---

I thought it would be a bit cooler once we passed the art museum.

“…”

I wiped the unpleasant sweat from my forehead with my sleeve.

“Everyone, it’s hot, right?”

“Hot.”

“Yup.”

“I’m… the same as before.”

Sure enough, Jang Chae Yeon and Song Ah Rin both complained about the heat, while Yu Da On seemed blissfully unaware of the sweltering temperature.

We wandered aimlessly through the dimly lit art museum.

Of course, we weren’t just wandering.

As we passed by, I tapped the shoulders of the people I saw.

“Excuse me.”

“…”

A man gazed at a sculpture with an entranced expression.

“Could you stand up, please?”

“…”

A woman chuckled while staring at a painting covered in black paint.

“Can you hear me?”

“…”

An old man knelt and prayed, tears streaming down his face.

None of them paid me any mind.

It felt like my presence was entirely disregarded.

“Doesn’t connect.”

Song Ah Rin interrupted my thought, shaking her head.

“It’s like our words don’t even register.”

“It certainly feels that way.”

Then I should just burn the painting—

No.

A translucent window flickered into my mind.

[Name: Landscape]

[Engraving, colored with sadness and darkness.]

[100×100 cm]

I searched for the golden lettering engraved next to the painting.

<'Darkness' is a painting much coveted by many.>

<This painting hints at a for the onlooker.>

<As countless people gaze upon it, they dream of their and nurture hope.>

My eyes started to feel strange.

To be precise, it felt more like I had forgotten how to function properly.

Even when I opened the manual, there wasn’t much help offered.

“Do you know where this place is?”

Ultimately, I had no choice but to ask the manual.

– Thwack!

The manual opened up.

[Office Staff Manual]

[KM – When you don’t know where you are]

1. While living in the management agency, there will naturally be times when you don’t know where you are.

2. In such cases, calmly look around, then determine where you need to go.

3. It may seem irresponsible to say, but trust your instincts during these times.

4. Instincts are one of the legacies from our ancestors that have kept us from extinction. Of course, there may be times when they betray you, but they’ve also saved you before.

5. Please wait a moment. It may take time; it doesn’t mean you haven’t found the answer.

I don’t need to explain that.

Instincts, huh.

If I had to choose the person with the best instincts here…

“Chae Yeon.”

“Yup.”

Jang Chae Yeon, glancing around beside me, turned her gaze toward me.

“What’s up?”

“Can you help me find the way?”

A flicker of confusion crossed Jang Chae Yeon’s face.

“I don’t know the way.”

“I do.”

Her confusion deepened.

“But…?”

“Just go with your feelings.”

After staring at me intently, Jang Chae Yeon sighed quietly and nodded, leading the way.

“…Can I really trust her?”

Following behind, Song Ah Rin asked with concern.

“Of course, while Chae Yeon has good instincts…”

Yu Da On trailed off as well.

“Let’s go.”

If I had to choose the person with the best instincts among us, it would be either me or Jang Chae Yeon.

What weighed on my mind, though, was…

“…”

I looked around.

The newly painted picture depicted countless people screaming as they strangled themselves in front of a faceless priest.

[Name: Proof of God]

[Watercolor, colored using fanaticism in faith.]

[100×90 cm]

I examined the golden letters inscribed once again.

<'Absence' is proof for many…>

This time it was clear the description I was reading didn’t match what I saw.

The artwork in front of the tearful and prostrated people had an entirely different description attached to it.

Conversely, other written pieces, like landscapes and such, depicted far more grotesque expressions than I had expected.

“…”

As Jang Chae Yeon continued walking in front, she turned to meet my gaze.

“Based on my instinct, it’s this way.”

Here?

I raised my head to look around.

Initially, I hadn’t even thought there were many people in this corridor, but the lack of them here was even more pronounced.

Like the first place we came to, there were no traces of people.

“This painting really… um…”

I watched the painting before me.

A multitude of people was clustered together like a whirlwind.

Those who formed the single whirlwind were solely focused on creating it with blind expressions.

A translucent window floated above the painting.

[Name: Whirlwind]

[Pastel painting, point emphasized with tears on leather canvas]

[200 X 80 cm]

I began to read the text written in gold.

<'Whirlwind' expresses a maelstrom of anxiety and loneliness.>

<In this piece, while the figures may seem close as they fall into darkness or are trapped in a vortex, they each exude a sense of isolation that prevents them from truly connecting.>

<Though they are labeled 'companions,' each person’s expression is one of experiencing solitude in the same space, revealing the repetitive isolation of a life they cannot escape.>

“…”

I examined the painting closely.

