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Chapter 7
Before I could even respond to that question, Friedel, who was trapped in the monster’s grasp, was lifted into the air and then mercilessly slammed down like a whip.
Thud!
“Ugh…!”
With a single scream, blood burst from between Friedel’s lips.
Friedel collapsed to the floor, weakly writhing. Slowly, a crimson stain began to spread around him.
“…”
The strange air of the hotel wrapped around me.
The smell of blood, so real it could make any game pale in comparison, reminded me that this was brutal reality.
My entire body stiffened automatically.
No matter how cruel illustrations could be, seeing it in reality was completely different.
Human blood, screams filled with human pain, and a broken body.
It was cruel enough to make me nauseous.
I couldn’t take my eyes off Friedel’s body.
My heart began to pound.
It’s only the beginning.
He can’t die… right?
As if mocking my thoughts, Friedel’s movements slowed and then stopped entirely.
It wasn’t sad, because I had no attachment, but the momentary silence was chilling enough to make my hair stand on end.
I didn’t even know what to say at the sight.
The monster slowly turned toward us.
Its eyes were deep, like an abyss ready to swallow you, and I met them head-on.
“Hic!”
Damn it! What the hell!
Out of fear, I hiccuped without even realizing it. I pressed my lips shut, but it was useless.
“Sis…”
“Hup, ugh!”
Hiccups kept slipping out from between my palms pressed over my mouth.
The monster perked its ears and began walking toward us.
I backed up silently with Holloway, careful not to make a sound.
If we just don’t make a sound…
“Ugh!”
—Screeeech?
…
I’m gonna die. Right at the beginning, I’m gonna die.
Just one hiccup and I’m going to the other world.
By the time my hands turned cold and my face went pale…
[Ah! You have found a weapon to counter the monster!]
What?
As my eyes lit up, another system window appeared.
[Pointed Spear
Feature: Pointy.]
Wow, what an amazing description!
I punched the system window in frustration.
You’re supposed to tell me where it is!
As if reading my mind, a holographic arrow appeared, pointing under a corridor table.
There, I saw a long spear.
I grabbed it urgently.
[Acquired ‘Pointed Spear’!]
[Stab the monster’s weak point.]
[Remaining uses: 5]
…Uses? What happens if I fail all five?
But no further instructions appeared. I stared at the monster.
Friedel beside it was also visible.
My body trembled at the gruesome sight, but the fear that if I couldn’t defeat this monster I’d end up the same consumed me.
I swallowed my nausea and tried to examine the monster calmly.
I couldn’t see any weak point.
Where its heart should be, there was an empty cavity, and its eyes were hollowed out.
The philtrum was too small to target…
Wait, do human weak points even work on this monster?!
I gripped the spear tightly and backed up, protecting Holloway.
“Sis, are you going to be okay?”
“What? Hup!”
“This spear… if you don’t hit the monster?”
“Then… I guess we’ll die.”
“….”
Despite my crazy answer, Holloway didn’t say a word.
I didn’t take my eyes off the monster.
I didn’t know where to stab it.
There was no guarantee that stabbing would even help, so I considered escaping instead.
Holloway, who was moving backward, suddenly stopped.
“What are you doing? Keep moving…”
“I can’t, sis.”
“Huh?”
“Behind… behind us…”
No way…
I turned slowly, and despair struck when I saw the same monster standing behind us.
Both paths were blocked.
“…”
This is the final boss, isn’t it?
Why is it here!
My inner scream went unheard, and I realized I had to break through one of them to escape.
I gripped the spear tighter.
I aimed at the monster on the side without Friedel, but I heard a monstrous roar from that corridor.
So I quietly shifted my aim to the monster near Friedel.
Going the other way would likely encounter more monsters.
“Holloway, when I hit that monster, run straight forward. Got it?”
And then follow me directly to your place.
I wanted to continue the instruction, but I was aware of my surroundings.
“What about you, sis?”
“I’ll follow right behind.”
Holloway nodded reluctantly.
“One, two, three — I’ll throw the spear as I run.”
“Yes, sis.”
The distance was still far, and I wasn’t confident, so I had to close in a bit.
I swallowed hard, gripped the spear, and ran.
Just as I pulled my arm back to throw accurately at its head…
Thud.
I slipped on debris from the wall the monster had broken.
“Damn it…!”
Startled, I dropped the spear and fell hard.
And the spear…
—Screee!
Hit the monster dead center of its leg.
“…Ah, that’s done.”
I murmured without realizing it, and Holloway, instead of running, burst into laughter.
The spear appeared, pointing at the struggling monster.
[Hit the weak point! The monster is immobilized for approximately 5 minutes.]
Five minutes? Enough!
I sprang to my feet and grabbed Holloway’s hand.
“Holloway!”
Stop laughing and come here!
Holloway ran to grab my hand, and we dashed past the monster.
If only we could escape its sight…
Someone grabbed my ankle, and I fell into a puddle of Friedel’s blood.
“Sis!”
“Ugh!”
Splash!
The metallic scent of blood hit me.
Friedel’s eyes were filled with madness.
“I can’t die alone…!”
