It Seems I Must Go to Work Even After Falling into a Horror Story – Chapter 100

Research Team Manager Gwak Je-gang.

He is the Mad Scientist who once pushed his underlings into a horror story at Cheerful Theme Park.

He also played an advisory role during the ‘Mansion of the Blind’ incident, where the employees almost met their doom.

“I’ve really been wanting to have a long chat with Doe, and finally, the opportunity has arrived!”

The crazy horror story researcher beamed with a smile and extended his hand.

“Your exploits have been so impressive that I’ve been dying to hear your thoughts!”

“Thank you.”

Ugh, he’s really the last boss I want to shake hands with.

But I have to. It’s just how work life goes.

“Once the new year begins, Group D will become the elite team, and after that, we’ll be busy working in teams, so it might be tough to have idle chatter like this before diving into the dark….”

Gwak Je-gang bantered as if calling me out was a great ordeal.

“I’m just so curious!”

Then, with a smiling face, he got to the point.

“How exactly did you manage to roast and bake Manager Lee Ja-heon?”

“…!!”

“He shuts right up as soon as I try to call him separately. He’s normally not that proactive, you know~”

I only screamed silently in my mind.

“Thank you, Team Leader…!”

But really, it’s not like I roasted him.

“I could’ve just said I didn’t want to do it.”

After all, Lee Ja-heon is an FM who genuinely tries to reflect the requests of the team.

It’s just that up until now, no one had made such a request!

No matter how sweet the deal, I’m the only one in this horror story company who’d cry out to share the burden instead of going in solo….

Well, if anyone else had, they’d probably already be dead or vanished.

Anyway, it seems this time, Lee Ja-heon found it hard to resist even at his own limits.

Or maybe… such justifications didn’t come up at all.

“Anyway, don’t worry about any resentment just because it was difficult to welcome our Doe.”

Gwak Je-gang smiled brightly.

“Isn’t it amazing how Doe seems to be able to do anything without effort!”

“What do you mean by amazing…?”

“She does her job well, speaks well, manages her reputation… it’s very impressive. But it’s impossible for anyone to be good at everything! Myself included, of course.”

Gwak Je-gang patted himself.

“Everyone has strengths and weaknesses. So….”

His passionate, crazed eyes focused on me.

“What do you think your weakness is?”

“…….”

“I’m really curious how that weakness doesn’t stand out while you’re traipsing through these bizarre paranormal phenomena!”

Oh man, seriously….

“If I could tell you, it wouldn’t be a weakness.”

“Haha, a classic answer!”

Someone save me.

“I didn’t mean to predict you’d call me a coward.”

I swallowed nervously without showing it.

Gwak Je-gang spread his arms wide.

“Anyway, I called you in today for good news!”

“Good news, you say?”

“It’s a cause for celebration! By my calculations… Doe, you’ve already accumulated more than half the points needed for a wish right?”

“…!”

What a ghost of a man.

Yeah.

That statement… is true.

I recalled the accumulated points I had just up till last week.

[Accumulated Points: 177200p]

Even up to this point, it was an astounding figure.

No one would believe that a newbie who had been working for less than a year could have accumulated this kind of point total, so I had never bragged about it.

Even in a department that constantly talked about their departure dates, there’s a limit to how far it can go.

‘If someone stands out this much, it’s natural to think differently.’

But who would’ve known?

This week, my accumulated points would become even more outrageous.

[Accumulated Points: 277200p]

I was reaching a point where someone might suspect manipulations.

‘Thanks to Seokwang Technical High School.’

Just think about the basic points distributed based on ranks.

A Rank: 100000p

Yet, I was the only one who cleared Seokwang Technical High School in A rank.

True, several people had entered and cleared it, but for A rank, I was the only one.

Moreover, I had cleared the potion task alone at a level that could be acknowledged.

Thanks to Director Cheong and Director Ho from the development department genuinely agreeing to approve the payment as it was now, it all got passed just like that.

What a happy yet spooky situation.

