Chapter 57….
[Ugh! Jihan! That’s brutal! Way too brutal!]
[This has to stop! No more!]
[That researcher has a family too, doesn’t he!? This is way too unethical!]
“…Boss, are you sure about this?”
“Persistent, huh. Hmph.”
“Mister….”
“Uuuugh!”
[Stop with the cruelty! Why now, while I’m eating!]
[Ugh, I can’t take this anymore! I— I just can’t! Jihan, I never thought you’d be this brutal!]
Lee Jihan was torturing the head researcher.
Right in front of everyone.
[LOLOLOL what kind of torture is that]
[Is that even torture? LOL]
[These guys are straight-up WWE wrestlers]
[Viewers are actually enjoying it]
Of course, it wasn’t real, sadistic torture.
It was just a skewer, tied with down feathers.
“Tickle tickle tickle!”
Yes—Jihan’s custom-made torture tool, optimized for tickling.
The feather mercilessly brushed under the researcher’s nose.
“Achoo! Achoo! S-stop! Stop!”
“Tell us how to get out of here safely!”
“I—I can’t! W-we’re all going to die here…! Achoo!”
“If you don’t talk, I won’t stop! Next is your neck!”
Jihan’s torture went on and on, stubbornly relentless.
And the moment the feather touched his neck—
“Hiii! Hiiiick!”
The researcher screamed, twisting against his bonds.
The nape of his neck seemed to be his weak spot.
“I’ll talk! I’ll talk, okay!?”
“Good. Then tell us.”
“T-there’s a secret passage behind that bookshelf…! So stop! Please stop!”
At that, Jihan signaled Marcus.
Marcus nodded and pushed the shelf aside.
Creeeak.
The heavy bookshelf slid away, revealing a steel door.
“So… are you going to kill me now?”
The researcher’s madness was gone.
Whether it was from fainting earlier or the tickle torture, his eyes looked clearer than before.
“If you’re going to kill me, do it quickly! But if I die, you’ll never get out of here alive!”
His tone wavered pathetically.
“You need my ID card and cornea to pass through that passage! And just so you know, the scanner only works with living irises!”
Gone was the bravado of preferring death.
Now he begged for life one moment and death the next, exposing the raw duplicity of human nature.
“I wasn’t planning to kill you right now anyway.”
“…Huh?”
[???]
[What now?]
[LOL did you see that NPC’s face? Totally blank.]
[Oops, he slipped up, didn’t he?]
[So he would’ve spilled everything without the torture, huh?]
[But the torture was fun though.]
[True, as long as it’s entertaining, who cares.]
“There’s still a lot I want to ask. Like that encrypted USB.”
“W-what!? When did you— Ah…”
[LOL when do you think?]
[Obvious, isn’t it?]
[While you were asleep]
[And now he just realized it LOL]
“I can’t tell you that. Really! It’s for your own good, I swear!”
The researcher went pale.
Clearly, he was hiding something important.
Jihan found it suspicious, but survival came first.
“Fine, then don’t answer. Just stand up and open the door.”
“Y-you’ll have to untie me first!”
“You’re unarmed. Don’t try anything stupid.”
The researcher glanced between Jihan and Marcus.
Like his plan to take the kid hostage had already been exposed.
“I’m not like the boss. You won’t get off easy with me. If he tickled you with feathers, I’ll ram this stick in your eardrum or your ass.”
Marcus growled.
The raw menace in his voice made the researcher shudder.
With Marcus, those threats sounded far too real.
“…Fine. I get it. Untie me.”
Resignation clouded his face.
Only then did Marcus loosen the ropes binding him.
“Haa… follow me. And don’t bring lanterns or anything.”
“Hm?”
“…Don’t ask why.”
Freed from his bonds, the researcher swiped his card and let the scanner read his iris.
Creeeak.
The steel door opened.
Beyond it lay darkness, deep and gaping—
Like the maw of a monstrous beast that should not exist in this world.
The group walked on and on.
Down the pitch-black passage.
No zombie sounds.
Only the researcher’s ragged breathing, the child’s startled gasps,
And Marcus and Jihan’s quiet breaths.
[How long do we have to keep walking?]
