I Like the Penalty
"First, let me introduce today's guests for the show!"
Raopf led the show with the skill of a seasoned host.
Capable big sis moment. Approved.
My internal favorability rating for her ticked up a notch.
I'd picked up her memes and become a fan, but my scoring was still strict. She exuded an intellectual charm, but just that much. Maybe an extra five points at best.
Her current score was a solid 105 out of 100. More than enough to join my Containment Facility.
"First up, Group A!"
The civilian group.
Their faces were hidden behind masks.
Too bad.
All guests on this show wore masks.
As scores dropped, the masks peeled away from faces, revealing increasingly terrified expressions amid tears and screams—a spectacle that had huge appeal for anomalies.
The hype had died down now, but it was one reason the Owl Show had endured for so long.
It's a cruel show.
A perspective lost on enthusiasts like me.
Group A handled things so calmly and confidently that the audience hoping for panic was left disappointed.
It wasn't that they had hearts of steel immune to anomalies; Nahee, hidden among the staff, was hypnotizing and puppeteering them on the fly.
I spotted Nahee and Jang Namgyu in the staff seats, mimicking anomalies.
Their acting was subpar.
I'd have to give them pointers on the details later.
Group B passed without issue too.
"Next up, Group C!"
Park Seongho and Yoon Eunbyeol.
Standing arrogantly before the anomalies, they screamed Response Bureau agent—dressed in the organization's signature formal-yet-practical uniforms, openly flaunting their status.
Self-introductions could say whatever; the rulebook for the mission hadn't restricted them. That was why Group C had been so cocky.
"Response Bureau again, I see?"
"If you stopped broadcasting, we wouldn't have to come."
"Wouldn't it be better to just block agents from participating altogether?"
Raopf grinned slyly.
"But that won't happen. My show is fair. Even if it means agents here to ruin it."
Her words brimmed with overwhelming pride in the broadcast.
"Don't agents have wishes? Pass our quiz show, and you get a Wish Voucher. We can't grant everything, but anything our studio can do? Done!"
"Immortality, resurrection, murder instruction, curing the incurable—easy peasy. We've had agents wish for those before. Won't you follow in their footsteps?"
"None passed. I don't bet my life on stupid gambles. Response Bureau agents never compromise."
Park Seongho declared it firmly, then glanced sidelong at Yoon Eunbyeol beside him.
This guy—picking fights and posturing to look cool since earlier... was it all to impress Yoon Eunbyeol?
It made his string of idiotic moves make sense, at least.
Chasing love in a life-or-death game.
Smart guy, in his own way.
"What a shame! You could've had anything."
Every line dripped mental pollution. Just conversing had civilians already bleeding from their noses.
Especially that seductive way she waved the Wish Voucher—even I found it dangerously tempting.
"Everything possible..."
"Interested?"
Raopf approached after catching my mutter.
The gap between her fresh, smiling beauty and her jellyfish-like body of coiled tendons was irresistibly alluring.
Containment won't be easy.
Those tendons, bristling with reverse-facing barbs for tearing flesh, were coated in some unidentified sticky fluid. Chains wouldn't hold.
Something jabbed my neck.
Turning, I saw Tosami, my Ratman teammate. A woman with rat ears.
She had human ears too, for the record. Anomalies often treated body parts like currency, so they carried spares.
"Answer something. The anomalies' eyes are gleaming."
Do not stay silent during self-introductions. Any response is fine. No answer means ejection from the show. Destination unknown.
"Problem?"
"No. Just wanted to watch you up close for a while."
"...Weirdo. Do you."
I met Raopf's eyes and said,
"I'm a fan, Raopf. Fell for you at first sight."
"...Pardon?"
"My wish? Living happily ever after with you. Location doesn't matter."
"Great joke, heard it loud and clear. Met a lot of agents, but Response Bureau has all types, huh? Hope you snag that Wish Voucher and make it real!"
I'd poured out my heart, but she brushed it off. Actions speak louder, I guess.
Desperate to kiss her right then, but with civilians around and unknown consequences, I held back.
Whew... not easy.
"Before we dive into the quizzes! As you know, one more rule rundown!"
Each team's score appeared: 100 points.
"Below zero? Eliminated! Highest score per round survives; final two teams do deathmatch! All other rules allowed! Anxious? Ask me!"
