Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work Novel - Chapter 24

I broke out in a cold sweat, staring at the bracelet.

[◎ (Cheerful) Fantasyland Membership ◎]

But the text, which had changed from a ticket to a membership, remained unchanged, and the subtly ornate and luxurious material hadn’t changed either.

Yes, yes…

It’s an unexpected situation, but my task hasn’t changed.

Stamping the bracelet at the gate and leaving.

‘Membership or whatever, I’ll just never come back.’

“Thank you.”

I swallowed hard.

“Um… I also want to go home.”

The blue mascot tilted its head slightly to the side.

I tried to use the bracelet at the gate device.

But the mascot stopped me.

‘Please.’

Why are you doing this?

I wanted to cry.

“I’m not as kind as you think…”

The blue mascot’s claws gently covered my bracelet.

Then a voice echoed.

To those who know honor,

It is valuable.

…!!

“Cough.”

A cough burst from my mouth.

It was blood.

‘Ju-just now… what.’

Could it be… because it changed from a ticket to a membership?

The blue dragon mascot seemed flustered when I coughed up blood, fidgeting before taking something out of its pouch and offering it to me.

[Blue Soda Churros]

It seemed to be a snack sold inside this theme park.

“…Thank you.”

Yeah. I’m definitely not going to eat it.

“But, I want to eat it at home.”

The mascot was firm.

To the extent that it turned off the gate device.

“…!!”

Click. A shutter came down from the north exit, which had gone dark.

I stared blankly at the sight.

They’re going this far?

I couldn’t understand what was going on at all.

But I didn’t do anything foolish like arguing.

‘I might end up like a researcher.’

That was something I wanted to avoid.

For now, for now… it’s not immediately life-threatening here. Let’s look for an alternative.

I retreated from the gate.

The blue mascot continued to watch me run away…

“This is crazy.”

I collapsed in the water park’s locker room.

I’m scared to death.

“What is this?”

To summarize, the mascot suddenly called me a ‘kind child,’ gave me a membership, and then lowered the gate shutter.

In short, I’m trapped here.

“…….”

Trapped.

No, what does ‘kind child’ even mean?

Researchers are bad children, I’m a kind child…

Ah.

‘…Is it because I saved my teammates several times!’

Yes. That’s the most plausible reason.

I did end up saving people several times in emergencies… is this their way of rewarding me by letting me play in the theme park forever?

‘I’m going crazy…’

This is a Class B darkness zone.

Even if the mascot is friendly and seems relatively safe, it means you never know what dangers and bizarre madness might happen when and where.

Furthermore.

‘…There are no exploration records over 24 hours.’

The moment it goes over 24 hours, it means everyone dies or disappears.

If I interpret it kindly, the ticket was a one-day pass, and I’m fine as a member, but the important thing is that I have no information.

‘Damn it.’

I wanted to bite my tongue as I racked my brains.

Maybe due to the fatigue from the past few hours, my thoughts were sluggish…

‘What can I do?’

I can’t win a fight against the mascot.

I can’t sneak in and turn on the gate device.

‘I used all my coins earlier.’

I threw whatever I had on hand in a panic when I saw Jang Heoun, a new recruit from Team Y, fall. I pressed my eyelids.

There are no buttons to communicate with the outside, so I can’t count on Team D’s help.

‘The items I have are…’

Smile stickers? It’s not something to use now that my favorability is already high.

The same goes for the 2x potion and the 0.5x cookie. They only matter if they create synergy.

‘Is there really nothing?’

The more I thought about it, the more I felt like I was sinking.

Just as I was getting depressed.

A light flickered above my head.

[Darkness Exploration Record Real Goods Box]

– New goods usage rights unlocked! (!)

“…!!”

A black notepad, a goods box.

‘Please!’

 

I pressed it without even breathing.

A lifeline? No, anything would have been fine. I just needed a small hint, anything…

Thud.

The goods fell.

‘…!’

I picked up the item, transparently vinyl-wrapped.

It was small and fluffy, fitting in my palm.

A stuffed doll.

———————

Dark Exploration Records / Daydream Co., Ltd.

/ ■■■■■

Kind Friend

Your cute animal doll. It will always be with you and protect you.

Always.

– ‘Cheerful Theme Park Souvenir Shop’

Item description on the packaging

———————

Ah.

I recalled the words on the board game box.

– Team up with your teammates to be the first to ride 3 fantasy attractions and receive a prize!

The team that was the fastest to ride three attractions at ‘Cheerful Theme Park’ could take one item of their choice from the souvenir shop as a prize.

‘Come to think of it, the supervisor mentioned receiving a prize earlier.’

And of course, the Cheerful Theme Park souvenir shop in the urban legend often had strange and mysterious items mixed in.

‘There were even exploration records that specifically listed the items that were taken…’

And this was one of the most famous items among them.

Kind Friend

In the original work, it was a stuffed doll small enough to fit in a young child’s arms, but in its goods form, a small doll reborn as a keychain was in my hand.

‘Was the user of this goods a Cheerful Theme Park visitor.’

It’s just a useless stuffed doll for those who haven’t visited the theme park, but I must have acquired the rights because I used all my ride tickets.

And the ability of this stuffed doll is…

———————

To invite someone from the other world and have a part of their spirit reside in the doll to become a friend; a strange item rarely found in the <Cheerful Theme Park> souvenir shop.

Refer to below for detailed invitation records.

———————

This is it.

“…….”

Normally, I would have meticulously thought it through and created safety measures before attempting it.

‘Inviting someone from the other world,’ isn’t that the perfect description for a chilling urban legend intro?

