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I had felt it keenly several times before, but most of the ghost stories handled by the Disaster Management Bureau result in fatalities.
This is because a phenomenon is only registered as a Supernatural Disaster once there are human casualties.
In that sense, a task that keeps one even a single step away from human casualties while working as an agent of the Disaster Management Bureau could seem… quite attractive.
No, I get that, but.
“At dawn, driving… with a ghost in the passenger seat?”
“Yes.”
“…….”
Is this for real?
“Don’t worry. There have been no cases of the driver dying.”
“…….”
“At most, it’s a mild heart attack or fainting. You won’t need to prepare yourself for anything too major.”
But I do need to!
I almost stared at Agent Bronze while letting my sense of betrayal and shock show plainly, but I barely managed to hold it back.
‘Wait a minute.’
…If I openly say I’m scared here, he’ll probably tell me to quit, won’t he?
I already whined once to get out of the Emergency Rescue Squad; if I do it again right away, Agent Bronze, who I’m already on awkward terms with, might just tell me to go look for a different career path.
‘No!’
That’s the worst route for a spy.
So, I changed my strategy.
“Um, but I… I’m in a state where I can’t drive.”
“…….”
I lowered my head, acting a bit pitiful, and glanced at the vicinity of my empty right arm.
Exactly.
‘He wouldn’t make me do something as crazy as driving with one hand…!’
Maybe if it were someone who had trained to do everything with one hand from the start, but how is someone who suddenly lost an arm supposed to go for a drive with a ghost? And at 2 AM, no less!
With this, I can naturally move on to another task….
“You don’t have to worry about that.”
…….
“Pardon?”
Agent Bronze looked at me with a faint smile for the first time in days.
“It is finally your turn to have your arm addressed.”
Ah.
Thinking about it, it was only natural.
The Disaster Management Bureau aren't idiots; they wouldn't just blindly assign a guy with one arm to drive.
It was only right to take some measures regarding my missing right arm before starting this work.
‘Should I laugh or cry at this?’
For now, I definitely felt like crying.
Regardless, thanks to that, I finally entered the headquarters of the Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau with Agent Bronze.
‘I actually get to do this.’
“This way.”
“Yes…!”
I followed Agent Bronze inside the busy City Hall where civil servants would be working… or so I thought, but instead, we turned back and walked through the gap between City Hall and the Seoul Library.
Being a back path, it was dark with the shadows of the two buildings.
Walking along that shaded path behind the Seoul Library, passing the unmanned book return booth….
‘Here.’
A glass-finished connecting passage between City Hall and the library building loomed overhead.
Once we stepped under that bridge….
Flash.
The iron badge I was wearing flashed, illuminating a narrow flowerbed beneath a library window.
And then, a hidden door was revealed.
“…!!”
The flowerbed suddenly became wide and deep, revealing a hidden space, followed by a clean, opaque glass door and a nameplate.
[Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau]
“Please, come in.”
Thus, through a hidden door in the alleyway between the Seoul Metropolitan City Hall and the Seoul Library, where countless pedestrians passed by unawares, we entered the headquarters of the Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau.
For the record, it was an automatic door.
‘Wow.’
And the inside of the headquarters was… surprisingly, like an ordinary public institution.
A space where adults of various ages in suits went about their business in a building with a moderately worn and depreciated interior.
Though the conversations they were having were anything but ordinary.
“How many died?”
“Fifteen.”
“Seriously, is Dobong-gu cursed lately? That crazy phone booth keeps….”
And they were moving busily.
Strange lights or shadows sometimes followed behind them, which perfectly illustrated the atmosphere of a public office in this bizarre Ghost Story Worldview….
“The facilities of the Management Bureau are mostly located underground. They say it’s harder to hide things above ground.”
“I see….”
I boarded the elevator following Agent Bronze’s lead.
The moderately old and modern elevator was familiar, but instead of buttons, the floor was entered via a keypad.
‘It’s probably designed so people can’t tell how many basement floors there are….’
[07]
Agent Bronze quickly finished the input.
“The Equipment Management Squad is on the 7th basement floor.”
Then, getting off on B7, which had the exact same layout as the B1 floor we entered from, he knocked on a door located right across the hallway.
[Supernatural Equipment Registration Room]
When we opened the door and entered, a middle-aged civil servant sitting alone in a small office looked up and greeted us.
“Agent Bronze! I was just told by the elder of that team… Oh, is this the Rookie Agent!”
“…Yes. That’s right.”
“Hello…! I’m Agent Grapes….”
“Ahaha, yes. Nice to meet you! I’m Oh Jeonghye, a senior official in the Equipment Management Squad. I’m administrative staff, not a field agent, so I don’t have a code name.”
The middle-aged official then smiled and guided me and Agent Bronze further inside.
When she opened a door that looked like a deep-colored display case made of ancient wood… the shelves extended deep inside, becoming a warehouse.
“…!”
“Now, what Agent Grapes will be issued today is….”
The official’s voice gradually grew distant, and as the warehouse before my eyes darkened….
“This is it!”
Flash.
Something shimmered as if moonlight had struck glass.
