Chapter 148: Ch 148: More and more
Daydream Inc.
A pharmaceutical company known for the improbable achievement of mass-
producing potions with wish-granting properties.
The raw materials consist of ghost stories.
...That was all the <Dark Exploration Records> had to say when the
company was first introduced.
Because there were no detailed explanations, it sparked more imagination.
The bizarre technology, the mystique, the cruelty, the blanks. All of it felt
chilling.
But as the wiki grew, so did the breadcrumbs.
’Backstories started getting attached.’
Of course, even Daydream Inc. couldn’t have just fallen out of the sky with
perfect, unknown pharmaceutical tech.
Even if it seemed that way on the surface, digging deeper should allow you
to deduce its origins and history... because that’s what made it exciting and
fun.
Eventually, as time passed, meaningful exploration logs were added here
and there throughout the Dark Exploration Records, and readers began
forming and theorizing several conspiracies about Daydream Inc.
—What even is Daydream Inc.?
And the place I had just visited... was evidence for Conspiracy Theory No.
2.
Conspiracy Theory No. 2 : Daydream Inc. was not originally a
pharmaceutical company.
The original source of Daydream Inc.’s pharmaceutical technology.
"...Huu."
I swallowed hard and began to look around the Dream Incubation Room.
The dust-covered lab looked like a disused school science room, or a
decrepit lab abandoned after the end of the world.
Everything looked dead.
Worktables and experimental equipment.
Beakers and cabinets filled with unidentified liquids.
And... a massive device at the center.
"..."
The lights were off, and beneath an empty glass tube sat a button panel and
keyboard was an old-style experimental machine straight out of the 2000s.
Dream Incubator
And beside it was an experimental logbook.
It was the same one mentioned in the exploration records.
I opened the worn pages and began to read it.
Every single page.
All the clean handwriting that must have once filled the log had been
deliberately and thoroughly obliterated.
Filth, blood, ink, and pencil markings covered every surface, drenched in
cramped scribbles of madness and screams...
"Uurp."
I dropped the logbook like I was throwing it away and gasped for breath.
’I thought I could handle it.’
I couldn’t.
You’d think that I would at least try to restore the text buried below, but I
gave up right away. And it wasn’t because this was some plot device like in
the <Dark Exploration Records> where information would be blocked
purposefully to build suspense. It’s just that, I physically could not.
It was simply unbearable.
"..."
I remembered now.
These were the responses provided by an employee who, by sheer accident,
succeeded in conducting trades in the ’Faceless Market’—an underground
exchange located within a manhole—without disclosing his employment
status, during the company’s internal interrogation.
Assistant Manager ■■■ : Yes! I was the one who discovered it. The machine
looked old, but it still seemed to function properly. There also seemed to
have been classified documents on Dream Essence potions and a few
certain Darknesses. I was afraid it might fall into outsider hands, so I
quickly... pardon?
Assistant Manager ■■■ : ...You’re saying that facility doesn’t belong to
our company? ...Wait, so it wasn’t contaminated by a Darkness, but it’s
because the company... W-Wait, why are you pointing that at m—
...That record ended with the company successfully ’cleaning up’ the
anonymous employee.
"..."
A chill crawled down my spine.
Something ominous was hanging in the silence of the lab. I wanted to turn
around and run out of there right away...
’No!!’
Time to move to the next step.
Gritting my teeth, I looked behind the machine.
There was a standard office desk with a data-entry PC, and beneath the
chair... something heavy had rolled onto the floor.
A corpse.
I already knew, but I still gasped.
The body, as if it had just fallen from the desk, was dried up and lifeless
like it had died long ago, which somehow made it even more disturbing.
But I understood what had happened.
Analysis results indicated that the body’s motor functions had ceased five
years prior.
Given the circumstances, it is presumed that only vital signs were somehow
sustained.
It was the final researcher of this incubator, forcibly kept alive until the note
at the Faceless Market was passed to someone else.
The owner of the hand I had traded with.
"..."
From the corpse’s left hand, which was missing its pinky finger, I retrieved
the custom equipment coin I’d paid with.
Then, I carefully picked up the card key hanging around its neck.
Researcher Yoo Kwe
■■■
Scrawled in ruined ballpoint ink above the smudged-out name was a phrase:
’Can’t let them find out.’
But I could still make out the first syllables of the name.
"...Yoo Kwe?"
Something flashed through my mind reflexively, But I pushed it down, for
now.
"...Huu."
