Got Dropped into a Ghost Story, Still Gotta Work

The meeting room was in chaos.

"Seventeen people have reportedly returned alive!"

"Seventeen...?! Are you sure about that number? Could it be a counting error?"

"Yes. Oh! The count just went up to 20."

Members of the Field Exploration Team, deployed earlier in the day into a high-risk Darkness, had suddenly returned in droves.

This unexpected turn of events completely paralyzed any immediate response.

"They said all the case studies were done and that they'd escape in small, sequential groups. What on earth is this?"

The room was filled with a cacophony of voices—speculations about whether the returning employees were really the ones who had entered, calls for lab testing to confirm their identities, and other theories about what might have gone wrong with their predictions.

But as the initial shock faded, a subtle thought began to form in the minds of some... The thrilling possibility of success.

Could this result be a remarkable breakthrough?

For a few of the key players who had backed this endeavor, similar thoughts emerged.

'If this survival rate is real...!'