Even if I fall into a ghost story, I still have to go to work
Chapter 74
I Still Have to Go to Work Even if I Fall into a Ghost Story
I Still Have to Go to Work Even if I Fall into a Ghost Story, Chapter 74
I Still Have to Go to Work Even if I Fall into a Ghost Story, 074
A classroom inside a ghost story, bathed in bright indoor lights.
“Die! Die!”
Behind me, people were desperately battering a student entity that stood eerily still.
“Let’s wait until they pass.”
In front of me, a civil servant watched my company’s employees pass by with eyes full of wariness and contempt.
And caught in the middle…
Was me, without my colleagues and having missed my timing.
I had to look like a virtuous civilian to the civil servant beside me while safely clearing this nightmare of a ghost story.
The catch? I was actually from the pharmaceutical company that civil servant despised so much!
“…….”
Just how high was the difficulty of this thing going to climb?
‘This is insane.’
In the meantime, the employees had moved far off into the distance. I felt like I’d locked eyes with a few of them, but when I looked away, they didn’t call out and instead quickened their pace.
Just as I was starting to feel a sense of relief—
Flicker.
The blackout returned.
“Eek!”
But this time, the people were faster than the darkness.
“……A-it’s not moving!”
“We did it!”
I took a deep breath.
When the lights flickered back on.
The ‘Segwang Industrial High School Student,’ who had been frozen like a statue, was now slumped on the floor near the back door.
“Waaaah!”
The frantic beating the people had delivered had clearly been effective. This time, the student couldn’t move even when the lights went out.
Instead, as if finally receiving the full impact of the accumulated violence, it lay collapsed as if dead.
However, the right hand of the frozen student remained outstretched toward the air, as if still trying to grab the back door….
“…….”
The people cheered, brandishing blood-stained mop handles and chairs with faces full of jubilation.
“It worked! This is it!”
“…….”
We had to run.
When one of the student entities fell into a state of immobility similar to biological death.
Quickly.
Every student nearby would be summoned to that spot.
[Ding-dong-dang-dong]
[A fatal accident has occurred in Class 5 of the 1st Grade.]
“Huh…?”
An announcement came over the school intercom.
Unlike before, the voice was low and somber.
A slow funeral dirge began to play in the background.
“Now.”
The civil servant poked my back.
“Run.”
[The deceased student is Lee Won-yul from the 1st Grade.]
I immediately burst out the door.
And as quickly as possible, I scanned the hallway, taking in as much as I could.
Confirming what I needed, I pressed myself against the wall to minimize my profile.
“Should we put our backs to the wall?”
“Exactly.”
[Let us all observe five seconds of silence.]
I didn’t resist as the civil servant pressed down on my shoulder; I simply sat down with my back against the wall.
And then.
Thud.
The lights went out.
[5]
Through the melody came the sound of a door sliding open. Drrrr.
The back door.
[4]
“Aaaaagh!”
“Ack!”
“Wh-wha… Gurgle.”
[3]
“Save me….”
“Sob,”
[2]
Screams, screams, short-lived screams.
[1]
…….
…….
Silence.
The funeral dirge continued to play.
[The moment of silence is over. We offer our deepest condolences to the deceased.]
I forced my trembling head up to look inside the classroom.
Because I had to see.
Flicker.
As the lights returned, my vision cleared.
The inside of the classroom was a mess of blood and filth.
All sorts of corpses were scattered about—flung against the walls, sprawled on the floor, or slumped over desks.
‘……Ha.’
And in the midst of it all, only two silhouettes stood tall.
The Segwang Industrial High School students, frozen by my gaze.
One entity stood trampling a decapitated person, while the other was smiling, gripping the front door….
Staring right at me.
“…….”
I’d been perceived.
‘Dammit.’
A bead of sweat trickled down my jaw.
“…I’m going to step back for a moment. To an angle where I can still see inside the classroom.”
“…….”
The civil servant gave a slight nod.
Keeping my eyes fixed forward, I felt along the wall behind me.
The reason I stood against this particular wall:
[Portable Emergency Light]
A red emergency flashlight was right nearby.
