[2019, May 27, Monday, 7:20 PM]
[Lee Joon: Number of Attempts - 2]
[Ghost Story Points: 711]
[Causality: 33%]
"Stop dwindling. Hurry up and guide
us, right now. To a safe place."
The teachers flinched at my words.
The Vice Principal quickly regained her composure and asked me.
"...Then what about you? Are you planning to follow me?"
I nodded calmly.
The teachers of the Void cult looked at me as if it was absurd.
"....."
"....."
Even the club members looked bewildered, but the commotion from the upper floor grew louder and louder.
Thump, thump-
Murmur, murmur-
Rumble, rumble-
A few students who had seen the unspeakable sight from upstairs were
hurriedly going back down the stairs without a word.
Amidst the clamnor of students scrambling up and down in a chaotic rush.
"Since we finished early, do you want
to go grab something to eat together?"
"Let's get some spicy rice cakes and
then hit up the coin karaoke."
"Huff, huff, up, upstairs. There's something weird up there. We need to get down, everyone…"
"Kyaak, kyaaaaak...."
"Stop pushing-"
"What is it? What's up there?"
We stood facing each other in the hallway in the midst of the clamor of students moving up and down the stairs.
Soon, the third-year representative teacher strode toward us.
"You better stop saying nonsense and just go home. Young miss, come here. Come with us."
"....."
Perhaps it was the situation, but they just openly referred to Hayoon with their own familiar term without hesitation.
However, Hayoon just stood there
expressionlessly.
We glanced at her, but Hayoon showed
no reaction at all.
Rumble-
"Hehehehe... "
At the same time, maniacal laughter echoed from the floor above.
The third-year representative teacher
hurriedly turned to look at the Vice Principal.
"Uh, what should we do? Maybe we should head to the parking lot now and get in the cars-"
"..That be difficult."
Vice Principal Jang Yeok said with a grim expression.
After a brief exchange of glances among them and looking at Hayoon who remained motionless.
The Vice Principal raised her head and
spoke quietly.
"....Come inside for now. All of you. To the teachers' office."
After saying that, the Vice Principal quietly walked alone, opened the door to the teachers' office, and went inside.
Creak-
The members exchanged uneasy glances, looking at the open door of the teachers' office, then at me.
Sunah, her expression somewhat cold,
glared at Hayoon, who remained silent.
'...They're all probably confused.'
They might even be feeling betrayed.
But given the urgent situation and the fact that time would loop back anyway, there was no reason to explain this now.
I looked around at them, then nodded.
"...Let's go in first. Follow me."
"o-okay."
"Uh, yeah."
"Kyaaaaak..."
"Aaaaagh....."
"What is it? What's going on?"
And so, amid the chaos and confusion of the students.
And under the watchful eyes of the other teachers, we entered the main teachers' office on the second floor.
Creak- Thud.
"....."
As the teachers followed and closed the door, the noise outside subsided, and the teachers' office seemed so peaceful it was hard to believe it was the building where a catastrophe was taking place.
The evening sunset streamed in through the windows, and the humidifiers on the teachers' desks softly released wisps of mist.
Soon, the Vice Principal walked a few steps and stood near her large desk, then slowly turned to face us.
Hayoon naturally stepped forward and confronted the Vice Principal.
We tried to follow, but the teachers from the Void cult suddenly extended their hands and stopped us, forcing us to stand a few steps behind.
"...I'm sorry, Miss."
"....."
"It's all.. my fault."
The Vice Principal spoke with a resigned tone, as if she had given up on something.
The backlight shining on her, standing with her back to the window, cast her face into an even deeper shadow.
"From the beginning... to the very end.."
"Exactly."
Hayoon answered in a clear voice, as if making a definitive judgment.
"It's all your fault."
"....."
Vice Principal Jang Yeok's expression grew even darker.
Her demeanor was the complete opposite of Hayoon's, who was staring coldly.
"..P-Prez... What's going on...?"
Gyeongwon cautiously crept closer and asked me.
Dukhun also approached quickly but quietly and poked me on the back.
"What happened... In Hayoon... Was she some kind of spy or something...?"
I couldn't really answer.
Amid the bewildered members, suddenly.
"Die- You evil b*tch-!!"
Suddenly, Sunah, with a whoosh-!, dashed forward at full speed from among us with a boxcutter.
Whoosh-
Sunah's small frame lunged forward almost as if flying.
Just as the boxcutter's blade was about to pierce Hayoon's back.
Hayoon glanced back, then immediately raised the butt of the shotgun in her hand and struck Sunah in the jaw as she was lunging at her from behind.
Just as Sunah's neck snapped with a spray of saliva, Hayoon spun around and cleanly smashed the shotgun against Sunah's head.
Smack-!
"...."
"Ugh."
