Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work Novel (End Part 1) - Chapter 191

So.

I opened the door to the unmanned motel and found Manager Kwak Jekang tied up, with the head of security sitting on him?

And why was Assistant Manager Park Minseong here?

No, it’s good to see him after a long time, but what kind of combination is this…

“Ugh!”

At that moment, Kwak Jekang, who was lying on the floor, struggled again. Wait a minute!

‘No.’

If he turns his head and reveals my face, things will go crazy. I immediately collected myself and tried to close the door and leave.

However, the head of security, seeing my movement, seemed to have realized something before me.

“Ah.”

The head of security hit the head of the person he was restraining.

And so, Manager Kwak Jekang fell unconscious.

“……”

-It’s a mess, my goodness! How chaotic! But there’s a unique charm that comes from the chaos, isn’t there?

Oh, please…

“What on earth is going on?”

“Ah… I secretly followed…”

“…??”

The hurried explanation that followed can be summarized like this:

The head of security said he had collected a few stories likely to be told around the company to find information about the ‘Pleasant Research Institute’ as he had promised me.

And in that process, he explored various places, and today’s destination was…

“I went to the… special area of the research team in the annex…”

“…Wait a minute. Isn’t that an off-limits area for all employees except authorized personnel?”

“Ah… the security team… it’s fine for work. Well… like patrolling the area…”

Ah, I see.

“So you waited until you were assigned that patrol duty?”

“No… I worked instead of another guard…”

“……”

“You… said you needed information…”

‘I feel bad…’

The head of security had a proud expression, leaving me speechless.

Anyway, given how much our paths overlapped, it seemed certain that the security team Baek Saheon mentioned was indeed the head of security.

Wait, come to think of it…

“I heard that you had a fight with Manager Kwak Jekang… Is it related to the current situation?”

“I didn’t fight… that person just kept picking fights…”

“Ah, so you got caught up in a quarrel.”

“No… I ignored him…”

“……”

“He just… bumped into things by himself and fell… Hmm. Anyway.”

The head of security scratched his head and returned to the main point.

Today, while patrolling the research team’s special area, he saw some equipment and documents, and a peculiar situation arose.

“It felt like someone was following me…”

“…!”

At some point, a persistent, observing gaze started following him.

He said he felt a strange malice.

“So I just went outside… but they kept secretly following me…”

He subdued him…!

“Well… there was no one around…”

I nodded, feeling like I wanted to grab my head.

“You didn’t know it was Manager Kwak Jekang.”

“No, I knew…”

“……”

Aaaargh!

“Well… it doesn’t really matter… And I didn’t expect them to call the security team…”

My gaze turned to Assistant Manager Park Minseong.

The assistant manager’s pupils trembled.

“Yes. I got the call…”

“……”

“When I came… it was already… yes.”

And so, this peculiar meeting came to be…

-Ahahaha! My goodness! It’s like a sitcom!

Life is always a comedy when viewed from afar. The problem is that I’m right in the middle of it!

‘This is driving me crazy.’

I barely managed to speak, suppressing the urge to press my temples.

“If we send him back like this, Manager Kwak will report Mr. J… or at any rate, there’s a high probability he’ll exaggerate the situation and cause trouble, isn’t there?”

“…Probably?”

Assistant Manager Park Minseong and I looked at each other, sweating coldly, then looked at the head of security.

The head of security had a face that suggested everything was a bother.

He seemed to be thinking, ‘whatever happens, happens.’

“……”

“……”

No, it’s about your safety…!

“First, then… Assistant Manager, is it right for you to… arrest the head of security?”

“Technically, yes, but… Hmm, if you just send him back as is, I’ll somehow… Hmm, I’ll say Manager Kwak Jekang was here alone.”

Assistant Manager Park Minseong laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.

“He’s known for his eccentric behavior, so I think it’ll work out…”

“It won’t…”

“…!”

The head of security stared intently at Assistant Manager Park Minseong.

“You just became part of the security team… so the prohibition is strongest now…”

Prohibition?

“You haven’t even… officially worked for 100 days yet, have you? It’ll be hard to… lie to the company…”

“……”

“The clock. It’s counting down now, isn’t it…?”

Assistant Manager Park Minseong’s face hardened.

But the next moment, a picturesque smile appeared on his face.

And unconsciously, he brought his hand to his wrist. On the wrist, hidden by the security team uniform, a shape that looked like a watch was reflected.

Yes. A wristwatch.

‘…The prohibition on the security team.’

