Rejuvenation.
It is humanity’s dream, but so far, no one has succeeded in achieving it through science. No one in reality has ever actually experienced becoming younger.
However, in this eerie world, I am experiencing it firsthand… This very rejuvenation!
…Though my height has been cut in half.
"Ah-choo."
"Hey, be careful. Kids are more sensitive to the cold."
As I pulled the blanket over myself, I momentarily fell silent, watching Agent Choi, who was smiling excitedly.
It was simply absurd.
‘This doesn't feel real.’
Me, eight years old?!
Returning to the body of an early elementary school student felt utterly bizarre.
Those old cartoon characters who instantly adapted after becoming younger were all lies.
A child’s senses were several times sharper, and strangely enough, my stamina was overflowing.
I thought my shorter reach would make me waddle awkwardly, but surprisingly, that wasn’t the case.
"It’s because of a golbin’s prank."
Agent Bronze explained it concisely.
Of course, that explanation only made sense to a veteran of the <Chronicles of Darkness Exploration>. For a newcomer, it was anything but clear.
So, I responded accordingly.
"A-A goblin's prank…?"
"Think of it as a supernatural phenomenon that deceives reality. It’s not a disaster, and it can’t be used for any evil purposes. After all, it’s just a 'prank'."
Hmm. That was a good explanation.
I glanced at the Goblin Fire flickering on my arm and recalled the explanation from <Chronicles of Darkness Exploration> that I knew.
----------------------------------
Goblin's Prank
A mysterious ability used by some agents of the Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau.
It sometimes manifests when an agent receives a mystical item related to a goblin as their designated tool.
Some of the various abilities derived from traditional goblin folklore, such as shape-shifting, hiding objects, creating illusions, and conjuring fire in midair, become infused with the agent, depending on compatibility.
—-------------------------
"As you might have guessed, the Disaster Management Bureau is quite deeply connected with goblins. So, you can assume for now that even the leader of Team Hyunmu 1 can use ‘Goblin’s Prank’."
So basically, you’re saying there’s a deeper backstory, and you’ll tell me once I’ve gained more experience. Thanks for the heads-up…
"Whoa, Jaegwan, you said too much! What do we do now? Junior, you might have to get your memory erased!"
“…….”
"Hmph. You’re not falling for it anymore."
Agent Bronze pressed his temples. Seeing a child make such a world-weary expression was truly bizarre…
"Agent Choi… You don’t have to respond when he says things unrelated to work."
"Hey! That’s too much. Fine, I’ll just stick to work-related stuff!"
Child-sized Agent Choi’s grumbling was a bit less irritating.
"Anyway, so basically, Goblin’s Prank is all about deception~ We’re not actually kids from some new country, so keep that in mind."
"Yes."
I get what you mean…
"But the senses deceive the body, and the body deceives the mind."
Agent Choi smirked and leaned forward.
Seeing an adult’s expression on a child’s face gave off a strangely eerie vibe.
At that moment, the Disaster Management Bureau’s vehicle transporting us came to a stop.
"While in this form, your emotions will be strangely uncontrollable, your stamina will overflow, but your strength will weaken."
Because we’re kids.
"That’s why we work in pairs. If your partner also turns into a child, your adult self instinctively kicks in to take care of them."
“…….”
I see.
"A prank is just a prank, so be careful not to get swallowed up by it!"
"Yes…! I’ll keep that in mind."
"Oh wow, our rookie responds so well."
At that moment, the Disaster Management Bureau’s vehicle transporting us came to a stop.
Ah, because of our current physical conditions, riding a bicycle was difficult, so this time, a van was used to transport us.
Besides, our destination was quite far.
"We’ve arrived."
Thud.
As the door opened, what appeared before us was…
Swooosh…
The seaside.
On this chilly early spring day, the seaside, untouched by sunlight, exuded an eerie yet majestic atmosphere.
If someone were to say that children had mysteriously disappeared from this place, anyone would nod in understanding….
"Not there. This way."
“…?!”
Following Agent Choi’s gesture, I turned my head.
It was… an old, massive seafood restaurant.
‘My God.’
A giant neon sign of a tail-flipping amberjack fish flickered. It was incredibly avant-garde.
However, there was a notice posted on the glass door.
