Translator: Nox

Chapter 24

I stared at the bracelet, a cold sweat breaking out across my skin.

[
◎
(Joyful) Fantasyland Membership
◎
]

The text that had changed from ‘Boarding Pass’ to ‘Membership’ remained the same, as did the strangely ornate and premium texture of the material.

R-Right….

It was an unexpected turn of events, but my task hadn’t changed.

I had to scan the bracelet at the gate and leave.

‘Membership or not, I’m just never coming back.’

“Thank you.”

I swallowed hard.

“Um… I’d like to head home now.”

The blue mascot tilted its head slightly to the side.

I tried to step toward the gate machine to scan the bracelet.

But the mascot blocked my path.

‘Please.’

What are you doing?

I felt like crying.

“I’m not as good a person as you think I am….”

G O O D C H I L D.
Y E S.

The blue mascot’s claws covered my bracelet with incredible gentleness.

Then, a voice resonated.

TO ONE WHO KNOWS HONOR.
IT IS VALUABLE.

…!!

“Cough!”

A cough erupted from my throat.

It was blood.

‘Wh-What was… that just now?’

Was it… because it changed to a membership instead of a boarding pass?

As I spat up blood, the blue dragon mascot seemed flustered and restless. It reached into its costume and pulled something out.

[Blue Soda Churros]

It seemed to be a snack sold inside the theme park.

“…I’ll enjoy it.”

Yeah, right. There was no way I was eating this.

“But, I’d like to go home and eat it there.”

P L A Y.
M O R E.

The mascot was firm.

To the point where it actually turned off the gate machine.

“…!!”

Click. The lights at the North Exit went out, and the shutters began to roll down.

I watched the scene blankly.

They were going this far?

I couldn’t wrap my head around what was happening.

But I wasn’t stupid enough to argue.

‘I might end up like that researcher.’

I wanted to avoid that at all costs.

For now, for now… it wasn’t so dangerous that I’d die immediately. Let’s look for an alternative.

I backed away from the gate.

The blue mascot continued to watch me as I hurried away….

---

“This is insane.”

I collapsed onto a bench inside the water park locker room.

I was scared to death.

“What is even happening?”

To summarize: the mascot suddenly called me a ‘good child,’ handed me a membership, and shut down the gate.

In short, I was trapped.

“…….”

Trapped.

No, first of all, what did it mean by ‘good child’?

The researcher was a bad child, and I was a good child….

Ah.

‘…Is it because I saved my teammates a few times?!’

Yes. That was the most plausible reason.

I happened to look after people during emergencies a couple of times… and so the reward was letting me play in the theme park forever?

‘This is driving me crazy….’

This was a B-rank darkness.

No matter how friendly or safe that mascot seemed, there was no telling when or where some bizarre, lethal madness might occur.

Furthermore.

‘…There are no exploration records of anyone staying longer than 24 hours.’

It meant that the moment 24 hours passed, everyone either died or went missing.

If I interpreted it very optimistically, maybe the boarding pass was a one-day pass and I’d be fine since I had a membership—but the point was, I had zero information.

‘Damn it.’

I racked my brain, feeling like I wanted to bite my tongue.

Perhaps due to the fatigue of the past few hours, my thoughts felt sluggish….

‘What can I even do?’

I couldn’t fight the mascot and win.

I couldn’t sneak in and turn on the gate machine either.

‘I used up all my coins earlier.’

Seeing the Y Team newbie, Jang Heo-un, collapse, I had panicked and thrown whatever was in my hand. That was my mistake. I pressed my fingers to my brow.

It wasn’t like I had a button to communicate with the outside world, so I couldn’t expect help from Team D.

‘The items I have are….’

The Smile Sticker? I shouldn’t use that when the problem was that affinity was already too high.

The 2x Potion or the 0.5x Cookie were the same. They only mattered if there was an effect to synergize with.

‘Is there really nothing?’

The more I agonized, the more I felt like I was sinking into a quagmire.

While I was wallowing in despair.

A light flashed above my head.

