In the chilly air, Lee Hamin's face drained of color, looking as if he might faint at any moment. Kang Geonu grabbed the pale boy next to him. Lee Hamin, who had warned not to fool around, counted again. Definitely seven. No matter how many times he counted, the unchanged number sealed off any escape from reality.
A cold needle seemed to scrape down their spines. Kang Sihyun, assessing the situation in silence for a moment, immediately pulled five of the children towards him. The six boys huddled together, scanning their surroundings closely. The courage training, once thought to have lost its purpose, was now proving its worth as none of the six could muster an excited voice. The surreal situation approached them with an uneasy terror.
Then, the cell phone in Kang Sihyun's pocket vibrated. Always set to vibrate, he had never heard the ringtone, yet a familiar melody flowed out of his pocket.
Someone's humming.
It spread through the eerie garden. Kang Sihyun frowned as he took out his phone. The call was from an unknown number. As his blue eyes glanced at the phone screen, the familiar melody abruptly stopped.
"...What's this?"
Haru asked in the bizarre situation. The voice that once exuded vitality whenever he glanced was now filled with confusion and anxiety, indicating Hamin's serious condition. He, frozen stiff, seemed like a machine only breathing out.
Kang Sihyun checked the recent calls and saw the incoming call with the caller ID restricted. In such a situation, he had no manual or guide on what to do. Just in case, he lowered the volume of the phone. The volume button of the phone, already set to vibrate, had nowhere further to go.
Just as they seemed trapped in hallucinations and auditory hallucinations, the phone rang again. This time, it wasn't Kang Sihyun's.
Turning towards the sound, Haewoon was looking down at her phone. Caller ID restricted. The letters filled Haewoon's screen as the melody played.
Then, it was Geonu's phone that rang.
Hamin's phone received the call next, followed by Seowoo's.
And finally, Kang Sihyun's phone rang again.
When the call reached Kang Sihyun's phone for the last time, all the phones were playing the same melody. Though the lyrics weren't audible, the hauntingly familiar tune persisted.
Hide tightly. Don't let your hair show.
There were lyrics that automatically came to mind with the rhythm spreading slowly, as if it were slowed down. The children, who had been looking down at their cell phones with rigid eyes, looked up. Kang Sihyun, meeting their gaze, held his breath. He was the one holding the gun.
With trembling fingers, he hesitated before pressing the call button.
"Hehehehe."
A gender-neutral voice let out an eerie laughter. Even though the speakerphone button wasn't pressed, the voice was transmitted to the other children. The laughter that sent shivers down the spine, just by listening to it, made Kang Sihyun quickly end the call.
Click. The call ended, and the laughter disappeared. However, the chilling silence left by the sudden laughter didn't dissipate within the children.
Suddenly, Haru looked down.
Squelch. Squelch.
Other children followed his gaze downward. Squelch. Words formed as the soil in the garden was dug up.
Did you notice?
The crookedly written words captivated everyone's attention. Kang Sihyun, surprised by the phenomenon he experienced for the first time in his 23 years of life, grabbed Haru's arm beside him.
Taking a deep breath, he analyzed the situation. It didn't seem like the irregular's doing, more like a spiritual phenomenon.
Being scared at times like this would lead to losing control. Kang Sihyun, forcibly calming his pounding heart, found a way to overcome the current situation. Somehow, it seemed like they had to cooperate with the ghost for now.
"I noticed."
He slowly opened his mouth to respond, and the laughter he heard over the phone echoed throughout the entire school. Children covered their ears at the sound of laughter mocking them to leave the neighborhood. Likewise, Kang Sihyun, furrowing his brows and covering his ears with his hands, realized one thing.
This wasn't the school they attended.
If it were, there wouldn't be a reason for such laughter. It was laughter loud enough to wake up even those who were asleep.
After a while, when the laughter subsided, Kang Sihyun spoke while staring at the words on the ground.
"This isn't our school, is it?"
"What?"
"Definitely..."
Hamin was surprised, and Seowoo muttered as if he had an idea. Even if they denied it wasn't a ghost, Kang Sihyun was certain that this wasn't the strongest.
Staring intently at the writing on the ground, he realized that the letters were moving. With a little hesitation, the letters shifted. Hamin was startled and stepped back.
