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Chapter 57.1
Chapter 57.1
Chapter 57.1
Office workers always carry their resignation letter with them—whether physically or mentally—over their hearts.
However, it’s usually hidden…
‘Telling a new hire, though?’
And from a direct superior, no less.
“I’ve almost collected enough points. Don’t go spreading it around.”
“……”
Given Assistant Manager Eun Haje’s personality, I’d have expected her to keep her poker face until the very day of her resignation, revealing it only at the last moment.
“Are you sure it’s okay to tell me this?”
“Why not? It’s not exactly bad news. Besides, there are plenty of people in this company who brag about how many points they’ve accumulated.”
Eun Haje gave my shoulder a firm pat.“I just thought I’d let our squad know in advance.”
“Sniffle. It’s so moving, seeing this from up close, sunbae-nim!”
“Cut it out.”
I glanced over at Supervisor Park Minseong, who had sidled up and was being overly dramatic. He seemed to have known about it beforehand.
‘Must be a company culture thing.’
After all, this is a job where people risk everything, spinning the chamber of a Russian roulette revolver against their temples in hopes of fulfilling a seemingly impossible, desperate wish.
It made sense that there wasn’t much point in hiding the desire to escape.
Still, it was a shame to see such a considerate direct superior leave. But for her, this was great news, so congratulations were in order.
There was just one thing I didn’t understand.
“Assistant Manager.”
“Yeah?”
“Does that mean you’ve gathered all 500,000 points?”
“What?! Five hundred thousand…!”
Eun Haje looked startled before her expression relaxed, and she chuckled knowingly.
“Oh, did you think I was aiming for a wish ticket?”
“……?”
Isn’t that the norm? Finding someone who isn’t would probably be harder around here.
“Well, when I first joined, that was my goal too. But after looking around, I realized there are other ways.”
“……!”
Ah.
‘I see.’
Now that I thought about it, not everyone might need to go all the way to a wish ticket.
‘If something you can buy from the employee points mall fulfills your wish, that might be good enough.’
“I just need one of the high-tier magical potions this company offers.”
As expected.
“…May I ask how many points it costs?”
“170,000. I’m less than 5,000 away now. Still… I’ll probably have to stick around a few more months to earn the bonus points here and there thanks to you.” ?????Ê?
Eun Haje gave a rare playful wink.
“I’ll talk to the squad leader and see if we can keep you here until the next regular personnel announcement.”
That meant I could likely remain on the D-squad until then.
Afterward, once she left, the squad would naturally be down to its proper capacity.
‘How thoughtful.’
Her confidence that I’d even want to stay with this squad made it all the more impressive.
“Sunbae-nim, when you leave, we should definitely have a proper squad dinner. And let’s stay in touch after you’re gone. We could go watch baseball or something…”
“Of course. You just need to stick it out a few more years too.”
“Me? Nah, I’m stuck collecting all 500,000 points.”
Despite scratching his head, Supervisor Park’s face seemed brighter than usual.
“Anyway… this means Roe can stay on our squad, right?”
“If the squad leader pulls the right strings.”
And when the ‘squad leader’ returned from the section head meeting, they confirmed the matter calmly.
“Yes. The odds are in your favor.”
“Ohhh!”
“It’s a matter of probability. Do not base your plans on the assumption of staying.”
“…Well, Roe, there you have it.”
“Yes…”
Classic lizard.
“Anyway, congratulations on your decision, Assistant Manager.”
“Thanks.”
Eun Haje smiled as he stepped out to smoke. Her back already looked lighter, as if a burden had been lifted.
‘…What happens to employees who quit?’
There were no accounts of resigning staff being secretly detained in labs for confidentiality or disappearing without a trace.
‘There were even descriptions of retired employees having relatively good endings.’
Like those universally liked colleagues that people on the wiki grew attached to, ensuring the writers gave them satisfying retirements.
‘…I hope it goes that way for her too.’
After a brief moment of reflection, I returned to my work.
That meant taking on the tasks assigned by the squad leader who had just returned from the meeting.
“This time, the Darkness we’ll be exploring is a C-class spider from a known source with a completed manual.”
“Oh… so the points will be around 600 to 700 per person, right?”
“Yes.”
“Roe, it’s good we banked on those points when we had the chance.”
The influx of ‘new Darkness manual completion explorations’ that had been almost exclusively assigned to D-squad was finally slowing down.
“There’s usually a seasonal burst of new Darknesses. The research squad tends to register them all at once as the deadline approaches.”
“Ah.”
This really feels so… company-like.
Of course, as a new hire, pointing that out wouldn’t do me any good.
I smiled faintly and said,
“Then we can all work safely for a while, right?”
“That’s what I like about you, Roe—you’re always so positive!”
Supervisor Park laughed heartily and handed me the tablet displaying the manual in PDF form.
“Even with a manual, it’s still C-class, so if you let your guard down, it could be serious. Let me know when you’ve fully gone through it.”
“Yes.”
“Looks like this one just involves surviving in a certain location for a day.”
Hmm.
I took the tablet and started reading.
The official manual was written in the usual calm tone, following the same format as always.
It resembled the entries in the <Dark Exploration Records> wiki, meaning the data had been implemented with detailed, practical information based on prior records.
‘Let’s see.’
This is a ghost story about getting lost in a space within a mostly empty commercial building, a phenomenon referred to online as a type of ‘backroom’.
“……”
As I read the next paragraph, a strong feeling struck me like a hammer.
‘This is…’
For months now, I’d been using the <Dark Exploration Records> to infer the true nature of ghost stories and match them to their corresponding manuals.
So I wasn’t exactly surprised by the general nature of these phenomena anymore.
But this situation? It’s surprising in a different way.
Normally, it’s the kind of thing where I’d end up in a scenario like the <Tuesday Quiz Show>, involving insane mass slaughter or a situation where my death is practically guaranteed.
But this time, it’s different.
‘This is… good news!’
Oh my god, a wholesome ghost story!
If fear were measured on a scale, this one would probably be a zero. Even the most faint-hearted could breeze through it after knowing the spoilers.
Then why was it rated C-class?
‘Because Daydream Inc. misclassified the grade due to a misunderstanding!’
This story was meant to bring joy.
It was one of those ‘misunderstood ghost stories’—seemingly dangerous but actually warm and gentle. It was safe and friendly, but people’s biases made it seem scary, leading to amusing misinterpretations.
‘It’s more like a magical experience than a ghost story…’
Naturally, there weren’t many cases like this in the <Dark Exploration Records>.
My heart raced slightly.
Was I really going to experience this?
‘Wait a minute.’
If this goes well…
‘This might not just feel warm and fuzzy—it could actually make my life better.’
My mind started spinning quickly.
To pull this off, there was something I definitely needed to have.
And that was…
“You’re being sent in tomorrow afternoon, so there’s plenty of time. Take your time reading through it. Though honestly… You probably don’t even need me to explain things, Roe!”
“In that case… would it be okay if I stepped out for a bit during lunch tomorrow?”
“Huh? Well, I don’t think either Squad Leader Lee or the Assistant Manager Eun would mind, but why? If it’s for a doctor’s visit, we can give you extra time.”
“Oh, no, it’s not that. I just…”
I thought about my bank account and started counting.
“There’s something I need to buy.”
“……?”
To make the most of this wholesome ghost story, I needed to bring along…
Something very expensive!