I Became A Ghost In A Horror Game-Chapter 119: Lewis Carol

Step, step.

A ponytailed woman walked through a city that had nearly become a ruin.

She was Lewis Carol.

The research director of the Organization.

The place she stood was where Alice had defeated a Dominator.

Under the pretense of conducting an investigation, Carol had personally visited every site Alice had been through.

And in °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° the center of it, she pulled out a mysterious pen from inside her coat.

A mysterious pen.

It had been in her possession ever since she formed a contract with Mephistopheles—a relic of unknown origin.

Even Mephistopheles himself likely didn’t know of the pen’s existence.

“...”

The actions Lewis Carol took at each site she visited were always the same.

She pulled out the pen and absorbed the Dominator’s power.

Starting from the Machine God, all the way to the recently defeated Sea King of Consumption and the Cosmic Bird.

Even though the bodies had long since been collected and disposed of, the pen was able to absorb a special residual energy invisible to all others.

“That’s enough,” Lewis Carol muttered, then smiled brightly.

The power gathered into the pen—this much would suffice.

As for that zombie-like angel, it was registered as Dominator-class, but its nature was too different—so she skipped it.

There was no need to absorb excessive power from other Dominators. Preparations were essentially complete.

“Director Carol, ma’am. Have you finished your business?”

An agent approached from behind Carol.

She tensed for a moment, but upon recognizing the voice, quickly relaxed.

There was no reason to be caught or worried—but she still questioned her own momentary nervousness.

“Yes. I didn’t detect any abnormal anomalies. Just needs cleanup now.”

“Understood.”

The agent escorted Carol to the helicopter.

He quietly watched her board the aircraft.

And just for a moment, his eyes flicked toward the pocket where she had hidden the pen.

The helicopter took off.

After a short while, the agent pulled out a book from inside his coat.

At a glance, it was clear that this wasn’t an ordinary book. Just as Carol was about to ask what it was—

He opened a specific page and murmured something.

At that moment, the air around them grew heavy.

Lewis Carol’s eyes momentarily lost focus, and the agent piloting the helicopter also spaced out, focusing only on flying.

Then, the man spoke:

“How much longer until that pen can be used?”

“It could still hold more, but... it’s enough now.”

Carol’s voice was unnaturally flat—almost mechanical.

The agent nodded, glanced at his watch, and continued his questioning.

“What do you plan to do with that pen?”

“I plan to leave. I hate this world.”

The agent nodded again.

As if saying, As long as that’s all... I don’t care.

He checked his watch once more and closed the book.

Exactly five seconds later, the heavy atmosphere returned to normal.

Lewis Carol, having felt no discomfort at all, casually asked what the book was about.

The agent replied with something vaguely believable, and whatever faint discomfort remained... was swept away with the breeze.

-------

“Don’t lower your arms!”

“...Alright.”

I held my arms straight up, just as Carol told me.

If anyone asked why I was doing this—it was because of that recent angel mission with Ariel.

Up to now, even though the things I’d done were pretty over-the-top, I hadn’t received any actual punishment, so I figured it’d be fine.

But not this time.

Apparently waking a well-sealed angel crossed a different kind of line.

So while it wasn’t exactly harsh, I ended up receiving a clear penalty.

“Hey, is looking for the angel really that big of a deal?”

“Yes! It is!”

“But the other stuff I did isn’t?”

“Those were serious too! But, um... this time, they didn’t expect anyone to get into the place the angel was kept. The higher-ups were shocked.”

So the other stuff, they at least expected? What the hell?

I grumbled internally.

It was a light punishment, sure, but now that I was going through with it, I felt ridiculous for doing it so earnestly.

To get out of this, I tried to butter Carol up.

She was weak to me—so I figured she’d cave fast.

“Carol... can’t you let it slide just this once?

You lied to me too, saying there wasn’t an angel.

I mean, sure, you probably had to say that in your position... but I’m a demon, and I wanted to find the angel, you know?”

“Well, I didn’t really lie.

When you stitch together body parts and they start moving, you don’t call that a ‘person’, right?

Usually, that’s called a zombie. Or maybe a flesh golem. There’s no longer a proper angel left.”

“That makes perfect sense... but it’s still a cheap technicality. Can’t you do something about this? This pose is really embarrassing, okay?”

With my deadliest sparkly-eyed look, I tried to guilt-trip Carol.

I didn’t think I was very good at being cutesy, but... I was sure it would work on her.

Sure enough, Carol sighed dramatically, like she had no choice, and said:

“Agh! Just this once!”

