Chapter 4: Zero, film, beginning, 10 minutes before

“Mr. Choi Jaeha! We have to get out!”

“Huh, huh?”

A blackout and yet the lights turn on?

That’s not normal.

As soon as the stage lights came on, I instinctively knew something had begun and opened the front door of the auditorium.

Clack.

“Damn it!”

The door was locked.

I should have known.

A maze is like this.

“What? It’s locked? Then the other one?”

Choi Jaeha, pale, ran toward the other front door.

“This one is locked too!”

“Let’s try the back!”

Both of us started going up the stairs at the sides of the seats.

The auditorium occupied two floors, the second and the third, so the back door connected to the third floor.

Rattle, slide.

As we ran up the stairs at full speed, wearing down our knees, a white screen descended over the stage.

“It’s locked here too! Mr. Seon Yuhan, what about yours?!”

“Here too!”

“What do we do? What do we do? What are we supposed to do?!”

Choi Jaeha suddenly came up to me and shook me by the shoulders.

“You brought me here!”

It was true that I had brought him to the auditorium because I didn’t trust the hallway, so I had nothing to say.

“If I die here, it’ll be your res—”

「We, l, co, me, de, ar, es, ti, ma, ted, au, di, en, ce!」

The voice from the speakers interrupted his shout.

「The, film, wi, ll, be, gin, sho, rt, ly, ple, ase, ta, ke, you, r, sea, ts.」

It was a grotesque voice.

As if each syllable had been assembled from different places tone, gender, and age constantly changed.

“What… what is this now?”

“Let’s sit down first.”

“No! What if spikes suddenly come out of the seat or something like that?”

What kind of movies has this guy been watching?

“Please. Mazes work with rules.”

“Let go of me! If you want, sit down yourself!”

Choi Jaeha freed himself from my hand and pressed himself against the closed back door.

「Du, rin, g, the, pro, jec, tion, mo, vi, ng, is, pro, hi, bi, ted, due, to, ri, sk, of, ac, ci, dents.」

“Mr. Choi Jaeha, please do what it says! We don’t know what will happen if we don’t!”

“I said no!”

I was about to insist when another voice forced me to stop.

「For, a, ple, a, sant, ex, pe, rien, ce, ple, ase, a, voi, d, ta, lking, and, si, len, ce, or, turn, off, you, r, pho, nes.」

It was a typical warning against illegal recordings.

「To, mi, ni, mi, ze, dis, tur, ban, ces, le, a, ving, is, not, al, lo, wed, from, 10, mi, nu, tes, be, fo, re, un, til, the, end, of, the, film.」

I set my phone to silent and looked at the time.

「En, joy, the, pro, jec, tion.」

3:45.

The film starts at 3:55.

I took that moment to try to seat Choi Jaeha.

“Mr. Choi Jaeha, I’m sorry for bringing you here, but we’re in the same situation.
As I told you, mazes work with rules. If they are not followed, you die. The problem is not knowing what they are. But here they are telling them to us, so it is relatively safe. Besides, you were saved from the elevator thanks to me. Trust me one more time. I have no reason to put you in danger. And if it’s a film, it will last at least an hour. Are you going to stay standing all that time? It’s better to sit and conserve energy. Please, follow the instructions…”

“T-to hell with it! Fine, fine.”

The annoying accountant finally sat down in the last row behind me.

It seemed he simply didn’t want to keep standing.

Well, as long as we don’t end up as corpses, it doesn’t matter.

Flash.

The screen suddenly lit up.

Huh?

It’s not the start time yet.

「The taste of memories! Nectar!」

A video with noise, as if recorded on old film.

A can with arms and legs, with a sweet voice.

It opens the can, drinks it in one go, and exclaims in satisfaction.

…It was an advertisement.

But it had problems.

First, everything looked distorted, as if generated by a faulty AI.

The shapes blended and deformed grotesquely.

The only clear thing was the “Nectar” can.

“Huh, that—?”

“Shh…!”

Second, Nectar is a labyrinth artifact.

An object that causes strange phenomena.

In this case, it changes flavor depending on who drinks it.

