episode_0087

“It’s strange.”

Choi Se-rim caresses my head for no reason.

“There is definitely a trauma, but it can’t be fixed.”

“Yes?”

I thought it would be an easy solution, but it seems like the cheat key isn’t working.

***

After having a panic attack in the bathroom.

After completely changing my clothes, the first thing I did was go to see Serim Choi.

It is clear that if we continue like this, our survival will be hindered.

A state of panic that comes unexpectedly.

Being alone in a small space seems to be a trigger, but there are countless situations like this in apartments.

Like riding an elevator alone.

Like being alone in a room.

I just came back from being with Da-ju Yoon.

After washing up and drying my hair, a feeling of fear came over me again as I was alone.

So I ended up holding on to Daju again. I myself.

“I’m not holding you back. just… … . Just stay next to me!”

I think he said it this way. No matter how you looked at it, it didn’t seem like he was relying on it.

Since I did it to him and not to anyone else, it’s perfect for causing misunderstanding.

Daju Yoon. About a quarter of the brain she has is male.

Daju, who was about to leave first, smiled and stayed next to me.

Even now when I visit Serim Choi.

“How about it? Can you fix it?”

“Wait a minute. Let me check.”

In the room, Da-ju Yoon and Ser-rim Choi are having a conversation.

I am lying in bed and closing my eyes.

It’s for treatment.

This will be the last time I shiver without knowing why.

With Choi Se-rim’s ability, she can erase or change memories. Then, I will be able to erase this vague feeling of fear that has settled in my head.

… … I thought so.

“It doesn’t work again.”

But it doesn’t seem to be working that way.

So is the atmosphere. The same thing goes for Choi Se-rim herself.

Above all, I don’t feel the feeling that I felt when Choi Se-rim used her abilities on me – the sense of digging through my thoughts and looking into my head.

I slowly opened my eyes and woke up.

“Sister. Can’t it continue?”

“Yes. I think Dabin’s tolerance is getting stronger. It’s hard to even read his thoughts properly now.”

Choi Se-rim’s ability allows her to look into other people’s thoughts.

If you can observe it, you can touch it. In other words, it is possible to modify or erase thoughts.

And one more thing.

Although it is harmless to the target and is certainly less affected by resistance, it is also related to the anomaly.

This means that it is possible to block or disrupt it with anomalous resistance.

And now my anomalous resistance is near the top.

It was like that before, but it got stronger.

In the past, you had to be conscious of it to block it, but now you can’t even if you ask them to read your thoughts openly.

“This is my first time seeing someone with such strong tolerance.”

“Then what should I do?”

“Well. Shouldn’t I overcome it on my own or go with someone else for a while?”

“… … .”

My heart becomes heavy.

I wonder if I’m in real danger because I’m filled with fake fear.

Wouldn’t it be a nuisance in a situation where lives come and go?

“But it doesn’t matter, right?”

Daju, who was quietly observing the situation, spoke up.

In a bright voice.

“It’s safest for us to go with my brother.”

“That’s right. Anyway, I will continue to go exploring with Dabin. I’m actually worried about when it’s time to rest.”

Was it because I was mentally stressed?

Affection for the two suddenly surges.

I feel embarrassed for some reason, but it is not easy to hide my expression.

“Huh? Dabin smiles.”

“I will stay with you. Continue.”

“Ah. That’s a bit.”

“Okay. I wish Daju could continue to be with me.”

Choi Se-rim smiled and stood up.

“That’s right. Yuni is slowly getting ready to leave. I’m still packing my things in the warehouse.”

“Now we are abandoning the 7th floor.”

“Yes.”

Even as she was just heading out the door, Serim looked back at me.

He worries about me with a kind voice.

“Dabin, is it okay for you to go into the warehouse?”

“Yes. It will be okay because there are a lot of people.”

It doesn’t cure the panic or make the worry go away.

All we did was the three of us gathered together and talked for a bit.

But, I thought it would probably be okay.

Squeak-

Choi Se-rim opens the door first and waits in the hallway.

The only people left in the house are me and Daju.

Daju hurriedly puts on his shoes.

“Let’s go quickly. You have to get something to eat first.”

“Huh? Are we all going to eat together anyway?”

“No. Something like snacks. If you don’t take it secretly, Yoon will take it away.”

Shake!

We left the house after hearing the front door close.

I probably won’t ever come back here.

The reality generator was completely destroyed.

The 7th floor can no longer maintain its current appearance.

After about a week, it will become a completely different place, and it will become a very dangerous place.

