Even if I fall into a ghost story, I still have to go to work
Chapter 57
By nature, an office worker always carries a letter of resignation in their heart—be it physically or mentally.
Usually, however, they keep it hidden…
‘She’s telling a newcomer?’
And her direct subordinate, at that.
“I’ve gathered almost all the points. Don’t go spreading rumors.”
“……”
Knowing Eunhaje Deputy’s personality, I thought she would keep a straight face until the very day she quit.
“Is it really alright for you to tell me this?”
“Well, it’s not like it’s bad news. Besides, there are plenty of bastards in this company who brag about how many points they’ve racked up anyway…”
The Deputy gave my shoulder a firm, encouraging pat.
“I just wanted to let the people on our team know in advance.”
“Kh-heek! Even just watching from the side, I’m moved, Senior!”
“Knock it off.”
I groaned as I watched Assistant Manager Park Min-seong approach and make a fuss.
It seemed the Assistant Manager had already known.
‘Is it because of the nature of this company?’
It’s a crazy profession where people play Russian roulette with their temples through work just to somehow fulfill a desperate, realistically impossible wish.
Since it was a given that everyone wanted to escape, I understood there was no need to hide it desperately.
Still, it was a shame to lose a direct superior who was so accommodating… but since it was a good thing for her, I should congratulate her.
However, a question remained.
“Deputy Manager.”
“Yeah.”
“Does that mean you’ve collected all 500,000 points?”
“What?! Five hundred thousand? No way…”
Startled, Eunhaje Deputy soon chuckled as if she had realized something.
“Ah, did you think I was trying to buy a Wishright?”
“…?”
I mean, wouldn’t that be the case?
Wouldn’t it be harder to find someone here who wasn’t aiming for that?
“Ah. That was my goal when I first joined, but after looking around a bit, I realized I could get by with something else.”
“…!”
Ah.
‘I see.’
Thinking about it, there were cases where a Wishright wasn’t strictly necessary.
‘If you can fulfill your wish with something available in the employee point mall, that’s enough.’
“One of the high-grade magic potions from this company is all I need.”
As expected.
“…May I ask how many points it costs?”
“170,000. I have less than five thousand points to go. Well… since the point bonus I got thanks to you will be ending anyway, I’ll probably have to stay for a few more months.”
The Deputy winked, which was unlike her.
“Let’s talk to the Team Leader and see if we can keep you here at least until the next regular personnel reshuffle.”
That meant if I could just hold out until then, I would naturally remain in Team D.
Since she would be leaving, a spot would open up.
‘That’s a very thoughtful thing to say.’
Especially since she showed the confidence that I would actually want to stay in this team.
“Senior, when you leave, you really have to have a proper farewell dinner with us… Let’s keep in touch even after you’re gone. We can go watch baseball or something…!”
“Of course. Hey, you just need to hang in there for a few years.”
“Me? Sigh, not me. I’m stuck having to collect the full 500,000.”
The Assistant Manager scratched his head, but his face brightened nonetheless.
“Anyway… then Roe Deer can keep staying with our team!”
“If the Team Leader handles it well, that is.”
And the ‘Team Leader,’ who had returned from the section chief-level meeting, gave a calm confirmation.
“Yes. The probability is high.”
“Oooooh!”
“It is a matter of probability. Do not plan your work on the assumption that you will remain.”
“…That’s what he says, Roe Deer…”
“Yes…”
Standard Lizard behavior.
“Anyway, congratulations, Deputy Manager.”
“Thanks.”
Eunhaje Deputy smiled and headed out for a smoke.
Her back already looked quite lighthearted.
‘…What happens to employees who quit?’
There had been no mention of stripping them of human rights and locking them in labs or making them disappear without a trace to maintain secrecy.
‘There were several descriptions of cases where people retired quite well.’
You know how it is. Those characters everyone likes.
Supporting characters that readers of the wiki grew attached to, so they made sure their retirement ended well.
‘…I hope it’s the same for her.’
After a short prayer, I went back to my work.
Which meant I was being assigned a task by the Team Leader who just got back from his meeting.
“The Darkness we will be investigating this time is a C-rank Spider, and it is a source of supply with a completed manual.”
“Oh… then we’ll each get around six or seven hundred points?”
“Yes.”
