Chapter 67: Suicide Squad (2)

As soon as I opened my eyes, I checked the "Luxury Bag" that had fallen near me. The "Jewel Ring" and "Map" were safely inside.

"It would've been nice if I could've packed a lighter or flashlight."

I looked around to get my bearings. There didn't seem to be any ghosts nearby.

Instead, there was a "Teacher's Office" about 5 meters ahead. Approaching carefully, I was lucky to find the door unlocked.

Click-

Entering the teacher's office, I felt a bit more at ease. This was a place with talismans.

As long as I didn't make too much noise, the chances of a ghost entering first were very low.

"Come on, give me something. Anything."

I muttered to myself like a mantra while rummaging through the office drawers. I could empathize with Yang Juhee's feeling of farming for items every time she entered a new room.

Yang Juhee was really reliable. Maybe I should've brought her on this journey too?

No. There are only two talismans we can get right now.

One from the basement and one from the first floor. That means only two people can escape.

There are four of us in the corridor now: me, Hong Mi-ri, Kwon Suho, and Yoo Dahee (presumably).

The plan for me and Yoo Dahee to escape with the talismans was already tight.

If Yang Juhee were here too, it would mean one of us three – me, Yoo Dahee, or Yang Juhee – would be trapped here and die because there are only two talismans.

Also, it's important to remember that last time, 'Yoo Dahee' died here, eaten by a ghost.

Yoo Dahee must have developed a 'quirk'. If she fails to escape this time too, Yoo Dahee might... die...

It'd be best to secure one escape talisman for Yoo Dahee no matter what.

With that in mind, I ransacked the teacher's office and managed to find a disposable lighter.

"Lucky me."

"What are you doing here?"

"Holy shit! Aaargh!"

I was so startled I jumped several meters into the air. This must be exactly what it feels like when your heart drops to your stomach.

No joke, I feel like my lifespan just shortened by 10 years.

Flick-

I hastily picked up the disposable lighter and lit it, revealing a pale face. It was a woman with lips as red as if she'd just eaten a mouse.

"Ms... Ms. Hong Mi-ri?"

"Yes, troublemaker Ha Young-won. What are you doing here?"

Looking down, I saw Hong Mi-ri was wearing high heels. Walking without a sound in heels. I could almost see Hong Mi-ri's character sheet that I had memorized.

[Hong Mi-ri's character sheet details omitted for brevity]

Light-footed!

"You really scared me. Phew. Ms. Hong Mi-ri, I don't know what's going on. I just opened my eyes and found myself here... All the windows are blocked! No phones!"

I acted like a super coward who knew nothing in front of Hong Mi-ri. I was confident in my coward act.

"You're saying you opened your eyes and found yourself here? Haven't you seen any other kids?"

"I don't know! Teacher! What's going on? This is the old school building, right? The one we're not supposed to enter! Why am I here? Teacher! I was sleeping at home! Aaargh!"

"Shh─"

Ms. Hong Mi-ri covered my mouth with her palm.

"Kid, be quiet! There's something else here besides us. If you make noise, the ghost will come."

"G-ghost?"

"Yes."

"W-what kind of ghost? Is it the Red Mask? I heard some kids saw a Red Mask near the old school building..."

I pretended to know nothing and asked.

According to my guess, the woman in front of me, Hong Mi-ri, is the 'Red Mask'. A man-eating ghost that devours children.

"It's not the Red Mask. There is. Anyway. A ghost."

Hong Mi-ri denied the appearance of the Red Mask. At this moment, I was certain.

Player Hong Mi-ri. Red Mask Hong Mi-ri.

These two cannot exist simultaneously. If Hong Mi-ri exists as a player, it means the Red Mask won't appear.

Hong Mi-ri said,

"This is like a haunted house with ghosts. The teacher is helping kids like you who've wandered in to get out. If you behave, I'll help you get out of here. Understand?"

Ms. Hong Mi-ri's words seemed quite kind and friendly.

Ghost Hong Mi-ri was the Red Mask that deliciously ate students, but Player Hong Mi-ri seemed to be on the friendly side. Are they really the same person?

Soon, Ms. Hong Mi-ri tilted her head, looking at me.

