Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work (Novel) - Chapter 64
Chapter 64
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Translated by Jinmu
Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je felt highly complicated.
‘Since I’m leaving anyway, I wanted to go a bit comfortably.’
It seemed to have been a completely unreasonable wish.
“Hey! Step back! Do you think I wouldn’t know you guessed once?”
“Aaargh! Get back! I haven’t guessed even once yet!”
‘Troll bastards…’
It was nothing short of a living hell.
Although behaving as if watching a sports match while prioritizing their own survival until just now wasn’t a very nice sight, seeing them scream while monitoring and keeping each other in check was even worse.
Survival and points.
Having two objectives meant double the conflict.
It felt like looking at a wagon wheel that couldn’t move due to friction and had just gathered a ton of heat…
‘Roe Deer is really no ordinary fellow…’
Such excellent political maneuvering was something she hadn’t seen in a long time.
‘It’s a relief he’s a good guy.’
Seeing that sight, they might easily hold out for over an hour just for the purpose of buying time.
‘Has it been 20 minutes now?’
_ _ T R A _ _ R
Seeing that even so, only a single blank was completed.
[Here is the hint for the 6th blank alphabet!]
[Whose obituary was the phone call that caused Teacher Eun Ha-je’s airplane trauma?]
“Assistant Manager Eun, who died…”
“Oh, piss off.”
But what on earth was the meaning of delaying time?
‘Isn’t it the same that my personal details will all be exposed and I’ll die anyway.’
Though she had no honor to care for at this point… it was true that the more time was delayed, the more bitter her mouth felt and the more fatigued she became.
Moreover, she felt dizzy every time she guessed what the two juniors were trying to do.
‘It seems they are trying to do something crazy.’
Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je recalled the whisper she had heard from Roe Deer earlier.
—When you are executed, keep this in mind…
“……”
It was an announcement as if he wouldn’t even listen to persuasion.
But.
If they were absolutely going to do that, wouldn’t it be proper for her to also try her best to live?
…Of course, she didn’t know if the juniors’ determination would remain the same after a while.
‘Let’s wait.’
Eun Ha-je conceptually crossed her arms.
And 20 minutes,
30 minutes,
40 minutes…
“Yay! It’s correct! B of Believe!”
[Correct!]
B _ T R A Y _ R
The word was being completed.
And at this point, someone was bound to realize it.
“Wait a minute.”
“Uh?”
The identity of the word.
“This word…”
* * *
“Roe Deer, look over there.”
I raised my head.
1 hour and 8 minutes elapsed.
…The letters were completed.
B E T R A Y E R
Betrayer.
“……”
[The word that best describes Teacher Eun Ha-je is ‘Betrayer’!]
What?
[When Teacher Eun Ha-je was a reporter four years ago, she betrayed her long-time boss and team to put out an exclusive story alone, but failed and had her story material taken away.]
[And in the process, a false report was published, and she neglected the informants who suffered so much mentally that they actually died!]
“……”
[What is the lesson of this incident?]
[The answer is ‘He who betrays his workplace is punished’!]
Ha.
[Hangman is a wonderful mock game that thus teaches the lesson of rewarding virtue and punishing vice to the children of our ■■ Kindergarten.]
“Seriously… there has never been a time when I regretted not being able to swear so much.”
“……”
“Roe Deer.”
The supervisor grabbed my shoulder.
“Hearing only this makes the senior seem like a very strange person, but…”
“In reality, we wouldn’t know until we hear it from her.”
“……!”
“Because this is that kind of Dark.”
Inflicting psychological pain and isolating the victim.
Controlling the actions of the remaining explorers by scaring them with penalties.
“I believe it won’t be too late to talk after we all get out alive.”
The supervisor’s face brightened.
“Exactly! As expected of Roe Deer! So… ah.”
Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud, thud…
I turned my head.
“…They are coming.”
Beyond the open door of the playroom, figures stepping in sync were slowly and smoothly walking inside.
There was no melting black substance or screaming.
A neat pastel attire with a smile on their faces. An apron and a name tag.
A branding mark on their foreheads.
[Sunshine Class ■■■]
[Chick Class ■■■]
[Dream Tree Class ■■■]
“…People who were completely contaminated and trapped here. No, they are monsters that used to be human… Don’t make eye contact.”
“……”
“If you get scared, you might get influenced for nothing.”
