Even if I fall into a ghost story, I still have to go to work
Chapter 91
A grim back alley.
The darkness and the stench felt out of place even in this noisy, bizarre night market where non-human things gathered.
And at the entrance of the alley, strange beings stood under gas lamps, staring at me.
Sunken eyes wearing uniforms.
-My, what a place. One would certainly hesitate to step through here in dress shoes.
But I had to go.
And I couldn’t let my colleagues catch me freezing up at the sight, even for a moment…!
Squelch.
I stepped into the back alley.
My colleagues followed close behind.
Squelch, squelch.
As we walked into the black shadows beneath the dim gas lamps between narrow walls, row after row of small side doors passed us on both sides.
“…….”
It was eerie.
The scenery felt like being inside a poorly composited image where side doors stretched on for eternity.
And from between those doors, gazes watched us intently from both sides.
‘Ha.’
Figures wearing tattered, filth-stained uniforms. Abnormally thin, black bodies stood motionless against the walls.
Only their heads turned toward us as we passed.
-Gazes are inevitable for a star! But everyone needs rest. As always, this Brown can relieve that burden for a moment….
I wanted to scream and beg him to do exactly that, but….
’No. It’s okay.’
I couldn’t use ‘Lights Out’ right now.
‘Can I ask you later, when I really need it?’
-Of course!
Right. I—I had to endure.
‘I have to stick to the plan.’
I swallowed hard and kept walking.
Just as the goosebumps on the back of my neck became so intense that my legs grew stiff, making it difficult to take another step.
“…Oh?”
I snapped my head up at a colleague’s exclamation.
The endless rows of bizarre side doors and the uniformed monstrosities were still there. And….
There was one.
One door was slightly ajar.
“…….”
The door frame poked out just a bit.
Through the crack, I could see a pitch-black void.
‘Seriously.’
It was like something out of a horror movie. My eyelids were twitching.
But I had to say it.
“There’s a door open over there. It looks like a sign of welcome. Let’s go in.”
“Yes!”
“Ah… I see!”
“…….”
‘Shouldn’t you guys be a little harder to convince with such bullshit?!’
Still, I had to do what I had to do.
After taking a deep breath, I approached the lone open door. The closer I got, the more the urge to flee washed over me, but I endured.
Instead, I leaned down and peered through the narrow black gap into the interior….
I locked eyes with a pair of bloodshot ones.
“…!!”
I—I expected this. Whatever you do, don’t panic and do something stupid….
I barely managed to thrust what I had been holding in my hand through the crack in the door.
A pack of cigarettes.
“…….”
My hands were trembling violently.
Something incredibly cold seemed to brush against my fingertips, and then…….
Creeeeeeak.
The side door swung wide open.
‘……Whew.’
In this alley, as a rule,
entering shops is impossible,
however, temporary exploration is sometimes achieved through the use of
addictive luxury goods
such as alcohol and tobacco.
I did it…!
I gritted my teeth as I pulled back my empty hand, the cigarettes already gone.
Wow, I feel like I’m going to cry….
“A pack of cigarettes, a five-thousand-won investment to open a client’s door! As expected, you don’t just wait for good news, you create it, Assistant Manager!”
“I agree…!”
“…….”
I wish someone would convince me that thoroughly so I could walk around with a light heart too….
But for now, I could only lament the fact that I was the one who had done the convincing as I moved my feet.
‘Ugh.’
The bloodshot eyes had vanished before I knew it. Instead, a faint smell of cigarettes began to waft from somewhere, but that was a small price to pay.
‘This is much better.’
I exhaled a sigh of relief and stepped inside.
“…….”
It was very dark, but I could vaguely make out the silhouettes. A space where boxes and luggage covered in black cloth were piled up like a maze.
It smelled like a musty warehouse.
“Ah, this would be perfect for a warehouse-style mart or a clearance outlet! There’d be plenty of items to scavenge if it’s high-volume, low-margin….”
Unfortunately, it wasn’t.
I pushed through the boxes and finally found what I was looking for.
“…! Roe Deer-ssi, over there….”
“Yes.”
There was another door further inside.
It looked similar to the one we had pushed through, but it was a side door that was less worn and cleaner.
‘……I guess I have to open this one too?’