It tastes like the most cherished memory.

「The taste of the kimchi my mother made!」

Sound of swallowing.

A female figure, a young man, and something red merge.

Scene change.

「The taste of the jajangmyeon I ate in secret!」

Another grotesque fusion.

Scene change.

「The legendary liquor of 13,7910 years!」

More unnatural fusion.

Scene change.

「The porridge I licked in the basement!」

Something that one wishes were not human mixes with something one wishes were food.

Scene change.

「Drink your memories! Nectar!」

It is, basically, a drug.

Very valuable, because it allows experiencing flavors from the past.

But in reality it is a trap of the labyrinth.

Outside the labyrinth, maybe.

But inside, you must never drink it.

Especially in an invasive one.

The labyrinth seeks to keep you.

「Remember! Eating is law. Law is consumption. Consumption is Nectar!」

The music faded.

Flash.

The screen changed again.

A bipedal bull-shaped character appeared.

“Hello, I’m Mimi. Oh, hey!”

Mimi or crazy?

He opened his eyes and pointed forward.

As if pointing at the audience.

“You, in row H seat 7!”

It can’t be…?

I lowered my gaze to check my seat number.

“Yes, you. This… ah, your name is Seon Yuhan?”

As if this were a children’s game.

The bull-headed figure muttered that and let out a mocking laugh.

“But you look quite grown up, huh? Ugh, though you’re a bit disgusting.”

He made a face as if he had bitten into something unpleasant.

Damn labyrinth.

That is nothing more than a “person” created by the labyrinth so that humans can understand it.

There is no malice there. It is just a mechanical output.

Even so no, precisely because of that, I responded with the same expression.

“Anyway, Mr. Seon Yuhan. Do you know the Tarae Diary?”

The mini minotaur extended its hand with a “ta-dá,” and the image of a reddish-brown leather notebook with an elegant design appeared.

“It’s a work planner given to all employees of the Tarae Group!”

Current Sports Agency, Future Entertainment, Yuwi Guild, Tarae Holdings.

A total of four logos appeared on the screen.

“And on the second floor of the Tarae building, in the ‘TARAE’ merchandise store, only for today! A special event is being held where even regular customers can purchase the Tarae Diary!”

But what does that have to do with anything?

Why are they advertising something like this?

There must be a reason.

Everything must be a clue.

“Ah, by the way, on the first page are the details of each floor of the Tarae building.”

No, I mean, what do I need that for?

I just need to find a way to go down to the first floor and get out of here without looking back.

Ah.

Wait.

A chilling sensation ran down my spine.

Could it be that…?

The horned bull head smiled like a salesperson who had just made an incentivized sale.

My heart began to beat faster.

“Now then, the movie begins!”

I didn’t have time to organize my thoughts.

Clack!

All the stage lights went out and the screen lit up again.

I turned around.

The projector was still off from before.

[Production / Presentation / Distribution: Labyrinth Pictures Co., Ltd.]

And even so, the screen displayed the image perfectly.

[Will spring come to Seonghwa High School as well?]

A title with an elegant font.

The moment I saw it, my blood ran cold.

“Huh? Seonghwa, ah—”

Choi Jaeha fell silent when he saw my insistent gesture.

I looked back at the screen.

The hand with which I was gripping the armrest was sweating.

「Hey. What’s for lunch today?」

「Kimchi duruchigi.」

「Oh! Duruchigi! I’m going to serve myself a lot. What else?」

「Tofu, seaweed salad, steamed egg, black bean rice, and bean sprout soup.」

「Ugh, I hate bean rice.」

Seonghwa High School was the most famous in the country.

「Hey, but what’s with that guy? What kind of weirdo is that now?」

「Hey guys, aren’t you tired of self-study? If you’re going to keep talking, then I’ll continue the class.」

「Ah, teacher, it’s not that… there’s someone standing outside the door. He’s wearing a strange mask.」

「Huh? ……Did you come for something? But in front of the teacher you should take that off—」

「—Aaaaaaaah!」

An invasive maze that was resolved with the death of more than 200 students and faculty.