Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work (Novel) - Chapter 7
Chapter 7
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Translated by Jinmu
Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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On the first day of work, when you hear something like, ‘New employee, you might croak soon? Haha, just kidding~’ from your team, what is the correct reaction of a new employee?
Actually, there is no such thing.
No, there is simply no answer.
Fortunately, perhaps because they didn’t expect a reaction from me, the bosses redirected their words.
“First of all… congratulations on passing the death survival game.”
Is it really okay to call it that out loud inside the company?
“But you are really the top scorer? That’s awesome.”
“Let’s hear some bragging.”
I am also curious about the reason.
“I just did my best, but.”
“Oh dear, then everyone would have gone to Seoul National University.”
“Anyway, it’s impressive. Welcome to our group.”
Since my employment grades were good, there was this advantage. As expected of a department suffering from heavy workload, they didn’t seem to haze the rookie.
“The group leader will also arrive soon. He’s on field work, so let’s relax for now!”
“Ah. Thank you.”
Following the boss’s guidance, I went to a partitioned space.
Four desks attached front and back.
And on top of the coffee table next to the guest sofa, an 80s-style radio was sitting.
The bosses sat in their seats and gestured to me.
“Sit there on the sofa.”
“Yes.”
And as I sat on the sofa, as if by magic, the radio on the table operated and made a vintage sound.
“……?”
Cheerful background music and the high-toned voice of a broadcaster.
-Hello! This is the Live Traffic Forecast. The current morning commute road condition in Seoul is sparse, just like today’s clear and pleasant weather, but from the afternoon…….
I turned my head and looked out the window.
Rain was pattering down.
A disconnected reality.
‘Ah.’
This radio is a ghost story.
—–
Records of the Dark Exploration / Ghost Story
[Hello Traffic Info]
: A ghost story appearing in <Records of the Dark Exploration>, Daydream Co.’s identification code is Qterw-E-63.
A strange radio that informs today’s fortune through traffic conditions. Sometimes it gives advice or counsel, but there are times when being overly conscious of that advice leads to chilling results.
—–
“Did you notice?”
“……!”
“Wow, this rookie is like a ghost…. Catching the sense of incongruity so quickly?”
The male boss, who looked like a physical education major, said as he came over and turned off the radio.
“This is like today’s fortune, a relatively safe urban legend. It is a verified Twilight (E) grade Dark.”
“…….”
“Wait, you just thought, ‘What is an urban legend and what is the Dark, you otaku?’ right?”
No, I didn’t.
“For such a rookie, I have prepared this. Ta-da.”
A tablet PC was placed on the table.
The boss touched the screen a few times and played a video.
“Watch it through.”
<Field Exploration Team New Employee Training Video>
A somewhat retro-feeling, low-audio-quality, cheerful orchestral BGM echoed.
And two animated characters, who seemed to be from the same era as the ’88 Olympics characters, came out and bowed their heads.
-New employee filled with dreams and passion! Welcome to the Daydream Co. Field Exploration Team!
-Today, we will tell you in detail what wonderful work the Field Exploration Team does!
‘A fox and a dragon?’
The red fox and yellow dragon characters wore hanbok and smiled broadly.
-Before that!
Above the subtly cute two characters, a glaringly old-fashioned Gulim font rose.
[What kind of company is Daydream Co.?]
I already know.
To the public, this company was a beauty-specialized pharmaceutical company that sold hair loss treatments and skin disease therapeutics with ridiculously good efficacy.
But in reality?
-Do you think we only make hair loss treatments? Oh my god! Actually, at Daydream Co., we can make any medicine you need!
-Literally a magic company that makes magical drugs!
From drugs that completely cure drug addiction to drugs for eternal youth and longevity, they made all kinds of fantasy potions, trading them secretly with political circles and high society.
That was the essence of Daydream Co.
A secret organization that makes transcendent potions.
‘And that is impossible through existing scientific and realistic methods, of course…….’
The fox character winked and raised an index finger.
-However! For magical medicine, magical ingredients are required.
-That is… ‘Dreamscape’!
On the screen, ‘Dreamscape’ was emphasized in a golden font and grew larger, and a glittering liquid flowed ecstatically in the background.
Hearts and stars popping out made it look like a magical potion from a children’s animation, but…….
The identity of that thing was a ghost story.
– ‘Dreamscape’ is collected from supernatural phenomena!
As the dragon extended a hand, the screen changed.
It was a city alleyway depicted in a cute illustration.
However, red eyes appeared in the shadow of a streetlamp, turning into the shape of a monster to threaten a pedestrian.
Next, an exaggerated animation of a fan licking its tongue and staring at a sleeping person appeared.
-Did you know that supernatural phenomena occur in modern society too?
-Sleeping in a closed space with a fan turned on will kill you, getting cursed at will make you live longer… These are all superstitious urban legends!
-But sometimes, these urban legends appear in reality!
‘Do they call them urban legends…….’
Indeed, the term ‘urban legend’ felt slightly less scary than ‘ghost story.’
And the most important core content appeared.
