Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work (Novel) - Chapter 68

Chapter 68

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Translated by Jinmu

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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Morning.

I sat in the quiet office.

-Ah, it is a refreshing winter morning. How about a cup of coffee, friend?

Sure. Let’s drink it at lunch.

As I tidied up the desk a little and talked with Brown to dispel the silence, the lizard-headed boss walked through the door around 8:50 AM.

I went over and greeted him politely.

“Hello, Leader. Good morning.”

“Yes.”

I raised my head and continued.

“Uh, I heard that you helped me get paid leave. …Thank you.”

“Yes.”

The lizard moved only his eyes to look at me.

“Can you perform your duties in the same state as two weeks ago?”

“Yes. I can work just like before. Even if the results aren’t what they used to be, I’ll regain my rhythm as quickly as possible.”

“I see.”

His vertical pupils stared at me.

“I will judge and supplement that.”

Mmh.

By this point, I could roughly translate it.

‘Whether you do well or poorly, I’ll cover for you, so just work hard like you usually do—is that it?’

At this rate, since he was a good boss even if his appearance and word choice were lizard-like, I felt like it didn’t really matter….

Of course, that didn’t mean I could let my guard down.

‘For a while, I must clear the Dark well, no matter what.’

I had already received paid leave.

But for an employee who handled work so efficiently that he became a supervisor in just 60 days to not show results ‘unlike before’ after returning from rest?

This would end up circulating in the company gossip.

Because it would look strange.

[No, I mean, it’s not like their colleagues died; they all came out alive.]

[Mmh… that employee named Kim Sol-eum, is he unexpectedly the type who is weak to mental shock?]

[But for someone with such a weak mentality… by what means did he achieve results all this time?]

…Like that, you see.

‘Once you start being suspected, nothing good comes of it.’

I shouldn’t give them any excuse at all.

‘Let’s clear it properly.’

Even though… I hadn’t been able to purchase a new reliable item right now.

I recalled the text on the Alien Shop homepage that had been up throughout my vacation.

<Space Shopping Mall>

※ Redecorating (Temporary State) ※

>>I Understood!

That’s right.

The homepage was undergoing renewal….

‘I wonder when it will open.’

Since I hadn’t seen any documents regarding the renewal, it would probably finish quickly and reopen.

Since my budget was fixed, I planned to secure items after seeing the products in the newly opened Alien Shop.

For now, let’s regain our initial intent and just clear the Dark properly.

‘Since they won’t give us high-grade Dark entities again for a while.’

The strange emptiness of the reduced numbers couldn’t be helped, but it wasn’t as if I could resign… so I had to make it work somehow.

I deliberately asked in a slightly lively tone.

“Still, is it right for us to be deployed to the Dark starting today? I heard there’s a high probability we’ll go to support other groups since we aren’t at the three-person capacity……”

“That’s right.”

Oh.

“Which team are we supporting today?”

If things went well, I might meet one of my fellow rookies whom I hadn’t met yet……

“The elite class.”

…….

Pardon??

Again?

“Do you mean Group A?”

“No.”

“…Then which group is it?”

“Group C.”

It was a group I had no acquaintance with.

Although it bothered me that they were the elite class, I thought it was at least a relief that Group A’s leader and Leader Lee Ja-heon wouldn’t meet… but as I thought up to there.

‘Huh?’

Come to think of it, in a way, I wasn’t without acquaintance with Group C.

[K.LEE: I’m Assistant Manager Lee Kang-heon of Group C haha]

That suspicious Assistant Manager who introduced Salmon Market to me!

‘He definitely said Group C.’

Perhaps I would see his face this time.

But the more important question came first.

If it was a Dark entity that the elite class entered……

“Could it be a high-grade Dark entity that is difficult to clear?”

“Based on what standard do you wish to judge?”

“……I apologize. It was a slip of the tongue.”

“?”

“Mmh. I would appreciate it if you could tell me what grade it is and whether a manual is available.”

“It is D-grade. The manual is fully prepared.”

Oh, then the probability of seeing the crazy act of summoning the Cleanup Team to use as meat shields would be low. Feeling much more relieved, I asked comfortably.

“Understood. Then when should we move?”

“We will begin moving in five minutes.”

Yes.

Like that, we just grabbed our bags, left the office, and walked.

However….

“…….”

“…….”

“Leader.”

“Yes.”

“Why are we going near the annex instead of the Group C office?”

“Because Group C has already entered the Dark.”

“…….”

Pardon?

The answers extracted after a few more questions and answers with the Lizard Leader were as follows:

[Group C is in a state where two members remain because their leader is on vacation.]

[The ghost story to be entered today is D-grade.]

