Walking into Hell #2
Gu Hye-na scratched the back of her head for a very, very long time. After a while, she asked me, “So your name was Ha Yeong-won, right? What happens to me now?”
Why was she asking me? I didn’t know either.
Gu Hye-na continued, “You gave me my body back. You must know something, don’t you? Why I had to go through all this. And what I’m supposed to do from now on. Explain it properly.”
I really didn’t know. I had just summoned her body as a desperate gamble to escape the head ghost, and it happened to work. Pure coincidence. But if I said that honestly, she’d probably get angry. And if she got angry… I’d die of a heart attack.
“Hye-na. It’s really good to meet you. The truth is, I’ve been wandering this corridor to save you. We finally met like this. Lucky, huh?”
“Really? To save me? Is that even possible?”
“Of course. I’m kind of a big deal. There’s something like a Dragon Ball at the end of this corridor that grants wishes. You know Dragon Balls, right? Anyway, with that, even dead people can be brought back to life.”
“Oh! But why do you want to save me?”
“That’s…”
“I get it. You like me, don’t you? I am pretty cute. I even appeared in a web drama. Did you see it? Charming Back-Alley City. I actually dream of becoming an actress. Though it’s all ruined now because of this.”
Charming Back-Alley City? What kind of drama title was that? I hadn’t seen it.
“Anyway, Hye-na. From now on, you need to cooperate with me. If someone else gets their hands on the treasure, saving you might become difficult. So you have to help me.”
“How am I supposed to help?”
“When other people besides me show up… attack them or something? You said you wanted to be an actress, right? Play the role of a terrifying ghost. A ghost part. Hey, that’s perfect for you.”
Hong Miri. Kwon Su-ho. I already knew people like them were after the corridor’s treasure. If I used the high school girl ghost Gu Hye-na… I could gain the upper hand in fights against them too. It was a pretty clever idea, even if I said so myself.
“Play a ghost? Fine. I’ve basically been doing that already. I’m not acting—I’m an actual ghost. So, how about it?”
What did she mean by “how about it”? When I hesitated, Gu Hye-na asked impatiently, “What are you doing out there right now? You really don’t know the web drama Charming Back-Alley City? It should’ve finished airing by now. What year is it?”
Gu Hye-na seemed curious about how the world had changed while she was dead. The shaman ghost had been exorcised, and the red mask hadn’t appeared today. The only ghost on the first floor was Gu Hye-na’s head, and since she was talking to me now, this floor was safe. So I ended up having quite a long conversation with her.
“The guy who killed me got caught? Serves him right, that bastard.”
“I helped catch him. My friends and I were the ones who found your body. We went through a lot.”
“Really? Most people wouldn’t have done that. You must’ve really liked me. Fine, I’m in a good mood! If I come back to life, I’ll go on a date with you. How’s that? Sounds good, right?”
I wasn’t sure what exactly had happened, but it seemed like I’d built up some favor with Gu Hye-na. Everything that had occurred so far had helped.
“When will I be able to come back to life? Do I have to go back to school? I’m probably listed as deceased right now—can that even be fixed? If I come back, people are going to be shocked, huh?”
“Well…”
Honestly, I didn’t know if bringing a dead person back to life was even possible. But looking at her now, Gu Hye-na seemed like a normal high school girl, aside from her severe princess syndrome. It was a shame that someone like her had gotten caught up with a crazy psychopath and turned into a ghost.
Gu Hye-na said, “And when I come back to life, I’m going to get revenge on that bastard Kwon Su-ho myself.”
“Kwon Su-ho?”
“Yeah! In a way, it’s because of Kwon Su-ho that I died!”
Why? I was dying to ask, but the sight of the furious high school girl ghost Gu Hye-na was so terrifying that my throat felt completely blocked. My body stiffened, making unnatural creaking sounds, my lips twisted uncontrollably, and her eyes—shattered like broken glass—glared wildly. Her pale face smiled in a way that sent chills down my spine. It was genuinely horrifying.
…Should I ask about Kwon Su-ho later? No! This could be important information! From my experience so far, it was always better to ask questions and gather information the moment something piqued my curiosity. So, with the help of my Strong Heart trait, I gathered my courage and asked, “What happened with Kwon Su-ho? If things go well, I might even help you get revenge.”
“Kwon Su-ho called me under the bridge. He said there was a new A-grade movie script and asked if I wanted the lead role. He told me to talk to the director about it.”
“Ah—the director…”
I recalled the good conversational skill I used when talking to girls. It basically meant echoing the end of their sentences with a realistic expression. In other words, the art of nodding along and adding timely interjections. Whether it worked or not, Gu Hye-na continued, “Yeah. But when I went under the bridge, Kwon Su-ho, who said he’d be waiting, was nowhere to be found no matter how hard I looked. It was so dark and scary, and just as I was about to head home, I got hit on the back of the head and died.”
“Ah, the back of the head. That must’ve hurt a lot.”
“Oh, come on. Don’t interrupt. Anyway, it’s obvious Kwon Su-ho set a trap for me. Anyone can see that, right?”
If Gu Hye-na’s words were true, it made sense that Kwon Su-ho had deliberately lured her under the bridge to kill her. But there was one thing wrong with her story. As far as I knew, Gu Hye-na hadn’t died from being hit on the back of the head—she’d been decapitated. That was what the police report said. In other words, she’d been knocked unconscious by the blow to the head and then had her throat slit while still alive. But Gu Hye-na didn’t seem to know that part.
