Ch.61*Pointer (2)

I tilted the book to examine it.

The arrow spun in a complete circle before pointing in the same direction.

‘Is it like a compass?’

The fascinating thing was that it was “drawn” on the book.

When I moved the book, the ink shifted position, changing the arrow’s direction.

[Directional Ink]

– A black liquid created by processing and transforming specific information, drawn to a predetermined direction.

That’s all I could determine from observing its anomalous properties. It seemed the ink itself was pointing in a direction.

If that was the case, I could use this to find the information mentioned in the book’s title.

With a gesture of my hand, the cover returned to its proper place.

The eerie title caught my eye once again.

[*Doomsday Scenario: 5000]

“Noona. Did you find a book?”

“Yes.”

Jung Haewon was shouting from far below.

It would be difficult to climb down with one hand occupied. I aimed the book downward.

“Catch this.”

“What?”

Whoosh-!

The book left my hand and sliced through the air.

Haewon let out a surprised “Uh,” but amazingly caught the book in one go.

“Oh.”

“What if I wasn’t ready when you suddenly threw it!”

“It wasn’t sudden. I told you before I threw it.”

I shrugged at Haewon who was looking up at me with an incredulous expression.

“Anyway, I’m coming down now.”

I was currently seven shelves up on the bookcase. It was at least as high as a four-story building.

I had stacked books to make steps, but getting down from here required rock climbing skills.

I carefully examined the terrain below.

The bookshelf dividers and protruding books created an uneven surface.

First, I tapped the protruding features below with my toes.

Thud.

Books fell with a clatter and rolled across the floor.

“Be careful, noona.”

“I know, so stop talking to me.”

One step, one step.

I descended carefully, placing my feet with precision.

Only after reaching the makeshift stairs could I finally relax a little.

“Haaah…”

That was exhausting.

“You’re down now.”

“Yeah.”

I brushed away the hair that kept sticking to my face as I returned to the floor.

“The book? Is it okay?”

“How long has it been that you need to ask? Of course it’s fine.”

“No, *huff*, I was worried it might have torn.”

When I expressed concern, Haewon opened the book to show me.

The book was perfectly intact without any tears or folded corners. The directional arrow was also safe.

“By the way, I’ve been wondering. Aren’t the others coming?”

“No. I said I’d go by myself.”

“I see.”

Swish, swish.

I combed my hair with my fingers and pushed it behind my head. Meanwhile, Haewon kept glancing at me as if thinking about something.

What’s with him? Does he have something to say?

As I silently watched him, Haewon suddenly started rambling.

“Well, everyone’s busy and since we need to prepare fires when night comes, time is limited.”

“Huh?”

“I thought it made sense to save manpower where possible.”

“Right.”

“And if we interrupt the work, we might forget which books we’ve already checked. Since we’re pulling books out and examining them in order. Are you listening to me, noona?”

“Yes.”

“That’s why I came alone. On purpose.”

“I see.”

After spilling out excuses, Haewon suddenly realized something.

“You’re teasing me, aren’t you?”

“No? You’re the one who got defensive on your own.”

I had just asked where everyone else was, but Haewon was digging himself into a hole.

I smiled and poked his shoulder.

“But it is amusing. Let’s go now.”

We crossed the library and returned to where we had been before.

Choi Serim was still staring at a book. She was so focused that she didn’t notice us approaching.

I carefully made my presence known.

“Noona.”

“Ahhh?!”

Serim jumped in surprise just from being called.

“Oh… Dabin, it’s you. Did you find any useful information?”

“Yes. Here.”

Serim carefully examined the cover and read the title.

“Doomsday Scenario. Number 5000.”

“Yes. This probably contains information related to the end of the world.”

“But there doesn’t seem to be any content inside. It looks like this is just information pointing to where the actual data is located.”

“Huh? How did you know?”

Serim seemed to know something without even opening the book.

“There’s a star in front of the title.”

