Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: Bus Stop 4444 Does Not Exist (2)
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After the ghost story bus came to a stop.
We got off at stop 44.
Thud thud thud—
The moment the girl stepped off the bus, she rushed behind me and buried her face against my back.
The passengers inside the bus stared at us in a daze.
'...Why doesn't anyone have a back to bury their face in?'
The passengers' stares felt burdensome.
Honestly, I desperately wanted to bolt from this spot right then and there.
But the reason I didn't.
Was to avoid creating any unnecessary variables.
We're almost there now.
The goal is right in front of us.
Assuming the information I know holds true, that is.
For some reason, my unintended staring contest with the bus that wouldn't depart and its passengers dragged on.
And just as a drop of sweat from my damp, tense palm fell toward the ground...
Vroom—
With the sound of the ghost story bus's engine starting up.
The bus began to pull away.
Swish swish—
?
The passengers on the bus waved at us with hands stained red with blood.
'Guess that's... their farewell?'
The distance between us and the receding bus grew.
The farther it got, the more the strength drained from the girl's legs, which had barely been holding her up until now.
Plop—
She collapsed limply to the ground.
At the same time, her eyes, now slack, began to well up red again.
The girl on the ground burst into the tears she'd been holding back.
She started sobbing loudly.
Her cries were so intense.
I nearly got swept up in the emotion myself.
If the girl hadn't been here, I might have wailed "Mom!" at the top of my lungs too.
And looking back, it was truly a blessing.
Because it played out exactly.
Like what I knew.
In the case of the "Bus Stop 4444 Does Not Exist" ghost story.
Normally, to get off the bus at each stop, you have to pay with a body part as demanded by that stop to complete the "alighting" process.
But there are specific stops.
Where you can get off without paying any price.
Those stop numbers are as follows.
4.
44.
444.
4444.
When you arrive at a stop with one of those numbers, static filled with ███ plays.
And that static signifies "omission."
Unlike other stops, these are rare save points where you can alight without paying anything.
Excluding these four stops, every other one requires some payment.
And the timing was perfect too.
I boarded the ghost story bus right at stop 39.
A number pretty close to stop 44.
If I'd missed stop 44 after dropping in, I might have had to wait until the next save point at stop 444.
'Guess I got lucky.'
Thinking about it now.
For someone who fell into such a bizarre ghost story at first, I didn't waver mentally much at all.
'...No way.'
Could this be that thing you only hear about.
The "dramatic growth" narrative that happens in extreme situations... or something?
Bzzz—
But at that moment, a vibration from my smartphone made me check it right away.
It was another alert that "Anonymous (115.170)" had posted something new.
📰 /ApocalypseOfGhostStories
Title: Newbie Protector_3
Author: Anonymous (115.170)
Newbie Protector uses various items. Among them, the Smile Badge is Newbie Protector's trademark. The Smile Badge is a good friend that bolsters Newbie Protector's courage. Any rebuttals are wrong; everything I said is correct. +
This has to be... on purpose, right?
A post like this popping up at this exact timing was too suspicious to ignore.
I pulled the Smile Badge from my pocket and stared at it for a long while.
Looking at it again, it kinda looked creepy...
Of course, it was just my imagination.
According to that post I just saw, it seemed like thanks to this "Smile Badge," my mental state didn't shake during the ghost story bus, and I stayed calm to escape safely.
I put the badge I'd been holding back in my pocket.
Sniff—
I turned toward the sound of the sniffles gradually dying down.
"......"
"......?"
??
The girl was staring blankly at me.
It was an unnatural sight, so I cautiously spoke to her.
"Something you want to ask?"
"Th-tha..."
"?"
"Tha-thank you... for sa-saving me..."
I received thanks from the girl.
And following that gratitude, another question came my way.
"B-behind you... a white door..."
"Pardon?"
I turned at the sound of her voice pointing behind me with her finger.
There.
Was a real white door.
Its appearance was awfully familiar.
A sense of familiarity washed over me from the dark corridor inside the door, like I'd seen it once before.
"......"
A chilling sensation swept over me for some reason.
And that feeling.
Grip—
Came with the sensation of something tugging my clothes from the dark corridor.
Bang—!
I was.
Pulled back into that godforsaken space again.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Step—
"......"
Step—
Step—
"........."
Haa—
A deep sigh escaped me on its own.
