Chapter 105
Chapter 105
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 105
Chapter Title: Pedestrian III
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Shin Noah
6
The Inunaki Tunnel was riddled with all sorts of curses.
The terror inherent to tunnels themselves. Ghost stories. The lingering grudges of workers buried alive during construction. Murders and disappearances that occurred within the tunnel...
I'd underestimated the difficulty of this continental-level yokai that had extended its tentacles all the way across the Korea Strait. We retreated from the tunnel entrance and resumed our strategy meeting.
"Is there no way to physically destroy that tunnel from the outside?"
"Probably impossible."
Man-yeop-myo let out a sigh.
"Our council decided to tackle the tunnels and immediately tried physical destruction first. We even mobilized bombs from the old Self-Defense Forces and blew up all 72 tunnels simultaneously."
"And the result?"
"The Inunaki Tunnel was observed regenerating anywhere from as quick as four minutes to as long as four days. We hypothesize that it can only be subdued by walking straight from the entrance to the exit."
"...I see."
There were occasionally yokai like that. Ones that couldn't be subdued by physical force alone.
The exiled god "Mugan" was one such type. To briefly outline the method for subduing Mugan, just for reference:
1. Seal away the 99 ghosts of the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons at Baekhwa Girls' High School.
2. Descend to the fourth underground floor and walk exactly 4,444 steps to place 100 candles at the destination.
3. Exchange stories of the sealed ghosts' legends—at least the Hundred Tales—in a back-and-forth between at least two people.
4. Have the companion capable of performing the "shrine maiden" role advance four steps toward the arriving Mugan and seal it away.
5. Assist the shrine maiden by landing an "unpredictable strike" on Mugan during the process. Like using the famed sword "Do-ha" crafted by No Do-ha.
...It was an utterly insane攻略 method.
Unless you were a regressor, you'd naturally blurt out, "Who the hell designed this to be cleared?"
Later, when the Saintess saw this攻略 guide, she'd furrow her brow and mutter, "...You're truly remarkable."
But conversely, even an exiled god-level yokai that mocked the laws of the world could be subdued with "that much" effort.
An Inunaki Tunnel, a mere continental-level yokai, went without saying.
Even if physical force didn't work, every yokai absolutely had a weakness.
"I've got the gist."
"......? Nya, then why are you grabbing your sword cane and standing up, Undertaker?"
"If there's a yokai that can't be subdued by physical force, I figure maybe we just didn't use enough firepower. That's my personality."
From that day, the Inunaki Tunnel entered a brutal season of trials.
"Secret technique: Tunnel collapse."
Kwarrrrrumble—
I unleashed my aura freely, collapsing the tunnel entrance.
As Man-yeop-myo had pointed out, the tunnel structure restored itself in less than 40 seconds (probably stronger than before, with improved regeneration). But my blade didn't care about such trivial tantrums.
"Secret technique: Tunnel collapse. Again."
Kurumble! Kwang! Kwarrr!
Whenever the Inunaki Tunnel returned to normal, I carpet-bombed it relentlessly without pause. Not just the entrance—I blew away the entire mountainside the tunnel ran through.
"Nya aaaah! What are you doing, nya! This whole area is a mountain dedicated to our shrine, nya!"
"Calm down. It's just collateral damage."
"Our shrine's property is flying away—how is this collateral? This is the main damage, nya!"
Man-yeop-myo jumped up and down in rage, but there were results.
Forty seconds later, amid the wasteland where the mountain had vanished entirely, only the tunnel stood alone. Like a scalp fully afflicted with alopecia, the tunnel's outer structure was completely exposed.
"As expected."
Just as I'd predicted, the Inunaki Tunnel was a yokai that parasitized a "tunnel." The void it governed didn't extend beyond into the surrounding mountain.
The Phantom Sword marveled at the tunnel with its structure laid bare.
[Ho. Impressive power, Undertaker. The tunnel is fully exposed.]
