DNLYHS Chapter 6 (Part 3)

“Maybe he’s feeding us false information to put us in danger. Think about it. Has surviving in this school while following the Code of Conduct ever been easy? Is this school the kind of place where you can survive while half-heartedly keeping each other in check? We don’t even know what could happen tomorrow.”

“…So we could fall apart and get wiped out.”

“That’s right. There might come a time when even if we want to follow the Code of Conduct, we won’t be able to. And if someone gets greedy for a wish and sacrifices someone early, then when something big happens later, none of us may be able to handle it, and we could all die one after another.”

So we shouldn’t get distracted; we should cooperate. When Yeongwon gave them that kind of look, everyone nodded.

With that, they wrapped up their conversation and decided to spend the day in their own ways. The cook would nap for a bit and then tell the school nurse the story once he woke up, while Yeongwon and Yeonseo would take the janitor and go around the school to relay the story to the broadcasting adviser.

“…Just be careful until tomorrow. We’ll talk more after that.”

Leaving the cook behind, the three stepped out of the cafeteria. Keeping the unease beneath the surface quieted by logic and reason.

* * *

[I see, I think I understand. The school nurse said something similar earlier when he handed me the lunchbox. In short, you’re saying we shouldn’t fall for someone trying to stir trouble, correct…?]

“Depending on how you see it, even what we’re saying could sound like an attempt to stir trouble. But still, wouldn’t it be better for everyone if we trusted and cooperated with each other? You agree with that much, don’t you?”

When Yeongwon explained the situation and added his own thoughts, the broadcasting adviser reluctantly nodded.

From his point of view, maybe all of this sounded like something from another world. Being trapped in the broadcast room and listening to strangers argue would probably only make him more anxious, so Yeonseo gently added:

“For now, please focus only on steadying your mind. Your top priority is keeping your mental state intact, right?”

[…Yes, that’s true.]

“Just think and judge in whatever way helps you protect your mind most firmly. You don’t have to listen to anything that makes you anxious. You understand what I mean?”

[I think so. Um, you two…? No, three now? Anyway, please be careful.]

After finishing their talk, the three wandered around the school for a while to look for the janitor’s whereabouts. The most likely location was the annex hallway the janitor had mentioned earlier…

“The door is open? Hmm, but.”

“…I don’t think we should go there right now.”

Yeonseo nodded at the janitor’s words.

The door leading to the annex was indeed open. But no matter how much they shone the flashlight beyond the doorway, the darkness would not lift. It felt as if layers of shapeless black curtains had been hung there, blocking the light midway.

“…It feels like those restricted staircases. They aren’t physically blocked, either, but light doesn’t pass through at all.”

Murmuring that, Yeongwon stared into the doorway. Was the janitor beyond this place? Or wandering somewhere else in the school?

As they searched around, Yeonseo suddenly noticed writing on the inside of the passage door.

Open after Day 7 / A place you actually don’t need to go

Whoever wrote it had taken the trouble to write even something like this here… When Yeonseo gestured for the others, the two read the phrase with puzzled expressions.

“So it opens tomorrow. That means we can go then.”

“A place you actually don’t need to go… I can’t tell if that’s true or just bluffing. Hey, Janitor. According to you, the janitor was staying in this passageway, right?”

“Yeah, Yeongwon. This was his hideout.”

“…So you’re calling me that too now? Anyway, then we should consider the possibility that he wrote this. If he wanted to hide something, he could very well be bluffing. If it opens tomorrow, we’ll check it out.”

“…Did he really write it?”

“Who else could it be? Up until yesterday, he was the only one who could come here.”

For some reason, the janitor looked back and forth between the permanent marker in Yeonseo’s hand and the writing on the door, then nodded. Did he think Yeonseo wrote it?

Why he thought that was unclear, but the handwriting looked like it had been written with a very fine-tipped pen, more like a ballpoint, nothing like Yeonseo’s marker. Besides, Yeonseo hadn’t even been able to approach this door until today. So as Yeongwon said, it was reasonable to assume the janitor wrote it.

After that, the three walked the hallways and searched through the school one more time, but they didn’t find much.

By the time they finished sweeping the first floor and reached the area near the library, the end-of-day broadcast began from the speakers, as if waiting for them.

“I’m going back to the dorm room. What about you two?”

“Huh? Janitor, I thought you could stay active even after the end-of-day time?”

“That was only when I was a ghost. I mean, maybe I could plug the wire in the dorm room again even now, but… mm, honestly, I’m tired, sleepy, and it sounds like too much trouble for very little gain.”

“Well… if that’s how you feel, then sure. We’ll go rest in the gym storage room. See you tomorrow!”

That person really does have a surprisingly laid-back personality. Maybe he disliked the memories from when he was a ghost… The janitor waved to them and ran down toward the basement, while the other two headed to the gym storage room. During that walk, Yeonseo fell into a brief thought.

Come to think of it… Why had the janitor chosen to split his self and sacrifice himself from the start?

