Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work (Novel) - Chapter 6
Chapter 6
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Translated by Jinmu
Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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‘A new merchandise?’
And if usage permission was unlocked, it seemed to mean I could use another one of the merchandise items I had purchased.
‘Based on what?’
I wanted to immediately click the memo pad floating unrealistically in the air, but realized I was still sitting in the middle of the lecture hall.
Furthermore, because the host had called me out as the top scorer and whatnot, there were glances turning my way.
‘Let’s leave this place first and then check.’
Since the event seemed completely over, I should return home… Wait.
I realized an extremely fatal fact.
“…….”
Do I even have a home here……?
I hurriedly opened my smartphone and began checking the records.
Like a lie, all records of my getting a job and working had vanished.
Even family contacts were wiped out.
‘Oh, please.’
At best, the only things left were records from my college days, and I felt a momentary relief because they were similar to what I remembered.
The problem was… the fact that I had lived in a dormitory during college.
‘So when I graduated and looked for a studio apartment, I had a hard time because the schedule got messed up.’
Sure enough, the most recent records were text messages arranging a meeting to view a room with a real estate agency, and a KakaoTalk chat with a friend saying I was staying at a motel because the contract for the one-room apartment had fallen through…….
“…….”
Without realizing it, I raised my eyes and checked the screen of the lecture hall that was still on.
To be precise, focusing only on a single line of text at the bottom.
[Employee Benefit – Other]
Company Housing Support
Benefit… I should make sure to claim it, right?
* * *
And this ‘Company Housing Support’ was processed at an astonishingly rapid speed.
“Oh, hello!”
“Hello.”
Only an hour after inquiring at the desk, I had been assigned a room number and received the key and address to move, and even the location was decent.
Of course, it probably wasn’t out of a good intention to look after the employees’ convenience.
‘In order to work us to the bone day and night on 24-hour call, they probably need to keep their out-house slaves nearby after all…….’
In any case, the building was an officetel that looked quite decent. Perhaps because it had been newly remodeled, it was clean and had good security.
Considering that ‘Company Housing Support’ is a benefit that usually follows local assignments, it was a ridiculously good benefit, but…….
‘The company just put us through a death survival game, and they expect us to move in easily.’
However, this sarcasm was realized literally.
When I exchanged greetings with Go Yeong-eun, whom I met in front of the officetel, she spoke to me like this.
“Did you hear that? Seven people received company housing.”
“……?”
Isn’t that the majority?
Come to think of it, it seemed Go Yeong-eun had also come to move in here.
As if sensing my gaze, she made a sheepish expression.
“It is a bit scary, but since we’ve already joined the company anyway, refusing to live for free in an officetel near the station is also a bit…….”
“……Yes.”
Right. In capitalism, money is originally the scariest thing.
‘It saves about 1.2 million won a month, so it’s worth moving in even if one has to act crazy.’
Of course, there was a more crucial reason than that.
“It seems the people who came up from the provinces were guided and registered as soon as they passed.”
“I see.”
Now I understood the situation. It meant the rookies who had cheered and agreed couldn’t back out.
I had wondered how they cleared out a room for me so quickly, and now I could guess.
‘Did the room I received belong to a new employee who just failed the death survival game…….’
Thinking that way made me feel embarrassed for having chills run down my spine.
Anyway, after finishing my greetings with Go Yeong-eun, I went up to the 12th floor where my room was located.
Up to that point, it was good.
The only problem was that the officetel was a two-room apartment.
And my housing roommate was Baek Sa-heon.
“…….”
“…….”
Baek Sa-heon was sitting in the living room.
Seeing that he wore a medical eyepatch over one eye, it seemed he had received something. In terms of time, it looked like the company had given him some sort of treatment rather than him going to a hospital.
Striving to avoid initiating a conversation, I bowed my head and was about to find my room and head in when…….
“Hey.”
Pardon?
“Hey?”
I stopped my steps.
Baek Sa-heon flinched when I actually replied, but perhaps because his anger was greater, he glared at me with wild eyes and spoke.
“It must have been really fun watching me get my eye gouged out when you left the lost item behind, huh? Yeah?”
It seemed he thought I had left the lost item behind on purpose to watch him get his eye gouged out, even though I clearly knew of its existence.
‘I mean, you’re the one who rushed out on your own accord.’
Where on earth did he get the novel idea that while he punched another person’s eye, his own eye should have been taken care of by someone else?
However, at the same time, I knew.
If I took a low stance like, ‘No, that’s because you suddenly rushed out…’, or ‘Why are you suddenly speaking informally to me, sir…’, he would only become more arrogant and talk nonsense.
