Chapter 72

The practice that took place in the Old School Building.

Everyone had marveled at Seoyeon’s ghostly acting, but to be honest, Seoyeon herself wasn’t satisfied.

It’s hard to describe.

It was likely because she didn’t fully understand the terror inherent in the existence of a ‘ghost.’

“The feeling I experienced in horror games before.”

Though jump scares were discussed, aside from that, there was definitely something unnerving.

That tension.

The atmosphere brought by a creature.

Frankly, Seoyeon didn’t believe she executed it well herself.

The act of suddenly appearing on the stairs to startle.

That was akin to jump scares, something Seoyeon had actively avoided in games she’d played before.

There’s nothing wrong with jump scares per se.

Just…

“Maybe I should reference proper horror movies.”

Horror movies.

Even for Seoyeon, who had learned all sorts of human emotions through various media in her past life, horror movies were unfamiliar.

After all, horror movies are based on the premise that humans feel fear.

Naturally, the appeal of such films was diminished for Seoyeon, who didn’t experience fear, and she never thought to watch them.

“That’s right.”

Seoyeon nodded to herself.

The reason she was so startled and scared back then was because it was all new to her.

“Once I try some movies or games, I’ll get used to it soon enough.”

Sooyeon Joo – a girl unfamiliar with fear.

Even though she learned about it now, getting used to it would suffice.

Thinking back to the screams and struggles she had during games made her cheeks grow hot.

“…There won’t be moments like that again.”

Seoyeon resolved, then proceeded to browse the internet for reference-worthy horror films.

Primarily, films renowned for transforming the paradigms of horror cinema.

Among them, the scenes that left the most impactful impressions.

Among these, what caught Seoyeon’s attention was a stairway scene from a specific movie.

A possessed girl appeared, flipping her body upside down on the staircase and crawling down on all fours.

“…”

Seoyeon studied it closely.

She shivered alone and fell asleep.

And…

She had practiced here, at the Old School Building, where no one else came.

Over the past three days.

After her own form of intense training…

“Alright.”

Seoyeon looked at the face in the mirror and nodded.

This was makeup carefully done by a classmate!

Seoyeon wanted it to be scarier, but ultimately, it involved applying black mascara as intensely as possible on the eyes and using powder to make the skin appear pale.

Given her naturally fair complexion, it wasn’t that noticeable.

Gurrruul…

Seoyeon’s location was the second floor of the Old School Building.

Naturally, there were other students waiting at the second floor, aside from Seoyeon.

There were dressed-up ghosts from each class waiting on specific areas.

However, unlike them, who only had to stay in place, Seoyeon had to move.

From the central hallway on the second floor to the first floor.

After startling the students once, she would return, climb back up, and wait in the old faculty office at the end of the second floor.

In short, Seoyeon had to traverse the Old School Building’s corridor alone.

Swaaahhh…

The sound of a torrential rain pouring outside could be heard.

The blackout curtains borrowed in large quantities from the theater club were performing exceptionally, making the place feel like midnight.

“It’s suffocating.”

Seoyeon aimlessly pulled at the blackout curtain.

Even after pulling it aside, she could tell it was still daytime.

“The haunted house starts at 10, right?”

Checking the time revealed about 10 more minutes left.

Seoyeon took a brief deep breath and opened the window to enjoy the cool, rainy air.

Creak.

Swaaahhh!!

Tak.

Seoyeon realized, as she opened the window:

Ah, it’s not just raining; the wind is blowing fiercely too.

Before she could fully open it, the wind rushed in, drenching her face.

Her hair got wet too, sticking to her face.

“…”

Closing the door and roughly wiping her face with a towel, she felt the window rattling in the wind.

Apparently, the wind grew stronger after Seoyeon opened the window.

It was rather inconvenient.

It was already dark enough, and now, with the window rattling and flashes of lightning…

A boon for the haunted house, but an outright calamity for Seoyeon.

Still, who was she?

Sooyeon Joo, who watched horror movies and became desensitized to fear.

