The train is arriving.
And I don't know how long the Exorcism Charm I'm holding will last.
All these circumstances point to one thing.
'Quickly!'
Descend to the platform via the stairs immediately.
"This way."
Deputy Lee Seong-hae, who has the best sense of direction, darted out almost instinctively and began retracing their steps.
I had it mapped out in my head too, and everyone else likely tried to remember it similarly, so no one got confused and we ran after her.
Breathing.
Footsteps.
...From far away, the vibration of the approaching train.
The path quickly drew closer. Only the sound of breaking through trees and fog echoed in the silence.
And finally, the stairs appeared. A clear view without fog. A path to send us somewhere else….
■ Exit Number
The stairs leading up.
...
...
I reflexively looked up. Various objects piled up as if madly in front of the lowered shutter. Dried bloodstains, all sorts of attempts to block any connection to the outside.
The stairs leading out to Segwang Metropolitan City. Wait. Just a moment. 'Why?' And then it hit me like a blow to the head.
"Etiquette...!" "...!!"
Segwang Station (Forest of the Dying) Etiquette 3. Running near the ticket gate leads you to the exit.
We ran as soon as we scanned our tickets at the ticket gate. Thus, we arrived at the 'exit.' My heart chilled. 'Why did no one remember?' With this many people, it's impossible that not a single person noticed this.
And then I realized. Even now, recalling it in shock... 'It's rapidly evaporating from my mind.' As if being permeated by fog.
'It's a gimmick.' The information on the notice board doesn't seem to stay in my mind for long. But there's no time for despair.
'Quickly,' we have to go back...! "Cheongdong-ah. Reorient!" "Yes." Wait. I quickly added, "Agent, do not look in the direction of the exit." "You don't know what you might see." "...Yes." After confirming Agent Bronze nodded, holding up the colored glass, I urgently checked my items. ...Half of the Exorcism Fragment I was holding was covered in black mold. The silk thread was rotting. '...It's gotten faster.' Coming to the exit by mistake must have had a negative impact. At this speed, the remaining time we could endure was probably... only about 5 to 10 minutes. 'Quickly.' "Found it. The ticket gate...!" "Okay. Let's not run this time." I moved my feet. Making sure neither foot left the ground, so it wouldn't register as running. Movement began again amidst extreme tension and concentration. Upon reaching the ticket gate, I immediately tracked the direction back into the station. I found the Transit Card Charger. Most of the Amulet Dried Pollack was covered in dark purple mold. I walked back the way I came from the charger. The silk thread around my ring finger snapped. The path I walked on became increasingly dizzyingly foggy... Drip. Cold sweat fell onto the amulet. The amulet was now almost unrecognizable. More than half of the threads on my fingers had snapped. 'Quickly.' Not being able to run felt like torture. The thought that I could run now crossed my mind, but having already triggered the rule once, I couldn't easily try it, so I kept walking. Walking. And. And... the stairs. The path down to the platform. "...!!" People descended the stairs, unable to breathe. Clutching the remaining thread connected to the Amulet Dried Pollack, I moved my feet. And. And... I broke free from the fog.
"..."
The moment I stepped onto the platform.
"Haaah..." "Hoo." People collapsed. 'We're alive.' The moment everyone felt the same intuition, the tension released, and a deep sense of relief spread through the atmosphere. I looked at the ceiling and gasped for breath. Then, as I lowered my head, I saw the single remaining silk thread.
I swallowed. 'I almost died.' [Oh, that was a thrilling exploration with a twist in the middle, friend!]
Yeah. Whatever a friend who gave me 100 million says is fine. And finally, a few jokes began to be exchanged among the people. "I thought we were dead when we came out the exit." "Hahaha!" "Glad we came down safely!" The subtle distance between the individuals from the two antagonistic groups, Daydream and the Disaster Management Bureau, seemed to have lessened. It seemed a strange sense of camaraderie had formed. [It's a very classic psychological phenomenon. The mechanism is a bit different, but it can be seen as similar to the suspension bridge effect!]
Yeah. 'Whatever is fine.' I felt like we could handle things without getting angry at each other even after leaving. "We should have a get-together after we leave. Didn't the public officials say they liked spicy tripe stew? How about it, do you like Korean beef too?" "Oh, you're killing me. Citizen." "Agent, please..." "The Old Man probably eats a pound of it too, so why are you holding back?" "...?!" "Can I come too?" "Of course."
Even though I knew they wouldn't actually have a company dinner, the conversation, meant to relieve tension and gather their spirits, went back and forth meaninglessly.
♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪
"It's coming." The signal that another train was arriving was picked up again.
'Does it come more often if there are passengers in the station?'
I don't know about the frequency, but it would be good if we could get out of here. Of course, whether this is a means to completely escape the ghost story remains to be seen... "There were people on the train. I hope it's connected to some other supernatural phenomenon. Right, Grape-ie?" "...Of course."
Anything is better than being in the middle of a World-ending Class... And also. "...We should also prepare for the possibility that the people on the train might not be normal." "Naturally." In fact, if the passengers on the train in the ghost story were involved, statistically, there was no ruling out the possibility that they too were contaminated humans.
The train is entering.
I see agents switching to anti-personnel gear and Daydream employees organizing their items. Among them, there are probably items that can't be used here, but are being maintained for appearance. 'I can't say that, being completely broke myself.' I suppressed a sigh, looking at the Amulet Dried Pollack swaying in my sweat-drenched hand. It was already almost ruined.
100 million for five lives isn't bad, but still, thinking of it as disposable...
Thump. "..." I watched it fall to the floor. The Persimmon Tree Fragment, covered in mold, lay there, crushed into an unrecognizable shape. The last silk thread, dangling from my hand, had snapped and fallen. The amulet was completely. Ruined. "..." "Wait. Noruya, that..." It can't be ruined simply by weight. Because it's an item... ...Which means. It had been acting as an amulet until the moment it snapped.
