Chapter 114

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Translated by Jinmu

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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The method of scamming is similar to a kind of unethical marketing method.

1. Buy trust.

“That person cured the guy wearing glasses? He was completely out of his mind.”

“Yeah! He’s perfectly fine now. And that person also fell out the window but is perfectly fine. He said he saw something down there!”

“Wow… No, are, are you really okay?”

“Yes. I am fine. That gentleman is at peace now too.”

2. Present the problem and its cause.

“S-So… this is some kind of test-like situation? One where we can leave if we pass?”

“Yes. We will definitely be able to leave.”

“Ah…!”

“Could it be that this is some kind of hunter genre thing? Like, we awaken and….”

“Exactly! I think so too. There’s no way they would throw us into such a crazy situation for no reason!”

“That’s right. There was a reason.”

After heating up the atmosphere like this.

“And for us to escape this situation….”

3. Sell a magical solution.

In unethical marketing, that ‘solution’ is the product one wishes to sell, and in a pseudo-religion, it is the very doctrine.

And the method I would put forward was….

“Everyone must go out the window once.”

“…!!”

“W-What did you say!?”

“Do not be surprised, everyone.”

I smiled and pointed at myself.

And also at the office worker with glasses who had calmed down due to the Happy Maker.

“Those who accept my invitation and go out will be perfectly fine like me. Because this is a kind of test.”

“Ah…!”

“If you have doubts, well… I will try to persuade you somehow. Or I could fall once more, it’s fine.”

And at that moment, the guide video began to flow again.

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“Ah…!”

However, the atmosphere was a bit different this time.

At least in Car 7, which had listened closely to my marketing, people began to whisper and glance at the window.

‘Does that mean it might be okay to go out over there?’

It wasn’t just panic or fear anymore; curiosity and expectation began to arise.

-Ah, this is interesting. Quite interesting…. A wonderful skill, Mr. Roe Deer!

-However, every great and impressive entertainer is bound to be challenged. Ah, look. There they are, just in time!

Thud!

“Bull-fucking-shit!! You crazy bastard!”

Pounding his armrest and screaming was the middle-aged man whose face had turned red and blue with rage.

He was the passenger who had fallen out the window in Loop 1 and pushed the glasses-wearing man to make him fall in Loop 2.

‘Having rested for a turn, it seems he’s regained a bit of his reason.’

Yet he was still not in his right mind.

“Th-that person is the one who pushed someone out the window just before… Gasp!”

“Crazy bastard…. P-piss off! You fucking idiot.”

They were the eyes of a madman rolling around as if he would stab me with a knife at any moment.

“Jump?! I’m not jumping! I said I’m not jumping, you son of a bitch! Why don’t you jump once more!”

Looking at that man who had pushed past nearby passengers to stand in front of me, I spoke calmly.

“If you do not wish to participate, you do not have to do so right now.”

“Uh, uh-uh?!”

“Please rest. In any case, you do not even have the qualification right now.”

“Wh-what?!”

“I mean, even if you ask us to help you go out the window, we cannot grant it.”

This was also an important step.

4. Restrict the people who can obtain the solution.

Why do they keep producing in small quantities to cause items to go out of stock, and ask you to inquire about the price via direct message?

It was to target the psychology where scarce things look precious, and hard-to-get things look better.

That tantalizing feeling where it’s right in front of you and seems obtainable, yet if you miss this opportunity, you might never get it again.

Stoking that feeling.

“Only those who have the qualification can go out the window without pain….”

“W-what kind of nonsense…”

“And that is not you. It means you do not yet possess the qualification to pass the trial without pain. Please step back.”

“…Uh, uh…….”

Muttering ‘uh-uh,’ the middle-aged man staggered and sat down.

Well, the saying that crazy remarks must be responded to with crazy remarks worked this time as well.

Perhaps because the provocation was clear, before I knew it, everyone in the train car was looking this way with wide eyes.

I looked at them and smiled gently.

“However, do not worry too much. In the end, everyone will become ready.”

“……!”

-Ahhh! Splendid!

Beyond Brown’s cheers, the people of the car flocked over in a crowd and began to ask questions.

