Each of the alleys within the 'Death Road' ghost story has its own theme.
It was as if shops dealing with similar industries or materials had gathered to form a commercial district, just like in reality.
Of course, they appeared completely unpredictably, and their probability of appearing varied.
Alleys of Death Road identified so far:
…….
And the place we had just entered was the alley selling daily necessities.
But even at a glance, I was heading straight for the shop that looked the least inviting in the entire alley.
A butcher shop where living organs and flesh hung.
Wriggle, wriggle.
'Le-let’s just think of it as a haunted house.'
It was fine. There wasn't anything that… looked exactly like it did when it was alive. Since it was all just parts, let’s just, just think of it as an amusement park attraction using animatronics….
Wait, if I think of an amusement park, I’ll remember Cheerful Theme Park, and that makes it even scarier?!
'C-calm down.'
I couldn't afford to be intimidated.
Attempting to act unbothered, I strode toward the butcher shop.
Raw Organ Butcher Shop
Beneath the window illuminated by red and blue lights, the owner, who had been scritch-scratching a knife against a whetstone, looked up.
A massive physique with a blood-stained apron.
Looking closer….
A flayed cow was looking back at us with a head that had become a lump of flesh.
Nod.
It gestured.
As if to show it would treat the customer well, it beckoned us to come closer….
“Se-Senior Staff, wait a moment!”
Kang Yihak blocked my path.
“Haha, er, um. It doesn’t look like we need anything from that shop, let’s go to another one!”
“The owner has already gestured to us, it would be rude not to go in.”
-Ah, quite right. That is what manners are!
“No!”
Kang Yihak immediately noticed her voice had gotten loud and quickly lowered it, speaking urgently.
“It was written to never enter the alley with meat…!”
She was right.
If you discover an alley themed around meat on Death Road, never enter and remain in the alley you were previously in.
If you have already entered due to unavoidable circumstances (such as being chased by a merchant), block your hearing with earphones or similar and move to the next alley as quickly as possible by completing 1,000 steps.
If a companion is caught by an offer for a tasting, it is recommended to leave them behind and advance at a faster pace.
Items from the manual that were spine-chilling just to read.
“That’s true.”
“Ah, you remember after all? Then….”
“So?”
“…!?”
“I want to do some shopping.”
And with that, I walked toward the butcher shop.
“M-Mr. Roe Deer…!”
I’m sorry, Jang Heowoon! You’re free to run away…!
However, I heard the footsteps of two people following me. It seemed they had both decided to follow me after all.
Hmm. I thought they would run away.
'Actually, I probably wanted to run away more than anyone….'
But if I stopped and backed down here, I felt like I would be dragged around by that colleague’s schemes again, so I kept moving forward.
Eventually, the three of us stood side by side in front of the intensely lit butcher shop where wriggling parts were on display….
Naturally, I was at the front.
Ha.
….
The flayed cow looked at me.
'Uuuugh.'
I mustn't look too closely.
I unfocused my eyes and looked toward the owner’s neck area, but the veins were throbbing, so I hurriedly shifted my gaze to his clothes.
Better to look at the blood-stained clothes instead.
“Hello. By any chance, can you package things fresh?”
Nod.
“You have many good parts. Hmm… perhaps.”
I pretended to contemplate before pointing my finger.
“Could I see some front feet?”
Thump.
The flayed cow head stood up and opened the glass door.
From inside, 'front foot' parts were pulled out one by one and displayed before my eyes.
…Flesh that was still wriggling and moving, very much alive.
An animal's paw.
A primate's hand.
A primate's hand.
A tentacle?
An animal's paw.
A primate's hand…
A human hand with a ringed finger trembling, as if pleading against the glass floor…….
'Ugh.'
I had to endure it.
I looked down, feigning composure.
……There was no suitable left hand among them.
'That’s a shame.'
Having endured this mental torture, it would have been nice to have such a harvest.
Shaking off thoughts of Assistant Manager Eun Haje, I pondered for a moment before speaking to the other party.
“I’d prefer something with sturdier bones so the broth comes out well… hmm. Do you happen to have any eyes?”
Thump!
The owner’s hands grew rougher because I had rejected him once. I could faintly hear my colleagues behind me on both sides holding their breath.
I also took a deep breath to suppress my fear.
'Displaying….'
The front feet were cleared away,
And eyeballs appeared before my eyes.
A purple iris in a black pupil.
A blue eyeball the size of a fist.
A lens with flesh still attached.
White circles trembling without focus….
Desperate dark brown eyes staring at me.
'Ha.'
I closed my eyes and opened them.
“That one looks good.”
I pointed with my finger.
The first one displayed, the black eyeball with the glinting purple iris.
“I’d like to purchase that. Oh, no need to slice it up.”
…….
The flayed cow looked at me intently.
And then, it held out its hand.
A very clear gesture demanding payment.
Kang Yihak whispered in a very small voice.
“…Senior Staff, should I try to feel out what we need to pay….”
“No.”
I pulled a box out of my tattoo.
Thump.
A heavy box filled with corn and carrots was placed in front of the shop.
“…??”
“…?!”
“I will pay with this.”
