Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work (Novel) - Chapter 18
Chapter 18
===================
Translated by Jinmu
Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
===================
I will speak honestly.
One month since joining the company.
Surprisingly, a ghost story conglomerate is worth working at…!
“Wow, crazy. Cleared in 30 minutes again!”
“Aren’t they seriously put up better performances than Team C?”
To think a day would come when I would actually hear such artificial lines, which felt like something an extra in a Wetube web drama would say.
“Hey, enjoy it. It’s all your performance.”
Lunchtime.
The assistant manager, who had proudly brought back both Menu A and Menu B from the cafeteria, spoke coolly.
For reference, we had already handled one case this morning as well.
“Thanks to Roe Deer, I even get to pull off crazy things like clearing twelve new Dark entities a month.”
“Not at all. It is all thanks to your excellent leadership.”
“Leadership? I didn’t lead anything. I’m just riding the bus well.”
“That’s right. I will buy beef today, Sol-eum senior.”
“Min-sung… even so, that’s a bit much.”
“Ayy, why are you like that! If you do well, you are all my seniors, aren’t you?”
When a superior cracked such a joke, it was surprisingly hard to react in a way that didn’t sour the mood….
But whether it was sincere rather than a joke, the supervisor, instead of waiting for my reaction, showed a captured screen of his monthly point accumulation history with a excited face.
“It’s already 5,000p!”
Indeed.
[Supervisor Park Min-sung / Accumulated Points: 5,200p]
This was also the amount of points I had earned over a month.
‘The speedrun did work, after all….’
To think my survival movements would turn out like this.
It was also possible because most of the grades were F or D.
‘It seems high-grade ones don’t appear that often.’
Well, if they appeared frequently, the world’s door would have already closed with the message ‘And thus, the world was destroyed.’
In any case, my superiors looked more excited than me. It seemed they found it more fun since it was someone else’s business.
“It’s probably the shortest time among all rookie records in our company’s history!”
“Ooooh!”
Ah, come to think of it, I had barely seen my rookie colleagues.
Because I entered and exited the 17th-floor Research Team office every day, it seemed I had fewer opportunities to see other Field Exploration Teams instead.
‘As for Baek Sa-heon, we were treating each other as non-existent people.’
In fact, to maintain the crazy guy concept I had once established, I did occasionally throw out jokes that crossed the line regarding work.
-You’re going into the Dark exploration today too, right? Want to bet on how many civilians died?
-…….
The researcher who gambled gave me inspiration. Thank you.
Anyway, seeing Baek Sa-heon grit his teeth and ignore me without even replying, the effect seemed certain.
‘It’s smooth sailing.’
I finished the last broth of the short rib soup and put it down.
Leaving on time, and receiving bonuses.
‘The cafeteria is also decent.’
In terms of welfare, it was a company that would score a rating of 3.5 or higher on sites like Job Korea.
Except for the heavy stress that came from spending a night in a haunted house where ghosts popped out every day, that was….
‘From doing things I would have rather died than do in the past just to make a living… hmm. It is a normal office life.’
Even down to the point where the sense of efficacy from putting up performances made me somehow delude myself into thinking it was manageable, it was exactly the same.
“Roe Deer.”
Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je spoke in a small, low voice.
“At this rate, there must have been talk about it among the higher-ups.”
“…Excuse me?”
“Your performances, I mean.”
“…….”
“It could be a knack or luck once, but when it becomes ten times, it is not that.”
The assistant manager frowned and grinned.
“There will definitely be a higher-up who singles you out to take a look, so make sure to tell us when that happens. Tell the group leader too.”
Hmm.
If it were a normal company, I would have worried about my performance being snatched away and looked for a angle to quietly gloss over it.
But since this was a ghost story universe and these were the words of a superior whose life I had previously saved.
I nodded obediently.
“Yes.”
“Right. Even if he looks like that… no, just by looking at him, our group leader is quite extraordinary.”
Our gazes turned toward Manager Lee Ja-heon, who had finished his meal quickly and was leaving the cafeteria.
“If you receive an absurd proposal, he will cover for you if you ask him at least once.”
That lizard would?
“…Yes.”
“Okay. Anyway, Roe Deer really catches on quick.”
I should keep it a secret in the future that I didn’t actually agree all that much but only nodded my head.
That aside… there could be talk from the higher-ups, huh.
I thought as I cleaned up my tray and stood up.
‘Now that things have turned out like this, it can’t be helped that I stand out.’
I was giving up on that to some extent.
