Even if I fall into a ghost story, I still have to go to work
Chapter 70
…The situation settled down quickly after that.
Actually, it had no choice but to settle down.
It was because the Lizard had grown suspicious of my previous behavior.
—No-ru, were your questions last night intended to initiate a long conversation with a ghost, having mistaken me for one?
My spine really chilled at that moment.
—…How could that be? I was simply flustered after seeing the back-hand clap, so I was keeping both possibilities in mind.
And then, I gave a conceptual thumbs-up toward my respected superior.
Meaning, I brushed it off with flattery.
—I didn’t want to miss the opportunity for my first deep conversation with you, Team Leader, just because of a misunderstanding that you were a ghost.
—I see.
—Thank you for your kind counseling over such a long period.
—Yes.
Phew.
For the record, the members of C Team, who had spent the day peacefully asleep, woke up just before Section Chief Lee Ja-heon and I were about to leave.
And then they chuckled heartily.
“Ah~ of all people, it had to be you two who got caught. What a shame.”
“Wow. We were quite scary, weren’t we?”
“I know, right? It was chilling~”
Liar!
Seeing them laugh while recalling the things their ghostly mimics had done, I once again realized the sheer size of the balls on these so-called company elites.
Oh, before that.
‘Since the opportunity is here, I might be able to find out the Salmon Market recommender.’
“Excuse me, could I get both of your names?”
“Oh, of course!”
The Dolphin-masked Junior Manager raised her hand high.
“I’m Lee Seong-hae, a Junior Manager, and that over there is Kang Do-jun, the Deputy.”
“……”
Huh?
Wait a minute.
The Deputy who introduced me to Salmon Market was… Ah!
“Is your C Team Leader’s name by any chance Lee Kang-heon?”
“Eh? No.”
“……”
‘I’ve been played.’
I thought they were being suspiciously cooperative with their personal information, but it seems it was all a lie.
‘Did they take advantage of the fact that the elite A, B, and C Teams can’t have their names or contact info looked up directly through the internal network by general teams?’
Well, it didn’t matter much. It just made me feel glad that I’d used a detour to create my ID.
Just as I was about to wrap up the conversation with some excuse about “misunderstanding,” someone spoke up.
“Excuse me, No-ru Junior Manager.”
While the Leopard Deputy was talking to Section Chief Lee Ja-heon.
The Dolphin Junior Manager suddenly turned her head slightly and spoke to me.
“By any chance… did you get a KakaoTalk message saying they’d help you make money?”
“……!!”
“From someone with a profile picture of a beach in Hawaii?”
“Are they someone famous?”
“Known among those in the loop?”
The Dolphin Junior Manager glanced at her colleagues, and once she confirmed that attention wasn’t focused here, she continued quickly.
“Listen, I was the top recruit of my year, too.”
Ah.
“I got contacted as well. That, uh, the fish that bears eat a lot… ah, screw it, Salmon Market. Salmon Market.”
They’d been phished over here, too….
“I heard several people rumored to be promising recruits received them!”
According to the following explanation, the identity was different every time, but there was exactly one thing that remained consistent.
[K.LEE: Oh, hello there, employee lol]
The profile picture and the name ‘K.LEE’.
The Dolphin Junior Manager whispered.
“Want to hear my theory?”
“Of course.”
“In my opinion, no matter how I think about it, I think the administrator of that site sent it. To promote their secondhand site and find someone to sell genuine items from the Darkness!”
Oh.
“Do you think a company employee created that site?”
“At the very least, I think they’re an insider! They know the Field Exploration Team far too well.”
I see.
I rubbed my chin.
‘If there really is an employee doing such a thing…’
They’d likely be a “Named” character.
I narrowed down a few people from the wiki-listed employees who might be capable of such a thing.
“Thank you. That clears up some of my questions.”
“Don’t mention it.”
The Dolphin Junior Manager smiled and shrugged.
“By the way, are there many employees in the company who use Salmon Market?”
“Quite a few, right? The company doesn’t really care as long as we don’t sell Dream Collectors or masks. It’s like how they turn a blind eye to looting to keep soldiers’ morale up during a war? Gross.”
The Dolphin Junior Manager grumbled.