She said it like she was resigned—but her expression betrayed how happy she was.

She clearly couldn’t contain the joy of getting hit with my cuteness.

Why did Carol like me this much, anyway?

Feels weird to even ask...

“Penalty complete...”

Carol muttered as she marked a checkbox on her list.

Officially, I was supposed to hold my arms up for twelve hours—if she hadn’t shown mercy, my arms would’ve gone totally numb.

“Oh, Carol. This is sudden, but I have a favor.”

“Yes? What is it?”

“I know I’ve been living off allowance, but... I want to start earning my own money.”

“...?”

A strange look appeared on Carol’s face.

It was like, You’re locked up here, so of course you get an allowance.

Still...

I mean, I’m technically “locked up,” but I go out all the time, and more importantly, being a freeloader... kinda weighs on me.

What triggered this was the kids teasing Ariel about being unemployed.

Since Ariel and Jack had no money, they kept eating the kids’ snacks.

But I couldn’t even laugh at that.

Living off allowance wasn’t exactly something to be proud of... not at my age, anyway.

“I don’t know the reason, but sure. I’ll help you.”

A little while later—

We set up a table in front of the staff cafeteria, along with a bottle filled with yellow liquid and some ice.

“So your brilliant idea was homemade lemonade, huh.”

“They say kids sell it all the time overseas. Not that I’m saying I’m a kid.”

“Hm. Better than standing outside and yelling at strangers. Honestly, I thought you’d make a clone and sneak off to hang out with Alice’s friends again.”

So she had noticed that, huh.

At first, I’d made a proper clone—but people make mistakes, and repetitive tasks are boring, so I lost motivation.

“Next time... I’ll make a better one before I go.”

“So you are going again.”

While we chatted, an agent appeared at the cafeteria exit.

Carol immediately flagged him down.

“You there, Agent—just finished eating, right? Want a drink?”

“Uh, y-yes...”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

The agent looked extremely troubled.

Since Carol was his superior, and judging by how he glanced at me, he seemed uncomfortable seeing me outside the containment room.

Hmm. I’d helped out quite a few times when containment protocols went off during serious incidents, but I guess there were still agents who weren’t used to me.

Trying to break the ice and earn some money, I handed him a cup of lemonade.

Even while drinking it, his expression didn’t look too good.

That’s when I realized.

It wasn’t us that made him uncomfortable—there was something else going on with him.

“You have something on your mind, don’t you? You don’t look well.”

The agent flinched in surprise but didn’t answer.

Was it too personal to talk about?

Hmm... I don’t usually push people like this out of respect for privacy, but since he’s our first customer—

I want to help.

So I decided to sneak just a little peek into the mirror linked to that agent.

“Let’s see... You feel guilty about a comrade you lost during a mission, don’t you?”

“H-How did you...?”

I didn’t look deep enough to see who he wanted revenge on.

Could be a person, or a monster.

But most likely the latter.

“There’s a way to know things... Hm. Looks like you’re thinking about revenge as a way to relieve that guilt.”

“Are you going to say that’s not right?”

“I’m not in a position to say what’s right or wrong.

But, if I’m being honest with a little bit of affection mixed in... I’d say it’s better to stop.

Even if it’s a stranger, I still worry.”

“...”

He fell silent again.

Maybe I’d made things awkward by opening my mouth at all.

I felt like it would only get more awkward if I just left it there, so I continued.

“I’m not saying revenge is always bad.

But you need to know whether you want revenge because you want to for yourself or someone else—or because you feel like you have to due to guilt or societal pressure.”

“Knowing the difference... you mean.”

“Exactly. And remember—throwing yourself into danger isn’t the only solution.

There are other ways, too.”

After hearing me out, the agent looked a little bitter but sincere.

At least he seemed better than before.

Contemplating something is always better than drowning in depression.

I smiled and gently told him there’s nothing wrong with taking time to think things through.

“...Please take payment.”

He handed me a whole wad of bills from his wallet.

Holy crap, how much is this?!

“You’re giving me this much?”

“It’s a tip.”

He said that and walked off quickly.

I don’t really like tip culture.

...But from the receiving end, it feels pretty good.

Hmm, is that too materialistic of me?

After that, maybe word spread, because even agents who hadn’t eaten started coming over just to buy lemonade.

While they drank, I chatted with them—kind of like how bartenders keep people company.

It was my strategy.

And it worked surprisingly well.

“If you want to overcome your trauma with snakes, you need to let go of impatience—it’s simpler than you think.

