Translator: Nox

Chapter 23

Even if You Fall into a Ghost Story, You Still Have to Go to Work

Even if You Fall into a Ghost Story, You Still Have to Go to Work Chapter 23

Even if You Fall into a Ghost Story, You Still Have to Go to Work Chapter 023

After a long and arduous escape from the territory of the crazed Red Mascot, I finally arrived at the Blue Zone.

There, I met the welcome members of Team D… and saw the body of the Team A Leader dangling over the shoulder of the lizard-masked Section Chief.

“…….”

I managed to squeeze out a question.

“Um, that corpse on your shoulder, Team Leader…”

“Ah, he just fainted.”

Aha.

So he was just moving him safely. I was just beginning to feel a sense of relief and camaraderie again when—

The Team D Deputy gestured with his thumb toward a giant tube he and the Assistant Manager were dragging.

“The corpse is in here.”

“…….”

I never thought I’d see the day where a corpse was stuffed into a tube and dragged around like luggage….

“We wrapped it up well, but since some of it was in pieces…”

Please, don’t describe it.

“No, seriously, it was horrific. Wow…”

“Roe Deer, be careful. The mascot here acts like some kind of avatar of justice.”

“Pardon?”

The explanation followed.

The mascot here extremely disliked acts of killing between teammates.

“But that Deputy from Team A, the one in the praying mantis mask, decided to mess around in the name of ‘experimentation.’”

While riding the first attraction, he had giggled as he pushed the Team Y employees into death traps one by one.

Undo your seatbelt. Stand up. Sing along to the song. Do a handstand and get down onto the tracks….

“Three from Team Y died like that. The last employee begged him in tears, but he didn’t even blink… It was pretty disgusting.”

“…….”

It seemed the companions weren’t the only ones who felt that way.

The Team D Deputy frowned.

“When we got off the attraction, the mascot was waiting right there for the praying mantis. It called him a ‘bad child.’ And then…”

Description omitted for the sake of my mental health.

“I thought I was going to throw up.”

“…….”

“Well, honestly, he got what he deserved! …Even if the Section Chief didn’t agree.”

The Assistant Manager glanced toward the Team A Leader hanging over the lizard-masked Section Chief’s shoulder.

“Speaking of which, why exactly did he faint?”

“That… our Team Leader, uh,”

“…….”

Wait, just a second.

No way.

“Actually, he made a bit of an unreasonable demand of us back then. I think he was trying to save his team member somehow.”

And when that got out of hand….

“Our Team Leader just gave him a chop to the back of the neck.”

“…….”

“Hey. We’re going to get our stories straight and say he collapsed on his own because his blood pressure spiked, so you keep your mouth shut too, Roe Deer.”

“Yes, sir.”

I’ll take it to my grave.

“Ah, and about why the Team Y employees are treated like that…”

“I’ve heard the gist of it. From him.”

I gestured slightly toward the Deputy wearing the butterfly mask.

“…Really? Okay.”

The Assistant Manager’s expression softened slightly. It seemed he was glad to skip a topic dark enough to be uncomfortable to voice himself.

“By the way, is your team okay?”

Ah.

I hurriedly checked the Cow Mask with the pierced shoulder and the Butterfly Mask with the blisters on his face.

“There are people who need first aid. Could we possibly get some help?”

“Yes.”

Suddenly, Section Chief Lee Jaheon dropped the luggage—the Team A Leader—onto the floor with a thud.

Then he started shaking his shoulders.

“W-Wait a moment, Team Leader!”

“Ugh, argh!”

“…?!”

Section Chief Lee Jaheon, having shaken the Team A Leader awake, spoke with a nonchalant face.

“Section Chief Seok. We have employees who need treatment.”

“Wh-What…”

The Team A Leader, who had a dazed expression, suddenly snapped to his senses and pointed a finger at Section Chief Lee Jaheon.

“You!! You!”

“Yes.”

“What happened to Deputy Lee! The one in the praying mantis mask…”

“He is deceased.”

“…….”

“…….”

“…And what were you doing while he died?”

“We waited until he died, collected the body, and then rode the next attraction.”

My god.

The Team A Leader looked momentarily speechless, then finally managed to stammer out a response.

“Y-You just watched a member of my Team A die?? Lee Jaheon, are you in your right mind?? How are you going to take responsibility for this! This loss…!”

“? I am the Team Leader of Team D. Team A is not under my jurisdiction.”

The lizard’s pupils narrowed as if puzzled.

“The loss caused by the death of Deputy Lee Seok-jong of Team A is your responsibility as his Team Leader.”

“…….”

To actually see someone say such things in a corporate setting.

Even if they held the same rank, an elite team leader would normally be considered a superior.

I felt a chill down my spine for a slightly different reason.

“…….”

The Team A Leader stared silently at Section Chief Lee Jaheon with bloodshot eyes.

