[Chapter 24] Joint Broadcast (3)

“Hello~ I’m Airi!”

“Ah… um, hello?”

Airi greeted them with a bright smile.

Dojun replied, but his expression and tone were stiff and uncertain.

Sensing something was off, VirtuKing quickly asked,

“Phantom, what’s wrong? Are you uncomfortable with Airi?”

“Do you get nervous around strangers…? If there’s anything bothering you, please tell us, Phantom!!”

Airi also asked with a slightly flustered tone, prompting Dojun to shake his head and respond.

“No, it’s not that. I’m not uncomfortable.”

“Really? That’s a relief. But then… why the weird reaction?”

Dojun hurried to explain.

“It’s just… Airi’s voice sounded really familiar to me. So similar that it caught me off guard.”

“Ahh, that makes sense.”

“Her songs have been trending lately. You’ve probably heard them a lot out on the streets.”

Dojun seemed like he wanted to say more, but held back, as if second-guessing himself.

“Maybe I’m mistaken. Must be my imagination.”

Trying to steer the mood away from the awkwardness, VirtuKing moved the conversation along.

As they briefly chatted about Airi’s latest single, Dojun found himself lost in thought.

A soft, calm, and clear voice.

Every time Airi spoke, someone’s face surfaced in Dojun’s mind.

‘No, I’m pretty sure it’s her.’

She was someone deeply familiar to him.

But now wasn’t the time. They were in the middle of a broadcast, so Dojun swallowed the name that almost slipped out.

Once the short music update was over, VirtuKing began introducing the main content.

“Alright, the game we’ll be playing today is called White School.”

White School.

One of the most infamous horror games in Korea.

In short, it was a game about escaping a monster-infested school in the middle of the night.

Originally a 2D game, it had recently been revamped into a virtual reality title for capsule gaming. With the switch from third-person to first-person perspective, its immersion skyrocketed. The renewed White School had since received rave reviews.

Horror games were typically solo experiences.

But the capsule version allowed for multiplayer gameplay, which quickly turned it into a popular content format among streamers for missions and punishment-based events.

“We just need to escape while completing a few quests? Sounds pretty manageable.”

Dojun listened to the game’s premise but still didn’t quite get why people kept talking about ‘running away.’

“Yeah, but the catch is—if even one of us gets caught, we have to start all over.”

“Oh…”

It clicked for Dojun then.

“Wait, Airi… are you bad with horror?”

“Not exactly horror—more like creepy stuff. Like bugs. When I see something gross, I just freeze up. And the monster in this game is super gross.”

Bugs.

Dojun glanced at Airi with a hint of suspicion.

Their eyes briefly met before Dojun averted his gaze, thinking,

‘This won’t be easy.’

Now he understood why this mission might be difficult.

Just the psychological stress of being chased was already high, but being pursued by something you genuinely feared? That could trigger panic.

“I mean, ghosts and dark places are fine. But if something disgusting starts chasing me or sticks to me, I just collapse on the spot.”

“Can’t you just carry her and run?”

“We tried that, but your movement slows down and the monster always catches you.”

“…So quitting isn’t an option, huh?”

“Please help me!! If I fail this, I have to do a 24-hour nonstop stream as punishment.”

A 24-hour stream.

Among streamers, it was one of the more brutal penalties.

Especially for virtual streamers, where dragging out content made things less entertaining.

“Let’s give it a shot, Phantom. I’m here too, so I’ll do my best to help.”

Since he’d already agreed to appear, there was no backing out now.

Still, for dramatic effect, Dojun felt he should at least act reluctant.

“Alright. Let’s give it a try.”

With Dojun’s approval, the three of them launched White School.

“Airi, Phantom, and VirtuKing return to school late at night to retrieve bags they left behind.”

The game’s prologue played, and then the trio’s virtual characters appeared in front of the school gates.

As soon as their characters loaded, Dojun spoke up.

“I’m confused. How does a student leave their bag at school?”

“I did it all the time?”

“Same here.”

“…Excuse me?”

Dojun blinked in disbelief at their casual replies.

– We dropped out mentally before physically, Phantom…

– A perfect-scorer wouldn’t get it.

┗ And soon he’ll face things his perfect scores can’t save him from, kek

┗┗ Wonder how long the honor student can survive Airi’s trolling, fufufu~

┗┗┗ Tests have answers. Airi doesn’t. Boy~♥

“I’ve played so much I can clear the early game super fast now.”

“So the midgame is the real problem?”

“What do you mean ‘problem’! It’s just a little scary, that’s all!!”

★★ ‘AiriSniper’ has donated ₩10,000 with a video attached. ★★

“Introducing: The goddess of crawling—Airi in full ‘low crawl mode,’ coming soon to Phantom’s nightmares!”

The donation triggered a video showing Airi crouched under a desk, clinging to her head in terror.

Dojun, seeing this, calmly remarked,

“Hmm… looks like Airi took earthquake drills very seriously in school. Impressive form.”

“Wha—what did you just say?!”

