Episode 389
: Through a lucid dream, Lee Jae-heon experienced the final boss of Eonhak High School firsthand.
Its body was stronger than well-hardened plaster, and its speed was fast enough to exceed that of a typical plaster monster. Unless I occasionally stopped to think, it was nearly impossible to escape the monster. Even though he could catch and kill as many as he wanted, the way he controlled his pace seemed like he was enjoying hunting.
Therefore, it was difficult to even drag it into the swimming pool without taking advantage of the moment of inattention or taking advantage of the pleasure of hunting. Jaeheon Lee judged that if he encountered the final boss in real life, he would return several times.
‘Unlike in a lucid dream, there are rules in Unhak High School, there are monsters other than the final boss, and many survivors will be targeted by the monsters, so variables arise. No matter how hard you try to understand it for a week, problems are bound to arise.’
So I thought. Let’s just complete the main character, since we’re going to go through it multiple times anyway.
“Ah….”
“….”
“I’m going to turn.”
Lee Jae-heon, who was semi-forcibly locked in the bathroom, sighed.
“What are they doing all gathered here?”
Jeong In-ho, Hong Gyeong-jun, and Lee Jae-heon. These three people entered the bathroom of Building A on the 3rd floor to avoid the art teacher. Because there are so many people coming in, the only time they can stay is 20 minutes. If we wanted to, even if we had to confine ourselves to the bathroom, we had to divide the number of people into other places.
“I’m leaving?”
“Boss.”
“Just don’t call me.”
Lee Jae-heon wiped the corners of his mouth for a moment before continuing.
“I know it’s crazy, but you have to look at reality.”
Woo Woo-young and Yoon Gar-ram, who were in the same third-floor standby group, died.
I’m not sure if Song In-myeong was dead or alive in the art room on the 4th floor, but as soon as Hong Gyeong-jun and Jeong In-ho came down to the 3rd floor, Yoon Gar-ram noticed that something was wrong and started a fire. He probably gained more confidence after the apartment incident, so it wasn’t a bad choice, but Woo Joo-young was caught by a monster and couldn’t deal with it right away.
‘Lee Jae-heon’ was unable to save Woo Woo-young due to lack of visibility, and when Song In-myeong was not visible, Vivian briefly became agitated and became stiff, and Jung In-ho and Hong Gyeong-jun, who had just run away, were not quick or strong enough to deal with the art teacher monster. The monster, which was not greatly affected by fire, killed Woo Woo-young.
“Even though the situation is like this… we need to get out of there first.”
Vivian was burned to death by Yoon Garam, who lost control, and Yoon Garam, who was distraught over the deaths of the two survivors, was captured by the art teacher monster. The funny thing was that Yoon Garam became a plaster monster.
‘I didn’t know that the final boss could create a plaster monster.’
Did he really enjoy the hunt itself, or was it just a dream and his abilities were limited? The art teacher in the dream only held Jae-heon Lee and compacted him, but never even showed him the plaster. Even though it was applied to the body, it did not turn it into a monster.
Jaeheon Lee reflected.
‘I should have kept in mind the art teacher that Song In-myeong explained better. It wasn’t for nothing that people talked about him as a perverted bastard who mainly creates plaster statues as objects of love…’
I don’t know if it only targets women or if it is possible for anyone he comes into contact with, but what is certain is that art teachers turn survivors into plaster monsters without going through school rules. I could have made it. Otherwise, there was no way that Yoon Garam, who was confronting the art teacher, would suddenly become a plaster monster.
It was still wandering around the third floor.
“Because of the fire, the sprinklers were activated and the commotion itself was loud, so people on the standby team on the second and first floors must have noticed that there was a problem.”
“…Yoon Garam and the art teacher monster are all on the third floor. “I don’t think there will be any damage yet to the standby crew members downstairs.”
“Thanks to you, we are the problem.”
Lee Jae-heon clicked his tongue at Jeong In-ho’s rebuttal.
“How do I get downstairs…”
If it were a normal school, I would have escaped through the window, but under the rules of this Unhak High School, if I did that, I would be neatly ‘deleted’. The strange white light visible through the small window of the bathroom was unsettling. Jaeheon Lee glanced at the window and then turned his gaze to see the survivors.
Fortunately, the apartment incident seemed to have had its effect, and even though four people died in an instant, Jung In-ho and Hong Gyeong-jun did not seem as confused as before. They were lost in thought.
“….”
“….”
It wasn’t until about three more minutes passed that Hong Gyeong-jun opened his mouth first.
“…Jaeheon Lee knows this too, right?”
“You mean we all go back when we die?”
“Before In-ho Jeong, you said that Jae-heon Lee was the subject of a return. It would be strange not to know. “I just asked to confirm, so you don’t have to worry too much.”
As expected, the reason Hong Kyung-jun’s mentality was still healthy was because there was a ‘next opportunity.’
Jaeheon Lee spoke with sunken eyes that seemed to be looking into the distance.
“Don’t think about dying first.”
“….”
Hong Gyeong-jun looked at Lee Jae-heon. My eyes returned to focus.
“…That’s not what Lee Jae-heon would say, is it?”