"First, Speed Quiz Show! -5 points per wrong answer! 5-second limit!"
Karaoke-machine applause blared as questions popped up one after another.
Whether you knew or not, one every five seconds.
Q. What was defined before epithalamium?
Q. What does Article 5, Clause 13 of the U.S. Constitution say?
Q. What's the fair price for a helicopter from Amryuhoe?
Q. From the options, what's the right thing to say to the Hanbit Stay Hotel receptionist?
Questions impossible to know rained down—you'd fail if clueless.
Without the ghosts' help, dropping out here wouldn't have been weird.
"Miss one around now. Adjust score to minimize penalties."
Too high a score or no elimination sometimes brought tough questions with penalties. To last long in this quiz show, minimize those.
Following Tosami's guide, we missed some occasionally, and Raopf showed displeasure.
"Containment folks always fudge scores to dodge penalties. Matches must be fair. Rules followed."
After roughly a thousand quizzes, scores were:
"Such capable guests again! Show can go on. Next: OX Quiz on understanding teammates! -5 per person, lie detectors attached!"
Scores dropped, but worse: petty questions shattering pride and sowing team distrust.
Luckily, we'd agreed beforehand not to take offense and trained thoroughly.
Q. I believe this person would sacrifice for me.
I pulled O without hesitation.
Group D existed to tank penalties. I was ready for mental attacks; Tosami for body parts.
Tosami pulled O too.
Q. Honestly, I'd do better alone.
X.
Too easy. Two's better than one.
Q. I feel intense disgust at my partner's habits.
"Time to miss some."
Tosami said, ears perking. Thanks to BeardMaster, all I saw were those ears. Soft, perfect to pet.
"Now, Round 1 final question! Wrong answer? Penalty and interview!"
Penalties unknown, but resisting worsened them. Our team had to miss and pay.
Plus Raopf's interview shredded sanity—so I had to be the one wrong.
Q. If only one can leave, I'd yield to my partner!
I pulled X without hesitation.
"All same answer? Honest survival instinct! That's it! Love this raw humanity!"
Raopf beamed; Tosami's eyes widened in shock.
"You... supposed to miss?"
"I know."
"Then miss!"
As Tosami bickered with me, Raopf announced.
"All truth, so penalty escalates—"
Raopf paused mid-sentence.
"...Wait, a lie in there. Group D, heart mask. No yielding to partner. A lie?"
She pointed at me.
"Yes. Lie."
She was nose-to-nose in a blink.
Interview time.
"Reason?"
"Told you before."
Raopf tilted her head at my words.
"What'd you say?"
"My wish is happy life with you. Anywhere fine."
"......"
Raopf's face seemed to crumple slightly. Imagination?
"...Mocking like a pro?"
Tosami snickered, nudging my shoulder. Her ears were a bit red.
Raopf-type anomalies damaged just by proximity; ears probably flushed near-bleeding.
"Not mocking."
True heart.
Lie detector was on.
"What? Detector vanished at interview start. Knew and mocked, right?"
Unfair much?
Explains the shit-eating grin.
"Not the answer I hoped! Keep saying you like me. Shall we check if true?"
"Penalty revealed! The punishment is—!"
"That's..."
"Harsh."
"Taunt backfired?"
Penalty dropped; Tosami, Group C, and staff-seat Jang Namgyu gasped in dismay.
"Skinship with me for 10 minutes!"
Raopf grinned demonically. A smile to gouge eyes for.
"Can't pull away. Eyes must meet."
Her voice alone churned guts, splintered mind. Barely holding sanity; eye contact? Risky.
"Heh heh heh, nice, right?"
"Yeah. Bit disappointing too."
Jang Namgyu shuddered at imagined tentacles ravaging his brain. Actual fishy blood dripped from his nose.
Raopf's presence warped mind and body.
Jeongchan bro. Rough. Can he endure?
Amid collective shock, the man with crumbling mask showing lower face grinned through nosebleed.
Bleeding alone signaled his limit. Heavy interest from Raopf already burdened him mentally.
"Skinship how far? Backdoor too?"
...!
Jang Namgyu was floored by the unrelenting mockery.
"Team leader's the real deal—not just any fast-track 9th Grade."
"Huh? Y-yeah... no one's just anyone."
Jang Namgyu could only watch Jeongchan taunt the anomaly to the end, licking his lips beyond mere composure.