Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work-Chapter 118

"Excuse me, Pioneer. I’ll go first. I’m fine going alone."

The Chief casually volunteered to be the first to jump from the altar.

Since the first altar required someone to go alone, it made sense for a leader to take the initiative. Meanwhile, I needed to stay behind until the very end to coordinate and ensure the rest of the passengers were ready.

But, as it turned out, the Chief wouldn’t be going entirely alone.

"Then... I’ll go too! For the first one!"

"Might as well get it over with right away."

There were so many volunteers that several passengers ended up going with her to the first altar.

Just before the jump, I issued one last caution.

"You still have a chance to back out."

Even at the final crossroads, not a single person withdrew.

"Let’s go!"

"Aaaaah!"

The group of over seven people, led by the Chief, hurled themselves through the windows toward the first altar.

"Clear the way."

The train sped through the altar, and the surrounding area grew bright again.

“Ah....”

The passengers blinked at the all-too-familiar landscape outside. After 14 loops, it had become a near-mundane sight.

"They... they made it."

Unsurprisingly, it didn’t seem much different from previous loops—at least not to those who stayed behind.

The effects of the missing painkillers would only become apparent after the jump.

And then came a peculiar phenomenon.

‘Wait, maybe this isn’t as bad as I thought?’

Some people who had been hesitant started coming forward, belatedly deciding to jump themselves.

Like this guy:

"Hey! I’ll go too."

This particular passenger had been marked by the Chief as a potential sacrifice due to his prior behavior. In earlier loops, he’d been the type to wave his fists at people, saying things like, “Move before I make you.” Conveniently, he seemed to have erased that from his memory, approaching me now as if nothing was wrong.

Well, it didn’t really matter.

"Alright, you’ll jump at the second altar—"

"No, I want to jump with you, Pioneer. At the very end. It has to be with you."

"...Fine."

"What a rude fellow."That he was.

From behind, I overheard him whispering to his companions:

"Hey, what’s with you? Why are you suddenly volunteering to jump?"

"Can’t you tell? It’s obvious. If you jump, you probably get some special ability or reward. You’ve got to ride the momentum at times like this."

Hmm.

‘...What a misunderstanding.’

"I bet the whole ‘it’ll hurt’ thing is just to scare us off."

Nope.

‘It’s going to hurt. A lot.’

Still, people were entitled to their misconceptions. I wasn’t going to stop him. I did, however, make a mental note to add his name to the list of volunteers for the altar.

And then I noticed something.

‘That mole on his cheek....’

It stood out now that I had a proper look at him, something I had missed earlier in the chaos.

‘And he was from Car 6.’

The realization struck.

‘...This guy must’ve been the original cult leader from the earlier loops.’

"Oh no! Did he lose the role to you, Soleum?"Admittedly, that seemed to be the case.

‘The smooth flow of these 14 loops must’ve created this kind of anomaly.’

Still, it was far better than a scenario where he led passengers into madness, ripping out organs for sacrifices and throwing empty shells through the windows.

The important thing was that the majority of volunteers descended to the altar with calm determination.

"Here we go."

"See you all when we’re better people!"

"We can do it!"

The atmosphere was unexpectedly uplifting. Some passengers even shed tears while waiting their turn.

"This is my first time challenging myself like this..."

"That’s incredible!"

Amid the heartfelt encouragement, I glanced at someone who stood apart from the crowd.

Baek Saheon.

His face was sour, as if he couldn’t care less about the scene unfolding around him.

“...Why are you looking at me like that? I’m not jumping."**

"Fair enough."

I hadn’t expected him to.

"Although..."

Baek Saheon lowered his voice slightly.

"If you gave me a painkiller, I might consider it."

"Oh, you’d use it now?"

"No, after this whole thing is over."

"Ah...."

I chuckled.

"No, thanks."

"......."

Freeloader.

‘Trying to scrounge up free items, huh.’

"We’re approaching the fifth altar, Pioneer!"

"Alright. I’m on my way."

Leaving Baek Saheon behind, I returned to the volunteers, offering advice and applause as they prepared themselves.

As the Silver Heart Owner, I did everything I could to guide them.

After about three hours, we finally reached the ninth altar.

"......."

The final moment had arrived.

"Let’s do this."

"Yes."

The remaining volunteers gathered together.

There were more than twenty of them.

‘This is insane.’

Honestly, I was scared.

If they started writhing in pain and turned their anger on me, I wasn’t sure I could handle it.

"Here we go!"

"One, two—jump!"

Without hesitation, two or three people at a time clasped hands and leapt out the window.

I stayed behind, watching until the last of the volunteers jumped. Then I approached the window myself.

"Are you really going to jump, Pioneer?"

Technically, the loop would clear even if I didn’t.

But still...

"Ah, will you be using the marvelous painkiller again, my friend?"......

‘No.’

I tucked the painkiller back into my pocket.

And then I threw myself through the window.

Splat.

My body tumbled onto the dark, blood-soaked ground of the altar.

