Even if I fall into a ghost story, I still have to go to work
Chapter 48
The conference room was a madhouse.
“I’m telling you, seventeen people have made it back alive!”
“Seventeen…?! No, is that number right? Is there an error in the count?”
“Yes. Oh! I just heard the number has increased to twenty.”
The Field Exploration Team, which had been deployed into the ‘Promising Darkness’ earlier that morning, had suddenly returned en masse.
The response was momentarily paralyzed by an event that completely defied all predictions.
“Wait, the case studies were all finished, and they said they’d escape in small groups sequentially—so what the hell is happening?”
Voices flew back and forth in the chaos of the unexpected: questions about whether these were really the employees who had been sent in, suggestions that everyone should be tested in the lab, and more.
But once the bewilderment subsided, a thought began to creep into their minds… the thrilling sensation of success.
Wasn’t this an encouraging result?
Similar thoughts occurred to the few individuals who had pushed for this operation.
‘If this is really the survival rate…!’
Their investment had paid off through a bold and wise choice!
The success rate in securing resources was so much higher than they had anticipated that they felt dazed.
‘Shouldn’t we start shaping public opinion immediately?’
‘Wait, I need to make sure my contribution is mentioned starting now.’
However, all this confusion, excitement, and worry were wiped away in an instant.
Right after one more piece of news was delivered.
“It’s B-grade.”
“Hah.”
As a result of appraising the Dream Collector of the first employee to escape, the solution was judged to be B-grade.
In other words, the ‘A-grade with a high survival rate’ they had dreamed of… didn’t exist.
In a split second, the atmosphere in the conference room plummeted into disappointment.
“Ha… well, of course.”
“Didn’t we jinx it by making such a fuss about it being A-grade?”
“Still, hey. Isn’t this survival rate rare for a B-grade? Don’t you think so, Section Chief Kwak?”
Kwak Jegaeng, the researcher who had been summoned in a hurry, gave a thin smile.
“Of course~ It’s a remarkable achievement.”
No, actually, it wasn’t just remarkable… it was staggering!
Did these people not even know what the initial employee survival rate was for each grade?
They didn't even have a sense of how incredible this situation was! That was why they weren't foaming at the mouth to find out the details of the exploration right this second!
‘Wow~ Incredible.’
Watching them exchange pleasantries and consolations with nuances like ‘We were just unlucky; our judgment was correct,’ made Kwak Jegaeng want to laugh.
Did this look like a situation for consolation?
‘Do those people have no sense of reality at all?!’
The average survival rate for civilians in a B-grade anomaly was around 2%.
The act of deploying employees in bulk without a proper manual was a reckless gamble in itself, yet this staggering result was being met with disappointment and self-aggrandizement?
And all this after they had hastily adopted the opinion of a single research team section chief—someone who told them exactly what they wanted to hear—just to keep up appearances of expert consultation.
The reason was obvious.
‘Because it’s what they wanted to do!’
Thanks to them, he was happy to have such interesting results to analyze, but he found it miraculous that this company functioned at all with those kinds of higher-ups in the development department.
Kwak Jegaeng felt a twinge of pity. This company needed to last a long time so that he could research various fascinating paranormal phenomena!
But wasn't it a risk for the company that the members of the grandly named ‘Innovation Development Strategy Office’ were like this?
Though it was common for family-owned companies to be a total mess with no system when viewed from the inside.
‘I’d heard rumors, but… could all the higher-ups aligned with the owner’s family be like this?’
Of course, not everyone in the room was like that.
Kwak Jegaeng glanced toward one person sitting somewhat apart.
It was someone who hadn't been at the previous meeting.
‘He’s on Executive Director Ho’s side.’
He was sitting there under the pretense of ‘attending briefly due to interest in this agenda.’
Even if the higher-ups in the development department meddled in the Field Exploration Team quite a bit, this was unusual.
Furthermore, he was openly receiving remote reports on the situation from his own people.
Like this.
“I hear a single employee was a huge help in this large-scale escape.”
“Pardon??”
The atmosphere was filled with wariness and tension rather than a desire to please.
But everyone was shocked by the words that followed.
“A new recruit.”
“……!”