A horrific sound of skull meeting steel. With that, Sunah let out one last cry, as if biting through her tongue, and then thud,collapsed to the ground.
"...!".
"What...!"
The teachers of the Void cult flinched briefly before aiming their guns at us belatedly, and I hurried over to Sunah, who had collapsed.
"S-Sunah. Sunah?"
I rush at Sunah who lying on the ground.
"....."
What happened? Did the monster do
something...?
"....."
No. Sunah's body was clean.
I shook Sunah, who lay with her eyes closed like a baby bird, but there was no response.
Hayoon looked down at the two of us with an icy expression.
'...What? Why is she suddenly acting like this?'
It was an unexpected situation, so I held Sunah close and stared blankly for a moment.
Hayoon raised her own gun and aimed the last remaining bullet at me.
"Get up, Joon."
"Put her down and get up."
"....."
"Kyaaah.. Kyaaaah."
The students' commotion, sounding distant as if in a dream.
In the teachers' room, only the humidifier was emitting steam in the lingering silence, with Hayoon aiming a gun at me.
"I'll count to three. One. Two."
"....."
I put Sunah down and slowly stood up.
Then, in front of everyone, I stood up and faced Hayoon, who was aiming the gun, and locked eyes with her.
A moment of silence passed between us, and Hayoon gently lowered her eyebrows as she asked.
"What's Wrong, Joon?"
"...What?"
"You're looking at me with resentful eyes."
I paused for a moment, then closed my eyes instead of answering.
Hayoon continued, her voice still soft and clear, yet somehow commanding.
"She's the one who rushed at me first."
"..."
"Do you think I should have been stabbed instead?"
When I opened my eyes again, she was still aiming at me without the slightest movement.
I let out a faint sigh and spoke.
"..Fine. But why did she jump out at you in the first place?"
"I don't know. Maybe she hates me."
Hayoon offered a slightly cold smile. Then, still aiming at me, she gestured with her chin toward the Vice Principal beside her.
"If you have any questions, ask them now. She will answer you."
"...."
"Quick."
The Vice Principal, who caught my gaze, looked dumbfounded, murmuring Huh? even in her gloomy state.
I glanced at the gun.
What was Hayoon planning? Why was she telling me to question the Vice Principal while aiming the gun at me?
Wouldn't they usually point a gun at the person who should be answering to threaten them?
But her gun was pointed at my head.
Hayoon's actions were full of things I couldn't understand, but thinking that I had to do what needed to be done, I bit my lips tightly once and then followed her instruction.
"..Vice Principal Tang Yeok, I-"
Thud- Boom!
The building shook violently for a moment. I stumbled briefly, then continued speaking.
"-I have a few questions for you."
"Do you really expect me to answer them now?"
The Vice Principal had a look of disbelief on her face.
Hayoon shot her another icy glare.
"Just answer them. He's going to die here anyway."
"....."
That's why she pointed the gun at me?
To kill me?
'.... In that case, she could just answer them herself.'
I stared at Hayoon with a puzzled expression at her contradictory behavior, but she silently kept the gun aimed at me, her gaze urging me to ask the Vice Principal whatever I wanted to know.
At that moment, the third-year representative teacher, who had been watching our standoff, stepped forward to intervene.
"....Young miss, we don't have time for this. We need to evacuate immediately-"
"Shut up."
The room froze at her cold words.
Hayoon narrowed her eyes and lifted
her chin.
"You were wrong anyway. The Vice
Principal almost abandoned me."
".....".
"Divine punishment will descend. Wait
for it."
"A-ah, Miss…"
At those words, the teachers of the Void cult instantly began trembling like aspen leaves.
"No, this can't happen... it can't..."
"Please.."
"Be quiet."
Once again, the teachers fell silent at
the cold, commanding tone.
Hayoon smiled at me with a gentleness that was the complete opposite of the situation.
"What are you doing? Hurry, Joon."
"....
"
"You just need to remember this scene. The image of the vicious traitor In Hayoon, who struck down and killed Sunah whom you cherished so much, and pointed a gun at you."
"....."
"Now. It's time to do what you have to."
Thud- Boom-
While she urged, the building shook again, so I nodded without waiting any longer and turned to the Vice Principal to ask questions.
"Vice Principal. First... when Teacher Choi Jungim tried to consume your strange symbol in the very beginning."
"...."
"Why didn't you stop her back then? If you had stopped her, couldn't all this have been avoided?"
Vice Principal Jang Yeok slowly raised her chin with a stiff expression.
Until now, her face had seemed strict and authoritative.
But at the moment, with her hair disheveled from running around and her flustered attitude toward Hayoon, all that was reflected was the image of a middle-aged woman who had failed.
Like a high-ranking official who had made an irreparable mistake.
The Vice Principal glanced at Hayoon again, as if seeking her judgment, but Hayoon only furrowed her pretty eyebrows.
"Huuuuuu.."
