GDCG c300

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Chapter 300

—Live broadcast begins in 60 seconds! 59, 58....

I clenched and unclenched my hands.

Looking around, I could see the brightly lit home shopping studio.

And the countdown clock.

10:00

Once the broadcast started, it would begin counting down. 

A home shopping survival contest where your survival depended on how much you sold within the allotted ten minutes.

'How the hell did I end up doing something this insane?'

But calm down.

'It's fine if I die.'

It's fine. Not dangerous. Not dangerous…

At worst, it just becomes another absurd dream. No, if anything, dying would cleanly wake me up from the dream.

I glanced to the side.

My eyes met those of my teammates standing in the other studios.

'Right.'

As long as one of us made it to the end and used the prize money to buy items, that would be enough.

I recalled the 'shopping loophole' I'd already thought up and nodded inwardly.

'Only one of us needs to survive.'

—3, 2, 1…

I looked at the camera.

—Action!

The lights came on. 

“Hello! I'm today's guest host, Contestant Number 4, 'Friend of the Talk Show.' Please take care of me!”

Then— 

Live reactions immediately began appearing on the prompt screen beside the camera.

"......!"

—? What is this guy selling?

—saltredbeansaltredbeansaltredbean 

—Die 

—LMAO what is this, feels like a ghost story 

—Hello 

—Let's stay together looks nice 

Where was this even being broadcast?

A chill ran down my spine as I read the occasional bizarre comment, but I kept smiling.

“Today, the product I, Contestant Number 4, will be selling on Delusion Home Shopping is....”

I thought carefully. 

'There's a chance ordinary people can buy this.'

Something that wouldn't pose a fatal danger to customers. Something that could still sell quickly. 

I pulled out a rectangular box from beneath the desk and placed it on top. 

It looked like a miniature gray shipping container. Crude, industrial, and completely out of place.

“This is the 'Into the Vacuum' series from Samramansang Company!”

—Excuse me? 

—Did this dude just say some nerd shit 

—What is he talking about 

I knew this would happen....

'But out of all the options they gave me, this was the right answer.'

As for what it was... 

Into the Vacuum

A funeral product packaged with the peculiar advertising slogan: 'Safely transport the important body parts of deceased personnel.'

It appeared to have been developed for transporting the remains of high-ranking officials who died during wartime across long interstellar voyages.

Occasionally discovered already used and containing something inside. The contained organism has sometimes been identified as ■■■■■■.

...Yeah.

I knew they were thinking 'You're trying to sell a space-war funeral container?'

Even the warehouse stock had been covered in dust, as though Delusion Home Shopping itself had postponed selling it for ages.

But that wasn't the important part.

The important part was the sales angle.

I lifted the container and held it up toward the camera.

“Everyone. What you're looking at here... is a legendary airtight storage container.”

—What? 

—Die trapped inside it 

—What is he saying 

“You're going to be amazed! Once you place something inside and seal it....” 

Tap. Tap. I opened and closed the container.

“All foods that normally require refrigeration can be stored at room temperature!”

—???

“And that's not all! Shelf life increases dramatically! Put freshly caught fish inside, and even a month later it'll still be as fresh as the day it was caught! You can eat it raw as sashimi!”

—Holy shit

Exactly. 

I was going to sell it as kitchenware…!

“A product that will revolutionize your kitchen!” 

I launched into a relentless sales pitch.

Bought ingredients in bulk because they were cheaper, only to realize you couldn't finish them before they spoiled? Buy this container.

Had expensive premium ingredients you wanted to save for special occasions but worried they would go bad? Buy this container.

Wanted to preserve a beloved meal cooked by someone who had passed away, but ended up throwing it away after it spoiled? Buy this container!

“And that's still not all!”

I paused for effect.

“Normally... this is an ultra-premium product with a retail price exceeding two million won.”

I held up my fingers.

“One, two, three... no less than four of these!”

Then I spoke with complete seriousness.

“For this broadcast only, this entire package can be yours for just 530,000 won!”

—Oh

—Expensive!

—Actually sounds about right though

—Is it gold plated?

—PLEASESAVEIMTRAPPEDHERE

—What even is this place? How does that work scientifically?

—Good child

/tl. Blue Dragon? 

—Expensive but interesting

“Everyone, that's the price of a single hair dryer. Products that lead the market, possess patented technology, and genuinely improve your quality of life simply cannot be cheaper than this.”

I looked straight into the camera.

“We were only able to secure inventory at this price through an emergency acquisition. I'm completely serious.”

—Honestly if it really freezes expiration dates that's a crazy deal

—You're amazing

—Iwanttostoremyselfinside

—Order submitted

“Full refund policy included! Try it yourself! If it truly doesn't provide miraculous effects like 'expiration date suspension' and 'room-temperature storage,' you can return it with no questions asked!”

