When I last met Jang Heoun—no, when I called him and he appeared—he was still a resort employee.
A ghost story working at a ghost-story resort.
Once human, but no longer human, a chilling being.
But what stood in front of me now...
“Um, I mean, I... huh?”
...was a person.
“Brother!”
Too human. The moment Kim Heoun met his eyes, tears streamed down, and the two threw their arms around each other.
It was the look of someone reunited with family they thought dead.
A person, in the shape of a person...
[Oh, how moving. A family reunion!]
...!
Right.
Just because someone shows natural emotion doesn’t mean they’re human.
From the start, if he were truly human, he couldn’t have appeared like this.
The person named Jang Heoun died and only the resort employee remained; that is why he could be summoned to this “leased space” I designated as a new resort site.
In other words...
Closer to “still darkness, but looks as if he’s regained his living personality”...
...How on earth?
Something—wonder or fear—ran cold down my spine.
In the meantime, having barely finished their reunion, Jang Heoun turned to me and spoke.
“Um, Mascot. Thank you...! Is this also something you did, Mascot...?”
...I silently looked at the employee, then asked:
Who
are
you?
He faltered.
“...Pardon? I, that is... Wild Ox—well... I was working at Daydream, then I, uh, became Wild Ox working at the resort.”
Who
am
I?
As if he’d caught on to something, Jang Heoun’s expression changed.
“I know that Mascot... was Noru.”
...!
“Ever since I was in the wrap-up team, I received a lot of help. ...Mascot.”
Jang Heoun swallowed.
“I... died. Right?”
......
“In that resort room, to another employee... And you saved me, Mascot, and so... surviving as an employee of Flower Golden Resort... is that right?”
That’s
right
“...Yes.”
Head bowed low, Jang Heoun soon continued in a tone that sounded a bit artificially bright.
“Um, I was definitely in a hot-spring-like place where the agents were, and there I faintly began to regain self-awareness.”
Ah.
So the effect wasn’t a total zero.
Of course, it was so slight as to be judged meaningless recovery; the kind of thing that likely made the despair of false hope even worse—my mouth went bitter at the thought.
But now expectation and tension stormed in Jang Heoun’s eyes.
“But right now my consciousness is clear. I—I... have I recovered? Is this also something you do for employees?”
At that moment Kim Heoun couldn’t hold back and spoke up, anxious.
“I also—I also want to become an employee...! Y-you brought me back here to ask me that, didn’t you? Should I sign?”
Dead, revived, not human.
Even after going through these insane occult things multiple times, the two who grew up in the Nameless Shining Church facility treated me with a strangely everyday casualness.
That birthed a bizarre chill.
And my thoughts deepened...
If you
sign,
you must
work
I pointed with a forepaw.
Here
“Here... then.”
A faint look of bewilderment tinged both figures’ faces.
An empty, bare space connected to the platform.
A small retail space not even fifteen pyeong.
For
the time
being,
here,
I can’t
leave
“...!”
Right.
With a sound mind, he can’t leave...
The moment he goes out, the living personality will vanish again and only the resort-ghost employee will remain.
In the end, it means they have to remain almost confined to this space.
In a cramped area under ten pyeong.
Sorry,
only
here,
in that
form
And if I remove this space, they’ll have to return to the resort. There they cannot exist with a living personality like this.
Silence fell for a moment.
But—
“...I’ll try staying here anyway.”
...!
“If this is part of the resort, I think it’ll be all right.”
Then, as if watching my mood, he added softly:
“Also, if I can work with my brother... I’ll be able to work more happily.”
“Y-yes, I’m used to being in tight spaces. I can do well...!”
The “Heouns” answered me as if actively appealing.
The pride I feel as a mascot seeing enthusiastic employees and the complicated feeling that Kim Soleum the human feels both seized my head at once.
And both acknowledged it.
There was only one answer right now.
Got
it
I took Kim Heoun’s signature on the employment contract.
“Then, what should I do?”