“Roe Deer, it’s a good thing we earned a lot of points while the work was pouring in.”
The ‘investigations for completing new Darkness manuals’ that had been flooding Team D almost exclusively were now tapering off.
“There’s usually a season when new Darknesses pour in. The research teams register them all at once when the registration deadline approaches.”
“Ah.”
That… really feels like a company.
Of course, a new employee gains nothing by pointing that out.
I said with a bright smile.
“Then we can all work relatively safely for a while.”
“Yeah, I love how you’re always so positive, Roe Deer!”
The Assistant Manager laughed and handed me a tablet with a manual PDF pulled up.
“Even with a manual, it’s a C-rank, so things can get ugly if you let your guard down. Let me know when you’ve fully familiarized yourself with it.”
“Yes.”
“Looking at it, it seems you just have to hold out in a certain location for a day.”
Hmm.
I took the tablet and began to read.
The official manual, written in a calm tone, followed the same format as before.
It was similar to the wiki, providing detailed numerical data based on the records we had gathered.
‘Let’s see.’
It was a ghost story about a space one could fall into by taking a wrong turn in a commercial building with many vacancies—a type commonly referred to as the Backrooms on the internet…
“……”
As I read the next paragraph, a powerful premonition struck me.
‘This is…’
It had already been months since I started guessing the identity of ghost stories through manuals based on my knowledge of the original novel.
This meant I wouldn’t be surprised just because I already knew what it was.
And yet, this was a situation worth being surprised about.
Normally, it would be a crazy mass-slaughter event like the Night of the Living Dead or a situation where my death was guaranteed.
But this time, it was different.
‘This… this is a good one!’
My god, it’s a heartwarming ghost story!
If you measured the horror level, it would probably be zero. A supernatural phenomenon that even a coward could pass through with composure if they knew the spoilers!
But why was it C-rank?
‘Because Baekilmong Co., Ltd. misclassified the rank!’
This was a story about finding joy there.
A so-called ‘misunderstanding-type’ ghost story!
It looked dangerous, but in reality, it was an incredibly gentle and polite phenomenon. It was just a safe and kind ghost story that was funny because people misunderstood it due to their prejudices.
‘It’s to the point where “magical experience” is a more fitting term than “ghost story”…’
Naturally, there weren’t many such cases in the novel.
My heart raced slightly.
I’m going in there?
‘Wait a minute.’
If I play this right…
‘It won’t just be a heartwarming feeling; my future life could be heartwarming too.’
My mind spun rapidly.
To make that happen, there was definitely one thing I needed.
And that was…
“We’re heading in tomorrow afternoon, so there’s plenty of time. Take your time reading. Well… I don’t even need to tell you that, Roe Deer!”
“In that case… tomorrow, would it be alright if I went out for a bit during lunch before we leave?”
“Huh? Well, neither the Team Leader nor the Deputy are the type to care about that… why? If you’re going to the hospital, I’ll tell them to give you some extra time.”
“Ah, it’s nothing like that. Just…”
I thought of my bank account and did a mental count.
“There’s something I need to buy.”
“…?”
To gain an advantage in this heartwarming ghost story, I had to prepare something.
Something very expensive!
And the next day, after lunch.
We moved in the Deputy’s vehicle.
To the location where the Darkness we were to enter was isolated.
“You’ve got everything you want to bring, right?”
“Yes.”
The ‘expensive thing’ I had bought during lunch was tucked safely in my briefcase.
The Deputy in the driver’s seat checked in.
“Is this the first time you’re entering an urban legend that takes place in an actual physical space, rather than being kidnapped by touching an object?”
No. Actually, just recently I went into a mountain cabin and pretended to be a serial killer while holding body parts, and I thought I was going to throw up.
…Let’s not mention that.
“Yes. I think it’s my first field trip.”
“Haha. You’re still in your twenties, right, Roe Deer? This must be your first job.”
The atmosphere was quite pleasant, and we moved without issue.
We even shared some small talk.
“Did you know? Our Team Leader supposedly broke a steering wheel three times by accident while on duty. So rumors say he’ll never sit in the driver’s seat again unless there’s a zombie apocalypse…”
“……”
Hmm. Let’s not ask him directly.
Anyway, after driving for about 40 minutes, the car arrived smoothly at its destination.
“We’re here.”
