Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work - Chapter 262

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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 262

Midnight Station.

The place where the train had announced there was a casino was different from the pristine Segwang Station, starting from the platform itself.

Red and yellow lights.

As soon as I stepped foot on the floor, I could see small lights twinkling like light bulbs clustered densely on the ceiling, hanging down in colorful strings.

Some bulbs were burnt out or broken with severed wires visible, but this only added to the eerie atmosphere.

The feeling of an old, rundown entertainment district.

[Hmm. It seems like maintenance isn’t being done properly.]

However, my attention on the facilities was only momentary.

Because an even more shocking scene was unfolding around us.

The passengers who had gotten off with us.

The moment the long-term missing persons who had poured out through the train doors like a flood stepped onto the Midnight Station platform after leaving the train.

Their true forms were revealed.

“…!!”

Worn and tattered clothes, faded coats, disheveled and dirty hair, and gaunt, emaciated frames.

The appearance of those who had been isolated and abandoned for a long time.

Free from the train’s influence that ‘showed passengers in their original boarding appearance,’ this was certainly the look befitting long-term missing persons.

A chilling shock enveloped our group.

But this level might be a somewhat familiar sight to people who had entered various dangerous ghost stories.

The shocking element was something else. For instance….

Their bodies were fragmented.

“….”

Arms, legs, sometimes hands, eyeballs, noses, ears, hair… various deficiencies were visibly apparent.

It wasn’t just one particular body part, nor was there any pattern to it. Some had reached a state where they couldn’t walk or move properly.

They would try to move normally but keep falling over or crawling, or bumping into the platform screen doors with loud thuds.

Yet they still moved.

Upward.

Up the stairs, trying to reach the waiting room.

‘Exhibition….’

The sight reminded me of the Blind Man’s Mansion, and tension from association appeared on the faces of the former and current Field Investigation Team members who had nearly died there.

But there was also a clear difference from the visitors and victims of that place.

The finish.

“…It’s too smooth.”

Like something extracted from a doll or clay, the connection points of the missing body parts were excessively clean.

Even parts that seemed impossible to cut with human tools were partially missing, and when they moved, you could see empty air being compressed in the silhouette of their clothes.

The eeriness that came from that.

That appearance, which crazily stimulated the uncanny valley, contrasted with the worn and disheveled look characteristic of long-term missing persons, creating an even more chilling scene….

And an ominous feeling.

‘…Why did they end up looking like that?’

Various speculations and keywords about what exactly was happening at this ‘casino’ station flashed through my mind.

All the more so because we were experienced.

“….”

“….”

“Please wait a moment.”

We silently agreed.

As Section Chief Lee Ja-heon, whose gloves had similarly worn out, changed into spare gloves, we stood quietly on the platform and waited.

We waited until the frenzied movement of the long-term missing persons calmed down a bit.

Then we slowly began to move.

Toward the stairs.

And as we stepped forward, we realized.

That faint, upbeat sounds could be heard from above.

Piano, brass instruments, string instruments.

Melody that seemed to incite.

[Ah, it’s a cheap jazz recording. It could be quite romantic at the right time and place, but right now it only reveals the decay of the facility….]

“…Anyone feeling drawn to the music or getting strange feelings? …No one. Okay. Let’s go.”

We slowly headed upward, careful not to collide with the ‘passengers’ who couldn’t climb the stairs properly and were struggling or rolling down.

And finally, the waiting room should have come into view….

“…!”

The front of the stairs was blocked by a wall.

A wall finished with tiles.

And that was all there was—a door attached to that wall and a small unmanned counter.

There were words written on the door….

Royal Casino

Open for Business

Enjoy a Fantastic Experience

“…From the circumstances, it seems all the missing persons went in here.”

The music was coming from beyond that door.

Temptingly.

“If Deputy Manager Dolphin got off at this station, there’s a high probability she’s inside.”

Phew.

Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je massaged her own shoulders.

“Should we knock?”

“If we die doing that….”

“We’d just end the investigation early.”

Knock knock.

The Deputy Manager knocked on the door.

Then from the small unmanned counter next to the door, a small sign with a pen attached popped out with a thunk.

“…!”

We immediately turned our heads to check. It was….

“Unmanned Pawn Shop?”

It was a kind of instruction manual.

※ We exchange body parts for casino coins. ※

Write the parts you wish to exchange on the enclosed form to check the rate.

Then submit the form to the counter.

“…!”

“Fuck.”

That’s how we confirmed the rough mechanism.

“…It’s an organ trafficking casino.”

The wiki page gets updated.

Segwang Subway Line Map

– Segwang Station (Forest Path of Death)

– Midnight Station (Body Casino)

– (Unregistered)

– (Unregistered)

– (Unregistered)

– (Unregistered)

– (Unregistered)

Body Casino.

Midnight Station (Body Casino)

A subway station in Segwang Special City where a gambling establishment named ‘██City Royal Casino’ is located.

Originally a casino in a hotel connected to the subway as a tourist facility for foreigners, it mutated to find new currency value after encountering Segwang Special City’s Day of Disaster.

