episode_0022

“You can just press anything, right?”

Daju was the first to enter the elevator and looked around at the buttons.

“No. I should only choose floors I haven’t been to.”

“How many floors are there that I haven’t been to? Even if you just press the button, it will be the first floor you see.”

That is correct. A combination between specific numbers. Alphabet buttons that sometimes appear, etc. Because the combinations are almost endless. It will definitely be much more than the 14th floor you see now.

“Then can I press it?”

“Yes.”

“Huh? Really?”

“In my opinion, you are the luckiest person here. It’s all luck, so I’ll leave it to the lucky ones.”

“Speaking like this makes me feel burdened again. Anyway, I’ll press it right away.”

Daju starts pressing random buttons.

“Press slowly! Don’t you have to keep records!”

“13 so far! 4! 2!”

then. Is it possible to find an exit between infinite layers? No matter how you look at it, there is a high possibility that you will die before then.

“Now the alphabet appears.”

The elevator lights blink for a moment, then the wall rotates and a new instrument panel appears.

[ARRAY]

[Set the coordinates here.Z]

[Set the stairs here. 0-]

[The world line is set here. 0-14]

[Unauthorized requests or inquiries may be rejected.]

“Huh?”

this. Did it look this good?

When I first came here, I felt like I was going to die from dizzy just by looking at it for a moment.

I focused my mind on the sentence floating in the air.

[Caution: The entered information is combined and reflected according to specific rules regardless of order.]

little bit more.

[■■■■ cannot affect its parent ■■■■……………]

Try more?

■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■

Crazy dizziness again. I closed my eyes tightly.

Before, I couldn’t even read this far. I guess this varies depending on the condition, right?

Since I’m about to explore now, it might be a good idea to see it again later.

“13-4-2-GK0! It’s a floor you haven’t been to, right?”

Seok Hyeon-min nods his head silently and glances this way.

“Hold on tight.”

Shake!

And with a roar that I was slowly becoming accustomed to, the elevator crashed.

[13-4-2-GK0]

The elevator slowly slows down. I think the door will open in a little while.

“Let’s go out as soon as the door opens. One person has to hold the button in the elevator. You know what I mean?”

“Yes.”

“If something happens, press the close button at the right time. Because we will run to our deaths.”

“We did that too when we saw the monster, right?”

I nodded silently at Daju’s words.

“So there has to be one person who stays…Im Da-bin? One of my hands was also injured, so I couldn’t use it properly. I don’t have much experience, so just wait in the elevator.”

“I hurt my hand too.”

“Then Daju Yoon, will you stay?”

“No. Please worry about me too.”

“It must hurt. Dabin. For now, keep pressing the open button. If you are in a hurry, a signal will be given right away, so press the close button carefully.”

“Yes.”

I don’t want to just sit in the elevator, but it can’t be helped. Anyway, at least one person has to hold the elevator.

Unlike previous explorations, this time it was a floor I had never been to before. It means you don’t know what might happen inside.

“Then we will go.”

“Be careful.”

A space left alone.

[■■■■ cannot affect its parent ■■■■……………]

If I had the same mind, I would like to take a closer look at it, but for now I have to focus all my attention on the outside.

I pressed the open button and looked out as far as I could.

Stone dust. dust.

The desolate landscape resembles the surface of a planet seen in old space magazines.

Gray earth and rolling stones. Deep dug holes visible in the distance. Did you say that was a crater?

The two people who go outside walk like astronauts.

“Wow! It’s so amazing!”

“Be quiet.”

[origin]

[produce]

[Conception]

Short words flashed through my mind, but too quickly.

I can’t even remember it, let alone write it down somewhere. All that remains is the feeling that I saw something.

Am I doing something strange?

Suddenly I became a woman. They say ‘transformation’ is a common phenomenon in apartments, but there has never been a case like mine where only the gender changed without a problem. Most people lose their reason and go crazy, or turn into terrible monsters.

Anomalous observation. This is also unique to me. Seok Hyeon-min said that I was the best among all the people he had ever seen. Usually women tend to be poor at observing things, but I deviate from that.

“……”

I looked in the mirror for a moment.

Still looking like a dazed high school girl. I’m probably used to it now, but every time I see it, I feel a tingle in my heart. Is this because I’m embarrassed, or is it awkward because of memories of when I was a man? I do not know.

This was a man. If I had even dressed like a woman, wouldn’t you have believed me? Still, the black hooded zip-up and sweats are quite masculine fashion, so that’s a bit fortunate.

I slowly looked away.

The two must have gone quite far, and there is no one outside anymore.

I am afraid of silence.

A place where only dust blows in the dry air and there are only dead stones around. If the Creator really existed, there is no way he would have left a space like this.

Someone needs to fill that one.