“I’m told he broadcasted the escape method to all the employees…. We’ll need to look into the details of how he did it.”
“…….”
“There are those who are curious about this.”
It was Executive Director Ho.
The people from the Strategy Office glanced at each other and began to babble excuses.
“Ah, we will send over the detailed contents as soon as the exploration report is out.”
“Exactly. Usually, people are out of their minds right after coming out of a field exploration, so they say all sorts of nonsense.”
“Still, they wouldn’t make up a story that didn’t happen, would they?”
“That is….”
“On that note.”
The man from Executive Director Ho’s side cut him off.
“He is also curious about what decision the ‘Innovation Development Strategy Office’ will make.”
“…….”
“Regarding the employee’s reward.”
* * *
“Congratulations, Assistant Manager Kim.”
“……Excuse me?”
I almost spat out my iced americano on the medical room bed.
I’d been knocked out for a few hours after a brief physical exam, having heard the tear-jerkingly grateful words, ‘The youngest had a hard time, so just rest.’
I thought I’d be able to hear the wrap-up of this exploration after I went home and came back to work tomorrow….
Assistant manager?
“Yeah, you didn’t hear wrong. Assistant Manager Kim.”
Eunhaje Deputy Manager gave a wide grin.
“You’re getting promoted. The fastest record since the establishment of this company's Field Exploration Team!”
“…!!”
“I honestly knew this would happen. I guess the days of hearing our Roe Deer speak formally to me are over.”
“Hey, if we wait another six months, won't he be speaking casually with me too?”
No, this wasn't some neighborhood corner store; how could a new recruit become an assistant manager in just two months?
‘Isn’t this just a common company rumor?’
I tried to ask this more politely, but the answer was firm.
“No, you deserved it. Do you know how many employees you saved this time?”
Eunhaje Deputy Manager crossed her arms.
“Including you, it’s twenty-six people in total.”
“……!”
“Roe Deer, they say seventeen of those employees escaped only after hearing your announcement!”
“If you include those who saw others escaping and followed late, you basically saved everyone.”
The deputy manager added that there were even a few civilian escapees.
“Isn’t a record like this something that only comes out once every few years? Honestly, it’s only right to give you more than just a promotion.”
“Exactly. Let’s feel things out once the team leader gets back from his meeting tomorrow. I’m sure they’ll give you something.”
I was grateful to my superiors who were as excited as if it were their own success, but I was dazed.
A promotion.
……A promotion after only sixty days of work at a major corporation!
My modern heart was fluttering!
“Get your mind ready. Special appointments like this go up quickly.”
And it happened exactly as she said.
The very next day, I saw the official notice regarding the promotion on the intranet.
[Special Personnel Announcement]
As if it were the most natural thing in the world, the three characters of my name, ‘Kim Sol-eum,’ were written there.
“…….”
Bzzzzzzzt.
My smartphone was crying. It seemed like congratulatory messages were coming in from all over….
Wa-wait a second.
‘It looks like they’re processing this quickly to minimize internal backlash.’
The Field Exploration Team was also a place where humans worked. Naturally, it meant that if their lives were saved, they would feel emotional gratitude or appreciation.
In that sense, well, since twenty-seven people probably felt something like gratitude toward me, there would be little backlash….
I could feel the company's determination to promote me without missing that timing just from the timing of the announcement.
But why……? Why are they promoting me this much?
‘J-just how much more are they going to work me?’
Isn't it enough that I'm primarily sent into newly registered horror stories without manuals?
As my imagination spun terrifying predictions, I even contacted an elite superior from another team….
[Are you an idiot? It would be weirder if you didn't get promoted.]
“…??”
[I heard the person in charge of manual reviews even came to see you when you were missing. You’re producing results that are bound to be talked about; it’s obvious someone at the top would take notice.]
Deputy Manager Jin Nasol of Team A clicked her tongue.
[I should have just brought you to our team when there was a vacancy. Tsk. Why did you refuse for no reason?]
“…….”
[Anyway, congratulations. It was a promotion that was going to happen anyway.]
“…Yes, well, thank you.”
I eventually had to hang up the phone feeling hollow.
Then, leaning back in my office chair, I thought.
