Ch.152Theater Voyeurism (3)

All were asleep.

Only the news kept repeating its noisy message.

[Please evacuate quickly to the outside.]

But we must not go outside.

Thump, thump, thump!

“Haewon. Close the theater doors.”

“Yes.”

“See those piled-up belongings? We need to use them to block the entrance somehow.”

One corner of the theater is filled with suitcases and bags.

Belongings they brought from inside the apartment.

Food, clothes, daily necessities, and such.

If we build a barricade with those, we might be able to hold out a bit longer.

“And.”

I grabbed Jung Haewon as he was about to leave quickly.

“Never look outside. Understand?”

“…Yes.”

I recalled the gaze of the creature I saw inside the apartment.

That malice.

That persistent killing intent desperately searching for prey.

Numerous red eyes blink differently inside the black, smooth tent.

And the moment you make direct eye contact.

Your mind becomes flooded with its thoughts.

‘Found you.’

‘Finally found you.’

The gaze itself is an anomaly.

A memetic agent that drives people insane and makes them easy prey.

I can endure it to some extent, but Jung Haewon cannot.

Men tend to have weaker resistance to this sort of thing.

Perhaps.

Even a brief glance might make him lose consciousness.

“Got it? Never make eye contact with that thing outside.”

“I understand.”

Jung Haewon nods, completely frozen with fear.

THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP!

The theater door seems like it could burst open any moment.

Jung Haewon hurriedly begins moving the luggage.

“Dabin. I’ll help too.”

“No, you can’t, noona. You need to help me with the conversation I’m going to have.”

“Conversation?”

“Yes.”

On the movie screen, the news anchor keeps repeating the same message.

[Please evacuate quickly to the outside.]

“That’s not even real news anyway.”

Suddenly.

The anchor briefly clears his throat.

The news content changes.

[Breaking news. Citizens are currently trapped in a theater, and firefighters have begun rescue operations.]

“It’s a trap targeting only us.”

“Theater? Is that referring to us?”

“Yes. Normal news would specify which theater and where it’s located. It just says ‘theater,’ which is suspicious.”

[The name and location of the theater are still being confirmed. We will update you as soon as new information comes in.]

Serim noona has a tense look in her eyes.

But we still have time.

“It doesn’t know exactly where we are yet.”

“Then what about that? Isn’t that trying to come in from outside the door right now?”

“Yes. That’s correct.”

“I don’t understand.”

That’s understandable.

The Tent of Confirmation Bias.

It has quite troublesome anomalous properties.

Almost too difficult to understand intuitively.

However, I know everything.

I’ve already searched for information using the Librarian’s ability.

“It has two objectives.”

THUMP THUMP THUMP!

“Huff. Huff.”

Jung Haewon is working hard to move the luggage.

“One. To physically capture its prey.”

[Breaking news. Firefighters are opening the theater doors to rescue the trapped citizens.]

[However, the Emergency Response Headquarters reports that entry is currently difficult due to obstacles such as luggage piled in front of the door.]

The news continues to stream from the screen.

Fake news designed to deceive us and make us make wrong decisions.

“Two. To capture the prey’s consciousness.”

“What does capturing consciousness mean?”

“It’s a bit complicated to explain. But basically, it means we fall for that news.”

I showed Serim noona two fingers.

“Both conditions must be met for it to succeed in hunting.”

“So we need to block the entrance and be careful about the news… That’s it.”

“Yes. That’s why I need your help, noona.”

Jung Haewon shouts while panting heavily.

“It’s almost done!”

“Good job! You can rest now! Keep checking if anything’s coming in from outside!”

I feel bad making Jung Haewon work so hard alone, but it can’t be helped.

The truly dangerous part is what I’m about to do.

“Normally, we could escape by pointing out the flaws.”

“Like how they claim to rescue us without knowing the theater’s name?”

“Yes, that’s one, and I’ve found many other flaws too.”

“But you said ‘normally’? Does that mean we’re not escaping?”

“Correct.”

It was quite hot inside the theater.

I took off my hoodie and threw it on a theater seat.

Now I’m just in a gray short-sleeved t-shirt.

“As I said earlier, I’m going to gather information here.”

“So that’s why you asked for my help.”

“Yes. Please help me, noona.”

Lies contain some degree of truth.

This fake news is the same.

Most of it is false, but it contains information about the outside situation.

My goal is to figure that out.

The problem is that I need to keep exposing myself to the news to do so.

“Haewon! Let me borrow your phone for a moment.”

“What?”

Jung Haewon is still panting heavily.

“I’ll get it.”

Serim noona got up and retrieved the phone from Jung Haewon.

The screen still shows a YouTube video.

A black, smooth-skinned tent.

It’s trying with all its might to enter from outside the theater door.

Pressed flat against the door, it keeps pushing, shaking, trying every method, but.

The theater door is quite heavy and sturdy, plus it seals well.

This means it’s impossible for it to seep through the door cracks.

The more this happens, the more it becomes fixated on other methods.

The Tent of Confirmation Bias. Its second hunting method.

Deceiving us to make us come out voluntarily.

Thump, thump, thump.

As the door-knocking sounds fade,

new recommended videos appear at the bottom of the YouTube video.

[LIVE: Public Broadcasting Emergency Disaster Report]

I clicked on the thumbnail to enter the new video.

“Hello. This is an emergency broadcast from the public broadcasting station. I’m Lee Jeong-hwan, emergency disaster news anchor.”

As soon as I clicked, a male announcer began broadcasting.

