"Door open!"
Grrrrrrrrrumble!
At the guard’s command, the massive steel gate parts left and right. The friendly logo painted on the door splits with it.
YA, boxed inside a blue octahedral border.
It’s the logo of Yeonam, the giant corporation owned by the richest chaebol family in the [Cthulhu World] setting.
This grand project carried out on the mid-slope of Seoraksan is being done under the name of Yeonam Construction, one branch of the Yeonam Group.
"You really dug this out like this."
"Hahaha, that’s about the level of our tech."
Gwak Daeyong answers with pride. Did he miss the sarcasm in my voice?
...
I ignored his preening and looked past the gun truck’s sideboard at the grotesque sight ahead.
A mountain of rock so immense it can’t be taken in at a glance.
Was Ulsan Rock in my world like that, too?
It looks like the corpse of some colossal monster.
Ulsan Rock glints pallidly, reflecting the uncanny moonlight.
And Seoraksan, bearing that huge, brutal boulder—teetering as if it might collapse at any moment.
Gwak Daeyong may feel proud seeing it like that, but to my eyes—coming from a world that still retains an idea like nature protection—it’s nothing but an absurd, merciless outrage.
Yeonam Construction hollowed out the midsection of the mountain that supports Ulsan Rock, and in the void they created, they raised a gigantic rampart.
"Alright, disembark."
With Yeom Cheolmin’s cue from the driver’s seat, the gun truck’s engine died, and the vibration that had pounded my body for hours finally stopped.
Uuugh... Whether there’s magic or not, a weak body is still a weak body. I’m dying here. Seriously.
"Ow ow ow—"
"Urrrgh—"
Seeing Gwak Daeyong ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) and the others twist their bodies with pale faces the moment they got off the truck, the ride must have been vicious enough that even sturdy folks could barely endure it.
"Man, that was rough."
"Still, thanks to the Mage, we got here safe."
"Everyone had a hard time moving, but haul the gear first—then rest!"
The crowd buzzes; Gwak Daeyong barks orders.
"Welcome to the construction site for the [Seoraksan Strange Phenomenon Research Institute]!"
The site manager’s shout, as if he’d rushed over.
It’s a setup that’s been mentioned now and then, but it’s become unimportant.
This place isn’t originally a ruin excavation site, but a site for building the Yeonam Group’s research institute.
I mean, that’s the pretext.
A pretext to rip into Seoraksan at will. If no ruins had been discovered, would the institute have gone up? Probably not.
I’ve looped [Cthulhu World] several times, and the research institute here has never actually been completed.
"Still, this time it’s something to see."
"This time?"
A sharp voice cuts into my mutter.
"Looks like a pretty convincing site. You’ve been guarding it well?"
"Hand it over."
A small hand thrust toward me.
"...What?"
"You said you’d give me a new weapon last time. Give it now."
"Hey, Curtain Call. I came because Tudor asked me to help you. And the first thing you say when we meet is that?"
This is fairly polite, no?
But the white-haired brat in a bright red leather jacket crumpled my response up and tossed it straight into a filthy hole in the work site.
"Help, my ass. You came because Tudor offered money. Hand over the new weapon like you promised. Enchanted."
"Sigh—"
I raised my left hand to deal with Curtain Call’s bullying—and I guess to others it looked like the threat of an angry mage.
"Eek, Collie! Don’t pick a fight with Kim Sinhwa!"
"Kim Sinhwa! I’m sorry! I’ll apologize for Collie!"
A few familiar troubleshooters sprint over and grab Curtain Call in a panic.
"I didn’t pick a fight!"
Curtain Call swings the halberd (Halberd / axe spear) on her shoulder with showy force, whooshing as it cuts the air. Every time she swings it, the burly guys clinging on bounce off lightly like a comedy skit.
"Hahaha— that girl’s at it again."
"She seriously doesn’t stop, twenty-four seven."
Absurd as the commotion is, no one complains—not even the site manager. They just give the rampaging Curtain Call a wide berth with a knowing smile.
"Looks like they’re used to it."
She’s probably done incredible work on this site.
Normally, troubleshooters get treated like monsters or outlaws, but as long as they’re on your side and working with you, they get the hero treatment.
"Cut it out, Curtain Call! I don’t have time to waste on this!"
Midnight will arrive in a few hours.
In the end, I calmed the ruckus by enchanting Curtain Call’s halberd.
"Still the same, huh. Anyway—been well?"
Vwooooom— vwoom—
Curtain Call gave the halberd, now spewing multicolored radiance, a few swings, then grinned in satisfaction.
"A bunch of monkey-or-maybe-ape things poured out of that hole and kept me busy."
That hole.
When I came a few days ago... hmm, going by the flow of time, that’s an incident two days from now... is it okay to call it a few days ago?
Anyway, by my subjective time, unlike when I came here a few days ago, this [Seoraksan Strange Phenomenon Research Institute Construction Site] is still intact.
But that doesn’t mean the site is actually fine.
Battle marks on the outer wall here and there.
And that ominous cave over there—gaping as if it might devour a person any second.
Uooooooo—
A baleful resonance spills from the cave.
At the cave mouth... there are gruesome bloodstains.
Likely traces of the nonhuman race I met underground clawing their way out. But it seems the shoggoths haven’t appeared yet.
"If that’s all, you’ve had it good. Your whole team’s still got all their limbs attached."
Curtain Call tilts her head with a face like, Is that so?, then says again in a much softer voice,
"Fair point. It’s rare to find a site that feeds you this well."
Then she pulls a few heavy anchor bolts from her jacket’s front pocket and tosses them into her mouth.
Crunnch— crack.
Same appetite as ever. She could fight with teeth instead of a weapon.
"You said you’d come tomorrow. Why’re you here so early?"
