Even if I fall into a ghost story, I still have to go to work
Chapter 96
The ghost story taxi calls to us.
From beyond the gate.
Honk, honk.
If we take that and follow the manual properly, we can definitely reach 'Seoul Station'...
The problem is the method of getting into that taxi.
'Stand outside the gate of this shop.'
That was the reason I looked for a shop with a gate in the first place. The alleys of Samangdan-gil are too narrow for a taxi to stop.
'Therefore, to call and board a taxi, we have to step outside the gate...'
However, there's no guarantee what kind of landscape will unfold once we step outside, or if Section Chief Lee Ja-heon and I will be safe.
So, I've prepared a countermeasure on this end.
Using a product from this very shop.
'I was planning to stop by anyway, and since this shop happened to have a gate, I could finish everything at once.'
I swallowed hard.
"Team Leader, please proceed as planned."
"Understood."
Section Chief Lee Ja-heon reached into the paper bag he was holding and tore open the packaging in an instant.
Then, along with the cozy socks, the extra item included revealed itself.
A small ball of yarn.
Befitting a handmade shop, it seemed to be provided so one could add their own embroidery to the socks, but right now, it would be used in a slightly different way.
"I'm starting."
Avoiding the shopkeeper's gaze, I unraveled one end of the red yarn and tied it firmly to the leg of a display case in the shop.
Then, I split the ball of yarn in half and held it with Section Chief Lee Ja-heon.
It would limit our movements somewhat, but even considering that, it would be safer for both of us to hold the yarn directly.
"Let's go."
"Yes."
Slowly unraveling the yarn, I walked backward with my back to the opaque glass door...
And the moment my back touched the glass door, I felt downward and grabbed the handle.
Click.
As I pushed the handle, a gust of wind rushed in from outside.
And the raw sound of a car horn.
Honk, honk.
Don't look back.
I walked backward slowly, matching my pace with Section Chief Lee Ja-heon.
Fortunately, I have a 'good friend' who can act as my eyes.
-You just need to keep walking backward in that direction, Friend!
! Since it's night, there aren't many pedestrians.
...Pedestrians? No, let's not get curious.
Keeping my gaze fixed inside the shop, I continued walking backward without looking at the dark surroundings.
The yarn hanging inside the shop was connecting me to 'Samangdan-gil'...
In a sense, it was a kind of lifeline.
'As long as I'm holding onto this, it's not a disappearance!'
Slowly, slowly, without rushing, I retreated...
Thump.
My body made contact.
Honk, honk.
...It's the taxi.
The vibration of the car body traveled through me at the sound of the horn honking again.
Carefully reaching back, I felt the smooth body of the car...
-One span to the left.
I adjusted my hand. I felt a smooth groove.
'The handle.'
I grabbed the car door handle and pulled.
Then I climbed inside the taxi, folding my body in.
I didn't even have time to form an impression of the modern and clean interior. I moved to the side seat while looking under the seats, and Section Chief Lee Ja-heon entered the empty space immediately after.
And at the same time he threw away the remaining ball of yarn, he closed the door.
Thanks to his immense strength, every movement happened in an instant.
Slam.
"......."
I finally raised my head.
And I spoke to the taxi driver in the front seat, who was wearing an eerily clean, sharp suit and a uniform cap.
"To Seoul Station, please."
.......
[Estimated time of arrival is 43 minutes from now.]
The car started smoothly.
'Phew.'
I leaned my body deep into the backrest and let out a sigh of relief.
For now, I did it!
'Ghost story transfer... success.'
Of course, since this taxi itself was a ghost story, I couldn't let my guard down.
I quickly recalled the relevant wiki.
The problematic ghost story called 'Hell Surcharge Taxi,' which sounded like payment would be an issue just from the name.
The exterior of the taxi is mainly described as a black luxury sedan made in Germany.
The car model changes with each call, but it can be identified by the orange taxi sign and the golden inverted cross decoration on the mirror in front of the driver's seat.
I looked at the driver's seat.
...An ominous-looking golden inverted cross was hanging and swaying from the front mirror.
Confirmed.
'Whew.'
Even though it was according to plan, tension crept up my spine.
