Chapter 384
Chapter 384
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: 384. Sounds of Movement
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Lying alone in my room, lost in thought.
I'd turned on the air freshener the moment I got home, but that didn't mean I could fully trust it or anything.
It wasn't like this was the first time I'd dealt with something like this.
Waking up in some bizarre place after falling asleep wasn't a one- or two-day occurrence.
With those thoughts racing through my mind, I scanned my surroundings as best I could, but there really wasn't much I could do.
Lock the door, keep the gun by my bedside, and cling to the manual while sleeping—that was about it.
I'd locked the door, placed the gun right next to my head, and was staring at the manual, muttering to myself.
"Hey, if I suddenly get dragged off by someone here, you have to wake me up. Absolutely. Otherwise, I really won't trust you anymore."
Saying that, I kept my eyes fixed on the manual, and only after a little more time passed did it finally open.
[Manual for Office Workers]
[TRS - Trust the manual completely.]
1. The manual never lies or deceives you.
2. No matter what you hear or what any containment object says, the words written in the manual are always more reliable.
3. Don't forget: The manual was created for a reason, and if something is written in it, it's because your predecessors went through the exact same thing.
The manual was making a fervent case for me to trust it.
Fine, let's say I believe you.
"Then I'll trust you and sleep. For real this time?"
With that, I closed my eyes.
Honestly, I couldn't fall asleep right away. No, far from it—out of sheer anxiety, I lay there with my eyes shut for nearly an hour.
-Shrrrrk!
The manual flipped open, revealing a new entry.
[Manual for Office Workers]
[SLP - The Harmful Effects of Sleep Deprivation on the Body]
1. Sleep deprivation is truly bad for your body. Virtually every problem can be traced back to lack of sleep—it's that detrimental.
2. Sleep when you can.
Okay, I get it.
With that thought, I closed the manual, shut my eyes again, and tried my best to drift off.
Even so, I tossed and turned for another hour without actually sleeping.
*
And the next day arrived.
Without a single issue.
"..."
How am I even alive?
Thinking that, I poked and prodded at my body this way and that, and with a thud, the manual fell to the floor.
Did this thing actually protect me or something?
I ran my thumb over the manual's cover, then turned my gaze to the air freshener.
It was still emitting a fresh scent.
Clutching the air freshener tightly, tense as could be, I stepped out into the hallway. Seeing the unchanged scenery, I let out a sigh of relief and got ready for work.
If I'm alive, I have to go to work.
I should check in with the others to make sure they're okay too.
With that in mind, I sent messages to everyone else, and fortunately, replies came back quickly.
[Colleague - Yoo Daon: I'm fine!]
[Colleague - Song Arin: Yeah]
[Colleague - Jang Chaeyeon: All good]
[Colleague - Park Ye-eun: Yep!]
Good.
Thinking that, I headed to work.
"Hello."
"Good morning!"
Two people greeted me with bright smiles, and then...
"..."
"..."
There were Yoo Daon and Song Arin, yawning widely without even trying to hide their exhaustion.
"What kind of thrilling day did you two have?"
Park Ye-eun wasn't some kid who stays up late gaming— what on earth did they do to show up looking this wiped out?
I stared at them in confusion, and Song Arin glared back irritably while Yoo Daon looked at me like a kid caught doing something naughty.
"This is all because of you..."
"Arin..."
"...Fine."
At Yoo Daon's words, Song Arin bit her lip, replied, then went to her seat, crossed her legs, and folded her arms.
What now? What's the problem?
"Let's work."
I spoke up, and until the branch chief came by to check that we were all still alive, we quietly focused on our assigned tasks without saying a word.
"I told you all you'd be fine."
After lunch, the branch chief stopped by the HR office, muttering contentedly as she looked at me and the others.
"How was it? Did you feel anything creepy or bad?"
"Hmm..."
Creepy stuff.
Was there anything creepy?
I closed my eyes, thought back, and slowly shook my head.
"No. Nothing in particular."
"That's what I figured."
The branch chief nodded repeatedly at my answer.
"They probably tried all sorts of things to track down Kim Jaeheon or Yoo Daon from there, but they failed."
"So we just keep living like this?"
It was a hassle, and more mentally draining than I'd expected, adding unnecessary stress.