Fine.
I had denied reality, but it seemed I had finally reached this stage….
‘Am I… an elite employee?’
A special character worthy of being listed as a named entity in the Dark Exploration Records?
The kind of character that some hardline creators would try to kill off plausibly just to maintain the worldview's atmosphere, making them exit the wiki….
But because their popularity and recognition soared after videos were posted on Wetube, they just ended up leaving them be… that kind of character?
I think they call this a Mary Sue….
‘How did it come to this?’
No, maybe it was inevitable.
Honestly, having read all of Dark Exploration Records was a cheat code!
‘Considering I would have died if I didn’t use that knowledge, I’ve tried my best not to make it obvious.’
The problem was….
‘What the hell do I do if they find out I’m actually a coward?’
Even thinking that I’d just end up being transferred to the cleanup team had become wishful thinking.
There was no telling how far the ripples would reach.
If the question ‘Why did a coward have such good results until now?’ arose….
‘I feel like interrogation and experimentation are waiting for me…?’
The future where I’m dragged off to the research team the moment it’s revealed I came from a parallel dimension was clear as day.
Cold sweat seemed to trickle down my forehead.
N-no.
I stood up, grabbed my coffee, and took a lap around the breakroom.
Once the caffeine hit, my head cleared a bit.
Right.
‘If I can’t avoid it, I have to increase my survival rate here.’
If I’m already marked, showing consistent performance will actually help me avoid unnecessary scrutiny.
‘I just have to make them think I’m naturally this competent and unique.’
It wasn't as if such employees didn't exist. Like Section Chief Lizard or Deputy Manager Jin with the butterfly mask.
I would just be classified as one of the named individuals.
Even though the probability of being deployed to more dangerous horror stories has increased, increased…… *sob*, no. It might actually be better.
If I’m treated as high-level personnel, they might send me to certain-death spots less often!
‘And I’ll be able to earn points faster.’
The more I thought about it, it wasn't bad for a quick escape from this world, but…….
To do that, there was a mandatory step.
‘A character. I need to build a character….’
I had to appear as a ‘competent and special unit’ naturally enough to avoid suspicion.
Just like I acted like a crazy person to Baek Sa-heon, I had to maintain the line appropriately.
To do that…….
‘…I’ll need more cards I can use for my character traits.’
“…….”
I looked up.
Above my head, the thing that had been flashing ever since I escaped the exhibition was still there.
[Dark Exploration Records Real Goods Box]
- Permission to use new goods unlocked! (!)
Opening that would require more planning, so I had been postponing checking it until my stamina recovered and my judgment returned.
One of the goods I had bought at the pop-up store.
‘It’s time to receive it.’
But I had no idea what the ‘usage permission’ I’d achieved at the exhibition actually was.
The number of items used?
I reached out toward the black notebook glowing by my head, moving as if I were stretching, and lightly touched it.
Click.
With a faint, clear sound, a small, light object wrapped in plastic fell into my hand.
“…….”
Shining in silver, a small shield-shaped object with the word ‘CHARGE’ engraved in embossed calligraphy….
It was a badge.
‘Ah.’
I realized it.
The condition I had met was a ‘good deed.’
======================
Dark Exploration Records / Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau
/ Item
Silver Heart
The wearer gains the awe of others according to their accumulated altruistic actions.
The creator’s value—‘It is socially most efficient for the altruistic to gain power’—is strongly reflected.
Item Usage Condition: One who has achieved the merit of saving 12 or more people in a supernatural disaster.
======================
Commonly known as the ‘Integrity Badge.’
It was an item produced and distributed by the Disaster Management Bureau. Its popularity exploded after someone played a major role in the exploration records of a certain train explosion anomaly that was being sealed there.
It was even more so because of this unique attribute.
As you can see, it’s an item exclusively for good people.
An object that allows a good person to exercise influence over a group.
‘To think the day would come when I meet this condition….’
It was almost overwhelming.
It was an item that was rarely used in anything but heartwarming ways, but there was one time it caused a disaster of insane proportions.
‘That’s just how the horror story world is.’
Once records accumulate, one of those terrifying incidents always slips in to create tension.
