A rainy Monday afternoon.
The employees of Group D from the Field Operations Team scribbled out the incident report at a speed they had never shown before, and even finished proxy approval under the Group Leader's ID.
There was only one reason.
A new hire who had ignored the time limit of a Ghost Story and cleared it!
"It definitely… was supposed to be three days, wasn't it?"
"Yes, that's right."
An assistant manager and an employee sat across from the new hire on the sofa, having piled up snacks from the break room in front of him.
They exchanged glances and nodded at each other.
It was finally time to ask properly.
"But how did you get out that fast?"
"Ah."
The new employee looked like he thought about it for a moment, then answered with an expression that seemed to say he understood.
"I fast-forwarded time."
'He's answering as casually as if he were saying what he had for lunch…!'
…Before they could even say that, the new employee slowly explained the method he had used.
"Since there was a time limit, I thought there had to be some event that would count as 'time has passed,' so I focused on that…."
All the way down to the method of pulling the "time alarm" forward using expiration dates.
As they listened in silence, the superiors thought:
'He's a genius.'
'He is not allowed to quit.'
The instinct and reasoning to pierce straight through the essence of a Ghost Story at a glance?
This was talent born for the Field Operations Team. He absolutely could not escape this team—no, they absolutely had to help him adjust well!
"I'm not someone who should be talking about welcome parties and the like, Roe Deer-nim."
"Feels like you'll overtake me and make assistant manager in no time."
"…!?"
A new hire like this—they could never find another one…!
"When you climb the ladder, don't forget us… and if you get a Wish Ticket, come brag to us too…."
The new hire seemed a little flustered.
"That's not it. Uh… actually,"
"Hmm?"
As if making some great confession, the new hire added,
"I only came out quickly because I was scared."
"...."
Was being scared of urban legends something that usually let you escape quickly…?
It felt like they were going to suffer some kind of perceptual contamination and start thinking it had been an escape room.
'He's too humble…!'
But the new hire stood firm.
"From next time onward, I'd appreciate it if you'd at least give me some warning. I nearly fainted from fear."
"Is that really something the guy who cleared it in an hour gets to say…?"
With a strange expression on his face, the new employee said,
"I thought I was going to die."
'Liar!'
What kind of person who thought they were going to die would do something like a time attack to break the speedrun record? Even among veteran employees, that was the sort of pure insanity most people wouldn't attempt.
Still, separately from that, they understood the sense of betrayal.
'Honestly, it was pretty harsh.'
No matter how safe it supposedly was, getting dropped into a paranormal phenomenon alone really wasn't a normal thing.
And they also knew exactly how to soothe a wounded heart.
The office worker's cure!
Sipping coffee, the assistant manager asked,
"Roe Deer, how much did you get?"
"Pardon?"
"The money that comes out when you clear it."
"Ah, yes. I got ten million won."
That's right. This F-grade Darkness gave prize money upon clearing.
And the manual clearly stated:
-When clearing an Umbra (F)-grade Darkness for which the company has a fully completed manual, 50% of any incidental profit generated will be paid to the employee as a bonus.
Put the other way around, that meant the company took 50% of any money an employee earned in a Darkness using a completed manual.
And on top of that, the Darkness first assigned to a new hire did not qualify for this clause!
The company's reasoning was that since they only assigned Ghost Stories whose safety had been ensured through dozens or hundreds of attempts, there was no need to pay hazard compensation.
The new hire had already read that manual as well.
But still.
"That normally all gets taken by the company… but just keep it."
"…Pardon?"
Once you've got enough seniority and know-how, there are always ways to fudge things!
Since he had cleared it with a brand-new escape method, there was even a beautiful exception in company policy that said it didn't count as falling under the existing manual. So of course they could handle it.
If a huge sum hits your account on your very first day, it makes everything seem rosy!
The assistant manager and the senior associate, wearing warm expressions, used the very technique that had once been used on them.
"Come on. Just pocket it, pocket it. There's a way to process all of it."
"..."
'It was actually twenty million.'
Kim Soleum, who had been planning to keep half for himself, broke out in a cold sweat.
