I Became A Ghost In A Horror Game

I opened Uncle Peter's study.

It was filled with old books, gunpowder, and unidentified herbs.

The others sniffed and frowned.

Among the suspicious antiques engraved with demonic patterns, one item particularly caught my attention.

Suho, who was in the lead, looked at the uselessly fancy gold paper on the desk and his eyes sparkled.

"Look at this!"

Everyone gathered around it.

I checked the paper.

This is...

The treasure map supposedly led to immense riches or something like a gem that could grant any wish.

The location was quite specific and even a safe route was marked, so it seemed like we could easily get the treasure if we had a little courage.

An adventure.

When we were starting to get bored, this kind of stimulation was like honey.

Their eyes sparkled as they excitedly chattered.

But I wasn't the type to be satisfied with just what was in front of me.

Because there were so many other interesting things in this room.

Sometimes my friends would say that my habit of looking into every nook and cranny of a room I saw for the first time was strange, but I thought it was fun.

I searched through Uncle Peter's room like a maniac.

And eventually I found something hidden.

I cleared away the relics piled in a corner.

I poked a hole in the strangely discolored wallpaper.

Using a spoon, I dug through a wall that seemed too soft to be concrete.

Bang!

"What's this?"

Beyond the fake concrete I had dug through, there was a safe.

It had a numerical lock, and to find the combination, I searched the entire house meticulously.

From Uncle's birthday to the number of spoons and chopsticks in the house- I was determined to crack the code.

I entered the numbers as if I was going to try them all.

"...This is it."

With a click, the safe opened.

The safe's password was a number written on the back of a photo of a young woman who seemed to have died a long time ago.

That photo of the young woman had also been well hidden, so it took some time, but I can think about it later.

I opened the safe with anticipation.

Inside was a bloodstained book.

The title was Tinkerbell... A book of spells and medicine.

I borrowed (stole) a bag from Uncle Peter's study and packed the book into it.

Of course, I also packed everything else that might be useful.

The bag was heavy, but my heart felt satisfied.

When I turned around, the others had all gathered in the living room.

"Are you done now? Why were you searching every nook and cranny by yourself?"

Their expressions were sulky, probably because I had been engrossed for too long.

I scratched my cheek and apologized.

"Hehe... Sorry. I got too absorbed. I was also late because I was cleaning up."

"So, Ha-rim, are you going to go there?"

"Yeah! Are you guys really going too? You said we shouldn't take risks."

"With a treasure like this, it's a different story! It's worth the risk!"

Kyeong-min was surprisingly greedy.

Well, if you can get gold and silver treasures with just a little courage, who wouldn't try?

"...Alright! We're going. Everyone else agrees, right?"

When I said that, Suho and Eun-jeong responded.

"I'm coming along because I'm worried about you guys... But I'm curious about the treasure too!"

"If you're all going, then I'll follow too!"

We really get along well. It would be nice if we could keep working as a team.

Maybe we should form a club and stick together!

...To foster a sense of belonging, I should give them the red flower necklaces in my pocket.

"Great! Then take this."

"What's this?"

"Don't you think we fit together pretty well? So let's form a team. This is a symbol of our unity."

Each of them took the flower necklace I handed out.

The kids commented that the necklaces seemed somehow familiar.

And they all wondered why there were five necklaces.

"Was there someone else you wanted to give it to? Maybe Uncle Peter?"

"Um... I'm not sure... But there definitely was one more person... It's strange, right? Anyway, let's get going!"

We confidently went outside.

We walked on the soft asphalt and passed people who were drinking alcohol and cold medicine like snacks.

The sharp smell of cigarettes stung my nose, and occasionally, plants that made me feel dizzy when I caught their scent occasionally spoke to us.

"First, we need to get past that theater."

The theater was said to put on an impressive show with a terrifying atmosphere.

This was probably the theater Uncle Peter had briefly mentioned.

But the treasure hunt was more interesting, so we decided to slip through the alley next to the theater.

"...?"

