Chapter 23

Chapter 23. Shopping! Warehouse Club! (3)

CRASH, THUD, BANG—!

I rolled across the moving walkway along with a rhythmic series of impacts.

-Take refuge on the left, in the ATM area!

I had not even stopped yet, but Cha Si-eon shouted.

So I threw myself to the left before I even had time to feel the pain.

That was when I looked around, unable to sit or stand properly.

-Mr. Seo Do-un.

“Hoo, yes.”

-Are you perhaps tired?

“Huff, haah, what?”

-Why is your heart rate like this?

Why? I was nimble.

For an ordinary person, I was genuinely quick!

“I moved without stopping even once for almost ten minutes, hoo, so how could I not be tired?”

-Mr. Seo Do-un, the time you spent moving was 4 minutes and 8 seconds.

Then I must have run through time!

I had no strength left to say anything more, so I collapsed on the spot.

My vision was literally turning yellow.

My heart was pounding like mad, and sweat dripped from my eyelashes and the tip of my nose.

-If you lower your head, you will faint. Raise your head, breathe deeply, and take out water and saline glucose. Consume them.

Even as I groaned, I raised my head as instructed.

And this vest the Bureau gave me.

Honestly, I had thought it was cumbersome, but from now on, I would have to walk around with even more cumbersome gear.

I had already lost count of how many times this thing had saved my life.

I swallowed the water and pills I took from the pocket, then stayed still for a while.

Then the yellow-and-black flashing in my vision gradually returned to normal.

The moment I caught my breath, Cha Si-eon noticed with ghostlike precision and spoke.

-We will rest for two more minutes, then move.

“Are you the Grim Reaper or what……?”

-If you wish to meet a real Grim Reaper, you may continue resting as you are.

His ears were sharp too…….

I groaned and shut my mouth.

But it was not long before I opened it again.

“Team Leader Cha Si-eon.”

-I am listening.

“Who was the person who died earlier?”

A brief silence passed.

-The observation team will identify them.

The answer that eventually came back was extremely Cha Si-eon-like.

I had thought he might at least explain their age range or gender, but as expected, he was coldly rational.

If I had died at Railway Station Where the Siren Sounds, I would have been processed like this too, right?

Mm. It was probably better not to think about that.

Did the person earlier die without pain?

They probably did. It seemed like they died instantly.

……I think I should not have thought about that either.

-Your heart rate is rising. If you are thinking useless thoughts, restrain yourself.

I sighed at my situation, where even my heart rate was being controlled.

Then, to change the subject, I asked Cha Si-eon,

“If this Special Zone disappears, does a new Special Zone appear?”

-That is correct.

“Then wouldn’t it be better to destroy places like this early and replace them with new ones?”

There was a law of conservation for the number of Special Zones, so even if one was destroyed, another appeared again.

On top of that, the internal rules were completely renewed, like some kind of gacha draw.

Then was it not best to hurry up and get rid of something like Three Steps, One Death instead of leaving it there?

-There were indeed several discussions along those lines.

“Then why didn’t you get rid of it?”

-If we engage in full-scale war against a Special Zone, our side may also suffer casualties. In addition, once this Special Zone is destroyed, the 17% we have uncovered so far will also disappear. Therefore, we have maintained the status quo.

I realized what I had overlooked.

Every safety rule is written in blood.

That was a saying that applied both in society and in Special Zones.

In other words, that 17% had also been uncovered through someone’s blood.

So they could not give it up easily.

There was no certainty that something better would appear after throwing this away.

So they had maintained the status quo because they had no choice, and now they were getting rid of it today?

To rescue me?

“How many people have died here so far?”

-Mr. Seo Do-un.

Perhaps noticing my bewilderment, Cha Si-eon spoke firmly.

-For now, focus only on escape. Deploying the rescue team is the Bureau’s decision after considering multiple factors.

I had no choice but to close my mouth.

I was grateful they were trying hard to save me.

But if that came with other casualties, it changed the story.

Putting aside the matter of conscience, why?

I understood that the Bureau treated me like some kind of rare item.

But there should be limits.

