The light green magic medicine flows into Go Yeongeun’s mouth.
Gulp. Gulp.
The liquid disappears, and once the glass bottle is empty.
“…!”
Ms. Go Yeongeun set the bottle down.
With her eyes wide open, she reached both hands toward her ears….
And within her trembling hands.
As if new skin were sprouting from a wound, a rounded mass of flesh began to grow where Go Yeongeun’s ear had been torn off.
It took shape in an instant.
The helix, the tragus, and the earlobe manifested into clear forms based on the cartilage, and then….
It became whole.
“…….”
“Wa, waaaah…!!”
My goodness.
“Ms. Go Yeongeun?”
“Yes!! Ah! I can hear! This, this actually worked….”
Go Yeongeun cried out as if she couldn't believe it while touching her newly formed ear, then turned on her smartphone and began inspecting her ear with the camera app.
As if it were the most natural thing, she said it looked exactly like her original ear.
“Does it hurt or anything?”
“Not at all! It was just a bit itchy and then it was fine… Wow, no, I feel like I can hear even better than before?!”
It was a very good thing.
Truly, it felt amazing and even miraculous, and it was a great relief, but….
‘…This might make her even more reckless in her choices.’
At this company, if a manual determines that clearing a certain high-grade Darkness absolutely requires a permanent physical loss, low-grade Regeneration Potions are sometimes provided as supplies.
And once you get used to that?
The employees gradually stop caring about losing parts of their bodies.
The first time is hard; the second time is easy.
‘Is that a good thing?’
I looked to the side with a strange feeling.
Baek Saheon was staring down at the fancy box containing his Regeneration Potion with a dark expression….
With only one eye.
“…Excuse me. Saheon-ssi.”
“…….”
Yeongeun spoke to him cautiously after a moment of hesitation.
“Having one eye compromised has a bigger impact than you’d think. It affects your sense of distance, field of vision, and even your sense of balance, so even if you think it’s a waste, it might be better to use it and regenerate.”
“Mind your own business.”
Yeongeun almost made a face that said ‘What’s with this jerk,’ but perhaps because she was relieved to have her ear back, she chose to ignore him.
I added a few words after some thought.
“Since the work is dangerous, another physical loss might occur. It might not be a bad judgment to save it just in case.”
“Ah… that’s true too.”
“……!”
Baek Saheon’s pupils suddenly trembled as he stared intensely into the box.
‘Hey.’
Why do you look like you're about to use it right now just because I took your side?
Regardless, I ignored him and packed my box away carefully.
My heart fluttered a bit.
It was my first time seeing such a famous, powerful, and non-scary symbolic item in person.
The symbol of Daydream Inc.
The magic medicine.
‘Let’s keep this safe.’
It was then.
“Um, Soleum-ssi.”
“Yes?”
“I’ve been meaning to tell you… I really wanted to formally thank you.”
Go Yeongeun looked at me and bowed her head.
“Really, truly… thank you.”
Pardon?
“Back then, you faced that machine alone so we could escape.”
“…You weren't in any real danger anyway, Ms. Go Yeongeun.”
She had already had her ear collected, so she didn't need to pay the fare. Wasn't it essentially only Baek Saheon that I saved?
‘And that bratty guy hasn’t even said thank you once….’
As expected, his personality is trash.
However, Ms. Go Yeongeun shook her head firmly.
“No. You came back after that to save us again. You even lied about the candle being ours.”
“…….”
“No matter how I think about it, there was absolutely no need for you to do that. You could have just gone with Group D.”
“Um.”
Well, there was a reason….
‘Give the candle to those daredevils?’
Oh? Our safety is guaranteed with this? Okay. Then let's try this and that. Let's submit it for manual review and extract some points.
I can only imagine myself collapsing from a heart attack while trailing behind them as they did all sorts of things.
I didn't seek out the two of them despite the fear of wandering that crazy exhibition alone for no reason.
It was because an even greater fear was behind me…!
‘And…… if I can save someone, it’s only right to do so.’
I just did as much as I could.
So I simply shook my head.
“That was something anyone would have done.”
“Are you serious? I don't think so….”
“Actually, considering the contribution levels, I think both of you should have been promoted too. I feel a bit sorry that I’m the only one who got promoted.”
Go Yeongeun took on a serious expression.
“O-Oh, no. I… don’t want to be promoted yet.”
“…….”
“Ah, of course, I’m sure you’ll do great, Soleum-ssi!”
I feel like I'm about to cry…….
“Um, but why do you think we should have been promoted? In the exhibition, all those items and everything came out of your pocket, Soleum-ssi… you remember that, right?”