The Vice Principal let out a deep sigh
and then opened her mouth to speak.
"..Whatever Miss is thinking-"
"From now on, do not mention me."
The Vice Principal flinched, startled. Hayoon poked my shoulder sharply with the gun barrel, giving me a warning as well.
"You too. Don't mention me either."
"....."
"Just the two of you talk."
I quietly nodded, and after a moment of silent contemplation, the Vice Principal also bowed her head before continuing to speak.
"...I don't know what you're thinking, but I'l answer your question assuming it's something within my scope."
"....."
"Because... by that point, it was already
too late. Is that answer sufficient?"
A brief sentence.
But I nodded in response.
Because it was something I had already guessed.
Still, to make sure, I asked the Vice Principal again.
"So, you're saying that it was late for
Teacher Choi Jungim. She was in a state where she could turn into a monster at any moment. Is that it?"
"...."
The informal language was flowing naturally from my lips.
From the moment we first met, I had been trying to take the initiative to ask these questions, but now, seeing the Vice Principal so subdued under Hayoon's pressure, I felt a little sorry for her.
But suddenly switching to formal speech would also make me look weak, so I pressed on.
"Answer me. Am I right?"
The Vice Principal quietly nodded her head.
"..You are right."
"Okay. Then next question."
I quickly compiled a list in my head and asked the most urgent question first.
"If you had known in advance today, if you had known about Teacher Choi Jungim's strange behavior earlier in the day. would there have heen a way to subdue her somehow?"
"A way to subdue her, you mean....?"
"Like knocking her out by hitting the back of her head. Or drugging her to make her lose consciousness."
"...."
"Answer me."
Vice Principal Jang Yeok stared intently into my eyes.
With her back to the window, the backlight made it hard to see clearly, but her expression seemed to ask why I was asking such a thing.
While she was looking at me like that, Hayoon suddenly turned her head to glance at her. The Vice Principal flinched slightly, then nodded again.
"...That would be difficult. Both of it."
"Both?"
"Yes."
Suddenly, the building shook again, and we all staggered momentarily before regaining our footing.
Vice Principal Jang Yeok also stumbled, steadied herself against a desk, and then continued speaking.
"...By today, it was already too late. The moment any physical impact was applied, Teacher Choi Jungim would have immediately turned into a monster."
"What if several of us had beaten her, like when you locked the door and ran away, we almost defeated her."
"That's..."
The Vice Principal trailed off.
"..That was likely just a temporary suppression. To be certain, the only
temporary measure is to either burn her down completely until not a single cell remains or blow her head off. Like with the shotguns we have.."
"...."
"Of course, even blowing the head off would only stop her movements temporarily... but at least it would buy us some time. Time to pour the oil and set her on fire.."
As she said that, the Vice Principal glanced toward the third-year representative teacher. The representative teacher glanced at her,
then pulled out a plastic bottle from inside his coat.
It was a bottle filled with a yellowish liquid, probably gasoline.
'So they planned to subdue Teacher Choi Jungim with a gun and then immediately douse her with that to burn her.'
So, in the end, she had to be burned.
I pondered for a moment before speaking.
".How do you know so much about how to deal with that monster? When people from your side betray you, do they all turn into monsters like that? Is that why you're prepared for it?"
"....."
The Vice Principal stared at me intently instead of answering.
I rephrased the question and asked again.
"Tell me whether everyone turns into such monsters, or if only Teacher Choi Jungim ended up that way. Tell me."
"...."
"Answer me. I know much more than you think I do."
I took a step closer to the Vice Principal, who remained silent.
"The science teacher who died of heart attack before. I already know he tried to kill me with a ghost story but got killed instead."
"....!"
"Does Teacher Choi Jungim's condition only apply to her? Or do all of you turn into the same thing if you consume the totem? Just tell me that."
"..Haa."
The Vice Principal resignedly let out a sigh, as if there was no choice since I already know that much.
And perhaps because I crossed the line of what could be answered appropriately, her tone changed.
"It's different, brat. We're all different. We don't even know what will come out."
"Okay. Thank you."
I quickly nodded my head.
In other words, they came prepared with the materials to burn something immediately without knowing what would come out. It also implies that these people were already well-versed in methods to deal with various ghost stories.
I then asked the next important question.
"..But you all barged in with guns. Even ifit was to deal with Teacher Choi Jungim, can you really handle the aftermath after causing something of this scale? Dozens of people died, and a teacher was burned to ashes at the school?"
"Figure it out yourself."
The Vice Principal seemed to imply she had no obligation to explain that far and brushed it off.
Her face seemed unwilling to answer.
Hayoon also didn't react, and I sank back into thought.
'...Damn. If the method to deal with it is
this cumbersome, it won't work.'
If we provoke her slightly, she would
transform immediately, and to completely eliminate her, we even have to set her on fire.
