It Seems I Must Go to Work Even After Falling into a Horror Story 076

Baek Sa-heon was rarely doubting his one remaining eye.

Am I dreaming right now?

Well, I am dreaming, in a way. A nightmare inside a horror story… No.

No!!

Actually, just a moment ago, he had been simply furious.

‘I came because they said there was a powerful brainwashing item in this school’s teacher’s office…’

With all these people involved, it seemed that the information was not that high-grade after all, and he was boiling inside.

‘…I won’t let this go when I go back to work tomorrow.’

It was one thing to update the kill list of the person who fed him that ‘high-quality information’ while gritting his teeth.

But still, he was confident.

No, he actually thought the tense standoff between the two factions at this moment was quite advantageous.

‘If I just shake things up a little, it’ll turn into chaos, right?’

Whether to stir up discord or summon a monster to wreak havoc, he felt he could grab the item and make a swift exit.

Just like he had done before by using the surrounding fools as bait at crucial moments.

He could even tolerate the weak colleague wearing a buffalo mask who was holding back tears. She seemed useful.

But….

‘What the hell is that guy…?’

Baek Sa-heon stared blankly ahead.

A familiar face in a black school uniform stood confidently next to people from the Disaster Management Bureau.

Wearing the same iron badge as them, holding a strange toy-like gun.

…Kim Sol-eum!

“Agent Grape.”

Grape?? What the hell does that mean?

He clearly saw she wasn’t wearing such equipment when she was in the classroom earlier. No…

‘Why is a Daydream Corporation employee standing there so nonchalantly?!’

“It seems everyone is gathering items; could it be what we were looking for?”

“Maybe.”

They’re naturally chatting in a very disaster management bureau-like manner…!

Nearby, the Daydream Corporation employees murmured.

“They don’t seem like ordinary folks.”

“Maybe one of them has a high rank? It looks like she was called in.”

“……”

Beside them, Jang Heo-woon gaped, looking back and forth between herself and Kim Sol-eum.

She was the only employee there who could remember Kim Sol-eum’s unmasked face.

Even with the mask on, her astonishment was palpable.

And she seemed to be trying to make friendly conversation with Kim Sol-eum!

‘Yes. That’s it!’

You’re supposed to take my place!

“Uh… uh.”

“Could you possibly step back a bit?”

“Pardon?”

But the other person was Kim Sol-eum.

That ‘Agent Grape’ quickly cut off Jang Heo-woon’s attempt at recognition and surveyed the employees with a serious expression.

Then, she continued in a persuasive tone.

“Possessing dangerous items in such supernatural disasters could lead to some awful consequences. As you may have experienced, things that look good here don’t always yield good results.”

Her voice sounded awfully…

Convincing.

“…there are still monsters roaming outside.”

“……”

Kim Sol-eum spoke fervently.

“Please consider sacrificing for the sake of saving more lives.”

You?

Chills ran down his spine.

But somehow, Jang Heo-woon blinked, and slowly, as if in a trance, opened her mouth.

“Uh, then… this time, I’ll yield,”

This crazy jerk!

“…! Hey! What do you think you’re saying, newbie?!”

“Shut up!”

The uproar from the staff, who regained their senses, erupted.

Baek Sa-heon was unaware, but he had a mental defense item on him that allowed him to somewhat escape the influence of the ‘Soul of the Moon’.

Though the situation didn’t look too favorable, the agents across from him began to chatter.

“The corporate culture is garbage.”

“True. Still, that agent speaks very well.”

“……”

They’re even being recognized by the agents…!

‘What the heck is that guy pretending to be an agent…?’

No, wait a minute.

In that moment, a lightning-like realization struck Baek Sa-heon’s mind.

‘W-wait… was she actually an agent from the Disaster Management Bureau from the start?’

Looking closely, the public official standing next to her was that guy he encountered at the lethal mountain cabin!

The mask provided by the company also had an effect of messing with the recognition of non-employees, so it seemed he hadn’t recognized him…

‘…Could it be?’

Was it all scripted?

Kim Sol-eum had been a spy for the Disaster Management Bureau from the very beginning?

