Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work Novel (End Part 1) - Chapter 196

First, a quite reasonable guess immediately came to mind regarding why Baek Saheon was in this peculiar rural village.

‘…Baek Saheon was on the Tamna-bound train!’

It was the same Mokpo-bound KTX train that I had ridden today.

‘Was this his destination back then too?’

It seemed like he was going home, so then this is Baek Saheon’s… hometown?

A strange feeling arose.

The quaint and friendly rural village festival scene and Baek Saheon somehow felt disconnected.

Even more so if this rural village festival was a cult-like ghost story about a bizarre small society.

“Take this over there!”

“Ah, yes.”

Even now, Baek Saheon, despite his sullen face, obediently complied with another villager’s instructions, carrying rice and helping out.

But…

Observe the villagers carefully, find the person who looks most disgruntled, and ask for a night’s stay!

According to Agent Choi’s comment, could this guy also be considered one of the suitable people?

It was a bit awkward and bizarre, but I could grasp the context of the situation up to that point. But…

Why on earth is that person here?

‘…Assistant Manager Eun Haje.’

I desperately turned my head naturally, careful not to be noticed by Agent Cheongdong, to confirm that figure again.

Assistant Manager Eun Haje was getting more boiled pork and drinking soju with it.

Just like in a company cafeteria.

“……”

Seeing her natural, indifferent expression and movements, I felt strange.

Unconsciously, I leaned my gaze more towards her…

Our eyes met.

‘…!’

At that moment, Assistant Manager Eun Haje slowly picked up her boiled pork plate and soju bottle, then… began to approach this way.

‘……?!’

Why, why is she coming this way?

And she plopped down naturally in front of our table and started talking to Agent Cheongdong!

“I have a lot of boiled pork, would you like a piece?”

“……Who are you?”

“I’m a reporter, I heard about the village festival and came to see if there was a story… I wanted to ask your thoughts for an article.”

‘A-Assistant Manager!’

Assistant Manager Eun Haje feigned ignorance of me with a perfectly straight face, approaching Agent Cheongdong repeatedly like a work-worn reporter.

Agent Cheongdong’s eyes turned cold. Like he was being bothered by some annoying informant.

“I have nothing to say.”

“Then just listen to me ramble. From what I saw yesterday, the foreign visitor lure for this festival…”

Ding-ding-ding-ding-ding-ding!!

“…!!”

My head snapped around at the loud sound of gongs and drums being beaten together.

The music stopped, and a benevolent-looking middle-aged man emerged from among the people who had been performing traditional music, picked up a megaphone, and shouted.

[Everyone! It’s drawing time now! Everyone get a prize and enjoy Jisan’s blessings!]

“Yeah. That seems to be it. The festival commemoration prize draw.”

It seemed that prize draws were held daily during the four-day festival.

Prizes are mainly agricultural products grown in the village, and occasionally handicrafts or precious metals are given out.

In the case of precious metals, the branch speculates they are belongings of missing persons.

The villagers scattered in all directions, carrying drawing boxes. Sounds of people winning something or not winning something could be heard everywhere. I saw someone who won gold cheer and receive a pair of gold earrings.

“Oh, that’s nice. But those earrings look like secondhand goods too.”

“……”

“……”

“Well, someone probably donated them for the festival.”

None of us could answer.

And a person approached our table from the other side, carrying a drawing box.

The sullen person wearing a medical eye patch.

‘B-Baek Saheon.’

This wasn’t some reunion event for Daydream employees. We were suddenly facing a three-way encounter.

The bigger problem was this.

Agent Cheongdong knew Baek Saheon’s face.

“That…!”

Agent Cheongdong’s face, having recognized the face of my ‘colleague’ from the serial killer’s cabin, stiffened coldly.

And as his gaze alternated between me, I shook my head.

“It’s alright.”

“…Yes.”

Agent Cheongdong quickly calmed down.

Because he was confident that my identity wouldn’t be revealed.

