Whether a simple maze or a complex one, the method of solving it fundamentally remains the same.
Ultimately, an exit exists somewhere, and the entire process revolves around countless attempts to reach it.
As these attempts are repeated, the accumulated time and experience invariably increase the chances of escape.
[In the process of pioneering new passages, we discovered a novel variable: Passage 2-c, the first anomalous point.]
[Upon repeated administration of the antigen a couple of times, a slight anomaly was detected.]
[Just in case, we halted the team and threw an object into the passage. After about thirty minutes, following vibrations and tremors, the passage simply vanished before our eyes.]
A line drawn in red pen, a small skull symbol.
It silently warned of paths that must not be taken.
Conversely, paths deemed safe or passable bore distinct markings.
[Good O. Although the water reaches ankle-deep, there are no other significant abnormalities.]
[Normal △. A strong chill pervaded the area, but passing through quickly presented no issues.]
[Absolute X. The second path on the right: ten seconds after entering, the walls of the waterway narrow from both sides.]
Flipping through the notebook, I murmured,
“It seems we should take the right path here.”
There was no hint of confusion or disorientation.
The notebook had been meticulously detailed, as if its original owner had anticipated others might discover and rely upon it.
Yet, despite its thoroughness, I couldn’t afford to let my guard down.
This notebook was no omnipotent tool.
It merely served as an auxiliary aid in navigating the paths.
Entrusting one’s life entirely to it would be an unwise decision.
The sheer scale of this labyrinth had already surpassed the limits of their stamina, time, and mental fortitude.
Even they had been forced to surrender at times, and some paths remained entirely untrodden.
[The water is slowly growing deeper. Four days have already passed. Where, exactly, is the exit…?]
[It was deemed too dangerous to lose any more body heat. Ultimately, our team had no choice but to turn back here.]
[Should anyone discover this notebook after us and find themselves in a better situation, we implore them to conduct further investigation.]
[Day 6 of deployment. A path became visible in the distance, but dark figures blocked its entrance.]
[Seungtae also appears to be struggling physically after numerous encounters with them. We cannot risk the team.]
[…We are turning back.]
[All that remains of our weaponry are three pistols and fifty-two rounds of ammunition. …Please. May we arrive before then, we beg.]
The dates recorded in the notebook were ceaselessly updated.
Eight days had elapsed since their initial deployment.
Clues concerning the doppelgängers were meticulously documented.
[Day 8. No exit in sight. There is no hope.]
[They granted us no time for rest. Should our steps falter, they would reveal themselves within the hour.]
[We had to keep moving relentlessly. Jinseok’s once vibrant expression gradually grew dim.]
[Day 9. Ultimately, we could no longer move. Perhaps that was a blessing.]
[They were vulnerable to light. When Seungtae fired the flare gun, a desperate gamble, the swarming entities vanished.]
[…Only one flare gun remains. Before then… please.]
[…A very strong… light is the only… intensity they… react to.]
And now.
We stood before the very crossroads where they had finally given up and turned back.
From this point onward, no further markings or notes remained.
“The notebook ends here, then.”
“Seunga… she truly kept meticulous records. Once we escape, I must offer my thanks as a junior investigator.”
Ahead lay three diverging paths.
Each stretched into an impenetrable darkness, their ends unknown.
Rustle— Rustle—.
The surrounding air shimmered, strangely distorted.
A familiar sound, one I had grown weary of hearing.
With a frictional scraping against the walls and floor of the waterway, dark figures began to rise from the ground.
The very reason inscribed in the notebook: ‘why they had no choice but to retreat along the path they came’.
Dozens, if not more, of these shadowy entities fully materialized.
Instinctively, my hand reached for the trigger.
Yet, faster still, Kang Suji stepped forward.
“I’ll handle this, Alpha.”
Her hand swept to her waist, and a sharp *clang* of metal immediately sliced through the air.
Kang Suji took a breath, then her feet pushed off the ground, sending her hurtling forward.
Her footsteps echoed as she cleaved through the darkness.
The moment the dark figures, reacting to the sound, unanimously turned their heads—
Whoosh—!
A speed impossible for the eye to follow.
Within the gloom, a white light streaked back and forth like lightning.
With each flash of that light, the tearing laughter of the doppelgängers ceased, one by one.
“Kee-hee-hee-hee—”
“Hee-eee—!”
Their screams, incomplete, were torn apart and vanished.
A moment later.
The only sound filling the silence was that of the sword retracting.
Swish. Clack—
As if in response to that sound, the remaining doppelgängers’ bodies simultaneously collapsed.
Black ink splattered everywhere as if bursting forth, instantly staining the floor a deep, inky black.
With ink still dripping from above her head, Kang Suji walked over, her expression bright.
A strangely cheerful smile spread across her lips.
