episode_0002

The day of the written exam.

I left the house with my little sister seeing me off.

“You okay? Can you get on the bus alright?”

“Don’t worry. I looked it all up.”

“Did you pack your pencil case?”

“They use computers for the test there.”

“You have the talisman I gave you, right?”

“Yeah. I’ve got it.”

I almost asked if she was my mom but held back.

That’d be crossing a line, given our nonexistent boundaries.

‘If I let my guard down, I might turn into trash in an instant.’

On the other hand, I was grateful to my sister.

To think she’d look after her useless older brother like this.

I’m not the type to cry easily, but today, I felt tears welling up…

Not because I was scared to go out, of course.

“By the way, what about your school? Aren’t you supposed to be there?”

“My big bro’s taking an exam—how is that not important? I skipped.”

“Of course it’s important, you brat.”

“Ow!”

I flicked her forehead, exasperated.

Since when was skipping school so casual?

My sister looked up at me with tears welling in her eyes.

“Ugh… Who even needs school anyway?”

Must be that rebellious phase.

Seems my little sister has a lot of grievances against society.

“You still have to go. You’ll regret it later.”

“But you dropped out too.”

“…Which is why I’m regretting it enthusiastically right now.”

“Ah… Sorry.”

The mood suddenly turned somber.

This wasn’t what I wanted.

“A-Anyway, I’ll be back.”

“Yeah! I’ll be cheering for you!”

With my sister’s lively encouragement, I stepped outside.

The moment I did, a fierce assault overwhelmed me.

“Gyaaaaah!”

The intense heat radiating from a G-type main-sequence star over 150 million kilometers away!

The divine radiance that could annihilate even a polar bear!

In simpler terms—sunlight.

“My eyes…! My eyes are burning…!”

For a shut-in like me, the sunlight was unbearably harsh.

Damn you, Vitamin D! Were you a spy all along?!

“S-See? The outside world is dangerous. Maybe I should just go back…”

“…Just go already.”

My sister giggled and pushed me forward.

…I was being serious, though.

What a tragic era, where even family doesn’t take your sincerity seriously.

‘Whew! At least I got on the bus safely.’

Maybe I’d been worrying too much all this time.

Nothing happened—I boarded the bus without issue.

‘Guess this place is inhabited by normal people after all?’

The inside of the bus was utterly ordinary.

Passengers with their heads down, staring at their phones.

A couple and a kid were the only ones who stood out.

No way this was some ridiculous urban legend about a bus to the underworld.

It was still bright morning, after all.

“See? Nothing to worry about. Good thing I came out.”

As the tension from going outside faded, a new tension took its place.

The written exam waiting for me.

‘I did pass the practice tests, but…’

With Cheon Ji-hae as my opponent, I couldn’t let my guard down.

For all I knew, the exam paper might be cursed.

Why else would it show up so often in Neapolitan horror stories?

Like warnings about how “Question 3 doesn’t exist” or something.

‘…If something like that pops up, I’m ditching the test and running.’

A corporate job exam is an important challenge, sure.

But my life is worth twice as much.

“Well, all I can do now is study hard.”

I pulled out the notes I’d prepared.

Reading them now wouldn’t make a huge difference,

but it was better than sitting around trembling.

‘Still, I’ve lived a past life. Even if I fail the practical, I can’t flunk the written test.’

Just as I was psyching myself up to study—

“Miss! You have to tap your card before—gasp!”

The bus suddenly stopped, and commotion broke out at the front.

Someone must’ve forgotten to tap their card.

I glanced up absentmindedly—and my gaze froze.

‘…What the hell is that?’

The person boarding the bus was clearly human.

Except for being a woman over 2 meters tall.

I could’ve brushed that off somehow,

but the real problem was the lack of eyes.

And, most damningly—the red mask covering her mouth.

‘The Red Mask Ghost…!’

A horror story no Korean wouldn’t recognize.

A woman with a red mask hiding her torn mouth.

She asks, “Am I pretty?” while showing her mouth.

Say “yes,” and she tears your mouth open, killing you.

Say “no,” and she just kills you outright.

‘Why the hell is a famous ghost like that on MY bus?!’

More than fear, indignation hit me first.

The Red Mask is a well-known urban legend—high-tier at that.

How the hell is a ghost like that roaming around in broad daylight?!

“Am I pretty?”

“Uh, w-well…”

The Red Mask asked the bus driver.

He seemed to realize the thing in front of him wasn’t human.

His eyes darted around frantically before he forced out an answer.

“Y-Yes! Very pretty! Of course you are!”

“Really? Even like this?”

The Red Mask removed her mask.

Her mouth, slit all the way to her ears, was grotesque on its own.

“Eeek!”

The driver screamed at the horrifying sight.

Trembling, he still managed to nod.

“Y-Yes! You’re beautiful! Of course you are!”

