Chapter 243: Board [6]

I honestly couldn’t believe myself.

I was the last person who would even think of giving chase to something that was even remotely dangerous.

And yet...

Here I was—

Running straight toward the very thing that terrified me.

The thing I

should

have run from.

"S-stop!"

Clinging onto the knife in my hand, I rushed with all my might towards the shadow. It was just unfortunate that the distance between us didn’t shrink despite my running at full speed.

’Fuck! Fuck...! I only just started to go to the gym! Cut me some slack!’

Just a little run was enough to make my lungs burn.

My speed was also on the low side.

This situation secretly reinforced my thoughts of keeping up with my gym schedule.

"S... stop!"

The beam of my flashlight bobbed wildly as I ran, its light bouncing across the uneven, rotten cobblestone beneath my feet. Along the walls, faded paintings flashed in and out of view. Dozens of faces, all pale and staring at me.

I tried my best to ignore them as I kept my gaze firmly locked onto the shadow in the distance.

I couldn’t allow it to run away from me.

"Kh—!"

I ignored the burning in my lungs and pushed myself faster. At the same time, a black film began to spread from my legs, reinforcing them as my speed steadily increased.

Knowing that this entire situation was being recorded, I made sure to keep the action extremely subtle.

Thump! Thump!

Each of my steps started to echo louder within the corridor.

I could feel that I was slowly catching up on the shadow. It was just as I was getting close enough to determine their identity that the shadow flickered and disappeared from view.

"Huh?"

I stared at the scene, stunned.

"W-what...? Where did they go?"

I moved closer to the spot where they left, and paused the moment I noticed a wooden door.

My breath paused as I looked at the door.

From beneath the door, a faint, flickering light pulsed irregularly, like a candle struggling to stay lit. The air around it felt colder.

It... felt dangerous.

And yet, swallowing my saliva, I did the one thing I would never have done in the past

Bang!

I kicked the door.

"Hieeek—!"

A scream followed as a figure huddled back, nearly toppling the desk over. She just barely managed to keep everything from falling over as Mia appeared before me.

She stood frozen, her face ghost-pale, eyes wide with panic. Strands of her brown hair clung to her damp forehead, and her breath came in shallow, uneven gasps.

"S-squad Leader...?"

Her voice came in tremors.

I frowned while looking at her.

’The shadow disappeared right here, and she’s one of the two people that I previously suspected. Is this a coincidence?’

I didn’t think so.

Step.

Taking a step forward, I saw Mia’s face pale even further as she took a step back.

"S-quad Leader... W-what are you doing? W-why are you getting closer? And why... why are you holding onto a knife? D-don’t tell me...?"

I could see her eyes darting towards the walkie-talkie on the desk. She probably wanted to communicate with the others and tell them that I had been possessed.

However, I was more preoccupied with something else.

’...The lamp is almost out. There are only a few minutes left.’

I had to end things quickly before it’d be too late.

Step.

I took another step forward.

Mia’s face paled even further.

Her eyes trembled, and as I stopped before her, she huddled to herself as if she was too terrified to look at me in the eye.

"S-squad L-leader.. Please."

I ignored her words and raised the knife.

Then—

Swooosh!

I swung.

"Hieeeeek! Now!!!"

A scream followed.

Clank!

A loud metallic clang echoed as my knife struck something solid, and then a large figure emerged in front of me just as I swung behind.

The impact’s recoil knocked me back several steps, while Min stood completely still, unmoving.

Mia lunged at me a moment later, but I quickly dodged to the side and backed away.

That’s when I saw her, standing next to Min.

There was surprise in her voice as she looked at me, eyes wide with something between confusion and disbelief.

"How did you know this was a trap...?"

I didn’t answer immediately before lowering my head and staring at Min’s shoes.

As expected...

"Min.. what should we do now? We’ve caught the spirit. Should we warn—"

"How did I know? You were too obvious."

I looked at Mia.

"You, of all people, should know... I’m just a regular person," I said, my voice calm but firm. "You looked too afraid of me. Something that shouldn’t make any sense at all given your knowledge of me."

I paused, then turned toward Min, narrowing my eyes.

"Besides..."

I pointed at his shoes.

"I left a line of salt at the entrance to my room. A simple trick to see if anyone tried to enter."

My gaze lowered toward Min’s shoes and the faint marks of salt left behind by them.

"Look at his shoes. They’ve got traces of salt. His shoe size also told me that it wasn’t possible for you to be the same person that I was chasing. I realized in that moment that Min was the one that I was chasing."

But with that being said, even though I was certain that it was Min, I knew that even if I went back to the board and put out his name, it wouldn’t work. The rules stated that I had to be truly certain.

Mia lowered her head, her eyes settling on Min’s shoes. That’s when she noticed it too, the faint traces of salt clinging to the soles.

"T-that’s..."

"Don’t listen to him. This salt comes from another room."

I smiled.

"If I had to guess what happened, Min suddenly rushed into the room and told you that I was chasing him with a knife and that I was the culprit. His story would make sense if not for the fact that the culprit can only be either one of you."

".....!?"

Mia’s face changed.

"W-wha...? How?" But then, she paused and fell into a brief moment of thought. It was there that she seemed to finally connect the dots. Confusion turned to dread as her gaze snapped toward Min.

The atmosphere changed instantly.

The air grew colder, heavier. The candle flickered violently, its flame sputtering as if reacting to something sinister.

A chill swept across the room.

Min’s expression began to twist... slowly, unnaturally. His features warped into something that wasn’t entirely

his

as his eyes started to turn pitch black.

And in that moment, a sharp, bone-deep cold crawled down my spine.

"Quickly use the board!"

"Huh? Me..?"

Mia looked confused, but after seeing my expression, she immediately dashed towards the board and reached for the planchette. The candle was now almost entirely melted, and the flame was extremely dim.

The surroundings were dark, and the walkie-talkie was only emitting static sounds.

Rattle! Rattle!

The surroundings shook as I stared at the hulking figure before me.

"Th-this.. this..."

I could hear Mia’s voice behind me as she struggled to move the planchette, but my focus had shifted. Min’s face had twisted into something sinister, and without warning, he lunged in her direction.

"Stop her! I must stop her! Stop...!"

"Stop her! I must stop her! Stop...!"

"Stop her! I must stop her! Stop...!"

His voice took on a strange, layered quality as he spoke, but before he could advance, a black liquid coiled around his legs. I swung my foot with all my strength, kicking toward him.

Bang!

My foot came into contact with his body, and he skidded back.

As he did, his attention turned towards me, his pitch black eyes locked onto me, and I felt every hair on my body rise.

I tried to laugh, but I couldn’t.

’...Suddenly, I really am starting to miss puking.’