WETRIED TRANSLATIONS

The Legendary Newbie of the Ghost Story Labyrinth

[Translator – Aren]

Chapter 46 - Backrooms within a Dream (2)

A little while later, when Park Minho arrived, Director Yoon greeted him with the smile of a warm, amiable man.

"Welcome, Park Minho-nim.”

"Are you Director Yoon?”

"Yes, that’s right. I’ll be assisting with your Awakening process today.”

"...I’ll be in your care."

Seeing Park Minho’s somewhat nervous expression, Director Yoon assured him that there was nothing to worry about.”

"You only need to lie down and relax."

"Understood.”

Director Yoon turned and issued instructions to the staff around him.

"Perform another inspection for any anomalous objects.”

Soon one of the nearby personnel brought over something resembling the metal detector used at airports and scanned Park Minho.

"There’s nothing, Director."

"Understood."

Director Yoon explained in case Park Minho found the process suspicious.

“It’s the same principle as removing necklaces or rings before an MRI."

“Ah, I see."

With the help of the staff, Director Yoon busily finished preparing everything before ordering everyone out of the procedure room.

"Wait outside. I can handle the Awakening Support Device alone from here.”

"Understood."

The staff filed out all at once. But at that moment, one of them quietly slipped something into Park Minho’s hand while Director Yoon’s attention was focused on operating the control panel.

Park Minho accepted it and calmly lay there as though nothing had happened.

“Now then, let us begin. During the procedure, you’ll enter a state similar to sleep. But there’s no need to worry. When you wake up, you’ll be a fully fledged Awakened.”

Soon the Awakening Support Device began operating.

-Huuuum.

Under the machine’s effects, Park Minho’s eyes gradually closed as if it had become impossible for him to resist this overwhelming drowsiness.

But Park Minho wasn't the only one who fell asleep. Director Yoon, the one responsible for the procedure, also closed his eyes and stepped into the world beyond consciousness.

* * *

The irritating smell of disinfectant filled the air.

Feeling a chill, Park Minho slowly lifted his eyelids. A concrete ceiling came into his view.

As he sat up, he realized he was wearing unfamiliar clothing. A stiff, rough-textured patient gown. On the front was the number ‘704,’ making it look almost like a prisoner’s ID number.

"Hm......"

Park Minho looked around. The room contained nothing but a narrow vertical window, a tiny metal sink and toilet, and the iron bed he’d been lying on.

It was, quite literally, the perfect image of the most nightmare-inducing psychiatric hospital room. Honestly, mistaking it for a prison wouldn’t have been strange at all.

'Just like Professor Kim explained.'

This wasn't reality. It was the Psychiatric Hospital Backroom, manifested inside a dream. The strange thing was that time flowed differently here than in the real world.

Park Minho immediately tried putting on the Hanged King’s noose.

However, nothing happened. That alone was enough proof that this place truly was inside a dream.

Park Minho soon noticed a set of patient rules posted on the wall.

[Bright Mind Psychiatric Hospital Patient Rules]

1. You must swallow all medication provided. If you are caught pretending to swallow it or spitting it out, your prescription will be doubled.

2. The director of this hospital can cure your sick mind with a 100% guarantee.

3. Absolutely cooperate with the instructions of nurses and doctors.

4. This hospital prioritizes the complete recovery of patients above all else. Complaints may be submitted if you are dissatisfied with a diagnosis or treatment.

5. Recovery certification absolutely requires the patient’s consent and signature.

Park Minho read the rules carefully, over and over again. After all, he had willingly entered the tiger’s den to catch a tiger.

The problem was that Director Yoon held an overwhelmingly advantageous position within this dream Backroom.

Because the role of hospital director was played by none other than Director Yoon himself. Meanwhile, the victims he abducted into the dream Backroom were mere patients.

Through this roleplay, Director Yoon possessed the power to wear down a victim’s mind and brainwash them according to his desires, all under the pretense of mental treatment.

'But I’ll be different.'

Director Yoon definitely had the advantage, but even he still existed within the rules of the Backrooms.

-Knock, knock.

A knocking sound echoed before the iron hospital room door creaked open. Then a clear voice spoke up.

"Patient 704. Are you awake?”

Park Minho’s gaze immediately turned cold. The one entering through the doorway was an entity wearing a nurse uniform.

