting.
Today’s duty officer, instead of panicking at the sight, simply pushed up his glasses and watched us quietly.
And then—
Knock, knock.
“Agent Su-Maksae, Gomyeong says you promised to grab a late-night snack but never showed. She asked me to pass the message.”
Through the door, a familiar silhouette appeared.
He turned toward me.
“Oh, you look well enough.”
Agent Haegeum!
“Seems you’re getting along with the will-o’-the-wisp. Sister Hong’s sense was spot on.”
He plopped down by the sliding door and spoke casually to the duty officer.
“If it’s about the wisp, I’ll stay here. You go keep your snack promise.”
“A-ah...!”
The officer thanked Agent Haegeum several times and, without much hesitation, left.
“Thank you!”
He waved awkwardly at me and the wisp before disappearing down the hall.
The moment he was gone—
“...You see? They’re starting to trust you now.”
......
“From here on, there’ll be plenty of people testing you with offerings. Don’t take it the wrong way. They’re just trying to figure out what tributes you’ll accept.”
Question: Target of the offerings.
“Of course, you.”
As expected.
I stifled a sigh, watching the will-o’-the-wisp drift from my horns down toward the yellow lantern burning near my ribs.
“Well, I’ll be fielding a lot of questions about what you liked when you were still the Mascot.”
Huh.
“So if there’s anything you’d like to receive, you can tell me now.”
No, really, you’ve already done so much—helping me regain my senses, letting me use this space rent-free....
Of course, I knew the Bureau wasn’t just trying to pamper me.
‘They want my cooperation as a supernatural entity.’
Especially with Agent Haegeum’s testimony that I had been the owner of the Flower Golden Resort.
Harnessing the power of supernatural beings friendly to humans was already one of the Bureau’s established methods.
Like the will-o’-the-wisp, Baridegi’s Workshop, or General Beom. Now I was being considered as a potential cooperative familiar.
But the problem was—I wasn’t fit for that.
Yes, I had once been human. But now, I was no sacred being. More like a profane, synthetic lump of flesh.
......And then—
“Looks like you haven’t fully escaped that rotten company’s grasp yet.”
......
“If you settled with the Bureau, how about we find a way together? A way to break whatever contract ties you down.”
A way... out of the employment contract with Director Cheong?
That was...
I didn’t know if it was possible. Cheong was no ordinary being.
Even if it were possible, it would require enormous investment. And I wasn’t nearly powerful or valuable enough to repay such a cost.
Just thinking about breaking the contract made the regulation-violation announcement scream in my head, to the point my brain felt like it was oozing.
Flicker.
‘.......’
The will-o’-the-wisp circled softly around my head.
Over the cacophony, I heard faint humming, the tapping of a bat, the sound of cheerful footsteps.
The sounds of goblins.
......
Gratitude.
As the announcement grew faint, I patted the wisp perched on my shoulder.
Agent Haegeum, watching quietly, smiled and stroked the hilt of his Catastrophe-Slaying Sword.
“Good. That shows you can at least grapple a little—with the help of other supernatural beings. They {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} even mended your clothes.”
I glanced at my arm. A patch of silver thread had been sewn in.
The ripped zipper of my Bureau uniform had already been repaired when I came to my senses.
Apparently someone from Baridegi’s Workshop had come and stitched it.
‘I can feel a faint energy from it.’
I’d check it later. Anyway—
Thanks for the offer: Will consider accepting.
It was a lie.
“Yes. It’s an honor, Mascot.”
I was grateful nonetheless. Even if he didn’t know I was really Agent Grape in disguise, his offer meant something.
Of course, there was no way I could truly accept.
‘Still, I’d like to leave something helpful behind.’
After some thought, I unzipped my sleeve and slipped my hand inside.
Into the inventory tattoo.
To him, it must have looked like I was just shoving a hand into my own flesh.
“...!”
‘This connects to the Resort.’
And to its new manager, the Lodgekeeper.
‘When I called for Jang Heowoon, I felt the decision pass through the manager.’
If so—maybe this was possible.
I sent signals, instructing the manager to place a few items from the Resort into the connected space.
Safe, non-contaminated, manageable items.
When I pulled my hand out—
On my gloved palm gleamed a colorful plastic token.
“That is....”
A Delight Coin.
Repayment for treatment and lodging.
Recipient: Bureau of Supernatural Disaster Management and Agent Haegeum.
“...!”
I poured the coins out before Agent Haegeum, who leapt to his feet.
Usage:
▶ Resort lodging
▶ Theme park gift shop
▶ Theme park restaurants (not recommended)
‘The Bureau should find these useful.’
If agents had previously entered the theme park to rescue people, there must be other ways in.
With Delight Coins, their mobility would be far easier.
In my area, the gift shop mostly sold relatively safe items for humans.
And in this quantity, it wouldn’t harm Resort operations.
Tribute: 30 Delight Coins.
Warning: May cause mild contamination in holders. Recommend secure storage.
“Oh my....”
Please, take them.
I felt like a petty citizen handing over a bribe, stuffing the coins at him.
‘That should settle some of my debt.’
When the will-o’-the-wisp returned to its lantern, I watched Agent Haegeum depart with both the lantern and the pile of coins, nodding faintly to myself.
As if the accounts were settled.
......But that was only my thought.
The next day, offerings began arriving before me from the Bureau.
‘...!?’
And I realized.
