Chapter 24
[What the hell is wrong with my post?]
Author : GaeljilChamswipjyo
Why did my text suddenly turn into a historical-drama voice?
I don't know why you guys are suddenly freaking out,
but I do know this isn't a normal situation where you can coast at Level 1.
So please get this onto the featured posts.
I came and reported the situation to my senior.
[Comments]
The writing style changed on its own.
How on earth are those Joseon-era village entities affecting smartphone terminals?
They probably aren't used to the latest gadgets, either, at their age.
“Senior.”
“Why are you calling me, oppa?”
“I can't sleep, so could you explain the mission first?”
“Is that so? Well, things don't really stick in your head when you wake up.”
Kang Chaeyoung brightly closed the comic book she had been reading.
“If you sit on the porch past midnight, an entity is bound to come and ask you a few questions.”
“Questions?”
“Yep! For Level 1s, it's just simple questions. Come here.”
Kang Chaeyoung tapped the seat beside her.
When I moved over and sat down beside her, she stood up, put her hands on her hips, and made an “ahem!” sound.
“Who goes there!”
She must have been trying to demonstrate the entity role.
“Yes.”
“Do you know which direction to go to get outside!”
“That way.”
I pointed toward the place I'd come in from earlier.
“Mm-hmm, I see! Then could you perhaps light my cigarette?”
“I'm sorry. I don't smoke, so I don't have a lighter…”
“Oppa. You just died once.”
A chilly remark flew at me without warning.
I hadn't taken my eyes off her bright smile,
and yet there had been no warning at all, so why had my life been snatched away all of a sudden?
“Do you get it?”
There weren't many choices. Sorry, non-smoker, lighter.
The oddest word among them.
“A lighter?”
When she heard my answer, Kang Chaeyoung smiled, baring her white teeth.
“As expected, our team's youngest is different from the others!”
“Was that the right answer?”
“That's right! It shouldn't be in the support guidelines, so how did you know right away?”
“…I watch a lot of livestreams.”
“Out of nowhere?”
Every October 9, Hangul Day, streams that restrict loanwords flood in. The viewers get all stern and serious too.
If even people practically steeped in English do that, how much worse must Joseon in 1867 have been?
It was a time when the whole country was in an uproar over bloody incidents tied to the West.
English would have been more than a strange culture—it would have sounded like the voice of invaders.
That was probably the influence behind the gallery posts being forcibly changed, too.
“Then while guiding the entities today, I mustn't use English at all.”
“Yep, yep! That's exactly it.”
“But why isn't this important information shown in the support guidelines?”
“If the goal is to answer the questions of the entities that show up and verify that the information the gatekeeper gives is accurate, then it should be all the more essential to know.”
“Exactly! I don't know what Branch Chief Park is thinking!”
After that, Kang Chaeyoung forgot all about the hosting practice and started viciously badmouthing the man called Branch Chief Park.
He was the one who strongly insisted that the Bureau's entity reports and response guidelines be filtered.
The reason, apparently, was to prevent the Bureau's information from leaking back to the entities.
Because lower-ranking employees were more likely to suffer mental contamination.
The problem was that this filtering got applied indiscriminately even to the parts people needed to know.
“You're lucky there aren't any victims here yet. We told them to lift the filter for support missions, but they still won't do it.”
“If someone tells you anyway, like with you, senior, wouldn't that still count as information leakage?”
“Exactly! It's like trying to cover the sky with your palm!”
The badmouthing of Branch Chief Park went on for quite a while.
He said people from research rather than the field were no good for this, and that the team leader said he'd smash Branch Chief Park's head in if he ever met him, and so on.
I listened silently to her, nodding along occasionally.
Because I could sense a bit of sadness in Kang Chaeyoung's eyes as she forced her energy up and kept talking.
“Aigoo, even though there are still more than ten hours left, I dragged you in and talked about all sorts of things, oppa.”
“It was a big help, senior.”
“Hehehe~. Let's take a short break and then continue.”
Kang Chaeyoung said that and went back into the room.
It seemed to be her own way of being considerate, telling me to rest easy for now.
All right, let's use this chance to check the gallery.
[Summary of the Best Posts So Far for Newbies]
Author : White Hacker
Newbie, since you didn't give me your account number, I brought you a summary of the best posts as interest.
Read it carefully, and please give me your account number already.
The support mission in the village where time has stopped is to guide the few entities that appear at midnight.
Two or three entities pass by during the night, and if you're a Level 1 on newbie duty, even mistakes only get you hurt. English is the exception (you're dead).
The problem is, if the gallery posts are affected too, then whoever shows up today definitely isn't Level 1.