-Daydream Co. manages these urban legends, collecting ‘Dreamscape’ and making wonderful magical medicines that grant people’s wishes!
-Yongyong, ‘Dreamscape’ is a resource more important than anything else for the company, right?
-Of course! It is always needed… But who on earth will gather ‘Dreamscape’ for us?
The dragon character called Yongyong tilted its head.
Who else.
-It is indeed the wonderful Field Exploration Team!
An SD animation appeared, showing office workers in suits raising their thumbs and performing active roles in spaces where various unrealistic events occurred.
-Thanks to the active efforts of the brave and wise Field Exploration Team, the Dreamscape Collector is full today as well!
The office worker character with bushy eyebrows in the screen coolly held out an object in one hand.
A portable cylinder equipped with scales.
‘Dreamscape Collector.’
—–
[Dreamscape Collector]
: An item appearing in <Records of the Dark Exploration>.
A portable liquid storage container made by Daydream Co. The scale is filled when exploring the ‘Dark (ghost story).’
The company refers to this liquid as ‘Dreamscape.’
Making crazy reagents close to reality manipulation using this collected ‘Dreamscape’ as raw material is the main source of income for Daydream Co.
—–
Watching the essential item of the Field Exploration Team, the two characters clapped.
-Then, let’s pack the Dreamscape Collector and bravely and wisely enter the Dark!
-Our company’s future depends on your shoulders! Fighting!
The video, which shouted typical new employee gaslighting, ended by showing the logo of <Daydream Co.> along with fireworks.
“…….”
“Did you watch it well?”
“Yes…….”
I chose my words.
“It was impressive.”
“Uh…… our department’s work is somewhat like that.”
The quite outgoing boss offered his hand once again, requesting a handshake.
“Ah, I should introduce ourselves first. You are Employee Kim Sol-eum, right?”
“Yes. I look forward to working with you.”
“Right. Ah! Over there is Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je.”
The short-haired woman introduced as the assistant manager waved her hand from her desk and then lowered it.
The physical education major type male smiled broadly and pointed at himself with his thumb.
“I am Park Min-sung. I am a supervisor.”
“Nice to meet you, Supervisor.”
“Haha, you don’t have to speak so formally.”
“Pardon?”
“In this department, everyone gets promoted to supervisor after about a year of service. You will be too, soon, soon.”
His tact in not mentioning that the probability of dying before then was also high was…….
“Well, you might die before then, of course.”
Or not.
“Ah, senior!”
“Why. It is right for him to know. As you just saw in the introductory video, it is indeed a dangerous job.”
Assistant Manager Eun Ha-je gestured with her chin.
Indeed. To reach the rank of assistant manager in this company, one had to possess that level of mental strength.
“Resignation is also a decent option. There are so many jobs in the world.”
And in this setting, whichever job you choose, there is a possibility of being dragged into a ghost story…….
“Thank you, but I will try my best for now.”
“Hmm. Okay.”
“Ohhh, passion.”
The two nodded, saying they liked my attitude, and the assistant manager added words of encouragement.
“Although they say ghost stories or urban legends, there are response manuals for all of them, so don’t worry excessively.”
“……Yes.”
The supervisor whispered.
“Ah, in this company, we call them ‘the Dark’, you see? If you don’t want to get looks from outside like ‘Is that guy a ghost story otaku?’, just call it that.”
“…….”
Then wouldn’t I just be treated as an otaku?
But I kept my mouth shut and just nodded. Because I didn’t want to do something useless like nitpicking my boss’s words on my first day of work.
“Okay. Did you understand the manual completely?”
“Yes.”
I nodded after reading through the ‘Work Manual’ handed to me by the supervisor.
“Hmm. Good, good.”
The two bosses looked at each other, smiled broadly, and turned their heads.
“Then, shall we go to work?”
Pardon?
* * *
14th floor.
The two bosses moved to this floor, taking me along.
“Since the basic familiarity is over, you should experience it now.”
Getting off the elevator, the place we stopped at was in front of a small storage room next to the emergency stairs.
“So. What you will do in the afternoon… is a light Dark exploration.”
Pardon?
“You don’t have to worry too much.”
“You won’t die, you won’t die. Uh, in game terms, it’s like a slime that appears in a beginners’ village!”
“……Yes.”
It was about time to work, indeed.
I was prepared, but my mind was still dizzy.
‘Surely they won’t send me to a place where it’s easy to die on my first shift.’
Because it would be difficult for them to take care of a panicked rookie too, wouldn’t it?
Calming myself as much as possible, I strived to use my brain.
First, to guess the reason for standing in front of this… Ah, is the storage room a place connected to a ghost story?
‘What ghost stories started in a storage room?’
While I was searching the <Records of the Dark Exploration> wiki inside my head, the bosses began to give me various instructions.
First of all, I received an object.
“You saw it in the video earlier, right? It’s the Dreamscape Collector.”
I received a solid plastic sealed cylinder that looked like a syringe with signs of use.
‘They sold this as merchandise too…….’
But receiving the real thing felt oddly strange.