Sou ve nir
sales
At that moment—
The material of the floor and ceiling of the space I’d leased changed.
“...!”
Formal wood and golden trim.
The fittings of Flower Golden Resort.
And merchandise rose up on a wooden counter that sprang from the center.
Goods sold at the Flower Golden Resort gift shop, amenities.
And most importantly... foodstuffs.
Good Kid Chocolate Bar (Golden Edition), Flower Cookies, Garden Salad, and even hot dogs and several theme park foods with the YuKwae Theme Park logo.
[ Flower Golden Resort ]
Souvenir Pop-up Store
A substitute for Delusion Home Shopping.
Since that place got wiped out, the survivors lost a source of provisions.
Which meant the lives of the survivors on the train would get harder, and the probability of some negative impact reaching Ko Yeongeun was quite high.
So it must be replaced.
There would be risk of contamination, but I’d brought as much “edible by humans” food as possible; it should be all right.
Even if I want to sell more, or hand it out free... this is as far as it goes.
Surprisingly, even hauling this stuff here from the resort proper incurred a kind of “shipping fee.”
I have to burn through coins rapidly to transfer it.
It seemed barely possible only because this is a broadcast station and thus has some degree of “connection” to ghost stories beyond Se-gwang Special City.
I stifled a sigh.
And—
Be
careful
Trouble makers
I’ll
kick
you out
A mass-produced mascot was stationed.
Because it’s a resort zone.
As the Golden Mascot, it would perform basic functions.
Thankfully, the employees could step beyond the gold border I’d marked for ten pyeong. As long as I, the resort’s mascot, permitted it.
Hoo...
...It was at least fortunate their roaming radius widened within Afternoon Station.
[Impressive. Strictly speaking, it’s not a choice that greatly benefits the resort... but blazing a new trail has its own fun.]
[Your two employees look happy too! My, employers as good as my friend are rare.]
...That’s probably not true, but I was relieved all the same.
Hoo.
And yet, watching two dead people—ghost stories—smile, talk, and move like ordinary humans still raised a strange feeling.
How is it possible?
Chief Park Minseong or I... at least weren’t in a dead state.
And it’s not because it’s a dream. They were truly summoned into Se-gwang Special City.
Even so, to appear so human—perhaps...
The property of Se-gwang Special City...?
Wait.
—And I heard something strange. To heaven? To paradise... I think it meant something like that...
Could the disaster of Se-gwang Special City—
The YuKwae Research Laboratory’s research into “heaven” and “paradise”—
be related to this phenomenon?
Wait
here
Leaving the employees behind, I looked past the empty space marked with the rental sign.
As expected.
Like during the closure at Hanbit Library, a normal concourse connected beyond.
I passed through the concourse and headed for the opposite platform.
...!
...And at the facility there, I discovered several shocking pieces of news.
But even that shock had to be shelved in the face of the task before me. Something urgent was right in front of my nose.
Bronze Agent and Deputy Eun Haje.
Tearing up the day-labor contracts of the dead.
***
“Deputy.”
Eun Haje opened their eyes.
In front of them, their junior, face pale, was peering down at them.
“Noru.”
Eun Haje reflexively checked that their limbs were intact, then looked around with a frown.
“Are we still in Se-gwang City.”
“......”
Beside them, the stickler of a civil servant was, like them, coming to.
Which meant they were still, in a dead body, stiffly pushing themselves upright.
Frankly, it was a creepy sight.
I’ve really been through everything.
To think I’ve even tried moving as a corpse.
“I’m sorry. I...”
“What are you saying, now.”
Eun Haje flicked their junior on the forehead.
“We all agreed to go in from the start, and we were unlucky enough to take the Euthanasia Pill first. Isn’t that right, Mr. Public Servant?”
“...Yes.”
Shock lingered in the agent’s eyes, but more than that there was composure and relief.
Looks like they’re thinking it’s a relief that Soleum’s fine and the others made it out.
Same for Eun Haje themself.
Still, they asked to confirm.
