Ch.21Reorganization

Again on the 7th floor. Originally, we planned to explore two more locations, but we returned briefly to treat Daju’s wounds.

Seok Hyunmin took out his key and opened the door to room 701.

“We’ll rest a bit. Do some data organization before we go. And.”

Hyunmin sighs deeply, his fingertips trembling.

“Don’t touch anything carelessly. This time we were lucky it only ended with injuries.”

“Carelessly? When I could get cola-flavored candy? I can’t resist that.”

“Yoon Daju, it’s amazing you’re not dead yet. My heart’s pounding so hard I might die first.”

Hyunmin drops his bag on the floor with a thud.

“Dabin. Is your broken hand okay?”

“Yes. It doesn’t hurt if I don’t move it.”

“That’s good. I’ll organize the data, so you two rest. I’ve put out the first aid kit.”

As soon as he finishes speaking, Daju lies down on the sofa. I pick up the first aid kit and sit beside her.

“Hey. Aren’t you going to treat it?”

“It’s nothing, really.”

“I’m going to disinfect it, so hold up your hand.”

I examined Daju’s wound under the living room light. I couldn’t tell in the dark, but the wound on her left hand is deeper than I thought.

Just as I’m about to take medicine out of the box.

Clack. Clack.

“Why won’t this open?”

“It’s because you’re using one hand. I’ll do it myself, so stay still.”

“Ah. Wait.”

Thud!

I must have used too much force, as the box fell to the floor.

“I knew this would happen.”

“…Shut up.”

Having injured my right hand is really inconvenient at times like this. With no choice, I sat on the sofa and watched as Daju opened the antiseptic bottle herself and disinfected her wound.

“Ugh. It stings.”

“Here. A bandage.”

“Thank youuu~”

“Wow.”

For a moment, I almost clenched my right fist.

“You’re crazy.”

“Huh? Why?”

“Ow! Ah. My finger! Ah. This is driving me crazy.”

Daju laughs like she’s about to pass out. But I can still give her a light knock on the head with my left hand.

“Ow! That really hurt!”

“Because I hit you hard.”

“Why is this oppa so strong? Have you turned back into a man?”

I wish I had.

Meanwhile, the emergency treatment is complete with bandages and medical tape on the wounds. Anyway, Daju seems fine. Now I decided to check on Hyunmin.

There were piles of documents since we first arrived. They appear to be handwritten. I’m getting curious.

[13A1 Exploration Summary]

Hyunmin is writing something with a pen on a pristine white A4 paper.

I approached him and started a conversation.

“Are you recording the contents of this floor?”

“Yes.”

– Overview

– Usefulness

– Dangers

– Potential Dangers

He seems busy organizing the table of contents now.

“You might end up writing these later, so look at the other documents beside me. You’ll get a general sense of how to write them.”

I picked up one of the file folders next to him.

[13th Floor Exploration Log]

There are some black stains at the bottom of the page. Did ink leak? Or…

“…!”

I closed my eyes tightly and shook my head. When Choi Jun-gi slit his wrist, blood must have splattered everywhere.

Let’s stop thinking about that.

– Overview: A space in the form of a buffet restaurant. Plates contain actual edible food.

– Usefulness: Can solve meal problems in emergency situations.

– Dangers: None

– Potential Dangers: The restaurant’s food has been confirmed to cause a type of ‘addiction.’ People who consume the food feel an urge to visit the restaurant, which grows stronger the more they eat. People who consume more than a certain amount of food become unable to leave the restaurant.

I looked at another document.

[2-3-5-K Exploration Log]

– Overview: A department store-type space. After meeting the entry conditions and entering, one encounters events such as fire, earthquake, monster attacks, etc.

A few words are inserted in a crooked handwriting.

– After entering (past) fire, earthquake, monster attacks, etc. are encountered.

This part was probably written by Park Sungjin.

– Usefulness: If you safely escape the department store, you can order one of three facilities. 1. Reality Anchor. 2. Electrical facilities. 3. Network facilities. Two secured so far: 1 and 2.

Again, the content about securing two has been crossed out.

– All three have been secured, and it’s unknown whether additional facilities have appeared since.

