Chapter 25
Screeeech.
Halfway up an unnamed mountain behind town, a black van climbed the broken road.
The van, which had been speeding along the road, gradually slowed as the end came into view.
“We’re here.”
The driver in sunglasses turned the wheel and parked on the shoulder. The doors opened, and men and women in black suits poured out.
They were Bureau Response Division agents. Unlike their usual team-based operations, the agents gathered here were all mixed up from different teams.
It couldn’t be helped.
The basic requirement for entering the theme park was to have a ticket. Because of that, those who couldn’t get one couldn’t come even if they wanted to. No matter how experienced a psychic was, teleporting into a paranormal phenomenon without conditions was impossible.
Which meant the people here were two from Response Team 3, three from Team 5, and one from Team 6.
A response team of six in all.
Not a small number, but not a large one either. It was an awkward number for investigating and dealing with an unidentified paranormal phenomenon.
But this wasn’t the time to complain. Anyone who tried to stand tall against absurdity wouldn’t last long in the Bureau.
Since when had the supernatural ever considered human circumstances?
An unfavorable environment was nothing out of the ordinary for the Response Division. So instead of voicing complaints, they quickly steadied themselves and began preparing to move in.
“The signal from the reconnaissance member carrying a ticket cut off here. Looks like the address on the ticket wasn’t a lie.”
Park Ji-a said.
She expertly operated the handheld device and showed everyone the screen.
“A three-person team vanished completely starting from the broken road. Their vital signs also cut out.”
“So they’re dead. How many minutes after going inside did it happen?”
The man with a huge shotgun slung over his back took off his sunglasses and asked. Park Ji-a answered at once.
“Fifteen minutes. The cause of death is listed as… mutation? That’s what it says.”
“Mutation, huh. What, is this some kind of zombie theme park?”
“I don’t know. But if all three mutated within fifteen minutes, then it’s definitely not something to take lightly.”
“Yeah. A phenomenon that links reality to another space like this couldn’t possibly be easy.”
Hiss, whew.
The man drew in his cigarette smoke with practiced ease and looked over the agents on his team.
“Let’s grab our gear and go in. I’d like it if we didn’t have to fight, but that’s not something we get to decide.”
“Yes, sir.”
“This damn axe. It’s ridiculously heavy, too…!”
The Team 5 agents, including the man, each took up their weapons.
“…….”
The Team 6 agent Mir shook her ticket by herself while fiddling with the sword at her waist.
Team 6 consisted only of the strongest members of the Response Division. She would surely be the one to shine most in the theme park.
Park Ji-a watched Mir’s back for a moment, then turned to Kim I-seo, who had a guitar case strapped to her back.
“How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine. Even my injuries have all healed.”
Kim I-seo answered, lightly patting the thigh that had been struck by Palcheok. Her pink hair fluttered in the breeze.
“How about you? Are you in good condition?”
“Not bad. Enough to support the team.”
Park Ji-a answered Kim I-seo with a bright smile. The moment Kim I-seo smiled back, Mir, who had been standing still until then, came back holding her ticket.
“When did everyone first find their ticket?”
It was an unexpected question, but instead of looking puzzled, the Bureau’s group immediately pulled out their tickets and answered.
“For me, today is day three.”
“I’m on day five.”
Park Ji-a and Kim I-seo said. The Team 5 members also reported that they had found theirs within a week.
But there was one person.
There was one man for whom today marked exactly one week.
“Exactly a week ago, around 3 p.m., I found it in front of my lodging.”
“...A week ago, huh. That’s exactly the kind of time when something tends to happen. Any unusual details?”
“Nothing in particular. His mind is fine, and there are no physical issues.”
It was the moment the man said that.
The minute hand of the world ticked over and pointed to exactly 3:00 p.m.
And the man vanished before their eyes.
There had been no warning at all. As if he had never been there in the first place, the man’s figure vanished.
“Boom!”
Instead, a small clown doll appeared beneath where he had been standing. With a balloon string around its neck, the limp doll convulsed madly like something dead before soon bursting and spilling blood.
“……!”
“What the fuck!”
The agents’ bearing changed in an instant. Before anyone could say a word, they clutched their tickets and sprinted toward the theme park entrance.
“Move in, move in! Begin the operation!”
“Agent Park Ji-a! If someone has held a ticket for a week, they’re forcibly transferred! Record it and hand it over to the Bureau immediately!”
“Yes, yes! Recording now!”
She tapped the terminal as she ran.
After one step, two steps, and then a third...
“...Ah.”
The world changed.
