Seoul Object Story - Chapter 57: Theme Park (8)

slup~

I sat on the rooftop of the food court, slowly melting and eating an ice cream.

Looking down from the high place, it was a spectacular sight.

A golden wave.

The small golden Reapers running with their tiny feet, surging forward in a tangled mess like a tidal wave.

The mannequins dressed in black server uniforms also lined up in orderly ranks to confront them.

A clash between the black fortress and the golden waves!

But the black fortress scattered like a sand castle swept away by the waves, turning to dust.

Clap clap clap.

As I was clapping with the ice cream in my mouth, a golden Reaper crawled up and climbed onto me.

The golden Reaper comfortably leaning on my stomach had a self-satisfied expression as it held something out.

A stamp!

The golden Reaper’s expression seemed to seek praise, so I patted its head, and it seemed pleased.

When I stamped the paper with the stamp the golden Reaper brought, the stamp that had served its purpose vanished with a swish.

Now 4!

I only needed to collect 5 more stamps.

Looking down at the golden Reapers again, the situation had become quite interesting.

Mannequins desperately trying to flee.

Golden Reapers running, jumping, rolling, and charging at them.

As the number of mannequins dwindled, this space itself began to destabilize.

Like a broken channel, there was static noise.

Unfamiliar rides would suddenly appear.

Chasing golden Reapers would disappear beyond the space.

The sky shattered like glass, and the ground cracked like an earthquake.

The end of the theme park!

One by one, the golden Reapers that found stamps began clinging to my body.

It seemed there was an unspoken rule that only Reapers who found stamps could cling to me.

***

??? POV :

—

I walked while chewing on the last remaining energy bar.

I had solved a total of 3 attractions so far.

The ‘Guest Room’ where I had to erase purple with an eraser.

And the ‘Drop Tower’ which was a simple picture addition quiz.

The ‘Food Court’ where I had to erase more than one type of intake with an eraser.

The most annoying one was the ‘Food Court’.

As I was starting to get hungry, I thought I could eat something when I entered the ‘Food Court’.

But in the end, the only things the food court provided were poisoned foods.

And at a time when I was really hungry, they were all my favorite foods!

When I went back to the guest room, the door was firmly closed and couldn’t be opened.

If I had known, I would have brought more energy bars before leaving the guest room.

As I was thinking about which attraction to choose next, a sudden earthquake struck the theme park.

Like a TV screen with interference, multiple scenes overlapped and shook like hallucinations.

The most noticeable of these hallucinations was a golden wave.

The vision of small golden things wriggling around.

An earthquake occurred whenever that vision appeared.

As if the theme park was screaming.

“Hmm, this kind of thing could happen.”

Amidst the earthquake, I heard the perplexed mumbling of mannequin

Then a mannequin who was opening and closing its hand spoke to me.

“Guest?”

It gave off a completely different vibe from before.

Unlike usual, its intonation and emotions seemed remarkably richer.

“I think it may be possible now. Please follow me.”

The place the mannequin ran off to on its own was the ‘Smile Viking Ticket Booth’.

Originally there should have been an attendant mannequin at the ticket booth, but it was gone.

The mannequin rummaged through the ticket booth and found a stamp.

“Guest, hurry up. We cannot miss this opportunity.”

“What? What is this, another trap?”

“It’s no trap. The theme park is just falling apart. This is the only chance to collect stamps. There’s no time for arguing.”

Perhaps because this was a theme park full of intentions to deceive people, the mannequin’s words sounded suspicious.

It was clear that something was happening, given the unusual tremors and atmosphere.

But I couldn’t trust the mannequin’s claim to help me, as I had no idea why it would do so.

“I can’t believe it. Why would someone with no reason to help me offer to do so? How many trustworthy people are there?”

“Hmm, you seem hasty usually, but skeptical at times like this. There’s no need to persuade you, but I can give you a few reasons.”

The mannequin took a breath and spoke.

“First of all, I have a reason to help you. Even though it has become like this, I was originally human too. I was a victim of this theme park. I ended up getting stuck in this state, but you don’t need to end up the same way.”

It certainly sounded sincere, but there was no way to know if it was the truth.