[Closed Today]
But the three children approached the restaurant’s door and placed their hands on the handle.
"From now on, we’re heading to the Dragon Palace."
----------------------------------
Entry Location.
A children's playroom attached to large seafood-handling restaurants such as fish markets or sushi restaurants.
At this time, the playroom must have a floor area of over 49㎡ and contain a red cylindrical slide.
Additionally, there must be visible illustrations related to an underwater kingdom on the walls.
(When murals in such playrooms were changed, distorted yet similar sea-themed paintings began appearing irregularly. It is assumed that complete entry blockage is impossible.)
"Confirmed."
"Good."
Agent Bronze pushed the toys aside with his now shorter arms, revealing the printed poster wallpaper beneath.
A mermaid and smiling fish, with coral, shells, and a small conch-shaped castle in the background.
And beside them, a red slide resembling a playground ride and a ball pit.
"Wow, nostalgic. These places never disappear, huh? Is it because there’s always demand?"
"Enough chit-chat, let’s get ready."
"Yes sir."
Even this argument sounded somewhat endearing when spoken in a child’s voice.
"Junior, you read the manual, right?"
"…Yes."
"Alright. Let’s do this."
I stood at the entrance of the red slide, following the other children.
Entry Method.
With eyes closed, crawl up the slide from the bottom.
At this moment, you must strongly focus on the desire to enter the underwater kingdom depicted on the wallpaper.
Possessing related items (such as a seashell) increases the probability of success.
And then, recite the incantation.
"Sparkling Dragon Palace, we’ve moved into Dragon Palace."
With eyes still closed, enter the smooth and cold black hole of the slide.
This incantation appears irregularly as graffiti on the walls or floors of playrooms that meet the entry conditions.
Sometimes, it is detailed in illustrations on the appendix pages of comic books found in the playroom, under the title ‘How to Go to the Sparkling Dragon Palace.’
"Sparkling Dragon Palace, we’ve moved into Dragon Palace."
I keep climbing upward.
From the front and back, clear and high-pitched children's voices echo my incantation.
A strange feeling.
It’s dark.
I keep chanting the incantation.
"Sparkling Dragon Palace, we’ve moved into Dragon Palace…."
The slide doesn’t end.
Instead, the incline grows steeper and steeper, until eventually, I have to climb as if clinging onto the slide.
I hear the children panting. It feels like I might cry, but I hold it in.
If the slope becomes dangerously steeper, it means the entry ritual has succeeded.
There is no record of what happens if one fails to hold on and slips back.
How much time has passed?
Eventually, I find myself in a state as if clinging to the edge of a cliff.
"Sparkling Dragon Palace…!!"
I suddenly plummet forward.
"Ack!"
Like tumbling off a cliff, like a roller coaster dropping from its peak.
My small body tumbles downward.
"Hik!"
Finally, unable to hold back, my child’s body lets out a scream as my eyes fly open.
A fantastic landscape unfolds before me.
“…!!”
A city one could only see in dreams.
A place where golden lights shimmer, a vast expanse of blue sky where aurora-like waves ripple in the air.
No, it’s not the sky—it’s the blue ocean.
Beneath the dazzling, rippling sea, golden pipes and ivory-bricked houses lined up to form an elegant and radiant street straight out of a fairy tale.
Glittering coral reefs, colorful banners and decorations. Golden speakers, delicate flowers, and wave-patterned metal ornaments shimmered on every streetlight.
And up above, a beautiful, multicolored palace adorned with pearls and gold.
"Ah…!"
Before I knew it, I was no longer falling.
I was floating, gently descending as if drifting above the clouds in a dream.
Toward the beautiful golden town.
Drifting.
The two children who came with me were descending beside me.
As we got closer to the city center, a banner in front of a white fountain shimmered in gold, blue, and red as it fluttered.
To Sparkling Dragon Palace
Welcoming the newly arrived children
Welcome!
And then.
"A new friend!"
"Wow, another one came!"
More than twenty children came rushing down the beautiful avenue from beneath the banner.
Every single one of them was beaming with wide smiles.
With neat and pretty hair and clothes, the children dressed like fairy-tale princes and princesses, as if they were the stars of a birthday party.
"Three of them came?"
"I like this one!"
“…!”
Agent Bronze flinched when his arm was grabbed, but the child holding him only burst into laughter.
