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“Be careful.”

“…Uh.”

At Jang Chae Yeon’s words, Song Ah Rin nodded and began to walk cautiously, avoiding the areas where light shone.

Unlike usual, there was less annoyance in her voice, and Song Ah Rin turned to look at her again. Jang Chae Yeon, receiving her gaze, tilted her head as their eyes met.

“Why?”

“…Nothing.”

Watching the two talk, I turned my gaze to the wall.

On the wall were people who had become trees.

Though their postures were all different, the commonality was that they all wore expressions of great pain.

“Da On, be careful over there.”

“Ah, thank you.”

As long as I avoided the places where light shined, it was not too much of a problem.

But it didn’t seem like this was going to end here.

“…Da On, you don’t hear any sounds or anything, right?”

“Sounds?”

“Yeah, like, go toward the light…”

“Um, no?”

Yu Da On replied with a puzzled head tilt.

“I haven’t heard any sounds yet.”

“Got it. If you happen to hear anything, make sure to let me know.”

“Okay.”

No matter what happens, stay in the darkness.

In other words, it meant there was something that needed to be escaped from in the dark.

“What’s the Management Agency doing? They’re not catching these things.”

“It’s a mutual non-aggression pact.”

Jang Chae Yeon responded calmly to my murmuring.

“We don’t call using people as materials a mutual non-aggression pact.”

“You’re right. But there’s something you’re overlooking.”

“Yeah?”

“If the damage is too severe, the Management Agency will step in and crush it immediately.”

“Crush it?”

“Think of the last flood.”

As if it had been promised, Song Ah Rin began to speak, following up on my question.

“When accidents happen at the same time right in front of us, if one incident kills 10 people and another kills 1,000, naturally, we’ll have to focus more on the incident where 1,000 people die.”

“…”

“Of course, if we deploy the branch chief to capture them, eventually we might be able to catch the aestheticists.”

“That’s possible.”

It feels just like our side has asymmetric power.

“But there aren’t only one incident happening in the world. Honestly, there aren’t that many branch chiefs.”

“That too… is true.”

“So this is like an implicit agreement between the Management Agency and them.”

“…An agreement.”

“If the Management Agency fights with all its might or fights while preparing for their operations to be paralyzed, then they too will eventually face consequences.”

“…”

“And they know that, and so far have not crossed the line.”

“But you never know when they might go crazy and cause a big accident.”

“That’s right. So the Management Agency is keeping it in mind…”

“…”

As she listened to Song Ah Rin’s words, Jang Chae Yeon clenched her fist tightly, digging her nails in, and seeing this, Song Ah Rin muttered.

“It’s not easy.”

“…”

“Shh.”

Yu Da On, who was walking ahead, hurriedly reached out her hand towards us as if to signal us to be quiet.

-Clatter.

A clattering sound began to be heard.

We quickly looked around.

Somewhere to hide…

In the dark, the four of us hid behind the carved wooden figures in unison.

A bright light began to approach from the distance.

“…Light?”

I squinted, trying to see the source of the light.

It was a wooden doll.

It was the size of an average adult man, with a flashlight mounted where its head should be.

It roamed around, shining its light here and there as if on patrol.

Soon, a translucent window appeared above its head.

[Name: Patrol Squad]

[Age: Created 3 years ago]

[Specialty: Light]

[Talent: X]

[Background: These objects tasked with patrolling the Hall of Darkness are akin to key figures who have created more than half of the artworks.]

[Weakness: Destroy the flashlight on its head.]

Just by touching that light, one would become a piece of art.

Should I shoot it?

But if I do that, and it calls for the guides, things will get even messier.

I need a way to quietly finish this.

I glanced around at the other three.

They were all focused on me as if waiting for my orders.

“Da On, pass the awl to Chae Yeon.”

I whispered to Yu Da On, the closest to me.

At my words, Yu Da On took out the awl and rolled it toward Jang Chae Yeon, and I gestured to her by pretending to poke my head with a finger.

Jang Chae Yeon nodded as if she understood and reached out with the awl.

Soon, the awl floated in the air and shot toward the flashlight’s head at a tremendous speed.

The flashlight turned its head abruptly upon hearing the sound, but—

-Smack!

With a dull thud of something colliding, the glass shattered and flew up, and the wooden body slowly collapsed to the floor.

-Thud.

There was no sound of something breaking or exploding.

“…It’s surprisingly easy.”

“Yeah, right.”

I couldn’t help but agree with Song Ah Rin’s words. I didn’t expect it to fall so quickly.

“Ah. Could it be because of the awl?”

While we were huddled together, Yu Da On clapped her hands and skipped over to pull the stuck awl back out.

“Look! Even after Chae Yeon shot it with that much force, it didn’t break or bend at all!”

Following Yu Da On’s lead, I looked at the awl.

Indeed, it showed no sign of bending, let alone a scratch.

I looked again at the translucent window that had popped up.

[Name: Awl]

[Age: Created 20 years ago]

[Specialty: Piercing]

[Talent: -]

[Background: The man pondered while making an object. In my opinion, the awl is too soft. Let’s make a sharper one.]

[Weakness: He entrusted this awl to a trustworthy person.]

Come to think of it, didn’t a man’s figure appear in the background when looking in the mirror?

I recalled the background of the mirror.