Traces of human habitation.

Mementos left behind.

They will all be swallowed up by the anomaly and transformed into a grotesque form.

It’s time to take the elevator, wander around, and drift again.

“We’re here.”

Seok Hyun-min greets me warmly as I enter the warehouse.

Next to him, Jeong Hae-won is whining and moving his bag.

“Welcome, sisters. Here… … . Help me lift this… … .”

“Is this heavy?”

Daju walks to the side and simply lifts it.

Jeong Hae-won let out an exclamation without filtering.

“Crazy.”

The bag looks full and heavy at first glance, but Daju lifts it with ease.

The bag sits on a cart at the airport.

Other bags were already piled on top of the wheeled cart.

Tuk-tuk.

To prevent the bag from collapsing, Seok Hyun-min refines the shape of the bag.

“I’m going to collect my luggage like that and put it on the cart.”

Carrying luggage on a cart… … .

It’s good because you can carry a lot of things, but it’s a bit strange.

Previously, when I went on an expedition, I only packed the bare minimum of luggage.

Would it be possible to move around while continuously pulling a cart of that size?

“Ah. Are you going to keep carrying it in the elevator?”

“That’s right. Yunyi noona came up with an idea.”

Seok Hyeon-min proudly shrugs his shoulders. It wasn’t even his idea.

We continue our exploration by continuing to load our luggage into the elevator.

First of all, the idea itself seems good at first glance.

“After loading all the luggage, split into groups.”

One person guards the luggage and keeps pressing the button to hold the elevator.

And the rest go out and explore the floor.

“How about it? It’s okay.”

A reasonable plan at first glance.

But there is a problem.

“You shouldn’t leave your luggage there for too long.”

“Huh? Why?”

“Elevator. Don’t hold it for too long either.”

Elevators are not very safe spaces.

Of course, it will be relatively safe.

While other spaces can feel dangerous as soon as you step into them, the elevator seems fine at first glance.

But if you try to stay there… … .

The dangers of elevators are gradually revealed.

“But you really didn’t know? Why are there no people in the elevator?”

A look of embarrassment is evident on Seok Hyeon-min’s face.

“I’ve never seen it before.”

“If it were that safe, you could just eat and sleep in the elevator.”

“Then what is in the elevator?”

“Yes. But it won’t be easy to find out. Because it has to be that way.”

Se-rim Choi, Da-ju Yoon, Hyun-min Seok, and Hae-won Jeong. And even the AI guy who I don’t know when came.

Everyone nearby was standing still and listening to me.

“I’ll call my sister.”

Daju Yoon turned around, but there was no need to.

Heo Yoon was already there.

“Did you hear about Dabin? Elevators are dangerous too?”

“Only if you stay for a long time.”

I haven’t seen or heard it directly. This was a fact that could not be known even from observation of the anomaly.

This is information discovered through the librarian’s abilities.

“Yooni’s older sister. Sister, have you ever left something in the elevator?”

“Never.”

“What about other people?”

As expected, the same answer comes back.

The danger lies here.

“It must have been quite a while. It probably never happened. I just can’t remember.”

“Wait a minute, then.”

Seok Hyun-min is startled.

I continued the story.

“If you stay in the elevator for a long time, it will disappear. It disappears from my memory.”

“But isn’t it possible that it really didn’t exist?”

This is Jeong Hae-won.

“No, there is evidence. It was on the 3rd floor before. Do you remember when I met you?”

“No? I wasn’t there at that time.”

“Ah. That’s right.”

This happened when I first went to the 3rd floor.

The elevator door opened, and Park Seong-jin was already on it.

With a palu dripping with blood.

“The person I was with was Serim. Yuni’s sister. There were two people like this.”

“Yes. It must have been like that.”

“That’s right.”

Choi Se-rim and Heo Yoon answer in turn.

“Then why did we run away then?”

“What? Of course… … .”

Heo Yoon cannot continue speaking.

“That was the time when you went missing. If we had met each other in an elevator, wouldn’t we have tried to talk at least once? Or at least take a quick look. Why did you immediately turn around and run away?”

“I don’t know. There was definitely something in the elevator, and it was… … .”

Heo Yoon covers his head and falls into thought.

No matter how hard she tried to remember, her memory was clearly empty.

Instead, Choi Se-rim answered.

“There were bodies piled up on the floor of the elevator. There were dozens of people lying there who had just stopped breathing.”

“Yes.”

“But, I don’t remember. What was really on the floor of the elevator?”

The clue is here.