Though he spoke with a straight face, Airi freaked out, flailing in protest.

LOLLLLL

That line came outta nowhere, genius-tier roast

BREAKING: ‘Miracle Idol’ Airi (22) appointed as Earthquake Drill Ambassador…

“Okay, let me explain. The goal is to clear the game by deactivating a magic seal. Phantom, for now just follow along. You’ll know when it’s your time to step up.”

As soon as they entered the school, the front door slammed shut behind them.

“Hmm… couldn’t we just break a window and leave?”

“That’s not how this works. Even if you try, all exits are magically blocked.”

White School wasn’t just a horror game—it had fantasy elements, too.

To clear it, they had to find a magic circle in the school’s basement and destroy it.

“The circle’s in the basement power room. But first, we need the key. Which means heading to the faculty office. And to get in there, we need the key from the security room.”

Thanks to their experience, Airi and VirtuKing swiftly located the key.

But the moment Airi grabbed it—

A red light bathed the entire school.

“Run!! As soon as you pick up that key, the monster activates!! We need to get to the faculty office fast!”

Following VirtuKing’s lead, Dojun sprinted after them.

He was clearly familiar with the layout, making their escape smooth.

Then came a faint tremor beneath their feet.

‘It’s coming.’

The tremor grew stronger—soon even Airi could feel it.

Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.

Heavy footsteps approached.

They reached the second-floor faculty room just in time, but there wasn’t enough to grab the keys safely.

“Everyone hide under the desks!”

Even scaredy-cat Airi handled the situation like a seasoned pro.

Dojun hid and held his breath.

Soon, the monster arrived outside.

It looked even worse than he expected.

Roughly 2.5 meters tall with green skin like the Hulk—and a grotesque insectoid face that was horrifying to behold.

“Well, that’s terrifying.”

Dojun muttered calmly over Discord.

Meanwhile, Airi cowered, trembling beneath her desk.

The monster lingered for a bit, then wandered off.

“It’s gone. Airi, grab the master key and the basement key. Quickly.”

“Y-Yes!!”

Snapping out of it, Airi gathered the keys.

To reach the basement, they had to open a door at the far end of the first floor.

But opening that door triggered the monster again.

“This next part’s the real problem. This is where we always get stuck. Think you can buy us some time?”

“I’ll give it a shot.”

The trio moved quietly to the far hallway door.

“Opening it now.”

VirtuKing inserted the key.

As soon as the door creaked open—

SCREEEEEECH—!

The piercing sound echoed throughout the building.

Instantly, the rumble returned.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

A monster appeared on the main stairs and locked eyes with Dojun.

It charged at him like a maniac.

VirtuKing and Airi turned to flee downstairs—but Dojun shouted,

“Wait!! We need to go up!!”

“What are you talking about? The basement’s downstairs!”

“There’s another monster below!!”

“What…?”

Before VirtuKing could respond, they heard another door slam open downstairs.

His body shivered instinctively.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me. It’s supposed to spawn upstairs!”

Startled, VirtuKing hesitated—just long enough for the downstairs monster to lock eyes with Airi.

She froze in place.

“Damn it.”

Dojun slammed the hallway door shut and bolted downstairs.

There, he met the monster head-on.

“Take Airi upstairs. I’ll buy you time!!”

“Got it! Just don’t try to fight—it’s immortal! You’ve gotta run!”

VirtuKing hoisted Airi and made a run for it.

Meanwhile, the monster threw a punch at Dojun.

He dodged and rolled aside.

‘Fast.’

Dojun’s character had standard human abilities—no special enhancements.

And since the monster couldn’t be killed, fighting wasn’t an option.

‘No weapons to stop it either.’

All he could do was dodge and run.

In the narrow staircase, Dojun weaved through attacks by mere inches.

The audience was stunned.

Bro what is this movement??

He’s dodging everything in that cramped space?!

Wait wasn’t Phantom a logic-focused character??

┗ Nah man he’s pure reflex. You didn’t see him fight in the secret passage?

┗┗ I thought that was a fluke…

┗┗┗ Calling that a fluke? LOL okay

As Dojun stalled for time, the second-floor monster broke through the door and noticed the fight below.

Without hesitation, it joined the chase.

‘Two of them in a tight space is too much.’

Even with insane reflexes, narrow hallways meant unpredictability.

A single lucky hit could end the game.

Recognizing the risk, Dojun turned and fled.

He dove through an open hallway door, just barely avoiding another punch.

Then he kept running down the hallway.

‘I’ll lure them to the main stairs and escape from there.’

Though the monsters were physically stronger, Dojun was slightly faster.

Along the way, he hurled nearby objects to slow them down—but they just bounced off.

Still, Dojun grinned.

‘So they react to physics. Good. Let’s test this.’

He toppled a cabinet.

This time, the monster avoided it.

‘So they have a fear of collision.’

Despite their strength, their low intelligence was evident—they couldn’t even open unlocked doors properly.

‘All of this… can be used.’

Maybe clearing this game wouldn’t be so difficult after all.