Chapter 25- Match Girl (3)
Thanks to the overwhelming physical presence of our first teddy bear, we were able to shake off those human bastards…
But we can’t keep running from them forever.
The longer the chase with them continues, the more disadvantageous it becomes for us.
=======
/Ghost Story Journal
[Black Ashes]
:Identification Code Cd-D-111-1
Another variant observed in the Match Girl ghost story.
This variant is an anomalous phenomenon that occurs when two or more intelligent beings enter the current ghost story.
Based on a well-built adult male, he stated that it wasn’t too difficult to shake them off.
-New peculiarity observed from the Black Ashes.
Confirmed that the number of entities continues to increase as time passes.
Total number of entities observed so far:
-1111 entities.
=======
It’s definitely not just a thousand.
It was an absurd number that had gone far beyond reasonable limits.
That’s why Park Yeon-jeong focused even more on what he could do right now.
Click.
The revolver-shaped item he’d been holding in his hand.
The Final Trigger.
My fate depends on this.
This current item was purchased for an enormous sum of 26,660,000 won. It’s the most expensive item among those currently in my possession.
Of course, against such an overwhelming enemy, the most useful item would undoubtedly be…
Thousands Eyes might be perfect.
But… that item won’t work.
No explanation needed.
What won’t work…
Just won’t work.
If the day comes when Park Yeon-jeong uses Thousands Eyes again,
It will be the day when all his body parts are torn apart.
It’s still a mystery why those Eye creatures didn’t kill him back then and let him go.
Well, let’s not look a gift horse in the mouth, right?
The important thing is that I survived.
My eyes turned back to the revolver in my hand.
And
Please, please, please, please, please!
I begged.
I begged desperately.
Please, pleeeeease… ‘white’ must not come out! I hugged the revolver tightly and prayed fervently.
=======
/Item List
The Final Trigger.
(Check your fortune for today!)
Put the barrel to your head!
Pull the trigger!
Check today’s fortune with thrilling excitement!
(Don’t worry, you won’t die^^.)
What color will be your personal color today?
White? Red? Orange? Yellow? Green? Blue? Indigo? Purple?
…Or, black?
Don’t be too disappointed if you don’t get the color you want.
We always have tomorrow!
When used: Provides a random bullet. (Can only be used once per day. Based on midnight.)
Each bullet possesses a bizarre power, but keep in mind that some bullets only activate when they hit the target. (You were an expert marksman in the military, right?)
By the way, the white bullet is a ‘dud’.
=======
Seriously, anything but white!
It’s a dud, they say!
As long as it’s a bullet with any color, I can turn this situation around.
And currently, among all those colored bullets, the one I wanted most was purple.
=======
/The Final Trigger
<Purple Bullet>
:Absolute obedience. (This shy bullet grants intense mental fascination to the target hit by the bullet.)
The effect fully activates only when the bullet is firmly embedded in the target’s body.
=======
With this bullet, I could make the Match Girl submit in an instant.
If that happens, I could also make her withdraw the large number of Black Ashes that’s been chasing me.
And with the Match Girl in a submissive state, trapping her in the quill pen wouldn’t be too difficult either.
So please!
Come out, purple!
No… no.
I corrected myself again.
Please come out, honorable purple!!!
Park Yeon-jeong unhesitatingly aimed the barrel at his head and immediately pulled the revolver’s trigger.
Click.
It wasn’t a deafening firing sound. Rather, a quite deflating, bland trigger action.
Swoosh!
From the barrel where the bullet should have been fired, a small flag popped out fluttering.
The color of the flag that came out of the barrel was:
<Yellow>
It wasn’t the purple he had hoped for.
But anything is better than white.
When I immediately checked the chamber inside the revolver and confirmed the yellow bullet in the adjacent chamber,
I felt somewhat relieved.
Only one yellow bullet.
This means I have only one chance.
While Park Yeon-jeong was briefly contemplating the optimal strategy for the current situation,
…Oh, right.
Thinking about it, I belatedly realized that I didn’t come here alone, and simultaneously,
” Teddy Bear.”
?
While lightly tapping the head of the teddy bear costume he had been wearing all this time, he asked our teddy bear with a playful tone.
“I need you to be the bait instead of me.”
?!?!
*****
Crackle.
【…I’m bored.】
The Match Girl’s embers, which had been burning red until just now, subsided a little.
It was because the current situation was boring.
【Ahhhh~ I wonder when I’ll catch them.】
While briefly cooling down her heat and anxiously stamping her blackened feet,
Pitter-patter-pitter!
In the distance, she spotted a huge teddy bear head fleeing desperately in the opposite direction.
【…Don’t those guys ever get tired?】
A voice tinged with boredom. But there was no reason not to chase after what had caught her eye.
【I’ll definitely catch them this time. If not… you know?】
!!!
The Black Ashes flinched at the girl’s words,
And immediately, all the Black Ash that had been standing blankly beside the girl rushed in the direction where the bear costume had disappeared.
