Chapter 7: Scissors Trio

I sighed, looking at the switches.

‘What kind of rule is there…?’

There were six switches.

Simply operating them in numerical order had no effect.

Frustrated, I decided to look around more.

On one side of the room with the switches, six desks were lined up.

On each desk, various items were scattered around, but every desk had at least one pair of scissors.

I focused on the scissors because, unlike other old items, they looked brand new.

Having a hunch, I slowly started to examine each desk one by one.

‘Are the scissors related somehow?’

Looking closely at the scissors on the desks, I saw that the number of blades varied.

Some scissors had a typical form with two blades, but some had an unusual number of blades, like four or six.

And some scissors on the desks had a strange shape with an odd number of blades.

‘Maybe I should only choose even numbers?’

Focusing on the phrase “bo-bil” on the note, I started counting the blades of the scissors.

Desk 1: 4 blades

Desk 2: 3 blades

Desk 3: 2 blades

Desk 4: 5 blades

Desk 5: 6 blades

Desk 6: 1 blade

Scissors with an even number of blades were on desks 1, 3, and 5.

I checked the switch numbers and the desk numbers again.

If ‘bo-bil’ doesn’t have another meaning, but the meaning I think it is, there’s only one answer.

‘I guess I have to operate them in the order of 3 → 1 → 5.’

Having a hunch about the answer, I strolled toward the switches.

I could feel sweat forming on my palms.

A sense of unease that another danger might arise if I failed swept over me, but this was the only way.

“Please.”

I slowly pulled switch number 3.

Click.

Nothing unusual happened.

Next, I pulled switch number 1.

Click.

The room was still quiet this time too.

Finally, I pulled switch number 5.

The switch moved, and a low mechanical sound resonated.

And a weak vibration spread through the room.

A small light bulb installed on the ceiling flickered and turned on.

I could hear the sound of electricity flowing from somewhere.

‘Is it a success?’

I hurried back to the elevator.

When I pressed the button, this time it reacted, and the light turned on.

The elevator door slowly opened.

The inside of the elevator was narrow and old.

The interior was made of metal, and instead of numbers, strange symbols were engraved on the button panel.

I randomly pressed one of the buttons.

The elevator started moving slowly, and a small vibration came up from the floor.

Gulp.

As I waited in nervousness,

after a while, the elevator stopped.

“What’s this place now…?”

The moment I stepped out of the elevator, I set foot in a new space.

It felt similar to before, with drab beige walls and cold air, but the atmosphere was somewhat different.

Looking around, I saw three rooms lined up in front of me.

The exteriors of the rooms were plain.

There were no doors, so the interiors were clearly visible, and each room had a completely different atmosphere.

I slowly moved my steps and examined the rooms one by one.

First, the room on the left.

The left room was decorated like a small garden.

The floor was covered with dark green grass, and the flower beds were full of flowers.

But the colors were somewhat dark, and the flowers were withered without vitality.

“Hmm~.”

In the middle of it, there was a woman who seemed to be a gardener.

She was bending over, holding large scissors, and trimming the flowers.

Every time the scissors cut the flowers, dry leaves fell and scattered on the ground.

I took a step closer and observed her.

Long hair covered her face, so her expression was not visible.

But her hand movements were very smooth and precise.

“A gardener?”

Her actions seemed normal, but like other things here, it felt somewhat eerie for some reason.

Next, the room in the middle.

The middle room looked like a barbershop.

A small chair was placed in the center, and various tools were arranged on the mirror and shelves.

Scissors, combs, hairdryers, and other ordinary beauty tools.

There were two women in the room.

One woman was sitting in the chair, and the other was trimming her hair with scissors.

Every time the hair fell to the floor, the sound of scissors echoed in the room.

This sound was unusually sharp and loud, echoing even outside the room.

“This is… a beauty salon or something?”

I got a little closer.

But the face of the woman sitting in the chair was not visible.

Her long hair completely covered her expression.

The woman cutting the hair had a small smile, but that smile was somewhat unnatural.

