Chapter 23: Closed Gallery
I once saw a movie a long time ago.
It was about a protagonist stuck in a time loop, who kept trying to solve something through each repetition.
And now, I felt like I had become that movie's protagonist.
Clang!
Jang Chae-yeon deflected the slash aimed at Yu Daon's neck with her telekinesis.
Clang! Clang!
However, faced with an endless barrage of slashes, Yu Daon eventually let out a sigh and stepped back.
"This isn't going to work."
"..."
Jang Chae-yeon made a gloomy expression.
It was an expression that looked as if her pride had been stabbed right in the core.
And for good reason.
She'd already caused two accidents in the short time we'd been here.
Clap, clap. As I started clapping, both of their gazes turned to me.
"Let's try finding another way."
There's no point in stubbornly clinging to something that isn't working.
It's better to quickly abandon it and find a different path.
"What have we even tried so far?"
"...Following the manual and circling around once, making a hole in the wall, trying to force our way up."
"Right."
Naturally, the first thing we did was follow the manual.
Although the thing that broke my back in half didn't appear at all then.
We circled around two or three times like that, but we kept ending up in the same place.
Next was breaking the wall.
Jang Chae-yeon broke the wall until her nose bled, but nothing came of it.
I'd hoped there might be some space behind the wall, but instead of a space, an endless stream of concrete poured out, so we gave up.
Finally, dodging the blades.
The incredible spectacle Yu Daon and Jang Chae-yeon had been putting on until just now.
The plan was to dodge the blades to the end, send Yu Daon up, and wait for rescue.
The conclusion, as you can see, is that it's impossible because there's a limit to how many blades they can block.
"...I'm out of ideas."
Yu Daon sat down on the stairs with a tired expression.
"..."
Now Jang Chae-yeon's expression was going beyond her core and heading somewhere else.
As always, the thinking ended up being my responsibility.
"I'll think about it for a bit."
I started piecing together the information.
This is a place that can only be passed through by following the manual.
Ultimately, the three of us ended up trapped here because we failed to follow the manual, according to this very manual.
However, there's a slight logical flaw in saying this phenomenon was created by the manual.
Fundamentally, what is a manual?
A manual is like a guideline.
'If you don't follow the manual, something terrible will happen.'
The reason is the horrific outcome that occurs when the manual isn't followed.
A prime example would be what happens if someone, in a non-human state during the Butterfly Dream Incident, touches the iron door on the first basement level.
In other words, when the manual isn't followed, an irreversible event occurs.
If this were truly a standard Management Bureau-style manual, the moment Jang Chae-yeon nodded, her head should have flown off and only Jang / Chae-yeon should have remained in that spot. Or at least, an equivalent event should have occurred.
I looked at the manual's title again.
[Manual for Those Who Failed to Follow the Manual]
It shouldn't end this gently.
Such a manual shouldn't have existed in the first place. Instead of a punitive manual, there should have been a hint of a consequence like, 'If you break this, you may be trapped forever.'
'The information contamination intensifies the further you proceed, resulting in many casualties. Therefore, the Management Bureau has decided to implement new measures.'
What if the manual I'm looking at itself is fake? What if the information has already been contaminated?
Then what should I believe?
What else? My own eyes.
I looked around the basement again.
[Name: Basement]
[Age: - ]
[Trait: Repetitive]
[Talent: - ]
[Background: Why on earth do madmen who want to try art using humans exist everywhere? Even though those who blame their lack of aesthetic sense on their materials can never achieve greatness, he set up a workshop to prove his stubbornness.]
[Weakness: This space will disappear along with the disappearance of its owner.]
Let's think about the basement.
It disappears along with the owner's disappearance.
So, the best method is for us to find the owner and take them out.
The problem is that we don't even know if the owner is here or not.
The idea of finding and taking out an owner whose very existence is unknown is too much of a leap, no matter how I think about it.
In this current state, the weakness is the most clear, but also the most unrealistic.
The weakness being like this is the problem.
"..."
I read the text carefully.
Art. Material. Workshop.
Art museum.
An idea flashed through my mind like lightning.
I shot upright, and a glimmer of hope returned to Yu Daon and Jang Chae-yeon's eyes.
"Did you get a good idea?"
"I did."
"Is it freefall again?"
"No. Instead, let's go break some artwork."
The two tilted their heads.
*
Eventually, the three of us were standing in front of the starting room again.
"Listen carefully."
I gathered them and began explaining.
"Our goal is simple. We go into that room and destroy everything we see."
"Just break it all?"
"Yes."
"Including the ones doing the Ganggangsullae?"
"We'll focus on breaking those."
"Huh?"
Yu Daon tilted her head but soon nodded as if she understood.
"If Jae-heon has an idea, he must have one."
"...Both of you, get down on the floor the moment we go in."
And there was one person burning with fighting spirit like crazy.
Hope had returned to Jang Chae-yeon's eyes. It was the expression of someone who had finally found her chance to shine.
I opened the door.
The same darkness as before.
"Do we really get down as soon as we go in?"
"Yes."
Jang Chae-yeon widened her eyes and nodded.
Swept up by her intensity, Yu Daon and I just rolled our eyes, looked at each other, shrugged our shoulders, and said nothing.