After all, if I had witnessed a clown popping out of a portrait and crawling with only its upper body, I would have already fainted….
But there was also a corner I believed in.
‘It’s hard to give a rookie a more difficult task than this, right?’
If it crossed this level, it wouldn’t be dumping chores but giving core tasks.
Having a rookie who joined the company only a month ago, and who wasn’t even a lateral hire with experience, handle the core duties of the department?
This wasn’t some crazy small business appearing on Wetube. That was also completely out of the question due to the unwritten social rules within a conglomerate.
I just had to think that I was very lucky that my workload had developed toward ‘ghost stories without manuals.’
If this became chronic, the probability of them just letting it pass while getting used to it, thinking, ‘Ah, he is specialized in that area,’ was higher.
“Shall we head back then?”
“Yes.”
I drew my conclusion and returned the tableware.
However, at this moment, having adapted and become immersed in the world and office worker life, I was forgetting one thing.
The immutable truth of social life, that was.
Namely….
The nail that sticks out gets hammered down!
* * *
At the same time, the office of Research Team 1.
‘Escaped within an hour again….’
Looking at Group D’s records, a researcher who was wasting away his salary grit his teeth.
‘Did they earn about 5,000p so far?’
At that speed in just a month, they might actually break the shortest record within a few years and take the Wish Ticket….
“…….”
“Geez, must be nice?”
The researcher grumbled.
“Even though some of us work while seeing all kinds of terrible sights in the lab, they don’t even count it as hazard pay, so it’s hard to gather even 500p a month.”
“…….”
“While a rookie gets 50,000 points in a single month….”
“Uh-huh, let’s stop there.”
The researcher shut his mouth tight.
His insides began to boil at the reality that he couldn’t even voice his complaints in this situation.
Something was wrong.
‘There’s a guy who easily earns points while carrying around a good weapon he got lucky drawing.’
While someone else couldn’t even dream of it because they had neither the points nor the access authority.
‘Researchers are more elite and should be treated better than the field exploration workers who roll with their bodies, so is this right?’
It was truly unfair.
The researcher genuinely thought so.
He had conveniently forgotten that he used to laugh at the Field Exploration Team employees, calling them experimental lab rats.
“Well, when the timing is right, there are times when Dark explorations go well like this.”
Manager Gwak Je-gang smiled and casually tossed words to the researcher.
“Even so, this is quite amazing, though.”
“…….”
Gwak Je-gang, pretending not to see the researcher raising his head with a grimace like he had chewed on dung, flipped through the documents again.
“Ah, they said we have to deploy more than ten people for this Dark?”
“…….”
“Supervisor Lee?”
“Ah, yes. That’s what they said. They say we can only enter the Dark if ten people gather.”
“Hmm.”
Gwak Je-gang smiled and picked up a pen.
“Then this time, it’ll be a team play.”
-A, D, and Y Groups deployed.
“…….”
The researcher watched Gwak Je-gang pull out the organization chart of the Field Exploration Team and check the corresponding teams.
It was then.
“Supervisor Lee.”
“Yes?”
“Do you happen to know the meaning of the alphabetical order of the Field Exploration Teams?”
He did not know.
A person who was just preserving his seat while slacking off on his own work had no reason to be so knowledgeable about the organizational structure of another department.
Gwak Je-gang smiled and tapped the document. It was somehow a strange smile.
“In a word, it’s in order of performance.”
“…!”
“You know, like how they have things like that in schools too. Like advanced classes, regular classes, and remedial classes.”
The researcher suddenly recalled.
“Then… is Group D the advanced class?”
“No.”
A firm denial came back.
“A through C. That’s the elite.”
Gwak Je-gang tapped the corresponding groups with his pen.
“The rest are all consumables.”
“…Ah.”
It was the moment his mood was somehow about to get slightly better.
“But well. I’m saying this because it’s just between us… Group D’s performance is so good. There’s even a rumor that if they keep going like this, things will turn out well for them in the next assignment, you know? Haha.”
“…!”
As company gossip usually was, outrageously exceptional stories were normally not trustworthy rumors.
Even so, the researcher somehow grew anxious.
‘Isn’t there any bad news?’
As if fulfilling that expectation. Manager Gwak Je-gang’s muttering was heard.
It was in a tone that was deliberately regretful.
“But of all things, does it have to be matched like this? To think they’re going in with Group A… hmm.”
“…! Uh, is it bad to go in with the elite team?”
“It would naturally be so, wouldn’t it? Why, Supervisor Lee knows too.”
