Even if I fall into a ghost story, I still have to go to work
Chapter 90
Even After Falling Into an Urban Legend, I Still Have to Go to Work
Even After Falling Into an Urban Legend, I Still Have to Go to Work Chapter 90
Even After Falling Into an Urban Legend, I Still Have to Go to Work 090
The alleys within the ‘Death End Alley’ urban legend each have their own theme.
It’s as if shops dealing in similar industries or materials in the real world gathered together to form a commercial district.
Of course, they appear completely unpredictably, and the probability of their appearance varies.
Alleys of Death End Alley confirmed so far:
- Street Vendors
- Bookstores
- Pets
- Jewelry
- Daily Necessities
- Lighting
- Meat
…….
And the place we have entered now is the alley selling daily necessities.
But even at a glance, I am heading straight for the shop that looks like the one place in this alley no one would ever want to enter.
A butcher shop where living organs and flesh are hanging.
Twitch, squirm.
‘Let’s, let’s just think of it as a haunted house.’
It’s fine. There isn’t… anything hanging there that looks exactly as it did when it was alive. They’re all just parts, so let’s just think of it as an amusement park attraction using animatronics….
Wait, if I think of amusement parks, I’ll be reminded of Joyful Theme Park, which makes it even scarier!
‘C-Calm down.’
I can’t let myself be intimidated.
Trying my best to look composed, I strode toward the butcher shop.
Raw Meat Butcher Shop
Beneath a window illuminated by red and blue lights, the proprietor, who had been sharpening a butchering knife on a whetstone, looks up.
A massive frame with a blood-soaked apron.
Looking closer….
A tattered, flayed cow turns its head of raw flesh to look at us.
Nod.
It gestures.
As if promising to treat its customers well, it beckons us to come closer….
“A-Assistant Manager, wait a moment!”
Kang Yi-hak blocked my path.
“Haha, uh, well. It doesn’t look like we need anything from that shop, so let’s go to another one!”
“The owner has already gestured to us; it would be rude not to go in.”
-Ah, quite right. That is indeed proper etiquette!
“No!”
Kang Yi-hak immediately noticed his voice had gotten too loud and lowered it, speaking urgently.
“It was written never to enter the alley with the meat…!”
He was right.
If an alley themed around meat is discovered in Death End Alley, do not enter under any circumstances and remain in the previous alley.
If you have already entered due to unavoidable circumstances (such as being chased by a merchant), block your hearing with earphones or similar means and move to the next alley as quickly as possible by completing 1,000 steps.
If a companion is caught by an invitation to taste samples, it is advised to leave them behind and proceed at a faster pace.
Items from the manual that send a chill down your spine just by reading them.
“That’s true.”
“Ah, so you do remember? Then….”
“So?”
“…!?”
“I want to do some shopping.”
And with that, I walked toward the butcher shop.
“R-Roe Deer-ssi…!”
I’m sorry, Jang Heo-un-ssi! You can run away if you want…!
But I heard the footsteps of two people following me. It seemed they had both decided to follow my lead.
Hmm. I thought they would run.
‘Actually, I think I wanted to run away more than anyone….’
But I felt that if I stopped and backed down here, I would be dragged around by that colleague’s schemes again, so I kept moving forward.
Eventually, the three of us stood side-by-side in front of the butcher shop, bathed in intense lighting, where twitching parts were on display….
Naturally, I was in the very front.
Hah.
….
The flayed cow looks at me.
‘Ugh.’
I mustn’t look too closely.
I blurred my focus and looked near the proprietor’s neck, but then I saw veins twitching and hastily shifted my gaze to its clothes.
I’d rather look at blood-stained clothes.
“Hello. Do you offer fresh packaging?”
Nod.
“You have many good parts. Hmm… by any chance.”
I pretended to deliberate before pointing my finger.
“Could I see the forelegs?”
Thump.
The flayed cow’s head rose from its seat and opened the glass door.
From within, ‘foreleg’ portions were pulled out one by one and displayed before my eyes.
…Flesh that was still twitching and alive.
