In the dim office, Lee Jaheon lifted his head.
Standing at the door, arms crossed, was Eun Haje, her expression worn and hollow.
“You need to stop now, sir.”
“…….”
“How many more times are you going to conduct these interviews? Even the directors have lost interest.”
Eun Haje walked into the office.
Her gaze swept over the vacant seat, as though confirming, once again, that the colleague who once sat there was truly gone.
All that remained was the sentence in the official report: Presumed deceased as of January 2nd.
“It’s already been a month.”
“After a month of no news, sometimes you have to know when to give up. …Writing reports isn’t going to bring back the dead.”
“…….”
“And the Dream Essence Collector data was ultimately marked as death-confirmed.”
She was right.
The Dream Essence Collector’s record had confirmed the missing employee’s groans and brief murmured phrases, such as, ‘Is that so?’
It has been meaningfully inferred that this is part of the psychotic symptoms observed in the Tamra Express, a dark anomaly that occurred during the elite team’s assignment.
Statistical projections estimate that the probability of deep contamination or death for the employee in question exceeds 80%.
Additionally, per protocol, if the Dream Essence Collector is returned and no significant developments are reported within 30 days, the employee is automatically declared deceased in the system.
In other words, this matter is already settled.
“…He’s already been added to today’s termination list, Section Chief.”
Supervisor Kim Soleum (Employment contract terminated due to death.)
…By the time it reached that stage, death was usually certain.
Assistant Manager Eun Haje rubbed her face before speaking again.
“…The company won’t support this anymore. You know how it is. We don’t waste money or time on the dead.”
All the searches and repeated reviews had only been approved because Kim Soleum was an exceptional and talented employee.
But there were no manuals detailing what had triggered the Tamra Express Darkness, and it had not reoccurred even once in the past month.
“Is there even any point in organizing all this? Haven’t you thought about stopping?”
“Yes.”
“…….”
Did he mean to say that there is still a point to this? Or that he did consider stopping?
“What’s your reason?”
“Because Supervisor Kim Soleum is not dead.”
“…!!”
Eun Haje’s eyes widened.
Lee Jaheon was not the kind of person to blindly cling to hope.
Which meant—he truly believed this.
And Lee Jaheon wasn’t someone who believed things without reason.
Which meant—he had proof.
“W-Why do you think that?!”
“There’s a hint.”
Lee Jaheon recalled something.
A seemingly unrelated incident from late last year.
– Please take care of this.
Before heading into the Darkness, Kim Soleum had entrusted him with something for half a day.
A small stuffed toy.
– My goodness. Are you truly entrusting me to an unimaginative blade grunt such as this? Mr. Roe Deer!
That stuffed toy, speaking in its strangely old-fashioned and eerie tone.
Of course, Lee Jaheon had not responded.
He was supposed to be a well-mannered person of modern sensibilities, and thus saw no obligation to entertain a talking plushie.
However.
Something about the way it spoke felt familiar.
And then, there was the site of Kim Soleum’s disappearance.
In the train restroom, all of Kim Soleum’s company-related belongings had been scattered haphazardly across the floor.
Yet, Lee Jaheon’s focus had not been on that.
Instead, his eyes had gone straight to the writing on the mirror.
Because—he had recognized the handwriting.
“Compare these.”
He pulled out the developed photograph of the mirror message and placed it alongside an old, worn-out postcard that had been carefully stored away, untouched for years. ŔＡŊỗꞖЁṣ
Even retrieving this single postcard had taken weeks of authorization.
“This is…”
A remnant from a broadcast-themed Darkness that D-squad had cleared multiple times.
But in the most recent expedition, an unexpected event had resulted in an entire squad being wiped out—
And thanks to the quick thinking of one employee, D-squad had barely escaped with some A-grade Dream Essence.
A Darkness so unusual that its classification was still under review, bouncing between the Research Team and the Assessment Division.
Quiz Show Application Form
To :
From :
“…Tuesday Talk Show!”
The handwriting was the exact same.
Lee Jaheon nodded.
“Supervisor Kim Soleum is there.”
No matter what form he may have taken.
A studio bathed in blinding lights.
A thunderous applause erupted from the audience, rolling over the stage like a tidal wave.
[Thank you! Thank you!]
The crowd, still intoxicated by the thrill of the final segment, whistled and cheered in pure excitement.
The host pressed a dramatic hand to his chest, feigning deep emotion.
[Oh dear, with this kind of response… Haha, shall we start from the very beginning again? You are currently watching Braun’s Late-Night Talk Sh— Goodness.]
WAAAAAH!
The host let out an exaggerated flinch at the overwhelming cheers—before his TV screen face returned to a grinning expression.
[Unfortunately, before the furious advertisers come storming in, we must endure a heart-wrenching farewell! But don’t be too disheartened! We’ll meet again tomorrow!]
The house band struck up an energetic, playful tune, signaling the end of the talk show.
The host steps to the center of the studio, bowing politely with his TV head tilted forward.
[To all our viewers who tuned in today—those watching from the depths of the underground in repentance, those sobbing in regret, and even those joining us from EPUB viewers.]
[Tomorrow at exactly 11:33 PM, we shall meet again… Have a wonderful night!]
As the band’s finale swells to its peak, the host raises both hands, acknowledging the thunderous applause.
And then—
[Cut!]
The show ends.
Click.
Everything falls silent.
The audience vanishes.
The once dazzling lights blink out, leaving only a few soft overhead fixtures illuminating the now-empty seats.
Crew members flood the stage, swiftly moving to reset the set and attend to the performers.
I am among them.
Or rather—
[Mr. Soleum!]
The host is calling me over.