episode_0019

Yoon dumped a pile of documents on the desk.

“Now. This is the data we have. I’ve summarized it so it’s easy to read, so if you don’t know anything, look it up in the file at the back.”

Sarah.

I stretched out my arm and took the summary from the center of the table. The title is written in neat handwriting on white A4 paper.

“Dabin read this. The rest of you probably forgot some parts, so find the information and read it one by one.”

“I know everything, but it’s annoying.”

“Doesn’t it bother you to breathe? Just die.”

Heo Yoon and Seok Hyeon-min face off again. Daju mutters dejectedly.

“Stop fighting…”

“Anyway. From now on, this is a really important story. Dabin and Daju checked earlier, but the 11th floor was blocked. It won’t be easy to get supplies in the future.”

“What should I do? I guess I’ll starve to death.”

“Okay. I hope you do. We need to see if we can get supplies from other floors. This is something that needs to be resolved as quickly as possible, so let’s move right away even if we’re tired.”

Yoon leads the agenda fluently.

In the meantime, I checked the contents of the data. This is information accumulated by the people trapped here as they continued to explore for several years.

Palak.

As you turn the page, you will see a description of each floor.

In the case of relatively safe areas such as the 7th or 11th floor, the explanation is detailed. In most cases, more than half of the content is ‘unknown’. Some layers are completely empty.

“Then should we find a new area?”

It’s Yoon Da-ju.

“I guess so. There are very few places in the area where you can get supplies. It’s dangerous and very dangerous.”

“Uh…what about department stores?”

This time it’s me.

“Department store?”

“Yes. This area here.”

He pointed out and showed the information in the data. This is the place where I went with Park Seong-jin last time and brought a server.

“Not here. I couldn’t take the items inside out.”

“Ah.”

“What you can get from there. Reality Generator. Electric power equipment. Internet network. But I brought all three, so I won’t have to go again.”

“You have no choice but to go to an unknown place.”

“……Yes.”

Unlike Daju, who already looks excited, the others’ expressions are grave.

“So. This is what I think.”

Yoon counts slowly.

“There are six people here now, including the uncle. So, let’s divide into three teams and explore at the same time.”

“My brother was hurt.”

“Who. ah. Dabin?”

“That’s right! It was like that, right? What do we do. Do you just want to stay home?”

Daju is worried about me. It’s a bit surprising, but I don’t want to sit still at a time like this.

“I’m fine. The swelling has gone down a lot. Since you can’t use your hands anyway, you can just run away.”

“Okay. Instead, we will split into two teams. Is it okay to get there?”

“It doesn’t matter if there are three teams.”

“I don’t like it.”

“…Yes.”

Yoon makes a firm decision and hits Seok Hyun-min, who was lying down next to him.

“Hey. Seok Hyeon-min. You go with Dabin.”

“Me?”

“Shouldn’t we help you work hard!”

“Isn’t there an uncle too?”

“This is your first time here. You have a lot of experience, so help me.”

The only ones left are Heo Yoon and Choi Se-rim?

“Pack your bags and leave first. We’ll take you with us later.”

This time the three of us. We began an exploration to find a ‘line of bread’ to feed people.

* * *

Slurp.

The elevator door opens.

[13A1]

“Let’s go.”

“Oh, that’s right!”

“Why?”

“This is my first time hanging out with you like this. I always walked around alone or with other guys.”

“I’m not an old man.”

“Huh? If you are serious and retort, you are an old man. It caught right in, right?”

“Ha…”

Seok Hyun-min sighs and leaves the elevator.

“Oppa! Let’s go quickly too.”

“Yes.”

Outside is a dark blue color. A red digital light spreads from afar.

…That’s right, the one attached to the elevator.

Is there another elevator that leads to a strange world? Or, there is a huge mirror in the middle of this floor, so if you make a mistake, you could be dragged into the mirror world. I’m dying of anxiety because all kinds of thoughts are coming to my mind. Daju Yoon was excited alone. It’s really crazy.

“Huh? There’s something over there!”

“Hey. Let’s go together. Don’t go out alone.”

I quickly walked out of the elevator.

First of all, the surrounding area is an ordinary apartment, exactly the same as the 7th floor. The difference is that the lights are completely out. And I can’t see anything beyond the railing. Originally, the cars passing by on the road were noisy, and there were a lot of church crosses. It’s completely quiet now.

Daju Yoon is looking at the stains on the railing with interest. Seok Hyun-min is leaning next to him, holding a cigarette.

“You may have seen it in the data earlier.”

“……Yes.”

He spoke without any sign and I was momentarily taken aback.

“There is some information about this floor. So I decided to start exploring from here.”

“Yes.”

“First of all, there is some unknown device here.”

Seok Hyeon-min gestured over the railing.

Fighting. Cigarette ash falls into the night air.

underneath. There is something in a space whose depth cannot be measured.

Light coming from afar hits the air and scatters into several directions. The outer void is so clear, without a speck of dust, that you can count every single thin line. red line. It’s ominous.

