Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work

Chapter 97.1

When I saw the shoes at the entrance, my first thought was that Baek Saheon had finally returned to the company housing.

‘Took him days to muster the courage.’

Or perhaps he’d heard some rumor that I hadn’t returned from today’s ghost story and rushed back.

‘But I’m back now.’

I was contemplating how to deal with whoever was currently in the room when—

– Oh dear, Mr. Roe Deer. There seems to be a slight misunderstanding in your recollection!

A misunderstanding?

– Those shoes have been in the same spot every evening, Friend.

“......!”

What?

No, I was sure there was nothing in the entrance when I left on the first day...

‘...Wait a second.’

I recalled the last time I saw Baek Saheon.

At Sekwang Technical High School.

Amid the chaos between the Disaster Management Bureau and the Field Exploration Team, I’d seen him fleeing with an item in hand.

And the effect of that pen-shaped item he was holding...

‘Hypnosis.’

“......”

I looked down at my hand.

The silver ring.

The mental defense item I’d purchased today.

‘...Aha.’

That explained it.

Baek Saheon hadn’t been leaving earlier or returning later than me. He hadn’t been commuting from elsewhere either.

He’d been returning to the dorm all along.

He’d simply placed a suggestion on me, ensuring I wouldn’t notice him.

‘But now it doesn’t work on me.’

Thanks to the silver ring shielding my mind, I’d finally ‘seen’ his shoes after days of being oblivious to them.

“...Hah.”

Seriously.

As if being sick and exhausted wasn’t enough, now I had to deal with this nonsense at home...

– Oh, what a perfectly pieced-together deduction, like a beautiful puzzle!

– But... isn’t it a traditional and moral lesson for deceivers to pay the price?

There was a hint of sly amusement in Braun’s voice.

Normally, I’d have been horrified by that, but...

* * *

And froze, horrified.

“......!”

Kim Soleum was sitting in the dark kitchen.

At the dining table, surrounded by what looked like snacks, he was examining their wrappers.

And in the center of the table sat a plush rabbit doll on a cushion...

The same creepy toy Kim Soleum always called ‘Braun’ and carried everywhere.

“What? Cheap-looking?”

Flinch.

“Yeah. I suppose that’s part of the concept. It was a stationery store, after all.”

‘This godforsaken psycho.’

He was talking to the doll again.

‘Why hasn’t he gone back to his room? Why is he still out here doing this bullshit?!’

Baek Saheon shuddered and was about to retreat to his room but... paused.

Wouldn’t this natural encounter be a good opportunity?

Without needing to try anything specific, this seemed like the perfect moment to reinforce the hypnotic suggestion.

“......”

Baek Saheon made up his mind and pulled out the fountain pen.

Then, he quietly stepped forward.

“Sure. But even items like this have their own effectiveness,” Kim Soleum said.

Baek Saheon froze mid-step, the fountain pen in his hand.

Kim Soleum continued speaking, his back turned, talking to himself like the lunatic he was.

“Like my roommate’s fountain pen passing by behind me right now.”

“......”

Ah.

Paralyzed, Baek Saheon felt his blood turn cold.

“Braun, did you know? My roommate tried to brainwash me and take control.”

“......”

“Yeah. I even prepared a gift to repay the favor...”

Kim Soleum’s voice was slow and deliberate. It wasn’t because he was calm—it was because he felt like he’d cough up blood again if he spoke too quickly.

But the low, hoarse voice, tinged with the scent of blood and pain, only made his words sound more menacing and weighty.

“Don’t you think that’s rather rude?”

Kim Soleum set his snacks down on the table and turned his head.

“And someone that rude... doesn’t deserve to be a roommate, don’t you think?”

“......!!”

Their eyes met.