Mayuri's Hell (1)
Nao suddenly came to her senses. What was I doing? As far as she could remember, she'd come to the demo hall with Mayuri. They'd been watching the CCTV footage, but Ari just wouldn't come back. So she'd gone looking for her. And after that...? Her memory was hazy. All she could see ahead was darkness. Pure darkness. Thick, impenetrable darkness. Had there been a blackout or something?
"...What the hell. I can't see a damn thing."
That was weird. She was a vampire, after all. Her night vision was perfect. The fact that she couldn't pierce this gloom left Nao feeling uneasy.
"Ari? Ari...? Ari, where are you?"
No response, even when she called out. She swung her arms around, but nothing touched her.
...This is unsettling.
Still, she had one thing she could rely on: she was a vampire. Immortal, practically unkillable. She could live forever if she wanted. To be precise, Nao was the kind of being who couldn't die even if she tried. So getting trapped in some darkness like this? Not a big deal.
Nao let out a small sigh and plopped down right there, hugging her knees. If it was just a simple blackout, the lights would come back on eventually.
1 second. 2 seconds. 3 seconds.
......
How much time had passed? With nothing but darkness, she couldn't tell. Was that really 1 second? Were those 10 seconds accurate? No change in the dark at all, so even if 100 seconds had flown by, she'd have no way to know.
She counted the seconds. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
She counted. 101, 102, 103, 104, 105.
She counted. 5231, 5232, 5233, 5234.
She counted. 49123, 49124, 49125, 49126.
She counted. 1024299, 1024300, 1024301, 1024302.
No change. Just darkness. How many seconds? Days? Years? Centuries had passed in this void? Here, Nao realized she was utterly alone.
"Hm?"
I tilted my head at the messages from Nao. The bathroom? Something wrong?
"Mayuri? Is there a problem?"
"Dunno."
Did Ari splash water on her clothes while washing her hands? Nah, didn't seem likely. Ari used to be pretty feral at first, but now she was pretty adapted to human civilization. Or maybe Nao found something? I sent a message back.
No more replies after that. She really must be busy.
"Lisa, let's go check it out."
"Yes."
I headed to the bathroom, thinking about Nao as I walked. An immortal vampire with insane regeneration—even decapitated, she wouldn't die. Small Nao wasn't a perfect vampire, but her recovery was still top-notch. So I wasn't too worried about her. What was the point in fretting over an undying vampire?
I reached the bathroom. A phone lay on the floor. The lights inside were off, making it pitch black. No, even accounting for that, it was too dark. The far end was completely invisible.
"No way...."
Is this a trap? And right then—pop.
The world went black.
"Power outage?" Lisa asked from beside me.
"No... this isn't a normal blackout."
Even if the power went out, it was broad daylight. Yet nothing was visible. Not even with blackout curtains on every window. My hand, my feet—total darkness. If I lost body sensation too, it'd be like my consciousness floating aimlessly in the deep sea. Who knows how that differs from being a ghost. Definitely not a regular outage.
"Mayuri? Where are you?"
Lisa kept calling.
"I'm right here, Lisa."
"Mayuri? Mayuri? If you're nearby, please answer."
"Huh? I'm right here...?"
"Mayuri? Mayuri? Mayuri? Mayuri? Mayuri?"
Lisa's reaction was off. Like she couldn't hear me at all, just kept calling my name. I quickly activated a Bond Effect.
Moon's Fall
Fwoosh. A ping-pong ball of light bloomed in my hand. In the darkness where I couldn't even see myself, I finally spotted my hand. I swung the light nearby.
Lisa stood there blankly.
"Mayuri? Mayuri? Where are you? Mayuri? Don't disappear. Mayuri?"
Even waving the light right in front of her face got no reaction. Shaking her shoulder did nothing. She couldn't perceive me at all. Like she was trapped in a hallucination.
"...Store."
I hurriedly stored Lisa away. It wasn't just her voice—other voices echoed from deeper in the bathroom.
