Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work-Chapter 90

The alleys in "Death’s End Alley" each have distinct themes.

It’s as if they’re modeled after real-world commercial districts, where shops with similar specialties cluster together.

Of course, their appearance is unpredictable, and the frequency of their emergence varies.

Here are the alleys confirmed so far in Death’s End Alley:

And the alley we just entered is the one selling everyday goods.

But, at a glance, I’m walking straight into the shop that looks the least inviting in this alley.

A butcher shop, where living organs and flesh are hung on display.

Twitching.

“Just think of it as a haunted house,” I told myself.

It’s fine. None of the items look like their original form when alive. They’re just parts—just parts. I’ll pretend it’s animatronics from a theme park attraction...

Wait, but thinking of theme parks makes me recall cheerful amusement parks, which somehow makes this scarier!

“Stay calm,” I whispered to myself.

I can’t back down now.

Feigning composure, I strode toward the butcher shop.

"Raw Flesh Butcher Shop"

Under the red and blue neon lights of the glass window, the butcher, sharpening a knife against a whetstone, raised his head.

His apron was drenched in blood, and he had an enormous frame.

Looking closely...

The flayed remains of a cow, its head now a mass of flesh, turned to look at us.

Thunk.

It gestured.

The kind of gesture that said, "Come closer, I’ll take good care of you."

“W-wait, Sir!”

Kang Ihak stepped in front of me.

“Ha-ha, um, well. It doesn’t seem like we need anything from that shop. Let’s check out another place!”

“But the owner already gestured for us to come in. It’d be rude not to.”

-Oh, he’s right. That’s just basic manners!

“No!”

Kang Ihak caught himself raising his voice and quickly lowered it, speaking urgently.

“The manual clearly stated: Never enter a meat-themed alley!”

He was right.

According to the Death’s End Alley manual:

If you encounter a meat-themed alley, do not enter. Stay in your current alley.

If forced to enter (e.g., being chased by a merchant), block auditory senses with earplugs and quickly take 1,000 steps to move to the next alley.

If a companion is lured into sampling products, leave them behind and proceed swiftly.

The manual alone was chilling.

“True.”

“Ah, so you remember? Then—”

“So what?”

“...!?”

“I feel like shopping.”

And I marched straight toward the butcher shop.

“N-Noru!”

Apologies, Chang Heowoon! Feel free to run if you must...!

But I could hear the footsteps of both companions following behind me. It seemed they had decided to stick with me.

Hmm. I thought they’d run away.

‘Maybe I wanted to flee more than anyone else....’

But if I stopped now, I’d lose momentum and end up dragged around by their hesitations again. So, I kept moving forward.

Eventually, the three of us stood in front of the grotesque butcher shop with its twitching displays under glaring lights.

Naturally, I was at the front.

Sigh.

...

The flayed cow stared at me.

‘Gross.’

I avoided looking too closely.

Focusing on the butcher’s neck was worse, though, as his pulsing veins made me quickly divert my gaze to his blood-stained apron.

The apron was definitely easier to handle.

“Hello. Is fresh packaging available?”

Nod.

“You’ve got some fine cuts. Hmm... could I take a look at the forelimb?”

Thunk.

The flayed cow’s head rose, opened the glass door, and pulled out the "forelimb" section to display before me.

...Still writhing. Still alive.

A beast’s paw.

A primate’s hand.

A primate’s hand.

Tentacles?

A beast’s paw.

A primate’s hand...

A hand wearing a ring twitched against the glass floor, almost pleading.

‘Ugh.’

I had to endure it.

Pretending to inspect, I glanced down.

...No decent left hands.

‘What a pity.’

After braving this mental torment, it’d be nice to gain something worthwhile.

I brushed aside thoughts of Deputy Eunha and her ridiculous requests, pausing before turning to the butcher.

“A sturdier one would make better broth... Do you have anything with eyes, by chance?”

Thunk!

The butcher, seemingly offended by my initial rejection, moved roughly now. From behind, I could faintly hear my companions holding their breath.

I, too, took a deep breath, forcing myself to stay calm.

The forelimbs were removed, and—

Before my eyes appeared rows of eyeballs.

Dark sclera with violet irises.

Fist-sized blue eyeballs.

Lens-covered orbs still attached to muscle.

Unfocused, quivering white circles.

And a desperate brown eye that seemed to be staring right at me.

Sighing, I closed my eyes briefly before reopening them.

“That one looks good.”

I pointed.

The first displayed—a black sclera with a glimmering violet iris.

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“I’d like to purchase it. Oh, no need to slice it.”

...

The flayed cow stared at me for a moment, then extended its hand.

A clear gesture: Pay up.

Kang Ihak whispered urgently, “Sir, maybe... we should figure out what to offer first...?”

“No.”

I pulled out a box from my tattooed inventory.