“Anyway, this company is truly annoying.”
I nodded without realizing it.
“They certainly do have a tendency to disregard human life.”
“Ah, well, that… human death being eco-friendly is true enough, so I don’t really care about that.”
“……”
“The important thing is that they seem to kill too randomly. If it were up to me, I’d definitely cut people based on their personality first. Phew.”
I… I’m scared of C Team.
“Anyway, just saying.”
“Thank you.”
“For what?”
The Dolphin Junior Manager replied energetically as she tied her long hair back into a ponytail.
“No-ru Junior Manager, you were so polite even when I was a ghost. I think good people should live a long time.”
Giving a thumbs-up, the Dolphin Junior Manager grinned.
Mm. Thank you.
In any case, the parting with C Team was quite heartwarming.
“See you next time in the Darkness where they give out lots of points! We’ll show you our cool side then!”
“Preferably if only one of you comes so we can take all the points! Hahaha!”
Mm.
‘I don’t want to experience seeing the “cool side” of an elite team in the Darkness…!’
Still, it seemed like I could work with them more smoothly and with less friction than with A Team.
Of course, C Team also seemed to have a bit of an elitist complex, but I could overlook that as a trait of the elite teams.
…Except for the fact that the shocking ghost version of C Team I saw today was replaying endlessly in my head, that is.
‘Uuuugh.’
Let’s go home.
Go home and enjoy the luxury of sleeping in the middle of the day….
Feeling a small bit of gratitude that today was my day off, I bowed my head to Section Chief Lee Ja-heon.
“Section Chief, thank you for today. I’ll say it again, thank you for kindly answering my questions even when I was asking them frantically in the Darkness.”
“Yes.”
“If you ever have anything you want to ask me, please feel free to do so anytime, Section Chief!”
“Yes. I will ask now.”
“……”
Already?
Section Chief Lee Ja-heon asked flatly.
“Kim Sol-eum. Have you used the ‘Fox Counseling Room’?”
“…!”
That was one of the three new locations I’d been granted access to upon becoming a Junior Manager.
- Security Team Rental Warehouse
- Annex (Free equipment crafting twice a year)
- Fox Counseling Room
It was also the only place I hadn’t used yet….
“No.”
Naturally, I hadn’t had the peace of mind or the timing for it.
“Do you plan to use it?”
“……”
Mm.
“…Section Chief, you’re recommending it because the Fox Counseling Room helps with mental recovery from contamination, right?”
“Yes. I recommend you schedule a visit soon.”
It was a valid point.
Except for one problem.
‘There are side effects there.’
In fact, the ‘Fox Counseling Room’ had a very fatal side effect that wasn’t written in the employee manual.
Of course, the probability was very low, so it wasn’t something a normal employee would worry about, but….
I didn’t want to risk that side effect even if the probability was low.
…I was already sick and tired of “probabilities” right now.
‘I think I can still hold out.’
Unless I consciously thought about it, I didn’t hear strange inner whispers or feel the urge to read the education manual.
The nights were a bit tough until I fell asleep, but that was better now that I had someone to talk to.
I meant Brown.
—My! It is an honor, Friend.
Right.
I never thought a monster from a ghost story could feel like such a lifeline….
‘As expected, humans are creatures of adaptation.’
Anyway, since today was my day off and I could sleep during the day, I figured I’d be fine if I caught up on sleep like this.
Of course, on the outside, I nodded politely.
“Yes. I’ll set a schedule as soon as I have time.”
Knowing full well that “time” might not come for a while, maybe even months.
It wasn’t a lie, anyway.
“…Yes.”
Section Chief Lizard stared at me for a moment but accepted it and left.
And so, I returned home safely…….
“Phew.”
Click.
I opened the door and entered my room.
Perhaps because it was working hours, the dormitory building itself was quiet. Baek Sa-heon wasn’t there either.
‘Shall I try to sleep?’
I washed up and lay down on the bed, and for one last time, I was about to check various information and sites I knew….
“…!”
But then, all my sleepiness vanished.
‘It’s open!’
The alien shop had finished its renewal and was displaying a new homepage.
The brilliant colors of the clicked screen stabbed at my eyes.