If I searched this space further, I felt like I might uncover more of
Daydream Inc.’s hidden backstory or origins.
’But who knows what might jump out...’
Even just the lab journal from earlier had given me a weird feeling.
’For now, I’ll only touch what’s already been verified.’
I returned to the central device labeled ’Dream Incubator’.
While there were no detailed operation logs in the <Dark Exploration
Records>, it had clearly stated: ’Though it looks like an old prototype, it
appears to be in proper working condition.’
All that remained was to piece together what was needed.
"Huu."
First, I picked up the card key I had retrieved from the dead researcher.
Then, feeling along the surface of the ’Dream Incubator’, I found a slot
located on the outer front panel.
’Here, maybe.’
I inserted the card key into the slot.
Ziiiiing—
"...!"
The machine lit up with red and blue lights.
A huge experimental device glowing as if it were the only living thing in
this decrepit old lab.
And then, The glass tube mounted at the top.
’Is something inside?’
There seemed to be some kind of round object set at the center of the glass
chamber.
’That might be the core component.’
In any case, the Dream Incubator had successfully reactivated.
Along with a number displayed on a small panel next to the glass tube.
DE 0000000
Time for the next step.
I opened a valve at the end of a small pipe connected to the side of the glass
tube.
Inside, there was an oddly shaped recess.
’...This is it.’
I reached into my coat and pulled out the item I had prepared, Something
I’d held onto ever since pulling it from a merch box, never able to use it no
matter the situation.
It was said to lose its effectiveness if exposed to air due to oxidation, so I
hadn’t even dared to touch it.
—Dream Essence, A-grade or higher.
A shimmering golden potion, like a hologram, contained within a Dream
Essence Collector designed for Daydream Inc.’s elite teams.
...I could finally use it what I had charged up during my escape from
Braun’s Late-Night Talk Show.
I fit the sharp end of the collector into the recess on the end of the pipe.
Thunk.
It clicked in perfectly, almost like a lie.
And then... the essence began to flow in.
"...!"
The dazzling, prismatic fluid filled the pipe and began to pour into the
transparent glass chamber. It was almost overwhelming to look at.
’Was it really that much?’
From what I remembered, it had only been stored in a palm-sized cylinder.
Yet somehow, it filled a quarter of the chamber with a soft swish.
As the golden glow filled the glass, the object inside briefly revealed its
silhouette.
’...An egg?’
Something scarlet, the size of five chicken eggs.
It seemed to pulse, and inside, a strange form flickered for a moment.
But then it was completely submerged in the luminous liquid, vanishing
from view.
And then...
DE 0000001
The number on the panel increased.
Accompanied by the hum of machinery, the number rapidly climbed...
DE 00158313
And stopped there.
"Huu."
Success.
’I’ve charged the Dream Essence into the machine...!’
The number, oddly reminiscent of welfare points, made me wonder. Could
Daydream Inc.’s entire point system have originated from this?
Not that it mattered now.
What mattered was that everything had gone exactly as I’d planned.
All that was left was to use it.
"..."
I turned my attention to the buttons below the panel.
...They were emojis.
🥰🥸🤯🧐🤪🥱
Out of the dozens available, only these few were properly lit.
’Maybe I don’t have enough materials?’
Or maybe it was a limitation of the machine itself, I couldn’t be sure.
Either way, I thought carefully and clicked the one that seemed the safest
and most useful.
🥰🥸🤯🧐🤪🥱
The ’observant’ emoji with a silly face.
The button lit up...
DE 00158313
DE 00148313
The number decreased, and the machine activated.
Oooooong!
With a motor-like sound, the liquid inside the glass chamber was sucked
downward.
The vibrations of the machine made my whole body tremble slightly, and
then...
Clunk.
The lower section of the machine opened, and a cylindrical, transparent
glass bottle emerged.
"...!!"
I picked it up with a trembling hand.
A bright purple liquid, shimmering with an eerie radiance, swirled inside
the bottle.
Even the label was printed on graph paper
Detective Syrup for Kids
(Cherry Flavor)
★★★
A familiar color.
And just from the emoji and name, I could guess, Daydream Inc.’s detection
potion...!
Detection Potion
: When consumed, it illuminates what you need most at the present moment.
Judging from the color, it looked to be at least C-grade.
The name was different, but I was sure the effect would be similar.
But what made it even more interesting was this...
’This potion was discontinued.’
Right.
It was a potion no longer produced by Daydream Inc. Naturally, that meant
it was also unavailable for purchase through the employee welfare mall.
