Chapter 120

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Translated by Jinmu

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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*Click.*

An old television turned on.

A black screen was witnessed within all of my vision and head.

I could not turn my eyes away.

I had to watch.

Stay tuned!

For you,

an advertisement

is now

screening.

A cheerful and classic orchestral background music flowed.

And a black-and-white video appeared.

Cast: Kim Sol-eum

The exhausted appearance of a fresh-out-of-college rookie in his mid-to-late twenties wearing a black suit.

Sometimes writing documents in the office with a bare face, sometimes wearing a bizarre mask with horns and escaping from death, chased by danger in ghost stories…

Me.

Are you depressed?

Are you tired?

Are you suffering from tedious work, verbal abuse, and corporate politics?

Is your daily life anxious, where you can trust no one and do not know when you might die?

In times like that, you should sit in front of the TV and watch something new and fun!

Having returned to the company housing, I sat in front of the TV and watched the screen blankly.

A children’s cartoon movie that I watched to soothe my fear.

However, fitting for children, the videos were short and ended quickly.

I sat blankly in front of it for a moment with hollow eyes, then went into the room.

And I tried to sleep, though it did not come.

Were you afraid that the show you were watching would end?

Were you scared that tomorrow would come?

Did you hate going back to a workplace that was painful, not suited to your aptitude, and left you on edge and suffering day by day?

Was it difficult and terrifying every time your thoughts deepened, but you had no other options?

Were you just enduring the horror, thinking that this path had to be the correct answer?

…….

I, I…

For someone like you!

Now, do not be surprised, and take a deep breath.

A perfect alternative,

a new path has found you!

Ta-da.

Inside the screen, a spotlight shone brightly on my bedroom door, and then someone opened the door and made a cool entrance.

A stylish silhouette in a brown suit, wearing an old TV instead of a head.

…It was the host.

The correct answer for you!

I got up from the bed in surprise and shook hands with the host with a welcoming face. And with a relieved smile, I threw the mask and briefcase out the window.

As the host snapped his fingers, the company housing magically turned to ashes, revealing a brilliantly lit studio.

I smiled broadly and stood on stage with the host.

It was clearly something that had never happened, yet it mixed with past scenes, piercing my head in a clever and dizzying way.

As if it were real.

The host of the new talk show is full of wit, tact, and humor, and listens to and empathizes with all of your worries!

If you accept the perfect proposal of this person whom you invited yourself, everything will be fine.

An attractive workplace that no one would want to refuse.

Prepare for your new life!

No.

No, I,

I mean, I have to go home…

Oh my!

Are you suffering from dreadful homesickness?

The screen rotated.

And once again it projected me, but this time it was not my past self.

Now.

…Me, peering into the TV screen.

Straight on.

Staring back, face to face.

Cast: You

It was reflected like a mirror.

However, the me inside the TV was distorting his expression and wearing a tearful face to an unusual degree.

No, that wasn’t me. I wasn’t making any expression right now… or was I? Was I making a tearful face right now? Stop! It was dizzying. I pressed my face with both hands amidst confusion and doubt.

My vision disappeared.

Even so, the TV could be seen.

Subtitles popped up below my face.

Why do you always miss home?

Do you want the happiness of escaping an uncomfortable and burdensome environment? Do you cry every night with the desire to fall asleep without anxiety and nightmares?

Do not worry.

The great talk show awaits you!

No.

Special information visible only to you who are watching this advertisement right now:

The crew of the great talk show have no faces.

A dream workplace free of the discomfort and burden of having to face unfamiliar faces.

Come in right now!

That was crazy.

Faceless colleagues? Who would want such a thing? Absolutely not…

In this workplace, no one struggles to hide themselves.

You who are watching this advertisement, do not worry either.

Reveal it comfortably!

To let you display your overflowing talent and ideas to your heart’s content,

the one and only workplace.

It is said that this legendary host returned countless application forms and left this spot vacant just for you!

…….

An attractive workplace that no one would want to refuse.

It is now your new home!

No, it is not!

It was deliberately using the word ‘home.’ It knew that I wanted to go home. That was it.

But what I wanted was not a new home. I had never wanted such a thing.

What I wanted was…

…returning to the familiar world I originally lived in.

A place where at least I did not have to worry about being eaten by a monster while walking down the street. A place where ghost stories were just fun inside tales. My friends and family were all there, too.

And let’s not forget!

Now I had a silver ring on my hand.

I could resist this entire situation. Resist, I could resist.

That figure on the TV was not me.

I was not smiling.

You will be happy.

In your new home.

I would not be confused.