*
The cartel’s request was to tear out the manager’s heart. But finding where the manager was right now proved difficult.
“I-I think the most likely place is that tower over there...”
Yuna said, pointing at the huge blood-red tower standing in the center of the theme park. Ian agreed with her.
“If it’s there, then it’s there. But we can’t be sure. If we rush in blindly and get trapped, that’ll be a headache. And more than anything, even if he is there, we can’t kill the bastard right now.”
“R-right... we need to figure out an escape route first...”
It doesn’t end with ripping out the heart. We have to get out of this theme park with it.
If killing the manager makes this space collapse, that would be fine, but unless they were certain of it, they couldn’t move recklessly.
For now, the right move was to experience at least three attractions in the theme park and secure an escape route in advance.
But the rides here were all insane.
Safety bars were already missing, and there was a roller coaster that raced between saw blades, a haunted house with a killer chasing after you, and a gyro drop that kept rising into the sky instead of falling, only to be eaten alive by clown clouds.
Everywhere was packed with things brimming with malice, all of them meant to kill humans. Whatever they used, ordinary people definitely wouldn’t survive.
Still, there were a few things a mage could get through easily.
If they targeted only those, securing an escape route in advance wouldn’t be difficult.
Ian looked over the attractions listed in the booklet once more and planned their route in advance.
That was when Yuna suddenly pointed at the plaza and spoke.
“S-someone just appeared there all of a sudden...?”
“...What?”
At her words, Ian frowned and whipped his head around.
In the plaza where blood-red fountains flowed, in the middle of the grotesquely dressed clowns, dolls, and crawling guests, a single man in a suit suddenly appeared.
Unlike the other aberrations, he was dressed normally, and for a moment he didn’t seem to realize what had changed, his face blank with confusion. But then he drew the pistol at his waist and aimed it at a bug crawling sideways.
“W-what the hell is this, damn it!”
His face was a mix of shock, fear, and dread. The moment Ian saw his clothes and pistol, he realized the man was a Bureau agent. Yuna seemed to reach the same conclusion, chewing at her lip as she idly stroked the guitar case with her hand.
But the agent didn’t notice the two of them.
No, he didn’t even have the time.
“…….”
“…….”
As he appeared, the aberrations moving busily in the plaza all froze at once. Then they slowly turned only their heads to stare at him.
It wasn’t just the plaza. The ones on the rides, the ones selling food, even the clown clouds in the sky.
They stared him down, his image reflected clearly in their eyes.
It was a chilling sight. Ian twisted his face and took a step back.
‘Looks like getting tangled up with him would do us no good.’
He couldn’t tell what had caused it, or how he’d ended up here.
But if he had to guess, something probably went wrong while the Bureau was dispatching agents to resolve this phenomenon.
There was no way that was a good thing.
“T-that guy’s as good as dead...”
Yuna muttered while looking at the agent. But there was no sadness or pity on her face.
She was simply stating the reality calmly.
Ian nodded and turned around.
“Let’s move. If we stay in the plaza too long, we might get caught up in this too.”
“Y-yeah... I think we should go to the h-haunted house first... It’s one place we absolutely have to pass through along the route...”
“I thought so too. More importantly, are you thinking of saving that agent?”
“U-uh...? Do we really need to...? It’s already too late anyway...?”
Yuna answered awkwardly, scratching her cheek.
“More importantly, let’s go... I think it’s about to begin...”
Yuna said, glancing back slightly. Ian followed her and turned his head just a little.
[Intruder detected. Intruder detected.]
A bizarre voice began to pour from the speaker set up beside a bench in the plaza.
[All staff of this theme park, please eliminate the intruder immediately. Once again, all staff of this theme park, please eliminate the intruder immediately.]
[Weeeeeeeng!!]
Along with the siren, the staff who had been standing still began to move. The Bureau agent shouted and fired his pistol, but that only managed to take out a few of them.
Squelch!
Before long, a staff member’s arm pierced his abdomen, ripped out his organs, and chewed them up with a sickening crunch. His strength drained away as his body collapsed to the floor, and the neatly severed arm fell straight toward the two mages.
“Heeheehee!”
“Kerrk, kuheeek!!”
The staff and guests gathered around the fallen agent. Then they devoured his body as if it were a feast.
Ian stared at the scene for a moment, then turned away.
‘At least guns seem to work.’
It was unintentional, but they had gained useful information.
Ian silently prayed for the man’s soul as he moved on.
notes":"Adjusted wording for natural English, preserved tone and bracketed speaker lines, and standardized the chapter title."}]}*** End Patch**}]()],