Ch.29029 – Missing Person 1

# 029 – Missing Person # 1

I put Yang Juhui and Jeongseok in the box and closed the lid.

Then I turned off the flashlight.

The corridor was engulfed in complete darkness.

Roll-roll-roll.

Click, click.

I could feel the two ghosts approaching me.

The temperature around me seemed to drop several degrees in an instant. I gritted my teeth and held my breath.

The gamble of a lifetime.

All or nothing.

Click, click.

Roll-roll-roll.

Finally, the sound of high heels approached right in front of me.

“Yeongwon.”

The Head Ghost calling my name was right in front of me too.

I pressed myself against the wall as much as possible.

Creak, creak.

Roll-roll-roll.

The Head Ghost met the headless high-heeled ghost.

They were close enough that I could touch those horrifying things if I just reached out.

My heart was pounding like it would burst, and I felt all the blood drain from the top of my head down to my feet.

But—they showed no signs of noticing me.

My gamble had paid off!

Earlier, when the Head Ghost’s gaze seemed to pass over me as if it couldn’t see me and only followed Jeongseok and Yang Juhui, I had a hunch!

“Hehehehehehe.”

The Head Ghost suddenly laughed.

Just as I wondered what would happen next, the high-heeled ghost slowly reached out and grabbed the Head Ghost.

Then she placed it against her severed neck.

“This isn’t the right body.”

Thud, roll-roll-roll.

The Head Ghost fell off the body and rolled back the way it had come.

The high-heeled ghost in the white gown also continued straight ahead, her stiff joints creaking, and disappeared.

Crackle-crackle.

When the discordant sound of the phone from inside the box disappeared, I was finally able to exhale my held breath. I had won the gamble.

“It really worked. The ‘Subtle Perfume.'”

“Subtle Perfume: A perfume made with water that fairies have splashed in. Greatly reduces the probability of being discovered by ghosts and Watchers. Lasts for 100 hours when used. 1/2 uses.”

What an amazing item.

In other words… I was practically invisible to the ghosts right now.

With this, we might actually be able to escape.

“Guys. You can come out now!”

I called my friends after I was sure the ghosts had completely disappeared. When I opened the lid, I met the eyes of Jeongseok and Yang Juhui, who were frozen like mice in front of a cat.

“…Hey! What happened to you?”

Yang Juhui jumped out of the box and protested to me in a small voice.

Jeongseok was also just gaping with his mouth open, as if he couldn’t believe what had happened.

I tried to explain as briefly as possible, in case the ghosts might return.

“I used the ‘Subtle Perfume,’ remember? When you spray it, it greatly reduces the chance of being discovered by ghosts. When the Head Ghost acted like it couldn’t see me earlier, I thought I’d take a chance.”

“……”

Yang Juhui looked like she didn’t quite understand.

Fortunately, Jeongseok seemed to comprehend and nodded.

“I see. But you said this was your first time using the perfume, right? There was no guarantee that the ghosts wouldn’t be able to see you even if you sprayed it, was there?”

“That’s true. But we didn’t have time to be picky.”

The box was barely big enough for two people.

The corridor was straight with ghosts at both ends.

We had to sacrifice one person, and I had the highest chance of survival.

“Wow. You’re really crazy. Even so, I would never have thought of that. But in the end, your judgment was right.”

Jeongseok seemed very impressed by my decisiveness and gambling skills.

However, Yang Juhui frowned slightly as if she was a bit angry.

“Hey. Next time, at least say something. Do you know how surprised and scared I was!”

“I would have explained if I had time. Anyway, let’s go. It’ll be troublesome if the ghosts come back.”

We chose to move forward.

Our destination was the outside.

Although it was a dark and gloomy place, our progress seemed very smooth.

# # #

“Are you sure it says to go in here?”

Following the crayon markings, we walked straight down the corridor until we came across an “Operating Room.”

“East for 25 steps”

“Are you sure it says to go in here?”

Yang Juhui asked me again.

She always walked ahead fearlessly, but this time she seemed a bit scared.

“I think we’re supposed to go in here. Why? Is something bothering you?”

Small, trivial emotions.

A piece of paper on the floor.

These things could be very important puzzle pieces for us right now.

Was she feeling uncomfortable about there being an “Operating Room” in what we thought was a kindergarten? I also thought it was a bit strange.

I tried to gauge Yang Juhui’s feelings, and she pointed inside the lab.

“No, look over there. There’s a huge spider web in there. I’m a bit scared of spiders.”

I see.

Yang Juhui, who had crushed cockroaches under her foot without hesitation, was afraid of spiders.

I thought she was like a general such as Guan Yu or Zhang Fei, but she was still a girl after all.

The tension that had built up suddenly dissipated, and I couldn’t help but giggle.

“Yang Juhui, you’re cute. If a spider comes out, I’ll catch it for you. I might be scared of cockroaches, but I’m not afraid of spiders.”

“What are you saying!”

“Guys. Stop chattering and let’s go in.”

Jeongseok cautioned me and Yang Juhui.

But despite saying that, he wasn’t readily entering the “Operating Room” either.

He probably wanted someone else to go in first.

I realized today that Jeongseok was more of a coward than I thought.

Normally, Yang Juhui would have taken the lead, but she seemed reluctant because of the spider web.

I decided to take the lead this time.

“Guys, we’re really close. Let’s hang in there a bit longer. I hope there’s an exit in here. Please.”

Slide-

I opened the sliding door and entered the “Operating Room.”

The inside of the operating room smelled of all kinds of medicines that made my nose wrinkle.