A portable light source that could ‘freeze’ the students even during a blackout.
‘It’s an absolute essential.’
However, in the spot where three should have been docked, only one remained.
‘The employees must have taken them.’
I was just surprised that even with that bastard Baek Sa-heon in the group, they hadn’t taken all three as spares.
Furthermore, they’d had the sense to jam a wad of paper into the emergency light’s removal sensor to prevent the alarm from sounding. They were exactly what you’d expect from people with experience in ghost story exploration.
They’d even left one scrap of paper fluttering in the empty slot of the flashlight.
‘I saw that coming.’
I reached back and grabbed the paper….
As I extended my hand forward, the text folded onto the back of the paper caught the edge of my vision.
—Debt
“…….”
Not bad.
I crumpled Baek Sa-heon’s note, stuffed it back into the sensor, and pulled out the flashlight.
‘Phew.’
With this, the primary preparation for a blackout was complete.
‘Next is….’
“…! Did you pull the flashlight?”
“Yes.”
“……Excellent. Keep it on. …Now, let’s retrieve the name tags.”
The civil servant strode toward the front door of the classroom.
Right up to the face of the student entity that was staring intently at me.
‘Huuuuu….’
Just looking at it felt like warning signals were screaming in my brain.
But the civil servant swiftly reached out and tore the Name Tag from its chest.
Then, he went further in to retrieve the Name Tag of the first entity that had fallen by the back door.
“…….”
This is insane.
‘That’s an irreversible step.’
If you are witnessed stealing a student’s Name Tag, you will be hunted by that student until you die.
Though I suppose it was already a lost cause the moment we made eye contact.
‘We’re definitely going to be chased.’
Even with a flashlight, moving through this school at night with two students on our tail was madness for an ordinary person.
It was a choice only an Agent of the Disaster Management Bureau, equipped with gear and allies, could make.
‘…Still, if it were me, I would’ve done it differently.’
But the milk was already spilled, and thinking rationally….
Getting my identity caught by the civil servant.
Dying in a nightmare ghost story.
No matter how I looked at it, the former was the greater risk. Dying here was just a bonus; it felt like I’d be marked and investigated afterward.
‘For now, I have no choice but to trust the Disaster Management Bureau Agent’s move.’
Let’s at least… pull my own weight.
‘If I’m going to do it, I have to do it fast.’
At the same time the civil servant moved, I approached the classroom.
I reached out to the student near the back door and pulled off the Name Tag.
‘Uuuuugh!’
This is crazy, I’m actually terrified.
The student, frozen without a twitch, felt like it would turn around at any moment and crush my head….
But that didn’t happen, and I succeeded.
‘Phew.’
It was then, as I gripped my hand, which was tingling with goosebumps.
“H-help me….”
I heard it.
“…….”
I thought the student entity was only stepping on the decapitated person’s neck, but I was wrong.
There was someone underneath, tears streaming down their face.
“P-please….”
There was someone still alive.
Whether they lacked the strength or the spite to scream, their thin whisper reached my ears.
“…….”
After a brief and intense deliberation, I made a certain move.
…….
“…! Gasp, sob……. Yes….”
My eyes were entirely occupied with watching the student-shaped entity, so I couldn’t be certain, but I felt the person underneath give a faint nod…….
“…….”
I slowly backed away and joined the civil servant. After stepping back into the hallway, we began to move quickly.
“Watch the front. I’ll keep an eye on the classroom.”
“…Yes.”
The civil servant took out his own flashlight.
He watched the back of the head of the entity that had been staring straight at us from the front door.
And I watched the hallway ahead to ‘freeze’ any new entities that might appear with my gaze.
We pressed against the wall, moving in a way that minimized our blind spots as much as possible.
“…….”
It was a desperate, silent, and rapid movement.
As the classroom grew distant… and finally, when one of the two entities that had been completely inside the room was no longer in sight.
The civil servant, who should have been watching it, muttered in confusion.
“Why aren’t they following… unless,”
I felt a tremor of agitation from the back pressed against mine.
“…Was there someone alive inside? Is that person watching them?”