It comes to mind.

At Daydream, once a rescued employee was sufficiently free from contamination and their humanity restored, they devised immediate usable methods rather than investing further.

The Darkness Exploration Record doesn’t explicitly mention those prohibitions in detail. It was believed that leaving it to the imagination would be more meaningful and chilling.

However, there were hints here and there.

For example…

‘Wristwatch.’

Yes, yes. Company security team members also wear wristwatches. What are they for? I don’t know either. What’s certain is that if they do something… unexpected.

Like trying to leave the company during the day?

Anyway, then a sound was heard. The sound of a ticking clock…

The ‘tick-tock’ sound.

Why was that strange? It seemed like an electronic wristwatch, so why was there a ticking sound? It felt creepy, like a ghost story…

It would get faster and faster, and eventually, an alarm would even ring?

Then they would suddenly disappear.

Not the clock, but the security team employee.

-Excerpt from Interrogation #26 of Prisoner G-56 (Origin: Daydream Inc.) from the Glass Prison

“Assistant Manager.”

“…Ah! Yes.”

Assistant Manager Park Minseong seemed to snap out of it and took his hand away from his wrist.

The atmosphere in the unmanned motel became a little subdued.

But the head of security spoke nonchalantly.

“Hey, don’t worry… Well… it’ll just be a disciplinary action… it’s not like I killed him…”

“…?!”

“Just… go and tell them… But… wait a minute.”

The head of security looked down at the researcher he had tied up and muttered seriously.

“Isn’t it… a bit of a waste…”

…??

“This person… knows a lot… Hmm, since it’s come to this… maybe some information…”

“No. It’s fine.”

It’s suspicious!

And why would he try to increase his own disciplinary action!

‘Let’s quickly resolve this.’

If he didn’t see me, it didn’t matter… Wait a minute.

Even if Kwak Jekang didn’t see me, someone did.

“Assistant Manager Park Minseong.”

“Yes?”

“If it’s difficult for you to lie to the company right now, in the process of testifying about the incident… do you have to say you saw me?”

“…!!”

Assistant Manager Park Minseong’s face turned pale again.

“Probably… if the company demands it. It might be…”

Damn it!

At that point, the problem wouldn’t end with just revealing that I’m alive.

‘…In the process of dealing with that, it’ll definitely reach Director Ho’s ears.’

If they ask why I was meeting the head of security, then even the dream incubation room might be exposed…

“Try to avoid that situation as much as possible…”

“Excuse me…”

The head of security raised his hand.

“Hmm… Actually, I’m not keen on it… and it’s annoying… but…”

And he pointed at Kwak Jekang.

“Should I just… kill him…?”

“!?”

K-kill immunity!

Come to think of it, the security team had kill immunity!

“If I kill him… and the security team reports ‘no one called for’… it’s not a lie… and it’ll just pass. At least… it’ll buy us time…”

“No, you can’t.”

“C-calm down, Chief!”

No, the security team’s kill immunity isn’t for the security personnel!

‘It was made to avoid compensation if a company person dies during the suppression process when a ghost story appears in the company!’

Additionally, it’s closer to, ‘Since there’s kill immunity, don’t interfere with the security team’s work and incur more costs.’

From the beginning, though.

“Kill immunity is the authority for the security team to kill employees who interfere with their work, isn’t it? This isn’t during work hours!”

If they could kill just like that, Kwak Jekang might have already disappeared into a puddle of blood by another security team.

“That’s true… hmm,”

“L-let’s think of another way.”

“Yes! We’ll think hard!”

“Hmm… yes…”

I’m sweating.

‘Th-thankfully, the head of security isn’t very motivated…’

His decisive judgment makes me realize he wasn’t the leader of an elite team for nothing.

…Honestly, even more so because he didn’t just think of killing immunity, but of killing him to destroy the evidence entirely.

I’m just fortunate that he’s not inherently a bad person. I wiped away my cold sweat.

…And this situation was my responsibility.

I was too tempted by the head of security’s offer to find information about the Pleasant Research Institute.

-A moment of choice, friend! Is it an adventure for a clean result without loss, or stability with a slight loss?

-Oh, if you ask this host for advice, I’m ready to whisper it to you.

‘…Are you suggesting we kill him and destroy the evidence as an adventure?’

-Correct answer!

Damn it.

I pressed my brow, then suddenly…

I thought of a method.

‘No.’

-Hmm?

‘There’s another way to destroy evidence…!’

“I’ll handle it.”

I took out an item I had stored in my inventory.