This degree of…

“…”

Seoyeon headed toward the central stairs first.

It was almost 10:00.

The time when the first guests would enter the haunted house.

There was one thing Seoyeon didn’t know, though.

While her usual makeup didn’t smudge when it came in contact with water,

the current makeup was different.

Seoyeon didn’t realize how she must have looked, soaked in the rain.

***

Most students gave up after encountering the ghost at the central staircase on the first floor and turned back.

Yet, occasionally, there were those who made it to the second floor.

“Man, we should’ve just turned back.”

“Scared?”

“What, scared again?”

Three male students casually conversed as they climbed to the second floor.

Though the ghost at the central staircase was intimidating, everything else wasn’t that scary.

It was merely the rain, thunder, and the old school itself creating an eerie atmosphere.

“Managable, manageable.”

“Hey, Ji-seok went in and bolted out.”

“Ridiculous, what’s so scary about this?”

Though he clicked his tongue dismissively, his voice trembled slightly.

Finally, the last one.

The faculty office.

They had already heard that the ghost they saw earlier awaited here.

The upside-down crawling, red-eyed ghost from the central staircase.

“Hey.”

“What?”

“Can we retaliate? Can we scare them when we go in?”

This was, after all, just a haunted house made by high school students.

They certainly weren’t professional actors or employees.

“Counter-scare sounds fun.”

“Ah, and if you surprise me, my fists will fly first. Don’t.”

Two male students arrogantly boasted, intending to scare the ghost first as they walked in.

However.

“…”

As soon as they entered, all three froze in place.

In the center of the faculty office stood a female student with her back turned.

Darkness.

The stillness of eerie silence, with only the sound of the rain.

At the moment a flash of lightning illuminated the room, the still figure of a woman stood quietly.

“What’s the mission again?”

Just roughly open the drawers on the desk and retrieve the bracelet inside.

“That kid isn’t moving. What’s he doing?”

“Uh.”

With trembling voices, they slowly moved, keeping the standing student at the center.

They stuck close to the wall, carefully walking towards the designated drawer until one of them slowly opened it.

At that moment, the girl’s body moved.

The boys stiffened as they were in the middle of opening the drawer.

“Does… does she intend to turn around?”

At this thought, the girl’s waist bent backward.

“AAAAAAHHHH!!! FUCK!!!”

They pulled the stubborn drawer open and grabbed the bracelet.

They didn’t even entertain the thought that this student’s acting was mediocre.

People feel fear from the unexpected.

Who expects a body to bend backward instead of simply turning?

Combined with the atmosphere—

The black makeup melting down her face.

The crimson eyes glowing in the dark.

The wide-open mouth, resembling sheer terror.

There was no way she looked like an ordinary girl anymore.

And…

She flipped her body and began crawling on all fours.

What’s more, she moved fast!!!

“RUN, DAMMIT, RUN!!!”

At this grotesque sight, the boys hastily turned around.

– Give me back my bracelet, my bracelet, my bracelet.

Behind them, they heard the vengeful voice of the girl.

And as they ran down the central staircase to the first floor, they stopped.

“Whoa, whoa… Gosh. What an insane scare!”

“What was that with the crawling thing…?”

“Ah, it’s okay, okay, you’re safe now.”

Just as they turned around at the inopportune moment,

A female student was right in front of them.

“But it was supposed to be far!”

“It’s freaking fast, isn’t it?”

Terrified, the boys ran down to the first floor.

Surely, no one could crawl down the stairs so fast.

But wow, this thing was blazing fast!

How could she flip her body and chase so quickly?

Is she really a ghost?

With that thought, they bolted down to the first floor.

At the same time,

A group of girls walking in caught their eyes,

And at that moment, the ghost chasing the boys suddenly halted.

“…Sooyeon Joo.”

A voice full of disappointment rang out.

***

“Wow, the atmosphere is incredible! Are you really going in, Jiyeon?”

