Urban Legend: No-Escape Classroom

Hellooo, Rover…? You around Rabelle College right now?

I wish! That would've been so cool to say. But... gotta be honest with a fellow fan club member. That's rule number one!

And you're someone I'm working very hard to recruit, you know. Gotta stay completely honest!

Alright, fine, truth time. Another member saw you there earlier. Figured you couldn't have gone far.

Speaking of which, there's a rumor going around Rabelle College. After class, when the whole campus goes quiet, the second classroom from the corridor becomes an inescapable zone...

Anyone who goes in gets stuck, almost as if the room eats you. No matter what you do, you always wind up right where you started... staring at the same door.

I'm just repeating what the survivor said. Flickering blue-white lights, a weird, staticky hum, and… a cursed, vengeful spirit.

Maybe it really is some kind of inexplicable paranormal event. Or maybe there's a perfectly logical explanation waiting to be uncovered. Since you're this close... Come on, doesn't it pique your interest?

Not saying you have to go, but it is one of the hottest topics in our club right now. Who knows, today might be the day you write your first legend.

That's the spirit, Rover!

Go on, be brave! See for yourself what's really in there!

The second one from the corridor… Is this it? Looks like a normal classroom from the outside.

Yes. Because this classroom… doesn't like the dark.

Too dark. I can't find my things… Come, come help me…

The one trapped here forever… Unless I find them again… Stay with me.

Oh… You mean the one behind you?

It's useless. That door… is temperamental. Unless I'm pleased.

Seems like you still don't understand what's happening… If you don't believe me, go ahead. See for yourself...

Well? You tried it already? I told you, it's useless.

You can only leave if you please that "door."

No, that's just a metaphor… My name is Shion. As expected, no one ever understands me.

If only I were the door… A door doesn't need anyone. It doesn't care... It doesn't worry about being loved.

Bring them back… The feelings I poured into them… The things I gave them… The pieces of me I attached. Everything. Only then…

Only then will I be satisfied. Only then… can I leave.

And only then can you leave.

Please, kind stranger. Help me.

In this never-ending classroom… help me gather the three things that carry my feelings—

My "gifts."

Find them for me... Find them all...

Help me take back... this love that was always destined to be unrequited...

You... You've decided to help me find them?

Good. This time... I won't regret it. I've made my choice.

That day, watching him sketch at his easel, the sunset tinting his smile with gold… I realized I had fallen for him. Completely.

I had feelings for him, so I prepared a one-of-a-kind "model" just for him.

Cold to the touch, empty sockets for eyes, smooth contours… Everything else was too soft, too noisy, too alive. Only this one respected the quiet.

Why… why did he take it only to toss it aside in some dusty corner?

Why did he stop coming to see me… and start giving that same smile to someone else?

Find it. Bring it back to me…

No… not this one. This isn't my gift!

I told you what I wanted!

Yes, that's the one!

See? Someone does understand me, after all.

…I knew you would help me. Help me collect them.

There's no turning back now.

I hate things that look too clean and shiny. Pretty on the outside… but with a taste as cold as ice.

But no one else felt the same except for him...

That afternoon, when I was so exhausted I nearly fainted, he was the one who gave me something that could actually warm me from the inside...

Steam fogged up my glasses. The broth was so rich and heavy. When he set it on the table, the smell filled the room… salty and savory.

He had to understand how I felt. So I started giving him the same thing, every single day. But then... why did he stop opening them?

He just put them aside… and said he'd share them with others!

He went too far, too far, TOO FAR!

Find it. Bring it back to me!

No, this isn't it… This isn't my gift…

You're so close…

Yes, that's it!

Looks like… you're getting better at understanding me…

Well… this is the last one. Are you sure you want to?

If that's how you feel… then I'll pull myself together. This time, I can definitely, absolutely move on!

You might not guess it, but I'm actually a musician. Even the coldest keys sound warm when I play them.

Even so, if he had asked, I would have given him the instrument that's been with me for years…

He didn't say yes. But he didn't refuse either. He only told me—

"This is really too heavy."

No. Help me find it. My precious treasure with black-and-white keys. I'm not leaving it with someone like that!

No, this isn't it… This isn't my gift…

You're so close…

They're all back... all of my "gifts"... But what about my feelings?

My feelings for him... Could I...? No, I can't. If I put them back...

If he saw them, maybe he'd remember me. Maybe he'd change his mind…

I... I...

Sure, the things you gave were a little… unusual. But someone who really liked you would get your vibe, no matter how strange.

And someone who truly cared wouldn't blow hot and cold like that.

Eh? Y-you noticed…

Strictly speaking, yes. I'm not really here. It's just a little trick with holographic tech.

I-I didn't mean to scare anyone! I just… I just couldn't bring myself to come in person, so I gambled that someone brave might help me.

For one, I really, really don't want that guy to see me... skulking around to take back my gifts. Just thinking about it is mortifying!

If-if he asked me why, or tried to say hi, I couldn't just pretend I don't know him… I just haven't figured out how to face him yet.

And also, the Mindbending Herder is terrifying.

You don't know her?

She never makes a sound. She just walks through empty classrooms, hunting down lone students.

She puts a curse on them and feeds them to this... this thing she summoned! If you're still inside a classroom, you'll be eaten whole!

So I don't want to be her next target. And also… Shh—listen!

Thump... thump... Creak—CREAK— Footsteps! And... and chewing! It's her! The Mindbending Herder is here!

(The moment your eyes meet, she looks a bit surprised to find you here.)

(Then she raises her hand, tracing slow circles in the air, as though weaving an obscure spell. The space around her shimmers faintly.)

I KNEW IT! It's a real curse! I'm done for!

Should I cut the projection? B-but you helped me… I can't just leave you alone here…

Calm down, Shion. This is Zahira, my friend. And that's not a curse. It's just her Forte.

…What?

She can't speak, so her Forte works a bit differently. This is all a misunderstanding.

(She puffs her cheeks slightly, as if annoyed at being misunderstood.)

A m-misunderstanding?

So the rumors were wrong… and I mistook a good person for an urban legend?

(She crosses her arms, pretending to be angry, and nods.)

I'm sorry—!

(Seeing how genuinely contrite Shion is, she sighs and gently pats her shoulder.)

Don't be so nice all of a sudden! You'll make my heart skip a beat!

I-I fall in love at the drop of a hat, okay?! And I just got my feelings back, so I'm emotionally vulnerable right now...

Girl stuff. You wouldn't understand...

So that's how it is. You got so scared of the Mindbending Herder that you ended up becoming an urban legend yourself, creating a real one...

What? You mean me?

Yeah, the "ghost" trapping people in an inescapable classroom.

So... it was just a giant chain of misunderstandings?

Or someone was just too scared to face reality.

Ha! Then that means… you've officially debunked another urban legend.

But you know, urban legends… they sometimes grow back on their own.

Exactly! Otherwise, what's the point of the Paranormal Fan Club?

Actually, Shion's story gave me an idea. I'm totally starting a forum series… "The Midnight Hologram Haunting." Catchy, right?

Shh! You shouldn't draw such a clear line between urban legends and the truth.

...You're starting to sound like the real Mindbending Herder.

Alright, alright! I'll post the real investigation results at the end. But we need a good hook to recruit new members, don't we?

Anyway, Mindbending Herder or whatever else comes up, if you run into another urban legend, just call me anytime!