“Excuse me! T-then, who becomes ready?”

“I do not know either. It seems I can simply recognize those who are ready.”

“Then is there a person who is ready in here?”

It was then.

“Am, am I… by any chance qualified?”

The office worker with glasses who was sitting quietly raised his hand and asked.

Thanks to the Happy Maker, he was in a peaceful state without fear and PTSD, so he did not rush at the middle-aged man who pushed him, but.

Even so, perhaps unable to help his physiological tension, he swallowed his saliva.

I smiled and nodded my head.

“Yes.”

“…!!”

“You are qualified. …Because you have already done it.”

And I approached and held his hand.

“You have proven enough without having to go down again. That peace is the proof. ……You really went through a lot, and you were brave.”

“Ah…… ah!”

Tears trickled down the eyes of the glasses-wearing man.

At that sight, the muttering of the people subsided.

Instead, something new slowly began to emerge in their gazes.

Yearning and sympathy.

“From now on, for those who get their qualifications verified and go down, I will distribute tokens to protect you so that it is as painless as possible.”

“…!”

“T-then….”

However, there was still no volunteer.

‘I knew it would be like this.’

In any case, I had just said that everyone must jump out of the window to escape.

There was no one who would rush first to a spot where they might suffer without any benefit.

-My friend, do you have a brilliant solution?

It was obvious.

‘I’m going to drive public opinion once more.’

I nodded my head as if understanding completely.

“Right. I know it must be hard. In this life, I will go out the window once more…”

“Excuse me, I will go.”

Huh?

Supervisor Dolphin raised her hand.

Supervisor! My overwhelming gratitude….

“But not alone. If you also fall out of the window once more together, Supervisor.”

“Uh-uh-uh?”

“U-uh, excuse me, are you okay…”

“Of course. I am fine.”

Even if she hadn’t said that, I was planning to do so! Although it was tearfully grotesque and stomach-churning, it couldn’t be helped, right….

“If there is no other volunteer, I will demonstrate once more.”

“Yes, yes. Ah, but I want that person to go before us.”

Supervisor Dolphin pointed with both hands nonchalantly.

At Assistant Manager Butterfly.

“Seniors first!”

Uaargh!

“Look, Assistant Manager, you said you would grant one request of mine. I’m using it now!”

“I didn’t give it to you to be used in this kind of situation. But well, I don’t really care.”

Yet, surprisingly, Assistant Manager Jin Na-sol was calm. It looked as though they had discussed something in advance.

“Should I go now?”

Entering the First Altar

The surroundings turned red and dark just in time.

Amidst the reflexively frozen people, the small and calm words of Assistant Manager Jin Na-sol were heard.

“I don’t like asking twice, though.”

Hieek.

“Yes. Please close your eyes for a moment. I will hand you the mark of permission….”

Pretending to shake hands with Assistant Manager Jin Na-sol, I covertly handed her the stick under the cover of darkness.

‘You just need to stab it.’

However, even before I could form the words with my lips, Assistant Manager Jin Na-sol was already stabbing the Happy Maker into her arm with an invisibly skillful hand.

She seemed to have guessed it as if it were only natural. …That it was a painkiller item.

“Hmm.”

Pt.

With a short sound, the medicine was sucked out from the stick stabbed inside her sleeve fabric, and the remaining stick naturally disappeared within.

“This is quite fine, isn’t it?”

Assistant Manager Jin Na-sol grinned and immediately fell backward from the window.

“Hiek!”

“S-She went with a smile!”

In that way, the sacrifice was volunteered and offered at the first altar.

Now, the atmosphere of the car entered a state of complete excitement.

There was no one who said it was suspicious because they were my companions.

Because they had gradually come to want to believe.

‘The sensation of things being resolved is addictive after all….’

To the point where two volunteers dramatically stepped forward afterward.

“M-me!!”

“I will fall together.”

They were a married couple sitting near the window, and thanks to having watched who fell out of the window and what conversations took place since the very first loop, they seemed to have gained courage from the ‘information value.’

However, I did not readily say okay.

“…….”

I quietly stared at them for a few seconds as if trying to discern the essence of the two.