……Crackle.
And silence returned once again.
【…Bored, bored, bored, bored…】
Thud.
A black ash appeared before the Match Girl who had been endlessly muttering the word ‘bored’.
【…Huh? No way! Who’s this?!】
The Match Girl, who until just now had been exhaling boredom along with small embers,
Upon discovering a man dressed in a black suit, flames began to blaze all over her body, and her entire body started to heat up again.
Crackle,crackle!
Such intense heat that the surrounding bitter cold disappeared in an instant.
Unless one was a fool, it was clear what emotion the Match Girl was currently exuding.
It was joy.
【So that bear costume from earlier, was it a diversion? Something like that?】
“…….”
【But why did you suddenly appear in front of me? Surrender? Begging? Or………have you perhaps awakened to some belated sexual desire? But that’s troublesome. I don’t have that kind of reproductive or…….】
“Let’s end this now.”
Before the match girl could finish speaking, I aimed my gun at her.
And her reaction upon seeing that sight.
【……Pfft! Hahaha! You must be serious……! Good! This is fun! This is too fun, this development!!】
Whoosh!
Her emotions intensify.
Her flames begin to burn more fiercely.
【Then let’s make a bet! On who will win! Let’s bet!】
【The terms of the bet are, whoever dies first.】
Fwoosh!
The match girl set forth an absurd betting condition and began to scatter a large number of black ashes.
And the black ashes, which were quickly regaining their form, immediately began rushing toward Park Yeon-jeong at a fierce speed.
【Can you hit me?! How many bullets do you have in that gun!】
【Entertain me more!!!】
The black ashes rushed in a straight line, as if to protect the match girl.
Now, due to the heat emanating from them, I no longer feel the cold.
The trembling in my hands subsides.
Click.
Along with the sound of pulling the trigger from somewhere.
A voice that only Park Yeon-jeong could hear clearly resonated in her ears.
——-
-1 bullet loaded.
-Today’s personal color is ‘Yellow.’
-A day of hunger. Today feels like I could devour everything in sight.
——-
Bang!
The gunshot echoed throughout the vast cityscape.
Was it because there were only empty buildings in this place?
Somehow, the gunshot that just echoed throughout the city was louder than any other sound.
It was a massive reverberation, as if lightning had directly struck the city from a clear sky.
Crackle.
Crackle,crackle.
The black ashes that were rushing toward Park Yeon-jeong all stopped at once.
Precisely.
Everything in the straight trajectory of the fired bullet. An impossible scene as if everything had been blown away by a massive strike.
Crackle,crackle.
And the match girl who was in the direct path of that terrifying destructive force.
Crackle,crackle,crackle.
With half of her body blown away, she was spewing embers from her mouth.
【…uh……oh?】
Thud.
Like a tree tilting sideways.
The match girl collapsed helplessly to the floor.
She seemed to have no strength left to maintain the black ashes she had created countless times.
Crackle.
The black ashes lost their form and returned to ordinary ash.
With this unbelievable scene behind me, where everything was resolved with just one shot I fired.
Staring blankly at the hand holding the revolver, I thought.
This is awesome!
This is the power of capital!
You got that! You little match kid!
He was excited like a child.
*****
I never thought everything would be resolved with just one shot.
Of course, Park Yeon-jeong already knew how to use the yellow bullet he had drawn.
=======
/The Final Trigger
<Yellow Bullet>
:Endless hunger. (A hungry bullet that devours everything within the radius of its firing.)
Let’s not do anything stupid like shooting yourself.
=======
Despite knowing the explanation that it was a bullet that devours everything, I never thought it would have this much power.
Almost like the terrifying destructive force that would come from firing an anti-tank gun in a straight line.
With the reassurance that nothing would be scary as long as I had this item called the Final Trigger.
Shiver,shiver,shiver,shiver,shiver,shiver,shiver,shiver.
C-cold!
I began to shiver from the cold like an aspen tree.
Teddy bear, please save me!!!
The powerful cold wave that I had forgotten due to the powerful heat of the match girl once again penetrates my body.
When really only a few seconds remained before all bodily functions would stop.
Pitter,patter,pitter,patter!
Cute footsteps heard from afar.
Snatch!
A teddy bear that rushed over like lightning, lifted me up without any hesitation and immediately swallowed me whole.
“……Ah.”
It’s warm.
I’ll finally live.
After leaving behind the breathtaking moment when I almost became an ice statue, my footsteps stopped in front of a piece of charcoal that had burned black.
Ta……Tak.
The lump of charcoal that remained very small, revealing its presence.
On the outside, it truly looked miserable.
Ta…Tak.
But I wanted to applaud that intense will to stubbornly survive.
“Thank you for staying alive. Really.”
These words were sincere.
To avoid repeating the same mistake I made with the revolver earlier, I took out my quill pen in advance.
