I painfully realized it last time as well, but most ghost stories handled by the Disaster Management Bureau involve fatalities.

That’s because a supernatural disaster is only classified as such when there are human casualties.

In that sense, working as an agent of the Disaster Management Bureau while being one step removed from human casualties could be… quite appealing.

I mean, I get it, but still.

"So at dawn… I just have to let a ghost sit in the passenger seat and drive?"

"Yes."

"……."

Is this real life?

"Don’t worry. There have been no cases of drivers dying."

"……."

"At worst, it’s just a mild heart attack or temporary unconsciousness. No major mental preparation is required."

I do need to prepare.

I almost turned to glare at Agent Bronze in sheer betrayal and shock, but I barely managed to hold back.

'Wait a second.'

…If I openly admit that I’m scared, they might just tell me to resign, right?

I already whined my way out of the Deployment Rescue Unit once. If I try to pull the same move again, Agent Bronze—who’s already awkward around me—might just outright suggest I find another career.

'No way!'

That would be the worst possible spy route.

So, I changed my strategy.

“Uh, but… I’m in no condition to drive.”

"……."

I lowered my head, acting a little pitiful, and glanced at where my missing right arm should be.

Yes.

'They wouldn’t make me do something as crazy as driving with one hand…!'

It’s one thing if someone had been trained to drive with one hand from the start, but how is someone who just lost an arm supposed to drive with a ghost?! At 2 a.m., no less!

With this, I can naturally get assigned to a different task…

“You don’t have to worry about that.”

"……."

“Excuse me?”

For the first time in days, Agent Bronze gave me a faint smile.

“It’s finally time to take care of your arm.”

Ah.

***

Thinking about it, this is only natural.

The Disaster Management Bureau isn’t stupid enough to just throw a one-armed guy into driving duty.

Before assigning me to this task, it only makes sense that they’d take some action regarding my missing right arm.

'Should I laugh or cry at this?'

For now, I did kind of want to cry.

Anyway, thanks to this, I finally entered the Disaster Management Bureau’s headquarters with Agent Bronze.

'I can’t believe I’m actually doing this.'

“This way.”

“Yes…!”

Instead of following Agent Bronze into the busy city hall where officials were working, I was led outside and made to walk between the city hall and the Seoul Library.

Since it was a back alley, the shadows of the two buildings made it dimly lit.

Walking down the shaded path behind the Seoul Library, passing by the automated book return booth…

'Here.'

Above us stretched a glass-covered passage connecting the city hall and the library.

As we stepped under that bridge….

Sparkle.

The metal badge I was wearing gleamed, casting light onto the narrow flower bed beneath the library window.

And then, a hidden door was revealed.

“…!!”

The flower bed suddenly expanded, revealing a hidden space, a clean, frosted glass door, and a nameplate.

[Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau]

“Please, come in.”

And so, through the hidden door nestled between Seoul City Hall and the Seoul Library—where countless pedestrians passed by unaware—we entered the headquarters of the Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau.

For the record, it was an automatic door.

‘Wow.'

And inside the headquarters… surprisingly, it looked just like an ordinary government office.

Except for the conversations being exchanged, which were anything but normal.

“How many died?”

“Fifteen.”

“What’s going on with Dobong-gu lately? That crazy phone booth just keeps….”

And they all bustled around busily.

Strange lights and shadows trailing behind them only served to further reinforce the eerie, ghost story-infused atmosphere of this government agency…

“Most of the Disaster Management Bureau’s facilities are located underground. It’s harder to conceal them above ground.”

“I see….”

Following Agent Bronze’s lead, I boarded the elevator.

The moderately old yet modern elevator felt familiar, but instead of buttons, the floor was selected via a keypad.

'Probably to keep people from figuring out how many basement levels exist….'

[07]

Agent Bronze quickly entered the number.

“The Equipment Management Division is on Basement Level 7.”

We exited at Basement Level 7, which had the exact same layout as Basement Level 1, and knocked on the door directly ahead in the hallway.

[Supernatural Equipment Registration Office]

When we entered, a middle-aged government official sitting alone in the small office looked up and acknowledged us.

“Agent Bronze! Oh, I was just about to talk about that senior member of your team… Oh, is this the new recruit?”

“…Yes. That’s right.”

“Hello…! I’m Agent Grape…….”

“Ahaha, I see. Nice to meet you! I’m Oh Jeong-hye from the Equipment Management Division. I’m an administrative officer, so I don’t have a codename.”

The middle-aged official smiled and led me and Agent Bronze further inside.

As she opened what looked like a dark-colored display cabinet made of ancient wood… the shelves extended inward, revealing a storage room.

“…!”

“Now then, what Agent Grape will receive today is….”

