"Oh, right! Just send those to the team leader's desk, Agent Mint."
"Yes…!"
Go Yeongeun carried the bundle of documents she had just organized over to her superior's desk.
It was information on the newly observed supernatural disaster.
She briefly reflected on how the term 'Disaster' had now become more familiar to her than 'Darkness'.
'Phew.'
Go Yeongeun sat down at her own desk.
Then, she could faintly hear the idle chatter of the other agents sharing the office from the hallway.
"…so that's what happened. Black-Tortoise Team 1…"
"But honestly, if I were that rookie, I think I'd have done the same..."
"..."
Her nerves instantly went on edge.
Just from that, she could tell who they were talking about.
For nearly two weeks, agents at the Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau had been careful about bringing it up, but it was still the main topic of conversation.
Agent Grapes.
Her fellow spy.
Whispers of Kim Soleum's imprisonment, release, and subsequent disappearance.
That's right.
Go Yeongeun's colleague had failed in his spy mission and had gone missing.
…Maybe it was a relief he hadn't been caught.
Given the circumstances, it seemed something had happened when Director Ho's binding was exposed, but with the hush-hush atmosphere, it was hard to ask.
She'd heard that things had gotten serious during the imprisonment, but then improved again.
And that even after the disappearance, the mood toward Kim Soleum among the field agents wasn't that bad.
…News from Black-Tortoise Team 1 had dwindled significantly.
That much was all that Go Yeongeun, as a rookie agent, could know for certain.
Of course, it was difficult to find out anything more after Kim Soleum had disappeared almost as soon as he got out of the Glass Prison.
'He really… ran away, didn't he?'
Go Yeongeun would worry herself into a state of nerves, but always ended her thoughts with a sigh.
She couldn't risk leaking information while trying to track down Soleum's whereabouts.
If Kim Soleum had managed to escape successfully, poking around would likely only cause trouble, and there was the risk her own identity might be exposed as well.
It was bad for both of them.
Given she was somewhat acquainted with Kim Soleum, and that they were both rookies, there was even more chance she was being monitored for security reasons.
'…Feels like I'm under suspicion as a spy, too.'
She didn't know.
The Disaster Management Bureau staff were certainly good people, but they were also skilled at pretending to be nonchalant while probing, or zeroing in on key issues as if it was nothing.
'Well, they are agents, after all.'
In any case, unlike her nerves-wracked state as a spy walking on thin ice, there was no noticeable change in the other agents' attitudes.
She hadn't been dragged off to the Glass Prison herself, at least.
'That's a relief, but…'
…Honestly, it felt hopeless.
Of the three who'd come in, one was quarantined due to contamination, and one other had gone missing.
Only she was left, but for a rookie to steal a document on an annihilation-sanctioned disaster was realistically close to impossible.
…If she were Director Ho, she'd have cut her losses by now.
'But I have to hang on.'
And she had to do her job.
Go Yeongeun forced herself to stay calm and calculated things to avoid panicking.
'Calmly, one at a time.'
First, she needed to clean up any traces more thoroughly.
She'd only ever contacted Kim Soleum through a separate phone line registered under a different name.
She decided she had to take care of that, too.
So, that evening, when she returned to her officetel after work, she searched for the spare phone.
Rather than hiding it meticulously, she'd just tossed it in a drawer with other old junk, like her previous phone. That way, it would be easier to overlook.
And the moment she turned it on.
Spam messages, which she deliberately invited by giving out this number everywhere, poured in.
Even contact from Director Ho disguised as counseling offers looked like spam at first glance.
"Huu."
Go Yeongeun began clicking through and deleting the spam one by one.
[ Don't just sit there serenely, please disembark now! At this stop, ★Special Discount★ Gangnam Station… ]
Her hand froze.
"…Wait a second."
Serenely, disembark, this stop…
"…!"
She couldn't help but remember, like being struck by lightning.
The subway of Abyssal Transpo.
This was a hint only someone who'd shared that insane onboarding ghost story would recognize. And at this moment, there was only one person who would send such a message disguised as spam…
Only one.
Go Yeongeun immediately clicked on the message.
[ Don't just sit there serenely, please disembark now! At this stop, ★Special Discount★ Gangnam Station Discount Phone Sales, only until 21:00 on the 17th at the left counter (Unsubscribe) ]
"..."
