“Think carefully.”

The civil servant, dressed in typical serial killer fashion, spoke with a tone of reliability.

“You can never be fired, and it’s a seniority-based pay system that lasts until age sixty-five. Since it’s a specialized field, there are separate allowances as well.”

Why was I sitting here listening to a recruitment pitch for the Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau?

“If you have the ‘constitution’ to get caught up in supernatural phenomena anyway, wouldn’t it be better to be properly protected by money and the system?”

I’m already being protected, though…

And no matter how I look at it, I don’t think an 8th-grade civil servant makes more money than an employee at a major pharmaceutical corporation!

But even if my mouth were torn open, I couldn’t say I worked at Baekilmong Corporation.

I didn't want to be flagged as a person of interest and reported to the Bureau!

‘Maybe I should have just stuck to writing.’

I began to regret my decision to use my voice, which I’d done after much thought for the sake of faster, more persuasive, and impactful communication.

I opened my mouth, feeling like I was about to break into a cold sweat.

For now, he seemed to see me as nothing more than a ‘civilian who easily gets caught up in supernatural phenomena,’ so let’s lean into that…

“I tried to do something this time because I was genuinely terrified, but I’m not someone with the ability to eliminate these kinds of phenomena. Being an agent… that’s out of the question.”

“…….”

The civil servant looked at me with a slightly incredulous expression.

Wait, why?

“You believed the Lodge Keeper was the root cause of this phenomenon and terminated the contract to prevent further incidents, did you not?”

“I… did?”

“Then, through your own judgment, did you not bring about the complete conclusion of this supernatural event?”

“…….”

“It is a natural talent.”

No, it isn’t.

It’s the power of the Wiki…….

“I’m sorry, but I really don’t think I can do it. Actually, I did this after consulting with the friend I came with….”

Wow, please.

“In the first place, I’m not a good fighter, nor do I have any special abilities to be an agent.”

“Special abilities.”

The corners of the civil servant’s mouth curled up slightly.

“There is… a specific way to ‘acquire’ those.”

“…!”

“You will hear the details after you are appointed.”

This is driving me crazy.

“I mean, what are you even basing this trust on…?”

“Are you not currently in possession of a small silver shield-shaped badge?”

“…!!”

“That is the reason.”

Ah, dammit.

‘He’s sharp.’

I had considered this possibility, but I intentionally acted startled, as if caught off guard.

“What? H-how….”

“That is persuasion equipment used by the Disaster Management Bureau. I heard that in the past, it was distributed to citizens who had accumulated great merit… but this is the first time I have seen someone capable of using it.”

“Ah…….”

“Since it is an item that only a person of good heart can use, it serves as a sort of certification.”

Then, he gave me a sidelong glance.

“Did you use it while keeping it in your pocket?”

This guy is smart, too.

‘It’ll look more suspicious if I feign ignorance now.’

I might as well admit its efficacy and move on.

Don’t forget, this only works for a ‘good person’!

‘He won’t bother confiscating it. There are no cases of that happening unless someone caused trouble.’

Fortunately, with my brain working at lightning speed, a response popped out without a pause.

With a bitter expression as if I had a tragic backstory, I rummaged through my pocket, pulled out the small silver badge, and held it up.

I naturally brought up the only legitimate route that explained why it wouldn’t be strange for me to have this.

“…I inherited it from my family.”

From today on, the Goods Box is my family.

“I was told to use it when I needed a voice in an emergency…….”

“I see.”

The civil servant nodded and looked at me with a hint of sympathy.

“You had a wonderful family.”

“…….”

Did he just misunderstand that to mean ‘they’re watching me from heaven’?

Well, in a sense, it’s not a misunderstanding, but still….

I tried my best not to think of the black Goods Box floating in the sky as I spoke.

“I was told not to volunteer for dangerous work, and I want to keep that promise as much as possible….”

“…….”

That was a real line my parents used when they tried to stop me from going into finance, and I certainly didn't join this company voluntarily, so I wasn't lying. Not really!

“…I understand.”

The civil servant looked at me with a touch of regret but backed off readily.

“If that is the case, it cannot be helped.”

Phew.

