We returned to the stairs.

“We just need to climb, right?”

“Yes.”

I began climbing, but instead of just walking until the next floor appeared, I started counting.

One floor.

Two floors.

Three floors…

We kept climbing until the stairs simply stopped.

Huff…

Gasp…

I lifted my head.

“This is the top.”

We had reached the very top floor of this massive mansion.

On our way up, we encountered usher machines three times. Each time, Go Yeongeun asked the machines questions, but the answers were always the same.

By now, the two of them must have been wondering,

‘Why are we climbing when the machines say to go down?’

The answer lay here on this top floor.

“Ms. Goral. How many floors do you think we’ve climbed?”

“What? Well… huh?”

“……”

“Wait. If I counted correctly…”

“Six floors,” Baek Saheon said.

“This is the sixth floor, not the seventh!”

Exactly.

“But this mansion was supposed to have seven floors!”

– This historic mansion is composed of seven floors above ground… and 7,221 floors below ground.

This contradicted Braun’s explanation.

But Braun, being a ‘good friend’, wouldn’t lie.

So if everything is true…

“……”

I get it now.

“You. Did you intentionally lie about the seventh floor—”

Baek Saheon started, but I interrupted.

“Ms. Goral, do you know this?”

“Hey!”

There were many ghost stories like this—situations where what seemed logical and clear to one person becomes completely irrational for another due to cultural or environmental differences.

It’s a kind of ghost story that thrives on the unease created by these disparities.

Like when I once identified a clown painting because I understood the difference between a clown and a pierrot in that previous Darkness exploration.

“How floors are counted depends on cultural norms.”

“…Huh?”

“In countries like the U.S. or South Korea—and East Asian countries in general—floor numbering starts from the first floor.”

However…

“In other cultural contexts, it works differently.”

That explains why the stairs from the ground floor to the basement seemed unnaturally long.

It wasn’t just perception.

“They start counting from the ground floor, or ‘floor zero’.”

“……!”

The Ground Floor, as it’s often called.

“So this mansion does have seven floors above ground… from GF—or 0F—to 6F.”

I looked down the stairs.

“Now we just need to go back to 1F and ask how to find the way to 0F.”

And that’s exactly what we did.

* * *

– Please guide us to the path leading to 0F.

On the first floor—

Following the path led by the usher machine on 1F, we walked forward and, surprisingly, found a staircase of a completely different design on the opposite side of the main exhibition hall.

A massive, double-spiral staircase.

If we descended one of the spirals, we could, of course, end up in the basement exhibition hall, where the bronze glow transitions into brass—just like before.

But there was another option. We could stop midway and choose to open a massive door.

And so I opened that door.

Creak.

A grand, elegant space bathed in silver light unfolded before us.

It wasn’t an exhibition hall.

It was… the lobby.

“……!!”

A floor functioning purely as a lobby, without any exhibits, and therefore not connected to the usual staircases for exhibition halls—this was the elusive 0F.

We had finally entered this floor through its most proper passageway.

And right in front of us was a stained-glass-style glass door.

“…The main entrance.”

Though the light pouring through obscured the view of the outside, it was unmistakable.

We had found the exit at last.

“We’re saved!!”

“Haaa…”

Shouts of relief and deep sighs of exhaustion filled the lobby.

And then, cheers of joy.

“Mr. Roe Deer! Your deduction was right! It was right again! Wowww!! Let’s get out of here immediately!”

Truly. I wanted nothing more than to scream and run out in celebration.

But…

“I need to find my superiors and leave with them.”

“A-Ah!! Then… you’ll need the candle, won’t you?”

Go Yeongeun, eyeing the dwindling candle wax, quickly made a determined decision.

“…Let’s go together and get them quickly!”

“Yes. Thank you.”

Truly, thank you so much… Wandering this place alone while searching for my fellow rookies had already drained me completely.

Go Yeongeun’s choice was exactly what I expected of her character.

As for Baek Saheon, well…

His decision was no surprise either.

Without hesitation, he made a beeline for the door.

“Do as you like. I’m outta here!”

Sure, whatever.

I watched Baek Saheon with an unimpressed look.

‘I’d better observe what happens when someone uses the door—what effects it has, and how it reacts.’

But then, Baek Saheon hesitated.

“……”

“……”

And slowly stepped away from the entrance.

‘……?’

Why.

“I thought you were leaving?”

“…I’ll let someone else go first.”

Good grief.

‘It’d be easier for everyone if he just left.’

I gave him a slightly disappointed glance and turned my attention elsewhere.

– Hahaha… this is quite the amusing situation, Mr. Roe Deer!

I don’t find it amusing, but it’s comforting to know that someone does.

– So now you’re heading off to inform your remarkably ordinary superiors about the location of the exit?

Exactly.

‘Though remarkably ordinary aren’t exactly the words I’d use for them…’

How many times have I scoured this mansion by now? My legs were ready to give out, but I needed to move quickly.

– Wait a moment. Are your legs hurting, my friend?

– Oh, then it’s time for me to introduce my newest ability.

…Huh?

‘A new ability?’

– Yes! Thanks to the splendid bath you gifted me, my dear friend, I’ve rejuvenated myself. Allow me to demonstrate my strength…

– Now, take me out of your pocket.

His tone was oddly grandiose, yet carried a subtle air of gratitude.

I followed his instructions and pulled the stuffed doll from my pocket.

“Mr. Roe Deer?”

“Please wait a moment.”

– Precisely. You won’t need to wait long! A true performer is always prepared to impress… like this!

Snap!

A dull snapping sound echoed from the doll’s fingerless hands.

And then…

I felt something open within me, as if my chest and mouth had been ‘unlocked’.

A sense of resonance.

It was as though a vast space had formed within me.

[Ah.]

“……!!”

“Y-Your voice…”

I fell silent.

The vibration of my vocal cords reverberated throughout the entire lobby.

– Not bad.

– In my show, no guest needs to raise their voice. Every word will be comfortably and clearly heard by the audience and viewers.

That’s…

‘A mic?’

– Ah, what a wonderfully mainstream way to put it!

– Mr. Roe Deer, my dear friend, your words will now reach everyone clearly… as long as they’re in the same ‘studio’.

– In this case, the ‘same floor’, if you will!

Unbelievable.

He had actually become more capable.

– You flatter me.

I was amazed.

‘Though, unfortunately, this ability doesn’t seem very suitable for the current situation.’

– Pardon?

I only needed to call the superiors waiting in the terrace room. If everyone on this floor could hear me instead…

“……”

– Friend?

Wait.

Is that really a bad thing?