In the method of identifying troublemakers developed through years of dealing with clients, there is a term for types like Baek Sa-heon.
A so-called ‘creation-type troublemaker.’
The type that imagines the situation as they please and stubbornly insists on it.
Explanations do not work on this kind of human figure.
Rather…….
“Yeah. It was fun.”
“……!”
“Thank you. Thanks to you, it was enjoyable. Is this what they call dopamine?”
“Wh-what…….”
“Keep delivering good news in the future. In fact, I hope we work in the same team.”
“…….”
“Work life is going to be fun.”
Done.
‘With this, I’ll probably just look like a crazy guy.’
Evaluating his behavioral patterns up to now and his achievements in <Records of the Dark Exploration> collectively…….
‘Baek Sa-heon seems to have the kind of personality that would push me into a death trap the moment he finds out I’m a coward, right?’
In that case, it would actually be better to plant the impression of, ‘Ah, I shouldn’t get involved with this guy!’
‘To do some bluffing, along the way.’
After patting the shoulder of the now-silent Baek Sa-heon twice, I stood up and headed to my room without looking back.
‘As long as I don’t get stabbed in my sleep, it’s fine.’
Actually, I had just told a lie.
Because at this period, the probability of working together with a colleague was extremely low.
What kind of workplace would group rookies together and create a team for them to work? They would split everyone up to organize teams.
Furthermore, it was a system similar to a certain ninja manga, where they balanced things out and distributed them evenly based on grades.
And regardless, I was called first, and Baek Sa-heon was called second.
‘Since he would also have been judged to have good grades, the chances of us being placed in the same team are even rarer.’
Therefore, we wouldn’t be working together for a while.
Let’s treat each other as nonexistent people.
Click.
With a light heart, I entered my assigned room.
“Phew.”
Inside the clean room, there were newly replaced bedding, a desk, and even a door leading to a private bathroom.
An informational booklet was even hanging on that door.
“If I apply, they provide bedding replacement and cleaning services every week for 100,000 won a month?”
Seeing this corporate-level welfare that seemed crazy, I could gradually sense their intention to daze the new employees with a barrage of carrots.
As if the death survival game up to now had been a lie, many new employees would be confused by this neat and kind reality.
Of course, from my position of knowing why the company was acting this way, it was all too transparent but…….
‘Right. It must be hard to fill usable personnel in the Field Exploration Team.’
Since they were rookies judged capable of ‘work,’ they wanted to ensure there were no runaways.
‘Well, since they are giving it, I should make good use of it.’
Because I had decided to attend anyway.
On the desk, a small welcome gift package was even visible. It contained expensive snacks and office supplies stamped with the company logo.
Furthermore, inside the half-open drawer, there was even a diary.
Looking at the company logo stamped on the cover of the diary, it seemed to be an issued item.
‘But it was manufactured with last year’s date.’
Did the person who lived in this housing before me leave it behind? I flipped the pages of the diary.
As I did, giant letters on the first page…….
– RUN AWAY
‘Oh dear.’
I appreciate the senior’s advice that would serve as blood and flesh, but it was already too late for me.
In fact, it wasn’t even that scary.
‘Isn’t this just… an office worker’s tragedy?’
My sense of humanity surged slightly. Closing the diary, I put it back neatly into the drawer.
Since I seemed to have checked everything worth seeing, shall I slowly do what needs to be done?
[Records of the Dark Exploration Real Merchandise Box]
-Usage permission unlocked for new merchandise! (!)
Now that I was alone, I could check it!
‘Phew.’
Sitting on the bed with a trembling heart, I leaned in a comfortable posture and reached my hand toward the memo pad.
Tap.
Just like when it spat out the phone grip, the memo pad unfolded and something fell from inside.
OPP transparent film packaging.
What was inside that bag commonly used for packaging fancy goods was indeed a bundle of stickers.
“This is…….”
I raised the plastic bag.
Stickers depicting a typical smiling emoticon on a yellow circle.
A so-called bribe item.
—–
Records of the Dark Exploration / Daydream Co.
/ Items
Smile Sticker
An office worker’s friend! 🙂
When attached to an intellectual being, it makes them feel a mild sense of affinity toward the user.
Item Use Condition: Regular employee of Daydream Co. or above.
(ps. Disciplinary action will be taken if used for inappropriate private purposes such as hunting.)
—–
“Aha.”
This sticker, which was shoddily packaged and poorly finished, was surprisingly an item that was used quite iconically in a few <Records of the Dark Exploration>.
Evoking a sense of affinity? It was practically manipulating favorability.
‘Was it when they convinced and cooperated with people from other affiliations?’
