Chapter 273
Chapter 273
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 273
Chapter Title: Even If I Fall Into a Ghost Story, I Still Have to Go to Work
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In the frozen air.
The voice coming from outside the iron door—the only entrance and exit to this narrow space where the ghost story was isolated.
…….
"Wha…."
I clamped my hand over Baek Saheon's mouth. He reflexively started to struggle, then froze stiff.
Because both the Security Captain and I were staring at the iron door without so much as a twitch.
"……."
"……."
The voice cut off.
The voice of the kindergarten teacher from the■■ Affiliated Kindergarten vanished from outside the iron door as if it had been a lie.
But its identity was already clear enough.
'…Foreman Park Minseong.'
The person who had been stationed at the annex front desk was now away from his post, standing right behind the isolation door on Basement Level 2.
Completely contaminated.
'…….'
A chilling premonition crawled up my skin like static. Through the fragments of flesh whose location I didn't even know, from within the uniform.
'What the hell did Executive Director Cheong do?'
I cautiously took one step toward the isolation iron door….
"…!"
The door lock disengaged.
The iron door opened via the security team's authentication process. I sensed the Security Captain pressing down his hat and stepping forward. Screech. The iron door swung open. And through the gap….
A hand thrust in abruptly.
Wearing a hand puppet.
The puppet shook its arms and head cutely and cheerfully with the kindergarten teacher's finger movements. Brown hair in twin braids, rosy cheeks….
Red cape.
A child wearing a red hood.
From the side.
A strange sound came.
I approached the door to stop the storytelling.
But strangely, my body wouldn't move.
As if under someone's command.
Just like that.
Another arm, sleeves neatly rolled up on a white dress shirt, appeared through the door gap. The deformed wolf hand puppet conversed slyly with Little Red Cape.
The black shape wavered.
The sound of lips smacking.
Could be heard.
"To eat you up."
The black shape engulfed the space.
The sound of the stone altar shattering, tree branches greedily crunched into jaws—everything was swallowed into enormous teeth.
The Security Captain was already gone.
The black silhouette boiled over, bulging with countless eyes and toothy maws bursting from within, covering the floor. Sharp enormous claws rolled eyeballs as they selected prey. It snatched the puppet that had slipped through the door gap, hand and all.■■■■Scream■■■Flesh■■That■■■■■The perfect teacher doesn't scream. Chaos, dust, pain, space-devouring sticky tar-like beast fluids, churning sounds, countless eyeballs.
A massive four-legged beast, grotesquely stitched together, burst out of the narrow isolation room.
A gigantic wolf dripping with sticky fluids, soaked in tar, charred black.
Its maw opened.
On both sides of its head.
Censored explosive sounds reverberated through the space.
Eyeballs rolled.
A massive forepaw with claws bent to snatch the eyepatch-wearing man trying to flee into a narrow corner. A melted head trying to wedge its snout tip through the half-open door into the hallway beyond….
The moment I witnessed that.
My body began to move.
'…!'
I surged forward like shooting black smoke, clamping the beast's massive maw shut. Hard. There were two maws.
Meanwhile, with another tendril, I tried to block the vision of the countless eyes on its claws. Eyeballs tried to poke out from the smoke. I felt the maw drooling inside the smoke. The dizzying sensation that letting go meant ruin—hold it shut somehow until the Security Captain snapped out of it….
Gulp.
……?
Crunch, crunch.
Chewing sounds. Swallowing sounds, like inhaling breath to drink, residue sliding down the throat….
Coming from within the smoke.
One of the wolf's maws
Was devouring my black smoke.
!!
I clamped that maw again. This filthy, worn-out disgusting beast was eating me! How dare this third-rate trash at■■, but the overwhelming sense of violence and appetite….
'Shut up!'
What? What was that disgust just now? What the hell am I saying? I need to get a grip. Again, again…, no! To stop the Security Captain somehow….
Ah.
Read the wiki to erase it.
Yes, that's all there is. This massive, bizarre beast will soon 'chew me up' and slip through the gap to swallow Foreman Park Minseong and Baek Saheon whole. Not much time left. I can't hold out! Before that, to calm it somehow, even bearing the side effects, I have to read….
…….
……!!!
I realized.
'If it's Executive Director Cheong.'
He would've aimed for this too.
'Using my ability…!'
The reason I suddenly couldn't move 'as if under someone's orders,' then abruptly could in this urgent, panicked situation.
'So I'd recklessly use the wiki ability in my haste to act urgently…!'
Then I'd revert to the 130666 state.
Kim Sol-eum's emotions and human judgment stripped away, reduced to an empty state capable only of Special Division employee decisions based on the employment contract.
Then automatically, I'd….
…Be right outside, manipulated again by the very one who orchestrated this into a fine pawn for duty.
A perfect way to drag 130666 out from Executive Director Ho's project in one fell swoop with my own feet.
'No.'
I had to avoid that utter helplessness. But if Foreman Park Minseong or Baek Saheon died like this? Even without that, the security team on this floor would deploy, and the situation was beyond salvaging.
Cornered into a dead end in one move.
'Damn it.'
And moreover….
The final unresolved question.
'How the hell does Executive Director Cheong know my condition…?'
How does he know that suppressing a ghost story entity strips away Kim Sol-eum's identity?
I didn't know. But there was no time.
Chill and urgency tangled in an instant, all thoughts flashing by.
But no other way to suppress it….
"Eup!"
Baek Saheon, quickly retreating to keep distance from the black beast, dropped a Nostalgia Candy.
I picked it up.
The candy piece felt subtly larger than before.
"Wait! Don't use it! It won't work! That's a complete monster!"
I knew.
I remembered when the Nostalgia Kitty around 130666's neck snapped because it couldn't withstand the moment.