“My sister was able to read thoughts and remember them. Because it’s a scene I glimpsed through the man’s memories.”

“Then is it normal for it to be erased from memory?”

“Yes. That’s why the elevator can remain clean.”

Dead bodies fill the elevator floor.

In the middle of it all, Park Seong-jin was breathing heavily.

Blood dripping from the palus.

While everyone was solemn, Jeong Hae-won came forward.

“Wait a minute. Then how does your sister remember this?”

“Well? I am… … Because it’s me.”

Because it has the abilities of a librarian, it is immune to most anomalies. It is especially strong against effects that cause memory loss.

Always remember and preserve information.

Because that is the role and responsibility of a librarian.

“Stop talking nonsense. Is this also anomaly resistance or something?”

“Yes. It’s roughly similar.”

After answering, I walked towards Jeong Hae-won.

“Huh? Sister, why?”

And then he stretched out his hand and squeezed Jeong Hae-won’s shoulder.

When I used the acupressure techniques I learned from Daju Yoon, the results appeared quickly.

“Ah! iced coffee! It hurts! Why all of a sudden! Why are you doing that?”

“What is nonsense? To my sister.”

“Ahh!”

“I didn’t do it wrong.”

“I was wrong. I was wrong!”

“Hu… … .”

No matter how nice you look, it’s true.

If you look down on everyone like this, it will be easy to go with the flow.

If I don’t do this, I might end up becoming a really stupid high school girl someday.

Not from what others see, but from my heart.

This can never happen.

Heo Yoon sorted out the momentarily chaotic situation.

“Then what should we do? Should I lighten my load?”

“Yes. I think it should be like that.”

“Or, let’s quickly find a place to stay for a week. After that, you can move your luggage slowly. How about it?”

“But I don’t think it will matter.”

“Okay.”

Heo Yoon is lost in thought.

While muttering, I draw conclusions one by one.

“Then pack your bags in advance… … . Put everything on the cart.”

“Then you can move it right away.”

Then Jeong Hae-won and Seok Hyun-min’s expressions hardened.

“Huh?”

“Yes?”

“What? It’s like this. I have to work.”

Heo Yun had already picked up another piece of luggage and started moving it.

Regardless of whether elevators are dangerous, it doesn’t change the fact that you have to work.

***

It rattled.

It rattled.

Inside the elevator, which is still moving.

Foundation researcher Riko Ichinose was lying inside.

The destination of the elevator is very far away.

It is a place that cannot be reached even if you travel for several days.

So, enough time for everything inside to disappear while moving.

After exhaling, Riko rolled her eyes towards her own body.

Beneath a blood-stained white lab coat. Pale wrists exposed above the hem.

The outline of the wrist was slowly fading.

My body is disappearing.

Just like other researchers who had doubts about the professor.

Soon, you will completely disappear and be forgotten even in the memories of others.

As if it never existed in the first place.

I have to get out of here.

If you press the button right now, you can easily come back to life.

My body doesn’t move.

A paralyzing poison flowed into her veins.

In addition, it was also used as a test subject for an anomalous entity, albeit briefly.

Putting him in the elevator instead of killing him must have been an old man’s bad taste.

No matter how much I scream, my body does not move.

No matter how hard you try, all you can do is blink your eyes or wiggle your fingers.

It’s like a dead tree.

However, his consciousness is clearer than usual, and he is very frightened.

Crouching, she shivered in a pool of her own blood.

I even felt like I was floating on water.

Is it because I lost too much blood?

Or is my consciousness slowly fading now?

I couldn’t figure it out.

Just stand up and press the button and the elevator will stop.

The door opens, and extinction becomes something that never happened.

But that simple task was impossible for Rico.

Just lie still and wait for it to disappear.

It rattled.

It rattled.

You can’t even expect someone else to accidentally press the button and get it out of here.

Professors can see the future.

“And I saw the future.”

“No one will use the elevator for the next three days.”

This is what the professor said himself right before the elevator doors closed.

The reason you told me this was probably because you wanted me to struggle.

While suffering.

While blaming my body for not moving.

All you have to do is press the button you see in front of you once, but you just can’t do that.

You probably want to die like that.

Rico gritted his teeth.

I tried my best to raise my body again, but all I could do was slide a centimeter on the floor.

“I don’t want to die. I don’t want to die… … .”

Trapped in the elevator, Rico prayed and prayed for an impossible miracle to happen.

“I don’t want to die… … . please… … .”

and.

Shake!

With an unexpected noise, the elevator stopped.