Chapter 149
"No one but you [would say] 'Ah, I'm looking forward to it.' Lee Seo-yeon looked absolutely thrilled, practically buzzing with excitement. Sure, part of it was the golden opportunity to tease the two of them at once, but I had a feeling she was genuinely looking forward to hanging out with this group. After all, she was the only extrovert among us. She was always the one taking the lead on stuff like this.
"...Fine, let's go. Where's this escape room cafe?"
"There's a huge one nearby if we drive a bit. Sound good?"
"...Yeah."
Lee Seo-yeon rattled off the spot like she'd known about it forever, and even Park Harin—with her sad puppy eyes—nodded in the end. You can't spit in the face of a smiling one, as they say. It'd be tough to say no when she was this pumped.
"But Harin, can't you handle scary stuff?"
"...It's not that I can't..."
Yoo Seol-ah stifled a laugh as Park Harin trailed off. Whether it was because escape rooms beat karaoke or she just wasn't thinking that far ahead, she dove right into teasing mode.
"There was this one time back in the day."
"...Hey, whatever it is, don't say it, Yoo Seol-ah."
"Think it was third year of middle school? We had a class bonding event, and everyone watched a horror movie together."
Yoo Seol-ah was already ignoring Park Harin's protests. Bonding events like that happened once or twice a year—sometimes off-site, but usually right in the classroom, huddled up watching movies and snacking. Especially in the late afternoon after classes, when it started getting dusky; horror flicks were a natural pick. I went to an all-boys middle school, but on bonding days, the whole place echoed with high-pitched screams. The fun was in watching everyone pretend they weren't scared... until they all shrieked together. Even I, way braver back then than now, found the dark school halls creepy at night. Turns out, everyone's the same.
"Yoo Seol-ah, come here."
"...Kyaa!"
Yoo Seol-ah stubbornly kept talking, batting away Park Harin's arms as they grabbed at her. She screamed, but she looked happy doing it. Watching them, you could tell they were true besties.
"Anyway, that night she calls me up, voice all shaky, begging me to come over."
"...Ughhh..."
"I thought something huge had happened, so I bolted over. What do I find? Her buried under the covers."
Was this the hidden side of a sports genius? Park Harin covered her flushed face with both hands. I'd always thought she was the epitome of cool—unlike Yoo Seol-ah's fake-it-till-you-make-it vibe—but everyone has their weaknesses.
"I asked what was up, and get this: her parents weren't home that night, and she was too scared to sleep alone. I was like, fine, whatever... but she wouldn't let me leave. So we ended up sleeping together."
Gap moe, they call it. But more importantly... she was that scared and still thought about sending you home alone? Yoo Seol-ah, you're low-key ruthless. Though to be fair, she's super polite from a distance, but once you're close, she says whatever's on her mind.
"...I didn't say 'absolutely not' or anything."
Park Harin mumbled, sounding totally defeated. At this point, who was who? Quiet types turn bold around friends—it's a thing. These two had known each other forever; it'd be weirder if they didn't rub off on each other.
"She was on the verge of tears, though. The movie was pretty spooky, but was it that bad?"
"It was set in a family home!... And they used mirrors, doors, windows—all that stuff to scare you. How am I supposed to deal?"
Middle school, huh? That movie was over four years old now, and she still remembered it that vividly? Must've been traumatic. Lee Seo-yeon jumped in, holding back a grin at Park Harin's reaction.
"Should we pick something less scary? I haven't been recently, but they expanded and added more premium rooms."
"...Anything too scary, and I might have a heart attack."
Park Harin finally threw in the towel, going full honest. Hearing the sincerity, Lee Seo-yeon shared the cafe's homepage link in our four-person group chat. It looked legit—big operation, sleek site, tons of unique concepts.
Escape rooms are all about solving puzzles via clues and logic to bust out of a locked room. Early ones were mostly just finding codes for locks, but as they proliferated, only the ones with killer original setups survived. Last time I went was summer break in high school sophomore year with friends. Newer spots like this probably had even wilder gadgets.
Yoo Seol-ah, scrolling the site, suddenly looked up.
"Hey, isn't this that place? The super famous Japanese escape room chain?"
"Yeah, exactly. They use the whole building."
Her words jogged my memory too. Escape rooms boomed in Japan before Korea, and they had massive scales—way bigger than you'd think. I'd seen a review vid of one taking over a five-story building. Immersion off the charts. Not that big here, probably, but same brand? Hype building.
