MFCLE 4

Chapter 4

The amount of time it took for everyone gathered here to start treating me like a crazy person?

Five seconds.

……Probably?

It might have been even faster.

‘I can feel their eyes burning into the back of my head…….’

I know. I know that what I just did was something I deserved to be cursed out for.

I’m not that oblivious.

Anyone who remembered everything that had happened before our eyes and the foul stench that had stabbed at our noses should have known.

It was obvious enough that even a passing dog would understand that you shouldn’t talk back to the announcement coming from the speakers right now.

[<Exploration Record, Round 6>

New employee Park Ji-su decided to disobey the instructions from the announcement, as stated in the manual.

At first, she was intimidated by the increasingly aggressive tone of the announcer, but after confirming that he could not actually harm her any further, she was relieved.

New employee Park Ji-su thought that, if things continued like this, she would be able to complete her mission safely and return home.

(Result: Death — Asphyxiation/Shock.)

(Cause of Death: A white glove that appeared from somewhere grabbed her neck tightly. With a crack!, she died.)]

Even the wiki site explicitly stated that you must never defy the words of the ‘announcer.’

But……

What the hell was I supposed to do?!

After that female student.

I was obviously going to be the next person to fucking die!

Sorry, but……

I’m scared too.

It’s only natural that a known fear is more terrifying than an unknown one.

And even now, the white glove that had been floating through the air without disappearing after the drawing had ended was still clearly visible in front of me.

……The strange direction of the hand, as though it were looking toward me.

‘It’s just my imagination, right?’

Please let it be.

Bzzzt—

Along with the static tickling my ears, I did my best to calm my trembling lips.

—Applicant Park Yeon-jeong, are you trying to raise an objection to our aptitude test?

—To the long-standing policies of our company, which have been in place for ■■ years?

Yes!

Everything about it is a problem!

Especially ‘long jump across a floor covered in magma’—isn’t that basically telling us to die?!

……I desperately wanted to say that.

But if I did—

That white glove would probably snap my neck without mercy, just like breaking a tree branch.

I exhaled a short breath and immediately turned my gaze toward the speaker.

“……Of course not. Surely these are measures devised by people far more capable than a mere applicant like myself. If I were capable of understanding the grand intentions of such distinguished individuals, I wouldn’t be standing here right now.”

—……

I couldn’t know what expression the man beyond the speaker……

No, what expression that ghost story creature was making as he looked at me.

So for now, my gaze wasn’t on the speaker.

It was fixed on the white glove that could come and snap my neck at any moment.

The hand moved through the air as though stroking an invisible chin.

Was it……thinking?

—……As expected, Applicant Park Yeon-jeong sees deeper into our company’s intentions than the others!

—What an admirable talent!

The voice that had been subdued until now seemed to regain its energy, and the tone of the announcement rose.

But being praised by a ghost story monster—

It didn’t make me happy at all.

Still, the moment I realized that he had a favorable impression of me—

I couldn’t let this opportunity slip away.

“But I’m disappointed! It’s such a shame that the applicants who came here won’t be able to make use of their own talents and will end up failing here!”

It was a tearful performance so shameless that even method acting would have been embarrassed.

The remaining twelve applicants watching the scene unfolding before them couldn’t even close their mouths as they witnessed my pathetic performance.

—……

The guy beyond the speaker also seemed to have been rendered speechless, as he offered no response.

……This is embarrassing.

An inexplicable sense of shame washed over me in the unbearably quiet silence.

But I had to endure it.

If it meant surviving and getting out of here alive, I was ready to throw away that much pride.

To shake off even a little of this embarrassment, I exaggerated my movements even further.

Whoosh!

I threw both arms wide above my head.

Then I shouted at the top of my lungs.

“How disappointing! How, oh, how disappointing that we have to send away such capable colleagues who could surely lead this company! It’s so, so disappointing!”

—……

“Ah. What a shame!”

—……

“Really, how……disappointing!”

—……

……Excuse me?

Why wasn’t he reacting?

The announcer hadn’t responded at all for quite some time.