Thunk.

A heavy box filled with fresh corn and carrots landed in front of the shop.

“...??”

“...?!”

“This will cover the cost.”

For butcher shops in Death’s End Alley, bartering with consumables suitable for cattle is the preferred method of payment.

Good. Though some stores demanded bizarre currencies, we didn’t have any of those on hand.

‘Bartering is the way to go.’

I had stocked up on essentials, valuables, snacks, and even a vegetable box in my inventory tattoos.

“Now, how much should I offer?”

...

The butcher eagerly reached out to take the entire vegetable stash.

My companions, initially startled by my inventory trick, looked visibly relieved.

“Oh, the trade worked....”

“Wait. All of it?!”

“...?!”

Frowning, I interjected.

“That’s way too expensive. Even if it’s fresh-packaged, there should be limits. Do you know how hard it was to get these here fresh?”

“Noru, are you—”

Ignoring their pale, horrified expressions, I continued my bargaining.

“Are you charging more because I showed interest? Or is this a supply issue?”

Nod.

“You must’ve had a hard time, but I’m already over budget... Sigh.”

I deliberately fell silent.

The butcher also fell silent.

The flayed cow seemed to stare blankly before retreating to the counter and retrieving a handful of coins.

Rusty coins with inverted numbers and letters.

The currency of this place.

‘YES!’

Finally...!!

Not every shop accepts bartering, and when escape requires payment, having these coins is essential!

-Oh, the joy of a prepared script falling into place!

Smiling, I accepted the coins.

“...The change is enough. Thank you. I’ll take it now.”

...!

The flayed butcher rose excitedly and carefully packaged the item I had purchased.

The black eyeball, still faintly twitching, was placed in a clear liquid-filled bag and handed to me.

I tried hard not to look too closely at either the coins or the product.

“Thank... you.”

And then.

Drip.

Blood from the butcher’s apron splattered onto my face.

And onto Chang Heowoon’s face as well.

“...!”

Chang Heowoon, wearing his ox mask, froze stiff, likely suppressing the urge to vomit.

‘Damn.’

I quickly interjected.

“Oh. My friend seems to be hungry and low on energy. We’d better hurry back to eat something.”

Please, please!

The flayed cow stared intently at Chang Heowoon.

Frozen stiff, he began to sweat profusely.

Thunk.

The shopkeeper dropped an item toward Chang Heowoon.

...It was one of the corns I had paid with.

“Th-thank you....”

With trembling hands, Chang Heowoon picked up the corn.

The shopkeeper stared at him for a moment before returning to his place at the butcher shop’s glass door.

‘...We passed.’

We quickly walked away from the “Raw Flesh Butcher Shop.”

At the same time, I glanced at Chang Heowoon, who was clutching the corn tightly.

More specifically, I looked at what was on his head.

‘...It must be the mask.’

It seemed the shopkeeper mistook him for an ox.

As expected, the masks provided by Daydream Inc. weren’t ordinary items. They worked like dream collectors.

‘Phew.’

Don't give up your body!

Remaining steps: 7,999

Our steps only slowed when the next alley appeared, and I immediately checked on Chang Heowoon.

“Are you okay?”

“Huh? Oh, yes... It wasn’t that much blood, and everything was, um, processed, so I think I’m fine now....”

‘Isn’t it more disturbing that it was “processed” yet still alive...?’

But fear points differ from person to person. Respecting that seemed wise.

At least he was okay, and his complexion didn’t look bad.

Just as we were about to start moving again—

“Wh-what was that just now? How could you make such a deal?!”

Kang Ihak finally broke his silence with questions.

Hmm.

‘Time to double down...!’

Feigning nonchalance, I asked back, “What do you mean?”

“The thing you just bought! The manual clearly says to avoid alleys with visible meat, yet you acted like you were fully prepared....”

I was fully prepared!

But I couldn’t just say that, so I answered, “It was obvious.”

“...?”

“When the manual described the meat-related stores, it sounded like food stalls. The problem seems to arise from eating their products, right?”

I lifted the bag containing the item I purchased.

“But this is a butcher shop. I assumed I could simply buy something without consuming it.”

“...!”

“And judging by how the items were displayed....”

I turned the bag, showing them the eerie black eyeball.

“Since it’s alive, I thought it could serve some other purpose.”

“.......”

“For example... organ transplants.”

“...!”

Right.

Explorers don’t buy food at the “Raw Flesh Butcher Shop.”

There have been cases where employees successfully attached tongues purchased from this butcher shop to their mouths. The tongues functioned without issues and allowed for movements beyond human capability.

When attached to a missing body part, the butcher shop’s “living, fresh-packed” items activate.

Sometimes, they even retain special abilities from their original forms.

Of course, approaching that butcher shop without knowing this and trying to make a purchase would be sheer insanity!

