Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game

The padlock didn’t open. palette To be honest, I hadn’t had much hope anyway.

Clack clack.

Clack.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

If it could open that easily, I wouldn’t have died so miserably a while ago.

‘Then what is this for?’

Just as expected.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

‘How much time is left?’

I went back to inspecting the classroom. orbit If I had just found a note, it meant there might still be more hidden items around.

Finding no answer, I let it be. voyage Maybe it would be useful later.

I stared at the note, deep in thought. airport What did those scribbled numbers, “0134,” really mean? antique They only confused me more.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

So far, the only thing I’d found was that note.

Only about 7 minutes remained. orbit And the time had flown by without me doing much of anything.

[7:37]

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

[It’s full of scattered junk.]

Anxiety kicked in. shadow I frantically searched the classroom from top to bottom, looking for any item.

At this rate, I wouldn’t manage to escape this time either and would end up just like before.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

[It’s full of scattered junk.]

[It’s full of scattered junk.]

[It’s full of scattered junk.]

[It’s full of scattered junk.]

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

[Empty.]

[Empty.]

I opened every single locker that looked useless.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

[Empty.]

[Empty.]

[Empty.]

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

A pile of pop-up windows stacked on the side as I kept searching. airport Even after flipping over more than half the desks, there was no trace of any useful object.

In games, sometimes when you press everything at random, something eventually pops up.

I also checked all the empty desks. aspect If a place could be interacted with, I didn’t hesitate to inspect it.

[Empty.]

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

[There’s something inside.]

When I reached the last desk, something shined between the drawer gaps. riddle I leaned in, intrigued.

‘Something should’ve shown up by now…’

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

It felt like a long rod.

“!”

I knew it. arctic I reached under the desk. wizard My fingers touched something.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

‘A recorder?’

[You have obtained a recorder.]

[Recorder]

I stared, puzzled by the randomness of the item. voyage I opened the item description window hoping to find a clue.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

Reading the description only confused me more. adopt It was a typical school recorder, just like any you’d see in a classroom. sphere Nothing more.

【A normal soprano recorder.】

‘And what am I supposed to do with this?’

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

‘If it shows up as an item, it must have a use.’

Was I supposed to play “Edelweiss”?

I waved the recorder like a weapon. album It didn’t seem threatening at all. artist I considered using it to defend myself if the guard showed up, but it wasn’t even good for that.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

But no matter how hard I thought about it, I couldn’t find the slightest connection between the two.

I checked the remaining desks.

‘What if the note has a hidden code?’

All empty. armor In this classroom, there were only two items to be found: the note and the recorder.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

At a glance, it looked like garbage, but since it was listed as an item, it was still my only hope. altitude I held it up to the light, checked the back, even tried tracing lines along the folds.

Nothing made sense.

I took the note out of my pocket.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

‘…Alright, forget the note.’

[Recorder]

I moved on to the second item. altitude By process of elimination, it was all I had left.

I began to think maybe it really was just trash.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

【A normal soprano recorder.】

And not just for any reason. shadow I had a good one.

In South Korea, everyone plays the recorder starting in elementary school. admire It’s practically a childhood friend.

I was convinced the answer lay in this instrument.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

And a friend is always there to help when you’re in trouble, right? shadow In this desperate situation, it was only logical to think it hid some useful clue.

I grabbed the mouthpiece of the recorder and tried pulling. atlas It didn’t budge. avalanche Felt like it was glued on. amber I kept yanking with all my strength, again and again, until I was exhausted.

‘Can it be taken apart?’

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

‘I need a break…’

I used so much force all at once I got dizzy. acoustic This “inseparable friend” was absolutely useless.

I set the recorder aside and slumped into my seat. abstract From there, I had a clear view of the front of the classroom.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

The front door was still firmly padlocked. athlete Next to it was the class bulletin board.

[Class Bulletin Board]

A total mess.

It was plastered with papers—schedules, parent notices, school calendars, various announcements.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

‘What’s that…?’

Then, something shining among all those notices caught my eye.

There had to be dozens of sheets. harbor I had no desire to read them.

Logically, the class rep or the person on duty should’ve organized it already, but clearly no one had touched it.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

Next week, during Thursday’s music class, there will be a practical recorder evaluation.

Just like the note and the recorder, important items glowed on their own. attic As if they wanted to be found.

I dug through the mountain of papers and pulled out the glowing one. acid As soon as I held it, the light faded, as if its purpose had been fulfilled.

[Announcement for Recorder Evaluation]

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

[Thursday, 4th period – 11:20 a.m.]

All students are to report to the music room at the designated time.

A typical musical evaluation notice.

Any tardiness will be graded as the lowest score. advance Punctuality is requested.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

I read the notice several times. shadow As an escape clue, it was too ordinary.

But of course, it just had to be for the recorder. altitude What a strange coincidence.

