### Chapter 228 – Room 202, Cursed Room – ‘Mermaid Princess’ (6)
—
[User: Han Kain (Wisdom)]
Date: Day 100
Current Location: 2nd Floor, Room 202 – Cursed Room ‘Mermaid Princess’
Sage’s Advice: 1
– Han Kain
Following Ahri, I began rummaging through the government office, and I couldn’t help but feel incredibly lucky to be holding the title of ‘Administration Bureau Agent’ countless times.
Looking objectively at our party, excluding Seungyub, who’s outside the island, the doctor who sneaked off to observe the merfolk, and the sealed Elena, we still had six members. Just having six people clustering together was bound to draw attention, especially with the girl at the front wearing some bizarre, space-suit-like outfit.
Common sense would dictate that if such a group walked down the street, it would automatically form a photo zone, and citizens would be busy snapping pics to post on social media! Hiding would be the worst strategy for this combination. However, as we were agents, and this world was a stage openly managed by the ‘Control Faction’, we didn’t need to hide most of the time, especially with our badges that acted like a VIP pass.
We boldly flashed our badges, shooing away the government staff as we headed underground. With the excuse that we were here to investigate casualties from the Cheongseong Group, the merfolk staff had no grounds to stop us.
Maybe it was a bit too noisy, as my older sister seemed anxious.
“Grandpa, isn’t it a good idea to hide a bit?”
“Us? Eunsol, do you think we can hide? More importantly, do you think that protective suit can be concealed?”
“… That’s true.”
“Everyone on this island is watching us. Where can we hide? In fact, it’s better to wield ‘authority’ and charge ahead. Do cops or detectives always skulk around?”
Songi joined the conversation.
“What if Serenade shows up? She seems to have some mysterious powers too.”
Ahri answered nonchalantly.
“The governor is probably busy praying on the outskirts of the island right now.”
“Praying?”
“I asked earlier, and they say when ‘Kadaruha’ has nightmares, the saint prays to alleviate the pain of the god. It’s considered a very important and sacred ritual on the island.”
As we were chatting, we reached the basement level of the government office, but we temporarily lost our way.
“Ahri?”
“… The compass says we need to go lower.”
“But there’s no door leading further down! There’s nothing on the layout except the basement level. The underground parking doesn’t seem to fit either.”
The compass clearly instructed us to head lower, but there was no way down. After wasting some time wandering in circles, we eventually made a decision.
“Hey, you! Come here!”
“…”
“Do I need to drag you here?”
Grandpa picked out a more senior-looking merfolk employee who had been pacing nervously around us.
“Spill it out! Where’s the way down?”
“O-Oh, I think there’s a misunderstanding. The government building only has the basement as its lowest level—”
“Hey! Don’t you realize everything you’re hiding will come out anyway? We already know there’s more below, so spill it!”
The employee, surprisingly resilient, resisted the threats from Ahri and Grandpa. However, when Songi gestured, the employee couldn’t help but blurt out everything.
“Ah! Ah! Ah…”
“Songi, what did you show him?”
“A vision of the floor collapsing. Just a little display of our determination to break through if needed!”
Whether it was the determination or the pressure from Songi’s supernatural aura that made him surrender isn’t clear, but the employee led us somewhere with a defeated expression.
“The Saint won’t let this go lightly when she returns!”
“We’ll handle that ourselves, so just do what you’re told.”
Unexpectedly, the path leading below the basement connected directly to the second floor. This explains why we couldn’t find a passage down no matter how hard we searched the basement.
As we descended the dimly lit stairway, the employee stepped back, seemingly fearful.
“… I’ve told you everything, so I’ll be leaving now.”
“Go ahead.”
After the employee left, Jinchul asked,
“Will it be okay to let him go?”
“What can we do? The point of this ‘coercive questioning’ is to maintain some boundaries. In fact, we’re already crossing lines. We wouldn’t be able to do this if the saint were here.”
“Is that so?”
Since we took on the authority of the Administration Bureau, everyone had to follow Grandpa and Ahri’s judgment. The rest of us had no clear idea of what was permissible behavior for the agents.
The door leading to the basement level, or possibly further down, opened. Simultaneously, everyone fell silent.
—
— SPLASH! SPLASH!
“How is there such a place in the government building’s basement?”
— SLASH!
With a humid, stone floor, water echoed beneath our feet. Having tracked the clothing worn by the daughter of the sea god into the government basement, we now faced an unexpected underground cave.
“It’s the other way around; it’s not that there’s a cave under the government building, it’s that the government building was built on top of the cave.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“The cave is going to be the main point, not the government building.”
— SPLASH!
The eerie atmosphere of the damp cave was filled with slime, and sluggish, snail-like creatures were wriggling everywhere. It wasn’t the best for mental health. Thank goodness I wasn’t alone; everyone was here to endure this together. The headlamp attached to Ahri’s protective suit provided some much-needed light.
After walking for a while, Ahri spoke up.
“It feels like we’re almost there…. According to the compass, it should be very near.”
“What’s that smell?”
With Jinchul’s sudden remark, I paused and concentrated my sense of smell. I started detecting a rancid odor that words couldn’t describe. Soon, the others began to wrinkle their noses in disgust.
“What is that? Is it the smell of fish?”
“It smells like a homeless person who hasn’t washed in weeks.”
“Doesn’t it smell like rotten meat?”
All those smells seemed to blend into a horrendous olfactory torture that only a hellish place could produce! At this point, it no longer felt like a mere odor, but a psychological attack. We could barely endure it; everyone staggered about in confusion when suddenly —
[Advice: 1 -> 0]
[Immediately bend down!]