"It's a ways off, though. Taxi?"
"No personal chauffeur?"
With Park Harin weakened, Yoo Seol-ah went full assault. Lee Seo-yeon chuckled awkwardly.
"I'm not my parents... like I'd have that."
"......"
...Having a personal driver in the first place was already rich-kid vibes, no? Yoo Seol-ah clammed up, her tease backfiring. Guess her sense of money gets wonky sometimes.
"Anyway, we need reservations. Lunchtime now, so spots open probably. Let's pick a theme first."
Big place meant ten themes, all with high-quality posters. Park Harin kept flinching, though—horror ones galore. Three out of ten screamed nightmare fuel. And even non-horror rooms had jump scares baked in. Screams incoming today.
"Harin said no scary stuff, right?"
"...Y-yeah, skip the five-star horror ones..."
Poster of a ghost leaping out of a TV. Movie adaptation, probably—even scarier in a room than on screen. Watching from a theater seat vs. pushing forward to solve puzzles despite the fear? Totally different.
Lee Seo-yeon—who once smirked while smashing corpse monsters—chuckled.
"Got it. No horror today. How much escape room experience you all got?"
"Twice for me?"
"Three times."
Not often, since you need 3-4 people usually. Lee Seo-yeon nodded and picked a few beginner-friendly ones.
"Second time for me too, but these are newbie recs. Skipped the scary."
Three options: murder mystery, folktale, and Grand Mage's Laboratory—which looked tricky to figure out.
"...W-what're you looking at."
I'd glanced at Yoo Seol-ah by reflex; her tone was guilty too. Great minds.
They made a lab too?
But with Park Harin here, joke stayed internal.
"Mystery might spook Harin too, so one of the other two?"
"Thanks... seriously."
Hearing the "couldn't sleep" story, even murder got nixed. Between the last two, we picked the lab—higher reviews.
"Grand Mage sounds intriguing."
"...Hmph."
Dead serious tone, and from her, it hit different. Lee Seo-yeon nearly burst out laughing, covering with a cough. The Grand Mage I knew floated heavy stuff to skip lifting and solo-water-gunned at pools. Lucky timing—she booked it, and we taxied over.
"...Whoa, this whole thing's the place?"
"Yeah, first floor was an arcade before—they expanded."
First time seeing floors 1 and 2 fully dedicated. Even thrill-averse folks like us would dig this. Pumped, we headed in; a super young staffer greeted us right away—classic escape room vibe.
"Lots of experience with escape rooms?"
"Not really."
While we all needed the rundown, Lee Seo-yeon differed.
"Over 100 rooms for me."
"...Ah, then a quick intro from me, and you can get the rest from her!"
Staffer's eyes lit up at "100 rooms." ...That means 100 rooms escaped? During wait time, I asked; she nodded. We all stared in awe.
"...It adds up after a while. Kinda addictive."
Fun, yeah, but pricey as a kid. Over 100? She's been at it forever—rich girl perks.
"Alright, premium room means pairs enter separate doors. Team up first, please!"
...Premium lived up to the name. Separate entrances? Wild.
"Once set, hold hands. I'll blindfold and guide you in."
Inevitable, but Yoo Seol-ah side-eyed me, turned away bashfully, and took my hand anyway.
...We don't hold hands much compared to other touches, so my head heated up oddly.
Lock tutorials done, blindfolded with walkie-talkies, we shuffled in per staff. "Start!"—blindfolds off. Seol-ah and I gasped in sync.
"Whoa... first time seeing production value like this."
"Same. Worth every penny."
Puzzles unsolved, but the interior? Insane. Hard to believe it was the same building—total Grand Mage lab immersion.
"...We don't really make potions like this, though. Kinda stereotypical..."
Yoo Seol-ah poked at a round flask of liquid. My weird look made her pivot fast, embarrassed.
"They said stand by the light first, right?"
"Yeah."
To the descending green glow—sensor triggered a wall video. Immortal Grand Mage falls for a mortal; we're their descendant unraveling magic secrets. Video ends; I side-eyed her again. She flushed crimson.
"...I wouldn't like anyone but you! Anyway, no!"
"...Haven't said a word."
"You gave me that 'who's the other guy' look!"
...Busted.
Short bicker over, we dove into the first mission step by step.