What exactly were they expecting from me?

-Your heart rate is rising again. Please restrain yourself.

……Maybe the part about expectations was just my imagination.

Considering the way he was scolding me through my heart rate.

Somehow deflated, I closed my mouth and emptied my head as well.

Then the small noises in this space suddenly sounded much louder.

Vrrrrr—!

CLANK- CLANK-!

BEEEEEP—!

Ugh, if I stayed like this, my heart rate was going to rise again.

To shake off the eeriness and alien feeling, I spoke again.

“How long have you been at the Bureau?”

-I do not accept personal questions.

“That’s rich coming from someone watching another person’s heart rate.”

-This is my sixth year.

“That’s quite a long time.”

I had heard Cha Si-eon was around my age.

Then had he finished university or training or whatever and worked here ever since?

Ah, so that was why his personality was like that!

“Is Bureau work tolerable?”

-No.

Unexpectedly, an immediate answer came back.

And a negative one, at that.

“Then why do you do it?”

-Because it must be done.

Cha Si-eon’s answer surprised me a little.

So I stood there blankly for a moment, and then a harsh instruction came down.

-Break is over. Please stand up.

What? Already?

Wondering if I had run through time again, I checked the watch.

But no.

“There are still 30 seconds left.”

-You seem to have rested enough, so please move now.

What was this tyranny?

I tried hard to pretend I had not heard him.

-Mr. Seo Do-un, stand up.

……They said if the Grim Reaper called you three times, he would take you away, right?

I had no choice but to get up.

-B1 is the grocery sales area. It likewise contains invisible traps and dangerous entities. The dangerous entities on this floor are the 「Sampling Counter Employee」 and 「Checkout Counter Employee」, and the 「Woman Pulling a Shopping Cart」 appears at rare intervals.

I had only come down one floor, and the method for passing through was the same as before.

I checked for traps with pieces of bloodied clothing and moved little by little.

Fortunately, the 「Sampling Counter Employee」 did not roam a wide range like the 「Shelf-Stocking Employee」.

So passing through the grocery section was relatively easy.

No, it should have been easy.

-Stop for a moment.

Cha Si-eon suddenly made me stop.

Right then—

FLAP— CLANG—!

There was the sound of something flying around, followed by metal striking.

The direction was where the 「Sampling Counter Employee」 I had been deliberately keeping my distance from was located.

CLANG! CLANG! CLATTER—!

The sound of metal colliding kept coming from the same direction.

“What’s happening right now?”

-A bird has entered from somewhere.

“A bird?”

-The bird is flying around nearby, so the 「Sampling Counter Employee」 is trying to drive it away.

Animals could enter here too?

Perhaps Cha Si-eon had not predicted this situation either, because he spoke with greater caution.

-For now, put some distance……

But his words cut off midway.

-Get down!

What burst out instead was a shout.

And a clear sense of déjà vu.

I lowered my body almost as if diving down.

WHOOSH—!

Immediately afterward, something passed quickly over me.

This time, I dodged it!

I belatedly raised my head to see what it was, but there was no trace left in the air.

Instead, the storage rack stacked with things like powdered milk cans moved.

Slowly, and at an angle.

-Left!

At Cha Si-eon’s instruction, I rolled first.

Immediately afterward, the upper part of the storage rack separated cleanly from the lower part and toppled sideways.

BANG! BOOM—!

The cans that bounced loose poured toward me.

I was pounded like a drum by the objects crashing down around me.

Still, that was fortunate.

Powdered milk cans were light compared to their volume, so I could endure it.

The problem was that their lids flew off and a huge amount of powdered milk spilled out.

But what was this?

……Sawdust?

I stared blankly at the powdered milk that had spilled across the floor.

These powdered milk cans were only convincingly imitating the outer appearance.

The contents they spat out when crushed were inedible sawdust.

CLANG—!

At the metallic sound that rang out again, I flinched and lowered my body.

Beyond the storage rack that had been sliced clean through, I saw a bird flapping around.

Pitch-black wings. It looked like a crow.

And beneath it, something was swinging a long blade.

