Chapter 18
Let me be honest.
One month into the job.
Surprisingly, this horror story mega-corporation is actually pretty decent…!
“Whoa, insane, another clear in 30 minutes!”
“Aren’t they doing better than Team C in terms of performance?”
I never thought I’d actually hear such scripted lines that sound like something from a W-tube web drama extra.
“Hey, enjoy it. It’s all your achievement.”
At lunchtime, the Deputy Manager, who had boldly gotten both Menu A and B from the company cafeteria, said cheerfully.
For reference, we’d already handled one case this morning.
“Thanks to Musk Deer, I’ve been pulling off insane feats like 12 new Darkness clears in a month.”
“No, it’s all thanks to your excellent guidance.”
“Guidance? I’m just riding the bus.”
“Right. I’ll buy beef today, Soleum sunbae-nim.”
“Min-seong… even so, that’s a bit much.”
“Come on, why not! When you’re doing well, you’re all my seniors.”
It’s surprisingly hard to react without offending when your superiors drop lines like that…
But whether it was a joke or sincere, the Assistant Manager didn’t wait for my reaction and instead excitedly showed me a screenshot of his monthly point accumulation.
“I’ve already got 5,000p!”
Right.
[Assistant Manager Park Min-seong / Points Earned: 5,200p]
That was also about how many points I’d earned in a month.
‘The speedrun strategy really worked…’
I never expected my survival tactics to turn out like this.
It was possible because most of them were F or D-class.
‘It seems high-class ones don’t appear that often.’
Well, if they appeared frequently, the world would have already ended with “and so the world was destroyed.”
Either way, my superiors looked even more excited than me. Other people’s achievements are always more fun.
“This is probably the shortest time among all new employee records in company history?”
“Ooooh!”
Ah, come to think of it, I’d hardly seen any of my fellow new employees.
Since I was going in and out of the 17th floor research team office every day, I rarely saw other Field Exploration Teams.
‘Baek Sa-heon and I are treating each other like we don’t exist anyway.’
In fact, to maintain the “crazy guy” persona I’d established, I occasionally threw out crossing-the-line jokes related to work.
-You’re going into Darkness exploration today too? Want to bet on how many civilians died?
-……
That gambling researcher gave me inspiration. Thanks, buddy.
Anyway, Baek Sa-heon didn’t respond and just gritted his teeth and ignored me, so the effect seemed solid.
‘Smooth sailing.’
I finished the last sip of my galbitang and set the bowl down.
Leaving on time, getting bonuses.
‘The cafeteria’s decent too.’
It was a company that would probably get a rating of 3.5 or higher on a site like JobKorea.
Except for the immense stress of spending every night in a haunted house with ghosts popping out…
‘In my previous life, I’d never have done this just to make a living… hmm. Just a normal work life.’
Even the sense of accomplishment from producing results makes me delude myself into thinking it’s doable—just like a regular job.
“Musk Deer.”
Deputy Manager Eun Ha-je said quietly, in a low voice.
“At this rate, higher-ups are going to take notice.”
“…Huh?”
“Your performance.”
“……”
“Once could be luck or a fluke, but ten times means it’s not.”
The Deputy Manager squinted and grinned.
“There’ll definitely be some higher-up who wants to test you out. If that happens, make sure to tell us. And the Team Leader too.”
Hmm.
In a normal company, I’d be worried about someone stealing my credit and might quietly let it slide.
But this was a horror story world, and my superior was someone whose life I’d saved.
I obediently nodded.
“Yes.”
“Good. Despite how he looks… actually, just by looking, our Team Leader is pretty extraordinary.”
Our gazes turned to Section Chief Lee Ja-heon, who had finished his meal quickly and was already leaving the cafeteria.
“If you ever get an unreasonable offer, you can ask him to cover for you once or twice.”
That lizard?
“…Yes.”
“Okay. Anyway, Musk Deer’s good at reading the room.”
I hadn’t really been convinced, but I just nodded—I’ll keep that a secret for now.
Anyway… higher-ups might take notice, huh.
I cleared my tray and stood up, thinking.
‘At this point, standing out can’t be helped.’
