The Elder.
The person known as Team Leader of Black Tortoise Team 1.
It was also this Elder, who, through the window of this clubroom-like waiting area, had played a 'dokkaebi trick' for the agents and sent us into the Twinkle Twinkle Ocean Palace in the forms of children.
'They can't possibly be human.'
I'm almost certain.
So I expected that we would probably visit the Elder by performing some magical ritual through the window in the waiting room.
But things didn't go that way.
"Alright, let's go carefully."
Tak.
We traveled by car.
"…??"
"It's not that far, maybe about forty minutes?"
Maybe I should just be grateful it wasn't by bicycle.
The three agents used, of all things, an ordinary means of transportation, and crossed the city of Seoul toward our destination.
That place was…
[Blue Hope Hospital]
"..."
A white building in a quiet area.
A convalescent hospital.
From the way the staff were all kind and there seemed to be many visitors, it looked like a very well-managed place…
The agents, as if familiar, entered the main entrance without hesitation.
"We're here to visit Park Hongrim."
"Ah! Right this way…"
Going up to the fifth floor, there was a sunlit single room.
And…
There, lying on a bed bathed in the warm glow of sunset from the window, was an elderly person with a peaceful face.
If she had her eyes open, I would have thought of her to be an intelligent and kind person.
Truly… the Elder.
"Grapes-ie. Let's say hello. This is our Elder."
"..."
On the table, there was a picture frame filled with messages written on rolling paper.
Just like in Black Tortoise Team 1's waiting room.
– Hongrim-unnie, love you so so much
– Thank you always
– Leaving a message as your beloved disciple who tracked down and rescued the master of Andong soju for the sake of solidarity with our soju-loving Team Leader – Our great leader, our Team Leader
Traces of people.
"Grandma, I— Huh?"
Just then, a student entered the room in a hurry and was startled to see us.
"Hello, Agents…!"
"Hey, Yeji-ya. Good to see you. Have you been well?"
"Oh, you know, about the same as always. Now, let's see how our Madam is doing…"
The high school student who seemed to be her granddaughter checked her grandmother's temperature by touching her forehead and then looked up with a smile.
"She must be in a good mood."
"She does look well."
"Haha. Oh, Uncle Jaekwan, have you been well?"
"…Yeah."
The granddaughter and the two agents seemed to know each other, exchanging words naturally, then introduced me.
"This is our new recruit."
"Ah… Nice to meet you."
"Yes, me too…!"
This was no time to be flustered. I hurriedly bowed my head in greeting, and the student also bowed deeply in return.
Then she said,
"…Please take good care of my grandmother."
"..."
For some reason, my chest felt tight.
"I should be the one saying that… I've received so much help from the Team Leader."
"...Yes."
The granddaughter took a deep breath, as if holding back tears, and then smiled brightly.
"Then, I'll step out so you can greet her."
"Alright. Thank you."
Tak.
The hospital room door closed, and silence settled in.
Agent Choi looked at his unconscious Team Leader and gently reached out to straighten her hair.
Still, the Elder did not move.
"There… was an accident."
"..."
"As you know, Grapes, with supernatural disasters, even the slightest mistake can lead to someone dying in the most absurd way, right?"
Agent Choi's voice grew a bit softer.
"They say the last supernatural disaster our Team Leader entered was a real labyrinth, mysterious and bizarre, just all sorts of strange things happened…"
He took a deep breath.
"Her upper body was almost blown away."
"…!"
"Especially her head… I heard nearly half of it was gone."
I instinctively checked the Elder lying on the bed.
…She looked perfectly intact.
"Yeah. But she looks fine now, doesn't she?"
Agent Choi couldn't continue, and like me, just quietly looked at the bed.
…Agent Bronze slowly opened his mouth.
"Team Leader passed the dokkaebi trial and received her own personalized dokkaebi flame lantern."
Ah.
I instinctively looked down at my right arm.
More precisely, at the dokkaebi flame that had replaced it.
