Editor’s Survival Guide - Chapter 89

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Editor’s Survival Rules Episode 89

ep15. Edit! National Museum of Korea! (5)

Crack—!

The long spine bones wrapped around the stone pagoda collided with each other, making sounds.

Those bones moved as if they were alive like snakes.

And at the end.

What was attached to the end of the skeletal frame that soared high enough to touch the ceiling was a human skull.

Facing that giant skeleton, I felt my mind go blank.

“Huk, heok…!”

My breathing naturally became labored.

I didn’t want to look at that thing anymore, but I couldn’t move.

All I could do now was gasp for breath while staring at that giant’s skeleton.

That’s when it happened.

Grab—!

Something pulled one of my arms downward.

Thud—!

I, who had been barely standing, collapsed helplessly.

Someone pressed my head down with their hand, making me bow.

“Keep your head down…”

A voice that reached me faintly.

“Gasp, heok, huk…!”

Prostrated on the floor, I barely came to my senses and took a breath.

In that state, I looked at the person who had grabbed me.

It was a woman who had pulled me down.

A woman wearing a thick winter coat with long hair covering her face was holding my hand.

As I stared blankly at that hand, water dripped from my forehead.

It was cold sweat I had shed.

The abdominal pain I had momentarily forgotten in my bewilderment also came rushing back.

I endured the pain and tried to figure out where I had been dragged to.

This building had a three-story structure, but the central corridor was vertically open from the first floor to the third floor ceiling.

A wide, open long corridor, and a giant stone pagoda placed in the middle of the corridor.

And even a giant skeletal entity coiled around it.

This place was the isolation-grade Special Zone “National Central Museum Watched by False Gods.”

This is crazy.

I was definitely entering the “Hotel,” so why did I come here?

Is it a problem with the underground stairs connected to the “Hotel”?

No, no.

If that were the case, Response Team 3 should have come here with me too.

The fact that I’m here alone means I was dragged here while entering the “Hotel.”

Why on earth? Could it be the work of that “Crow”?

First, first the earpiece.

I suppressed my confusion and moved my arm.

No, I tried to move it but stopped again in dismay.

When I tried to move my body, my chest hurt as if it were being torn.

Don’t move, please stay still. Don’t do anything.

It felt like my whole body was screaming at me.

Terrified, it was urging me to lie prostrate as if dead.

I couldn’t go against that command.

It was because of that giant skeleton looking down at me, the “False God.”

Other people prostrated on the floor.

Are those people also caught in this kind of feeling?

Then how did this woman pull me down?

I was full of questions, but I couldn’t resolve anything.

I had no choice but to lie prostrate helplessly, looking at the hand of the woman holding mine.

* * *

How many hours had passed in that state?

Grooooooong—!

A roar poured over my head.

A terrible rumbling that seemed to shake even my brain.

I knew what this sound meant and gritted my teeth.

The oppressive feeling that had been pressing down on my body like gravity became much lighter.

Realizing I could move now, I tried to stretch my stiffened body a little.

“Stay still…”

But the woman next to me gripped my hand tighter and whispered.

“You can’t… raise your head…”

Suddenly, a shadow fell over us.

Crack—!

The sound of bones clashing right above my head.

It was the “False God.”

It was stretching its neck long from the stone pagoda and moving above us.

I held my breath again.

Crack—! Creak— Crack crack—!

Every time the bones clashed, chills ran up my spine.

I stiffened my body and watched closely the movement of the “False God” reflected on the smooth marble floor.

After a while.

Grooooooong—!

The “False God” roared once more.

Fortunately, it wasn’t above our heads.

I felt the people around me raising their heads.

So I also raised my stiffened body and assessed the situation.

The spine bones of the “False God” had come down close to above my head.

The gap between that giant bone and my head was at most 1 meter.

Everyone prostrated in this central corridor was in the same situation, bearing the “False God’s” spine above their heads.