Even the white glove—the only thing I could visually confirm—was now frozen in place with its palm held wide open.

‘Someone, anyone. Please just react!’

I’m going insane from anxiety!

And then—

The static from the speaker brushed against my ears.

Bzzzt—

How long had I been waiting for that sound?

—……Hmm. From the company’s perspective, if we could bring in as many talented people as possible, there certainly couldn’t be a better outcome.

That was a remarkably positive response.

If things continued like this, there was a chance I might be able to skip the aptitude test altogether.

—This is something we’ll have to discuss with the executives who will be conducting your interviews.

—In the meantime, we’ve prepared a space where the applicants can take a short break.

Bang!

Once again, the lights in the space where we were standing went out.

When they came back on—

‘……A break room?’

We were somehow standing in a space that looked just like an office break room.

—Why don’t you relax for a while and enjoy some sweet snacks.

—I’ll be back shortly.

After those final words, the announcer’s voice disappeared.

“……He really left?”

“I……think so?”

Everyone remained on guard until the very last moment.

Since they were clearly aware of how dangerous this place was, I didn’t bother trying to ease the tension either.

Some people, finally feeling the hunger they’d forgotten because of their extreme fear, glanced at the snacks placed on the table.

Of course, no one ate them.

They merely stole glances at them.

No one was foolish enough to touch food placed in such a bizarre space.

They were simply waiting for someone else to be the first to touch one.

‘Having to risk your life just to eat a snack. What a pain.’

I’m not eating it out of disgust.

Besides, right now, I needed to devote every ounce of my attention to the slightest change coming from the speakers rather than those snacks.

‘It worked, right?’

……It had to.

Otherwise, I’m dead.

Whether my head was blown apart by a falling shot put or my body was crushed by a hydraulic press—

Whatever the method, if I failed, the aptitude test would begin under the assumption that the next thing waiting for me was my ‘death.’

But just as I had been waiting for the announcement from the speaker—

There was someone who had something they wanted to say to me as well.

Tap.

“Eek!”

I answered someone who had approached me with good intentions with a very heartfelt scream.

……Please understand.

I’m scared too.

“Aaaaaah!”

As though responding to my scream, the female student screamed as well.

A female student?

Only then did I turn away from my startled heart and realize that Kim Hye-seon, the student whose eyes were still swollen and red, was looking at me strangely while sniffing back her tears.

“……Sorry. I startled you, didn’t I?”

“……N-No, it’s okay.”

……That’s not exactly convincing when her scream was still ringing in my ears.

“Th-Thank you for earlier. For saving me.”

“……”

……If that’s how she interpreted it, then fine.

There was no need to embarrass myself by telling her the ugly truth.

‘What are you talking about? I only said that because I wanted to live.’

If she’s grateful, that’s enough.

……Yeah. Let’s leave it at that.

“I just did what I had to do.”

It wasn’t a lie.

Bow.

She bent at the waist a full ninety degrees to thank me.

Such a polite child.

……This girl really is something.

She has exactly the kind of personality that makes surviving a ghost story difficult.

She may have gotten lucky and survived for now, but that girl is far too easily influenced by others.

She’ll probably reach her limit at the next interview.

Bzzzt—

He was back.

Along with my painfully obvious hope that things had gone well, a low-quality voice flowed from the speaker.

—Oh my! I’ve kept the applicants waiting for quite some time!

—As one of the company’s executives, I would like to apologize on their behalf.

An apology was nice and all, but what happened?!

—After discussing the matter with the executives……we’ve decided to give all the remaining applicants the opportunity to proceed directly to the interview!

—Congratulations!

—Ta-da!!

Still that tacky congratulatory sound effect.

But—

‘Yes!’

Who cares if the congratulatory sound effect is tacky?

I’m alive for now. That’s all that matters.

Naturally, I wasn’t the only one delighted to hear that the aptitude test announced over the speakers had been canceled.

Everyone here must have felt the same way after seeing the ridiculous obstacles in that aptitude test.

They simply hadn’t had the courage to talk back to the announcement.

And since talking back meant death, I understood.

The ghost story’s announcement continued.

