Chapter 2
Four children were struggling to climb the mountain. And then one of them suddenly complains.
"Oh, it's hard! Do we really have to climb the mountain? It's night!"
Said Kim Eun-jeong, one of the two girls with relatively weak stamina. She hates using her body, so she joined the [Mystery Investigation Club] to laze around.1
Her friend Shin Ha-rim is also a member of this club. However, Eun-jeong did not expect that she would climb a mountain as a club activity. She was thinking it would end with collecting scary stories on the Internet.
Shin Ha-rim flinched after hearing that. Kim Eun-jeong came here because the majority of the members agreed, she was the only one against it.
It was because Ha-rim thought there was no better way to submit club activities reports as summer vacation assignments. She was just trying to fulfill her role as the president...
Then, Lee Kyeong-min, who is the most rational of the group, said while his glasses were shining.
"How is it that there are no haunted spots nearby? This is a famous place at our school, so if we say we've been there, it'll get a lot of attention. If that happens, I will receive a certificate of merit and a lot of prizes!"
And beside him, Yoo Suho, a male student so tall he didn't look like someone from elementary school, helped.2
"That’s right. Besides, if you don’t give a good report, the club might be disbanded."
Ha-rim pumped her fists after hearing these two opinions. She thought she did a good job. It was worth it to entice them to go to a haunted spot and enjoy the thrill.
At this point, Kim Eun-jeong had no choice. She put up with her displeasure and continued to climb the mountain. As rumored, there was a large western-style mansion at the top. A mansion so large that even a flashlight couldn't fully illuminate it. Yoo Suho let ou an exclamation.
"Wow, I never thought I would see a mansion like this in my country."
Then, Lee Kyeong-min explained from the side.
"It must have been built in the past when western culture was introduced and western-style mansions became popular. A mansion like this on top of a mountain... Rich people have a lot of eccentricities."
Ha-rim was delighted as she patted her aching leg. Finally arrived! However, the face of Eun-jeong next to her wasn't good.
"Eun-jeong, what's wrong?"
"It's creepy and it makes me feel uncomfortable..."
"Isn’t that what haunted spots are supposed to be?"
"It is..."
She was feeling uncomfortable, so she decided to quickly take a picture as evidence and go back. The club is important, but friends come first.
Anyway, there would be no wild beasts, let alone ghosts, so it would be over soon. Yoo Suho confidently stood in front and entered the mansion.
"The inside is cleaner than I thought."
Kyeong-min walked in.
"No, it's a mess. What fell? A chandelier?"
"I felt like I had to say that line for some reason."
The mansion could not be said to be in good condition even with empty words. It's a dark night, so they have to shine a light to check what's ahead, stepping on the chandelier debris strewn on the floor.
Kyeong-min was so focused about the discomfort of walking between the debris that he didn't notice the red blood stains on the floor.
Eun-jeong said.
"Wow, it’s really creepy here. Isn't it on a different level from other haunted spots?"
Ha-rim switched her cell phone to camera mode to fulfill her duties as the president. After all, you need a photo to write the report.
"I'll take a picture."
A clicking sound filled the mansion. Kyeong-min took out his notebook and surveyed the surroundings, while Suho took the lead and removed dangerous objects such as shards of glass. Eun-jeong stayed by Ha-rim's side as she warned others not to walk alone.
Kyeong-min found something. A large mirror up the stairs to the second floor. The large mirror was wrapped in cloth. Kyeong-min carefully unwrapped it. It was because he was curious about the design of the old western-style mirror.
He took down the cloth. In the mirror was a pretty girl like a doll. For a moment, Kyung-min mistook himself looking at a painting rather than a mirror, but then realized. It's real. It is a real ghost! Kyeong-min screamed.
It was Suho who reacted immediately.
"What happened!"
Ha-rim and Eun-jeong followed behind. What they witnessed was the real thing out of the many fakes. There is a ghost in the mirror. A beautiful girl ghost.
With a knife...
POV Switch - Ella
It must have been unreasonable to hope not being seen with the cloth that was hastily put. I thought for a moment about what to do with the four children who were scared to see me in the mirror.
Right now I am Ella. Let's think about how Ella treated them in the original story.
-Wow! You have so many friends! Then you should play games, right?
First of all, she proposes a game to the main characters with a cute tone and facial expression. Hide-and-seek.
Kyeong-min carefully asked first what would happen if he didn't play the game.
-Of course, I'm going to kill you~!
After hearing the answer, Kyeong-min has no choice but to participate. The rules of the game are simple. You win if you get to the front door by avoiding [Ella In The Mirror]. Obviously, if you lose, you die.
