What is this situation?
'Hold on.'
So, the Team B Leader is next to me, and I'm here….
The Security Chief and me, the mascot, are over in that hallway.
'…What?'
Is this a hallucination from the library ghost story?
But if I had to guess, it would be more natural for the Team B Leader, from the uncontaminated past of several decades ago, to be the hallucination… but a person with such a real presence, who even subdued a student, can't be a hallucination, no….
....
I swallowed.
'…Brown.'
-My friend is calling me.
And I shifted my focus.
'That Golden Mascot over there.'
To the yellow, cat-like mascot with antlers like tree branches.
'…Is that your friend?'
Will it be identified as me?
-Oh, that could be. But right now, I am with Mr. Roe Deer!
It was an ambiguous answer.
'Ha.'
Meanwhile, the Team B Leader, who had already been carefully observing the state of the two entities, slowly informed me through a written conversation.
-They don't seem to be human.
-They seem to be entities belonging to this library ghost story, so let's observe them a little longer.
"..."
He's judged them to be something other than human.
That judgment was, in fact, correct.
Even if both had physical forms, they couldn't be seen as ordinary, uncontaminated people.
"Um… the yarn, should I hold it…."
Thank you
"Yeah…."
And as the Security Chief took hold of the yarn, his pupils shimmered yellow.
'Looking at him like this, he really seems out of the ordinary….'
Those two beings conversing beyond the corner looked anything but ordinary, just from their appearances and way of speaking….
'But.'
I was still looking at the Security Chief, who was wearing a disposable dental mask, and I fought the urge to whip my head around to look at the Wolf Leader.
…What if.
What if that Team B Leader.
What would happen if he realized that the being he judged to be a ghost story, that Security Chief, was his future self?
"..."
I have a bad feeling about this.
'It's better to keep them from meeting.'
I picked up my pen as nonchalantly as possible and wrote a reply.
-Yes. There's a high probability they are something that got lost in this library.
-That's the established theory.
I can't lie.
He'll notice.
"Hmm… since we found the yarn… should we follow the thread to find the end…?"
Let's hold it
and move.
Let's find
the others.
"Should we…."
It seems their conversation is over, and they're about to move again. For a moment, what the Golden Mascot said sounded so much like something I would say in this situation that I got the chills, but for now, let's focus on not running into them.
-We'll give up on the yarn for now. We should also get out and search other places first
The moment I wrote that far.
"A smell..."
...!
I lifted my head.
The Security Chief's long, vicious black forepaw, having rushed in at some point, was grabbing the collar of my jacket.
And the moment the Wolf Leader pulled my body out, leaving only the jacket behind with exquisite timing.
"..."
"..."
"…Um."
We've been found.
The Security Chief fidgets with his hands, then looks back and forth between me and the Golden Mascot.
"This is..."
It's okay
The Golden Mascot runs over and stands in front of me.
And it looks at me with its black, pebble-like eyes.
We've
done this
before.
What….
Ah.
For a moment, an image flashed through my mind.
'The Cosmic shopping mall VIP shopping.'
The situation where all my Contaminations were materialized and sitting there.
"..."
Right?
Then, is this… a phenomenon where the personality of a Contaminated Entity and an uncontaminated person have been separated?
Is that how the Golden Mascot sees it?
'But that's strange too.'
I didn't have just one or two types of Contamination.
If the Contamination that had consumed the most of my ego were to pop out, the kindergarten teacher from the Hungry Hangman should have appeared first.
And even if the most powerful form were to emerge….
'…130666 should have appeared.'
My form in reality.
[Oh, this makes one curious about the standard of measurement.]
I started to worry more and more about what might have happened to the rest of the group.
But the most urgent thing was….
"You two seem to know each other."
The Security Chief and the Team B Leader had met.
"..."
"..."
A tall build, a neat suit, well-groomed hair on top, a Wolf Mask covering the face.
A gaunt and languidly stooped body, a shabby security staff uniform, a hat pulled down low, carelessly grown hair, a crumpled dental mask.
"What's going on? Employee Yong."
My mind went blank as I watched the two face off.
'Did he notice?'
The Security Chief, at least, definitely did.
But Mr. Jay….
He stands there stock-still as if his movements have frozen, then soon pulls his hat down and bows his head.
....
Hoo.
In that case.
"Leader. This person is… a member of the Security Team."
I stood up, swallowed, and gestured politely to the Security Chief to introduce him.
"He's with me."
The Wolf Leader's gaze remains fixed.
"But you pretended not to know."
Hoo.
"As far as I know, the Security Team… didn't exist in the company's early days but was established later, so I presumed you wouldn't know of it."
"Hmm."
"So I was worried you'd find it suspicious…."
I confessed as if letting out a sigh.
"Yes. I was trying to deceive you. I wasn't sure how much you'd believe, and I was a bit scared of your reaction."
"Mine?"
"Yes."
This was truly from the heart.
"Honestly, objectively speaking, it is a suspicious situation, isn't it."
"Haha."