Start by piling on gear to feel safe facing them, and gradually reduce it.”

One agent.

“Feeling lethargic, huh? While it’s an emotional issue, we can’t ignore the chemicals in your brain either.

Try taking prescription meds while distinguishing between what you can control and what you can’t.”

Two agents.

“Your assigned anomaly is aggressive, and you’re afraid?

Want me to calm it down with my fists?

Break a few limbs, make it easier to manage.”

Three agents.

“You keep having negative thoughts and fears?

That’s because stress is wearing down your spirit.

You’ll have to face your fears one day, but for now, focus on healing.

Here—pat, pat. How’s that? Feel a bit better?

Try building a warm and comforting routine.

Or take a long vacation.”

Four agents... I stopped counting after that.

After chatting so much that my throat started to ache, my cash box was overflowing with bills.

So generous with their tips... I guess people in physically demanding jobs have a bit more financial wiggle room.

“So much money... I guess everyone really likes lemonade.”

“I don’t think it’s just that.”

Alright. I’ve earned enough—looks like I can reach my goal.

“With this, I can finally buy those ridiculously overpriced but delicious yogurt ice creams for the kids.”

Spending money on snacks makes me feel guilty.

Even more so when it’s not my money.

That’s why I wanted to indulge using money I earned myself.

“That’s why you wanted to earn money? Hm. I’d be happy if you bought one for me too.”

“In that case... want to meet the kids? We could all eat together.”

I said that because I wanted to introduce Carol to the children.

She’s my friend, after all.

I’d like her to meet people like Maria and James too.

But when I looked at her hopefully, Carol shook her head.

“No... I don’t think I can. I’m kind of shy. I used to stutter badly when talking to strangers.”

“Huh? Even with little kids? Well, if that’s the case, I guess it can’t be helped.”

“Ugh... I’d love to spend more time with you, but I really have to get back to work. When I’m done, I’ll head back to the containment room.”

“Of course.”

Carol looked really regretful as she walked away toward her lab... Oh, right.

I was going to ask her about what she said the other day—something about parallel worlds—but I forgot.

Oh well. There’ll be a next time.

“Not like it’s a huge deal.”

I mumbled that to myself—

When tap tap, I saw someone walking toward me from the end of the hall.

Strange. Lunch hours should be over by now.

“One lemonade, please. Do you have any left?”

“There’s exactly one left. You’re... Carol’s direct agent, right?”

An agent assigned to support Carol.

The one who used to be in that position had transferred out, and this one took their place.

I think it happened after the Peter Pan incident—yeah, that sounds right.

This was the only agent with that kind of intimidating aura. No way I’d mistake him.

“I’m glad you remembered me.”

“Of course~”

I handed over the last lemonade.

He took it and drank slowly.

I wondered—did he have something on his mind too?

He didn’t look good, but didn’t look bad either.

His face was naturally shadowed, so it was hard to tell.

A unique case, for sure.

“You’ve been doing counseling for the other agents, I see... What’s your overall impression?”

“It’s not like they told me much detail, so I wouldn’t call it counseling exactly... But if I had to sum it up... Hmm. Overall, I’d say they were all lethargic.”

“I see.”

To be honest, that was the pattern with most of the agents I spoke with.

Lethargy.

A mental illness born when someone loses their sense of purpose, or faces something they can’t overcome.

Even outside this branch, I imagine many people are plagued by it.

“What’s your opinion on memory erasers?”

Huh? That’s... a pretty sudden question.

Memory erasers—tools used to protect secrets and defend against psychic damage.

The Organization uses them all the time.

Then again—

Now that I think about it, it’s not an unrelated topic.

They’re also used to erase trauma.

When they’re overused for forgetfulness instead of protection... it could be that this lethargy is the price.

“At first, maybe it’s okay. But... you’ll develop a resistance eventually.”

“You mean drug resistance?”

“Not biologically. I mean in the soul.

There’s only one way to truly get rid of fear from the soul—and that’s to face it and overcome it.

Otherwise, you’ll just become empty and numb.

If you rely on memory erasers without ever overcoming your trauma, you’ll definitely hit a wall someday.”

“You’re saying there’s a limit. I already knew that... but hearing it aloud makes me feel impatient.”

“Impatient?”

“It means even the merry-go-round we thought would last forever... can’t save us.”

“You sure say some deep stuff...”

And people who talk like that—never really explain what they mean, huh.

Was he comparing memory erasers to a merry-go-round?

Or was it something more direct?

You really do make people curious...