“There is a reason when I die, man… I’m not trying to throw everything away and die just because something goes wrong. “I want people who remain after my death to have a better path.”
“But….”
“Ever since In-ho Jeong came, I have always been the ‘one who stays’. Detective Hong, you were the same until a few days ago. Dying even though you know there is another chance is an act of abandoning those people.”
“How many times have you abandoned Lee Jae-heon?”
“Because that’s my specialty.”
‘Lee Jae-heon’ laughed briefly.
“As you know, if you are not the last survivor, you will have no memories. If you’re seriously considering your next opportunity, think about how you would act. Personally, I recommend staying as long as possible to get more information.”
“…Mr. Lee Jae-heon….”
Hong Gyeong-jun asked, continuing his words.
“Aren’t you afraid of dying?”
“very.”
“I guess so… have you thought about what the ‘leftover people’ you mentioned would think of your death?”
“I’m going to forget it anyway, so should I care?”
“The direction is different from what you just said.”
“So that means I’m the bad guy.”
He continued speaking calmly.
“Hong Gyeong-jun, isn’t he a detective? He’s different from me.”
“…You think I’m not a bad guy.”
“You must be good.”
“That is correct.”
The answer was clear in tone, but Lee Jae-heon noticed that Hong Gyeong-jun’s eyes were somewhat turned.
“I have to be nice.”
Once again, Hong Gyeong-jun was watching Lee Jae-heon overlap with his shooter.
‘It’s been like this for a while… but it’s gotten worse.’
It was quite funny to input ‘Lee Jae-heon’s’ words into my head as if they were commands.
Now that he has gone through a lot of work, Hong Gyeong-jun has become a docile sheep who listens better when he goes crazy. It seemed like the modifications that had been made so far were finally coming to fruition.
Hong Gyeong-jun hoped that the death of the shooter in front of his eyes would not be repeated and was blind to that. The moment Hong Gyeong-jun learned that Lee Jae-heon’s survival was forever guaranteed at least at the next opportunity, there was no longer anything for Hong Gyeong-jun to hesitate about. After that, all that remained was a sense of duty: ‘I must listen carefully to what the gunner says.’
“All right. We’ve been here for about 15 minutes, so we’re about to be kicked out of the bathroom. How are Jaeheon Lee’s injuries?”
“My vision is a little blurry, but not so much that I can’t see.”
Lee Jae-heon burst into laughter at Hong Gyeong-jun, who seemed to have ‘organized’ his thoughts.
‘There’s still no problem here.’
He turned his gaze and looked at Jeong In-ho.
“What about Assistant Manager Jeong?”
“…I’m always fine.”
Jeong In-ho, who said that, was looking at Hong Gyeong-jun with a look of disgust. He probably didn’t want to see Hong Gyeong-jun, who had become a yes man, mentally upset, but his expression was resolved in about 5 seconds.
Jeong In-ho, who quickly returned to his usual neat expression, asked Lee Jae-heon.
“Then should we first think of a way to get downstairs?”
Even though he witnessed the deaths of Woo Joo-young and Yoon Garam Vivian, he seemed to be quite fine.
“There were two monsters wandering around on the third floor and there was a lot of commotion, so we should also keep in mind the teacher monster… and the other student monsters that we pushed away while taking class. “It must be difficult to go down to the second floor while avoiding eye contact.”
“…I guess so.”
Lee Jae-heon spoke about the main character, who seemed to have become insensitive to the death of his colleague.
“So I’m going to go out and attract attention.”
“No.”
“It’s not possible.”
“It’s so hard to make a living.”
Funny bastards.
‘It may be a bit different, but in the end, Lee Jae-heon’s death became a weakness.’
Hong Gyeong-jun is actually better. Because he essentially knows that ‘Lee Jae-heon’ will never die due to the regression structure, the death of Lee Jae-heon that he opposes is simply something that is unpleasant to see. At worst, it only strengthened Hong Kyung-jun’s frustrating control freak aspect and could no longer break him down.
But Jeong In-ho was different. Unlike in the original work, the main character knew how to cooperate, perhaps because he found something to rely on, and above all, he used ‘Lee Jae-heon’ as his spiritual support. As a result, I developed a bad habit of judging that when one person dies, ‘this episode was a failure.’
“Why does that monster only pursue me?”
Therefore, Jeong In-ho is not fully developed as a protagonist.
“Did you see that all eyes were only following me? If we do well, we can both go down.”
“You keep acting like that…”
“What. Sacrifice what? “How many more times must I tell you that it is not such a tickling act for them to understand?”
I had to complete the main character.
“I always make the most efficient choice for what I want. You can’t disparage that just because he’s In-ho Jeong. “I don’t know exactly what I did in front of In-ho Jeong during this time, but I can assure you that it was all for the best.”
The time has come for ‘Lee Jae-heon’ to explode.
Lee Jae-heon gave a crumpled smile as if it was truly unbearable or as if he was unfair and disappointed. A voice resembling a weak candle flame came out, as if he was naturally depressed.
“Why don’t you know that?”
It was probably the first time Jeong In-ho had ever seen this expression.
