GSGW c245

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※Warning※

*This chapter contains themes related to suicide.

Chapter 245

The bluish feet of a corpse hanging from a tree were above my head.

They were clearly dried out, yet strangely swollen as if bloated.

Sway.

They brushed against my cheek.

"......"

“Roe Deer?”

“Yes.”

This is driving me insane.

Every muscle in my body wanted to curl up. I wanted to squeeze my eyes shut, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. 

'If there’s anyone here who could start crying and say they can’t do this… that alone would be impressive….'

Everyone else looked completely calm and unfazed. Was I really supposed to be the only one panicking in fear?

'It’s not like this is my first darkness exploration!'

And besides, this was a Catastrophe-Class disaster.

'I have to pull my weight somehow… anything…!'

“I’ll check it.”

Resisting the urge to cling to someone’s pant leg and beg them to count my wiki information as participation, I gritted my teeth and reached out.

Then I touched the corpse that had bumped into my head—(please, no).

I felt like I might faint just from the fact that I had to touch this thing. And remembering how calm I’d been standing next to that eyeless corpse back during 130666 made me feel like passing out even more—but my hand kept moving.

'…Cold.'

For now, touching it caused nothing ominous. No spreading curse, no suicidal impulses, and no strange hallucinations.

“It’s just a corpse.”

“…Yes.”

But there were far too many.

I caught a flicker of frustration on Agent Choi’s face as he tried to peer through the fog.

“It’s not working. The talisman isn’t working at all. But… one thing’s certain.”

“..... "

“I can’t see the end of it with the naked eye. …The trees with the hanging bodies.”

The corpses didn’t discriminate between men or women, young or old.

Countless people filled the forest.

…Fear and unease settled across everyone’s faces.

“Are they really dead people?”

“There’s a chance this is some kind of staged effect. But if a real disaster happened in this city… then it’s more likely they’re genuine.”

“Our Bronze is a bit too honest with civilians.”

“It’s fine. Well… they’re already dead anyway. We’ll just make sure we don’t end up like that!”

Suppressing the urge to vomit from the overwhelming sight, I forced myself forward.

Most of the bodies looked like they had been here for years. Dust had gathered on their clothes.

'Meaningful information….'

“Could you check their hands in particular? If they’re real bodies, there might be clues about what happened at the time of death.”

“I was already looking. Grapes. Heave-ho.”

And soon, we found something.

The hand of a corpse wearing glasses and a checkered shirt.

“…It’s a bit smudged, but there’s writing.”

Written in pen across the palm.

No one is coming to save us

Seven thousand people were abandoned

We want to run away

But there is no way out

So instead

We become trees

"......"

The dried pen strokes forced the image into my mind.

'…Did they realize they couldn’t be rescued?'

The phones stopped working. Thousands of people became trapped inside a collapsed station with no food.

Outside, some kind of terrible disaster was happening—something so horrible that no one could leave. And with that ongoing terror, the hope that someone might come rescue them disappeared.

And so…

“Hm. Still, they chose a pretty peaceful method, didn’t they? Instead of killing each other, they all died together.”

“They might have been influenced by the darkness. Or maybe the unusual nature of this is what turned it into darkness in the first place.”

“Ahh.”

In contrast to the calm conversation of the Daydream Inc. employees, the two Disaster Management Bureau agents looked somewhat stiff.

But like veterans, their composure quickly returned.

“…Now that we’ve figured out the background of the disaster, shall we go find the information board?”

“Yes.”

After some hesitation, we decided not to disturb anything unnecessarily and left the bodies hanging where they were.

And seventeen minutes later, according to the smartphone clock—

“Found it.”

An information board appeared.

A typical public-institution signboard. Black and yellow borders surrounded neat blue lettering, dampened by the mist.

…The rules of this urban legend.

Segwang Station (Forest of Final Moments) Etiquette

1. Do not break tree branches

2. If you stand too close to the platform screen doors, you will see something strange.

3. If you run near the ticket gates, an exit will appear.

4. Do not separate from your group

5. Do not hang yourself from the trees

6. Disturbances inside the station are in the fog.

7. The train bound for ■■ no longer stops here.

“Hm. Pretty creepy, isn’t it, old man?”

“Old— …ahem. Yes. A typical supernatural phenomenon manual.”

Listening to them, I began analyzing the rules.

“I think we can categorize them by tone.”

The presence or absence of a period at the end of each sentence revealed a pattern.

“They’re divided between the forest and the subway station.”

The subway rules sounded like guidance notices, while the forest ones were instructions.

“Hm. Maybe there was originally a forest outside, and it merged with the station?”

“Or maybe the fact that ‘there’s a forest nearby’ influenced the identity of the station. Darkness is shaped by human perception, after all.”

Assistant Manager Eun Haje lightly tapped the information board.

Thunk. A corpse hanging behind it slipped down and stopped right in front of my face.

“...!”

I almost swore.

“Oh dear. Looks like Grapes is pretty scared.”