Because…

They wouldn’t recognize us anyway.

During the festival period, villagers do not recognize acquaintances who visit from outside.

They are thoroughly treated as grateful guests who came to the festival, and there are several testimonies from people who felt a sense of incongruity here, left, and avoided harm.

-I even interrogated them to see if they were just pretending, but they really seemed not to know? There seems to be some strange restriction. The branch doesn’t have any related information, so when I’m not here, just let it go.

Baek Saheon approached.

His face was still not particularly pleasant, but even when our eyes met, there was no change in his expression.

He simply…

“Pick one.”

…offered the drawing box to our table.

“……”

“They say the prizes are quite good… Oh, thanks.”

Assistant Manager Eun Haje boldly pulled a stick from the drawing box. ‘Rice’ was written on the end of the stick.

“Your turn.”

My eyes met Agent Cheongdong’s.

Do not decline the draw. If you decline, no villager will offer you a place to stay. Remember this if you don’t want to hastily call other agents for a failed rescue!

“Excuse me. Aren’t you going to do it?”

“Ah. I will.”

I reached my hand into the chicken-shaped wooden drawing box. The box was strangely damp and moist.

And what I drew was…

“It’s a blank.”

Phew.

Agent Cheongdong also carefully drew a stick, and this time, a stick marked ‘blank’ came out again.

“Too bad. It would’ve been nice if you’d gotten something.”

Assistant Manager Eun Haje pointed to the middle-aged man in the center of the village holding the megaphone.

“If it was that special prize, it’d be a jackpot.”

[If you win the special prize, treasure will come!]

In the corner of the banner the man pointed to, a golden rooster statue was printed very vividly.

Its size was only estimable, not actual, but even with that detail, it could be guessed to be quite large.

“Jackpot.”

“Looks like about 100 don of gold!”

“Does anyone actually win that?”

As for that…

However, there have been no sightings of anyone winning the special prize yet.

That’s right.

Considering that guests draw more than half of the sticks, it’s certainly statistically odd.

The author suspects this is a type of selection ritual within this supernatural disaster.

(According to branch investigation, a folk tale is passed down that 52 years ago, a winner ended the drought in this village and was enshrined as a god in the village shrine, but its credibility has not been proven.)

And Agent Choi’s words were true.

No special prize came out this time either.

A deep sense of disappointment spread across the face of the villager holding the megaphone.

[Thank you all for today! May you all receive Jisan’s blessings!]

And so, that day’s festival concluded.

“Ugh.”

“Isn’t it a scam?”

“Hey, hey, but the alcohol and meat are free.”

Outsiders stood up, but the problem was that many in their party had drunk too much free alcohol, making driving difficult.

“Oh dear, how did this happen…”

“It’s fine. This person here said they’d let us stay!”

Quite a few outsiders, enticed by the generous hospitality and invitation of the friendly rural village, decided to stay overnight like at a guesthouse.

It was a rather warm scene.

However, if you look closely, the villagers quietly gathered here and there, unnoticed, collecting the remaining drawing boxes and muttering something.

And they, too, took turns drawing sticks from the box.

Once the draw for outsiders is over, the villagers gather and take turns drawing the remaining wooden sticks from the drawing box.

Until they find the ‘special prize’ stick.

At this time, they recite a peculiar phrase.

“Sansanbaekjisambokjusiopgedaerijaya.”

“Sansanbaekjisambokjusiopgedaerijaya.”

-It’s probably a spell or prayer… While it’s not exactly shamanistic, don’t listen too carefully. Incantations from supernatural phenomena rarely have a good effect.

And finally, one person found it.

The stick with gold foil on the end.

“Ah…!”

Tears streamed from the eyes of the one who drew it.

People surrounded him as if congratulating him, shouting:

“Sansanbaekjisambokjusiopgedaerijaya!”

“Sansanbaekjisambokjusiopgedaerijaya!”