A chill ran down his spine.

But at the same time, he felt like a new opportunity had presented itself.

‘If I unveil that guy’s identity…’

At that moment, his eyes met Kim Sol-eum’s.

Kim Sol-eum grinned and patted her chest.

And she mouthed the words.

‘Debt.’

“……!”

-Debt

The phrase he had written down as he left his emergency flashlight behind.

‘Th-that crazy jerk, that’s your debt to me…!’

Are you implying that if you want to collect on your debt, you better cooperate?

How is a debtor threatening a creditor… No!

‘Forget that for now!’

Baek Sa-heon clenched his teeth.

Right now, his team was outnumbered.

‘There are more agents than before.’

If this continued, the field exploration staff aiming for high scores would likely retreat quietly and abandon the items.

That would mean no disruption would occur. The opportunity itself would vanish!

‘Instead…’

“……”

Baek Sa-heon pondered, then made a decision.

He absolutely needed that item.

…Absolutely.

He also knew it was securely attached to the soles of his shoes, a considerable amount of money invested upfront to prepare his personal equipment.

This carefully crafted Parent Equipment was…

A weapon of mass destruction for causing confusion.

Owner: Baek Sa-heon

Registered Equipment Description: A tri-colored pen-shaped device that shoots out a nib like a firework when the tip is pressed.

Produced by Qterw-E-99.

As he felt the thin cylindrical pressure from the sole of his shoe,

Baek Sa-heon intentionally turned to Jang Heo-woon and spoke.

“Excuse me.”

“Yeah?”

“Does it seem like there’s a strange sound coming from outside…?”

And he shot naturally at Kim Sol-eum.

“…What?”

He aimed for the head.

‘Die!’

You better die.

So even if she wakes up in this darkness, she wouldn’t realize it was him who shot.

‘That guy should have a name tag anyway!’

He finally wrote off the debt and couldn’t risk being exposed for ruining this situation.

‘I’ll just pin it on someone else.’

After all, the personalities of these company employees were all pretty similar.

Baek Sa-heon managed a nonchalant smile of triumph.

Whoosh.

The tip of his specialized equipment launched silently from the sole of his shoe, piercing Kim Sol-eum’s head…

…but didn’t?

Kim Sol-eum casually twisted her head to dodge the nib.

“…?!”

Kim Sol-eum shot a quick glance at Baek Sa-heon.

‘I’ve read the usage instructions for your specialized equipment on the wiki several times.’

She was already familiar with the loading procedure.

‘It’s just tapping the left heel twice.’

Having prepared for it since they became roommates, her reflexes were hardly surprising.

In fact, since he had no expectations, he didn’t get angry when…

‘No, I can’t budge.’

In that moment, Kim Sol-eum smiled at Baek Sa-heon.

‘I know you shot that.’

And that means you’re done for.

“……”

Baek Sa-heon’s spine tingled.

Learned fears surged to an almost panicked level.

But his purpose of creating chaos had succeeded.

“Ugh,”

“…!”

The pen tip that struck the locker behind Kim Sol-eum exploded in all directions.

In an instant, light, noise, and smoke thickened the teacher’s office.

“…Who’s there?!”

No matter how quietly he spoke now, it would be useless.

With this much commotion, even ‘students’ would come running despite the risk of some property damage. So…

They would arrive shortly.

“…!!”

“Flashlight.”

Everyone ducked and pressed against the walls. The smoke obstructing their vision was the worst condition in this school of nightmares.

‘Who could it be?’

On everyone’s mind, survival became the priority over identifying the source of the threat.

‘Now that it’s come to this…!’

Even if I have to snatch whatever I aimed for!

Baek Sa-heon dove towards the table.

2nd Year ■■■ Fountain Pen

He grabbed the item and stuffed it into his pocket.

Then, he naturally joined the employees and bolted out of the teacher’s office.

The agents, who had crafted their defensive line in the office, only realized the situation when the fog cleared a bit.

The fountain pen and the employees had vanished at the same time.

“…! Damn it!”

“Those Daydream Corporation bastards…!”