I checked the cover again. The title was [*Doomsday Scenario: 5000]. There really was a star at the beginning.

“Wow, you’re right.”

Haewon gripped the book cover tightly and made a fuss.

“But what does the star mean?”

“I told you earlier. It’s an address value.”

I took the book back.

“Yes. Dabin is right.”

“Then let’s find Daju and get going. We should be able to find the information we want from here.”

“Good idea.”

I was about to leave when Serim stood up and blocked my path.

“?”

“You did well, Dabin.”

Pat, pat.

Serim reached out and stroked my head.

“Noona always does this at least once.”

“Hehe…”

Serim seemed happier about patting my head than I was about receiving it.

I smiled back up at Serim. The height difference isn’t that great, but Serim is still taller.

After staying like that for a while, Haewon awkwardly started to back away.

“Um. I’ll go, get Daju noona then.”

I grabbed Haewon’s arm and pulled him back.

“Why go alone when we can go together?”

Yoon Daju had been examining books on the opposite shelf for quite some time.

It wasn’t far from where we were.

“Let’s go now, noona.”

“Okay.”

We entered this apartment by chance and wandered for a long time, but now it feels like we’re not far from discovering the truth.

There’s no visible evidence, but I definitely have that feeling.

“Uggghhhh…”

In a narrow, long space between bookshelves, Daju was lying among the books.

If a person could melt, this is what it would look like. The record of a human being fighting boredom was right there.

Torn papers.

Paper airplanes and cranes folded from them.

She had even stacked books to make a bed. Daju was curled up in the middle of it all.

“Huh? Unni, you’re here? Oppa too?”

Daju had cloudy eyes like a mountaineer who had been isolated alone for a long time before finally being rescued.

Yoon Daju, who loved moving around, and a library—they must have been perfect opposites.

“Yes.”

I approached Daju, clearing away the books at my feet.

“Did you find anything?”

“No… It’s all garbage… garbage… I thought I was going to die…”

“Good job. We just found something like a compass, so now we just need to move.”

“Really?!”

Hope flashed in Daju’s eyes.

“Yes.”

“Haaa…”

Finally liberated, Daju hunched over and whimpered.

“I’m saved…”

“Do you hate reading books that much?”

“Thank you, oppa.”

Ugh.

It sends chills down my spine when Yoon Daju calls me that.

“Yeah. Let’s go.”

I folded my arms and turned around.

Daju staggered behind me and suddenly leaned against Haewon.

“Oof!”

Haewon had only supported Daju to keep her from falling, but he let out a pained sound.

“Why are you so heavy, noona?”

“It’s just momentum. Didn’t you read about that in books?”

Meanwhile, Serim walked beside me.

“Noona.”

“Yes?”

“I’ve been thinking, it always seems like you know something. Is there a reason you can’t tell us everything?”

Serim quietly shook her head.

“I thought I knew something earlier, but now I don’t know anything.”

“Could this be related to that? The memetic kill agent?”

Memetic kill agent. Formally known as information that is dangerous in itself, which depending on the degree, can be fatal just by remembering it.

If it’s knowledge about this library, I thought it could be quite dangerous information.

“Maybe? I can’t remember anything right now.”

But Serim gave an ambiguous answer.

“I’m sorry, Dabin.”

“No, I was just asking.”

I don’t think Serim is hiding facts with any malicious intent.

There must be some reason she can’t talk about it.

I turned my attention to the book I was holding. In the pages spread open on both sides, the arrow was pointing in only one direction.

Across the forest of bookshelves.

The open space I had seen earlier when I climbed to the top of the bookshelf.

I’m the only one here who knows what’s over there.

“For now, we just need to go straight in the direction the arrow is pointing. Then…”

I stopped speaking and halted in place.

Serim was the first to notice something was wrong.

“Dabin?”

“Oppa, what’s wrong?”

Next was Yoon Daju. It didn’t take long for Haewon to realize the situation as well.

