A few hours later.
“F*ck…!”
The employee wearing the ladybug mask hid in the restroom next to the resort lobby, panting and wiping the sweat that had gathered under his neck.
His head was spinning.
‘What is this?’
What on earth was going on?
When entering a New Darkness without a manual, he at least entered with a bit of mental preparation, but the things happening now were so sudden he couldn’t keep his wits about him….
‘I—I definitely entered as a guest!’
But that damn Security Team monster became a Mascot and dragged him into being part of the ghost story…!
…As an employee here.
And this Cheerful Theme Park Resort area was about to begin operations.
Ladybug swallowed hard.
‘…Isn’t there some way to sneak out?’
He could steal a stamp, get it marked, and run for the gate.
‘If only I could do something about the thing strangling my neck….’
At that moment.
Creak.
“…!”
The restroom door opened, and someone walked in.
…It was two Field Exploration team employees wearing resort uniforms.
“Oh, there you are. Come out and take this.”
The harvest mouse employee waved a piece of paper.
That guy had been scared to death by the Security Team monster, but his attitude changed somewhere along the line after the monster actually stamped his Boarding Pass.
He was actually following the order to wait and tidy up his appearance for a moment before the opening!
It seemed he had given up thinking, wondering if he really could escape this way.
‘Idiots!’
While trying to sneer at their slave mentality, the ladybug employee barely managed to reach out and take the paper….
< Flower Golden Resort Work Regulations >
“…!!”
Welcome to our newly renovated dream getaway, our luxurious and comfortable resort. We welcome you to work as part of our family.
Before starting today’s shift, please be sure to familiarize yourself with the following instructions.
“These are the guidelines to follow while working; they were stacked in the staff room… Assistant manager?”
The ladybug employee swallowed and looked down at the document.
Work Regulations are subject to modification or addition without prior notice. Employees are strongly encouraged to check the regulations at all times to prevent improper responses or handling.
Chillingly strange expressions.
It was a textbook Rule-based Ghost Story.
‘Dammit….’
Cold sweat trickled down Ladybug’s back.
As someone whose team was already managing a similar Darkness, he picked up the document with trembling hands, wanting to violently reject it.
He knew that this was, at the very least, a hint.
However, there were too many uncertainties. Just as Darkness always was. Therefore….
‘…I need to make someone else break the rules first.’
He had to check that way.
The employee hid his sinister gaze and looked around at the other staff.
Then he spoke in an understated tone.
“Hey, what do you all think?”
“Pardon?”
“I mean, since these rules suddenly popped up. Do you… do you think the Security Team employee’s Mascot made these up on the spot?”
The employee’s voice grew lower.
“Could it be that he’s also Contaminated and just wrote down whatever came to mind…?”
“…!”
The employee spoke as if nudging him.
“You’re Mr. Bison, right? What do you think, Mr. Bison?”
“Me?”
“About the Mascot’s condition.”
“Ah….”
Jang Heowoon, wearing the Bison mask, quietly lowered his head after reading the work regulations.
“How should I put it… well, he doesn’t seem like a bad-hearted person.”
“…!?”
“What did you say?”
Is this bottom-feeder already contaminated?
The two employees momentarily exchanged glances. They thought they could use this gloomy branch office employee as bait if necessary.
Jang Heowoon began to speak in a tone of deep thought.
“This is my second visit here, and even before, the theme park areas were divided into those belonging to scary Mascots and those belonging to kind Mascots.”
“…….”
“In other explorations recorded in the manuals, the Mascots seemed to pursue various, yes, values….”
“So you’re saying that one’s kind?”
“Rather than kind… if you think about Mascots like Magic Bunny… ugh.”
Whether he was remembering that time or not, Jang Heowoon’s face turned pale and he gagged. The ladybug mask didn’t bother hiding his contempt.
‘Just like someone from the Cleanup team.’
Incompetent.
Looking at how he managed to survive and get promoted with that attitude, he must have good luck.
“A-Anyway… I think it’s quite kind of him to let us know the rules like this….”
“Ah, I see.”
Good.
Look at that useless optimism.
‘That guy will make a mistake soon, and then I can observe the results.’
Ladybug hid his dark assumptions and finally stepped out of the restroom.
For now, he should fill up his stamps too.
He had to take what he could get.
If he had to stay in this Darkness until night, staying here seemed like it would at least increase his survival chances.
“E-Excuse me.”
He cautiously approached the Mascot standing idly at the front desk.
Since it was a basic mascot suit without any accessories, this was likely the main body of the Mascot the Security Team monster had turned into.
And he bowed as politely as possible.
Because being arrogant in a ghost story was a foreshadowing of death.
“If you don’t mind… I would also like to stay at the resort today with this Boarding Pass…!”
The yellow Mascot’s round, black eyes stared at him blankly.
They were black.
…Strangely, the yellow light that had been on that person’s black face, which looked like a gas lamp, flickered in his mind…….
