A person who lost their smartphone on Death End Alley and desperately tried to return to reality.

I can confidently say that I’m not the first.

The <Chronicles of Darkness Exploration> contained numerous accounts of the miserable and eerie fates of such individuals.

For detailed records on missing employees and civilians on Death End Alley, refer to the document titled Attempted Escape from ■■■ 16.

First of all... let’s check the shared premises.

Any blind attempt to follow others receiving navigation directions on their smartphones is bound to fail.

The app’s navigation could not be shared.

In the end, all such attempts conclude with, ‘the person I was following suddenly disappeared.’

As these failure records accumulated, people gave up on this approach and started searching for escape hints directly in Death End Alley.

‘People tried all sorts of methods.’

A shop offering to open the backdoor if you give up one of your limbs, a passerby suggesting you enter a manhole, or a shoe store promising you’d see the way out if you wore their shoes....

The fortunate thing is that I don’t have to try all these methods and can go straight to the conclusion.

All the aforementioned attempts failed.

...Yeah.

A cruel fact deduced through inductive reasoning.

The residents of Death End Alley have no idea how to return to reality.

It was all just a trick.

It’s no different from grabbing an office worker wandering the streets of Seoul and asking how to reach a ghost story.

From the beginning, the residents here possessed no knowledge at all.

‘One must abandon any expectation or plan to escape with someone’s help here.’

So, I had to think of a way to escape, assuming there would be no new hints at all.

Sigh.

“Team Leader.”

“Yes.”

I reluctantly opened my mouth.

“…I’ll brief you on what we’ve compiled so far.”

The next premise, number 3.

"From now on, we can’t normally enter a new alley."

Originally, app users would encounter a new alley every 1,000 steps and could choose whether to enter or not.

However, since the pedometer app is completely broken, that rational method is no longer available.

‘We’re trapped in this alley.’

If we kept walking, the scenery might suddenly change, but we couldn’t choose it.

Essentially, as we’re not residents of this ghost story, we can’t find the way.

"Thus, we must find a way to escape within this alley."

"Yes."

"…Also, we must leave before daybreak."

A time limit.

Naturally, most of this company’s field exploration teams are strong-willed.

Among them were crazy individuals who, upon finding relatively safe alleys by following the manual, would experiment to see if they could raise the solution grade.

There were times when the research team requested it on a company-wide scale.

For instance… extending the time spent in Death End Alley by holding out as much as possible without walking, within the limits of the smartphone battery.

The result?

Everyone went out of contact.

…This ‘loss of contact’ is not a disappearance accompanied by witness accounts of grotesquely transformed individuals like laborers in the back alleys of boutiques.

Complete evaporation.

There’s even a detailed record of an employee who communicated via dedicated equipment, stayed at an inn in the alley for a day, and eventually went out of contact.

Explorer: Yes, yes. I’ve entered a place called Goldfish Eye Inn. For safety, I’ll take turns staying awake with Supervisor ■.

Explorer: What did I pay for the lodging? Oh, well, I found someone who was going to die anyway and made good use of it. Just take it that way.

Explorer: Anyway, I’ll try staying up all night. If this raises the dream grade, we’ll get proper points, right?

(Omitted)

Explorer: The sun is rising.

Explorer: The sun is burning the alley! It’s on fire! Everything’s burning, everyone’s running away, but I can’t— (Transmission cut off)

“…….”

I absolutely never wanted to experience something like that.

‘This is driving me crazy.’

As I walked through Death End Alley, having lost my smartphone and thinking about all this, a blatant sense of reality started creeping in.

That I could become one of those records.

Time constraints, spatial constraints, method constraints.

I barely managed to report calmly to Lee Jaheon.

"…Overall, I think whatever method I come up with will be a gamble."

"Yes."

Lee Jaheon remained calm.

"…Team Leader, aren’t you worried about the current situation?"

"Yes. Worrying is of no use in resolving the current situation."

“…….”

Wow.

‘Still, it seems like he’d join in without complaint as long as my crazy idea has some persuasiveness.’

Just like the colleagues I was with earlier.

 “…….”

Wait.

‘Where did that colleagues go?’

Team Leader Lee Jaheon clearly told the colleagues entering the neighboring shop, ‘Come out in 10 minutes.’

If they really came out after just 10 minutes.

‘Does that mean they were there when the torrent swept through the alley?’

Could they have been swept away and sucked into the current…

"Supervisor!"

Ah.

When I turned my head, Kang Yihak and Jang Heo-un were running toward us, waving their hands.

Judging by the paper bags with yarn patterns in both hands, it seemed they had safely finished their purchase.

"Wow~ So you were here!"

Kang Yihak was smiling brightly.

Sigh.