"The terror of a tunnel is concentrated in the darkness. The vagueness of not knowing how far or how long until the exit appears, the hopelessness of being surrounded by concrete with no escape if things go wrong. But look."
I climbed onto the tunnel's outer wall and walked to the midpoint. Then, with a slice— I cleaved the tunnel's midsection like tofu.
"If the structure is exposed, even if an explorer gets trapped, they can be rescued from outside like this. Of course, the outer wall will regenerate after 40 seconds, but if we pull them out in that time, there's no issue."
[Ahh... Indeed. Thinking of it that way, it doesn't feel scary at all.]
"Yokai feed not only on voids in reality but also on gaps in our minds, blooming like mold. We must use any means to eliminate even the slightest unconscious fear."
[Hm. Truly priceless wisdom.]
"That's because real gold worth a fortune just flew away—it's only natural, nya! Oh no, oh nooo!"
Click—
I handed the spirit camera back to Man-yeop-myo and photographed the tunnel entrance again.
Alright. We'd responded to the yokai's provocation with one of our own—now, how would it react?
Soon, the photo developed. Last time, it had human torsos hanging from every cedar tree, but since we'd clear-cut the forest, now corpses were nailed to the stone wall at the tunnel entrance.
Except this time, just the heads.
The severed heads had their lips and eyelids fixed in place with small nails, forcibly contorting them into "smiling expressions."
The stone wall still bore the words "Welcome home (おかえり)," now written in the blood dripping from the magical girls' heads.
"...Still got some leeway, huh."
Whatever.
"Nya?"
"Just talking to myself. You don't need to look at the photo. It's just playing around with your fellow magical girls' corpses anyway."
"......"
Man-yeop-myo nodded faintly.
I picked up the radio. The radio itself had no special functions—I'd just tricked everyone into thinking it was a "yokai radio" so it wouldn't seem suspicious.
"Saintess."
[Yes.]
"Contact Corps Leader No Do-ha. Tell her to start the operation."
[Got it.]
A moment later.
"Your Excellency. The chess pieces are moving."
Yoo Ji-won spoke from the table set up at the tunnel entrance.
"Teams 1 through onward are entering the Busan Subsea Tunnel in sequence."
"Good. Keep reporting. Saintess? Please keep a steady eye on the convicts' viewpoints. Share their reactions, dialogue, every little action with me. I need it for the攻略 guide."
[Yes.]
Srrrrk. Srk.
On the table, the 72 chess pieces moved slowly as expected. The convicts we'd lost entirely in the previous regression.
Me, No Do-ha, the Saintess, Yoo Ji-won. The top support specialists began manipulating the countless chess pieces.
This time, the prisoners' lives would be spent a bit more valuably.
7
A tunnel in reality is a "passage you can walk from the entrance to the exit."
Conversely, a void tunnel is a "maze where you can enter the entrance but never exit."
Thus, to defeat the tunnel's yokai, simply have a person enter and emerge unscathed. That proves "this is no longer a void, but reality."
From here on, I'll attach the guidelines for safely crossing the Inunaki Tunnel—or more precisely, the communication logs we exchanged while establishing those guidelines.
These logs are nearly identical to the攻略 guide later registered in SG Net's [Library Society Yokai Encyclopedia].
Though the survival rate for humans entering the tunnel isn't high, if you keep your wits about you and doggedly follow the "攻略," you will absolutely return alive.
On the record.
[Mr. Undertaker. All exploration teams have been issued radios. I've introduced myself as the National Highway Management Corps team leader and arranged for the explorers to follow my orders.]
[Lead team entering.]
[Judging that collapsing the stone wall would draw excessive attention from the "Inunaki Tunnel," the explorers climbed over it.]
1. First, as the convicts climb over the stone wall, a foul "garbage stench" will immediately waft in.
It's akin to the stench of leaves rotting all season after a summer rain.
The cave breath heavy with moisture will cling to your body like ticks, but don't panic.
Rather, the smell indicates a "safe zone."
[Two explorers report the stench is unbearable.]