He said he didn’t remember, but the person who made that decision had likely been the janitor himself. Was he that desperate to achieve his wish? To the point, he didn’t care if he died?

If others’ wishes were similarly desperate, desperate enough to risk their lives, then that thought left Yeonseo feeling uneasy.

And then…

“…Ah.”

“Yeonseo? Why are you tripping over nothing?”

Following behind Yeongwon and walking toward the gym storage room without thinking, Yeonseo suddenly rebounded backward as if he had hit an invisible wall. Only then did he remember he hadn’t written today’s record. Since he hadn’t carried out his task, he didn’t have the right to enter the hideout.

But the moment he tried to ask Yeongwon for permission as usual, he flinched without realizing it.

…Earlier, the janitor asked me that. Whether my role even helps with survival.

At the time, he hadn’t thought much of it, but apparently it had bothered him after all. Now that he actually had to make an excuse, he felt strangely small and uneasy.

“Uh, so… you go in first. I’ll just…”

When he lowered his head and mumbled, trailing off, Yeongwon didn’t go inside or close the door. Instead, he looked at Yeonseo for a moment.

Was he starting to get suspicious? When he heard the janitor earlier, he hadn’t really processed it, but now… maybe he thought Yeonseo’s behavior was odd.

But instead of questioning him, Yeongwon stepped back out through the doorway. His hand came to rest gently on the top of Yeonseo’s bowed head.

“…Go do what you need to do. I’m not doubting you.”

“What?”

“Just as you trusted me, I’ll trust you too. I’m saying that you’re doing something all of us need.”

Whispering that, Yeongwon lightly ruffled his hair before closing the gym storage room door.

Yeonseo was grateful he shut it quickly. Even without looking in a mirror, he could tell his face was burning hot with embarrassment.

You trust me. Well, of course, it’d be upsetting if you didn’t…!

It would be ridiculous to be swayed by someone he met only today when he’d been with another person the whole time, but… still, something warm tightened in Yeonseo’s chest.

Probably because of relief. In a place where he was anxious to the point he couldn’t even trust himself, someone else had chosen to believe him.

All right. Just… hurry up and write something!

Feeling the familiar presence of those eyeball monsters creeping closer, Yeonseo quickly grabbed the permanent marker.

Today’s place to write was under the window frame. Yeongwon guarded the hallways and classrooms but almost never inspected the window frames, so if Yeonseo positioned himself well, he could avoid being noticed.

Besides, for some reason, someone else had written plenty of phrases here already.

Beware the moonlight

Don’t let the shadows get eaten

Don’t relax just because it doesn’t hurt

You’ll get kicked out if you stay too long in the library

The handwriting, the type of pen used, and even the colors were all different. Who on earth had written all these phrases? Were there others before him who had served as Librarians in this school?

With that question lingering, Yeonseo still wrote diligently. He wished that his writing would blend in among all the other scribbles here.

Trust Yeongwon, trust yourself, and move forward without wavering. No matter what choice you end up making.

He knew it was a bit childish and sentimental, but he pressed hard and wrote it carefully. For the current Yeonseo, this phrase was more necessary than anything. Anyone who didn’t know Yeongwon would probably be confused by it, but…

Ah, it worked after all.

Feeling that familiar sensation of something being fulfilled, Yeonseo immediately opened the gym storage room door and went inside. Yeongwon had already laid out the exercise mats on the floor and was reading his Code of Conduct notebook.

“All done?”

“Yes. I hope what I’m doing actually helps…”

“…Well, it doesn’t really matter, even if it doesn’t. Just don’t get in my way.”

“Oh.”

“And whatever the problem was yesterday, don’t you ever break the Code of Conduct again. I don’t want to see your corpse floating around with a rope tied to it. If I see that twice, it might even show up in my dreams. Understood?”

He always had to talk like that…! Yeonseo found his curt attitude annoying, but even so, something warm spread in his chest. After all, there was real concern for him in Yeongwon’s eyes.

“Anyway, while I break the door lock, you come here and read your Code of Conduct. Mine was simple, but I don’t know about yours. Maybe it has something like a nuclear bomb written in it.”

“I have no idea… Anyway, I’ll read it.”

He talks harshly by default, so what can you do. Pouting, Yeonseo sat down on the mat and opened the notebook. He didn’t know whether the new entry would be simple like Yeongwon’s or chaotic in some strange way.

[Day 7 Code of Conduct]

[Your chance of escape is 65 percent. You have faithfully carried out your penalties, and you chose to help the janitor escape. You are incompetent, but no one can deny that you did your best for everyone.]

[However, the first Day of Choice has arrived.]

[Today, you will remember something you had forgotten. Based on that memory, carry out your first choice.]

[You….]

Before he could finish reading the last line, Yeonseo was struck by an overwhelming headache and dizziness, far worse than the morning’s nausea.

“Yeonseo? What’s wrong, Yeonseo!”

The last thing he managed to do was slam his notebook shut with all his strength. His consciousness sank deep beneath the surface of unconsciousness.