『The quill pen specifies the raw material to be used as ink.』
The same phrase as with the conductor.
『Valid raw material specification complete.』
『Replenishing ink.』
As soon as those words ended, black ink dripping from the tip of the quill pen instantly swallowed the match girl.
『Ink has been replenished.』
Along with the notification that it had been replenished, the shape of the feather, which had been in the form of a musical note when it was the conductor,
Tak.
Now had the shape of a blackened, charred feather.
Shake.
The ground began to shake just like before.
This too was the same as when it was the conductor.
The collapse of space where the ghost story’s owner disappeared.
The ghost story area that the match girl had been managing began to crumble.
But Park Yeon-jeong wasn’t particularly worried.
That thing.
Wouldn’t leave me to die like this.
Flash!
Along with the familiar sound of lights turning on.
The trembling of the ground subsided.
To be precise, I was now standing in a different place.
Static-
[It seems you finished your second task faster than expected.]
Noise’s voice hit my ears. And the fact that Noise’s voice hit my ears meant.
The place was the usual main library.
It seemed that Noise had transported me to the library again this time.
[There are already many customers looking for the tomboy girl, more than I expected.]
[I don’t understand why they’re looking for this item so desperately.]
Soon after, I handed the quill pen to the white librarian who appeared before me, just like before.
Scratch……scratch, scratch.
Again, opening a blank book. Again, the sound of something being written could be heard.
[This is your performance bonus, Employee Park Yeon-jeong.]
Ring-
My smartphone rang. When I checked, this performance bonus was…
-30,000,000
It was the same amount as with the conductor.
“…Mr. Noise.”
[Yes? What is it?]
“What are the criteria for this performance bonus?”
It wasn’t a complaint about the disappointing amount of money.
It was a genuinely pure question.
[Ah. Have I not explained the performance bonus criteria to you yet?]
[This… I apologize.]
As soon as Noise finished speaking, the white librarian flew towards where I was.
He was holding a small piece of paper in his hand, and after receiving it, I checked the contents written on the paper.
——-
<Performance Bonus Criteria>
F-10,000,000
E-20,000,000
D-30,000,000
C-50,000,000
B-70,000,000
A-100,000,000 / (Good thing)
S-(Better thing.)
——-
In the table that was simpler and clearer than I thought, what caught my eye was.
A-100,000,000 / (Good thing).
100 million?
Even just looking at the number made up of ‘0’s and ‘1’s, its presence was quite majestic.
While my mind was dominated by the thought of whether I could touch such an amount if I captured an A-grade ghost,
I suddenly remembered the amount I received for capturing the conductor, which was only an E-grade.
-30,000,000
Clearly, the amount I received was 30 million won.
There’s no way Noise would have made a mistake.
“I think… there might be a mistake in the amount I received earlier? The ghost I captured was definitely E-grade.”
I confessed honestly.
But Noise’s response to that was.
[No. The amount is correct. When Employee Park Yeon-jeong captured that ghost, its measured value was D-grade.]
[It happens sometimes among our ghost stories.]
[Beings trying to grow their size…]
At those words from Noise, I.
Understood to some extent.
There was also a report from the agency stating that the conductor’s ghost story could grow to as high as B-grade in the future without being strange.
And if the time I just entered was the starting point for that conductor to grow its size.
Noise measured him as D-grade, not E-grade.
I couldn’t say that was too wrong.
Static-
[More importantly, Employee Park Yeon-jeong.]
“Yes?”
[Since you finished your work early today, let’s have you leave early as well.]
[I think we need days like this too.]
[Thank you very much for your hard work today as well.]
At his words telling me to leave early today, I checked the time.
14:43 PM.
It really was earlier than I expected to leave work.
“Yes, I understand.”
But I didn’t refuse.
Just as I was getting excited at the thought of being able to rest a bit more than usual today.
[Oh right!]
Noise’s urgent voice came to me.
[She told me a lot was prepared for you today. I would like you to go home early today if possible.]
…What?
Home?
I don’t have a home… Ah.
I do.
The home that Noise just mentioned wasn’t the ordinary home we know.
It was the home where ghost stories live.
You want me to go in there again?
Into that paper terrorist’s house that kept me awake?
[I never even imagined she would make such a request to me.]
[When I first heard that story… It was surprising. Perhaps she has taken a liking to you, Employee Park Yeon-jeong. Congratulations.]
“……”
A man popular with ghosts.
It’s called ‘Park Yeon-jeong’.
Park Yeon-jeong disliked himself for being popular with ghost stories.
[Oh, and!]
What else, Mr. Noise!
[I think it would be better if you take off that bear costume before you go, though I find it cute. For humans like you, that appearance might look quite ridiculous.]
“……”
Thank you for reminding me, I had forgotten.
Park Yeon-jeong, who almost became a laughingstock, trudged along, took off the bear costume, and was able to safely leave work in ordinary formal attire.
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bro got hollow purpled