But the worst were the people who came face to face with that “False God.”

The “False God” was closely examining people gathered at one spot.

Then one of them shouted explosively.

“This person…!”

“Uaaaah!”

One person pointed at the person next to them, and the pointed person lunged at them.

They became entangled, shouting.

After a moment, one person covered another’s mouth and shouted.

“This person!”

Then the surrounding people who had been watching without stopping or helping also shouted along.

“This person!”

“This person!”

People shouted the same thing and pointed at the one pinned underneath.

Today’s scapegoat had been decided.

Whirrrr—!

Something like wires poured down from under the “False God’s” neck bones.

Those strings moved as if alive and approached the one pinned underneath.

The person who had been on top hastily retreated, and the person who had just been freed instead clung to that person and screamed.

“Fuck! No, why me! It’s this person! This person!”

It was already too late.

Wires descended from the body of the 「False God」 and wrapped around the screaming person’s wrist.

“Save me! Aaaaah!”

That person was lifted into the air just like that.

And the 「False God」 devoured him.

Crunch-!

Squelch- Crack-!

The skeletal 「False God」 crushed that person with its solid teeth.

I was breathless once again.

More than anything else, I was terrified that the person might fall back out of the 「False God’s」 throat.

I was horrified to death at the thought of the human chewed up like gum pouring down onto people’s heads.

But that was just my unfounded worry.

The laws of this place were not that common-sensical.

The 「False God」 swallowed its prey without waste, then bestowed mercy upon the humans who had offered a sacrifice.

Clatter-

White hail-like things poured from the joints of the 「False God」.

It was 「Fake Rice」.

It also fell around me with soft thuds.

So I picked up one that had fallen on the floor and examined it.

It certainly looked like a grain of rice.

But the material was closer to plastic, so it didn’t seem like something edible.

However, unlike me who felt something strange about that substance, other people began frantically eating the 「Fake Rice」 that was falling like rain.

Among those satisfying their hunger, some already had swollen and distorted heads.

I watched that scene blankly, feeling like I had fallen into hell.

—

■ Final Communication Record #1 of the Late Team Leader Kang Seung-cheol

I’m sorry, Manager.

Everyone except Agent Park Dae-cheon and myself has died in the line of duty.

I don’t think I’ll be able to return either.

There isn’t much time. Please listen to what I have to say for now.

I’ve confirmed 6 dangerous elements in this place, the 「National Museum of Korea」.

I’ll tell you what I’ve figured out.

First is the 「False God」.

The 「False God」 has a form where something like a whale’s body is attached below a human skull.

The skull is about 3m in size, and the body length is estimated to be at least 30m or more.

The 「False God」 floats above the ‘Ten-story Stone Pagoda’ in the corridor on the 1st floor of the space.

I’ll tell you the pattern of the 「False God」.

Sasasarbasat uru mahagra ahanam.

I’m sorry.

The 「False God」 looks down upon the people in the 「National Museum of Korea」 from noon until 4 AM the next day.

People who receive this ‘looking down’ have their bodies stiffen and cannot move.

At this time, if you make eye contact with the 「False God」, you’ll show symptoms of respiratory distress and then faint or die.

Agent Choi Jin-ho couldn’t endure the ‘looking down’ and died in the line of duty.

At 4 AM, the 「False God」 withdraws its ‘looking down’ and makes a ‘whoooong’ noise.

After that, the 「False God」 wanders around looking for food.

The 「False God」 chooses its prey starting with the person in the highest position.

So all the people trapped here are lying prostrate on the 1st floor.

You must not hide in blind spots like inside exhibition halls or restrooms to avoid becoming prey for the 「False God」.

The 「False God」 accurately detected Agent Heo Jeong-gyu who was hiding in the restroom, and dragged him out with ‘strings’ to devour him.

The most desirable method is to lie prostrate in the 1st floor corridor while entrusting your fate to the god.

