The Third Loop: The Director's Confession
Even a seasoned agent like me, Kim Geun-hong, was momentarily thrown into a state of panic. I only came to my senses after instinctively throwing a punch that connected with the man's ribs.
—Thud!
"Gah!"
The man's mouth fell open as he stared at me with wide eyes, his body curling inward. When he started wheezing and looked ready to scream again, I didn't hesitate.
—Thud! Thud! Thud!
I grabbed him and delivered three rapid, powerful uppercut-style punches straight into his ribs.
"Hrk...!"
He couldn't even make a sound anymore. Four brutal body blows were more than enough to leave him stunned. I'd thought he was some kind of anomaly because of how loudly he'd been screaming, but his reactions proved he was human after all. No ghost story would react so realistically to pain.
"Quiet."
His sudden scream had startled me, and I'd nearly cursed out loud, but this was an extreme situation. I decided to let it slide. Punching him had been the right call. Right now, the only thing that mattered was keeping this man alive.
"Behave and get inside. If you make another sound, I'll give you ten more punches to the ribs."
Tears streamed down the man's face. Had I cracked his ribs? I wasn't particularly worried. This hospital's rules ensured that any injury would be treated. Experiencing that bizarre healing process would naturally break his spirit. He'd follow instructions after that. Maintaining defiance in this hospital was a bad idea. Obedience offered the best chance of survival.
I supported him and guided him back into the hospital room, laying him down on the bed.
"Ugh...!"
He curled up like a shrimp, clutching his ribs with both arms. It was a pitiful sight, but I showed no mercy as I whispered to him.
"I'll bring you the survival manual. Memorize it and follow it exactly. That's your only way out of here alive."
In the previous loop, I'd shoved him into the Black Room. That decision had become a thorn of guilt lodged in my heart. But this time, I'd corrected it. I'd saved someone who should have died. That became my source of confidence.
"Do you understand? Do not make any loud noises. This is a hospital. Doctors aren't the only ones who administer injections. I can give you a fist injection in the ribs whenever I want. If you understand, answer me."
"Y-yes, sir..."
"Good. Your ability to endure the pain is commendable. That attitude will keep you alive."
Anyone seeing me right now would think I was the anomaly. But this was necessary if I wanted to save him. There was no time to empathize with his panic or soothe him with gentle words, and the environment didn't allow for it. The only way to save both of us was through this somewhat forceful approach.
"A nurse might come in. If she does anything, obey her. Don't show any resistance. You'll die if you do. If you don't want to die, stay calm and follow instructions."
After calming him down, I stepped out of the room. Then—
"..."
A nurse was standing in front of the elevator. She was watching me. Her uniform matched my memories: red heels, fishnet stockings, a nurse's cap, and a one-piece dress-style uniform. Was this the same nurse who had taken care of me when I was a patient? Back then, her eyes and mouth had been sewn shut, but now—perhaps because I was registered as a security guard—she looked different. Just an expressionless woman.
—Click. Click.
The familiar sound of heels echoed as the nurse approached.
"Kim Geun-hong-ssi."
Security guard protocol. I was Security Guard Lee Seung-cheol. I absolutely could not react to any other name.
"Kim Geun-hong-ssi."
I ignored the nurse's call. I mechanically continued my work as if I hadn't heard anything, collecting the boxes placed in front of the doors.
"Kim Geun-hong-ssi."
I kept ignoring her and pulled the cart along. As I did so—
"Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi. Kim Geun-hong-ssi."
This crazy woman kept calling my name...!
Stay calm. Stay calm. Losing composure here would be the end. Why had this nurse appeared? This hadn't happened before. The only difference was that I'd sent the man back to his room instead of the Black Room. Was that the reason?
Should I commit suicide right now? Countless judgments raced through my mind. Trying to save someone had been a mistake from the start—I should have just done my job. If I'd failed, I should have immediately killed myself to avoid the skinning. A single moment of hesitation could ruin everything. Even if I got skinned, there was no guarantee I'd return just by receiving penalty points.
Extreme choices. Should I use the items I'd been saving?
The moment that thought crossed my mind—
"..."
The calling stopped. Had she left...?
I continued pulling the cart and collecting boxes. Only after finishing the entire collection did I turn around to check behind me.
The nurse was gone! Had she really left?
I moved carefully and peered through the small window in the hospital room door. No sign of the nurse. She must have taken the elevator back. I needed confirmation. I checked every room.
...Nothing.
I entered a room I remembered. Patients sat on their beds, staring blankly at the ceiling. Ignoring them, I opened a drawer. There it was—the patient survival manual distributed by the Bureau. Seeing it made me miss the Bureau terribly. I wanted to see Spandal and Jaaldi. Jamtree was a bitch, so I didn't want to see her, but... I'd liked the condensed milk coffee she used to make. If I ever drank that sweet coffee again somewhere...
