Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work - Chapter 303

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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 303

 

I remember when I first opened my eyes in the subway of Segwang Special City.

 

The relief of awakening in a human body, the confusion, and the bone-chilling terror.

 

Even the wretchedness of dying with a noose around my neck at the end.

 

But at some point, all those sensations became dulled and blunted.

 

‘Since I come back to life anyway.’

 

Like a game.

 

While I considered the things I experienced in this Segwang Special City to be terrible, at the same time, I didn’t walk around feeling the fear of survival like walking on thin ice as I did in the original darkness.

 

Taking euthanasia pills and dying had somehow become like a means of transportation to the outside.

 

That unconscious complacency that even in the worst case, there probably wouldn’t be any casualties.

 

And so I face the result.

 

The investigation personnel trapped in ghost stories with their consciousness remaining in their dead bodies.

 

…Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je and the Bronze Agent.

 

[Oh, even with dead bodies, they’ll probably think and move like when they were alive in this place.]

 

[Even if their entire body rots away and only bones remain, they might be able to move those bones with a rattling sound, or maybe they won’t be able to move as their nerves and muscles rot? Come to think of it, if the brain and bones separate, we could confirm which one retains consciousness!]

 

[Oh friend, it’s heartbreaking but wouldn’t it be an interesting investigation…]

 

“…”

 

No.

 

No.

 

There must be a way. Ending like that is…

 

‘Actually, it’s a common thing in this world.’

 

I froze.

 

People going missing in ghost stories, dying, suffering fates worse than death, and even after death, slowly having their ego collapse while in eternal suffering.

 

Or enduring all of that while remaining sane.

 

All those things that are chilling just to imagine, isn’t that the very meaning of this world’s existence?

 

The thrill of has that meaning.

 

In the ‘investigation records’, anyone can meet terrible endings beyond imagination.

 

Without any context or grand significance.

 

And if this is that ending…

 

‘No.’

 

I gritted my teeth. That’s an investigation record, and this is reality. No, even if it’s an investigation record, I can change it if I add a plausible explanation!

 

‘Something I can do.’

 

Something I can somehow try to do…

 

-Mr. Noru. You are not a studio. You don’t have a place you operate in this isolated location, so how will you ‘release them from here’?

 

I looked up.

 

The single notice attached to the empty space where Delusional Home Shopping was ‘seized’.

 

Rental Inquiry

 

■■■■-■■■-■■■■■

 

“…What if I rent this place?”

 

[Oh!]

 

If I take over this empty space at Ohu Station.

 

“If I operate this place like Delusional Home Shopping, I’ll have a ‘place I operate’ in Segwang Special City. Then I can release those two people from this ‘place I operate’. Right?”

 

[That’s a persuasive deduction. Mr. Noru!]

 

I immediately tried to read the contact information written under the rental inquiry.

 

■■■■-■■■-■■■■■

 

…It’s not reading well. My head was strangely confused, and I felt like I was going to vomit.

 

But my hands were unconsciously pressing the censored number on my smartphone.

 

A censored, unreadable number was displayed on the screen, and I pressed the call button.

 

A strange, monotonous mechanical connection tone could be heard.

 

Tuuuuu-

 

Click.

 

-This is Blood Broadcasting Station if you want space rental press ■ if you want blood debt settlement press ■ if you want broadcast appearance press ■

 

I pressed ■ for space rental.

 

-Confirmed we will send you the cost of the rental space you are located in via text message thank you

 

Click.

 

The call ended and a text message arrived.

 

The smartphone screen strangely flickered with static as words blinked…

 

Rental Space: Commercial

 

(Store and Office)

 

Payment Item: Fresh Blood (Intelligent Being)

 

Security Deposit: 7999L

 

Monthly Payment: 59L

 

“…!”

 

I understood why this station’s name was ‘Blood Broadcasting Station’.

 

‘The cost is… blood.’

 

My back went cold at that abnormality, whether it was malice or distortion.

 

[Hmm, quite decent. You’ll lose a bit in the process of converting gold to blood, but… it’s impressively cheap given the poor location!]

 

Cheap?

 

That?

 

They say a human body has about 4L of blood.

 

Then that would be the amount of completely draining the blood of about 15 people…

 

“…If I use all my remaining survival prize money except for the two day worker contracts… could I buy enough blood for that deposit.”

 

[It would be difficult. You couldn’t even get 20% of it!]

 

“….”

 

[But don’t worry…]

 

[You can just borrow from this Brown again, can’t you.]

 

The one making the kind suggestion warmly places his hand on my shoulder.

 

“….”

 

I raised my head.

 

“…First, I’m going to try inquiring about the rental again.”