The casino came to offer new exchange items for users who no longer had valuables to trade.

Over 90% of the people who evacuated to this station on the Day of Disaster are currently dead or wandering around as addicts.

‘Really.’

It’s become conditions worthy of a high-grade ghost story….

And the most dangerous thing is this.

“…We’ll have to sell something to enter.”

However.

“This makes it easy.”

Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je began writing a sentence on the paper attached behind the sign without hesitation.

Left hand

“Citizen!”

“I’m already missing one hand in reality anyway, and I have equipment to replace it immediately, so this is right. Let’s not waste time unnecessarily.”

And surprisingly, rough handwriting as if scribbled began to emerge from the paper.

Left hand 32 coins

Is that the price?

“I can’t tell how much this is worth. How many coins would one game cost?”

Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je, who had been scratching her head, suddenly put the paper into the window without any agreement.

The paper disappeared into the darkness. And just as the sound of coins jingling could be heard from inside the window….

“Ugh.”

Blood began spurting from Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je’s wrist.

“…!”

“Deputy Manager.”

I hurriedly took out hemostasis medicine and brought it to Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je’s mouth. The very one from the Daydream Medical Office.

When Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je swallowed the hemostasis medicine, the bleeding stopped and the area around her wrist was revealed….

Her left hand had disappeared.

And.

Jingle.

A small pouch popped out from the window.

“Are these the coins?”

Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je picked up the pouch and tried to check inside.

At that moment.

I felt gazes.

“….”

The long-term missing persons who had been writhing on the stairs were all looking this way.

More precisely, at the pouch Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je was holding.

“….”

Click.

The door opens. Colorful lights pour out from inside.

“Let’s go in right away.”

Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je hurriedly took coins from the pouch, distributed one or two to each of us randomly, then moved her steps. We immediately took them and followed the Deputy Manager through the door….

Thud.

The door closed in front of us.

“…!”

I reflexively grabbed the door handle, but confirmed it was blocked by some kind of force.

“…It seems only the person who made the transaction can enter.”

Phew.

Fortunately, as the pouch disappeared, the long-term missing persons also turned their gazes away….

“…This means anyone wanting to enter inside must exchange one body part.”

That’s right.

Which part to sacrifice for entry.

[Oh, Friend…, if you want to enjoy games, I could introduce you to a more proper place.]

‘…I’m here for work right now, so I’ll just gratefully accept the sentiment.’

I calmed down Good Friend who was making terrifying sounds and continued pondering.

‘Which part should I cut off.’

Meanwhile, there was someone who had already reached a conclusion.

Right hand ring finger 4 coins

Manager Lee Ja-heon.

“Did you choose the least used finger?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, Citizen, is there a reason you didn’t consider toes as candidates?”

“I considered the risk of balance problems when moving in emergencies.”

“Hmm. You know how to choose properly~.”

Everyone had similar selection criteria. Selling the part that’s least used independently.

What’s surprising is that Baek Sa-heon also made the same choice as Manager Lee Ja-heon after pondering.

I thought he’d stubbornly refuse to enter.

‘Is it because it’s a casino.’

I could feel a desire to acquire something.

‘…Hmm.’

“The appendix only gives 7 coins? These bastards seem to have eaten a lot of people.”

“It would be better to choose something else considering internal bleeding.”

I watched as the agents, after much deliberation, each sold their left hand and right ring finger.

In the end, when you make wise judgments, the decisions converge similarly.

However, I had a gut feeling.

‘…It seems like we’ll be short on coins.’

Since we don’t know what will happen inside, wouldn’t it be better to secure some emergency funds?

“Then we’ll write everything down, submit it, and quickly go inside. Now, have you all understood?”

“Yes.”

“Well, at least you’re answering clearly. Let’s go.”

I watched Manager Lee Ja-heon submit his form first, bandage his glove for hemostasis, then take the pouch from the counter and enter the casino door.

The companions who had already written everything on their forms with pens moved in unison.

“Grape Agent.”

I watched Bronze Agent finally grab the pouch from the counter, then took hold of my form.

And….

I picked up the ballpoint pen again and erased what was written.

Right ring finger 4 coins

“Agent!”

Right eye35 coins

I threw it straight to the counter.

The moment blood spurted from my vision, my right sight itself disappeared.

“Right now…!!”

“I’m, I’m fine.”

Actually, I’m not fine. It hurts too much. It really hurt like hell. It wouldn’t be strange if tears came from my remaining eye.

‘But Deputy Manager sold her bare hand?’

What does she think she is, Xiahou Dun or something? Please!

I snatched the heavy pouch from the counter and rushed through the open door. Bronze Agent almost dragged me inside while supporting me, and simultaneously, the door closed.

Click.

“Are you insane?!”

“Stop it. It’s not like your eye will reattach if you do that.”

Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je quickly intervened and checked my condition.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes.”

I hurriedly drank Baek Il-mong’s emergency room medicine to stop the bleeding, then answered.

The pain gradually subsided. I gave up on the bold attempt to check with my smartphone screen out of fear, and instead examined other people’s severed parts.

‘…There are wounds.’

Why were the cross-sections of the long-term missing persons so eerily smooth?

