Chapter 229: Ch 229: Have you been well?
Excavating Darkness.
Entering the endlessly repeating scenes of the Cheerful Research Institute
deep beneath the main building to extract the Darkness hidden within.
Acquiring new ghost stories to harvest Dream Essence is one of the core
operational processes of Daydream Inc.
However, by now, most of the Darkness from the Surface Levels of the
Cheerful Research Institute has already been excavated.
So it has reached the stage where employees must be dispatched into the
deep levels, which were dangerous, poorly understood, and riddled with
anomalies...
"And so here you are, Mr. Employee! Hahaha, Special Division’s very own
130666!"
Yes, that’s right.
The employees of the Special Division were ghost stories bound to
Daydream Inc. as employees, and they were the ones best suited for this
task.
As of today, I am one of them.
A week of dutiful annex work had finally paid off.
"Though I hear you won’t have to go that deep today!"
Right.
This is my assignment for today.
Excavation of new Darknesses within the Surface Levels, at or below
Basement Floor 30.
Kwak Jekang lowered his voice.
"Of course, if you’d like to go deeper, I’d welcome it wholeheartedly, Mr.
Employee."
"..."
If I kept descending, maybe I could even find the ruins of that strange
Dream Incubation Chamber where I woke up...
Just the thought of it made my stomach churn, but I held it in.
’After all, today I intend to show them I can work diligently.’
I need to lay the groundwork, mentally and environmentally.
Naturally, this is a solo assignment given only to Special Division
employees, so there’s no need for the carrier crate either.
"Um, maybe I should... tag along..."
"Hmm? Who said you’d get that chance? This is a solo mission for Mr.
Employee! Really now, a mere Guard Team grunt who’s barely even done a
few underground expeditions..."
Request : Silence
"..."
Kwak Jekang shut his mouth.
The sergeant, as always, looked completely indifferent to that guy.
He seemed to only pick fights with Jay-ssi in particular.
’Does he have some kind of personal beef with him?’
Now that I was clear-headed, I felt it even more strongly.
But... if the sergeant really was the same man recorded in the wiki, the one
who was the B-squad leader...
’Shouldn’t he be the one holding a grudge against the Research Team?’
What a peculiar power dynamic.
"Hm."
But the sergeant was focused mainly on today’s expedition rather than
Kwak Jekang, and he seemed deep in thought, as if debating a course of
action.
Beside him, Supervisor Park Minseong was also watching me with a
worried expression.
Both of them were probably wondering if someone like me who’s in this
abnormal state should really be entering such a dangerous level of Darkness
alone.
’...’
I secretly drew words in smoke where Kwak Jekang couldn’t see.
In the same tone that Kim Soleum would speak.
I’m clear-headed now.
"...!"
Don’t worry. I’ll be careful and return safely, Jay-ssi.
And.
Supervisor Badger.
"..."
The smoke dispersed, but Supervisor Park Minseong stayed silent for a
moment.
Then his voice came, soft and heavy.
"...Um. Alright, be safe."
"Take care..."
Still bound, I was escorted out of the isolation room to be transferred to the
main building.
To the elevator.
* * *
Ding-dong.
I boarded the elevator.
It wasn’t the ground-level elevator in the main building I’d used to escape
the isolation room.
This was an elevator that descended deep underground.
The same one I’d taken once before, dressed in Guard Team gear, when the
sergeant and I entered the ghost story of Sangun-nim.
But unlike back then, there were no supplies.
Only the well-organized briefing in my head, compiled by Kwak Jekang
and handed to me in a folder...
Like the wiki.
Main Building Underground Exploration
Log : Cheerful Research Institute
This particular Darkness is classified as a Special
Management Type and can only be accessed via a
dedicated elevator leading underground from the main
building.
Its appearance and ■■ have been confirmed to almost
exactly match the interior of a certain facility once called
the Cheerful Research Institute, and it has been
designated by the same name.
Though standard-sized emergency stairwells can be
found inside, there are no records of anyone returning to
the surface through those passages. Keep this in mind
during exploration.
The appearance of the Cheerful Research Institute on
each underground floor is nearly identical in structure,
but displays increasingly bizarre anomalies the deeper
one goes.
Basement Floor 1~29 are considered the Surface Levels;
Basement Floor 30~59 are the Middle Levels; Basement
Floor 60 and below are the Deep Levels.
And so, it begins.
Basement Floor 2~9 – The Office in Vacation Season
Ding-dong.
The elevator doors opened on Basement Floor 9, revealing the sight of the
’Cheerful Research Institute’...
A brightly lit hallway with a calm atmosphere.
It looked like an ordinary office space, nothing you’d expect in an
underground facility.
From behind the frosted office windows came occasional sounds of
scribbling or quiet conversation, but for the most part, silence.
In the corresponding Surface Levels, the Cheerful
Research Institute maintains a typically quiet and
composed atmosphere.
A significant number of office personnel are presumed
absent from their workstations, and there is little to no
observable activity.
Risk Level : Minimal
Most of the Darkness here had already been excavated.
This wasn’t my destination today.
Instead of stepping out to walk the office hallways, I turned around inside
the elevator.
And pressed it.
The call button for the elevator was located immediately to the left.
On the dedicated elevator in the company’s main
building, floors are labeled only until Basement Floor 9.
Levels numbered with two digits or higher may
occasionally be displayed, but pressing those buttons is
not recommended.
The official exploration procedure is to exit at the lowest
floor normally displayed on the elevator panel and then
transfer to the elevator on the left.