“You, who were unconscious, also boarded all three attractions with us and met the clear conditions. Now, treat the employees and take responsibility…”

“Team Leader.”

That wasn’t the sound of someone stopping Section Chief Lee Jaheon.

It was the butterfly-masked Deputy calmly addressing the Team A Leader, who was on the verge of losing his mind.

“Wouldn’t it be better to talk after we get out? Let’s clear this before more variables appear. You have to meet the people from that crazy Research Team 1 too.”

“…Right. You’re right.”

The eyes inside the mallard duck mask blinked and slowly settled.

It seemed the primary target of his anger had been reset.

However, he did leave one final word.

“Team Leader Lee Jaheon, we’ll talk once we’re out.”

“Yes.”

The Assistant Manager whispered to me on the side.

“It’s okay. Our Team Leader hearing lines like that is an annual event.”

“…….”

Is it… really okay?

One thing’s for sure: I’m not at a level where I should get involved in this.

I decided to keep my mouth shut and stay out of sight.

In any case, the Team A Leader used his dedicated equipment to treat the butterfly-masked Deputy.

It was marvelous to see the skin around his jaw and head regenerate as if being rewound.

“There are very few employees with dedicated equipment like that. I’m jealous.”

Me too.

Is there any way to get something like that?

Survival rates would likely skyrocket with an item like that.

I watched the Team A Leader’s dedicated equipment, the Healing Ring, quite intently.

Healing… huh.

After confirming that the butterfly-masked employee was treated quite cleanly, the Team A Leader tried to pass by without even considering the Team Y employee with holes in his shoulder, but….

“Could you perhaps treat this one as well? We have to move together, and I’m worried his mobility might drop.”

“…!”

Surprisingly, the Team A Deputy had subtly nudged for the treatment of me and the Team Y newbie.

Thanks to that, the Team Y newbie, whose shoulder had healed in an instant, blinked his eyes under the cow mask.

“…Thank you.”

The Team A Deputy gave a slight nod.

Is he the type who moves strictly based on work efficiency…

Once the mechanism of this ghost story was understood and the safety and escape methods were secured, his decision-making process had shifted toward minimizing risk.

Is that the type that becomes an elite in this company…

I made up my mind to keep an eye on Team A’s equipment and traits and remember them. …And while I was at it, it would be nice if I could forget about the corpses in the tube.

“Now then, let’s ride the two attractions we took and get out of here quickly.”

“Ah, thank you.”

As soon as the treatment process was finished, the Red Team moved toward the attractions to fill the remaining slots on their boarding pass bracelets.

The others didn’t leave and followed along.

“It’ll be over in exactly thirty minutes, so don’t worry.”

It seemed they were waiting to check the situation and look after the newbie.

I was grateful, but thinking about the corpse tube following us made me feel like it might be less scary if they just left….

“Like I said before, the mascot here is surprisingly moral for a monster.”

Mmm. I had guessed that since the phone call.

If they rode three attractions that fast, there’s only one reason.

A generous mascot that didn’t demand anything humanly excessive.

These teams were lucky enough to hit such a zone against staggering odds.

“It even answered kindly when we asked what was inside the attractions. It even gave us souvenirs for being the first to ride three.”

Must be nice. Living the dream.

While someone else was suffering in the crazed Magic Bunny Zone….

The strange thing was that in terms of survival rate, the Red Team had more survivors since everyone made it.

Anyway, the Red Team soon arrived at the entrance of an attraction where a Blue Dragon Character riding a dolphin was smiling.

And once inside the attraction… a figure with a cutely exaggerated blue dragon head appeared.

A blue mascot wearing a life vest.

[Hello]

The mascot waved a greeting sign.

I bowed my head slightly in greeting. The mascot bowed back.

“Hmm.”

Next, we boarded a flume ride called ‘Blue Mountain.’ It was a typical amusement park ride where you board a boat and move along a stream of water.

The two other Field Exploration Team members also boarded safely.

The problem was the last person.

“Fuck.”

The researcher’s mouth twitched as he spat out a curse at the mascot.

It seemed his hatred and fear of the Magic Bunny were finally exploding upon seeing a similar but less terrifying mascot.

“These fucking creepy bastards…”

“Please board quickly.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Glancing back at the mascot, the researcher boarded the attraction.

The blue dragon mascot’s button-like eyes watched the scene in silence.

“…….”

As a result of boarding the remaining attractions smoothly like that.

[(Joyful) Fantasyland Boarding Pass
■
■■
]

“Finally…!”

“Phew.”

We finally filled all the slots on the boarding pass.

“The exit is to the north. We will move now.”

“Yes!”

We were soaked, but that didn’t matter. What mattered was that we could finally escape this godforsaken theme park.

I don’t want to go within a 1km radius of an amusement park for a while….

[Please return safely]

A typical goodbye sign sparkled above the gate machines at the north exit.

And next to it stood a blue mascot dressed in formal attire.