 

[Good. How much would you like to borrow, Friend?]

 

“…Rather than that, could you possibly relay my words to them, Brown. You’re more of a business expert than I am.”

 

[My, such an appropriate request is hard to refuse!]

 

“…Thank you.”

 

I wiped the cold sweat from my forehead as I watched the Host’s gloved hand begin making a call on my smartphone in the darkness.

 

…Actually, the first thing that came to mind was pulling money from the resort.

 

‘But that won’t work.’

 

It was impossible to spend the resort’s coins by pouring in even more astronomical amounts.

 

‘That would… negatively affect resort operations.’

 

And as a mascot, I couldn’t do anything that would blatantly cause negative effects.

 

Distributing coins and gifts to some extent fell under the realm of promotion, which I’d been doing without issue, but when it reached the level of a ‘security deposit,’ the story changed.

 

This was just an isolated city subway station with almost no real benefit for theme park promotion.

 

‘Investing that amount of money would be impossible with a mascot’s identity.’

 

And around that time, the emotionless, strange voice I’d heard earlier began coming from the smartphone.

 

[Connected.]

 

“Thank you. Then I’d like you to ask this question.”

 

I swallowed.

 

“…Is it possible to rent only part of the rental space? About 1/10, no, 1/20 of the total area.”

 

[Oho!]

 

Right.

 

‘If I can’t rent it all, even just a part would be fine.’

 

The important thing was having a location, and then I could naturally inherit the contents of the day worker contract…!

 

[They say it’s possible.]

 

I clenched my fist.

 

[They say they’ll provide information about the security deposit and rental costs.]

 

And Brown informed me as follows.

 

Rental Space: Commercial (1-20)

 

(Store and Office)

 

Payment Item: Fresh Blood (Human)

 

Security Deposit: 499L

 

Monthly Payment: 3L

 

[Hmm, it’s become a modest amount.]

 

Perfect.

 

It wasn’t exactly 1/20 of the amount, but this much could definitely be covered by the prize money.

 

[Should I deduct it from your prize money, Friend?]

 

“…Yes. Please handle the security deposit with that.”

 

And at that moment.

 

The rental inquiry notice moved.

 

And a ‘space’ appeared in its place.

 

“…!”

 

The notice that had been right next to the stairs had somehow moved to the opposite wall, and dark red lines appeared inside the glass door where the notice had been attached.

 

A small rectangular space.

 

It was the size I had said I wanted to rent, incomparably smaller than Delusional Home Shopping.

 

And in the corner, a red mailbox had been placed.

 

Instead of the typical letter logo, the mailbox was covered with a dark red inverted cross, drawn as if with fingers like dried blood.

 

And even text.

 

Blood Broadcasting Station

 

Monthly Payment: Unpaid

 

It seemed this was where the rent was to be paid.

 

In that case.

 

[Well then, will you also deduct the rent from your prize money?]

 

“Wait.”

 

I began paying the rent directly.

 

[…Noru?]

 

I pushed my arm into the mailbox opening.

 

And I took out a military knife from the supplies I’d brought and cut that arm.

 

Along with the pain, my blood poured into the mailbox.

 

“…!”

 

But with desperation and tension, even the pain wasn’t that intense.

 

‘This reminds me of what I did in the blood bathtub.’

 

I could hear the sound of liquid dripping from inside my hand that I’d inserted into the opening.

 

[Good heavens, Friend! What are you doing?]

 

“Saving the prize money.”

 

I slowly drank the low-grade healing potion just before I was about to lose consciousness.

 

To recover gradually.

 

And only after the bleeding stopped did I pull my hand out of the container.

 

…About half of it seems to have been paid.

 

“Brown, could you deduct only the amount I haven’t paid yet for rent from the prize money?”

 

With this, I should be able to take more items from Delusional Home Shopping.

 

‘I can’t miss this opportunity.’

 

I had to do everything I could.

 

I couldn’t afford to be complacent anymore.

 

[Oh my goodness…]

 

[The viewers must have been shocked senseless. What a truly shocking thumbnail cut that would make.]

 

I smiled bitterly. I could hear Brown sighing and snapping his fingers.

 

And then…

 

Monthly Payment: Paid

 

As the inverted cross mailbox disappeared along with its mark, lights came on in the small space I had rented.

 

“…!”

 

And at the same time, the giant host’s black silhouette that had been beside me in the darkness had vanished.

 

But his voice remained beside me as ‘Good Friend’ as always, continuing our conversation even in the bright space.

 

Still lamenting what I had just done.

 

[Yes. At any rate, Noru now has a small space to operate.]

 

[But what kind of store will you run? More importantly… who will you entrust to run it? My friend who has many things to do in this area can’t be stuck running a small shop!]