A location and a time.
Go Yeongeun quickly searched the internet.
She looked up the discount phone store near Gangnam Station.
And an hour later.
Go Yeongeun found herself standing in front of a storage locker near the discount phone store at Gangnam Station.
"..."
At first, she wondered if she was supposed to meet at the storefront, but even after the designated time of 21:00 passed, no one appeared.
Then, when she focused on the 'left counter' mentioned in the text, she immediately noticed a passage leading to the storage lockers on the left side of the store.
'Is it here?'
She hesitated for a moment, then looked at the lockers.
There was locker number 17.
The number specified in the message.
"..."
If so.
When she entered the code, the same number sequence from the message, 1721, into the combination lock…
Bee-bee-beep.
"...!"
The locker opened.
Go Yeongeun hurriedly grabbed the card used to pay the locker fee and looked inside.
There was a small paper envelope.
A memo was attached, written in awkward, unfamiliar handwriting on purpose, the letters crooked.
Please open this at home
"..."
Go Yeongeun quickly took the envelope and went home.
Her heart was pounding.
'What is this?'
Given the circumstances, it was almost certain that the person who left this was Kim Soleum.
But what on earth was being passed on?
Had the method of exchanging information for the spy work changed to something like this? With these swirling thoughts, Go Yeongeun opened the envelope at her dining table.
'Two boxes?'
There was a black box.
Feeling puzzled, she opened one of the boxes…
A dazzling, multicolored light shone out.
"…!!"
The Daydream Inc. employee quickly shut the box in alarm.
'W, Wish Ticket!'
That crazy potion with the holographic aurora-like glow— There was no doubt it was a Wish Ticket!
'Kim Soleum-ssi!'
Did he actually complete the spy mission by himself and bring back Wish Tickets? No, but how? Is this real? Is it really real? There's a Wish Ticket in a subway locker… Wait.
'…There are two boxes.'
Her heart pounded in her chest.
She reached for the other box and opened it…
Once again, brilliant light spilled out.
'Oh my god.'
And then, a small note fluttered down.
"…!"
She quickly picked it up.
Yeongeun-ssi.
Our work is finished.
Do as you wish.
You don't need to come back.
"..."
She was so shocked her mind went blank.
But the note wasn't finished yet.
P.S. If possible, please deliver the other box to its intended recipient. If not, please keep it safe until then.
"No way…!"
How could someone just hand over two bottles of Wish Ticket potions with only a note like this, as if it wouldn't matter if she just took both for herself!
…but even as she thought this, that kind, clever spy knew.
That she would keep her word.
"..."
A swirl of gratitude, obligation, joy, and pressure spun in her mind.
So…
Go Yeongeun made up her mind about something else.
And grabbing something, she ran out of her house.
The iridescent potion ripples in my hand.
The color of Dream Essence.
A potion that grants wishes.
…The instructions are engraved in relief on the transparent glass bottle, and whenever the liquid inside shimmers like waves, the words are revealed.
I looked into it.
: Daydream Potion :
Wish
EX (miraculous)
Lift the bottle with both hands.
Express your heartfelt wish in a single sentence…
With your eyes closed, drink all the liquid in the bottle at once.
Any wish will come true.
I had already known about these instructions since before.
So I had agonized over it from the beginning.
What sentence should I use?
When using the Wish Ticket, in what single sentence would I express my wish?
Every time I lay awake in bed unable to sleep, every time I wrote an exploration report at the office, every time I barely survived a ghost story and walked home after work, I thought about it.
The very first thing that came to mind was that.
The primal desire.
– Please send me home.
It was a desperate plea.
But I put it on hold.
'Home' is too abstract a concept.
It's not as if there was only one place I'd lived until now. I couldn't tell by what standard the Wish Ticket would activate.
If I phrased it wrong, it might even send me to the Daydream Inc.'s company dorm.
…Even when I was infiltrating the Disaster Management Bureau, the aversion that made me avoid the concept of 'home' and move from motel to motel likely stemmed from this.
So I thought again.
I had to eliminate every possible loophole.
'I can't make a mistake.'
I absolutely must not let the Wish Ticket grant my wish in some unintended way.
'Please send me back to where I originally lived'? That's just as abstract. Rejected.