But subduing a person by force and burning them on school grounds was impossible.
Even if we tried to do it outside, today was the day of the big event, so she wouldn't even try to go anywhere.
We needed a more discreet solution.
"Then instead of physical methods inside the school, what about something like drugs? Like using drugs to knock her out?"
In the timeline I would go back, Someone could give Teacher Choi Jungim sleeping pills to keep her quiet, then take her outside to either burn her or bury her.
Of course, we wouldn't be the ones doing it... That's something the Void cult would handle themselves. One way or another.
But the Vice Principal firmly shook her head.
"All the medication and coffee she takes together are psychoactive drugs and caffeine, essentially stimulants. I don't think it would work."
"...Hey, then f*ck it."
"...."
"Then how the f*ck did you plan to handle this and bring things all the way? If there's no way to quietly deal with it inside, and no way to knock her out and drag her outside, then what?"
"...Am I really taking criticism from you right now? An outsider?"
The Vice Principal raised her head with
a stern expression and frown.
Furious, I grabbed a textbook from the
nearby desk and threw it toward the
Vice Principal.
Thump-
Vice Principal Jang Yeok flinched and stumbled back after it hit her chest.
A few teachers growled, "That damn brat...", but I pointed angrily at the stern middle-aged woman.
"Hey, you b*tch. Do you even know how many people have died, even right now?"
"...."
"How many more did I sacrifice to get here? It's all because of you b*stards that things have come this far!"
The Vice Principal stiffened her face and leaned back wearily.
As I continued growling quietly, the building shook again, and we all staggered.
Thud- Rumble-
Even while regaining my balance, I didn't stop pointing accusingly at the Vice Principal.
"Now tell me the rest. What's the purpose of that symbol, why did Teacher Choi Jungim betray you, and who are you people really? Who do you serve?""
"...."
"Speak, you f*cking b*tch!"
The Vice Principal's expression grows increasingly rigid.
"...Since when did you and I have anything to do with each other? When did we ever have a conversation?"
"Shut up and answer everything! Now!"
The building shook again, and I strode towards the Vice Principal.
Hayoon's gun followed me, unwavering, as I moved.
I felt like grabbing the Vice Principal by the collar, but even in the crossfire, I had never thought of committing violence against an ordinary person, so I iust glared at her.
"Answer me. Now."
The Vice Principal looked at me with a
puzzled expression.
"What do you intend to do? Why are you asking me that?"
"Answer me! I don't have time!"
"No, you little brat who is still wet behind the ears. Step back."
"Answer!"
I finally couldn't help grabbing the middle-aged woman by the collar, clutching it tightly and lifting her up. The club members gasped in shock, and just as the teachers of the Void cult were about to rush forward with this brat really...!".
THỦD- BOOM! CRASHHHHHHH-
Once again, the building shook violently, and the sound of something crashing down could be heard from somewhere.
Then, as if the entire school was bursting apart, the cackling laughter of hundreds of voices, shrieking with glee echoed all around.
"Hehehehe.... hehehe.... hehe...."
We staggered wildly, nearly tumbling Over from the tremendous shaking.
"Uh, ugh!"
"D-Damn it...!"
The Vice Principal was the first to regain her footing and quickly gave orders to some of the teachers.
"Go out and check! Guard they entrance and don't let anyone come in here!"
"Yes!"
The teachers who received the order rushed out into the hallway, while I was still clutching the Vice Principal's collar.
Finally, the Vice Principal glared at me with a resentful look in her eyes.
"Fine, you little brat. Since it looks like everything's about to go to hell thanks to you, I'll just answer your questions."
"No, it's not. Just as your young miss said, isn't it all your fault? Because you, as the person in charge here, messed up, and now everyone is going to die, right?"
I shot back at the Vice Principal with a spiteful tone until the very end, but she glared at me, her eyes narrowed fiercely.
"Shut your mouth and listen quietly when I'm offering to answer. Choi Jungim, that b*tch, deserves divine punishment. She lured a few students from our school under the pretext of winning the science fair and made
them collect that symbol you saw. So, she was desperate to make them win at all costs, fearing the students would report her to me if she broke her promise. But once her preparations were mostly complete, her attitude became arrogant from start to finish,
probably because she had already planned to betray us anyway. And since you don't even know this, we call it a 'rosary,' you little brat. Are you satisfied with that answer now?"
The Vice Principal, firing off words like a machine gun, shoved me aside and strode briskly toward Hayoon.
"Miss, please come with us now. It's late, but if you evacuate now-"
"Shut up."
Hayoon, still aiming the gun at me, replied coldly.
Then, as if trying to listen carefully to something, she tilted her head and listened.
Whoooom-
"Hehehehe....."
Thud-thud- Boom!
Clang-! Clang-!
"... He's here."
"Who..?"
"In Taesang"