When attempting to purchase via barter at the butcher shop in question, you must trade with food items that a cow can consume.
Yes. The shops on Death Road sometimes used strange currencies, but basically, we didn't have that currency.
'So I have to try bartering.'
However, because each shop accepted different items, I had filled my tattoo with various daily necessities, jewelry, and snacks….
Including the box of vegetables.
Of course, there were shops that demanded something as payment that a human could never give up in their right mind, but this was enough here.
“How much of this should I give you for the price?”
…….
The butcher reached out to take the entire pile of vegetables I had brought out.
The complexions of my companions, who had been horrified by the Tattoo Inventory performance, brightened.
“Ah, the trade is a success….”
“Wait a minute. That much?”
“…?!’
I interrupted with a frown.
“That’s too expensive. No, even if it’s packaged fresh, there’s a limit. It wasn’t easy for me to bring these here in such a fresh state either….”
“M-Mr. Roe Deer…?!”
My companions began to look at me even more like a madman, their faces turning pale, but I continued to blather on.
“You didn’t… raise the price just because I said I’d buy it, right. Is it just a supply issue these days?”
Nod.
“…You must be going through a lot. Still, this exceeds the budget I had in mind…… Sigh.”
I intentionally fell silent.
The owner was also silent.
The flayed cow head seemed to look at me blankly for a moment, then finally went to what appeared to be a cash register and brought back a handful of coins.
Rusted coins, where all numbers and letters were marked in reverse.
The currency of this place.
'Yes!!'
It worked…!!
There are shops where bartering doesn't work, and you absolutely need coins to escape those places!
-Ah, it fits perfectly. Oh, the joy of a prepared script!
I accepted the coins with a smile.
“…This is enough for change. Thank you. I’ll take it then.”
……!
The flayed owner stood up as if excited and packaged what I had purchased.
The black eyeball with its pupils rolling crazily was thus packaged in plastic within a transparent liquid and ended up in my hand.
I tried my best not to look closely at either the coins or the object.
“Thank… you.”
Just then.
Splatter.
Blood from the butcher’s apron, which had moved significantly, splashed onto my face.
And onto Jang Heowoon’s face as well.
“…!”
Jang Heowoon, wearing the Bison mask, froze stiff and lowered his head.
He was probably desperately suppressing the urge to vomit…….
'Damn it.'
I stepped in and started talking.
“Ah. My friend here seems to have no energy, perhaps he's hungry. We should get back quickly and get him something to eat.”
Please, please!
The flayed cow looked at Jang Heowoon quite intently.
Just before Jang Heowoon, frozen stiff, was about to break into a cold sweat.
Plop.
The shop owner dropped something toward him.
…It was the corn I had given as payment.
“T-thank you….”
Jang Heowoon picked up the corn with trembling hands.
The shop owner watched him blankly, then sat back down in front of the butcher shop's glass door.
'…We passed.'
We left the 'Raw Organ Butcher Shop' at a quick pace.
At the same time, I looked at Jang Heowoon's face as he clutched the corn tightly.
To be precise, at what he was wearing on top of it.
'……Is it because of the mask?'
It seemed he had mistaken Jang Heowoon for a bison.
As expected, Daydream Inc.’s masks were no ordinary items. Just like the Dream Collector.
'Whew.'
Don't give up on your body!
Remaining steps : 7999
Our footsteps only stopped the moment the next alley appeared, and I immediately checked on Jang Heowoon.
“Are you okay?”
“Pardon? Ah, yes…… that, the blood, there wasn't that much, and since it was all prepared, this much is, okay now….”
'Isn't the fact that it's still alive even though it's cleanly prepared more grotesque…?'
But everyone has different fear points. Let's respect that.
Anyway, I was glad he was okay. His complexion wasn't too bad either.
Just as we were about to move again.
“W-what was that just now? How could you make a trade like that…?!”
Kang Yihak finally started her questioning.
Hmm.
'Let's go for it one more time…!'
I intentionally asked back with a composed air.
“What do you mean?”
“The thing you just bought! The manual clearly said to avoid alleys where meat is visible, but how did you do it so perfectly as if you were prepared….”
I was prepared!
But since I couldn't say that, I answered like this.
“It was too obvious.”
“…?”
“Looking at the description of meat-related shops in the manual, it was a restaurant district. It seems like eating it is usually the problem….”
I held up the bag containing my purchase.
“But this is a butcher shop. I guessed that I could just buy it without eating it.”
“…!”
“And judging by the way they were displayed….”
I turned the bag to show it to her.
The bizarre black eyeball.
“Since it’s alive, I bought it thinking I could use it in a different way.”
“…….”
“For example… like an organ transplant.”
“…!”
Yes.
Explorers don't buy food at this Raw Organ Butcher Shop.
An exploration employee successfully attached a tongue purchased from the Raw Organ Butcher Shop into their mouth. It functions without issue and performs various movements that a human cannot.
If you attach a 'part' from that butcher shop, which is packaged alive for freshness, to a missing body part, it becomes functional.
It even comes with the original abilities that the part possessed.
Of course, approaching that butcher shop and trying to buy something without knowing this would indeed be an act of madness!