"What's wrong, Eun-jeong?"

"Something... Makes me uncomfortable. It feels like someone's in the theater. I can sense a presence."

I looked at the theater. She was right.

There seemed to be someone about the same height as us.

They seemed to be sad for some reason.

"Is it... An illusion? How can you sense someone's presence in a building?"

As we hesitated, the presence suddenly disappeared.

Though we were puzzled, we had to move further inside to avoid the people gathering to smoke.

The destination was much further away.

As we walked, I kept a close eye on the book I found in Uncle Peter's room.

The contents of the book were shocking.

I had thought this world was slightly strange, but I now realized it was a completely insane place.

And that there was a way to have a significant impact on it.

I felt like a fool for even considering that it might be okay to not go back.

As my expression grew more serious, Suho asked.

"Ha-rim, why are you looking like that?"

"Huh? I'll tell you later."

"Okay?"

I felt uneasy about how the treasure map was so openly displayed, but if the treasure was real, it could help us escape this world.

"This sewer is the entrance, right?"

We arrived at a sewer hidden by vines.

"It smells! ...But not too bad?"

We went into the sewer.

It was very large and complicated like a maze.

Without a map, getting lost would have been a serious problem.

Even as we entered the sewer maze, I didn't stop reading the book.

"...Certain herbs help to separate one's existence from Neverland. Drinking tea brewed from these herbs... Makes you sleep well... With a peculiar minty taste."

This is the tea Uncle Peter used to give us all the time... What on earth was Uncle Peter planning to do to us?

We had reached about two-thirds of the way through the maze when it happened.

"...Hey, Ha-rim."

Eun-jeong looks at us with anxious eyes.

"Yeah?"

"Can you hear a ticking sound?"

We, who had been following the treasure map, suddenly froze.

We felt our excitement drain away in an instant.

Tick.

It was definitely the sound of a clock.

And then, a heavy splashing sound followed.

It was the sound of something crawling... Like a beast walking on all fours.

The sound was getting closer.

...It's coming this way?

"Guys, hold your breath and stay quiet!"

Thud-! Tick. Thud-! Tick.

We hid behind a wall.

Then, a giant crocodile passed through the corridor we were about to enter.

The crocodile was larger than an elephant, and a ticking sound echoed from his body.

After the crocodile passed, we looked at each other in shock.

Suho was the first to speak.

"W-What was that?"

At this moment, Suho shouldn't have said anything.

The ticking crocodile had a massive body.

When it moved, there should have been loud thudding sounds that grew fainter as it got further away.

But the thudding sound of the crocodile's steps had only slightly diminished before abruptly stopping.

What does this mean...?

"Run!"

Tick.

It means that it stopped midway to wait for our next move!

"I've memorized the path! This way leads to the exit!"

Kyeong-min shouted.

It was natural to run straight to the exit when encountering an enemy.

But now, the situation is different.

"There's more than one!"

We weren't being chased by just one crocodile.

A sense of dread came over us.

If we let our guard down, we could end up completely trapped in an instant.

We might even get caught and killed immediately if they appeared in front and behind us at the same time!

Tick. Tick. Tick. Tick. Tick.

The wall beside us vibrated.

It was hard to estimate the number of crocodiles chasing us, but by calculating the timing of the overlapping ticking sounds, I could roughly guess.

...Three!

"We can't let them surround us! Instead of taking the direct route, we need to avoid dead ends and find a way to evade them!"

"But how?!"

I looked at the map.

We had already strayed far from the main path.

Three pursuers.

And they were approaching from different directions.

Obviously, they were faster than us.

If they approached from different locations, we had four possible routes.

We should run to the upper-left route.

"We only know that there are many of them, but we have no way of knowing exactly where they are. If we wait until their movements converge, all three could come right at us. Or one could come from behind while the other two come from the front."

Either way, we're in trouble.

In the latter scenario, we would be trapped and have no choice but to die.

To prevent this...

"We have to distract them."

Kyeong-min was right.