Was it because I was trapped in the confined space of a taxi? Along with the pressure of having entered a scary story from which I couldn't escape no matter what happened...
Tick, tick.
The meter rose.
[10000]
[10100]
[10200]
It was fast.
"Driver."
I had to start talking quickly.
The more the driver loses interest in the passenger, the faster the vehicle's speed becomes, and the meter rises rapidly.
And when the meter goes up...
The taxi passenger receives a curse corresponding to the meter amount upon getting out.
Yes.
The fare for this taxi isn't about collecting money; it's about allocating a curse.
To be precise, it was more eerie because it was closer to 'supernaturally occurring bad things' rather than a curse.
However, if the driver maintains interest in the passenger and drives slowly, the meter rises slowly, and this 'curse' ends at a level the passenger can handle.
In the opposite case...
'The moment you get out of a taxi racing like crazy, you receive a curse you can't handle.'
Furthermore, just because the taxi is fast doesn't mean it arrives at the destination early.
All taxis arrive on time; the taxi's speed and the estimated arrival time are unrelated.
The time sentenced to me was 43 minutes.
During this time, I had to constantly pique the other party's interest.
'It says that as the vehicle speed increases, the probability of abnormal phenomena occurring inside the car, such as windows breaking, increases...'
I definitely didn't want to experience that.
Still, since I'd already read the records, didn't I know what kind of conversation the other party would find interesting?
That was true.
The problem was that there were four candidates for that 'other party'!
A total of four drivers work in shifts for the taxi, and they refer to each other by numbers.
They look identical in appearance but show subtle differences in customer service, and each has distinct interests in conversation topics.
They look exactly the same, so you can't tell who is who, but if you point-blank ask what number they are, they show displeasure and kick you out of the taxi.
'And those who are kicked out go missing...'
Therefore, the only way to find out who it is is through conversation.
The keywords confirmed to have piqued the interest of each driver in the exploration records are as follows:
Number 1 / Olympics, elections, pets, games, SNS.
Number 2 / War, mafia, action movies, vampire legends, firearms.
Number 3 / Good restaurants, farming, economic recession, slum tourism, luxury goods.
Number 4 / Afterlife, religious experiences, pandemics, massacres, ■■■.
Thus, the original strategy began with figuring out as quickly as possible which number driver this was through the first conversation.
But you see.
If exploration records are piled up in your head to this extent, you can try something else.
A conversation method to get out of this taxi in the most intact state possible.
[Customer.]
"......."
The first question had already begun.
An arrogant voice, sounding strangely mocking, flowed from the driver in the front seat...
[How was your day today?]
"I just worked."
[Aha.]
The driver does not directly express their preference for the stories the passenger tells; they only ask questions.
But the meter answers.
[10500]
[10700]
[10900]
[11200]
It was spiraling.
-Good heavens, does that driver not know the concept of small talk? Friend, if you want, a capable broadcaster like me can chip in a word...
'It's okay.'
It was an expected result. I quickly and nonchalantly followed up with the next words.
"But I almost died while working."
Halt.
"I was trying to buy meat at a butcher shop, but I almost became the meat myself."
The meter stopped.
[11300]
"Fortunately, the shop owner turned out to be a vegetarian. I managed to get out by handing over agricultural products in a barter. I even won the haggling and got some money."
[.......]
The driver's fingers tapping the steering wheel slowed down.
...The vehicle slowed down.
[And then what happened?]
Phew.
"I headed toward the back alleys."
'It worked.'
What was I doing?
'Weaving as many correct keywords as possible into the answers.'
So that whichever driver was sitting there would take an interest.
It was the so-called 'Surely there's at least one thing in here you're interested in' strategy.
And as it happened, my current situation allowed me to naturally bring up all sorts of provocative subjects in an everyday manner.
'I've certainly been through quite a lot of ups and downs over the past six months.'
[What will you be doing tomorrow?]
The stories didn't run out easily.
"I'm going to rest for now and try to organize what's happened so far. It's been quite eventful."
No matter what question the taxi driver threw at me, I kept steering the conversation toward provocative and talk-worthy experiences and topics.
And I kept weaving them in.
Nightmares, food, blood, violence, survival of the fittest, mascots, cooking, fortune-telling, ghosts...