I shouted at the top of my lungs.

[B-But my friend.... Oh, heavens.]

...This was embarrassing.

Incredibly embarrassing…!

But my eyes drifting toward the real-time inventory counter beside the prompter didn't lie.

'Good!!'

The remaining stock was disappearing rapidly.

And after a short while—

“Sold out! Thank you very much. Today's entire inventory has been exhausted.”

I bowed my head and ended the broadcast.

01:45

'Hoo.'

Done.

—Contestant Number 4! Braun's... no, 'Friend of the Talk Show'!

—Oooh! The first contestant to completely sell out! Total stock depletion! An amazing result!

—Unfortunately, the total revenue only places him in second place. The downside of choosing a cheaper product.

—Still, among the leaders! The shooting star of low-priced sales!

I stared at my glowing ranking marker sitting in second place and suppressed a sigh.

'If possible, it'd be better if I stayed until the final round.'

And... sadly, the person in last place was— 

—Contestant Number 2! "Hawk's Eye" has been eliminated immediately!

“Well, can't be helped.”

Assistant Manager Eun Haje shrugged.

She had tried selling 'Sleep-Gambling Snuff', a product that allowed people to stay awake for four hours at the cost of losing an entire day to sleep later. Naturally, she'd run into numerous obstacles....

'Home shopping host.... It really doesn't suit her.... '

Honestly, I'd expected Section Chief Lee Jaheon to be eliminated first.

Apparently, however, his bizarre design sense combined with his absurd physical strength had generated an unexpected amount of attention, landing him in first place.

“Well, everyone. I'll be going first.”

—The eliminated contestant is... huh?

Before the main host could even move—

Assistant Manager Eun Haje casually waved to us, then collapsed neatly onto the floor.

She had quickly taken a euthanasia pill.

—...The shock of elimination must have been overwhelming.

—It's unfortunate, but if you can only sell this much during our greatest special sale ever, elimination is only fair! Ah, I'm almost in tears thinking about the purchasing opportunities you've deprived our viewers of!

Assistant Manager Eun Haje's corpse was swiftly dragged out of the studio.

...The sight felt unpleasant. Disturbing. But I reminded myself that she'd already escaped this place and continued looking at the camera. 

—And with that, Round One of our simultaneous discount home shopping showdown comes to an end! Thank you all for your support!

The round ended.

"......."

Staff members entered to reorganize the studio. The lead host of Delusion Home Shopping chatted with them about something. Meanwhile, I tried to quickly communicate with the remaining members of our group. 

But...

—Get rid of this.

The moment the host pointed at Assistant Manager Eun Haje's corpse, I reflexively spoke up politely. 

“Ah, would you like me to move it?”

We needed to get her somewhere safe—

—Oh, come now, Friend of Braun. That's what contract employees are for. No need for you to do that!

—Now, get up.

…… Just now.

Why

did the corpse

move?

—Go wait over there.

Assistant Manager Eun Haje's corpse rose to its feet. No, it wasn't merely a corpse moving....

It had an expression.

A deathly pale face.

With a bewildered expression, Assistant Manager Eun Haje jerkily turned to look at me before beginning to walk away.

Dragging her dead body along.

I could only stare at the horrifying sight, frozen with terror....

—We should at least recycle them during the survival show. We still need interview footage and everything.

What? 

“Isn't she... dead?”

—Of course. We keep using them after they're dead. Delusion Home Shopping Studios are very fond of cost-effective management!

—Broadcasting fees are expensive here, but this works surprisingly well! Maybe because it's such an isolated location? In any case, we'll keep using them until their limbs rot off!

Wait. 

Wait... wait a second. 

Only then did I realize why Agent Bronze's corpse had remained behind.

Whenever we died previously in Segwang Special City, our bodies were usually gone when we returned.

I had assumed they either disappeared immediately or were removed for some other reason. 

But that wasn't it. 

The thing that should have vanished... hadn't. 

'He couldn't leave.'

Which meant.... 

'You can't escape even if you die?'

—The insurance ad is almost over. Get them in there!

I turned my head.

More figures were entering the studio we had just left.

Faces painted unnaturally white and smiling strangely. 

Neat clothing with perfectly styled hair. 

Figures with the appearance of professional shopping hosts. 

The bizarre beings that belonged to the Delusion Home Shopping ghost story.

—Contestants Number 6 through 10! Everyone, please welcome the next group of Delusion Home Shopping Survival participants!

'No.'

But then I realized.

They weren't residents of this ghost story.

They were people from Segwang Special City.

Citizens who had come to Delusion Home Shopping for temporary work, signed the wrong contract, and disappeared. Anyone deemed "useful" continued being used by Delusion Home Shopping.

Dead or alive.

Literally souls enslaved to the show business.

And then I realized something else.

