The reviews on the blog went something like this:
When you visit the headquarters of Neosone, the first thing they do is test your psychic abilities.
Neosone is a company designed for ordinary people, so those with psychic abilities cannot use its services.
Once you’re certified as ordinary, you can become a Neosone member.
From the moment you receive your Neosone membership card, you can start earning money.
The method is as follows:
You use the countless products that Neosone sells or rents, then leave a rating for them.
In return, you receive a reward.
It’s said they pay 50,000 won per product.
Alternatively, you can use one product for several hours. In that case, you get the 50,000 won reward plus an additional 10,000 won for every hour of usage.“They’re paying for something as simple as this?”
I continued reading the blog post.
Interestingly, if you buy these products, you can use them at home. The more you use them, the more you accumulate something called Neosone Points.
Of course, these Neosone Points can be converted into cash.
Even better, if you give the products you’ve bought to acquaintances and they use them, you still earn points.
And as you accumulate points, your Neosone Level increases. If you achieve the Neosone Level “Diamond,” you can earn over 10 million won per month.
<Neos Diamond Member Ko Kihoo>
The photo showed a man posing with a thumbs-up in front of an expensive foreign car. And he wasn’t the only one. They were all ordinary people who couldn’t use psychic abilities, yet they had achieved this level of success.
“Hmm.”
A classic story of someone born with nothing, without any special powers, climbing to success. Most of them shared similar backstories.
“That’s me, isn’t it?”
Someone like me, with no psychic abilities, becoming a high earner making a million won per month? Unbelievable. A million won a month... How many delivery runs would I have to do to reach that amount? ṞΑ₦ȰβЕs
<Neos Diamond Member Yoo Hajin>
I imagined myself wearing such a nameplate, giving a thumbs-up in front of a luxury Maybach. Honestly, isn’t Neosone practically a conglomerate at this point?
Their stock prices have reportedly skyrocketed.
And to be a diamond-level executive in such a place…
“I don’t have anything planned for tomorrow, so...”
I decided to see for myself if this was real before making a judgment.
I saved the directions to the Nesone Network headquarters.
****
Neosone’s headquarters was enormous.
Its exterior, entirely covered in glass, gave off a sleek and modern vibe.
To think the headquarters would look this impressive.
It immediately boosted my trust in the company.
However, banners like “The Anomaly Response Headquarters Must Cease Its Malicious Investigations – From All Neosone Members” and “Condemn the Government and Anomaly Response Headquarters for Interfering with Corporate Activities!” slightly dampened the mood.
While I was staring at the banners, a voice called out from behind me.
“Hello. Are you Yoo Hajin, here to apply for membership today?”
“Yes, yes.”
The voice belonged to a woman in a suit.
Judging by the employee ID around her neck, she seemed to be a Neosone staff member.
“Nice to meet you. Please join the others who came to apply today. Follow me.”
At her words, I looked around.
There were two older men, one older woman, and a high school-aged girl.
The girl had gray hair and an expressionless face, giving her a doll-like beauty.
She glanced at me and muttered:
“Curious. Why are you here?”
“Huh? Do you know me?”
“Incorrect. This terminal is meeting you for the first time.”
Her speech pattern was odd.
Maybe she’s doing a character bit, like Nayu?
Wait, I’ve heard this tone somewhere before.
While I was lost in thought, people began entering Neosone’s headquarters. With no time to ponder further, I followed them inside.
****
We stepped into the Neosone headquarters.
The interior was just as immaculate as the exterior.
In the basement, there was a machine designed to test for sensitivity to psychic energy.
I placed my duffle bag on the floor and calmly submitted to the test.
After stepping out from the machine, the female staff member spoke.
“Great. None of you have psychic abilities? If so, all that’s left is to swear that you don’t have any friends or family who are successful psychics. Honestly, Neosone is a welfare company for ordinary people, so we can’t extend benefits to those kinds of individuals.”
At that moment, the gray-haired girl muttered something under her breath.
“Confirmed. Activating the Heavenly Ordeal Defense Mode.”
Heavenly Ordeal Defense Mode?
Ah, right. Heavenly Ordeal is basically Heavenly Punishment.
Joo-cheol once said that the strongest individuals in this world can endure Heavenly Punishment without much trouble. That’s why their oaths shouldn’t be trusted.
Not that I believed everything Joo-cheol spouted, but it didn’t seem like something he’d lie about. If anything, it felt like information he’d have been better off not sharing from his perspective.
In any case, Heavenly Ordeal Defense Mode.
This implied that the girl in front of me was someone incredibly important.
And with such a peculiar way of speaking.
I was starting to piece together her identity.
Could it be...?
I leaned toward the girl and whispered, “Are you the Director, by any chance?”
“Affirmative. Please remain silent.”
The gray-haired girl maintained her icy expression as she muttered her reply.
Maybe she didn’t want to be friendly with me.
I had wanted to express my gratitude for all the help I’d received from her before.
Of course, part of me also wanted to stay on good terms with her because of her incredible position as the Anomaly Response Headquarters Director.
But being told to shut up by such a person?
I couldn’t help but feel a little deflated.
Noticing my expression, the Director asked indifferently.
“Query. Why do you appear displeased?”
“Well, it’s just... I thought it’d be nice to get closer to you...”
“You wish to become closer with me... H-Halt. Error. Confusion. Adjusting.”
While the Director beeped and whirred, the female staff member called out to us.
“You two over there! Please complete your oath and collect your membership cards!”
“Ah, yes.”