[Background: How can I make people happy? He was tormented by this thought all day long. Eventually, he reached a conclusion. I should create a mirror that can show what people desire.]

So, could it be that the creator of the mirror and the awl is the same person?

The one who showed me the past and future and sent the awl to Yu Da On is the same person?

At that moment, the translucent window appeared before my eyes.

[Critical: 0->1]

“…”

Does this mean that the one who gave this was not human, or was related to a containment object, or perhaps even the containment object itself?

For now, there must be a reason for giving this to Yu Da On.

I looked at Yu Da On and spoke.

“Please take good care of this for me, Da On.”

“Yes!”

I watched as Yu Da On carefully tucked away the awl and started reading the manual again.

[Manual for Office Staff]

[Exhibition Hall 1 – Hall of Love and Darkness]

8. If you pass through the Hall of Darkness, you will enter Exhibition Hall 2.

8-1. Sometimes, all the lights in the Hall of Darkness may turn on. In this case, refer to [T-Suicide Method] before it’s too late.

8-2. The exit of the Hall of Darkness may vary, but they all pass through a tree where many people bloom. At this moment, you may find acquaintances among those in the trees. These acquaintances are never real, or even if they are real, there is nothing you can do about it, so you must ignore them.

“…Ah.”

Before I could relay that information, Jang Chae Yeon had already stopped and covered my mouth with her hand as she muttered.

“…Sister.”

“Sister?”

Did Jang Chae Yeon have a sister?

I clearly remember her saying she was an only child during the Cube incident.

Frowning as I was about to call her, Jang Chae Yeon turned around and urgently shouted at me.

“My sister is over there. Help her!”

I looked in the direction she was pointing.

It was a giant wooden statue.

Inside the round wooden sphere, many people were encased, all reaching out toward the light shining down from above.

Like people running toward the sun, they were all gazing at the ceiling lit by the spotlight, and above all—

-Skiiiii…

A horrific sound echoed.

It sounded like someone scratching a chalkboard with their nails.

“Ugh…”

My face involuntarily grimaced as I covered my ears.

“What is this…”

“Sister!”

Jang Chae Yeon lunged forward while pulling away, and Yu Da On grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her back, causing the two to tumble to the ground.

“Chae Yeon! Snap out of it!”

“Sister! Sister!”

“…Chae Yeon, there’s no sister over there.”

“No! She’s over there…! Look…! With such a painful expression—”

Jang Chae Yeon began to tremble her hands as she was pulled by Yu Da On, moving her body this way and that.

“Chae Yeon.”

I began to speak in a calm voice.

“Those over there don’t have any faces.”

“…”

Jang Chae Yeon’s movements stopped.

“…Let’s go.”

Yu Da On, watching that scene, took hold of Jang Chae Yeon’s wrist and led her away. Jang Chae Yeon, still looking stunned, was being pulled by Yu Da On as she moved her feet.

“Da On.”

“Yes?”

“Do you hear or see anything from over there?”

“Uh…”

Yu Da On looked toward the tree and shook her head.

“I can see and hear, but it’s a voice I’ve never heard from a person I’ve never seen.”

“Really?”

“So… frankly, I don’t feel anything.”

With a chuckle, Yu Da On awkwardly smiled.

“How about you, Song Ah Rin?”

“I…”

Song Ah Rin looked at the tree and placed her hand on her temple.

In a moment, her previously shaken expression regained composure.

“I can see something, but I’m okay.”

“…Understood.”

I nodded at her words and looked at Jang Chae Yeon, who still had a dazed expression as she stared at the tree.

“Chae Yeon.”

“Yeah.”

“Every artwork here poses a challenge to the mind.”

If it were a direct mental attack, there would at least be a way to block it.

This place torments based on people’s traumas or their past and future, leaving no means to guard against it.

What a malicious setup.

“…”

As Yu Da On led Jang Chae Yeon away, I also took care of Song Ah Rin and moved along.

Soon enough, a bright path appeared.

A path lined with lush greenery unfolded,

and the manual began to open again.

-Swish!

[Manual for Office Staff]

[Exhibition Hall 2 – Hall of Nature]

[Welcome to the Hall of Nature. Numerous natures and life forms blended with nature will greet you.]

1. Remember, all living beings you see here, apart from you and your companions, are not human.

-Splash, splash.

Footsteps were heard as someone approached.

“…Me?”

Jang Chae Yeon murmured, looking up at the person in front of us.

With her hair soaking wet, she stood before us.

[Name: Jang Chae Yeon]

[Age: X]

[Specialty: X]

[Talent: Psychokinesis]

[Background: This is not Jang Chae Yeon.]

[Weakness: Shoot her head.]

As she reached out, I pulled out my gun and shot.

-Squelch!

-Bang!

The thing resembling Jang Chae Yeon reached out, and in that instant, the bullet pierced its forehead—

“Ugh!”

Song Ah Rin, who was beside me, screamed in pain as her right arm twisted grotesquely, clutching her arm and kneeling down.

“Song Ah Rin!”

“Hey, Mel! The front!”

Song Ah Rin gritted her teeth and yelled, kicking me as her brows furrowed,

and another Jang Chae Yeon-like monster with its hand outstretched fell limp with its neck half twisted.

“…Huff…”

Jang Chae Yeon, her face pallid, locked eyes with me as she extended her arm.

-Splash, splash.

Footsteps were heard.