‘Was it contamination after all?’

I thought I should be careful while looking around.

Bronze Agent looked like he had a lot to say, but when Agent Choi grabbed his shoulder, he pressed his mask and turned his head.

‘Phew.’

“Please return all the coins you received from Peregrine Falcon Deputy to him.”

“Oh, well. Let’s do that.”

Baek Sa-heon looked displeased, but perhaps reading the atmosphere, he returned the coins he had received from Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je.

I also politely offered the cheap metal-coated coins I was holding to Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je.

And I took in the casino interior.

‘Similar atmosphere to the platform.’

This seems to still be the entrance of the casino.

Colorful light bulbs, the casino’s characteristic gambling colors. Black, gold, and red overflow everywhere, and those who have lost body parts sit in corners muttering.

No employees were visible.

However, broken slot machines and still-operating slot machines could be seen here and there.

A strange feeling as if someone had turned on an abandoned and neglected casino.

The sight of long-term missing persons clustered around the still-operating slot machines, inserting coins, evokes an ominous feeling.

“There’s something like a pawn shop over there too. It’s right next to the door we entered… so the inside of that counter is over there.”

“…It seems like a place where body parts exchanged for coins are stored.”

That’s right.

Right next to the door we entered. Beyond the glass blocked with grime and dust, countless stored body parts are visible.

And at the only open counter in that glass partition, I confirmed another use for coins.

Today’s Casino Coin Products

“As expected.”

Items that could be exchanged for coins were listed.

Water 1 coin

■■ Canned food 2 coins

Kitchen knife 4 coins

Pig’s head 7 coins

Left ear 21 coins

Cream cake 53 coins

Gas range 152 coins

Golden cup 256 coins

Bath of Youth 1810 coins

※For other items and premium products, please inquire at the counter.

[I see a nostalgic name. Who would have thought they’d handle it in such a shabby place.]

A familiar item did catch my eye. But more importantly, there was also an important clue written there.

“There’s food.”

Although it was ridiculously overpriced, the important thing was that it could be obtained.

“…Could Dolphin Deputy have expected this when he got off?”

It would have been difficult to guess specifically.

But he probably had some expectations.

“Since many people get off, wouldn’t he have judged that there’s a high probability of something helpful for survival?”

Segwang Special City outside is an extinction-level ghost story.

The subways are all unknown ghost stories too.

If contamination is unavoidable, and danger is unavoidable.

Since we even heard the name casino from the train announcement, choosing a place where we could at least obtain supplies seemed like the best strategy.

‘Nobody getting off would be a real danger signal.’

I guessed that Deputy Lee Seong-hae must have made such a judgment too.

And speaking of which.

“…Citizens, please take a look over there.”

Agent Choi pointed to an old banner above the text listing the coin products.

Royal Casino Limited

Premium Product

Emergency Exit 10000 Coins

That hot topic product that can take you anywhere! A high-quality transportation method for busy■■modern people, a luxury item for the top 0.01%.

“That thing, we could hope it’s an escape method, couldn’t we?”

“…It’s definitely possible.”

Except for the insane fact that we need to collect 10,000 coins when selling one eyeball only gets you 35 coins.

‘Phew.’

I reflexively brought my hand to my empty eye socket, then made eye contact with the Bronze Agent with my remaining eye and said as if making an excuse.

“It’s fine. I chose this considering this is a casino.”

Having only one eye doesn’t significantly interfere with gambling.

‘Depth perception isn’t that important a part in gambling.’

Especially if this place bears the name casino.

‘In casinos, it’s mainly cards and slot machines.’

In this case, missing an ear or hand would be more problematic. Being unable to distinguish the sound of cards being dealt from both sides, or being unable to do tasks requiring both hands would be more fatal.

And also.

‘If Deputy Manager Lee Seong-hae made a similar judgment to mine….’

….

“Found it.”

I finally focused on one item among the countless body parts placed on the pawn shop’s display case.

A black iris with clear pupils, sparkling green.

It was Deputy Manager Lee Seong-hae’s eye.

“…Looks like he made the exact same judgment as Noru. Smart guys are really something different.”

Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je clenched and opened her left hand that had been replaced with equipment.

“If you sell something like a hand, you’ll have problems when gambling. There’s a reason they cut off fingers in gambling movies.”

“…How do you know that, Citizen?”

“Let’s call it rich experience for news gathering. Anyway, it seems certain that Deputy Manager Dolphin got off at this station.”

….

“The question is whether he’s still here.”

And one more thing.

How many body parts has he lost so far.

‘…Let’s search quickly.’

My body moved automatically from anxiety.

“Then let’s split up in pairs of two to search….”

“Hello there.”

….

My body froze.

“This is your first visit to Royal Casino, isn’t it? You were looking at the products, visitors.”

A familiar voice.

“Your party’s exchange amount exceeded 50 coins, so I came out to guide you that you can use games other than slot machines.”

I turned my head.

The dealer of this casino who had come out to greet new clients was standing behind us.

“Please come this way.”

Deputy Manager Lee Seong-hae.

He was looking at us with a face missing one eye.

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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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