I was going back to my original home. That was not a home. I was working to return home, and this purpose would never be reversed.

In your home.

The crazy talk show was not my home.

The crazy talk show was not my home.

The crazy talk show was not my home!!

…….

…….

[Hmm.]

Currently

adjusting

the screen….

The TV screen fell away.

“Phew.”

I let out a breath and slumped onto the floor.

The moment my hand touched the cold tiled floor of the cramped train restroom, a sense of reality returned.

No, it surely did, but…

[I understand very well, Sol-eum.]

The next moment.

I was standing in a comfortable studio.

No, originally, this place was indeed a studio.

However, in this small and comfortable space, there were no audiences yet, and only two comfortable single-seater chairs were placed facing each other.

And the TV-headed host with a serious attitude extended his hand to me.

[My, you are very tense…. Shall we sit down first? Let’s arrange your clothes and wipe off the blood. And let’s have a more comfortable conversation….]

[It seems my friend was startled in mind and body because the advertisement was too stimulating for him.]

…….

Soft piano sounds flowed.

[Sol-eum has no media experience yet, so I was excessive. Let’s take some time….]

As the host motioned, a cup with steam rising from it soon appeared on the table between the seats.

…It was hot chocolate.

[Ah, did you remember? It is the beverage I recommended to Roe Deer whenever he was exhausted. Chocolate! Something pleasant and warm must go into a fatigued body, shouldn’t it….]

A smiling emoticon appeared on the TV face, and the antenna went up slightly.

As if he were slightly excited.

And he busily put marshmallows into the cup and stirred it.

[Still, this is the first time I am serving you directly. With a body stuffed with cotton, I was bound to only be indebted every time for things like this.]

“……”

[In that state, there were indeed many things I could not do for you. Come, come, let’s rest a bit for now….]

Following the kind guidance, I naturally came to sit on the chair.

…Because there was no other choice besides that.

Surprisingly, however, the host quietly waited without any other unexpected actions while I rejected all other ‘help’ and stopped the bleeding of the wound on my arm and treated it on my own.

He did not even rush me to drink the beverage.

He just waited like a thoughtful interviewer.

…In that process, my head cooled down slightly and I became calm.

[Have you calmed down a bit, Roe Deer? Take a deep breath, yes…. Let’s have a conversation.]

The host sat in the opposite chair and clasped his hands.

And he spoke politely.

[Roe Deer says he absolutely does not want to quit what he is currently doing. Is that correct?]

“……”

Breaking out in a cold sweat, I slowly nodded my head.

The antenna of the TV head tilted sideways as if in wonder.

[That is very strange, strange…. Roe Deer must have disliked that job!]

“…!”

[We talked about so many things. How much Roe Deer himself disliked this job, and I also often heard complaints that you never wanted to do it again once the goal was achieved.]

But that also meant I absolutely had to attend until the goal was achieved.

In order to get a Wish Ticket and return home…

[Hold on a moment.]

[Yes, Roe Deer. That is exactly the part I wanted to focus on!]

[My friend, you are saying you desperately want to return to your home. And…]

The host whispered.

[Actually, I know the reason why Roe Deer says he wants to return to his home.]

What reason could there be for a person saying they wanted to go home?

Wondering what kind of sophistry he was trying to line up, my shoulders began to tense up.

I had to listen and let it go.

[Oh, it will be shocking, but please pull yourself together!]

However, the host’s voice became lower, smaller, and turned into a whisper.

With speech technique that made me naturally focus on the next words.

[Precisely…]

I came to listen.

[Because actually, you do not want to go.]

…….

What?

[You actually know it, don’t you?]

[I mean, that you came to misunderstand the situation, make assumptions, and have prejudice because of two strong emotions.]

[Namely, fear and desire.]

What are you saying right now…

[Oh, Roe Deer…. You do not miss home or like it. You just fear and dislike what you are doing right now.]

“……!”

[Now, Roe Deer. Did you truly only hate it when the stories you enjoyed became reality?]

[Were you not even a little excited or thrilled to witness how the things you imagined were implemented in reality? Are you really sincere that you only hated it?]

Hate…

Rather than hating it, because it was too dangerous.

[Danger! Ah, traditionally a plausible justification. But let’s think about it, Roe Deer.]

The old television set on the host’s head fizzled.

[Will the ‘home’ you return to really be safe?]

Images passed by on the TV head.

Cruel black-and-white news.

[War, poverty, climate crisis, terrorism, infectious diseases… and all other minor and terrible tragedies. Hell can find anyone, and you are no exception.]

[In any reality, we cannot choose what tragedy we will meet. Unless it is a show, that is!]

