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Iarin wore a face that resembled a tired office worker.

“Is it like that feeling of sudden stagnation regarding martial arts? Like, I’m practicing out of habit, but at the same time, I feel bored, and… I want something new for my body and mind, you know~”

However, despite her serious expression and tone, what she said was extremely simplistic.

If one listened carefully, they would realize it was merely a complaint about being bored.

“Are you saying you’re just bored?”

“Umm~ Half of it?”

Iarin said that and paused for a moment.

Then she seemed to consider whether to speak or not, biting her lip before sitting cross-legged on the bed, staring intently at Jinseong. As if she had made up her mind, she slowly opened her mouth.

“Hey, do you happen to know any school urban legends?”

School urban legends.

Literally, urban legends set in schools.

There are various theories on why such school urban legends are created. One theory suggests that it arises naturally due to the peculiar atmosphere of schools that, for some reason, become creepy at dusk, coupled with the gathering of students who are at an age where they are keenly interested in such tales.

Another suggests that, since schools are spaces where positive and negative energies become abnormally concentrated, spiritual beings would naturally reside there, leading to strange occurrences.

Yet another theory posits that, in the search for ‘a large but cheap site’ to build such a huge structure as a school, they end up constructing it over graves or places where bad things happened, resulting in odd happenings.

“Honestly, isn’t that just how all school kids are? They get all worked up over minor things. It’s like they have this urge to show off something they know. Especially those practicing martial arts; they want to act like ghosts don’t scare them at all~”

But one thing is certain: whatever the reason, school urban legends gain quite a sensational popularity. They tend to persist with a resilient life force.

“Honestly, I’ve never been greatly interested in school urban legends or anything. I thought they were just fun to listen to, but that’s about it? Frankly, I’ve passed the level of being scared and screaming over such legends~ Right?”

Iarin skillfully opened a snack she had brought from somewhere and dumped it into her mouth.

After a few rough chews, she swallowed, then turned to Jinseong.

“To be honest, I’ve had my share of experiences while in Russia… Ah, just thinking about it makes me angry again. Suddenly the lights went out, and broadcasts blared… It was scarier than any urban legend, you know? It felt like a horror movie came to life.”

“Hmm.”

“So, honestly, school urban legends might seem a bit silly to me. But…”

It felt like it had become a trend.

Iarin whispered like that.

“Trend?”

“Yeah. I don’t know who started it precisely, but it seems to be trending.”

She said it with a tone as if she were looking at something ridiculous. As if she were a college student observing newly minted middle schoolers.

Surprisingly, in that moment, Iarin resembled Lee Yang-hoon, whom she often called an old man.

“Seems like it might be a ghost that died alone with regrets… Stories like if you confess under a specific tree, you’ll succeed, or if you go to the gardening club, there’s a blood-red flower that blooms at midnight which, when presented during confession, grants eternal love. Or if you go to a specific bathroom at a certain time, you can see the face of your future spouse… Those stories have been trending.”

“Hmm. Well, that age is when people are very interested in love, isn’t it? Not that unusual.”

Iarin paused for a moment at Jinseong’s words, then burst into laughter at his face.

“Wow, you talk like there’s a huge age gap! You’re not that much older than the kids at our school!”

Jinseong had just turned an adult, and how much of an age difference was there really to look at high schoolers and say, ‘that age is all about love’! It sounded like an old man looking at kids and chuckling!

“Oh come on, you’re not exactly normal either, bro. Really.”

She tossed a snack she found somewhere at Jinseong, laughing as if it were a fun little thing. Then she tore open a packet of snacks she had found.

The contents of the long stick-shaped snack packet flowed down the slope and vanished into Iarin’s mouth in an instant, as if being inhaled, disappearing down her throat.

Incredibly fast.

Having replenished her snacks, Iarin threw the wrapper into the trash can and continued her story.

“Anyway, those love-related stories spread quite a bit. So the kids’ eyes lit up at that.”

“Hmm.”

“These urban legends are all at midnight, but… well, our school often has kids hanging out late. Especially those into magic or alchemy, some even live at school. So hearing these urban legends makes for a perfect testing environment. Plus, since it’s trendy, wouldn’t the kids want to try experimenting at least once?”

“….”

“The school at night is super quiet and boring. It feels like time goes slower than during dull classes… So when friends are around, it seems like it’d be fun to try something like that. Right?”

Iarin made eye contact with Jinseong, seeking agreement.

She then shot him a significant look.

An unspoken pressure filled with ‘nod your head.’

However, much to her surprise, Jinseong did not nod in return.

Instead, he stroked his chin, deep in thought.

“Hmm. Urban legends, urban legends.”

Weird stories circulate among people, much like rumors.

And in that process, they get distorted, turning into creepy tales that linger.

But if one traces back to the beginning, urban legends indeed have their causes.

Most of those causes stem from harmless misunderstandings or misinterpretations seen or heard in dark environments. However, a select few are genuinely tied to dangerous and suspicious matters.

It could be associated with a ghost possessing considerable power or linked to specific divine objects. It may involve curses… or be related to abnormal creatures created through biological experimentation or chemicals causing hallucinations, or potentially dangerous individuals.

If that’s the case…

The elevator that Iarin felt was odd might also fall into the category of those urban legends.

“You seem to have made plans to investigate urban legends with a friend.”

“…Huh?”

Iarin’s eyes widened at Jinseong’s words.

“And that urban legend… could it possibly be related to the elevator?”

“Wow, how did you know?!”

Iarin was startled by Jinseong’s remark.

He had brought up the elevator without her even mentioning it, leaving her amazed.

Yet that surprise lasted only briefly.

Iarin recalled something.

“Ah~ I mentioned the elevator before, didn’t I? No wonder I was surprised.”

She had remembered bringing up the topic of the elevator with Jinseong previously.

Her feelings about the elevator and the urban legends surrounding it. She had shared quite a bit about it then.

It was only natural for Jinseong to think of the elevator.

“One of my friends, you know, Surah? She used to be uninterested in those kinds of tales~ But lately, I don’t know if someone sparked her interest, but she’s wanting to check out the elevator. At midnight, no less!”

“Surah? Is that her real name?”

“No, her real name is Yesuhwa. Isn’t that a pretty name?”

“Indeed.”

Iarin started talking about her friend with a brief introduction, saying that Yesuhwa had heard an urban legend about the elevator from somewhere, and she wanted to check it out. But the tale went that you shouldn’t take more than two people in the elevator at once. So she thought of Iarin and proposed they confirm the urban legend, agreeing to treat her to a delicious full course of malatang afterward…

“…So that’s how it went.”

After finishing her explanation, Iarin tilted her head, looking somewhat uneasy.

“But here’s the thing. How should I put it…? I’ve agreed to go, but I have this weird feeling I don’t want to go. My body feels sluggish, and suddenly I’m tired and lazy, yet I’m committed to going, but it feels unnecessarily depressing—ah~ it’s frustrating~”

“Hmm.”

“Besides, it feels like this negativity is contagious. Suddenly practicing martial arts seems boring, and I feel like that boredom has suddenly increased too… At the same time, I’m feeling lazy and lethargic, like I just got out of the water wearing padding? Why is this happening?”

Jinseong briefly gazed at Iarin, who had a puzzled expression on her face, unsure of what caused those feelings.

‘The feeling of laziness and the feeling of boredom. They seem similar, but one pushes you away while the other pulls you in.’

Those contradicting feelings coexisting…

‘There’s definitely something going on here.’

Jinseong became certain that something was amiss with the school’s elevator.

 

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