BXBX NOVEL Chapter 1: Possessed by a Curse
Chapter 1: Possessed by a Curse
“By the way, doesn’t our team leader seem a bit scary?”
“You’re right. He looks like a workaholic most of the time.”
The terrace set up on the company rooftop.
As lunch began, employees gathered in small groups to chat.
It was the usual office talk.
Stock market talk, gossip, and discussions about superiors.
One of the female employees spoke up.
“Has anyone ever seen the team leader doing anything other than work?”
“Nope, never. Total work addict. Sometimes it’s like watching a horror movie, seeing him work. Thanks to him, we’re all suffering too. I never knew working under a workaholic could be this exhausting. Ugh…”
“If he’s that much of a workaholic, shouldn’t he go to the hospital…?”
A male employee shrugged as he replied.
“Well, at least he’s good at his job.”
“That’s true… Didn’t Team Leader Shin save the head office’s new business from failing recently?”
“So what? We’re all just employees at the end of the day. He’s just helping the company.”
“Come on, but he gets promoted quickly. How old is Team Leader Shin this year? Early 30s?”
“No… I think he’s still in his 20s. Wasn’t he 29?”
“What?”
“Wow… Having a team leader in their 20s is tough.”
“Well, yeah. With that face, 30s would be a stretch.”
As they murmured among themselves, a sudden sound interrupted them.
- Welcome, Administrator!
Everyone’s eyes turned to the strange voice and lively music.
It came from one employee’s smartphone, with the word "KeepWorld" clearly displayed on the screen.
“Oh, Assistant Manager Kim, you play that too?”
“What’s that? KeepWorld?”
“Huh? You don’t know KeepWorld? It’s a super popular game right now. It’s famous because no one’s been able to clear it yet, it’s so difficult.”
“No one’s cleared it?”
“Yeah. But the AI is really well-made, and the content and illustrations are top-notch, so it’s super popular.”
“Really? Should I try it?”
As one employee showed interest, Assistant Manager Kim played it off like it was no big deal.
“It’s pretty easy, actually. It’s just a collection-based mobile game. As long as you follow the basic rules, it’s nothing special.”
“Really? Assistant Manager Kim, what\'s your ranking… Wow! 18,911th?! And your company rank is Master level too?”
“Haha, I’ve put in some effort.”
“I’m so jealous. I’m still stuck in Silver…”
For a while, the employees continued chatting about KeepWorld.
Then suddenly.
“By the way, do you think Team Leader Shin plays games?”
“No way, what games would he play? Team Leader Shin probably doesn’t know anything outside of work.”
“KeepWorld is a game about running a company, though. If Team Leader Shin played, wouldn’t he be able to clear it?”
“I don’t know… He seems to prefer running a real company.”
“Exactly. He’d probably handle another task instead of playing games.”
The new employees all seemed certain that the Shin Seongjin would never play a game.
Watching them, a female employee who had joined not long ago tilted her head.
‘That’s strange. I think I saw him playing a game… Was it just my imagination?’
* * *
“Team Leader, aren’t you going home?”
“I’ve got a bit more to finish up. I’ll wrap things up and leave, so you guys go ahead.”
“Understood, Team Leader. We’ll head out first, then. Good luck!”
Soon, the sound of busy footsteps gradually disappeared, and silence settled over the office.
Confirming that everyone had left, Seongjin sank into his chair.
“…Even if I leave now, the traffic will be so bad, it’ll be a pain to get home.”
It would be easier on both his body and mind to wait a little before heading out.
Sure, it meant going home late, but it was not like he had nothing to do in the meantime.
“…Guess I’ll get started.”
He leaned back comfortably, turned on his smartphone, and launched KeepWorld.
- Welcome, Administrator!
Cheerful music and a mechanical female voice flowed out of the speaker.
Glancing at the top of the screen, a smile formed on his lips.
“Today’s the last day.”
[Achievement Rate: 99.9%]
Finally, the end of KeepWorld was within his grasp.
Just one more achievement to clear, and he’d finally see the ending.
‘It really took long enough.’
He had been playing this game for seven whole years.
The thought that it was finally ending made him feel a bit nostalgic.
‘Honestly, I didn’t think I’d ever be able to clear it.’
No one had yet to complete KeepWorld’s true ending.
And for good reason – KeepWorld was infamous for being more brutal than most Souls-like games.
It adopted hardcore rules, and everything in the game was randomized, meaning there was no clear strategy to follow.
Clearing the game required only one thing: effort.
Only effort.
- You will soon be transported to the office of the Joseon government. Please activate the Ethics Program.
Seongjin lightly tapped the screen.
Then, with a dim background, a loading bar appeared.
He quickly muted the volume to focus on the game.
[Update in progress: 24%]
“Hmm, taking a bit longer today.”
This must’ve been a large-scale update.
After waiting for a while, he tapped the screen to move to the waiting room.
Along the long hallway were thousands of isolation rooms, convenience facilities, and small 2D characters bustling about.
The scene resembled a massive corporation.
[Update in progress: 51%]
He tapped the air to shift the view to the highest part of the company.
From there, the entire company’s grand scale came into view.
Even on the small smartphone screen, you could feel the enormity of the corporation.
[Update in progress: 92%]
‘I wonder what’s going to change with this update. Hopefully, nothing annoying.’
As he killed time wandering around the waiting room, the update was soon completed.
[Update in progress: 100%]
[The update is complete.]
[You can now meet the Gate of Truth in the Rift of Time!]
