Chapter 25
Chapter 25
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Theme Park of Dreams and Hope
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Screeech.
Midway up an unnamed back mountain. A black van climbed onto the severed road.
The van, which had been speeding along the road, gradually slowed as the end came into view.
“We’re here.”
The driver, wearing sunglasses, turned the wheel and parked on the shoulder. The vehicle doors opened, and men and women in black suits poured out.
They were agents from the Management Bureau’s Response Division. Unlike their usual team-based operations, the agents gathered here were a jumble from different teams.
It couldn’t be helped.
The basic condition for entering the theme park was possessing a ticket. Because of that, those without tickets couldn’t come even if they wanted to. No matter how veteran with superpowers they were, transferring into an anomaly without meeting the conditions was impossible.
Thanks to that, there were two from Response Team 3, three from Team 5, and one from Team 6.
A response team of six in total.
Not a small number, but not large either. It was an ambiguous count for investigating and handling an unidentified anomaly.
But they couldn’t just complain. From the start, anyone who whined about unfairness wouldn’t survive long in the Management Bureau.
Since when did anomalies ever consider human circumstances?
Unfavorable conditions were everyday life for the Response Division. So instead of voicing complaints, they quickly composed themselves and began preparing to enter.
“The signal from the scouting personnel with the ticket cut off right here. Looks like the address on the ticket wasn’t fake.”
Park Ji-ah said.
She deftly operated her terminal and showed the screen to everyone.
“A team of three vanished starting from this severed road. Vital signs cut off too.”
“That means they’re dead. How many minutes after entering?”
The man with a massive shotgun slung on his back took off his sunglasses and asked. Park Ji-ah answered immediately.
“Fifteen minutes. Cause of death… mutation? That’s what it says.”
“Mutation, huh. What, is this some zombie theme park?”
“No idea. But if all three mutated within fifteen minutes, it’s definitely not something to take lightly.”
“Probably. A anomaly that connects reality to a sub-space like this was never going to be easy.”
Tsk, whoosh.
The man skillfully inhaled cigarette smoke and looked at his fellow Team 5 agents.
“Grab the extension cords quick and let’s head in. Would be nice if we didn’t have to fight, but that’s not up to us.”
“Yes.”
“Goddamn axe. So freaking heavy…”
The Team 5 agents, including the man, each grabbed their weapons.
“…….”
Mir, the agent from Team 6, shook her ticket alone while fiddling with the sword at her waist.
Team 6 was made up of the strongest in the Response Division. She was surely the one who would shine brightest in the theme park.
Park Ji-ah stared at Mir’s back for a moment, then turned her head toward Kim I-seo, who had a gun case on her back.
“How’s your condition?”
“Fine. All injuries healed.”
Kim I-seo tapped her thigh, where she’d been injured by the Eight-Foot Ghost, and replied. Her pink hair fluttered in the blowing wind.
“What about you? Feeling okay?”
“Not bad. Good enough to support the team.”
Park Ji-ah smiled brightly at Kim I-seo’s question. The moment Kim I-seo smiled back, Mir, who had been standing quietly, returned holding her ticket.
“When did everyone first find their tickets?”
It was a sudden question, but the Management Bureau group didn’t find it odd and immediately pulled out their tickets to answer.
“Third day for me today.”
“Fifth day for me.”
Park Ji-ah and Kim I-seo said. The Team 5 members reported finding theirs within a week too.
Except for one.
There was one man exactly at the one-week mark today.
“Exactly one week ago, around 3 p.m., found it in front of my dorm.”
“One week ago, huh. Perfect timing for something to happen. Any anomalies?”
“Nothing notable. Mentally sound, no physical issues.”
That’s when it happened.
The hands of the world clock ticked to exactly 3 p.m.
And the man vanished before the group’s eyes.
No warning signs at all. As if he’d never been there, the man’s figure disappeared.
Pop!
Instead, a small clown doll appeared beneath where he’d stood. With a balloon string around its neck and limp like it was dead, the doll convulsed wildly before spurting blood and bursting.
“……!”
“What the fuck!”
The agents’ momentum shifted. Without anyone saying a word, they clutched their tickets and ran toward the theme park entrance.