The eyes behind the Wolf Leader's mask narrowed slightly.
…It was impossible to tell if he was smiling or sizing me up.
I swallowed.
"So, since it seemed they had also found the yarn… I thought we could meet again after securing an exit."
"Hmm."
The eyes in the Wolf Mask scan the two entities.
…The Security Chief is still standing there with his head bowed, his hat pulled down.
The moment his gaze lingers a bit longer on the more flamboyant mascot.
"I understand."
"..."
"Let's go together for now. We should try using Employee Yong's yarn."
"Yes."
I feel like my heart is shriveling up.
Let's walk
We held the yarn and walked.
The ball of yarn I had dropped while moving to Sekwang Technical High School was still there in the same spot.
And logically, since I had tied the end of this yarn to the outside of Hanbit Library, it should guide us there.
"..."
Even during that process, the Wolf Section Chief continues to speak in a casual tone.
I don't know if I should consider this a relief, but he was speaking to the Golden Mascot.
"Are you also a Security Team employee?"
I'm
the owner
of a wonderful
Resort.
"A Resort."
"…Among the Daydream Darknesses… there is a Resort run by a ghost story entity that is friendly to people."
I didn't say anything untrue.
"It is quite a splendid place."
That's right.
As if praising me, the mascot patted the back of my head.
The feel of its fluffy paws was strangely unsettling….
....
A thought suddenly occurs to me.
'What are the chances that I'm the fake?'
That the Golden Mascot is the real one, affected by the ghost story. And that I am an appendage created by this ghost story… what are the chances?
'…No.'
I'm in human form right now.
I have a human personality.
My consciousness… there are no gaps in my consciousness.
And Brown is with me, isn't he? The probability that the other one is the ghost story's appendage is high. No, let's not talk about probabilities….
'Don't doubt.'
Doing so makes it easier to give up or make the wrong judgment.
But in this indescribably bizarre feeling, I kept moving my feet….
"..."
"..."
And surprisingly, the end of the yarn was.
Origin of the Incense Burner's Path
Here.
The hallway engraved with strange rules.
The red yarn was in a messy clump on the floor, drawing the same bizarrely broken sentence as before….
"..."
'It's gone.'
The exit is gone.
Instead, this passage has appeared again. To a place where letters are jumbled, where a strange space is hidden behind the bookshelf.
The moment my mind was about to go blank.
With a tak sound, I see the silhouette of a student backing away.
"…!"
It was Lee Gyeol, who had been following us. I urgently followed and asked.
-What's wrong?
He also urgently scribbles a reply on the paper….
-Don't go That's a different place
"…!"
-It's not a normal library!
-How do you know that?
-I just know I can't not know
Lee Gyeol writes down the words as if certain amidst the confusion.
…Wait a minute.
Sekwang Technical High School is inside Hanbit Library.
Since it's set up as a sort of special corner there…
it's part of the library.
Perhaps the students can also be judged as entities of the library.
If so….
-Lee Gyeol, do you happen to know all the rules for using Hanbit Library?
-I know
-Can you write them down for me?
Lee Gyeol wrote down the usage rules he 'knew'.
Do not make footsteps
Do not fall asleep
Be curious
Leave after obtaining one thing
Do not go down to the basement
Gaze at the window
'They match.'
The order was different, but they weren't different from what we knew so far. However….
The part written in red letters isn't there.
'That's definitely not a usage rule.'
Rather… it feels more seductive, deep, and proactive.
... For instance.
The law of worship.
The master of the library. It's a way of serving some being that has settled here as a sanctuary, a being that one 'must bow to'.
'…It's calling us.'
Blocking the exit, luring us.
If so….
'Is the phenomenon of the Wolf Leader or the Golden Mascot appearing also what it wants?'
Click.
"…!" In that time, the Security Chief had already grabbed the
"..."
And it reveals its form in his hand again. The passage leading to something that has settled in the library.
"..."
"…Um, should I… go take a look.... To see if there are any traces… of the others...."
"Please wait a moment."
I stepped forward reflexively.
"It was quite dangerous. Symptoms of the writing system collapsing appear inside."
"Hmm…."
Then I'll go in
"…!"
When I turn my head, the Golden Mascot is patting its chest with its hand.
It's okay to meet the library owner
"You think… it's at the end of that passage?"
Yes
"..."
I looked back at the Wolf Leader. He is calculatingly looking over the newly appeared individuals and checking on me….
Wait,
"Leader, could you possibly keep watch here?"
"Me?"
"Yes. I feel like someone should watch the entrance here, and if someone sensitive to danger could stay…."
"You could also prove that we have no intention of luring you into that passage to put you in danger."
"..."
"Right?"
I couldn't bring myself to answer.
"It's fine. Let's go in together."
"...!"
He glances at the Golden Mascot.
"I prefer to keep dangerous elements close…. If they're not going to disappear anyway."
"..."
It was a far more convincing statement than a warm remark about trusting me after half a day together.
But.
"No. I'm asking because I think it might be genuinely dangerous."
