Chapter 104

Episode 104. There Is No Line 10 in Seoul (4)

****

“This is the Director. Currently on standby at Basement Level 4. If anyone in a position to receive this communication is available, please respond.”

I spoke into the radio, but no reply came. What should I do? I saw some broadcasting equipment in the management room, but it probably doesn’t work.

There are a few options.

First. Go upstairs and try contacting the field support team via radio. Or just leave the underground bunker altogether.

Second. Search this floor myself. Check how many Special Forces members are still alive or find where they might be hiding.

Third. Go deeper. It’s not like the Special Forces has to be here to complete the mission. I already eliminated one threat, so exploring alone shouldn’t be impossible.

Basement Level 5. Should I go down there?

[Director. Are you alive?]

“Number.”

[This is Moon-6. The Science Officer.]

“Where are you?”

[I’ve returned to Basement Level 3. I’m not sure where the other Special Forces members are. I can’t reach them.]

“……”

I hesitated. There are so many Mimics, it’s intimidating, but this one seems to talk like a human……

“Science Officer. Come back down here. We’ll continue the exploration.”

[What if the Special Forces are all dead?]

“Come and see this. I just killed one of the Colorless Orchestra’s leaders. And. We still need to find the rest of the Special Forces members, right?”

The Special Forces Science Officer fell silent. Anyone else might have lost their mind hearing that their comrades were all dead.

But Moon-6, the Special Forces Science Officer, wasn’t like that.

[Is that an order?]

“Yes.”

[Give me five minutes. I’ll comply.]

I heard sniffling from the other end of the radio. I turned it off for a moment. In five minutes, they’ll probably find their way here……

I let out a sigh.

****

[This is Moon-6. I’ve arrived at the site.]

I looked at the Science Officer.

“Did you see any Special Forces members on the way?”

[No. I didn’t find any bodies either. Just a bunch of Mimics melting away and soldiers from who knows where.]

“See? We should go find them, right?”

[Understood.]

“Like I said earlier. If the other Special Forces members were dragged away or chasing something, there’s plenty of reason to go down to Basement Level 5.”

[By the way. Who is this person?]

“A rebel faction within the Foundation. I’m not sure exactly who, but it seems they were raising Mimics inside this structure. If we keep looking, we might find Mimic eggs nearby.”

[Definitely…… that seems to be the case.]

“That’s what I think. The Colorless Orchestra was raising Mimics here. The connection to the King of Darkness seems minimal, honestly.”

The inside of the management room was relatively safe. The Science Officer took off their gas mask. The communication equipment attached to the mask and helmet was also removed.

“Ah. Let’s sit for about five minutes before heading down.”

****

Basement Level 5. The generator.

It wasn’t operational, but the massive machinery resembled a grand cathedral. A power far beyond human comprehension.

“It’s not as high-tech as I thought?”

[It’s from the military dictatorship era. And engineers like retro stuff like this. Something they can fix with tools.]

I looked around.

Basement Level 5 wasn’t very spacious. There weren’t many places to hide unless you crawled into the pipes.

[You’ve changed every time I see you, Director.]

“How so?”

[It’s been about a year since we started working together, right? We studied and trained together. But now you’re the head of the Human Weapon Research Lab. And I’m…]

“Ah.”

[Sorry. I’ll focus on the mission.]

“Sure…… Do you see anything?”

[It definitely looks like a fossil fuel-powered turbine, but I have no idea what it’s for. Where’s the oil coming from, where’s the steam being vented……]

“Surprising. I thought it would be a nuclear fission plant. Do they think fossil fuel supply will continue even after a nuclear war?”

[I feel like we’re missing something.]

It’s always like this underground. The answer lies below.

****

Basement Level 6. The lab.

Basement Level 7. The control room.

Basement Level 8. What the hell is this……?

We hung from the ladder, looking down. What was on Basement Level 8 was completely unexpected.

A quarry? Parts of it were reinforced with concrete, steel beams, and railings, but Basement Level 8 was a cave.

A cave with stalactites growing everywhere.

At the center of Basement Level 8 was a pit about 10 meters in diameter. Above it hung something like a submarine device…… except it wasn’t hanging, it was just tossed aside.