There were two operating tables like those you’d see in a surgical ward, both contaminated with something dark red and hardened.

Could it be blood?

What caught our attention even more were the elevators.

There were two elevators.

Like twins.

Placed about a meter apart, side by side.

“Any markings? Do you see any crayon markings?”

Jeongseok asked Yang Juhui.

Yang Juhui, who had the best eyesight among us, took the flashlight from me and looked around, but she shook her head as if she hadn’t found anything.

“I don’t see any. Ha Yeongwon, what about you? You said you could see some writing, right?”

“East for 1 step”

“It seems to be the elevator on the left.”

Without the status window…

Even if we had been lucky enough to find the crayon markings and reach this place, would we have had to take a 50-50 chance at this fork in the road with the two elevators?

“Ha Yeongwon. Look at this.”

Jeongseok, who had been rummaging through the operating room, drew our attention as if he had found something.

He was holding what looked like a chart that doctors might carry.

Looking closely, there was writing on the paper, which was covered in dark red stains.

“According to research, achievement is passed down through blood. Parents and children. Twin sisters will prove our theory.”

“Twins are indeed remarkable.

The development of the sisters—Yeri and __ over the past five years has stood out among the children in the facility. Especially the younger sister ___’s aptitude as a Watcher far exceeds expectations.”

“The younger sister has a peculiar birthmark that the older sister doesn’t have. Does this difference create a gap in levels even between twins who share the same blood? Either way, these sisters will surely take us to __.”

“The experiment failed.”

“Do you think this means something?”

Jeongseok asked for my opinion.

I looked at the two operating tables in the room and thought about it… but I couldn’t pinpoint anything specific.

Something involving twins had failed… that’s about all we could tell, right? However, the word ‘Watcher’ written there was quite concerning.

“Hey. What are you guys doing over there? Aren’t you coming? You said it was the left elevator!”

I was looking for other useful items when Yang Juhui’s call brought me back to my senses.

It seemed best to escape this place quickly.

We boarded the elevator.

To be honest, the inside of the elevator wasn’t in the best hygienic condition.

There were 100 floor buttons on the elevator panel.

Again, all the numbers were labeled as “4.”

“Should we press any button? They’re all the same floor 4 anyway.”

Jeongseok shook his head at Yang Juhui’s question.

“That’s… something we should think about.”

All the same floor 4…

As I carefully examined the elevator buttons, I found one with a dark red liquid in the shape of a fingerprint.

It seemed like someone had pressed this with their finger.

“Alright. I’ll choose.”

Slide-

Among the 100 buttons, I firmly pressed the only “4” that had a mark like a stain on it.

The door closed-

Whooooosh-

The elevator started moving, and we couldn’t tell if it was going up or down.

“The door is opening.”

Clank-

Swoosh.

About a minute after boarding the elevator, the door opened.

The scene beyond was strangely familiar.

“It’s outside. We made it!”

Yang Juhui was the first to exit the elevator.

Soon, Jeongseok cautiously followed her outside.

“This is the 4th floor of Yeongwon’s house, right? Right! It seems we’ve returned! Holy shit! We’re alive!”

I also stepped out of the elevator.

Then someone came up from the stairs and scolded us.

“Hey! It was you kids! You left paper and tape on the stairs!”

It was the building manager who lived on the 4th floor of Taegwang Villa.

The lady was holding a paper that said “Do not board the elevator,” which looked quite familiar.

Jeongseok looked at the phone in his hand.

“…Not even a minute has passed. 11:20. Not even a minute has passed since we entered the elevator.”

“This paper is yours, isn’t it! You little brats!”

Turning my gaze away from the lady’s scolding, I looked at the elevator we had entered and exited. But the elevator had disappeared as if it had never been there.

“When an adult is talking, why don’t you answer! Did you do this or not!”

Why does the building manager’s scolding, which would normally be annoying, sound so sweet?

It was because it was the voice of everyday life that made us realize more than anything that we had survived.

“Congratulations! You have triumphed over the ‘Death Elevator’!”

“Beginning calculation for 3 survivors.”

“You gain 300P.”

I picked up the ‘capsule’ that had fallen in front of our door.

It was quite heavy.

Click, thud-

When I opened the capsule, there was a small pen inside.

Wondering what it was, I looked at it and text appeared.

“Yeongwon’s Glow Pen: A pen that is visible even in darkness. Marks made with this pen cannot be erased unless you use the eraser on the cap.”

A pen?

For a moment, I thought that all that trouble just for a pen—but considering how the crayon markings had been such a great help to us in the death floor just now…

This pen could be useful in many ways.

Clunk-

I opened the door and entered the house.

I wondered if Mom, who had escaped before us, would be waiting for me at home, but my expectation was wrong.

It’s turned off—

Mom’s phone was still off.

I decided to wait for Mom, and the next morning, after serious consideration, I reported Mom’s disappearance to the police.

Fortunately or unfortunately, I had the number of a Yeongji High senior police officer in my phone who could help with the missing person report.

I found Mom on the third day after escaping from the elevator—

On a street in Jimun-dong near the downtown area of Gaeryong City.

The person who found her was someone I knew but hadn’t expected at all.

Click. Click. Click.

The sound of high heels made my skin crawl for a moment—

When I turned my head, a woman in a sophisticated suit with an alluring choker around her neck was approaching me, wearing red shoes. She was a woman I had once had a crush on.

“Yo.”

“…Teacher Hong Miri?”

“Yes, D-class troublemaker. Nice to see you. Here to see your mom? Shall we go together?”

Click. Click.

The English teacher walked elegantly and seductively toward the hospital in her high heels.