Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work-Chapter 105

I froze, staring at Isolation Room B14.

Creak, creeeeak.

The rusty hinges screeched like a wailing ghost as the door to the isolation room began to open.

The door that was never supposed to open. And from the darkness inside, a black silhouette emerged...

"Run."

Without hesitation, I turned and bolted toward the corridor exit.

I could hear Supervisor Park Minseong running alongside me, his footsteps frantic and urgent. My survival instincts drove my legs forward even as my mind reeled in confusion.

‘What is this?’

What the hell is going on?

‘The rules...’

Rule #4: Ignore the sounds from the isolation room.

Rule #11: Shout at them to shut up, and they’ll quiet down.

Before I could decide which rule to follow, the door opened on its own? What the hell is in there...?

"Guys."

Both Supervisor Park and I nearly tripped over our own feet.

That voice—we both knew it.

But neither of us dared to look back. We kept running, turning the corner and sprinting toward the green emergency exit sign at the end of the corridor. We abandoned the cleaning tools as we ran, gasping for breath, our hearts pounding in our chests.

Just as Park grabbed the doorknob under the glowing green emergency light—

[BEEEEEEP!!]

"...!!"

[Unauthorized access to isolation room detected.]

[Sealing the corridor.]

The red emergency lights flickered on.

A mechanical voice, devoid of emotion, announced the situation as a protective shutter began to descend outside the door.

Park and I exchanged a glance, the realization hitting us simultaneously.

"......."

We were trapped.

The corridor was sealed—with us still inside.

‘We’re screwed.’

Damn it. Damn it!!

I frantically dug into my pocket, searching for another tip or rule that could help us. Anything to give us a clue on what to do next.

Then, a voice—casual, almost mocking—broke the suffocating silence:

"Well, well. You two are like a pair of dumb and dumber. Did you trade your exploration manual for candy? What happened to staying calm?"

.......

‘What?’

It was a tired voice, tinged with irritation but oddly familiar, almost mundane.

Step, step.

"Unbelievable. Or maybe I should call this cautious? Yeah, let’s go with that... Sigh."

The voice came from right behind us.

But it wasn’t what I expected. No eerie laughter, no icy hands reaching out to grab us, no spine-chilling supernatural phenomena.

"......."

"Damn it. Okay, calm down. Listen, I know I sounded crazy earlier, but I had no choice. I needed to activate my escape item, and there wasn’t enough time to explain. You’ve gotta understand."

The voice sounded rushed, a hint of nervousness creeping in.

"Do you think I wanted to scream nonsense? I was trying to buy time, maybe gather some intel while I was at it. Then the item activated, the door opened, and here I am."

The voice was...

"Pull yourselves together. You’ve got ten seconds. Hurry."

.......

.......

"...Deputy Manager?"

"Yeah."

I couldn’t stop Park from turning to look.

In fact, I turned too.

And there she was.

The familiar silhouette.

A short bob cut. Sharp eyes gleaming with intelligence. A cold yet professional-looking suit.

Deputy Manager Eun Haje, standing in the corridor, surveying the cleaning tools we had abandoned with a faint look of disdain.

"Are you seriously going to leave those there? Well, never mind that for now. First, you need to wrap your heads around this situation."

"......."

"......."

The strength drained from Park’s grip on my shoulder as we both stood there, dumbfounded, staring at her.

"Oseri, and... Noru."

A faint smile spread across Eun Haje’s face. It was calm, slightly weary, and touched with her usual hint of authority.

"Long time no see."

Her expression was a mix of composure, boredom, and exhaustion, yet beneath it all was a hint of a predator’s grin.

"Damn this godforsaken company... Sigh."

She ran her hand through her hair and let out a deep sigh before gesturing toward us.

"Sorry, but I need a favor. Just open the door to the isolation corridor for me. Once I’m out of here, I’ll take care of the rest."

Eun Haje spoke calmly.

"I’ll handle it from there."

Park and I didn’t respond. It felt like our brains were on the verge of short-circuiting.

Eun Haje chuckled dryly.

"Can’t even manage a reply, huh? Smart move. If I were in your shoes, I’d probably do the same..."

What is this?

‘Why does it feel... so convincing?’

Why does this feel so real...

‘No, that’s impossible!’

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"Supervisor," I muttered under my breath, swallowing hard as I spoke quickly to Park, as much to convince myself as him.

"Remember this. Deputy Manager Eun Haje resigned. She shouldn’t be here...."

.......

‘Wait.’

Shouldn’t she?

I suddenly recalled all the strange details that had been bothering me about her disappearance.

Eun Haje had cut off contact. She had transferred her equipment without meeting us in person, merely confirming texts without responding. Calls never went through. Everything we’d heard about her came secondhand from Team Leader Lee Jaheon.

Could it be...

‘Was she trapped here all along?’

I thought back to the conditions under which someone could be transferred to a Security Team isolation zone:

Emergency contamination, corporate anomalies, dangerous individuals, spies, disciplinary actions, and those ominous redacted conditions shrouded in mystery.

‘Plenty of possibilities.’

Even Park and I had ended up trapped here, if only briefly.

