Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work

Chapter 14.2

“What do you mean…? Oh, no, I didn’t hurt my eyes. My vision is fine.”

I was impressed by my own quick thinking.

“……”

Um, hello?

“Hmm, alright.”

The white reptilian head turned away with a faint hiss.

I nearly passed out.

‘Please stop this, for real.’

This world is too unfair if you have to suffer even after escaping a ghost story…

‘What the hell is going on?’

But I wasn’t about to say a word.

Judging by the atmosphere, it was clear I wasn’t supposed to see the lizard head!

‘Everyone else must be seeing a normal human face.’

Blend in. Don’t stand out.

I would never show any suspicious reaction toward this walking human… no, lizard excavator.

I successfully maintained my composure, and fortunately, thanks to the other squad members, the conversation flowed smoothly.

Then, we got to the main point.

“Section Chief, did the higher-ups give any explanation about why this happened?”

“Yes.”

The white lizard—no, Section Chief Lee Jaheon—nodded.

First, the cause of the incident. The employees who barged in…

“They said it was a human error, with the ‘Tuesday Talk Show’ being assigned to both D-squad and L-squad at the same time.”

“Oh, seriously.”

“Good grief…”

It made sense that the assignment had felt rushed; it seems there was a mistake.

The Section Chief continued his briefing.

– L-squad began writing the medium (postcard) to enter the ‘Tuesday Quiz Show’ at a similar time to D-squad, but a 50-minute delay occurred as they left the company building during the process.

“…Did they go out to buy coffee for the rookie?”

“L-squad did have members who were particularly good at taking care of their teammates.”

The two employees briefly looked bitter as they recalled the now-deceased L-squad, but quickly concealed their expressions.

“Anyway, it seems it was transmitted at an odd time, and our squad happened to go in first.”

“Yes.”

Lee Jaheon answered briefly and continued the briefing.

The next part, however, was the bombshell.

“And the reclassification of the ‘Tuesday Quiz Show’ to A-Class has not been acknowledged.”

“……?!”

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“W-What?”

– The absence of another group to cross-verify the situation, and the relatively high initial survival rate (43%), leaves it unproven whether the Darkness was truly suitable for A-Class classification.

“What the hell are they talking about, when L-squad was wiped out?”

“The collector! The Dream Essence Collector’s liquid was gold! I’ve heard many times that gold signifies A-Class…”

– While the liquid in the Dream Essence Collector does have a concentration comparable to A-Class, the possibility of extracting higher-class liquid from lower-class Darkness in special circumstances cannot be ruled out.

“So, since the official company classification was D-Class, no exception has been granted for the ‘Tuesday Quiz Show’.”

“……”

In other words, the company’s stance is…

‘Let’s not escalate a situation caused by an error, let’s just quietly resolve it.’

Typical corporate behavior.

They drive their employees mad, that’s for sure.

“This is unacceptable. We should go and talk to them directly…”

“Assistant Manager, wait— wait just a sec.”

Supervisor Park asked, in disbelief.

“The higher-ups took all the A-Class liquid, didn’t they? And yet, it’s still ending as a D-Class result?”

“No, that didn’t happen.”

“……!”

“Separate compensation has been arranged.”

Honestly, I’m not surprised.

‘They’re basically trying to keep us quiet by offering something in return…’

It’s normal for a company to prepare some kind of hush money, unless they’re utterly clueless.

The only question was how much that compensation would be.

I tried to avoid making eye contact with the lizard as I focused on Section Chief Lee Jaheon’s… not snout, but mouth.

“Given the uniqueness of the situation and the verification of the Dream Essence Collector’s liquid color, they’ve agreed to acknowledge that it was an exploration comparable to A-Class.”

“So…?”

“Additional points will be awarded.”

– For the successful clearance of the ‘Tuesday Quiz Show,’ a one-time bonus of points equivalent to A-Class will be awarded.

The amount is…

“Thirty thousand points per person.”

“……!!”

Supervisor Park and Assistant Manager Eun froze as if struck by lightning.

