WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Surviving as an Office Worker at the Anomaly Management Bureau ◈
Chapter 73: Haunted House
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“But why is there a haunted house in a Western-themed attraction?”
At Yoo Da-on’s innocent question, I could only shrug.
“Then does it make sense for a train to chase us?”
“You’re right.”
How was I supposed to understand this crazy place? I just had to accept it for what it was.
Let’s not try to understand it.
After a brief silence, the six of us gathered closely in front of the Haunted House.
“Wow, this place really gives me the creeps.”
“...”
Song A-rin’s assessment was exactly right.
Of course, there probably was not a single place here that did not feel unpleasant, but perhaps it was because of the name.
The enormous letters reading <Haunted House> had something about them that made anyone looking at them uncomfortable.
“...This really is the safest place, right?”
“You keep asking, so I’m starting to get confused too... But for now, I think it is.”
The Team Leader answered with an uncertain expression.
I guess we had no choice but to go in.
I looked around at everyone.
No one seemed willing to step forward first, so I had no choice but to enter.
Just as I reached for the door, someone opened it before me.
“...?”
“What are you doing? Aren’t you coming in?”
Aileen stood there holding the door open, looking at us.
“...”
After a brief exchange of glances, we all went inside.
* * *
“It’s dark.”
Jang Chae-yeon’s assessment was spot on.
There was nothing more that needed to be said.
Dark. That one word described everything.
It was so dark that I could not see anything.
“...It smells dusty.”
Yoo Da-on deeply furrowed her brow and covered her nose with her sleeve.
I always thought this, but she had an excellent sense of smell.
“...”
“Ms. Song.”
“...”
“Ms. Song?”
“Eek... What?!”
When I lightly tapped Song A-rin on the shoulder, she jumped and looked at me.
“Are you... scared?”
“...What are you talking about? Hey, I’m Song A-rin from the Management Bureau. Do you think I’d be scared of an atmosphere like this?”
Just like last time, perhaps she was a little timid.
Of course, I did not say that out loud.
“Alright. Then we need to get through this place.”
“Would physical attacks be better?”
“Are you planning to smash everything again? I think we should get through this quietly.”
“I’m fine with anything!”
Aileen and the Team Leader stayed quiet while the other three eagerly discussed a plan.
As I listened to them, I fell into thought as well.
At least all six of us were here, so if we could somehow make use of our abilities...
Tap, tap.
Someone lightly poked my back with a finger.
Aileen was tapping me on the back.
“There are instructions here.”
“Where did you find those?”
“I found them.”
With an expression as if that were obvious, she handed me a stiff laminated sheet.
<How to Enjoy the Haunted House>
[Do not be startled, no matter what happens!]
[We will do our best to scare you!]
[If you are too scared, shout that you give up! Our staff will escort you to safety!]
“Based on my experience... that is practically telling us never to declare that we give up.”
Aileen, who had read the paper beside me, rested a hand on her chin and muttered.
“This place is not friendly toward humans, so even if they say they will escort us to safety, there is a good chance that is by their standards, not ours.”
It made perfect sense.
She took out the rifle slung across her back to check it as she continued.
“I’ll provide fire support. Tell me if my experience or anything else can help.”
“Understood.”
After a brief discussion, our roles were decided.
Yoo Da-on would lead, with Jang Chae-yeon directly behind her. The Team Leader and I would stay in the middle. Song A-rin and Aileen would bring up the rear.
The entrance was covered by a thick curtain, making it impossible to see inside.
You had to go in to see anything. It really was no different from a haunted house.
“After all that thinking, it’s the same order as always.”
“If you have a complaint, you can stand in front.”
“What a rude way to talk.”
Jang Chae-yeon and Song A-rin were fighting particularly fiercely today.
“I’m going in!”
Whether the two argued or not, Yoo Da-on cheerfully shouted and stepped forward.
She pulled aside the curtain and walked in. Jang Chae-yeon followed her, then the Team Leader and I moved forward.
“Jae-heon.”
“Yes, Team Leader.”
“Um...”
The Team Leader spoke as they crossed the entrance, and I followed them through.
“...Huh?”
I could no longer hear the Team Leader’s voice.
I hurriedly turned around.
Where the entrance curtain should have been, there was only a wide-open space.
Was I alone?
I looked around.
Nothing was visible. Walls stood around me like a maze.
The one fortunate thing was that the passages were extremely wide. The downside was that I had no idea how to find my way through.
“...”
Fortunately, I had one Critical left, and I had weapons.
I took out my pistol and Butane Gas, then slowly began walking as I thought.
Was this a forced transportation type? If so, was this an otherworld?
But it did not have enough characteristics to be an otherworld.
I walked alone through the darkness.
If I saw anything, I would shoot it.
Step, step.
As I walked, I began to hear someone else’s footsteps.
I quickly stopped, looked around, and aimed my weapon.
What was it? How should I respond?