Friedel, grabbing my ankle, dragged me up.
Even injured, he was strong.
“Sis…!”
“Shh!”
There’s still a chance.
We had five minutes, and dropping an injured person wasn’t difficult.
“Holloway, you run first!”
“But—!”
Time was critical, so I reminded Holloway of reality.
“You have short legs, so you need to run first! That way you can put some distance between you and the monster!”
“….”
Holloway looked at his legs, then at me.
He frowned slightly but then ran.
[Holloway’s mood has worsened.]
Is that what matters right now?
“Let go!”
“Damn… I asked for help, and you didn’t even save me. Huff…”
“Let go!”
I struggled, and Friedel smirked at me.
Blood dripped from his mouth as he grinned grotesquely.
“Why should I?”
“You…!”
“Damn… Huff…”
He cursed, gasped heavily, and ground his teeth, frustrated at me.
“Even if I die, you’ll be my companion. How dare you refuse my help?”
I was incredulous and shot back:
“Do you remember using Holloway as bait first?”
“That was unavoidable…!”
“Then I’m the same!”
“You—!”
I wouldn’t back down, and he punched my cheek with a clenched fist.
Thud!
The impact left me weak.
“Heh heh…!”
Friedel laughed vilely.
“This bastard…”
“Keep talking! Let’s see if you can keep talking after getting hit by the monster!”
It was obvious he intended to use me as bait to buy time.
Otherwise, he really planned to die with me.
I ignored the sharp pain on my left cheek and bit my lip.
I wasn’t going to die because of this guy.
“Don’t you see the monster isn’t moving? If we run now, we can survive!”
“Do you think I don’t know that?!”
Friedel scowled.
“I won’t survive being hit. I need to kill you to feel satisfied.”
He muttered, staggering but dragging me toward the monster.
‘He’s already gone insane.’
No talking sense into him.
“Damn… I should’ve followed Sir Werner… shouldn’t have pushed Moran…”
Apparently, he wasn’t the only one causing chaos.
I looked around, but nothing was there.
The closer we got to the monster, a system message appeared.
[2 minutes remaining.]
Friedel, who was using his strength to throw me to the monster, suddenly clutched his chest.
“Ugh!”
After enduring the monster, it was clear he’d reached his limit.
Clutching his chest, Friedel spat blood from his lips.
“Cough!”
Taking advantage of the stagger, I kicked his ankle with my free foot.
“Argh!”
Friedel fell, losing his grip, and I immediately got up and ran.
From behind, a desperate voice grabbed my ankle.
“W-wait…! Don’t leave me…! I-I was wrong!”
“Shut up! I’m not nice enough to spare someone who tried to kill me.”
Time was still left, so he’d have to crawl to escape if he wanted to survive.
I knew he wouldn’t treat me like a savior.
Above all, he had tried to kill me.
‘He’s full of revenge against me.’
If he survived, he’d throw me to the monster.
I ignored Friedel and ran.
Naturally, I separated from Holloway.
I tried to fake going somewhere else, but he was faster.
“Sis, over here!”
Yeah, that’s right.
With little time left, I took Holloway and quickly entered a room, locking the door.
Hiding was better than running anymore.
After a few minutes, the monsters’ cries were gone.
Was it because of affection?
That was the only suspicion.
No matter how many times I played, the early story of the horror game had never changed.
The only thing that changed was the affection level between me and Holloway.
Could a mere 0.1% difference completely alter the early story?
Otherwise, it made no sense.
The monsters originally appeared because Evelyn, in the game, screamed at every little thing and woke them.
But I hadn’t screamed and acted as quietly as possible.
Suddenly, Holloway, the janitor, started cleaning, saying there were too many people, and the monsters appeared.
From the very start, we had all been scattered.
A faint tap on the back of my hand came.
“Sis, is your cheek okay?”
“It aches, but I’ll survive.”
It was clearly swollen.
Holloway reached toward my cheek, but I tilted my head.
“It hurts if you touch it.”
“Sorry… did that man hit you?”
“No.”
Of course, that was a lie. No need to tell the truth.
“Really?”
“I fell on it when I tripped.”
Holloway looked at me oddly, and I didn’t avoid his gaze.
“Oh, I see.”
He smiled faintly after a moment.
Then, somewhere, a finger-snapping sound came.
A system window appeared.
[Friedel Acrotic has died.]
[Remaining players: 6, including you.]
So he really died.
I didn’t feel any pity. He was the one who tried to kill me first.
[Sub-quest triggered!]
No rest at all.
[Sub-quest <Friends, Gather Here!>]
[Objective: Find at least 2 party members. If 3 or more gather, a linked cooperative quest will trigger!]
[Holloway is not included as a ‘companion’.]
[Time limit: Until death.
Clear reward: Sword
No penalty for failure.]
I was dizzy from the consecutive pop-ups.
A cooperative quest?
Did I have to do it? But the sword reward caught my eye.
But I can’t use a sword…
Is it really necessary to complete the quest?
Even if there are companions, villains like Friedel are still around, causing conflict.
[Tutorial complete.]
[Survival horror game <Child’s Secret> begins in earnest.]
And this was just the beginning…?