“…Yes.”
The civil servant took a deep breath.
“They must have been too heavily injured to move. …You did well. During a disaster, you secure your own safety first before helping others.”
“…….”
“Go toward the stairs. We’ll stop once near the fire hydrant.”
“Yes.”
I moved my feet. And then….
Flicker.
…Another blackout.
“I’m shining the flashlight.”
“Yes.”
I kept moving my feet.
And then I realized.
During that blackout just now,
The person I gave the Name Tag to had died.
‘They’re coming.’
Right now, two entities would be emerging from the classroom.
But because I was watching the front, I couldn’t look back… and the thought made the hair on my arms stand up.
“Don’t panic. There’s still a chance.”
“…….”
“You obtained a Name Tag earlier, right?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Now you just need to commit suicide.”
I nearly fainted.
“Let’s do it as soon as we stop at the emergency light. You look far too pale; it would be better for you to wake from the nightmare quickly. Since you have a Name Tag, there shouldn’t be a problem.”
“…Um.”
But the thing was.
I swallowed hard.
“I did obtain a Name Tag, but I don’t have it in my hand right now.”
“……!”
“I gave it to the person who was alive in the classroom.”
Yes.
Earlier, I had intentionally dropped the Name Tag on the floor.
So that the person pinned under the ‘student’ could grab it.
—If you hold onto that, you’ll wake up from this dream.
—…! Gasp, sob……. Yes….
“Since they have the Name Tag, that person will wake up safely.”
And in doing so, they’d bought us some time.
“…!”
The civil servant let out a short breath, filled with frustration and stress.
Then, in a voice even more weary and businesslike, he spoke.
“…Were you relying on the extra Name Tags I have?”
“No. You don’t have to give me those. You’re the one who earned them, Agent.”
“…….”
“You need more Name Tags, right? You’ll have to give them to your colleagues too.”
“…That’s.”
Of course.
I wasn’t saying this because I was some mindless pushover.
‘It’s actually fine.’
Why?
‘Because I never intended to commit suicide just by getting a Name Tag anyway!’
Exploration Record #13.
The exploration record I was using as a basis for my escape—the wiki entry I had written myself—was originally the record of an explorer who had failed to obtain a Name Tag.
Furthermore, I had analyzed this ghost story quite a bit and considered various variables while writing that record.
And I had reached a conclusion.
‘There is a ‘certain action’ you must perform without a Name Tag to clear this without meeting a physical death…!’
And that was also the strategy to obtain the highest grade of Dream Essence.
‘In that case, I have to do it.’
I had to prove to Team D… that I could continue to produce similar results even in new situations.
“Do you know what happens if you die without a Name Tag?”
I knew.
“From now on, every time you sleep on a new moon, you’ll be dragged back here. And when you wake up, you’ll forget, so you won’t even be able to deal with it.”
“…….”
“Can you handle that?”
I didn’t think I could, but what choice did I have…?
Ideally, it would be much safer to carry the Name Tag and then give up ownership at the critical moment.
But as long as that civil servant was stuck to me as a companion, it was impossible for me to obtain a Name Tag and then discard it when necessary.
So I had taken the risk and given the Name Tag away naturally.
“There will be another chance.”
And even if there were, I’d give it away again.
As long as I’m accompanied by you.
“And I’ll seize that chance on my own. Don’t worry, I won’t ask you for one, Agent.”
“…….”
And at this point, maybe.
Should I give it a try?
I continued in a voice that sounded somewhat determined.
“…As I thought, let’s split up here.”
“…!”
“If you need it, I’ll even give you the flashlight I have.”
‘I brought a high-powered flashlight anyway.’
I’d brought all sorts of other things too.
If I could just get away from you, I could stop acting like a civilian and use them!
It was scary to go alone, but I couldn’t go on with my hands tied like this.
Whether it was a civilian or a company colleague, that would be better!
‘I need to join a larger group.’
This ghost story has a bizarre structure where the more eyes there are, the safer it is, but the noisier it gets, the more dangerous it becomes.
‘I need to form a party of about four, quickly.’