And so, the nerve-wracking job fair came to a close.

Along with an unexpected harvest.

“Contact me if you have any concerns or problems.”

As I was leaving the lodge, I received another contact number from the civil servant.

However, the format was different this time.

Ryu Jae-gwan

010-XXXX-XXXX

“It is my professional contact number.”

Oh.

“This will be better than the business card I gave you before. That one might take time for a dispatch team to be assigned, and you never know what kind of agent will show up.”

In short, it was a free pass for escaping ghost stories.

I exchanged the previous contact information for this one, much like exchanging a cassette tape.

I didn't expect to use it like this.

I should hurry back before he asks to exchange names… but he’ll probably do a background check anyway.

‘In that case.’

I intentionally scratched the back of my head as if embarrassed.

“Actually, I used written notes during the Salmon Market incident because I was a bit scared… but I’d like to speak with you like this again the next time we meet.”

“Of course.”

“And… um, could my identity be kept secret? It’s a bit overwhelming… and I’m scared.”

“…….”

The civil servant was silent for a moment.

“You may go as you are.”

He let it slide.

Yes!

‘That means he’s leaving me as unidentified, right?’

I’d even left the door open for future transactions, so it was perfect.

‘Next time, I’ll be able to sell more food with less suspicion.’

“I hope you have a safe descent.”

“You too, Agent.”

I shook hands with the civil servant.

He immediately departed on his bicycle.

When he made one last suggestion as we parted ways, I deflected it quite naturally.

—To be honest, these situations are hard for me… I’m already near my limit. I don’t think I can do it.

That was completely sincere.

And Baek Sa-heon, you get that creepy look out of your eyes.

Whether he had asked out of genuine regret or not, the civil servant simply nodded and got on his bicycle without looking back.

Not without giving some life-saving advice to leave before the ‘Bureau Clean-up Team’ arrived.

‘I need to bolt right now.’

I left the front of the lodge—where the landslide debris and the bus stop had vanished as if they had never existed—and began walking down the mountain trail.

‘Whew.’

Only then did the tension release.

—This Brown knows the effort you poured in over the past few days, even giving up sleep for that artistic final cut! You worked hard!

Yeah. It was damn disgusting, terrifying, and exhausting….

‘Getting deployed alone into a ghost story like this… the Disaster Management Bureau is definitely not for me.’

Had there ever been a day when Baekilmong Corporation’s corporate rating was higher in my mind than today?

‘At least they give me money and points.’

They say even a servant should serve in a great house, and this was exactly that. Although I didn’t feel any more sense of fulfillment….

I looked back at my colleague who was contributing to this unfulfilling work.

“Let’s get down right now. This damn lodge…!”

“…….”

“Dammit, I got caught up in this crap when it doesn’t even earn points or money!”

“You have something to say before that.”

Baek Sa-heon shut his mouth tight.

Then he looked back at me and spoke very defensively.

“I can’t pay you anything for this. It’s not like I asked you to save me anyway.”

Look at this guy.

“And only you… Assistant Manager Kim Sol-eum, got the reward for the cassette exchange. So that’s enough, isn’t it?”

“Oh.”

I smirked.

“Interesting. You have the nerve to say that to the person who blew their weekend and skipped work without notice because of you?”

“……”

Baek Sa-heon’s face turned pale and then back again.

Then, he asked with difficulty.

“……What do you want?”

“Nothing.”

“…?!”

“Actually, it was fun.”

“…!!”

I strode down the mountain path. Behind me, I heard Baek Sa-heon’s scurrying footsteps and his belated reply.

“…Anyway, I admit that I caused you trouble with your weekend and the absence.”

“…….”

“That’s all.”

Oh.

“I’ll deposit three days’ worth of pay, so just wait.”

“Sure.”

But a moment later.

The moment we entered a service area and data started working, Baek Sa-heon let out a scream.

“The date is the same!”

Of course. Don’t you know it’s a standard rule that time flows differently in a ghost story?

“Regardless, I spent three days.”

“…!”

In the end, I got the pay, and Baek Sa-heon looked at me with a mix of injustice, relief, and irritation before quickly averting his gaze and running off.