They found themselves inadvertently responsible for the liability.

‘How convenient.’

Only Kim Sol-eum, who had been keeping an eye on Baek Sa-heon, recognized this.

But the situation was far too pressing to discuss it.

[A fatal accident has occurred in the 3F hallway.]

[The deceased student is 2nd year Kim So-ra.]

The Daydream Corporation employees had just shot one of the students.

“…ha.”

The blackout struck.

A five-second blackout.

Flashing flashlight beams.

Screams.

Corpses.

‘This is insane.’

With an abundance of both people and grotesque creatures, this was a B-grade splatter horror film in its own right.

A different kind of fear compared to the silence that had been stifling before.

Aaaaah!

Over there, at the window!

Blood! Blood!

Support…

Heaving,

As the brutal spectacle unfolded around me, I clung to the fog, trying to spot any students attempting to enter the teacher’s office.

It was a ghastly defense game.

Or perhaps I was cornered so thoroughly that it felt like a horror game derived from it.

“Go!”

The only consolation was that the agents were aggressively attacking, which meant I wasn’t really drawing attention.

But even that had its limits.

Blink.

The blood splattering across my eyes forced me to blink involuntarily.

In that moment, a student’s hand like a claw froze above my head.

“…!!”

I quickly stumbled back.

…That was almost my skull.

My hair stood on end.

‘No…!’

This was a quagmire.

‘The range covered by a single flashlight had exceeded its limits.’

From what I knew, while there were differences each time, there were at least twenty students on a floor.

What if a student was killed and an announcement was made?

[A fatal accident has occurred in the 2nd-year teacher’s office.]

They would come again.

With the blackout of five seconds as a moment of silence.

‘It won’t end well.’

There was a high chance that everyone here would die, and the exploration would be terminated. So…

‘Instead, I’ll seize this chance to escape.’

I gritted my teeth.

I had to find someone from another floor and join up.

The fog began to disperse, and the blackout finally ended…

Blink.

‘…Now!’

I dashed across the teacher’s office, filled with blood, guts, and violence, sliding through the door that was already ajar.

At that moment,

“Agent Grape!”

“…!”

In the clearing fog, I spotted a Bronze Agent.

They were in a standoff, having grabbed one of the masked employees, and that mask was…

“Yikes.”

“Quiet.”

A buffalo mask. The Y-Team extermination unit.

‘It’s Jang Heo-woon.’

Didn’t she not follow the employees when they escaped…!

“With this, I’ll restrain you…!”

The agent threw an item that resembled handcuffs towards me.

I supposed she thought I was coming to assist her, mistaking the situation.

But I had already resolved to cut ties with everyone…

“R-run away, Doe!”

“…!”

Damn it.

Jang Heo-woon covered her mouth in surprise at the name on my mask.

“……Doe?”

“No, it’s just…”

From the agent’s expression, I could tell.

‘I’m found out.’

Damn it, if that’s the case…!

I quickly grabbed the handcuff item that the agent extended toward me.

And, reversing it, I put it on the agent.

“……?!”

The handcuffs grew and confined the agent’s mouth and arms, and the shining silver chain connected to my hand.

“Doe, let’s run.”

“Yes, yes…?!”

And I pulled Jang Heo-woon and the agent and dashed out.

Aaaaah!

[Moment of silence. We pray for the peace of the deceased.]

We escaped the chaotic teacher’s office and raced up the stairs like madmen.

A few stragglers in the office tried to follow us, but they decided to turn back due to the renewed chaos in the teacher’s office.

“Please keep an eye above.”

“Sure!”

Jang Heo-woon replied briskly as she looked up the stairs.

‘Huh.’

I watched the students start to disappear without following us, feeling an urge to wipe the cold sweat off my face while turning away.

Then, I caught eyes with the person at the end of the rope I was holding, who was bound.

The Disaster Management Bureau agent, Bronze Agent, glared at me as if she would kill me.

“……”

Now that this has happened.

There’s no going back.

‘Let’s con them…!’

I began to weave a systematic emotional con job faster than I ever had in my life.