It was the 「Sampling Counter Employee」.

It too had a barcode scanner for a head.

However, the body below it had many errors, like a badly drawn picture.

Leaving aside the fact that clothing and skin were tangled together, large tongs and scissors were fused to its hands.

“Team Leader Cha.”

Seeing that monster, I hurriedly called Cha Si-eon.

“Team Leader?”

But there was no answer.

……My earpiece had fallen out.

Only then did I realize that the earpiece had fallen from my ear.

So I hurriedly looked at the floor, but damn it……!

The floor was a mess, piled high with spilled sawdust.

Just in case, I checked the watch.

But because the earpiece was connected, the watch no longer played Cha Si-eon’s voice.

Damn it!

I rummaged through the sawdust, looking for the earpiece.

Praying that the 「Sampling Counter Employee」 would not turn this way, I desperately swept the floor.

Soon, something caught on my glove.

It was the earpiece I had dropped!

I hurriedly shook it off and put it back in.

At the same time, Cha Si-eon’s voice rang loudly.

-Seo Do-un, behind!

I flinched and almost stepped back, then stopped.

Stepping back was “back.”

Then what was I supposed to do with “behind”?

Even as I wondered, I turned around as if by instinct.

And my eyes met it.

The barcode scanner “looking down” at me.

Immediately afterward, my body was dragged backward.

Because that dangerous entity—

the 「Shelf-Stocking Employee」 that was supposed to be on the first floor—

had grabbed my ankle and lifted me up.

Hanging upside down, I kicked its head with my other foot.

BANG—!

But it did not budge.

Instead, its light source swept over my face.

BEEP- BEEP- BEEBEEBEEBEEBEEBEEBEEBEEBEEP-

---

■ Common Precautions for Dangerous Entities Classified as 「Employees」

Among the dangerous entities roaming this Special Zone, entities whose head area takes the form of a “barcode scanner” are classified as 「Employees」.

The 「Employees」 confirmed so far are as follows.

1. 「Information Desk Employee」 : Stationed at the information desk in front of the first-floor sales area entrance

2. 「Shelf-Stocking Employee」 : Patrols the first-floor product display rack area

3. 「Sampling Counter Employee」 : Stationed at the sampling counter on B1

4. 「Checkout Counter Employee」 : Patrols the checkout counter area on B1

5. 「Parking Management Employee」 : Patrols the parking lot area on B2-B3

If you are discovered by an 「Employee」, you will be dragged to the first-floor sales area entrance and forcibly removed.

During this process, your body will be dismantled into pieces the size of one of the 「Employee」’s hands. This will continue until your screams stop.

No method of avoiding an 「Employee」’s forced removal procedure has been confirmed.

The 「Employee」 will pursue you until the end as you flee, and you cannot resist the 「Employee」 by any means.

Therefore, never be seen by an 「Employee」.

If it is already too late, consider a less painful choice while you are being dragged away.

---

The world shook violently while turned upside down.

Cha Si-eon kept shouting.

But the sound of my own screaming was louder.

A display shelf toppled over as I thrashed.

It was no use kicking my feet.

Even the knife I pulled from my vest was eventually knocked away.

Before I knew it, the 「Sampling Counter Employee」 had also come alongside me.

I had struggled so hard to come down, but getting dragged back up to the first floor was too easy.

And now, I was in front of the store entrance.

It was too late.

I had dropped the knife earlier, so I could not choose a less painful option.

What do I do?

What do I do?

What do I do?

What do I have to do to die without pain……

No, I don’t want to die!

Like an idiot, I clawed at the floor until the very end.

But the 「Employee」’s monstrous strength dismissed my resistance as laughable, and only the stab-proof gloves I was wearing slipped off in a long slide from the friction.

The moment I saw that, I remembered too late.

Wait, maybe……!

In the end, when I was dragged all the way to the entrance, I hurriedly pulled off the gloves on my hands.

Then I spread my hand open toward the 「Employee」 that was truly about to tear me apart.

Dead stop.

At that moment, the 「Employees」 stopped moving.

What was on my hand right now—was the ring Baek Sa-ra had given me.