‘I’ve proven my utility!’
If the agents who had entered the park testified to the coins’ usefulness, then the Bureau was now probing how to get the most out of me.
The most efficient exchange rate for Delight Coins.
Refusal.
Recommendation: Give it to a child.
Today was my third refusal. I turned away from a basket full of children’s toys.
‘They must think I’m a legend tied to amusement parks....’
All the offerings were theme park-related.
Meanwhile, the will-o’-the-wisp had been permanently loaned to me. I heard it had insisted.
I was grateful, but regretted giving away so many coins.
‘What if they start introducing me to even more supernatural “friends”...!’
I feared they’d even drag in Jang Heowoon, still in treatment, for interviews.
And then it happened.
“This looks like something from your Resort. Is it?”
......
......!
“I guess it is.”
From beyond the sliding door, I saw it—
A pink-bodied rabbit plush, with pebble-black eyes and well-kept, fluffy fur.
‘My Good Friend...!’
Why was it here?
And then—
[Friend! I’ve returned.]
‘...!? Brown?’
[Who else! At last, no more cheap merchandise—I’m meeting you in the fine body you personally chose for me.]
[Behold! Even the coin you once used rests in my belly!]
I was dumbstruck, lifting the plush with both hands.
‘Was all of this... for this?’
[Indeed.]
That familiar voice, laced with playful mischief, rang out.
[A true entertainer knows how to wait for the perfect reunion! Whoever realized my plush hailed from your quaint Resort believed fate itself would lead me back to you. Ah, what a splendid meeting of destiny!]
Wait.
‘Did someone else own my Good Friend until now?’
[Of course. The agents who shared the dream of Se-gwang Special City with you.]
Ah.
Ahhh!
‘So that’s what happened!’
Rumors must have spread that I wanted amusement park items. An official notice probably went out.
Who knew how they traced it, but the agents (likely Black Tortoise Team 1) who had held my Good Friend must have gladly handed it over.
Knowing it would reach Kim Soleum anyway.
Satisfied to deliver it officially rather than smuggle it out.
[Well, Friend? Do you like my surprise?]
I gazed at the rabbit plush, feeling a strange nostalgia.
Closeness.
‘This must be the Good Friend item’s effect.’
Maybe so.
‘Yeah. It was impressive.’
[I knew it!]
The plush seemed to rejoice.
‘But tell me....’
[Oh? A question?]
‘You knew, didn’t you—that entering Se-gwang Special City was just a dream.’
The plush froze.
‘You let me waste a hundred million on that talismanic pollack!’
Just for laughs!
[Friend! How could you suspect such a thing!]
It wasn’t suspicion. It was true.
[My word. Very well, let’s imagine. Suppose you, awed by my insight, had told everyone it was just a dream. Would they all have cheerfully slit their own throats together?]
‘......!’
[Even in a comedy skit, my friend wouldn’t expect such implausible writing.]
[No, they would’ve split apart in doubt, torment, and paranoia. Fewer would have awakened alive.]
[You wouldn’t have wanted me to cause that.]
That was... true.
‘Still, you could’ve told me that pollack wasn’t necessary....’
Grit.
[Friend. Remember, you insisted on repaying me for this plush when I was ready to gift it freely....]
......
Yeah...
‘Gotta make money.’
I couldn’t pry out the PopSocket embedded in my body, but I could at least scour the wiki for cash sources....
[Take your time repaying me. What matters is regaining the trust you owe me, Friend!]
Despite everything, those words didn’t grate. Clearly, the Good Friend’s effect made Brown’s voice sound warmer.
‘Sheesh.’
I stuffed the rabbit plush into my pocket.
In the numbed mind of Employee 130666, even the host of the nightmare show—now a creditor—didn’t inspire dread. My Good Friend nestled snugly in my front pocket.
“So it really was from the Resort, huh. Looks like you’re awfully glad to see it.”
I’ll... take it that way.
“Though technically, that plush had an original owner.”
...Huh?
Agent Haegeum’s voice wavered with hesitation.
“Do you know Agent Grape?”
...!!
“I suspect he got that plush at your park. But his whereabouts are unclear now.”
Cold sweat broke.
“The team had been holding onto it. If you could track it—please. Or at least any news of him.”
......
Unable to track.
Reason: Item ownership already transferred.
“...As I thought.”
You guilt-tripper!
Status of the plush’s purchaser: Alive, safe.
“...Good. That’s a relief.”
Agent Haegeum calmly accepted as I handed over a few coins in exchange for the plush, and explained (that the plush had been a limited-time event prize at the park, now discontinued).
Then he rose, smiling.
“I’m glad you’re friendly toward humans.”
......
“Rest well.”
He vanished into the corridor beyond the door.
Clack.
As the door closed, I finally sighed, drawing my conclusion.
‘I can’t stay here any longer.’
Letting the Bureau register me fully as a familiar would be a mistake. It would waste their time and resources.
And I couldn’t keep ignoring Baekilmong’s summons.
But time kept passing, and Deputy Lee Seonghae still hadn’t woken....
‘I’ll have to go back in alone.’
To rescue him.
To Se-gwang Special City.
Considering everything, there was only one answer.
***
And so, a few days later.
At another outing arranged by Black Tortoise Team 1, I made the announcement.
Declaration:
Formation of an independent Se-gwang Special City expedition team.
(Including Ho Yuwon.)
“......!!”