—Once this broadcast ends, we'll select four people from our ten aspiring hosts!

—Excluding the two lowest-ranked contestants, another four will be eliminated!

—And then those four glorious finalists will each host their own grand shopping program! Lowest prices! Unrepeatable bundles! Exclusive bonus gifts!

—Keep your channel locked! It's Delusion Home Shopping's Black Friday!

'There were more contestants.'

My blood ran cold.

'The winner might not be one of us...!'

If one of those people won, we were finished.

We would all be eliminated, receive nothing, and become trapped here just like them. 

There was no way a complaint like "Our one-day temporary contract has ended, let us leave" would work. 

We would remain frozen in our 'employment status.' 

Because we'd be dead.

"......."

“What are we supposed to do now?”

Baek Saheon approached me, whispering through cold sweat as though he was about to grab me by the collar.

“Seeing this, dying doesn't get us out either! Why did you make us sign a contract in the first place...!”

"......."

“And there's no guaranteed way to get first place!”

I turned to look at him.

Baek Saheon stared back through clenched teeth. I reached out and.... 

“Thanks.” 

"...…??"

I patted him on the shoulder.

“Roe Deer. Should we at least try forcing a path out of the station right now?”

“...No. Too dangerous.”

If we got caught, they might decide we'd interfered with the home shopping program and hit us with some absurd penalty fee.

“There is a way to take first place. Please wait. I'm asking you.”

“Um... okay.” 

[Roe Deer.... My friend having to become the cheap salesman who hawks the most products in this vulgar, messy advertisement program.... Oh, the tragedy.]

[You appear to need assistance.] 

That was true.

I desperately needed assistance.

[Oh? Then...]

So I decided to procure some myself. 

[Hm?] 

I placed a hand over my chest.

The idea had just occurred to me.

'A way to guarantee first place.'

Beneath my clothes, I felt a pulse… and the lines of a tattoo. 

A particular contamination I'd been feeling react ever since entering this broadcasting-station ghost story.

I firmly pressed on one of the contaminations stored within my tattoos and drew it out.

LIVE BROADCAST

PREPARING

Anticipation consumed my body. 

Comfort, fulfillment, excitement, tension.

Home shopping. To be honest, it probably wasn't my specialty. I felt much more suited to the Late-Night Talk show…

But being too picky about genres wasn't the mindset of a true entertainment professional!

[No—oh heavens.... Roe Deer?]

Sorry, Host!

I'll make sure not to tarnish the reputation of the Late-Night Talk Show!

I raised my head with a bright smile.

My teammates were staring at me with baffled expressions for some reason, but from now on I'd handle things exactly like a member of a prestigious talk-show crew should!

After all—I was a show-business professional. 

***

In a corner of the shelter train. 

Specifically, the connection between Cars 5 and 6. Someone stood there anxiously. 

Go Yeongeun. 

There was no privacy on this train. 

This narrow passageway was one of the few places where people rarely looked and where someone could quietly gather their thoughts.

Even then, she'd probably have to move aside whenever people passed between the cars. So she stood there alone while she still could…

And worried.

'Will they be okay?'

Whether she would be able to see her former coworkers again soon.

She had heard it usually took about a day. Still, her emotions remained tangled enough that she kept returning to Car 7 to look out toward Afternoon Station.

Every so often, she glanced down at her now-useless smartwatch.

...The guy in the goat mask had hinted that he might be willing to sell portable batteries, but she'd ignored him.

It would only be temporary anyway. 

'It's meaningless.' 

She stared at the dead smartwatch screen. The black surface reflected her face.... 

Flash.

Instead, the screen lit up. 

"...?!"

There shouldn't have been any battery left. 

“W-What...?” 

Go Yeongeun barely managed to keep from shouting as she hurriedly tried to remove the watch. This was obviously something supernatural!

She would have ripped it off and covered it immediately.

If not for the face appearing on the screen. 

Hello everbody! It's a pleasure to see you all!

“…!!"

It was Kim Soleum.

Kim Soleum's healthy, smiling face filled the tiny smartwatch display. 

Bright, cheerful, energetic, happy…

'W-What is this?'

Something felt wrong!

At the same time, text appeared at the top of the smartwatch screen.

'Home Shopping Host Survival?'

What is that supposed to—wait. 

Inside the tiny screen, Kim Soleum reached beneath a desk as though about to pull something out.

I'm so happy to introduce this product to all of you today. Please look forward to it. The item I'll be showing during this broadcast is....

Then—

he pulled out an empty hand.

"......?"

Kim Soleum smiled brightly. 

Nothing.

"...?!"

That's right. I'm not selling anything.

The home shopping channel descended into chaos!

 

note: happy chapter 300!! only 71 chapters left of Part 2

My next post will be on sunday instead of saturday because I'm going on a trip and won't be able to translate much T-T

 

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