The employee descending backward on the escalator spotted it.
Screek. Screek.
Screek, screek.
“…!”
At that moment, the employee’s body began to move.
It turned toward the lure.
And then.
It walked against the flow of the escalator.
Screek, screek.
Slowly. Steadily.
The red bait shifted to the far left side of the escalator.
The employee stumbled sideways to follow it.
And as its head leaned out past the handrail…
Screek… screek… screek……
Kim Soleum let go of the line.
Whirrrr—!
The fishing line unraveled, pulling free from the advertisement board—
And the red bait dropped between the two escalators.
Thud.
The employee fell headfirst between the moving escalators.
It had thrown itself after the lure.
“Huuk…!”
“Let’s move. Before it gets out.”
The agent immediately sprang into action.
“Take off your shoes. Crawl up—use your knees instead of your feet. Stay quiet.”
The high schooler handed over his shoes, then got down on all fours and crawled up the stopped escalator.
At that moment, he didn’t feel any embarrassment.
He didn’t feel pain.
All he cared about was that this was quieter.
And that it meant he wouldn’t enter the employee’s line of sight.
Even so, the tension squeezed his throat tight.
What if something jumped out at them?
But in the end—
He successfully crawled up the escalator, moving against its direction.
“Huuuk.”
The moment he pulled himself up onto the second floor, tears pricked at the corners of his eyes.
The agent helped the high schooler get to his feet.
“You did well.”
“T-Thank you…”
Kim Soleum glanced down at his empty hands a few times, feeling the absence of the fishing line. Then, clearing his mind, he shifted his gaze forward.
The second floor.
The first thing visible upon reaching the top of the escalator… was a massive food court.
In the darkened supermarket, only the food court’s signs emitted an eerie glow, and strangely enough, there were sounds of cooking.
The number of roaming employees was…
‘Zero.’
Surprisingly, it was a relatively safe zone.
“We can rest here for a while.”
The second-floor food court is an area where employees do not patrol.
However, do not sit for more than an hour without ordering.
Kim Soleum led the high schooler to a quiet corner near a bibimbap stall and had him sit down.
“Um… Why specifically here?”
“It’s safer in places that don’t serve meat.”
The high schooler swallowed hard.
The agent remained calm.
He sat down and allowed the student to catch his breath and rest his injured ankle.
…It was hard to believe that this was the same person who had just pulled off a crazy stunt at the escalator.
‘…He’s amazing.’
He was far more skilled and knowledgeable than expected.
Just as he had confidently claimed.
Without realizing it, the high schooler wanted to leave a good impression—so he opened his mouth.
“Um, uh… My name is Jang—”
“Let’s not share names.”
“…!”
“It’s better not to use real names in places like this. Be careful.”
Gulp.
The high schooler swallowed hard.
“T-Then… What should I call you, Agent?”
“…Call me Grapes.”
“Yes, Agent Grapes.”
The student exhaled deeply, finally feeling some relief.
Maybe this was what being a real agent was like?
Maybe all his awkwardness was because all his ability points were dumped into being a competent agent.
‘…I think we can escape.’
Even with an injured ankle, the high schooler felt hope.
And with that newfound confidence, he asked,
“T-Then we’re safe here, right?”
“Yeah.”
Agent Grapes nodded.
The high schooler felt a deep sense of relief.
“It’s okay.”
That was a lie.
And it wasn’t enough.
‘…Even on the second floor, the chance of death or disappearance is still high.’
While keeping his voice steady, Kim Soleum’s mind was racing through the <Dark Exploration Records>, trying to find this specific scenario.
His brain, now freed from immediate survival mode, was reorganizing priorities and digging through data.
‘We need to get out.’
Had there been a precedent for an irregular situation like this?
‘Labor Day, early store closure, anything…!’
And then—
Closed early due to ??? reason.
…!
He found it.
Kim Soleum gritted his teeth and forced himself to remember more details.
He couldn’t remember specific numbers and names right now, but he was slowly reconstructing this exploration record in his head…
Exploration Record #3[?]
An agent responded to a civilian distress call and entered the store around 7PM. (Agent : ???)
Looky Mart closed early due to ??? reason. An unexpected situation arose, and the agent lost contact for three days.
“…!”
This was it.
He anxiously dug deeper into his memory.
Then, the outcome of this record…
Result : Rescue failed. Agent returned alone.
“……”
So that’s why he hadn’t remembered it well.
‘It ended in just one line.’
These types of records were common.
Interesting in concept, but the detailed aftermath was often skipped, leaving it up to the reader’s imagination.
Just a simple line.
Success.
Failure.
But the implication was clear.
“……Ha.”
—Agent Bronze failed the rescue mission.
So if he reunited with Agent Bronze.
No matter what decision that agent made inside Looky Mart, Kim Soleum would have to oppose it.
And he would have to convince him to escape according to his own plan.
‘…This is insane.’
No, not me— the difficulty level is insane.
Suppressing a sigh, Kim Soleum forced himself to stay composed, scanning the surroundings from their corner in the food court while keeping the high schooler seated.
‘Let’s just wait it out.’
If Agent Bronze was still alive, he would definitely make his way to the second floor.
Kim Soleum forced himself to stay optimistic.
‘We can talk it through once we meet up again.’