He pressed the confirm button immediately.
A blue vortex appeared, along with a new menu.
[Joseon Government (Confederation Union-Master)]
- Company Rank: Challenger
- Administrator: Page One
[Creature Management]
- Currently managing: 674 creatures.
- Company Score: 994,987 (World Rank 1)
[Staff Summoning and Management]
- Current staff: 11,547.
- Special grade (0), 1st grade (3), 2nd grade (12)…
[(NEW) Rift of Time - Gate of Truth]
“Oh, finally…?”
The moment he saw the words ‘Gate of Truth,’ Seongjin’s eyes lit up.
According to his theory, he had to conquer the so-called Gate of Truth to complete all the achievements and clear the game.
‘I wondered where it was or if it even existed… Turns out it hadn’t been updated yet.’
What a messed-up game.
At that moment, a new notification popped up.
[Would you like to subdue the Gate of Truth?]
"Of course."
With the ending in sight, there was no reason to hesitate.
I immediately clicked confirm.
Then, a rift in space-time opened.
At the same time, I felt a chill, like my spine was freezing.
"What the...? Did the heating turn off?"
That couldn\'t be.
As I wondered, a creepy eyeball appeared from the rift.
The eyeball rolled around and then looked at me—or at least, that’s how it felt.
Something unsettling gripped my entire body, but I didn\'t care.
Instead, a sense of challenge sparked within me.
"This has to be at least Class 3, right?"
Well, considering it\'s the final achievement that no one in the world has managed to conquer yet, it\'d be disappointing if the level were too low...
"Alright, let\'s explore—"
Right at that moment...
- Heh heh.
I heard an unpleasant laugh in my ear.
At the same time, the eyeball that appeared from the rift vanished like a mirage.
"What? What the...?"
[Grade 4 employee \'Evangeline\' has died.]
[Grade 6 employee \'Leveson\' has died.]
[Grade 4 employee \'William\' has died...]
[Grade 5 employee \'Albert\'...]
Out of nowhere, I began hearing the obituary notices of the company\'s employees ranked 4 and below.
"What the hell is going on?"
I hurriedly touched the screen, but the controls wouldn\'t work, as if a bug had crashed the game.
The game froze entirely.
Panicking, I rebooted the game, but it was completely unresponsive.
"Damn it, what kind of bug is this...?"
- Heh, heheh.
Just then, I heard the laugh again, like some strange, inhuman being was mocking me.
That creepy sound made me lower the volume.
...
The volume was already at 0%.
It was then that I realized something was really wrong.
‘...This isn\'t coming from the speaker, is it?’
So then, what is it?
That question was never answered.
「Come to me when you reach the end of the foolish truth.」
Because a black energy started emerging from the phone screen.
The black energy, which shot out in an instant, wrapped around my entire body and disappeared.
Immediately after, the phone—now without an owner—fell to the floor.
Thud.
[Entity ‘Administrator (Shin Seongjin)’ confirmed.]
[Starting synchronization.]
[50%... 100%]
[Success.]
* * *
- Welcome, Administrator. Please name the company you will be managing from now on.
A voice that sounded somewhat familiar brought me back to my senses.
The musty smell.
The cold floor.
And the chilling wind coming from who knows where.
With my consciousness suddenly returned, I scanned my surroundings.
Aside from the long corridor, the place was sealed off with steel walls on all sides.
The only things I could make out were the vast space, reminiscent of a playground, and the strange stone monument standing in the middle.
"...What the hell."
Calm down.
Think.
Just a moment ago, I was playing KeepWorld.
So why am I standing here now?
The question didn’t last long.
[Welcome, Administrator. Please name the company you will be managing from now on.
I heard the familiar voice again.
I turned to the source of the sound.
Projected in the sky was a familiar hologram.
[Please provide the name of your company.]
I stared at the hologram for a long time.
A square blue window.
It looked like something straight out of a video game, hanging there in midair.
"...What is this."
My breathing grew labored.
My brain couldn’t comprehend the situation unfolding without any warning.
"What... is happening right now...?"
[Warning!]
[A serious level of mental contamination has been detected in the user.]
[The Foundation\'s Star protects you.]
In an instant, the chaos in my mind seemed to clear up.
As if the tangled threads in my head were being unraveled, I felt a wave of calm wash over me.
Perhaps it was that calm that helped me adapt to the situation so quickly.
\'...\'
After regaining my composure, I closed my eyes and then opened them again.
Then, I looked up.
The hologram was still hanging in the air, just like before.
\'...\'
As I stared at it, the hologram shrank and floated down in front of my eyes.
Instinctively, I reached out toward the hologram that had come so close.
Then.
[Incorrect access. Please use system permissions.]
"System permissions?"
The only things here were the monument a little distance away and me.
Scratching the back of my head, I walked toward the monument that seemed vaguely familiar.
[Congratulations, Administrator. We look forward to your success.]
A hologram I\'d seen somewhere before.
However, the contents displayed below it were unfamiliar.
[Foundation\'s Star – User ‘Shin Seongjin’]
[You can use the skills of the creatures you’ve collected. (Current collection rate: 0%)]
[You are the sole ‘Administrator’ recognized by the world. Your mind will never waver.]
[You are an absolute sovereign, the guardian of the world. Your words carry authority.]
[Your employees\' mental strength increases by 5%, resisting status effects.]
[The company established by an absolute sovereign and the world\'s guardian. Work efficiency improves based on the company\'s achievements. Current increase: 0%]