Gwak Je-gang touched his chin.
“There are also Dark entities where an escape route is opened only when there is sacrifice, after all.”
Especially….
If it was a Dark entity that required a large number of people, even more so.
Gwak Je-gang shrugged.
“There will be talking points created in many ways in this exploration record.”
* * *
A few days later.
Having naturally received a call and gone up to the 17th floor just like the past month, Group D ended up seeing an unexpected sight.
“Hello.”
“…?!”
There were earlier guests in the office of Research Team 1.
People wearing various masks.
‘Are they other groups from the Field Exploration Team?’
I quickly counted the heads.
Roughly seven people.
Among them was someone I recognized.
-Is it also possible to revive a dead person?
It was the rookie employee who had asked such a question regarding the Wish Ticket at the welcoming party.
The rookie employee wearing a cow mask stood leaning against a desk with his head bowed quietly.
A somewhat gloomy energy hovered.
He had long hair for a man, to the point that I wondered if the company wouldn’t frown upon it due to dress code issues.
Of course, there seemed to be no one at this place who cared about such things.
“Ah.”
“This is… hmm.”
Around the time Group D’s seniors made short reactions, which were hard to tell if they were exclamations or sighs, as they saw the people filling the office space.
“Oh oh, our Group D has finally arrived too. Welcome~ Well, well, let’s go into the briefing today as well.”
Manager Gwak Je-gang appeared, led the people, and began moving to the attached conference room.
As I moved my steps, I heard the assistant manager asking.
“Are we entering together with other groups?”
“That’s right. That’s right.”
“…….”
The assistant manager glanced around, then came back near me and spoke in a low voice that wouldn’t be heard by others.
“You see those employees wearing masks with gold marks over there?”
“Yes.”
“That side is Group A.”
I knew.
‘That’s the elite team.’
Daydream Co. had a structure where raw materials only came out and the company ran when someone cleared the ghost stories.
‘For there not to be a setting plot hole that the company should naturally go bankrupt, an inhumanly high-performing and good field exploration team was also necessary….’
So it was also a place with exceptionally many big names in the <Records of the Dark Exploration>. I nodded slightly.
Group A consisted of three people wearing bizarre butterfly, mantis, and mallard duck masks respectively.
Just then, the person wearing the mallard duck mask of Group A made a gesture of recognition.
It was the energetic voice of a middle-aged woman.
“Ah, is that side that employee Kim Sol-eum?”
“Yes. Hello.”
Even as I reflexively bowed, cold sweat broke out.
‘That’ Kim Sol-eum? What on earth kind of rumors are circulating?
“Yes, yes. Let’s see each other if there’s a chance. A young man with a bright future.”
And she brushed past and sat in her seat.
…That person must be the leader of Group A.
The assistant manager continued to explain.
“And… the ones wearing masks without gold marks are Group Y.”
“…….”
The three wearing masks without gold marks, and even the rookie employee in the cow mask whom I recognized.
It was a group where a gloomy energy hovered somehow.
“Group Y’s leader is not a manager but a regular employee, so just let it be and stay quiet.”
“Yes.”
That… I also knew.
The supervisor whispered to me.
“Hmm… Roe Deer. The other group members you saw today, especially Group Y, just treat them moderately if possible. Got it? I will tell you the reason later.”
“Yes.”
I nodded without a word.
Because I could roughly guess the content he would tell me later.
But suddenly, the supervisor who sat next to me was touched.
“Ha. I really… love how you are like a version of the group leader who is quick-witted.”
“Me too.”
“…….”
It is a compliment… right?
“Well, well, if everyone is seated, I will start the briefing straight away.”
Gwak Je-gang stood in front of the conference room board without even turning on the prompter.
“I was going to tell you about the Dark we are entering today… but!”
Manager Gwak Je-gang laughed heartily.
“Actually, we don’t know anything either.”
“…??”
“What do you mean by that, Manager Gwak?”
“It means there is only a single piece of escape information from civilians!”
“……Ha.”
Amidst the silence, documents were distributed.
I also looked down at the page, which was practically a short note.
-All college students (12 people) went missing while playing a board game during a club MT at Hanmaeum Gadeuk Pension in Gangwon-do.
The board game in question is under the trademark ‘Pleasant Theme Park! ~Delightful Fantasyland Tour~’ and is presumed to be developed by Pleasant Laboratory*.
Survivors described that the board game was ‘already placed inside the pension.’
The pension owner denied the fact.
Result: Some returned 17 hours later.