Let’s just be grateful I’m not at the very back.
I stepped forward and grabbed the doorknob.
As I pulled it with all my might….
A brilliant, dazzling light pierced my eyes.
“…!!”
My vision, briefly blurred by the pouring light, slowly recovered over several seconds, taking in the entire space.
A magnificent sight filled my eyes.
The interior was framed with elegant crystal chandeliers, brass, and deep-toned wood, while gold frames and thick, glossy green velvet curtains hung on the walls.
But there was something even more overwhelming.
Ivory-colored torsos consisting only of upper bodies lined three sides of the walls, displaying unfinished suits and dresses.
And between them, bodiless hands wearing white cotton gloves were measuring clothes and finishing the tailoring!
My colleagues’ mouths hung open.
“W-where is this…?”
How did this happen so suddenly in a place like a gloomy back alley?
To put it simply….
‘Because that really was the back alley.’
Confirmed Alleys of Death End Alley:
38. Boutique Back Alley
We had entered through the filthy back path of these brilliant luxury shops.
Naturally, we weren’t legitimate customers.
We were nothing more than snatchers who had bribed our way in with a pack of cigarettes from a slum-like place where drudges and fired homeless people wallowed.
But using irregularities in ghost stories wasn’t anything new.
‘If it doesn’t work, let’s run.’
If we were caught trespassing, we might suffer a gruesome fate, but in that case, I could just ask Brown to erase our presence and flee.
‘Since the back door escape route is secured.’
That’s why I’d been holding back on asking Brown for favors until now!
I moved forward.
“Ooh…!”
Please don’t be impressed, everyone….
Contrary to my troubled heart, the gloved hands touching the torsos reacted in unison.
Whish!
With a light whistling sound, the bodies of the gloves suddenly manifested in mid-air.
They were mannequins wearing luxurious navy blue uniforms.
They were similar to the ones I saw in the back alley but much cleaner, more refined, and more detailed.
And even heads popped out.
Printed mannequin faces.
‘Ugh.’
Don’t stare.
I hurriedly lowered my gaze.
It was eerie, but tolerable.
In any case, the mannequin employee bowed deeply in a polite posture and then gestured for me to follow, as if guiding me.
For the record, if you follow that, you go missing.
Deputy Manager Choi, who moved under the guidance of a mannequin clerk, has gone missing. In the last communication, he stated, ‘It seems I am moving toward the Boutique Street Member Registration Corner.’
Addition: Afterward, a laborer wearing the broken glasses of the missing employee was spotted in the Boutique Back Alley. Presumed to be the individual. (Refer to Exploration Record #145)
Perhaps… it implied that his true identity was discovered during ‘Member Registration,’ and he was forced to pay for the sin of trespassing through forced labor.
Or perhaps he couldn’t pay the cost of the membership registration itself.
“…….”
Either way, I tried not to imagine what kind of people the numerous monsters in tattered uniforms I had witnessed in the back alley originally were.
‘It doesn’t matter now.’
This was the only thing that was important.
Membership registration was the problem, so I had to avoid it.
‘First, I’ll try to approach them by saying I’ll buy at the expensive non-member price as a test.’
If the eligibility to purchase was only for members, we’d run. What I was trying to get here wasn’t worth more than my life.
But it was when I raised my hand to show a friendly gesture.
…!
The mannequin employees flinched, as if a mark was appearing over their printed faces.
And then they bowed their heads to me again.
“…….”
And I knew exactly one thing that could be the reason for that….
I turned my arm to check.
Beneath the cuff of my dress shirt, which naturally slid down as I raised my hand, the now-familiar Latin word was revealed.
: Socius :
“…Has membership been verified with this?”
The mannequin bowed its head deeply.
“…….”
Now I was getting scared.
‘This is already the second time.’
The fact that the ‘Theme Park Membership’ tattoo left by the mascot was granting me authority within ghost stories.
-Socius.
-It was used to mean companion, member, or kin. The versatility of Latin!
Just as Brown said, it was literally being accepted everywhere in the sense that the word implied.
Even in the Fox Counseling Room, they had recognized it….
‘…Why did they leave this on me?’
In the past, I might have just thought of it as a huge gain and moved on, but things were a bit different now.