An animal’s paw.
A primate’s hand.
A primate’s hand.
A tentacle?
An animal’s paw.
A primate’s hand…
A human hand with trembling fingers wearing a ring scraped against the glass floor as if pleading…….
‘Ugh.’
I had to endure it.
I looked down, pretending to be indifferent.
……Among them, there was no suitable left hand.
‘A shame.’
I’ve endured this mental agony; it would have been nice to have at least that much of a harvest.
Shaking off thoughts of Eunhaje Deputy, I pondered for a moment before speaking to the entity.
“Something with a sturdier bone structure would be better for making broth… Hmm. Do you happen to have any eyes?”
Thump!
The proprietor’s movements grew rougher, perhaps because I had rejected the first offer. Behind me on both sides, I could hear my colleagues thinly catching their breath.
I too took a deep breath to suppress my fear.
‘The display….’
The forelegs were cleared away,
And eyeballs appeared before me.
A black pupil with a violet iris.
A fist-sized blue eyeball.
A lens with bits of flesh still attached.
White circles trembling without focus….
A desperate dark brown eye looking at me.
‘Hah.’
I closed and opened my eyes.
“That one looks good.”
I pointed my finger.
The very first one displayed—the black eye with the shimmering violet iris.
“I’d like to purchase that. Ah, no need to slice it up.”
…….
The flayed cow stares at me intently.
Then it holds out its hand.
A very clear gesture demanding payment.
Kang Yi-hak whispered in a very small voice.
“…Assistant Manager, should we try to probe what kind of payment it wants…?”
“No.”
I pulled a box out from my tattoo.
Thump.
A heavy box filled with corn and carrots was placed in front of the shop.
“…??”
“…?!”
“I will pay with this.”
When attempting to purchase through bartering at this butcher shop, you must trade with food items that a cow can consume.
Right. While the shops in Death End Alley sometimes use bizarre currencies, we fundamentally don’t have that currency.
‘So I have to try bartering.’
However, since the items accepted vary from shop to shop, I had filled my tattoo with various daily necessities, jewelry, and snacks….
Including the box of vegetables.
Of course, there are shops that demand something a human could never give up in their right mind as payment, but here, this was enough.
“How much of this should I give you as payment?”
…….
The butcher reached out to take the entire pile of vegetables I had produced.
The complexions of my companions, who had been horrified by the tattoo inventory performance, brightened.
“Ah, the deal was a succe—”
“Wait a minute. That much?”
“…?!”
I cut in with a frown.
“That’s too expensive. No, no matter how fresh the packaging is, there’s a limit. It wasn’t easy for me to bring these here in such fresh condition either….”
“R-Roe Deer-ssi…?!”
My companions turned pale and began to look at me as if I were even more of a madman, but I kept talking.
“You didn’t… raise the price just because I said I’d buy it, did you? Or is it just a supply issue lately?”
Nod.
“…You must be having a hard time. Still, this exceeds the budget I had in mind…… Phew.”
I deliberately fell silent.
The proprietor was silent too.
The flayed cow’s head seemed to stare blankly at me for a moment, then it finally went to what looked like a cash register and brought back a handful of coins.
Rusted coins where all the numbers and letters were written backward.
The currency of this place.
‘Yes!’
It worked…!!
There are shops where bartering doesn’t work, and when escaping those places, you absolutely need these coins!
-Ah, everything is falling perfectly into place. Such is the joy of a well-prepared script!
I smiled as I accepted the coins.
“…This is plenty for change. Thank you. I’ll take these.”
……!
The flayed proprietor stood up as if excited and packaged what I had purchased.
The black eyeball, its pupil darting around frantically, was thus packaged in plastic with a transparent liquid and placed in my hand.
I tried my best not to look too closely at either the coins or the item.
“Thank… you.”
In the midst of that.
Splatter.
Blood from the butcher’s apron, which had moved violently, splashed onto my face.
And onto Jang Heo-un’s face as well.
“…!”
Jang Heo-un, wearing the cow mask, froze stiff and bowed his head.