But Assistant Manager Eun Haje snorted.

“Come on now, officer. Roe Deer wouldn’t be scared of something like this. This kid even went into that people-grinding talk show, didn’t he? Right?”

"......"

Ha.

I managed to force a smile toward the Assistant Manager.

“Of course. …It’s part of the persona I created while infiltrating the Disaster Management Bureau.”

“You little punk. Still good at your job.”

“Thank you.”

Wouldn’t it be nice if that were actually true…

Honestly, I wanted to tell the truth even now—but look at the atmosphere here.

Four veterans inside a Catastrophe-Class disaster.

'If I admit I’m scared here, it’ll look like I lied just to freeload on the group project….'

Sigh.

Meanwhile, someone else was losing their mind just because the talk show got mentioned.

[Good heavens. Did they really refer to Braun’s Midnight Talk Show with such a barbaric name? My word. Even if the public craves sensationalism, that’s going too far!]

[I cannot understand why someone with refined sensibilities like you, Roe Deer, would remain friends with such a person—but I respect your judgment, friend]

Right. Thanks… I feel a little less scared.

I looked at Agent Choi.

He smiled faintly.

“Oh~ So Grapes is actually a cool-headed person who never feels fear?”

“……”

I didn’t say that much…!

“Got it. Okay then. From now on, Grapes will—”

Agent Choi suddenly snapped his head to the side. Why—

“Duck.”

I reflexively pushed down the shoulder of the person next to me and lowered my head.

Whip.

Something—

With a taut sound, something strange brushed past my hair. I pressed my body silently to the ground and listened.

……

……

I realized something.

The hand that had been pressing someone’s shoulder beside me now grasped nothing.

"......"

When I lifted my head—

I was alone.

Trees and fog.

Escalators and station signs.

Amid a forest filled with countless hanging bodies, I stood there by myself.

'Ah.'

I didn’t scream. I didn’t call out for the others like an idiot.

I simply began to walk, stiff and rigid.

One step.

Two steps.

My pace gradually quickened. The need to find the others combined with fear, pushing me faster and faster.

But at the same time, I thought: I’m not stupid. This is a supernatural phenomenon. I chose one corpse as a reference point so I wouldn’t lose my direction. I tried not to stray too far from it as I cautiously turned my head to look around—

Something comes into view.

Something long.

Extending from a tree, hanging still.

"......"

I slowly approached.

A thick, old rope, tightly twisted—a brown cord tied into a circular knot so it could hook onto something…

A noose.

A noose hung before my eyes, dangling from the thick branch above, positioned exactly at my eye level.

"...….!"

I slowly stepped back.

The noose hanging in the air gradually faded from view into the fog. Without even having time to sigh in relief, I turned my head and began walking again.

This time something else revealed its silhouette in the mist. Hoping it might be another person, I hurried toward it.

And there—another noose.

"……"

For some reason,

it felt like the number of hanging corpses on the trees around me had increased.

Like I could see them more clearly.

Shirts, tracksuits, dresses, suits, blouses, jumpers—people in every kind of clothing swayed as black silhouettes within the fog, filling my field of vision.

Then I heard something.

News.

—Another body has been discovered in the ■■■ Forest of Segwang Special City. A man in his thirties, identified as Shin, is believed to have taken his own life due to personal despair…

—This marks the seventh body found in ■■■ Forest this year alone. Authorities have closed the connecting subway passage and begun installing warning notices…

I walked again. Unable to bring myself to push through the corpses, I tried to move toward whatever direction seemed to have fewer bodies. And there—

Another noose.

As if it had been prepared especially for someone left alone.

—■■■ Forest, infamous as a so-called suicide hotspot in Segwang Special City. Photos of victims hanging from trees have spread across social media, sparking even greater controversy…

—Experts have expressed concern about the harmful effects of the coverage, warning that it encourages copycat incidents among citizens.

"......"

—Don’t you want to give up too?

I realized something.

'How did that many people manage to hang themselves?'

Even dying takes preparation. If seven thousand people had all hanged themselves, they would have needed an enormous number of ropes or cords.

Something strong enough to support a person’s weight.

Which meant…

'What if this forest… was already filled with ropes meant for hanging?'

—Don’t you want to give up too?

If the nooses had been provided.

For the sake of a quiet death.

This forest had been prepared to hang seven thousand people.

Just as people imagined it to be.

"......"

Even when I turned around and ran, I returned to the same sight.

A rope tied in a circle.

[Ah, what an inevitable development.]

[The ending is calling to you, Roe Deer. Doesn’t it resemble a black box with its arms outstretched?]

Of all metaphors to choose…!

I clenched my teeth. Don’t think about it. Don’t think about what state I was in back then—or what state I ended up in afterward.

More importantly—

'How did I deal with this before?'

I had to remember.

Even when I wasn’t in a state of being 130666, I had survived by breaking urban legends. Surely there was something I could do as an ordinary human.

'Even if this is a Catastrophe-Class disaster… that’s outside.'

