chapter_0584

584 – Ginin

584 – Ginin

A massive hole was created by Saebyeok’s punch.

At this point, it couldn’t be considered that the door had been opened.

‘…That makes sense, right?’

I hurriedly checked the rulebook.

The rules were densely written on an A4-sized sheet of paper.

– The door opens automatically. Wait until then.

Creeeak-!

As soon as I confirmed the rules, the wooden door began to slowly open.

Then, with a loud thud, it collapsed.

I couldn’t tell if the door had opened according to the rules or if it had fallen due to Saebyeok’s punch breaking the hinges.

“Hmm…”

In situations like this, it’s better to maintain a positive mindset.

I read the rulebook again, thinking that the door must have opened automatically.

– Look to the left when you exit based on the door.

Never look to the right.

That thing is watching us.

If we make eye contact, it’s all over.

Is there a monster on the right side of the door?

Thinking that a monster was watching us made me scared.

But as long as we don’t make eye contact, we should be fine.

I informed the kids of what was written in the rulebook.

“Hey, everyone, we have to look only to the left when we go out. And once we’re in the hallway, don’t look back.”

“Okay…!”

“Huff…”

We stood in a line in front of the door.

Before going out, I turned around to check on the kids.

Everyone was looking to the left, except for Gaeul, who was looking up at the sky.

“Gaeul, that’s the right side.”

“Guae?!”

“Yeah. The left side is this way.”

After turning Gaeul’s head to the left, we passed through the narrow door in a line.

Naturally, we placed our hands on each other’s shoulders like a train, keeping our eyes fixed on the left hallway.

“Saebyeok, how’s it behind us?”

“It’s fine.”

Saebyeok had the most important role among us.

Being at the very back, she could see everyone but was also the most vulnerable.

I hoped nothing would happen to Saebyeok.

“Uh-oh.”

Saebyeok’s voice, tinged with confusion, reached my ears.

It was strange for Saebyeok, who usually didn’t express emotions in her tone, to sound like that.

“Saebyeok, what’s wrong?”

“Um… Wasn’t I at the very back when we came out…?”

“Yeah, you were at the very back.”

“Then who is holding my shoulder?”

At Saebyeok’s words, we all stopped in our tracks.

Even Bom, who usually joked around, was breathing heavily with tension.

“Haha… Saebyeok has really improved her joking skills…”

“Sorry, this isn’t a joke.”

“……..”

Every hair on my body stood on end.

Even though I didn’t seem to be at the front, I could tell that Levinas had covered his ears and closed his eyes.

‘What should I do?’

I quickly scanned the rulebook.

Unfortunately, there was no rule about someone holding your shoulder during the train game.

We might have discovered a new rule.

“Saebyeok, are you okay?”

“Yeah. I’m fine. It’s just holding my shoulder.”

What kind of person would only be resting their hand on her shoulder?

I was curious, but I absolutely had no intention of looking back.

“Everyone knows the rules, right?”

“Yeah…”

We walked down the hallway, deliberately ignoring the presence holding Saebyeok’s shoulder.

As we did, I recalled the rules for the next room.

‘We were told to hide our weapons, right?’

That thing doesn’t forgive anyone who brings weapons into its room.

It’s said that it goes into a fit at the sight of a weapon, so we had to hide them somewhere.

“Hey, if you have any weapons, you need to hide them so they aren’t visible.”

“Got it.”

“Okay…”

We hid our weapons in our bags.

As long as the weapons weren’t visible, it was said to be a problem-free room, so this should be fine, right?

After confirming that all the kids had put their weapons away, I opened the door and stepped inside.

‘It’s really just a room.’

It was a room with an old blanket and a bed.

While exploring the room with the kids, something strange happened.

“W-we-we-weapons?!”

A strange voice, choked with phlegm, echoed.

Startled, we turned to where the sound came from.

“Yack…!”

“Ugh!”

In the corner of the room, a bizarre creature was hanging from the ceiling.

Its body was stuck to the ceiling, but its neck was so long that it reached down to the floor.

It looked like a clean zombie.

“Are we safe now?”

Levinas, still covering his eyes and ears, asked us.

At that moment, Bom silently squeezed Levinas’s hand.

Though Bom was usually playful, she never joked around in situations like this.

“W-weapons…!”

The creature crawled down from the ceiling towards us.

Its eyes were fixed on Haneul’s mechanical arm.

‘Oh!’

Could Haneul’s arm also be considered a weapon?

I hadn’t even thought of that.

I hurriedly recalled the contents of the rulebook.

The rulebook also mentioned how to survive when making eye contact with it.

– If you found the dining room, congratulations.

If you give it enough food to fill its stomach, it will retreat once.

“Uh, food. Can everyone take out all the food…?”

At my request, the kids pulled out all the snacks they had brought.

I hoped this would fill it up.

Swallowing hard, I offered the food to the creature.

