Chapter 6
Chapter 6
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Anomalous Tale Gallery Victims Community
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The train smoothly pulled into the Immae Station platform.
The scenery outside the window finally felt real.
The murmur of the crowd, the glow of the billboards, the footsteps heading toward the exit.
Everything was so ordinary that it was hard to believe.
I stood up from my seat.
'Time to go home.'
No matter what.
I had no intention of transferring here and heading back to Gyeonggi Gwangju Station.
I'd died two digits' worth of times to that bastard.
Today, as an unemployed bum, I was splurging big and taking a taxi.
Sera, sitting next to me, also carefully gathered her things.
"This is as far as we go."
She spoke first.
"..Thanks to you, Alpha, I survived. You were a huge help with the investigation too. If I'd been alone... I'd probably have been swallowed by the rules and vanished by now."
Her voice was calm, but it trembled slightly at the end.
"Like the previous investigator. I still can't believe it. That I made it through the mission alive."
I shook my head.
"An investigator would've figured it out eventually on their own. You were just a little quicker."
"You're so humble."
Sera gave a faint smile, but it faded quickly.
"Truth is, it's not completely over yet. The rules we documented today are just a temporary measure... We'll send the info on that anomaly we investigated to the Foundation, and management will begin."
The platform crowd poured out in a rush, interrupting our conversation for a moment.
We quietly moved to a corner of the platform, and then I said to her,
"Well then. Is the investigation over here?"
"Yes. I have to head back to HQ and report. As for Alpha Agent..."
She trailed off and looked at me.
"...Could I see you on the next mission too?"
I averted my gaze for a moment.
I didn't want to get dragged into this hellish anomaly again.
"If fate allows it."
I answered curtly.
Sera nodded.
"Then, until here today."
We turned and walked in different directions.
Then her voice called from behind.
"Alpha Agent!"
I turned around at the sound.
"Your account number!"
"...?"
"The reward for today's work. You said you'd get it when you came. It'll need upper approval, but it should hit by midnight."
Somehow, we'd just had this cool parting conversation.
And now it felt like a marketplace.
Exchanging account numbers here was a bit awkward.
But me, jobless bum.
I had to eat to live.
I'd done all the work today, so even if the real Alpha Agent showed up, they had no right to complain.
"NongX 3XX-XXXX-XXXX-XXX, Kang Do-yoon."
The words slipped out, and our eyes met.
...Ah.
"I heard your name. Kang. Do. Yoon. Next time, I'll just call you casually. That's fine, right? We shared life and death together, after all?"
A little.
My name got exposed because I gave my account number, which was pretty cringe, but I was the stoic Alpha Agent.
I wouldn't blush over something like this.
Sera and I ended up taking the same exit, meeting again at the station entrance below.
After parting ways with her in front of the station, I silently took a taxi home.
Even as I punched in the door code and sat on the bed, my expression didn't change.
An empty space with no one around.
I covered my face with both hands.
"...Fuck. Should I just die?"
It was the most urgent moment yet for an auto save.
***
Ding—
In the midst of a brief self-loathing spiral, my phone notification rang.
[Deposit: 50,000,000 won]
[Depositor: Anomalous Management Corporation]
"......"
I closed my eyes once, opened them, and looked again.
I thought it was a mistake, but it was still there.
'Fifty million won.'
Some might say it's too little for the price of a life.
But as a day's pay of fifty million?
That'd be 1.5 billion a month.
...Of course, that's just talk.
No one calculates it that simply.
More importantly.
"That's a lot."
More than my severance pay.
Alpha Agent.
"...Might be worth it."
Was there anything bad about doing this for me?
My reincarnator perk was probably auto save.
The ability to return to the most recent save point upon death.
So, in truth, I couldn't really die.
As I pondered that for a moment, another alert popped up, lighting the phone screen.
I'd had my phone on silent basic mode since my working days.
[Anomalous Tale Gallery Victims Community (+1253)]
I'd completely forgotten about it.
That gallery that had suddenly popped up during the subway anomaly.
The embarrassing feeling from moments ago vanished.
"Got time to kill... Might as well check it out."
I was originally a community lurker veteran.
I couldn't just pass something like this by.
One post pinned at the top.
[Title: The level of newbs these days.]
-Author: I'm Shallow Here.
[Video - Subject 'Newb120053']
Now you get why everyone wants a used newbie?
But there's a problem.
Ah, it's not a big deal.
It's minor.
That newbie just... does the fucking job too well.
Does assistant manager work.
Does section chief work.
Does department head work.
Not enough? Handles the other department's work too, all of it.
Got it?
Yeah.
I lost my veteran title.. Fuck.