Sparkle.

An old, cracked glass lantern.

“This will-o’-the-wisp just arrived today, and it’s bursting with energy! It’s excited to assist you.”

My god.

This really turned out to be the most exciting and promising outcome.

---------------------=

Chronicles of Darkness Exploration / Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau

Item/ Goblin Fire Lantern

A goblin fire imbued in a glass lantern, nurtured with divine energy for 100 days.

Usually inhabited by the playful yet kind shadows of goblins, it seems to use the lantern to cool down and refine its energy.

It becomes an item that the user can naturally wear and carry, sometimes even substituting for body parts.

If compatibility aligns, the user can perform a few goblin tricks.

Item Usage Conditions: Must be a government officer affiliated with the Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau and authorized for its use.

---------------------=

“Would you like to try receiving it?”

With my trembling left hand, I carefully accepted the glass lantern.

At that moment, the glass lantern shattered.

“……!”

The shattered, transparent lantern reassembled into my right arm with a crisp, clear sound, as if it were made of ice.

And as the goblin fire enveloped it, the next moment….

“It worked perfectly!”

It had turned into a perfectly normal arm.

I moved my arm around.

…It moved smoothly.

Without even the slightest pain.

‘Wow.’

Truly, among all the phenomena classified as ghost stories, this was one of the warmest and most pleasant ones.

‘This feels more like something out of folklore or a fairy tale.’

As I moved it at will, I clenched and unclenched my strangely cool yet soft right hand a few times.

Then, my right hand suddenly gave a thumbs-up on its own and lowered again.

“…?!”

“Ah, it’s just a little mischievous. But actually, that might end up helping you at work! Haha!”

“…Yes.”

I guess if you work in a world of ghost stories long enough, even civil servants turn out like this….

And so, I filled the void of my missing right arm with the mystical goblin fire.

Of course, it wasn’t a permanent gift.

“Since it hasn’t been specifically imbued with your energy, it will revert to a lantern after three days. Just come back for a recharge then.”

Yeah, I figured they wouldn’t just hand a custom-made, fully-fledged goblin fire lantern to a rookie right away.

What I got wasn’t a fully customized goblin fire lantern with real goblin tricks, but more of a shared standard-issue item.

Anyway, I bowed my head in thanks to the two senior civil servants who helped with my equipment issuance paperwork.

“Thank you.”

“Oh, don’t mention it.”

Then, the senior official from the Equipment Management Division winked at me from behind their glasses and whispered a little tip.

“Agent Bronze has never gone out of their way to take care of a rookie like this before.”

“…!”

“He always overwork himself without showing it. I respect them, but sometimes I feel bad for him too… It’s nice to see him getting along with a rookie for once.”

“Ah, thank… you.”

“Oh, don’t mention it.

I’m not sure if ‘getting along’ is the right term, but after spending the day together, I did feel that he was far more polite and considerate than I expected.

Did he sort out his thoughts while I was hospitalized?

‘Well, I do owe him my life, so maybe he just decided to be more accommodating, even if it’s uncomfortable for him.’

Either way, I was grateful for it.

On the way back, Agent Bronze also said this to me.

"-…It will take time, but eventually, let’s find your custom goblin fire too."

"-……Thank you."

It was a bit fascinating and made me curious.

What kind of form would it take?

‘If I can use goblin tricks too, would escaping from ghost stories become much easier?’

Of course, there was a high chance my spy work would be over before that, which was probably for the best for my safety, but the thought itself wasn’t bad.

…Though the fact that my right arm wasn’t actually mine still felt incredibly strange sometimes.

……And also the fact that I was currently waiting until dawn just to act as a taxi driver for a ghost.

‘Save me.’

I suppressed a sigh and endured the waiting time.

Now that I had both arms again, there was no way out—I had to drive.

‘Guh…’

And so, time slipped away mercilessly… and eventually, the moment arrived.

2 A.M

***

A dark Express Bus Terminal Station.

Of all times, it's drizzling.

Public transportation had stopped running, the crowd had dispersed, and silence had settled in.

Only a few taxis, including mine, stood in a row along the roadside, having come at this hour to take advantage of the night surcharge and the lack of other transport options.

“…….”

I gripped the steering wheel tightly.

At around 12:45 a.m., we successfully rescued three civilians who had reported being trapped in reality after seeing a ghost in the restroom near Express Bus Terminal Station.

Now, if the ghost is safely returned to its original place, the supernatural phenomenon will come to an end.

And the one assigned to ‘safely return the ghost to its original place’… was me.

‘…Agent Bronze said he’d be waiting at the destination, right?’

Hoo.

I took a deep breath alone in the silent car.