“It’s down there. When I first came here, I had to attach a rope to go down, but there was no need to do that.”

“Yes?”

I cannot estimate the size of the space outside the railing.

“Follow me.”

hook.

Seok Hyeon-min straddles the railing and soon disappears from view.

“Don’t be scared, just fall.”

“Uh……”

Am I possessed by something now?

Fall down there?

Kuuk.

A familiar feeling passes through my shoulder.

“Oppa. Were you scared?”

“Yes.”

Daju bursts out laughing.

“Since when did you become so honest? Before, I pretended to be really cool!”

“When I.”

“Hmm. When you catch a monster on the 11th floor? ah. There were times when I was told to jump in the elevator.”

Was I like that?

“Oppa, do you remember what I said before?”

“What.”

“No need to think about it too complicated.”

Daju tapped my shoulder again and sat down on the railing.

“Sleep. Come up.”

“Ha……”

Daju took the hand he extended and stood on the railing.

They’re all up now.

“Hey. What are you doing now?”

Why… why do you keep pulling!

“Wait, wait, wait. Daju. Listen to me. I’m not mentally ready yet”

“Let’s go!”

“Too bad!”

Whoop-

The wind passes by my ears.

The eyes close tightly on their own, and the semicircular canals in the ears sound an alarm.

It starts to accelerate.

“Ahhhh!”

“Wow. I’m so scared.”

“Yoon. Daju…you crazy…bitch…!”

Did you say time is relative?

For me, forever. After a brief fall that objectively lasted less than 10 seconds, I rolled onto the floor.

“Oppa. Arrived.”

“……”

“You didn’t faint, right?”

“Yes.”

I let out a stale breath.

This is an underground parking lot with a cool, musty smell. I can see Seok Hyeon-min’s back just a little bit away.

“This way.”

” Let’s go!”

Is that the device emitting red light?

■■$#@#■!#■■ ■■@$■!@#yo ■■!@!@$%■■

I ran without even having time to catch my breath.

“Are you here?”

Seok Hyun-min is leaning against a mechanical device with his hands resting on it.

“This is the device.”

It is large enough to fill one side of the parking lot. The iron plates are crudely intertwined, and steel nuts are embedded here and there. From cogs smaller than your little fingernail to gears the size of car tires. Inside, large and small gears mesh and rotate, but the axis and angle are quite unstable. It feels like if you make a mistake, a small part will pop out.

“When I came here before, I couldn’t figure out what the device was, so I just came back. I stopped him from risking his life to conduct an experiment.”

Seok Hyun-min shrugs his shoulders as if making an excuse.

“You mean the 11th floor was fine at that time? Even though he didn’t have anything he needed, he still said he wanted to die. They are all crazy bastards… crazy bastards.”

“I guess I should try it now.”

“That’s right.”

Nodding his head, Seok Hyeon-min comes next to me.

“I heard from Serim that you are doing some observation of anomalies.”

“Yes.”

“How much?”

“I don’t know.”

“Okay. i get it. I’ll take a look at the device first, so if you find anything unusual, come and tell me right away.”

‘Anomalous Observation’. Whenever this topic comes up, Daju’s face becomes pouty.

“Hey man. Why don’t you ask me?”

“You haven’t been able to observe it for a long time. They say you can’t even see what’s right in front of you.”

“So you don’t have any expectations?”

“Yes.”

“It’s too much.”

“Not too much.”

Seok Hyeon-min disappears behind the machine.

“Daju Yoon. Take out the flashlight and keep checking to see if there is anything around you. Strange guys might pop out.”

While the two were fighting, I took out my smartphone from my pocket.

– oh

– came

– Me: How did you know?

– It’s a secret

The only way to communicate with him is by typing sentences. Normally, there would be no way for him to know whether the smartphone was turned on or off.

I’m curious, but this isn’t the time to ask questions like this.

– Me: Do you know what that machine is?

click.

– me :

– ?

-Where is it?

– Me: The name of the floor is 13A1.

– do not know

– No search results

Is it not even in the foundation’s network?

I had no choice but to put my smartphone away and quietly look at the machine.

The size is really big.

A machine this size can’t just roast peanuts. It must have some great function because of its size. I don’t know what it is. Now I understand why those who came first risked their lives to experiment.

A huge steel device that you only see in arcades is operating right before your eyes.

“K.”

It’s romance itself.

It reminds me of Metal Slug.

■■$#@#■!#■■ ■■@$■!@#yo ■■!@!@$%■■

Just as I was about to look away, words flowed into my mind.

I still don’t know exactly what an ‘anomalous observation’ is, but anyway. That’s how it feels when you do it. Anyway, it’s a weird feeling.

“……”

The letters are all broken now, but if you focus, you can see them clearly.

I opened my eyes wide and glared at the piece of metal in front of me.

“Oh.”

The broken letters regained their original appearance, and something began to appear.