In this dream, I could calmly review those.
As an adult.
For example…
‘Why do more than half the children we et change every ti agents co in?’
If all the children were different, I could logically assu, ‘Ah, there are multiple similar places like this due to the nature of the supernatural phenonon.’
But if more than half change… that’s sothing else entirely.
That ans more than half of them have disappeared.
At the very least, disappeared in a way that prevents them from eting the agents.
And then…
‘Why aren’t the agents questioning that?’
Two eerie but simple and clear possibilities flashed through my mind.
Either they themselves are being influenced by this ghost story.
……Or there are truths they’re deliberately hiding from , the rookie.
Maybe both.
‘If that’s the case…’
…Then don’t I have sothing perfect for this kind of situation?
Sothing that could support my insight.
Sothing I don’t need to ask the others for.
[Indeed! Clever boy. Grapes, a wise idea is a treasure for all ti.]
[Don’t forget what you’ve learned in this dream when you wake up tomorrow.]
It felt like a wrinkled hand gently stroked my head in encouragent.
Ah, thank you, Elder.
……
……
“Ah.”
Kyararararara…
Laughter and the sound of chis.
A new golden morning had begun.
“Let’s go see the rmaid Princess!”
“I wanna play tag!”
Children chattered cheerfully as they woke up and began leaving the bedroom.
Normally, I’d imdiately follow to gather information, but my mind was already focused on one clear idea.
Sothing I’d concluded during the dream.
“……”
I reached inside the thick coat I wore and carefully pulled out what I had packed to avoid breaking it—
Detective Syrup for Kids.
The syrup I’d made by pressing one of the emoji buttons in the Dream Incubator.
At Daydream Inc., it was officially called this.
Detection Potion
: When consud, it brightens your vision to reveal what you need most at the mont.
If I drank the detective syrup, I’d see which child could be rescued.
Because right now, my mission—and what I most need—is to rescue a child.
‘Alright.’
Normally I’d have weighed this or that option, but…
Co on, this is about saving a kid. Being too calculating about it just makes feel like scum.
‘Besides, I needed to test its effect anyway.’
I opened the sealed cap of the syrup and drank it in one go.
Just as the label described, the syrup had an artificial cherry scent and sweetness that slid down my throat.
“…Huu.”
I pocketed the empty bottle.
There was no dazzling, dramatic change like you’d expect from a healing potion, but I felt my heartbeat steady and my mind grow calm.
‘Now, let’s check.’
I turned my eyes to the children still in the common area, then to the kids running outside through the window.
Looking for the one who would ‘catch my eye’.
But…
“……”
Why can’t I see anything?
The kids running off, the ones laughing by the fountain in the distance.
They’re just kids. None of them stand out in any way.
For a mont, I started to feel a chill. Was there truly not a single viable target to rescue?
But then.
‘…Huh?’
I felt a presence elsewhere.
Sothing distinct and bright registered at the edge of my vision.
“……”
I turned my head to check what it was.
My coat’s opposite pocket.
The one holding the item I’d bought at the Faceless Market in the manhole.
‘Why is this…’
I reached in and pulled it out.
It was a sheet printed with four vintage stamps.
They looked like cheap fundraising seals or promotional stickers, each showing an old Korean street scene.
And if you looked closer, you could see things in the background that weren’t human.
Pigeons, rats, stray cats, sparrows, cockroaches.
Creatures that coexisted with people on the streets.
Street Stamp
: A strange stamp that allows the user to disguise themselves as one of the animals commonly seen on the streets of Yeongdeungpo-gu, Korea, during the 20th century.
Crafted by the Today’s Artifacts Dealership.
…I’d picked it up just in case I needed to run or hide while spying. I’d even broken into a cold sweat when Agent Choi suggested it himself.
And sweated more sorting through non–Daydream Inc. items to trade for it.
Anyway, the core ability of this item is exactly that.
‘I can transform into a non-human street animal.’
Sounds useful?
Of course, there’s a fatal side effect.
If the stamp’s effect lasts more than 2 hours continuously, the user’s body may begin to mutate into sothing from the stamp.
Not simply becoming an animal, but rather having their body infected with features from that animal.
Like sothing out of a bio-horror ga.
Imagine growing a pigeon’s beak out of your jaw, or sparrow eyes on your forehead.
‘Ugh.’
Just thinking about it made my skin crawl. I vowed again never to exceed the ti limit.
But… transforming into an animal in a ghost story that requires the form of a child to enter… was that really ‘what I need most’ at this very mont?
I felt uneasy.
But also sothing colder. A gut feeling told I needed to check.
‘Daydream Inc. never scams people with their potions, even if they lie about other stuff.’
Their effects are always spot-on. There’s no need to fake it.
‘Alright.’
If sothing feels off, I’ll spit out the stamp imdiately and return to my child form.
I took a deep breath and peeled off one of the stamps. Then placed it in my mouth.
“…!!”
My field of view dropped.
Even lower than when I’d turned into a child.
My back hunched, and I stood on all fours.
I felt fur. My ears rose. Whiskers twitched.
‘A cat, huh.’
I lifted my head.
It might’ve been more useful to be a pigeon, at least I could’ve flown. But at least I didn’t turn into a cockroach or a rat, which was comforting enough…
……
‘Oh.’
The golden city collapsed.
The blissful blue ocean, the fairytale-like brick houses and wide boulevards, the beautiful banners all lost their color and decayed.
And in their place, horrifying sights appeared. Rusty tal pipes. Flickering, broken streetlamps. Half-collapsed buildings. Scribbles of blood and filth. Grotesque, bulging, ulcer-like masses filled the cracks in the bricks and lampposts, pulsating and oozing. The whole space is infected! It’s wrong! It’s wrong! It’s everywhere! I’m contamin—
Spit it out!
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