Chapter 24
Chapter 24
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: Doppelganger Overlap Anomaly (7)
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There was no hesitation at the fork in the path.
Round 3.
Luckily, I stepped onto the correct path twice in a row.
“Left. Right.”
Twelve paths spread out before my eyes.
The difficulty had spiked suddenly.
…For now, straight ahead through the middle.
Round 8.
Left → Right → 3 → Right → 5 → Center → 2
Finally, I found another exit (manhole).
Aiming Kang Su-ji’s borrowed pistol and pulling the trigger caused black ink to splatter like a burst before vanishing into thin air.
[Second exit – Fake.]
Round 15.
Left → Right → 3 → Right → 5 → Center → 2 → 6 → 4 → Left → 5 → Right → Center.
[Third exit – Fake.]
Round 21.
[Fourth exit – Fake.]
And then the process repeated countless times.
The moment the trigger pulled on the last bullet left in the magazine.
Clang—!!
The sound I’d been waiting for finally rang out clearly through the empty underground sewer.
‘…Found it.’
Rustle— Rustle—
As if reacting to the gunshot.
Black silhouettes began approaching from far down the passage.
Their forms were familiar.
They were the same ones that had appeared every time I’d shot at a manhole.
Black hair and black suit—Kim Sera’s form.
Covered head to toe in knives—Kang Su-ji’s form.
One. Two. Three…
The pattern of only two appearing at a time was gone.
Now they were multiplying exponentially from every corner of the passage.
Silhouettes approached from every fork.
No matter which way I ran, they blocked any escape.
I stared at them calmly too.
“Alpha. There you are?”
“You vanished so suddenly—we’ve been looking everywhere!”
“…It’s Alpha!”
“He’s here!”
“Come this way! Alpha!”
“Anomaly?! We’ll save you! Hurry over here!”
“Alpha Agent!”
“Alpha! Get behind me quick!”
Familiar voices overlapped and echoed at once.
I slowly swapped out the magazine and spoke.
“…Ms. Kang Su-ji. What happened to the people who collapsed?”
“Huh? What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
Bang—!!
Kang Su-ji couldn’t have forgotten those three people.
“Ms. Kim Sera. Do you remember what anomaly we entered together last time?”
“Th-that…”
Bang—!!
I let out a deep breath and looked up.
“If any of you knows me, raise your hand.”
A brief silence.
Soon, eerie laughter erupted.
“Hehehehehehehehehehe”
“Hehehehehehehehehehehehe”
“Gegergeulleoryeoryeolbeobeobeobeoryeoryeoryeoryeoryeodadadadadaaaa”
“Deodeodeodeopchyeochyeochyeochyeochyeochyeochyehehehehehe”
“Hehehehehehehehehehehehehe”
The laughter tangled together, filling the entire passage.
They weren’t even pretending anymore.
Every visible silhouette charged straight at me.
Black silhouettes crawled along the walls and ceiling, closing in like spiders.
Bang—!! Bang—!! Bang—!!
Three trigger pulls.
But in that gap, they were already upon me.
The lead silhouette tackled me down and climbed on top of my face.
Its jet-black torn mouth gaped wide.
“Hehehehehehehehehehehehehejajajajajamermermermermermgekgekgekgesseussseupsseupnininiinidadadadaaaa!!!"
Bang—!!
The head of the one on top of me burst like ink.
Click— Click—
The sound of an empty chamber.
Scrape— Scrape— Scrape— Scrape— Scrape— Scrape— Scrape— Scrape— Scrape— Scrape—
With dozens of black silhouettes piling onto my body all at once, my vision plunged completely into darkness.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
[Moving to the last save point.]
[The most recent save point is AUTO SAVE 2.]
[Doppelganger Overlap Anomaly]
[Death Type]: Digestion.
[Tip]: Voices echoing in the darkness aren’t always friendly.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
***
This time, I didn’t freeze up.
[Side Job Doctor]: Still not dead—...?
Before comments could pile up, my body moved on reflex, just as Side Job Doctor had advised in the previous round.
I’d already done this dozens of times.
What started as clumsy, awkward motions had become polished through endless repetition.
I turned to the two still staring blankly.
“Now let’s quickly get these three to the exit. Their immunity is weakened—they could be in mortal danger if we stay here any longer.”
My final words snapped Kang Su-ji out of it.
She swiftly hoisted the two collapsed adult men onto her back.
I took the remaining one.
Kim Sera lit the way ahead with her flashlight.
Before questions could arise, I spoke first.
“…I think I’ve figured out the maze’s pattern.”
Since both had prior experience with me, there was no suspicion or doubt at my claim of deducing the rules from just a short trial.
Instead, trust flickered by.
Along with a hollow sense of their human limitations.
From there, things went smoothly.
“Left here.”
