WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
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◈ Surviving as an Office Worker at the Anomaly Management Bureau ◈
Chapter 52: Intensive Care Unit
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I remembered getting lost in an aquarium with my younger sibling when I was little.
I remembered desperately trying to soothe my crying sibling beneath the dim lights as we wandered the maze-like paths, finally finding our parents.
I vaguely remembered passing the tank with the deep-sea creatures back then.
“...”
This place was just as dark as that aquarium had been.
“Please keep a close eye on our surroundings. Let me know if you see anything.”
Jang Chae-yeon and Song A-rin nodded and began looking around.
Once I confirmed that the two were watching our surroundings, I quickly opened the manual.
[Manual for Office Workers]
[2-20. Only two people have ever made it out of the Intensive Care Unit alive. We hereby announce that the Escape Instructions through this place have been discontinued.]
Ignoring that, I looked at the bottom of the manual.
[2-15. The Intensive Care Unit is the final stage chosen if you fail to save the patient in the previous stage or mistakenly fail to head for the exit. The objects residing here are extremely dangerous. Even if a branch chief-level employee comes alone, the probability of death is extremely high due to the high variability.]
[There are four main objects to be wary of here.]
[1. Nurse]
[2. Jellyfish]
[3. Patient]
[4. Doctor]
I could understand numbers one, three, and four, but what the hell was a jellyfish?
The moment I wondered that, Jang Chae-yeon tugged on my sleeve and pointed at the ceiling.
It was the night sky.
No, more precisely, it was an endless black ceiling.
Countless jellyfish floated through the air above us, giving off a dark blue glow.
Soon, my eyes began displaying information.
[Name: Lighting]
[Age: Created 3 weeks ago]
[Trait: Luminescence]
[Talent: Luminescence]
[Background: After a long experiment, that person eventually died and became a single starlight, wandering the Hospital without finding rest.]
[Weakness: X]
“...”
It was utterly horrifying.
It felt like I had learned something I never needed to know.
I turned my gaze back to the manual. I knew roughly enough about the nurse and doctor, so first, the jellyfish.
[Jellyfish: These jellyfish adorn the endless sky of the Intensive Care Unit. Looking at them continuously causes severe mental derangement. Unless you possess considerable mental resistance, we recommend that you do not look at them.]
I hurriedly covered Jang Chae-yeon’s eyes with one hand.
“?”
Jang Chae-yeon tilted her head with her eyes covered, while I used my other hand to turn the pages again.
[2-16. As you move through this place, you may think it is not as dangerous as expected. However, you must never forget this. There may be few dangers here, but every single threat in the Intensive Care Unit is so great that you may wish you were dead.]
[First, if you have a pistol, always be prepared to use it. The barrel should be pointed at your temple. If you calmly pull the trigger, you can almost certainly die.]
[If both arms have been amputated or you are unable to perform this action for another reason, refer to [T-Suicide Method].]
[Once you have thoroughly familiarized yourself with this, proceed forward. You will see a massive operating room. You must enter it to pass through this place. Never run. After opening the door, never look back no matter what sound you hear.]
I tapped both of them on the shoulders and gestured toward the operating room.
I continued reading the manual as we walked.
[After passing through the operating room, you will find a doctor wearing a white coat and a green surgical mask. This is one of the few beings here you can communicate with, and one of the more favorable ones, so obtain as much information as possible. It is best not to lie.]
[Do not forget. The Intensive Care Unit has an exceptionally low survival rate because of its high variability. Be mindful of every possible situation and exercise caution.]
It didn’t need to emphasize that twice.
Soon, the operating room came into view.
The metal doors gleaming amid the dark blue light looked as though they had been designed to make anyone reluctant to enter, but I had no other choice.
I opened the operating room door with one hand. It opened without a sound, and a chill swept over us.
“...Don’t look back. No matter what.”
Both of them nodded, and the three of us slowly began walking into the operating room.
The cold pierced down to my bones. It felt as though we had entered a freezer.
As we slowly moved forward, a sound began coming from behind us.
-Scrape... scrape...
It was the sound of something heavy being dragged.
Song A-rin, walking beside me, reached out and grabbed my sleeve.
In contrast, Jang Chae-yeon walked calmly beside me, matching my stride.
Looking only at her face, you’d think we were out for a walk.
-Scrape... scraape...
I thought I understood why the manual had told us never to run.
The sound was getting closer.
At first, it had come from near the door. Now, it was only a few steps behind us.