“To understand exactly what’s happening and how to evacuate, we’ve invited Choi Cheol-hwan, Communication Team Leader from the Central Disaster Safety Countermeasure Headquarters.”

“Hello. I’m Choi Cheol-hwan, Communication Team Leader at the Emergency Disaster Countermeasure Headquarters.”

At first glance, it looks like a TV news broadcast, but it’s actually a live stream on YouTube.

This means we can communicate through the live chat.

– Looks like it’s safe there

– Is this a real broadcast???

– So where should we go to survive?

Numerous messages appear and then disappear as they’re pushed up.

I left my own message in the chat.

– Please explain exactly what the outside situation is right now.

Only my chat appears in bold text.

I didn’t do anything special to make it that way.

Everyone else is just fake. It means only my chat matters.

“We’re currently assessing the domestic situation. Each headquarters gathers information and reports to the central office, but so far, we haven’t received any reports.”

– lolololol does that make sense

– are we really doomed

– anyone here from the provinces?

– I’m in Paju area

Actually, I’m in Seoul.

But a little bluffing is essential to get information.

– For real?

– Tell us what’s happening there

Direct messages aimed at me start coming in.

– The situation is very bad monsters are massacring people

– I saw the video so it was real

– For real?

– Not fake, it’s real. This is serious.

Sure enough.

New information comes in shortly.

On screen.

Team Leader Choi Cheol-hwan checks his phone, then looks back at the camera and speaks.

“We just received news from the Gangwon Disaster Countermeasure Team.”

“Yes. What kind of news?”

“Currently, there are casualties caused by unknown creatures. We’ve identified mass casualties mainly in buildings or enclosed spaces. We’ve also received video footage…”

“Yes. We’ll check it briefly and share the video with you.”

Soon, a video appears on screen.

“Aaaah!”

“Help me!”

The setting is inside a department store.

Many people are screaming and running away.

Crack-

The sound of bones breaking. A man’s neck snaps backward.

The black tent extends its corner like an arm, lifting the man’s body, causing his broken neck to dangle backward.

Next was an old woman’s turn.

Splat.

Like squashing a fly.

The black monster dispatches people easily.

Only a horrific mark remains where the old woman was.

One by one, people die brutally.

The last thing that comes on screen is two characters visible through a window.

Paju.

Strangely clear and visible.

To think it could create fake videos so quickly…

This is targeting me.

Me, right here.

“And here’s the next video. Team Leader Choi?”

“Yes. Let’s check this one together.”

This video shows an elevated highway.

The sign reads, again, Paju.

People are throwing themselves onto the road.

Vrooom-!

Screech-!

Boom!

People hit by speeding cars fly like leaves and fall onto the road.

Some fall from the elevated highway and disappear off-screen.

“People are throwing themselves onto the road. This can be attributed to the effects of the anomalous radio waves we’ve been hearing about recently.”

“You mean the anomalous radio waves.”

“Yes. Besides the creatures, these radio waves are another threat. Prolonged exposure to these waves exponentially increases the probability of suicidal tendencies or mental disorders.”

“Then how should we deal with these anomalous radio waves?”

“Again, don’t stay in enclosed spaces for long periods, and try to be in open areas if possible. When radio waves echo in enclosed spaces, they replicate and their effects multiply. Our research shows that people who stayed indoors for extended periods had much higher rates of abnormal symptoms and mortality.”

“So you’re saying we need to go outside to avoid both the creatures and the radio waves.”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

Team Leader Choi Cheol-hwan from the Central Disaster Safety Countermeasure Headquarters nods and adds:

“Especially avoid crowded, enclosed places like theaters, reading rooms, and cafes.”

As expected. Along with the message to leave the theater.

Screech, Boom!

Meanwhile, the video continues playing on screen.

Brutal footage broadcast without any filtering.

People are hit by cars and die, leaving bloodstains on the road.

The vehicle drivers have gone mad too.

Several cars suddenly accelerate and crash into guardrails with all their might.

Crack-

Crunch.

The guardrails are torn away helplessly.

The vehicles fall from the elevated highway one after another, disappearing off-screen.

A moment later, only a loud sound echoes.

BOOM!

Crushed vehicles.

Fallen people.

Blood and flesh stuck to the road.

Black smoke and flames erupting from cars.

“Dabin…”

I looked up.

Serim noona was looking at me with concern.

“Huff…”

Is it because of the horrific video?

My hand holding the phone is cold.

I put down Jung Haewon’s smartphone for a moment and rubbed my hands together.

My hands were drenched in sweat.

“It’s okay. It’s okay…”

Serim noona firmly holds my hands.

Soon my mind becomes calm.

It’s Serim noona’s ability to influence other people’s thoughts.

“We need to keep doing this, right?”

Serim noona murmurs.

“Yes.”

“For how long?”

“We still have a long way to go.”

“…”

Finally, she manages to say:

“Don’t push yourself too hard.”

“I won’t, noona.”

I nodded.

So far, I’ve only confirmed that ‘communication with it is possible.’

And just that the anomalous radio waves drive people crazy.

Unlike the videos showing monsters, this part is likely true.

When I send information, it provides videos matching that information.

Sometimes creating fake videos, sometimes editing real footage.

This means I can gain some new information depending on what information I send.

Tap. Tap.

I typed into the chat window.

– Also people from a place called the Foundation came out and I’m not sure if we should follow them to evacuate

– They claim we’ll survive if we follow them but they’re not government officials so I can’t trust them

– For now we’re taking shelter in a nearby theater

‘The Foundation.’

I threw out the keyword through the chat,

and now it’s the creature’s turn to take the bait.