It was a commercial district in a bedroom community on the outskirts of Seoul.
However, because the real estate boom had long since passed and people had moved away due to new urban developments, it was a somewhat quiet and empty… ’old’ new city.
On the windows of numerous vacant units, real estate contact numbers with ‘For Sale’ signs were posted.
“I guess one of these buildings is the urban legend. When you enter at sunset on a clear day, something strange happens.”
“Yes.”
With my superiors kindly briefing me on the contents of the manual, I approached the specified commercial building.
“It seems they’re blocking civilians from approaching with some… security team equipment. It recognizes our masks and lets us inside.”
Hmm.
“Be careful once you’re in.”
The Assistant Manager lowered his voice and whispered seriously.
“There are many gruesome records, so let’s be sure to stay alert.”
“……”
Are you talking about… things like this?
Investigation Record #12
One of the deployed employees (Staff Jeong Se-jong) discovered a shop operating in Room 404 next to the emergency exit on the 4th floor. The name on the sign was ■■■ Cafe.
However, as they approached the location:
Strange sounds that wouldn’t be heard in a cafe
began to be heard.
Barking, shouting, and dozens of animal howls overlapped, growing louder and louder, until the moment the employee stopped in front of the door, the sounds suddenly drew close as if to pounce.
The panicked employee succeeded in fleeing to the emergency stairs just before the door opened but lost contact after a loud crash.
The employee was later found unconscious near the building.
Open fractures in both legs, severe back injuries, and was removed from duty. Subsequently suffered from persistent PTSD.
At first glance, it might seem eerie and gruesome.
But did you notice?
‘That’s just… a dog-friendly cafe.’
The employee, terrified by the sound of dogs, fell down the stairs and suffered multiple injuries, and the ghost story kindly sent him outside…
This Darkness is just a space where the most anomalous thing is that the shops that used to be there are operating normally.
However, it could be seen as the type of story that chuckles at investigators who get ruined by jumping to conclusions and interpreting everything in a negative, sensationalized way.
And the people right next to me are busily giving me advice…
“Let’s go carefully. There are quite a few records of this space harming those who enter.”
No, there aren’t.
“Especially, you mustn’t lose consciousness. It ends with serious injuries.”
It’s just that even if you’re badly hurt and lose consciousness, they kick you out when the time is up…
Since this is literally a shopping mall, they politely evict you when business hours are over.
But I refrained from saying anything, fearing that if I did, they’d go, ‘Ah, this ghost story even pollutes the mind!’ and another comedy of errors would ensue from their wild misunderstandings…
Instead, for the sake of an efficient investigation, I readily nodded when they suggested distributing communication devices and splitting up.
“Will you be okay, Roe Deer?”
“Yes.”
Normally, I would have clung to them for dear life, but today was a day for this coward to shine!
“Contact us immediately if there’s a problem.”
“Understood.”
Carrying the radio I received from the security team (which strangely reminded me of the toy radio sold in the Alien Shop), I immediately set off.
-Hmm, is there a shop you wish to visit? It seems several are in operation.
You know what?
You’re right.
‘However, I have to approach it in a somewhat special way…’
Because the space was warped, the floors and directions were a mess, but there were occasional systems and laws to it.
And among them, there was this:
When taking the elevator from the 7th floor, a button for the basement appears by chance.
After several attempts, I finally found the button labeled ‘B1’ in the elevator.
-Ah, a hidden location? It reminds me of that elegant exhibition.
Do we really have to bring that up?
I still have nightmares about being trapped in the basement of that exhibition, unable to find the exit, wandering in circles and losing my organs to a spider machine…!
‘Th-this is a kind place… a kind place…’
I tried to shake off the nightmare as I pressed the button.
Ding.
And when the doors open, the underground parking lot is visible.
‘I think someone fainted here because a car honked its horn.’
That wasn’t what was important.
I moved diligently according to the instructions I remembered.
‘Three times to the left.’
If you circle this underground parking lot, a new section number that wasn’t there before appears.
‘A19.’
Then I was as good as there.
I moved my feet with an excited heart.
Next to this parking section, there was also a door leading into the building. Instead of opening it and going to the elevator, if you looked to the side, there was a small shop.
That was how it appeared.
Moonlight Tattoo Shop
The magical place.