As long as there was the risk factor of me being a Baekilmong Corporation employee, I couldn’t travel with this Agent.
I needed a stage where I could move more proactively.
‘Let’s part ways, acting like I’ve given up.’
“I feel like I’ll only be a burden to you, Agent. I’ll… try to manage on my own somehow.”
You said themselves that they consider civilians caught in a disaster as good as dead anyway! Let’s just consider this an unavoidable situation and part ways!
However.
An entirely unexpected response came back.
“……I misjudged you.”
“…?”
The civil servant looked at me with an expression of firm resolve.
“I was planning to carry out a humanitarian execution the moment you obtained a Name Tag.”
Pardon?!
‘This is crazy.’
Even if dying meant waking up, to say he’d kill someone right to their face like that.
Feeling cold sweat trickling down my back, I forced a smile.
“Ah, yes. Even if it’s a dream, suicide is difficult….”
“Yes. But… if you’re willing, I’d like you to accompany me on this disaster investigation.”
…….
Excuse me?
The civil servant spoke quickly.
“You’ll become a temporary Agent. This isn’t my solo mission, so normally it would require the consent of another Agent, but… ah.”
The civil servant reached into his coat, pulled something out, and handed it to me.
“If you eat this, it will be recognized as a simplified procedure.”
My eyelids flickered as I looked at the small, rectangular, foil-wrapped Caramel Candy in my hand.
…It’s a Disaster Management Bureau issued item!
======================
Sweet and Sour
A chewable caramel-type candy.
Upon ingestion, the user feels an uncomfortable pain whenever they tell a lie, compelling them to speak the truth.
======================
“It’s a light truth-verification procedure.”
No, this is basically a truth serum used for torture.
“If you take this and accompany me, you will also be paid a small stipend.”
“…….”
“If it’s too difficult, I’ll give you a Name Tag and then kill you to send you back.”
Wow, holy shit, seriously.
“Citizen?”
If only I could pretend to eat it and tuck it into my tattoo, but in this dream where I’d completely reverted to a high schooler, I didn’t even have my tattoo.
After weighing the scales intensely.
“……Yes.”
I diligently chewed and swallowed the torture-grade truth serum.
It had a pleasant sweet and sour taste that caught in my throat, but I chewed and swallowed it nonetheless.
‘Getting caught throwing it away or getting caught holding out without eating it is a bigger problem.’
Since that would mean I knew what this caramel was.
“I swallowed it.”
I wanted to cry.
But as they say, the stick comes with a carrot.
An unexpected shower of carrots began to fall.
“Well done. Now, take this.”
“…??”
The civil servant quickly handed me something else to my empty hand.
It was a steel-colored badge that looked somewhat similar to a Silver Heart.
Huh?
“It’s an Agent identification badge. If you wear that, you’ll be able to get help even if you run into other Agents.”
“…….”
“And this.”
As soon as I pinned the badge on, a small, ivory-colored pistol was quickly handed over.
Inside the translucent cylinder, small multi-colored glass beads sparkled like bullets.
One look was enough to tell this was no ordinary item….
======================
Glass Hand Cannon
An exorcism pistol loaded with special glass beads manufactured by the Disaster Management Bureau. It is so small it looks like a toy or a lighter.
======================
“It’s a weapon for dealing with supernatural disasters. It will certainly be effective against those ‘students.’ Keep it on you.”
“…….”
Wow.
This is the basic Disaster Management Bureau Agent issue set I’d only ever seen on the wiki.
Just like Baekilmong Corporation’s Dream Essence collectors and masks, it was like an Agent identifier.
‘I can’t believe I’m wearing all this.’
I was actually going to act like a Disaster Management Bureau Agent, a role I was never destined for.
‘What kind of situation is this?’
It was funny and even a little exciting, but at the same time, I desperately wanted to run away.
But for now….
‘I don’t have the luxury to worry about that.’
“…It’s started.”
Flicker.
“We’re almost at the end of the hallway, so from now on, you watch this side too. …You must never lose hold of the flashlight.”
…….
I readjusted my grip on the unfamiliar pistol.
They were coming.