Just as cold sweat began to bead on the back of the ladybug-masked employee’s neck.
[(Cheerful) Fantasyland Boarding Pass ■□□]
“…!”
The Mascot gave permission to add his duty name to the guest log and stamped the pass.
“T-Thank you…!”
However.
V e r y S o o n
“…!!”
Ladybug raised his head in surprise.
The mouth of the theme park Mascot, whose appearance was eerily cute, did not move. It was a mascot suit, after all.
However, a voice echoed through the lobby.
O p e n i n g
Then that monster began to assign the employees.
G e t R e a d y
Jang Heowoon was assigned as an assistant information clerk at the front and stood next to the counter, while the harvest mouse employee assigned as a cleaner retreated behind the lobby.
Ladybug swallowed and quickly darted his eyes around.
Then the remaining positions were….
‘Security!’
The Mascot approached him.
“…!”
No way. That looks like the most dangerous spot!
He reflexively opened his mouth.
“Um, I’m more confident in my brains than my brawn… I think I could show better results if I were assigned to that side!”
What he was aiming for was Jang Heowoon’s spot.
‘It’s only right that I go to a spot with a higher survival rate than some guy who gags at the sight of gore.’
Ladybug glanced at the front desk where Jang Heowoon was, trying not to be too obvious.
The Mascot stared at him without a word.
“…….”
Then it began to guide him.
To the very place he was looking at, the front desk!
“…!”
Pushing him out was a success!
Ladybug’s heart pounded as if it were about to explode.
But….
H e r e
The place he was assigned to… was the desk next to the front.
…The place that receives room service request calls.
‘Dammit.’
Room service in a ghost story; just hearing it made him think all sorts of horrible requests would come in.
Ladybug Grit his teeth. However, he couldn’t ask the Mascot for a reassignment.
He had no intention of being the first one to try and force his way, having a 50% chance of committing suicide.
Meanwhile, the Mascot walked away from him.
T h r e e
The Mascot went and stood at the reception desk.
The position where guests are personally checked and received.
T w o
The golden sun was setting outside the window.
O n e
As the Mascot standing at the desk looked at the Standard-grade Mascots standing at the entrance, they grabbed the glass doors.
And.
R e s o r t o p e n
The doors opened.
-♩♪♬♬~♩♬♬~♩♪♪
-Ahahaha!
Music flowed, and the laughter of children filled the lobby.
The background music of Cheerful Theme Park.
W e l c o m e
The Mascots bowed toward the open doors in unison.
Flower Golden Resort was now open.
***
I realized it.
Being able to communicate through language is truly precious….
Even if it’s in that bizarre mascot-style yellow speech.
‘Ugh.’
To think I’d end up saying this….
‘Anyway, the atmosphere is set.’
I stifled a groan and squeezed my eyes shut and then opened them inside the mascot head.
Then I scanned the employees.
‘I assigned them to places where they can pass off as much work as possible and be clever.’
I hope they all familiarized themselves with the Work Regulations. I wrote them while practically fighting the pen.
I hope they work with some common sense. Because if they work too hard, they might suffer something absurd from a ghost or a monster.
But then again, if they’re so lazy it stands out… I don’t know how this resort will react.
“…….”
I swallowed hard and looked at the wide-open resort doors.
And at the phrase in the document added earlier.
< Things needed for resort facility expansion >
Employees: 3
Satisfied guests: 30
I had to operate it anyway.
‘I have to somehow fill thirty satisfied guests to open the next space.’
Even if I could use other methods to bring in three employees, there was no other way for this.
For now… I have to hold out.
At least for today.
–Ahahaha!
And, and….
Guests were finally entering through the open doors of the resort.
Souvenirs were held in the hands of those who had visited other areas of the theme park…. I tried not to think about what those souvenirs might be made of.
But.
‘…Why am I excited?’
My guests.
My heart pounded inside the mascot suit as I recognized them as official guests of this wonderful resort.
No!
I desperately suppressed it and responded to the first guests approaching.
At a glance, they looked like an ordinary, happy family. Their hair was wet as if they had enjoyed the water park.
“Hello. We’d like one room, please.”
If only their heads, stomachs, and pelvises weren’t crushed into a mush of organs by something like tires.
…It was clear the whole family had met with a terrible accident together.
‘Phew.’
I assigned them a deluxe room and added an extra bed for the child.
“Daddy, are we really sleeping at the amusement park this time?”
“That’s right. Finally, our ■■ can play for one more day at the amusement park!”
Blood dripped onto the counter and then went back into the crushed intestines.
Mr. Jang Heowoon was covering his mouth with a pale face, but he escaped the situation by bowing deeply as if in greeting.
“Thank you!”
And as the guests left for the elevator, Jang Heowoon let out a small sigh of relief.
I raised the Mascot’s paw and patted his head.
G o o d J o b
“…! T-Thank you….”
Mr. Jang Heowoon lowered his head deeply, then looked up with his eyes shining for some reason.
