Sitting in the transport vehicle heading to the research institute, I slowly swung my legs back and forth.

Clank, clank.

The loud clatter of chains echoed.

Someone might have pointed it out, but those timid fools wouldn’t dare.

The transport vehicle came to a noisy halt in the institute’s parking lot.

Around the vehicle were police officers with tense expressions, and researchers who looked terrified as they stared at us.

Stepping out of the vehicle, I looked down at the officer standing at the front and asked,

"So, where do we go?"

The officer could only stammer, unable to give a proper answer.

The death row inmates snickered, their laughter seeping out.

The officers shouted at them to be quiet and led us to one of the isolation rooms inside the institute.

The nameplate in front of the room read Theme Park Invitation Doll.

Inside the isolation room, a round-faced doll Object was waddling around.

Its sneering grin made me want to tear it apart.

Looking around, the expressions were clear.

The once confident inmates now wore faces of impending doom as they stood before the Object, while the researchers were a mix of fear and barely contained curiosity.

The inmates were lined up and thrown into the isolation room, trembling all the way.

Idiots, absolute idiots.

If they had to do it, they should at least stand tall.

How is it that only worthless scum ended up here?

Especially those two, the fat pig and the scrawny wimp—it's a wonder they’ve survived this long.

As I stepped in front of the isolation room, the tight handcuffs that bound me were removed.

Phew, now I can finally breathe.

Rubbing my wrists, I entered the isolation room, and the doll was grinning widely.

I accepted the letter it offered and read the postcard.

The contents were nothing but a string of ridiculous statements.

"Enjoy the best entertainment of your life at Smile Theme Park!"

As I finished reading, my vision began to darken.

So, it seems that escaping means riding the nine deadly attractions described in the letter.

Whether I escape or not, at least I’ll be free from that miserable prison life.

Twenty-one minutes after the death row inmates arrived, they had all read the letters and vanished.

The police officers who had transported them withdrew, leaving only the minimum number of personnel behind.

"Sister Seoa? That… that person is gone, right?"

Oh Yerin was trembling after seeing the huge inmate, hiding behind me.

But Sehee, the institute director, was at least 15 cm taller than me, so why hide behind me?

"Researcher Oh Yerin. Everyone’s gone, so you can come out now."

"Phew! Didn’t that woman look terrifying? Covered in tattoos and with the kind of vibe that made it seem like she’s killed a few people!"

While Oh Yerin was making a fuss, I noticed something strange.

The Theme Park Invitation Doll seemed to have grown in size.

By about 5 cm?

And the doll’s grinning expression, with its stitches ripped open, made me feel uneasy.

Cackling as it danced around the isolation room, the doll was clearly up to something.

Something was happening.

I hurriedly called the assigned researchers to re-measure the doll’s size.

Even as the researchers restrained its limbs, the doll kept laughing.

Cackle, cackle.

This had never happened before; it was a completely new reaction.

The measurements showed a 5 cm increase in height.

But the growth didn’t stop at 5 cm.

Even during repeated measurements, the doll continued to grow by 1 cm at a time.

Had it been too hasty to send in the death row inmates?

When I opened my eyes, I found myself in a place I didn’t recognize.

The room was so lavishly decorated that I felt like I didn’t belong.

Elegant paintings, a pantry filled with food, and an antique mirror.

When I looked into the mirror in front of me, I saw myself—fat and bloated like a pig.

Anger welled up, and I smashed the mirror.

Huff, huff.

I was out of breath.

Blood dripped from my fists, and tears of frustration welled up.

Despite the luxurious room, it felt like a death chamber to me.

Something was wrong.

How did I end up in a place like this?

I hadn’t done anything wrong.

Sure, I’d kidnapped a kid once and accidentally killed them, but the death penalty for that?

The kid provoked me first!

"Welcome, dear guest. Welcome to Smile Theme Park!"

"Argh!"

A monster suddenly appeared, its face right in front of me.

Had the monster arrived already?

"W-who are you?"

"I am your personal concierge, assigned to assist you."

"What’s a concierge?"

"It’s exactly what it sounds like. In short, I’m here to help you throughout your time at the theme park."

Despite being a stitched-up monster, its voice was calm and gentle.

What the heck, this is nothing to be scared of.

Ha.

I raised my hand and slapped the mannequin hard.

"All that fear because of you! You scared me, huh?"

