Chapter 59
Dan Seo-hyuk’s brows twisted into a harsh scowl. It seemed he never imagined that not only he, but I as well, had already been noticed by the ghost.
Well… we did walk in here to play hide-and-seek in the first place.
Outside the window, darkness still hung thick. At the very least, we had to hold out until sunrise.
But there was nowhere suitable to hide.
[Are you done hiding~?]
[If you’re not done, tell me!]
The excited childlike voice echoed, but we couldn’t even think of answering.
How did Dan Seo-hyuk hide in the original story again?
[I love hide-and-seek!]
[I love being “it” too!]
[No one leaves until I find everyone!]
[“It” gets to decide how long we play together!]
Ah—right. That was it.
The biggest reason Dan Seo-hyuk survived was because the ghost pretended not to see him on purpose, just so the game could continue.
Then Dan Seo-hyuk, not realizing he’d been discovered, would panic and scramble to hide again.
The hide-and-seek ghost would watch that and laugh, deeply satisfied.
In a way, it’s like babysitting a kid.
But the thought that the ghost might end up carrying around my head instead of a toy made it very hard to smile.
Maybe I should’ve just sent Seo-hyuk in alone from the start…
Regret stabbed through me. Maybe Millie could hide us—so I glanced around, but she was nowhere to be seen.
I didn’t dare call her. She might reveal our position immediately.
She only shows up when it’s convenient for her!
Can’t she have some self-awareness and show up when I actually can’t call for her?!
I fumed silently, vowing to confront her later if I survived.
[Well then, since big sis is here too, shall we start?]
There is no “big sis” here.
If you count my previous life, I’m closer to an aunt, so I am NOT the “big sis” you’re referring to.
Hopefully.
Please exclude me.
Hah… I’ve had enough forced nostalgia games from escape rooms in my past life…
I swallowed back a sigh. Dan Seo-hyuk pointed toward something.
Huh?
Deep inside the area, an emergency exit sign glowed faintly. There definitely wasn’t a staircase going down earlier!
But we couldn’t use the elevator, and there was no other escape path.
Seeing him head toward it so quickly meant he didn’t know about the ability he could gain here.
In this situation, I couldn’t exactly tell him, “Just play hide-and-seek for a whole day and you’ll awaken your <Partnership> ability!”
What do I do…?
Even if I don’t need to, Dan Seo-hyuk must endure a full day here!
[I’m gonna count now!]
[Oppa and unnie, hide really well!]
[If I see your hair, I’ll snip it off!]
Please… please specify that you’re talking about hair…
Despite the ghost’s cheerful, bubbly voice, I wanted to cry.
Dan Seo-hyuk hurried toward the emergency exit. If he escaped now, bringing him here would’ve been pointless.
Should I just straight-up tell him, “You get your <Partnership> ability here if you last a day”?
…No. He’d demand to know how I knew. Even if I said Millie told me, it’d sound suspicious.
Ugh, this is such a mess!
[Ten!]
[Nine!]
[Eight!]
The child spun in place, dancing with a radiant smile.
Someone once said that ghosts who laugh and dance are the most dangerous. …Well, this one does both.
[Seven!]
[Six!]
Dan Seo-hyuk turned to me, mouthing words.
His gestures said to run at the right moment.
No. You cannot leave.
In the original story, he wasn’t said to be in mortal danger from the hide-and-seek ghost… right?
It was spooky, sure, but supposedly the ghost just genuinely wanted to play.
Then leaving him here alone shouldn’t kill him… probably?
[Five!]
[Instant death!]
[Three!]
I’m sorry—did something that wasn’t a number just get included?!
Nope. This won’t do.
My thinking was long, but the decision was instant.
I forced strength into my trembling legs and bolted forward. While pointing at Dan Seo-hyuk, I shouted:
“Oppa says he wants to play with you!!”
[…Really?]
The child snapped his head up. The bandage hiding his eyes was getting further soaked with blood.
A more horrifying sight would be hard to imagine.
“You crazy idiot!”