"Hungry.... Hungry.... Hungry.... Hungry.... Hungry.... Hungry.... Hungry.... Hungry.... Hungry.... Hungry.... Hungry.... Hungry.... Hungry.... Hungry.... Hungry.... Hungry...."
Ari's voice. I cautiously moved deeper, shining the light on the floor. Ari lay there, drooling, eyes unfocused, endlessly muttering about hunger. One of her arms was turning black, like it was merging with the darkness. And Nao.
".............."
Nao hugged her knees, silent. Her condition looked the worst—patches of skin blackened all over. She resembled an insect awaiting devouring, caught in a spider's web.
I realized what this anomaly was.
Muk-si Saeng-myeong-che Encounter Record #Erosion
Humans have long awakened with the sun and slept as it set. As the price for choosing a life guided by light, we came to fear the dark. Darkness is humanity's oldest terror, the most primal shadow. Thus, the moment you face it, you will behold the form of your hell. And in the end, you shall be devoured by the darkness and vanish.
Erosion. A monster that feeds on human fear and grows. The darkness surrounding me was the monster itself.
Erosion darkens spaces. It then inflicts the most terrifying experience on anyone wandering within. Those eroded by fear are ultimately devoured. Luckily, Ari and Nao weren't fully consumed yet. Which meant we still had time. I stored them both away.
"...But this thing shouldn't be this widespread."
As far as I knew, Erosion filled just a single room with darkness. But it had already spread to the hallway.
...It must've already eaten a few people. And it'd try for more, growing to engulf the entire hotel.
Was this the thing the 'Call from the Future' warned about? That's when a doubt hit me. Were those earlier messages really from Nao? Maybe someone impersonated her to lure me in, feeding fresh prey to Erosion?
According to the call, Erosion would devour everyone at this demo. But it hadn't grown enough to cover the whole hotel yet. So it needed more bait. And the only group I'd peg for this...
One suspect came to mind. But now wasn't the time to dwell.
-Shhhsssh...
Something brushed past in the distance. Shining the light toward the sound revealed only a fleeting shadow. For an instant—a massive spider silhouette.
—So cute
—Humans so cute
—Cute enough to shove in my stomach
I shone the light down the hall.
...The hallway stretched on forever. Escape this way? Doubtful.
'No, impossible...'
I shook my head. With my trash stamina, no way I'd outrun this to safety. If escape wasn't viable, I'd have to hold the monster here.
I gritted my teeth and pulled out my phone.
Sent to Woo Jin-ho. Then -shhhsssh... again. Like it was closing in slowly. Then, clearly—from one spot. I aimed the light there: a massive spider, jaws gaping.
Jump scare.
"Eek...!"
My heart lurched. The instant I was sucked into its maw—my vision went totally black. Even the light vanished. Overwhelming darkness that swallowed the glow itself.
I clenched my fists. Don't freak out, Mayuri. No fear. No fear at all.
I knew what came next. The worst thing I could imagine. Not mental corruption—this anomaly forced you to witness your personal most terrifying experience.
'...Just don't let fear crush me.'
Luckily—or not—I'd fought Erosion in the game before. Getting eaten plunged the protagonist into a hallucination map shaped by their fears. Ghosts, zombies, monsters—whatever. Get caught, game over. Probably symbolizing full fear erosion. Classic RPG Maker trope.
Conversely, escape successfully, overcome fear, break free. Now it was a mental endurance battle. Whatever horror awaited, if I conquered it, I'd win. A nightmarish hell ahead, sure. But as long as fear didn't break me, Erosion couldn't claim me. And with Woo Jin-ho alerted, he'd handle it. Just stall till then.
That's when a sound hit my ears.
Blam blam! Blam-blam-blam! Bapparabam-bapparabam! Blam-blam-blam!
Reveille. The morning bugle.
Uh-oh.
"Rise! Trainees, rise! Rise and shine! Get up quick and change uniforms!"
I sat up. Right in front of me: the locker stand.