[Cucumber Candy]: ..Probably the assistant manager from there. You're fired.
[Spectator No.1]: That's your entry-level peer position. Getting compared and screwed over..
ㄴ[Kyaru is Truth]: What batch?
ㄴ[Spectator No.1]: Shit...120050.
ㄴ[Not Human]: ㅋㅋㅋㅋ That's the one? Kya— [Video - Subject 'Newb120050'] Shitting and pissing at the same time ㅋㅋ What a talent.
ㄴ[Spectator No.1]: Fuck, I told you not to post it! A person's exploding to death, you think you wouldn't shit yourself?!
ㄴ[Not Human]: ? I'd shit too. Junior-kun.
ㄴ[Spectator No.1]: ...Don't act like you know me.
[Real Tears]: Hey, but for real, is that a newb?
[Happy Storage]: What was I like at first. Trembling hands there, missed one rule...
[ㅋㅋㅋㅋMan]: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Company life gets wrecked.
[Taste of Collapse]: That day, the company collapsed. All employees integrated into one.
I stared blankly at the screen.
The figure in the video looked familiar.
"...No way, is this me?"
Casual clothes.
Didn't look at all like someone out for anomaly suppression.
Of course not.
I'd fallen for the info posted in the gallery and rushed out.
'Fuck... Didn't think it was real.'
Too lazy to click each one, I skimmed roughly.
[Title: My world crumbled today]
-Author: Kidaria Jossi
My routine was to help newbs when they came..
But they're taller than me?
[Title: Roughly this vibe?]
-Author: Serious Junkie
...ㅋ
(Meme)
Anyway, I'd done enough lurking.
Got the overall gallery vibe.
No need to ask around.
I headed straight to the notice board and checked the gallery rules and guidelines first.
[Title: Anomalous Tale Gallery Victims Community ㅡ Rules to Follow and Guidelines]
-Author: Grad Student No.12
You've probably used galleries before, so basics are the same.
But there are special rules unique to Anomalous Tale Gallery.
1. Live broadcast forced upon anomaly contact
-When you get hit by an anomaly, a [Broadcasting] code pops up in the gallery.
-Cannot be stopped forcibly. Broadcasts to the end, even if you die.
-Broadcast records auto-save in the gallery; no editing/deletion.
2. Share anomaly-related info appropriately when needed
-Each anomaly has its own unique rules.
-Note: Anomalies with the same name have same rating/danger level, but if worldline or space differs, the rules for that instance vary slightly.
-Still better than nothing. That info is other victims' lifeline.
3. Prohibited Posts
-Gore ban: Pure corpse/gore pics deleted immediately.
-Foreign news/politics ban: Block anomaly-unrelated articles, political memes.
-Mind-polluting posts ban: Anomaly patterns, meaningless scribbles, foreign news summoning circles, etc. prohibited.
-Bait/crap posts ban: All fake facts/experiences blocked.
4. Respect Others (Do I really have to say this?)
-Don't excessively mock victims broadcasting live.
-Sure, gallery tradition is mockery, but broken mentality misses rules and leads to instant death. Know the line.
5. Donations/Coin Rules
-Donations during broadcast are free.
-Said it a million times, no fees!
6. Accounts & Activity
-Anon/nicknames all allowed. (Batch number unchangeable)
-However, accounts linked to anomaly broadcasts are permanently recorded. Nickname changes won't affect the one in the video.
7. Final Caution
All info is reference only; your judgment decides life or death.
[Recommendations 32521][Disrecommendations 41]
[Comments]
[Dark Merchant]: Finally Anomalous Tale Gallery gets a main notice like other safepunk galleries, fantasy galleries ㅋㅋ
[Cucumber Candy]: No more of those damn Cthulhu summoning circles? Please.
[Real Tears]: Mind-pollution ban = super important. Newb died from bait post before. That's why safepunk gallery and ours still have shit atmosphere.
[Happy Storage]: Notice rec. Historic day. 5121 Anomalous Tale Gallery users.. no 5120.. no 5119.. no..
[Not Human]: Rule 1 is pure hell… Fuck. How many times do I have to watch my death replay! There! Fuck! Info! Nothing! Just shitting and pissing, how many fucking times do I have to see that!!
[Lurker 20 Years]: That one line 'Respect Others' gave me chills. Respect... others?
ㄴ[Wasp]: Aim at others.
[Dog Rec Fairy]: Dog rec stamped.
It was clear.
This wasn't just a simple community.
A gathering of victims trapped in anomalous dark fantasy.
The number next to it, 1253.
Probably the real-time active users right now.
And my code number was 120053.
Meaning over 120,000 people had passed through here before me.
My fingers itched.
Wanted to drop some shitpost.