Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work-Chapter 137

Go Yeong-eun was my calm and collected peer.

That much, I knew for sure. Even when we first woke up in that insane subway during the entrance test, or later when we escaped that deranged art exhibit pulling out visitors’ eyes, her composure had never wavered.

But now, as she stood on the stairs leading to the infamous “fourth floor” of this cursed mart...

“She’s a person, right?”

The student’s trembling voice cut through my thoughts.

Too calm.

Go Yeong-eun didn’t flinch, didn’t react to the student’s scream or question. Her pale face remained expressionless.

She stood there, silent, looking down at us from the stairs.

Wait.

...She’s standing on the stairs?

Hold on!

Didn’t the door to the third floor disappear as soon as someone climbed those stairs? Wouldn’t that mean she couldn’t return on her own?

If so...

When did she even get here?

No, more importantly—

Why is she here in the first place?

Go Yeong-eun could very well be one of the two missing agents mentioned earlier. In fact, the “two agents” detail itself had been a clue. Disaster Management Bureau agents typically operated either solo or as part of a team.

A pair often implied a senior-junior dynamic.

But why?

Why would a rookie agent be alone, standing on the stairs to the fourth floor, the center of this ghost story?

Without her senior.

For at least a week.

Trapped on these stairs.

“...”

A chill ran down my spine.

I spoke, cautiously.

“Agent?”

No response.

“Yeong-eun?”

She opened her mouth.

“Welcome to Lucky Mart!”

I immediately pulled the student behind me and gripped the door.

“Agent.”

“Thank you for shopping with us!”

The figure on the stairs began to stumble down toward us.

It was Go Yeong-eun.

Or rather... something wearing her face, moving like a Lucky Mart employee.

Shit...!

I almost flung the door open and pulled the student through but hesitated.

The sound.

I didn’t hear the signature creaking footsteps.

...And her clothes. She wasn’t wearing an employee uniform. She still had her agent gear on.

Which meant...

Contamination?

I reevaluated the figure carefully.

Her form was unmistakably human, coming down the stairs with awkward but deliberate steps.

“Keep your hand on the door handle.”

“W-what?!”

I darted forward.

As she stepped onto the landing, I tackled her, pinning her down.

“...!!”

“Welcome to—”

She was still human.

If that was the case...!

With one hand holding her down by the shoulder, I reached into the tattoo on my wrist and pulled out a Blue Soda Churro.

Forcing it into her open mouth was awkward, but I managed.

“!”

She didn’t resist. She just kept muttering the same lines, her jaws moving automatically.

But that was enough to crush the churro, bits of it slipping down her throat.

I watched, sweating bullets, as the snack worked its way through her system.

Moments later—

“BLERGH!”

Go Yeong-eun retched violently, expelling a torrent of dark liquid.

I patted her back as best as I could, watching in grim fascination as the black water pooled on the landing.

It wasn’t the overwhelming volume I’d seen during my time on Brown’s talk show, but it was still enough to startle the student into a panicked retreat.

Finally, after one last heave, she collapsed, her strength spent.

“Haah... Haaah...”

“Agent.”

I called out to her.

“...”

Her unfocused eyes shifted toward me.

Then her pupils contracted, trembling wildly.

“N-Noru...”

Her mind had returned.

Enough for her to respond to the term “agent” and address me by my alias, as dictated by ghost story protocol.

Good.

“AAAHHH!”

“...?!”

Suddenly, she screamed and scrambled to crawl back up the stairs.

I grabbed her before she could move too far.

“W-Wait, this cursed mart! Even the hallucinations are so real—ugh!”

“...”

“I’m not falling for this. You’re dead, Noru. You’re already dead—”

Oh. Right.

“Excuse me, but I’m not dead, Agent.”

“...?!”

“I’ve been assigned to the same mission as you.”

“...?!”

It took over thirty minutes to convince her that I was alive and well, that I had been reassigned as a spy, despite her believing I’d died during my month-long disappearance in another ghost story.

“Th-thank you... You really saved me.”

“It’s nothing.”

Once she calmed down, Go Yeong-eun quickly pieced together our current situation using the details I provided.

Explaining things to the student without accidentally revealing sensitive information had been much more challenging.

I stared at the now-empty churro wrapper in my hand, feeling a strange mix of awe and disbelief.

This churro... It’s incredible.

During the chaos of Brown’s late-night talk show, I hadn’t had time to appreciate how powerful it was. But seeing it cleanse contamination in one go was absurd.

A miracle item. Almost too good for the world we’re in.

Still, escaping this cursed mart took priority.

Having another person around—especially someone competent—was a huge morale boost.

First things first.

I stepped aside to ensure Go Yeong-eun could clearly see the door leading back to the third-floor mart.

“Can you see the exit?”

“...Yes.”

She nodded.

“Technically, I can’t see the door itself, but I can see light spilling through the crack. If someone opens it, I think I could leave.”

“Good.”

Relief washed over me.

But then Go Yeong-eun raised a hand to her face, covering her eyes.