My bag was full of herbs I had borrowed (stolen) from Uncle Peter's room.

I told the kids about our situation.

"My bag is full of medicinal ingredients from Uncle Peter's room. The crocodile's sense of smell is incredibly sensitive. Crocodiles dislike the smell of strong herbs."

We realized it right away.

There was only one course of action we could take.

"Let's put strong medicines where the paths overlap!"

I pointed to a spot on the map as we ran.

"If we block this route with the medicine, the crocodiles will have to circle around."

This place was like a maze.

Even the crocodiles, which were sensitive to vibrations, sounds, and smells, couldn't pinpoint our exact location with their eyes.

The crocodiles doesn't realize we're right in front of them, and it maneuvers around the herbs that are blocking their path.

Of course, the chase continued, but they were blocked by the wall and could not overtake us.

To put it simply, it was like riding a horse with a carrot in front of it, and the horse running to eat the carrot.

No matter how fast the horse ran, the carrot never seemed to get any closer!

And then we do it again.

We precisely exploited the crocodiles' blind spots with their inability to know our exact location.

The stupid crocodiles, even though we were very close, didn't seem to find it strange that they couldn't catch us.

We miraculously made up for the difference in speed with our plan and entered the escape route.

"Success! The crocodiles are circling around!"

It's all going according to plan.

However, it's impossible to completely dodge those crocodiles, and we can't.

Even though it's a maze, they live here, so it's hard to completely lose them.

Moreover, once we enter the escape route, we would eventually encounter at least one crocodile!

"Don't relax."

The exit was a straight line! If we, being slower, had a chase with the crocodiles, we would inevitably be caught.

There is only one way for us, who are slow, to reach the exit without getting caught.

-To not have a fair race.

The moment the paths of the pursuing crocodiles overlapped with ours.

As the three giant crocodiles emerged simultaneously from the passage, we were already halfway to the exit.

Our efforts to twist and block the paths had paid off.

"They're coming!"

The chase became a race with starting lines at different points.

Three massive ticking crocodiles burst out of the back passage.

They were fast, but the three of them, tangled together, had to slow down to fit through the narrow path.

The incessant ticking was nerve-wracking.

"The real game starts now!"

"Eek! They're right behind us! Can we really survive this?!"

"Of course! We ran until now because we believed in that!"

Even if we're scared, we run.

Because deep down, we were convinced that efforts would be rewarded.

Carrying our fears, we ran.

For something better.

"We have to delay them as much as possible! Because of that, at the last moment! When we're close to the exit! Throw the remaining herbs to slow them down!"

As we reached the exit, we threw all the remaining herbs towards the crocodiles.

They were so focused on chasing us that they didn't pay attention to our actions.

We managed to buy some time by making them hesitate.

"...We're here!"

We found a rope connecting us to the surface.

I sent Eun-jeong up first, followed by the others.

Suho seemed reluctant to go before me, but I was firm, so he reluctantly hurried up without delay.

Finally, it was my turn to climb.

The giant crocodile started opening its mouth wide toward me, who hadn't fully climbed up yet.

I threw all the useless items from the bag into its mouth.

While the crocodile's mouth was filled with items, I quickly climbed up and escaped.

"Haah... Haah... Haah..."

Breathless, we sprawled out, wiping our cold sweat.

"That was close. We almost died for real."

But... We survived.

This, too, would be a memory.

I turned to look at the kids with a smile.

Contrary to my expectation that they'd be smiling, their expressions were like they had seen a ghost.

I realized that a shadow was blocking my view.

Looking up, I saw Uncle Peter watching us with an angry expression.

"Yeah. You were almost dead. You little brats."

"Un... Uncle Peter?"

"With those pale faces... You came back alive. I told you not to do dangerous things. It's not about concern. The act itself was forbidden."

We guessed that Uncle Peter was about to give us some terrifying punishment in anger.

Seeing us scared, Uncle Peter grinned.