At the branch, rumors circulate that the villager who draws the special prize takes on a special role in the next festival.

“……”

I turned my head.

Baek Saheon was watching all of it with sunken eyes.

“Excuse me.”

Baek Saheon only shifted his gaze.

I asked quite politely.

“Is there anywhere in this village where we could stay for a night?”

“……You’re not implying you want to stay for free, consuming someone else’s food and room, are you?”

Assistant Manager Eun Haje, who had picked up a sack of rice, suddenly interjected.

“I’ll pay. Since we’ve met like this, it’s fate.”

“Excuse me?”

“Here. Is this enough?”

And Assistant Manager Eun Haje offered a rather thick wad of cash to Baek Saheon.

Baek Saheon’s eyes were slightly bewildered, but soon his gaze deepened, and he snatched the money.

“…Follow me.”

“Okay.”

“Wait! You said you were a reporter? You should go back now. This is our request…”

“Are you going to kick out someone who paid? Capitalism is dirty, but let’s at least stick to the rules. Old man.”

“……”

I heard Agent Cheongdong softly mutter, ‘Old man?’

Oh my god.

With a feeling that made me want to shut my eyes tightly, I followed Assistant Manager Eun Haje, who was calmly starting to walk with Baek Saheon, and asked.

“…Shall I carry the rice sack?”

“Oh. Young junior, is this your repayment for the accommodation fee? At least this one sticks to the rules.”

I took the rice sack from Assistant Manager Eun Haje, whose hands were still likely inconvenient. Then Agent Cheongdong, with an awkward expression, helped carry it.

“You’re too late.”

“……”

It was the moment Agent Cheongdong looked at Assistant Manager Eun Haje with an incredulous expression.

“Hey! You goddamn country bumpkins! Cucumber? You think I came all the way to this hick village for a cucumber?!”

Thwack!

Loud shouts and a tearing sound came from nearby.

Cucumbers shattered from a box thrown onto the ground, rolling in the dirt.

And a drunken outsider rolled on the ground, whining.

“Give me gold, gold!”

“Oh dear, sir.”

“You still have two more chances!”

Smiling villagers coaxed and appeased him.

…Such gentle kindness, unbelievable considering they had just been verbally abused.

Enticed by offers of dinner, a place to sleep and try again tomorrow, and claims of good hot spring water, the troublesome guest disappeared with the kind villagers into one of the houses.

Into one of the few tiled-roof houses in the village.

The tiled-roof house in the center looked strangely grand.

“……”

I stiffly turned my gaze away.

The smiles disappeared from the faces of the villagers who remained, and they quietly and diligently collected the broken cucumbers into the box, muttering something.

And they continued to mutter something as they brushed the dirt off the cucumbers.

“Sansanbaekjisambokjusiopgedaerijaya…”

The same prayer-like phrase I heard earlier.

“……”

I managed to tear my eyes away and kept walking.

“…This way.”

But do you know what the problem was?

Baek Saheon was also going to that tiled-roof house.

‘Wait.’

It looked suspicious no matter how I saw it, were we really supposed to go in there?

But Agent Cheongdong was walking unhesitatingly, so I didn’t escape.

‘…Agent Choi wouldn’t have written a lie in his tips, would he?’

The tiled-roof house grew closer.

“…Come in.”

The entrance of the tiled-roof house was wide, and the daecheongmaru, which served as a foyer, was also spacious.

However, Baek Saheon carefully and furtively moved to a corner as if he didn’t even want to step on it, and opened a side door.

But there was already a person standing there.

The middle-aged man who had been holding the megaphone earlier.

“The guests are sleeping now.”

“Ah, welcome. Haha! Saheon, treat them well. Don’t do anything foolish.”

“……”

“May Jisan bless you!”

Baek Saheon slowly nodded, then guided us.

The tiled-roof house was strangely spacious, with similar structures repeating and sliding doors appearing continuously until…

A hallway lined with old wooden doors appeared.