“Right.”
“Third from the left.”
“…The texture says this isn’t an exit.”
“Fifth from the left.”
And—
“…Here it is.”
The exit I’d found.
Our footprints from when we first entered were still imprinted on the floor.
No sound echoed, so no dolls appeared.
At my words, Kang Su-ji quickly approached the manhole cover and pried it open.
The scrape of metal rang out, and the chill scent of outside air wafted down.
Communication must have reconnected, because I saw Kim Sera pressing her earpiece and exchanging reports.
—Second Exploration Team. We’ve found three survivors inside the underground sewer—
Soon after, rescue gear lowered from above.
First Exploration Team.
The three were secured to the line one by one, and with clanking metal sounds, slowly hoisted up.
After the second was done, just before the third went up.
A hand suddenly thrust toward me.
On it lay a familiar notebook.
I glanced at Kang Su-ji.
Wondering if it was a mistake.
But the hand was clearly extended my way.
As if asking me to take it.
I reached out slowly and carefully accepted it.
The last person ascended slowly.
I turned my gaze to the notebook.
A worn cover with faded lettering.
—Investigator Shin Seung-ah
I flipped it open.
The first page bore a sentence in heavily pressed script, faint but still legible.
—Let’s all… go home together.
—Kang Su-ji, don’t blame yourself. Your big sis won’t die that easily! Seung-tae oppa’s worried too…
I carefully turned to the next page.
It was filled densely with maps and records they’d made during their exploration.
Forks marked in red pen, short notes, traces of countless attempts and experiences.
[1-a Passage: 1 and 2 are traps—lures you with sounds like people approaching. No contact.]
[2-b Passage: Third fork, right path—dead end. Just wastes time.]
[1-c Passage 2nd. Narrow path by flooded area—thought it was a dead end at first, but closer inspection revealed a way through.]
Soon, the manhole cover closed, and the light illuminating the sewer faded completely.
The notebook’s contents became invisible once more.
***
As the crisis ended and tension ebbed, a brief wave of exhaustion washed over my body.
Kang Su-ji broke the short silence with a deep bow toward us.
“…Alpha. Sera. Thank you.”
A tremor laced her voice.
“I’ll never forget this favor. I knew the exploration had to continue… but when you said you’d head back to the exit, Alpha, I couldn’t stop you.”
She bit her lip with her head bowed, then forced her gaze up.
“Even though I knew full well how dangerous it is to drag three injured people along on a mission.”
Her words hung heavy, blanketing the space in thick silence.
Like a criminal awaiting judgment, Kang Su-ji bowed deeply.
I watched her for a moment before speaking.
“What just happened?”
“…Huh?”
When she looked up at my words, confusion and tears mingled in her eyes.
I smiled and tapped the watch on my wrist.
Coincidentally, the time matched exactly when we were supposed to have arrived.
“We just came down.”
As if agreeing, Kim Sera smiled and chimed in.
“Yeah. I just got down here too.”
She pulled out the worn notebook from her pocket and held it up.
Kang Su-ji’s eyes widened at the sight.
The familiar cover, inscribed with that handwriting.
“…And received this gift too.”
One last thing before I forgot.
‘…Almost slipped my mind.’
This anomaly gallery was always free anyway.
I turned on my phone and sent coins to ‘Side Job Doctor.’
[Transfer complete]
[Side Job Doctor]: ...?
[Side Job Doctor]: I didn’t do anything.
[Newb120053]: Just felt like it.
I chuckled briefly.
Then I used the Recorder’s Pen to revise some rules.
Black light flowed from the pen like ink, seeping into my mind.
[Doppelganger Overlap Maze – Revised]
Rule 1. Map
1-1. The underground sewer map is based on the underground anomaly and doppelganger anomaly rules. (New)!
ㄴ Previous maps are no longer usable.
1-2. If a path not on the map appears, a new rule has taken effect.
1-3. If rules change, the reliability of the entire map collapses.
Rule 4. Mimicry
4-1. Doppelgangers can mimic living people’s forms and voices.
4-2. Beyond simple human imitation, they copy memories and speech patterns.
ㄴ If the mimicked subject is alive, they only copy appearance—never memories. (New)!
ㄴ They’re mainly drawn by sound. (New)!
Rule 5. Passages (New)!
5-1. Some underground sewer passages are fake ‘false paths.’
5-2. Entering a ‘false path’ triggers a trap.
ㄴ Traps vary: flooding, entire space heating up, environmental shifts.
ㄴ Preparation for specific scenarios is pointless.
The two women’s gazes turned to me.
Closing my eyes must have looked like I was deep in thought.
I flicked on the flashlight, illuminating the sewer.
This darkness was no longer unknown.
[When our investigation team first arrived at the underground sewer—]
It was just our target to conquer.