“Entering, entering! Operation start!”
“Agent Park Ji-ah! Forced transfer after one week with ticket! Log it and send to Management Bureau immediately!”
“Y-Yes! Logging now!”
She tapped the terminal while running.
After one step, two steps, then three.
“……Ah.”
The world changed.
*
The condition for the cartel’s commission was to rip out the manager’s heart. But finding where the manager was right away was difficult.
“Th-The tower there in the center seems most likely…”
Yuna pointed at the massive blood-red tower in the theme park’s center and said. Ian agreed.
“If anywhere, it’s there. But not certain. Charging in blindly and getting trapped would be a headache. And even if he’s there, we can’t kill him right now.”
“R-Right… Need to secure an escape first…”
Ripping out the heart didn’t end everything. They had to use it to leave the theme park.
If killing the manager collapsed the space, fine—but without certainty, they couldn’t act rashly.
For now, experiencing at least three attractions to secure an exit in advance was the right move.
But the rides weren’t sane.
No safety bars was basic; rollercoasters running between saw blades, a haunted house chased by killers, a gyrodrop that kept rising endlessly into the sky to be eaten alive by clown clouds, and more.
Everything was packed with malice designed to kill humans. No normal person could endure them, no matter what.
But a few could be overcome easily by a mage.
Targeting just those would make securing exits not too hard.
Ian glanced once more at the attractions listed in the booklet and planned their route in advance.
“Wh-What…?”
That’s when it happened. Yuna suddenly pointed at the plaza and let out a voice.
“P-People just appeared there…?”
“…What?”
Ian frowned and whipped his head around at her words.
In the plaza with its blood fountain. Amid the grotesquely dressed clowns, dolls, and crawling guests, a man in a suit suddenly appeared.
Unlike the other monstrosities, perfectly dressed, he didn’t notice the change at first and wore a dazed expression. But soon he drew his pistol from his waist and aimed at a crawling bug nearby.
“Wh-What the hell is this, fuck!”
His face filled with bewilderment, terror, and fear. The moment Ian saw his suit and pistol, he realized he was a Management Bureau agent. Yuna seemed to reach the same conclusion, mumbling as she stroked her guitar case.
But the agent didn’t spot the two.
No, he had no time to.
“…….”
“…….”
With his appearance, the lively monstrosities in the plaza froze simultaneously. Then they creakily turned only their heads to stare at him.
Not just the plaza. Riders on attractions, food vendors, even the clown clouds in the sky.
They glared piercingly, capturing his image fully in their eyes.
A chilling sight that sent shivers down the spine. Ian grimaced and took a step back.
‘Nothing good comes from getting involved.’
He didn’t know how or why the man had ended up here.
But guessing, something happened during the Management Bureau’s dispatch to resolve this phenomenon.
Definitely not good.
“G-Gonna die…”
Yuna muttered watching the agent. But no sadness or pity showed on her face.
Just calmly stating the reality.
Ian nodded and turned away.
“Let’s move. Staying in the plaza might get us caught in the crossfire.”
“Y-Yeah… Ghost house first, I think… It’s mandatory on the route…”
“I agree. By the way, any thought of saving that agent?”
“H-Huh…? N-Not really…? Too late anyway…?”
Yuna scratched her cheek awkwardly.
“More than that, let’s go… It’s starting…”
Yuna said, glancing back. Ian turned his head slightly too.
[Intruder detected. Intruder detected.]
A grotesque voice began emanating from the speaker by the plaza bench.
[All theme park staff, please promptly eliminate the intruder. Repeat. All theme park staff, please promptly eliminate the intruder.]
[Wheeeeeen!!]
With the siren, the still-standing staff began moving. The Management Bureau agent screamed and fired his pistol, but it only took down a few.
Stab!
Soon, a staff member’s arm pierced his abdomen, ripping out organs and chomping them messily. His body collapsed powerless, and the severed arm fell precisely toward the two mages.
“Ehehehe!”
“Kek, kuheheek!!”
Staff and guests gathered near the fallen agent. Then they tore into his body like a feast.
Ian watched briefly, then turned away.
‘Good to know guns work, at least.’
Unintended, but useful info.
Ian silently wished the man peace as he walked away.