"It seems like you had a successful shopping trip."

"Ah, yes, yes. The shop owner seemed desperate for money. They even looked ready to sell their own hat to meet our price. It was a really, yes, a really great shopping experience!"

Then, glancing at Team Leader Lee Jaheon’s face, she quickly pretended to check her smartphone and started speaking rapidly.

"Oh? No, I can’t believe time has passed so quickly… I’m sorry. You told us to only take 10 minutes, but I got distracted when I found something useful for the exploration. I’m really sorry, Team Leader!"

"Yes."

It obviously seemed intentional, but it was rather fortunate.

It seems they were too absorbed in bargaining to notice the flood happening outside.

However, Jang Heo-un, standing next to her, glanced at his paper bag with a slightly pale face.

"Bison, is there an issue with the item you purchased?"

"Ah, no. That’s not it. But among the items they were selling, the thread wasn’t yarn… there was something strange, like veins, mixed in."

“…….”

Good heavens.

"Ah, of course, I didn’t buy it. Thank you so much for the coin, Roe. I’ll make sure to repay you with gold when we get out…!"

"By the way, it seems like it’s about time for you to head out! Wow, have you been filling your step count in this alley? Could you share the ‘remaining steps’ on the app?"

Lee Jaheon answered immediately without expression.

"No."

"…What?"

Ahhh!

‘This lizard!’

I struck Team Leader Lee Jaheon’s shin at a perfect angle where the others couldn’t see.

"?"

And then I said calmly.

"I’m walking a bit slowly to check something. Have you two completed your step count?"

"Ah, I think I’ve almost finished. I’ve been walking back and forth a lot in the shop, looking at items."

“…….”

"It’s a shame~ I could’ve checked out two more alley options!"

Kang Yihak clicked her tongue regretfully.

On the smartphone screen that the colleague pulled out, the remaining steps caught my eye….

Don’t give up on your body!

Remaining steps: 1052

"Since I’ve spent all the money you lent me, I guess I’ll just check what the next alley is and head back. Haha!"

"…Yes."

Do you know this?

There’s only one way a person who lost their smartphone has successfully escaped from this place.

It’s a method that has been recorded multiple times, thoroughly verified, and confirmed as fact.

I just had a similar opportunity almost come my way.

It’s…

Taking someone else’s smartphone.

Supervisor Park Dojeong got into a scuffle with a merchant during a transaction. In the process, three ribs on the left side were fractured, and the smartphone was destroyed.

He stole a civilian’s smartphone and successfully returned.

“…….”

I stared defenselessly at Kang Yihak’s smartphone swaying in the air….

"Yes. Then please return first. Team Leader, it’s fine if the two of them head back, right?"

"Yes."

I let the two colleagues leave.

"Then, I’ll take my leave. Thank you…!"

"Haha, see you at the company tomorrow. Let’s talk more leisurely about the loot then~!"

The two walked through the alley and suddenly disappeared.

…They must have gone to the next alley.

Let’s not do things we can’t handle.

‘This is an undeniable evil deed.’

If I’m not careful, I might not be able to use the Silver Heart.

Even if that’s not the case, if I later realized there was a way to survive without stealing a smartphone, my mental state won’t hold up…

‘Unless it’s truly the worst-case scenario, let’s not go that far.’

Because the moment I lose the line, the contamination might accelerate.

I lightly touched the silver ring I was already wearing and calmed down.

“– Oh, Roe Deer, you chose dignity. That’s truly remarkable restraint!”

“– Among the guests, there are those who wouldn’t hesitate to do all sorts of lowly things to gain attention. That, too, could be considered a noble professional spirit, but isn’t it participants like you who truly win the hearts of the public?”

Y-yeah, that’s right.

‘Thank you.’

I didn’t exactly want to compare myself to them…

I tried not to recall the incident that happened during the Tuesday Quiz Show and calmed myself down.

In my current situation, trapped in a ghost story, I didn’t want to recall the direct experience of nearly being trapped and dying in one.

I just focused on digging through the records in my mind and comparing whether there was anything in this alley that could serve as a clue…

"Roe Deer"

Whoosh.

Lee Jaheon grabbed me by the collar, opened the door of a building, and threw me inside.

Then he came inside and lay flat on the ground.

"There’s water."

“…!”

I lifted my head.

The place we entered was an unmanned laundromat.

Through the glass door with cheap lettering printed on it, the alley filling with water came into view…

Ssshhh.

Between houses, from a narrow gap that wasn’t an alley, black water seeped out and formed into a mass, taking on a shape resembling that mascot-like animal.

A writhing dragon character.

‘…It doesn’t seem like a real mascot.’

I didn’t sense the clear intelligence I had seen before.

But precisely because of that, it was even more eerie and threatening.