That was the first time Dan Seo-hyuk ever swore at me.
Honestly, getting cursed out by the main character—even villains would pay good money for such a rare experience.
“Seo-hyuk, I’m really sorry!!”
I yelled sweetly—something I’d normally never do—before sprinting toward the emergency exit with all I had.
Please, be grateful for my sacrifice and come back with a nice ability!!
As I pushed my body to run even harder—
Thud—
Footsteps beside me. Bare feet slapping against the floor. …What?
[But I wanna play with big sis too.]
Before I knew it, the child was right beside me, hugging my head tight against its chest, grinning widely.
The jagged, yellow, crooked teeth… especially the sharp canines… looked ready to bite into my skin at any second.
Panicked, I yelled:
“H-here! Play with the handsome oppa instead!”
And please hand over some of your ability to him!
[Mm… I like pretty big sis more.]
“I’m NOT pretty!”
I desperately tucked my chin, giving myself a double chin. From below, the kid would surely see me as uglier.
[Funny! Your face got weird!]
[I wanna carry it around!]
Carry it… how? Like the head already in your arms?
AAAAAAAAHHHH!!!
I screamed silently as I ran frantically to shake the kid off.
But the more I ran, the farther the emergency exit got. It really felt like the ghost was messing with me.
Please… spare me…
“Ma Cho-yeon!”
Behind me, Dan Seo-hyuk wore a look of disbelief, hesitating before running after us.
Great. Now I was being chased by the hide-and-seek ghost and the original protagonist.
“Why are you two doing this to me?!”
“You betrayed me first!”
“It wasn’t betrayal! It was for your sake!”
“For my sake? Using me as bait?”
…Well, yes, it does look that way.
Actually, it is exactly what I did so the ghost would focus on him instead of me!!
[So it was tag, not hide-and-seek?]
[Sounds fun! I’m good at tag!]
[Big sis, I’m gonna catch you! And if I do, you might die.]
Don’t smile while saying that. It’s even creepier.
The bandage was now completely blood-red. Its mouth was stretching wider and wider.
Why did this remind me of the Slit-Mouthed Woman? I was terrified of that ghost as a kid.
First the Keyring Ghost, and now another one with a ripped mouth—why are they all like this?!
My eyes stung with tears of injustice.
[It’s my first time playing tag!]
[If I catch you, I can do whatever I want, right? Then I want your pretty face first! After that…]
Tag is NOT supposed to be a murderous sport!!
I can’t keep doing this.
Playing tag with an excited, newly murderous hide-and-seek ghost was too dangerous.
Instead… yes. If it came down to it—
“Let’s play hide-and-seek!”
I shouted loudly enough to shake the basement, skidding to a stop.
The ghost stopped right beside me, staring up at me.
“What are you—!”
Dan Seo-hyuk, unable to slow down in time, crashed into my back.
He caught my swaying body instinctively.
But that wasn’t what mattered.
[Hide-and-seek?]
[You’ll really play with me?]
The hide-and-seek ghost smacked its lips and asked.
“Yes.”
We could never win in tag. Even if we ran fast, we had nowhere near enough stamina.
It was a guaranteed loss.
But hide-and-seek?
Not perfect, but there are pillars and piles of trash—plenty of places to hide.
Definitely a better game than tag.
[I really love hide-and-seek.]
[It’s been so long since someone asked me first.]
The ghost fidgeted shyly with its fingers, smiling as though truly embarrassed and happy.
Just moments ago, yellow smoke had been drifting around it.
Now, a faint greenish-yellow aura surrounded the child.
So it can change.
Which meant I could potentially use this to get us out safely. A huge discovery.
I beamed and replied:
“Yeah. Oppa and I will play with you. How about you search while we hide until sunrise?”
[Until sunrise?]
[So you’ll stay with me all night?]
[Even when it’s dark and scary, I won’t be alone?]
The ghost’s face lit up with joy. The deep-red bandage slowly returned to pure white.
The green aura grew thicker around the child.