– You must want a custom version made, right? That requires a full consecration ritual, which you can't get with this temporary issue. You'd have to pass a dokkaebi's trials, too… Goodness, it's powerful but no easy task.
Could it be.
"So, right now, from the Team Leader's head down to her upper body… more than half has been replaced by a dokkaebi flame."
"…!"
"They say the reason she can't wake up is that the dokkaebi flame is already using too much mystical power, so it can't withstand the causal interference of directly manifesting in reality…"
"..."
I looked at the elderly woman peacefully sleeping on the bed.
…Most likely, forever asleep.
"…That's how our Team Leader became the 'Elder'."
No longer just a human, but a supernatural being. A dokkaebi Elder.
Agent Choi, who'd been staring at the bed alongside me, finally managed to lift his head.
He wore a gentle smile.
"But we know she's always watching over us! In dreams and fantasies."
"...Yes."
"Let's greet her, then. …Elder! We came to offer our thanks, and to introduce our new recruit as well."
Agent Choi patted me on the shoulder.
"See? I told you this one would do well. He really did a great job. I'm sure you've already seen it yourself."
At this point, I couldn't say I had no intention of joining this team.
I wondered for a second if Agent Choi had planned even this, but looking at his soft smile, that didn't seem to be the case.
"..."
With Agent Bronze's guidance, I stepped up right to the bedside.
"…Hello, Elder."
And I bowed deeply and respectfully.
"I'm the new recruit who just joined."
At that moment.
[Grapes-ie.]
"…!"
I raised my head.
Everyone else in the hospital room had vanished without me noticing.
And instead of sunset, a brilliant full moon shone into the room from the window.
There…
[You did very well.]
A gentle, softly glowing flame was stroking my hair.
No, something with a warmth like flame, but also with the sense of body heat… a fragment of the Elder.
Warmth and an image.
I blinked.
"Am I… dreaming?"
[Yes. Your weary journey has made you doze off for a bit. Come, sit here for a while…]
A familiar hand took hold of mine.
My eyes drifted closed.
Before I knew it, I was leaning against the bed, receiving the Elder's comforting pat on my back…
"…Do you—"
The words came out suddenly.
"Do you really think I did well?"
[Of course!]
[You did your very best, and thanks to you, the children came back alive and smiling. That's all because of your efforts, and your good fortune.]
"..."
[Don't be so hard on yourself. No one else could have done better than you. Even if you went back, you couldn't have done it better than you did.]
For some reason, I felt choked up.
To be emotionally supported by someone had a power that shook a tired heart.
'But…'
A suspicion came over me.
'It feels like she knows my real identity.'
I'd felt it in the previous conversation with the Elder, too. She seemed to know all about the items I had.
'Maybe it's because this is a dream.'
She must already know about me.
Then, maybe, is this also a ploy to make a spy let down their guard?
Rather than suspicion, it was a strange feeling, closer to disappointment.
Like realizing your grandmother had some hidden motive for being so kind to you…
And anxiety.
But…
[And really, who in this world has no secrets? Who is without fault?]
Once again, the hand patted my back.
[The important thing is to always keep a little light burning in your heart. If you ever realize, 'Ah, I've lost my way,' then sometimes you need to check your footing so you can turn back.]
"…Thank you."
I steadied my breath.
[Yes. I've become an old woman for whom it's hard enough to know even those in my own care… Life is so complicated, with all its quarrels and troubles, I don't really understand much of it.]
It was a gentle way of saying she wouldn't reveal my true affiliation to the Disaster Management Bureau.
…Or about my suspiciousness.
"..."
The hand patting my back lifted away.
There was a hint of excitement in the gesture.
[But the elderly have their own kind of wisdom, you know. And…]
[They have gifts to give, too.]
Before I knew it, I'd sat up and was perched on the edge of the bed.
As always in dreams, the context had shifted, but it didn't feel strange. Because this was a dream.
And this gentle request as well.
