A grimy back alley.
Even within the noisy, bizarre night market filled with non-human entities, this dark and foul-smelling place felt distinctly out of place. Under the flickering gaslights, strange figures in uniforms fixed their hollow eyes on me as I stood at the mouth of the alley.
– My, this looks like the kind of place you'd rather avoid stepping into with polished shoes.
But I had to go.
And I couldn't let my teammates notice that I was momentarily frozen by the sight.
Slosh.
I stepped into the back alley.
My teammates followed close behind.
Glop, slosh.
Walking between narrow walls under dim gaslights, we passed rows of tightly clustered side doors.
"..."
It was surreal.
The scene felt like stepping into a poorly stitched-together image meant to stretch endlessly with its strange side doors.
As we walked between the doors, eyes stared at us from both sides.
'Haah.'
Figures in filthy, stained uniforms. Their abnormally thin black bodies stood silently against the walls, their heads turning to follow us.
– A star is always subject to attention! But even stars need a break. As always, this Braun could relieve that burden for you…
I felt like screaming and begging him to do exactly that, but—
'No. It's fine.'
I couldn't use 'Lights out' now.
'I'll save it for when I truly need it.'
– Of course!
Right. I had to endure this.
'Stick to the plan.'
I swallowed hard and kept walking.
Just as the chill creeping up my neck made my legs stiffen to the point where walking became difficult—
"…Huh?"
My teammate's exclamation snapped me out of it.
The endless side doors, the figures in uniforms, and then—
Just one. A door, slightly ajar.
"..."
The door was protruding slightly.
From the crack came an inky darkness.
'Wow, seriously.'
It was straight out of a horror movie. My eyelids twitched from the tension. But I had to say this:
"There's a door slightly open over there. It seems like a welcoming sign. Let's go in."
"Yes!"
"Ah… I see!"
"..."
'Shouldn't they be questioning this nonsense?!'
But I had to do what needed to be done.
Taking a deep breath, I approached the single open door. The closer I got, the stronger the urge to run, but I resisted. I bent down to peer into the narrow crack of the black door…
And came face to face with a bloodshot eye.
"...!!"
Calm down.
I had anticipated this. No panicking, no stupid moves…
I carefully slid something I had prepared through the door crack.
A pack of cigarettes.
"..."
My hand trembled.
It felt like something icy grazed my fingertips…
Creeeak.
The door creaked open wider.
'...Phew.'
In this alley, entering shops was generally prohibited, but the use of addictive items like alcohol or cigarettes occasionally allowed for temporary exploration.
I did it.
Retrieving my now-empty hand, I clenched my teeth.
Wow, I could cry… seriously.
"Opening a business contact's door with a simple 5,000 won investment? You're amazing, Supervisor!"
"Right?!"
"..."
I'd rather have someone else persuade me to that degree, honestly. I'd be able to just go ahead comfortably like them…
But since I was the one who had done the persuading, I could only trudge forward in regret.
'Ugh.'
The bloodshot eye was gone, but a faint scent of cigarettes lingered.
'Better than before.'
I sighed in relief and stepped inside.
"..."
It was pitch black, but I could vaguely make out shapes. Stacks of boxes and items draped in black cloth formed a maze-like space. The musty scent of a warehouse filled the air.
"Ah, if this is a discount warehouse or overstock store, we could find plenty of valuable items…"
Too bad it wasn't.
Pushing past the boxes, I finally spotted what I was looking for.
"...! Mr. Roe Deer, over there…"
"Yes."
A second door stood deeper inside.
It looked similar to the one we'd just entered, but it was less worn and much cleaner.
'...I guess I'll have to open this one too.'
At least I wasn't at the back of the group this time.
I stepped forward, grabbed the doorknob, and pulled hard…
A dazzling, colorful light pierced my eyes.
"...!!"
As my vision gradually recovered from the flood of light, the space before me slowly came into focus.
A dazzling scene filled my eyes.
Elegant chandeliers made of crystal and brass, deep-toned wooden structures forming the interior framework, and walls adorned with golden frames and thick, glossy green velvet curtains.
But the most striking element was the three ivory torsos lining the walls. Each displayed an unfinished suit or dress, with disembodied gloved hands meticulously measuring and tailoring the garments in between.
My teammates gawked, their mouths hanging open.
"Th-this place…?"
How could such a scene suddenly appear after that eerie back alley, one might ask.
To put it simply…
'That was truly a back alley.'
Confirmed sections of Death Lane:
38- Boutique back alley
We had entered this lavish boutique through the filthy backstreets. Naturally, we weren't legitimate customers.
We were nothing more than thieves who'd slipped in through a slum-like area filled with vagrants and dismissed laborers, bribing our way in with a pack of cigarettes.
But irregular methods in ghost stories weren't exactly new.
'If things go south, we'll just bolt.'
If caught trespassing, we'd likely face a gruesome fate, but that's when I'd rely on Braun to erase our presence and escape.
'The backdoor exit is ready, after all.'
That's why I'd saved my request to Braun until now!
I stepped forward.
"Whoa…!"
Please, don't be impressed, everyone…
Despite my nervousness, the gloves tending to the torsos reacted in unison.
Fweeeep!
With a light whistle, the gloves suddenly attached themselves to the bodies of mannequins clad in sophisticated navy uniforms.
They resembled the figures we saw in the alley but were far cleaner, neater, and more detailed.
Even the heads appeared.
The mannequins' painted faces stared back at us.
'Ugh.'
Don't make eye contact.
I quickly averted my gaze.
It was eerie but bearable.
The mannequin bowed deeply, its posture polite, and gestured for me to follow.
Of course, following it would result in certain disappearance.