Although it resembled a human, its form was grotesque. Its eyes, nose, and mouth looked crushed and flattened, skin like severe burns covering its face. Only a torn slit where the mouth should have been forcefully formed a crescent-shaped smile.

Yet despite its horrifying appearance, its voice was chillingly gentle.

"Nice to meet you. I’m the nurse assigned to Patient 704. This facility is the cradle of Bright Minds, where sick hearts are healed. I’ll explain the procedures going forward.”

The nurse entity twisted its neck a grotesque 90° before continuing.

"The treatment process is simple. Before going to sleep each night, you’ll take the medicine I provide. Then when you wake up in the morning, you’ll attend a consultation with your assigned doctor. As you receive treatment daily and your symptoms improve, you’ll eventually meet the director for your recovery evaluation.”

Park Minho knew exactly what recovery evaluation meant.

The final stage of perfectly brainwashing him into Director Yoon’s puppet by restructuring his subconscious mind trapped inside the dream. If Park Minho wanted to win this fight, he had to overturn that recovery process.

"Now then, your first pill.”

It was a green pill no larger than a fingernail. At first glance, it looked no different from ordinary medication prescribed at psychiatric clinics. But for some reason it felt revolting, as if there were bugs writhing inside it.

"Take it."

The nurse stepped closer. Its gentle voice carried an undeniable pressure underneath.

"And just so you know, pretending to swallow it and hiding it under your tongue won’t work. I’ll be watching until you completely swallow it.”

"......."

“If you cooperate with treatment and show signs of improvement, I’ll designate you as a model patient and give you some special privileges.”

According to Professor Kim, that pill had a strange effect. I gradually made a person see their situation more positively while causing them to slowly forget about their real self outside the dream.

It was the groundwork for brainwashing. But there was no way for him to refuse this.

Park Minho placed the green pill in his mouth and drank some water.

-Gulp, gulp.

Park Minho felt something unpleasant slide down his throat as his Adam’s apple bobbed. The nurse entity leaned its face in close, staring until it confirmed he had swallowed it, only then did it nod in satisfaction.

"Very good! You’re a wonderfully cooperative patient. Then, have a pleasant night.”

-Creeeak, bang!

The heavy iron door slammed shut with a dull sound. Park Minho walked over and twisted the handle, but it wouldn’t budge. It was tightly locked.

At this point, this place was basically a prison.

"Fuck..."

He had known what he was walking into, but it still felt awful. Still, he ended up sitting down on the iron bed. The medicine was already taking effect. His vision was spinning.

-Eeeeeeee.

A ringing noise filled his ears, like countless insects buzzing around his head. At the same time, some of his caution toward Director Yoon strangely subsided.

Then the room lights shut off forcibly, and drowsiness crashed over him. Park Minho fell asleep inside a dream.

Everything appeared to be progressing exactly as Director Yoon intended. But there was one thing he had failed to account for.

It was Mark Minho’s anomalous trait, ‘Short Sleep.’ It doubled sleep efficiency, enhancing mental recovery and information processing during sleep. 

Naturally, that effect also dragged the pill into its influence, cutting its effects in half.

"......"

How much time had passed? The old fluorescent lights on the ceiling flickered back on, illuminating the room.

Park Minho suddenly opened his eyes and examined himself. Something felt strange.

The disgusting scent of disinfectants that had pierced his nose yesterday now somehow felt calming. And the cramped room felt warm, almost like a cradle. The iron door felt like a shield protecting him from the outside world.

'If I stay here, I can be cured…'

When that thought suddenly crossed his mind, Park Minho immediately slapped himself hard across the face.

-Smack—!

Even though ‘Short Sleep’ had reduced the medication’s effectiveness by half, it was already affecting him. He repeatedly reminded himself that this place was a disgusting hellhole. that this was a dream Backroom.

Yet even while doing that, nauseating whispers echoed inside his head: ‘I’m a patient. This is my true reality. I must be grateful to the Director.’

But this much was still within his expectations.

'I can endure this.’

He reached into the pocket of his patient uniform. Inside, the item the staff member had secretly handed to him before falling asleep was still there.

* * *

After that, the same day repeated endlessly.

Before sleeping, he took pulls under the nurse’s supervision. After waking, he attended consultations with a doctor.

The doctor, much like the nurse, was another grotesque entity.

Yet unlike its appearance, it spoke with calm wisdom and carefully offered treatment advice.

“Your progress is excellent. Please remember to continue taking your medication.”