“The others? I roughly heard you did some Greatest Show on Earth kind of live broadcast, and something about home shopping getting confiscated. We were sorting inventory in the warehouse.”
“Roughly similar, but not exactly a Greatest Show on Earth.... Anyway, the others got out safe.”
“Good.”
That settled it.
Eun Haje craved a cigarette, but didn’t pull one here. They couldn’t be sure a dead body could smoke.
Besides, where they were now looked like a kind of shop.
“What’s this place then?”
“Ah. It’s safe. I leased it. By a rental contract.”
Leased?
It felt bad.
Kim Soleum smiled. A human-shaped silhouette stood behind him—somehow familiar looking...
“...Agent Hwagak?”
“...!”
Ryu Jaegwan rose, trying at once to confirm the figure behind. Kim Soleum rushed up to restrain him.
“Calm down, agent.”
“What on earth is going on?”
“It’ll be better to step outside and talk.”
“Noru.”
Eun Haje deliberately wobbled their dead body a bit comically.
“We... tsk. Going out’s going to be hard.”
“No!”
Kim Soleum hastily pulled two sheets from his coat. The very day-labor employment contracts they had signed.
“I obtained your contracts. If we tear these up, you can leave...”
Then his face froze.
“Noru?”
The contract
won’t
tear.
...Why?
As Kim Soleum reeled, the realization hit him a second later.
I was too weak...!
The idea of leasing only a tiny portion of the space ultimately led to insufficient control.
He could let the hires move as if they were living people, but the authority to cancel and void the subordination itself did not lie with this leaseholder.
Because he didn’t have that much power.
But that could be solved.
You can just borrow the deposit!
“...There was a slight issue, but don’t worry. I can fix it right away. I’ll...”
“What issue?”
“......”
“I asked what issue. Podo agent.”
“...It’s probably because I contracted the lease too small. If I contract it bigger...”
“Don’t.”
“...!”
“Do not make contracts recklessly in a supernatural disaster! If you’ve already contracted it, at the very least do not increase its scope.”
Ryu Jaegwan grabbed Kim Soleum’s arm.
“You knew that too, which is why you kept it this small, didn’t you?”
“......”
“What did you do to lease this space. What price did you pay?”
“It’s really fine.”
Kim Soleum pulled his arm free.
“I handled it well. There’s also a safe way to borrow the remaining cost...”
“Are you out of your mind?!”
...Oops.
“Never, never entertain the idea of going into debt to a supernatural disaster!”
“......”
A flicker like fatigue crossed Kim Soleum’s face, then vanished, leaving a calm look.
“I already am.”
“...!”
“There won’t be much difference in the amount. So...”
“There won’t be?!”
You crazy kid!
Eun Haje hurriedly seized their junior and whispered.
“Have you ever, even once, seen a bastard who kept borrowing from a monster in the dark and became its debtor get a good ending?”
“......”
“You haven’t. You know it.”
Kim Soleum’s face clouded, then he ground his teeth.
But Eun Haje didn’t change their words.
“So leave it for now.”
“Deputy,”
“Don’t forget. Our bodies are fine outside.”
Eun Haje jabbed a thumb toward the empty air.
Out there.
“You said this was entry through a dream. Like a kind of coma.”
“......”
“Better for us, if anything. We’re already dead, so we don’t have to worry about starving or contamination.”
“What nonsense...!”
“It makes more sense than going into debt for lease costs to a ghost story, so be quiet.”
“......”
Eun Haje clapped Kim Soleum on the back.
Exchanging looks with the agent.
“Let’s think of it as... a long dream. All right?”
They knew it wasn’t, in truth.
A comatose state with the mind held dead in a nightmare ghost story? That’s practically the prelude to being processed as missing...
“Play the long game.”
But this conclusion was sincere.
***
A few hours later.
We signaled the Train Shelter entering the platform and boarded.
“Are y—!”
Ko Yeongeun, who had brightened as if she had a lot to say on seeing us, took in the sharply reduced headcount and the mood, then simply welcomed us with “You’ve worked hard.”