I first used the ball of yarn again to tie myself to the Security Chief. It wasn't very reliable, but there was nothing else.
'Let's only go as far as we can see with our own eyes.'
And I placed the remaining strand in the Wolf Leader's hand.
"…If we pull on the yarn from inside, could you please pull back?"
"..."
A gaze that scrutinizes the tension in my lower face.
"Alright. I'll do that."
Hoo.
What about me?
"You don't go in either, wait with him. We might need two people's strength to pull."
And finally, I spoke to Lee Gyeol.
As a farewell.
-Even if I don't come out don't worry I can come find you again in another way
Right.
We can just die to get out.
The two people entering now. 'The Security Chief and I… must be the real ones.'
I desperately thought so.
Right.
We exist as we are at this moment.
So we can escape this place by dying and waking from the dream, just like we did in the previous Segwang Metropolitan City exploration.
But the other beings….
'I'm not sure.'
If they really came from the past… no, if that were the case, I should have a memory of visiting the library as the Golden Mascot.
They must be fakes.
…I had to think that way.
But I couldn't bring myself to kill them. In the first place, this situation is so bizarre that I have no idea what effect it would have.
"..."
"…Shall we go?"
"Yeah…." A confusing situation.
The Security Chief and I walked in silence, inside the pile of bookshelves in the red, shadowy darkness.
"..."
It gets narrower and narrower.
It goes down.
A strange path.
A passage piled with books, books.
All the letters, shrouded in darkness, are unreadable.
Nothing unusual.
Slowly, slowly forward…
checking if there's anything, forward….
Tuk, tuk.
"Hey."
"..."
"Behind…."
…Ah.
The Security Chief, who was slightly ahead of me, is looking back at me. I followed his gaze and turned my head….
t҈h҈e҈o҈n҈e҈w҈h҈o҈s҈a҈w҈h҈i҈m҈s҈e҈l҈f҈k҈e҈e҈p҈w҈a҈l҈k҈i҈n҈g҈c҈o҈m҈e҈h҈e҈r҈e҈m҈y҈l҈i҈b҈r҈a҈r҈i҈a҈n҈
The yarn we were tied to.
It's stuck to the floor, drawing letters. Like the outer passage.
But it's much more distorted and strange.
The letters, the recorded language, are being deconstructed.
Crushed by great knowledge, jumbled up, strange unreadable things, strangely glowing in the dim passage, at us….
Light.
"…!" I realized there was something I had carelessly passed by among the yarn.
"Mr. Jay,"
A button.
It's half-pressed into the floor, among the yarn….
And the button.
'It's the form Deputy Manager Eun Haje often uses for her equipment or items.'
My heart pounds.
The Security Chief's eyes narrow as he confirms it at my pointing.
"…Untie the yarn."
"..."
"I'll run, grab it, and go straight to the entrance. In a way that avoids damaging those letters as much as possible."
At that moment.
"Then…."
The Security Chief, grabbing me, ran back toward the entrance. To be precise, he moved as if he were almost leaping over things.
"…!"
I barely managed to lower my arm at the perfect moment and retrieve the button on the floor.
Without damaging the letters made by the yarn. We arrived at the entrance.
'Crazy.'
I thought my heart was going to drop.
"Are you okay…?"
"Just a moment."
I came out from inside the hidden bookshelf, and as soon as I caught my breath, I examined the button in my hand. When I pressed it properly….
[Ah.]
"…!"
The button plays.
[Hoo.]
It's Deputy Manager Eun Haje. Her breathy voice seemed to be barely hushed, and then she spoke.
[This library… wants a librarian.]
[That's why it says to look at the window,]
And the button recording cut off. With a tremendous roar.
"..."
What happened?
A chilling worry and concern.
And at the same time… a realization dawns. Librarian.
Window.
"Wait a minute."
I recalled the letters I saw earlier. They were distorted, but I could read them well enough. Because I knew the pattern.
It was, let's see….
theonesawhimself keepwalking comehere mylibrarian
This was it.
Putting aside the fear and unfamiliarity of the situation, if I calmly rearranged the anagram just as I had done before….
The one who saw himself keep walking come here my….
"Librarian."
I lifted my head.
"I see. I get it now. Why there was suddenly a rule to gaze at the window. It's telling you to look at your own reflection in the window."
The dark window reflects one's face like a mirror.
And the user who has reflected their face in the library….
"Can become a librarian."
Thump.
"Kindly, the master of this place seems to find a suitable moment from within that user to become a librarian. As if opening a book and finding a page they like."
Thump.
The sound of the Wolf Leader's footsteps. And…. The Golden Mascot, bowing its head deeply to me.
I'm sorry I get it now
What?
We're the same thing
Wait a minute.
That means….
"If that mascot was a past version of you that you experienced. Then that means."
Thud.
The Wolf Leader's footsteps stopped. In front of the Security Chief.
"You are my future."
"..."
The Security Chief lifts his dry eyes.
"...No."
With bright yellow pupils.
"You… are my past… is what I should say."
He stared like that.
At his own nostalgia.