Chapter 3
Why had a monster that only appeared in the dark shown up here, where the lights were on?
And why was it invisible to my eyes, but visible only through the camera?
It was too different from the characteristics of the one I knew.
Even though I’d already looked up the Smiler on the wiki back when the Backrooms was all the rage as a setting.
I looked around with my phone camera.
It wasn't there.
Click, click, click.
I photographed the surroundings and checked the pictures.
It wasn't there.
“...This should be fine for now.”
After confirming it was safe, I took my phone charger out of my bag and plugged it into the outlet.
Why give me a charger but not a power bank?
And that 110V converter plug they’d included, as if I’d need it later.
No matter how prepared I was when I willingly signed up, the Bureau was stranger than I'd imagined.
“Phew.”
I zoomed in on the photo I'd posted to the gallery earlier.
In the corner of the yellowish background was a monster with a body like black smoke, and in its center was a beaming smile showing off sharp teeth.
It was unmistakably the Backrooms' signature entity, the Smiler.
“Fuck! Why the hell can't I see something like that!”
I couldn't tell why it was different from the original lore.
I almost got myself killed.
If you're gonna be a goddamn liminal space, then act like one and follow the wiki
After taking one more set of photos to make sure the area was safe, I wrote a post.
[Survival Report]
Author : ShitpostingIsEasy
Fuck....
[Comments]
AutoSaveIsMandatory : Oh, you're not dead
I'mStuckAtHome : I'm glad you're alive, I'm glad you're alive, I'm glad you're alive, I'm glad you're alive, I'm glad you're alive
OrphanCrusher : Okay, I'll start a new thread
EntityFucker : You dodged the ending where you get crushed, lol
People welcoming my survival with surprising enthusiasm.
The perfect crowd to ask questions to.
[Does anyone know why this is different from the setting I know?]
Author : ShitpostingIsEasy
According to the Backrooms wiki, this thing's supposed to come out in the dark
And why can I only see it in photos?
I nearly died without even knowing why;;;
Comments
EntityFucker : Honestly no idea. Why's it ignoring the setting?
DadIsAMartialArtist : Among the people here, there probably aren't many who've had a case like yours.
ㄴBoundSpiritNo.1 : Exactly. The management policy for liminal spaces is basically neglect—it's worse than not managing them at all.
GayWeirdGay : What branch is it even that would shove a newbie into a liminal space?
The comments were still hot, but there was no answer that really cleared things up.
Surely the employee said this batch would be easier than the last one.
How is enduring the Backrooms, where entities that ignore the existing rules show up, supposed to be easy?
“This bullshit is way too much... huh?”
As I thoroughly read the comments and went back over the post, one comment caught my eye.
[Saw this late, here's the rundown]
Author : LoreTweaker
It's understandable that people wouldn't really know what's going on right now.
To begin with, Bureau employees aren't dispatched to liminal spaces.
Unlike rule creepypastas and Napolitan stories, these things change their rules however the hell they want, reflecting whatever's hot in real time.
So they usually throw in N-rank personnel and hold an Indian-style rainmaking ritual, hoping someone gets out so they can recover the data.
More specifically,
Ah, food's here. I'll finish this later.
[Comments]
EntityFucker : You crazy bastard, tell us everything before you go
Management : If you don't finish writing it by today, you'll get banned for a week
ㄴGayWeirdGay : From now on, praise the mods
ㄴLoreTweaker : Ah, chicken gets gross when it goes cold, so I'm eating fast and coming back
“He cut it off right here.”
Merciless cliffhanger technique. I was annoyed, but decided to hold it in.
Chicken is a serious matter.
And since he'd answered my second-biggest question,
that ordinary employees don't have any reason to enter liminal spaces.
“Damn, it's the human-rights-forfeiture track again. I have to trash this.”
I thought it would be about the level of resentment you'd get from classmates if you said you got in through the rural admissions quota.
I figured that even if I made it out alive, the way I'd be treated wouldn't be very pleasant.
Click. Click. Click.
“I think I can spit in that smiling face of yours.”
And that, in turn, meant I had to survive first.