I looked at the object placed on the nearest shelf.
A worn and cracked glass lantern.
Yet it was so exquisitely made that light sparkled through the delicate glasswork.
And in the center, a shimmering pale blue flame flickered and sparked the moment it saw me.
“It’s a Dokkaebi Fire that arrived today, and it’s very energetic! It’s quite excited to help you.”
Oh my god.
The most cool and anticipated method had truly appeared.
==========
Dark Exploration Record / Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau / Item
Dokkaebi Fire Lantern
A Dokkaebi Fire dwelling within a glass lantern that has been prayed over with divine energy for 100 days.
It seems to be inhabited by the fire-shadow of a usually mischievous but good-natured Dokkaebi, cooling its heat and practicing its discipline.
It becomes an object the user can naturally wear and carry, accompanying them, and sometimes even substituting for a part of the Body.
When held by a compatible user, several Dokkaebi Pranks can be used.
Item Usage Condition: A civil servant belonging to the Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau who has received authorization for its necessity.
==========
“Would you like to try receiving it?”
With a trembling left hand, I carefully received the glass lantern.
At that moment, the glass lantern crumbled.
“……!”
The crumbled transparent lantern reassembled itself onto my right arm with a crisp sound, like shards of ice.
And as the Dokkaebi Fire enveloped it, in the next moment….
“That went well!”
It had turned into a perfectly fine arm.
I shook the arm.
…It moved well.
Without a single bit of pain.
‘Wow.’
Truly, among the phenomena classified as ghost stories, this was on the most heartwarming and pleasant side.
‘This feels more like a legend or a folktale.’
I clenched and unclenched my right hand, which felt strangely cold and soft yet moved according to my will.
Then, my right hand gave a thumbs up and then down of its own accord.
“…?!”
“Ah, it’s because it’s a bit mischievous. But that will actually be helpful while you work. Haha!”
“…Yes.”
So this is what happens to civil servants when they're steeped in a Ghost Story Worldview….
Thus, I came to fill the void of my right arm with a miraculous Dokkaebi Fire.
Of course, it wasn't a permanent gift.
“Since we didn't perform a separate prayer using your birth chart, it will return to a lantern after three days of use. You can come back and recharge it then.”
Right, I figured they wouldn't just give a rookie a custom-made, official Dokkaebi Fire lantern right away.
What I received wasn't a formal Dokkaebi Fire Lantern that could use actual Dokkaebi Pranks, but likely a type of common supply.
‘If it were, the Disaster Management Bureau would have been game-breakingly strong in the Dark Exploration Records.’
“If we were to make it custom-made like that? You wouldn't be able to just take it like this; the Agent would have to undergo a Dokkaebi Trial too… Phew, it's powerful, but it's hard work.”
In the first place, that was the kind of treatment only a team ace or a team leader in the Management Bureau could receive.
‘It’ll be convenient to have an excuse to use a Regeneration Potion later on.’
Regardless, I bowed and thanked the two senior officials who even helped me fill out the checkout paperwork.
“Thank you.”
“Hey, it’s nothing.”
And the official from the Equipment Management Squad even gave me a tip, winking from behind her glasses.
“You’re the first rookie Agent Bronze has tried to look after this much.”
“…!”
“He’s an agent who works overtime every day without showing it, someone I respect but also feel sorry for sometimes… It’s nice to see him getting
along with a rookie agent.”
“Ah, thank… you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
I didn't know if we were… "getting along," but anyway, having spent time with him today, he seemed much more polite and caring than I expected.
Did he sort out his thoughts mentally while I was hospitalized?
‘He might have thought that since he owes me his life, he should treat me well even if it’s uncomfortable.’
In any case, it was something to be very grateful for.
Agent Bronze even said something like this while we were returning.
— …It will take time, but later, let’s come back to find a custom-made Dokkaebi Fire for you as well.
— ……Thank you.
I was a bit curious and wondered.
What form would it take?
‘If I could use Dokkaebi Pranks too, would the difficulty of escaping ghost stories become a lot easier?’
Of course, there was a high probability my spy duties would end before then, and that would be better for my well-being, but the imagination itself wasn't bad.
…Even though the fact that something that wasn't my arm was attached to my right side felt very strange at times.
……And even though I was now waiting until dawn to provide a call-taxi service for a ghost.
‘Save me.’
I endured the waiting time, suppressing a groan.
Now that I had two arms, I was undeniably stuck with driving.
‘Ugh.’
And so, time passed in the blink of an eye… and finally, the time had come.
2 AM.
The dark Express Bus Terminal Station.
Of all things, it was drizzling.
With public transportation cut off, the crowds had vanished, and silence had fallen.
Only two or three taxis like mine, aiming for the late-night surcharge and the time when there are no other means of transport, stood lined up by the roadside.
“…….”
I gripped the steering wheel tight.
At around 12:45 AM, three civilians who had sent a rescue request after seeing a ghost in a restroom near Express Bus Terminal Station and being unable to leave were safely rescued back to reality.
Now, the supernatural phenomenon will end once the ghost is safely returned to where it originally belonged.