I’d more or less accepted that.
If I’d seen clowns crawling out of portraits with just their upper bodies, I’d have already fainted…
But I had faith in something.
‘They can’t give a newbie anything harder than this, right?’
Beyond this level, it wouldn’t be just handling grunt work—it’d be core duties.
Would they make a one-month-old newbie, not even an experienced hire, handle core departmental tasks?
That’s some crazy stuff you’d hear on W-tube. It was also against the unwritten social rules of a large corporation.
I’d just consider myself lucky that my workload had “evolved” toward “manual-less horror stories.”
If this became the norm, they’d just think “oh, he’s specialized in that area” and let it slide.
“Shall we head back?”
“Yes.”
I concluded my thoughts and returned my utensils.
However, at this moment, I had forgotten one thing, having become accustomed to and immersed in the world and office life.
An immutable truth of social life.
Namely—
The nail that sticks out gets hammered down!
At the same time, at Research Team 1’s office.
‘Another escape in under an hour…’
A researcher who had been watching Team D’s records while wasting company time gritted his teeth.
‘How much has he earned so far… about 5,000p?’
At that pace, in just a few years, he might even break the record and receive a Wish Grant…
“……”
“Wow, must be nice?”
The researcher grumbled.
“Some of us work in the lab seeing all kinds of horrific things without any hazard pay, struggling to save 500p a month.”
“……”
“Some newbie gets 50,000 points in one month…”
“Hey, that’s enough.”
The researcher clamped his mouth shut.
The reality of not even being able to voice his complaints in this situation made his blood boil.
Something was wrong.
‘There are people who luck out with good equipment and earn points easily.’
While others couldn’t even dream of it because they had no points or access rights.
‘Research positions are supposed to be more elite than field exploration, and should be treated better—is this right?’
It was truly unfair.
The researcher conveniently forgot that he himself had mocked Field Exploration Team employees as lab rats.
“Well, when timing works out, sometimes Darkness exploration goes this well too.”
Section Chief Kwak Je-gang chuckled and casually tossed a remark at the researcher.
“Still, this is impressive, no matter how you look at it.”
“……”
Pretending not to see the researcher’s disgusted expression as he looked up, Kwak Je-gang flipped through some documents.
“Ah, I heard this Darkness requires 10 or more people to enter?”
“……”
“Assistant Manager?”
“Ah, yes. That’s right. They say you need 10 people to enter the Darkness.”
“Hmm.”
Kwak Je-gang smiled and picked up a pen.
“Then this time it’s a team effort.”
-Teams A, D, and Y deployed.
“……”
The researcher watched as Kwak Je-gang pulled out the Field Exploration Team’s organizational chart and marked the relevant teams.
Just then.
“Assistant Manager.”
“Yes?”
“Do you happen to know what the alphabetical order of the Field Exploration Teams means?”
He didn’t know.
Someone who was just coasting through his own work, preserving his position, wouldn’t be well-versed in other departments’ organizational structures.
Kwak Je-gang smiled and tapped the document. There was something peculiar about that smile.
“In short, it’s by performance ranking.”
“…!”
“Why, you know how schools have those—honors class, regular class, remedial class.”
The researcher quickly realized.
“Then… Team D is the honors class?”
“No.”
A firm denial came back.
“A through C—that’s the elite.”
Kwak Je-gang tapped those teams with his pen.
“The rest are all expendable.”
“…Ah.”
He was just starting to feel a little better.
“But well, since it’s just us talking… Team D’s performance has been so good that there’s a rumor they might get something good at the next assignment. Haha.”
“…!”
As with company gossip, such shocking rumors usually weren’t reliable.
Yet, the researcher somehow felt anxious.
‘Isn’t there any bad news?’
As if to satisfy that expectation, Section Chief Kwak Je-gang’s muttering was heard.
In a tone that was deliberately sympathetic.
“But it’s unfortunate that it had to be like this. Going in with Team A… hmm.”
“…! Is it bad to go in with an elite team?”
“Probably. You know, Assistant Manager.”
Kwak Je-gang touched his chin.
“There are Darknesses where escape routes only open through sacrifice.”
