GSGW c247
Chapter 247
Borrow money from Braun?
And with that money… purchase an item from the Space Shopping Mall?
“......"
No.
'It isn’t borrowing.'
'It’s an advance.'
And the meaning of an advance was….
[Of course, there will be no burdensome demands for repayment. We’re friends, after all!]
[It would merely be deducted from the salary on the day we work together again. Surely a form like that wouldn’t weigh on Roe Deer’s mind….]
He was saying he would hire me again.
[So, what do you think?]
……
First of all.
“Braun, how are you even here?”
I needed to buy time.
I looked at the host in the suit sitting on the platform.
“This is a personal shopping space. Other guests shouldn’t be able to enter.”
[Oh my, mass media isn’t a guest—it’s family! Ah, the warm sense of daily life that a television placed in the living room provides.]
Both gloved hands spread apart kindly and politely.
[This Braun is family to his friend, a part that laughs and cries together. Of course I would accompany you on your shopping.]
[Do you doubt it? Then let’s ask the personal shopper present here! Now then, explain it…. why am I here?]
The lizard added its comment.
“That sapient entity is manifested on site as a part of the customer’s mental system, for the smooth progress of shopping.”
[So it seems! Oh, of course, if Roe Deer coldly refuses and says he will not allow this pitiful friend to accompany him on his shopping, then I will have no choice but to disappear….]
[But you wouldn’t say something so cruel, would you?]
My head sank.
'Braun can now speak to me freely even without the Good Friend Doll….'
Just like during the previous personal shopping session, when my contaminations had manifested.
It was clear that ever since the Good Friend Doll’s restrictions disappeared—or perhaps since it had been resummoned—some deeper connection had formed.
Even within Segwang Special City, where outside influences were blocked, he was still speaking to me.
'Has Braun’s Good Friend personality become a part of me entirely?'
I couldn’t be sure. Still, I felt a basic relief in having grasped the situation as I analyzed it….
An advance?
'No way.'
Wasn’t that a statement premised on my labor? I didn’t want to work on that talk show again. The thought that he would probably be pleased if I did made my stomach turn even more….
'…Though it seemed like the thoughts I didn’t want him to read weren’t being read by Braun.'
I swallowed as I watched the host sitting in the chair, elegantly moving his fingers without the slightest agitation.
Is there another way? Another way….
Ah!
'What if I asked for the wages I was supposed to receive when I worked as a staff member on the Late-Night Talk Show….'
No way!
I had escaped after blasting half the studio apart with holy fire artillery. Honestly, the fact that he hadn’t shoved a bill into my face the next time we met might already count as him being ‘lenient’ from the host’s perspective!
'Then….'
[Take your time and think, Roe Deer. There is plenty of time….]
Hoo.
'Maybe it’d be better to just sell my organs…'
If my organs were even in a condition to be sold. As I held my throbbing head, something suddenly came to mind.
“There’s one more thing to check.”
Then I turned to the lizard.
“Doesn’t the Space Shopping Mall only accept currencies that exist in reality as payment?”
“Yes.”
The lizard immediately agreed.
“Only currencies that exist in reality and are circulated on Earth can be used.”
“You mean not only Korean won, but also things like dollars, euros, or rupees?”
“Yes. Real-time exchange rates based on the solar calendar are applied.”
As expected.
“Braun, you heard—”
[Oh.]
[Are you thinking that the Curious One’s silver coins this Braun pays as salary have no monetary value here, and therefore any money I give you would be meaningless… is that it, Roe Deer?]
Ah.
[Ha ha, presenting a surprise to such fixed assumptions is part of the fun of a show!]
[Now then, would you prefer crisp U.S. dollars or gold? I will provide whichever suits your preference. Isn’t that the virtue of a fine sponsor?]
"......"
With a stiff neck, I looked back at the lizard.
“Is that… possible?”
“Yes. However, in the case of dollars paid by that sapient entity, a special exchange rate will be applied, making them far less efficient than ordinary dollars.”
[Such remarks only encourage the consumption of luxury goods. Quite an unexpected talent for commerce from a group of swordsmen.]
The lizard did not react.
The host willingly rose from his seat.
[Now then, Roe Deer.]
[All obstacles have disappeared.]
"......"
Before I realized it.
The suited host leaning against the chair was already standing right beside me.
A hand extended forward.
[Will you receive an advance from this host— from the Late-Night Talk Show?]
…Wait.
Wait, that’s….
No, but if there’s no real problem, surviving right now is what matters most, so by priority, maybe accepting it is correct? Stay calm. I need to make the wisest possible decision here….
[Oh dear.]
[It’s a joke!]
……
Huh?
[I was merely playing around for a moment. An advance, really!]
[That would surely hurt my friend.]
The host’s hand tapped my arm neatly, just as he would when hosting the talk show. As though encouraging a participant.
[My friend spent his own pocket money to prepare a bathtub for my cotton-stuffed body. Now, if this legendary entertainer gave his friend nothing more than a mere advance, that would surely become headline news. So….]
[The payment for today’s shopping will be given as a gift, as a gesture of goodwill from me. What do you think?]
"......"
