How a Regressor Conquers the Tower of Urban Legends
Chapter 37
Humans overcame darkness surprisingly recently.
Of course, fire had accompanied humanity throughout its history.
Even so, it hadn't been that long since people became able to wander around at night as if it were their own domain.
Before that, the night belonged more to the wilderness.
Or to things we could not understand.
Humans at night had always been closer to prey than predator.
So maybe it wasn't strange that I was gripped by fear in this darkness.
"What the hell is this...?!"
I swung my arms around, trying to find the elevator wall.
Even though my eyes were open, it was no different from having them closed.
Worse, I couldn't even touch the walls.
The elevator wasn't especially narrow, but it wasn't wide either.
Normally, a few steps in any direction should've been enough for my hand to touch a wall.
But no matter how much I moved, there was nothing.
Which meant...
"Mr. Mascot? Are you there?"
No answer came.
I squeezed my eyes shut, then opened them again and stopped moving.
Calm down.
Think about the announcement that played before this bizarre situation started.
The elevator had called it a removal procedure.
Or disinfection.
And I had a rough idea of what it wanted to remove.
The fishy smell that had clung to me.
And that monster with lungs protruding from its neck that had looked at me with a strange sense of kinship.
Either I had changed...
Or those things had begun recognizing me as one of them.
And the elevator considered that something foreign that needed to be removed.
I steadied my breathing and faced forward.
There was still nothing but darkness.
So I simply stood still.
<The procedure will now begin.>
<We recommend that you do not turn around.>
<This treatment is physically harmless. However, turning around may cause severe psychological side effects.>
Even though this no longer felt like the inside of an elevator, the announcement echoed from somewhere above my head.
Then I felt something cold behind me.
Like someone had suddenly placed a block of ice against my back.
Goosebumps rose across my entire body.
But I didn't turn around.
I closed my eyes and waited.
Something touched my back.
It felt like a completely dried-out tree branch poking into me.
That was all.
As that branch-like thing repeatedly pressed against my back, only one memory surfaced in my mind.
The third floor.
The tree I'd seen beyond the cliff.
Back when I knew almost nothing, there had been only one thing I understood.
If that tree catches you, you end up worse than dead.
Why was I remembering that now?
I kept my eyes closed.
I didn't know how long I stood there.
Then...
<The procedure is complete.>
The dry announcement sounded again.
The thing poking my back withdrew.
At the same moment, something soft suddenly wrapped around my shoulders.
"!!!!!!"
I opened my eyes.
A cute bear mascot completely filled my vision.
"!?!?!!??!!!"
It looked at me.
Then at the elevator doors.
Then up at the ceiling, where it began furiously punching the air as though filing a complaint.
"!?!?!!!!!!?!?!?!!"
<...Removal has been completed.>
There was a slight pause before the elevator resumed speaking as if nothing had happened.
I stared at the mascot for a moment, then pulled out the notebook.
This time, I doubted many people would've been able to make much use of my advice.
[152. At this point, isn't No. 150 not even human?]
[154. Why is he the only one fighting a completely different battle...?]
[156. I didn't get the Isolation Building, but honestly, I feel like it would've been much easier if I had.]
[156. If you follow No. 150, it seriously feels like you'll survive no matter what. What the hell did this guy do before coming here?]
[157. No. 24 in the twenties said there was a Management Bureau, right? Maybe No. 150 is some high-ranking official or elite from that organization?]
[158. I wish someone like this were my boss.]
You really shouldn't say that about the lowest-ranking employee who doesn't even have a junior under him.
I sighed and closed the notebook.
"They really don't understand anything."
The Isolation Building was supposed to be the hardest one.
Hadn't they read the guide?
Still...
"...Ahem."
"...?"
"Nothing."
They said praise could make even a whale dance.
I couldn't help feeling a little pleased.
With that thought, I carefully reached inside my clothes.
The heavy sensation I'd felt throughout the hospital was gone.
"..."
The handgun had disappeared.
I hadn't exactly used it much.
But now that it was gone, I strangely missed having it.
Feeling an odd emptiness, I looked forward.
So this was the eighth floor now.
"...Just one more."
Then I could go back and rest.
What kind of bizarre place would it be this time?
I took a deep breath and faced the elevator doors.
<You have arrived at the eighth floor.>
The mechanical voice echoed.
The mascot moved to stand beside me.
Ding.
The doors opened.
I immediately looked ahead.
"...?"
The unexpectedly quiet atmosphere left me staring at the mascot in confusion.
But it seemed just as puzzled, staring blankly ahead.
"What the hell is this?"
I muttered.
The interior of an airplane stretched out before us.
It gently shook with a low woooom, as though flying through the sky.
There was only one problem.
"...Wait. Is this really an airplane?"
Something was off.
Near the restroom stood something resembling a flight attendant, hands clasped behind its back.
Near what looked like the cockpit, even more attendants were standing guard.
The more I looked around, the stranger it became.
The windows had been nailed shut with wooden boards.
And all kinds of bizarre objects were scattered throughout the cabin.
I quickly closed the notebook and opened it again.
Sure enough, the information had updated.
Let's see.
Tap, tap.
Before I could start reading, someone tapped my shoulder.
I turned.
A smiling flight attendant was looking at me.
A neat uniform.
Hair swept cleanly back to expose the forehead.
At first glance, they looked like the very image of a professional flight attendant.
