The Next Morning,The remaining students gathered, discussing the events of the previous night, particularly about the three young men who had never returned.
They had assumed the three were already dead, but to their surprise, they were still alive.
After a while, the group dispersed.
Kyung Ho, Taehyun, Jin Woo, Min Joo, and two other students stood beside the building, smoking while staring at the abandoned structure across from them.
They spoke in hushed voices, their expressions serious.
Min Joo exhaled a puff of smoke before muttering, "Cei sekkiya, should we really stay here? If we escape now, maybe no one else will die."
Kyung Ho leaned against the wall, inhaling deeply before replying, "But what if this is exactly what they want? What if they're manipulating us, making us believe we have a choice… when we really don't?"
Min Joo fell silent, his fingers gripping the cigarette tighter.
Meanwhile, Inside the Building,Five other students had gathered in the hallway, their stomachs growling from hunger.
One of them stretched and sighed. "I'm heading to the cafeteria. I need some instant noodles."
The others nodded but didn't follow, lost in their own thoughts.
On the other side of the building, Jasper stood by a window, peering outside. He cast a quick glance at Ji Hye, Min Seo, Yoo Jin, and Soo Young, who were quietly discussing something in the corner.
His eyes lingered on Ji Hye for a moment longer before he turned away, lost in thought.
A Risky Plan,By 1 PM, everyone regrouped.
Five students stepped forward, declaring their decision.
"We're leaving this place today," one of them announced firmly.
Kyung Ho, Taehyun, Min Joo, Jin Woo, and the two others who had been smoking earlier looked furious.
"Are you serious?!" Min Joo snapped. "We never agreed on this! We were supposed to make decisions together!"
Jasper sighed, rubbing his temples. "I still think it's safer to stay. Out there… it could be worse."
But the five students refused to listen.
Ji Hye raised her voice, "Then why don't we send an SOS signal? Maybe someone will see it!"
Soo Young and Jun Ho immediately agreed.
But others scoffed.
"What kind of nonsense is that?" one of them sneered. "Do you really think someone will see it?"
Jasper cut in, "There's no harm in trying."
Jun Ho nodded.
Hwan, who had been quiet until now, spoke up. "I have a camera. We can use it to gather evidence."
At that, the group finally had a plan.
Dividing Tasks,Hwan, Ji Hye, Min Seo, and Yoo Jin set out to collect evidence—specifically, proof of the murdered victims.
Meanwhile, Jun Ho, Min Joo, Jin Woo, Taehyun, Kyung Ho, Soo Young, and the others searched for white bricks or anything bright enough to spell SOS on the asphalt.
Jasper's Discovery Jasper, thinking of another way to get help, suddenly remembered someone—Mr. Lee, the cafeteria cook.
If anyone could help them, it would be him.
He walked toward the cafeteria, searching every corner. But Mr. Lee was nowhere to be found.
Then, something caught his eye.
A large storage cabinet stood slightly ajar.
Feeling uneasy, Jasper slowly approached and pulled it open.
His breath hitched.
Inside was a lifeless body.
The smell of blood hit him like a punch in the gut. His hands trembled as he turned the body over.
His stomach twisted in horror.
It was Mr. Lee.
His abdomen was ripped open, his organs exposed. The metallic stench of blood filled the air, making Jasper gag.
His eyes then fell on a crumpled piece of paper clutched in Mr. Lee's cold fingers.
He carefully pulled it out and read the message:
"Stay away from the basement, or you'll become its next meal."
Jasper's expression darkened.
Without hesitation, he sprinted out of the cafeteria, shouting.
"JUN HO!!! COME HERE!!!"
A Grim Decision,Jun Ho arrived quickly, alarmed by Jasper's urgent tone.
Jasper shoved the note into his hands, his voice deadly serious. "Read it. Then go warn the others."
Jun Ho paled as he read the message.
Kyung Ho and Taehyun arrived moments later. Together, they carefully wrapped Mr. Lee's body in plastic and stored it inside the walk-in freezer.
When they finished, Jasper muttered, "He was the only one trying to help us."
The atmosphere grew heavy with tension.
Suddenly, the five students who had planned to leave approached.
"We're leaving now," one of them announced.
Jun Ho stepped forward, trying to reason with them. "You should stay. It's too dangerous."
Jasper, however, shook his head.
"Don't waste your breath, Jun Ho." He exhaled deeply. "Even if we begged them for a hundred years, they wouldn't change their minds. Just let them go."
The five students hesitated for a moment.
But in the end, they turned away and walked out.
Jasper left as well, heading outside. He climbed onto the hood of his fuel-deprived car, lighting a cigarette.
Ji Hye followed, crossing her arms. "That's your fifth cigarette. Stop now."
Jasper glanced at her, unfazed. "This is my life, not yours. Don't tell me what to do."
Ji Hye frowned. "You're being reckless. I don't want anything bad to happen to you."
Jasper exhaled a cloud of smoke, his expression unreadable. "Something bad has already happened… Maybe today. Maybe tomorrow."
Then, without another word, he pulled his jacket hood up.
Before walking away, he muttered, "Forget about me. Focus on getting everyone else out of this hell."
Ji Hye stood frozen, watching him disappear.
She clenched her fists before finally heading back inside.
Meanwhile, the five students walked briskly down the road.
One of them scoffed, "Those idiots are just waiting to die."
The others laughed, nodding in agreement.
Moments later, they spotted a vehicle approaching.
It stopped beside them.
Their teacher—the one sent by their school—stepped out.
Excited, they rushed forward.
"Sir! We want to leave!"
The teacher nodded calmly. "Of course. Get in."
They eagerly climbed into the van.
As the engine rumbled, one of them noticed something odd.
The driver… looked familiar.
"Isn't that… our bus driver from the study tour?" one of them whispered.
An eerie silence filled the vehicle.
Then—
BANG!
A gunshot echoed inside the van.
Blood splattered against the windows.
One by one, the five students were shot in the head.
Their bodies slumped lifelessly against the seats.
The teacher and the driver exchanged glances—
And laughed.
Back at the Building inside, the remaining students gathered.
One of them asked, "Did the SOS signal work? Is anyone coming?"
Kyung Ho scoffed. "What a joke. We wasted time stacking bricks like lunatics."
Taehyun, Jin Woo, and Min Joo agreed.
Ji Hye sighed. "Enough. Complaining won't help. We need a new plan."
The tension thickened.
But none of them realized—
Their fate had already been sealed.
That night, things were calm. Everyone headed to their rooms to sleep, except for Jasper and two other young men. They stayed on night watch, taking turns keeping an eye on things. Jasper was scheduled to rotate shifts with one of the others. After a while, the night seemed eerily quiet.
One of the young men volunteered to take over the watch. He walked out of the building, and just as he turned back around—boom—he was abducted!
The other young man, walking beside the building and moving toward the surroundings, was also taken. No one knew. Even Jasper, who was in his room, had fallen asleep from exhaustion. The watch shift continued with the two young men unknowingly taking over for the others.
The night dragged on, and no one suspected anything amiss. Eventually, the entire group, including Jasper, was asleep, leaving the other two who were supposed to replace them to take the next watch shift. They didn't notice the two missing.
It's strange how quickly things changed. Despite being on alert, no one knew that the people they thought were safe were now gone.