CHAPTER 08

I set the notice board down. Beneath it was a long repetition of distorted, melted text. I returned it to Tae-hyeon, who placed it inside his briefcase.

We quickened our pace. Soon, a three-story building with a strong end-of-the-world atmosphere came into view. Orange streetlights were on, but the area around the entrance was shaded by trees.

Tae-hyeon checked his wristwatch.

“Let’s hurry a bit more. Even with administrative privileges, we can’t exactly cover wandering around late at night.”

“You still haven’t told me where we’re going.”

Tae-hyeon nodded toward the building ahead.

“The girls’ dormitory. That’s where you’ll be staying for the time being.”

“The dormitory? But I’m not even a student here.”

At my question, Tae-hyeon gave a completely unrelated answer.

“The 16th expedition member from the circulation board you just saw.”

That anonymous expedition member deployed to Rose Apartment who went silent—was that who he meant? The one who said the neighbors kept calling them “kid”?

“To put it simply… there are people who are assigned certain ‘roles’ by the Citadel. In your case, the role of ‘Amelie’ has been assigned. You can tell from the phone.”

I pulled the old mobile phone from my pocket. The cat-sticker phone had been silent since earlier.

“The Citadel will no longer let you leave through normal means. You are no longer a drifter or a visitor… you’ve become an official component of this world.”

A component. It sounded nice, but I didn’t need to ask to know it wasn’t something to be happy about.

Tae-hyeon continued his explanation.

“The Citadel will be watching you. So from now on, it’s better if you think of yourself as Amelie. Don’t even mention your real name—erase it completely from your mind.”

At that, I remembered how I had almost told Malo my name earlier and swallowed dryly.

“What happens if I say my name?”

“To those assigned roles, this world becomes… a little more accommodating. But if you fall below the Citadel’s standards—break implicit rules, go around using your real name, things like that—you’ll be replaced immediately. Like ‘Expedition Member 16’ or ‘Mr. Kim Sang-hoon.’”

I still didn’t fully understand what “replaced” meant, but Tae-hyeon’s attitude gave me a rough idea.

Probably a miserable death—or something equally awful.

“Well, it’s not all bad.”

He pointed toward the central plaza we had passed earlier.

“As long as you remain Amelie, most anomalous entities will recognize you as one of their own.”

I looked back toward the plaza, but all the lights were off and nothing was visible. Even just facing that direction made me feel uneasy, so I quickly turned away.

“So then… does that professor, Malo, also think I’m an anomaly?”

At my question, Tae-hyeon snorted.

“Of course not. That one isn’t an ‘ordinary anomaly.’”

“Then what is it?”

Tae-hyeon sighed and spoke reluctantly.

“Entity classification number S7078, or the ‘Restorer.’ But among us, we just call him ‘Professor.’ He seems to prefer it that way too.”

“Is he really a professor?”

“I don’t know.”

When I looked at him in disbelief, Tae-hyeon shrugged as if there was nothing he could do.

“Nobody who’s tried to interfere with higher beings has ever ended well. And it’s not even within my authority.”

So in the end, he didn’t know anything.

“But he seems like he can talk, at least.”

“I guess… if you can call that communication. Either way, I’d rather not get close to him.”

I see.

Still, in order to survive in the Citadel, shouldn’t I use everything I can? Besides, Amelie is a university student—getting along with a professor probably wouldn’t hurt.

Even if that professor went around personally recruiting students because he didn’t have any.

We entered the dormitory lobby through the glass doors. The interior felt less like a university dorm and more like an old 1990s high school building.

My sneakers creaked against the worn terrazzo floor.

“This way. You need to greet the dorm supervisor.”

I followed Tae-hyeon deeper inside. On the right side of the dim hallway, there was a small room with a window, like an old study hall counter. The frosted glass window was shut tightly.

“Uh… can we just skip this?”

An uneasy feeling made me ask. Tae-hyeon gave a short laugh.

“Try it if you want. If your life is boring enough.”

Damn.

Tae-hyeon leaned slightly and knocked on the window.

“This is administrative officer Tae-hyeon. I’ve brought a student.”

Then he gestured for me to speak.

“Say hello, and give your name.”

Hesitantly, I knocked on the window as well.

“Hello… I’m Amelie.”

Silence.

Just as I started to wonder if something was wrong, the window slid open slightly and a hand shot out.

It was a long, thin hand with bluish fingertips.

I instinctively tried to look inside, but Tae-hyeon grabbed my arm.

“Don’t look in.”

“….”

A small object was placed on the counter with a faint jingle, and the hand disappeared back inside.

Click—the window closed. I picked up the small key left behind. It looked like an old hotel key made of silver.

A leather tag was attached, with a room number printed in gold.

“The last Amelie retired long before I was assigned here. The position’s been vacant for quite a while. I’ll try to dig up more information.”

“Wouldn’t the institution have records?”

“Maybe. If they were institution agents. But most Amelies are drifters. And drifters don’t have an obligation to report.”

Tae-hyeon guided me to the stairs.

“I can’t go above here. Once you’re in your room, check the dorm rules. They’re relatively… friendly. Probably.”

“Probably?”

“Nothing is certain in the Citadel. I’ll request access to institutional records. I’ll contact you if I find anything useful.”

He checked his watch again, clearly eager to leave.

“Wait—just a second. Is that it?”

“Yes?”

“No warnings? No advice?”

Tae-hyeon paused briefly, then answered awkwardly.

“Well… what kind of advice would there be?”

From his attitude, I realized something.

He thought I would be replaced soon.

The talk about “records” was probably just politeness.

Maybe I had expected too much from an institutional agent. After all, their goal wasn’t rescue—it was investigating the Citadel.

In the end, the rescue teams were only there to support expeditions. Handling drifters like me was just side work.

I took a deep breath and looked up the stairs.

Fine. Who else could I trust anyway?

“Still… out of all possible roles, why a university student? I’ve never even stepped foot in a college.”

“If it helps, most university students are high school graduates anyway.”

“…That’s not even a joke.”

Tae-hyeon nodded.

“I understand your concern, but it’s not a priority. This isn’t even a real university, and even if anomalies imitate humans, their knowledge is limited.”

So as long as it looks convincing, it’s enough?

If there’s one thing I’m good at, it’s being shameless.

Tae-hyeon looked at me for a moment and sighed.

“Focus on surviving, Amelie. That’s the only advice I can give you right now.”

…That kind of thing is my specialty.