"I'll go first."
As if it were natural by now, Yu Daon took the lead and stepped into the darkness.
"...Then I'll go."
"Okay. See you inside."
I followed Yu Daon and walked in.
The moment I entered, the familiar darkness I'd seen about three times now spread out.
I immediately jumped to the right and dropped to the floor.
Soon, all hell broke loose.
Boom!
Thud!
Crash!
An overwhelming force swept through the interior.
Miscellaneous items inside flew everywhere.
"Ugha, ughe?"
"Aah~~!"
The things that had been doing the Ganggangsullae were literally 'torn apart.'
It was worthy of being called a storm.
I got scared too and covered my head with both arms.
It must have been a good three minutes before the storm finally stopped.
"..."
I looked around.
There was nothing left in sight.
Should I go out?
Bent halfway over, hoping desperately that nothing would happen, I stepped outside with short, careful steps. There stood Jang Chae-yeon, drenched in sweat, and Yu Daon fanning her with her hand.
"...Did we do it?"
"It seems so."
Jang Chae-yeon leaned against the wall and took a deep breath.
Her white hair, wet with sweat, gave off an oddly alluring feeling.
I probably shouldn't be looking.
I turned my gaze away, and after Jang Chae-yeon's breathing had calmed down a bit, I spoke again.
"Let's go."
We passed the familiar operating room and stood before the stairs where Yu Daon's head had been severed at least twice.
"...Shall we go?"
Yu Daon asked anxiously while touching her own neck.
"Not yet."
I stepped forward and drew my gun.
Let's assume this place is an art gallery.
The reason an art gallery can exist as an art gallery is because it contains artworks.
Conversely, if the artworks disappear from the art gallery, it can no longer be called an art gallery.
We just destroyed two artworks.
But one remains.
The actual threats in this place were three.
First, the madmen doing the Ganggangsullae.
Second, the madman who thinks he's a doctor.
Third,
I looked at the stairwell landing where Yu Daon's head had flown off.
[Critical: 1 -> 0]
The world turned black and white, revealing the existence hidden in the stairwell landing.
A giant human with a grotesquely twisted face.
Clad in rags, it held a massive axe in its hand.
[Name: Executioner]
[Age: Manufactured 5 years ago]
[Trait: x]
[Talent: Axe Swinging]
[Background: This thing guarding the basement accurately and cleanly severs the necks of those trying to escape in the darkness.]
[Weakness: Be fast, or be strong.]
Its glabella glowed bright red.
Bang!
Without hesitation, I fired the gun, and the bullet pierced its glabella.
Thud!
With a loud noise, the massive body tumbled down the stairwell landing.
Crumble...
A sound of something crumbling was heard, and the three of us were standing in the middle of the familiar Management Bureau subway.
"...Whew."
It's finally over.
As I was breathing a sigh of relief, Jang Chae-yeon suddenly bowed her head deeply.
"...I'm sorry."
She seemed really bothered by it.
"Because of me, something that could have ended easily took a long time. I really have no words."
"Well, it's..."
Still, thanks to her, we did easily take care of the Ganggangsullae dancers.
"I'll make it up to you. If you really want, you can even hit me."
Where would I even hit her?
Before I could even get a word in, Jang Chae-yeon kept her head bowed.
The only place with a large surface area is her chest.
"It's oka—"
"I think that's acceptable."
Yu Daon cut me off and spoke up.
"..."
"In times like this, it's best to end it cleanly. Be cool about it!"
"Ah. Okay."
Yu Daon looked at Jang Chae-yeon and reached out her hand.
"Stand up straight."
"...Okay."
Jang Chae-yeon closed her eyes.
I've seen this scene a lot.
Usually, at this point, Yu Daon would hug Jang Chae-yeon and say, "It's okay," and the friendship between the two women would deepen—
Before my thought could even finish, Yu Daon swung her arm around and then drove her fist straight into the top of Jang Chae-yeon's head at a right angle.
Wham!
"Gack!"
With a sound like something breaking, Jang Chae-yeon let out a noise no human should make, grabbed her head, and crouched down.
"Be more careful next time."
"...Yehheh..."
Yu Daon clenched and unclenched her fist, her eyes flashing, while tears welled up in Jang Chae-yeon's eyes.
She must have had quite a bit built up.
Yeah, I get it. Even I would probably feel like that if there was someone who tore off my arm, ripped my side, and twisted my neck 180 degrees.
Anyway, like this, once again, we survived.
*
"...So, by the way, what happens if I quit?"
"What kind of talk is that?"
Team Leader dropped the coffee he was drinking.
[Name: Heo Chan]
[Age: 49]
[Trait: Complacency]
[Talent: Crisis Detection]
[Background: Living as the family breadwinner, he was working overtime today for his family's next meal when he faced the crisis of losing his job.]
[Weakness: Let's just keep going like this.]
"If you quit, I'll die."
"What can I do about that?"
"...Al-, alright. I'll assign you to desk work. I'll assign you, so please don't do that."
It looks like I'll be able to rest for a while.
As I was thinking happily, a radio broadcast flowed into my ears.
<The musical 'Red Lady' is recently gaining explosive popularity, becoming a nationwide hit. It is setting the highest records in South Korean history—>