[You're accepting my gift, my friend.]
[Oh, what a moving friendship!]
A powerful premonition struck me.
This.
'If I’m not careful, this will seriously screw me over.'
It felt more dangerous than an advance.
The being in front of me had brought up the advance precisely to lead things to this conclusion. To draw out the psychology of ‘then maybe it’s fine if it’s a gift.’
……
But.
“Then… just this once, I’ll accept your help.”
Giving up something necessary for survival because of fear would be foolish.
'Let’s walk the tightrope properly.'
“Thank you. Really.”
[Think nothing of it!]
[Now then, charge the cost to my account—]
“But.”
I cut in.
“I’d feel too sorry receiving it as a gift… so I’d rather treat it as a loan. Would that be possible?”
[Hm?]
Not an advance. A debt.
'This needs to be settled as a money matter.'
A sudden intuition told me it shouldn’t remain as an emotional obligation, or a vague debt owed to some future moment.
“I’ll repay it within half a year.”
I smiled as best I could. Damn it.
“Money isn’t something you give as a present. If I want a gift later, I’ll ask then.”
……
After a silence that made cold sweat bead on my skin.
[Very well, Roe Deer!]
…!
[But half a year? There is no need to hurry so much. Oh yes indeed…. There is plenty of time, and we will remain friends for quite a while.]
“…Right. Thanks.”
Hoo.
'That worked.'
Forcing a smile, I added jokingly.
“The interest rate is the legal one, right?”
[Ha ha! I could never charge interest to a friend. I will only take the principal.]
“Ha ha…. Thanks for that too.”
Hoo.
As I watched the host pat my shoulder again, memories of the dizzying terror of the Tuesday Talk Show resurfaced in my mind….
But either way, I really was grateful.
Because thanks to him, I could buy this.
[Oh ho. I very much look forward to seeing what kind of splendid escape episode Roe Deer will perform with such a small object.]
That…
'I can guarantee that much.'
After Braun heard some incomprehensible payment address from the lizard personal shopper and took certain measures.
“The payment request has been completed.”
The lizard declared so, then handed the item over to me.
“…Thank you. I hope we meet again.”
“Yes. Customer.”
And with that, the shopping was finished.
Soon after, I opened my eyes.
As if I had dozed off for a moment.
“...!"
On the platform that had been empty of people during the personal shopping session, my companions were now watching me with calm yet anxious expressions.
While I had been shopping, it must have looked as though my soul had left my body.
“Agent Grapes.”
“I bought it.”
I raised the item I had purchased with such difficulty.
A strange light passed through the two agents’ eyes.
It was…
Something hanging from a rope.
It looked like those who had hanged themselves from trees in the misty waiting room earlier, yet the atmosphere was completely opposite.
A tiny piece of persimmon wood.
A somewhat rough, fish-shaped folk craft swayed softly, tied to a bundle of white silk thread.
“It’s a warding pollack.”
/tn. in korean folk custom, it's meant to be hung near doors to ward off evil spirits, bad luck, and misfortune while inviting good fortune and prosperity
***
“Are you ready?”
“Yes!”
Eun Haje raised a hand toward her mouth as she listened to the voices of the group, then lowered it after realizing she had no cigarette.
Her involuntary streak of abstaining from smoking had grown inconvenient, but nothing was more inconvenient than this situation.
A situation where they might die.
Trying somehow to attempt any possible escape, they had pooled together anything of value and handed it to the youngest member who claimed "there was something worth trying."
Surprisingly, Kim Soleum had closed his eyes for a moment—then returned with something that truly seemed effective.
“Yeah, this definitely isn’t borrowing someone else’s sacred power~. Right, Bronze?”
“…Yes.”
And it was an extremely precise item.
Even more surprising was that during the process, he returned all the money and goods people had pooled together.
—We found another method of payment.
“......"
Whether that was something they should believe in required deeper thought, but first they had to escape before questioning anything.
“Then we’ll depart.”
Whether that was something they should believe in required deeper thought, but first they had to escape before questioning anything.
'And the team lineup…'
Well, it wasn’t bad.
Though everyone was somewhat doing their own thing.
At the very back stood the ill-tempered young man from the Disaster Management Bureau.
‘Agent Bronze,’ was it?
The one Eun Haje teased as an old-fashioned stiff actually seemed like a fairly decent person.
'A bit rigid, but that’s often the sign of someone with a good heart who hasn’t been soaked too deeply in society’s dirty waters.'
Even though it was obvious he harbored ill feelings toward Daydream Inc., he suppressed them and maintained courtesy while showing a certain degree of empathy. Not bad. Even now, the way he stood at the very rear gave off a kind of spirit of service.
'And the civil servant who usually pairs with him….'
Agent Choi.
He stood near the front.
“Grapes. Be careful.”
He pretended to be composed, but after falling into the highest-ranked ghost story related to the Disaster Management Bureau, it was clear his mind was troubled and he was anxious about the many civilians he had to protect.
It also seemed quite obvious he was trying to subtly guide and coax Kim Soleum, who maintained a neutral position overall.
'Looks exactly like a detective offering candy to a delinquent teenager.'