The moment my senses registered the environment....

‘Shit.’

This was hell.

Even though I’d seen it before, the grotesque horror was overwhelming without the numbing effect of the Happy Maker.

Rotting flesh, pulsating like worms, created waves across the ground. The stench of blood and filth was suffocating.

The flesh moved.

‘Does this cause hallucinations? No... I have the silver ring... I’m fine... just stop thinking. Stop thinking.’

I steadied my breathing, letting the ring’s resistance take effect.

But then the pain struck.

"...!!"

A burning sensation engulfed my entire body.

Agony.

AGONY.

A-G-O-N-Y.

Each letter felt like molten wax searing my flesh.

Even without the voice in my head, the pain was unbearable.

Around me, those who could still hear it...

"This is insane! INSANE!"

"Aaaagh!"

"What’s it saying? Sins? What sins?!"

Screams and wails filled the altar as people staggered, tripped, and fell.

Nearby, someone collapsed entirely, sinking into the mire of flesh. I gritted my teeth and hauled them up.

"Ghhh..."

‘Painkiller.’

My only thought was to inject the Happy Maker into them. As I propped them up, I suddenly noticed something.

The pain in my back and shoulders—where we were touching—had lessened.

‘...Wait!’

It wasn’t gone entirely, but the contact between us seemed to shield those areas from the altar’s effects.

"Everyone! Stay close! If we touch, the pain lessens!"

I grabbed another person, throwing an arm over their shoulder like a lifeline.

My voice carried through the chaos.

"Don’t leave your skin exposed! That’s where the sound gets you!"

"Hold hands! Stay together!"

Slowly, scattered individuals formed clusters, clinging to one another like penguins huddling for warmth.

Of course, not everyone made it.

Some, unable to keep their composure, flailed and sank into the mire.

One passenger, still chasing the illusion of “special abilities,” pointed an accusing finger at me before disappearing into the flesh.

But the majority—more than twenty people—banded together.

"It’s working!"

"We can do this...!"

"Keep moving! Toward the light!"

By holding onto each other, they minimized the pain.

Hands clenched tightly, they stomped through the sea of rotting flesh, scattering it with every step.

Amid the screams and shouts, voices of encouragement began to rise.

"Almost there!!"

The light grew closer, steadily but surely.

A little further.

A little more...

And then, finally—

"Ah...."

They leapt into the light, their cries of pain transforming into cheers of triumph.

"Wooooo!!"

As the radiance enveloped me, a strange sense of euphoria overtook my mind.

The voice was gone.

But a thought lingered.

Perhaps this ghost story’s trial had never been “solved” properly until now.

And maybe, just maybe...

If every passenger on this train jumped together and endured this process...

They’d reach the fabled Tamna.

***

I opened my eyes.

“Ack!”

“Ugh....”

“What... what’s going on?”

The sound of sharp intakes of breath and low groans filled the air.

Around me, people jolted awake, startled, their chairs creaking as they sat upright, disoriented.

I immediately looked up at the train display.

The screen flickered briefly before the words shifted:

Mokpo-bound.

Then:

Departure.

Beep!

With a lively whistle, the high-speed train began to pull out of the station.

“Oh, looks like we made it back safely!”

“...Yes.”

We’d escaped.

I let out a long, shaky breath and collapsed into my seat, all the tension draining from my body.

But the moment I looked ahead, my nerves tensed up again.

‘...Jin Nasol.’

The Deputy sat there, arms crossed, staring at the ceiling of the train, her expression completely unreadable.

Sure, everything had turned into "just a dream," and she hadn’t jumped during the final altar. Her lingering anger probably wasn’t as intense as it could’ve been.

But still...

‘Better safe than sorry.’

I quickly rummaged through my pocket and pulled out something to appease my efficiency-obsessed, perpetually exhausted superior.

All three of us had one, after all. It was...

“Deputy.”

“.......”

“The Dreamcatcher is full.”

The translucent, golden liquid shimmered as it sloshed gently inside the small container.

Yes.

We’d been on a work trip, so naturally, we’d brought Dreamcatchers with us. Since we’d cleared the ghost story, they had filled up.

‘If this had been the old Iksan train, it probably would’ve been an F or D grade....’

But with the anomaly’s escalation, the extended route, and the countless sacrifices at the altars, our final result was...

“C grade.”

The same grade as the darkness we’d intended to investigate in Mokpo.

Since the Dreamcatcher was already full, there was no point in entering another anomaly.

For the first time, an expression returned to Jin Nasol’s face.

“So we don’t have to go to Mokpo anymore. Let’s disembark at the next station.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

Relief washed over me as I exhaled deeply.

‘Thank goodness.’

For office workers, the greatest gift is finishing the job early.

Then, from behind me, I heard quiet murmurs.

“Hey, I had the weirdest dream. The train was running underwater.”

“What? That’s bizarre. Sounds like nonsense.”

“No, but it was exciting. There was chaos, and this saintly person showed up. They called them the ‘Pioneer,’ and they were sitting right in front of us!”