And at the end of her words, Ella, as if showing mercy, said that while it's one at a time, if one of them wins, she will spare the rest.
Then, Suho tried to go first, but Kyeong-min was faster because he was confident in the game.
At this moment, Kyeong-min becomes a playable character, and the player controls him, being able to save and load the game. What happens to Kyeong-min who reached the front door?
He dies.
Ella doesn't keep her promise. As she swings the knife by the mirror, Kyeong-min's throat is cut and he falls to the ground.
-Kyaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!
Seeing such a shocking scene, children who are mere elementary school students cry, scream, and uproar. Of course, the front door could not be opened because of Ella's power.
Now the game changes the playable character to Ha-rim and the victory conditions are different. Defeat Ella.
There are three survivors, but if Ha-rim, the player, avoids Ella's eyes and breaks all her mirrors or burns her mansion, her powers will weaken and they will be able to escape the mansion.
The ruthlessness of the Game Producers who killed Kyeong-min, that sacrificed himself for the sake of the other children, makes me shudder.
'Except for the main character, the other two survivors will die one after another even if they get outside.'
Of course, I don't have the guts to help the doomed characters. Knowing what kind of disaster will happen if the original story is twisted... About the main character who continues to explore the secrets and somehow achieves results.
What if the progress goes a little wrong and the protagonist dies sacrificing himself for others? Then, what will become of this world!
Can you reach the "Ending"?
Even so, the minimum conscience within me is crying out not to kill them.
No matter how important the original story is, I'm honestly not confident in killing people.
Even though I know what I should do, I just can't take the lives of children. You got to be joking.
Once again, it's impossible to help them. I can't figure out how to help them with this body trapped in the mansion.
Even if I intervene in the original work, it is not now.
If so, don't kill. For now, I give the horror similar to the original as much as possible so that the history is not distorted.
Yes, this is for the best.
Then let's start playing.
Keep things flowing as closely as possible to the original!
"Hi, I'm Ella~! I live in a mirror!"
Deliberately making a cute voice. I feel my stomach twisting, but I have to act like a crazy bitch. I'm wondering if I'm doing it correctly, but it can't be helped.
"Are you... Are you really a ghost...?"
When Ha-rim asked, I pretended to be angry.
"A ghost?! Ella is just trapped inside the mirror!"
Ignoring the flinching and surprised Ha-rim, she said with a pitiful expression.
"I'm stuck in the mirror... I was so lonely! Did you know? I killed the snail hiding in the mansion. Because I was bored!
Then I also killed the cat. Because even though Ella said Ella was lonely, it didn't even listen!"
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"Then a bigger one came in and I killed that too! Why? Of course it's because I'm lonely and alone... So lonely that I want to kill everything I can see!!!!"
"Heek!"
Basically, crazy bitches are unpredictable things. It shakes the psychology of children who were anxious about facing a ghost.
Okay, seeing their reaction, I think the acting is fine. The distorted face was restored and changed to a terrifyingly calm expression.
The children were so overwhelmed by this attitude that they stayed quiet.
"Still~? I'm glad my friends are here."
"Fri... Friends?"
"Yeah! Friends! You really don't want to be friends with Ella? Then that's what it would happen?"
I pointed my hand under the fallen chandelier. When Eun-jeong shines a flashlight on it, she finds (past) me under the chandelier.
"Heo-eok! That... That person is dead!"3
"Hu... Huh."
Suho is shocked and Eun-jeong even sheds tears. Kyeong-min calmly asks me.
"What do you want from us?"
“It's a simple game! You're playing with poor Ella! The game is hide-and-seek! If you go out through the front door without getting caught by Ella, you win!"
"What if... If I don’t play the game...?"
What if you don't play the game? Obviously you have to die. Only in the original, of course. Still, I have to be scary like the original. I shouted out Ella's line, making the best use of Ella's appearance.
"I will kill you of course!"
Placing my hands on my cheeks and slightly flush my face. A voice that tickles your ears. Even to me, it looks like a crazy bitch. No, I shouldn't take pride in scaring children.
Kyeong-min breaks out in cold sweat. He has to answer right now.
"...I will join the game."
"As expected, I was blessed with friends!"
As I mocked him, a groan came out of Suho's mouth. It seems that he thinks he's pathetic for not being able to do anything. My heart trembles again. No, you can't be weak here.
"The game is one player at a time. If you get caught, you die! But if even one person passes, I'll let everyone go!"
Knowing the original, I know how Kyung-min will act. A guy who would risk his life for his friends. Then, shall we prepare the "key" now? I telekinetically placed the bottle of red wine near the front door without anyone noticing.
"I'll go."
When Kyeong-min said that, Suho stopped him.