Especially…
If it’s a Darkness that requires a large number of people, even more so.
Kwak Je-gang shrugged.
“This exploration record is going to be quite eventful.”
A few days later.
Team D, who had been called up to the 17th floor as naturally as they had for the past month, witnessed an unexpected sight.
“Hello.”
“…?!”
There were visitors in Research Team 1’s office.
People wearing various masks.
‘Other Field Exploration Teams?’
I quickly counted heads.
About seven people.
Among them, one person was familiar.
-Can you revive the dead?
The new employee who had asked that question about the Wish Grant at the welcome party.
That new employee, wearing a cow mask, was quietly bowing his head, leaning against a desk.
A slightly gloomy aura surrounded him.
His hair was long for a man—almost to the point where you’d wonder if he’d get in trouble for dress code.
Of course, no one here seemed to care about that.
“Ah.”
“This… hmm.”
Just as Team D’s seniors were letting out short reactions—whether admiration or sighs—at the people filling the office space.
“Oh, Team D is finally here. Welcome~ Alright, let’s get started with the briefing.”
Section Chief Kwak Je-gang appeared and began leading everyone to an adjoining conference room.
As we moved, I heard the Deputy Manager’s question:
“Are we entering with other teams?”
“That’s right. Right.”
“……”
The Deputy Manager quickly glanced around, then returned to my side and whispered quietly enough that no one else could hear:
“See those employees with the gold-stamped masks?”
“Yes.”
“That’s Team A.”
I know.
‘They’re the elite team.’
Daydream Corporation’s structure required someone to clear horror stories to extract raw materials for the company to function.
‘To avoid the plot hole of the company going bankrupt under normal circumstances, they needed inhumanly high-performing Field Exploration Teams…’
That’s why <Darkness Exploration Records> had particularly many named characters from there. I nodded slightly.
Team A consisted of three people wearing masks of a bizarre butterfly, a mantis, and a mallard duck.
Just then, the person wearing the mallard duck mask from Team A acknowledged me.
A spirited middle-aged woman’s voice.
“Oh, you’re that Kim Soleum employee?”
“Yes. Hello.”
I reflexively bowed, but cold sweat broke out.
‘That’ Kim Soleum—what kind of rumors were going around?
“Right, right. If we get a chance, let’s chat. A young man with a bright future.”
And she passed by and took her seat.
…That must be Team A’s Team Leader.
The Deputy Manager continued explaining:
“And… the ones wearing masks without the gold stamp are Team Y.”
“……”
Three people without the gold stamp, plus the cow-masked new employee I recognized.
A team with a somewhat gloomy atmosphere.
“Team Y’s Team Leader isn’t a Section Chief but a regular employee, so just take it as it is and stay quiet.”
“Yes.”
I knew that too.
The Assistant Manager whispered to me:
“Hmm… Musk Deer. The people from other teams you saw today, especially Team Y—just keep things moderate with them. Got it? I’ll explain the reason later.”
“Yes.”
I nodded without a word.
Because I could roughly guess what he’d explain later.
But then, the Assistant Manager sitting next to me was moved.
“Hah. I really… I love that you’re like a more perceptive version of the Team Leader?”
“Me too.”
“……”
That’s… a compliment, right?
“Alright, everyone, please have a seat and we’ll start the briefing.”
Kwak Je-gang stood in front of the conference room board without even turning on the projector.
“We’re about to brief you on today’s Darkness… is what I’d like to say, but!”
Kwak Je-gang chuckled.
“Actually, we don’t know anything either.”
“…??”
“What do you mean, Section Chief Kwak?”
“There’s only one piece of civilian escape information!”
“…Huh.”
In the silence, documents were distributed.
I also looked at a page that was little more than a memo.
-All 12 university students (12 people) went missing while playing a board game during a club MT at the “Full of Harmony” pension in Gangwon-do.
The board game was branded as “Cheerful Theme Park! ~A Fun Fantasy Land Trip~” and is presumed to have been developed by the Cheerful Research Institute*.
The survivor stated that the board game “was already placed in the pension.”
The pension owner denies this fact.
Result: Some personnel returned after 17 hours.