For a moment, he was caught between the incredible joy of suddenly gaining another ten million won whose source he couldn't explain, and the pangs of his conscience—but only for a moment, because he was soon made to stand up along with his superiors.
"Since you successfully explored a Darkness, we should go accumulate the most important thing."
"Accumulate…?"
"Yeah."
The senior associate grinned.
"Employee Welfare Mall points!"
"Hoo."
Who would have thought being in the middle of a crowded city in broad daylight could make someone this happy?
For the moment, I wasn't even worried about the future where I probably wouldn't be able to sleep without all the lights on.
'Does having twenty million won in cash in my pocket really give me this much peace of mind…?'
No matter how much I'd fallen into a Ghost Story, this was still twenty-first-century Korea and a capitalist society.
At last, I sat down at the desk I'd been assigned, turned on the computer, and logged into the intranet.
Sitting in a brightly fluorescent office on one of those office chairs meant for correcting your posture made the insane reality that I'd been facing down a ghost just moments ago feel like a complete lie.
There were even some pretty cute stationery items and a round-eyed lizard plush sitting on the desk.
'…No wonder it felt kind of used.'
Well, all I could do was hope the previous user had won the lottery and quit on the spot before having time to clear the desk.
Anyway, the Welfare Mall had already been bookmarked on the PC, so I was able to access it easily.
[Baekilmong Co., Ltd. Employee Welfare Mall]
I entered my employee number, finished signing up quickly, and clicked the 'Register Points' tab just like my superiors had told me.
-Select the grade of Darkness you cleared, enter your name, attach the PDF, and submit.
So I did exactly that.
And five minutes later—
[Employee Kim Soleum / Accumulated Points: 100p]
"…!"
The review was completed and the points credited at astonishing speed.
'So if you clear an F-grade by yourself, you get 100 points.'
Well, regardless of how badly I'd suffered, it was still only F-grade, so it probably wasn't worth much…. Better not expect anything.
Still, now that I had points, I wanted to check whether there was anything I could buy with 100p.
And I was taken aback from the very first page.
"…A robot vacuum?"
The selection was better than I'd expected.
Most of the items listed as special-price deals were around 100p, while high-end large appliances of the sort people usually only buy when getting married were around 500p.
On top of that, Baekilmong Co., Ltd.'s unreleased reagents were sold for around 1000p, and among them were outrageous overtechnology items like cornea-regeneration potions.
Ah, for reference, the hair-loss medicine cost about 500,000 won on the market without insurance, but here you could buy it for 100p.
'This is actually pretty decent.'
With a small spark of anticipation, I moved the mouse.
Now came the moment to check the most important thing.
The glorious name that appeared when you went to the 'Company Products' tab and sorted by 'Highest Price.'
'Wish Ticket.'
The wondrous potion introduced as the company's representative benefit the moment the death survival ended had the following price….
Wish Ticket : 500,000p
"..."
You're joking, right?
'Five hundred thousand?'
I had just cleared a Ghost Story and gotten 100 points….
500,000 points?
'In theory… if I assume I go into F-grade alone every single day, it would take fifteen years.'
But that could never be as easy as it sounded.
'If things go the way I'm planning, there's no way that would count as company work.'
There was no way I'd be able to clear only F-grade Darkness every single day, and there would definitely be countless irregularities.
'I'd definitely get forcibly thrown into higher-grade Darkness with coworkers a lot.'
Wait, would those get split too?
I dug through the Welfare Mall's point registration tab and found the base points awarded by Darkness grade.
F-grade : 100p
D-grade : 1000p
C-grade : 2500p
B-grade : 10000p
A-grade : 100000p
S-grade : Separate review
On top of that, additional allowances were added depending on special characteristics measured internally by the company.
Things like urgency of clearing it, lack of available information, or additional dangers.
'If groups of three are the default, and three-person clears are standard….'
...So I'd need to clear B-grade 150 times to get one?
'Are they insane?'
Once you got to B-grade, a civilian's survival rate dropped sharply to around 2%.
From that point on, it was just the kind of grade where no matter which choice you picked from the options given, you ended up dead or in a fate worse than death!