“It's too dangerous. I'll go."
Even so, Kyeong-min didn't care.
"No. I'm confident in winning the game, because I'm smart."
"Still!"
"...I want you to believe in me just this time.”
There was a will in Kyeong-min eyes. It was the same look in his eyes when he was protecting other children, so Suho had no choice but to agree.
"I get it..."
Kyeong-min stepped forward to me. Yes, that's how it should be.
"I will go first."
I laughed and shouted.
"Then the other friends gather in front of the stairs~! It's old and breaks easily, so be careful going down~!"
Don't die in vain like some idiot.
The first-floor structure of the mansion has a staircase going up to the second floor in the front of the entrance. And there are several rooms connected by doors in the back. Kyeong-min starts there, and the children wait in the center.
She told the children that if they gave even one word of advice to him until he reached the front door, she would tear their mouths, so they didn't try anything.
Once everyone was in position, the game started. In a room with so many mirrors that could not be ignored, Kyeong-min swallowed his saliva and moved on.
Calculating the blind spot and the visible side of the mirror and passing by one after another. In order to not let him relax and commit a mistake, I appeared in the mirror right before Kyeong-min passed by and scared him with a knife.
And.
'There are no blind spots...!'
It's all down to chance here. You have to be prepared to be caught and run quickly to pass through.
Hah... Hah... Hah...
Kyeong-min's breathing becomes rough. The smarter you are, the more difficult it is to gamble. That's why I passed by the spot right before him. As soon as he saw myself passing by with a knife, he would gain confidence.
Ah! A place that has been passed once is unlikely to be passed through twice! He thought. Sure enough, Kyeong-min, who did not miss the opportunity, quickly left. With this, the hurdle was passed. After getting through the room, he gets closer to the front door. Everyone held their breath and looked only at Kyeong-min. He was getting more and more relaxed at the thought that he had done it.
However, that attitude led to mistakes. It was because I randomly moved and we met eyes. Kyeong-min quickly hid. Kyeong-min thought he was in trouble.
It's also because of the increased difficulty. Because the front door has a lot of mirrors. I couldn't show that I was too caring, so I decided to scare him more.
In the mirror, I cut the spot where he had been with a knife.
Slash!
"!!!!"
"Did I see it wrong~?"
Hah... Hah... Hah...
A sound of holding back the gasping breath. Did I scare you too much?
Kyeong-min calmed down and went on again. And finally! Reached the front door.
"Win! I won! Now free the kids!"
“Wow! You're really smart~! But what about it?”
Nope.
"What?"
"Alas! You can go now, but the kids can't! If you win from the beginning, who am I playing with? Don't be so mad! If you get angry, I'll kill you!"
"That... But..."
“Ah~ I’m annoyed. Are you going to save them? Ah, I had a good idea. I'll let you go then I will kill the children! If you don't like it, you can come back~!”
A devilish idea in my opinion. You can go, but if you go out alone to live, I will kill all of these children. Even if you win or lose, someone dies. What to do now...? The game never ends unless someone is killed.
"I... I..."
He seemed conflicted. He lowers his eyes and look around in uneasy restlessness. Looking at the hesitant Kyeong-min, I laughed out loud.
"Ahahaha! You're conflicted! You are so funny! Hahahahaha!"
Now I will only be seen as irredeemable trash. Kyeong-min, who was trembling, said.
"...Sorry guys..."
Kyeong-min shakes his head.
And then.... He throws the wine bottle lying on the floor at the mirror where I was! I can suck it into the mirror, but I'm just laughing and pretending to be careless and let it hit. Crash! The wine shattered and the contents temporarily covered the mirror, blocking my sight.
"Now!!!"
Children running with all their might as if they had been waiting for it. These guys didn't think that he would betray them at all... My nose crinkled at the warm sight.
Ah, by the way, is it time to get angry here?
"These guys~!! I can't forgive you!!! How dare you run away!!!"
She shook the furniture with her telekinesis. Because of the dramatic effects, the speed of the children increased, probably realizing that they would die if they were caught.
"I'll kill you! If you get out of here, I will definitely kill you. So wait AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"
And bang! The children are all out and the front door is closed.
Silence comes to the mansion that was shaking violently. The crazy Ella, no, I calmly organized my thoughts. Did I make any mistakes?
"Looks like I'm done."
Let's leave the future to them and escape from this damn
mansion.
In order to shake off the guilt of tormenting the children, I stretched out and moved to the mirror in another room. now the worry about getting involved in the original story is over. I am me, the original is the original.
Let's leave the future to them and escape from this damn mansion.4
However, this idea is shattered by the children who return to the mansion in less than an hour.
What...? Why did you guys come back...?