Author note: Updated
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Something feels off.
I looked around the table. All those versions of myself, sitting there in the forms of various ghost stories.
Right now, my contaminations have been made visible and seated over there by the Space Shopping Mall's VIP shopping service so that I can perceive them.
And when I asked to have them all removed, what the lizard said was…
'…That they're going to permanently destroy a part of myself?'
That sounded as if it meant destroying my contaminated mind itself.
Like amputating a limb to prevent an infection from spreading.
Of course, sometimes you have no choice but to do that.
But normally, it's an irreversible decision you'd only make when there's truly no hope of recovery.
"…Is it impossible to remove just the contamination from there? That is, to restore the contaminated mind back to its original state. Permanently."
"That is not a service the Space Shopping Mall provides."
"…Is it possible anywhere else?"
"That is information I cannot provide."
I turned my head.
The yellow mascot was shaking its head at me.
Y o u C a n ' t
I looked down at my right arm.
In this ghost story world where your body can regenerate, there are times when people even cut off their limbs.
Because here, you can undo it.
But to cut away and destroy your sense of self… In this place, that's an even more extreme choice than cutting off a limb, isn't it?
"..."
Did Section Chief Lee Jaheon really intend to introduce this method to me?
"I'll change the question."
I don't think so.
'Then.'
I looked up.
"Rather than destroy my contaminated selves, I'd like to be able to recognize and manage them myself."
The problem with contamination is that it can turn you into something else without you knowing.
But if I'm fully aware of what mutations exist inside me, I can suppress them, or at the very least, use them if worst comes to worst.
"…So that I can control myself."
The gray lizard, meeting my gaze, nodded.
"I see."
"I want to purchase something that can help with that. Is that possible?"
"Yes."
The lizard moved its hand at once. As if I'd picked the correct answer.
"…!"
Then, from far down the table, an object shrouded in fog was swiftly brought right in front of me by some excited tentacles.
"With my personal shopper authority, I recommend this suitable item."
It was… a small machine.
It looked like a piece of specialized surgical equipment, with a delicately crafted needle at the end of what looked like a robotic hand, and a crescent-moon-shaped lamp shining down on the machine from above.
I already knew something similar to this.
The tattoo machine from the Moonlight Tattoo Shop.
A miniature, item-like version of a bizarre device from an emotional ghost story was sitting right before my eyes.
Single-Use Automatic Moonlight Tattoo Machine
"This is an item produced for a short time before the Moonlight Tattooists all went out of business, except for a handful of survivors, due to certain events. You have acquired one of the three remaining units."
P r e t t y
U n i q u e
The tentacles that had delivered it waved boisterously like arms, then flinched as if glancing at the lizard for approval, and soon vanished into the mist.
My heart pounded.
"…What exactly does this help with?"
"The spirit of the Moonlight Tattooist residing in the machine inscribes a tattoo tailored to support the user's needs."
Just like at the Moonlight Tattoo Shop.
"The tattoo inscribed by this device is fluid. It adapts to the user's environment and changes into the most suitable form."
That's a bit different.
But for me, who would have to enter ghost stories and face different contamination risks in the future, it was even better.
'Did they recommend this with that in mind from the start?'
"Would you like to purchase it?"
I nodded.
"Yes. I want to buy it."
"Thank you. The price is 159,999,999 won."
[approx. 116,300 USD]
"..."
I almost choked on my own spit.
"Is it possible to pay with something else? By giving you an item you purchase, for example…"
"What item is it?"
Wait a second.
'No matter how I think about it, these guys aren't a buyback specialist business.'
I don't know where these aliens actually use the money they collect from people, but even so, the prices of the goods sold at the alien shop are already brutal compared to their cost.
Given their business sense… I felt like they'd really lowball me on the buyback price.
'Of course, just letting me buy at all is already doing me a favor, though.'
In the end, after some thought, I took out a jade token.
A reward I received from Team Leader of Black-Tortoise Team 3 at Cheerful Theme Park.
A disaster management bureau-issued item made at Baridegi Workshop.
"How about this?"
"That is not an item the Space Shopping Mall purchases."
"Hmm, is it perhaps something you're seeing for the first time?"
"Yes."
As expected.
'The alien shop really has no connection to the Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau.'
That actually worked in my favor.
"I'm not offering this for sale, but as currency."
I held the jade token out to the lizard.
"It's a currency accepted in various places. You'll find it useful for acquiring a range of goods."
"Please provide a concrete example."
I gladly gave a few.
Mainly East Asian legends, ghost stories derived from folktales, and sometimes even European or American traditional fairy tales. All of them accepted jade tokens as currency.
