Chapter 75

Fear.

An emotion of being afraid of something.

It wasn’t an entirely unfamiliar feeling.

In fact, one could say it was the emotion Haeun was most accustomed to.

Regardless, the reason Haeun first began acting was due to the fear of her parents from her past life.

The first emotion that struck her when her seemingly healthy performance faltered due to a momentary mistake was also fear.

However, because the fear aimed at them wasn’t included among the emotions her past-life parents had allowed her to express,

she had to learn how to become numb to fear first.

Perhaps that was why Haeun had never really shown any signs of being scared until now.

There was simply nothing for Haeun to feel fear about.

Maybe that’s why.

“I’m planning to stream <Shirooni> on Wednesday.”

[Hmm, it definitely seems like it will have an impact… but will you be okay?]

“Yes. I’m confident.”

Haeun reassured the Touhou dedicated manager on the call about confirming Diah’s streaming schedule, insisting that nothing would go wrong.

There was also a bit of reluctance in her not wanting others to worry about her.

Ultimately, <Shirooni> wasn’t that scary for a horror game.

Its graphics were relatively cutesy 2D pixel art, unlike the latest horror games that were primarily 3D.

Therefore, Haeun figured that, being already trained in the emotion of fear, she could clear <Shirooni> without too much trouble.

She thought she could simply focus on showing a different side of Diah.

To put it bluntly, it was a miscalculation.

“Ah, there was nothing before! Where did that come from…!”

– Nothing was there X Didn’t see anything O

– I wondered what confidence allowed her to stay still like that, lol.

– I’ve seen someone die in the kitchen for the first time.

– Do you know the Virtual YouTuber who lost 150,000 won in an instant?

– Prediction: Staying up all night.

Shaking vision.

Irregular breathing.

The sound of her heart pounding excessively.

Lastly, there was Diah’s avatar, almost collapsing backward.

‘… This is bad.’

Everything from A to Z proved that Haeun was genuinely scared.

At the same time, it meant that the ‘acting scared like a child’ of Diah that Haeun had envisioned was now impossible.

Haeun probably knew the overarching story of <Shirooni> already.

She likely remembered most of the gameplay and positions of the minor traps too.

Thus, she had intended to play as smoothly as possible so that the viewers wouldn’t feel frustration when watching Diah.

However, Diah planned to occasionally get caught by yokai or fall into traps to ‘act’ surprised.

The issue was that the version of <Shirooni> in Haeun’s memory was several years old.

The version currently being played by Diah had undergone various updates since the one Haeun remembered.

So.

“Hide in the storage before it comes chasing—”

-Clank.

-Clank clank.

“…Huh? W-Why won’t this open?”

– The locked door cannot be opened. Because it is locked.

– You need to find the key, Diah.

– It opens if you say ‘Open, sesame!’

– Whoa, there’s a shadow behind you.

– Goodbye, lol.

The intent to deliberately get caught by yokai for the sake of entertainment turned into a genuine inability to escape, and she got caught and eaten.

At nearly the same time, the terrified voice captured by the broadcasting mic was genuine, not an act.

Perhaps it was only natural.

The strongest type of fear a person can feel is ‘the fear of the unknown.’

Haeun, who had thought she was immune to the emotion of fear until now, was not at all accustomed to the fear of the unknown.

Strictly speaking, the fear Haeun had been accustomed to was learned fear.

The kind that became fear only after knowing what it was.

However, the version of <Shirooni> that Diah was currently playing primarily featured ‘jumpscares’ as the main source of fear.

The fear felt by players in <Shirooni> stemmed from the fact that the white yokai aiming to eat them ‘totally does not inform’ the players about when or where it would show up.

If Haeun had been playing the version of <Shirooni> she remembered, she could have anticipated where the yokai would jump out.

“P-piano. The third one from the right….”

[Kiieeek!]

[Guwaaaahhhh!!]

“What?! I didn’t even press the key, I didn’t press it!”

– They got mad because you didn’t ask for permission to touch someone else’s piano~

– From <Shirooni>’s perspective, Diah is an intruder, right?

– Another intruder! Another intruder! Another intruder! Another intruder!

– At this rate, we’ll really be up all night?

Unfortunately, the version of <Shirooni> that Diah was playing had all the updates applied, resulting in

it becoming completely unpredictable when or where a yokai would jump out.