He was probably desperately suppressing the urge to vomit…….
‘Damn it.’
I jumped in and spoke up.
“Ah. My friend here seems to have no energy because he’s hungry. We should head back quickly and get him something to eat.”
Please, please!
The flayed cow peered at Jang Heo-un quite intently.
Just before Jang Heo-un turned rigid and broke out in a cold sweat.
Thud.
The shop owner dropped something for him.
…It was the corn I had paid with.
“T-Thank you….”
Jang Heo-un picked up the corn with trembling hands.
The shop owner stared at him for a moment, then sat back down in front of the butcher shop’s glass door.
‘…We passed.’
We walked away from the ‘Raw Meat Butcher Shop’ at a brisk pace.
At the same time, I looked at Jang Heo-un’s face as he clutched the corn tightly.
Specifically, what he was wearing over it.
‘……Is it because of the mask?’
It seemed to have mistaken Jang Heo-un for a bison.
As expected, the masks of Daydream Co. were no ordinary items. Just like the Dream Collector.
‘Whew.’
Do not give up on your body!
Remaining steps: 7999
Our footsteps only stopped the moment the next alley appeared, and I immediately checked on Jang Heo-un.
“Are you all right?”
“Huh? Ah, yes…… That, there wasn’t that much blood, and everything was already butchered, so I’m, I’m okay with this much now….”
‘Wasn’t it more grotesque that it was cleanly butchered yet still alive…?’
But everyone has different fear points. I should respect that.
Anyway, it was a relief that he was okay. His complexion wasn’t bad either.
Just as we were about to move again.
“W-What was that just now? How did you make a trade like that…?!”
Kang Yi-hak finally began his questioning.
Hmm.
‘Let’s go for one more push here…!’
I deliberately asked back with a composed face.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean what you just bought! The manual clearly said to avoid alleys where meat is visible, but how did you do it so perfectly as if you had prepared for it….”
I did prepare for it!
But since I couldn’t say that, I answered like this.
“It was too obvious.”
“…?”
“Looking at the description of meat-related shops in the manual, they were restaurants. Usually, it seems the problem arises from eating….”
I held up the bag containing my purchase.
“But this is a butcher shop. I guessed that I could just make a purchase without eating.”
“…!”
“And judging by the way they were displayed….”
I turned the bag to show him.
The bizarre black eyeball.
“Since it’s alive, I bought it thinking it could be used in a different way.”
“…….”
“For instance… like an organ transplant.”
“…!”
Right.
Explorers don’t buy food here at the Raw Meat Butcher Shop.
An exploration employee succeeded in attaching a tongue purchased from the Raw Meat Butcher Shop inside their mouth. It functions without issue and allows for various movements a human cannot perform.
If you attach a ‘part’ from that butcher shop—which is packaged alive for freshness—to a missing body part, it activates.
It even brings along the original abilities that the part possessed.
Of course, approaching that butcher shop to buy something without knowing this would be absolute madness!
So I let my mouth run.
“In a place like this, deduction created from limited clues is important.”
No, it’s not.
‘Trying to profit by imagining things from limited clues is usually just a great way to die….’
Everyone knows you only try that as a last resort when there’s no visible way out…!
But since I had to act cool and crazy, there was no choice. Madmen always have their own startling logic.
“I succeeded in that deduction. Is there a problem?”
There’s probably a lot!
Sure enough, Kang Yi-hak was staring at me with his mouth agape.
Yes, you must be dumbfounded….
“Wow!”
Whoa, startled me.
“You are absolutely right!”
…?!
Eyes gleamed behind the pony mask.
“No, wow, yes. To make high returns, a person really has to think differently from others… I guess I was playing it too safe with risks and all that.”
“…….”
“Life is all or nothing anyway, isn’t it! Hahaha! Yes!”
W-Wait a minute.
This is getting strange….
“Come on, let’s keep going. Man, it’s been a while since I’ve met a superior worth emulating!”
“…….”
In that moment, I realized.
‘The Silver Heart!’
I was still wearing the Silver Heart inside my pocket.
