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Chapter 1
1. The Annoying Character in a Horror Game? That’s Me
Rumble… KRAK!
A thick bolt of lightning struck, and a woman screamed in terror, shivering from the shock.
“Kyah!”
“It’s okay, it’s just lightning,” a man said gently, carefully holding her to calm her down.
Embarrassed by the strange tension, the woman pushed him away lightly, forcing a small, awkward smile.
“Sorry… I was just too startled.”
“That’s understandable.”
Half in a daze, I noticed her worried gaze directed at me.
I quickly averted my eyes and stared at the abandoned hotel in front of me.
“Miss Evelyn, are you alright?”
The woman gently shook me as I stared helplessly at the gray, deserted hotel through the heavy rain. Even soaking wet, she had a charm like sunlight.
Her long sky-blue hair, eyes, high nose, and pink lips trembled slightly from the pouring rain as she worried about me.
She was someone whose presence could be noticed from a glance.
The heroine of A Child’s Secret.
And Evelyn…
The utterly frustrating, obnoxious, irksome character in a horror game that you simply can’t ignore.
From the start, she causes trouble for the hero and heroine, uses others as bait to survive, does everything she shouldn’t, kills those who didn’t need to die, and somehow manages to survive until the very end.
And when her karmic retribution comes, she dies the cruelest, most agonizing death among all.
And that troublesome character… is me.
Seeing the massive abandoned hotel, its former glory dripping from its weathered facade, I suddenly remembered everything from my previous life and realized where I was. There was only one thing I had to do:
“I must never enter that hotel.”
Even the sign was barely recognizable. The letters spelling “HOTEL” at the end looked grim and ominous.
A chill that seemed to creep into my bones and a sinister aura pricking my skin made me swallow dryly.
I was trembling from fear.
The only person who truly understood the brutality of this abandoned hotel was me—the one who had played the game.
“If I go in… I’ll die.”
There’s no hope at all once you step inside.
Somewhere familiar…
Of all places…
I bit my lip to stifle a scream.
A desolate, eerie island.
A grand, luxurious hotel stood prominently on that island. Once glorious, its current faded splendor only added to its ominous aura.
There was no special reason for its infamy. Horror stories like this are common:
Tales of someone sacrificing the entire island’s population to lure guests, a madman killing all travelers on the island, the hotel owner secretly imprisoning guests underground for cruel experiments…
Rumors were rampant, but nothing was ever proven. In fact… even these terrifying rumors eventually vanished, as if nothing had happened.
After countless years, no one remained who remembered this island or its hotel.
But I knew, because I had played the game.
I knew how dangerous this place was. And the most dangerous spot? That hotel.
That luxury hotel was the main setting of the horror game A Child’s Secret.
Once someone entered, they could never leave. Strange incidents unfolded within its walls, and the scent of death lingered in every corner.
Merely stepping inside eroded the mind and amplified fear. This level of terror explained why the game was rated for mature audiences.
And true to its reputation, this horror game was notoriously cruel, while its illustrations were stunning. Many players entered for the beautiful art, only to quit in fright—more than half, in fact.
“The most dangerous beings must be the five demons living in that hotel.”
The abandoned hotel, the main stage of the game, was home to five demons of unimaginable power.
True to their reputation, these demons were merciless and gave no quarter to humans. Bound to the island for some unknown reason, they never forgave intruders.
“People like us, for example.”
Despite the threat of demons, key characters in the game rely on one another inside the enormous hotel, sometimes even developing bonds.
Yet some betray or cause trouble.
Those who survive the trials face the ultimate boss—the strongest demon in the game.
No player has ever defeated the boss and escaped the hotel. Everyone succumbed to a bad ending.
“People say there are normal and happy endings… but no one has ever seen them.”
Even among the bad endings, the method of death differs depending on the story path. The game’s extreme difficulty, combined with the realistic illustrations, drove many players away in frustration.
Thus, A Child’s Secret became a forgotten, ill-fated horror game. All that remained were the beautiful illustrations of the five demons and the main characters who entered the hotel.
Why did I dwell on this game unnecessarily?
“Because a hopeless abandoned hotel now stands before me.”
Tension surged through my body.
“No thanks, I don’t plan on dying.”
The raindrops, as if aware of my resolve, fell harder, piercing the ground with force.
Pouring rain. The best choice? Take shelter inside the abandoned hotel. After all, we were stranded on an island.
But…
“I’m not risking losing limbs!”
I tried to flee the hotel when someone grabbed my wrist, pulling me back.
The grip was too strong to resist, laced with irritation.
I was thrown backward, landing face-first in the mud.
“Ahhh!”
Pain shot through my back and hips, and I screamed.
The one who had thrown me didn’t apologize but scowled.
“Enough of this, Miss Evelyn!”
That jerk! I almost cursed, but instead, I froze.
We were nobles on a ship when a sudden typhoon struck, sinking the vessel.
Fortunately, we survived, waking up on the island—the setting for the horror game.
Many other nobles who had been on the ship were missing. But only seven of us remained, including me.
Given the horror game setting, no other humans likely existed on this island. In fact, we had seen no one else.
Everyone was stunned—and dismayed—to realize they were alone.
That marked the beginning of the story.
And from the moment I met them, I lived up to my role as the annoying, troublesome character.
I cried when my legs hurt, cried over food, whined at scolding, and even demanded to be carried when I couldn’t walk. I whined so much that it would make even the most irritating child seem polite.
It was no wonder the others were exasperated.
“Yet they didn’t abandon me thanks to the kind heroine.”
Even amid my whining, the heroine stayed composed, smiled, and calmed everyone down. She even soothed me.
Enduring my relentless nagging, the heroine was nothing short of an angel.
“I’m fed up carrying you around while you cry and scream!”
The man in front of me scowled in disgust.
I had no comeback, seeing how absurdly I had fallen. No one even reached out to help. They just clicked their tongues knowingly.
Just then, a system window appeared before my eyes, sparkling.
[Werner glares down at you with contempt.]
[➤ What should you say?
- “Wh-why are you doing this to me! I’m scared!”
(.·´¯(>▂<)´¯·.) - “How dare you say that to me?! My dress, my hair—everything’s ruined!”
((╬▔皿▔)╯) - “Wha… what’s disgust?”
((⊙_⊙)?) ]
Disgust… do you think I don’t know what that is?
This selection screen… really?
[Time limit: 10 seconds.]
[※ If you don’t choose, it will auto-select.]
The system clearly wanted me to be the game’s annoying character.
Still… this playful choice window in the middle of a horror game?
Tick-tock. I shakily reached for the system window. Determined to resist the system’s urge to make me annoying, I pressed option 3.
Ding!
[Option 3 selected: “Wha… what’s disgust? ((⊙_⊙)?)”]
My mouth automatically opened, my eyes widened like the emoticon, and the words tumbled out:
“Wha… what’s disgust?”
The atmosphere fell silent.
The rain was loud, yes, but… surely it wasn’t the reason everyone was speechless?