“Oh, really?”

“...!”

Wait.

It seemed my stint as a pseudo-cult leader had left a strong impression on some passengers.

‘I’d better get out of here.’

After quickly excusing myself from my colleagues, I discreetly headed for the restroom to lay low.

Click.

“Phew.”

Right.

I’d wait here for a few minutes until the details of the “dream” faded from everyone’s memory.

“You’re like a celebrity avoiding rabid fans, Soleum.”The comparison was embarrassingly accurate.

Still, this wasn’t a bad outcome.

‘No, it’s an excellent ending.’

A faint sense of pride welled up in my chest.

...Unlike the nightmare the passengers of the original Iksan train had faced.

‘That ending was horrific.’

It was so devastating, so burned into memory, that even without reading the Wiki entry, I could recall every detail vividly.

At one point, after countless loops, the passengers’ sanity shattered completely. Their collective madness escalated beyond humanity, turning the train cars into hellscapes.

By then, any notion of calculating the proper number of sacrifices for the altars had become impossible amidst the chaos and agony.

But, as with any anomaly, probability dictated that “the correct answer” would eventually arise by chance.

After endless restarts and untold years, they finally managed to match the required numbers and jump through all nine altars.

They escaped.

Yet...

‘In a sense, they didn’t.’

Those who had experienced the sacrifice described waking up feeling haunted, as if by a lingering nightmare.

But after hundreds—thousands—of loops?

‘They could never escape the nightmare.’

Even when the phenomenon ended and they returned to reality, they didn’t recognize it.

Believing they were still trapped in the loop, they spiraled further into madness.

Their despair, compounded by the slight recovery of their mental faculties, drove them to even greater extremes.

Reality became the new hell.

The passengers tore each other apart in their seats, in the aisles, and at the windows.

The chaos culminated in the train derailing...

And exploding.

That was the grim conclusion of the “Tamna-bound High-Speed Train Incident.”

Survivors: 7

Casualties: 404

It hadn’t come to that.

I let out a sigh of relief.

Finally, with everything over, I had time to wonder about something.

■■■ Deputy.

The only employee from Baekil Co. who had survived the original incident.

The person who had presumably traded three silver rings to purchase this one from the Death Market.

Where had they been?

‘Well, they must’ve been here... right?’

I wasn’t sure.

Aside from Baek Saheon, I hadn’t seen any other company employees on this train.

And honestly, I hadn’t wanted to draw unnecessary attention by going out of my way to find them.

‘Either way, it’s fine. If they were here, they made it out safely too.’

What mattered was that this train hadn’t descended into tragedy.

Bang, bang, bang!

Ah.

‘Time to leave.’

Someone was knocking on the restroom door, clearly impatient.

I jotted down a few notes about the past 14 loops on my phone, splashed cold water on my face, and stepped out.

Click.

The waiting passenger rushed past me into the restroom without a word.

‘Guess they were in a hurry.’

I turned to head back to my seat when—

Swish.

"You bastard."

I froze.

A box cutter slashed through the air, narrowly grazing my chest.

"...!!"

Shit!

I stumbled back, instinctively grabbing the assailant’s wrist and twisting.

Clatter!

The box cutter fell to the floor with a sharp clang. Without hesitation, I slammed the attacker to the ground.

And then I saw their face.

"You piece of shit! You think you can fool me?!"

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My blood ran cold.

‘The cult leader...!’

"You lied to us! You deserve to die!"

I pinned them down, sweat pouring from my brow.

This was the same passenger who had failed at the ninth altar, left behind in the muck.

‘This lunatic....’

"You liar! Liar! I’ll kill you, you bastard!"

I slammed them against the floor again, the impact silencing them with a dull thud.

Panting, I wiped the sweat from my hands.

‘They must’ve gone insane from the ordeal.’

Given their already poor character, they’d likely endured an especially harrowing punishment.

Still, it had only been a nightmare. For them to act out like this... their temper must’ve been irreparably volatile.

At least I hadn’t been injured.

Why?

‘...Because I wrapped myself in armor.’

Expecting the possibility of another ghost story dragging me in, I’d prepared before the trip, layering protective material under my clothes.

It was alien-shop-grade stuff: "Packing Film 12B357."

Considering I’d received a death warning, it had been a sensible precaution.

‘Though I didn’t think it’d save me from a knife attack by a lunatic.’

Could this have been the foretold death I’d just avoided?

‘What do you think, Brown?’

......

No response.

"Brown?"

A chilling realization crept up my spine.

The box cutter had slashed my chest.

While it hadn’t reached my skin, it had cut through the outer layer of my clothing.

In the pocket of my jacket...

“Brown?”

Still no answer.

With trembling hands, I reached into my pocket and pulled out the plush toy.

Thud.

Stuffing spilled out onto the floor.

The pink fabric, now shredded, dangled lifelessly.

“......”

I stared, frozen, at the torn remains of the keychain.