Chapter 60

'The fear that you might die.'

Perhaps that was the essence of a ghost story.

Recently, I had even experienced a government-managed disaster that, in theory, could only be cleared if someone died.

In other words, I had grown quite accustomed to hearing that people generally died in ghost stories. I had become somewhat numb to it, too.

After all, somehow, I had always squeezed through the eye of the needle.

'This is insane, but let's find a way out first.'

The past few months had been more than enough time for that to become my default mindset.

But...

"Originally, everyone went missing. All that came back was one headless corpse."

"..."

"But after a few more attempts, someone got lucky and came back alive. They used that person's account to gradually complete the manual."

It was the standard process for completing a high-grade Darkness exploration manual.

"But there was one thing they couldn't change, no matter what they tried."

Namely...

"One person dying."

"..."

"A mechanism for choosing who gets picked? There isn't one. No logic, either. It's literally random. They've run it thirty-seven times now, and whatever equipment you wear or items you bring, none of it makes any difference."

"..."

"You're chosen the moment you enter, too, so there's no way to prepare or respond."

How had I ended up in this goddamn situation?

Purely through luck, I had a one-in-twelve chance of dying instantly.

... Including my teammates, the odds were an absurd one in three.

Someone would simply die.

"You might be thinking, 'Why send someone as capable as me when they could send bastards who deserve to die?' But..."

"I'm not."

"Really? I did."

"..."

"How could I not...? But this goddamn Urban Legend insists we provide challengers with brains before it'll graciously let us clear it."

In other words, they couldn't send expendable pawns, either.

Deputy Eun Haje's lips twitched.

"An 8.3 percent chance of death is actually a pretty decent average for B-grade."

"..."

That was true.

Take the exhibition ghost story.

That had been an especially bad case because there was no manual, but even with a complete one, a disturbing number of deaths was inevitable.

And yet.

"It's strange, but being stuck with those odds no matter what I do feels incredibly unfair."

"..."

It wasn't strange.

Dying 'just because,' without even getting to put up a fight, felt entirely different from having a chance to try something.

The latter was a challenge. The former was slaughter.

"... Are they giving us three days to mentally prepare?"

"That's probably it."

Presumably, after about three days, people would cool down and start thinking rationally—and hopefully.

'Surely I won't be that one in twelve...'

"Roe Deer, this is your first Darkness like this, right?"

"... Yes."

"Go out and have some coffee. Get me one, too."

I took Deputy Eun Haje's card and headed out as she told me I could take my time.

She had sent me on a coffee run as an excuse, but really, she was probably looking after the rookie's mental health.

'This is driving me crazy.'

Thanks to that, I was now leaning my head back against a café sofa, an Americano in front of me.

Fear... Well. There hadn't been a moment since I'd fallen into this world when I wasn't afraid, so that wasn't the issue.

I just felt unsettled.

'Information and all the rest of it mean nothing in this situation.'

Was it because I was realizing how much more certainty I'd had than the other employees all this time? I felt a strange sort of self-loathing, too.

And an intense sense of danger.

"..."

'Should I just quit?'

Wouldn't it be better to quit now and look for another way?

Investigating ghost stories on my own, using <Records of Dark Exploration>...

-Ah, my friend!

-In that case, why not pursue a career in show business from now on?

What??

-Why, of course. There's always a fine job waiting for my friend... As the old saying goes, what are friends for? Haha!

I nearly fell off the sofa in horror.

'I'll pass.'

That certainly snapped me awake.

-What a shame...

Right. Around here, there were countless ways to end up worse than dead, just like that.

Besides, investigating alone? Only an idiot who had forgotten what a coward he was would choose that.

Quitting over a one-in-twelve chance really would be stupid.

'But sitting around doing nothing would be stupid, too.'

-Ah, are we heading back?

'Yeah.'

First, I needed to learn more about this ghost story.

I got my teammates' coffees to go, returned to the office, and read through the tablet.

And...

'... Ha.'

It really was random.

It was indeed a ghost story I already knew from <Records of Dark Exploration>. The problem was that almost everything I'd read was already in the manual.

'There's no new information.'

I didn't know anything more than everyone else did.

'No loopholes.'

Even <Records of Dark Exploration> explicitly described it as 'random upon explorers' entry.'

There were no exceptions or suspicious details. It hadn't been treated as particularly important in the first place.

Whoever wrote it had simply accepted it as part of the premise. With people dying in every ghost story anyway, they probably hadn't thought it was anything special.

And...

"Team Leaders are excluded from this assignment. Only employees ranked Deputy or below ever go in here."

"..."

Team Leader Lizard wouldn't be joining us on this exploration.

The reasoning was that if a Team Leader was chosen as the sacrifice, the difference in rank could cause employees to 'momentarily confuse their priorities.'

"No Cleanup Teams or Elite Teams, either. There was a whole mess once when they went in."