I pressed and held the open button with my good hand, and grabbed the hood zip-up zipper with my injured hand.

“Augh.”

A dull pain shoots up through my fingers, but I can somehow pull the zipper down.

They say that if the outline of your breasts is visible when you wear thick clothes, they are pretty big.

Even though he was originally a man, it is common sense that with a body like this, he has to have someone’s child.

Otherwise, all space will be filled with emptiness.

Right?

“Ha…”

I leaned my hand against the mirror as if I was falling down, and kept pressing the open button with my other hand.

I slowly unzipped the zipper and looked down.

It’s just a natural thing for the universe, so why is this exciting? My breathing becomes rough without me even realizing it.

“Phew…”

I took a deep breath and threw off my jacket.

Undergarments sloppily worn on completely exposed shoulders. The chest line… it’s really ugly. If it were a man…

“Huh?”

My heart is pounding.

wait for a sec.

What was I doing?

■■■■■

When I looked up, I saw something wriggling far away in outer space.

If you focus, you might be able to see something, but the more you focus, the more distance ‘that’ becomes and it becomes blurry.

■

■

■■

■

The letters suddenly begin to wriggle violently.

I feel intense curiosity, but the feeling of reluctance is greater than that. The moment I look more closely and understand that, I am afraid that I will fall apart. It’s a feeling I’ve felt for the first time in my life.

My body, which had been heated for a moment, quickly cooled down, and an inexplicable feeling of anxiety remained.

What was it?

Are the two people outside okay?

■ ■

■Disappointing■■ ■

■■■ ■Anger■

■ ■

***

A wilderness where there seem to be no artifacts.

In one place, the remains of the satellite pile up to form a tower.

Gilded metal plate.

Solar panels that once provided power.

Wheels and mining tongs that allowed the exploration robot to move.

They support each other and form one huge structure.

It doesn’t seem like a building you can go inside. Is it just a religious symbol?

Seok Hyeon-min slowly looked up at the steel structure.

“What is that? Looks like the Eiffel Tower?”

“Be quiet. Think about it.”

Following the outline of the round tower, white spacesuits sit in a spiral array.

Some people are buried in accumulated rubble and dust, with only their shoulders or heads visible. There are also some that are completely preserved in their sitting position.

However, the posture is all in lotus position. Inside the helmet, which is designed to block ultraviolet rays, a skinny skull is visible.

Is this what nirvana is?

Was it to sever ties with the earth and leave the body to a meaningless void?

“Wow! Sans!”

“……”

Seok Hyeon-min took out a plastic bottle tied to a rope from his bag.

“Daju Yoon. Don’t move forward, stay still.”

Exploration itself is crazy, but hastily stepping into a space like this is even more crazy.

The first rule of exploration is to ensure maximum safety before moving.

If you put a living thing in a bottle and throw it in a suspicious location, you can know at least two things for sure.

How does the ‘anomaly’ of that space affect matter?

Likewise, what effect does it have on living things?

Even if there are no problems at this time, safety cannot be assured.

Because it is unknown whether it has any effect on the human mind. Maybe ‘something’ inside ignores animals and only targets people. Like the AIDS virus.

The current bottle contains the cockroach that was caught last time.

Tuk.

Eventually, the plastic bottle flew far away and landed on the remains of the satellite.

“Wait 3 minutes.”

If the time is too short, the risks cannot be fully assessed.

However, it is dangerous if the time is too long. It’s like standing defenseless during that time.

After a set time has passed.

Seok Hyeon-min pulls back the rope connected to the plastic bottle.

“That’s it.”

“How did it go?”

“Anyway. Just fine. I think it’s okay to go further inside.”

“Oh. Is it true?”

The cockroaches inside the plastic bottle are moving so actively that it’s disgusting. The shape of the plastic bottle remains the same except for scratches when thrown.

To what extent is this safe?

Daju Yoon was delighted with the idea of being able to go to a new place, and then lost herself in thought for a moment.

It would be interesting to get there, but…

‘Has this guy ever been like that?’

Seok Hyeon-min, whom Da-ju Yoon knew, was always a cautious person to the point of being excessive. It was because of a trauma in the past. However, this time, I keep feeling like I’m excited about something.

“Uncle.”

“Why.”

“You won’t run away this time?”

“What?”

“It seems much more uncertain than last time. It doesn’t seem to have much to do with supplies.”

“When did I run away? I didn’t go to places I didn’t have to go. I even took the test this time. If you don’t want to go, go back first.”

“No. That’s not true, but… he’s a bit strange after all.”

Da-ju Yoon makes a mischievous expression and trails off her words.

If you’ve made it this far, you might notice. Seok Hyeon-min smiles confidently.

“I got the feeling this time.”

Pointing to the top of the tower.

“There’s something over there.”