Every time I drank it, I'd think of that vampire-like Jamtree woman.
Alright. I took the manual and entered the room where the man was.
"...!"
He flinched as he lay there.
"Well done. Stay quiet and obedient. That's your only chance of survival. Here, the survival manual. If you want to live, follow it."
"W-wait a moment..."
"Keep conversation to a minimum."
"Where is this place? Who are you..."
He still hadn't come to his senses. In this kind of anomalous space, failing to adapt meant death. He needed to accept that the unreal was real and recognize that he'd fallen into it. Otherwise, he'd die. The only reason this man could survive was because he'd encountered me—Kim Geun-hong in the third loop.
"Do you want to get punched in the ribs again? Just accept it quietly. If you don't want to die."
When I raised my fist, his eyes filled with terror.
"Hrk...!"
"I have nothing more to say. Acting foolish will get you killed. Really. Follow the manual."
There was no time for explanations. Now that I'd given him the manual, it was up to him. I stepped out of the room.
* * *
I continued performing my duties after that. There were a few near-incidents, but I handled them all perfectly. Eventually—
-Please come up to the 9th floor office.
Kim Seong-han had called for me! This was essentially the most important event in this loop. If Kim Seong-han was here, he would have useful information about Cheongak Mary Hospital. Just learning that would be a major achievement.
I went straight up to the 9th floor.
"Sir."
"You've arrived."
When I entered, the skinless Kim Seong-han greeted me.
"How is the security work going?"
"It's all manageable. Let's get to the point."
"Yes... Did you come to rescue me?"
I stared at him quietly.
"Sir, this might sound cruel, but you're not a normal human being right now."
To be blunt, someone whose skin had been completely peeled off couldn't possibly be human. Kim Seong-han had retained his personality, but he was already halfway assimilated into the hospital.
"...I know."
Even so, I wanted to save him.
"If you were still human, I might have found a way. But it seems you've become partially one with this hospital."
"..."
"To save you in this situation, I need the information you possess. Tell me everything you've learned while working as a doctor here."
"Understood. I was planning to tell you anyway. If someone like you learns about this hospital, it could reduce the number of victims."
As expected. Kim Seong-han was practically a saint. Even in this situation, he was thinking about other victims. That was what true nobility looked like.
"I was in a traffic accident and ended up here by chance. When I came to, my body had been healed. They must have realized I was a doctor, because they told me to become one. I couldn't refuse."
Kim Seong-han's story began. He, too, had been an unfortunate victim who'd been pulled in. But unlike the others, because he was a doctor, he'd been made into one of the hospital's physicians. So when doctors arrived here, they were forced onto the doctor route.
"After becoming a doctor... my skin was peeled off."
"...So that's what it was."
"Yes. Having my skin removed meant I became subordinate to this space. When I put that skin back on, I lose my personality. And I begin acting as this hospital's 'Director.'"
What?! So the Director's true identity had been Kim Seong-han?!
"You were the Director, sir."
So the one who'd instantly killed Department Head Lee Do-hyeong had been Kim Seong-han wearing the skin. Maybe the doctor who'd conducted the discharge consultation had been him as well.
"Then what happened to the previous Director?"
"I don't know... At some point, I became the Director. During that process, I learned something."
"What was it?"
"The reason for Cheongak Mary Hospital's existence."
"The reason for its existence...!"
What could it be?! If I knew the reason, prevention might be possible...!
"What is it?"
"Primarily, this hospital exists to heal people. Many have actually received treatment. Any wound, any illness—everything gets cured."
"But the survival rate..."
"Yes. If you don't follow the hospital's rules, even if you're healed, you can't be discharged. You become part of the hospital."
I already knew that much.
"Only a very small number are discharged normally. Recently, that organization called the Bureau has been leaving manuals behind, so the numbers have increased slightly... but it's still a minority."
When he mentioned the Bureau, Kim Seong-han glanced at me. He was guessing that I'd come from there. He wasn't entirely wrong. I didn't confirm it outright because I didn't know what might happen later.
"Of course, that treatment is never normal."
"Pardon? What do you mean...?"
"I'm a doctor too. I can tell the difference between what can and cannot be treated. Moreover, the surgeries here are grotesque and bizarre. They're not human medicine. How could that be normal?"
...He was right. This hospital's medicine was anything but normal. It was something grotesque performed by anomalies. Perhaps it was just something horrific taking the form of medical treatment...
"Sir, but I've seen multiple people discharged from this hospital. I examined them, but there were no abnormalities."
I'd also received treatment from the hospital. I'd eaten that grotesque lump of flesh. And I'd been fine?
"That's just—"
Kim Seong-han gave a bitter smile.
"—something that can't be detected with human technology."
"...!"
The moment I heard those words, a chill ran down my entire body. That meant...
...this grotesque something had been applied to me as well.