#132
This embarrassment was entirely due to Shin Haejun. I slapped his arm and walked towards the passageway connected to the department store.
“You two seem very used to this.”
“To what?”
“People taking pictures from afar and staring… you both seem unfazed.”
Hyun Dowoon chuckled casually at my question.
“You get used to it when you receive attention frequently.”
“That’s right. If you walk confidently, no one can say anything.”
Shin Haejun added, patting my back. Since I needed to get used to this life now, I straightened my back. Walking with the two of them on either side, we might look like a criminal being escorted from a distance.
As we were walking through the first floor of the department store, people suddenly started buzzing. I was about to turn my head to see what was happening when Hyun Dowoon suddenly pulled me close, burying my face in his chest.
‘It’s chilly…!’
I didn’t know why, but I could clearly feel that both Hyun Dowoon and Shin Haejun were angry. It felt like the surrounding temperature had suddenly dropped.
‘No, it really got colder!’
The temperature seemed to have dropped by more than 10 degrees. It was very strange for the temperature to drop like this indoors, and it wasn’t even abnormal weather.
I realized that Shin Haejun had used his frost storm. Even for an S-class, using a skill to harm civilians indoors would surely turn public opinion against us.
“Wait, wait a moment.”
I struggled and pushed against Hyun Dowoon’s body. His strength was so great that I couldn’t completely push him away, but I managed to free my head enough to see the situation.
“Ugh… uuugh…”
A man was sprawled on the floor, looking up at Shin Haejun with confused eyes. Between the two, a chunk of ice about the size of a small child was floating. The people standing around had their hair completely messed up as if hit by a strong wind.
“I believe I advised maintaining a 1.5m distance…”
“I, I just wanted an autograph…!”
The man, who looked to be in his early 30s, said trembling. Shin Haejun, who had been silent for a moment, smiled.
“I thought you were attacking us. Rushing at us with such a big camera.”
Shin Haejun waved his hand, making the ice disappear. Inside was a frozen camera. It was really as big as those used by paparazzi.
The man who received the frozen camera looked aggrieved.
“Get autographs from celebrities. You shouldn’t risk your life trying to get an autograph.”
However, at Shin Haejun’s quietly uttered threat with a smile, the man slowly backed away with a terrified expression, clutching his camera.
After the man disappeared, Shin Haejun composed his expression as if nothing had happened and approached me.
“…Is it okay to threaten civilians like that?”
I asked cautiously, worried that it might ruin his image, but Shin Haejun smiled coldly.
“He’s just a reporter anyway. At most, he’ll write some insults in an article.”
“That’s… that’s not right!”
“It seemed like he was slowly creeping forward while taking pictures. I clearly announced the 1.5m distance rule from the start. It’s to prevent any problems for you. The one who broke the rule is at fault.”
Even with Shin Haejun’s explanation, I still felt uneasy. I guess that’s why people have been maintaining their distance well until now…
“You’re worried that we might be making our own rules in a mall that everyone uses, right?”
Hyun Dowoon accurately pinpointed my concern. I nodded with wide eyes.
“It’s very rare to see two S-class espers and an unranked guide in one place. We thought maintaining order would be the biggest issue from the moment the date was planned, so we decided to turn it into an event.”
“An event?”
“Only people with admission tickets are inside this mall. We rented out the entire mall and only allowed people who received numbered tickets in advance to enter and use it. Both reporters and civilians are allowed to take pictures, but we advised them to maintain a 1.5m distance.”
I couldn’t even guess how much money they spent on this one-day date. It made me think that even if I earn money, I can’t keep up with real rich people.
‘So that’s why people were gathered at the entrance earlier…’
I had wondered why people were gathered at the entrance without entering the mall, but it seems they were people who couldn’t get admission tickets. Seeing how they waited just to see us, I understood why high-level awakened ones rivaled celebrities in popularity.
‘The atmosphere doesn’t seem too bad either…’
I thought everyone would be scared after intimidating people, but they were actually whispering about how cool Shin Haejun’s technique was. Come to think of it, Shin Haejun acts like a puppy now, but he was incredibly rude at first. If people were used to this behavior, I could understand their reaction.
And it’s true that the person who broke the agreed-upon rule was also at fault…
I accepted this and led Shin Haejun and Hyun Dowoon around again. What’s done is done, can’t be helped.
Nine’s quest generously counted our browsing and shopping at the mall as a walk. After looking around for a while, our appetite returned and we had a meal. As we ate pasta in an Italian restaurant that seemed perfect for blind dates, just as Shin Haejun had said, I felt very strange.