When I asked, the branch chief slowly shook her head.
"No need to go that far. After some time passes, won't they give up looking?"
"How much time is 'some'?"
"Ten years?"
"..."
Ten years?
My jaw dropped, and the others stared at her in disbelief too. She shrugged.
"You think it's easy to hide from crazy people? No way."
"..."
True, but ten years is way too long.
As I was thinking that, the branch chief hummed thoughtfully.
"You really didn't feel anything at all, right?"
"Yes."
"No sounds... or any presences or anything like that?"
Not for me.
I shook my head slowly, and seeing that, she nodded knowingly.
"Got it. I'll keep that in mind."
With that, she turned to leave.
And nothing happened until quitting time.
"...Is it really okay for things to stay this quiet?"
Apparently, I wasn't the only one feeling uneasy—Song Arin muttered something like a hiss, and the others stared at me intently.
"If it's good, it's good."
Even if it wasn't, there wasn't much I could do right now anyway.
"...Should we just storm in and smash everything?"
"Does that even make sense?"
Jang Chaeyeon muttered, and Song Arin shot back pityingly.
"We don't even know where their base is, and they clearly look like lunatics. Why would we lose our minds and pick a fight?"
"..."
Jang Chaeyeon pouted at the sharp retort, and Yoo Daon looked at me.
"Jaeheon, really nothing happened to you?"
"...Yeah. What about you, Daon?"
Why ask that out of nowhere? You're making me anxious.
I looked at her with all my unease, and she gave a wry smile, shaking her head.
"No, just... um, I can't smell anything, so it's bugging me for no reason."
"..."
"Don't worry. If anything happens, I'll tell you right away."
Yoo Daon nodded, and with that, our day came to an end.
*
Surprisingly, the next few weeks passed without incident.
The air freshener's effect must really be solid...
"..."
"..."
"..."
Yoo Daon and Song Arin were looking more haggard by the day, and Jang Chaeyeon watched them with worried eyes.
Honestly, I wasn't comfortable either.
The constant fear of when we'd be attacked kept me from sleeping properly—I'd wake up in the middle of the night, scanning the room, which was real stress.
Those two must be feeling the same way.
Poor things.
As I watched Song Arin and Yoo Daon, they leaned toward each other and started whispering.
At least their relationship seems better now. That's a relief.
Or is it leaving Jang Chaeyeon out?
Next time, I should bunk Yoo Daon and Jang Chaeyeon together.
As I mentally planned the next sleepover combo, the branch chief appeared before us as if it were routine.
"No issues today either?"
"Yes."
"Got it."
Then she headed back to her office.
She'd come check on our status like this and then return to her duties. Everyone seemed way too accustomed to it now.
Still, doing regular office work without any field deployments was pretty comfortable.
As I was thinking that,
-Ring ring ring!
The phone at the Team Leader's desk started ringing.
An internal line?
The Management Bureau's phones were on internal lines, so only people at the Gangseo Branch would call.
And real calls didn't come often anyway.
The Team Leader seemed to think the same, furrowing one eyebrow as he picked up.
"Yes, HR Team... Yes, yes."
He nodded while listening.
The longer the call went on, the worse his expression got, and soon he hung up.
"Sigh."
"What is it, Team Leader?"
"Just now, Containment Team called. About death benefits."
The Team Leader sighed, scratching the back of his neck.
"They said a massive accident happened during that containment object incident, and a lot of people died."
"...Really?"
"Yeah, Jaeheon. I'll send you the list, so check it carefully."
"Okay."
I sat at my computer and opened the list he'd sent.
"..."
It was the neatly compiled list of the deceased.
"..."
Matching names slowly for insurance payouts.
"...Team Leader."
"Yeah?"
"These people here."
"Yeah."
"They don't exist."
"What?"
The Team Leader's eyebrow twitched, and at the same moment,
-Boom!
Something exploded from downstairs.
Right then, the alarm blared.
-Weee-ooh! Weee-ooh! Weee-ooh!
[The Gangseo Branch is currently under attack. The Gangseo Branch is currently under attack.]
At the same time,
The Team Leader broke out in cold sweat, yelling at the top of his lungs.
"Kids! Something's up!"
-Rumble...
From below, the sounds of things breaking and moving nonstop echoed relentlessly.