Seoul Object Story - Chapter 62: Gyeyang Mountain Temporary Camp (2)

Reaper (MC) POV:

—

The cat that escaped from the burning building started running west, west through the ruins.

Even when the ruins ended and a maze-like city appeared, it continued running without hesitation.

It dashed through the complex and eye-catching city without sparing a single glance.

The noisy chatter unique to cities, children’s laughter, occasional distant barking of dogs.

As if it knew the way, it did not stop at the intersections of the complicated city.

Streets I had never seen before, but seemed familiar to the cat.

I followed the cat for a few hours like that.

Finally, in front of the open scenery atop a tall ruin, the cat let out a loud meow.

Meow!

It sounded like a cry of achievement.

Looking down below, a familiar scenery came into view.

It was the scenery that was always shown when TV introduced the ‘Incheon Gyeyang Mountain Temporary Camp’.

It depicted the disorder of the camp well while being quite a scenic view, making it a scene often shown on TV.

Seeing the camp directly rather than on TV, it was a bit different from my expectations.

TV often described it as a ‘lawless temporary camp’….

But to me, it didn’t look rugged enough to be called lawless or temporary.

However, there was something even stranger.

There wasn’t a single person in the city?

Really, not a single one.

After secretly following the cat into the city, that strangeness was doubled.

Children running on precarious stairs.

Laundry fluttering in alleys from the wind.

Youths sitting in alleys playing instruments.

Couples sitting hand-in-hand on walls.

Shopkeepers calling out to passersby.

It was a city overflowing with positive emotions and vibrant liveliness.

But the flame inside me didn’t even stir.

The subtle sense of discomfort only grew stronger.

The cat, not seeming to notice the strangeness, strolled leisurely through the camp, searching for something.

Perhaps it was seeking adventure?

But the cat had already stepped deep into an adventure.

Those fake humans were watching the ghost cat intently while pretending not to notice.

***

Detective Yellow POV:

—

The afternoon sunlight came through the blinds, casting shadows on the floor, and the coffee machine in the corner let out its signature sound, releasing fragrant steam into the room.

The aroma of freshly brewed coffee mixed with the scent of old wooden furniture and books, creating the office’s unique atmosphere.

It was the usual detective office, but with a slightly different vibe as preparations were underway for a field assignment.

I checked the photos pinned on the corkboard while inspecting the tools.

I checked the fit of the yellow suit and put the pocket watch inside.

Then I picked up the gas lamp from the shelf.

As I grabbed the gas lamp, a small scream came out.

“Senior! Are you really taking Watson?”

Junior 1 asked with a startled expression.

Junior 2, unfamiliar with Watson, looked curious.

“Yes, I have to take it. I’d regret it if I didn’t.”

I said quietly, looking Watson up to eye level.

Then, I grabbed a revolver.

“A gun!? Have you gone mad, senior? Where are we going to fight? You said we’re meeting a client? And isn’t that illegal? A gun in Korea…”

“I have a feeling a gun might be needed, so I’m taking it. Haven’t you seen movies? Great detectives always carry a revolver.”

Seeing me talk like this for the first time, Junior 1 checked her luggage again.

Then Junior 2 asked, “So where are we going?”

“Incheon Gyeyang Mountain Temporary Camp.”

I pointed to the news article pinned on the corkboard.

<Incheon Gyeyang Mountain Temporary Camp, Police Withdraw for Dubious Reasons>

It was a recent controversial news article about the camp.

***

??? POV:

—

On the stairs leading underground, a man grumbled while pinching his nose shut.

“Ugh. I can’t breathe.”

Perhaps due to the sticky blood running down the walls, the stairwell reeked of blood, making it difficult to breathe.

The man belonging to the association had come all the way to the ‘Incheon Gyeyang Mountain Temporary Camp’ to make up for his recent string of failures.

He had secretly tried to revive the Central Research Institute, but failed.

He forcibly took out the vice-director from prison and tried again, but failed again.

Unable to summon the Director Object, he left it as an inevitable situation and had the vice-director operate the Research Institute, but the vice-director ended up as a headless corpse.

As serious disruptions occurred in preparing to operate the secret Central Research Institute, finding the Director’s location could be considered a blessing in disguise.