"Like I said, I have a lot to do."
"A lot to do?"
"Rather than talk about it here... More importantly, where’s the person in charge?"
A manager showed up, but I doubt a nameless extra NPC has any special authority. The one in charge here should be Mun Seunghee.
"Uh... she’s in that office over there, but the chief is meeting a guest right now."
The helmeted manager’s reply.
"A guest at this hour?"
It’s past 9 p.m. now—creeping up on 10. And in a field site like this, what guest?
"Kim Sinhwa, you showed up at this hour too."
Curtain Call’s voice comes out like, Are you stupid? I ignored it and cast my perception toward the direction Mun Seunghee was in.
Mun Seunghee, a few troubleshooters serving as escort—and twelve humanoid lifeforms with alien mana.
No, wait. One of them feels familiar.
I excused myself to the manager and headed that way...
"Curtain Call— don’t follow."
"Not interested. Being near those guys turns my guts inside out."
With a flick, she leaps down toward the cave mouth. Hmph. Does whatever she wants.
From a space that’s basically a makeshift office set up with containers, a rough, blunt middle-aged man’s voice drifts out.
"Ah— seriously. This is going nowhere. It’s simple, isn’t it? What we want is—let’s say— a tour? Yeah. Call it a tour."
He barely sprinkles in honorifics, but still ends with rude half-speech that looks down on the other party.
Somehow I’ve heard that voice before.
"In practice, it isn’t that simple."
That’s Mun Seunghee’s voice. Compared to her extremely rude counterpart, she keeps a sculpted, upright posture and continues.
"And I’m sorry, but I don’t have the authority to answer on this matter."
"Since a minute ago it’s ‘no authority, no authority’—like a parrot—"
"Good grief— you’ve torn up our neighborhood like this, and you can’t do even that?"
"This is what happens when a woman’s put on a site like this—"
"When’s the person with real authority actually getting here?"
Rude remarks spill from twelve mouths in a growing babble.
"Hmph..."
Just like Curtain Call said, it makes my insides flip.
The ones Mun Seunghee is dealing with now are cultists of the [Old Voice].
They haven’t shown their true colors yet; they’re still wearing bland expressions and pretending to be "local notables"—a dozen cultists.
Their demand, in a word, is this:
Their "request" is sliding past rudeness straight into something shabby and blatant.
"Guess you don’t know, huh? Hey? That director above you, Mun Gyeongnam? I’m, like— good with him, yeah? Talked to him the other day, yeah? Met up and ate together not long ago, yeah? He said it was all fine, yeah?"
Familiar mana, and a voice I’ve heard.
Kim Seonghwan.
The troubleshooters standing by Mun Seunghee look ready to grimace, but Mun Seunghee doesn’t change her expression and repeats the same line.
"I apologize for repeating myself, but I do not have the authority to do so."
"Ha— fine. Do as you please. I’m looking forward to what you’ll say tomorrow."
Failing to get what they want, the middle-aged fellows—no, the cultists—grumble and mutter and yammer as they leave the office.
"Urrrgh—"
No point in showing my face now. I quickly slipped my body into the darkness of the work site.
"Alright, everyone, this way."
A few troubleshooters and armed personnel from Yeonam rush over to "see them off." Of course, it’s more to restrain any sudden moves than a send-off.
"Hey! We’re going for today even if you don’t do that!"
"See you tomorrow! Tomorrow!"
"Yeah, let’s really see what you do tomorrow, you punks!"
"Outsider bastards—"
Even as they go, Kim Seonghwan and the eleven cultists keep up their sleazy stream of abuse.
Only after they’re out of sight does a sigh drift from the back of the temporary office—Mun Seunghee’s.
Only after I finished the simple paperwork and formalities was I able to meet Mun Seunghee.
"It’s been a while. Thank you for coming to help."
"Yes, it’s been a long time. Have you been well?"
"Thanks to the help you gave last time, we were able to get this far."
A short exchange of pleasantries follows.
Even on Mun Seunghee’s sculpted face, a touch of genuine gladness flickers.
It feels less like she’s glad to see me and more like she’s relieved to be having a civilized conversation built on courtesy and kindness—but coming straight from dealing with a feral kid like Curtain Call, I...
No, this isn’t the time to chat like this.
"I caught a bit earlier— the director is coming?"
"Yes, the director is scheduled to visit for an inspection. We added escort personnel in a hurry for that."
There was also the matter of bringing in equipment for the excavation of the ruins. The reason I could depart separately was the pretext that the gear needed protection.
"If it’s the director, I’ve heard enough to guess. Is Mun Gyeongnam the one coming? I mean— can Mun Gyeongnam really come?"
"Mmm..."
As soon as I finished my regression, I stormed in and wrecked Mun Gyeongnam. To be honest, I beat him so badly he wouldn’t be moving for a good three months, and I laid a curse and even bound him with a magical contract.
And he’s coming? Can he really?
Mun Seunghee hesitates a moment. Her look says, Why do you even know that?
"I’m a mage. I have more eyes and ears than most."
"The eyes— that does check out."
With that faint sense of humor, she goes on, as if giving up,
"There was a minor accident not long ago, but it seems the director recovered quickly. We just got word he’ll visit tomorrow as scheduled."
He’s really coming? That’s some grit.
Last time, thanks to the magic phobia, Mun Gyeongnam couldn’t recall his hidden identity as a [Mage] or his deeds as a cultist, and that led to many mistakes.
"If there’s nothing special on the schedule tonight, could I act on my own for a bit?"
"Act on your own?"
"Yes. There are places I need to check nearby."
This round’s outbreak of madness isn’t fixed as magic phobia, but before I forget something again—or find myself unable to respond properly—I want to do as much as I can.
First, go to Boamdang.
Tonight I should see something different from last time.
