Surviving Among the Entities

Like always, on a day when I was helping people with the tickets, the ticket dispenser suddenly stopped issuing them.

[An abnormal number of tickets has been detected as being issued from this machine.]
[As such, we have decided to impose limitations.]
[This machine can only dispense 10 tickets per month.]
[The ticket limit resets at the start of each month at midnight.]
[As an abnormal number of existing tickets have also been issued, they will all be disposed of and rendered unusable.]

It was a notice that appeared on the dispenser’s screen.
Just as I had sensed in the Mirror Dimension, these entities indeed possessed a sense of self.

“What a pity, I wanted to help more people.”

I opened a filing cabinet in the corner of the office.

“Well, I did dispense quite a lot.”

2,500 tickets were stored in each compartment.
With the 8-compartment filing cabinet, I had dispensed 20,000 tickets.

‘And that’s just the ones I stored, not counting the ones I distributed to people.’

I did have an excuse.

‘I thought they’d be happy if I dispensed more.’

I had assumed the entities would be pleased with the tickets being used, but it seems I went too far.

“No tickets can be dispensed until the 1st of next month, and all existing tickets are now useless.”

Just in case, I tried using them, but no rewards were granted.

“The saying that opportunity only knocks once is true, it seems.”

I took out the ticket I had been carefully keeping in my pocket.

[Reward: Driving skills on par with Michael Schumacher at his peak]
[Task: Catch a red sea bream with a fishing rod]
[Deadline: 24 hours]

The red sea bream is a fish that even avid anglers might only catch once in a lifetime.
Since I had to catch such a fish within a time limit, I had prepared thoroughly and was about to attempt it.

“This was the easiest one, so I was preparing for it.”

Would the same task appear if I dispensed it again next month?
I could lower the reward to reduce the difficulty, but perhaps due to my complex about driving skills, I wanted to reach the pinnacle rather than settle for ordinary skills.

“It’s difficult to abandon greed.”

I’ll have to endure my driving urges somehow.
In any case, now that I could no longer indefinitely help people with the tickets, I lost my motivation to work.

‘Let’s call it an early day today.’

I returned home and ordered some chicken. While waiting for the chicken and enjoying the mysterious carbonated beverage made by my enhanced WK tumbler, an office employee came to mind, so I called them.

The customer is not answering, so the call will be connected to voicemail.

Did Im Jin-guk leave to find a better job?
Or did he leave out of fear of the entities?
Praying for his reform and new life, I was about to look for the remote when the chicken arrived when suddenly:

[♬♬♪♩♬]

The TV turned on by itself, and a fast, upbeat music started playing.

[Hello!]

Following that familiar, nostalgic voice was the introduction to the broadcast.

[I’m the announcer for the Wall-Mounted TV For You!]

While the voice was the same, the attire was different.
Instead of the ordinary announcer’s outfit from before, it was now a stylish New Yorker vibe.

[Our station remodeling finished 2 weeks ago, but we were a bit delayed in purchasing outfits suited to each of us, so please excuse us!]

Putting his hands in his pockets, he began the news while walking around the set.

[Then, I’ll swiftly deliver the news you’ve been waiting for! A broadcast different from before! Please enjoy it!]

Well, how about that.

“I’m glad I ordered chicken.”

[The first news item! Someone left a package in front of Ms. Lee Mo’s (26) house in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province! While the package doesn’t contain money, it does include a message of gratitude filled with sincerity, so please accept it warmly!]

Simultaneously with the news, a sound of something dropping in front of the door could be heard.

‘Intervening in reality in real-time.’

Was it always like this?
Or was it due to being enhanced?
I quickly opened the front door and brought in the box. Inside was a handwritten letter with a conventional gratitude message, and there was also a trophy.

“Recipient of the Wall-Mounted TV For You Launch Achievement Award: Ms. Lee Mo”

I placed the acrylic trophy on the shelf below the wall-mounted TV and refocused on the news.

[The second news item! At 5 AM four days from now, a dangerous entity is scheduled to appear in Taebaek, Gangwon Province. This entity, named ‘This Is Not Sundae Soup!’, escaped from a situation where the Foundation was in disarray. It plans to attack stores that sell sundae soup with dang-myeon noodles added, turning all the owners and customers into sundae sausages themselves.]

I immediately sent a text to Dong-wook.
Followed by a call, but I had already provided the necessary information, so I turned off my smartphone to focus on the news.

[The third news item! After a long time, the Family Zoo is recruiting rare animals! This news, which hasn’t been heard in nearly 100 years, has many wildlife enthusiasts excited. Let’s meet the reporter who went to cover this story. Reporter, Reporter?]

The screen changed, and a reporter with a microphone head appeared.

[Yes, this is the reporter on location, Reporter!]

While his attire didn’t differ much, his face, which was a microphone, had changed.
Perhaps due to the switch from a black studio microphone to a silver concert microphone, his voice was now louder, clearer, and more grandiose than before.

[I’m currently at the Family Zoo. Famous for housing the rarest animals from all dimensions, this place is also known for 50% of its visitors never leaving and becoming part of the exhibits instead.]

The background wasn’t the zoo I knew.
While there were enclosures, instead of animals, they contained massive spheres floating inside.

[So interviews were usually impossible here, but now that we’re a Wall-Mounted TV, we can conduct interviews!]

Some spheres contained modern cities.
Some contained lush rainforests.
Some were lands with flowing lava, and others were the dark depths of the ocean.

[Then, let’s interview the head zookeeper about recruiting rare animals!]

And one sphere even contained the universe.

[Head Zookeeper?]
[Good to meet you, I’m the Head.]

A beige-clad zookeeper in his 20s, haggard with fatigue, began the interview with a grimaced expression.