“Make sure not to lose it. It has a serial number engraved on it, so it will become a real headache.”
“Yes, Assistant Manager.”
I understood it as a situation similar to losing a bullet casing.
“And it is good to make wearing the mask a habit before entering the Dark. Don’t ask for the reason. Your mask is also somewhat… um.”
“…….”
“…….”
The bosses blinked their eyes as they saw my mask with bark-like texture and both horns.
“…A deer?”
“A roe deer?”
I don’t know either.
“The horns are cool. It’s a roe deer, right?”
“I don’t know well, but.”
“Let’s go with roe deer. It’s stronger than a deer.”
Is a roe deer?
“Anyway, wear that and look at this.”
Supervisor Park Min-sung held out the tablet PC.
Ah, to brief me with a manual video again to show how it is…….
[Doing this and getting 20 million won VS living normally]
“……??”
It was an internet post.
-Playing tag with a ghost for 3 days in a convenience store with no one else within a 10km radius and getting 20 million won.
VS living normally.
For reference, the ghost looks like this↓
“Ugh!”
Suppressing my goosebumps, I scrolled down quickly to pass the photo, but the residual image had already remained.
It was a blue ghost with a bloated forehead and head, and eyes so large they looked like they were about to pop out.
“What is written there?”
“It is asking if one has any intention of playing tag with a ghost in a convenience store for three days and receiving money…….”
Even while speaking, I didn’t know.
‘Why on earth are they showing this to me?’
It probably wasn’t workplace bullying.
While saying we were going for a ‘Dark exploration’, why an internet post…… Ah.
“…….”
“…….”
I raised the scroll again without looking at the screen.
[Doing this and getting 20 million won VS living normally]
Could this… by any chance.
—–
Records of the Dark Exploration / Ghost Story
[Please Choose]
: A ghost story appearing in <Records of the Dark Exploration>, Daydream Co.’s identification code is Qterw-F-243.
A Dark derived from balance game choices of the type ‘Experience horror and receive money VS live normally’ that was popular on the internet.
It occurs irregularly when accessing a URL containing a specific number.
Mainly, one is chased by a killer or a ghost, and if caught, they start over from the beginning.
—–
This crazy world.
While the surroundings were warping, the supervisor’s voice was heard.
“Do it comfortably, comfortably!”
Is that even possible?
To be sent out on field work alone to win a contract on my first day of assignment, and to have to experience this even inside a ghost story!
However, there was no time to even scream.
With that as the end, I fell into the Dark alone.
“…….”
I stood up, tottering.
‘It’s dark.’
Cool and musty air. My field of vision was extremely dim.
The only thing visible was the flickering of the cold, dim light coming from the beverage refrigerator far away.
“……!”
I had returned to the starting point.
Mainly, one is chased by a killer or a ghost, and if caught, they start over from the beginning.
‘This is crazy.’
They want me to do this for three days?
Just kill me instead, fuck!
‘No, hold on.’
I soon deduced a more chilling circumstance.
‘Since you ultimately return to the starting point if you can’t endure it… in reality, there’s no telling how long it will take.’
Literally an endless retry.
A coward like me might go crazy before then.
‘No.’
Is there another way, another way?
This time, avoiding the beverage refrigerator, I headed toward the checkout counter.
Since there were many large structures or objects to hide my body around the checkout counter, I planned to hide here first to buy time to think.
‘If I completely bend my body and go inside the chair…….’
In that process, I saw it.
Between the counter and the legs of the chair.
The silhouette of the ghost’s lower body.
“…….”
Thud. Thud-thud. Pitter-patter-patter.
Pale bare feet moved with a strange interval and rhythm. A bizarre sense of incongruity unique to non-human entities sounded like a warning alarm, sending unpleasant goosebumps.
Holding my breath, I lay flat under the counter.
Continuously.
Until the ghost passed with its bizarre steps and I reached the limit of keeping quiet, continuously.
‘There are too many clichés where it shoves its face in the moment you let your guard down.’
And a long time later, I released my breath very slowly. Even then, striving with all my might not to make a sound.
“…….”
‘This is driving me crazy.’
Cold sweat fell from my chin.
I couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t even turn on my smartphone because it was obvious the screen light would draw aggro.
The only thing to trust is my memory!
‘Surely, I also read about this ghost story multiple times as if reflecting on it…….’
Since there were many exploration records of F-grade ghost stories where rookies were deployed together, I read them as if looking at past exam questions.
Although I never dreamed I would fall alone from the very first round!
‘Damn it.’
Drenched in cold sweat, I recalled the exploration records.
‘Mountain cabin, basement, pedestrian crossing, fast food restaurant, closed school…….’
None of them.
But surely, surely there was a unique case…….
—–
Records of the Dark Exploration / Ghost Story /
Please Choose
Exploration Record #23 (Irregular)
Chased by a crazy doctor for a night (12 hours) in a closed hospital at night.
※ Special note: The exploration ended after 16 hours and 11 minutes had elapsed.
—–
“……!”
This is it.
I began to squeeze and reconstruct the corresponding content.