Before I even realized what was happening, my back was already bent. At the same time, a piercing scream came from behind.
“Ugh! Aaaah!”
We all turned in shock, seeing blood shooting out from Jinchul’s wrist! His hand! Where did Jinchul’s hand go?
“Everyone, hide behind me!”
Ahri’s sharp shout finally snapped everyone back to reality, and we scrambled behind the ‘protective suit’.
— THUD!
The loud noise rang out from the protective suit. Just then did I grasp what had been the earlier attack. From the dark cave, something sharp and unseen had launched toward us!
Simultaneously, horrifying howls echoed from all around.
— WOOO! KIRI KIRI KIRI!
Countless movements erupted outside the headlamp’s view. The unsettling sound pricked my ears, and I imagined writhing, slimy creatures crawling along the floor and climbing up the cave walls, filling my mind with terrifying visions that set my anxiety levels soaring.
As everyone prepared for a fight, I suddenly pondered how I could sense the movements of creatures I couldn’t even see. Was it some sort of heightened instinct from the maze of hell I experienced once?
“Look up! Something huge is coming from the ceiling!”
As my older sister shouted out the detected movement in the darkness, Ahri swung her arm. The sharp force cleaved through whatever was descending from above.
At the same time, a viscous liquid poured down as everyone took a step back.
What should I do? Should I possess one of those monsters, perhaps? But I still couldn’t see what that monster looked like. In fact, I had no idea which sense I was using to feel their movements.
Suddenly, something raced past me! Who was the target? I sensed, without sight, that it was aiming for Songi. In that split second, I felt an intense tug at my belly, and both Songi and I tumbled to the floor.
“AH! O-opp-ah? Did I just teleport?”
Rather than answering, I glared at the murky tentacle flailing in the air.
“Dóminus técum. óra pro nóbis peccatóribus.”
From behind, an unfamiliar song drifted through the air. The enchanting tone filled the cave, creating a calm amidst the foreboding tension. At first, it sounded like a song, then perhaps a flute? As the mysterious melody permeated the cave, the creatures threatening us began to scatter like obedient pets.
As the chaos subsided, I heard understandable words from behind for the first time.
“Goodness, you really are hopeless. The employee you asked to guide you was something serious.”
It was Serenade. Grandpa answered with a somewhat sheepish tone.
“Governor, I might have been a bit too forceful, so please excuse the employee.”
“That’s quite generous of you.”
“However, it seems we have quite a bit to discuss. What are those monsters?”
“First, come with me. And, Cha Jinchul, since you mentioned a severed wrist, better pick it up quickly—”
Before Serenade finished, Jinchul casually picked up his wrist from the floor and reattached it with no sign of distress. Both Serenade and the rest of us looked on in disbelief, wondering if it had really just fused back together.
“Seriously? Is everyone so surprised they’ve never seen my regeneration skills before?”
Serenade exhibited a blend of admiration and shock.
“Wow, you folks are quite impressive. Please, just come this way without causing any more fuss.”
I felt like the child caught doing something wrong, being scolded by their parents. Grandpa and Ahri, who had boldly charged ahead with government employees, now seemed quite cautious in front of Serenade. No matter how much an administration bureau agent you were, there seemed to be lines to maintain with her. As I considered this, I couldn’t help but feel like a rookie learning from seasoned agents.
“Governor, we acknowledge our rudeness. However, we would like to hear an explanation about the monsters hidden under the government building.”
Serenade glanced at us, considering before she spoke again.
“What would you all do if I took you outside?”
“…”
“You’d likely do something similar again. If I were to leave the building, you’d threaten the employees, wouldn’t you? Oh, wait, is that even necessary? You already figured out how to access the cave, right?”
“Right on the mark.”
Serenade sighed, clearly unimpressed with Ahri’s brazen response.
“Let me explain what this place is. The people trapped here are not just monsters. They are… our unfortunate potentials, fellow beings who couldn’t properly awaken.”
Unfortunate potentials. Fellows who couldn’t develop correctly.
What did that mean? Unable to contain my curiosity, Grandpa asked.
“Governor, could you please elaborate a little more?”
Serenade tilted her head, considering.
“Do you really not understand after hearing this much? They are people who failed to awaken into merfolk. Every year, 3 to 4 of them emerge across the island. After being sent underground for long periods, it seems quite a few have accumulated.”
What was up with that? Why suddenly mention ‘awakening into merfolk’? Are humans not simply human? And how could they become miserable monsters as a punishment for not succeeding?
Could it be that merfolk are not born as merfolk? Just then, I recalled what the doctor had said.
“Despite losing most of their intellect, they are still our kind. The proof of that is that they obey my control.”
“They obey your control?”
“Yes.”
At that moment, my sister’s sharp voice cut through.
“Actually, isn’t it that they’re not following your control, but rather ‘the daughter of the sea god’? Given the objects inside that box, I have several ideas.”
“… That box, what are you talking about?”
“I can clearly see it. Don’t pretend you don’t know. That box sticking to the cave walls. What’s inside that box? It looks like the things protruding from it are fabric, right?”
“…”
“I’ll make a guess. These monsters, no, ‘fellow beings’ likely instinctively follow the daughter of the sea god, right? Can they smell her scent? Or is there some pheromone coming off you? Either way, it seems you stuffed your sister’s belongings in that box to keep these fellows imprisoned.”
“You have remarkably sharp eyes. Well, I believe you now understand the situation.”
Without further explanation, Serenade turned her back. As we followed her out of the cave, I realized the kind of kindness she extended in explaining the cave’s situation.
The saint was defending herself against accusations that she was using these monsters for sinister purposes before the ‘Administration Bureau’.
—
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