Everything was melted into the everyday conversation.
Eventually, the vehicle advanced slowly, at a speed like a bicycle.
I kept talking endlessly. It was a performance of filling the audio that even Brown admired a few times.
And around the time my throat was almost hoarse.
[...We have arrived.]
The taxi stopped.
[Your destination, 'Seoul Station.']
...Click.
The lock on the taxi's rear door was released. And as the tinted window rolled down, a familiar landscape was revealed...
It was the night view of Seoul Station.
'Ha...!'
I was so glad to see it that I felt like I could cry.
I wanted to rush out immediately, but I had to settle the bill first.
I looked at the meter.
[29700]
[29800]
Click.
The driver ended the meter.
[29800]
'I did it...!'
Ending in the 20,000 won range was usually only possible for distances within 10 minutes.
At this level, there would be no permanent damage.
[Here is the fare settlement.]
The taxi driver reached back with his hand.
In that hand was a check.
-29,800 / Code 1
I carefully accepted that classic-style paper check, stamped with a snake-shaped wax seal...
The explanation was written on the back.
The code representing the curse the passenger would receive.
Fare Code 1: Disease.
- Three days of high fever, headache, coughing up blood, chills.
Good.
'This is perfectly fine.'
It was much better than my financial luck turning disastrous or people around me dying.
"Thank you."
Holding the check, I bowed deeply toward the driver's seat and finally escaped the taxi.
'Ha.'
How could the winter air be this good...
Knock, knock.
"...!"
The window of the taxi's driver's seat rolled down halfway.
[Customer.]
I almost fainted.
"Yes."
[It was an enjoyable conversation. I think my colleagues would also be interested in your stories...]
In the darkness, the hand wearing a white glove holding the steering wheel tapped, tapping its fingers...
[Let's meet once after we retire. I'll buy you a drink then.]
I swallowed hard.
...Did you notice?
Actually, the driver of this taxi has a very clear and famous motif.
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.
A ghost story using a play on words, where the horsemen of Conquest, War, Famine, and Death work as taxi drivers of the end times.
Grasping the current situation based on this... that was a statement that made cold sweat pour down.
However, I could nod resolutely.
"Yes."
Because the Horsemen of the Apocalypse won't be able to retire until the end of the world comes!
I'll be back before then.
"It would be nice if there's a chance. Well then, good luck with your work."
[Hahaha... yes. How tedious.]
The taxi window rolled back up.
The black vehicle vanished from Seoul Station like a ghost in an instant.
Leaving only the orange taxi sign behind.
"......."
I looked at the minus check I was holding in my hand.
At that moment.
The check burst into flames, and I began coughing up blood.
"Urgh."
High fever and a headache scorched my head, but it was bearable.
And the Lizard was watching me in that state.
While also dripping blood from between his jaws.
'Ugh.'
It probably wasn't a great sight, but well, I had no choice but to swallow the blood-mixed saliva and speak.
"Um, this will get better as soon as three days pass. It seemed to be... that kind of rule."
"Yes."
"And thank you. For not prying into how I knew, and for trusting and leaving it to me in the taxi. *Cough*,"
The Lizard looked at me as I coughed up blood-mixed phlegm.
"Mr. Kim Sol-eum."
"Yes?"
"Take sick leave."
"Yes..."
A short while later.
After waiting for the coughing to subside a bit, we called another taxi and returned to the company housing.
Taking another taxi was quite unsettling, but there were no other anomalies, and except for the burning fever, the Section Chief and I succeeded in returning home safely.
'To think Team Leader Lee Ja-heon also lived in the company housing building.'
Anyway, we parted in front of the building.
"Take sick leave."
"Yes... thank you."
Let's save the more detailed talk for later at the office.
'Phew.'
Like that...
I returned safely.
'Even if it's company housing, home is nice.'
As I opened the door and entered, the characteristic warmth of a heated interior greeted me. It almost felt like pleasure.
Since I was even feeling sick, I just wanted to take a hot shower and sleep deeply, but...
Well, I had one more thing to do.
'Heh.'
I checked the shoes in the entryway that weren't mine.
They were Baek Sa-heon's shoes.