[Way longer than I thought]
[Feels like we’re heading downward?]
[Gamma’s too dark, can’t tell]
“Don’t touch the walls. Just stay right behind me.”
“How many times are you going to repeat that?” Marcus sneered.
[Why isn’t night vision working?]
[Physics engine is top tier but no night vision?]
[They must be hiding something deliberately]
[Weird he told them not to bring lanterns]
[Didn’t Jihan bring one anyway?]
[LOL why always do the opposite]
[But that is gamer instinct]
[Well, let’s hope the lantern comes in clutch]
The chat grew analytical.
Normally playful and chaotic, they now pointed out oddities, breaking things down with surprising objectivity.
‘They’re right… something is off.’
Jihan sensed it too.
Even without them, the strangeness of the situation was undeniable.
Still—he was sure of one thing: the researcher meant them no direct harm.
Step. Step. Step.
They pressed on.
Until—
“Ugh!?”
The researcher cried out, followed by the sound of a heavy fall.
“Hey, are you—”
“Marcus, don’t bend down.”
Marcus, about to help him up, was firmly stopped by Jihan.
“Boss, what’s wrong?”
“Something’s off. The sound of him falling.”
[???]
[What was weird?]
[Sounded like a normal fall…]
[Ah]
[Oh!! Got it;;]
[Holy crap, Jihan’s senses are insane]
[What was it? Tell me already, I’m watching with the sound off!]
“…Huh?”
“It wasn’t a thud. It was a squelch.”
And at that moment—
“Help! Help me! Get me out! Please! Pull me out!”
The researcher’s screams tore through the passage.
“Kyahhhh!”
The child shrieked in terror.
Jihan gently covered her mouth, calming her.
“It’s okay. Stay calm.”
“Save me! Hurry! Pull me out!”
[Pull him out? From where?]
[Didn’t he just fall?]
[Oh f*** this is terrifying]
[I can’t, I’m done]
[Jihan! Just leave! Leave him!]
Jihan’s instincts screamed.
This corridor was wrong.
[Don’t tell me…]
[What?]
[Remember those who said the map looked weird?]
[Yeah…]
[It looked fleshy red… like meat…]
[Oh no oh no oh no stop stop stop!!]
The chat buzzed nervously.
But Jihan only thought of saving Marcus and the child.
Focus had narrowed his vision.
But he pieced together hints from their reactions.
[So Jihan, what are you gonna do?]
[You’re a gamer, right? You have to.]
[Oh no…]
[Chekhov’s gun in novels, Jihan’s lantern here]
[LOL but this is straight-up cosmic horror. You sure?]
[Yeah, the game just got freaky as hell]
[Reminder: it is a horror game, not a craft sim LOL]
The chat grew frantic.
They tried to laugh through their fear.
But ultimately, they were safe spectators.
Jihan had to choose.
Light the forbidden lantern—
Or ignore the cries and move on.
“Save me! Please! I can’t take it anymore!”
Jihan made his decision.
The researcher was still valuable—almost a walking answer key.
If this place was truly dangerous, they needed him to get out.
“Marcus, kid—close your eyes for a bit.”
“Huh? Boss?”
“Mister?”
“N-no! Don’t! Just reach your hand out and pull me!”
“I’ll count to three.”
No hesitation in Jihan’s voice.
Once he decided, he bulldozed forward.
“One, two…”
“Three.”
Click.
The lantern flared to life.
[Capsule usage time exceeded 4 hours. Forced logout initiated for user safety.]
A system message popped up.
Then—blackout.
[…]
[…]
[…]
The chat went silent.
Not from disappointment—
But from sheer shock.
[…What was that]
[What did I just see?]
[This message has been blocked by Clean Censorship!]
[This message has been blocked by Clean Censorship!]
[This message has been blocked by Clean Censorship!]
Terror.
Overwhelming terror.
The kind born from incomprehensible horror.
“…That wasn’t… just me, right?”
Even Jihan stammered, his voice trembling.
The last thing they saw of the corridor—
It wasn’t a corridor at all.
It looked like… the inside of a living body.
[No, we definitely saw that. F***.]
A grotesque space of pulsating, slimy flesh.
Red. Wet. Writhing.