'Hmm. Summing it up, I guess they work mainly in tales passed down in different cultures.'
The lizard silently looked at the jade token.
And after a moment's silence…
"Confirmed. I shall recognize it as currency and accept it as payment."
Of course.
'Nice.'
However, the lizard took all five of the jade tokens I offered.
'Not so nice…'
Still, considering the price, it felt like a reasonable deal.
At any rate, that's how the machine ended up in my hands.
Single-Use Automatic Moonlight Tattoo Machine.
"Would you like assistance with using it?"
"I'm fine."
I brought the device to my arm.
I planned to have it inscribed over my existing tattoos.
'It looks like you use it by pressing the switch like this.'
However.
Bzzzz—
The miniature tattoo machine, emitting a soft light and buzzing noise, floated off my arm and began hovering by itself.
"…!"
Then it started inscribing something just below my left collarbone.
As if gathering moonlight and searing the end.
Bzzzz—
Within that sound, I felt the anguish and artistic sensibility of someone who once inhabited the tattoo machine.
What the customer wants is clear.
To govern oneself!
The most fundamental and important thing. But when one's mind is filled with countless identities and anxieties, it is hard to unify and control them all.
Let's tag each one and give them a junction.
So that whenever you wish, you can organize and piece them together.
If that's the case… isn't the most striking spot right above the heart!
I felt something hot above my heart.
And as the light from the tattoo machine faded, I hastily unbuttoned my shirt to look at my bare skin.
"...!"
A star made of letters was revealed.
A tattoo in the shape of a circular puzzle, repeating like the intricate ring of a tree, as if depicting a halo.
Words from various unknown languages were inscribed in letters the size of the device, interlocked in several precise concentric circles.
There was still plenty of space between them, and I understood…
Now, the worries that made up the design would hold each other in check and maintain balance.
Through this tattoo, the customer can recognize himself and, as he desires, rule himself.
The light and sound from the single-use tattoo machine faded away completely.
Then, with a click, the crescent-moon lamp shut off.
"Usage complete."
"..."
I turned my head and looked at those who had been sitting at the table.
There was no one there.
No, from the beginning, they had all just been me.
Now that I could verify they were part of me with the tattoo, I no longer needed to see them with my eyes to make decisions.
"...Huu."
I looked down at the tattoo again.
And among them, I reached out to a word that looked as if its font had glitched out, like a computer error.
The bells of Sekwang High School tolled.
"…!"
I realized that, if I wished, I could instantly don a high school uniform and become a being from a horror game, living in a different time and light from the intruder.
No matter what the side effects might be.
'…Wait, hold on.'
So this tattoo doesn't just organize what's in my mind and show it to me?
It sorted out my contaminations so that I can 'take them out and use them' whenever I want? This is insane.
'It really was worth one-hundred sixty million won.'
Of course, whether I'll actually use it is another question, but the important thing is that, for now, my contaminations have been organized and I won't be swept away by them immediately.
'Good.'
I carefully straightened my clothes, being especially cautious not to touch the worn Gothic-looking letters that, no matter how I looked at it, seemed to belong to the Church of the Luminous Unknown's mimic.
Whether it was fortunate or not, a grand, gold, antique script and some words scrawled as if with little claws were inscribed even more prominently in the center.
'Mascot and… cat?'
A strange sense of familiarity came over me.
Were these two on my side?
…Anyway, for now, this incident seems to have settled down.
Huu.
"Would you like to proceed with your next purchase?"
The lizard asked, as if it had been waiting.
I looked again at the piece of the Church of the Luminous Unknown's scripture still on the table.
'I need to deal with that too.'
Like buying something I could use to store it safely, for example.
The problem was, I didn't have enough money left.
The best thing would be to rush to Daydream Inc. right now and sell it off, but as a spy, the timing wasn't right…
"If I finish shopping, do you think I might forget about that item again?"
"There is a statistical possibility."
Hm.
As the penniless wretch I am, I thought for a moment, then asked,
"Do you happen to offer a storage service?"
"Kim Soleum-ssi."
"..."
"Kim Soleum-ssi."
Huhk.
I opened my eyes.
A lizard was looking at me from across the table.
But this time, it wasn't gray.
"Section Chief."
"Yes."
White lizard head, red pupils. Section Chief Lee Jaheon was standing in front of me.
Huu.
"Did you experience any inconvenience during your VIP shopping?"
"No. It was very helpful…"
And then I saw it.
In front of Section Chief Lee Jaheon, a pink plush doll was now sitting on the table.