I turned my gaze away from those figures as much as possible.
[The game is over!]
[Then, let’s hang the Hangman lastly!]
“The time has come.”
“……”
I recalled the conversation we had during preparation right before.
—Supervisor, if by any chance it’s too burdensome…
—To pass it to you?
—Pardon?
—Come on, saying such words is a bit much. It is my custom equipment. You can’t even use it in the first place!
‘I really didn’t mean to say I would do it, but well, thank you…’
And in the supervisor’s hand right now, literally his own custom equipment was held.
Camouflage cloth.
‘Did they call it the Mimic Muffler.’
At any rate, the appearance was no different from when I received help at the exhibition, but there was a difference.
“It is extremely damp?”
It was filled with moisture.
The drink from the that remained with me had been completely poured into it.
The very thing used to double the effect of the Smile Sticker in the Tuesday Quiz Show.
‘I generously soaked that muffler in it.’
Since dirtying the floor too much with foreign substances was also a penalty matter, I had laid my suit jacket on the floor to do it, almost discarding it.
And if that drink worked…
‘The camouflage equipment, even if one-off, would exert tremendous power.’
Until the moisture dried.
And since we had to do a time attack anyway, it was a perfect fit.
“Then I’ll wear it.”
“Yes.”
I nodded.
Glancing at the kindergarten teachers who were beginning to ascend the platform, the supervisor quietly pulled the muffler over his face.
And…
He completely became one of them.
[Sprout Class ■■■]
“……!”
—Ah, excellent. Quite a decent disguise. Though it seems it won’t hold out long…
‘It only has to hold out for just a brief moment.’
About 3 minutes.
And I also had to move.
I waited briefly for the supervisor to blend in among the teachers, then began to move with a time delay.
‘It’s now.’
I had to approach the platform as closely as possible so that Brown could use his ability.
And it would be even better to draw some attention to make it easier for Supervisor Park Min-sung, who would sneak in among those monsters, to move.
‘Start immediately…’
And it was the moment I raised my head.
“……”
‘Ah.’
I had forgotten the crucial thing.
That I am a coward.
Teacher Kim Sol-eum, listen.
I have finished reading the education book!
1. ■■ Annex Kindergarten is eternal.
2. I comply with the rules.
Then it’s perfect, I am a perfect teacher, everyone is safe and happy, there are absolutely no accidents, no one jumped off, it is a perfect and safe kindergarten, everyone complies with the rules while providing childcare, I am a perfect teacher, everyone complies with the rules and continues endlessly here. If you read all the education books, if you attend our ■■ Annex Kindergarten, Teacher Kim Sol-eum will also become like me soon. Now just read the education book, quickly.
On the platform.
Countless teachers of ■■ Annex Kindergarten were standing with smiles. They were absolutely not human, absolutely not human.
It was to the extent that the instinct that getting close to that would get me fucked grabbed the nape of my neck and made me want to scream. I must also read the education book.
I knew it in my head. The more I felt afraid, the worse the mental contamination became. I just had to endure.
And the fact that I had to stand close under their gaze was, in truth, nothing very grand compared to Supervisor Park Min-sung, who had to directly blend into their midst.
But…
Did I hold back my scream?
What on earth was this, this.
They said you get contaminated if you feel fear, right?
Is my fear attracting contamination?
I have to draw attention? I, the gaze of those things…
“……”
Drip.
Cold sweat dripped beneath my chin.
I barely pushed my left foot forward, stepping ahead.
One step.
Clatter, clatter, clatter, clatter…
Gaze pierced through.
It’s a rookie teacher!
‘S-Sticker.’
Tattoo sticker! I must use it. I must use it now. By the looks of it, I can’t endure…
No, endure. Don’t use it now.
Right now, this is panic. A timing when reason, not courage, is needed… No, I’ll use it…
—Mr. Roe Deer.
“…”
—I’m curious about your favorite fruit, Mr. Roe Deer.
“……”
—Mr. Roe Deer, a humble spectator named Brown is waiting for your answer!
The question…
—I mean, your favorite fruit!
…….
“Grapes.”
—Ah! Excellent. The symbol of abundance and ripening. Was it not worshipped as a sacred fruit in ancient Egypt, and was it not the most socio-cultural beverage in Greece?