'Please send me to a world without ghost stories'? There's no guarantee that'll be the world I was originally from. What if I died and went to heaven? That would technically be a world without ghost stories… Some insane interpretation like that might happen.
I rejected options again and again, and chose with the utmost caution.
A perfect sentence that could designate time and space precisely.
And I decided.
Clutching the potion tightly in both hands, I opened my mouth and spoke.
"My wish is…"
Right away.
"…To return to where I was the day before I joined Daydream Inc."
To the world I originally lived in, at the point before I spun the roulette at the popup store.
It was the perfect fit.
– Excellent!
'It's done.'
Hearing the host's admiration, I calmly opened the cap of the Wish Ticket potion.
A burst of light erupted, but I covered it with my hand and closed my eyes.
Then I poured the potion into my mouth.
"...!"
A dream that you drink.
That was the only way I could describe it.
A strange, synesthetic liquid like nothing I had ever experienced slid down my throat.
Radiance filled my stomach.
An intangible power. Transcendent authority. Overwhelming mystery.
Ecstasy and awe led me forward.
Yes. I am moving!
'Holy…'
My whole body was being sucked away somewhere.
Very deep, very far…
To wherever my wish reached.
It felt like I was traveling to fulfill a long-cherished desire. Transcendent power was transporting me.
Yes.
Yes!
Just like this, I'm going to return safely to my home…
...
...
...?
"Cough."
I collapsed to the floor.
My body rolled across a dusty, filthy floor and I coughed.
Musty air.
Even when I opened my eyes, there was only pitch blackness. Even blinking, I couldn't make out any contours.
Silence.
Stillness.
What is this?
The fantastic sensation was gone. The Wish Ticket had vanished. Which meant…
This was my destination.
"..."
The blood drained from my head.
I felt numb.
"Ugh."
I struggled, twisting myself off the floor. Sharp fragments scraped my arms and hands, leaving a stinging pain.
Gasping for breath, I lifted the empty bottle I was still holding in one hand. The last few drops of the Wish Ticket liquid faintly shimmered.
My surroundings became visible.
…I was on top of shattered glass.
"…!"
When I turned my head, I saw where I had fallen.
An empty glass tube was shattered.
I had collapsed onto the broken glass shards in a dust pit.
'…Why?'
How did I end up… inside this place?
My heart thudded uneasily. Before the ominous feeling could take over my mind, I desperately tried to make out the silhouette of the device in the darkness.
It looked like a device for storing large volumes of liquid. But…
…The machine was familiar.
There were no lights, and below the empty glass tube, I saw buttons and a keyboard panel. An old lab machine, straight out of the 2000s.
That, that's…
The Dream Incubator.
A broken, shattered Dream Incubator from Cheerful Research Institute.
...
Blankly, I looked around.
My eyes, now accustomed to the darkness, used the leftover shimmer from the Wish Ticket to finally make out my surroundings.
This place.
This is Cheerful Research Institute's prototype Dream Incubation Chamber.
"...!"
Something's wrong.
Something's definitely wrong.
Why did I end up here?
"No."
Calm down. Calm down. I definitely wished to be returned to where I was the day before I joined, so why am I here. Wait. No, no it's not.
"This isn't the same place!"
It's different!
Yes. The lab had the same structure, but it wasn't the same. The silhouette was strangely different.
Other machines and documents were visible. Even cassette tapes and empty reagent bottles. And computers, too…
'There's no dust on the computers.'
…Strange.
I staggered and turned my head. I needed a hint, any hint.
And then I found it.
An experiment log.
"..."
Soaked in blood and filth, all records meticulously erased, only the phrase 'We fell for it' frantically repeated.
It was there, right next to the shattered glass tube of the Dream Incubator.
Just like how I had found it last time in the Dream Incubation Chamber.
"..."
I walked closer.
The old paper wasn't soaked with blood and filth this time, but was browned as if scorched.
With trembling hands, I turned the pages.
There were charred spots, but I could read them.
From the very first page's title.
Ireum-nim Invitation Research
I drew in a breath.
Research Objective : Verification for ...'s existence
…incarnation and contract of an external entity into the present world.
The subtitle of this research took the name of a god worshipped by a certain cult group that had recently emerged, stemming from prior research.
This would be Cheerful Research Institute's final project.
My heart pounded with dread.
I flipped the pages frantically.
