THGA 02

Chapter 02

I felt sick. Once again, I had returned to the very first checkpoint. And now, dying again… I laughed bitterly at the emptiness of it all.

What? If I die seven more times, I’ll be trapped in this game? Damn it, you heartless developer. Couldn’t you at least make the difficulty a bit easier? What the hell is this?

Sren’s programmed intelligence was ridiculous. Who would have thought that it would silently wait to see if I appeared? I sighed at my own pathetic situation, knowing I had to act even smarter than that.

I’m just an ordinary person. My IQ isn’t high, I’m not good at games, and I’m not clever with tricks. For me, this situation was nothing short of despairing.

I had possessed this game the day my younger brother, a horror game YouTuber, started a live stream. As expected of a game rumored to be on “Hell” difficulty, my brother couldn’t even get through the early stages and ended the stream in frustration. Then, he went out to drink with friends to calm down.

Coincidentally, my parents were also out for a reunion, leaving me alone at home, lying on my bed reading a popular fantasy romance novel. It was exactly midnight.

Then I heard a sound from my brother’s room. Naturally, I assumed he had returned and paid no attention. But the sound of the door opening and closing continued, as if someone was searching for something.

The ongoing noise made it impossible to focus on my book. Annoyed, I went to scold my brother for messing around, but when I opened the door, the living room was dark as if no one had ever been there.

Only my brother’s door was slightly ajar. At that moment, I still thought he was playing a prank. So I opened it… and the monitor, which had been off, suddenly lit up.

On the screen, I saw the game title. The background showed an empty chair, ropes untied, and a basement covered in blood. It was the horror game my brother had been playing earlier: Hallucination of Tracker.

“What the…? He didn’t even turn off the computer? Damn, that scared me.”

I moved the mouse to click the exit button, but something was wrong. It clicked, but the game wouldn’t close.

“Huh? Why isn’t it closing? Is this a glitch? The screen’s terrifying enough, why didn’t he properly shut it down?”

Terrified, I tried to turn off the monitor instead of exiting the game. But…

“What… what? Why won’t the power turn off?”

No matter how many times I pressed the power button, the screen stayed the same. At that moment, the mouse cursor moved on its own—and pressed the game’s Start button.

Goosebumps ran all over my body. Panicked, I banged on the monitor and tried to press the computer’s power button, but it was useless. Then, a quiet, eerie background music filled my ears. The suspenseful sound dominated the room, making my heart feel like it would stop.

The only light in the room came from the monitor, and being alone there was terrifying. I quickly got up to turn on the lights—but they didn’t work. Only then did I realize something was very wrong. I tried to leave the room, but…

Bang!

As if anticipating my move, the door slammed shut. I tried to open it, but it wouldn’t budge, as if it were locked. Then, a strange, wet, low-pitched voice laughed beside me.

“—Rachel. What if you get caught already? I told you to hide well.”
“Eek…!”

I couldn’t breathe. That voice was so chilling. My body trembled, and his voice came again.

“—Shivering like that won’t save you. I win this game. Now, in the next game, you’re the seeker.”

What? No way… he isn’t talking to me, is he?

“—I’ll wait. I want you to find me.”

It felt like someone was watching me. I realized that if I didn’t get out of this room somehow, something terrible might happen. I desperately tried to turn the doorknob.

“—I’ll start again when I count to three.”

His voice continued relentlessly. The more I struggled, the closer he seemed.

“—Close your eyes, cover your ears, shut your mouth… before I hear your breath.”

Then, a sound like a warning beep from a heart monitor rang three times. My vision instantly blurred, flooded with a deep red. There was a faint smell of blood. I couldn’t even scream. Paralyzed, I fainted.

When I regained consciousness, I was inside the game world. I tried to escape, but it resulted in three deaths.

Once again, deep darkness fell.

Ding, ding, ding— The clock tower rang.

I counted silently in my head, now accustomed to it. Footsteps grew steadily closer, matching the rhythm.

I couldn’t just wait anymore.

If I died seven more times, I’d be trapped in this game forever. Honestly, it still didn’t feel real. The very fact that I was here was absurd… But I couldn’t even imagine what would happen if I ignored the warnings.

Being trapped in this horror game world forever—it was terrifying. If it had been a different genre, I might not have struggled so hard to escape. I might have even enjoyed it. Whether the threat was real or not, I wanted to survive. I didn’t dream of wealth or fame, just to live an ordinary life like everyone else.

To do that, I had to escape this game. With seven lives left, it was time to think strategically to progress in the story.

Damn Sren always went berserk when I tried to escape—so what if I did the opposite this time?

As soon as I thought of that, I loosened the rope. Before he could enter the room, I untied the cloth covering my eyes and the gag myself. I then ran to the door, waiting for Sren to enter.

Click! The doorknob turned. As he stepped in, I lunged at him, wrapping my arms around his neck like a madwoman.

“Good morning! Sren!”

To add weight, I even lifted my feet. Damn it—this was revenge for dying three times.

“…!”

Sren flinched in surprise. I laughed and bit his earlobe.

“Sren, I missed you!”
“Re… Rachel…”

He had acted like a madman when trying to kill me, but now that I was bold, his face flushed innocently.

“I wanted to surprise you—why did it take you so long? Didn’t you miss me?”
“Not exactly…”
“Oh, did you find something more fun than me?”

My voice chilled as I spoke. I was just doing what he had done. Sren looked unusually flustered, but then he relaxed and corrected my misunderstanding.

“You’re the only one for me. Rachel.”

He gently stroked my hair while whispering,
“You know? You’re the only one who drives me crazy.”

He was still formidable. The tension between us was like a tug-of-war. I didn’t want him to see me nervous, yet his presence made my heart race. When I swallowed dryly, his pastel-like crimson eyes curved beautifully. And then…

“Ah…!”

He pressed me against the wall in an instant. I had no time to resist, trapped in his embrace. He whispered close, as if about to kiss me.

“You know, Rachel.”
“…Hmm?”
“Why has your heart been racing since earlier?”
“…!”
“As if you’re lying to me.”

His smile slowly faded. My body stiffened. When I looked into his eyes nervously, he buried his face into my neck. I felt his tongue brush my skin—damp and vivid.

I couldn’t breathe. My heart raced, and I clutched his clothes tightly. A sharp pain shot through my body, and my legs went weak.

“Ugh…!”

Sren had bitten my neck. As he gnawed on my flesh, my eyes stung with pain. Helpless, I could only moan repeatedly. If I tried to push him away, I feared he might kill me again.

What is he… really? A vampire, perhaps? I never imagined I’d have my neck bitten and blood drained.

While my mind raced, Sren whispered in a low, wet voice:

“You’ll be punished.”
“…!”
“If you dare try to escape from me…”

It was clear that even thinking about it was forbidden. His meticulousness left me stunned, my mind blank.

What should I do? Was this attempt also a failure?

Frustrated, I pressed my lips shut. Sren slowly lifted his head again. His blood-red lips, stained with my blood, looked even more terrifying. Then he smiled mischievously and said,

“This was quite refreshing, though. I almost got fooled. Rachel.”

The more fear filled my eyes, the more he seemed to enjoy it. He pressed his hand harder on my thigh and whispered:

“Should I mark my territory properly this time?”