—Shall we go into more detail? Let’s step forward…
I slowly moved my steps.
Rookie Teacher Eun Ha-je will hang from the rope, dangle, have her neck snapped, and die!
That is the Hangman game!
I moved forward while looking at the floor.
—How about wine, perhaps? A beverage that has varied alongside human civilization. From the grape variety, harvest time, to the aging method.
—Improved over thousands of years, the desires of producers and consumers became the will to maintain its method and results…
One step.
One step…
“……”
Soon, the edge of the platform caught my field of vision.
I had arrived right beneath the platform.
—Mr. Roe Deer, your footsteps are the same.
I raised my head.
—In a show, anyone can be bold. Otherwise, they disappear.
—And Mr. Roe Deer. You were a participant not likely to disappear. Ah, now the memory comes back. Indeed… you were the MVP.
—Let’s follow your desire and will this time too.
Brown spoke cheerfully.
—And shall we splendidly pull off the designated role?
…….
Yes.
‘Thank you.’
—Encouraging the crew is always my specialty!
Really, I was grateful.
I took a deep breath.
Once again, the smiles of the teachers pierced through, but it was slightly better.
It meant that whispers or text did not dig into my brain enough to contaminate me from being consumed by fear.
‘Let’s not be overwhelmed by fear.’
I can do it.
I took my stand and looked up at those teachers standing packed on the platform.
[Rookie Teacher Eun Ha-je, please come up to the platform~]
The hanging began.
* * *
The kindergarten teachers standing packed on the colorful, fresh, and pretty platform. It felt as if an event was about to progress any moment, but…
What they surrounded was the scaffold.
The black gallows. Otherwise known as the scaffold.
And a straight black line was drawn leading all the way to that scaffold.
What lay at the end of the line were assembled body parts.
Both legs, both arms, thighs, waist, chest, neck.
Lastly, the head.
The moment it appeared on the platform, all the parts merged, and Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je let out a breath.
And she gritted her teeth, looking at the teachers tightly surrounding her.
Good-bye!
The teachers calmly applauded with smiling faces.
Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je, who was probably holding back heavy swearing, moved her feet with a pale face.
Not of her own will. Limbs were forced to move by the black holographic rope, heading toward the scaffold between the teachers.
And…
‘This timing.’
Do you know that?
Naturally, contact with the teacher selected as the hangman was a penalty matter.
Any attempt to rescue directly, or even a last handshake or exchange of goods, was forbidden.
Doing it even at the risk of a penalty was also impossible. Because it was formatted such that the action was blocked right before the attempt.
Therefore, the attempt we could make was only exactly once…
[It’s the sight of the hangman ascending the gallows! This is what happens if you guess the correct answer well.]
The moment Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je manifested on the platform and climbed the scaffold.
When the assistant manager passed right beside the ‘teachers.’
Tap.
The teacher handing over something.
“……”
Supervisor Park Min-sung, in the perfect form of a teacher, ‘handed’ something to Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je.
For reference, since ropes were attached to both arms and legs, they couldn’t be used. Only small parts could be moved.
For example…
‘The mouth.’
The ‘something’ passed in a passing glance vanished instantly into Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je’s mouth.
As if nothing had happened.
And Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je kept moving her steps with an expressionless face, finally ascending onto the scaffold.
Here comes the second timing.
[Then, we begin the hanging.]
‘Brown!’
Now!
—Very well.
—Let’s meet your mask in a different way! Viewing the familiar anew…
I urgently looked up at Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je.
There was no change.
Thud.
On the black hologram hanging around her neck, shape and texture manifested.
[Hangman~!]
And pulled her upward.
‘Dammit.’
I really wanted to look away, but I watched that sight acting nonchalant.
A bizarrely immense force entered the rope, and…
Eventually.
Ting.
Roll, roll, roll…
“……”
The headless body fell beneath the platform.
Thud.
I caught the body falling right in front of me.
In the limp, slumped body, there were no signs of life.
And it soon faded away, disappearing…
“……”
[The game is over!]
[Rookie teachers, please wait for the evaluation briefly!]
“Ah, it’s finally over.”
“Supervisor Roe Deer, you won. No, how could you not let us guess twice?”
The employees approached from behind, spitting out sighs of relief and grumblings.
Right before the execution began, they had been waiting in the back in accordance with the kindergarten’s instruction: ‘Rookie teachers, now come to the playroom and watch the conclusion of Hangman.’