"..." I stiffly turned my head towards the platform stairs. ...The fog that had spilled out from the lobby was flowing down the passage. 'Ah.' That's right. The lobby is part of the subway station. Being counted as a passenger at the station. Means they knew of our existence at this station... enough to chase us. But the reason we weren't chased all the way to the platform until now was that the amulet was blocking their presence. But now that it's snapped. "Back." The next moment. The fog, pouring down the stairs, completely covered the platform. "...!!" The platform, shrouded in fog, widened to an eerie extent, and tree shadows began to appear.
Hanging Corpses.... Nooses without bodies.
-A new body has been discovered in ■■■ Forest, notorious as a suicide hotspot. This body is a set of five unidentified male and female corpses, hanging themselves side-by-side from trees near the subway connection tunnel.
-According to eyewitness accounts, they are presumed to have made an extreme choice after giving up on boarding the subway train. The last conversation they had was...
-Don't you want to give up too?
"Evade." I ducked my head. I tried to grab the shoulder of the person next to me, but again, all I grasped was a corpse. I quickly brushed it off.
"Everyone towards the platform screen doors!" Fortunately, I can hear. And in the fog, a trail of blue flames flickered, and a bell-like sound was heard. A presence that repelled the fog. "Here!" I rushed towards it. As I got closer, I saw a silhouette in the fog. Agent Choi near the platform screen door!
"Passengers, please observe etiquette and board safely."
"As soon as the train doors open..."
Hook
"...Agent?"
Just now. Didn't Agent Choi just get caught by a noose before my eyes and dangle upwards into the tree? Huh? What is this...? Why did it suddenly become like this? This was clearly a ghost story that lured victims, so since we were registered as historical users, there was no need to lure us? Did the dam that the amulet was blocking break and pour out? Did we break etiquette? No...
Just now.
Did they die? Did they die... "Damn it." ...Deputy! I barely regained my senses and pushed through the fog, searching for a voice. Deputy, that is, around here...
Hook.
Another figure being pulled up, caught by a noose. Disappearing into the fog.
-Don't you want to give up too?
I froze. '...Ah.' The platform was now completely covered by trees and fog. Could everything I just saw be a hallucination? A hallucination? Because it's impossible for two people to suddenly die like this, so... But other presences... "Agent Grape!" Agent Bronze. "Agent." Silhouettes approaching me. Deputy Lee Seong-hae is also visible beside them. Deputy Lee Seong-hae held up the Glow-in-the-dark Star Sticker stuck to the back of her hand, and the light revealed the inside of the fog slightly. We were almost right next to the platform screen door. The light from the open train door was faintly visible beyond the fog. "Get in immediately...!" This time. I saw it. The noose that sprang out of the fog caught Agent Bronze's neck and pulled him upwards. He was reeled up into the fog. "...!" I reflexively grabbed his lower body. At the same time, Deputy Lee Seong-hae grabbed his feet. But it was useless. Because it was around his neck. With unimaginable pressure, the noose slipped from my grasp and pulled upwards.
Snap. Only the sound of a neck breaking was heard.
"..." The platform screen door closes.
I threw myself towards the train. My confused mind couldn't reach a proper conclusion and spun wildly. Escape, is this escape? Is there nothing I can do? It's already too late...! And this time, I saw it. Illuminated by the light of the Glow-in-the-dark Star Sticker held up by Deputy Lee Seong-hae as she ran, a rope descending from the fog was visible.
A noose. It was one of our turns. 'No.' I shoved Deputy Lee Seong-hae next to me into the closing train door as if throwing her.
At the same time.
-Don't you want to give up too?
A noose also caught my neck and pulled. Hook. Pain. Pressure. Suffocation.... Death. Blackout.
+++ Would you like to continue? +++
"Hah!" "Agent!" Ryu Jaegwan opened his eyes. He was gasping for breath, and the intense pain and tightness he felt in his neck and the shock reverberated in his chest and body. He tried to raise his hand to touch his neck, but someone stopped him. "Calm down. This is Headquarters!" ...Headquarters? He suddenly focused. A modern space with gold cords and talismans. A bed, the smell of disinfectant and rice... The Disaster Management Bureau's contamination ward. "..." He finally released the strength in his hand. The medical staff looking at him breathed a sigh of relief and said, 'A nightmare?' Is that possible? Did I have a nightmare as a type of supernatural disaster? Then, from where did the nightmare begin? Is the place I am now actually a dream... "I told you not to use the well as a passage anymore! You insisted on using it... Everyone who used it has been unconscious for two days. Agent Bronze is the first one to wake up now." "..." "Agent Choi definitely didn't tell you to use it..." "Wait, quick, just a moment." Ryu Jaegwan asked urgently, "Did the well work?" "It worked! Suddenly, supernatural disasters and Daydream employees all lost consciousness and appeared in the Main Building, causing chaos." "..." "Moreover, it seemed artificial that everyone was unconscious, and it was definitely because they were all caught in some strange supernatural phenomenon... Agent?" Agent Bronze grabbed his neck again. '...My voice isn't coming out well.' And there's a strange stuffiness, and it feels like auditory hallucinations are attached... like a noose. "Are you alright? We have a detailed examination scheduled, but..." "Yes." Although there seemed to be strange pain, body tremors, and peculiar after-effects... I survived.
'I didn't die.'
That's how I realized it.
The reason they could connect to Segwang Metropolitan City, a space unrecognized and erased from reality.
It was a dream.
Through the well, they had entered Segwang Metropolitan City in their dreams.
And...
"Ah, everyone seems to be regaining consciousness. However... only one Daydream employee remains unconscious."
We left one person behind.