Countless experiment records filled the pages.
Because none of this was registered in any database, the format was inconsistent, and there were several experimenters.
All sorts of attempts and preparations.
Failure, Dream Incubator #21 discarded.
Failure, failure.
Horrible materials of unknown nature and extreme methods, half-erased, remained.
Things that were created, summoned, then discarded.
And then.
Success.
Some meaningful result was achieved.
Experiment #316
Essence volume : 1200L
Materials: Qterw-A-4…'s …dragon, ...-…326, human blood, ..., and 13 other synthetic elements.
Successfully awakened Ireum-nim's mind within the glass tube.
Contract failed. Form collapsed within the essence.
Suspected cause : Insufficient essence. Will adjust variables based on this research.
And then it became more refined.
Experiment #322
Essence volume : 2300L
The awakened Ireum-nim screamed inside the glass tube while and after ... ...… lost all vital signs.
After recognizing the mutation of its own bodily tissue, it rejected the combined materials, resulting in lumped collapse.
A request was made to adjust the material ratios to prepare a medium more closely reflecting Ireum-nim's exact appearance.
Currently confirming Darknesses related to shapeshifting.
My hands shook.
Ominous speculations swirled through my mind.
The experiments continued, the conditions becoming more and more specific.
The currently confirmed requirements for invitation and contract are as follows :
1- Preservation of Ireum-nim's original identity.
2- Erasure of previous emotional attachments.
3- Provision of a survival goal.
4- Removal of all sense of incongruity.
It is believed that these requirements can be fulfilled through a powerful binding, and various methods are currently being proposed.
And then…
An existing invention from Cheerful Research Institute is mentioned.
It is now a discontinued invention, designed to partially imbue a doll with the presence of a being from the reverse world, so that it may serve a supportive role to the contractor.
A limited version is currently distributed as a souvenir in a certain board game, and this
That thing.
product is called 'Good Friend'.
"..."
I barely managed to turn the next page.
The final experiment record.
Experiment #444
Essence volume : 39,999L
Materials : Same as #443.
Result : Success.
Utilizing the ritual used in the discontinued invention, Ireum-nim was successfully and fully invited.
... have been imbued. Stabilized.
As soon as the subject awakens, it will be separated from the Dream Essence and a simple interview will be conducted.
The page ends there.
But.
"..."
When I turned the last page, I saw a torn sheet of paper wedged in.
It looked like it had been crushed and balled up in a hurry, then someone else had carefully smoothed it out and put it back in the experiment log.
And scrawled over it was more writing.
The previously neat handwriting was now completely destroyed.
Daydream found out. They burst in. It was another trick. Before Ireum-nim could be taken, I spirited them away and hid them in the place with the most humans.
Please
The writing abruptly and unnaturally ends there.
And under the words 'place with the most humans', someone had underlined it heavily and, in a different hand, written another note.
New employee orientation?
As if deducing from the note.
"..."
It can't be.
My mind rejected it.
But the conclusion was already clear.
No. There wasn't even anything left to guess.
It was too obvious.
In answer to my wish, 'Please send me back to where I was the day before I joined Daydream Inc.'—
I had awakened inside this shattered Dream Incubator.
So, that means.
I…
I was the research subject of this experiment log.
-x-X-x-
The Good Friend.
Something synthesized, an entity from the reverse world invited by Cheerful Research Institute, imbued within.
Just like the host 'Braun' projected into the plush toy.
The consciousness of Kim Soleum, existing in another world, projected into 'something' created in the Dream Incubator.
…Is that it?
"...No."
No, it can't.
There must be… must be some other explanation.
What did it say about the binding up above? I don't qualify for that. I want to go home. I need to return to my house, to meet my family and friends.
That's why…
Who, exactly, are those people?
"..."
I can't remember.
I mean.
I was sure, back when I first joined, that I remembered.
Didn't I recall the conversations with my parents and friends? And didn't I look up contact info, check addresses, search through my records and...
...Did I actually do that?
Or did I just think to myself, 'I checked,' and let it go?
What exact contacts did I look up, which previous address did I visit?
I don't know.
I can't remember.
There's only this conviction that I did…
"..."
So, does that mean,
This body I inhabit,
Isn't Kim Soleum?
If the place I was before joining was this place.
If I've returned to the place this body was.