The school I attend.
Reading the newly written words, Kang Sihyun asked another question with an uncertain answer.
"This isn't where we belong, right?"
I made you follow me.
"...Aren't you scared at all? You're good at conversing."
The scene was so surreal that it wouldn't be surprising if one were to faint on the spot, yet Kang Sihyun maintained his composure, continuing the conversation calmly. Seeing this, Lee Hamin, with a troubled expression, spoke up. He mentioned feeling uneasy, saying it wouldn't be a surprise if they were hit by a car and found themselves trapped in another world. Kang Sihyun refrained from responding immediately, pondering over what Hamin had just said, before turning his gaze towards the children. According to the ghost's response, they were trapped in a world created by a ghost mimicking the Supreme King. When asked what they should do, the children exchanged glances, reflecting confusion, worry, anxiety, and irritation. Kang Seowoo, speaking on behalf of the group, suggested they should go back.
"We need to go back, what else can we do?"
"What's the way to do that?"
"Maybe we could ask this one?"
Seowoo, poking the ground with his toe where the writing was, squinted and suggested. The crushed letters seemed to writhe as if in anger. The boy, squatting close to the ground, reached out to write the moving characters. His demeanor suggested the absence of the emotion of fear.
"I want to get out of here."
"...."
"What should we do to get out?"
Seowoo, adopting a tender tone in contrast to his usual self, observed the ground. The response came not from the ground, but from the air.
"We'll play hide and seek. You guys are the seekers, I'm the hider. Find me hiding. Let's play together!"
The gender-neutral voice spoke cheerfully in a childish tone. The sudden voice from the air made Sihyun, who was surveying the vast school grounds, frown. It would take a long time to find the ghost in such a wide area. They couldn't afford to waste that much time.
"What if we decide not to find you?"
"Then we'll be together in this place!"
"It's amusing just watching you guys!"
The mocking voice revealed its malevolence. Sihyun, showing signs of exhaustion, rubbed his head. It felt like his energy was being drained each time he spoke. Or rather, each time he spoke with the ghost. Seeing Sihyun's weary demeanor, Haewoon, who had been observing the situation silently, took over. As Haemin struggled to stay on his feet, Haewoon briefly glanced at him before looking up into the air.
"How are we supposed to find you if we don't know what you look like? There's hardly any hints. That's unfair!"
"Unfair?"
"Unfair."
With a natural expression, Haewoon placed his hands on his hips. Outwardly bold, he was disappointed in the blatant cheating. The ghost emitted a sound of contemplation, showing signs of hesitation. Sihyun, admiring Haewoon's resourcefulness, felt like applauding him.
"Why don't we play a guessing game about who I am?"
"Twenty Questions?"
"Yeah, but it wouldn't be fun if only I answered. Let's do something we can all participate in."
"A game?"
"Yes!"
The ghost responded cheerfully. Nevertheless, there was still a disconnect between the tone and the voice, causing a sense of unease. Haewoon turned to Sihyun. Sihyun, indicating he had no ideas, waved his hand vaguely, suggesting Haewoon to figure it out.
Given Haewoon's cunning nature, he would probably come up with a game that allowed for negotiation with the ghost while also being advantageous for them. When Haewoon explained the rules, he laid the groundwork to make it slightly more advantageous for himself. The rule was that humans and ghosts would take turns asking questions, and the ghost couldn't ask consecutive questions to one person. It was a biased rule, but since the ghost didn't know much about the truth game, there was no way it could argue against it. When the ghost heard that lying would incur penalties, it laughed, saying it would only tell the truth.
"Alright! Let's play the truth game! If someone lies, they have to give me half of their life ropes!"
"Half? What does that mean?"
Haewoon asked about the unfamiliar penalty. The ghost, excitedly laughing, replied.
"Your lifelines, I mean."
"...."
"If you lie twice, you have to stay here with me! But if you find me, I'll let you all go."
With one word, the ghost took control, speaking with apparent sincerity. It was only now that Sihyun could understand the true nature of the Supreme King urban legend. It meant being trapped forever in the ghost's world, where, for the first time in their lives, Sihyun and the children were about to play a truth game with their lives on the line.
It would have been better to have a drink instead of getting into this.
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