I took another bottle of water from my bag, gripped it in my left hand, and started running.
Because the Smiler was visible in the photo I'd taken of the direction I came from.
[When's part 2 of the rundown going up?]
Author : ShitpostingIsEasy
At this rate, I'm really going to die
[Comments]
LoreTweaker : Hold on, I'm just gonna drink the pickled-radish brine
ㄴHuntingDog : Why the hell would you even eat that?
ㄴLoreTweaker : It's sweet and tangy and tastes good, so why are you bitching?
ㄴShitpostingForPay : This guy's drinking vinegar water....
Click, click, click.
As I widened the distance between us, I took photos every so often to gauge the Smiler's speed.
From the way the distance was closing, it was about the speed of an adult man strolling leisurely.
Unless it suddenly had some reason to speed up, it didn't seem hard to shake off.
‘Just in case, I'll keep taking photos often.’
After confirming there was nothing ahead of me, I started walking a little faster.
The second rundown had just been posted.
[Here's the rundown now-(2)]
Author : LoreTweaker
First off, anyone who doesn't drink pickled-radish brine can get lost, yeah
You probably know that old Napolitan stories and rule-creepypasta have fixed rules
Those guys almost never have their rules suddenly change on a whim
But creepypasta-type stuff is different
As I said above, these bastards change however they want depending on which version of the setting is most well-known
The Backrooms the newbie's in probably reflects an altered setting, not the original one
That's probably why the Smiler's traits differ from the original
That's why they don't throw in employees and use N-ranks for nothing
If you ask me, that guy isn't a newbie but either someone slated for culling
or an N-rank who lucked into getting into the gallery, yeah
Preemptive condolences, action beam
[Comments]
AaaChargeIn : At least it's not a woman. There's no feminine vibe in the post
ㄴEntityFucker : This bastard's still worrying about whether it's a woman even now
HuntingDog : For real....
To sum up, the Backrooms I was trapped in had a layer of popular current-world setting slapped over it, making it very different from the one I knew.
At this rate, even the little information I did know would be useless.
‘Unless someone teaches me in real time, that is.’
And hot topics were always covered live.
[Title : Is this it?]
Author : WhiteHacker
The new Backrooms lore video on NewTube is getting insane views
It's only one video, but people seem to be devouring it like crazy because of the setting compendium they uploaded
The quality is insane too; I'll leave the video and setting compendium links here
Too lazy to summarize it, so newbies can go watch it themselves
[Comments]
AutoSaveIsMandatory : I was wondering why you hadn't shown up. You found it crazy fast lol
OrphanCrusher : 1 million in 3 days with the first video? For real?
ShitpostingForPay : Watching it now, and yeah, the quality is enough to justify it
As expected, someone found the cause right away.
Judging by the reactions of the people who checked first, it didn't seem to be a bait link either.
If I checked that out, my survival rate would probably go up.
ㄴShitpostingIsEasy : Thanks, but the link doesn't work here
ㄴ(OP) WhiteHacker : ? But how are you using the gallery then?
ㄴShitpostingIsEasy : The gallery works, though?
ㄴ(OP) WhiteHacker : ????????
ㄴAaaChargeIn : What
ㄴLoreTweaker : Right, he's in the Backrooms. How is he on the gallery?
A contradiction discovered in an unexpected place.
“So it wasn't because it was a Bureau-issued phone?”
In the top-right corner of the device, there was still a Wi-Fi icon connected to something, along with the no-data-available indicator.
But that's not the important thing right now.
ShitpostingIsEasy : That's not the important thing. Hurry up and bring me the setting, I'm dying
ㄴ(OP) WhiteHacker : Yeah, hang on. I'll summarize it
Already being in the Backrooms is unrealistic; who has time to worry about whether the Wi-Fi works?
If this hadn't existed, the invisible Smiler would've torn me limb from limb.
“Pick apart the bad and gloss over the good.”
No need to make a fuss over something good.
It wasn't long before WhiteHacker's post went up.