‘And the registration completed this morning.’

In that way, Kim Sol-eum officially gathered over half the points needed for a wish.

‘This is absurdly fast, even beyond my expectations….’

Curiously, everything seemed to align perfectly up to this point.

At this rate, if I can just hold out as part of the elite team for just a year, or perhaps even less, I’ll be able to return to my original world.

To a 21st-century Korea where horror stories don’t exist!

All this flashed through my head in an instant, but my expression remained composed… or at least it should’ve.

‘No slip-ups…!’

“If I’ve gathered more than half the points, does that change anything?”

Instead, I deliberately put on a slightly furrowed brow to give an ambiguous reaction.

It should be uncertain whether I was groaning from gathering too many points or upset about not getting enough.

“It’s less about change and more about opportunity, wouldn’t you say?”

Gwak Je-gang smiled brightly.

“Have you heard of the Wish Simulator?”

Simulator?

…Ah!

From that point forward, Qterw-D-718 offers the Wish Simulator to promising employees who seem likely to earn a wish.

‘There was such a horror story category.’

I recalled the somewhat faded wiki.

Simultaneously, Gwak Je-gang’s chatter echoed in my ears.

“This company gives employees that appear to be close to getting a wish a chance to check their wishes, you know? So it can be fulfilled in the ‘right’ way.”

I wondered if that “promising employee” standard was set at 250,000 points….

Maybe it was calculated based on the remaining period until they could receive a wish.

Either way, it seems I had a chance to experience the simulator.

… If entering a horror story can be called an opportunity!

“You could do it next time, but if not now for Sol-eum, waiting in line might cause delays. I thought it’d be good to do it now, so I called you in.”

“…….”

I thought about it.

Gwak Je-gang’s plan for the dark entry?

‘There’s definitely a trap in there.’

But I can’t refuse carelessly.

This guy seems hell-bent on asking for a reason.

“Why would I run away if I’m not a coward? Isn’t that right? Hahaha!”

Yikes.

“Well, I could avoid for other reasons.”

I sighed and stood up.

Let’s wrap this conversation up quickly.

‘If it means I have to go to a horror story anyway, I should at least not give them a freebie.’

“Alright, understood. When do I enter?”

Gwak Je-gang smirked.

“Doe.”

“…….”

“Your attitude has really changed. You’ve shed that newbie persona. Haven’t you?”

Hold on.

“No, I meant that in a good way! You seem more like an employee now; it feels friendly. Enough chit-chat, let’s get to the point~ We’re pretty much like the elite team already.”

Gwak Je-gang laughed, eyes sparkling.

“Then let’s do something that’s befitting the company!”

He then dropped a document on the table.

‘This is….’

It was an employee profile.

I recognized it.

[Employee: Jang Heo-woon]

I looked at a photo of a gloomy-looking colleague with long hair.

“Oh, I know him! We entered Cheerful Theme Park together, right? A friend from the cleanup team.”

“He shouldn’t still be part of the cleanup team.”

“Ah, right. He did get reassigned…but I believe he’s still officially part of the cleanup team.”

“…!”

“It’s just that he’s been dispatched as part of a general team. For it to officially change, wouldn’t it take until next year?”

Gwak Je-gang tapped the document casually.

“So, what I’m saying is… it’s still an acceptable group for such tasks.”

“…….”

Such tasks?

An eerie chill creeped up my spine.

“What do you mean?”

“It’s simple. You’ll go into the dark, and when you finish up with Doe, just call this employee using the leftover elevator and let him be.”

“…!”

That crazy bastard.

No, stay calm. I mustn’t show any signs of distress.

“Um. Is this darkness only able to accommodate two people, or does it require sacrifices?”

“Haha… figuring that out is the essence of our research job! Just follow the orders, Doe. Simple as that, right?”

Thud.

Gwak Je-gang threw another document onto the table.

This was the darkness assigned to me this time.

“From the Elevator Horror Story.”

*

“Then, I look forward to working with you, Doe! The cleanup team newbie will be called in when it’s time to go.”