[Take your trinket out of your pocket, would you?]
"..."
Before I knew it, I'd taken the item out of my pants pocket.
A round accessory marked with an X.
Memorial Popsocket
The item that let me read the , displaying past memories concisely as text.
But it had cracked, so I hadn't been able to use it anymore.
[Ah, I remember this.]
[All the kids put these on everything these days, the administrators must be so upset. The dokkaebis didn't even throw a party for eight days just to make one of those.]
A hearty and kindly laugh.
[But this one is… a little different, I think. Let's see…]
The Elder put on her reading glasses and peered at my popsocket.
In the crack of the popsocket, the adhesive left by the government agent pretending to be a dokkaebi in the dokkaebi workshop was still there.
"Um. He said that adhesive would set within a month… but even though a lot of time has passed, it hasn't changed at all."
[Hmm? Ah… I see. Since that fellow wasn't a real dokkaebi, just a human in disguise, it's no wonder he didn't know.]
[That person is more of a strange creature. But it looks like they were imitating something from our workshop.]
[But if you treat something made by street riffraff like a knockoff, things just won't work out.]
The Elder infused the popsocket with fire.
"…!"
The popsocket, which had been burning brightly, suddenly sparkled as if all the old grime was scrubbed away, and the crack disappeared.
[There you go, it's now properly bonded.]
"…! Thank you…"
[But the important step isn't finished yet.]
[You have to make a wish for what you want it to become.]
"…!"
Come to think of it, I'd heard that at the dokkaebi workshop, too.
– Wish for what form you'd like it to take. Then, it'll transform into a splendid trinket!
But things had been moving so frantically that I'd barely paid attention to that part.
'This time, I'll try to be conscious of it.'
I politely put the popsocket back into my pocket.
"Thank you."
[Grapes, you really are so polite.]
I could feel a look of fond satisfaction.
She patted my head again.
It felt as if the warm fire seeped into my entire body, burning away all pain and contamination…
[This old woman would love to give you a dried persimmon, but… it seems our time is up.]
Huh?
[Your drowsiness is wearing off!]
"..."
I opened my eyes.
Before I knew it, my head was nearly bumping into the bed in the hospital room, and I reflexively straightened up.
A person startled awake from a nap.
"…!"
I quickly raised my head.
I saw the two agents looking back at me, smiling.
And… the Elder, still lying sound asleep in bed.
"Did you greet her properly?"
"…Yes."
The clock in the hospital room showed the same time as when I'd entered.
I had literally just 'nodded off' for a moment.
And even in such a brief nap, a dream had visited.
"..."
I looked down at myself.
The tumors and ulcers that had sprung up across my body… were all gone.
"…Thank you."
I bowed deeply toward the sleeping Elder. The agents smiled and patted my back.
"Then we'll come again next time, Elder!"
I followed the two agents out of the hospital room.
The Elder, still peacefully sleeping with her eyes closed, seemed to be seeing us off…
"How was it? She's a wonderful person, isn't she?"
"...Yes."
"Told you so. We're really lucky when it comes to people. Our team~ Maybe Grapes also got some luck with superiors, huh?"
This time, Agent Choi's confident assurance didn't feel annoying at all.
I slipped my hand into my pocket. I could feel the popsocket, now perfectly fixed.
"..."
"For now, just rest well. Think about things like the report tomorrow. The Site Cleanup Unit already went, and all the kids are asleep anyway."
"Please get home safely."
"Yes… Thank you."
I bowed my head and thanked the two agents as well.
They rode off across the road on the bicycles they'd brought with them.
Only after they'd disappeared did I raise my head.
"...Huu."
It was amazing.
'At least I gained something from all this.'
I never expected to get the Memorial Popsocket repaired like this.
'So… does that mean I'm supposed to make a wish until it activates?'
.
.
Alright, now what I have to do is…
"…Contact Director Ho."
…I have to clean up the mess that broke out at Daydream Inc...