Before they knew it, the couple came to wait in a state filled with anticipation and tension, as if taking an exam.

And after a moment.

“Yes. You two are qualified.”

“Ah…!!”

“Please close your eyes for a moment and stretch out your hands as soon as you enter the altar. I will give you the mark.”

The two rejoiced in their daze and stood in front of the window, receiving congratulations from their surroundings.

Entering the Second Altar

Thus, having been secretly administered the powerful painkiller called ‘Happy Maker’ under the cover of darkness, the two went out the open window hand in hand.

Hmm. The scam was proceeding smoothly….

‘Although it is much better than throwing each other out the window and more than half of them going crazy.’

Still, cold sweat dripped down my back from pulling off the scam.

“…Since there are no other volunteers, this person and I will now go out. Everyone, protect your hearts above all else, and we will see you at the starting point in a moment.”

“A-are you okay?”

“I am fine. I… will be fine going once more.”

“…Ah!”

I really hate it, but I must do it once more.

‘I have to differentiate myself.’

If I wanted to keep leading the people, I had to emphasize how I alone was different. Showing that I was fine even after falling out the window multiple times would also be an impressive method.

And fortunately, Supervisor Dolphin did not go back on her word.

“Let’s go together!”

“Ah, thank you.”

“But by the way….”

Supervisor Dolphin looked up at me intently.

“Do I have the qualification?”

“…Yes.”

The nuance was subtle.

Entering the Third Altar

“B-be careful!”

“We will see you in a moment!”

In any case, like that, I successfully fell out the window again with Supervisor Dolphin while drawing positive responses from the people.

Into the mad tunnel filled with rotting flesh.

“Ugh!”

Having landed on the floor with a breakfall, Supervisor Dolphin was horrified by the terrible surrounding state, grumbled, and shook her body.

“Ugh, dirty. What, what did you say? So noisy. Ah, should we go that way? Toward the light.”

“Yes. Even if it’s a bit hard, we just need to walk.”

Still, having one more person is a relief.

‘…And I don’t hear the voice either.’

That strange voice, the sound telling me to discard my sins or come to Tamra, had disappeared for some reason.

‘Though it isn’t an important factor for escape.’

I tilted my head and walked.

At that moment, Supervisor Dolphin spoke up.

“Hey, the fact that we fell together like this is actually… because I have something to talk to you about.”

“Yes.”

“What you said to the people. You know, about protecting them so it won’t hurt. Strictly speaking, you did that because you thought it wasn’t a lie, right?”

“Yes. I merely… changed the way of communication to work well in an emergency. Though it’s a bit extreme.”

“Hmm…….”

The supervisor placed her hand on her chin as if contemplating for a moment, then blurted out.

“Excuse me, Supervisor.”

“Yes.”

“Do you know how many people suffer because of cults?”

She did not frown or anything.

She just stared at me intently.

Without even blinking.

“…….”

Right.

Supervisor Dolphin was an extreme character-supremacist….

‘A-a cult might be a disqualification…!’

Fix this!

I opened my mouth right away and spoke calmly.

“I know it well. In fact, among my peers, there is a friend who got enchanted by a cult and lost contact.”

This was the truth.

“That’s why I thought we had to beat them to it.”

“Hmm.”

“In this situation, superstitions or cults will unconditionally prevail. Because the pain repeats without knowing why, they will want to lean on anything.”

And in the actual cases, that was how a cult emerged.

‘Of course, it’s not strictly because of that, but because this is the only way to escape the Dark before people go crazy without bloodshed….’

Since I couldn’t explain that far logically, I ended it like this.

“Whatever the case, I chose this method to minimize damage for now. …Though I know it’s a bit extreme and strange.”

“Hmmmm……”

After a suffocating three seconds.

“Well, that is true!”

Phew.

“Honestly, you’re just speaking that way, but in reality, you’re looking for a way to let everyone escape together while making people suffer less and feel comfortable, right?”

“Exactly.”

“Great! I will fully cooperate too!”

Supervisor Dolphin reached out her hand as if requesting a handshake.

And when I grabbed that hand,

She pulled it hard.

“But you must not exploit good people.”

“…….”

“Because then I will fight you, Supervisor.”