In other words, the jumpscares of <Shirooni> could fully unleash their frightening potential.

[Silica donated 10,000 won!]

: At this rate, a <Shirooni> belly burst might happen.

[Moran Parrots also donated 10,000 won!]

: Hmm, the cheeks aren’t cooked evenly. It’s disqualified.

“My, my face isn’t for eating…!”

– But you’ve already been eaten more than ten times.

– If an uncooked face is good, isn’t that a pass? (This message has been deleted.)

– Even <Shirooni> might get disgusted and stop eating you, lol.

– If <Shirooni> appears, it’s time for a lunchbox.

– I wondered why it came to the abandoned mansion; it was a lunchbox delivery service..!

Afterward, Haeun paid the price for completely trusting her memories for a while.

The chat filled with messages teasing Diah was an added bonus.

Thus, eventually, at the two-hour mark of the <Shirooni> stream,

more specifically, the moment when she realized she hadn’t even seen the main stage of the core story of <Shirooni> yet,

‘… I can’t keep doing this.’

In order to prevent herself from becoming confused by the discrepancies from what Haeun remembered,

she removed all information about <Shirooni> from her mind.

Relying on Haeun’s memories would only lead to another blow to her back.

Above all, Haeun was most concerned about her throat.

Though it hadn’t hurt yet, it seemed like further screams might be risky.

‘Stay calm.’

With that, she made Diah’s state blank, like a white canvas not knowing anything about <Shirooni>,

ensuring she wouldn’t be caught off guard no matter where they went in the mansion.

“I’ve already checked the bathroom and storage, so now I just need to look in the master bedroom—”

[…Crack!]

[Guwaaaahhhh!!]

“W-Why are you hiding in the fireplace?! There are plenty of other places!”

– That’s up to the homeowner.

– Isn’t it Diah’s fault for bothering the Shirooni that was quietly hiding in the fireplace?

– The fireplace is wider than you’d think.

– I just went to the bathroom for a sec; why is it a game over again?

Of course, getting startled was a different matter.

Since she had been meticulously searching for more hints, her encounters with yokai had gotten more frequent.

The fortunately positive thing was that the story, which had been stagnant for a while, had started to progress incrementally.

Thanks to thoroughly checking every corner of the mansion without miss, they could now steadily advance towards <Shirooni>’s ending.

Thus, after solving all the puzzles in the basement of the mansion,

finally reaching the secret passage, and after many trial and error, succeeded in shaking off the yokai chasing after Diah.

“P-Please, let me in, <Diah>. I’ll get caught for real at this rate!”

“I absolutely won’t let you in. You’re already a yokai!”

– Good luck with that.

– This is why I don’t like perceptive little kids (one year old).

– Ah, she won’t fall for it, lol.

Having seen through the lies of a previously deceased NPC ally in one go,

Haeun finally managed to reach just before the ending.

Not long after, they found themselves in a huge maze filled with traps.

Behind them, many yokai were chasing after Diah.

– I predict about 20 tries.

– Didn’t Da Ramji spend an hour just at this part when they played it earlier?

– Moreover, there’s no saving here, lol.

– If you die here, it’s straight back to the starting village, Diah.

[67889 donated 10,000 won!]

: If you don’t die even once, it’s 40,000 won.

[Jung Ki Detul donated 10,000 won!]

: If successful, an extra 60,000 won, lol. That’s a safe asset.

Indeed, a moment later, the big missions that they were soon to be caught in started.

No one among the 8,000 viewers currently watching Diah even thought she could succeed this mission.

With everyone now united, they looked forward to Diah’s genuine screams and frustration.

However, the reason Diah had been caught countless times by yokai until now was simply because she didn’t know.

So.

Now that the locations of the yokai and traps were openly announced,

-Tada!

-Whoosh~!

-Swish. Swish.

Haeun was confident that she wouldn’t become a lunchbox even once.

“Up down up right back down left up up jump!”

– ?

– Why is she doing well?

– This isn’t what I expected.

– Someone is controlling Diah.

– How come she’s escaping the maze like it’s a rhythm game? LOL.

– Who are you?!

– Give us back our awful Diah! Give us back our awful Diah!

Thus, with movements more agile than ever before, they reached the end of the maze.

As the yokai that had been chasing right behind Diah crumbled down with the collapsing maze, Diah exclaimed.

