Faster. Faster.
“Supervisor, then your previous experience was the 35th round, right?”
“T-That’s right. It was the only round where they tried to send in new hires.”
Kim Soleum exchanged short, urgent questions and answers with Supervisor Park Minseong and quickly organized the core details in his head.
‘Supervisor Park Minseong’s details as an experienced person….’
“Is this it? Is this the information you need?”
“I’m putting it together.”
-The new hires were drafted for this exploration of Darkness for the first time and were in a state of pandemonium due to terror.
-Several people were penalized for using profanity. A fight broke out over a vial of Cheongsimhwan, and both were penalized. Even the person who took the medicine was penalized.
-The number of personnel who received two or more penalties and were on the verge of Contamination was 7.
-The new hire who was caught as the Hangman lost consciousness due to a panic attack in the middle of it, but everyone was in such a state of panic and terror that no one could pay attention.
-A new hire fainted after being hit on the head by a body falling from the Execution Platform. They resigned afterward.
“…….”
Wait?
“After that, they never put in new hires again….”
“Wait a moment.”
“Huh?”
“Does the body remain?”
Kim Soleum looked at the supervisor urgently.
“I mean the people who become the Hangman and die here.”
“T-That’s right? Of course, I don’t know about things like decomposition. …I think they didn't have heads, either. It’s not like I went to the funeral and saw every step of the procedure….”
“…!!”
A chill ran down Kim Soleum’s spine.
This is, this is….
“W-Why??”
Supervisor Park Minseong hurriedly grabbed my shoulder.
“Is there some kind of hint? Can it be done?!”
“Yes.”
Kim Soleum nodded urgently.
However, cold sweat trickled down his neck.
‘Honestly, I can’t guarantee it this time either.’
It felt like a crazy idea. But, but….
How thrilling is the hope that there is a possibility.
‘It’s right to try.’
Kim Soleum roughly assembled what he needed. …It seemed like it might just barely work.
‘With this, I can slip through the gaps without touching the rules…!’
However, if there was a problem…….
There was one absolutely necessary ability, but it wasn't in a standby state.
‘…Braun.’
He needed him again.
‘Disguise Ability, how much longer would I have to wait to use it again?’
-Hmm.
-Don’t even I need about half a day’s rest?
Kim Soleum immediately revised the question.
‘What if the conditions were changed?’
-Conditions?
Kim Soleum explained the ‘changed conditions.’
Then the answer changed.
-If it’s that, I can do it if I rest for about an hour!
-It’s a bit of a grueling schedule but… hmm, I’ll endure it. Because I am a pro!
‘Thank you so much.’
-Don’t mention it!
One hour then.
The conditions were re-established.
‘I have to buy time.’
In this chaos, he had to make sure Assistant Manager Eun Haje didn't completely ascend the Execution Platform for one hour.
And that was impossible alone.
“Seonbae.”
“Yeah?”
“If possible, I’d like you to act as a shill.”
“……?”
Kim Soleum quickly tucked the ‘Silver Heart’ into his pocket.
Then he shouted.
To the nine employees who were already gathered in the room, heatedly playing the Hangman Game.
“Seonbaenims.”
“…!”
Nine pairs of eyes turned to Kim Soleum.
He swallowed hard inwardly.
What he needed now was….
‘…Aggro!!’
“If you could double your Clear Points, would you do it?”
The Assistant Manager of Group D, Eun Haje, lifted her head.
For someone who had been sentenced to death and was hanging in the air with black ropes around her neck and limbs, her mind was calmer than expected.
‘This is a good enough way to go.’
Except for dying right before collecting Points, honestly, compared to the bloodbaths of the employees who had died before, it really wasn't bad.
“Assistant Manager Eun!! What was the transportation method!!”
“I don’t know. I told you I don’t remember!”
It was even more so in the sense that she was annoying the trolls with no personality until the end.
The only regrettable thing was that even though she wasn't very cooperative, the correct answer was being narrowed down.
That’s how Hangman was.
“Agh… what was the last transportation she took when she was a reporter? How the hell am I supposed to know that? I don’t know, damn it… A?”
[That is correct!]
“I-It worked!!”
Even if they couldn't guess the initials through hints, the answer would eventually come out if they kept throwing out alphabets.
_ _ _ _ A _ _ R
‘Ugh,’
Assistant Manager Eun Haje felt the chilly fear of death at the back of her neck as she looked at her missing feet, but she didn't show it.
She didn't want to give the trolls any satisfaction.
[Here is the hint for the 3rd blank alphabet!]
[Why can’t Assistant Manager Eun Haje board a plane again?]
Meanwhile, the two Hubaes from Group D were busily exchanging questions and answers in the corner.
‘What are they doing.’
They seemed to be gritting their teeth seeing her with both feet gone, but then they talked even more desperately.
It seemed like they were thinking of the futile idea of saving her from here….
‘Maybe that’s better.’
She hoped they would just realize there was no answer while talking and give up.
Knowing they had considered it would be a comfort.
‘…….’
In the meantime, someone got the answer to this relatively easy question.
“Trauma? T!”
