Chapter 27: The Law of the Musical
"Aaagh!"
I woke up from my sleep, clutching my throat.
Even now, I could still feel Song A-rin's hands wrapped around my neck.
As soon as I got up, I carefully examined Song A-rin lying beside me.
Her eyes were closed as if she were asleep.
I poked her shoulder, but there was no sign of her waking up.
Did she survive?
What was that scream I heard before I died?
"..."
What if she was killed by the Red Lady?
'Starting now, audience members who have exhausted all their chances will be joining our lady.'
I recall the broadcast's message.
The broadcast had said 'chances,' which conversely meant that people don't die all at once.
The problem is that we don't know how many chances there are.
"..."
First, let's think about the information we've gathered so far.
I start thinking about the musical.
A musical without a script.
So, the hypothesis that we could end this musical by destroying the script is currently impossible to execute.
Would it have been possible if Jang Chae-yeon had used her telekinesis to completely wipe this place out?
Probably not. This doesn't seem like a problem that can be solved by physical means.
I think about the musical and the Red Lady.
Let's summarize what we've experienced so far.
1. The 'Red Lady' cannot be seen with the eyes.
It's different from information blocking or interference. For some reason, directly looking at the Red Lady caused fatal damage to my eyes. As if it were a given.
2. Changes in location and their reasons.
When I was talking to that child earlier, the location changed three times. And the Red Lady didn't appear quickly either.
In contrast, Song A-rin never mentioned the location changing even once. Then suddenly, the scene changed.
3. There's more than one chance.
Even if you get caught and killed by the lady once, you don't immediately explode like those people. Meaning, if I fail again next time, I'll be the one to die.
Let's set aside point 3 for now. Focus on points 1 and 2.
A place that's neither another world nor a dream.
What if the place I'm in is inside the musical?
What if the human named 'Kim Jae-heon' has entered the musical as a character?
It starts to make some sense if you think about the conditions for scene changes in a musical.
A play's progression is fundamentally driven by the characters' dialogue. This is especially true for musicals. Unlike mime plays, it's a genre where action and lines are central.
It's a law of all theater.
The story progresses through interaction, and through that, the method of resolving conflicts or the conclusion within the play emerges.
If that's the case, then this musical is the worst of the worst.
They made it so interaction is necessary, but deliberately put the audience members into the musical separately.
In a story that requires interaction to progress, advancing the plot through monologues isn't easy.
Then what exactly is the 'Red Lady'?
What could it possibly be that my eyes were destroyed the moment I looked at it?
"..."
I still don't have a proper answer for that part.
For now, I've decided on a method for the next round.
If I enter the play again, I'll progress the play by mixing dialogue and action as much as possible.
Then, I'll have to adapt on the fly based on the results that follow.
Not being able to see is frustrating to the point of driving me insane.
If necessary, I might have to use the manual.
According to Song A-rin, for some reason, only my manual is attached to me.
...I hope it's not cursed or has a consciousness of its own or something.
I look at Song A-rin again.
Her eyes were still closed.
Before thinking of a way to end this play, I need to think of a way to escape this place first. If necessary, I should get Song A-rin out first.
What would be the easiest way to escape?
I decide to test the simplest hypothesis first.
I sprang up from my seat, and of course, shortly after, an employee came to confront me.
"Miiiiiiissssss... Geeeeeeeentlemaaaaaaan..."
"I really need to use the restroom."
"...Thiiiiiiis waaaaaaay..."
The employee pointed towards the exit with his hand, and I hurriedly walked in that direction.
I saw a sign that said 'Restroom,' passed it, and quickly headed for the exit.
The theater's glass door came into view. I opened the door and stepped outside.
"...Damn it."
I'm sure I opened the door and went outside.
But somehow, I was back inside the theater again.
I opened the door and went out again.
If there's a feeling like walking on a Möbius strip, this must be it.
I looked at my reflection in the glass door.
Maybe I have a Critical?
[Critical: 0]
No chance.
I quickly gave up and walked back into the theater.
Song A-rin was still sitting in her seat, dazed as if asleep.
"...Ugh."
Soon, Song A-rin opened her eyes with a groan.
"Are you okay?"
She's the one who killed me to save me. There's a contradiction in my words, but since she actually did it, I felt sorry and could only ask her cautiously.
"...Damn it."
She put one hand on her forehead and bowed her head deeply.