"...??"
Why is Braun here?
"Um, I thought I had… put that in my pocket."
"I set it aside so it wouldn't interfere with your shopping."
"..."
I asked, struggling,
"Section Chief, just asking, but… can you still hear Braun— I mean, the plushie?"
"Yes."
"But I can't hear him."
"I see."
"What… What's he saying?"
"Sighs, excessive excitement, criticism and threats."
Aaaagh!
"I determined it had no informational value."
"Y-Yes…"
Hurriedly, I carefully picked up the plushie from the table and returned it to my shirt's front pocket.
But at that moment.
– My goodness. Finally.
"…Braun?!"
– Mr. Roe Deer! Oh, we can speak again at last…
I quickly pulled the plush from my pocket and checked it.
But at that instant, the voice cut off.
'Huh?'
I put Braun back in my pocket.
– Mr. Roe Deer? Can you hear me?
Only one thing had changed.
'The tattoo on the left side of my chest.'
Could it be that, when Braun is near my tattoo, it counts as being inside a ghost story?
'Oh god.'
"Yeah. …It seems like, as long as I keep you here, we can keep talking."
– Near the heart, hm. How fateful! Excellent. I shall generously forgive you for leaving me alone with that crazy, boring fellow for a full 23 minutes, because I am a Good Friend.
– Now, hurry up and kick him out. Quickly.
"W-Wait."
I quickly soothed Braun, then spoke to Section Chief Lee Jaheon.
"Um, Section Chief… I saw someone who looked a lot like you while I was shopping."
"That was not Section Chief Lee Jaheon. However…"
"They are still part of the collective 'we', right?"
"Yes."
"Then, does that mean you already know everything I did?"
"Yes."
I asked a little awkwardly in return.
"So you know what I did at the very end, too?"
"You mean the item storage service request?"
That's right.
– I'd like you to store this item safely for me.
– Understood.
I entrusted the root of all evil—the Church of the Luminous Unknown's sacred law fragment—to the lizards… no, to the Space Shopping Mall.
'It seemed like it would be cheaper than removing it completely or buying an item to control it.'
And that expectation was correct.
…It was still hella expensive, though.
– The price is 8,999,990 won for 100 days, based on the planet you currently reside on.
– …Do you offer installment plans?
Installments, really.
I never thought I'd use a financial service I've never even tried in real life in a world of creepypastas…
'Still, Daydream Inc. would probably pay a higher price if they bought it, so this is probably for the best.'
When the time comes, I'll just find it and sell it right away.
Fortunately, according to Section Chief Lee Jaheon's explanation, I'll be able to retrieve it anytime.
The cell chip I put under my tongue had disappeared without a trace, but now, I can reactivate it by connecting to the Space Shopping Mall.
"Kim Soleum-ssi, you are now connected with us."
…I wanted to ask if that was also a kind of contamination, but since it didn't appear on my tattoo, I decided not to be rude. After all, he's someone who can squeeze steel with one hand.
He's also the one who always notices my contamination and takes care of it for me, and I'm grateful for that.
"I'm grateful. Thanks to you, I've come to my senses a bit."
"Yes. However, the choice is yours, Kim Soleum-ssi."
"…Do you think I made the right choice?"
The lizard's snout curved slightly.
"Yes."
"...!"
"You made a good choice."
Just as he's told me a few times before.
"..."
As expected.
When I was shopping earlier, the lizard had the same head and even spoke similarly, so I didn't notice, but seeing him in person like this, I could feel it.
'They're subtly different.'
How should I put it? With this lizard, you could feel intelligence and emotion, and there was personality, maybe… I'm not sure.
Of course, if those alien reptiles share a single mind and feeling, maybe I'm just projecting that difference onto Section Chief Lee Jaheon because I've built a connection with him.
'Honestly, I'm not even part of D-squad anymore, nor is it his responsibility, but he still looks after me.'
He probably does the same for my D-squad sunbaes, too.
He was a supervisor whose thoughts I was always curious about and whom I was grateful for in many ways.
"Thank you, Section Chief."
With another word of thanks, I escorted Section Chief Lee Jaheon out of the motel when our business was finished.
Instead of using the door, he quietly disappeared out the window.
– If any issues arise, please contact us.
That was the last thing he said.
"..."
– Is it over?
Yeah.
– Huu. Finally gone.
– By the way, don't you have any plans for us to leave this dreadful place too?
Hahaha.
"There is."
– Oh?
"I'm going to work tomorrow."
And by the way.
"I'm a spy infiltrating a government agency now."
– Show business, my goodness.