Chapter 5: Ch 5: Special Suprises
What happens when a new hire successfully completes their probation
period, you ask?
Usually, there’s a lighthearted celebration with a gift-giving ceremony.
I didn’t expect a major corporation inside a ghost story to be the same.
[Let’s see... oh my! We have 22 successful candidates this time,
everyone! Wow, I wonder what the HR department thinks of this?]
No one is curious about that.
And I’m sure the other new hires sitting next to me feel the same.
[This is truly an amazing record. If this wasn’t a case of miscalculated
difficulty, you all are an elite group. Elites.]
The room fell into silence.
The host cheerfully continued, unfazed.
[Shall we pick out the top elite among our elite employees?]
[The top of this cohort from the Field Exploration Team! One of the
fastest to complete the evaluation and escape, and the highest scorer in
the overall assessment.]
The host raised his hand.
[Congratulations, Kim Soleum-ssi!]
Me?
[Kim Soleum-ssi, are you there?]
[The event won’t end until the gift is presented~ Come up and accept
it!]
For real?
’Why though...’
I stood up, since it would be foolish to stay seated after being given
instructions. After all, we had just been stuck in a ghost story where failing
to listen to announcements meant death.
[Ah, you’re quick to get up. That quick comprehension will serve you
well in our department. What a shame, such a shame.]
Was this a superior from another department? Somehow, that made him
even more irritating.
I stepped up onto the stage and stood in front of the host.
[Come on, take your gift!]
What the host handed me was a sharp-edged paper bag.
Inside the silver shopping bag, stamped with the Daydream Inc. logo, I
could glimpse a plaque, presumably an official certificate, along with some
other items.
[Don’t feel too bad that there’s nothing extra special for being the top
scorer.]
I wasn’t happy at all.
I accepted the bag, nodding slightly to avoid glaring at the host, and began
to head back down when...
"Take a good look inside."
What?
"What’s in—"
[Now, let’s call the next new hire!]
The host was already calling out the next person’s name on the mic, as if we
hadn’t just exchanged a few words.
"..."
Hmph.
I didn’t waste any more time and quickly left the stage.
After that, Go Yeongeun and the others who had been in our train car also
went up to receive their gifts.
It didn’t mean much, but Baek Saheon was called right after me.
"..."
"..."
He remained seated next to me afterward, not saying a word.
He didn’t even make eye contact. Judging by how he was holding his left
eye, it was clear he had ’returned’ the lost item.
’He’ll figure out how to get to a hospital.’
[Next up, Kim Jiwon-ssi!]
As more names were called, some of the people receiving their gifts looked
strangely disheveled, with odd gaits or unfocused eyes.
’...Maybe they were stuck in the ghost story for too long.’
Even though we all seemed to regain consciousness at the same time in the
lecture hall, there had clearly been a time difference between our escape
from ghost story and now.
The thought of how long some others might still be trapped made a chill run
down my spine.
At least I made it out, which is more than can be said for the other 78
people.
[Did everyone receive their gifts?]
Finally, the gift awarding ceremony ended.
There was no audible response, but a strange tension and sense of
expectation hung over the room.
Perhaps we might finally be allowed to leave.
To be honest, even I was hoping for that. It seemed like things should be
wrapping up soon.
But.
[However... this company doesn’t hire all of the candidates who pass
the probation period.]
"...?!"
[Sometimes, there are people who make it through purely by luck.]
No way.
[But Daydream Inc. is a company that never forgets the social value of
fairness.]
[Such probationary employees are penalized heavily in the final
evaluation.]
The host didn’t do anything overt.
No dramatic snap of the fingers, no ominous glance, not even the lights in
the hall dimmed.
And yet...
[As I mentioned, freeloaders are always identified.]
People started melting.
"...!"
All around, several people began to dissolve, their bodies collapsing as if
they were being smeared away.
There were no screams or movements.
’Damn it!’
The person in front of me pressed their hands over their mouth to suppress a
scream.
I hurriedly turned my head away.
But I had already seen it.
’They’re gone.’
Of the ten people from our train car, only half remained.
Me, Go Yeongeun, Baek Saheon, and the new hire who had been attacked
by Baek Saheon. Everyone else was gone.
"..."