Apparently, a member of the Elite Teams—Teams A, B, or C—had been chosen as the sacrifice, then fought desperately to avoid dying, resulting in the 'unnecessary loss' of quite a few other employees.

Not that I regretted not joining Team A, but this damn company really was consistent.

"Thank you for telling me."

"Nothing to thank me for."

Somewhere between resignation and irritation, the deputy seemed to seek comfort in smoking. The supervisor struck up a conversation, and the two headed upstairs with their cigarettes.

"Did you see the list? The employees going in with us..."

"Yeah. Honestly, if one of them dies, I don't think I'd even go pay my respects. Surely they didn't pick the bottom of the barrel in terms of character?"

"Come on, that doesn't describe us!"

I kept comparing <Records of Dark Exploration> with the manual, trying to find something.

A crack I could squeeze through.

A tiny gap in the rules.

But here's the thing.

That afternoon, a way around the rules suddenly presented itself.

Though not quite in the sense I'd meant.

"Supervisor Kim!"

"Section Chief."

Section Chief Lee Byeongjin had come to see me. As someone in charge of reviewing manuals, he definitely hadn't come all the way here just because he was 'passing by.'

"I heard! You're going into that insane Russian roulette Darkness!"

"..."

I'd thought this before, but he really had a knack for getting on people's nerves...

But Section Chief Lee Byeongjin hadn't come just to make a fuss.

He lowered his voice, checked that no one was around, and whispered.

"Why don't you talk to Director Ho?"

"...!"

"I'm telling you, he's been keeping an eye on your accomplishments!"

"Are you saying..."

I looked at him.

"If I speak to the director, he'll get me out of it?"

"Exactly!"

"..."

"Normally, they just select people, talking about fairness and whatnot... But I'm against that. Against it! Hm? They ought to exempt a young man with such a bright future as you, Soleum. You're the top recruit!"

There it was. A genuine escape route.

Getting a higher-up to let me off.

I opened my mouth.

"I'm all right."

"H-huh?"

I absolutely could not choose this.

'It would draw too much attention.'

The moment I chose that option, I would effectively be choosing my faction within the company.

The executives at a ghost-story company couldn't be ordinary people. I couldn't attach myself to one by desperately begging them to save my life.

Besides, this was a matter of survival.

'The moment I'm exempted, word will spread through the company.'

Would anyone look kindly on that?

It was a form of selfish maneuvering.

Sharing hardship was essential to being accepted as a proper member of a group. If I tried to dodge it...

'I'd be marked for good.'

Given that the Field Exploration Team constantly operated in groups of three, it was a perfect way to thoroughly screw up my work life.

It might be different if the director quietly pulled me out without anyone knowing, then summoned me privately to take credit for it.

The fact that he hadn't meant he wasn't paying enough 'attention' to single me out for exemption in the first place.

Or...

'He considers luck a kind of ability, too.'

In other words, this was a trap.

However bitter it felt, this was the correct response.

I deliberately spoke with the composure of someone who stuck rigidly to principles.

"Making an exception for me alone would be preferential treatment. I'm sure the company has its reasons for assigning work this way, so I'll do my part and fulfill my responsibilities."

"Uh..."

Section Chief Lee Byeongjin stammered, but after asking several times whether I was sure, he finally accepted it and turned to leave.

Honestly...

It took everything I had not to grab his trouser leg and shout yes...

'Let's call it a win for building my persona.'

That was the only consolation I had.

I watched him leave with a bitter feeling, then returned to my seat.

'Let's read the manual again.'

But whether I checked <Records of Dark Exploration> or reread the manual, there were still no loopholes.

There were no exceptions for any explorer.

'So every explorer who enters is included in this victim lottery...'

"..."

Wait.

'This...'

I read it over several times.

'... Could this be a loophole?'

I couldn't be sure.

'It's a possibility, though.'

But in this situation, I had to seize any possibility and give it a try.

-Have you thought of something amusing, Mr. Roe Deer?

Not amusing, but I did have an idea.

'Creating an exception.'

-Hmm?

Every explorer who entered this ghost story, without exception, was entered in a lottery with a one-in-twelve chance of instant death.

But could there be a condition shared only by those explorers?

A condition to which there had never been an exception.

-What shared condition?

...

'Being human.'

In both the manual and Records of Dark Exploration, the explorers were human. There weren't any accounts involving other living things at all.

But humans weren't the only intelligent beings in this setting.

Include plants and animals, and the possibilities were endless.

'Could a nonhuman life-form avoid the selection?'

Considering the patterns in the irregular cases I'd read in <Records of Dark Exploration>, that seemed like the most plausible exception in my current situation.

-Mr. Roe Deer, do you wish to cease being human?

'N-no, that's not it.'

I wished he wouldn't ask innocent questions that sounded like traps.

'I just want to be treated as nonhuman for a little while.'

I chose my words deliberately.