I want to give advice, but not all the entities that burst out of the village where time has stopped have been identified; at minimum there are thousands of them.
Newbie, check the list of entities scheduled to visit and put your name on it.
Just be prepared for the possibility that, as always, you might not get a cheat sheet.
[Comments]
Gaechebagi : You can't even make more Backrooms stuff, so why do you keep asking for an account number?
ㄴWhite Hacker : After the newbie escaped, I'm using AI to make videos now. The Bureau seems to be trying to manipulate me by showering me with huge sponsorship money.
ㄴGaechebagi : Look at them reaching out directly because they know it's Korean, not some Westerner.
Sanyanggae : Please pray there aren't any changgui.
AppaneunMurimin : Brush, paper, and ink peddlers and bedwetters are troublesome too.
Amsulsulsulsul : Master physicians, divine physicians, and herbalists too.
GeiGoeiGeiya : Why are there so many things that aren't allowed?
ㄴSeoljeongttalGaejoha : They're entities that shouldn't show up on the newbie list, so they're all Level 3 or higher.
ㄴGeiGoeiGeiya : There are too many high-level entities, aaaaaah!
An exception that can even fool the Bureau. Should I tell the senior honestly and call for support?
There's still a little mission time left, so if I can get out of here now, I might be able to get help.
Let's ask for advice.
[What Happens If I Request Support and Bolt?]
Author : GaeljilChamswipjyo
From what I've heard, it seems this is not a matter for just me and the senior to bear.
In such a case, couldn't I explain the circumstances and ask for more personnel?
I even suspect the people who assigned this task didn't properly assess the situation in the first place.
If you're going to send people, you ought to send enough to match the job.
Making us take on dangerous work while also telling us to bear it is truly hard to understand.
[Comments]
Gwanrireulgwanri : It seems like it auto-changes the moment it's posted now.
Jibaknyeong1ho : If you want to live, that's fine. Though thousands may die in your place.
GathyeosseoyoJibe : Once a support mission is confirmed, the odds of a high-ranking agent being stationed nearby are low.
DonbadgoGaeljilhagi : The above comments are all right, but the premise is wrong. You can't leave in the first place; I've done support missions, so I know.
You can't leave until the guidance is over? What kind of nonsense is that?
ㄴGaeljilChamswipjyo : Please explain in detail. What do you mean, you can't leave in the first place?
ㄴDonbadgoGaeljilhagi : I've tried it, and you can't get out. The village won't let you leave until sunrise the next day.
ㄴGaeljilChamswipjyo : Then what on earth are the staff who normally manage this place doing?
ㄴDonbadgoGaeljilhagi : They're watching to keep out the things you'd die if you saw them, but some bastard slipped past the surveillance.
So there was no way out to begin with.
And the nearby staff are already dealing with even harder work, so it means something got past them to get here.
The last shred of hope I'd been imagining in my head shattered.
Why is it that nothing is ever easy, every single time?
For some reason, I suddenly missed the cafeteria cook intensely.
“Oppa, are you all rested? You look even more tired than before?”
Just then, Kang Chaeyoung came out after opening the door.
Hospitality practice was important too, but I had to somehow tell Kang Chaeyoung about the situation now.
“Senior.”
“What's the matter?”
“Do you happen to know which entity is visiting today?”
“Of course I know. That's why I was taking it easy~.”
Kang Chaeyoung stretched her interlaced arms with a stiff groan.
Crack, crack.
A sound like she was getting a chiropractic adjustment came from her body.
“Today, only two entities are coming. And they're the gentle ones at that!”
“I guess it's not often that only two come.”
“That's right! It was announced three days in advance, so I even sent the list to the team leader and got approval.”
“I see?”
So the team leader didn't know that an anomalous entity like this was coming.
Come to think of it, if he had known, he wouldn't have sent me here.
More importantly, didn't they say the gatekeeper is the one who tells you which entities are coming?
Does that mean the gatekeeper was complicit?
Or does it mean it's powerful enough to get out while fooling the gatekeeper's eyes?
Whether she knew what I was thinking or not, Kang Chaeyoung kept a bright expression the whole time.
“Unnyeoni and Dotgabi are good kids who'll let it slide if you answer them well. Still, just in case, be sure to read the report.”
“Of course.”
It was certain now. The senior had no idea what unexpected complication had arisen in this support mission.
++++
Entities Scheduled to Visit Today
Unnyeoni
Dotgabi
E̷l̷d̷e̷r̷
++++
Otherwise, there'd be no way there could be three entities written on the paper I'm holding right now.
And the writing wriggling like a bug in real time is just a bonus.