[To the remaining 13 new employees, congratulations! You have
successfully become full-time employees with excellent results!]
Not a single person clapped out of joy.
In the chilling silence, one person, overwhelmed with panic, fumbled and
stuttered.
"I resign, I’ll resign... I want to quit."
But the host remained calm.
[Oh? Leaving such a great work opportunity? Come on, at least hear
about the benefits before deciding.]
Behind me, Go Yeongeun shouted desperately.
"So, can we quit after hearing about the benefits? Without any penalties?"
[Yes, absolutely. You can quit without a single scratch on you~]
The host’s words were smooth and confident.
That’s when I realized.
’It’s here.’
The stick had passed.
Now comes the carrot.
...The ’benefit’ I was expecting.
[Let me introduce our company’s top employee benefit!]
The reason why, after going through such a crazy experience right upon
joining, employees still stay with the Field Exploration Team.
[Employee Benefit]
Wish Ticket
Something appeared on the large screen in the lecture hall.
A beautifully sleek crystal bottle.
Plop.
Inside the bottle, a strange liquid shimmered with multicolored ripples.
It moved like waves.
The colors, textures, and rippling patterns were so beautiful and strange that
they gave off an uncanny feeling.
Silence filled the room.
[Let’s take a closer look, shall we?]
The host pressed a button, and the screen lifted, revealing a table that had
been hidden behind it.
On the black table was the same dazzling bottle from the screen.
"...!"
The liquid inside the bottle shimmered on its own, reflecting the light in the
room so brilliantly that it seemed otherworldly.
It made you question whether such a thing could even exist in reality.
[You all know Daydream Inc. is famous for being a highly successful
pharmaceutical company, yes? I mean, how advanced must our
technology be if we even developed a cure for baldness?]
[But in truth, our main product is something else... It’s this.]
The host steadied his trembling hand and put on white gloves.
Then, carefully picking up the crystal bottle from the table, he held it up for
the employees to see.
[The name of this medicine is the ’Wish Ticket’.]
[And its effect is... just as it sounds. When you drink it, any wish will come true.]
"...!"
[Don’t believe me? But we have a whole truckload of your seniors and
superiors who’ve taken this and had their wishes fulfilled.]
[Allow me to demonstrate.]
The host tore open the packaging of the bottle and downed it in one gulp!
[Today’s the day I was scheduled to receive my Wish Ticket. Haha!]
And in that moment, everyone in the lecture hall immediately knew what
the host’s ’wish’ had been.
The instant he drank the Wish Ticket.
The face of the host, who appeared to be in his mid-to-late 40s, rapidly
tightened and gained a youthful, rosy complexion.
His body became fit, and his hair grew back, shiny and thick.
He had returned.
He looked exactly like a young man in his prime, full of energy and growth!
[Yahoo!]
The host, who now looked like a high school student, raised his fist in
excitement.
[How about that? To put it simply—rejuvenation!]
Even his voice had grown young and youthful.
A stunned silence fell over the room for an entirely new reason.
It was a silence filled with disbelief.
The host pointed at the new hires in the lecture hall.
[The Field Exploration Team, your team, always gets great
performance reviews. On average, they receive the Wish Ticket in half
the time it takes other teams...]
[In fact, the ten employees who got the Wish Ticket the fastest were all
from the Field Exploration Team!]
Gulp.
Someone swallowed nervously from somewhere in the hall.
Of course, it was all wordplay.
In reality, it was no different from hazard pay.
’Before those ten, dozens, maybe hundreds of people must have died.’
So, it was more like bait—a shiny, but deceptive promise.
But still...
’There are people who’ve taken it.’
It wasn’t a scam.
[Now, let’s take some questions—oh, you there!]
One of the new hires quietly raised a hand and asked in a rough voice,
"Can it bring the dead back to life?"
It was a tall man with brown hair.
[Ah. You always hear that question in these kinds of stories, don’t you?
’The one thing that can’t be wished for’...]
[...But!]
The host raised his hand dramatically.
[The Wish Ticket will grant a-n-y wish the drinker desires.]
"...!"
[Of course, as long as you use it correctly. For detailed instructions,
please refer to the employee portal.]
"..."
The questioner fell silent again, but the unease among the new hires grew
even stronger.