Laughter and sparkling euphoria overflowed.
"Where… is this place?"
"This is Sparkling Dragon Palace! It’s really, really fun! It’s really great!"
The child who had been chattering to me smiled and started leading the
way.
As if they had nothing to worry about, like children sent to a paradise-like place by their parents to make new friends and have fun.
But….
“…….”
These children… are all missing persons.
All living beings confirmed within this supernatural disaster are presumed to be missing children.
The age range confirmed is from 5 to 11 years old, and most express deep euphoria and satisfaction.
"Ahahaha!"
The children burst into laughter and led us running down the avenue, trying to bring us straight to the palace.
Yet, like children, they kept getting distracted by their surroundings.
"Look at this, look!"
All around the street, mechanical dolls adorned with gears moved on their own.
Golden signboards hung above their heads.
Children
Come and get your honey!
Near the belly of a colorful toy soldier statue with a comical expression, there was a water fountain, and when the faucet was turned, real honey poured out.
"If you carefully collect it in a bottle, the Mermaid Princess will give you a gift!"
If placed in front of the white ivory Mermaid Princess statue at the palace entrance, the pedestal would open and spill out wonderful toys, clothes, fairy tale books—things the children had always wanted.
"Waaaah!"
The children cheered and laughed.
"Here, I’ll give this to you."
"…Thanks."
I received a pair of fancy-looking shoes from a younger-looking child wearing a blue dress.
There is a strong theory that the legend of Dragon Palace, originally a folktale of missing children near the sea, has manifested as a supernatural disaster.
“…….”
I deliberately grabbed the child and spoke softly, as if uneasy.
"Hey, I need to go meet my mom now…."
"Mom? She’ll come pick you up! Just stay here and play!"
“…….”
"You know, my mom is really amazing! She’s great at sewing, and when she comes, I’ll show her only to you."
Then, with a slightly shy giggle, the child ran off into the street.
“…….”
……Probably.
That child… will never be able to show me their mom.
“ – Once you go in, you’ll feel like you can take all the kids out immediately. But don’t get caught up in it, okay?”
I clenched my teeth.
“ – If you bring them out the wrong way, they’ll die.”
Long-term missing children (over 1000 days) in ‘Sparkling Dragon Palace’ will turn into sea foam the moment they return to reality.
Before rescue, make sure to verify their disappearance date.
But apparently, this is insanely difficult.
“ – …Every time we enter, the children we meet change. And yet, we’ve seen proof of kids who weren’t here last year but have apparently been here for over three years.”
“ – Still, we can be affected by this supernatural phenomenon just like the children, so staying too long here is dangerous.”
Agent Choi, the leader of this mission, had declared.
“ – Two days.”
“ – ……”
“ – We stay exactly two days here, and we leave on the third day. Got it? …Honestly, we could stay a bit longer, but the Bureau said otherwise….”
“ – Agent.”
“ – Yeah! That’s why it’s two days.”
So from now, Team Hyunmu 1 and I, the three of us, must find a child who has been missing for less than three years in reality and take them out.
…Only that child.
“…….”
This won’t do. Maybe because I’m in a child’s body, I’m getting shaken too easily.
"Calm down…."
I took a deep breath and started moving.
To meet as many children as possible within the given time in my assigned area and hear their stories.
And I can confidently say I did my best for two days.
I spoke with each of the children who greeted us and even managed to find the dormitory where the ones who didn’t come out were staying.
But….
"…This regular rescue operation ends here."
“…….”
“…….”
…For two days, we couldn’t find a single child who met the conditions.
Not a single one.
"Let’s return."
I lowered my head.
“…….”
…There are things in this world that don’t work out no matter how hard you try.
‘This was an unknown ghost story.’
Since this was a ghost story I had never seen in the <Chronicles of Darkness Exploration>, I had no special method of my own.
Following the Bureau’s rules and my superior’s plan was the safest and most reasonable course of action.
‘Besides, standing out too much is dangerous for me anyway.’
So right now, this is just….
"No!"
……
…?!
Wait.
D-Did I just say that out loud?
"I refuse! Let’s keep looking!"
…That was definitely me speaking!
"……T-That’s…"
What’s even more frustrating is that even my superiors are starting to look troubled.
…Because I’m in a child’s body!