_ _ T _ A _ _ R
[That is correct!]
Her entire left leg disappeared.
‘F*ck…!’
“Waaaaah! It worked!”
“Ah!! I should have gone first!”
The sound of the trolls shouting as if they were watching a sport upon seeing a person's leg vanish.
Eun Haje slowly began to get angry with annoyance.
‘Should I just actively become a troll too?’
But suddenly.
“Seonbaenims.”
Someone raised their hand from beyond the trolls.
“If you could double your Clear Points, would you do it?”
‘…Roe!?’
That’s right.
The new hire of Group D—no, the youngest, Kim Soleum, who had escaped the new hire status in the shortest time—was raising his hand with a calm expression.
“What?”
“That guy… isn’t that the one? The one who got promoted this time.”
By then, everyone recognized him.
The top recruit wearing a Mask with antlers similar to a deer. Since he had already been promoted to supervisor in just 60 days, rumors had already spread openly.
Was it because of those rumors?
Strangely, they found themselves paying attention to the new hire. He had a curiously… natural presence.
Moreover, just now.
‘Didn’t he say Points…?’
“…….”
In the bizarre atmosphere of the playroom where everyone was focusing on him, Kim Soleum opened his mouth.
“Would you like to make a bet?”
…??
“If you win this bet, I will give you all of my Clear Points.”
“…!!”
“Huh?”
It was insane aggro.
“Is he crazy? What’s wrong with him?”
But at the same time, if you were a Field Exploration Position employee hooked on the word ‘Points,’ you had no choice but to say this.
“Are you really going to give all two thousand Points?”
“Yes.”
“Ah, Supervisor Roe Deer. You might not know because it’s only been a few months since you joined this company… but Points aren't transferable.”
“I know.”
“You know? Then what….”
“But there’s no problem with buying two thousand Points' worth of items from the Employee Mall and handing them over.”
“…!”
“If you beat me, I’ll let you choose and give them to you. Even if you use them to craft Exclusive Equipment, I’ll pay for it on your behalf.”
The atmosphere changed.
Since they had already avoided being the ‘Sacrificial Lamb’ anyway, if they could get additional Points, how useful would that be?
“Are you serious?”
“Yes.”
He was serious.
Of course, if they could win.
“What kind of bet is it?”
Kim Soleum crossed his arms.
“It’s about who guesses the most alphabets for the Hangman keyword.”
“Ah!”
“I will give the Points to the person who guesses more than me, the most among everyone.”
Is this guy crazy?
“For your information, I’ve only guessed one, so if you guess just two, half of the criteria are met.”
“W-Wait a minute!”
Supervisor Park Minseong of Group D, who was listening nearby, stood up in horror.
“Roe, why make a bet in this situation….”
“Safe B-Class Ghost Stories are rare as long as you follow the Manual. I think it would be good to take this opportunity to see if any special phenomena occur if we get a lot of correct answers.”
Kim Soleum said as he looked at the employees seriously.
“I’d like you to stop if the atmosphere gets strange. I hope it won’t be dangerous.”
“Ha.”
A few employees snorted and looked at each other, and finally, one of them opened his mouth with a smirk.
“Ah~ how noble. To make the Manual more detailed and safe~ you’re going to make a bet?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Kim Soleum answered immediately.
“I want to help the people who come in after us to clear it even a little more safely.”
“……Why?”
“There’s no particular reason. Hmm… I thought it would be good if someone did it, so I’m going to do it since I can.”
“…….”
The employee who asked the question shut his mouth.
Somehow… he felt strange.
‘Come to think of it, did they say this new hire even rescued a missing person?’
He remembered again.
‘They said he got promoted because he saved all the other employees from some B-Class Darkness last time, too.’
Searching for an unlikable office worker whom no one was looking for without pay, and doing dangerous things in High-Grade Darkness to save employees whose faces he didn't even know.
‘He’s out of his mind.’
Normally, he would have mocked him for being a pushover, but strangely, he couldn't do it this time.
Tiiiing—
A clear metallic sound spread through his mind.
Bizarrely, his thoughts became clear.
An odd feeling, as if he were breaking away from the tainted, comfortable methods and inertia he had become accustomed to, and looking at the phenomenon uprightly.
…Then, very strangely.
Those foolish choices seemed, well, somewhat great.
“…….”
“…….”
His mouth just opened.
“…Well, a bet sounds good.”
“Ah, thank you!”
Kim Soleum bowed a few times as if thanking the employees, who had grown quiet for some reason, and then moved his feet.
“Then I’ll see you when we leave.”
And he approached Assistant Manager Eun Haje, who was watching this scene with her mouth agape, with a somber face.
“Assistant manager.”
Assistant Manager Eun Haje felt a strong headache.
‘The problem with this kid is that he’s too nice!’
He’s a clever youngest, but this is his flaw.
‘He’s too sincere.’
He’s the type that’s perfect for burning out or breaking down.
He even desperately claimed that an Item belonged to his colleagues just to save them, and now he was doing this kind of foolish thing….
“You, are you seriously….”
Kim Soleum lowered his voice and spoke quickly.
“It’s a lie.”
“…….”