“Of course. I will keep that in mind.”

“Yes, yes! Excellent!”

I smiled and finished shaking hands with Supervisor Dolphin.

‘I-I lived.’

Cold sweat trickled down my back.

Fighting between rotting flesh and an elite team senior who joined the crazy ghost story company at the top of her class? Why should I commit such a suicidal act? I’d rather bow my head and submit.

“For now, judging by the atmosphere, the people in our car will be completely persuaded?”

“Right.”

Squelch, squelch.

I replied while walking toward the exit of light.

“But I won’t stop here.”

The final goal was….

“I will make the majority of this train ‘believe’ my words.”

At least 7 out of 8 cars.

I had to secure a dominant public opinion.

* * *

Loop 5.

The people of the high-speed train, who repeated dying and starting over multiple times, were gradually becoming soaked in fatigue, resignation, and madness beyond panic.

Meaning, their perception was distorted, and it became difficult to think normally.

And during the repetitions, there was something they heard over and over.

“They’re talking about something strange in the back… like, we are chosen, this is a test? Saying things like that.”

“…Sounds like cult nonsense, but, what kind of test?”

“They say if we pass this, we can obtain transcendental abilities?”

“All the people who fell out the window went crazy. But the people in the back cars said they fell but are perfectly fine. They even described the scenery inside…”

“…Really? Come on, no way. Isn’t there no proof?”

However, the act of replying itself revealed a psychology that wished for an answer.

The expression of the subconscious wishing that those words were true.

“They say a person called the ‘Pioneer’ in Car 7 is teaching the method to escape.”

“He will help us all. That everyone is qualified.”

As the whispering of the passengers in Car 3, the first-class car, grew louder like that.

“…….”

The man sitting in the front single seat.

Baek Sa-heon opened his eyes.

‘Damn it.’

He was going back to his family home for a vacation, only to be trapped in this damn train ghost story and look like he would wither to death.

‘No, wait….’

He smiled a smile of satisfaction, recalling the new eye beneath his medical eyepatch.

Looking at how the situation was turning out roughly, he understood.

‘This is about throwing people out the window continuously!’

So, isn’t it just a ghost story that ends when we throw about half of them and arrive at the destination?

‘I just need to stay hidden without catching anyone’s eye.’

Well, a cult running rampant is a obvious situation in this kind of crisis.

In a micro-society, and a stressful emergency situation at that, humans were bound to do crazy things.

A train that constantly returned to the departure starting point.

In the special situation of inescapable extreme stress, since words that seemed to solve the crisis were heard, everyone had no choice but to listen.

It is human nature to cling even to crazy talk that, under normal circumstances, they would have snorted at and ignored, saying ‘I don’t buy into cults’!

‘I just need to stay quiet without getting swept up, right?’

If I just stay as quiet as a dead mouse like this, and wait for them to throw each other, make a mess, and clear it on their own….

“H-hey!!”

“…!”

The back grew noisy.

‘Did a fight break out?’

It wasn’t. Someone had entered the car.

“Those people! The Pioneer and the Car 7 people!”

They’re the cult bastards.

‘Let’s take a look at their faces first.’

Baek Sa-heon slightly turned his head and looked at the aisle… only to see.

He ended up seeing familiar faces.

“…!!”

‘It’s the elite team.’

Assistant Manager Jin Na-sol of Group A and Supervisor Lee Seong-hae of Group C.

Two faces he had memorized from the company intranet just in case made an appearance.

‘Wh-why are those people here?’

While he was complicatedly worrying whether this train was a Dark managed by Daydream Co.

“Attention!!”

Supervisor Lee Seong-hae shouted from among the cult group.

“The person who will teach us the way to escape from here has arrived!”

And as she stepped aside, a person walked out from the door connecting to the back car.

An office worker with an indifferent, cool impression dressed in a suit had an strangely peaceful smile, but….

It was an even more familiar face.

‘…Kim Sol-eum!!’

“Everyone, do not worry.”

Kim Sol-eum smiled gently and opened his arms wide.

“All of this is a great trial, and the passengers are the chosen ones.”

F-Fuck!!

That psychopath bastard is the cult leader!!