And I was the one who had been assigned the role of ‘safely returning the ghost to where it originally belonged.’
‘…Agent Bronze said he’d be waiting at the destination.’
Sigh.
I took a deep breath alone in the silent vehicle.
A ghost that has already missed its sacrifice cannot directly harm the driver, but strange anomalies will occur within the boarding vehicle. Be careful to cope without panicking.
First, I will explain the vehicle being issued to you, Agent.
So, what was assigned to me was this 4-seater taxi vehicle with two or more ‘8’s included in its license plate.
This car, where I was now sitting in the driver’s seat, barely managing to hold back my anxiety.
The ghost will check the license plate at the taxi stand and then board your vehicle, Agent.
Before long.
A figure with long hair appeared, peering through the windshield from the dark outside.
It… was looking at the license plate with its head hung low.
“…!”
I tried my best not to let my hands on the wheel shake and to act calm and composed.
If the driver is shaken, the ghost may get out of the taxi.
In this case, the supernatural disaster will not end. Please be careful.
The figure with long hair trailing down staggered and moved strangely, coming near the passenger seat.
And it knocked on the door.
Tap, tap.
I unlocked the car door.
A person wearing faded summer clothes that didn't fit the weather, with their face almost completely covered by long hair, got in.
They muttered as they entered the car.
“Please take me to Saji-yuk Cemetery….”
Thud.
The passenger door closed.
“Understood.”
“I like this car's number. The number is… good eight eight eight like eight eight eight”
I almost fainted.
“I see.”
As calmly as possible, I entered the destination into the navigation.
Saji-yuk, Cemetery….
— Search completed.
A place with a bizarre name that normally wouldn't have been searchable was, surprisingly, found, and the navigation began to guide the route.
— Estimated time of arrival at the destination is 4:04.
“…….”
Two hours.
I barely managed to step on the pedal.
The car started and left Express Bus Terminal Station….
Vroooooom….
A car with only the sound of the engine remaining.
Now I had to sit in this cramped space with a ghost for two hours.
While driving without getting into an accident.
“…….”
“…….”
A strange chill drifted through the car.
The plaster air freshener on the dashboard shook, and a smell that wasn't flowers began to waft.
The smell of burning incense.
A suffocating silence.
— Turn left in 200m.
My hands on the steering wheel almost flinched.
Even the emotionless voice of the navigation made my skin crawl.
“…….”
I tried my absolute best not to be shaken, which is to say, I tried not to look to the side.
But not looking seemed even scarier! Because I wasn't looking, the imagination and the suffocation made it harder. My hands on the wheel were sweaty, and the dark road ahead didn't enter my sight properly.
It felt like it would be better to just look! Not looking was more painful because of the imagination and the breathlessness.
‘Wait, just a second.’
“…….”
I stole a glance at the passenger seat. There, sitting quietly, was the woman with long hair….
Her neck was twisted around.
“I’m suffocating.”
I looked at the steering wheel.
“I think someone is following us from behind!”
I fixed my gaze forward.
Cold sweat trickled down my neck, making me repeatedly recall the image I just saw, completely, the head twisted so the face was pressed against the headrest, and only the back of the head covered in black hair was visible….
“Hey! Driver, I’m telling you something is following us from behind! Look back! Look back!”
Behind you!
I moved my head.
And….
“……Ah, it’s just another vehicle.”
I checked the side mirror.
“Don’t worry. There aren't many cars right now, so they must be speeding. I’ll drive safely.”
“Ah, yessss drive safely safely”
“…….”
I didn't look at the passenger seat anymore.
I didn't look back either.
I tried my best, my absolute best, not to look anywhere, and…….
‘I can't do this.’
Ha. This is driving me crazy. I absolutely, absolutely can’t….
There needs to be some other sound.
“If it’s okay with you, may I turn on the radio?”
“Yes.”
I barely reached out with my frozen hand and turned on the radio.
Turning on the radio will temporarily quiet the Passenger Ghost.
[The woman responsible for the romance of the deep night, hello. This is Miyoung Kim’s Deep Night Romance Radio.]
The stable and soft voice of the radio DJ temporarily drove away the fear.
‘Phew.’
I could finally breathe.
However, the radio is not a cure-all.
The radio will have content similar to real-life radio programs, but the more you listen, the more bizarre the content will become.
Traffic accidents dated a week in the future, mourning for a major catastrophe that hasn't happened yet, interviews with dead people, etc.
However, it is recommended to leave it on the frequency it first plays. The more you change the frequency, the higher the probability that the content will become even more grotesque and horrific.
There was a reason I didn't turn it on from the start.
I turned on the radio with the mindset that I would turn it off if necessary. Please, please, just for a little while with this….
[Then let’s welcome today’s guest. It’s a program I also enjoy watching very much: Late-Night Talk Show!]
“……!”
[The legendary host of the Late-Night Talk Show has joined us in the radio booth. Everyone, please welcome him with joy!]
[The host of ‘Braun’s Late-Night Talk Show,’ the amazing and great Braun!]
Wait a minute.
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