“They say you just have to scan your used boarding pass here and leave.”

The blue mascot politely pointed to the gate machine with its hand.

“Now then, the Team Leaders should go out first. Hurry.”

The Team D Deputy made the wise choice of organizing the situation and sending the bosses out first.

People went out one by one, and it was about time for those below the rank of Deputy to leave.

“Now then, starting with Deputy Jin…”

“M-Move!”

The researcher pushed the employees aside and lunged for the gate first.

“What the…”

The Assistant Manager and Deputies looked a bit flabbergasted, but they seemed to let it slide with a feeling of ‘well, that’s how civilians are.’

It wasn’t like they’d lose anything by leaving a few seconds later.

Regardless, the researcher scrambled to scan his boarding pass bracelet at the gate.

That seems to be a habit of his.

To be honest, it was a real eyesore—

B a d C h i l d

“…Huh?”

The researcher turned his head.

The blue dragon mascot was gripping his boarding pass bracelet with its claws.

The paper bracelet crumpled.

Y o u

Tear,

B a d C h i l d

Rip, rip,

A r e n’ t Y o u

It snapped.

Whoosh.

The researcher stared blankly at the scraps of the bracelet falling to the floor, as if he couldn’t understand.

And then.

“Hyaaaaaaagh, aaagh!!”

The blue dragon’s mouth swung wide open.

“Save me! Save me!”

He was being sucked in.

Beside me, the Cow Mask muttered as if possessed.

“Ooooh scary the sea god is angry the wicked one is sucked into that tidal wave scary…”

I covered the Team Y newbie’s mouth and pushed his head down.

I also lowered my own head and didn’t look.

“Aaaaaaaagh!!”

So it ends like this in the end….

If you move to another zone, the aggro you drew from the previous zone’s mascot disappears.

However, the things you have done accumulate.

======================

Joyful Theme Park User Guidelines (Applied up to Exploration Record No. 64)

6. Please don’t forget that the theme park is a public space!

Observe etiquette and manners when using public facilities! Countless eyes are watching you, and no one forgets.

Look, the mascot is behind you.

======================

Every mascot knows what you did inside Joyful Theme Park.

That means it knew what the researcher had done before, too.

-Move, fuck!

Even the fact that he had pushed the Team A Deputy to die in his place while running away from the Red Mascot.

It probably tried to let it slide once, considering the extreme circumstances…

The problem was that he repeated the same behavior.

It’s karma.

The researcher’s screams ringing in my ears were now turning into wails.

“That motherfucker tried to kill me too!! Why only me, only me!! This trash, tras—”

True.

But the Team A Deputy never actually went through with it. He listened when persuaded.

But you didn’t.

At this point, even I, a resident of the coward’s shelter, thought he had it coming.

-Sa v e m e e e a a a a r g h…

The researcher’s voice stretched out like taffy, leaving behind a bone-chilling shiver.

Ugh.

Just as my coward’s heart reacted instinctively and my body was about to bolt.

“Don’t.”

“…….”

The Team A employee grabbed my arm and held me down.

Then he spoke as if to dissuade me.

“You can’t save him.”

I… didn’t even have any intention of trying.

Anyway, as he said, I stayed still.

Soon the screams vanished, and the eerie feeling around us subsided.

When I looked up, the blue dragon mascot was simply standing there politely, dressed as neatly as before.

It was an appearance that made it hard to believe it had just killed someone.

It became a bit more chilling.

The standards are… stricter than I thought.

I guess I really am inside a ghost story.

This mascot seemed to have its own beliefs or standards. It went beyond simply not harming teammates.

Let’s act carefully.

“…Let’s head out again.”

“Yes.”

One by one, the remaining people filtered out.

I wondered, but as expected, was it based on seniority?

“See you outside.”

I gave up and sent the superiors first.

And after seeing off my fellow coward.

I stood at the gate next to the blue dragon mascot last.

“…….”

The cutely stylized dragon looked at me with round eyes.

Um, could you please not look?

Honestly, I’m really scared. Being the last one left is also extremely nerve-wracking. I’m only overdoing it so people don’t find out I’m a coward.

It was then.

G o o d C h i l d

“…!”

A-Are you reassuring me?

The mascot’s voice didn’t sound as eerie as the ones before.

The property damage… as expected, it seems to be letting it slide.

Thank goodness.

“Thank you.”

I bowed my head and tried to pass.

But the mascot moved and blocked my path.

“…?”

G o o d C h i l d r e n

G e t G i f t s

The blue dragon reached out.

Then it lightly grabbed my wrist.

To be precise, the boarding pass bracelet hanging there.

[(Joyful) Fantasyland Boarding Pass
■
■■
]

The bracelet seemed to grow slightly warm, and then, as the mascot let go….

[
◎
(Joyful) Fantasyland Membership
◎
]

The text had changed.

L e t’ s K e e p P l a y i n g

…Huh?