“Sigh…”

I sigh without realizing it.

Park Sungjin, who wrote this, probably saw the Memetic Kill Agent uploaded to the internet right after. Now he’s as good as dead, having completely lost his mind.

It’s a complicated feeling.

– Dangers:

Accidents encountered inside the department store. Entry conditions include hunting a certain number of monsters.

– Potential Dangers: None

Earlier, the dangers were “None,” but this time the potential dangers are none.

Is this the difference between the floor’s inherent danger and the danger that accumulates when repeatedly visiting the floor?

Rustle.

The more documents I examine, the more I realize how little I know.

All just superficial information.

14th Floor Exploration Log. Must explore with 2 or more people. Went alone and died. Don’t leave anyone alone either. Always keep an eye on others.

Why?

Unknown. Looked away briefly and one team member disappeared.

Essential information is severely lacking like this.

If you don’t know, you die. And dead people don’t talk. There’s bound to be insufficient data.

“I’m done writing. Let’s go again.”

“Which floor are we going to this time?”

“Don’t know. We’ll go somewhere we’ve never been before.”

Hyunmin packed his bag again.

“What? Now? Even though we have injured people?”

“That concerns me too, but none of the floors we’ve visited had anything to do with supplies. We have less stored food than I thought, so at this rate, we’ll probably have to starve in a few days. Plus, we can’t trust that damn machine. We have no choice but to find a new way.”

This time Daju seems a bit tense too. Hyunmin pats her shoulder to encourage her.

“Everyone go to the storage room and grab a bag each. Emergency food. Flashlights. And simple weapons too. I don’t know what’s going to happen now.”

After a short rest, I moved to the storage room with Daju.

“What weapon are you going to use, oppa?”

“I don’t know. I can’t carry anything too heavy.”

“Ah! How about fighting with head flicks?”

Rattle.

Ignoring Daju’s words, I pulled down a box from the shelf.

It has a label roughly scribbled with a board marker.

[Weapons (Self-defense)]

True to its name, it contains everything that could be used as a weapon.

Baseball bats, hammers, crowbars, steel pipes, even a fire axe. There’s quite a variety.

“How about this?”

Daju, who was rummaging through the corner of the storage room, comes out holding what appears to be a real sword.

“God-bondo. We’ll slice everything with this, right?”

She then raises the sword in an awkward stance.

“Nedajip.”

“You also need to think about carrying it around. If it’s too big or heavy, it’ll get in the way when moving.”

Hyunmin is already holding a hammer, gauging its weight.

“I’ll take this.”

“What is it?”

“Just a steel rod. The weight is just right, and someone even wrapped insulation tape around it for better grip.”

Whoosh-

When I swing it, it does have a threatening feel. Though with this body, how effective would my strikes be? I just hope we don’t end up in a situation where we need to use these.

“Got everything you need?”

“Ah, yes!”

Daju chose an aluminum bat.

I also firmly gripped the steel rod in my hand and left the 7th floor with quick steps.

* * *

Emergency exit.

A phone lies fallen on the floor.

“Urrrgh…sob…”

A man leaning his back against the wall, whimpering in pain.

Red lines are drawn across the white paint.

Another man crouches down, looking at him.

Not only did he come out to the stairwell, but he was also just staring at his phone. He would have died even if it wasn’t by his hand.

So, this isn’t such a wrong action.

“Urrrgh…”

Drip.

After watching the blood drops slowly flowing down.

“Not enough.”

He raised the crowbar and struck the victim again.

“Aagh! Aaaaargh!”

Splat!

A warm lump of blood falls onto the stairs. The sacrificial lamb convulses with his head thrown back.

That scar on his neck. Seems like I’ve seen it somewhere before.

Park Sungjin briefly licked his lips, then stopped his thoughts.

Precious blood is being wasted.

He took out a crumpled paper from his bag.

Dipping his finger in the liquid on the floor, he continues to write the unfinished sentence.

■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■

Distorted red letters. Even he can’t read them properly.

They take their place on the paper.

[Those chained are called the victorious.]

……

[Their number is seven.]

“Seven.”