[Darkness Exploration Record Real Goods Box]

-Usage rights for a new Good have been unlocked! (!)

“…!!”

The black notepad. The Goods Box.

‘Please!’

I didn’t even breathe as I pressed it immediately.

Was this a lifeline? Honestly, anything was fine. I needed a hint, a lead, anything….

Thud.

The Good dropped.

‘…!’

I picked up the item wrapped in transparent plastic.

It was a small, fluffy thing that fit in the palm of my hand.

A plush toy.

======================
Darkness Exploration Record / Baekilmong Co., Ltd.
/ ■■■■■
Good Friend
It’s your cute animal plushie. It will always stay by your side and protect you.
Always.

• ‘Joyful Theme Park Gift Shop’

Product description on the packaging

Ah.

I recalled the text from the board game box.

-Be the fastest to ride 3 fantasy attractions with your teammates and claim a prize!

The team that rode three attractions fastest in the ‘Joyful Theme Park’ could take one of various items from the gift shop as a prize for free.

‘Now that I think about it, the Assistant Manager said he received a prize too.’

And of course, the gift shops within guedam theme parks were often stocked with bizarre items.

‘There was an exploration record that listed the prizes people had taken….’

And this was one of the most famous items among them.

The Good Friend.

In the original source, it was a plush toy small enough to fit in a child’s arms, but the version in my hand had been reborn as a small keychain Good.

‘So the requirement to use this Good was being a visitor of Joyful Theme Park.’

It was nothing more than a useless plushie unless the owner had visited the theme park. It seemed I had gained the rights because I had used up my boarding pass.

And the ability of this plush toy was…

======================
A strange object that makes a
Friend
by inviting
Someone from the Otherworld
and allowing a portion of their spirit to dwell within the doll.
Rarely appears in the gift shop of .

Refer below for detailed invitation records.

This was it.

“…….”

Normally, I would have deliberated extensively and set up every possible safety measure before trying this.

‘Inviting someone from the otherworld’—wasn’t that the perfect setup for a terrifying horror story?

But I had neither the time nor the luxury for that now.

‘Let’s do it.’

I was in desperate need of advice from someone who understood the nature of guedams.

I pulled out my smartphone, which was now equipped with the Memorial Griptok, and opened the ‘Good Friend’ tab.

The required materials were as follows:

======================
· Materials for Invitation
Matches (or a lighter)
100ml of water
A spoonful of salt
A coin (a clean one)

An object related to a friend

And a quiet space.

‘This locker room will do.’

It was noisy outside with the sound of water and music, so this was the best spot available.

I figured I could find a lighter, water, and salt somewhere in the theme park. I could steal them from a shop or just ask for them.

The problem was the next two.

A coin (a clean one)
An object related to a friend

I had no coins left.

And an object related to a friend… was actually an entry included for the sake of the guedam’s flavor. If you put in a fairy tale book, a monster based on that fairy tale would come.

‘What should I use to keep it safe?’

Actually, I felt uneasy offering anything from this theme park as an object related to a friend.

This place itself was already a guedam.

“…….”

After much deliberation, I settled on two items.

I prayed this substitution would work.

And a short while later.

“Phew.”

I set down the torch and salt I had procured on the floor in the far corner of the locker room.

‘That was creepy.’

I had gotten everything from a snack truck. I took a gamble when I saw they sold ‘Grilled Marshmallows,’ and they had both.

‘…They gave them to me for free after seeing the membership.’

Instead of being happy, it only made me feel more uneasy.

I wiped my mouth and opened my smartphone again.

I had to start quickly.

======================
· Invitation Ritual

1. Use your finger to dip into the water and draw the hexagram from the enclosed diagram on a smooth floor.
2. Place the ‘Good Friend’ in the dead center of the hexagram.
3. Place the coin on the belly of the ‘Good Friend.’ At this time, there must be no water left on your fingers.
4. Hold a spoonful of salt in your mouth and burn the object related to a friend.
5. Once the ‘Good Friend’ begins to speak, swallow the salt and return the greeting kindly!
   If the coin has disappeared, it is a success! You have met a reliable friend. Please always stay together and cherish them!
   ※ If the salt cannot be swallowed, tastes strange,
   turns to ash, or bleeds,

RUN AWAY.

