Chapter 129
Chapter 129
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 129
Chapter Title: What Happened at the Abandoned Hospital (4)
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Game start: 30 minutes.
The VTubers' playthroughs were accelerating at a rapid pace. No matter how scary or painful something is, you eventually adapt and get used to it, right?
Aside from Sara's early dropout—her hot-tempered personality plus an unexpected weakness to horror—the rest of the VTubers were throwing themselves headfirst into the terror, determined to keep going.
I'd figured Sara would be the most depressed about dropping out first, but seeing her happily munching on snacks while spectating actually put my mind at ease.
Of course, this was my planning, purely for the viewers' entertainment, but I still felt a twinge of guilt for scaring my cute junior like that.
"That said, the first floor's just basic-level stuff, but they're freaking out way more than I expected."
Honestly, it didn't scare me at all.
Maybe because I handcrafted those things myself? Even shoved right in my face, all I could think was, Ah, shoulda smoothed that part out more, or Needed extra liquid effects there—just regrets.
You know how they say 19+ artists don't get turned on by their own work? Yeah, I totally got that vibe now.
"Man, I feel like I could've done it even better."
It left me with regrets, but not in a bad way.
Regrets mean room for improvement next time. Having growth potential was always exciting.
"Snacks are so damn expensive these days."
I grabbed a cookie and popped it in my mouth. Dubai Chewy Cookies—8000 won a pop? It was enough to make my head spin, but what can you do? That's the economy now.
Just a few months ago, anything over 4000 won at a café felt pricey. Seven years really hits you sometimes.
Excluding Myth, the most entertaining to watch was Shiro.
Half-resigned, sniffling her way through the abandoned hospital, then delivering perfect screams at every jumpscare. That was the fun part.
She reacted so earnestly(?) to everything I made. Impossible not to enjoy watching.
And the most surprising was Pone. This Japanese VTuber who loves mystery-nation tteokbokki, seems to have taken the CSAT, and speaks Korean fluently enough to win awards—she showed zero fear.
Even with a grotesque bio-doll's freakishly long teeth right in front of her, she didn't flinch—instead, she leaned in super close to analyze them. Gave me chills.
Hey, I'm glad she's praising it, but not scared at all? Mixed feelings bubbling up inside.
"But seriously, isn't this amazing? You guys might not get it, but the immersion is off the charts for me. Wow, incredible!"
You'd think Pone was dominating the scores from this, but her quirky fourth-dimensional side kept her from racking up too many points.
Every single jumpscare? She'd freeze for at least five minutes, observing and marveling. Grateful as the creator, but viewers must wonder if that's allowed.
Fun watching viewers vent their frustration—I'm rooting for her, after all—but the players might actually go insane.
1st:Myth (6)1st:Mika (6)3rd:Pone (4)4th:Shiro (3)5th:Yui (1)
Eliminated: Sara Iris
"Oh, Mika's putting in the work too."
Myth and Mika were neck-and-neck at the top. Must be their streaming experience—they pushed forward steadily despite the horror.
"Kinda spot on, but... do these people know Myth too well?"
Guess after seven years of me lying comatose, the fans who'd stuck with Myth really knew her inside out.
As I monitored the chat and streams, keeping tabs on my creation's results, the competition raced toward the finish.
'Still tied.'
Mika caught her breath, gripping the camcorder tight as she eyed the scoreboard.
She'd been through hell on the first floor, but her resolve to beat Myth and snag QWER's avatar burned strong.
"Hoo, haaa... How's everyone holding up? Not too freaked out, right?"
"It's all bravado, you jerks. This place is legit scary, okay?"
Wet towels snagging her feet, shattered glass, floor rats, ceiling rattles with falling dust. Plenty of scares, but manageable so far.
Nothing like that bathroom mirror ghost level—
"Huh? Six points?"
Mika froze.
She quickly replayed the last 30 minutes in her head: flying papers, floor rat, wet towel, dust, mirror ghost.
That was five. Why six—? The question hit like thunder, and she bolted.
Viewers buzzed about Mika suddenly dashing off without a word.
They questioned the six points too, but no one reached the truth faster than her.
'Based on QWER's past moves—if I were QWER, how would I design this map?'
No way it'd be a boring map where everything's one point.
She doubted QWER made something that simple. An accidental camcorder gimmick? No, Mika was certain otherwise.
QWER wouldn't allow a sloppy gimmick like that.
This had to be a scoring system.
'If I figured it out, no way Myth-unnie missed it.'
She wasn't a genius, but no way she'd lag behind on QWER-related insights.
"Gotta head to the second floor now."
Think about it: In the intro video, QWER freely explored the first floor, no issues.
Even had time to go home for a nice meal. So how'd QWER vanish? Amid the fear-blurred logic and memories, Mika found her answer.
"Got the mission to go to the second floor... and poof, disappeared. Means the second floor's that dangerous—and terrifying."
And worth way more points. Her theory might be wrong, but with the first floor mostly cleared, no reason to stick around.
Mika stood before the long, massive staircase to the second floor.
Ominous energy seeped from the stairs themselves—gave her a bad vibe right away.
"Hoo."
She steadied her breath. First floor was packed with jump-scares like this—what horrors awaited above?
But that wasn't reason to run.
She had to beat Myth somehow, right?
Steel her courage and resolve—Mika headed up to the second floor.