Even if I fall into a ghost story, I still have to go to work
Chapter 98
After confirming that the Memorial Griptok was cracked, I don’t know how I spent the rest of that night.
The next day, regardless of whether I was in pain or not, I went out immediately and bought a new phone.
Then, after transferring the SIM card, I attached the cracked Griptok with trembling hands and turned it on.
‘…It’s working!’
Fortunately, the Wiki booted up… but something was off.
Darkness Exploration Log / Ghost Story
[Hellish Fare Taxi]
Glitches flickered across the screen.
It felt like an old computer, showing the characteristic stuttering of a machine with very little lifespan left….
Though it soon restored to normal, it made my blood run cold.
‘Right. Even merchandise can be damaged….’
Because of the bizarre situation where items bought at a pop-up store could actually be used in this ghost story world, and because I carried my smartphone around like a part of my body, I had overlooked that possibility.
You might ask why I don’t just back up the Wiki content by writing it down somewhere else.
‘That task alone would take over a month.’
To begin with, pages displayed via the Memorial Griptok are protected against copying or screenshots. You have to manually transcribe everything while looking at the smartphone screen.
‘I don’t even know if this Griptok will last that long.’
Still, there was no need to panic.
The goods provided by the Goods Box were, after all, items from this ghost story world.
Since I had established a foundation here over the past six months, other options were now open to me.
Either obtain a new Griptok.
Or find a way to get it repaired.
Interestingly, both required the same kind of connection.
‘The Disaster Management Bureau.’
That was where this Griptok originated.
And I knew exactly where these things, like the Griptok and the silver badge, were manufactured….
Naturally, I knew the entry methods, passwords, and necessary preparations.
And as it happened, I even had a Disaster Management Bureau temporary Agent badge.
“…….”
I pressed my fingers to my temples and thought.
‘I’m currently on a three-day sick leave.’
That meant that, in this state, I couldn’t go to the office to work or handle the follow-up for Death End Alley anyway.
However, since I was only skipping work, I could push myself with other tasks as long as I could endure it. My physical recovery in three days was guaranteed.
‘But I can’t artificially avoid the pain charged as the taxi fare.’
Because it was a curse, even pumping myself full of painkillers wouldn’t cure it. Furthermore, if I tried to evade the pain through supernatural means, the duration of the curse would increase by the amount of pain avoided.
The fare was only considered paid when the actual pain was felt.
So, unless I was in a dire emergency where I absolutely had to extend the curse’s duration, I should keep my super-strong painkiller, the ‘Happy Maker,’ tucked away.
Besides….
“…….”
Thinking about what I had done in that nightmare after injecting it made me feel a bit chilled.
‘It really didn’t hurt at all; it was so peaceful….’
If it hadn’t been a dream, and if I hadn’t had my contamination treated at the Fox Counseling Room, I might have been tempted to use it whenever things got hard, or even become addicted.
I had to be careful.
‘…Right.’
Instead of letting things fall apart, I should prepare while I still can.
I very carefully detached the cracked Griptok from the phone, packed it, and stored it inside my tattoo.
“Brown. I need to go out again.”
-Aha, a fighting spirit despite your injuries! What a charming interview subject. Isn’t this a testament to your passion for the industry?
-But if it becomes too much to bear, please tell me at any time. Your perfect partner, your friend, Brown, will help you….
Those were quite chilling yet reassuring words.
“Yeah. Thanks.”
After taking another shower to wash off the sweat, I put on a light hoodie.
Then, I took the rabbit doll with the shiny bowtie and tucked it into the front pocket of my zip-up.
-You look much cleaner now, Mr. Roe Deer! So, where are we headed?
Hmm.
“The place in Seoul where the most young people gather.”
I got off at Hongik University Station.
It was a neighborhood where it was amazing to see so many people even on a weekday afternoon.
‘And even away from the station, there are crowds everywhere.’
From Mangwon to Yeonnam, every street would be teeming with people out for fun.
Compared to the faded street I visited yesterday—the commercial district that led to Death End Alley—the sheer size of this crowd was on a different level.
-There are so many people here! It’s bright, and the reactions are great… Ah, I want to invite them all to a show and give them the joy and shock of a lifetime!
Aaaargh!
Fortunately, Brown was immediately distracted by something else, so I didn’t need to suppress that excited voice.
-Ah, the aroma of coffee is wonderful too! Would you like a cup, friend? ……Oh my! You’re stumbling. Do you need support?
‘…I’m fine.’
Since I had come out to downtown Seoul with a disease curse and a ghost story inhabitant in tow, this was unavoidable… Haha.
Still, the feeling of being surrounded by positive energy wasn’t bad.
A vibrant street lined with cafes and drenched in sunlight, where not a single trace of gloom could be found.
It was hard to even imagine anything mysterious or ghost-story-like happening here in broad daylight.
‘That’s exactly why it’s safe.’
I recalled the method to access the place where the Griptok could be fixed.
A Disaster Management Bureau document that had been uploaded to the Wiki as a memo image.
! Must be destroyed immediately after reading.
Location to visit: A nameless cafe with a blue roof. A commercial facility converted from a house, with a buckwheat flower wreath hanging on the door.
There it was.
With Brown’s help, I completely masked my presence and entered the blue-roofed building.
It was a large cafe bustling with customers.
In that place, where all sorts of lights and decorations sparkled even in the daytime, the cafe staff were busy taking orders and serving drinks and coffee.
Instead of standing in the order line, I stepped aside and ducked into the kitchen area.
And if I went even further inside…
Two doors appeared the moment I turned the corner.
[Staff Only]
Both were identical yellow doors, but one simply led outside, while the other…
‘Is the door I need to open.’
Enter through the right door of the two.
Never touch the left door. Once you touch the left door, you can never enter the ‘Location’ through the right door again.
I cautiously approached the right door and knocked with a specific rhythm.
Knock-knock, knock-knock-, knock-knock, knock-knock-
The Jajinmori rhythm. A beat that anyone who received public education in this country couldn’t help but be familiar with.
Then, I opened the door just a crack and slipped inside unnoticed.
Creeeak, thud.
“….”
The inside looked like an ordinary staff-only space.
A place where hallways, storage, and employee break areas were all mixed together.
Worn-out sofas, desks, laptops, boxes of supplies. And on one side, seasonal interior props were piled up.
Find a model that can be interpreted as a home, such as a traditional house, an apartment, or a yurt.
I carefully sifted through the props and found the right one.
A model of a Hanok.
It looked like an interior prop that had been used for Chuseok.
‘This must be it.’
I crouched down in front of the Hanok model and reached out to grab the tiny gate.
And the moment I opened the gate.