—Well then! You’re all ready for your interviews, aren’t you?

“……”

“……”

“……”

—Haha! You’re all still such shy people!

By the time I’d become numb to that kind of absurdly positive thinking—

—We’ll begin the interviews!

The announcer diligently carried out the role he’d been assigned, without missing a beat.

Bang!

The lights went out again.

I used the brief darkness to mentally review the interview process I was about to face.

[<Exploration Record, Round 8>

Employee Lee Sol was one of the outstanding employees of the month, having completed the aptitude test in the shortest recorded time.

Her superiors also had high expectations for her.

Lee Sol was so elated by the announcer’s praise that her confidence seemed to reach the heavens.

Everyone thought that, at this rate, they really might be able to overcome this ghost story.

(Result: Death — Suicide.)

(Cause of Death: Unable to answer the interviewer’s [REDACTED] question, Employee Lee Sol began exhibiting symptoms of mental confusion. For some reason, she picked up a knife lying on the floor and stabbed it into her own neck.)]

As I’d already learned from the previous records, you must never do anything that displeases the interviewers.

Then again, avoiding the interviewers’ displeasure was actually quite simple.

Just give truthful answers.

The reason Employee Lee Sol died was because she couldn’t provide an honest answer to the interviewer’s question.

Of course, even knowing this method, the questions would undoubtedly be anything but easy.

It was a ‘watch-your-words’ section where one mistake could lead directly to death.

‘Though I won’t be taking that interview anyway.’

Even if I somehow passed the interview, the ending would still be the same: I’d be trapped in this place and forced to spend the rest of my life here.

I didn’t want to spend the remainder of my life trapped inside a ghost story like this.

So there was only one opportunity to escape.

The moment the interview was being conducted.

That would be my chance.

[<Exploration Record, Round 13>

Employee Ryu Jin-ho could not withstand the pressure of death and told the interviewer that he was too inadequate to answer the question.

A single tear fell from the interviewer’s faceless visage.

‘Don’t blame yourself too much. There will be another opportunity.’

(Result: Escape.)

(Testimony: After the interviewer’s words, all the lights in the room went out again. When the lights came back on, he stated that he was standing in front of the location where he had been before entering this ghost story.)]

I’d finally made it this far.

Escape was right in front of me.

As I swallowed back tears at the thought of my struggles up until now and prepared to put on the same method-acting performance I’d already used earlier—

Bang!

The lights came back on.

And what I saw was—

<Congratulations! Official Emplo……>

……What are you doing?

I locked eyes with the white glove hurriedly setting up a strange banner between two pillars.

The banner wasn’t fully set up yet, but the words ‘Official Employee’ had already caught my eye.

Why did those words make me so uneasy……?

My gaze instinctively swept rapidly around the room.

And I realized something.

For some reason, instead of being in the interview room, I was standing alone in the central hall where I’d originally been.

“……?”

Why?

Why was I the only one here?

Had something gone wrong during the transfer?

As those questions filled my mind—

Bzzzt—

The static that would bring this entire ordeal to an end reached my ears.

—Oh dear. I must have been too hasty.

—I seem to have called Applicant Park Yeon-jeong here a little too early.

—I wanted to surprise Applicant Park Yeon-jeong, who has shown the most impressive performance of all!

—But now you’ve seen everything.

—It’s……a little embarrassing.

……Why does this suddenly feel so wholesome?

More importantly, I’m freaking terrified.

I’ve been worried sick about the next word on the banner that the white glove has been holding.

It can’t be……

But even as I told myself that, an inexplicable sense of dread slowly tightened around the back of my neck.

“……I’m a little……confused about what’s going on.”

I tried my best to maintain my composure, but my voice failed me.

—Since things have turned out this way, I suppose it’s only right that I explain everything clearly.

—Applicant Park Yeon-jeong!

This pattern…… No.

Please, just tell me I’m wrong.

—We would like to officially……

No.

—Congratulations on joining our company!

—Our company looks forward to seeing what you’ll accomplish!

No! Fuck!!

Park Yeon-jeong, Day One as an Employee…… Begins?