And I and the two companions split up to move.
Because our goals differed.
“......”
As things stood, I couldn’t just leave.
Check the next station too.
No—check as many of the YuKwae Research Laboratory facilities in the stations as possible, as fast as possible. Confirm the hidden pieces, and somehow, somehow, find a way to get people out of here...
I recalled how the two reacted when I said I was heading to the next station.
—You mustn’t!
—......
—No, I mean... please stay on the train as much as possible. If staying on the train isn’t workable, then at Afternoon Station, next to the counter—please, absolutely do not help with the work and just stay there...
—Got it.
The hand that patted my shoulder, steady.
—I’ll wedge my butt on this train somehow, so don’t worry. This old-timer will get thicker-skinned too as he goes.
—......
—I’ll find out whatever I can.
I assented to that.
If they’re on the train, they can stay whole.
Then the two would be safe.
So right now, the two had gone to see Ko Yeongeun’s aunt, who managed the back cars of this Train Shelter...
Armed with a few bribes to hand the conductor up front.
It’s okay.
And as for me, still an outsider, I decided to use what I’d bought last visit at the stall in Car 7.
—Counter for Purchasing Car 8 Lodging Ticket
“Here it is.”
The “train lodging ticket” was a transit card with a series of numbers scratched in with an awl.
I handed the item to the shelter guard posted at the door, and was allowed into Car 8.
Clatter.
With the sound of a door opening, the last car, outfitted with blankets and shabby bedding, came into view.
I let out a breath.
Just one day... let’s sleep one day and move.
So much had happened that I wasn’t sure I was making the right calls now.
Heoun and Heoun, the dead deputy and the agent, Se-gwang Special City, YuKwae Research Laboratory, paradise, talk show, resort...
I need to rest.
A human body, unlike 130666, has to eat, sleep, and rest.
Sleep first, then think again when I wake.
Instinctively I went to the spot at the very end and slid into the bedding.
But I was already asleep; piling sleep on sleep felt meaningless, and the thought churned until it only kept me awake.
So I asked:
Brown. About the people whose contracts you assumed—did they all... start work on the talk show?
[They did, Noru! Hm, a range from more or less usable hires to those barely good for errands.]
And among them would be my party.
...When my people go home, could you deliver a letter for me?
[Not a hard favor at all, Noru!]
I quickly wrote a letter where I sat.
That the two had become unable to get out of Se-gwang Special City while dead.
...That this was my responsibility.
But that I would find a way somehow, and for that I would continue the exploration in Se-gwang Special City for now.
So there was no need to panic even if I didn’t wake up.
And...
With an apology for the imposition, I also asked that the letter be delivered to Agent Choi.
...Like this. Please deliver it to Section Chief Lee Jaheon.
[Noru, I truly struggle to understand why my friend is leaving such a deferential note to a swordsman... Good heavens, even the letter itself is more than he deserves.]
I figured he’d say that, but I smoothed it over and finished my request to Brown.
Thanks.
And silence fell again.
“......”
In the bright train car, lying on the floor, I turned my gaze meaninglessly.
There was no door since it was the very last car, but it was finished off at that end. My eyes went blank staring at the plates screwed down with bolts.
The screws, the metallic color, all to the same standard; but here and there the passage of time had wrinkled them like a pattern. For example, the second screw from the left looked almost like a logo...
...Wait.
It’s a Daydream Potion cap.
“...!!”
I sat up.
I looked at the screw again.
My impression didn’t change.
Right.
I rummaged in my pocket, pulled out the bottle of low-grade regeneration potion I’d used, and held its cap up to the screw...
...The central pattern matched.
“......”
I reached for the cap disguised as a screw and pulled hard.
There was resistance, but amazingly, it came out with a pop in the end.
And the note, rolled like a screw and attached to the cap, came into view...
Oh~ you spotted this?
Then you deserve to read this pro tip lol
“...!”
Read well and do your best
At the end of the note that began like that, the writer’s name was written.
—Lee Kangheon