After finishing the meal, I discreetly checked my phone in the restroom, but there was no change in the quest window, which should have changed from “not achieved” to “achieved”.
‘Ah… 8 hours…’
It seemed the problem was not meeting the time condition. Even after watching a movie, having a meal, and taking a walk, we were still far from filling 8 hours. Not knowing what else to do to fill the time, I came out of the restroom with wavering eyes. Shin Haejun and Hyun Dowoon, who were waiting for me at the table, asked with bright faces:
“What do you want to do next?”
“Is there anything in particular you’d like to do?”
I closed my mouth at the sudden question. I couldn’t think of anything we should do…
‘This happens every time you log in;; Don’t you have any plans?’
‘I just play games every day. I don’t even know what’s fun to do when meeting friends…’
‘You could do an escape room, go to an arcade, drink, there’s lots to do?’
Suddenly, I remembered what an acquaintance had said in Limitless Nine. It was a conversation with someone I briefly played with because there was a dungeon that required exactly two players. They were worried about me being absorbed in the game every day.
“Escape… room?”
As I frowned slightly, trying to recall the memory, Hyun Dowoon searched for something on his phone and then stood up.
“Let’s go. There’s one nearby.”
I had said it without thinking, but do escape rooms exist in this world too?
Wondering about this, I followed Hyun Dowoon’s lead and found a place that really said “Escape Room” on the sign.
“We escape from a room? Is that fun? Running around in maze dungeons is already frustrating enough.”
Shin Haejun muttered while carefully examining the sign. I had no response to whether it was fun or not. I hadn’t tried it either.
“Well, Jaeha-ssi said he wanted to do it, so let’s try it.”
We entered the escape room with solemn faces. After passing through a long corridor, we found someone sitting at the reception desk who jumped up in surprise when they saw us.
“W-w-welcome!”
“We’re here for the escape room.”
“D-did you… make a reservation? Oh, no! I’ll check for you!”
When Shin Haejun spoke, the employee started trembling and looking at the screen with a face that looked like they might faint. Looking closely, I could see them silently mouthing words like ‘Damn, they’re so handsome’.
“It was a sudden decision, so we couldn’t make a reservation. Will it be difficult to use?”
When Hyun Dowoon spoke with a gentle smile, the employee made an expression as if they would make it possible even if it was impossible, tapping on the screen and flipping through a notebook with a schedule written down.
“There’s one time slot open!”
“Wow!”
I had suggested coming here without much thought, but now that we could actually do it, I couldn’t help but smile. Now I have people to enjoy these things with!
“Um, but… it’s an R-rated theme, is that okay?”
The employee who had confidently said it was possible now asked us with an uneasy look.
“R-rated theme?”
When I asked back, the employee sheepishly handed us what looked like a guide board. It had a brief description of the escape room theme written on it.
‘Wasn’t it supposed to be escaping from a maze-like room?’
That was the vague image I had!
Looking at the guide board, I saw a title that said [Phobia Test], an indescribably distorted image, and a hashtag that read ‘#Beware_of_Various_Traumas’. There was also a note saying ‘It may be quite bizarre, so pregnant women and the elderly should avoid it’.
“We’re all adults, so it’s fine.”
While I was shocked with my mouth open, Hyun Dowoon answered nonchalantly.
I thought it might be too much to do an R-rated theme when I hadn’t even tried a regular escape room before, but when I came to my senses, we had already put away our belongings, changed into special slippers and clothes, and arrived at the entrance of the room. I was already dazed, and while listening to the explanation of how to solve locks needed for the escape room, my soul seemed to escape. The two of them had quickly brought me along.
“You might be a bit… surprised when you go in. If you find the puzzles difficult, feel free to ask for hints!”
With the employee’s encouragement, we entered the room and the door closed with a thud. As soon as I saw the inside, I couldn’t help but feel dizzy. From the entrance, it was as if a swamp had spread out, and my feet sank in. Seeing a scenery I had never encountered even in dungeons, I felt a chill run down my spine.
It wasn’t just like being at a mudflat, but my body sank in as if I had really fallen into a swamp. Moreover, a sound like nails on a chalkboard came from the speakers, making it even more confusing.
“Ah, this sound is annoying…”
Shin Haejun seemed irritated too, pressing his fingers to his temples.
“This looks a bit like Jaeha-ssi.”
Hyun Dowoon, seemingly unbothered, pointed at some spores hanging in the air.
‘Are you saying I look like… mold right now?’
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