So I babbled on.

“In places like this, deduction based on limited clues is crucial.”

No, it’s not.

‘Attempting to deduce things and gain benefits in this kind of place is the perfect way to get yourself killed....’

Everyone knows that’s a last-resort tactic when there’s absolutely no visible escape route!

But I had no choice but to act composed and crazy. After all, lunatics always have their own impeccable logic.

“I succeeded in my deduction. Is there a problem?”

Of course, there’s a problem!

Sure enough, Kang Ihak stared at me with his mouth agape.

Yes, I understand your disbelief....

“Wow!”

Whoa, that startled me.

“You’re absolutely right!”

...?!

His eyes gleamed beyond the pony mask.

“Wow, that’s it. To earn big, you’ve got to think differently from others. I’ve been playing it too safe, worrying about risks and such.”

“.......”

“Life is all or nothing anyway, right? Ha ha! That’s it!”

Wait.

Something’s wrong here....

“Let’s move forward, then. Wow, it’s been a while since I’ve met such an inspiring superior!”

“.......”

At that moment, it dawned on me.

Silver Heart.

I had forgotten I was wearing the Silver Heart accessory in my pocket.

‘It’s still on, and my rambling ended up persuading him!’

The problem was that this situation was bizarre regardless.

The Silver Heart wasn’t a mind-control tool—it was a persuasion aid.

It only worked if the argument was both logically sound and emotionally compelling.

‘So this level of absurd nonsense shouldn’t have worked....’

“I’ll do my best to support you from now on, Sir! Ha ha.”

“.......”

Oh.

Now I understood.

This person found my crazy logic convincing.

‘What kind of person even are you?’

Cold sweat dripped down my back.

Desperate, I turned to my seemingly sane companion for help.

‘Heowoon, please, you of all people....’

“Yes, I’ll support you as well!”

“.......”

Where did it all go wrong?

Chang Heowoon looked like he was thinking, “Wow, I’m so grateful for the help again!”

He was already fully persuaded.

-Congratulations, friend! You’ve earned the trust of your colleagues!

“.......”

Sure.

But something... something feels very wrong.

Still, the only thing to do now was to keep walking to get out of here....

Don't give up your body!

Remaining steps: 6,999

Surprisingly, the next alley went smoothly.

And the one after that.

“Lighting stores this time. Let’s avoid looking directly at the windows to prevent blindness or burns. Pretend we’re chatting while moving.”

“Yes!”

The alleys were lined with all kinds of bizarre and mysterious shops.

But now, with the manual in mind, it felt like taking a pop quiz after memorizing the textbook.

Of course, the fact that a single mistake could lead to death kept me on edge....

“Oh! A pharmacy! Should I try buying something there this time? What do you think, Sir? You too, Ox?”

“Yes! I’m fine with it!”

“...It doesn’t seem particularly valuable. Let’s keep moving.”

“Ah, I guess we should save our resources for bigger opportunities. Ha ha!”

Why does it feel like everyone expects me to make bold purchases again...?

And the thought of my teammates wholeheartedly supporting that made me break into a cold sweat.

Meanwhile, there wasn’t a single store in sight that looked like it might stock the chocolate I came here for.

Avoiding eye contact with shopkeepers while sneaking glances at the surroundings was also exhausting. Sigh....

Then, it happened.

Don't give up your body!

Remaining steps: 4,999

“Sir, a new alley has appeared....”

I stopped in my tracks and looked at the gap between the pharmacy stores.

From within, a foul stench wafted out.

‘Ugh.’

It was a narrow back alley, barely half the size of the one with street vendors. But it was overwhelmingly dark.

“.......”

The narrow path was lined with decrepit side doors, illuminated faintly by sparse, flickering gas lamps.

In their dim light, viscous sewage dripped from pipes and pooled on the ground, occasionally glistening before disappearing into the shadows.

Beneath the lamps, bizarre silhouettes leaned against the walls—thin, hunched figures with twisted spines.

Glancing at them, I saw they were clad in filthy, tattered uniforms, their hollow eyes fixed on us.

...Judging by the atmosphere,

‘Even if this place weren’t part of a ghost story, I’d turn around immediately.’

The alley radiated an unsettling dread, making it clear that no normal transactions would take place here.

“This wasn’t in the manual.”

That was true.

At this point, Daydream Inc. had yet to fully explore this alley. It was an unknown, uncharted place for employees.

The problem was...

‘I have to go in.’

Tears welled up in my eyes.

And somehow, I had a feeling... that even in this insane location, I wouldn’t need to persuade anyone to enter with me.

I turned to my teammates with a heavy heart and said, “Let’s go into that alley.”

Their responses:

“Yes...!”

“Looks like a place for contraband! Wow, high profits guaranteed!”

“.......”

Please... just let me be the only lunatic here.