To her friend’s question, Jiyeon nodded.

“Where else can we go, anyway?”

“Still…”

Behind Jiyeon, two girls followed.

“Young-mi and Sun-hee voiced their concerns.

“Come on, you two. It’s just a haunted house made by high school students, what’s there to be scared of?”

“It wouldn’t be scary if the weather was good.”

“Considering this downpour and the lightning… walking through the Old School building is creepy enough.”

At their words, Jiyeon tilted her head.

Sure, that could be true, but Jiyeon had other concerns in mind.

Like…

“I couldn’t even make it to the second floor.”

“Then you at least made it to the end of the first floor?”

Conversations like these from trembling girls.

“Ah, shit. This is so embarrassing.”

“I saw you run away. Fast feet, huh?”

“Huh, I could die.”

“I almost gave a roundhouse kick out of surprise.”

She also overheard conversations from some boys,

Most of which were filled with obvious bravado.

Especially that last one—lucky for them. If they had actually executed the kick, they might’ve ended up with a broken leg.

Jiyeon thought seriously.

Although she didn’t used to, recalling an incident from middle school, it made her suspicious.

“There’s quite the line.”

Despite all that, the line of students lining up outside the Old School building was impressive.

Considering how few could go in at a time, it made sense.

Once a group went up to the second floor, another group would enter the first floor,

meaning two teams could go in at once.

Especially today, since the torrential rain rendered most booths unusable, and the remaining ones were either simple food stalls or recreational games, people naturally gathered here.

In such an atmosphere, haunted houses tend to attract students even more.

“I see, Sooyeon Joo really acts well. Just by showing her face at the staircase, she scares people into running.”

“Only a few teams have made it up to the second floor?”

“Yeah.”

Jiyeon heard this conversation from the students managing the line.

She thought,

‘She probably didn’t just show her face.’

While she might have done that during practice, it wouldn’t have been that terrifying.

The reactions of the other classmates were enough to deduce that much.

‘She must’ve thought, “If it’s not scary, it’s not a ghost!”‘

And borrowed inspiration from horror movies and games,

using characters as references.

Seoyeon excelled at imitating such motifs.

Could it be a natural-born talent, or simply her acting skills?

‘If she gets too excited, who knows what she’ll do.’

She occasionally exhibits boyish tendencies.

When faced with someone showing genuine reactions, she gets so excited and can jump into things without much thought.

“Uh, it’s our turn.”

“I’m sticking right behind you, Jiyeon. I absolutely won’t go forward!”

“I got it.”

With a heavy sigh, Jiyeon entered the Old School building.

After handing in their participation tickets at the entrance, they proceeded inside.

‘Sure enough.’

The dark Old School building alone was enough to feel eerie.

But just that much…

First, similar to a map given out earlier, one had to visit a designated classroom on the first floor and complete a mission.

The ghosts encountered there would startle them.

But that level was quite mundane.

Honestly, it didn’t come close to the standard of an amusement park haunted house.

However,

‘The central staircase.’

This was the place where Seoyeon was supposed to appear.

So, when Jiyeon reached the central staircase, she paused.

“AAAAAAHHHH!”

With coarse male screams, a group of boys came running down.

Behind them, the crimson-eyed ghost on all fours was in pursuit, having just passed them.

“!!”

At the sudden appearance of the ghost, the two girls behind Jiyeon gasped.

Some people get so shocked they can’t even scream.

The eerie sight of the woman crawling down upside-down.

The strange, black streaks on her face.

The glowing red eyes amidst the darkness.

The two girls, who involuntarily went limp, fell to the ground.

Then,

“…”

“…”

Jiyeon and the ghost’s gazes locked.

Gradually.

Without stopping her pursuit, the ghost continued crawling toward the central staircase.

Jiyeon, pursued by it, sprinted up to the second floor.

“Hold… hold on!”

The two girls reached out to her desperately.

“Joo Sooyeon, are you crazy??!”

At that moment, a cry, not a scream, pierced through the air.

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