Creak.

Baek Saheon opened one of them.

Inside was a small single room with signs of life.

One neatly folded futon and one dusty bedding set, seemingly pulled out in a hurry.

“Sleep here.”

“Isn’t this your room? Where are you going to sleep?”

“……”

With an expression that said I was asking something useless, Baek Saheon spun around and opened another door for Assistant Manager Eun Haje.

And then disappeared down the hallway.

“He’s not worth the money I paid him.”

Assistant Manager Eun Haje shrugged and said casually to me.

“Well then, sleep well. See you tomorrow if I get the chance.”

“…Yes. Thank you.”

I watched Assistant Manager Eun Haje’s retreating back as she entered the next room.

…Surely, Assistant Manager must have recognized Baek Saheon. But she didn’t acknowledge him.

She knew he wouldn’t recognize her.

‘She knows a lot about this ghost story.’

It meant that Assistant Manager also visited with a clear purpose.

And Assistant Manager Eun Haje… is part of Director Ho’s project team.

‘…What’s going on here?’

As I could guess what kind of destruction-level supernatural disaster Director Ho was looking for, various hypotheses came to mind. No, if it were before, I would have certainly done so, but…

“……”

I was tired.

Of all of it.

Let’s stop.

Let’s just think about the wish ticket…

“Agent Podo.”

“……”

“Do you remember what you need to do?”

“Yes.”

This ‘Jisan Village Offering Ritual.’

When a rescue request comes in, the Disaster Management Bureau uses the supernatural phenomenon-answering machine to designate a meeting location and time for the rescuee.

So, let’s go to the location given by the branch.

“This is the place.”

Agent Cheongdong showed me the note.

1 AM Village Wellspring

* * *

The tiled-roof house became dead silent after midnight.

Agent Cheongdong and I quietly left the room and moved.

-After midnight, it’s relatively safe to walk around as long as it’s not the village shrine.

But don’t purposely make loud noises!

“The wellspring is to the east.”

Crossing the dark rural village landscape, where only scattered streetlight glowed, we finally arrived at a place with only a few houses that looked like abandoned ruins.

The wellspring was in the middle of it.

At the well, which was blocked by stones, a figure was already standing there, seemingly on guard…

It was Baek Saheon.

“…!!”

His one eye turned to us, and he spoke calmly.

“Are you agents?”

The next moment.

Agent Cheongdong lunged and subdued Baek Saheon.

-If you’re caught by a villager in the middle of the night, hide as quickly and quietly as possible.

If that’s impossible?

Subdue them and hide them in an abandoned house!

And just as he was about to roughly drag Baek Saheon into the abandoned house.

“Agh! Shouldn’t public officials treat informants better than this?!”

“……!”

Agent Cheongdong stopped his arm.

“You’re the informant?”

“Yes! I was the one who reported it!”

Baek Saheon, failing to shake off Agent Cheongdong’s grip with an irritated expression, quickly lowered his voice, looking anxious.

“Please help me get out of this village. …Right now.”

“It seems like a trap.”

Agent Cheongdong immediately told me openly.

“Villagers can leave whenever the festival ends. There’s no reason they’d need help…”

“I can’t leave!”

Baek Saheon gasped.

And looking back and forth between me and Agent Cheongdong, seeking a way out, he finally swallowed and said.

“…Check my pocket.”

“……”

I reached out and searched Baek Saheon’s pants pocket.

Inside was…

A drawing stick with gold leaf on the end.

The special prize.

“I-I drew that on the first day…”

-Unfortunately, there have been no cases of successfully rescuing villagers from the influence of a supernatural disaster during the festival period yet.

If you’re a junior agent I’ve marked as one of our team, you’d be the type to try a rescue attempt, so I’m telling you in advance.

-Junior. Your seniors will try that, so you don’t do it. If you try to leave Jisan Village with a villager during the festival…

“Get me out of here, please!”

-The agent also goes missing.