Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work - Chapter 181

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Even If I Fall Into a Ghost Story, I Still Have to Go to Work Episode 181

….

[Can you hear me?]

I can hear it.

Brown’s voice.

Classic, cheerful, and uniquely accented.

[My heartfelt advice is already prepared, but even the best advice is meaningless when one isn’t ready to listen.]

[In that sense, first, I need to properly introduce Noru’s current situation to Noru herself.]

…Introduce my situation to me?

I held the receiver, gradually falling into a strange immersion where the conversation began to cover all five senses beyond just hearing…

…

[Can you see?]

Ah.

I can see.

[Oh, excellent. Then let me introduce! Noru’s Great Adventure, Resort Edition!]

The curtain rises with classic band sounds and applause.

That’s…

‘That’s me.’

As if rewinding and showing a sitcom, the days from my first entry into this Cheerful Theme Park began to play.

Me waking up in the Resort Facility Room wearing Security Team uniforms.

[Interesting costume! Quite splendid, isn’t it? A beast bound by a belt – typical fear and fascination. But not bad. Not bad at all…]

Ding dong! Ding dong! Ding dong! Ding dong!

The things I had done pass by edited together with cheerful sound effects.

[That’s the moment you became the owner of this resort. Hmm, the mascot’s deformation looks rather childish… but good. This is a theme park after all!]

[Yellow bow ties for all employees? Oh my! It would have been better to just put mascot masks on everyone! Good heavens!]

Laughter.

[My goodness, gift offensives and even free spa facilities? It’s such a radical promotion that all the depressed folks in the world would come running. If only this resort doesn’t go bankrupt first!]

Rapidly edited scenes pass by.

The cheerful commentary describes and evaluates my desperate survival story as if it were an enjoyable and successful resort management tale.

[The dead employee successfully rises and begins working again! This way, Noru has learned one more excellent mascot lesson.]

[‘People cannot be fixed and reused, but employees can be fixed and reused’!]

I felt a strange sensation.

‘…Did I really do that?’

It was an odd feeling.

After all, immersion means being deeply absorbed in something that isn’t what I’m experiencing.

In other words… it presupposes distance.

Thus, the actions of the Yellow Mascot in the flashback are evaluated by me.

[One more! Someone unfit for the resort’s standards is thrown out of the lobby again!]

Over the past few days, from some point on, I had been endlessly adding usage rules and work regulations, transforming into a powerful and eerie resort operator.

A typical Cheerful Theme Park mascot.

That’s… that’s.

[Look at that. Your thorough guest screening process!]

The more successfully the resort operates, the more powerful it becomes.

More expansion, more users, better ratings, and higher sales – I began to judge operational policies based on discomfort rather than safety.

‘Wait a minute.’

A sense of unease creeps up.

And, and… finally it leads to the scene where I changed my ‘body’.

In the flashback, I transfer my consciousness to a Standard Mascot and naturally handle the disturbance in the resort – Lee Seong-hae killing the Ladybug Employee.

…Seeing it this way, it really was a perspective and ability that wasn’t human.

[This is exactly the scene. This is my first piece of advice to Noru.]

[Let’s focus and check it out. However…]

The scene rewinds with the sound of tape.

[This time it’ll be interesting to see from a different perspective.]

My consciousness that departed to the resort’s Standard Mascot.

And what remained… is my body.

The Yellow Mascot standing at the gate to the Blue Zone stands still for a moment, then soon distributes balloons to visitors at the gate and greets them.

Just like the Standard Mascots.

‘…!’

Thank goodness. It stayed right there.

Since it was next to the Blue Zone Gate, it wouldn’t have been harmed or gone missing.

…Though I felt creeped out immediately after realizing that my body could also be treated like a Standard Mascot.

Anyway, tremendous relief washed over me momentarily.

Now I just need to find my body and quickly proceed with the Ceremony Ritual!

Thank go…

[Shh! Let’s appreciate it a little more.]

However, the ‘advice’ wasn’t over.

[Let’s see… now they’re appearing. Oh, what a filthy and rude intruder!]

I feel dizzy.

The flashback progresses rapidly, soon leading to Magic Bunny’s insane gate attack that just occurred.