[However, questioning why they should even keep a three-person capacity for such a low-grade Dark entity, Group C went in on their own using fake reports, causing the administration office to hurriedly organize additional personnel.]

“…….”

Wow.

When I first joined the company, Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je had spat fire and cursed at the stopgap measure of ‘it’s three people including the rookie, isn’t it.’

‘Here, they voluntarily entered with just two people….’

It was ominous.

-Mmh, members who do not follow instructions well! A great host must be able to handle all elements of the show well, especially human resources.

-Is today the opportunity for Mr. Roe Deer to learn that? Let’s check. Then shall we go vigorously? Friend!

I wanted to just slump down listlessly…….

But I needed points, and it was also time for me to enter the Dark again.

‘Although there was no normal person among the elite classes I met so far….’

And I had a strong hunch that it would be the same this time as well.

As a mere supervisor of half a year, I had to do what I was told.

If I felt it was unfair, I should have gone to Group A… of course, if I had gone, I would have already been bounced to the Cleanup Team and turned into a corpse.

‘…Am I missing them already?’

I moved my feet, trying not to think of the two bosses of Group D.

Manager Lee Ja-heon handed me a tablet.

“Familiarize yourself with the manual for ten minutes starting now.”

“Is there a reason you are only giving me ten minutes?”

“Because time is running short until the entry closes, and the survival rate for the recent two quarters is close to 97%.”

Thank you for the kind explanation…….

‘I’ve come to take a 3% death rate for granted now….’

Honestly, in this context, the 3% who died despite having the full manual would usually be those who were incredibly unlucky or acted unexpectedly.

‘It’ll be fine.’

I stared into the tablet with a feeling that was either reluctance or resignation…….

“…….”

“…….”

-Mmh? Mr. Roe Deer, your head seems to have suddenly gone blank.

Yes.

Because I’m screwed.

———————=

Records of the Dark Exploration / Ghost Story

[Not Knowing is the Answer]

: A ghost story appearing in the <Records of the Dark Exploration>, Daydream Co.’s identification code is Qterw-D-2367.

A blood-drying orthodox ghost story where one must spend a whole night among ghosts.

———————=

“…….”

Wait a minute.

Please wait a moment, Leader…!

Instead of wailing that I wouldn’t enter, I barely managed to make a rational proposal.

“Uh, would it be possible to prepare for just about thirty more minutes before entering?”

“It is impossible.”

“…….”

Right. He said the entrance closes…….

It wasn’t a particularly rational proposal.

“…….”

Ahhhh! Seriously!!

Why on earth did this have to be the one for my return!

“There are no records of deaths except for two who died of heart attacks. It is safe compared to others of the same grade.”

“……Yes.”

‘I’m not doing this because I don’t know that…!’

Just, I was misunderstanding something.

I had forgotten it, drunk on the image of ‘me building an elite rookie character.’

Even before the paid leave, I was just… a person who hated scary things, shedding tears inside while performing time attacks.

But for my return ghost story to be the hell of orthodox horror that I am weakest to.

‘Since half of them are people I’m seeing for the first time, and elite groups at that, I can’t even play any tricks.’

A situation where I had to endure purely with grit because the grade was low, making it a waste to even use a tattoo sticker.

Not a situation where my survival instinct rang a bell, causing me to run like mad and contemplate escape methods, but one where I had to feel everything raw….

The taste of horror intended by the wiki writer.

‘Sigh….’

I would have preferred playing tag with the convenience store ghost, where I at least entered without knowing in the heat of the moment.

It felt like I had suddenly returned to reality as if splashed with cold water. Should I call it shock therapy.

In the state of mind of being dragged to a slaughterhouse, I entered the Dark on my own feet, biting the bullet.

My legs trembled.

“This way.”

The only saving grace was that this time, it wasn’t the kind of Dark that swallowed us into a strange place with distorted space-time.

The entry method this time was very simple.

Knocks made on a sealed space satisfying specific conditions, and entering it would turn that place into the ghost story.

A sealed indoor space with no people within a 100m radius, blocked on four sides and the ceiling.

There must be no interior elements that allow checking the outside, such as windows, and there must be exactly one analog clock.

The volume must be around 40㎥, and if there is a difference of more than 4㎥, the Dark in question does not occur.

In the case of our company, they had reportedly built a separate space that satisfied these conditions by remodeling a part of the annex, and utilized this even in normal times.

Specifically, measuring ‘4m x 4m x 2.4m’……

[Pantry]

Leader Lee Ja-heon and I stopped in front of the door with this nameplate.

It was indeed a pantry attached next to a normal office, but the conditions were met.

A Wednesday on a date ending with the number ‘4.’