‘It seems like talking to it is impossible.’

“– Indeed, that’s true. Trying to converse with a parade balloon figure is a foolish decision, my friend!”

The mass of water began wandering through the alley again, moving its limbs in a grotesque manner.

Fortunately, it didn’t look into the laundromat.

‘Phew.’

On the damp ground where the mass of water passed, chocolate bars fell in a cascade.

They seemed to be products that had been swept out of the stationery shop by the torrent earlier.

And rushing there were the residents of Death End Alley, enchanted by the parade and following along.

It’s mine! It’s mine!

Send me to Cheerful Theme Park!! Make me a winner!!

Let’s find the good kids! Let’s find the good kids!

Pedestrians and merchants from all over the alleys flocked in, savagely tearing into the chocolate bars to see if they contained ‘theme park winning tickets.’

Presumably, admission tickets or membership cards were inside.

…Something like my tattoo.

: Socius :

‘…If it gets discovered, it feels like my skin will be torn off on the spot.’

The stereotypical progression of such a ghost story came to mind, making me shudder.

As the mass of water disappeared from view, heading beyond the alley, I gently opened the glass door.

Jingle.

…The pedestrians of Death End Alley, frantically rummaging through the chocolates, fortunately didn’t look this way.

Swallowing hard, I flipped the coin and summoned the third hand into the air.

The translucent hand carefully slipped through the narrow gap in the glass door and grabbed a chocolate bar that had bounced toward the laundromat from the alley….

As soon as the third hand returned to the laundromat, I immediately snatched the chocolate bar and stuffed it into another tattoo.

‘Phew.’

If I’ve already stirred up trouble, I might as well gather some information to analyze.

Fortunately, it seemed the silver ring did its job well, as I didn’t experience any strange hallucinations, noises, or intense desire for the theme park.

‘Let’s examine it more closely once I return to reality.’

As I withdrew my hand from the tattoo inventory and deactivated the third hand.

I thought about an item I’d been carrying around but had never tried using.

The most expensive item from the Alien Shop

We Help! - ₩66,666,666

“…!”

I took out the item.

A small red button.

…Braun definitely said so.

– Hmm. Alright. Roe Deer, you can think of it as an ‘emergency escape,’ right?

Emergency escape, huh.

‘Should I press it?’

Considering the price, it feels like I should save it for a higher-grade darkness, but since disappearance is imminent, it might be better to use it now rather than risk a bigger problem trying to gain an advantage.

‘Alright.’

Let’s see what happens.

Before using it, I showed the button to Manager Lee Jaheon.

“Team Leader, this is….”

“Do you need advice?”

“…….”

Huh?

“Do you need advice?”

“…Yes.”

“Do not use it.”

“…….”

A chilling premonition ran down my spine.

“This button, Team Leader, is it an item you’re familiar with?”

“Yes.”

“…Does something bad happen?”

“It depends on the criteria.”

“…I’d like you to explain in more detail.”

“That’s not possible.”

“…….”

“However, I do not recommend using it in the current situation.”

“…….”

‘Phew.’

In the end, I put the button back into storage.

Because Team Leader Lee Jaheon might declare that he can’t explain, but he wouldn’t lie.

Moreover, the fact that the manager is in a position to buy items from the Alien Shop makes me even more concerned.

‘After all, it’s because I got the link to the alien shop through that other account.’

Overall, forcing the use of this item in the current situation felt like a prelude to leaving behind a horrifying exploration log and disappearing.

– Oh dear, you’re not going to press it? I was curious about what would happen, but that’s disappointing.

Really?

I felt a strong sense of deflation.

It felt like realizing that the rope that suddenly appeared wasn’t real but just a drawing.

“…….”

I leaned against the wall of the laundromat and held back a sigh.

“Then all that’s left is gambling.”

Team Leader Lee Jaheon looked at me. I anxiously tapped my arm with my fingers.

“If we destroy an entire house, maybe it’ll create a gap in the concept of the alley, and we can escape…Wait, don’t destroy it!”

“Yes.”

This is driving me crazy.

I stopped the lizard that was about to punch the wall with its bare hands, then collapsed onto the floor.

‘Is this really the only way?’

Either die or escape.

Is there really nothing more certain than betting on such an extreme game of chance?

Surely, there must be a way to escape from the ghost story…

…….

Ah.

“…!”

I sprang up from my seat.

“Roe Deer.”

“Team Leader!”

This, this… it might work?

“There’s a way we can try. First, let’s get out of here and move….”

Lee Jaheon grabbed my shoulder and pulled me back.

“Step back.”

“…….”

I turned my head.

Through the glass door of the laundromat, a black figure came into view.

It was staring at us.

The black mass of water.

It found us.