"By the way, you're carrying a bag. What's inside?"

"Oh, this? I found it on the floor and picked it up."

Swish-

I showed Ms. Hong Mi-ri the map. I carefully hid the "Jewel Ring" in my pocket, just in case.

"A map! You're lucky! Hey! Good job! With this, we can get out easily!"

Ms. Hong Mi-ri was extremely pleased with the first-floor map I brought.

"Let's go to the broadcasting room first!"

"The broadcasting room? Why?"

"No time to explain everything. If you want to live, shut up and follow me."

Tough, aren't you? No wonder students like her.

Actually, I knew well why Hong Mi-ri wanted to go to the broadcasting room first. There's a hole there leading to the basement.

She must be planning to get a talisman from the basement.

Ding, ding-

Just then, we heard the sound of a bell. Ms. Hong Mi-ri quickly covered my mouth.

"It's a ghost. The ghost I told you about. The Guardian. It's the guardian ghost that protects this corridor. If you get caught wandering around without the teacher's permission, you're in big trouble."

So Hong Mi-ri calls the Bell Ghost the Guardian Ghost.

Guarding the corridor... I hadn't thought of it that way before, but now that she mentions it, it does seem like that.

A guardian, huh. Why is the Shaman Ghost guarding this corridor?

"Where is it where where is it where is it can't see where is it where where is it where."

The Shaman Ghost was still fierce. But thinking of this person as Yoo Dahee's mother gave it a different feel.

Come to think of it, when we summoned a copy of the mother ghost to help Yoo Dahee possessed by the Baby Ghost, the Shaman Ghost appeared too.

I thought the 'Baby Ghost' was the shaman's daughter. But it was because Yoo Dahee was the daughter that the mother ghost took the form of a shaman. The puzzle pieces are falling into place.

"G-ghost!"

Of course, I pretended to know nothing and shook like a leaf.

I even considered wetting my pants for effect, but that seemed a bit over the top, so I held back. Fortunately, my act was convincing.

"How can a boy be such a coward? Geez. How did kids like you end up in this old school building? It's all because of the water veins. There's a big water vein flowing under the school. Sigh."

Still on about the water veins, I see.

Anyway, the bell sound faded into the distance, and Ms. Hong Mi-ri opened the teacher's office door.

"Let's go."

***

With the map, finding the broadcasting room wasn't difficult. The problem was that the "Head Ghost" was sleeping on the altar in the basement.

"G-ghost!? Teacher! There's a head! Is that a ghost too? Aaargh!"

I acted like a terrified high school student who knew nothing. Ms. Hong Mi-ri looked at me with an expression of utter exasperation.

"I really feel like leaving you behind. Can't you be quiet? Geez. Anyway, see that talisman on the altar? With that, one person can get out of here."

"Oh...!"

"By the way, that's mine."

"...Pardon?"

"Didn't you hear me? That talisman there is mine."

Hong Mi-ri's expression was quite serious. She's claiming the talisman for herself.

In a way, it made sense. Everyone values their own life, right?

And from this conversation, I could tell that "Player Hong Mi-ri" doesn't want to die in this corridor.

Why? Because she'd develop a quirk if she dies? Or because she'd lose all her memories?

I pretended not to know and asked,

"If you take that talisman, teacher... then how do I get out?"

"Since we took the talisman from the basement altar, an altar like this should have appeared on the first floor too. There's a talisman there as well. You can use that one to get out."

"Where... where is that altar?"

"I'll help you find it. By the way, I'm planning to look around more. There might be other students trapped here like you. I'll search here and there. I can't escape from here just yet. Hehehe."

Hong Mi-ri couldn't hide her laughter intermittently. Her attitude suggested she was having the time of her life exploring this corridor.

She must have roamed this corridor as a ghost until she was sick of it. What could be so fun about it now?

But from what I observed, it seemed Ms. Hong Mi-ri didn't remember her time as the 'Red Woman'.

So she doesn't even remember when she ate Yoo Dahee and I escaped right under her nose by burning a talisman.

Hypothesis 1: Hong Mi-ri doesn't remember her time as a ghost.

...She can't control herself in ghost state? And she's extremely happy about exploring this corridor.