The missing people, tortured by the Red Mascot until they lost their minds, wail and beg before dying as madmen.

It was a miserable hell.

[A surprise attack! What a thrilling event that heightens the tension. Oh! Your response is also quite interesting!]

Countless missing people who were once ordinary individuals become grotesque figures calling out to the Red Mascot, getting killed like a game, then rising again as Red Mascots.

And the Yellow Mascot in the scene angrily threw the Red Mascot’s corpse back beyond the gate as a threat.

From the black shadow of that mascot whose territory was invaded, strange golden branches bulged out before disappearing…

…

Wait a minute.

Angry?

Not devastated or terrified by that scene, but anger at having territory invaded came first?

Trying to punish the user?

S t r a n g e

It really was like that.

Eeriness crawls up my spine.

In the end, I reach a conclusion about evaluating my actions…

-Completely contaminated.

I have already completely assimilated into this resort as the Yellow Mascot.

Under the pretext of moving for escape, I somehow try to successfully expand the resort.

And I’m being dominated by the resort’s principles of courtesy and dignity that I created for safety.

…The purpose and means are being reversed.

S t r a n g e

I flailed both arms. And I realized.

Why do I still have my right arm?

It was the fifth day since I entered here.

But why is my right arm still moving well?

The Goblin Fire that mimics my right arm needs to be recharged every three days, so why is there no reaction?

My original body that I left near the Blue Zone Gate also didn’t lose its right arm. I, I…

I became able to move my right arm even with just the mascot mask form.

A chilling realization flows down my spine.

‘Just how much have I been eroded by the mascot?’

If this erosion worsened not simply based on how long I’ve been a mascot, but as the resort operated more successfully…

[That’s right. You were excessively faithful to your role as this resort’s mascot. And…]

[It’s already too late.]

[You can no longer quit arbitrarily. You are a member of Cheerful Theme Park.]

My hands trembled.

[You even directly drove out that meddlesome predecessor just now. Now this resort is completely your possession!]

Then.

C a n ‘ t

e s c a p e ?

[Oh, that would seem to be the case, wouldn’t it?]

No way.

[And once the final announcement is made, everyone will know this fact. Your upcoming event, the Illumination of Flower Golden Resort.]

…Mascot Ceremony Ritual.

The Mascot Ceremony Ritual is a ceremony that announces which mascot’s territory Flower Golden Resort belongs to and receives recognition from visitors.

If successfully conducted, that reputation can be used as a stepping stone to expand other facilities.

The Ceremony Ritual is about establishing identity as a mascot.

So the moment that ritual is successfully completed…

-I become officially recognized as a complete mascot.

The complete owner of this resort.

A situation arrives where all identity is dyed, leaving no remnant self that could quit being a mascot and separate…!

‘No way.’

[Hmm. I agree. Spending the rest of your life in such a stale resort, what a boring thing that would be!]

[Noru, you have an obligation to continue experiencing and showing interesting things. This is something you directly promised to Friend…]

F r i e n d

[That’s right. I am your Friend. The purpose you intended to visit this place!]

The kind voice guides.

[You want to leave this place, don’t you, Noru?]

That’s right.

[Then you’d better continue listening to my advice. Just taking the handset is fine. Friend. Come, quickly unplug the cord and take it. That’s right…]

I unplugged the handset cord with trembling front paws and picked it up.

The voice still comes from the disconnected handset.

[Good… Very good!]

[Then now I’ll give you my final advice… Don’t be surprised. It’s a magical solution that can get you out of this predicament! It’s…]

The voice lowers to a whisper.

[We’ll switch places between one of the employees and the mascot.]

…!

[There’s no need to create a new mascot! Just make him imitate you.]

[If you make him perform the ritual in your place, everyone will eventually mistake him for you. After all, when everyone believes something, it becomes reality. Oh, how entertaining this will be!]

[Someone might feel a bit sorry for that fate… but you can just choose one of those who exist for your sake anyway!]

[I’m talking about those two employees who swore to serve you eternally until their contract ends, who now have nowhere else to return to.]

Bison.

Ladybug.

Those who died and were brought back to life.