Kicking the mannequin as it lay on the ground, I felt some of my anger dissipate.

Once the anger subsided, I realized what I had done.

What the hell was I doing?

Taking my frustration out on an Object?

As I tried to catch my breath and assess the situation, the mannequin got up and dusted off its clothes.

"So, can I continue with the explanation, sir?"

"Th-there’s no need. Don’t come back until I call for you!"

"Understood, sir."

The mannequin bowed and backed out of the room.

Whew.

As soon as the mannequin left, I let out a deep sigh.

With the fear gone, hunger set in.

Now that I’d relaxed, I was dizzy with hunger.

I started looking around the hotel room for something to eat and found it stocked with all kinds of drinks, snacks, and foods, neatly packaged.

I think I learned something about situations like this during Object-related training… what was it?

Wasn’t there something about not eating anything carelessly?

But I was too hungry to care, so I inspected the food, only to find strange labels attached to each item.

Blue tags, red tags, and so on.

On closer inspection, the tags were red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet.

Aha! The colors of the rainbow.

Weren’t Object quizzes often based on myths or famous stories?

So, does this mean I should eat them in rainbow order?

I really am smart.

Haha, I’m going to feast after such a long time.

And since I’m inside an Object, it’s all free, right?

I pulled out a bunch of delicious-looking foods, one for each tag color.

I selected seven dishes that looked appealing.

A salad with a red tag.

A bread roll with an orange tag.

A creamy soup with a yellow tag.

Fried fish with a green tag.

A mouthwatering steak with a blue tag.

A cheesecake with an indigo tag.

And coffee with a violet tag.

It was a course meal I had planned to eat once I got paid for that kid.

Finally, I get to eat it now.

Holding the fork as elegantly as possible, I took a bite of the salad.

Cough.

Suddenly, I couldn’t breathe.

Blood gushed from my mouth, spilling onto the floor.

"W-what… what is this?"

I tried to steady myself on the table, but I couldn’t muster the strength and collapsed.

Dishes and food clattered down onto me.

I tried to scream, but no sound came out.

The mannequin opened the door and entered the room.

"Oh dear, sir. You’ve made quite a mess of the room, haven’t you?"

There was a note of mockery in the mannequin’s voice.

"I thought you looked like a greedy pig the moment I saw you, but to think you’d pull out so much food."

The man, now spewing blood from his mouth, could only glare at the mannequin, unable to move a muscle.

His mouth, however, kept moving, silently pleading,

Please, save me. Please, save me. Please, save me.

"All the food is drenched in blood. I’ll have to prepare it again."

The mannequin began gathering the food the man had pulled out, placing it on a portable tray.

As the mannequin exited the room with the tray, it said,

"If you wanted to survive, you should have listened to the explanation."

The mannequin dropped a piece of paper on the man’s face.

It was a sheet listing the room’s rules.

Smile Theme Park Room Rules.

Welcome to Smile Theme Park!

Room usage is free!

All food provided is made with care by the staff.

However, if you wish to leave the room, you must eat at least one item, as a courtesy to the staff’s effort.

The following rules apply to free users.

Please review them carefully!

Now, delete one line from the following rules:

Of the seven colors of food, at least six are poisoned.

The red, orange, and yellow foods are all poisoned.

The red, yellow, and blue foods are all poisoned.

The orange, blue, and violet foods are all poisoned.

The green, blue, and indigo foods are all poisoned.

The orange, green, and indigo foods are all poisoned.

The dying man’s eyes frantically scanned the paper, but it was too late.

Yet, until his final breath, he continued to read the paper over and over again.

Nom, nom, nom.

I sat on the bed, eating cheesecake.

Delicious.

It tasted as good as the cakes from the famous bakery I used to have in the isolation room.

Chocolate mousse cake, strawberry shortcake, pecan pie, apple pie.

It was as if every dessert in the world had been gathered here.

Is this heaven?

Though, I did have one small complaint.

It would have been nice if the foods had different flavors depending on the tag color!

I had hoped for a surprise, but the red-tagged orange juice just tasted like regular orange juice—no strawberry-flavored orange juice or anything fun like that, which was a bit disappointing.

As I lounged on the bed, stretching out my limbs, I noticed the guidebook the mannequin had mentioned.

Well, I can read that later.

I continued to stretch and enjoy my pleasant, relaxing time.