And he began to perform his response duties with a more proactive attitude.
‘……??’
I told you not to work so hard….
Regardless, the work of assigning rooms to guests who were strange in some way continued after that.
There were more guests than I expected. It was as if they had been waiting for the opening.
And they all gave the same standard currency.
I rolled it slightly inside my paw.
Colorful plastic coins.
‘…These look like components from a Cheerful Theme Park board game.’
Yes. They were plastic coin-shaped tokens, just like the ones used in board games.
Strange characters were engraved on the front, and the theme park logo was on the back.
The color was mostly blue.
‘Hmm.’
I tucked them away for now. Seeing as they pay for accommodation with them, they must be useful somewhere.
It was after sending off about three or four teams and catching my breath for a moment.
Screeeeeeech.
A strange noise began to be heard from the door.
The sound of a balloon rubbing against glass.
It was Magic Bunny’s balloon.
Holding a bright red balloon and dragging its legs as it approached, it looked up at me and spoke quickly and precisely.
“HelloIwillstayforonenight.Aquietroomaroomwhereicandiearoomnoonecanfindplease.”
“I-I’m sorry, guest, but acts that disturb public order and morals are prohibited in our resort.”
Heowoon!
‘I told you you don’t have to work that hard!’
I quickly took out a notice I had placed under the desk and held it out in front of the thing, which was already hard to mistake for a human.
It was a notice derived from the resort’s rules of use.
< Flower Golden Resort is a space for happiness. Please refrain from anything that makes other guests or staff uncomfortable.
The standard of happiness is determined by the Mascot. >
“Idyingishappy!Idyingishappy!”
It made a scene.
‘Violation of resort usage rules!’
The Standard-grade Mascots rushed over, grabbed the nuisance guest by the arms, and dragged it out the door.
…Out the back door.
Phew.
‘Done.’
Anyway, I safely protected the resort.
It’ll be fine if I keep going… like this, right?
Yes.
‘Let’s hold out like this.’
As a safe Weird Tale Resort with only class and refinement!
***
At about the same time, Blue Dream Water Park.
“Phew. Filled them all.”
“Let’s get out of here!”
The Field Exploration team employees who had drawn the blue horse had finished riding all three attractions and were ready to leave.
“This is a sweet deal, a sweet deal!”
“B-grade for doing nothing!”
They were already in a state of comfortably finishing their work at Blue Dream Water Park, where exploration records existed and the rules weren't that difficult.
And they were looking for the gate.
“…?!”
“I-It’s closed…?”
[Under Repair]
A sign was posted on the largest main gate, blocking entry.
“W-What?”
“Excuse me… then where would be a good place to go out?”
They felt flustered, but they very carefully spoke to the Blue Mascot standing by the gate.
Then the Mascot pointed in one direction.
“Thank you!”
They quickly hurried their steps. Every time they met a Mascot, it would raise its hand to show them the direction.
“Damn kind.”
“How great would it be if other Darknesses were like this?”
Behind the two snickering employees, the employee wearing the Lizard mask followed quietly, observing the surroundings.
The path led further and further to the outskirts, into a beautiful garden.
“Oh.”
“This looks like it was newly made. I can smell paint.”
And at the end of the garden path… there was a gate.
However, an enchanting light could be seen beyond the gate.
“Huh…?!”
At the end of the waving golden streetlamps, a massive building, like a magnificent and grand hotel, was shining.
The Field Exploration team employees instinctively realized.
“I-It’s a Yellow Zone.”
“It wasn't in the original exploration…?”
Then the Blue Mascot standing by the gate watched them quietly and held something out.
“Uh?”
[Special Draw Event]
It was a board with small, thick pieces of paper folded and attached as if to hide the contents. The kind of draw where the contents are revealed when you peel off the paper.
“…….”
The employees swallowed hard.
“Hey, if it’s from here….”
“Yeah. I think it’ll be okay.”
Since this area was a kind place, wouldn't they be able to get useful items or something?
‘Then it’s a total gain.’
‘Betting once here might….’
Seeing how they avoided that monster-like Security Team employee today, they were clearly lucky.
And they were leaving soon anyway!
Ultimately, unable to overcome their greed, they reached out and tore off the papers.
“Huh? I won!”
“Aw man, a dud….”
And the person standing at the very back also quietly reached out and tore off a paper from the board….
Y o u
“…….”
I K n o w Y o u
Lee Jaheon looked up and into the eyes of the Blue Dragon Mascot he had encountered on Death Road.
However, the Mascot did not stop him from participating in the draw.
G o o d
Lee Jaheon reached out and pulled a draw paper.
A win.
“……."
He accepted the prize the Mascot held out.
A ticket-type coupon that looked as if it had been printed.
< Flower Golden Resort >
Deluxe Room 1-Day Accommodation Ticket
(Review mandatory)
He looked up at the golden resort where brilliant lights were twinkling.
He looked up at the Flower Golden Resort, its golden lights shining brilliantly.
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