Go Yeongeun looked at me with eyes that seemed to pity me for some reason.
“Um. In corporate life, if you look too much like a good person, people will look down on you, so it might be okay not to speak so highly of others….”
What?
No matter how I look at it, it seems like she's seeing me in an overly positive light because of the life-saver effect… but thinking of the Silver Heart, I just bowed my head.
Let’s be kind!
“……Thank you for the advice.”
Baek Saheon looked between Go Yeongeun and me with an incredulous expression but kept his mouth shut.
Then he stood up from his seat and left without a word of goodbye.
Well, whatever.
I exchanged polite goodbyes with Go Yeongeun and turned around.
And I thought.
‘When should I start wearing the Silver Heart?’
Should I only wear it when I'm on a mission?
I rolled the badge in my pocket with my fingers, making various plans.
Just then, a now-familiar human figure walked toward me from the other end of the hallway….
A white lizard head.
“Section Chief.”
“Kim Soleum-ssi.”
It seemed he had been talking with the Team Leader while I was receiving my reward.
Now, even those vertical pupils felt somewhat familiar.
‘Is this also the life-saver effect?’
I fell silent for a moment, recalling the lizard’s brutal knuckle-work as he snapped the Guide Machine's needle in two.
Then, the lizard’s vertical pupils shifted toward the empty regeneration potion bottle and the box.
“Did you use it?”
“Huh? Oh. It wasn't mine. My colleague here… Ms. Go Yeongeun used hers.”
“Hello, Section Chief! My name is Go Yeongeun!”
Go Yeongeun bowed her head toward the strange lizard… no, the Section Chief of another group.
The lizard looked at Go Yeongeun with his lidless eyes.
“I have a question.”
“Ye-yes.”
“Are you the owner of the escape item?”
“…Pardon?”
“Did you possess a cognitive distortion item in the shape of a candle in the B-Class Darkness in the form of an exhibition three days ago?”
Ah.
“Ah… um. Something like that….”
“Yes. That’s right.”
Go Yeongeun caught onto the situation as she made eye contact with me and trailed off, but she didn't deny it, showing her quick wits.
However, she must have felt the need to leave quickly.
“Yup. Then, I’ll be on my way.”
With that polite farewell, she quickly slipped away toward the opposite end of the hallway.
‘Good judgment…….’
Relieved, I took a bottle of water out of my bag and took a sip….
“Kim Soleum-ssi.”
“Yes?”
“Refrain from repetitive lying.”
I almost sprayed it out of my nose.
“The more often you mention it, the less effective it becomes.”
“…….”
When did he notice?
But I bowed my head first.
“I’m sorry.”
“Yes.”
“I thought it would be difficult to justify spending precious escape time unless my colleague was the one holding the escape item.”
“Yes.”
To say he’s answering with short phrases because he’s extremely pissed….
‘His voice is calm, though.’
He’s just this kind of human—no, lizard—to begin with.
I cautiously lifted my head.
Surprisingly, the lizard… was smiling slightly!
“All humans lie.”
“…….”
“What matters is the purpose and the result of the act.”
It was a statement that felt almost philosophical.
‘…Is he saying that since I lied with good intentions and the result was good, it doesn't really matter?’
“…….”
Whatever.
“I’ll be careful from now on, though.”
“Yes.”
That was the end of the conversation.
Section Chief Lee Jaheon returned to being a stoic reptile with vertical pupils.
‘I thought his personality was somewhat detached from that of an ordinary person….’
I felt that even more deeply now. In a good way, that is.
I picked up the regeneration potion box I had received as a reward from the chair.
—Friend, is all the work finished?
Just then, Braun spoke up from inside my pocket.
We had agreed to refrain from small talk while working in the office so I wouldn't be caught having a ‘Good Friend’… but since the timing was right, should I ask?
I slightly pulled the plush doll out of my pocket.
‘Braun. About the employee standing next to me right now.’
—Ah, the tall superior of Mr. Roe Deer?
‘Yeah. What does he look like to you?’
—Ho-oh.
After a brief silence, as if he were inspecting him.
—His eyes, nose, mouth, and even his auditory organs all look perfectly normal!
‘…As a lizard?’
—Lizard? Haha, Mr. Roe Deer, you certainly know how to make mischievous analogies. Who are you trying to tease? A lizard, of all things!
“…….”
Even Braun doesn’t see him as a lizard?
Don't tell me… am I really the only one who sees him as a lizard?
“Kim Soleum-ssi.”
“Yes, Section Chief.”
I made a resolution again. From now on, I won't even let the word ‘lizard’ cross my lips.
“Let’s move.”
Section Chief Lee Jaheon walked toward the elevator.