Because of that, there were records of it being distributed to very virtuous civilians in the past, but it was changed so that it was only loaned to affiliated civil servants under strict regulations.
I’d watched the wiki being updated in real-time.
What did this mean?
It meant that at this point, it was almost impossible for anyone to predict that an employee of Baekilmong Corporation would use this ‘Silver Heart’!
‘So I can actually use it.’
I don't know how many more altruistic things I'll be able to do in the future since I'm busy looking out for myself, but I should at least be able to get the basic effects, right?
At the very least, if I can give the people I work with the impression that ‘this person is quite something,’ it’ll be much easier to appear as a competent employee.
‘Good. Let’s keep this safe.’
I guess there’s always a way out.
I put the ‘Silver Heart’ in my pocket and left the breakroom with a much lighter heart.
When I did, a reward for this exhibition exploration was also waiting for me.
“Roe Deer! It’s not on the official notice yet, but they’re giving you a bonus prize too!”
“…!”
“*Sob*, of course our Roe Deer should get it, but it’s so sad that this reality is surprising….”
“Right? Do they think B-grade is some kid’s name? Those guys who would’ve died the moment they stepped in… do they think urban legends are a joke?”
Ye—yes. Thank you….
“Still, it’s a good thing the bonus is quite decent.”
‘Decent’?
That was high praise coming from Deputy Manager Eun.
Looking at her face, there was even a hint of admiration. This was unusual.
“…What kind of item is it?”
“Regeneration Potion.”
“……!!”
“You probably don’t get a sense of it just from the name, right?”
I got it perfectly.
It was an item so famous that it was impossible not to know it!
This wasn't just some health recovery potion they gave you at the medical room.
It was one of the magic medicines, a flagship product line that Baekilmong Corporation was proud of.
A miracle cure.
======================
Dark Exploration Records / Baekilmong Corporation
/ Potion
Regeneration Potion
A magic medicine that regenerates all traumatic defects.
The higher the grade, the more powerful it becomes, taking on a deep green hue.
======================
“To put it simply, it’s a medicine that generates body parts… and it’s C-grade. Even if a limb is gone, it’ll just regenerate.”
“…!”
“Even the exclusive equipment for section chiefs and above doesn't have this much power. It’s this company’s specialty medicine. If you convert it to points, the list price is ten thousand points.”
The deputy manager grinned and patted my back.
“It’ll come in handy later. It’s a dangerous industry, after all. Isn't it great that even if your arms or legs fly off, or your eyes, nose, and mouth disappear, they’ll come back?”
I think I would have been fine without that last part, Deputy Manager…….
“And… here’s some news that might be a bit disappointing but also good. Want to hear it?”
“Yes?”
“You’re not the only one receiving this.”
* * *
“Sol-eum!”
“Hello.”
I greeted Go Young-eun as she waved her hand. I also saw Baek Sa-heon sitting next to her.
The company had gathered the three of us in one place for a performance of awarding the prizes and taking photos.
It had been a few days since I’d seen their faces after escaping the exhibition.
Wasn't Baek Sa-heon my roommate? These days, he doesn't even come out of his room. Thanks to that, I watched TV in the living room comfortably with Brown.
“Did you rest well? Are you feeling okay?”
“I’m fine. How about you, Go Young-eun…”
I stopped mid-sentence and realized something.
Go Young-eun was observing my mouth, trying her best to read my lips.
“I still can’t hear.”
“…….”
Of course.
Fortunately, the rental device that had been in her ear was automatically returned the moment we left the exhibition, so it didn't seem like the ‘Exhibition Staff’ would come chasing after her.
Furthermore, Go Young-eun was holding the prize she had just received from the company.
When she opened the box decorated with luxurious gold leaf and mural-like patterns, there was a beautiful glass bottle sealed with wax inside.
A light green glow, like new sprouts, rippling inside the glass.
: Baekilmong Potion :
Regeneration
C (excellent)
C-grade Regeneration Potion.
Go Young-eun lifted the glass bottle.
Her eyes were filled with hope, anxiety, and expectation.
“Then, I’ll try drinking it right away.”
“Yes.”
Go Young-eun opened the ‘Regeneration Potion.’
Then she gulped it down in one go.