"So you've finally realized. How huge, horrifying, and dreadful the risks are for seeking something sweet. In the end, this uncle's fenced house is safer than everything tempting you!"

Uncle Peter misunderstood our terrified expressions.

We exchanged glances and expressed our desire to go home because we were scared.

At that, Uncle Peter laughed like a madman.

"Look at this, Alice. Humans are all the same."

...Alice?

That name sounds familiar... But who was it?

"Now... You've reflected, right? Stand up. There won't be any more scary things."

I took Uncle Peter's hand and stood up.

Looking back now, it seemed like Uncle Peter had expected us to open the study door.

That's why he had openly placed the fancy map.

Even if we reached the destination, there probably wouldn't have been any treasure.

Uncle Peter's back looked annoying.

We returned to Uncle Peter's house and relaxed.

I went to my room and took a shower first.

The hot water soaked my entire body.

They say that taking a cold shower boosts your immune system and taking a hot shower relieves stress.

I like the latter.

I looked at my reflection in the mirror hanging in the shower.

The reflection looked somehow empty.

"...?"

Something strange happened in the mirror.

Dark and ominous things started talking to me from within the mirror!

I stepped back in surprise.

Then the monsters in the mirror spoke.

[Alice... You must save Alice...]

"Alice? Who is Alice?"

[You must save her... You must give her...]

The dark monsters faded away.

I was startled and quickly asked.

"Wait! Okay, I understand. What's the way to save her?"

[Give Alice a rose. A red rose... We'll share a bit of the memories we have...]

"...!"

...

A little later.

It was mealtime, and I was cooking in the kitchen.

Uncle Peter asked me to make him a sandwich since we had troubled him.

We were the ones who had trouble...

Since we had broken our promise, even if we had ten mouths, we couldn't say anything, so I made the sandwich.

"Hahaha! Delicious! Hahaha!"

As expected, he's annoying.

Uncle Peter ate the sandwich and quickly fell asleep.

He fell asleep really fast, as if he had taken sleeping medicine!

"..."

Actually, I did put sleeping medicine in it.

Good night, Uncle. Maybe you should have laughed a bit more quietly.

I'm annoyed.

I thought that and looked outside the house.

There was a person outside who the monsters in the mirror were looking for.

And it seemed that I was the same.

One by one, the kids opened their doors and came looking for me.

I asked them.

"How much do you remember?"

"Just a few fragments. But with that alone, we know we need to find them."

"I see."

We all fiddled with the red flower necklaces around our necks.

"Then. Let's go."

POV Switch - 3rd Person

"Yawn. I slept well. Hahaha!"

Peter Pan woke up an hour later.

The sleeping herbs Ha-rim had put in the sandwich were close to a lethal dose for an ordinary person, but Peter Pan was delighted that he had slept well for the first time in a long time.

"Let's see... The kids... Are still asleep."

When Peter Pan opened the door, he saw the inflated blankets and carefully closed the door.

Peter Pan headed to his study.

His study was in complete disarray.

It was all because of Shin Ha-rim's excessive rummaging.

"It's a mess. It was intentional, but it's been rummaged through too much."

Casual curiosity, the desire for freedom, greed... And so on.

These are elements that deceive people into doing dangerous things.

Peter Pan intended to make the children who were tempted by these things suffer to bring out their fears.

Then he planned to show Alice the children who, filled with fear, wished to live in a comfortable home.

"Hmm?"

As Peter Pan was organizing his room, he realized something strange.

Even though the children must have been distracted by the golden map, it was odd that they had turned his room into a total mess, no matter how intriguing it might be.

Peter Pan sensed something ominous and began searching for the things he had hidden.

"...They've searched this far? Even if they found something, they wouldn't have guessed the password."

Peter Pan opened his safe.

It was empty.

And all the herbs, various potions, and relics were gone!

Peter Pan hurriedly went to the children's room and lifted the blankets.

It was a pile of trash.

In other words, a decoy.

The children were not here.

Peter Pan looked out the window.

"These brats..."

Neverland was becoming unstable.