Because I had already experienced being severely contaminated once.
‘If this is strong, its influence on me might be just as strong.’
How should I view an unpredictable, powerful mark on my body that didn’t come through a verified summoning method like Good Friend?
But the membership verification had already passed, and if it was dangerous anyway, I might as well use it to the fullest.
“Show me the goods.”
The mannequins nodded again and approached the torsos they were working on, then pulled back the curtains behind them.
Glass cases appeared like magic.
A single smooth suit was displayed inside. It was similar in form to the one I was wearing now, but the color was deeper and it had a strange luster….
As if asking if I liked it, the mannequins clasped their hands politely and looked back at me.
‘…Let’s begin.’
I raised my hand.
“Wait a moment. I’m mainly looking for small accessories for a gift.”
There was one thing to keep in mind.
I shouldn’t get greedy and try to take something beyond my means.
It would surely be at a price range that a human individual couldn’t handle with a sane mind.
Whether it was bartering or currency.
So, let’s narrow the scope.
“I’d like something casual that can be worn comfortably.”
At that, the curtain immediately went down and then up again.
The items in the glass case, which had been briefly hidden, had magically changed.
Instead of torsos, there were three or four upper-body mannequins.
Accessories glittered on their necks, arms, and fingers.
“…….”
Among them, I found the object that seemed the lightest and least conspicuous.
It was a slender silver ring.
It had elegant, thin carvings, but it looked like it used the least amount of raw materials.
It meant it looked the cheapest.
“How much is this?”
The mannequins raised their hands in a flurry and pointed in unison.
At my companions behind me.
“…….”
Right.
The basic barter in this boutique, as recorded in the , was….
Humans.
■■■ Deputy Manager succeeded in posing as an existing boutique member using mental disruption equipment.
Purchase Item: Ring
Cost: Three civilians (one 35-year-old, two 21-year-olds)
※This exploration record is transferred in preparation for government audits. Full access is limited to security C-level certifiers.
“……Roe Deer-ssi?”
“…….”
“E-excuse me, what exactly is happening right now….”
“Ah, I see. Wrap it up, please.”
The mannequins moved in unison again, carefully removing the ring I had chosen from the glass case.
Then, they brought a silk string with a luxurious tag from somewhere and tied it to the ring, then brought it to me as if for confirmation.
On the tag… tiny letters were elegantly written.
Instead of trying to read it and walking the direct shortcut to Death End Alley contamination, I asked Good Friend.
‘Brown, can you read this for me?’
-No problem! ‘Specializing in custom clothing, a luster that never fades. The skill of a noble craftsman who is always there.’
-Phrases that would only appeal to the nouveau riche or suddenly famous celebrities. Oops! That’s strictly between us, friend!
‘……Right.’
As expected.
’Never fades, always there’… I see.
I knew there would be that kind of keyword.
Abilities related to persistence or constancy.
In fact, the ‘Purchase Item: Ring’ entry in the boutique’s exploration record I recalled earlier had its own separate wiki document that served as its source.
A large-scale mental contamination incident.
The only company employee survivor from that incident was the one who had sold three civilians to purchase and wear a ring from this boutique.
‘…It was bound to come to mind.’
Since it was an incident related to the goods I possessed.
The one time a major disaster occurred because of the Silver Heart.
That train accident.
Employee ■■■
The only Baekilmong Co., Ltd. employee survivor of the ‘Tamra-bound High-speed Train Incident.’
Claimed to have lost the ‘Ring,’ the equipment presumed to have played a decisive role in survival, immediately after the incident.
That was the longest document among the human error accidents recorded in the Disaster Management Bureau files, a wiki that had even been recorded as a short story.
A ring that played a decisive role in surviving such a major accident without contamination.
It was no different from the fact that this boutique entry was created in reverse to give consistency and interest to the setting of that ring.
In other words, the accessories or clothing sold here were indirectly verified by the wiki.
When worn, they exerted resistance in situations that broke the ‘constancy’ of the mind, such as mental derangement or brainwashing.
To sum it up in one word:
‘It means it can be used as a powerful mental defense equipment….’
…An item absolutely necessary for me, who almost met my end due to contamination once.
“…….”
I looked up.
“Good. This ring, I’ll pay for it.”