“…Boss?”
“…I’m sorry. “I’m out of my mind.”
“….”
Jeong In-ho observed ‘Lee Jae-heon’ with his mouth closed, as if assessing something, but they had no time. Because Yoon Garam, who had become a monster, was constantly starting fires, smoke was seeping into the bathroom. I had to get out of school as quickly as possible.
After much discussion in a short period of time, it was decided that Hong Gyeong-jun would be the bait.
“Please take care of me.”
“…It’s a bit strange because it feels like I’m going to die.”
“It’s not wrong.”
“It’s a really strange feeling.”
Meat Shield was clearly decided, but in a situation where there were two or two scary monsters roaming around one floor, bait to attract attention was absolutely necessary. However, Jae-heon Lee was excluded as a bait candidate, and the only remaining candidates were In-ho Jeong and Gyeong-jun Hong. The two reached a decision after some discussion.
Hong Gyeong-jun muttered like a person possessed by something.
“I heard a story somewhere, but there is a place among pseudo-religions that offers live sacrifices. “He deceived people with the flattering story that there is paradise after death and committed murder for religious madness.”
“Did that really happen?”
“It was an incident straight out of a textbook. I heard it happened overseas… I think I’m now like those crazy people. These are fanatics who believe that after death there is a comfortable paradise where they can receive God’s love.”
Hong Gyeong-jun, who said that, looked at Lee Jae-heon.
“…I guess it won’t matter.”
I don’t know exactly what was irrelevant, but Hong Gyeong-jun looked quite relieved. As long as ‘Lee Jae-heon’ was sane, he seemed to be able to calmly accept even if he was sacrificed. Lee Jae-heon also wondered if there was any difference between the fanatics this bastard mentioned and the current Hong Gyeong-jun.
Nevertheless, Hong Gyeong-jun seemed to be in a very good mood.
“I’ll go first.”
“…I’ll tell you the story later, so don’t worry.”
“I’m not worried. “I’m sure you will do it well.”
Not long after I left the bathroom, I heard a loud noise made by a monster, and the epicenter quickly moved away. Before even confirming that it had arrived in Building B, Lee Jae-heon and Jeong In-ho left the bathroom and moved to the second floor.
Thanks to the survivors hiding in the second floor lobby, I was able to come down easily without getting caught, but…
“Bah, just now.” Hong Gyeong-jun just….”
“….”
“…died…?”
I feel like my heart is dropping. A feeling of shortness of breath.
“….”
“….”
Even before Kim Ki-jeong, who was hearing almost every noise in the school, pronounced Hong Gyeong-jun dead, the survivors realized that he was dead. It was an unavoidable phenomenon that you would experience if you were staying in the other side of the world.
Woo Woo-young and Vivian. It must have been the same even when Yoon Garam died.
“…Let’s go to the first floor.”
The fire was gradually spreading through the school, which caused the sprinklers to operate continuously. Based on Lee Jae-heon’s memories from the previous episode, Yoon Garam’s plaster monster, which constantly repeated the process of being heated in fire and cooled in water, would soon collapse.
While going down to the first floor, Kim Ki-jeong’s shoulders trembled.
“Mr. Kim Ki-jeong?”
“….”
“…I won’t bother to ask what you heard.”
The sound made when the plaster broke was quite loud. Even if the newly created plaster monster could not withstand the hot and humid environment and collapsed, even if Kim Ki-jeong, who had strangely good ears, heard the sound. It was not something that could not have happened.
As soon as he got down to the first floor, Park Da-hoon, who had been looking anxious the whole time, shouted softly.
“Park Da-young…!”
Surprised by the sudden action, I turned around and saw Park Da-hoon’s purple eyes.
“Dahun.”
“No, that’s not it. “It’s not that…”
“Calm down.”
With that ability, he was sure to have noticed the anomaly on the first floor.
“I’m not doing this because I really know anything. “It’s just ominous…”
Park Da-hoon, who was looking around nervously as he stuttered out an excuse, opened his eyes wide.
“Park Dayoung!”
“Dahun… Dahun.”
Park Da-young, who was loitering near the bathroom in Building A on the first floor, ran to Da-hoon Park, who was looking for me, and hugged her. Park Da-hoon, who would normally have hated her, hugged her and checked her pale face. It looked like they were checking to see if there were any injuries.
Before Park Da-hoon could say anything, Park Da-young opened her mouth.
“Please find me a teacher.”
“what?”
“Mu Munsan-gun… Teacher Munsan-gun and Seong Ji-ho.”
My voice was shaking.
“I was supposed to come out when I had time, but we were supposed to meet… right? here?”
“….”
“But he didn’t come out… I said I would hide in the bathroom in Building B in the back… but both of us…” “
…Uh….”
“I was in the bathroom. .”
Park Da-young’s purple eyes watered.
“A ticking…sound.”
“….”
“…I heard it….”
A sound came from behind the survivors who were listening to the brother and sister’s conversation.
Takkak.
* * *
Location Eonhak High School, Building A, 4th floor.
The final deceased is Park Da-young.
Fourth regression in progress.
(Continued in the next part)