[Convict No. 6 reports it's not just cave smell—it's the stench of left-out corpses. What should we do?]
"Tell them to search for the corpses."
[Yes.]
1-1. If it's not garbage or moss smell but "blood" or "rotting corpse" stench, immediately turn back and climb over the stone wall to retreat.
However, if you've already walked "seven or more steps" after entering the tunnel, do not retreat. Crossing the wall will sever your waist.
Searching for hidden corpses upon smelling them is strictly forbidden.
Ultimately, you'll realize the smell emanates from inside your own body.
Formulating rule 1 cost five convicts.
[An explorer has died.]
[The rest are somewhat confused but proceeding with the operation without issue.]
[I'll request Corps Leader No Do-ha to deploy the next team as scheduled.]
[No anomalies.]
[Advance.]
2. Never cross the center of the tunnel to the right side. Always stick to the left side when moving.
[Mr. Undertaker. I've relayed this to all explorers, but why only the left side of the passage?]
"Ah. In the last regression, our four walked side by side. The one on the far right, Phantom Sword, and the center one, Ji-won, suddenly dropped dead."
[Pardon?]
"Ah, Ji-won, you don't need to watch this. Focus on the minimap. Anyway... They suddenly gasped like they'd sunk into deep water, then collapsed soon after."
[......]
"We checked the bodies—gunk poured from their esophagus and lungs. Cause of death: drowning."
2-1. If you smell "water" or "sewer" during walking, you're leaning too far right.
Immediately shift leftward.
If breathing feels subtly hard or walking difficult, move left. But not with "walking motions"—swim.
Wear a life vest from the start in case of emergency.
Formulating rule 2 required no convicts.
[No anomalies. I'll order continued advance.]
"Yes, please do."
3. Inside the Inunaki Tunnel, graffiti and scrawls cover everything in vivid colors.
Left, right, all around—the entire passage is painted. The graffiti clings densely like barnacle shells on seaside cliffs.
They'll look like Latin script but resemble no earthly language.
If staring at the graffiti makes it seem to writhe, or if the red parts smell of "blood," immediately look away.
Deeper in, the graffiti grows denser and more complex.
If it still looks like "scrawls," the zone is safe. But if it appears as exquisite "art," especially a "beautiful living being," look away immediately.
This is presumed a void effect mixing the tunnel "corridor" with a gallery "corridor."
[Mr. Undertaker. Some explorers are showing excessive interest in the graffiti.]
"Any unusual behavior?"
[Yes. They're approaching and receding from the graffiti like appreciating art in a museum, muttering things like beautiful, pretty, ecstatic.]
[Ah.]
[Anomaly detected in Convict No. 14. Repeatedly chanting, "If only this color were a bit deeper."]
[Nearby explorers are trying to restrain him, but it's futile.]
[Self-harm confirmed in Convict No. 14.]
[He's slit his abdomen and is painting red on the graffiti.]
"Indeed. Saintess, don't look at the scrawls either."
[Yes. Switching views periodically. Convict No. 14 gouged out his own eyes and smeared them into the tunnel wall graffiti.]
[Death confirmed.]
3-1. If someone stands mid-tunnel admiring graffiti with no reaction, execute them immediately.
If "tattoos" appear clearly on their arms or neck, it's too late to kill. Flee as far from them as possible.
Infected individuals like this are henceforth termed "spectators."
If the blood smell fades and moss, basement, or cave smells return, you've reached a safe zone.
3-2. If you sense a spectator pursuing you, sever a finger or toe with your knife, draw a tattoo-like pattern on your face with the blood, and hold the severed part in your mouth.
Press as close as possible to the tunnel wall without making a sound.
Even if footsteps approach from somewhere, don't look toward the passage. Don't make noise. Stay plastered to the wall until the footsteps fully fade. Recommend holding breath for at least 30 seconds.
Formulating rule 3 cost eleven convicts.
[An explorer has died.]
[No anomalies.]
[Advance.]
Infinite Regressor Tries to Spill the Tea