Among the multitude in the whirlwind, familiar faces of Yu Da On, Jang Chae Yeon, Song Ah Rin, and myself bore the same blind expressions as we were swept away with the others.

“…That’s us, isn’t it?”

Yu Da On murmured, while Song Ah Rin wrinkled her brow in disgust.

“This feels awful.”

“…”

The painting that Chae Yeon chose. And the people within this painting, including myself.

What had I overlooked?

My eyes and the painting’s description…

“…Ah.”

This time, it matched.

I gazed at the translucent window again.

The name of the painting hovering above it was ‘Whirlwind.’

The name written here is also ‘Whirlwind.’

The names matched.

Was that why we were depicted in the painting?

-Thwack!

It was then that the manual, which had been silent until now, finally unfolded automatically, revealing its pages.

[Containment Object – Dream Within a Dream – Isolation Team Kim Heon Young Revised Edition]

[This object is where the Isolation Team first fell when encountering Aestheticism, and future information is fragmentary, so it should be viewed with some caution.]

1. When within this object, it is essential to have a clear judgment of where you are.

2. Paradoxically, to wake from a dream, you must delve deeper into the dream and completely realize that you are dreaming.

3. An extreme remedy, but the quickest way to awaken from the dream is death.

4. However, confusion between dream and reality can lead to suicide, so caution is advised.

5. Dream Within a Dream is a game conducted by all. If even one person can escape, everyone trapped in Dream Within a Dream will awaken.

“…”

I looked at the manual, then toward one person.

“Uh, what’s up, Jae Heon?”

“Can we have a quick chat.”

Yu Da On tilted her head in confusion as she looked at me.

*

I took Yu Da On to a corner.

“I guess this is something you two can’t do?”

Yu Da On smiled faintly, ensuring that Jang Chae Yeon and Song Ah Rin were out of sight before turning to me.

“What can I help you with? Honestly, I had a feeling you’d call me aside from the moment you did.”

“…Sorry about that.”

“Oh no! I actually like it.”

“Really?”

Like it? What do you mean?

“…I’m grateful that you’re letting me do something only I can.”

Yu Da On smiled softly.

“…”

“Anyway! Please just tell me quickly!”

“Oh, sure. Thank you.”

I slightly bowed my head and explained the situation to Yu Da On.

From start to finish, she simply listened to my explanation, then exclaimed brightly,

“Sounds good!”

She nodded with a bright voice.

“Are you sure about this?”

“As I’ve said many times before.”

Yu Da On raised her index finger, smiling.

“I can die hundreds of times for you, Jae Heon.”

“…Thank you.”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

Yu Da On laughed and held onto the gun in my hand.

“Okay, so now I just shoot myself, right?”

“…That’s correct.”

“…”

She looked at me with a slight smile.

Her bright grin bloomed on her face, and,

“Then I’ll do it?”

Yu Da On aimed the gun at her temple.

-Bang!

She pulled the trigger.

Blood splattered, and she collapsed.

“…”

Moments later, as if nothing had happened, Yu Da On stood up.

“…Da On?”

“I’m fine!”

She smiled lightly and dusted off her legs.

“Right now, I don’t feel anything different. Maybe not yet…? It doesn’t seem like we can escape just yet.”

Yu Da On furrowed her brows.

“Understood.”

So, does that mean this is still reality?

While I was pondering that,

[Critical: 0 -> 1]

A translucent window suddenly appeared, throwing me further into confusion.

Did I comprehend something?

What exactly?

It felt like I knew nothing.

“…”

No, for now, let’s make proper use of what’s in front of me.

I stepped out from the corner, approaching Jang Chae Yeon and Song Ah Rin.

Jang Chae Yeon and Song Ah Rin glanced at me, then looked away from the gun in my hand.

“Chae Yeon.”

“…Yup.”

‘Paradoxically, to wake from a dream, you must delve deeper into the dream and completely realize that you are dreaming.’

I nodded towards the painting, and Jang Chae Yeon nodded back.

[Coordinate Tear: 2 uses remaining]

Once again, the world transforms into a grid.

This time, it was yet another grotesquely distorted painting.

Jang Chae Yeon reached out,

-Thwack!

With a refreshing sound, the painting tore apart.

As I gazed through the painting, it revealed another art museum.

The difference this time? We weren’t sucked in.

The heat felt even more lukewarm than before.

“…It’s hot…”

Song Ah Rin muttered, and Jang Chae Yeon nodded.

“It’s not really that hot…”

And then I noticed the flustered Yu Da On.

“Let’s go.”

We stepped beyond the painting.