[Title : Rough rundown of the Backrooms setting changes for the newbie]
Author : WhiteHacker
First off, the area you're in is, as you know, Level 0 - Threshold
Normally no entities show up, but apparently up to two can appear.
There were two Smilers in the video, so keep that in mind
Since this isn't an exploration mission, this should be enough, I guess?
Still, just in case, I'm uploading the original Smiler settings
If any variables pop up, let me know
[Comments]
EntityFucker : This is pretty easy, huh? There was a reason they sent a newbie
ㄴI'mStuckAtHome : It's only easy if you know what's up. If you don't, you just get suddenly bitten—what part of that is easy?
ㄴHuntingDog : Classic looking down on other people's problems, lol
LoreTweaker : Seriously, what a completely soulless setting. Why is something like that even popular?
ㄴGayWeirdGay : Exactly. It's a kid's pick.
ㄴLoreTweaker : You asshole.
ShitpostingIsEasy : Yep, thanks thanks.
“...Maybe this is more manageable than I thought?”
The maximum threat I could anticipate was two Smilers.
As long as no other variables got added, there was hope I could survive.
I took a photo, checked the surroundings once more, then opened the attached original.
++++
Silverskin's Backrooms Wiki
Entity 3 - "Smiler"
Habitat: Most levels
[A photo of a black shape grinning with countless teeth bared]
Description
The Smiler is one of the most commonly sighted hostile entities in the Backrooms.
This entity cannot be observed through ordinary means.
It cannot be seen directly with the naked eye, and can only be confirmed through media that records or displays visual information—photos, video, CCTV, cell phone cameras, reflected surfaces, and the like.
On screens where the Smiler is recorded, only a pair of pure white eyes that seem to float in the dark and an unnaturally long row of teeth appear.
The rest of its body cannot be confirmed, and it's unclear whether it even has a physical form at all.
Behavior
According to confirmed reports, the Smiler's movement speed is very slow, at about 2.5 km/h.
However, this being never stops pursuing its target.
To date, no case of completely escaping a Smiler has been reported.
Biology
At present, the only confirmed features are two eyes embedded in a black shape floating in midair and an excessive number of sharp teeth.
[Record left by the missing Michael Sina]
The screen shakes violently.
Blood can be seen pouring from his left arm, which looks as if it has been torn off.
“Fuck! Fuck!”
Each time he looks back, the Smiler is seen pursuing him.
“Why... why! What the hell is it! I need to be able to see something to know what it is!”
His running slows, and the camera angle drops.
“Home... I want to go home... Mom...”
The person filming begins sobbing uncontrollably.
The Smiler in the frame gets closer and closer.
“Aaaaaaagh!”
The camera flies away with the scream, and the video ends with a scene of the filmer being torn apart.
++++
…If it looks like I'm about to get caught, I'd better take euthanasia pills in advance.
I filmed the surroundings again and started running.
The thing in the file moves at 2.5 km/h.
The problem was that it would chase me forever, but if I kept enough distance, I thought I might be able to sleep and rest.
I wouldn't be able to sleep soundly, but it was only a week of suffering.
I'mStuckAtHome : But seriously, newbie, why are you being sent into the field on day one? Are you really a rookie?
OrphanCrusher : Honestly, just say it's a gimmick. Nobody'll call you out on it, yeah.
With the summary post up and the buzz dying down, my identity wound up back in the hot seat once more.
They send a newbie into a liminal space where they don't even send staff.
It was a situation nobody would believe.
But it was something that had really happened to me.
“Since it seems safe for the time being, maybe I'll introduce myself....”
[I'm an orphan, but I swear on my mom and dad I didn't lie]
Author : ShitpostingIsEasy
Yep, I'm the newbie who came in today.
I guess it's because the track I came in through is unusual.
There's a track called the human-rights-forfeiture track where, instead of being hired normally, you become a complete company slave.
It wasn't really something to hide, so I told it exactly as it was.
There are several people in our department who came through the same track.
Probably everyone will understand just from that much...
[You have been banned from the gallery.]
Ban duration : 3 days
Reason : Fire suppression
“What?”
I was just answering a question, but for some reason I got banned from the gallery.