On this left-hand elevator, buttons leading further
underground from that level are highly likely to appear. In
most cases, ten levels are displayed.
Press the appropriate button to proceed with the
exploration.
[Let’s go. Downward-ho! To strike gold, oh, I feel like singing a miner’s
song! Like Snow White’s dwarves...]
Basement Floor 10~19 – The Office at Lunchtime
In these Surface Levels, the Cheerful Research Institute
is somewhat more active and noisy compared to the
upper floors, and personnel occasionally exit their
offices.
Risk Level : Low
Basement Floor 19.
From here on, I had to start being cautious...
To avoid being noticed by the residents of the Cheerful Research Institute
lurking behind those office doors.
Even if they came into the hallway, I wouldn’t see them.
’The same goes for them.’
Explorers entering via elevator and personnel of the
Cheerful Research Institute do not perceive each other.
However, each party is aware of the influence they have
exerted on the other.
It’s obvious what that means, right?
I can’t see them, and they can’t see me.
But if I destroy this hallway, they’ll know that some intruder has destroyed
it.
And most ghost stories are never forgiving to intruders...
Avoid detection whenever possible.
I heeded the advice, moving cautiously...
Further down.
I stepped into the left elevator again, searching for another button that
would take me deeper underground...
Basement Floor 20~29 – The Office at Midnight
This is my assignment for today.
The edge of the Surface Levels.
Ding-dong.
With a cheerful chime, the doors opened, revealing Basement Floor 29.
...
A dark hallway.
Utter silence.
Occasional strange clattering noises.
On these levels, all lighting is turned off except for
emergency lights. Little to no activity from office
personnel is observed.
However, fatal mental and physical hazards caused by
individual manifestations of Darknesses occur frequently.
Deployment of Security Team personnel who have not
passed contamination inspection is strictly prohibited.
Risk Level : Moderately Low
(Civilian fatality rate: over 50%)
This was the stage where the danger level spiked sharply.
It was a relief that my fear response hadn’t fully returned yet. I could still
act rationally, even alone.
I walked down the hallway.
The black smoke surrounding me was swallowed by the darkness, barely
visible.
Only my eyes, glowing like yellow lanterns, cast a faint light down the
corridor...
Even that, I kept as dim as possible.
All attempts to use artificial light brought in from the
surface have resulted in disappearance.
*A note left by Guard Team R16 has been recovered.
Authorization granted to attach the document.
Contents of the note : Turning on the lights after they
were switched off is im po
...Following the manual made me feel like I was back on the Field
Exploration Team again.
Whether that was really necessary now that I wasn’t even human
anymore... well, that was another story.
[So, Friend, where will you begin your search?]
To the darkest place.
I would seek out the places people would avoid. That’s where individual
ghost stories would remain.
For the first time, I truly appreciated that I had a body that wasn’t hindered
by the absence of even a speck of light...
I moved toward the office farthest from the emergency lights.
To the place on Basement Floor 29 that had the fewest exploration logs.
[3-⋢⟤⦯]
...The sign on the dim office door was distorted beyond recognition.
But no sound came from within.
...Safe, for now.
’Starting here.’
I grasped the office doorknob, turned it smoothly, and opened the door.
...The interior came into view.
It is identical in structure to the Dream Incubation Chamber.
’...!’
Before the shock could overwhelm me, I rang the bell.
The clear chime, jingle, echoed in my head...
...
I steadied myself.
’Huu.’
Okay.
The office was unmistakably... very similar in form to that underground
Dream Incubation Chamber I had found, right down to PCs and desks of the
same model and dimensions.
Only, the incubation machines were absent.
’Maybe this office... isn’t directly connected.’
I felt a sigh of relief slip out of me mentally for reasons I couldn’t even
explain.
Then I began to scan the room.
’...Clean.’
It looked like an ordinary office that employees might start using first thing
in the morning.
But in the dark, strange details stood out one by one.
There were colorful toys on desks, like something for children. Stacks of
hand mirrors piled atop a desk. PCs covered in sticky notes.
Pay attention to differences from standard office
environments during exploration, and exercise sound
judgment.
There is always a possibility that these are byproducts of
ghost stories capable of causing unconsciousness or
instant death through mere interaction. If retrieval is not
possible, they hold no value as a Darkness.
Easier said than done.
’Huu.’
I tried not to imagine the expressions of the unlucky employees who had
done this work before me, carefully inspecting each bizarre item.
[Crude, but one could call it creativity.]
Because I was aware of that creeping ’chill’, this wasn’t exactly a pleasant
search, but it was much better to have someone to talk to.
’No unusual reaction so far.’
Then I moved on to the next desk...
...
Wait.
’...This.’
Between two desks, on a storage shelf, I spotted a palm-sized, round
object...
A black model, shaped like a disc set upright on its edge.
’...A roulette wheel!’
It looked identical to the black roulette I’d spun at the
Records> pop-up store.
Right next to it was a replica of the button that had looked like a walkie-
talkie, the same one I had pressed back then.
’...’
How could this be?
What... is happening here?
’A hint.’
The realization struck me instantly.
I reached out. I needed to see what it did. If I could figure that out...
"Wow. It’s really good to see you, Soleum-nim."
...!!
I turned my head.
The hand touching the roulette, my hand.
Beside it.
A man’s bare hand, almost overlapping mine, grasped the roulette.
Following that hand upward.
"Have you been well?"
Director Ho.
He was looking right at me.
...With an employee ID card of Cheerful Research Institute hanging around
his neck.