“Those bad viewers who said there would be 20 tries all get down on their knees~☆”

– What?!

– Where on earth did she learn that?

– Vi-vi-vi-vi-sion!!!!

– Diah is truly fun! LOL.

She twirled in place, celebrating that she hadn’t died even once.

However, just five seconds later,

[Snap!]

“?!”

[Guwaaaahhhh!!]

“What-what was that?!!!”

She was dragged down below by a yokai that had crawled up to her, leading to her death.

Simultaneously, the broadcasting chat exploded.

– LOLLLLLLLLL!

– Not even in <Shirooni>, you can’t teabag, Diah! LOL!

– As expected, she doesn’t betray our expectations.

– I believe in you; you are indeed Diah.

– Diah’s true education GOAT: <Shirooni>.

– Wow, so quick to respond.

– Welcome back, Diah! It’s the starting village!

There, Haeun had to navigate the vast maze from the beginning all over again.

As soon as she exited the maze, she headed straight for the exit.

Afterwards, she gritted her teeth and ignored the “no-fun” chatting flooding the chat.

Finally, when the ending credits of <Shirooni> began to roll, she let out a sigh of relief.

Not long after, she finally witnessed the message ‘Thanks For Playing!’.

Thus, she slowly moved her mouse cursor to attempt to close the game.

[Crack!]

[Guwaaaahhhh!!]

Once again, the white yokai that had tormented Diah throughout the day appeared,

screaming a horrific sound that threatened to burst Haeun’s eardrums.

– Bump!

– Crash!

Diah’s avatar once again fell backward, nearly fainting.

She could barely confirm that the speed of the chat window had dramatically increased due to tipping over the broadcasting chair.

– This time, I think she’s actually dead.

– Rest in peace, Dibijack.

– Oh, she did well till the end! LOL.

– Should I save the replay…?

– Diah, your real-time popular clips are flooded with your own!

After taking a moment to catch her breath,

Haeun finally managed to lift her body with great effort.

“…Goodbye….”

– So you were alive.

– Real-time) Da Ramji’s sigh of relief that was about to call 119.

– Diva (not the character).

She bid farewell to the viewers who would reunite in two days.

Diah’s broadcast completely ended ten minutes later.

However, the image of the white yokai that had jumped out even in the last ending credits remained stuck in Haeun’s mind.

– Step.

– Step.

Instead of heading to Haeun’s bed across from the broadcasting booth,

she headed towards the door instead.

Then, she immediately made her way to the master bedroom.

“I want to sleep together… just for today.”

“Hmm? Why? Did you have a scary dream?”

“…Something like that.”

She burrowed between Na-yeon and Sung Yoon, who had already finished getting ready for bed.

Even though she knew it was just a game, she couldn’t calm herself down at all.

Of course, Na-yeon couldn’t refuse such a request from Haeun.

Thus, she gently hugged Haeun while reminiscing about childhood memories.

*

“How’s Haeun’s condition?”

“She seems to be perfectly fine.”

“Phew… That’s a relief.”

By now, there was just about two hours left until the live broadcast finale of <SIT ON THE MONEY>.

Lee Geon-yeol and Lee Jun, who had been busy running around since morning, were now quietly watching Haeun as she arrived in the waiting room.

This was merely to check on Haeun’s condition.

Since this <SIT ON THE MONEY> finals was her first stage as Pinocchio, they wanted to give her as much support as possible.

However.

“Um, uncles. I just found out that my acquaintance arrived a while ago. Is it okay if I step out for a bit?”

Haeun requested a brief outing upon hearing that her acquaintance had arrived at the <SIT ON THE MONEY> finals location.

“Don’t let anyone see you, so wear a hat and a mask.”

“Yes.”

“Let’s take the back door just in case. This writer here will guide you.”

They asked a staff member in charge of Daulby to ensure that Haeun’s identity wouldn’t be revealed.

So, in the end, Haeun had no choice but to meet her acquaintance accompanied by the staff.

Thus, she walked and walked down the narrow emergency path.

Until finally, when she emerged at the entrance of the finals venue.

“I’m sorry for calling you out on such a busy Friday, reporter.”

“Oh no, it’s fine. It’s Haeun; of course, I’d come.”

Finally, she met her only invited guest to this <SIT ON THE MONEY> finals, reporter Heo Ju-eun.

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