And I could also see why this was unlocked at this of all times.
Item Use Condition: Regular employee of Daydream Co. or above.
“Is it because I succeeded in joining the company as a regular employee?”
In <Records of the Dark Exploration>, items created by agencies or specific groups mostly had restrictions, allowing only a certain rank or affiliation to use them.
In terms of the setting’s plausibility, it was to prevent indiscriminate smuggling.
‘And from the perspective of ghost story writers, it was to prevent ‘Mary Sue’-style nuisances where excited beginners barge into all sorts of ghost stories and use all kinds of tools at random.’
Anyway, meeting such conditions now meant…….
‘If I get promoted or my affiliation changes, this <Merchandise Box> spits out merchandise one by one?’
It certainly seemed like it would help with survival.
But it would have been nice if they hadn’t dragged me into this world in the first place. Thinking that way made this itself feel like a ghost story.
‘Ugh.’
Feeling oddly unsettled, I looked up at the glowing memo pad a few times before barely redirecting my thoughts.
“First of all, isn’t it good that I got something?”
Smile Stickers. Having to directly attach it to the opponent was a bit burdensome, but being able to buy favor in a real emergency was definitely an advantageous condition.
However, there was a problem.
‘…These were definitely recalled and completely discarded after appearing a few times.’
Regarding the power of the stickers, the writers had fought to the death and held a colosseum with their tongues, and in the end, this item itself had vanished into the recesses of history…….
Although I didn’t know exactly at what point, to think that what was in my hand might be the only remaining sticker set in this setting.
I looked down at the packaged Smile Stickers anew.
Hmm.
I must never get caught.
Still, just in case, I put five sheets separately into my suit’s front pocket.
This way, I wouldn’t forget to bring them on my first day of work.
‘……Work, huh.’
My feelings were about to become complicated, but first, I had to sleep.
Having experienced such a spectacular and absurd thing, both my body and mind were completely exhausted.
‘I must recover.’
Changing temporarily into the provided robe, I locked the doors and went to bed.
It was my first rest since falling into the ghost story.
To be honest, I couldn’t sleep well.
The sight of a person exploding live and the appearance of the subway station that had turned bizarre played in my brain in surround sound, using my imagination as fuel.
I thought I had purchased speakers dedicated to a home theater.
Still, after about two days, I was relieved that I had recovered to the level where I could sleep while suffering from nightmares.
A few days passed like that.
Checking my small bank account balance, I managed to divide it to buy clothes and daily necessities, preparing for daily life.
Of course, I did not forget the most important thing either.
‘I must master all of it.’
Continuously reading all the <Records of the Dark Exploration> wiki pages I had read through the ‘Memorial GripTok,’ I memorized them to the point where they would pop out with a tap.
Because this was my lifeline.
And Monday returned.
The very first day of work at <Daydream Co.>
* * *
“…….”
Monday morning.
With a face that didn’t look very pleasant, I headed toward the Daydream Co. headquarters building.
It was to the extent that Go Yeong-eun, whom I met while going down from the officetel, was startled.
“Uh, Mr. Sol-eum, are you okay? D-did you not sleep well?”
“…A bit, yes. I’m fine.”
“Oh dear…….”
The two new employees walked to the headquarters building, which was a 15-minute walk away, while sharing brief small talk.
Besides us, we encountered a few new employees of the Field Exploration Team who had tense faces, but we only exchanged nods.
And tagging our employee IDs, we boarded the elevator.
“I heard the Field Exploration Team uses floors 10 through 15……. Ah, I’ll get off here. Mr. Sol-eum, let’s do our best…….”
“Yes. Let’s do our best.”
Bidding farewell to Go Yeong-eun who got off on the 10th floor, I looked at the floor number of the elevator button I had pressed.
13th floor.
‘Even the number seems to foretell the future…….’
I only hoped it was just my imagination.
I checked the assignment message that came the day before yesterday once again.
[New Employee (Field Exploration)_Assignment.pdf]
– Kim Sol-eum / Group D
Ding.
When the elevator door stopped at the 13th floor and opened, a hallway divided into sections marked by alphabets came into view.
Finding the automatic door printed with ‘D’ among them, I pressed the automatic door button.
And at the same time, I greeted them.
“Hello.”
“Oh!”
“He’s here, he’s here.”
A few men and women sitting in a fairly spacious office raised their heads and welcomed me.
One of the men stood up and offered me his hand.
“Welcome to the 15th class, Group D.”
The short-haired woman with a expressionless face standing behind him nodded and continued.
“For your information, there is a nickname that it is called Group D because all the rookies died.”
“…….”
“Just kidding.”
Shall I resign even now?