No idea just how incredible a spy persona Roe Deer must have created to make him act like that, but for now Eun Haje simply watched. They were fellow smokers, after all.
And standing beside him was….
“Oh. The pollack’s effect is good.”
Assistant Manager Lee Songhae.
Well, she was every bit the Daydream Inc. elite.
Partly because she was competent while also being a little unhinged.
There was a sense that a single slip of the tongue might make her turn hostile immediately, but Eun Haje had too much experience under her belt to worry excessively about that.
For now, she was strangely favorable toward this group as well.
Especially… toward Kim Soleum.
"......"
And that Kim Soleum stood at the very front of the group.
Holding the strange carving he had obtained, shaped like the ‘Warding Pollack.’
—It will ward off misfortune for anyone within five steps until the pollack carving breaks. Since I purchased it, I will carry it myself.
—Ah~ things like this are usually….
—There is no “usually.” It’s my item.
—......
'That brat.'
He knows how to protect what’s his.
It was probably also the sort of judgment common to capable people—doing it himself would simply be more comfortable.
The form that had pulled out an A-grade dream essence from an irregular ghost story and achieved the fastest promotion hadn’t gone anywhere.
And so Kim Soleum moved through the fog with the pollack tightly secured, each finger wrapped in strands of silk thread so that he absolutely wouldn’t drop the item.
And then.
'...!'
As he walked between the trees, mold began to bloom on the warding pollack swaying from his hand.
As if it were rotting.
'Is that a sign it’s starting to break.'
Once that mold covered it completely, the trees bearing hanged corpses would likely draw near again, or the strange hallucinations and voices would return.
The speed of its deterioration… was faster than expected, but it seemed it would endure until the ‘objective’ was completed.
'Though touching it earlier probably made it worse.'
If they weren’t careful, this time, someone might fail to reach the stairs before it was too late.
Just as that thought made them decide they had to hurry.
“Found it.”
“...!"
Under the influence of the warding pollack, Agent Bronze—who had been scanning the surroundings with a glass-like device that had finally begun functioning—made the announcement.
'Good.'
She had identified possible locations thanks to her familiarity with subway structures, but it was still faster than expected.
“Let’s move.”
The five of them moved their legs in perfect coordination, racing along the shortest route.
Their target was…
“There.”
A transportation card charger.
—What do you think?
—Since the lights still work and the announcements play normally, I think anything powered by electricity probably still operates.
And the guess was correct.
On the screens of the two transportation card chargers sitting alone among the trees, the lights were indeed on.
"......"
Soft sounds of people drawing breath could be heard.
And in the tense silence, Eun Haje reached out her hand.
'‘Can’t make the guy holding the pollack do it.'
However, she didn’t have a transportation card in her hand. In fact, even if they had one, expecting money to be withdrawn through the card company in a ghost story would be asking too much.
They intended to use another function of the device.
It was written clearly right above the machine.
Single-Use Issuance · Transportation Card Charger
Issuing single-use transportation cards.
Five cards.
Thunk.
Thunk.
Thunk.
Fortunately, the machine that swallowed the bills she pushed in successfully spat out five single-use transportation cards.
'Whether it would accept cash was a gamble.'
And fortunately, the gamble had paid off.
‘There’s nothing certain here anyway, so we have to take chances,’ Eun Haje thought with a grin, the very person who had insisted on trying it.
“Let’s move quickly.”
As soon as she swept the change into her pocket just in case, the group immediately moved again, following Agent Choi’s signal after he spotted the next destination.
The most important place in this exploration.
The ticket gates.
"......"
Within the fog, several ticket gates stood scattered like random pieces of equipment. Just like the chargers, their lights were on.
'Hoo.'
Catching her breath, Eun Haje thought back.
With no preparation whatsoever, how could they possibly exorcise this insane fog-filled waiting room?
What the agents called a ‘conclusion’—true resolution—was a distant impossibility right now.
So in the end, like Daydream Inc. always did, they would have to clear it.
And clear meant…
—Normally, clearing a ghost story means escaping from that location.
—Right.
—But we can’t leave to the outside.
Because outside was almost certainly a hellscape where a catastrophe-level ghost story had unfolded.
But this was a station, which meant there was another way to leave.
—The only option left is the train.
The subway.
—The train passed without stopping. But there was definitely a condition back then.
—…! Because there were no passengers. Wait…
—Correct, Agent Bronze.
“This way is the front.”
Agent Bronze, who had identified the direction of the ticket gates’ entrances and exits, declared it. Then, after exchanging glances, Agent Choi stepped forward first and tapped his single-use transportation card against the gate.
Beep.
—If we are counted as passengers, let’s see what happens.
One by one, the rest of the group followed as quickly as possible, each moving through the gates with their card. When Kim Soleum moved while holding the warding item, an almost suffocating silence fell.
And when everyone had tapped their cards and entered inside the gates.
♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪
A sound began to echo.
An announcement.
From far away, rising from the platform.
The train is arriving.
"......"
Passengers are requested to board safely while observing proper etiquette.
The notice about passing without stopping.
Was gone.
Which meant….
“Run.”
The group began sprinting toward the platform like mad.
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