So I let my mouth run.
“In places like this, reasoning created from limited clues is important.”
Yeah, right.
'If you try to gain an advantage by imagining things from limited clues, you're likely to die….'
Everyone knows you only do that when you can't see any way out and you're desperate…!
But I had no choice but to act composed and crazy. Because crazy bastards usually have their own amazing logic.
“I simply succeeded in that reasoning. Is there a problem?”
There must be plenty!
Sure enough, Kang Yihak was looking at me with her mouth wide open.
Yes, you must be bewildered….
“Whoa!”
Whoops, that startled me.
“You are absolutely right!”
…?!
Her eyes glittered behind the Pony Mask.
“No, wow, yes. After all, if a person wants to make high returns, they have to have a different mindset from others… I guess I've been too cautious with risks and whatnot all this time.”
“…….”
“Life is all or nothing anyway, isn’t it! Hahaha! Yes!”
W-wait a minute.
Something is strange here….
“Come on, let’s go forward. Man, it’s been a while since I’ve met a superior I can actually look up to!”
“…….”
At that moment, I realized.
'The Silver Heart!'
I was still wearing the Silver Heart on the inside of my pocket.
'I succeeded in persuading her with that while running my mouth!'
The problem was that the situation was still strange.
According to the settings, the Silver Heart was not a brainwashing tool but a persuasion tool.
It meant it was equipment that only exerted its effect when both logical validity and emotional resonance were present.
'So if I make such an absurdly crazy statement, it should be normal for her not to be persuaded..'
“I’ll do my best to support your future endeavors, Senior Staff! Haha.”
“…….”
Ah.
I get it.
This person… actually felt the crazy logic I spouted was plausible.
'What kind of person is she?'
A cold sweat broke out down my back.
I turned to my normal colleague, feeling like I was grasping at a final straw.
'Heo Un, at least you….'
“Yes, I will also support you well!”
“……."
Where did it go wrong for this one?
Jang Heowoon had a face that said, 'Wow! I was helped again! I'm so grateful!'
He was already fully persuaded.
-Congratulations. You've earned the trust of your colleagues, friend!
“…….”
Yeah.
But something… something seems to have gone wrong.
But for now, I had no choice but to walk to get out of here…….
'F-first, let's just escape.'
Don't give up on your body!
Remaining steps : 6999
Surprisingly, the next alley was also smooth sailing.
And the alley after that.
“It’s lighting shops. Since you could go blind or be burned if you look toward the windows, let's move while avoiding their gaze as if we're talking among ourselves.”
“Yes!”
Alleys lined with all sorts of bizarre and mysterious shops.
Still, since I already knew the manual, it felt like taking a pop quiz after having memorized the textbook.
However, in the sense that one wrong answer meant death, I was still in a state of extreme tension, but….
“Oh! A pharmacy! Shall I try to make a purchase there this time? Senior Staff, what do you think? It’s okay with you too, Mr. Bison, right?”
“Yes! I’m fine with it!”
“……It doesn’t seem to have much value, so let’s just move on for now.”
“Ah, as expected, you have to use your bullets for the big places, haha!”
The atmosphere had turned into one where they naturally expected me to boldly buy something again…?
And the fact that my colleagues would likely support that wholeheartedly was what made me break out in a cold sweat the most.
Meanwhile, a shop that might have stocked the chocolate I came here for wasn't even in sight.
It was also exhausting trying to catch glimpses of my surroundings without making eye contact with the shop owners. Sigh…….
It was then.
Don't give up on your body!
Remaining steps : 4999
“Ah, Senior Staff. A new alley has appeared….”
I stopped in my tracks and looked at the gap between the medicine shops.
From within… a stench drifted out.
'Ugh.'
It was a very narrow back alley.
It didn't look even half as wide as the alley where the street stalls were… and it was overwhelmingly dark.
“…….”
Whoosh.
Old side doors were lined up eerily along the alleyway. Only one or two gas lamps hanging here and there flickered faintly….
In that dim light, thick waste, like sewage liquid, flowing out from the pipes beside the side doors appeared and then vanished.
And beneath the gas lamps, entities with strange silhouettes, withered and with curved spines, stood leaning against the walls.
Glance.
Wearing dirty and old uniforms, they were staring at us.
……Judging comprehensively.
'Even if I didn't know this was a ghost story, it’s an atmosphere that would make me turn back immediately.'
A chilling and eerie feeling permeated the alley, making it seem like a normal purchase would never take place.
“…It’s a place that wasn't in the manual.”
She was right.
At this point in time, actual exploration had not yet been conducted by Daydream Inc., so it was an unfamiliar, unknown alley to the employees.
…The problem was.
'I have to enter there…….'
Tears came to my eyes.
And for some reason… the fact that I probably won't even need to persuade them to enter such a crazy place… also makes me want to cry a little…….
I turned to my colleagues with a heavy heart and said.
“Let’s enter that alley.”
And the reactions were as follows.
“Yes…!”
“Looks like a place that sells stolen goods? Wow, guaranteed high returns!”
“…….”
I’ll be the only crazy bastard in this neighborhood, please…!
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