Except for one thing.
That smile.
It was grotesque.
The corners of the mouth had been pulled upward as though someone had pinned them in place with thumbtacks.
And the eyes held no emotion at all.
"..."
Not human.
More accurately, something wearing the shape of a human.
Maybe I'd spent too much time around things that weren't human.
I could tell instantly now.
That wasn't a person.
"..."
"..."
We stared at each other for a moment.
Then the attendant slowly raised one hand and pointed.
One passenger seat was empty.
"You want me to sit?"
"..."
The attendant slowly nodded without losing that smile.
"...All right."
The only person I could properly talk to was still that gruff voice on the phone.
What a depressing thought.
I sighed inwardly and sat down.
The mascot took the seat beside me.
I raised my head slightly and looked around.
The cabin wasn't filled only with flight attendants.
There were other passengers besides us.
But they weren't human either.
Otherwise, they wouldn't all be wearing the same smile as the attendant who'd guided me here.
Every passenger slowly turned their head toward me.
I lowered myself in the seat and whispered to the mascot.
"I'm going to read the notebook. Tell me if anything happens."
"!"
The mascot nodded, the red scarf wrapped around its neck.
I looked away and opened the notebook.
How the hell was I supposed to escape from an airplane?
[9. The plane crashes. I'm going to die here.]
[11. Judging from No. 9's note, if we stay on the plane, it probably triggers some kind of crash gimmick.]
[11. I can't see an elevator anywhere. It's not in the restroom, not anywhere else, and not even in the cockpit.]
[11. But waiting for the plane to arrive somewhere feels wrong too. The announcements make me deeply uncomfortable. It feels like I'm somewhere I shouldn't be.]
[11. So what the hell am I supposed to do? I think we probably need to get out somehow...]
[11. The passengers aren't human either. When I said I was leaving, every single one of them looked at me at once. Probably not a good idea to say things out loud.]
[11. I'll pretend to go to the restroom, open an emergency exit, and dive out.]
[19. Ah, No. 11, you bastard... Now the attendants won't let anyone use the restroom... I was going to take a shower before leaving...]
[19. But isn't this strange? It feels like the airplane changes its behavior in response to what the previous people did.]
[19. The attendants won't let me use the restroom, so I'm going to break into the cockpit, hijack the plane, and go that way.]
[19. I'll drag the captain out and tell him to open the door.]
[24. Greetings. I am from the Gangbuk Branch of the Management Bureau.]
[24. Perhaps because No. 19 hijacked the aircraft, armed personnel are now surrounding the area.]
[24. After listening to the in-flight announcements, I also became certain that remaining here would be unwise.]
[24. Unfortunately, I had no choice but to disarm all the armed personnel, throw their weapons outside the plane, and knock them unconscious.]
[24. I will now attempt to leave. I hope we meet again alive.]
[49. No wonder everyone's clothes looked so strange. Some were wearing body armor, while others had all kinds of ridiculous equipment.]
[49. I guess everyone who survived this long must be insane...]
[49. Then maybe I should become insane too...?]
[49. I'm going to break a window and jump out.]
...
[77. Just in case anyone decided to stay, I waited here longer than most. I don't think you should ever wait too long.]
[77. Something is wrong outside the windows.]
[77. I think it becomes extremely dangerous after the in-flight announcement plays twice.]
[77. But the first announcement usually doesn't start until around thirty minutes in, so you should have plenty of time.]
[77. Stay calm and find a route. Good luck!]
...
[114. How the hell did everyone else get out so easily...?]
[114. My ability can't brute-force things like this.]
[114. What's outside the window?]
[114. I don't think the plane is supposed to land.]
[114. We're landing here? Stop lying. No way. I can't get off here.]
[114. The plane is landing.]
[114. shouldnt have landed]
"..."
I looked away from the notebook and scanned the cabin.
No wonder it said all the windows had been broken before.
Even for an airplane, the surroundings were far too strange.
"..."
I organized the escape routes people had used.
Most participants had escaped through the simplest method available to them.
Some were physically strong enough to simply throw attendants and passengers aside.
Others were fast.
Some were strong enough to rip the boards off the windows.
And then...
"...It adapts."
The attendants and passengers changed their behavior in response to what previous users had done.
They boarded up the windows.
Blocked certain routes.
Armed themselves.
That explained why some of the attendants looked more like security guards than cabin crew.
"...So the later you arrive, the worse it gets."
Unlike the floors I'd climbed before, this one actively punished late arrivals.
"..."
I closed my eyes and thought.
How was I supposed to get out safely?
Ding.
The chime signaling an in-flight announcement sounded.
"...?"
An announcement?
Hadn't No. 77 said it normally took thirty minutes?
I felt like barely ten minutes had passed.
Before I could hide my confusion, the announcement began.
<This aircraft is currently traveling at maximum speed in order to achieve a rapid landing.>
<Please understand that some turbulence may occur. After reaching our destination, prepare yourselves for the union that will follow.>
<After the union, this aircraft will be reorganized. Passengers without a ticket are requested to unite with a passenger who possesses one.>
"..."
Union?
And—
Before I could finish that thought...
Clap, clap, clap, clap...
Applause filled the cabin.
I slowly raised my head and looked around.
Countless passengers were clapping and smiling.
Still wearing those impossibly bright smiles, as though the corners of their mouths had been pinned in place.
And every single one of them...
Was looking directly at me.