That was.

[Oh, yes, you also knew it deep in your heart. This place and the place you call ‘home’ are actually not that different….]

[Does it matter whether the monster in the story appears in reality, or a real monster lives in reality? What matters is your pain!]

Brown spread his fingers and folded the disasters one by one.

[Death that comes without notice? My, where does death approach with notice? Anywhere would be equally terrifying.]

[Your peace there is also fragile and futile, something that can be shattered by a single action of a mad dictator pressing a button….]

[Ultimately, isn’t everything just a matter of Roe Deer’s perception?]

I blankly looked at the TV.

[And perception is not the truth. It is just a highly distorted experience that only you feel.]

[Let’s cast aside prejudice and look, friend.]

That was, that was…

…….

…….

Is… that so?

I felt that somehow things did not fit together, but no words came to mind to refute it.

It sounded plausible.

But surely this couldn’t be… just a matter of feeling.

[It is fine. Acceptance always requires time. This Brown can continue to talk with you… just like always!]

[So shall we develop the story a bit more now? More fundamentally, that is….]

Brown asked gently.

[What is it that Sol-eum really wants?]

[Let’s think for a moment, excluding going home.]

…….

What I want… no, wait.

…He grasped my situation this deeply?

That thing, he was reading my thoughts completely.

How much did he know? Just how deep into my inner thoughts did he know?

And if he already knew all my thoughts, was there any meaning in a debate no matter what refutation I made? Was there a way to escape?

Wait a minute, was he reading this thought too? How much could the host read my thoughts? Surely not about the Records of the Dark Exploration that I was thinking of…

[Sol-eum.]

I felt like I would go crazy.

I felt like I would go crazy from fear. I wanted to escape this situation…

[That is exactly it!]

Huh?

[You have finally realized it. Sol-eum. What you truly want deep in your heart!]

The host snapped his fingers, making a sharp sound.

[It is precisely escaping from fear.]

“…!!”

The TV approached.

[And here, there is a very fast and certain way….]

The way

to escape fear:

Making a talk show

with Brown.

[You will be comfortable and happy in my studio.]

[The appearance of a passionate show creator. Your active performance, dazzling with creativity and ingenuity, will shine brighter when there is no fear, so this Brown fully guarantees it.]

[A workplace where you only need to make a good show without complex thoughts…. A studio of this legendary host, free from all other dangers.]

They were the same words, but they sounded different.

The thought that it was absurd… did not occur.

That was terrifying.

[Shh, shh, there is no need to be afraid. Let’s listen to this Brown….]

[Now, friend. Will you look down at your hand? Yes… what do you see?]

…The silver ring on my index finger.

[Correct! What does it mean that you are wearing that?]

…….

‘That I am not polluted.’

It meant that my judgment was not encroached upon by supernatural phenomena, and I was in a state of possessing powerful mental resistance so that I could judge with sound, human-like reason.

[Correct answer! Ah, if it were a quiz show I would have given you a prize, what a pity….]

[Anyway, therefore, your current choice is not wrong. Now you may catch your breath and feel relieved.]

[How do you feel?]

I,

[Let me guess. …’Brown’s words sound reasonable, so wouldn’t it be okay to try it at least once?’]

…….

…….

But…!

[Correct answer!]

[Now, let’s seize our opportunity, friend.]

From the opposite side, Brown arranged his suit and politely stood up.

As if to show respect to a partner.

[A single handshake is enough.]

[We do not need complicated signing procedures. Shaking hands together, and working together.]

…….

[Don’t you want to spend a peaceful day without fear or pain? All you need is just to try a more comfortable and fun job with your friend who has become more reliable!]

[And if by any chance you are not having fun at all… you can return to your original job right away.]

…….

“Really?”

[Really.]

…….

[Seize the opportunity, friend.]

[It is only now.]

I raised my trembling hand.

And.

Extended it.

To the opponent.

[Indeed.]

Clench.

The host’s huge hand completely covered mine and shook it.

[You won’t regret it, friend.]

The surroundings became brighter than ever.

Lights poured from all directions, and the cramped studio gradually widened, revealing its appearance in the darkness…….

[Now, allow me to introduce. Sol-eum’s new workplace! New colleagues! New life!]

A neat set, a stage with twinkling light bulbs, and a classic golden sign shining above it…….

[The pleasure of witnessing, the joy of communication, the thrill of unpredictable developments, anticipation. This humble place that only… desires the applause of the audience.]

Brown’s Late Night Talk Show

I,

[Congratulations on becoming a part of it, Sol-eum.]

successfully changed jobs.