'Like dressing up as someone else for a show.'

-Oh ho.

'... Is that something you could do, Braun?'

-Ah, of course!

Strength and vitality filled Braun's voice.

Just as when he hosted his show.

-Isn't assuming new identities an entertainer's destiny? I possess countless masks, and... Ah. I believe I could lend you one even now, Mr. Roe Deer!

Jackpot.

'Let's try this.'

"Whew."

At last, I tore my eyes away from the manual and rested my head against the backrest.

Just then, apparently finished with their smoke break, the deputy and supervisor came into the office and waved when they saw me.

"..."

Ah, damn it.

'Braun, about that "mask" ability... Could you use it on multiple people?'

-Multiple people? People who aren't my friends?

'Well, including me.'

-... If I regained a little more of my former prowess, I could. Back then, I used to put dozens of people in the studio! Or was it hundreds?

... All right.

'Braun.'

-My friend calls upon me again!

I patted my pocket respectfully.

'Let's give you a bath.'

-...!?

* * *

-Mr. Roe Deer, I appreciate the gesture, but I'm not so enamored with the occult that I'd enjoy bathing in my friend's blood.

"I know."

Though he was a quiz-show host who exploded his guests' heads, Braun, as a 'Good Friend,' was surely that sort of being.

But there was no other way.

Even if I somehow got hold of blood bags from a hospital, they wouldn't be fresh enough to work efficiently. And I couldn't use someone else's blood.

Nor could I bring back a monster from a ghost story like last time.

'Whatever was inside the remaining wild ginseng has escaped, so it no longer meets the intelligent-being requirement.'

That left the obvious answer.

My blood.

I looked into the small bathtub with its elegant checkered pattern.

Still spotless and pleasantly fragrant, it was the Blood Bathtub I'd bought from the Alien Shop.

Now I had to pour my blood into it.

"I probably can't give you much. About half a cup."

In terms of volume, perhaps around 180 milliliters.

-Half a cup! A little tight, but not bad as a bath additive for a small, stuffing-filled body. Dilute it with water... No, that's not the point. Are you truly all right with this?

I was.

'I can do this.'

I exhaled deeply and picked up the kitchen knife.

Beside me was some wound-healing potion I'd brought back from the company infirmary after using part of it.

"Whew."

I stabbed the flesh of my arm with the tip of the kitchen knife.

-Good heavens!

Blood poured out.

I must have found the artery properly, because it burst forth in a heavy gush.

Ha...

'Remember. I'm scared of creepy situations, not bleeding itself...'

This wasn't a creepy situation...!

As I repeated that to myself and calmed down, the amount of blood I'd promised soon collected in the bathtub.

'That should be about half a cup.'

But I didn't stop the bleeding.

-Mr. Roe Deer?

A little more.

-I believe that's enough, my friend!

A little more.

-My friend?

This much should do.

'Done.'

I hurriedly stopped the bleeding with the company's medicine. Its magical effects handled the arterial bleeding beautifully.

The blood loss nearly made me a little dizzy, but it wasn't a problem.

'I can drink a potion for that, too.'

I'd be back to normal by the time we entered the ghost story the day after tomorrow, so it was fine.

Wasn't the important thing...

That a lovely fragrance was rising from that full bathtub?

"Whew..."

I peered into the tub. A rich, fragrant scent struck my nose.

Apparently, my blood had successfully done its job.

'I think I drained almost 500 milliliters.'

It seemed to have properly turned into a bath additive...

'... A woody scent?'

For some reason, the smell reminded me of the forest in that damn ghost story about spirits of people devoured by tigers. That made me a little uneasy, but it was still better than a foul or bizarre scent.

I nodded and spoke to Braun.

"You can get in now. Is the scent all right?"

-Ah, certainly. An interesting fragrance. Much like your unpredictable, capricious decisions, Mr. Roe Deer!

I smiled.

"Are you being sarcastic because I bled more than I said I would?"

-Sarcasm is an essential virtue for a popular talk-show host! But I don't exercise that virtue indiscriminately.

"Thanks for worrying about me."

-...

"I'll get proper treatment, so it's fine. Still, I won't do this again."

-At last, you speak wisely, my friend.

Did I?

To be honest, I'd done it this way on purpose.

I thought giving my 'Good Friend' a bit of a shock now would make him reluctant to bathe in my blood in the future.

And it seemed to have worked.

'If I'd told him this amount beforehand, he might have accepted it without a second thought.'

I couldn't have that.

'This has to be a one-time thing.'

I picked Braun up to put him in the bathtub, but once again, he declined.

-I shall walk proudly on my own two feet.

Good grief. Suit yourself.

I turned my back on the bathtub. Soon, I heard footsteps entering it, followed by the gentle sloshing of water.

The bath had begun.

But a little while later...

-Mr. Roe Deer, this bath additive you've made...

-Hmm. It's rather unusual!

What?