A ghost that has already lost its intended victim cannot directly harm the driver, but strange phenomena will occur inside the vehicle. Stay calm and handle them carefully.

First, let me explain the vehicle assigned to you.

That’s why I was assigned this four-seater taxi, which had at least two ‘8’s on its license plate.

The very car I was sitting in, trying to suppress my nervousness.

The ghost will check the license plate at the taxi stand before boarding your vehicle.

And then.

A long-haired figure appeared outside in the darkness, peering through the windshield.

It… was hunched over, staring at the license plate.

“…!”

I tried not to let my hands shake on the steering wheel and forced myself to appear calm and composed.

If the driver shows agitation, the ghost may exit the taxi.

In that case, the supernatural disaster will not end. Be careful.

The long-haired figure staggered oddly, moving toward the passenger seat.

And then, it knocked on the door.

Tok, tok.

I unlocked the car door.

A person whose face was almost entirely hidden by long hair, wearing a faded summer outfit unsuited for the weather, got in.

As they entered the car, they murmured.

“Please take me to the Four Limbs Flesh Cemetery….”

Thud.

The passenger seat door closes.

“Understood.”

“This car's number is nice. The number is… nice, eight-eight-eight-eight-eight-eight-eight-eight nice eight-eight-eight-eight.”

I almost fainted.

“I see.”

Doing my best to stay calm, I entered the destination into the navigation system.

“Four Limbs Flesh. Ceme..tery.”

" – Search completed."

A place with such a strange name shouldn’t have shown up in a search, yet surprisingly, the navigation system found it and began providing directions.

" – Estimated arrival time at the destination is 4:04 a.m."

“…….”

Two hours.

I barely managed to press the pedal.

The car started moving, leaving Express Bus Terminal Station behind….

Vrooooom…

The only sound left was the engine’s hum.

Now, I had to sit in this cramped space with a ghost for two whole hours.

While driving without getting into an accident.

“…….”

A strange chill spread through the car.

The plaster air freshener on the dashboard shook, releasing a scent that was anything but floral.

The scent of something burning.

A suffocating silence.

" – Turn left in 200 meters."

My hand on the steering wheel almost flinched.

Even the emotionless voice of the navigation system sent chills down my spine.

“…….”

I did my best to stay composed—or rather, I forced myself not to look to my side.

But somehow, not looking made it even scarier. My hands were drenched in sweat, and the dark road ahead blurred in my vision.

Maybe looking would actually be better! Not seeing anything was making my imagination run wild, suffocating me even more.

‘Wait, wait a second.’

“…….”

I stole a glance at the passenger seat. Sitting there quietly was the long-haired woman….

Her neck was twisted around.

“I… can’t breathe.”

I looked down at the steering wheel.

“I think… someone is chasing us from behind!”

I fixed my gaze forward.

Cold sweat trickled down the back of my neck, making me repeatedly recall the image I had just seen—her head completely twisted around, her face pressed into the headrest, and only the back of her head covered in black hair visible….

“Hey! Driver! There’s something chasing us back there! Look behind you! Look!”

"Behind you!"

I turned my head. And then….

“…Ah, it's just another car.”

I checked the side mirror.

"Don't worry. There aren't many cars around right now, so they’re probably just speeding. I'll drive safely."

"Ah, y-yes… Please drive safely… safely."

"……"

I no longer looked at the passenger seat. I didn’t look behind either.

I tried my best not to look anywhere… as much as possible… as much as I could….

'I can’t do this.’

Ha. This is driving me crazy

"No way… No way… I need some other sound."

"Would it be okay if I turned on the radio?"

"Yes."

With frozen hands, I barely managed to reach out and turn on the radio.

Turning on the radio temporarily quiets the onboard ghost.

[The woman responsible for your romantic midnight hours, hello! This is Mi Young Kim’s Deep Night Romance Radio.]

The DJ’s calm and gentle voice temporarily drove away the fear.

'Hoo.'

I could finally breathe.

But the radio isn’t a cure-all.

The radio will sound like a real program, but the more you listen, the stranger the content will become.

Reports of traffic accidents that haven’t happened yet, condolences for disasters that never occurred, and even interviews with the dead.

However, it is strongly advised to leave the radio on its initial frequency.

The more you change the frequency, the higher the chance the content will become more grotesque and horrifying.

There was a reason I hadn’t turned it on from the start.

I turned it on with the intention of shutting it off immediately if necessary.

Please, please, just let this work for a little while….

[Now, let’s welcome today’s guest! This is a program I personally enjoy watching, Midnight Talk Show!]

"……!"

[The legendary host of Midnight Talk Show has joined us in the radio booth! Let’s give a warm welcome!]

['Braun’s Midnight Talk Show' host, the incredible and legendary Braun!]

Wait a second.