Then Saebyeok shook Gaeul’s shoulder.

“Gaeul, you have lemons too.”

“Ikgu…?”

Gaeul glanced at the creature and handed over the lemons.

Not just one, but three lemons with an incredible acidity.

Was the plan to poison it with food?

It would be more lethal to ingest it than to touch it.

‘Will it eat the lemons?’

What if Gaeul noticed?

We cautiously observed the creature.

“Ch-ch-chew.”

Chomp chomp.

The creature began to eat the food placed on the table.

Dried anchovies and snacks.

And even a lunchbox.

As it voraciously devoured everything, it finally picked up Gaeul’s lemons.

“Ch-ch-chew.”

Chomp chomp.

The creature swallowed all three lemons in one big bite.

The creature seemed unfazed after swallowing the lemons…

“Kieeeek!”

It twisted its body this way and that.

Though its reaction was delayed, the effect seemed significant.

“Kiaaa!”

The creature, flailing around, charged toward Gaeul.

In a moment when we couldn’t react because our weapons were in our bags, Saebyeok and Haneul charged at the creature.

BAM-!

The powerful punches from the two hit the creature squarely in the face.

The punches must have been strong, as the creature’s long neck crumpled inward, making it look like an ordinary person.

“…Eh.”

The creature twitched its limbs for a moment before slumping down like a corpse.

I thought it was some incomprehensible, transcendent monster, but it ended so easily?

I looked at Saebyeok with a bewildered expression.

“That was fun, the escape room game.”

Saebyeok’s tail swayed gently.

I began to think that perhaps the incomprehensible, transcendent being was actually Saebyeok.

“Is it really over? Do we not have to follow the rules?”

“Yeah. Even with the rules, it’s a five-stage dungeon.”

“Ah, I see.”

Saebyeok had acted unexpectedly, like breaking walls and telling us to take out lemons.

It turned out she knew the dungeon too well, which was why she acted that way.

Born in the dungeon, Saebyeok was the dungeon’s expert.

**

“Huff…”

Having cleared the dungeon, we returned home to rest.

Gaeul was drawing in her sketchbook, depicting the monster we encountered in the dungeon.

A bizarre creature with a long neck on a human body.

Sophia, seeing Gaeul’s drawing, expressed her confusion.

“Gaeul, what on earth are you drawing?”

“A giraffe.”

“…A giraffe?”

“No.”

A giraffe, huh?

Is it because it has a long neck that it’s a giraffe?

I was taken aback by Gaeul’s drawing, but Sophia praised her.

“That’s a wonderful giraffe.”

Since Sophia hadn’t seen the monster directly, she probably didn’t know what Gaeul was drawing.

So she must have just complimented her for drawing well.

“Sophia, we met a giraffe monster in the dungeon today.”

“A giraffe monster?”

“Yeah. It looked like a person but had a neck as long as a giraffe’s.”

“That… can’t really be called a giraffe.”

At Sophia’s response, Gaeul stopped drawing.

With a rather shocked expression, Gaeul stared at Sophia.

“Isn’t it a giraffe?!”

“Right, it probably isn’t a giraffe. Humans can’t become giraffes.”

“Eh?!”

Was it shocking to hear that one can’t become a giraffe?

Gaeul’s eyes widened.

“…Did Gaeul want to become a giraffe?”

“Huff…”

“Oh, I see. Well… thinking about it, I guess I could become a giraffe if I really tried…”

Sophia tried her best to protect Gaeul’s innocent heart.

What’s most important for a child is the belief that they can become anything.

Of course, there are limits to what one can become, but there was no need to define Gaeul’s limits so soon.

“If Gaeul works hard, she could become a giraffe.”

“Yeah…!”

Gaeul, giggling, hugged Sophia tightly.

After a while, Gaeul released the hug and placed her hands on her chin and cheeks.

“Yay!”

With a shout, Gaeul began to push her head upward.

Thanks to her hands lifting her cheeks, Gaeul’s eyes and eyebrows also rose.

Could it be that she was trying to stretch her neck like a giraffe?

As I watched Gaeul with my mouth agape, it happened.

Crack.

A terrifying sound came from Gaeul’s neck.

“……!”

Gaeul seemed so startled that she froze in place.

Gaeul looked at me with wide eyes and asked.

“…Is Gaeul a giraffe now?”

“Um… you almost became one before a cuckoo.”

“……!”

Gaeul slowly lowered her hands, still with wide eyes.

Fortunately, it didn’t seem like her neck had broken or anything.

A word from the author (Author’s note)

Thank you so much for reading today, PIA1747014585384!

Thank you for the comments and recommendations! They always give me strength!

Everyone, always be careful with your necks…

It’s already too late for me…

───

Thank you for the 10 coins, eternalyg!

Thank you for the 1 coin, I Dakdoritang!

Thank you for the 10 coins, AABABBA!