Kids’ Disguise Syrup

(Green Grape Flavor)

★★★★★

A moment later.

“…Hmm?”

Manager Kwak Jekang opened his eyes.

More precisely, that’s the conjecture. Because we had blindfolded him.

“Oh? Did I… get caught in darkness? No. Just blindfolded him, I see.”

The excited tone instantly cooled, becoming indifferent.

But he soon realized why he was in this situation, and his tone changed.

About secretly following the head of security and then being tied up, struck, and knocked unconscious.

“No! Just blindfolding me won’t make me forget what I saw, you know! Hahaha! Oh, my goodness. How do you plan to explain this to the company after doing something like this?”

“……”

“Things have changed a lot since you were Team B’s leader, you know~ Do you still believe the company will treat you specially? Good grief.”

He spoke lightly, with a hint of subtle threats and eerie predictions, in the manner typical of someone who prides themselves on their indispensability, saying things like, ‘Did you really think kill immunity meant you could just kill researchers?’, or ‘I wonder how the company would react if a research manager with as much work as me was found as a warm corpse.’

But soon.

“Or… perhaps the situation is so desperate that this is necessary.”

“……”

“What were you looking for in the annex’s special research lab? Perhaps…”

His voice becomes meaningful.

“Is the darkness you disappeared into still there?”

“……”

“Hey, the entry method has collapsed! Now, even if I’m curious about how unfortunate the employees still trapped there might be…”

It seems he’s talked enough.

I swiftly pulled off the cloth covering his eyes.

Kwak Jekang’s face brightened, and he seemed about to say something else, but.

“…!”

There was no security guard he had imagined, who was once the leader of an elite team.

Instead.

There was me, wearing a security team suit.

“……”

I took out a communicator and tapped it in front of Kwak Jekang, who had frozen at the sight of me.

“…Ahaha, it seems you’re the one who answered the call! This is… hmm, the security team area?”

Silence.

“Wasn’t there a security guard in the spot I was in?”

Silence.

“…You’re taciturn. ……Wait a minute.”

A different light appeared in Kwak Jekang’s eyes.

“It’s a special suit.”

He recognized my attire.

The uniform for the special department of the security team.

“What’s going on? You responded to a mere research team manager’s call? Such grunt work shouldn’t be for a special and rare entity like you! Hahaha… Another purpose,”

And as if recalling his next words, Kwak Jekang’s expression changed.

Yes.

‘Unless there’s another purpose.’

I silently raised my hand and placed something on the office desk in front of his eyes.

[Fun Truth Game!]

[Shall we play a round?]

“…!”

A carrot-shaped plastic recording toy, shouting cheerfully.

It seemed childish and cheap, ill-suited for the atmosphere, but Kwak Jekang’s expression hardened.

‘As expected, he knows.’

One of the most famous interrogation devices of the security team appearing in the Darkness Exploration Record.

———————=

Darkness Exploration Record / Ghost Story

[Everything the Carrot Can Do]

: A ghost story appearing in the Darkness Exploration Record, identification code of Daydream Inc. is Qterw-E-2525.

A party toy that helps with truth games.

It immediately detects if the opponent does not tell the truth, and in return, proposes cruel and unconventional missions.

If the mission is not performed, other game participants can punish the participant.

———————=

Hmm.

Where did I get it?

To be honest, it’s…

‘A fake.’

It’s a counterfeit created by pouring ‘Kids’ Disguise Syrup’ on my smartphone.

Why would it be five stars?

Because it’s not for me to disguise, but an item that disguises what I want.

So it’s versatile because it’s for objects, not people, and it flawlessly mimics the user’s desired appearance and performance.

And even if it’s a fake mimicking the original, it doesn’t matter.

The important thing is that the opponent will believe it’s real.

A slight confusion appeared in Kwak Jekang’s eyes for the first time.

“…What is this? No, there’s no need to do it this way, is there? I…”

Then I’m ready.

Now, I just need to guide the deceived opponent and wrap up the situation.

…Preferably, in a way that benefits us slightly more.

[If everyone is ready, we’ll begin.]

[Now, a question!]

While the carrot was speaking, I subtly shifted my feet to clear Kwak Jekang’s line of sight.

Behind me, the prototype dream incubator of the Pleasant Research Institute appeared.

“…!”

Kwak Jekang’s eyes wavered, but the ‘carrot’ spoke the recorded question.

[What do you know about the machine in front of you?]

And so began the ridiculously efficient clean-up method.