 

[But if you pull that rustic Lodge Keeper away from the resort, your beautiful and modest resort will be left without a manager. In the end, they’ll call for you…]

 

“…”

 

About that, there was exactly one.

 

Method I could think of…

 

I reached my hand into the tattoo.

 

And pulled out the severed corpse I still hadn’t disposed of.

 

Kim Heo-woon.

 

Rustle

 

…The New Employee who had died, cut in half by a Mumyeong Chanran Temple executive in front of the main building elevator.

 

Someone who had grown up in the same facility as Jang Heo-un, then came back to life when Jang Heo-un’s wish was granted by the wish ticket.

 

And.

 

-Just as you took in Jang Heo-un, could you take all of us in too?

 

The person who had begged me to employ him.

 

[Oh, but this is… a corpse, isn’t it? A corpse can’t sign an employment contract!]

 

That’s right.

 

“But this person already expressed his intention to join verbally.”

 

If that’s the case, I could conduct an ‘interview’ to ask if his will remains unchanged.

 

If what I’m creating here is part of ‘Flower Golden Resort’.

 

If it’s that magical space.

 

[Impressive! So… will you start now?]

 

“…”

 

After nodding, I placed my hand on my chest within the ‘space’ I had rented.

 

And summoned the contamination of ‘Flower Golden Resort’.

 

Yellow Mascot.

 

The thick mascot suit enveloped me, and that thick cotton-like softness settled in place.

 

I’m

 

g o i n g t o s t a r t

 

I tapped my chest nicely like a proper mascot.

 

But my hands trembled inside the suit.

 

‘Is this right?’

 

To revive my companions, bringing back someone who died miserably as something from a ghost story to make them move again.

 

Even though I clearly saw that Heo-un hadn’t recovered from contamination since his death, was it really right for me to do this?

 

I thought it might be better to call Heo-un instead, but calling Heo-un would mean completely giving up the possibility of him recovering as a human.

 

Keeping him here would mean stopping the Disaster Management Bureau’s treatment.

 

I felt like I was making an irreversible choice, but there was no other way. Somehow, I had to get the day worker contract today to free those two people from their hellish fate.

 

‘I have to do it, I have to do it…’

 

I had to bear it.

 

And the resort is a good place. I would treat my employees very humanely and well. Very, very…

 

So let’s do it.

 

H e r e

 

I raised my front paws and declared.

 

R e s o r t

 

S o u v e n i r S h o p

 

The small space sparkled.

 

The magic of Cheerful Theme Park began to settle into the place declared as part of the resort.

 

A part of the terrible, delightful, cheerful, beautiful resort.

 

The interior wasn’t set up yet, but the declaration alone was sufficient for now.

 

And I summoned it.

 

The resort employee employment contract.

 

‘…’

 

I looked down at the severed corpse and asked for his intention.

 

W i l l y o u w o r k ?

 

Then the corpse began to mend.

 

The upper and lower body joined together, and a neat belt like that of an interviewee filled the gap between them, engraved with the Cheerful Theme Park logo.

 

Soon color returned to his face, and hair and clothes suitable for a resort job applicant wrapped around his body like tape, magically.

 

And opens his eyes.

 

Hel lo

 

I expect.

 

That this person’s dead self, completely contaminated by Cheerful Theme Park Resort, will react to me like a mass-produced mascot.

 

That way, I would end up operating this space using dead people as employees…

 

“Employee?”

 

…

 

…!!

 

“Employee? This place is… no, where exactly am I? Did you… hire me?”

 

A bewildered face.

 

A gentle expression and tone.

 

And confused gestures and expressions.

 

I realize.

 

This person is in his right mind.

 

Not a contaminated, subordinated mind.

 

“I’m sure my waist was… huh, what?”

 

Kim Heo-woon, who had been feeling around his waist with a pale face as if remembering being cut in half, soon seemed to realize something and looked up with expectation and tension.

 

“Did you… fix me?”

 

Si mi lar

 

“Th-thank you.”

 

And I realized.

 

Even though that person had only seen me in 130666’s form, he recognized me in my Golden Mascot state at once.

 

He’s definitely not in a normal human state. But how does he seem so… rational and like an ordinary person.

 

As if he’s not contaminated…

 

‘…Wait a minute.’

 

It’s like lightning struck in my head.

 

Min-seong Supervisor also had his self recovered as soon as he entered here from an extremely contaminated state.

 

If that’s… not a condition exclusive to living people.

 

‘No way.’

 

No way…

 

‘…’

 

I called out a name.

 

My employee who I can now ‘connect’ to and summon since a resort area has been created here.

 

Deu lso

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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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