If I was made in the Dream Incubation Chamber.
Then am I… not human?
"No."
I looked down at my hands.
[No]
No!
E n o u
Kekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekeke
My body starts to bulge grotesquely.
The tattoo collapses.
I disappear. The human body falls apart.
The self that has realized the truth rejects the shape of a human body. The body tries to revert to its original form.
Something unknown, sacred and bizarre, synthesized, bursts forth from within me.
Scales and horns, hooves, spikes all pierce through my ribs…
"No!"
My voice rings strangely through the space. But there is nothing I can do. I've already disposed of all my items. My tattoo is completely empty…!
N o
At that moment,
I realized it.
There is still one thing left inside the tattoo.
Equipment that's not mine, something I borrowed.
"…!"
I hastily shoved my mutating hand into my tattoo and pulled out the equipment.
The Security Team suit.
And I started to put it on like a madman.
My mutating body is forced and jammed back into a human form, held in place. Strange noises ring out as black smoke envelops my whole body.
In that way, I barely manage to regain human limbs.
I have to run away.
Staggering, I searched for the door to the lab. Yellow, lamp-like eyes flashed. The light found the doorknob.
Leaning on it, I barely managed to push it open and step out…
There are indoor lights.
"...!"
A normal office hallway.
A scene I had seen before.
'…Daydream's basement.'
The sergeant had told me about Cheerful Research Institute being in the company's underground.
– The Cheerful Research Institute… it's still in our company's basement...
– If you go deeper underground… the same office corridors… just keep repeating…
What floor underground is this, exactly?
How do I get out?
'Elevator…'
My head and body feel heavy.
A strange, intense pain sweeps over my entire body.
Dragging my feet, I tried to make my way somehow to the end of the corridor.
Just then.
"Excellent."
...
"You have strong company loyalty. To think you'd come back."
I raised my head.
Someone in a suit was now standing in front of me, staring straight at me.
An ageless impression, cold and immaculate appearance, a perfectly fitted three-button suit, dark blue hair…
Managing Director Cheong Dallae.
"Already wearing the uniform, are you. Looking good."
Black pupils stared at me.
"But that's not the proper uniform…"
I opened my mouth,
But no words came out. It felt as if my vocal cords were crumpled up inside the suit.
The mad, suffocating sensation grew stronger, more… painful.
"Yes. That seems to be a uniform that makes a human look like a monster. Is this a new version that's been developed?"
"..."
"But when a real monster wears it, it's just a mold that forcibly stuffs the body in. As you know, there are a lot of programs in society whose efficacy only works when there's a contract. That's how it is."
She declared thus.
"At this rate, you'll soon necrotize."
"..."
"If you don't like that, there is another path."
Executive Director Cheong Dallae took out a neat sheet of paper from inside her jacket.
"A contract."
...
"You just need to sign. I promise you the most humane treatment. You'll have a satisfying position… in the Security Team, that is."
Blood started to flow from my body. Blood dripped down my fingers.
"Here."
"..."
"Choose."
I feel like I'm going to die.
My collapsing body is being crushed, and so is my consciousness. I can't even stumble forward anymore.
I don't have the strength to even think of any other options.
A dead end.
"..."
I lifted my trembling hand.
And, with the blood streaming down, I signed the contract.
"Good."
The moment the signing was complete.
My body rapidly began to feel at ease.
As if I were wearing perfectly fitting clothes, as if I had fulfilled a promise, as if just the right amount of water had been poured into a cup.
A sense of peace and unfamiliar power spread through my whole body.
And… more than anything, a clear binding.
"..."
I looked at my superior.
"From now on, you'll be entrusted with a very important position."
And just like that,
I started working for the company once again.
〈 End of Part I 〉
goblin notes:
You guys. You guys holy shit what did we just read
Damn??? Like????? No words, literally. I can't think of anything.
I mean I know it was heading there, all the signs were there, I could see the vision (the novel's title itself, the Name, all the foreshadowing!)... But still?? I was so caught off guard I didn't think BDS-nim would actually take us there ??!!
I'm so excited for the second part! Literally don't know how things will go from here, I'm just so happy we're here for the rideee
p.s.
As of the full release of 208, this goblin will be taking a short hiatus from gsgw, give or take 2 weeks~
That's at least better than 2 months, right…?ㅋ
See ya~