Testified that they “stayed in a theme park inside the board game.” Showed various symptoms including delusions, PTSD reactions, and mild neuropathy.
- Survivors: 4, Missing: 1, Dead: 7
The next page briefly listed each survivor’s testimony about the “theme park inside the board game.” Their mental trauma was severe, making the descriptions very fragmented.
But it was enough to be familiar.
I swallowed.
‘It was about time for this one.’
Finally, it had arrived.
A Darkness that required a large-scale entry!
“It seems the board game requires over 10 players? That’s why they gathered so many people.”
“Yes, yes, we tried to create as similar an environment as possible.”
Kwak Je-gang winked.
“Still! That means our team members have already figured out a reliable entry method, right?”
“Didn’t you just bring the board game?”
“Haha! That hurts, Deputy Manager Jin. We even looked up the game rules.”
The Team A employee in the butterfly mask didn’t respond, and Kwak Je-gang, unperturbed, placed the board game on the table.
“Here it is.”
[Cheerful Theme Park!]
~A Fun Fantasy Land Trip~
: Ride 3 fantasy attractions the fastest with your team members and receive prizes!
The front of the nearly brand-new box depicted a colorful fantasy land.
Opening the box revealed a map of the theme park divided into zones, along with colorful coins.
“Now, we just divide into teams and start the board game.”
How cheerfully he said “let’s hurry up and enter a horror story where over half the people died.”
“Then can we just team up by our existing teams?”
“Ah, actually… if you draw a game piece from this gacha capsule, your team is determined by the color!”
Section Chief Kwak Je-gang pulled out a small capsule-like object from the box and showed it.
“If you shake this, a piece drops from this hole.”
“It’s random.”
With a sigh, people shook the capsule and drew game pieces one by one.
‘Blue, yellow, red… I think.’
Naturally, things went by seniority, so my turn was almost last.
What I drew was…
“Kim employee drew red.”
It was red, of all colors.
In a horror story world, it wasn’t a particularly auspicious color.
‘Well, in this horror story, color doesn’t actually matter much.’
Because even drawing the same color could lead to different outcomes.
I swallowed nervously.
Anyway, were we entering now?
“Alright, now we’ll enter by unfolding the game board!”
However, even when Section Chief Lee Ja-heon unfolded the board on behalf of the team, nothing happened.
“……”
Huh?
A thought flashed through my mind like lightning—I checked the headcount.
Four yellow, four blue.
And those who drew red like me…
Team A’s “Deputy Manager Jin” in the butterfly mask, and the familiar new employee from Team Y.
Three including me.
“……”
Ah.
‘The red team is short one person.’
“One person is missing.”
Section Chief Lee Ja-heon turned his vertical pupils toward Kwak Je-gang.
“It seems we can’t enter with 11 people. We need to fill all 12 and try again.”
“Oh, that?”
Kwak Je-gang answered casually, then tossed the capsule with the game pieces.
“Assistant Manager, catch!”
To the gambling-addicted researcher standing right next to him.
“Wh-wha…?!”
The researcher caught the capsule by reflex.
Rattle.
The remaining red piece dropped out.
“…!?”
“I-it came out!”
Wait.
-Departing for Fantasy Land~
The game board flew up into the air and swallowed our vision.
“WAAAAH—!”
“HAHAHAHAHAHA!”
I heard the researcher’s scream.
And Kwak Je-gang’s laughter.
“……”
I recalled the back pages of that person’s <Darkness Exploration Records> wiki entry.
======================
A psycho obsessed with horror stories.
A mad scientist.
The primary contributor who enriches exploration records with a crazy habit of encouraging combinations and actions that are clearly deadly when exploring insufficiently documented Darknesses, in order to extract unusual data.
Kwak Je-gang’s disciplinary records can be found on the #Exploration Records (Extra) page.
======================
…I’d been wary that a day like this would come.
“What is this?! What is this!”
With a large number of personnel, and Team A and Y joining, I’d suspected it…
‘He deliberately sabotaged our survival rate.’
This wasn’t aiming for a maximum-survival clear.
It was a setup where everyone except Team A was supposed to die.