If you entered that 150 times, an ordinary employee was basically guaranteed dead.
It was the kind of insane situation where, even if they ordered you to do it, you'd have to drop to your knees and beg that you couldn't.
Which meant a speedrun strategy of aiming only for high grades was impossible.
'In the end, if I want to raise my survival rate even a little, I'll have to invest at least ten years.'
What is this, some gentleman's revenge or something…?
And if the Field Operations Team was still the fastest department by far, then that meant people in other departments were even more likely never to get a Wish Ticket during their entire employment.
There were so many different products in the Welfare Mall that people in other departments probably gave up at that level and settled for being satisfied with other things….
But I couldn't.
Because my goal was fantastical and clear.
Return to my original world.
And they expect me to live here for fifteen years? I'd die of cardiac shock before that!
'No!'
I needed a plan, a plan.
'I need to properly figure out exactly which Ghost Stories I absolutely have to enter and which ones I need to avoid.'
So I needed to gather 500,000 points in the shortest possible time while keeping the perfect golden balance with safety.
I was just about to sink into serious contemplation when the senior associate tapped me on the back and asked,
"Roe Deer, did you register it? Computer working fine?"
"Yes. Ah, the personal items here…."
"Oh, that's the Group Leader's desk."
"...."
So that's why it felt used!
"Just don't break the monitor. Take it easy and use it for today, nice and easy."
Was this company… really all right?
Was it really okay to do something as insane as telling a new hire to temporarily use their superior's desk?
'Now that I think about it, of course it isn't.'
Wasn't this a company that ground people up inside Ghost Stories to make potions? If I applied the common sense of an ordinary decent twenty-first-century Korean office worker, wouldn't I just keep getting stunned by absurd situations?
...Maybe using a few underhanded methods really was the right move.
"Ah, Roe Deer, you smoke too?"
"I'm fine."
I didn't follow my superiors on their cigarette break.
Instead, I looked down at the desk I'd been using, took one deep breath, and flipped the keyboard over.
Just as I expected, there was a Post-it attached.
[Group Leader Lee Jaheon / 105105301]
ID : yongj1111
PW : dydajflgodks!111
It was such a common sight in companies that it was hard to even scold the lack of security awareness.
'If he's a Group Leader… then he must be a manager.'
And the truth was, in this company there was a certain site that only people at manager rank and above could access….
And that site would be very helpful when clearing high-grade Darkness.
"...."
Now that I'd seen the insane target figure of 500,000 points once, it felt like too much of a waste to let this go.
All right.
'Let's do it.'
Once I'd made up my mind, I logged back into the Welfare Mall.
This time, however, it wasn't with my own ID.
ID : yongj1111
Password : dydajflgodks!111
I tried logging into the Welfare Mall with Group D's Group Leader's ID.
The password does not match.
"Hmm…."
It was fine. I had expected an obstacle like this.
Let's see. If I clicked sign-up, I could check the password requirements.
'So it needed an uppercase letter.'
In that case, if I just changed the first letter of the password written under the keyboard to uppercase and tried logging in with 'Dydajflgodks!111'….
Ding.
[Welcome, Manager Lee Jaheon]
'Got it!'
I clenched both fists beneath the desk. It was the kind of celebration you could get away with in an office without attracting attention. Even though, at the moment, I was the only one in the office.
Anyway, what I needed to find on this page now was… a kind of bait link.
The so-called 'Alien Shop.'
There were quite a lot of alien Ghost Stories in
'They weren't malicious, but from a human perspective, they sold some pretty creepy or dangerous things.'
Well, even so, they were close to gag stories, so they were one of the rare Ghost Story types that felt oddly wholesome.
And they had a bit of a commercial mindset too. Maybe they wanted to target people who might actually have a use for their merchandise as customers...
They'd even planted what was basically ransomware in Baekilmong's company intranet.
'Only people at manager rank and above could see the bait ad link for the shopping mall.'
And I remembered perfectly well how to view that bait link.
'If you just click around randomly in the Welfare Mall and then press Back five times in a row….'