'This is seriously making me want to cry.'
Didn't Agent Choi just say I had great luck when it came to bosses?
I don't think so.
'Ah, please.'
I squeezed my eyes shut and picked up my smartphone.
Please let this get cleaned up quickly…!
"Hey, I don't think this rumor is going to be contained."
Agent Choi smirked as he slapped his direct junior on the back.
Ryu Jaekwan held back a sigh and half-heartedly dodged his hand.
"It's dangerous, sir."
"Eyy, I'm a bicycle master."
After telling Agent Grapes to rest up, they headed back to HQ to file their report, just the two of them, chatting as they rode their bikes.
"What do you mean, the rumor can't be contained?"
"What else? It's about Grapes."
"…!"
They'd gone out for a regular rescue in a supernatural disaster and managed to save every single child, and might have even ended the disaster itself.
And to think, this miraculous achievement happened right after a new recruit joined the team.
"When coincidence repeats twice, it starts being called skill."
And if this new recruit had even just completely ended a supernatural disaster while working with the Site Cleanup Unit before?
Then the probationary period for new recruits doesn't matter anymore.
His aptitude score just blasted through the ceiling…!
"Congratulations on your assignment to Black Tortoise Team 1. Hahaha!"
"..."
Ryu Jaekwan pressed his fingers to one temple.
The one saving grace was that the Disaster Management Bureau was generous when it came to investing in equipment for talented people.
'…Maybe things really will get safer.'
At this rate, it seemed like even a custom dokkaebi flame lantern wasn't far off… If not, at least Grapes would be able to get some more gear.
The only concern was whether he had attracted too much attention.
'…Let's hope the rumors don't get exaggerated in some weird direction.'
He decided to keep an eye on things.
Ryu Jaekwan sighed and pressed down on his bicycle pedals.
"Let's go, Jaekwan-ah~"
For reference, this speculation was taking place in a completely different direction within a different faction…
.
.
At the same time, in an office at Daydream Inc.
"Lord Cat!"
BANG!
An employee from the Field Exploration Team, wearing a pony mask, banged on the table and conducted a vivid interview with the Research Team.
"The Great Lord Cat was in that Darkness! The all-knowing, all-powerful Lord Cat!"
For reference, the Research Team was in total chaos.
It was because the 'Mermaid Grave'—which used to yield only C-grade Dream Essence—had just produced B-grade or higher essence.
A crazy anomaly!
And to make things worse, the Disaster Management Bureau had spirited away all the mer-children, and the agents had dashed off in a hurry.
So, now lacking research material, the Research Team was furiously extracting every possible statement from the Field Exploration Team members who had entered at the time.
And… this is what the testimonies had in common.
"It was a monster! A monster! Please, save me!"
"I don't know… The letters I saw? Were they really there? Maybe I was just seeing things… I was terrified, but I did my best for the clear."
"The GreatLordCatIsWatchingUsLettingUsOut!WeHaveToSaveTheChildren!"
Multiple employees have reported observing an anomalous entity manifesting as a black cat (hereafter referred to as 'The Black Cat').
Documented effects include: induction of panic and madness, brainwashing, physical transformation, causal distortion, reality manipulation, and collective mind control. These abilities exhibit anomalous characteristics that are not currently explainable by conventional means.
"Yes. It did help with the clear this time, but… I don't know what might happen if we meet it somewhere else."
Attempts to determine the entity's objective or intent have been inconclusive. Certain Field Exploration Team personnel reported that the entity appeared to be attempting to seize control of the ghost story (Qterw-C-1642); however, these accounts are classified as unreliable.
Notably, the prevailing hypothesis is that an entity of greater transcendence than Qterw-C-1642 irregularly intervened within this instance of Darkness. This hypothesis is considered highly plausible
"I want to avoid it as much as possible."
Accordingly, the entity designated as 'The Black Cat' has been assigned a unique Darkness identification code.
Designation : Qterw-A-1845
And so began the real chaos.