"Is this the second time you've been to this world?"

"The first time was when I brought the first and second Mecha Maknae after the housewarming, so yeah, this is the second time. Except for Olivia."

"…Why am I always left out? Are you discriminating against me because I’m Task Force Laser?"

"You should've convinced Carmen, the operation leader, and pushed for a joint mission with Dagger. Our cute little Maknae is one of a kind in the world."

Inside the unmanned Disney bus, instead of the supercar I had brought earlier, were LorenTina, Logan, and Olivia, the New York-version acquaintances. They were all in a lighthearted mood as they playfully fussed over my cheek and tail. Of course, today’s trip to Disney World involved these New Yorkers.

To put it simply, the agreement that had gone smoothly last night could be summed up as a "switch." The three of us, who had been touring the EPCOT virtual reality studio until yesterday, had headed to New York, and in exchange, the three from New York arrived here.

It was a sophisticated yet sly swap. Naturally, the chance of the viewers noticing was next to zero. If there were a slip of the tongue, they might feel something was off, but if we couldn’t even watch out for such things, we wouldn’t be able to say we belonged to a special forces unit.

But what I was really concerned about wasn’t that.

"I’m not sure if it was the right decision to leave the Mecha Maknae behind in that world."

"So, I gave Jin, Rain, and Mav their own quests. They’ve got the task of introducing HQ, so they’ll probably be babbling excitedly all day about what they know. It’s kind of a self-directed learning thing."

"You do realize that calling it a 'quest' and 'self-directed learning' doesn’t even match, right, Maknae?"

"Eh."

The Mecha Maknae, after a day full of experiences yesterday, had thrown a bit of a tantrum last night, begging us not to abandon them. However, as I just mentioned, the solution was surprisingly simple.

The "very reliable Mecha Maknae" was the key phrase that caught the attention of Jin, Rain, and Mav. After that, things went quickly. They shouted, "Trust us!" without needing further words and started preparing a script and presentation, promising to give a Central Park tour tomorrow.

"Should I tell them that the Mecha Biams inherited the original memories of the New York versions? Or should I leave that out?"

In other words, the Mecha Biamz didn’t need to do the presentation. But, well, what could we do? They had nothing else to do there, and the trio in this world seemed delighted with the cute Mecha Yujins.

The post-apocalyptic world they came from was far from the Disneyland experience here. The bears, sharks, and owls in that world didn’t realize yet that their only form of entertainment would be messing around with the Mecha Yujins.

At any rate, the Mecha Biamz had to be left behind. Plus, if the three of them were added to the sightseeing tour, the boat would sink immediately.

"By the way, when are you going to turn on that stream or whatever, Maknae?"

"Well, I’m thinking maybe during the boat tour… Are you interested in the broadcast?"

"I don’t think so. I’m just curious about why people recognized me so much when I briefly wandered around Seoul last time. What kind of mess did I make in my stream?"

"Ah."

Yeah, Shark had definitely caused quite a stir.

Explaining everything about that would probably require an entire "Shark Tour" instead of just this VIP tour, and I would likely have to play the guide. So, I just vaguely brushed over it and pulled back the curtain to show the view of Disney World in the distance to everyone.

They all had expressions of nostalgia, a sentiment I recognized from the time they saw Seoul from my balcony. It was that feeling of wondering when they would ever regain their former glory.

I knew exactly what they were thinking since I was aware of what happened to the theme parks in the U.S.

"Yeah, that’s how it used to be."

"What happened to that place? I can’t remember. I wonder if they’ll ever restore it."

"It turned into a town full of solidified molten iron and craters... Well, they’ll probably figure something out. I imagine Walt Disney would shed tears and bow to us if Disney World were rebuilt from the remains of the Russian army’s corpses."

"I don’t know. I think he might cry blood, though."

Even if Walt Disney, resurrected through blood tears and necromancy, came back, there wouldn’t be much he could do. Thanks to the anti-matter exorcism, he’d likely disintegrate back to atomic particles.

As those foolish thoughts crossed my mind, the bus began to slow down, and everyone, except me, took a deep breath. The air seemed to have a faint sweet smell—Disney World’s signature scent.

At the same time, two figures... no, two entities approached us. I recognized them from somewhere. Specifically, they looked like the robots from that post-apocalyptic world, quietly collecting trash to dispose of it.