Anyway, her story raised two questions in my mind.
1. Why did Kwon Su-ho set a trap for Gu Hye-na?
2. Were Kwon Su-ho and the psychopathic killer Kim Hae-il working together?
“But why would Kwon Su-ho deliberately set a trap for you?”
“That’s because my wallet…”
………………
Gu Hye-na suddenly stopped mid-sentence. The mere fact that the high school girl ghost had fallen silent filled me with a terror that made me want to wet myself. When she was talking, I could filter her image in my mind as a haughty aspiring actress, but when she went quiet, the horrifying ghost face felt all the more vivid. I opened my mouth first to shake off the restless feeling crawling over my skin like ants.
“Why? What about your wallet?”
“I still don’t completely trust you. I can’t tell you everything as it is.”
I see. Jeong Seok would’ve said something like, “It seems your favorability isn’t high enough to obtain information yet.” That was exactly it.
Still, I’d confirmed that Kwon Su-ho’s lost wallet was connected to Gu Hye-na.
“Bring Kwon Su-ho to me. Then I’ll tell you the truth. Until then, I won’t talk to you either. I can’t trust anyone.”
The vengeful high school girl ghost Gu Hye-na said this and disappeared into the darkness. It was extremely eerie. I worried she might suddenly change her mind, decide to kill me, and come charging out of the shadows. It seemed best for me to escape this place quickly too.
Should I check my status first? Both the talismans on the basement and first floors were gone. The first-floor entrance was also closed. If there was a way for me to escape, it was by opening the second floor. Praying that there would be a statue on the second floor as well, I decided my best option was to take a gamble using the Paper Crane Yu Da-hee had given me.
“Status Window.”
Description: Once a promising individual, you have been wasting time in meaningless daily life. But even a broken clock points to the correct time twice a day.
『Shop ◀ Click to Open』
『Clinic ◀ Click to Open』
『Training Ground ◀ Click to Open』
『Mercenary Corps ◀ Click to Open』
My current funds were 850 points.
Welcome to the Level 3 Shop. We sell various items to help warriors in battle.
Raising the shop level will add new products and apply discounts.
Shop Level 3 (Lv MAX)
1. Trait Draw Ticket - 80P
2. Capsule Draw Ticket - 80P
3. Unlock Locked Items - 80P
4. Open Old Building 2nd Floor - 800P
The points needed to open the second floor were 800. That was enough. Still, just in case, I decided to use the advice function.
“Advice.”
Broken Clock’s Advice: Without challenge, there is no achievement — Benjamin Franklin
Right. It meant I had to take on challenges to achieve something. I moved my finger and spent 800 points.
Ding-.
The Old Building’s 2nd floor has been opened.
The moment those words appeared before my eyes—
Uuuuuuung-.
The ground beneath my feet shook violently. It felt like an earthquake. Since I’d never experienced such a strong quake before, I lost my balance and fell over.
# # #
When the earthquake ended, the air felt even cooler and colder. Something about the atmosphere had changed. I could feel it. I checked the map and headed toward the stairs leading to the second floor. There were no ghosts blocking my way, so reaching the stairs was easy.
Finally, I arrived at the second-floor stairs. The moment I lifted my leg and stepped onto them, a chill ran down my spine. Honestly, I was scared. The second floor was an unknown even to me. But I couldn’t stay on the first floor forever, so I moved forward, step by step, toward the second floor.
And eventually, I arrived.
The second floor.
The second floor was similar to the first yet vastly different. While it shared the old building’s corridor structure, the walls were covered in horrifying graffiti.
“This is hell.”
“The devil lives in the deepest place.”
“Kill me.”
Red letters, as if written in blood. Feeling uneasy, I took the paper crane out of my pocket. It was the one I’d received from Yu Da-hee. She’d said that if I placed it on my palm and blew on it, the crane would fly and reveal the location of the statue with the talisman.
“Hoo-.”
I blew hard on the paper crane. It floated gently into the air and began slowly flying in a certain direction. Its speed was similar to my walking pace.
Sssssss-.
At the end of its flight, there would be a statue that could help me escape! Cheering inwardly, I followed the paper crane.
But there was a problem.
Thud thud thud thud thud thud thud thud thud thud thud-.
Something was making a very loud noise behind me and approaching. It sounded like someone deliberately stomping their feet to create noise between floors.
“……”
I looked around. On the first floor, there had been lockers and classrooms to hide in, but on the second floor, either there were none or I just hadn’t found them—there was no visible shelter. Ssssss-.Thud thud thud thud thud-. The paper crane flew slowly. And behind me, a strange presence was chasing after me.
“Paper crane, you bastard. Why are you going so slow…!”
I was in serious trouble. I figured if I saw any room nearby, I should hide in it. Just then, I spotted a place labeled “Music Room.” It seemed like a good idea to go inside and hide.
Creak-!
Luckily, the door wasn’t locked either!
Buzz buzz buzz buzz-.
Tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock.
But inside the music room, something was hanging from the ceiling, swinging left and right. A metronome? A device for keeping time? But it was way too big for that.
Flick-.
When I lit my lighter and took a closer look, I gasped and fell backward.
“Ugh! Hic!”
My breath caught in my throat. What was hanging in the air was a corpse. The body of a woman with an extremely elongated neck was suspended from a high rope on the ceiling, swinging back and forth. And from its mouth came a steady tick-tock sound, just like a metronome.
“Tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock-.”
…The Metronome Ghost!