Finally, the room on the far right.

The right room looked like a stationery store.

Inside the room, there were shelves and a desk, and on the shelves, stationery items were neatly displayed.

Pencils, erasers, colored paper, and various other items were placed.

There was one woman standing in the room.

She was arranging items on the shelves and holding a pencil, quietly smiling.

“A stationery store…”

I slowly examined the interior of the room.

The room was well-organized, but it felt somewhat overly neat.

Especially, the stationery items on the shelves were all shining like new.

It seemed like an ordinary store, but the drawer where the ‘scissors’ should be was empty.

Does it have any meaning?

Anyway, she didn’t seem to see me and didn’t stop her actions.

That smile felt strange, as if she were waiting for someone.

“Hmm.”

I looked at each room one by one and stepped back again.

These three rooms all had different atmospheres, but they had a strange commonality.

All were engaged in actions related to scissors.

The gardener was trimming flowers using large scissors.

In the barbershop, a woman was cutting another woman’s hair with scissors.

In the stationery store, stationery items were neatly arranged, except for scissors.

‘Are scissors the central theme of this space…?’

Come to think of it, scissors were the keyword in the elevator too.

I scanned each room once more and fell into deep thought.

I was worrying about which room to enter or if I should look for other clues here.

“What should I do…?”

The worry was short.

I took light footsteps, strolling into the room.

Because when I thought about it, it was a very easy question.

¤

Ah.

February 1, 2025.

Day 1 in a new space.

I solved the puzzle brilliantly.

As expected of me!

The elevator creaked and guided me to a new place.

Although it was still a bleak and drab space, this time there were three rooms in front of me.

There were no doors, so the interiors were clearly visible, and each room had a completely different atmosphere.

The left room was decorated like a garden.

A woman who seemed to be a gardener was holding scissors and trimming flowers, but it felt somewhat eerie.

The middle room was a barbershop.

A woman was cutting another woman’s hair, and the sound of hair falling to the floor was too loud.

The right room was a stationery store.

Stationery items were neatly arranged, but no scissors were visible.

Which one should I go to?

I’m worrying.

Ah, I’ve decided!

What, it was a simple question after all.

Monster File: [Professional Gardener with Pruning Shears]

Form: It’s in the form of a woman with long hair covering her face.

She’s holding large, sharp pruning shears, which is scary.

She’s trimming flowers in a withering garden and seems to be completely indifferent to her surroundings.

Characteristics: The motion of cutting flowers is very smooth and precise.

She must be a professional.

I didn’t get close, but there’s a possibility that she might react if approached.

Danger: The flowers she’s trimming seem to have lost their vitality.

There’s a risk of being attacked if you get close or interfere with her work.

Let’s not disturb her.

Weakness: I don’t know.

I don’t want to get close.

¤

Monster File: [Professional Hair Stylist with Scissors]

Form: A woman trimming the hair of a woman with long hair in a hair salon.

The sound of loud snipping of scissors echoes in the room; the blades seem very sharp.

Characteristics: Always wears a small smile.

The act of cutting hair seems important; she might get angry if disturbed.

Danger: The sound of the scissors is ear-piercingly sharp.

The woman sitting in the chair seems like bait.

Just like the Pomeranian I met a while ago.

Weakness: Do I really need to know?

It’s not like she’s going to cut my hair.

¤

Monster File: [Stationery Store Clerk with No Scissors]

Form: A woman working in a stationery store full of school supplies.

She’s always pacing between neatly arranged shelves.

She has long, neat hair and porcelain-like skin, and she wears an overly perfect smile.

Characteristics: She’s always organizing stationery and smiling quietly.

At first, she seems indifferent, but when someone enters the room, she keeps staring at them, which is scary.

Danger: All the stationery items in the room could be bait.

I don’t know why there are no scissors, but I’ll have to find out more in the future.

Weakness: What would she do if I told her there are no scissors?

Well, it seems dangerous, so let’s not try it.