One of the robots, rolling on tracks, came to stand in front of us, and the other floated towards us using an internal propeller, not quite like the anti-gravity movement in the movie.

"Welcome to the VIP tour! This is W, and over there is E."

"We decided to go with the most straightforward appearance for your tour. We thought having you guided by a prince or princess would be a bit... unrealistic. Hope you like it."

"Haha, it’s cute enough. I enjoyed WALL-E. The reproduction rate is impressive."

"...Remote-controlled robots. This might actually be better. It looks more fun than I expected."

I nodded.

Well, as the guide said, if Disney World had greeted us with the typical prince, princess, or trademark mouse characters, it might have been a bit much. We weren’t exactly in a mindset to appreciate that kind of childhood dream anymore.

If a prince or princess had shown up in full tactical gear, we’d have laughed, but that would only work in a world where Walt Disney focused on military expos rather than preserving children’s dreams.

As the water taxi headed towards the Contemporary Hotel, the tour guide kept talking about the history of Disney World, leading to a conversation that started to drift a little awkwardly.

"The sniper competition we just had was very impressive. Although I’m not an expert in creating dreams and hopes for tourists, it was really... cool. I’d love to hear about the work you normally do and what happened in this competition."

It seemed like the guide's role had unexpectedly flipped.

"Ah, I didn’t say it to the others, but one of our protocols is to make sure the tourists don’t get bored on the tour."

E, who had come closer, added in a whisper:

"Actually, we’re not that interested in Disney itself. We’re more here for those who came for rest and tourism. If you’re curious about Disney World, feel free to ask us. That’s the reason we’re here."

I understood. It was clear that the New York acquaintances hadn’t realized they’d swapped places with the originals yet, and they assumed we were the ones who had participated in the competition.

As we were nearing the boat, everyone seemed to relax, and I decided to let them ask whatever they wanted.

"Well, then, where should we start?"

As if calling a grandchild, all eyes were now focused on me.

It was time to tell the most amazing stories.

"So, the next stop, where was it? Originally, this place used to be an art museum, but now it’s being used as a facility to manage a first-class war criminal detention center. And over there, that reservoir-like place is used for underwater operation training. After basic training there, they do explosion practice on the Hudson River…”

"…"

Were they always this loud?

Logan’s group, who expected a light walk, was having their expectations thoroughly shattered.

As the VIP tour continued, the group started to lighten up a bit, gradually relaxing and shedding the intense pressure. It seemed like the way we carried ourselves in the world made the whole group feel a little tense, especially as we started walking down the parade road.

"Wait a second. If we go through this path…"

We turned right, cutting through a long line and passing a parade road.

"Wait, did WALL-E and EVE just—?"

"Wow, is this a pre-parade?!"

"Wave your hands!"

"Mom, there's a car!"

As we walked down the path, it was clear that we had unintentionally become part of the pre-parade itself. The crowd cheered as we passed, and I had to laugh at the irony.

"Well, this wasn't what I planned."

At that moment, the tour guides chuckled, continuing their presentation despite the situation. We were now moving through the crowds, and it was clear that some excitement had built up.

As we passed through the area, the guide shared some interesting details about the Cinderella Castle. It was not just a decorative piece—inside, it was actually a hotel, but not just any hotel. Only a select few—either those who made massive investments in Disney or individuals of great importance—could stay there.

"Actually, earlier this year, Disney tried to reach out to you, Eugene, for a collaboration, but there was no response, so it didn’t happen. Have you changed your mind since then?"

"…It wasn’t that I changed my mind, it’s just that earlier this year, I was pretty busy."

Well, how could I resist working on the Western US recovery strategy? But this year, I didn’t have anything particularly urgent planned, so who knows, maybe I’d end up staying at Cinderella's castle after all. But, honestly, I wasn’t particularly eager about it.

As we made our way towards the castle, I couldn't help but reminisce. The surroundings were crowded with people, but it wasn’t due to our group. Looking at the wide parade road ahead, I realized something.

"Wait, isn’t this the parade route?"

The parade seemed to be approaching us, and we all reacted to the sudden shift in attention. The crowds were cheering and waving, and it became clear that we had unintentionally become the star attraction of the pre-parade.

This wasn’t what I had planned at all, but it certainly made the experience unique.