"Anyway, wait here quietly. Don't do anything stupid. Hup."

Ms. Hong Mi-ri held her breath and approached the basement altar. I wondered if it was okay to step on the Head Ghost's hair.

As I thought this, surprisingly, I figured out the principle and nature of Hong Mi-ri's silent 《Light-footed》 ability.

Ms. Hong Mi-ri was floating about 3cm above the ground! She was walking on air! That's why there's no sound of footsteps!

Walking on air!

Naturally, she didn't step on the hair spread on the floor and easily obtained the basement talisman.

Rustle-

The Head Ghost moved as soon as she got the talisman. Watching the Head Ghost disappear to the first floor, I pretended to foam at the mouth.

"The... the head is moving...! Teacher, get away...! To the left...!"

"Hey. I told you not to make a fuss. It's fine as long as you don't get too close to it."

"It's... it's Gu Hyena, right? The head.... Why is Gu Hyena's head here? Weren't the police looking for the head? The head..."

"Someone made it like that. To guard the talisman in this basement. It's a stupid thing to do. Brutally killing a girl who just entered high school and turning her into such a resentful ghost. Sigh."

She says that, but she swallowed high school students whole herself. I wanted to say that but held back.

"Hey, scaredy-cat. Give me a boost up."

On the way back to the broadcasting room. Ms. Hong Mi-ri took off her heels and stepped on my shoulder to get up to the first floor.

It was a scene that felt familiar.

As we continued exploring the first floor like this─

We found the altar in the first-floor women's restroom.

But there was no talisman. Did someone take it?

"Teacher, there's no talisman here."

"......"

Hong Mi-ri frowned as if she hadn't expected this situation either.

"Ha Young-won. You said you didn't see any other kids, right?"

"Yes."

In reality, Kwon Suho and Yoo Dahee were on this floor.

Did Dahee take the talisman? She seemed to be quite experienced in this corridor. Kwon Suho could have taken it too.

Either way, the talisman was gone. That means if I want to escape, I need to use Hong Mi-ri's talisman.

"Hey, Ha Young-won. You can't escape now. In this situation. I'll kill you. You won't remember anyway."

"What?"

"Wouldn't it be better to die by my strangling than being caught and killed horribly by a ghost? Then you can escape. You might have some mental issues, but it can't be helped, right?"

So this is how it's going to be? She was pretending to be a kind teacher until now, and now she's going to kill her own student!

"T-teacher. It looks like there's an altar on each floor! Second floor! There might be an altar on the second floor too!"

I shouted desperately. Hong Mi-ri clicked her tongue.

"We can't go to the second floor. If we could go to the second floor, do you think I'd be playing around with you like this? Come here."

Hong Mi-ri reached out towards me.

I dodged it and shouted,

"Ms. Hong Mi-ri! Give me the talisman! The talisman! You have it, don't you? The talisman to escape this nightmarish old school building! You have one, don't you? Give it to me!"

Thanks to my lung capacity enhanced by 《Strong Heart》 and 《Hold Breath》, my voice was truly booming.

Of course, Ms. Hong Mi-ri scoffed.

"Shouting like that will only attract ghosts. Come on. I'll kill you painlessly. They say when you're strangled, carbon dioxide builds up in your brain and you see hallucinations and feel good."

You crazy bitch!

"Aaargh!"

I kept screaming, and finally, a large shadow fell across the women's restroom. The Shaman Ghost? No, it was a man who looked about 190cm tall.

"Is it true that you can escape from here?"

It was Kwon Suho. If Kwon Suho really has supernatural abilities, he'd know that what I'm saying isn't a lie.

Didn't he say he could detect lies?

The reason I deliberately shouted incoherently was to call Kwon Suho. And from the looks of it, Kwon Suho didn't have a talisman.

"Kwon Suho, you bastard. You were here too? What the hell is going on?"

"I don't know either. More importantly, Ms. Mi-ri. Whatever good stuff you have, give it to me. I'm asking nicely."

Kwon Suho and Ms. Hong Mi-ri glared at each other, and tension started to build.

If these two start fighting, I'll take advantage of the situation.

That was my plan.