“……”
“Ah, is it your first time having a teammate die?”
“Eun Ha-je, by her nature, wasn’t a bastard to live long in the first place.”
And they tapped my shoulder.
“Well… I’m telling you there’s no need to be so shocked. About her death.”
“……”
I smiled.
“…?!”
“Why are you smi…”
“She didn’t die.”
“W-What?”
“Huh.”
The employees looked at me as if looking at a madman.
Right then.
“Ugh, what is this?!”
The people who looked onto the platform shrieked.
It wasn’t because they saw Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je’s fallen head.
Rather…
“This, this!”
Because they saw something else instead.
An employee pointed to the platform with a trembling voice.
“Why… is it a hand?”
It was.
“I-It was definitely a head!?”
I smiled, looking at Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je’s left hand lying on the platform.
I never knew the day would come when I would smile at a severed body, but I couldn’t help but laugh.
‘It worked!’
—Ah, whose handiwork this is is marvelous!
—And it was quite an interesting idea. Swapping the hand and the head.
Yes.
We tried to make Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je’s head and hand ‘appear swapped.’
So that when she was executed, one of her hands would be severed instead of her head!
—Utilizing a hand or foot as if it were another body part is also one of the classic show tricks.
Brown, who grumbled that doing such a thing for someone who wasn’t even a guest was entirely because of his friend, was so admirable!
‘Of course, this isn’t the end.’
Because the hangman must unconditionally die and become a corpse to escape.
If Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je had remained alive even after the execution, they would have definitely noticed the anomaly and done something else to enforce the rules.
Therefore…
—Meaning I just have to put this plum-sized apple into the assistant manager’s mouth?
Supervisor Park Min-sung had been necessary.
What the supervisor, disguised as a teacher, instantly delivered into Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je’s mouth earlier.
It was exactly the Baekseolsan mini apple.
The item causing a ‘death-like sleep’ that I possessed.
‘It was a stroke of absolute luck that storage space was created on my wrist so that I could carry even apples that weren’t ground into juice.’
So I could speak like this.
—Assistant Manager, when you ascend the scaffold, if an apple enters your mouth, swallow the last piece right before your wrist is severed.
—What?
—That situation will occur. …That is all.
Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je had executed those words precisely.
Ultimately, the moment the assistant manager’s wrist, which everyone mistook for a neck, was severed, she swallowed the last piece of the apple.
In this way, she entered a state completely identical to death.
That corpse-like body was judged as ‘executed as the hangman,’ successfully exiting the ghost story.
Yes.
Outside of that situation, there is currently no other case of scenario…!
…We succeeded.
“Hah…!”
I squeezed my face tight.
Even so, I wanted to quickly exit and verify her survival.
‘Because someone might mistake her for a corpse and transport her away.’
Since it felt slightly too early to feel catharsis or relief, I had wanted to exit quickly, but…
[The evaluation is out!]
Fortunately, the concluding sign came from the TV.
Soon, it would be announced that those who had no contribution to completing the Hangman word would receive a penalty, and those who did would pass.
Still, judging by the signs, it seemed there was no one who wouldn’t be able to escape due to contamination.
“Roe Deer!”
And the moment the teachers descended from the platform and vanished, Supervisor Park Min-sung also finally ran down.
“I-It worked, right?!”
“Yes.”
“Uaaah!”
The supervisor slumped onto the floor in joy and relief.
“It was worth sneaking into that gap…”
Although Supervisor Park Min-sung’s face had also turned pale, he smiled broadly with sincerity and only then deactivated his camouflage equipment.
“Supervisor, since you didn’t guess the alphabet, your penalties will accumulate once more…”
“Ah, I can endure up to the second.”
Just as discussed earlier, the supervisor nodded as if willing to endure it.
“Honestly, it doesn’t feel good… but well, receiving one contamination from failing to guess the correct answer is better than the assistant manager dying! Since there is no third time, it’s fine…”
[Oh dear, buzz!]
“……”
“……”
Uh?
[Rookie teachers had to stand beneath the platform! You must not step foot onto the platform.]
[As a penalty, please read aloud the education manual for 10 minutes!]
Supervisor Park Min-sung looked up at the spot he had just descended from.
“Ah.”
The platform.
“I got caught…”
And he was dragged in.