But….
That alone was enough.
Just enough time to use another method that worked on me.
'Just a gap!'
I barely tossed the Nostalgia Candy into the maw of the beast chewing me up.
Chomp.
……Gulp.
The Nostalgia Candy, meant to be rolled around in the mouth for a while, melted on the beast's tongue like a slug hit with salt….
But in that instant, it flickered into view.
A human form.
'…!'
But it vanished the next moment.
I pulled out another Nostalgia Candy and tossed it between the beast's enormous teeth.
And this time, matching the flickering human form once more….
Ting.
I took out a spare jade bell and embedded it into that flesh.
The Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau relic that restored reason rang with a clear chime.
For something contaminated as deeply as me, its essence altered.
'Use the same method as on me…!'
I had to restore its reason.
The massive four-legged beast shook its body, opening its two maws, countless pupils, and black teeth dripping tar… then froze as if electrocuted.
I pulled out another bell and embedded it into the wolf's torso. And kept shaking it to make the sound ring. Then the next bell….
"Don't."
It seized my hand.
A human arm with massive claws.
"Any more, and it'll backfire…."
And the wolf phenomenon melted away.
The shape pulling its maw out through the door gap dissolved into sticky black liquid; the charred, stitched beast form wavered….
And the Security Captain appeared.
"……."
Eyeballs in his temples still rolled wildly searching for prey like mad, leaving violent marks as his sharpened claws gouged the iron door.
But at the same time, the Security Captain pulled something from his pocket and stabbed it into his stomach.
Like a sedative.
But not liquid….
'…A stone?'
Gradually, the strength drained from the Security Captain's body.
Shrinking slowly into his familiar, listless, motivationless form, regaining his original demeanor….
But I recalled.
The form revealed by the Nostalgia Candy just now.
'It was different from the Security Captain's current appearance….'
A man in a suit wearing a wolf mask.
I thought I'd seen something like that.
"……."
In the center of the ruined stone altar isolation room.
The Security Captain sank quietly, eyes wide open, frozen.
…Suppression successful.
Thud.
"Huff."
From the side, Baek Saheon's ragged breathing. From the door gap, Foreman Park Minseong's contaminated voice chanting the educational material endlessly, blood pouring from the cross-sections of his severed arms.
Somehow, I forced myself up and approached Foreman Park Minseong….
"What a filthy mess."
The broken iron door fully opened.
The one stepping out beside the huddled Sprout Class■■■ trying to wipe blood.
With the click of dress shoes, that voice resounded….
"What is all this commotion?"
Executive Director Cheong Dalrae.
Eyes whose age couldn't be guessed swept the surroundings, landing on me.
"You know unauthorized intrusions like this that aren't reported to the company are grounds for discipline, right? Damaging a front desk employee who came looking, no less."
…….
"You can't avoid discipline this time. You'll have to leave that absurd project team too, unfortunately. You."
We're screwed.
Ominous dread surged to the top of my head. I tried to back away, but my feet wouldn't move. Executive Director Cheong Dalrae's hand reached out toward my head….
Knock knock.
"…!"
Beyond the open door, the isolation room door opposite.
A polite knock sounded, and impossibly, the door opened.
It was the Fox Counseling Room.
Framed in backlit sunlight pouring in, Executive Director Ho Yuwon stepped out.
"Well, speak of the devil and he shall appear. Has guarding the tiger made you forget your place?"
"Managing Executive Director Cheong Dalrae."
Executive Director Ho approached.
"What could this be? I'm truly baffled."
And stood beside me, gripping my shoulder.
"130666 came on patrol at my request, and it seems he suppressed this sudden unfortunate incident. Who caused such an accident? A front desk employee showed up extremely contaminated out of nowhere."
"……."
"Come to think of it, I hear you prefer methods using security contamination, Executive Director Cheong."
"And you went ahead and transferred a Special Division employee to your project team without permission."
"Completely different cases!"
Executive Director Ho let out a soft, regretful tone.
"As an executive, it's within my authority to pull Daydream Corporation employees for projects. If you tried using a contracted company employee like a personal servant, that might be uncomfortable to hear…."
"Personal use."
I heard Executive Director Cheong laugh.
"Not words for you to say to me, Executive Director Ho."
"……."
"Lately…."
Those eyes glanced at the isolation room door Executive Director Ho had used as a passage.
"I've been hearing reports that the Fox Counseling Room is often empty."
Executive Director Ho's expression didn't change.
"Ah, of course, the Fox Counseling Room has nothing to do with you. But whispers that your actions this year are incomprehensible are starting to circulate…."
"……."
"I'm looking forward to your performance this year. Curious how long I can keep calling you a fellow Development Division director."
Executive Director Cheong's gaze returned to me.
"And how long you'll keep my employee."
If there was saliva, I'd have swallowed it.
"Even trained beasts don't bite their masters, but I didn't expect an employee barely clinging to life via the contract I offered to pull this."
"……."
"Well, I'll help clean up. Since it's for my company too."
Executive Director Cheong reached out and….
Grabbed Foreman Park Minseong's head, lifting it.
The Sprout Class teacher still convulsively reciting the educational material.
"Now, shall we call security and move this to a security training zone."
Wait.
"Looking at how consumed by contamination he is, he can't work for a while and needs retraining, right? Of course, educational services at employee discount, but given the depth…."
Executive Director Cheong glanced at the arms I'd tried to staunch.
"He'll probably rack up quite the debt again…."
"……."
"Makes me think I should offer generous terms here."
I realized from his tone.
Executive Director Cheong knew exactly.
That Foreman Park Minseong had cooperated with me, with Executive Director Ho.
That I cared.
"For this 'unlucky' annex front desk employee, I should prepare a new employment contract specially…."
"Just like the one you received."