“Not that it matters. I can’t leave the mart anyway.”

“...What?”

“I damaged merchandise.”

“...!”

“That’s not all. My senior agent destroyed something, and I think they lumped me in with them.”

I hesitated before asking.

“...Where is your senior agent now?”

“Dead.”

“...”

“Or so I assume. They went up the stairs.”

She gestured toward the fourth floor.

“They were here looking for a family member who’d disappeared. Their last trace led to the fourth floor... So they planned to go in from the start.”

She sighed, voice tinged with bitterness.

“Honestly, what were they thinking? If they wanted to die, they could’ve done it alone. But no, they had to drag me into this and—oh.”

“...”

“Anyway, when they opened the door to the fourth floor, I just sat here and covered my ears. Didn’t matter. I still heard it.”

The jingle.

Not long after, she’d begun to turn.

“...”

“Agent...”

“Call me Grape.”

“Okay, Agent Grape.”

Go Yeong-eun rubbed her face before lifting her head. Her expression was composed, as if she’d made peace with something.

“Since I’m a lost cause anyway, I’ll be a decoy so you two can get out. I almost starved to death here after being contaminated, so—”

“No.”

I interrupted her, stepping back to push the student forward.

“Uh, Agent?”

“Instead, could you help us? His ankle is injured.”

“Oh.”

We convinced the terrified student to spit out the candy temporarily.

Then I handed Go Yeong-eun a first aid kit, and she went to work with a level of professionalism that put my clumsy attempts to shame.

“Wait, if I eat the candy again, won’t it make this unnecessary?!”

“For now, just keep it on,” I reassured him.

Once his ankle was secured, I pulled out another distraction.

“Let’s eat this first.”

“...!! Food!”

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The student’s eyes lit up as I produced instant meals.

In a matter of minutes, the three of us had devoured the food.

Finally, I can eat. It’s not the mart anymore.

Unlike the food court, where we’d been limited to “safe” options, I could finally use my supplies.

I chose items with mild smells to avoid unnecessary risks, but I couldn’t recall a time I’d eaten so quickly.

After guzzling a sterilized milk carton in seconds and inhaling a castella cake, I finally felt human again.

Sustenance at last.

Afterward, I put the student to sleep.

I also wanted to collapse and sleep for a few hours, but talking with my equally exhausted colleague took priority.

We shared the information we had and chatted a bit to mentally recharge.

"You’re always so prepared, Agent... uh, Grape. Meanwhile, I brought something as useless as a floor plan of the mart."

“It turned out to be so vague and patchy because the third floor is too vast,” murmured Go Yeong-eun bitterly.

“I even brought some coins from other Darkness Zones, just in case, but they don’t seem to be accepted as currency here...”

Wait a moment.

“You have a floor plan?”

“Yes, the exploration team always includes them in the supplies. ...It’s meant for investigating unexplored areas.”

“Could you show it to me?”

“Of course.”

Go Yeong-eun pulled a thick, neatly folded pamphlet-like piece of paper from her small backpack.

The printed building layout was covered in handwritten notes and drawings in various colors.

‘...These are the annotations of Disaster Management agents.’

“......”

As I stared at it, almost entranced, one particular location caught my eye.

A specific store was clearly marked.

Do not go here. It’s a suicidal move to think this is worth it. Seriously, don’t.

“Agent.”

“Yes?”

“That ‘currency’ you mentioned earlier.”

“Oh, yes.”

“It seems like we can acquire it.”

I resisted the urge to point directly at the spot on the map, aware it might scare her off or make her hesitant.

Instead, I explained.

“There’s a store marked here on the map you gave me. There’s a hint there.”

“......”

Go Yeong-eun took a deep breath and shook her head.

“I’m sorry, but I have to disagree. The third floor is too large. I don’t know how long it will take to get there, and I’m terrified of how much time we’d waste just finding our way back to this staircase.”

Sweat glistened on her otherwise calm face.

She looked like she was doing her {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} best to hide her fear.

“You can go there after the store reopens for business. For now, I’d rather wait for rescue... unless we have some item to fend off the employees or mitigate the danger.”

Well.

“Now we do.”

“...!”

“Remember? It’s something you’ve used before.”

For the first time in a while, I reached into the tattooed inventory on my arm and pulled out an item.

Something that could now be used because we had exactly three party members, meeting the recommended number.

Something we didn’t need to worry about upsetting any Bronze Agents with.

[Quick and Easy Candle-Making Kit]

Holding the box labeled Mystical Candle Kit, I smiled faintly, genuinely, for the first time in three days.

“Let’s make candles again.”

The candles that had proven instrumental during our escape from the Mansion of the Blind were finally ready to shine once more.

***

The dark staircase landing.

Three people huddled together, crouched on the floor.

I spread out the black sheet included in the box and drew intricate patterns on it, carefully following the instructions for candle-making.

I then invited the others.

“Let’s draw cards.”

“Huuu...”

“Wow...”