While tracking the unidentified missing person case that occurred at the ‘Incheon Gyeyang Mountain Temporary Camp’ that the government was closely monitoring, the Director they had been searching for popped up…

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He was lucky.

The mission given to the man was one, ‘Recruit the Director to the secret Research Institute!’.

Following behind the researcher walking in the lead, as they entered deep underground, the smell of blood became even thicker.

On top of that, an unidentifiable heartbeat sound was added.

Thump thump.

The sound of countless hearts beating in unison.

That beating sound resonated loudly, as if pushing out the air, its vibrations even shaking the man’s body.

The place they arrived at after continuing to walk was a large cavity.

In the middle of that cavity, was the Director.

“Welcome. Anonymous from the association.”

The Director spoke with an exaggerated gesture and tone.

The man, who wanted to get out of this underground facility as soon as possible, paid no mind to the Director’s sarcasm and said what he had to say.

“Director, return to the Central Research Institute again…”

Clap.

The Director cut off the man’s words with a clap and said,

“As someone from the association, you should know my name, don’t you?”

“I don’t know. I seem too young to know your name. On top of that, all documents with the Director’s name on them have been destroyed, making it impossible to investigate.”

“…”

“Because you have no name, there is now no one who can call your name. It cannot be recorded either.”

Hearing those words, the Director fell into thought.

“Director, no, ‘Maker’! Return to the Central Research Institute again. Now the Central Research Institute can support all the experiments you wanted to do.”

“A name. A name is trivial. Return to the Central Research Institute? Good. No, not good. Why?”

Upon hearing the man’s words, the Director muttered incoherently while looking at the ceiling.

Feeling some ominous vibe, the man tried to turn around and leave, but two researchers had already appeared and were holding his shoulders.

“W-What are you doing?”

The Director walked up to the man’s face and pointed a sharp scalpel at him as he spoke.

“Name.”

“What?”

“What’s my name? I tested it, and it seems calling out a name is possible. I’ve tested it on regular people too, so it’s certain.”

“Absolutely no- Arghhhh!”

As the man tried to voice his refusal, the scalpel pierced right into his eye.

With a chilling sound, the scalpel was pulled out.

A sphere in the Director’s hand emitted an eerie light.

There should have been serious bleeding, but for some reason, the bleeding stopped instantly.

“Why are you so afraid? Do you think ‘Nameless’ will appear if you call my name?”

“Of course!”

“Why don’t you try calling it? Unexpectedly, I might be a parasitic Object that has taken over the Director’s body. Wouldn’t it be okay to name the host of a parasitic Object like the ‘Black Butterfly’?”

“No, you’re not some parasitic Object!”

“Words don’t seem to get through. Well, I’ll tell you someday. We have plenty of time.”

“Arghh, stop. I don’t know! I said I don’t know!”

But the Director didn’t believe the man’s words.

***

Junior 1 POV:

—

“Hello. Do you happen to have any requests?”

After loitering in front of the police station all day, senior started saying strange things again.

“Didn’t you say that to me too? Is it a line you always use?”

“Yeah, I think it’s cool.”

Whisper whisper.

As Junior 2 and Senior were gossiping, a woman who appeared to be the client grabbed Senior’s hand and stood up.

Once again, he succeeded in getting a client with that strange line.

“Alright then. Let’s go to the ‘Incheon Gyeyang Mountain Temporary Camp’ right now.”

Since it’s a kidnapping case, there’s no need to waste time now that we know the destination.

We took a taxi and arrived at the ‘Incheon Gyeyang Mountain Temporary Camp’.

Contrary to expectations, it was a lively and joyful place.

The children looked bright and cheerful, and the merchants seemed full of vitality.

And the sight of the elderly gathered on the hillside playing baduk and janggi made it seem far removed from a kidnapping case.

First of all, there were too many people, making it impossible to avoid drawing attention.

“Senior? Could a kidnapping have occurred in a place like this?”

Senior was frowning with a serious expression, looking around in all directions.

“Senior?”

“I don’t know. Something seems strange, but I’m not sure.”

For some unknown reason, we followed the terrified client to their residence.

A dilapidated three-story building made of concrete, without even a parking lot.

There, a young boy and a woman came out to welcome our group.

“Sisssss!”

The young boy ran with open arms and clung to the client’s feet.

But the client turned pale and froze stiffly.

Doesn’t that look exactly like a leech clinging to your leg?