Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work Novel - Chapter 90

“Death Alley” rumors say each alley has a theme. Like how similar businesses cluster together in real life to form a commercial district. Of course, they appear unpredictably, and their appearance rate varies. Death Alleys confirmed so far:

1. Street vendors
2. Bookstores
3. Pets
4. Precious metals
5. Everyday goods
6. Lighting
7. Meat

…

And the alley we’ve entered now sells everyday goods. But I’m heading straight for the store that looks the least appealing in this alley. A butcher shop with living organs and flesh hanging. Wiggling.

“Let’s think of it as a…ghost house.”

It’s okay. Nothing is…hanging in its living form. They’re just parts, so, just…think of it as an animatronics attraction in an amusement park…

Wait, amusement park makes me think of Happy Theme Park, which is even scarier?!

“C-calm down.”

I can’t falter.

I pretended to be calm and strode towards the butcher shop.

Raw Meat Butcher Shop

Below the glass window illuminated by red and blue lights, the owner, who had been sharpening a knife on a whetstone, looked up. A blood-soaked apron and a massive build. Looking closer…

A roughly skinned cow is looking at us with its chunk of flesh for a head.

A nod. A gesture. As if to be kind to the customer, to come closer…

“M-Mr. Supervisor, wait!” Kang Yihak blocked my way.

“Ha ha, uh, well. We don’t seem to need anything from that shop, let’s go to another one!”

“But the owner already gestured, it would be rude not to go in.”

– Ah, you’re right. That’s manners!

“No!” Kang Yihak immediately noticed her voice getting louder, and quickly lowered it, speaking urgently.

“It was written that we should absolutely never enter the alley with meat…!”

That’s right. If you find an alley themed around meat in Death Alley, never enter it; stay in the alley you were already in.

If you’ve already entered due to unavoidable circumstances (like a chase with a shopkeeper), block your hearing with earphones and move to the next alley as quickly as possible, completing 1000 steps.

If a companion is held back by an offer of a sample, leave them behind and proceed faster.

Just reading the manual’s entries sends shivers down your spine.

“Right.”

“Ah, you remember? Then…”

“So?”

“…!?”

“I want to go shopping.”

And I walked steadily towards the butcher shop.

“Roe Deer-ssi…!”

I’m sorry, Jang Heoun-ssi! You can run away…!

But I heard the footsteps of the two people following me. Apparently, they both decided to follow me.

Hmm. I thought they’d run away.

‘I guess I wanted to run away more than anyone else…’

But if I stopped here and faltered, I’d be dragged around again by that colleague’s ulterior motives, so I kept going forward.

Finally, the three of us stood before the butcher shop, with its intensely lit display of wriggling parts…

Naturally, I’m at the front.

Ha.

…

The skinned cow looks at me.

‘Ugh.’

I shouldn’t look closely. I unfocused my eyes and looked at the owner’s neck, then quickly averted my gaze to my clothes because the blood vessels were wriggling.

It’s better to look at the blood-soaked clothes.

“Hello. Do you happen to do fresh packaging?”

A nod.

“You have a lot of good cuts. Um… perhaps.”

I pretended to deliberate and pointed with my finger.

“Can I see the front leg?”

Thud.

The skinned cow’s head rose from its place, opening the glass door. From inside, the “front leg” section was pulled out and displayed before my eyes.

…Still wriggling and alive, flesh.

Beast’s foot.

Primate’s hand.

Primate’s hand.

Tentacle?

Beast’s foot.

Primate’s hand…

A hand with a ring on its finger, trembling, begging on the glass floor…

‘Ugh.’

I had to endure. I looked down calmly.

…There was no suitable left hand among them.

‘Too bad.’

I endured all that mental anguish, but I wish there had been at least some reward.

Assistant Manager Eun Haje’s thoughts flitted through my mind, and after a moment’s hesitation, I spoke to the person across from me.

“Something with a sturdier frame would yield better broth… Hmm. Do you perhaps have any eyes?”

Bang!

The owner’s hand was rough, a consequence of my earlier refusal. I could faintly hear my colleagues holding their breath from behind me.

I too take a deep breath, suppressing my fear.

‘Display…’

The front leg was moved aside,

and before me appeared the eyeballs.

Black sclera with purplish irises.

A fist-sized, blue eyeball.

A lens still attached to some flesh.

A white circle trembling without focus…

A pair of dark brown eyes looking at me intently.

‘Ha.’

I closed my eyes, then opened them.

“That one looks good.”

I pointed with my finger.

The first one displayed a black eyeball with a purplish iris shining brightly.

“I’d like to buy it. Oh, no need to slice it.”

……

A skinned cow looked at me intently.

Then it extended its hand.

A very clear gesture—to pay.

Kang Ihak mumbled in a very small voice.

“…Team Leader, should we try to subtly find out what… the payment is…?”

“No.”

I took a box out of my tattoo.

Bang.