Go Yeong-eun and the high school student each drew a card at random after examining their backs.

These cards would determine the attributes of the candles.

[Confusion]

[Dream]

‘Not bad.’

The sequence of attributes was decent. ...Strangely, it also seemed to mirror their current mental states.

Finally, it was my turn to choose the last card. I flipped over the remaining options, revealing keywords like Honor, Healing, Meditation, Wounds, Deceit, Anger, Interference, Protection, Strike, and Gaze.

‘Last time, I picked Deceit.’

Using the keywords Honor, Interference, and Deceit, we had fooled the exhibition’s security systems and pretended to be paying visitors.

‘This time...’

I chose without hesitation.

[Protection]

The card depicted two hands tenderly cupping a glowing lavender crystal orb.

I burned the three completed cards into ashes, carefully layering the residue onto the outlined candle design I’d drawn with crayon, then folded the sheet over.

Exactly as I’d done before.

And after waiting a while.

“It’s done.”

“Wow...”

The soft, navy-blue candle rolled out of the folded paper and into my hands.

Of course, I couldn’t use it myself, and the injured high school student living off nostalgia was definitely not an option.

Fortunately, we had someone with experience.

I handed the candle to Go Yeong-eun.

“I’ll leave this to you again.”

“...Understood.”

Go Yeong-eun took the completed candle.

“This time, I’ll handle it more properly.”

There was a peculiar determination in her tone.

As she held the candle, it ignited with a steady flame.

The bearer of this candle shall gain protection and be able to confront chaotic entities, inducing dreams as they approach.

The flame illuminated the misty visitor in the distance.

“Ah...”

I stepped behind Go Yeong-eun with the high school student, recalling how Brown’s lighting had once shielded us. But this light was cooler and lighter.

It was as though a cold mist had wrapped itself around us, following the candle’s glow.

“......”

We opened the door and stepped onto the third floor.

Though we should have stood out in the dimly lit store, we blended into the shadows, as if veiled by a shroud of mist.

Then, we encountered a staff member.

“Eek.”

I quickly covered the high school student’s mouth as the employee approached with creaking steps.

“......”

It brushed past us without a glance.

“Ha...”

Go Yeong-eun exhaled heavily, a mix of relief and lingering fear.

‘It worked.’

Once again, the item from the alien shop had proven its worth.

But this time, the time limit on its use felt even stricter than it had during the exhibition incident.

“We need to move quickly. Once the candle burns out, it’s over. If we want to reuse it when the store reopens, we’ll have to be efficient.”

“Yes. Where are we going?”

“Here.”

I pointed to a location on the floor plan Go Yeong-eun had brought.

She glanced at it absently before recoiling.

“...! Wait...!”

“It’s fine. Let’s move.”

“......”

Already holding the lit candle, she couldn’t risk putting it out in a struggle.

Reluctantly, she began walking, her body language screaming protest.

‘Thank you.’

Her hesitation was understandable.

After all, our destination was...

[Flesh for Sale Lucky Mart]

This insane sign marked a bizarre event store.

Where other stores seemed to mimic past Lucky Mart event displays, these signs looked like glitches, born of errors.

In this case, dozens of grills stretched across a stark white floor.

The silence was broken only by the sizzle of something cooking.

“Eek.”

“Quiet.”

I steadied the trembling high school student by gripping their shoulder.

It wasn’t an overreaction.

“Ha...”

Displayed on a grill near the front of the event store were charred cuts of meat. Their shape unmistakably resembled familiar bipedal creatures carelessly tossed onto the grill.

...Disposed staff.

‘I think I’m going to throw up.’

But I held it back.

Above it all hung a banner.

Instant Barbecue Event! Participate live and get guaranteed gift certificates!

Gift certificates.

‘Why would anyone do this?’ read a note scrawled on the map. ‘This place draws attention, and long-missing persons who’ve been altered beyond recognition will attack you. They’re beyond saving.’

For now, though, the mist protected us, allowing us to move unnoticed.

I gently tapped Go Yeong-eun on the shoulder.

“Could you step aside for a moment? I need to stand in front of an empty grill.”

“Wait, what are you...?”

“It’s fine.”

It really wasn’t.

I desperately wished someone else would do this.

‘If this doesn’t terrify you, are you even human?’

But among my group, one had been stuck on contaminated stairs for over a week, and the other was a minor civilian.

Neither was a suitable candidate.

This was also an opportunity.

‘I need that gift certificate.’

If I wanted the currency in my hands to control its use for our escape, I had to do it myself.

‘No choice.’

I gritted my teeth.

First, I injected myself with the Happy Maker to stave off shock. My hands were trembling.

‘Stay calm. Steady.’

Then, I grabbed an item I’d swiped earlier. Struggling to stop my hands from shaking, I raised it.

A massive butcher knife.

Its sharp blade gleamed in the light.

“That’s...!”

“It’s fine. As long as we return items in pristine condition, they don’t count as purchased.”

“That’s not the point! Agent...!”

I brought the butcher knife down on my right arm.