Assistant Manager Choi went missing after following the directions of a mannequin clerk. These were the last words in the last communication from the employee: 'I think I'm heading to the membership registration corner of Boutique Street.'
Additional note: A vagrant wearing the missing employee's broken glasses was later spotted in the back alley of the boutique. Presumed to be the employee. (Refer to Exploration Record #145)
It implied the assistant manager had been forced into labor for debt repayment upon being exposed as a trespasser—or perhaps the membership registration fee never got paid.
"..."
Either way, I tried not to imagine what those grotesque figures in tattered uniforms once were.
'That's irrelevant now.'
The only thing that mattered was this.
Membership registration was dangerous and must be avoided.
'For now, I'll try to buy something at the non-member price.'
If only members could purchase, I'd bolt—my life was worth more than what I came for.
But as I raised my hand to gesture goodwill—
...!
The mannequins flinched as though a signal had appeared on their printed faces.
They bowed again.
"..."
And I knew exactly why.
I turned my arm to check.
Beneath my raised shirt cuff, a familiar Latin word peeked through.
: Socius :
"…Does this count as membership verification?"
The mannequin bowed deeply.
"..."
Now this was unsettling.
'This is the second time already.'
The 'theme park membership' tattoo left by the mascot had granted me authority within another ghost story.
– Socius.
– The Latin term for 'companion', 'member', 'kinsman'!
As Braun had said, the word's meaning seemed to carry universal significance across different places.
Even the Fox Counselor had recognized it…
'Why did it leave this on me?'
Before, I might've seen it as sheer luck and moved on, but things felt different now.
I'd experienced firsthand how devastating contamination could be.
'This thing is powerful, but it's bound to affect me just as strongly.'
This was no ordinary mark, summoned through some verified ritual. It was an unpredictable, potent symbol etched into my skin.
Still, the membership verification had already succeeded. If it was dangerous, I might as well use it wisely.
"Show me the items."
The mannequins nodded once more and moved toward the torsos they had been working on. They pulled back the curtain behind them, revealing a glass display case as if by magic.
Inside was a sleek, elegant suit, similar in style to the one I was currently wearing, though its deeper hues and peculiar sheen gave it an otherworldly quality.
The mannequins clasped their hands politely and looked at me, as if asking if I liked it.
'It begins.'
I raised my hand.
"Hold on. I'm mostly looking for small, giftable accessories."
There was one important rule to remember here.
You must never be greedy.
Attempting to take something beyond your means would undoubtedly result in a price far too steep for any human to bear—whether in barter or currency.
So I needed to narrow my scope.
"I'd prefer something casual and easy to wear daily."
The curtain fell, and when it rose again, the contents of the glass display had changed, as if by magic.
Gone were the torsos. Instead, there were three or four upper-body mannequins. Around their necks, arms, and fingers, accessories gleamed under the light.
"..."
I scanned them carefully, picking out the lightest and least conspicuous item.
A thin silver ring.
Its elegant engraving was delicate, and it looked as though it required the least material to craft.
In other words, it appeared to be the cheapest.
"How much is this?"
The mannequins simultaneously raised their hands, pointing…
At my companions behind me.
"..."
Of course.
According to the exploration record, the standard form of barter in this boutique is…
Human lives.
Assistant Manager ■■■ successfully posed as an existing boutique member using mind-disrupting equipment.
Purchased item: Ring
Cost: Three civilians (One aged 35, two aged 21)
※ For government audit purposes, this exploration record was transferred. Full document access limited to C-level security clearance.
"Mr. Roe Deer?"
"..."
"U-Um, excuse me, but what exactly is happening right now…"
"Ah, I see. Please wrap it up."
The mannequins moved with precision, delicately removing the chosen ring from the glass case.
From somewhere, they brought out a silk string with an elegant tag and tied it to the ring. Then, as if inviting me to inspect it, they presented it to me.
On the tag, fine script was written in impossibly tiny, elegant letters. Rather than risk treading the direct path to Death Lane contamination by trying to read it, I turned to my reliable friend.
'Braun, would you mind reading this?'
– No problem! It says, 'Specialized tailoring, eternal luster that never fades. The craftsmanship of a noble artisan, always present.'
– Sounds like the kind of pitch that'd appeal to nouveau riche or social climbers! Oh, but let's keep that between us, Friend!
'…Right.'
As expected.
'Never fades, always present'…
Those keywords were exactly what I had anticipated.
They suggested abilities tied to durability and permanence. I recalled that in the exploration record mentioning the 'Purchased item: Ring', there was a separate wiki entry describing its origins.
A large-scale mental contamination incident.
The sole surviving company employee from that incident had reportedly traded three civilians for this boutique's ring and worn it to survive.
'How could I not think of that?'
The event was connected to the merch that I owned.
That one catastrophic train accident, all because of the Silver Heart.
Employee ■■■
The only surviving Daydream Inc. employee from the 'Tamra Express Disaster'.
They claimed to have lost the piece of equipment—a ring—immediately after the incident. The ring was suspected to have played a decisive role in their survival.
This incident was documented under the Disaster Management Bureau's human error cases, and it held the longest entry, even adapted into a short story for the company's wiki.
A ring crucial enough to ensure survival without contamination during such a massive disaster…
To provide coherence and narrative depth to the ring's origin, the boutique entry was created as its source.
In short, the accessories and garments sold here are indirectly verified by the wiki.
When worn, they supposedly provide resistance in situations that disrupt the 'steadiness of one's mind', such as mental confusion or brainwashing.
In short.
'This could be powerful mental defense equipment.'
…A must-have for someone like me, who'd narrowly escaped disaster due to contamination before.
"..."
I raised my head.
"Perfect. I'll take this ring."