When everyone is lying low in the 1st floor corridor, the 「False God」 comes down and examines the people.

Then it randomly selects one group and makes noise again.

At this time, the people placed under the shadow of the 「False God’s」 head must quickly designate a sacrifice.

If three people designate one person, the 「False God」 eats that one person.

If a sacrifice is not designated at this time, the 「False God」 randomly devours about 40-50 people.

Agent Lee Hye-rim was eaten along with them at this time and died in the line of duty.

After finishing its feeding, the 「False God」 sprinkles delicious 「Fake Rice」 on the people.

「Fake Rice」 is a substance in the form of raw rice that is really delicious, but continued consumption causes mental distortion.

So you shouldn’t eat it, but because it’s really delicious, you keep eating it.

Agent Park Dae-cheon, who couldn’t stop consuming 「Fake Rice」, was eventually contaminated.

Agent Park Dae-cheon is still waiting for delicious 「Fake Rice」 to fall from the 「False God」.

I will take responsibility for protecting Agent Park Dae-cheon’s dignity. Bidbamsanakarim!

…After feeding and even sprinkling 「Fake Rice」, the 「False God」 has a rest period until noon.

During the rest period, it sleeps with its head attached to the ceiling, and during this time the ‘looking down’ is also suspended, allowing relatively free movement.

This is the only time when you can explore the 「National Museum of Korea」.

—

I was looking at the hellish scene before my eyes when I barely managed to pull myself together.

Just how long had I been lying prostrate?

My whole body ached and my limbs were trembling.

Anyway, since the paralysis had worn off, I needed to put in my earpiece first.

But my hand was still being held by the woman next to me.

I moved to pull my hand away.

But the woman was receiving and eating 「Fake Rice」 with one hand while firmly gripping me with the other hand, not letting go.

“…?”

I pulled my arm again.

Grip-!

But the woman pulled my hand even harder.

The stronger-than-expected force made my upper body sway and tilt instead.

Normally I would have regained my balance immediately, but my body wasn’t in good condition right now.

So I fell helplessly toward that woman, and ended up looking up at the woman’s face that had been hidden by her hair from below.

The woman’s face, which was so distorted that it had holes like the cross-section of a lotus root.

“Where… are you trying to go…?”

The woman spoke, moving the holes in her face like breathing holes in a tidal flat.

“You can’t… go…”

“…!”

Thud-!

Without realizing it, I pulled my body back and kicked the woman’s body away.

The woman fell backward, leaving long nail marks on the back of my hand.

“Ah, too, harsh…”

The woman who had lost her grip on me groaned as she lay fallen.

Squelch- Squelch squelch-!

The woman seemed to be trying to get up again, pressing her head against the floor.

I saw the woman’s head stretching stickily like slime and hastily got up.

“Don’t, go…!”

The woman shouted from behind, but I ignored her and turned around.

Then an even more terrifying sound reached me.

“Catch, him…!”

At the woman’s command, the people around her got up staggering.

They too were stiff like me and couldn’t move properly.

No, they looked to be in even worse condition than I was.

Still, the sight of five or six people coming to catch me was terrifying.

I ran on my barely loosened legs while putting the earpiece in my ear.

-Seo Do-un, current location!

Manager Kwon Mu-seop’s voice came through immediately.

“National Museum of Korea, middle of the central corridor on the 1st floor, being chased…!”

-To the 2nd floor! Left exhibition area in the direction where you can see the entrance! Go to the first room!

I dragged my trembling legs toward the stairs.

The people chasing me also floundered and pushed through the people sitting on the floor.

Fortunately, aside from the people who had risen at that woman’s command, no one else showed interest in me.

Whether I passed by or not, they just ignored me or only glanced at me with their eyes.

But the woman.

Where was that contaminated woman?

I climbed the stairs while looking for the woman who had grabbed me.

Then something flew quickly toward me.

“Don’t, go…”

It was that woman.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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