[Recruiting, rare animals, welcome anything.]
[Yes, what qualifies as a rare animal?]
[Rare, machine, planet, star, transcendent, human, concept, but, self, life, movement, essential.]
[So anything is fine as long as it has a sense of self, life, and the ability to move?]
[No-self, rock, unmoving, plant, petrified wood, head, difficult, haha!]
[Haha! Such an amusing joke!]
[This place, zoo, not botanical garden.]

His grimace was so severe that his facial features had rotated several times, rendering them unrecognizable.
However, staring at it too intently gave me the feeling that my own life would become distorted, so I averted my gaze.

[Entry, welcome, prize, prepared, anticipate, everyone.]
[Well, we’ve concluded the interview! As the head zookeeper said, they’re recruiting rare animals, and prize winners will receive rare gifts, so please participate enthusiastically!]

A subtitle appeared at the bottom of the screen.

[Recruitment Dimension: Zoo-42]
[Entry Method: In-person visit, package delivery]
[Address: ■snake■-■■giraffe■lion■-■elephant■■■■■camel■■■■■zebra]

Unfortunately, since I didn’t know which dimension it was or couldn’t decipher the address, participation was impossible.

“Even if I could, I don’t have any animals to send.”

The only thing I could think of was an albino cicada.

“Sorry, I can’t send you.”

Having thought of it, I took out the cicada and placed it on my lap, gently stroking it.
The cicada seemed to recognize me as its owner and calmly enjoyed my touch.

[Haha, the Family Zoo’s prizes are famously beyond expectations, so I wonder who will receive the prize this time. Then, the fourth news item! A major incident is expected to occur at an abandoned school in Hanam, Gyeonggi Province. Let’s go directly and take a look! Intern, Intern!]

The screen changed.
In front of the dilapidated abandoned school, a woman with a notebook for a head was standing.

[This is so unlucky. I was originally supposed to go to the zoo, but that stubborn microphone told me to go to the abandoned school instead and went to the zoo himself!]
[Um, Intern, Intern?]
[The station has expanded, but he keeps telling me I lack experience and have to stay an intern, while he hogs all the good coverage assignments for himself? I was the one who found out about the Family Zoo event!]
[Ah, there seems to be a broadcasting accident……]
[Hm? Oh, Snoring Weedlord? He’s still an announcer. It’s really nice that he has his own accommodation now, so we don’t hear his snoring anymore. He doesn’t even have a nose, but his snoring sounded like rocket launches, I swear! Ughwahwahwah! Bughwahwahwah! Kwahwahbang! Like that!]
[……]

The screen switched back to the studio.

[One moment.]

The announcer sent a message to someone.
Shortly after, when the screen switched again, the intern was broadcasting in a composed manner.

[Hello! I’m the intern dispatched to the abandoned school, Intern!]
[( ˃̣̣̥᷄⌓˂̣̣̥᷅ )]

While her voice was calm, a sad emoticon appeared on her notebook face.

[This weekend, a group of people conducting a courage test at this abandoned school will die due to some dangerous entity.]

Beyond the screen, the school’s name could be seen.

‘Deokcheon High School.’

The intern entered the building’s interior.
The floor was already splattered with bloodstains, as if an incident had occurred once before.

[Originally, the group, which included broadcasters, was expected to successfully complete the test, but due to someone’s intervention, they ultimately lost their lives.]
[(੭ ˃̣̣̥᷄⌓˂̣̣̥᷅ )੭⁾⁾]

No corpses were visible.
Instead, an eerie sound could be heard from the darkness at the end of the hallway.

[The culprit behind this incident is currently eating. Is it human? Or a beast? I’ll leave the answer up to you.]
[(꒦ິㅁ꒦ິ)]
[Yes, I heard you. By the way, Intern, Intern? Let’s talk with Snoring Weedlord later.]
[( ᴗ_ᴗ̩̩ )]

The screen switched back to the studio.

[That’s all for today’s news. There were a few more items originally, but since a more important matter has arisen, we’ll end it here.]

The announcer bid farewell.

[Then, I was the announcer for the Wall-Mounted TV For You.]

The screen turned off.

“Hmm.”

I wanted to watch more.
After praying for the intern’s repose, I searched for Deokcheon High School.

‘A school that’s been abandoned for over a year.’

The land’s owner had passed away.
Due to his children fighting over the inheritance and engaged in lawsuits, the school couldn’t be demolished and was left neglected.

‘So an entity presumed to be committing murders is present there.’

The hint was an entity presumed to prey on humans.
And the victims were broadcasters and numerous others.

‘Should I look into the broadcasting world?’

The best course of action would be to prevent the victims from going there in the first place.
Then, contacting the Foundation to capture and contain the entity would be optimal.

[This weekend, victims due to an entity are expected at Deokcheon High School. Please take control of the situation.]
[Kim Dong-wook: Seung-hoon, please talk to us.]

After immediately receiving a response, I shared the information I had uncovered.
Rather than asking about the source, Dong-wook only inquired about the specific details of when and what would happen.

“Hmm.”

I wish it would end with this.
Four days later, I received a call from Dong-wook.

“Were you able to properly handle ‘This Is Not Sundae Soup!’?”

Yes, thanks to you, we captured it. If it had come to Seoul, it would have been a big deal. But since we knew the method to neutralize it, we were prepared, and there were no casualties.
“What was the method?”

Just pour about a liter of tasteless radish water over it.

It would soon be the weekend.
While entrusting it to the Foundation would resolve any issue, an uneasy feeling persisted.

“I should go and take a look.”

That Saturday evening.

『Mr. Seung-hoon, we have arrived at Deokcheon High School.』
“Thanks, Sarang.”

Taking my enhanced Polaroid camera.
Sarang.
And dried “Friendship,” I disembarked at Deokcheon High School.

“Hopefully, nothing happens.”