Maybe the abnormal phenomena here had some kind of loophole.

Calm down. Calm down—

—Don’t you want to give up too?

Don’t touch the noose.

'Damn it.'

I grabbed my own hands, which had somehow risen toward the rope, and stared at the ground to avoid looking at the corpse above my head.

Right. This place was—

—Divided into the forest and the subway station.

"......"

Right.

'The subway station’s fixtures haven’t changed.'

The information board was still there. The walls were still there.

The only strange things were the excessive trees, the thick fog, and the endless maze of nooses.

Which meant—I knew a clear symbol for a place without fog or trees.

Stairs.

'The platform…!'

I sprinted past the noose.

Searching through my memory, piecing together the locations of subway fixtures to find the stairs.

The ceiling lights. Mirrors. Signboards. Escalators. Tactile paving. Fire hydrants…

And then—

'Found it.'

I ran down the stairs.

At that moment—

“Roe Deer.”

I realized someone had grabbed my shoulder. I was standing at the bottom of the platform stairs.

Assistant Manager Eun Haje, her face drenched in cold sweat.

The others had apparently just come down the stairs as well, breathing heavily.

Each of them held different items in their hands.

'They all escaped using items.'

That was a relief.

I sighed and tried to wipe the cold sweat from my forehead—when I suddenly realized my hand felt heavier than expected.

I was holding a corpse.

“...!!"

Earlier, when I had quickly pushed down what I thought was someone’s shoulder—it had actually been a hanging corpse.

'Holy shit.'

And I must have been staring at the empty noose left behind after the body disappeared.

'Ha….'

The realization made goosebumps run across my entire body.

Unable to throw it, I tremblingly lowered it instead.

The bluish corpse—bloated yet shriveled—thudded onto the clean platform floor.

The lingering sensation made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

“Are you alright?”

Agent Bronze approached and quickly checked me with the equipment that was still functioning. After confirming there were no obvious signs that I’d been “affected,” he stepped back with slight relief.

“The fog suddenly got so thick we couldn’t see each other at all. We had to follow each other’s voices just to find the stairs and regroup. And on top of that, our items kept malfunctioning.”

When they reached the stairs, I was the only one missing.

They had just started discussing whether they should go back out to search for me.

“We just started saying we might have to go back out to search for you, but thankfully you got here in time.”

Thank you…

It was fortunate I found the stairs in time.

“Still, the fact that we all made it out safely shows why the company prefers experienced hires.”

“Haha…”

Weak laughter passed around.

“Anyway, now we know one thing. If you stay in that forest too long, the fog thickens and you start getting influenced by the hanging corpses, right?”

“Something like that.”

I shared the details about the empty nooses I had seen.

Everyone fell silent in thought.

“This is why I hate exploring without a manual. Everything’s a landmine.”

“Sure is inconvenient!”

“Any ideas, officers? From the vibe I got, it feels like one of those classic ghost-type haunted places.”

“Oh, good guess. In that foggy forest I felt a generally… wicked presence. We usually call that malicious energy.”

Agent Choi stroked his chin.

“But we can’t tell if it’s coming from the forest itself, or if it formed because too many people died here.”

“Oh—if we figure out which one it is, could we do some kind of purification?”

The two agents and I exchanged glances.

“…Yes.”

Agent Choi grinned, cold sweat on his face.

“If we have the right materials.”

But—

“Right now Bronze has, what… three rounds left that could even be used as materials?”

“…Yes. And they’re all anti-spirit rounds. Not suitable for dealing with territory-type supernatural phenomena. Besides…”

Agent Bronze pressed his furrowed brow.

“No matter which case it is, we’d have to borrow power from one of the spiritual entities cooperating with the Disaster Management Bureau.”

That was true.

Whether it was General Tiger or the Elder, we would need the power of some supernatural being.

And in Segwang Special City, equipment that borrows power from outside sources was probably completely disabled.

In short—the situation was bleak and terrifying.

'This is insane.'

And then I realized something else.

…Thirst.

'I’m thirsty.'

The others probably felt the same.

But without water or food, how long could we last here?

'…Hoo.'

Still, I should at least be grateful that none of us had died and that we could gather our heads together. And grateful that the platform gave us somewhere to retreat.

'First… we should probably deal with that corpse…'

Just as I opened my mouth to say so—

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

“...!!"

I turned my head.

Sound was coming from the platform speakers.

I had never heard the melody before, but its purpose was obvious.

“…A subway announcement?”

A train is arriving.

Whoosh.

If there hadn’t been platform screen doors, the incoming wind would have slammed into us.

The headlights of a train rushing in from the end of the track at terrifying speed illuminated the platform through the glass before flashing past.

Then the announcement followed.

Due to the absence of passengers, this train will pass through the station without stopping…

"......"

"......"

The train roared past and disappeared. We stared at the fading lights beyond the screen doors.

And then—

“A person.”

Our eyes met.

“There were people inside that train.”

"......!"

And just like that, another option appeared.

—Follow the train along the tracks.

 

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