Basement Level 8. We must be at least 100 meters below sea level. What is this pit? A well? A bunker beneath a bunker?

“……”

[Wait, I’m feeling……]

A retching sound came from the radio. I walked over to the Science Officer.

“Are you okay?”

[……]

The Science Officer fell straight into the pit. I closed my eyes tightly, but…… even after a while, there was no sound of impact or scream. What the hell happened?

I tied a rope to a sturdy spot and connected it to my belt. Then I tossed a small stone into the pit.

For some reason, there was no sound of it hitting the bottom.

Unable to contain my curiosity, I stuck a laser rangefinder into the pit. It beeped.

Wow, what the hell is this?

The bottom of the pit is about 8 kilometers down.

****

Let’s summarize for a moment.

We were fighting the King of Darkness and followed their trail to investigate an abandoned subway station.

The abandoned subway station turned out to be a Cold War-era underground bunker, filled with Mimics and resistance members waiting for us.

The entire Special Forces is missing.

Basement Level 8 of the underground bunker has an 8-kilometer-deep pit. I don’t know what it is, but it’s definitely not normal.

First…… let’s stay calm. I took the Crystal Clock out of my pocket and held it.

“Dr. Lee.”

[What are you doing now?]

“Underground bunker. There were Mimics, killed some hostile group members, and reached the bottom. But there’s a pit in the deepest part of the bunker.”

[Dr. Kim. Are you insane? Get a grip. Did the underground gas mess with your head?]

“Huh?”

[The entire Special Forces is missing. The Science Officer just died in front of you, whether by suicide or accident. What are you doing sitting alone in a cave?]

“……”

[Get out of the bunker now.]

I nodded. That’s right. Following the Crystal Clock’s advice, I dusted myself off and used my gun as a cane to stand up.

****

[Underground Bunker Exploration]

[Author: Recovery Team 1 Section Chief.]

[I’m thinking of submitting my resignation after this. It’s truly horrifying. I still see it in my dreams. Dozens of Mimics with the faces of my comrades, killing them one by one.]

[All the supernatural phenomena, all the anomalies in that underground bunker, just a few dozen meters away. Does that mean they’re lurking beneath the city?]

[Now even manhole covers make me nauseous. What else could this indescribable terror be?]

[All Special Forces members, except the Science Officer, returned safely. The Colorless Orchestra was targeting the Director, they said.]

[It’s a bit embarrassing, but the Special Forces members encountered a supernatural phenomenon that blocked their vision and just ran. That’s protocol. Fighting in an unwinnable situation is just suicide.]

****

[Underground Bunker Exploration. Reply and Research Considerations]

[Author: Research Department Head]

[This document is for all soldiers and researchers involved in the operation.]

[My deepest condolences. If needed, we can adjust your memories or emotional state, so please contact the Personnel Department if you wish.]

[Subsequent investigations revealed some peculiarities. The underground bunker primarily used geothermal energy. It also borrowed power from Seoul’s grid.]

[Shocking, right? Geothermal energy in the middle of Seoul?]

[And that pit the Director found. What could have created something like that? Basement Level 8, or rather, 8 kilometers below Seoul—what’s down there to warrant such a depth?]

[There’s a rumor in ecology, a bit complicated, but the term is Subsurface Lithoautotrophic Microbial Ecosystem (SLiME). Simply put.]

[It’s an independent ecosystem underground, unrelated to sunlight. Inside the rocks.]

[There’s debate on how widespread it is…… but here’s my opinion.]

[Everything the public knows about fossil fuels is a lie. Oil reserves keep increasing, and it’s constantly found in places unrelated to sedimentation.]

[Oil is a byproduct of this massive underground independent ecosystem. It’s not fossil fuel discovered billions of years ago. How many oil fields have increased their reserves?]

[This underground independent ecosystem isn’t an isolated phenomenon. Rather, dozens of kilometers underground, entire layers are made of oil and these microorganisms.]

[Sorry. Got carried away with the technical talk. I’ll post a formal paper later.]

[Everything we know is a lie.]

[The truth of the world must be seen firsthand.]