Ah.
“I just pulled some aggro to buy time.”
For a moment, Assistant Manager Eun Haje almost forgot that she was about to die, then she barely managed to ask back.
“…You said you were trying to buy time?”
“Yes.”
Hoo boy.
“Wait, if you’re thinking of trying something while stalling for time, don’t do it, it’s a perfect way to die….”
“And if we’re going to do it anyway?”
“…!”
“We are definitely going to do it. …If you cooperate, Assistant Manager, the success rate will be higher.”
This… disobedient brat!
Eun Haje gritted her teeth.
“Hey. I told you I’d take care of it.”
“I can’t trust that. …You’ve already resigned yourself. To dying.”
“…….”
He’s quick on the uptake, too.
‘Sigh.’
“…It’s not that I really had no intention of trying anything.”
In the end, Assistant Manager Eun Haje confessed.
The words she hadn't brought up so as not to plant useless hope in the supervisors.
“You know this Ghost Story imposes all sorts of rules on the people it’s caught as new teachers. But do you know who the only ‘free agent’ is?”
“……That is,”
“The Hangman.”
Assistant Manager Eun Haje smirked.
“That’s me.”
The Hangman didn't receive penalties even if she cursed or smashed her head against the wall to make a hole.
“The problem is that it’s still hard to move my body.”
Eun Haje gestured with her eyes toward the ropes holding her.
“But… to put it the other way, I can do whatever I want with everything above my neck.”
“…!”
Of course, the probability of anything working would be abysmal.
Assistant Manager Eun Haje said nonchalantly without showing it.
“Did you hear? Only I can keep trying this loophole. Because I won’t get penalized. So you guys, who are subject to penalties, just sit….”
Kim Soleum’s eyes flashed.
“I will utilize that loophole in a way that maximizes the survival rate.”
“What?”
“Please make sure to remember what I say from now on.”
Kim Soleum conveyed what Assistant Manager Eun Haje needed to do very clearly, distinctly, and simply.
So….
“……!”
“…That is all.”
And Assistant Manager Eun Haje felt like she had been hit with ice water.
He was really going to do that?
“We’ll go and get to work quickly. See you in a bit.”
“Hey!”
Wait a minute.
“Roe!! Badger!! You brats!”
But the two were already walking out of the playroom.
“Hey! Come back!”
‘Whew.’
Buying time, it seems to have worked, right?
I am walking down the kindergarten hallway, which is even more eerie because it’s too clean, colorful, and quiet, along with Supervisor Park Minseong.
‘Let’s go quickly.’
Based on the testimony of the supervisor and the assistant manager, the outline was becoming clearer. Impatience and hope took turns taking the lead.
Even in the midst of this, the background of this Ghost Story was scary.
But Supervisor Park Minseong, who had no fear, kept looking back at me with a worried face and finally asked.
“R-Roe. Is that okay? Your two thousand Points aren't child’s play…. What are you going to do if someone who guesses correctly twice comes out!”
Ah.
Well, that.
“They can never exceed it.”
“……!”
I smirked.
“If their personalities are selfish and they are in a situation where they check each other, it’s absolutely impossible.”
“Eh?”
“Because they will interfere every time someone tries to guess.”
“…!!”
According to the records, the time limit for each question was between 7 and 10 minutes at the Ghost Story’s whim.
To be most conservative, we had to fill this time limit to the full 9 times.
Then what was the best way?
“They will probably keep checking and fighting each other until the very, very end, and then, because they don’t want penalties to accumulate, someone will suggest a condition and try it.”
And the probability of that being the correct answer is quite small.
‘In the end, time continues to be consumed while they each endure Contamination once.’
Furthermore, once Contamination accumulates, they will hesitate to just throw out alphabets, so time will be delayed even further.
In that case….
“It will take at least an hour.”
I guaranteed it.
“The prize of the bet isn't two thousand Points themselves, but goods that can be bought with them, so it’s also difficult to suggest sharing.”
It would be awkward for a few people to form a team and split it, and it would be hard to trust a verbal promise that they would share it fairly.
‘The only reason I received trust for a promise made only with my mouth… must be thanks to the Silver Heart.’
I must never get caught. I continued speaking, trying not to even be conscious of my pocket.
“So don’t worry. First, we have to think about saving the assistant manager.”
“…….”
A surge of emotion flickered under the supervisor’s Mask, but he quickly calmed it down, realizing there was no time.
“Yeah. Let’s do it quickly! Oh. We’re here.”
“Yes.”
It was time to start preparations right away.
‘Phew.’
I sat down on the floor appropriately with the supervisor.
It was the largest space in the kindergarten.
[Recreation Room]
I tried my best not to look at the scenery right in front of me.
Before our eyes… was a colorful ball pit decorated with flowers and butterflies, and a platform.
However, on the fresh platform, two chunks of flesh stood there out of nowhere.
A left leg. A right foot.
It is Assistant Manager Eun Haje’s body.
‘Haa.’
Something—whether it was chills, fear, or a sense of crisis—made my hair stand on end.
‘The Execution Platform.’
There is only one timing.
I have to seize that opportunity here.
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