“And look around you. If the collapse of this theme park extends to the shuttle bus, it’s the end. You’ll lose your means of returning. Make your choice. The judgment is up to you.”

The mannequin handed me the stamp and urged me to choose.

We will rely solely on your kindness! Click here!

Donate now

It was clear the mannequin had changed somehow.

Should I say its emotions became richer?

And it was true that the theme park was collapsing and the mannequins were disappearing.

But how could I know if it was a trap set by the theme park or not?

When it’s hard to make a judgment, it’s best to follow the motto that has sustained my life until now.

‘When in doubt, just do it!’

“Okay! Let’s do it! Guide me, mannequin.”

After that, I ran around the theme park nonstop.

Whenever some golden thing passed by, holes were punched through buildings or pillars.

The sounds of metal being crushed and collapsing, buildings crumbling.

The inside of the theme park was becoming chaos.

“Hmm, a bigger collapse is happening than I expected. I don’t know how such a powerful being managed to get into the park.”

“Didn’t they just hand out invitations to anyone?”

“No. The attendants only give invitations to those the theme park can handle. Anyway, we need to hurry more. If the shuttle bus gets damaged, the stamps will be useless.”

***

Another Guest’s Mannequin POV:

—

I looked at the woman in front of me, fiddling with the doll head I’d gotten used to wearing in place of a head for so long.

Hah hah.

The woman covered in tattoos, with a pale face, leaned against the marble wall, panting heavily.

It was only natural since we had been running nonstop until now.

“Mannequin, did we succeed?”

“Yes, all we need to do now is take the shuttle bus and leave.”

“Hah…, it’s finally over.”

Shluurrp shluurrp.

With feeble steps, dragging her feet through the muddy muck, the woman entered the marble building.

Looking back, the Smile Theme Park had met its end.

To put it in the words of the guests, the Smile Theme Park had ‘ended service’.

The theme park had lost its power and was slowly melting away, seeping into the void.

The reason was only one – someone had discovered the theme park’s hidden ending.

A powerful, nameless being had not only caused chaos, but also revealed the hidden secret, driving a stake into the heart of the theme park.

The theme park’s first attempt to open a branch in a new world ended like this.

And it’s a good thing all the stamps were collected before the theme park completely collapsed.

***

Another Guest POV:

—

I walked slowly, catching my breath.

Ah, I’m so hungry.

I’m starving to death.

I was too lazy to even walk properly, so I dragged my shoes.

The squishy black mud.

A severe petroleum smell so intense it gave me a headache.

I finally arrived at the unnecessarily distant shuttle bus stop.

Since I collected all the stamps by any means necessary.

Now if I just leave the Object, everything will be over.

As I entered the marble building, displayed head pieces came into view.

Seven newly added skulls.

‘The idiots couldn’t pass in the end.’

My fellow death row inmates who were put in together had all ended up as just skulls on display.

Seeing that they couldn’t use underhanded methods like me, they likely failed to pass and died multiple times.

Hah, it’s over now.

Acquittal.

That ending was right before my eyes.

Even rolling around in the murderous Object will become a fine memory outside.

The firmly shut shuttle bus door was wide open, as if welcoming me.

As I climbed up the bus steps one by one, looking back, the mannequin was staring straight at me.

“Thank you. You’re my life’s benefactor.”

“Hmm, no. It was just something I had to do.”

Though the doll head’s expression was hard to read, I could definitely read it now.

The mannequin seemed extremely delighted.

Even if it was a victim of the theme park, wasn’t it overly joyful? But whatever.

I cleared it!

I sat in a seat on the bus, and the mannequin took the driver’s seat and began preparations to depart.

Likely from fatigue, drowsiness poured over me.

The mannequin hummed cheerfully as it drove the bus out of the theme park.

In my drowsiness, I heard the mannequin’s voice.

“Then please get some good rest, guest. You have everything needed for the bus ride, we’ll arrive shortly. Any other questions?”

“No, none.”

“If there’s nothing, I’ll take that as consent and depart.”

The mannequin’s ominous words brought back a question I’d had before.

There were 9 stamps, but why were there 10 coins?