“…….”

I reread the manual I had already mastered and put it back in my pocket.

How did it go, you ask?

[Heo-woon is scheduled to enter around 5 PM, so please rest until then.]

[Ah, yes! Understood!]

I’m not bringing him in.

And I realized.

‘This would be grounds for disciplinary action.’

Probably… even if I came up with some vague excuse, this would definitely raise eyebrows.

It’s unacceptable for an office worker profiting off others’ hard work to get off with a mere excuse.

But if I don’t completely block this off, it loses its meaning.

‘There’s a high probability that Gwak Je-gang already set something up concerning Jang Heo-woon.’

I have to prevent him from coming from the start.

And since I’m willing to risk disciplinary action, there’s one effect I’m aiming for that I’ll think about after the exploration ends.

What’s important is this.

……I had to ride a haunted elevator alone from now on.

“Ugh.”

Getting some mental preparation time and entering a place filled with ghosts alone for the first time…

‘Maybe I’d have been better off just barging in without knowing.’

My hands trembled in fear.

And I left Brown at my spot.

‘In this horror story, the elevator is a one-person ride after all.’

I didn’t want to leave Brown in front of the elevator. …Who knows what could happen?

I’d asked Manager Lee Ja-heon to check on him once in a while to see if he was doing alright, so it should be fine.

‘…Let’s go.’

I entered the building deemed suitable by the company for Qterw-D-718.

It was a very old rental apartment, and they had already shut off the water supply, but the company was arbitrarily supplying electricity.

The dark interior smelled of cold, musty air that had not been maintained.

The shadowy hallway seemed to stretch endlessly right in front of me.

And the device operating alone.

[5F]

The elevator door on the first floor.

“…….”

I swallowed and walked down the hallway.

With emergency exit signs and dim light flickering, I could see the elevator.

-Under Repair-

We will fix it quickly.

Happy Country Apartment Security Office

Despite the message, a worn-out scrap of paper dangled from yellow duct tape.

This phenomenon primarily occurs in buildings with only one elevator, especially one with frequent minor malfunctions or a sign that says it’s under repair.

Right. This is it.

I hesitantly pressed the elevator button.

The elevator slowly descended.

5, F, 3, 2……

[Ding]

I took a deep breath.

Through the opening elevator doors, I could see the rusty and dark interior.

The floor looked filthy, as if it hadn’t been cleaned properly.

But I stepped forward.

As I took a step into the elevator, I noticed the dirty mirror on both the right and left…

The smudged fingerprints.

‘…Huh.’

———————=

Dark Exploration Records / Horror Story

[Do Not Look in the Mirror]

: The horror story appearing in Dark Exploration Records, with identification code Qterw-D-718 for Daydream Corporation.

One of the ritual-type horror stories that circulated on the internet around the year 200X.

It’s said that if you look into the mirror in the elevator and play rock-paper-scissors with your reflection, if you win, it will tell you the truth to any question.

Depending on the occurrence of paranormal phenomena, it has instructions on how to handle them in a choose-your-own-adventure book style.

———————=

[The door is closing.]

I pressed my back against the only wall without a mirror and watched the closing door with a sense of despair.

My heart felt like it was going to burst from pounding so hard.

Soon, the elevator doors closed completely, and darkness and silence enveloped me.

I stood alone in the still dark interior of the halted elevator…

With the mirror.

“…….”

A seemingly endless few seconds ticked by.

I must endure. If I endure….

[Going Up.]

Ding.

Though I hadn’t pressed a button, the elevator started to move.

…It had called me somewhere.

All the floor buttons lit up in red as if they had been pressed, casting a crimson and eerie light inside the elevator.

Now it was starting.

After getting in the elevator, do not press the button and wait.

If the elevator starts moving on its own, you have successfully entered the horror story.

1. Starting now, you will play rock-paper-scissors with your mirror reflection until you reach the top floor.

If you win even once: to 3.

If you don’t win at all: to 13.