A heavy box filled with corn and carrots was placed in front of the store.

“…??”

“…?!”

“I’ll pay with this.”

When attempting a barter transaction at this butcher shop, be sure to use food that the cow can consume.

Yes. The shops on Death Lane street use strange currency, but we basically don’t have that currency.

‘So I have to try bartering.’

However, each shop accepts different items, so I had filled my tattoos with various necessities, precious metals, and snacks…

Including the vegetable box.

Of course, there are also shops that demand something a sane person couldn’t possibly give, but here, this was enough.

“How much would this be worth?”

……

The butcher shop owner reached out to take all the vegetables I had taken out.

The expressions of my companions, who had been shocked by my tattoo inventory performance, brightened.

“Ah, the transaction was successful…”

“Wait a minute. That much?”

“…?!”

I frowned and interjected.

“That’s too expensive. No, no matter how fresh the packaging is, there are limits. It wasn’t easy for me to procure this much fresh produce all the way here…”

“No, Mr. Roe Deer…?!”

My companions turned pale, staring at me as if I were insane, but I continued to speak.

“Did you perhaps raise the price because I chose to buy this… Is it just supply issues these days?”

Nod.

“…You must be having a hard time. Still, I exceeded my planned budget… Sigh.”

I deliberately fell silent.

The owner also fell silent.

The skinned cow’s head seemed to stare blankly at me, then finally went to what looked like a cash register and took out a handful of coins.

Rusty coins with all the numbers and letters printed backward.

The local currency.

‘Ugh!’

Got it…!!

There are shops where bartering doesn’t work, and you absolutely need coins to escape those places!

– Ah, it’s perfectly aligned. The joy of a prepared script!

I smiled and received the coins.

“…This is more than enough change. Thank you. I’ll take this.”

……!

The skinned owner, seeming excited, stood up and packaged my purchase.

The black eyeball, its pupils wildly rotating, was thus sealed in clear liquid and plastic packaging, placed in my hands.

I tried my best not to look too closely at both the coins and the item.

“Tha…nk you.”

In the meantime.

Thud.

Blood splattered on my face from the butcher’s apron, which had moved significantly.

And also on Jang Heoun’s face.

“…!”

Jang Heoun, wearing a bison mask, stiffened and bowed his head.

He seemed to be desperately suppressing nausea…

‘Damn it.’

I interrupted and spoke.

“Ah. That friend seems to be hungry and weak. We should hurry back and get something to eat.”

Please, please!

The skinned cow looked rather intently at Jang Heoun.

Just as Jang Heoun stiffened and was about to break into a sweat…

Thud.

The shop owner dropped something on him.

…The corn I had paid for.

“Tha… thank you…”

Jang Heoun received the corn with trembling hands.

The shop owner stared at him silently, then sat back down in front of the butcher shop’s glass door.

“…Passed.”

We quickly left the “raw meat butcher shop.”

At the same time, I saw Jang Heoun’s face, his hands tightly gripping the corn.

Or rather, what he was wearing on it.

“…Is it because of the mask?”

He seemed to have mistaken Jang Heoun for a bison.

Indeed, Daydream Corporation’s masks seemed to be no ordinary item. Like a dream collector.

“Phew.”

Don’t give up your body!

Remaining steps: 7999

Our footsteps stopped only when the next alley appeared, and I immediately checked on Jang Heoun.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes? Ah, yes… the blood, it wasn’t that much, and it was all processed, so, this much is, well, fine…”

‘It was neatly processed, but wouldn’t it be more bizarre if it were alive…?’

But everyone has different fear points. Let’s be respectful.

Anyway, it was fortunate that he was alright. His complexion wasn’t bad either.

Just as we were about to move again.

“Wh-what was that just now? How did you make that trade…?”

Kang Yihak finally began to question.

Hmm.

‘Let’s go one step further here…!’

I deliberately asked casually.

“What do you mean?”

“What you just bought! The manual clearly said to avoid alleys where meat is visible, but how did you do it so smoothly, as if you were prepared…”

I was prepared!

But I couldn’t say that, so I answered like this.

“It was too obvious.”

“…?”

“Looking at the description of the meat-related shops in the manual, they were restaurants. It seemed like usually eating them caused problems…”

I lifted the bag containing my purchase.

“This is a butcher shop, isn’t it? I figured I could just buy it without eating it.”

“…!”

“And judging by the way it was displayed…”

I turned the bag to show the other person.

The bizarre black eyeballs.

“Since it’s alive, I thought I could use it in a different way.”

“…….”

“For example… organ transplantation.”

“…!”

Right.

The investigators aren’t here to buy food from this raw meat butcher shop.

The investigative staff successfully attached the tongue purchased from the raw meat butcher shop to their mouth. It functions without problems, and performs various movements that humans cannot.

Attaching the ‘part’ from that butcher shop, packaged alive for freshness, to a missing body part makes it function.