Testified, ‘We stayed in the theme park inside the board game.’ Showed various aspects such as mental derangement, PTSD reactions, and mild neurosis.
-Survivors: 4, Missing: 1, Deaths: 7
On the next page, statements about the ‘theme park inside the board game’ were shortly written by survivor. The descriptions were very fragmented, perhaps due to severe mental trauma.
But even with just that, it was sufficiently familiar.
I swallowed my saliva.
‘It was about time for this to come out.’
It had finally come.
A Dark entity that absolutely required a large number of participants!
“It seems the capacity for playing the board game exceeds ten people? Is that why you assembled a large number of people?”
“Yes, yes, we tried to create as similar an environment as possible.”
Gwak Je-gang winked.
“Even so! In these adverse conditions, didn’t our team members grasp the exact entry method?”
“Didn’t you just bring the board game?”
“Haha! You speak so disappointingly, Assistant Manager Jin. We even found out all the game rules.”
The Group A employee wearing the butterfly mask did not reply, and Gwak Je-gang didn’t mind as he placed the board game on the table.
“Here it is.”
[Pleasant Theme Park!]
~Delightful Fantasyland Tour~
: Board the three fantasy attractions fastest with your teammates and receive prizes!
On the front of the box, which was practically as good as new, the appearance of a colorful fantasy land was drawn.
When the box was opened, a pictorial map of the theme park divided by sectors and colorful coins were visible.
“Now, all you have to do is divide into teams and start the board game.”
He spoke so cheerfully, telling us to quickly enter a ghost story where more than half of the people died.
“Then shall we just team up by our groups?”
“Ah, that’s… because if you draw game pieces from this drawing capsule here, the teams are divided according to that color!”
Manager Gwak Je-gang pulled out a small capsule-like thing from one side of the box and showed it.
“They say if you shake this, a piece falls out of this hole.”
“It’s random.”
The people eventually sighed, shook the capsule, and pulled out game pieces one by one.
‘Is it Blue, Yellow, Red….’
It was natural, but since such things tended to go in order of seniority, my turn was almost at the very end.
What I drew was….
“Employee Kim got Red.”
Of all things, it was a red piece.
It wasn’t very pleasant because it was an ominous color in the ghost story universe.
‘Well, color doesn’t actually matter much in this ghost story.’
Because it was a place where different things happened even if you drew the same color.
I swallowed my saliva and grew tense.
In any case, are we entering now?
“Now, when you unfold the game board, we will enter!”
However, even though Manager Lee Ja-heon unfolded the game board as a representative, nothing happened.
“…….”
Hmm?
At a thought that flashed like lightning, I checked the number of people.
Four Yellows, four Blues.
And the ones who drew Red like me were….
The butterfly mask called ‘Assistant Manager Jin’ of Group A, and the rookie employee of Group Y whom I recognized.
Counting me, a total of three people.
“…….”
Ah.
‘Only the Red team is short of a partner.’
“One person is missing.”
Manager Lee Ja-heon turned back to Gwak Je-gang with his vertical pupils.
“It seems we cannot enter with eleven people. We must fill all twelve people and try again.”
“Ah, that?”
Gwak Je-gang answered nonchalantly, then tossed the capsule containing the game pieces.
“Supervisor Lee. Catch this!”
To the gambling-addict researcher standing right next to him.
“U-Uh, uh…?!”
The moment the researcher caught the capsule in a daze.
Rumble.
The remaining red piece came out from inside it.
“…!?”
“D-Drew it!”
Wait a minute.
-Departing for Fantasyland~
The board game board fluttered up into the air and swallowed our vision.
“Uaaack!”
“Ha ha ha ha ha ha!”
I heard the researcher’s scream in my ears.
And also Manager Gwak Je-gang’s laughter.
“…….”
I recalled the back page of that man’s <Records of the Dark Exploration> wiki.
———————=
A psycho fascinated by ghost stories.
A mad scientist.
When exploring a ghost story with insufficient information, he is the prime contributor who enriches the exploration records with his crazy habit of pushing for combinations or actions that are bound to result in death to extract unique data.
Gwak Je-gang’s disciplinary records can be checked on the #Exploration Records (Spin-off) page.
———————=
…I was keeping my guard up, knowing that a day like this would come eventually.
“What is this, what on earth is this!”
I had guessed it from the moment a large number of people, including Group A and Group Y, came together, but….
‘He deliberately ruined the survival probability.’
This isn’t aiming to clear the ghost story with maximum survival.
It is a setup where everyone except Group A is meant to die.