—Haha, even without this job, he seems like the type who would find it hard to live a long, healthy life!

I know, right?

Actually, there was something else I needed to say.

‘I didn’t expect him to not say thank you until the very end.’

He was quite the piece of work in many ways. Still, he seemed a bit less malicious and more human than what I’d seen in the Wiki….

Actually, when the civil servant met him in the basement earlier, he had looked at him with cold eyes for a moment before advising me.

—One inherited the Silver Heart, and the other inherited a cassette tape… I see.

—…….

—You would do well to choose your companions carefully.

—Um. Yes. Thank you.

Well, then.

The government had allowed cassette tapes to fall into the hands of villains, conscripting only those whose guilt was certain. In other words, this guy… was a government-certified villain.

Even if I viewed him in the most generous light, there was at least one villain in Baek Sa-heon’s acquisition route.

—…It was something in my house. I inherited it from a relative.

……A relative.

‘There’s probably a story there.’

But I stopped thinking for now. I didn’t have the luxury to explore the backstories of the characters in the Wiki.

‘I have to survive in this ghost story company first.’

And not long after, this damn company started doing company-like things again. It brought up something bizarre and unpredictable as if it were common sense.

* * *

A few days later.

“Assistant Manager Kim!”

While I was buying coffee on an errand for my boss, a familiar face called out to me in the hallway. It was Section Chief Lee Byung-jin, the manual review manager who had gone missing.

“Ah~ Congratulations! I knew our Assistant Manager Kim would do well!”

We’ve known each other for less than two months, though….

“Top of your class, scouted by Team A, even saved me, and uh, you have connections in the Security Team, and now a super-fast promotion? Man, that’s great.”

“Thank you.”

It wasn’t particularly great, but I answered that way for now.

Instead of ending the conversation and leaving, however, Section Chief Lee Byung-jin lowered his voice and whispered.

“Executive Director Cheong is keeping an eye on you.”

“…….”

“He’s the most decent superior in this company. It’s an opportunity, so don’t miss it.”

An opportunity…?

“There are rumors that the Director is running a classified project team… you might get transferred there.”

Haha. You don’t know anything.

In a ghost story setting, once the word ‘classified’ is attached, the survival rate drops below half….

Instead of saying that, I politely shook my head.

“It hasn’t even been half a year since I joined, so I don’t expect such things. I’ll just work hard in the position I’ve been given.”

“Ha, humility too! I’m a good judge of character. Haha!”

I was just grateful he’d comfortably forgotten my high-handed attitude when I was pretending to be a security guard. I guess humans really are creatures of their environment.

Section Chief Lee Byung-jin patted my shoulder a few times as if proud, then left me with these words.

“Anyway, I’m really curious where you’ll go!”

“……?”

The nuance was strangely different.

‘Why does he speak as if it’s a given that I’ll be going somewhere?’

The answer to that question was soon revealed.

That afternoon.

“Hey, Roe Deer. Even if you go to another team, let’s see each other once in a while. I didn’t even get to buy you lunch many times.”

Excuse me?

I blinked as I looked at the slightly dejected Assistant Manager. Another team?

Was I… by any chance, being demoted to some strange place?

Was the talk about the Director keeping an eye on me actually a bluff to put me at ease before hitting me with a shock?

Why do something so pointless and wicked to a mere employee…!?

“No, I’d like you to stay on our team if possible… but looking at how things are going right now.”

Fortunately, the Deputy Manager kindly explained before I could spiral into a panic.

The Field Exploration Team usually has a capacity of three people per team, and any extra personnel assigned are usually for training new recruits. And until that recruit is promoted, they stay with the same team as an extra member.

“But you’re an Assistant Manager now.”

Ah.

I… was the exception to that general case.

“There’s a high probability you’ll be bounced somewhere else… but well, maybe you don’t have to worry too much.”

I asked with a bit of hope.

“Is it being handled as an exception?”

“Not exactly… I think the three-person capacity will work out just fine. Keep this between us.”

“Yes?”

The Deputy Manager smirked.

“I’m quitting soon.”

“…!!”

A coworker’s escape notice had arrived!