“Anyway, if the entire Organization is in this kind of state, it’d be a better choice to just process resignations and start hiring new people altogether.”

“...That’s already happening quite a bit, actually.”

How do you know that?

“What do you think of the Organization, Alice?”

“People who work hard. People walking a tightrope. Sometimes scary, but for some reason, they’re nice to me. People you can’t read. People who mess up sometimes... That sort of thing?”

“I see.”

“Then let me ask you—what do you guys think of me?”

“To some, you’re a subject to be contained. To those with religious faith, an enemy. To others, just a means to an end. But to those who share my views, we think of you as a friend.”

Honestly, I wasn’t sure before, but hearing that answer gives me a good sense.

This guy... He has a kind of commanding presence that even veterans can’t easily give off.

A sort of composure—and the way he answers my questions without hesitation, as if he knows me well—none of it feels ordinary.

“You’re not just some regular agent, are you?”

“I’m an agent now, but... I used to hold a much higher position.”

“You’re the ones who made Carol make me raise my hands as punishment, right?”

“...Seriously. Are you sulking over that?”

“I am not! Geez!”

Yup, I knew it. This guy’s higher-ranking than Carol.

One of the ‘upper brass’ she keeps referring to.

Someone with a command-level position, pretending to be a field agent—what’s his purpose here?

He feels strangely familiar, but that just makes it harder to tell.

“...Thanks for calling me a friend. I guess the leniency you’ve shown me came from that. I don’t know what made you feel that way... but I’m glad.”

“Being friends isn’t that complicated. If we exchange kindness, then we’re friends. Devils were enemies of mankind, sure, but they were also our neighbors.”

Oho. Hearing that from someone that high up makes me feel pretty good.

I guess I do still have some of that social animal instinct left.

“Hey. All those secrets you guys protect and carry...

Can’t you tell me even one of them?

I know you’re carrying a heavy burden for humanity. I can’t solve everything for you, but if you respect me, I’ll help as much as I can.

I already am, aren’t I?”

“You’ve done plenty already. And I’m grateful. But secrets...”

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He hesitates.

Could it be that he’s actually considering telling me something?

Guess calling me a friend wasn’t just talk.

Alright, my heart’s pounding now.

Come on, just say it. Indulge my very personal curiosity!

“Mephistopheles was once a member of the Organization.”

“!”

“He appeared one day out of nowhere, acting like he knew everything about the Organization.

Then he claimed to be a devil descended from the heavens.

And he asked us—he told us he had the answers we were looking for.”

“How much do you know about us?”

Since he saw right through what I wanted to know, I reflexively threw the question back at him—but he didn’t answer.

Instead, he told me something else.

“Alice. From the outside, our Organization may seem like a massive and powerful force, protecting humanity from all kinds of monsters no matter what.

But in truth... that’s not how it is.”

“You’re saying even one Dominator can shake you?”

“That’s right. Like a candle in the wind.

And we realized this lucky streak wouldn’t last forever—and that even if we overcame every disaster, we’d still be left with the fate of annihilation.”

I could brush that off as just pessimism.

But hearing it from one of the top commanders carried a different weight.

His tone was full of certainty... which meant—

“You’ve seen the future. Or maybe... predicted it.”

“Something like that.”

Only saying what he wants to say, huh? That’s cheap.

But I can’t bring myself to hate him.

Because in every word he spoke, there was truth. And even through the gloom, something in it... sparkled.

His eyes, from behind the shadowed face, looked straight at me.

“Alice. The Organization is suffering from severe lethargy. Not just the agents—but even the ones at the top.”

Was he talking about overuse of memory erasers?

But he shook his head.

It wasn’t about drugs like that.

More like a similar... “phenomenon.”

“Can you tell me what the issue is?”

“Alice. Someday, you’ll know the whole truth. But as a token of my gratitude... I’d like to give you a chance to find out a little sooner.”

He handed me something square-shaped, like a key.

It didn’t look like a regular key—more like a cipher device used for secure access.

I took it and tucked it away.

“It’s a kind of key—only usable after a specific date, and a specific time.”

“A specific date...?”

“A day when the world transforms into something fantastical. When that day comes, you’ll naturally understand what these words mean.”

“Come on... do you have to talk in riddles?”

“Riddles are a good thing, Alice.”

As I grumbled, he reached out and gently patted my head in that annoying way... Hey, don’t just pat me like that.

But I didn’t brush him off either.

“I’ll accept that gift. You could’ve just pretended not to know, but you chose to tell me.”

He finished his lemonade and walked away.

And in my cash box—

There was ten million won in cash.