Knocking on the door of the sealed space with a specific rhythm would start the ghost story.

“…….”

I had to… do it, right?

Based on seniority?

Knock, knock, knock-knock, knock-knock-knock

I knocked on the door, trying hard not to expose my trembling hands.

Then, like a lie, the door clicked open.

“Huh?”

“What’s with these people…… Oh!”

Inside, two employees were sitting with comfortable expressions, and they waved their hands upon seeing us.

“Ah, did you come to support?”

“Yes.”

“Geez, they send you even when we said we didn’t need it.”

To the employees who were chattering among themselves about how if the number of clearing members increased, points would be dispersed and the concentration of the dreamscape extract would be diluted… and so on.

The Lizard Leader answered like this:

“If you have complaints, apply for a department transfer and fix the common field exploration manual.”

“…….”

“…….”

The two employees gaped their mouths, then finally nodded with awkward expressions.

“Yes… that, it wasn’t meant to criticize those who came. I’m sorry….”

“Hahaha, it seems we acted thoughtlessly! We are truly sorry. Uh, you are the Group D Manager, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then that side……”

“It is Supervisor Roe Deer.”

“Ahhh!”

Both of their complexions changed again.

“Are you that rookie who almost joined Group A? I heard Assistant Manager Butterfly completely marked you!”

“I also heard that you saved an employee who was originally supposed to die… Oh, please tell us the story when we get out of here!”

“It wasn’t that grand of a story, and I was just lucky… yes. Glad to meet you too.”

Manager Lee Ja-heon and I sat down together at a small table located in the corner of the pantry under the guidance of the two.

“We have to spend the night together, so let’s at least exchange names. For start, you can call that side Supervisor Dolphin.”

“Nice to meet you, Supervisor Roe Deer.”

A small-statured woman wearing a dolphin mask waved her hand when she was called. Her tone was on the bubbly side.

And a slightly tanned man with a polite and sociable attitude extended his hand and grinned.

“And as for me, call me Assistant Manager Leopard.”

“Yes. Assistant Manager Leopard.”

Mmh.

[K.LEE: Oh hello employee hahaha]

Indeed, ‘Lee Kang-heon’’s profile picture was a Hawaiian beach. It suited him to have tanned skin.

Moreover, the matching job rank and sociable attitude.

‘It seems to be this person.’

Of course, I planned to keep the possibilities open. Since I didn’t know his real name yet.

Naturally, I had no intention of pretending to know him in front of my boss either.

“I look forward to working with you.”

“Yep. Let’s spend the night in our pantry while munching on snacks!”

Anyway, looking up to here, it seemed like a conversation to be shared while sitting in some office to work overtime.

In reality, situations like bloody tears suddenly flowing down the walls in the pantry, it turning upside down, or the coffee machine transforming into a killing machine do not occur.

하지만….

‘The ghost is already here.’

Some of the explorers are replaced by ghosts.

That’s right.

Someone among the people sharing a conversation right now is already replaced by a ghost.

Perhaps more than one.

“Would you like a cup of coffee?”

“Ah, I will brew it.”

“Ayy, there is no such thing as the youngest in our group. Just sit.”

I did not know when it would become like that. Perhaps from the moment of crossing the threshold, perhaps from the moment of sitting down and exchanging greetings….

‘Rather, the person replaced by a ghost has it easy.’

Since they wake up the next day in a state of having lost consciousness right from the moment they entered the pantry.

The rules I must follow.

Ghosts are identical to the explorers in all aspects, including appearance, personality, and character, but they create a sense of incongruity by doing actions humans do not do.

But you must not show that you noticed who the ghost is.

Every explorer who overtly showed signs of realizing went missing.

I, I can do it.

‘I can just ignore it while looking loosely.’

I can do it!

Well, if someone smiles wide enough to tear their mouth or something, wouldn’t it be fine to just look away and endure it.

‘At that time, let’s naturally pretend to look at someone else and endure it.’

Since there were many people, it seemed I could hold out.

I thought I might have become even more of a coward after going through various things, but unexpectedly, I might have become a bit stronger against horror.

At least, because I wasn’t bathing in cold sweat while imagining what would happen ahead!

“Ah! The entrance has completely closed just now. Now we just have to hold out with this number of people.”

“Oh~”

“Good. Let’s do our best!!”

Clap-clap-clap-clap!

The employees smiled brightly and clapped. It was a heartwarming scene.

Except for one thing.

“Wow!”

Everyone in the room was clapping with the backs of their hands.

“…….”

Ah.

“Huh? Mr. Roe Deer. Why aren’t you clapping?”

“…….”

“Why?”

Assistant Manager Leopard thrust his face right in front of my eyes.

“It seems you have something on your mind?”