Song A-rin’s fingers trembled against my sleeve.
Jang Chae-yeon still walked with a calm expression.
-Scrape... scrape...
“Haa... haa...”
Whatever had been dragging something was now breathing behind us.
The most terrifying part was that, judging by the fact that my head did not hurt at all, this was completely real.
After we had walked for who knew how long, I finally began to see an exit at the end of the room.
“Huu... huuu...”
The sound still came from behind us.
Song A-rin was clutching my sleeve so tightly that her fingers had turned white.
As I slowly stepped forward to open the door,
-Drip.
Something warm fell between me and Song A-rin’s hand.
“Eep-”
Before Song A-rin could scream, I grabbed her wrist tightly. She noticed my reaction and covered her own mouth with her other hand.
I opened the door and stepped outside.
Under the same dim lighting, Song A-rin sank to the floor as though collapsing.
“...Huff... huff...”
“Are you all right?”
“Do I look all right?”
“I see. What about you, Chae-yeon?”
“I’m fine.”
“Really?”
“I wasn’t scared at all.”
Jang Chae-yeon looked at Song A-rin as she spoke.
“That ignorant white-haired idiot...!”
At Jang Chae-yeon’s slightly amused voice, Song A-rin glared at her.
The fact that they still felt like fighting after coming this far meant they had plenty of energy left.
What exactly had been following us?
I didn’t know what it was, but I definitely didn’t want to meet it twice.
The next thing was supposed to be someone in a white coat and green surgical mask.
I looked around, but finding someone dressed like that was not difficult.
There was only one person here besides the three of us.
It was a man in a white coat and green surgical mask.
The strange thing was that, unlike the others I had seen so far, his body looked no different from a human’s.
“...Oh.”
He widened his eyes slightly upon seeing us and walked toward me.
“It’s been a while since anyone came to the Intensive Care Unit. Last time, a man came here.”
I thought I knew who he meant.
“...We came here to find someone too.”
“Oh? If you came all the way here, you must care deeply about them.”
He narrowed his eyes.
“If it’s not too rude, may I ask who it is? A name is fine, an appearance is fine, and both would be even better.”
I didn’t need long to think.
Having come this far, I would find Yoo Da-on somehow and get out.
I took a deep breath.
“The name is Yoo Da-on. She has long black hair, and...”
“Long hair, and?”
“...She has a beautiful smile.”
I had no idea how else to describe Yoo Da-on, so I ended up vaguely saying that.
“Hmm. Black hair, a beautiful smile... The name is Yoo Da-on...”
The man had already taken a chart from his pocket. He flipped through it as he spoke.
“She’s here. Yoo Da-on.”
“Is that so?”
He smiled gently and closed the chart.
“Seeing that there’s a star beside her name, she seems to be quite an important patient. But since the three of you came, I suppose I have no choice but to tell you.”
“Thank you.”
I bowed my head to the man as calmly as possible, and he laughed aloud and waved his hand.
“It’s all right. But the path there may be... somewhat long and difficult.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“If that’s the case, I can’t stop you. Now, look behind me.”
The man turned and pointed behind him.
Pitch-black darkness stretched out before us.
“Pass through here and go to the room at the very end. There is only one room at the end, so finding it should not be difficult.”
“...Thank you.”
“Do not mention it. This is treatment, too.”
He smiled gently, then passed us and headed for the operating room.
I opened the manual.
[If you have received directions from him, head in the direction he told you. You must never take another path. There is no telling what the enraged doctor may do to you.]
[There are no matching descriptions regarding the path to the patient rooms. From here on, it is up to your judgment, ability, and quick thinking.]
“So that’s what it says.”
“It’s not like we won’t go.”
“...Right.”
The two nodded in agreement.
Yeah.
I stepped into the darkness.
-Whoosh!
With the sound of a candle being extinguished by the wind, the things behind us disappeared.
What appeared before us was a single jet-black door to a patient room.
-Bang!
The door opened, and someone walked out.
“...Uhh...”
It was not human.
A jellyfish swayed and danced where its head should have been. The figure only moved like a puppet without a will, following the jellyfish’s movements.
-Flutter!
The manual opened.
[Manual for Office Workers]
[Patient: One of the dangerous objects within the Hospital, possessing both intelligence and immense strength. The moment it catches you, it has the strength to tear off whatever part it grabs, so please be careful.]
It looked dangerous, but if there was only one of them...
-Flutter!
A corridor began unfolding.
Soon, an endless corridor stretched out before us.
Every door was painted black.
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