>> I SEE MERCHANDISE
★REOPENING COMMEMORATIVE DISCOUNT EVENT!★
AMAZING PRICE!
Wow, really… amazing.
The design, that is.
‘How can it possibly get uglier?’
In the meantime, dots exploded like fireworks. The more colors and effects there were, the more terrible it looked.
If these aliens were using an outside contractor, I’d want to talk them out of it.
—No-ru, please pity this host and move me far away from that hideous flyer.
I willingly placed Brown on a towel on the desk.
I would bear this design terror alone.
‘Anyway, that means a reopening commemorative discount event is in progress.’
That was a good opportunity. The number of product types might have increased as well.
With a slightly fluttering heart, I pressed the enter button.
ITEM LIST
Happy Maker - ₩27,999,999
★
Nostalgia Candy - ₩12,999,999
★
Packaging 12B357na - ₩9,999,999
Necronomicon - ₩49,999,999
We Help! - ₩66,666,666
Really 20% discount if you buy over 100 million!
Become a Space Mall VIP!
“……”
Wait a minute.
“It’s here!”
—No-ru?
I almost jumped out of bed in excitement but managed to calm down.
“Armor has finally appeared!”
—Ah, have you found the item you were looking for? That is something to celebrate!
It really was.
Packaging 12B357na - ₩9,999,999
‘I have to buy this, no matter what.’
Plus, it was the cheapest. What kind of insane stroke of luck was this?
It was only after I put it in my cart that I realized it was ten million won and had a momentary reality check, but I had absolutely no intention of canceling the purchase.
And as I calmed my excitement and scrolled down to look at the other items.
“……”
—Friend? Is there a problem?
“No.”
It was quite the opposite.
I checked the list again, feeling slightly bewildered, but it was real.
’No… I know all these items.’
This was a first.
Even in cases where there wasn’t a specific entry in the , there was at least a minimal mention that allowed me to make a reasonable deduction.
Of course, some items looked so ominous they were practically ghost stories themselves, but perhaps because they were still just text, their utility and usage came to mind first.
‘This is huge.’
And then, a peculiar mark caught my eye.
Happy Maker - ₩27,999,999
★
What on earth is this star?
When I hovered my finger over it, an explanation popped up.
★ Similar to something you bought before!
‘Ah.’
These aliens… I wondered why they did a renewal, and it turns out they’ve introduced an algorithm. So that products related to what I bought last time appear at the top with a star!
‘But shouldn’t they have done this the exact opposite way?’
Maybe for clothes, but I didn’t think I’d necessarily buy similar items… Well, it works for consumable items that have run out of stock.
For example, this!
Nostalgia Candy - ₩12,999,999
★
‘It’s the Nostalgia series.’
It was an item made by the same place that produced the yarn-shaped restraint that had been wrapped around my wrist back when I was in the Security Team’s isolation room with the education manual.
A series with the concept of returning one’s identity to a ‘good time in the past’.
If it’s a candy type, it probably has a similar effect when eaten.
It seems it popped up because I’ve bought edible products a few times. It also has similarities to the Baekseolsan apples.
‘That’s a definite buy.’
I’m almost out of mini-apples anyway, whether juice or whole.
With that item already in my cart, I slowly looked through the rest of the list….
‘Painkillers, recovery agents, armor, for intimidation, for escaping crises….’
And then I realized.
‘These are all good.’
Every single one of them was a useful item. Because I knew their uses, I could tell.
Furthermore.
Really 20% discount if you buy over 100 million!
“……”
A discount.
‘It’s not an opportunity that comes around often.’
And combining my salary, the side income I’d earned so far, and performance bonuses, the ammunition I could use—excluding living expenses—was….
‘Up to 140 million, no… maybe even 150 million?’
“……”
—Friend, are you enjoying your shopping after overcoming that hideous visual torture?
“No.”
—Hmm?
“I’m just finished.”
I looked at the shopping cart.
Happy Maker - ₩27,999,999
Nostalgia Candy - ₩12,999,999
Packaging 12B357na - ₩9,999,999
Necronomicon - ₩49,999,999
We Help! - ₩66,666,666
= ₩167,666,662
※DISCOUNTED!※ : 134,133,329
Let’s go, buy all items!