The sound was approaching from the right.
“Wait.”
Just as I prepared to fire, I heard a familiar voice.
“...Ms. Aileen?”
Aileen was aiming a gun at me as well.
“...Phew.”
After confirming it was me, she let out a sigh of relief and lowered her gun.
“You startled me. I suddenly appeared, and no one was there.”
“Me too.”
What on earth was happening?
“Still, I guess the two of us ended up fairly close together.”
“I suppose so. Have you found the others?”
“Not yet.”
“That’s unfortunate.”
Aileen clicked her tongue and slung her rifle back over her shoulder.
“Then shall we move together for now?”
“I’ll let you know if I see anything.”
“Alright.”
I focused my eyes and began walking.
I could not see anything. I could not even hear footsteps.
“Can you see something?”
“How could I see anything?”
“You cannot see?”
“It’s dark here.”
The person who had found a laminated sheet in that darkness?
I turned to look at Aileen.
She wore a bulletproof vest, had rough blond hair, lifeless eyes, and a small build.
She looked exactly like the Aileen I knew.
However, the translucent window above her head told a different story.
[Name: X]
[Age: X]
[Trait: Disguise]
[Talent: Disguise]
[Background: This is not Aileen.]
[Weakness: Shoot it right now.]
“What the...”
Before it could react, I drew my pistol and aimed it at its forehead.
Bang!
I pulled the trigger without the slightest hesitation. Its head snapped backward before returning to its original position.
“...How did you know?”
Aileen looked at me with a hole in her forehead and asked in a low voice.
“I’ve been tricked by this kind of thing a lot.”
“Ahaha... Ahahahaha... Ahahahaha!!!!”
After hearing my answer, it laughed as if it found it amusing.
Then it melted away like a shadow.
“...”
Bang!
Crash!
The moment it vanished, I heard gunfire nearby, followed by the sound of something breaking.
Were the others holding their own?
“...”
What if they were not?
I began making my way through the maze faster than before.
If all six of us had been separated in one space and monsters like that were deceiving everyone, we had a problem.
I did not think my colleagues would be fooled. They all had experience in their own way.
But the opposite was the problem instead.
What if they were attacking each other because they suspected everyone else?
If the originals started fighting each other, there would be no turning back.
“Jae-heon...”
Bang!
“Hey!”
Bang!
As I moved, I quickly checked above the heads of any beings who greeted or approached me, then dealt with them.
The most troublesome were the monsters wearing Aileen’s appearance. Every time I saw one, it would reflexively point a gun at me, so I needed to move even faster to deal with it.
I dealt with around six of them in total, but I still had not met a single real person.
If only I were alone...
Bang!
A gunshot rang out from beyond the corner, and I hurriedly stopped.
Was it Aileen again?
I placed my finger on the trigger and slowly approached the source of the sound.
The moment I turned the corner, I fired.
But as soon as I did,
“Argh!”
The world spun upside down, and I was slammed into the floor.
My arm twisted as I struggled under the restraint, and a gun barrel pressed against my temple.
As proof that it had just fired, heat still lingered at the muzzle.
I barely turned my eyes to look beside me.
[Name: Aileen]
[Age: 23]
[Trait: X]
[Talent: X]
[Background: Having lost her entire family at a church when she was young, she joined the Response Team as its youngest member after more than a decade of relentless effort, then became its youngest team leader. Her determination to find her family and to put an end to all of this are all that drive her.]
[Weakness: She is only an ordinary person. If you kill her, she dies.]
“Proof.”
Aileen’s emotionless voice pierced my ears.
“Proof?”
“Proof that you are real.”
I hurriedly thought.
What should I say?
The easiest thing would be to mention a memory I shared with her.
I was about to bring up the shootout, but I closed my mouth.
If the Doubles had memories of the amusement park, that would be a fatal mistake.
Then, even if I was uncertain, I should mention something from before we entered the amusement park.
I recalled the sight of her bowing her head in the truck.
“In the truck, a ninety-degree bow!”
“...”
“You said you were sorry, that you would take responsibility...”
“That’s enough.”
The gun barrel moved away, and my body was freed.
After releasing me, Aileen cleared her throat and spoke.
“...Then I should prove myself too...”
“It’s fine. I just confirmed you were not one of them.”
At my words, she raised one eyebrow.
“That is not important right now. We need to hurry and join the others.”
“So we do not mistake each other?”
“Yes.”
At my answer, she slowly nodded.
“Alright. Then let’s hurry and join them.”
She began striding forward.
“By the way, did you subdue the other monsters one by one like this?”
Aileen only slightly turned her head to meet my gaze.
“No.”
“Then how did you recognize me?”
“Experience, and instinct.”
She said that when,
Crash!
Something collapsed nearby, and we both looked toward the sound.
“Let’s run for now.”
“Alright.”
Holding our guns, the two of us began running through the darkness.
There was only one person among us capable of causing such a huge commotion.
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