“Thirty thousand??”

“Yes.”

“Waaaah!”

The basic point reward for A-Class is 100,000 points.

Assuming the points are divided among the number of people entering the Darkness, with only two squads surviving, the estimate would have been under 17,000 points per person.

‘But we just got nearly double that.’

And it didn’t stop there.

“And a separate incentive has been awarded to the employee who played a decisive role in clearing the Darkness.”

The lizard’s head turned toward me.

“Kim Soleum-ssi.”

– An additional 10,000 points awarded to the top contributor.

“A total of 40,000 points will be granted to you.”

“……”

I just filled 8% of the Wish Ticket in one go.

‘Wow.’

I was almost in a daze.

Am I disappointed that the A-Class clearance didn’t officially get recorded?

No, it’s actually better this way!

‘There’s no benefit in standing out and getting a super-fast promotion in this world.’

What happens if expectations rise beyond reason?

I’d surely be forced into even more difficult ghost stories, and the more I stand out, the harder it becomes to use the ‘merch’.

Of course, there are special spaces and items that become accessible with a promotion, but priorities must not be mistaken.

This is a world where one wrong move means death!

‘And considering I was at death’s door… I definitely don’t want to go near A-Class again.’

Looking at the points, it didn’t feel like my efforts were wasted.

Apparently, the others felt the same.

“…I think I just heard my resignation come three years earlier.”

“Same here.”

But soon they composed themselves and said to me,

“Points aren’t transferable, so… this feels a bit awkward.”

“Right? Roe practically earned them all.”

“No, it’s fine.”

Honestly, even if transferring was possible, I don’t think they would have given them to me for any reason.

This isn’t about character.

‘These are people who got jobs in death zones to collect points for a Wish Ticket.’

For most members of the Field Exploration Team, their points are something they would never give up.

Hmm. I’ll make sure to keep this firmly in mind.

“Woo-hoo!”

“They really came through.”

We immediately returned to the office and registered the points.

[Kim Soleum / Accumulated Points: 40,100P]

‘Whoa.’

I looked at the monitor.

A five-figure number.

Honestly, it hit me differently.

“Whew, I survived, and I scored big points…”

Assistant Manager Eun grinned.

“We should use the company card for a team dinner!”

“Ooooh!”

“Let’s go, Roe!”

Without hesitation, I replied cheerfully.

“Yes!”

* * *

And now.

I’m watching the rare sight of a lizard eating premium beef…

Sizzle.

I’m trying my best to look natural as I watch the perfectly cooked beef disappear into the lizard’s mouth.

“The Squad Leader’s personality is a bit unique, but his skills are solid.”

“Yeah. You’re really lucky to be in our squad.”

“…Yes.”

It’s almost certain I’m the only one seeing a lizard face.

Having read about Section Chief Lee Jaheon physically destroying ghost stories a few times, I could understand why the team members were so favorable toward him.

Anyway, ghost stories or not, the beef was delicious, and I found myself enjoying the dinner more than I expected.

‘At least it’s not uncomfortable.’

I also realized that having a little alcohol really helps ease the fear.

‘Once I get home, I’m going to watch ten episodes of kids’ cartoons and sleep with all the lights on.’

While I was planning this extreme bedtime routine, Section Chief Lee Jaheon, who had been eating green onion salad, suddenly asked,

“Are you going to save the 40,000 points?”

“Pardon?”

It was a natural question.

“Oh, um, yes. I need to buy a Wish Ticket.”

“I see.”

“……”

Wait a minute. This conversation pattern feels familiar.

I retraced our previous conversation.

So…

“Is there perhaps another useful way to spend points?”

“Yes.”

“……”

Ah. So this is how I should have approached it…

Now I think I’m starting to understand how to deal with the Lizard Squad Leader. I felt a bit of relief as I asked in a more relaxed tone,

“What would that be?”

“Custom equipment.”

“……!”

I didn’t expect this to come up here…

‘It finally came.’

One of the main perks of being an employee at <Daydream Inc.>

‘Personalized equipment!’