So then...

Could Eun Haje be one of them?

"...Noru?"

"Wait... just wait a second."

It was possible, wasn’t it?

I wanted to interrogate her, to confirm her identity and understand what was really going on.

But gambling on mere possibilities wasn’t an option.

‘Let’s try something else first.’

I reached out to Braun, the plush ghost expert, through my thoughts.

‘Braun, the person in front of us—does she look like Deputy Manager Eun Haje from Team D?’

Braun responded cheerfully:

"Oh dear, this legendary host isn’t an investigative entertainer or detective, you know!"

"My superb observational skills have their limits, especially with these button eyes of mine... But sure, her appearance matches perfectly. Then again, who can say? Masters of disguise exist, after all."

Damn it.

I pressed on.

‘Still, could you confirm just one thing? I trust you, Braun. I really do.’

"...! Well, since you put it that way, of course! Ask away, friend!"‘Thanks. Then...’

I swallowed hard.

‘Is the person in front of me, in every sense—mentally and physically—human?’

"Ah, now that’s a question I can confidently answer!"Braun’s voice was bright as he declared:

"Yes, absolutely!"...Damn.

‘So she is human.’

My frustration mounted.

It would’ve been easier if Braun had said she wasn’t human. Then we could definitively conclude she wasn’t Eun Haje.

But the person standing before us continued speaking in that familiar tone:

"Look, I’d love to take the time to convince you properly, but there isn’t much time. Listen, guys."

Her complexion looked a little pale.

"The Security Team will send a squad soon to investigate. If I’m going to get out of here, it has to be before they arrive."

"......."

"I’m not asking for much. I’ll hide for a bit. When the door opens, just let me slip through."

I admitted to myself:

‘I can’t tell for sure just by looking.’

Which meant we’d have to take a calculated risk.

I turned to Supervisor Park and spoke decisively:

"Supervisor."

"Y-Yeah?"

It was time to decide.

"Do you not think it's impossible to encounter a deputy manager on leave inside a Security Team isolation zone?"

"Right...?"

"Oh, indirect questioning. Nice move, Noru."

Deputy Manager Eun Haje gave a short nod of admiration before muttering quickly.

"They probably threw me in here, telling me to think it over until I changed my mind about quitting. Looking back, trusting this godforsaken company was my mistake. Damn it."

"Supervisor, even if someone escapes the isolation corridor, wouldn’t they be caught right away?"

"Do you think I’m stupid? I’ve got an item ready. The problem is time. We don’t have any. The Security Team must be on their way already. I can’t even confirm their location—this is driving me crazy..."

Confirm.

‘...Wait!’

I remembered something in my back pocket.

‘The walkie-talkie.’

Leaning against the door, I carefully reached one hand behind me and grabbed the walkie-talkie from my pocket. I subtly turned up the volume just a little—

Bzzt!

[Currently sealing...]

Damn it!

‘The Security Chief has been transmitting this whole time!’

I immediately turned the walkie-talkie off.

But it was too late.

"I heard a walkie-talkie."

"...!"

"Well, it’s your device, so feel free to contact whoever you want. But I’m curious about something..."

Curious?

"They don’t usually give walkie-talkies to cleaners."

"......."

A chill ran down my spine.

"Did someone special give it to you? That’s strange. Cleaning personnel log in and receive instructions through automated systems. They’re not supposed to interact with other employees."

Suspicion and tension crept into Eun Haje’s voice.

"Are you sure... that device is really connected to the Security Team?"

"......."

"Noru, who did you meet?"

Sweat dripped from my palms.

This was an unprecedented situation.

‘Not knowing what to trust is unbearable.’

No clues, no certainty. Even if this was truly Deputy Manager Eun Haje, how were we supposed to help her escape? Hide from the Security Team? Was that even possible?

‘If I want to understand the situation better...’

Ah!

I remembered what I was supposed to check before.

The second tip sheet.

‘If I read all the remaining tips, maybe I can piece together the truth.’

I quickly pulled out the sheet and skimmed the next tip.

12. If you notice a strange smell or something leaking from the door cracks, run immediately.

These are the signs that the door is about to open.

Conversely, if none of these signs are present, it’s usually safe.

The exceptions will be explained in more detail in the next tip.

Take a moment before reading further.

I immediately moved on to the next entry.

13. Oh? The door opened?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Reflexively, I crumpled the paper in my hands.

My pulse thudded violently in my ears.

"Noru, what’s wrong?"

Stay calm, stay calm...

"Let’s calm down for now. The Security Team is on their way, so let’s think about what’s the best course of action from here."

Supervisor Park patted my back, his movements oddly deliberate.

As he did, his finger traced something against my back.

ㄷㅐ

ㄹㅣ

ㄴㅣ

ㅁ

ㅇㅏ

ㄴㅣ

ㅇㅑ

Not the Deputy Manager.

I froze, lifting my head in shock.

"Wow."

Eun Haje.

No—the thing wearing Eun Haje’s face—bowed its head toward us.

"How did you know?"

How did you know? How did you know? How did you know? How did you know? How did you know? How did you know? How did you know?