“Phew.”

First, I drew a hexagram on the marble floor of the locker room exactly like the image.

It was a bit complex, but not difficult.

‘…My focus is strangely sharp.’

The completed hexagram was excessively smooth; the surface glistened without a single smudge.

After thoroughly drying the water from my fingers on my clothes, I picked up the ‘Good Friend’ keychain with trembling hands and placed it in the center of the hexagram.

‘Of all things, it had to be a rabbit doll.’

I felt a bit uneasy, but I felt better reminding myself that I had bought it at the pop-up store because I thought it was cute.

And as for the coin….

‘This.’

I placed my item, the Silver Snake Coin, on top of it.

‘This counts as a coin… right?’

I figured an item from an alien shop in reality would be safer than getting one from this guedam.

Given its price point, it seemed to be a valuable item, so I was trying to convince myself that it might even produce a better effect.

Finally, I took the salt into my mouth.

‘An object related to a friend.’

I had to prepare something that definitely didn’t belong to this guedam.

And that was… me.

“…….”

I untied my necktie and held it up.

‘If it’s my item, it definitely doesn’t belong here.’

A friend related to a necktie? Whoever it was, it had to be better than someone related to a kitchen knife.

I clicked the torch on.

Then I brought it to the end of the tie.

Whoosh.

The fire caught with unnatural intensity, the flickering flames casting a long shadow from the plush toy atop the hexagram.

The shadow swayed.

Sway.

Sway.

Before I knew it, the surroundings had gone dark.

All I could see was the light of the fire devouring my tie, the hexagram reflecting that light, and the plush toy at its center.

Sway.

Sway.

My dizzy mind didn’t melt away.

Instead, the salt melted bitterly in my mouth, numbing my tongue.

In the midst of it.

Sway.

Sway.

The mouth of the ‘Good Friend’ clutching the coin opened.

—BEHOLD!

—I AM THE POSSESSOR OF A MILLION MASKS, THE LORD OF CHAOS, THE PINNACLE OF MADNESS, THE DREAM OF PLEASURE AND AMUSEMENT, THE INCITER OF WAR, THE PARENT OF SCIENCE, THE LOWLY FOUR-LEGGED BEAST,

…!!

It was too loud.

It felt like my brain was being turned into mush.

I wanted to cover my ears, but I had no hands. I was holding the tie and the torch!

What was this?

—THE DESIRE OF THE CRAWLING ONE, THE LORD OF STARS, THE ABYSS OF ILLUSION, THE MOUTH OF WISDOM, THE ROAR OF IMPULSE, THE FAR SIDE OF THE MOON…

The plush toy in the center of the hexagram was convulsing.

In the center, the silver circular object was burning away.

‘The Silver Snake Coin.’

Did I use the wrong coin?

—I AM…

My head ached so much, so much….

—Friend.

—Is my friend hurting?

I lifted my head.

—You mustn’t.

A kind, gentle voice flowed through the ‘Good Friend.’

—You mustn’t be in pain….

“…….”

The swaying subsided.

The tie finished burning, and the fire died out.

The coin that had been atop the convulsing rabbit doll had vanished at some point.

As had the moisture that formed the hexagram.

“…….”

Silence.

I looked at the ‘Good Friend’ lying motionless and swallowed the salt.

But I heard nothing.

‘Don’t tell me.’

“A failure…….”

—Mr. Roe Deer?

“…!!”

A cheerful, pleasant voice rang out.

But….

—Mr. Roe Deer?

It was a familiar voice.

Involuntarily, I opened my mouth.

“…Mr. Host?”

—Ah, it really is you, Mr. Roe Deer!

The Tuesday Quiz Show.

The voice of the TV-headed host who had moderated that live broadcast was coming out of the doll.

—Nice to meet you.
My Friend!