The host didn’t miss the moment.
[For other benefits, please check the screen or the pamphlet included in
your gift bag... So, shall we make a decision?]
With a swift motion, the back doors of the lecture hall swung open.
[If you want to resign, please go to the desk outside and collect your
paperwork.]
[But if you’ve decided to stay with the company...]
The host gestured.
[Put on the mask that’s inside your gift bag.]
A mask? Oh.
’So, this is when they hand those out.’
[You know how ’customization’ is all the rage these days, right? The
mask is designed to express your unique personality.]
[Well... this one doesn’t have any special functions, though. That’s all
there is to it.]
I clutched my smartphone.
There were too many eyes watching to check properly, but if I could access
the page of <Dark Exploration Records> reconstructed by the ’Memorial
Popsocket’, it would probably show something like this:
========================
Dark Exploration Records / Daydream Inc.
/ Departments
Miscellaneous
Employees in the Field Exploration Team wear masks while on field
duty, which are distributed after the new hire orientation.
According to Employee D, the design of the mask is determined by the
year of hire.
For example, agents with ant masks and agents with mantis masks are
likely to have joined in the same year.
========================
In short, it’s a symbol of the ’Daydream Inc.’ Field Exploration Team.
’I can’t believe the day has come for me to receive this.’
It felt strange in many ways.
Of course, 90% of me wanted to run out of here and throw the mask aside,
screaming that I was quitting.
Please, just let me go.
’But... even if I quit, this whole universe is a mess.’
The ’dark paranormal phenomena’ are already scattered everywhere.
It’s far too easy to end up as a background extra in a ghost story and have
your life end in a rare and horrific way.
’Haa...’
It might be safer to work as an employee, collecting my paycheck, company
gear, and ultimate reward while aiming for a department transfer. My
survival chances might improve that way.
’Besides, if I want to return to my original world, that ’Wish Ticket’ seems
to be my best bet.’
Anyway, there’s no way a coward like me will survive long in this universe.
Escaping this world entirely is the only real option.
So logically, as painful as it is, if I choose the most reasonable answer...
’I have to join.’
As much as it kills me to admit it, there’s no other choice. Damn.
In the end, I swallowed my tears and opened the envelope.
I reached in to pull out the mask.
"...?"
Something else came out with it.
───
If needed
010-0153-24865
───
A business card?
The space where a name and title should be had been whited out, replaced
with scribbled text.
’...Did the host put this in here?’
I looked around, but no one else seemed to have a business card stuck to
their mask.
’I’ll deal with it later.’
I slipped the card back into the envelope and pulled out only the mask.
It was smooth to the touch, covering only until my nose—a basic mask in
shape.
The surprising part was that everyone around me was already attempting to
put their masks on.
Without a single exception.
’...Even after all that, no one’s running away?’
There was only one wildcard.
The Wish Ticket.
’Did they filter out only those who would risk their lives for the Wish
Ticket?’
As I looked around the lecture hall at the silent employees accepting their
masks, I felt a complicated mix of emotions.
We’re all about to do the same thing, after all.
’No choice, I guess.’
I brought the mask to my face.
As soon as I did, the shape of the mask began to change.
I could feel it stretching and becoming more uneven across my cheeks and
forehead...
"..."
I reached up and touched it.
A mask with antler-like horns and a bizarre wood-grain pattern had formed.
Wait, antlers?
’...Reindeer? Deer?’
It looked too strange to just be a deer.
Reluctantly, I turned to look around. Go Yeongeun, who was wearing a
sheep mask, made awkward eye contact with me.
Around us, other new hires, wearing masks resembling animals like
elephants and goats, sat stiffly in their suits.
They looked just as unsettling as you’d expect from employees working at a
company that manages ghost stories.
[Once again, congratulations on joining the company!]
Clap, clap, clap.
The slide on the PPT changed, playing a recording of applause.
[Employment Confirmed]
’So, it’s come to this...’
Just as I was starting to feel overwhelmed thinking about my future with the
company...
Flutter—
The notepad suddenly reappeared in midair.
"...!"
The same notepad that had spit out the ’Memorial Popsocket’ merch earlier.
[Dark Exploration Records Real Merch Box]
– New merch unlocked! (!)
Huh?