-Gulp.

When night came, he was forced to take the pills.

Honestly, for the first few days, Park Minho could handle it. Because of ‘Short Sleep,’ intense mental detoxification occurred while he slept.

During hazy moments, he’d forget reality and believe this was his true world, even forgetting the real Park Minho, but later he’d regain his senses.

However, five days passed, and then a whole week, which was when things started changing.

The pill’s effects gradually became stronger.

“Patient 704, how are you feeling today?”

During the consultation, the doctor asked his usual question, and Park Minho answered as if it were only natural.

"I feel at peace. Thanks to the Director’s grace, the anger inside me is calming down.”

Even after saying it, Park Minho was startled inside. He was still barely holding onto his sanity, but things had started becoming muddled.

'Why was I angry at Director Yoon again…?'

'More importantly, who was Director Yoon?'

‘I’m tired. I should quickly take my medicine and sleep.'

At the same time, he was still desperately struggling to keep hold of his senses. The contradiction made Park Minho feel as though he had developed a split personality.

However, there had been a reward for causing no trouble and diligently taking his medication.

"Patient 704 has now officially become a model patient. You may spend your evenings in the recreation room, and a pen and notebook will also be provided in your room.”

Park Minho nodded at the nurse’s announcement.

“Thank you.”

That was a huge relief. It had been getting harder and harder to endure. Honestly, if becoming a model patient had taken any longer, he might have given up on targeting Director Yoon altogether and activated the emergency escape plan he had prepared beforehand.

"Whew…I need to keep myself together. No, what exactly was I trying to hold onto again?”

In the end, Park Minho repeatedly stabbed his own thigh with the pen.

-Stab! Stab! Stab!

Only after finally drawing blood did his mind clear again. Then he headed toward the recreation room.

When he opened the door, around a dozen patients were inside, but the room remained eerily silent.

"Uh..."

They stared blankly into empty space with unfocused eyes or leaned against walls with foolish grins stretched across their faces.

"Hehe…our Director…The great Director Yoon……”

One patient was chewing frantically on their fingernails. They weren’t just nibbling on them, they were actively tearing the nails out with their teeth. Blood dripped onto their patient uniforms, yet they didn’t seem to care.

“Resistance and suspicion…have to be pulled out……! Director taught us…!”

If Park Minho failed inside this Psychiatric Hospital Backroom, he would likely become one of them.

'How horrifying.'

But he hadn’t come here to meet the patients.

He had come for the complaint forms stacked in a corner.

According to the Psychiatric Hospital Backroom rules, they existed, though nobody ever used them.

After taking one, he returned to his room and started writing down necessary details in the notebook.

'According to Professor Kim… Nurses inspect these notebooks.'

The nurses checked what patients wrote whenever they attended consultations with doctors. Meaning anything he wrote had to remain understandable only to himself.

Park Minho scribbled several things down.

-Be sure to check the notebook before recovery evaluation.

After thinking deeply, he continued.

-Now I’m gradually coming to deeply understand the director’s teachings.

-Obviously I can feel my delusions and anxiety disappearing.

-Slowly I feel my mind becoming calmer and cleaner.

-I now realize all the problems I carried were caused by illness.

-Gratefully, I shall accept the hospital’s treatment from the very depths of my heart.

-Naturally, I wish to continue to follow the director’s guidance.

And then the next morning…

The nurse visiting his room delivered unexpected news.

“Patient 704, thank you for operating with treatment all this time. Today is your recovery evaluation day. You’ll be having a consultation with Director Yoon.”

"...Understood."

Park Minho answered blankly. Then, following the nurse, he entered the director’s office for the first time.

"Director, I brought the patient.”

"Come in."

The inside was completely different from every place Park Minho had seen in the hospital until now.

A warm, cozy atmosphere filled the room. Gentle sunlight streamed through the windows. Even the scent of fragrant tea drifted through the air.

And in the middle of it all sat a man behind a large desk. Park Minho stared blankly at the luxurious nameplate sitting on top of it.

[Bright Mind Psychiatric Hospital - Director Yoon Tae-Oh]

Director Yoon, who had been busily reviewing documents, raised his head and smiled warmly.

"Welcome, Patient 704. Today is a happy day. I believe I can finally declare you officially cured.”

"Ah, yes......”

For some reason Park Minho felt that everything Director Yoon said sounded incredibly trustworthy.

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