Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work

Chapter 1.3

Bang, bang, bang!

The doors to the auditorium shut one by one.

‘Damn it!’

While I was panicking, the naive new employees, who still thought Daydream Inc. was just a regular pharmaceutical company, hadn’t realized what was happening.

And so, as about a hundred new employees listened attentively to the host, the host cheerfully shouted out,

[Now, let’s get started!]

With that lively voice.

The lights in the auditorium went out.

“……?”

“Huh?”

The new employees, still confused, seemed to think it was a video or something being prepared, showing only mild curiosity.

That would be expected.

Who would expect such a crazy thing to happen just because they got a job?

For example.

The surrounding scenery suddenly transformed into the inside of a desolate subway train.

[Passengers, thank you for using Abyss Transpo today… Our train will not halt.]

[Please pay attention to the announcements for a pleasant journey to your destination.]

An unfamiliar announcement, with strange station names, started playing.

“……?!”

“W-What is this!?”

The new employees, still in their suits and seated neatly on subway chairs as if the auditorium had been transported as is, all shot to their feet.

It was understandable that they were startled.

“Excuse me?”

“Is this some kind of VR? Did we really move?”

Many of the people who were in the auditorium seemed to be there still, which offered some comfort, leading to complacent reactions.

They wandered around the subway, looking for any sign of the company or someone from the event, or searched for doors that might open.

Soon, they began to get a better sense of the situation.

“There are people in the next car! But… uh, the doors won’t open? Is this some new technology?”

With a feeling of cold sweat creeping up on me, I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again.

I already knew which ghost story this was.

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[Welcome to Abyss Transpo]

: A ghost story featured in <Dark Exploration Records>.

D-Class Darkness that boasts a ridiculously high difficulty for escaping and one of the most infamous stories. The Field Exploration Team suffers endlessly.

Exploration Records indicate a total of ■■ entries.

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<Welcome to Abyss Transpo>.

As you can probably guess, it’s a ghost story based on the Korean subway system.

– You fall asleep and wake up on a subway train. It feels like your usual commute home, but strange station names start appearing…

That’s how it begins.

The target of this ghost story is anyone who has ever commuted by subway, making it all the more chilling for most working people who read it.

“……”

‘And this ghost story… it’s under Daydream Inc.’s jurisdiction, isn’t it?’

It seemed like Daydream Inc. was planning to ‘filter out’ their new hires through this ghost story. …Damn it!

“Is this something like an escape room?”

“Why would a pharmaceutical company that makes hair loss treatment bother with escape rooms for new sales recruits…?”

That’s when it happened.

[This stop is Sorrow, Sorrow Station.]

“……!”

“S-Sorrow?”

The first announcement came over the speaker.

I held my breath and turned my head.

[The doors are on your right…]

Click.

The train stopped.

[The doors are opening.]

The doors opened.

It seemed like any other ordinary day, but—

[The doors will close in 30 seconds. Once closed, they will never open again.]

[Passengers whose destination is Sorrow Station should disembark according to the announcement.]

The familiar voice calmly mixed strange words and phrases into the announcement.

But people always try to rationalize things to find some form of reassurance.

“Look outside! It’s just a subway station!”

And indeed, they were right.

Outside the train, the platform was clearly visible. It looked a bit dark and damp, but otherwise, it seemed like an ordinary subway station.

Relieved by this, two or three people moved toward the door.

Oh, no.

“I think it’s better if you don’t get off.”

“Huh?”

This is bad. I sighed and spoke quickly.

“You heard them say ‘Sorrow Station’. There’s no station like that in Korea. Anyone would think it’s strange.”

“Oh…”

“Yeah, I think this guy’s right. Maybe we should wait and see how things play out…”

One of the quicker-witted people backed me up. It was the new hire who had been sitting next to me.

Because of that, the people who had been about to step off hesitated further.

“But still…”

“Hey, the doors are closing!”

But the sound of the doors closing caused a few panicked individuals to impulsively jump out…

It was a disaster.

[The doors are closing.]

“Ah!”

“I missed it. Shit.”

The people who didn’t get off sighed, watching the ones who did wave back at us from the platform.

Some even glanced at me and muttered curses under their breath.

I understood. In such a strange, unsettling situation, their instinct would be to flee without thinking.

But still.

“What the…?”

“Look at that…”

A grotesque sight unfolded.

As soon as the people who got off turned around to move…

Silver droplets suddenly poured from the ceiling and pillars of the platform, cascading down on them.

Drip, drip, drip.

It looked like giant teardrops.

But the countless silver droplets fell onto their bodies like molten metal, producing horrifying tearing sounds.

Screams. Convulsions. Silence.

Blood mixed with the silver liquid splattered against the windows.

[The train is now departing from Sorrow Station.]

The last thing we saw outside the window.

“……”

In front of the sliding doors, now soaked in filth and blood, only the crushed remains of the new employees were left behind, twitching slightly.

“Ahhhhh!”

“Ahhh!”

It was the fate of those who chose wrong.

[Please pay attention to the announcements for a pleasant journey to your destination.]

Finally, fear began to spread among the people as screams and shouts echoed around.

‘It’s started.’

I squeezed my eyes shut.

I’m inside a ghost story?

I don’t know how this happened, but I definitely seem to have become a new employee in a company from a ghost story.

And one in a department with an insanely high death rate.

‘Is this for real?’

Sure, if I’m being honest, I’m probably in a more advantageous position than the other new hires.

I’ve read through all the <Dark Exploration Records> on the wiki.

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3.2 Exploration Records (up to ■■ entries)

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I can remember things pretty clearly up to about this level.

From this point on, it sounds like the classic overpowered protagonist trope.

Maybe you’re thinking I could escape this situation and look cool by using my superior knowledge of this world?

Maybe you’re even imagining that I could monopolize the hidden treasures and items to come?

That might be true.

But there’s one problem.

A very critical problem.

‘…I’m fucking terrified of anything remotely horror!’

That’s right.

I… am a coward.

Text is fine. I can enjoy reading that.

But the moment it’s visualized, I can’t handle it.

And not just a regular coward—a coward to the point where my friends would constantly tease me for it!

– kim soleum’s crush asked him to watch a horror movie but he turned her down bc he’s too scared? is this for real?

– lolololololol

– dude your name is literally the sfx for goosebumps but you can’t even watch a horror movie lolololol

– shiieet no wonder your crush ran away lmao

lol –

wanna die? –

– sorry.

– sry.

I’m the kind of coward who, when reading horror stories at work in broad daylight, will turn off the background images and BGM just to focus on the text!

I was so scared, I didn’t even include an image in the ghost story I posted!

A long-term resident of the Shelter for Scaredy-Cats, that’s me!

“……”

I covered my face with both hands.

I’m screwed, big time…