It even comes with the abilities the original part possessed.

Of course, approaching that butcher shop blindly without knowing this and trying to buy something is insane!

So I started blabbering.

“In this kind of place, creative deduction based on limited clues is important.”

Yes. No.

‘Imagining things based on limited clues to gain an advantage is a great way to die….’

Everyone knows that this is only done when there’s no way to escape and you have no choice but to do it reluctantly…!

But I had to pretend to be calm and crazy, so there was nothing I could do. Crazy people usually have their own incredible logic.

“I succeeded in that deduction. Is there a problem?”

There will be a lot!

Sure enough, Kang Yihak was staring at me with his mouth agape.

Right, you must be bewildered too…

“Wow!”

Oops, surprise.

“You’re right!”

…?!

Eyes flash from behind the Shetland pony mask.

“No, wow, right. As they say, to earn a high income, one must think differently from others… I’ve been too cautious about risks and such.”

“…….”

“Anyway, life is all or nothing! Hahaha! That’s right!”

Wa-wait a minute.

Something’s wrong here…

“Come on, let’s go. Wow, it’s been a while since I met such an admirable superior!”

“…….”

At that moment, I realized.

‘Silver Heart!’

I still had the Silver Heart in my pocket.

‘I succeeded in persuasion by talking with it!’

The problem is that the situation is still strange.

The Silver Heart is, by setting, a persuasion tool, not a brainwashing tool.

It means that it only works if it has both logical validity and emotional empathy.

‘So, even if I make such absurd and crazy statements, it shouldn’t be persuasive…‘

“From now on, I will faithfully support Supervisor’s activities! Haha.”

“…”

Ah.

Okay.

This person… thinks the crazy logic I spouted is plausible.

‘What kind of person is this?’

Cold sweat ran down my back.

I looked at my normal colleague, grasping at the last straw.

‘Mr. Heoun, at least you…’

“Yes, I will also faithfully support you!”

“…”

Where did this go wrong?

Jang Heoun had a face that said, ‘Wow! I got help again! Thank you!’

Already persuaded.

– Congratulations. You’ve gained the trust of your colleagues, friend!

“…”

Yeah.

But something… something feels wrong.

But for now, I had no choice but to walk on to get out of here…

‘I, I have to escape first.’

Don’t give up your body!

Remaining steps: 6999

Surprisingly, the next alley was also smooth.

The alley after that, too.

“These are lighting stores. If you look towards the windows, you might go blind or get abducted, so let’s pretend to talk to each other and avoid eye contact as we move.”

“Yes!”

Alleys lined with all sorts of bizarre and mysterious shops.

But since I already know the manual, it feels like taking a pop quiz after memorizing the textbook.

However, since even one wrong answer means death, I was still extremely tense…

“Oh! A pharmacy! Should I try buying something there this time? Supervisor, what do you think? Mr. Buffalo is okay with it too, right?”

“Yes! I’m fine!”

“…It doesn’t seem to be of great value, so let’s move on.”

“Ah, you have to spend big where it counts, haha!”

They expect me to boldly buy something again, don’t they…?

And the fact that my colleagues will fully support it is what makes me break out in cold sweat the most.

Meanwhile, I can’t even see a store that might have stocked the chocolate. That’s my reason for being here.

It’s also hard to the death to keep from making eye contact with the shop owners and peek at my surroundings. Ugh…

That’s when.

Don’t give up your body!

Remaining steps: 4999

“Ah, Supervisor. A new alley appeared…”

I stopped and saw a gap between the drugstores.

From inside… a foul odor wafted out.

‘Ugh.’

It was a very narrow back alley.

It seemed less than half the size of the alley with the street vendors… overwhelmingly dark.

“…”

Whoosh.

Worn-out side doors lined the alleyway, eerily stretching on. Only one or two gas lamps flickered faintly…

In that dim light, thick filth, like sewage, flowed out of pipes next to the side doors, appearing and disappearing.

And under the gas lamps, leaning against the wall, were bizarre silhouettes of beings with withered, curved spines.

A quick glance.

Those in dirty, worn uniforms were staring at us.

…To sum it up.

‘Even if you don’t know the urban legends here, this is an alley that makes you want to turn around and run away.’

A chilling dread and eerieness pervaded the alley; it was absolutely not a place where a normal purchase could be made.

“…It’s not in the manual.”

That was right.

At this point, Daydream Corporation hasn’t actually explored this place; it’s an unknown alley unfamiliar to the employees.

…The problem is.

‘I have to go in there…’

Tears welled up.

And somehow… even though it’s such a crazy place, the fact that I won’t have to persuade them to go in… also makes me cry a little…

With a heavy heart, I looked at my colleagues and said,

“Let’s go down that alley.”

And the reaction was this:

“Yes…!”

“It looks like a place that sells stolen goods? Wow, guaranteed high profit!”

“…”

I’ll be the crazy one in this area, please leave me alone!