It’s only natural that was all he could say.

Anyone would know honesty meant death.

But in this legend, even that isn’t the right answer.

“Then I’ll tear your mouth open too!!”

—Riiip!

The Red Mask tore the driver’s mouth open.

Not horizontally—vertically.

His jaw split grotesquely and fell to the floor.

“Kyaaaaah!”

“N-No! What is that?! What is that?!”

“S-Someone call an exorcist!”

Passengers panicked at the gruesome sight.

They scrambled for an escape,

but the only exit—the front door—was blocked by the Red Mask.

‘The driver who could’ve opened the back door is already done for.’

No way out.

People were frozen in terror, unsure what to do.

“You there.”

“Eeek! M-Me?”

The Red Mask pointed at a man.

“Am I pretty?”

The man broke out in a cold sweat.

He’d just seen what happens if you say “yes.”

That left only one option.

“U-Ugly! Fucking hideous! You look like a rotten pumpkin!”

The man hurled every insult he could at the Red Mask.

But that wasn’t the right answer either.

“How dare you call me ugly!”

“Grrr—!”

The Red Mask lifted the man with one hand.

An inhuman strength.

“P-Please…!”

—Crunch! Thud!

She slammed him into the ground.

His head burst with a sickening sound,

and his body twisted unnaturally before going still.

“H-Hik! Eeek!”

Terror spread further through the bus.

What the hell were you supposed to say to survive?

‘Guh!’

Then, the Red Mask’s gaze met mine.

Just as I thought it was my turn—

—Whoosh!

She turned her head away.

‘Huh? She definitely saw me…’

Was I too ugly to even bother asking?

What a rude bitch—!

But I soon realized the real reason.

‘The talisman Chae-young gave me!’

The talisman I’d stuffed in my pocket just in case.

Seemed like it was working.

‘But do normal talismans have that much power?’

Most only repel low-level spirits.

Something like the Red Mask, a high-tier urban legend, shouldn’t be affected.

Unless it was an exceptionally powerful talisman.

‘How much money did she even spend on this thing?!’

Well, thanks to it, I’m alive.

But as her older brother, I’ll have to scold her for overspending.

Assuming I make it back alive, that is!

‘At least it seems I’m safe for now.’

The Red Mask moved past me, searching for her next target.

This was happening in broad daylight, right in the middle of the street.

If I held out a little longer, exorcists would show up.

Meaning, at the very least, I could escape safely.

I was feeling a little selfish but relieved—

“Am I pretty?”

“Ah.”

The Red Mask had chosen her next target.

Seeing who it was, I clenched my eyes shut.

‘You’ve gotta be kidding me! Not a kid!’

She was pointing at a girl no older than elementary school age.

Even if this were some R-rated horror game,

targeting a kid would get it banned outright!

“I-I…”

The girl trembled, unable to answer.

Too scared to even speak.

The adults were too terrified to step in.

Then, one person did.

“D-Don’t bully my little sister!”

A boy who looked maybe two years older than the girl.

“O-Oppa…”

“It’s okay. Hide behind me.”

He tried to shield her,

but his small frame was no match for the monster.

‘…Damn it.’

If I hadn’t luckily skipped my turn thanks to the talisman,

if I weren’t someone’s older brother too,

would I have just stood by and watched?

I don’t know.

What mattered was that my body moved before my mind could think.

‘If I were Hero Himmel, this is what he’d do!’

“Hey, you ugly bitch!!”

I crumpled the talisman and threw it at the kids, shouting.

‘Chae-young, I’m sorry!’

Even if I’m not even an extra in this world,

I can’t be trash who watches a kid die!

My legs shook, but it was too late to back out now.

The Red Mask turned to stare at me.

“If you know you’re ugly, save up for plastic surgery! Why take it out on innocent kids?! Ever heard of a mirror?!”

Silence fell over the bus.

No reaction—but I could feel the Red Mask’s fury.

Heh.

The corners of her mouth curled up.

That grotesque, monstrous sight made cold sweat drench my back.

‘Haha. I’m insane.’

Her slow approach was terrifying.

My body wouldn’t stop trembling from fear.

The Red Mask stopped in front of me and asked:

“Am I pretty?”

A question where either answer meant death.

But I wasn’t about to die quietly.

Time to show the modern fear of people over ghosts!

“What? What are you saying?”

The Red Mask froze at the Chinese coming out of my mouth.

That’s right! Ask all you want.

If I pretend not to understand, what can you do?

‘If every answer gets me killed, then I just won’t answer at all!’

I owe my past self for studying Chinese during job prep.

This is the power of globalization, you bastard!

Just as I cheered inwardly for my victory—

“我漂亮吗？(Am I pretty?)”

The Red Mask repeated the question in Chinese.

“…This damn game.”

Since when do Korean and Japanese urban legends speak Chinese, you crazy bastards?!