At this point, it might very well be an item that can only be obtained
through this prototype device...!
’I definitely charged over 150,000 points into it.’
Since this potion had consumed 10,000 points, I could try pressing all the
remaining emoji buttons.
’Alright, then next I’ll—’
At that moment.
The panel’s display changed.
06 / 23:59:54
And the entire lighting of the ’Dream Incubator’ dimmed, as if entering a
power-saving mode.
’...A cooldown countdown?’
Usable once per week.
A limitation befitting a prototype.
"Huu."
Honestly, it was a relief. If I’d gotten too excited and started pressing
buttons at random, I might have wasted all that precious Dream Essence I’d
just charged.
’Let’s think it through a bit more.’
I decided to examine the powered-down machine more closely.
Outwardly, it was a dull, ordinary hunk of metal, so I focused on the user
interface instead.
Especially the buttons.
’Each of these must correspond to a potion.’
I looked through the emojis. A mask, a demon, a thermometer, money, and
other various icons. I could guess how these would match specific
Daydream Inc. potions.
Except for one thing.
’...I don’t see one that looks like a Wish Ticket.’
Of course.
The emoji resembling the quintessential potion—the one considered the
very core of Daydream Inc.—was nowhere to be found.
’...Maybe this?’
I noticed a strange trace at the very bottom.
◎
It looked like the space where a button used to be had been forcibly gouged
out.
"...Can’t say for sure."
The ghost-story setting wasn’t forgiving enough to go poking around based
on hopeful speculation.
’...Maybe another employee could figure something out?’
If I brought someone who’d been at the company longer than me, I might
be able to safely uncover more hints here.
Of course, sharing unnecessary secrets might put both of us in danger...
’Still, there might be someone who wouldn’t care about that.’
I thought about a few candidates, then stopped myself.
Now that I’d taken on the role of a corporate spy, that kind of move was out
of the question. And in any case, by the time this whole spy job was over,
I’d already have the Wish Ticket in hand.
’Put it on hold.’
For now, I could be satisfied with the fact that I’d secured a personal use for
the Dream Essence.
I packed the ’Detective Syrup for Kids’ and stepped outside.
"Huu."
The yield was big, so I didn’t feel too bad.
But as I looked back at the manhole cover, I started to feel a bit uneasy.
Agent Choi had taken the note.
’Could he deduce the location like I did and show up?’
Or maybe he was already tracking my movements?
But there was no way to trace which manhole I’d exited from, and even if
he had the note, it would be hard to break the code while stuck in the
mindset of ’this is obviously ghost-story related’.
Even in the <Dark Exploration Records>, it took a former Daydream Inc.
employee three months to crack the cipher after obtaining it.
And that was purely by chance.
’If your thought process is stuck in this must be ghost-related, then... yeah,
it’s inevitable.’
Still, just in case, I decided to take a temporary precaution.
"I think this’ll do."
After taking a 3,000-point potion I’d purchased from the welfare mall, I
closed the manhole cover.
Gatekeeper Potion
: The first door you close after taking this potion can only be opened by
someone to whom you personally disclose the door’s location.
I think it was also called the Secret Potion.
It vaguely reminded me of something Director Ho had done, which
annoyed me a little. But the relief outweighed the discomfort.
"Alright."
There weren’t any ridiculous worldbuilding elements like ’Daydream Inc.
tracks all potion usage locations,’ so this was enough to feel moderately
safe.
Now all that was left... was to return to the bureau and enter another ghost
story, huh?
I dragged my feet on the way back to the hospital room, grumbling to
myself.
’My life, seriously...’
Still, from now on there’d be a bonus income from going into ghost stories.
Since I could collect Dream Essence.
Not to hand over to the company, but for my own use!
"Let’s hang in there."
I gave the elite-team Dream Essence collector, soon to be in use again, a
quick pat, and successfully returned to my hospital room.
* * *
A few days later.
"...You’ve done well."
"N-No, not at all."
I was finally discharged and returned to temporary agent duties.
"As mentioned before, you’ve been assigned to a general operations role,
not to the Dispatch & Rescue Unit."
Thank you...!
I almost cried while listening to Agent Bronze’s briefing.
"...This time, the work won’t be as dangerous. Civilian rescues are already
completed, and you’ll just be wrapping things up on site."
Everything was beautiful.
Yeah, people need to do some low-stress jobs from time to time...
"For this assignment, all you need to do is drive at 2 a.m. with a ghost in the
passenger seat."
"..."
Excuse me, what?