I followed the lizard, pretending to be nonchalant, and asked.
“Should I return to the office?”
“No.”
Hm?
“…Then where are we going?”
“To a restricted area where access is granted starting from the rank of Supervisor.”
“…!”
“I will explain the usage protocol.”
Here it comes.
In this company, as an employee’s rank increases, various authorities are granted.
It was part welfare, part ability, and part access to locations.
“As you have been promoted to Supervisor, Kim Soleum-ssi, you have been authorized to use three additional facilities.”
In front of the Annex, I received a file from Section Chief Lee Jaheon.
“From now on, Kim Soleum-ssi can check out magic weapons from the Security Team rental warehouse.”
“…….”
“In the Annex, you can use Twilight Grade Darkness to custom-make exclusive equipment without the accompaniment of a superior, and if necessary, you can register for the Fox Counseling Room.”
Benefits I already knew about.
And several spaces that were opened to me, which I didn't know about but had information on through the <Dark Exploration Record>.
A slight sense of accomplishment and thrill.
And anticipation.
‘The methods I can use to survive in this crazy world have increased…!’
But everything has two sides.
Better treatment means the company wants something from the employee in return.
In the case of this company….
‘Danger.’
Fitting for a company that deals with ghost stories, access granted only to high ranks usually implies a potential for danger that civilians cannot handle.
Like this.
“Additionally, Supervisors in the Field Exploration Team are assigned one specific Darkness.”
“…….”
That’s right.
Separately from the team, a ghost story that I must personally manage was being created!
“Usually, even if an individual is in charge, the group manages it collectively, but the primary responsibility lies with the employee themselves.”
Distributing responsibility to field workers.
What a corporate move. I’m getting a taste of familiar 21st-century society here….
According to Section Chief Lee Jaheon, as years of service and rank increase, the assigned Darknesses become more numerous and more dangerous.
Still, the good thing is that I’m a rookie.
“Since you have less than a year of service and are a Supervisor, Kim Soleum-ssi, you will be assigned an F-Class.”
Phew.
“After managing it according to the schedule, register the presence or absence of any anomalies in the checklist.”
“Yes.”
Anyway, since it’s a situation where I have to do as I’m told, I decided to offer a meaningful prayer instead of wasting energy whining pointlessly.
‘Please! Please! Let it be a normal low-grade Darkness!’
If it turns out to be something like the Tuesday Quiz Show, I’d rather just quit and prepare for the Disaster Management Bureau exam!
But then I heard something surprising.
“Are you saying you’re going to let me choose?”
“Yes.”
Section Chief Lee Jaheon said he would show me a few candidates and let me choose from among them!
“Is it usually like this?”
“No.”
The lizard stared at me.
“It is my authority.”
…?!
So, he’s using his official authority to be flexible and give me options… right?
That lizard?
“Thank you very much for your consideration. But… may I ask why you’re doing this?”
“It is a reward.”
“Pardon?”
“It is a reward for your actions in finding the correct escape route in the B-Class ghost story and leading everyone in Group D to return without injury.”
“…The Section Chief also saved my life from the Guide Machine, though.”
“That is a matter of responsibility.”
The lizard said stoically.
“A Section Chief has the duty to be responsible for their members within their own capabilities.”
“…….”
He really is… a good boss.
‘I was almost touched.’
If I were truly a new employee, I would have postponed my decision to quit for at least a month.
Was this why Assistant Manager Eun Haje and Supervisor Park Minseong tried so hard to look at the Section Chief in a positive light, even laughing it off?
I even felt like I should do a good job.
“…Thank you anyway.”
“Yes.”
I bowed my head and then headed to the F-Class Darkness isolation room where the lizard was leading me.
It was an unexpected but very good situation.
‘If I play this right, I might actually benefit.’
The <Dark Exploration Record> is a wiki.
What that means is, since many creators made things freely while only following the rules, the criteria for each grade might differ slightly.
‘It means that even within the same F-Class, the scope of utility could be very good.’
As long as I know the proper way to handle it, that is.
And through the <Dark Exploration Record>, I already know those ways.
If it’s a Darkness recorded there.
“These are the three F-Class Darknesses.”
I looked up.
Three items were visible before my eyes….
A worn-out Teddy Bear.
Two black cards.
A model airplane.
“…!”
‘I know all three.’
It was a jackpot.
—Ah, what a very old and ugly doll.
In the meantime, Braun spoke in a voice that was somewhat displeased. Is he being wary of the doll because he’s a ‘Good Friend’?
—Anyway, the time for choice has come, Mr. Roe Deer!
I pondered.
And I reached out my hand.
“I will take charge of this Darkness.”
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