[That’s right. The chosen one will faithfully continue your mascot duties… well, until they’re eaten alive by the Red Mascot.]

[Let’s choose one of the two to perform the mascot ceremony ritual in place of Noru!]

….

[Very easy, isn’t it? If I dare to guess, this is practically already decided…]

The voice rises in pitch.

[The one your heart points to, if you say that name…?]

….

[Noru?]

No way

[Hmm?]

I lifted my trembling body and grabbed the facility office door.

Time remaining until closing… 45 minutes.

The ceremony

I’ll

do it

[…Oh. Surely you don’t mean you’ll spend the rest of your life in this musty old theme park, friend? You who ruthlessly rejected even more suitable workplaces where you could demonstrate your talents, more wonderful jobs…]

No

[Then do you have another alternative? How surprising! It must be quite an amazing method to reject Brown’s advice?]

I walked out of the facility office with determination.

And declared into the receiver.

My plan.

The resort

I’ll blow it up

[…?!]

A moment of silence flowed from the other end of the receiver, as if bewildered.

Of course, the Legendary Host quickly poured out smooth words.

[Good heavens. Noru, destroying this resort won’t free you from your mascot duties! My word, you’ll have to bear enormous costs instead.]

[Where on earth did that radical and useless choice come from?]

It’s useful

Meanwhile.

Using my body standing by the Blue Zone Gate, I finished my conversation with the Blue Mascot.

It’ll be fun

friend

[…Oh my.]

Good.

I took a deep breath.

…Let’s do this.

At the same time.

The Night Garden of Flower Golden Resort.

‘Ah, they’re still there…!’

The Magic Bunnies continue to stare.

The cute Rabbit Mascots gaze motionlessly at Flower Golden Resort’s garden, at the employees within it.

“….”

Dozens of mascot suits silently staring at me.

It’s an alien and eerie experience.

Even more so if you saw those mascot suits tearing out human entrails while laughing just dozens of minutes ago.

Several employees were breaking out in cold sweat. However, this wasn’t entirely due to that eerie staring.

“Why, why isn’t he coming??”

The absence of the Yellow Mascot!

They had all received direct orders from the mascot to ‘take care of the guests,’ so they couldn’t leave their posts.

But their employer who had rushed to the resort dragging the Magic Bunny mascot suits still hadn’t come.

10 minutes, 20 minutes flow by like an hour…

“Wait, you do know how much time is left, right?”

“40 minutes.”

“….”

“40 minutes remain until closing.”

Yes…

The Disaster Management Bureau Agent hesitantly hid behind the Team Manager, avoiding the Daydream Employee wearing the lizard mask.

The Team Manager held back a sigh.

‘…Should I be preparing for the worst-case scenario.’

She gripped the signature sword in her arms tightly.

And it seemed she wasn’t the only one preparing for battle.

A few of the Daydream Corporation employees were making movements as if loosening up their bodies.

Lizard. Dolphin.

‘…They seem like capable ones.’

An elite team perhaps.

As she was scanning their masks with sharp eyes to see if they had golden marks, it happened.

The one wearing the dolphin mask clapped and waved their hand.

“You’re here!”

“…!”

It was true.

Over there, a yellow costume suit was waddling and running over enthusiastically from the resort.

A mascot with horns decorated with glass golden flowers.

At that moment, goosebumps ran down the Team Manager’s spine.

‘…Has it become stronger?’

It somehow felt like a more powerful existence.

Something like dominance seemed to touch her skin…

But there was no difference in appearance.

‘What is this?’

Did it devour something?

But regardless of that suspicion, the Yellow Mascot’s rather gentle attitude wasn’t comfortable.

It looked around at each employee as if taking care of them, and after confirming everyone was safe, it gathered and called over all the other mascots in a rush.

N o w

S t a r t

The Team Manager raised her hand.

“Wait a minute.”

“…!!”

“T-Team Manager!”

“That thing comes after the event ends and the amusement park closes, right? Do you have any countermeasures?”

The Yellow Mascot looked back at the Team Manager and extended its hand.

I t ‘ s O k a y

And pointed.

Y o u

G o T h e r e

“…?!”

And so, 30 minutes before closing time.

The delayed spectacular illumination event began.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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