I hadn't expected to return to this long corridor so soon.
Honestly, the moment I successfully escaped the ghost story bus.
It felt like everything was over.
But...
Haa—
Now.
I was back in that godforsaken space.
The dark corridor.
The place with the white door at its end.
Unlike my first visit, my heart wasn't pounding wildly, nor did I feel much resistance stepping forward.
Wonder if that's the "Smile Badge's" power too.
'Pretty convenient.'
The moment I arrived where the white door stood out most alien in the dark corridor.
I gripped and turned the doorknob without hesitation.
Click—
The white door opened, and before my eyes.
A disgustingly spacious rectangular room greeted me, with yellowed wallpaper and a rotary dial phone smack in the center.
It exuded an alien atmosphere no matter how many times I looked.
Step—
My footsteps headed toward the room's center, and the thing that sensed my approach with ghostly precision.
Ring ring ring~!
Started ringing noisily.
'I get it, I get it.'
I reached out and picked up the receiver right away.
『This call is being recorded, so we actively encourage the use of strong profanity and vulgar language.』
...?
The line changed.
But with just a hint of caution, I spoke first into the voice.
I didn't hold back on expressing myself in ways I normally wouldn't.
"What the hell do you want from me?"
A straightforward question.
And the response hit right at the core of what I wanted to know.
『What a company seeks in ideal talent is nothing grandiose. The kind of employee a company wants is...』
The voice cut off briefly.
And when it resumed, it wasn't through the receiver anymore.
It struck directly into my skull.
『One who does as told without backtalk.』
"!!!"
A booming voice that rattled my skull.
But the next line came back through the receiver.
『If Employee Kim Min-hyuk performs the assigned tasks diligently without issue, the company will not stint on support for such an employee.』
Unbelievable.
That answer was utterly absurd.
It said they'd spare no support if I completed the tasks perfectly.
But to me...
'Do the job right or die' was how it sounded.
『However, since there seems to be a standard phrase that motivates Employee Kim Min-hyuk, it should help with future tasks as well.』
Flutter—
As the AI voice ended, a single sheet of paper fell from the ceiling to the floor.
I snatched it midair.
My eyes quickly scanned the text on it.
⚔ TASK PERFORMANCE REWARD SYSTEM ⚔
Performance accumulates based on task difficulty. Promotion occurs upon sufficient accumulation.
Higher ranks receive higher-quality tasks.
(Employee) - Basic lodging and meals provided.
(Assistant Manager) - Access to convenience facilities.
(Manager) - Expanded usable areas within the company.
(Section Chief) - Assignment to major projects.
(Deputy Manager) - ██ ██ ████
(Department Head) - Meeting with 'executives' and recommended resignation procedure.
*Promotions subject to executive review.
After reading the "reward system" on that single sheet, the two things I wanted to ask were.
First...
"What... is my current rank?"
I voiced something I didn't even need to ask.
『'Employee.'』
I didn't need to hear it, but the truth hurt, so I checked the benefits for the Employee rank.
- Basic lodging and meals provided.
......
Tears blurred my vision.
But at the same time, another phrase caught my eye.
The "recommended resignation" in the Department Head rank benefits.
And that's my second question.
"If I submit a resignation right now, what happens to me?"
『.......』
Silence followed my question for a moment, and when the AI voice flowed again.
The answer was about what I'd expected.
『You will undergo resignation procedures. Note that this differs from the resignation process in the 'typical company' you imagine.』
Yeah, I get the gist.
So...
Resignation = Death.
That's what you're getting at, right?
To survive and return from this ghost story world.
The only way is to complete their tasks and promote to Department Head to get recommended resignation.
For now, that seemed like the best option.
Conversely, until I reach Department Head.
I'm stuck in this ghost story.
In other words.
I'm screwed.
I'll have to go through countless ghost stories, performing life-risking tasks.
But the AI sheep didn't miss delivering one more shocking fact.
『It may be unnecessary meddling, but the effect of the 'Smile Badge' in your possession does not activate here.』
"...Pardon?"
I carefully pulled the Smile Badge from my pocket.
And stared at it blankly for a while.
And it was a great chance to learn just how powerful faith can be for a person.
'Should've just told me outright.'
After facing that harsh truth.
I couldn't move from the spot for a while.
What was I doing just standing there?
Pure, simple fear.
The moment I realized the greatness of the placebo effect.