“Alpha! Sera! Luckily, I had good synergy with them, so I finished them off quickly!”
I stared at her, utterly speechless.
Kim Sera, standing beside me, was equally dumbfounded.
‘…She is human, isn’t she?’
****
Though Kang Suji had briefly prompted a moment of existential reflection on humanity, we resumed our advance.
Just as the previous investigator, Seunga, had done, I continued her meticulous record-keeping.
In the process of pioneering the paths, the physical confrontations were almost entirely Kang Suji’s responsibility.
As if she had undergone an awakening, Kang Suji’s sword cleaved through the shadows, making them vanish before they could even approach.
Upon reaching each fork in the path, I meticulously verified each route.
With every check, I imprinted the remaining records into my mind.
A ruined path.
A false exit.
A passage that sealed itself shut.
And now, doppelgängers approaching, disguised as family or acquaintances.
‘This way is a no-go. Last time, Sera was ambushed here.’
‘Right? No, the far right is blocked. This time, it’s left.’
The sudden, scorching heat of a passage. — ‘Third on the left, X.’
Water rising to the brink of drowning. — ‘Right passage, X.’
Unseen hands tightening around my throat in the darkness. — ‘Center, X.’
An ‘X’ marked paths that were impassable, while an ‘O’ steadily accumulated for those relatively safe.
Danger wasn’t solely physical, and Kang Suji couldn’t mitigate every threat.
As deaths recurred, countless fragments from each iteration accumulated in my mind like vital information.
‘This path has already been proven. Now, we must take a different route. A path yet untraveled.’
Numerous dead ends connected, and the shattered remnants of failed attempts interlocked, gradually forming a coherent structure.
— A mental map, etched by the record-keeper’s pen.
Finally, a complete map had been drawn within my mind.
The colossal labyrinth engulfing the entire city.
And at its very edge.
A new space, one never before reached, revealed itself.
Taking a deep breath, I turned to look at them.
As our eyes met, I nodded firmly.
“…Let’s go.”
****
Passing through a narrow corridor, we emerged into a colossal hall.
The ceiling soared endlessly high, and the surroundings were encased in walls rusted black like ancient blood.
The damp, heavy air settled suffocatingly, as if we had stepped into a colossal coffin.
At the center of the hall, a single object stood.
A massive engine crafted from black metal.
Dozens of pipes branched out in all directions, coiling around its body, writhing and pulsing erratically like living organs.
Soon, a heavy throb resonated from somewhere, vibrating throughout the entire space.
The reverberation seemed akin to a human heartbeat, yet the more I listened, the more unsettling it became.
This was the core, the very nexus, of the ghastly tale that dominated this labyrinth.
I recalled the words Kang Suji had spoken when we first entered this maze.
‘An opponent without direct physical power.’
However, whether that information still held true now was uncertain.
The labyrinth was already contaminated by doppelgängers.
For now, the engine showed no reaction.
It neither raged like a monster nor exuded overwhelming power.
It merely conveyed an oppressive grandeur stemming from its colossal presence.
Slowly, I approached the entity.
BOOM!
The path we had just traversed was now sealed.
Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle— Rustle—
Soon, with an unending chorus of rustling, shadows surged from the floor.
Like a rising black tide, silhouettes filled the entire hall, standing tall.
All bearing identical faces.
Countless shadow soldiers, molded in Kang Suji’s likeness.
They simultaneously lifted their heads, their split mouths tearing wider in a grotesque grin.
As if declaring that all would end here.
“Hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee”
“Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh”
“Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh”
“Heh-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-heh-heh-heh”
“Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh”
But it didn’t matter.
I had already anticipated this outcome to some extent.
Kang Suji stepped one pace forward.
“This is the end.”
The moment her brief breath steadied, her gaze sharpened, unwavering.
Kang Suji sprinted forward.
This was part of our pre-arranged plan.
If the rules shifted and resistance arose, I had instructed her to disregard us and charge straight ahead.
And then, in a single bound, her body soared into the air.
A silver trajectory etched itself through the darkness, extending outwards.
As if to block her path, shadows surged up like a wall.
A dark curtain formed of black waves.
Kim Sera and I pulled our triggers simultaneously.
We met no significant interference.
The shadows were completely focused on Kang Suji, paying no heed to the two of us.
They must have thought two bullets wouldn’t be enough to suppress them.
It wasn’t a wrong assumption.
Only, what we fired just now weren’t bullets.
What we fired were not bullets—
BOOM! BOOM!
‘—They were flare guns.’
Flares emitting dazzling light.
The white flames, streaking past Kang Suji and surging ahead of her, directly engulfed the darkness that had blocked their path.
The shadows, touched by the light, evaporated as if melting away.
In an instant, the black curtain was blown wide open in the center.
Through that rift, a single streak of silver light pierced its way through.