“Wow. My God.”

The wooden bookshelves were falling like dominoes, one after another.

Trrrrrrr-!

A thunderous sound like a giant tree being felled shook the entire library.

A shadow loomed overhead, and an enormous cloud of dust was surging toward us.

“We need to run right now.”

“No. That won’t work either.”

I bit my lip.

Haewon was right, but the situation was more complicated.

【The books must be preserved.】

【Must preserve them.】

【Must protect…】

Monks emerged from the dark spaces between the shelves.

These monks moved with incredible speed despite dragging their feet, muttering as if protecting the library was their only remaining mission.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Bookshelves continued to fall one after another.

Each time a bookshelf that reached to the sky collapsed, the library floor shook.

The monks, gathered like ants in front of the bookshelves, stretched out their arms and braced themselves.

Boom!

But as if it were futile, the bookshelf toppled backward too easily.

The bookshelf paused while severely tilted.

The monks temporarily stopped the domino effect.

No matter how many of them there were, those standing in front of the bookshelf were like ants before a boulder.

It was an unbelievably powerful force.

Crack.

Snap.

【Must not be forgotten…】

Joints bent beyond their limits, breaking bones pierced through flesh.

Books fell from the tilted bookshelf.

The falling books buried the monks, but their determination didn’t waver.

“Is protecting the bookshelves more important to them than catching us?”

“Yes. It seems so.”

Yoon Daju responded to my words.

When I checked beside me, Serim was nowhere to be seen.

“Hey. Where’s Serim noona?”

“Huh?”

In such a sudden situation, I couldn’t even properly notice the movements of someone right next to me.

I hurriedly checked behind us. Serim was already walking at the back of our group.

“Wait. Noona, where are you going?”

Haewon quickly grabbed her, but Serim continued walking without stopping.

Blank eyes.

Mouth hanging open.

“Serim noona!”

As Haewon kept clinging to her, Serim shook her arm with a thud.

Haewon flew away with a short scream and crashed to the floor.

【Must stop it. Now.】

【Move.】

【I said move!】

Serim was saying the same things as the monks while moving with slow, deliberate motions.

“Daju! Grab noona!”

“Unni, why are you suddenly acting like this!!!”

Daju and I rushed forward together. Haewon, who had gotten up from the floor, also helped, but we couldn’t stop Serim.

With one powerful swing of her arm, Serim sent us flying and we crashed to the floor.

Thud!

My head hit the ground and started buzzing.

Haewon had flown far away and collapsed.

Through my increasingly hazy consciousness, I could hear Yoon Daju screaming.

“Snap out of it!”

Daju was still holding onto Serim’s ankle, desperately trying to stop her.

Meanwhile, more monks continued to surge toward the bookshelf.

It reminded me of religious pilgrims visiting a holy site.

Rumble rumble rumble-

The bookshelf gradually tilted further.

Now I could smell the pungent odor.

The smell of decaying blood mixed with paper and wood powder.

The bodies of the monks underneath were being squeezed like sponges.

When a monk holding up the shelf was crushed, new monks splashed through the dark red puddles to take their place.

“Unni!!!”

Admirably, Daju was still holding on.

I got up and ran toward Serim.

There was very little time left before the bookshelf collapsed and the domino effect started again.

We needed to get Serim out of here as quickly as possible.

“Kyaaak!”

Boom!

Even Daju, who had been persistently clinging on, was finally sent flying into a distant bookshelf.

Calling Serim’s name or telling her to snap out of it seemed useless at this point.

‘What should I do?’

I rushed forward with all my strength, but it was useless again.

Serim sent me flying back to where I had been with ridiculous ease.

Lying on the floor, I rubbed my throbbing elbow.

Drip.

Blood was flowing freely from my arm where an earlier wound had reopened.

‘Should I abandon Serim?’

As I was contemplating this, a book at my feet caught my eye.

It had a cover color distinctly different from the surrounding books.