With that, we completed the oath and officially became Neosone members.
****
The Anomaly Response Headquarters Director began inspecting the provided items.
These were the products Neosone had given its members to use and review. After reviewing, a reward of 50,000 won would be given.
The Director picked up one of the items—a headset.
Analysis: This item is functionally identical to those previously acquired by the Anomaly Response Headquarters.
Like other Neosone products, it had a subtle effect on the soul. In a world where the existence of souls was an established fact, most functional products had some unique influence on the soul, so this wasn’t particularly unusual.
The Director put on the headset and played some music.
To be precise, it was an EDM track—a genre favored by the hacker girl who had shaped the Director through her oath. The thumping beats filled the room, but the Director analyzed the rhythm mathematically, deriving no pleasure from it.
Why had her creator enjoyed this type of music?
It was a mystery that could no longer be unraveled.
The Director turned to the female staff member and declared, “Declaration: I will write a review.”
“Oh, you’d like to leave a review? Please write it here.”
The staff member handed over a tablet.
The screen displayed the Neosone headset and the review input page.
===
Neosone Headset
Unrealistic sound quality.
An audio experience unmatched by other brands.
Experience the headset of a new era today.
Member Price: 174,000 won
Would you like to write a review?
===
The Director pressed “Yes.”
===
I think the sound quality at this price is quite impressive.
Kim Soyeon, Member
No response required.
Park Sijo, Member
****
The Director held the tablet and silently examined the reviews.
It didn’t take long for her to notice something strange.
“Query. There is an anomaly within the circuitry of this tablet.”
She quickly arrived at a conclusion.
“Answer. This tablet is equipped with a circuit that can block minor spiritual contamination. It appears capable of filtering out the spiritual information of possessed individuals.”
The Director was far from an ordinary girl.
She was the foremost authority on information in this sea of data.
Recovering information of this level was child’s play for her.
And so, the corrupted reviews left by possessed individuals surfaced.
===
Kim Soyeon, Member
I think the sound quality at this price is quite impressive.
Kim Soyeon, Member
I suddenly started hearing what sounds like a person’s voice. Even after taking the headset off, the voice continues. I’m going crazy—please respond quickly!
Kim Soyeon, Member
No response needed.
Park Sijo, Member
Noise-canceling works perfectly.
Kim Pilho, Member
How am I even reading this review?
Oh Chajeon, Member
As someone with a big head, the flexibility makes it super comfortable to wear.
Shin Gu, Member
The screams from that place are crystal clear—a great torture device.
===
After confirming the genuine reviews, the Director determined that Neosone was a paranormal phenomenon.
“Contamination level: at least 100,000 individuals. Identified ability to disguise itself as a mundane entity. Conclusion: Neosone is a region-destroying phenomenon, classified as B-grade or higher.”
At that moment, he approached her—the man who had no equal in her eyes.
The Director, who despised all psychics in this world, had only one exception: Yoo Hajin, the man before her.
“Observation. Yoo Hajin. Likely a ‘Mara’—a being psychics have erased from records. While I don’t know what a Mara truly is, it’s clear that they pose a fatal threat to psychics.”
Suppressing her surprise, the Director glanced up at him. He was already decked out in Neosone gear: a headset, sunglasses, a digital watch, and a jacket.
“Wow, holy crap, I’ve already earned 500,000 won today. They actually pay you just for writing reviews? This is insane.”
Yoo Hajin was overjoyed.
The Director quickly made a decision.
“Judgment. Yoo Hajin will be a hidden card in the war against psychics. I cannot allow such a person to fall prey to the Neosone phenomenon. Sharing information with Yoo Hajin is imperative.”
Without a word, she handed the tablet to him.
Now he would learn the truth about Neosone.
Surely, he’d flee this place immediately upon discovering it.
Psychics who had lost everything to phenomena like this might try to fight it, but even the Heavenly Deities would turn a blind eye if there was no benefit to be gained.
Yoo Hajin was likely no different.
“Still, it doesn’t matter. I’ve always handled phenomena like this alone anyway.”
The Director reassured herself with this thought.
She was a machine.
Emotions like regret didn’t exist for her.
She operated solely on logic and reason.
But Yoo Hajin simply grinned after reviewing the tablet. Then, he handed it back to the Director and left his own review.
===
Yoo Hajin, Member
Loyalty, loyalty. I’ll stick with Neosone forever. 😭
===
At a glance, it looked like a simple expression of loyalty to Neosone. But for him to leave such a review after learning the company’s true nature?
“Analysis. What could he mean by staying with them forever?”
Her composure wavered. Confusion, agitation, and tremors rippled through her.
The Director of the Anomaly Response Headquarters felt her system nearing an overload.
And yet, as her processes teetered, she could only watch as Yoo Hajin remained in the Neosone building, casually testing out another product.
Why isn’t he leaving?
Moments ago, he had clearly read the reviews that revealed the truth about Neosone.
Surely he understood by now that this phenomenon called Neosone was incredibly dangerous.
“Confusion. Confusion. Could he truly mean to stay with them forever…?”
While the Director’s systems spiraled into overload, Yoo Hajin busied himself fiddling with a Neosone smartphone case.
After attaching the case to his phone, he remarked, “Did I just earn another 50,000 won with this? This is insane.”
Yoo Hajin couldn’t see ghosts.
Thus, he couldn’t perceive the corrupted reviews left by those tainted by spirits.
But the Director was entirely unaware of this critical fact.
– – – The End of The Chapter – – –
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