"Ms. Song A-rin?"
"...I'm fine."
Her voice was trembling.
"...What happened?"
"..."
She flinched at my question.
Soon, her body began to tremble like an aspen leaf.
"...Uh."
"Yes?"
"...There's no way to win this."
She lifted her head and looked at me.
Her expression was filled with despair.
"No matter what I did, I couldn't win. I tried kicking, I threw rocks, I even used my hidden trump card... but I couldn't land a single effective hit."
"..."
"It doesn't make sense. It's as if it was designed from the start to be unwinnable...!"
"..."
I think I understand how she feels. I also looked at it with my own eyes, and my eyes exploded, so I know how bewildering it was.
I started speaking to comfort her.
I was also grateful that she sacrificed herself for me, and sorry that I, as her senior in life, couldn't help her even though she's my senior at work.
Choosing my words carefully, I began to speak slowly.
"Let's do better next time."
"..."
"I've been thinking about this and that, and I've come up with a decent method."
"..."
"Next time, if something happens, I'll die. We should share the tickets to have more chances."
"..."
"And... thank you. I survived thanks to you."
"..."
Consoling people is really difficult.
Song A-rin lifted her head and let out a sigh.
"You're grateful to me."
"Huh?"
She looked at me.
"I can infer your feelings right now, so at least I can sense your sincerity well enough."
"Ah."
Well, then, just read my mind, why don't you.
"That takes all the fun out of it."
As if she'd inferred my thoughts again, Song A-rin answered playfully and laughed.
<Intermission begins.>
People are waking up.
The same commotion as before, the same broadcast.
Once again, people start exploding.
There were far more people than last time.
It feels like less than 30% of the people are left in the theater now, let alone half.
Is it because I prevented the suicide?
Then how did the others escape? Do they still have chances left?
A bitter taste filled my mouth.
A phrase I saw during the Butterfly Dream incident came to mind.
<Humanity's last bastion.>
"...A-rin."
"Go on."
"By any chance, can you use something like telepathy?"
"...Do you think I can?"
She lifted her head and looked at me.
"I don't have that ability. I can only... give hints to other people's minds, to some extent. That's all."
"That might be enough."
She stared straight at me.
"What are you planning to do?"
"It's just my hypothesis, but hear me out."
I explained to her about the musical, and the connection between the script and the scenes. After hearing my explanation, she nodded slowly.
"I get what you're trying to say. The logic seems somewhat sound."
"Somewhat?"
Common sense doesn't apply here anyway. Fine. It's possible that we've really been sucked into the musical and become characters. Okay. Let's try to progress the story more dramatically next time."
She looked straight at me.
"So, what does that have to do with my ability?"
"Let's give people a hint."
"To all these people?"
Her face frowned.
"To say what?"
"As I said earlier, let's assume this is a play and proceed. Tell them to use monologues as much as possible."
"...Will that work?"
"And since this is a musical, there might be other characters besides the lady, right?"
"That's possible."
"If it seems too difficult, let's tell them to get themselves killed."
"...Like how I killed you."
I nodded at her words. She looked around at the empty seats and her expression hardened.
"When did so many people..."
"..."
"I guess we have no choice. Wait a moment."
Soon, she took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and began to concentrate.
My migraine started getting worse.
Without realizing it, I put my hand to my temple. The expressions of the people who were screaming or panicking began to grow dazed.
Soon, Song A-rin let out a deep breath and opened her eyes.
Her complexion had become very pale in that short time.
"You can do group hypnosis too?"
"It's possible. But it's incredibly exhausting, like I'm going to die."
However, her expression was more hopeful than before.
"With this, more people might survive, right?"
"Let's hope so."
<1 minute remaining until intermission ends.>
The intermission feels shorter than before.
"Are you ready?"
"Well, I was just relaxing. Are you okay, Ms. Song A-rin?"
"I'm not okay."
She answered while pressing her forehead.
"But I have to be okay. I'm a Management Bureau employee."
<Intermission ends.>
Soon, along with the broadcast, my vision darkened again.
*
"Alright, then bring up a topic of conversation."
In a barren wilderness without a single blade of grass, Song A-rin looked at me and spoke.
Deliberately waving her arms widely, she looked at me.
Her purple hair shimmered in the sunlight.
"Let's see..."
What story should I tell her?
"This is a story from when I was in the Cube..."
In the end, the burden of storytelling fell on me again.