Chapter 1
Chapter 1
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 00
Chapter Title: Apocalypse of Ghost Stories
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Prologue
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
A record of the information secretly shared.
It was just one of the many spaces where countless ghost story galleries gathered.
A place where people shared ghost stories born from their hidden desires and filled in each other's missing details.
A space where even the most inhumane posts were brushed off with a "whatever."
I liked that 'space.'
There was a dopamine rush you could only feel there.
Ghost stories woven from captivating setups.
Ghost stories spun purely from tantalizing themes.
Even disaster-level ones built on utterly absurd, fraudulent premises.
And occasionally...
You'd see posts so vivid they felt like real firsthand accounts.
But no matter how lifelike the writing...
Most people just laughed it off.
Because it was nothing but a setup game.
Just a setup made for fun.
Only...
For entertainment.
Just a written piece...
That's what I thought.
⚔ STATUS ⚔
[Admin Grade: Tyui-C-1004] Heaven's Gate [Admin Grade: Tyui-D-27] Shy Rabbit [Admin Grade: Tyui-E-666] Hell's Prophecy [Admin Grade: Tyui-B-20000] Sin and Death [Admin Grade: Tyui-A-58_1] Knight of Justice
[Observation and entry into these ghost stories confirmed impossible up to now.]
"These are the identification codes of the entities confirmed eliminated so far."
"...The characteristics of these vanished ghost stories..."
The employee in a black suit, tablet in hand, swallowed dryly in front of his boss.
"Common to all were witness statements of spotting a young man, and descriptions from survivors who made it out alive matching the man's appearance..."
Disheveled black hair.
Dead eyes and dark circles.
They said he wore the same black suit as them, with a 'badge' pinned to the collar of his overcoat, smiling all the while.
"And whenever an entity was dealt with, they said he smiled brighter than any child."
"...That guy again, huh."
"...Department Head."
The employee clutching the tablet pried his lips apart with effort and asked.
"I've been wondering for a while now."
"What is it?"
"You seemed to know that man I just described. Is he one of ours from the agency?"
"...That guy was a truly capable employee."
"Not anymore?"
"He's missing."
"...Pardon?"
"Honestly, I'd given up hope, but just hearing about him like this puts my mind at ease."
A gentle smile crept through the Department Head's wrinkled face.
"If he's that exceptional, shouldn't we send the A-Zone field team right now...?"
"No need."
"But."
"We'd only get in his way."
The Department Head spoke around his pipe, exhaling white smoke.
"That guy's a 'Veteran' in this line of work."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Achoo-!
Again.
Someone's definitely trash-talking me somewhere.
I wiped my lips with the back of my hand, deducing the meaning of that sneeze.
The start of yet another tiresome misunderstanding.
"So... who the heck is this guy anyway?"
People seem to have me mistaken for someone else.