‘I talked my way through that and succeeded in persuading him while wearing it!’
The problem was that the situation was still bizarre.
The Silver Heart, by setting, is a tool for persuasion, not brainwashing.
It meant the device only took effect when the statement possessed both logical validity and emotional resonance.
‘So if I make such an absurdly crazy statement, it should be normal for it not to work….‘
“From now on, I’ll do my best to assist you in your endeavors, Assistant Manager! Haha.”
“…….”
Ah.
I get it.
This person… actually felt that the crazy logic I spouted was plausible.
‘Just what kind of person is he?’
Cold sweat trickled down my back.
I turned to my sane colleague, clutching at the last straw.
‘Heo-un-ssi, you at least should….’
“Yes, I will also assist you well!”
“…….”
Where did it go wrong for this one?
Jang Heo-un had a face that said, ‘Wow! I received help again! I’m so grateful!’
He was already in a state of complete persuasion.
-Congratulations. You have gained the trust of the colleagues you work with, friend!
“…….”
Yeah.
But something… something feels wrong.
However, for now, I had no choice but to walk to get out of here…….
‘F-First, the escape.’
Do not give up on your body!
Remaining steps: 6999
Surprisingly, the next alley was smooth sailing.
And the alley after that.
“Those are lighting shops. If you look toward the windows, you could go blind or be burned, so let’s move while avoiding their gaze, pretending to talk among ourselves.”
“Yes!”
Alleys lined with all sorts of bizarre and mysterious shops.
Still, since I already knew the manual, it felt like taking a pop quiz after memorizing the textbook cover to cover.
However, given that getting even one question wrong meant death, I was still in a state of extreme tension….
“Oh! A pharmacy! Should I try making a purchase there this time? What do you think, Assistant Manager? Is it okay with you too, Bison-ssi?”
“Yes! I’m fine with it!”
“……It doesn’t look like it has much value, so let’s just move on.”
“Ah, as expected, you have to save your bullets for the big ones, haha!”
The atmosphere has turned into one where they naturally expect me to boldly buy something again, hasn’t it…?
And what made me break into a cold sweat the most was that my colleagues seemed ready to support me wholeheartedly.
In the meantime, there isn’t even a glimpse of a shop that might have the chocolate I came here for.
Avoiding eye contact with the shop owners while stealing glances at the surroundings was exhausting. Phew…….
It was then.
Do not give up on your body!
Remaining steps: 4999
“Ah, Assistant Manager. A new alley has appeared….”
I stopped in my tracks and looked at a gap between the medicine shops.
From within… a stench wafted out.
‘Ugh.’
It was a very narrow back alley.
It didn’t even look half as wide as the alley with the street vendors… and it was overwhelmingly dark.
“…….”
Whish.
Dilapidated side doors lined the alleyway in a ghastly row. Only one or two gas lamps flickering here and there barely provided any light….
In that dim light, thick filth like sewage liquid flowing out from pipes next to the side doors appeared and disappeared.
And beneath the gas lamps, entities with bizarre silhouettes stood leaning against the walls, their spines bent and withered.
Glance.
Dressed in dirty, worn-out uniforms, they were staring at us.
……Judging comprehensively.
‘Even if I didn’t know this was an urban legend, the atmosphere is enough to make anyone turn around and leave immediately.’
A sinister and eerie chill permeated the alley, making it feel like no normal transaction would ever take place there.
“…This place wasn’t in the manual.”
He was right.
To the employees of Daydream Co. at this point in time, this was an unfamiliar, unknown alley where no actual exploration had been conducted yet.
…The problem was.
‘I have to go in there…….’
I want to cry.
And for some reason… even though it’s such a crazy place, I feel like I won’t even need to persuade them to go in… which also makes me want to cry…….
With a heavy heart, I turned to my colleagues and said.
“Let’s go into that alley.”
And their reactions were as follows.
“Yes…!”
“It looks like a place that sells stolen goods! Man, guaranteed high returns!”
“…….”
I’ll be the only crazy bastard in this district, please…!