Clack, clack, clack….
Bweep.
Suddenly, a tiny green hand appeared in one corner of the Welfare Mall screen.
A pixelated left hand, waving as if greeting me and drawing my attention.
A speech bubble appeared above it.
1st Anniversary Thank-You Sale! ~80% OffIs work boring? >>ClickWant to get stronger? >>ClickWant to own cool stuff? >>Click
'So tacky.'
It looked exactly like one of those ancient internet banner ads from ages ago.
But surprisingly, if you clicked this clumsy thing!
The outside internet would open from inside the intranet as if by magic, and you'd be kidnapped to an alien website.
I wanted to click it right away, but!
'Hold back.'
Instead, I right-clicked and copied only the link, pasted the address into Excel, and took a picture of it with my smartphone.
'The company PC keeps logs of every access.'
There was nothing good about leaving behind a record that I'd clicked alien ransomware. Especially not using someone else's account.
A little while later, when my superiors came back from their cigarette break, I nodded and greeted them as though nothing had happened.
"Roe Deer~ when the Group Leader gets back from his field assignment, let's have a welcome dinner too. On the company card."
"Yes. Thank you."
And then I waited until it was time to leave work.
That evening, my monumental first day of work came to an end.
But my work still wasn't over.
"Let's do this."
After depositing the twenty million won, I went home.
And now I was in my bedroom, copying out the 'Alien Shop' bait link I had photographed in my smartphone gallery using image analysis.
After correcting a few parts that hadn't been read properly, I opened a browser and pasted it into the address bar.
"Hoo."
Deep breath… and enter.
Clack.
The page followed the complicated link in the address bar.
Then a screen in a format similar to Baekilmong Co., Ltd.'s Welfare Mall page appeared… and broke apart.
And a new page opened.
A screen with naked underlines and fonts, like the internet from the early 2000s.
Boing boing boing. A green spaceship spun around in the corner.
'This is really tacky.'
But I couldn't let my guard down just because it was tacky.
If I clicked 'stuff' here, I'd be able to see all kinds of absurd supernatural goods for sale.
…Though the prices were absurd too, which was a problem.
They started from the million-won range at minimum.
...It was the result of imaginative inflation, born from Ghost Story creators' swollen egos of 'I'd use something even more expensive!'
If I were the me of just yesterday, I wouldn't have been able to buy a single item on this list….
'But I have twenty million won now.'
My heart beat a little faster. Being able to directly purchase items from a fictional world was definitely the kind of thing that sent dopamine running.
"Hoo."
At last, I clicked the 'stuff' tab.
The screen loaded.
Stuff
Bloodsucking Cutlery - ₩14,999,999
Farther-Reaching Walkie-Talkie - ₩4,999,999
Alice Picnic Set - ₩11,999,999
We Help! - ₩66,666,666
※Sale!※ Silver Snake - ₩4,999,999
₩19,999,999
"…!"
I knew more than half of these items.
Had my luck finally turned!
'All right.'
Amid that rush of joy, I quickly searched my memory.
Bloodsucking Cutlery.
It was a weapon made up of a small fork and knife, and it evolved into a larger, sharper blade by sucking the victim's blood.
You could call it a literal growth-type weapon.
Farther-Reaching Walkie-Talkie.
A toy walkie-talkie that allowed remote communication with other people even inside a Ghost Story.
It would definitely be very useful when I had teammates.
Alice Picnic Set.
Just from the name, the image came to mind, but it was a set of food items based on Alice in Wonderland.
A drink that temporarily doubled the effect of an item, and a cookie that reduced it by half—that should have been the set.
Those were the items I knew.
I didn't know the remaining two, but setting aside the interesting title of 'We Help!,' it was far beyond my budget anyway, so I could skip it.
'Silver Snake is on sale.'
Buying something on sale did make it feel like I was getting a good deal, somehow.
"...Hmm."
I crossed my arms.
A weapon, a communication device, a buff potion, and a sale item… was it?
My budget was twenty million won.
Within that amount, which one would benefit me the most?
"All right."
I made up my mind and clicked.