But I don’t have the time or leisure for that now.

‘Let’s do it.’

I’m in a situation where I desperately need advice from someone who understands the nature of urban legends.

I took out my smartphone, equipped with a Memorial Griptok, and opened the ‘Kind Friend’ tab in <Dark Exploration Records>.

The necessary items are as follows:

———————

• Items for the invitation

Matches (or a lighter)

100ml of water

A spoonful of salt

A coin (clean)

An item related to a friend

———————

And a quiet space.

‘This locker room will do.’

The outside is noisy with the sounds of water and music, so this is probably the best place.

And I think I can get a lighter, water, and salt somewhere in this theme park. I can steal it from a store or ask for it.

The problem is the next two items.

A coin (clean)

An item related to a friend

I’ve used up all my coins.

And an item related to a friend… it’s actually an item added for the fun of the urban legend. If you put a fairy tale book there, a monster based on that fairy tale will come, that sort of thing.

‘What can I use that’s relatively safe?’

No, I felt uneasy about offering something from this theme park as an item related to a friend.

Isn’t this place an urban legend itself?

“…….”

In the end, after much deliberation, I chose two items.

I hope this substitution will work.

And a moment later.

“Whew.”

I placed the torch and salt I had obtained in the far corner of the locker room.

‘That was creepy.’

I got them both from a snack truck. I wondered if they had it when I saw the ‘Marshmallow Roast’ menu, and they did.

‘…They gave it to me for free after seeing my membership card.’

Far from being happy, I felt even more uneasy.

I wiped my mouth and opened my smartphone again.

I had to start soon.

———————

• Invitation Ritual

1. Dab water on a smooth surface with your finger and draw the enclosed hexagram design.
2. Place ‘Kind Friend’ in the center of the hexagram.
3. Place the coin on the belly of the ‘kind friend’.  Your fingers must be dry.
4. Hold a spoonful of salt in your mouth and burn an object related to your friend.
5. When the ‘kind friend’ starts to speak, swallow the salt and politely greet it back!

If the coin disappears, you have succeeded! You have made a reliable friend. Always be together and cherish them!

※If the salt is not swallowed, tastes strange, turns to ash, or causes bleeding, run away.

———————

“Huuu.”

First, I drew a hexagram identical to the image on the marble floor of the locker room.

It was a bit complicated, but not a difficult task.

‘…It’s shining unusually brightly.’

However, the completed hexagram was excessively smooth, its surface gleaming without a single blemish.

After completely wiping the moisture from my fingers on my clothes, I lifted the ‘kind friend’ keychain with trembling hands and placed it in the center square of the hexagram.

‘Why a rabbit doll?’

I felt uneasy, but remembering that I had definitely thought it was cute when I bought it at the pop-up store made me feel a little better.

And the coin….

‘This.’

I placed my item, the silver snake, on top of it.

‘This is definitely a coin… right?’

I thought that it would be safer to use an item from a real-life alien shop than to rely on this urban legend to save me.

Considering the price range, it seemed like a fairly valuable item, so I engaged in some self-deception, thinking it might have a good effect.

And after putting the salt in my mouth, the final step.

‘An object related to a friend.’

This also had to be something that wasn’t part of this urban legend.

That would be… me.

“…….”

I loosened and picked up my necktie.

‘If it’s my item, it definitely isn’t part of this.’

A friend related to a necktie? Whoever it is, it’s better than a kitchen knife.

I turned on the torch.

And held it to the end of the necktie.

Whoosh.

The fire, which caught on incredibly quickly, flickered, casting shadows on the stuffed animal on the hexagram.

The shadow shakes.

Shake.

Shake.

Suddenly, the surroundings are dark.

The only things visible are the light consuming my necktie, the hexagram reflecting the light, and the stuffed animal in the center.

Shake.

Shake.

My muddled mind doesn’t melt.

Instead, the salt in my mouth melts, numbing my tongue.

In the midst of that.

Shake.

Shake.

The mouth of the ‘kind friend’ embracing the coin opened.

– Behold!

– I am the possessor of a million masks, the lord of chaos, the pinnacle of madness, the dream of pleasure and amusement, the instigator of war, the parent of science, the lowly quadruped,

…!!

It’s too much.

My head feels like it’s being shaken violently.

I wanted to cover my ears, but I have no hands free. I’m holding the necktie and the torch!

What is this?

– The desire of the being, the lord of stars, the abyss of fantasy, the mouth of wisdom, the roar of impulse, the far side of the moon…

The stuffed animal in the center of the hexagram is convulsing.

A silvery round object is burning in the center.

‘The silver snake.’

Did I use the wrong coin?

– I…

My head hurts so much, so much….

– Friend.

– Is my friend hurting?

I raised my head.

– No.

A gentle and soft voice flows out through the ‘kind friend’.

– Don’t hurt….

“…….”

The shaking subsides.

The necktie burns completely, and the fire goes out.

The coin that was on top of the convulsing rabbit doll has disappeared.

The moisture used to draw the hexagram is also gone.

“…….”

Silence.

I watched the motionless ‘kind friend’ and swallowed the salt.

But I couldn’t hear anything.

‘No way.’

“Failure…….”

– Mr. Roe Deer?

“…!!”

A cheerful, pleasant voice resounded.

But….

– Mr. Roe Deer?

It’s a familiar voice.

Unknowingly, I opened my mouth.

“…Announcer?”

– Ah, it’s Mr. Roe Deer!

Tuesday Quiz Show.

The voice of the TV show host who had been running the live broadcast in that urban legend was coming from the doll.

– Nice to meet you, my friend!