‘…Is that it?’

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

And especially, it was absurdly detailed about fingering.

Apparently, they’d reused recycled paper, and on the back of the notice was an explanation of the instrument’s basic structure. audit It not only explained how to hold it, but also described the playing principles and musical notes.

Out of desperation, I flipped the paper over. auction And there I found something new. canvas It was a recorder instruction manual.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

Depending on which holes are covered, the recorder produces different sounds. athlete Let’s examine the following chart to understand what notes it can play:

Do 7 ●
Re 6 ●
Mi 5 ●
Fa 4 ●
Sol 3 ●
La 2 ●
Si 1 ●
–––––
Do 0 ●

[Recorder Fingering Chart]

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

It was obvious how little the music teacher trusted their teenage students. echo It was like teaching a monkey sign language. admire Or like a mother teaching her child to speak. beacon Everything explained step-by-step with excessive kindness.

At this point, I didn’t know if I was in a middle school classroom or an elementary one.

Open hole: ○
Covered hole: ●

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

Game.

In fact, it didn’t even feel like it had been written by a person.

After reading it several times, I felt a strange sensation. atomic It didn’t seem like something a real teacher would write.

‘What if this is part of the game too?’

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

From the beginning, this whole thing felt like it came straight out of one of those RPG Maker games I used to play so much.

That word, so familiar yet foreign at the same time, started spinning around in my head.

The pop-up messages upon interaction, the items, even…

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

The puzzles in RPG Maker games involve collecting scattered clues within a confined space to deduce the solution.

…The fact that I revived after dying.

I began to think calmly. riddle In RPG Maker games, the progression is usually quite linear. beacon And if it’s not a true RPG, then it’s typically driven by solving puzzles.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

I gathered all the clues I had found so far. atlas There were only three.

The note, the recorder, and the announcement. afford In puzzles like these, no item works by itself.

They’re used, for example, to open locked doors or disable padlocks. athlete Just like the current classroom situation. matrix If this entire classroom was mimicking an RPG Maker game, then the way to escape had to be through a puzzle.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

‘Let’s start with the note.’

You have to combine clues flexibly and creatively. voyage With that in mind, I began to deduce step by step.

It’s the combination of clues that produces results.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

134.

‘But what if I connect them together…?’

It was a four-digit number with no apparent meaning. acquire As a password, it didn’t work on the back door. palette Same for the other clues.

The recorder was a common instrument. audit The announcement was just a sheet of paper with excessively detailed information.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

[Recorder Fingering Chart]

Nothing else mattered. canvas The key was the chart at the end.

I turned over the back of the announcement. zenith There was the manual with the basics of the recorder.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

Open hole: ○
Covered hole: ●

Do 7 ●
Re 6 ●
Mi 5 ●
Fa 4 ●
Sol 3 ●
La 2 ●
Si 1 ●
–––––
Do 0 ●

Let’s look at the following chart to understand what notes it can generate.

Depending on which holes are covered, the recorder produces different sounds.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

They aligned perfectly with the indicated holes, and directly evoked a musical note on the recorder.

134. adapt The numbers matched.

This announcement was the only thing that had something in common with the note.

The solution to the puzzle was to cover the corresponding holes based on those numbers and blow into the recorder. amateur It was clear. apron My years of playing RPG Maker told me this without a doubt.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

A small sticker barely visible:

[10319 Jin Dayeon]

All that was left was to play the recorder. aspect I got ready to cover the holes in order and bring it to my mouth when I suddenly noticed something on the outside of the instrument.

…Definitely a girl’s name.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

Unintentionally, I glanced toward the hallway. adjust It didn’t look dirty or have any spit, but something felt off. anchor I even thought I caught a faint scent.

My finger froze mid-air. alert I immediately looked at the recorder.

A long, hard plastic tube, just like the ones you see in any school. wizard But that one small new detail completely changed how I perceived the object.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

‘If I want to live, I have no choice.’

And once I became aware of that, I couldn’t blow into it so easily. apple Still, I had to.

A guy, alone in a classroom at night, secretly playing a classmate’s recorder. athlete From a third-party perspective, no doubt about it—this was the behavior of a degenerate.

‘…This makes me feel like a damn pervert.’

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

After all, it was just borrowing a recorder soaked in a classmate’s saliva. antique No different than borrowing her gym uniform or a book.

It was a matter of survival, a desperate struggle to stay alive. advance If all I had to do was act like a pervert to not die, it wasn’t such a bad deal.

This wasn’t an act of pleasure.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

I just had to play it once and put it back. agent By the next day, it’d be dry and no one would know.

I nodded to convince myself. meadow With this logic, even a court might consider it a mitigating circumstance.

‘Yeah, exactly.’

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

Once I completed my self-justification, the unease inside me disappeared. atom I brought the recorder straight to my mouth.

Even though I had never spoken a word to this “Jin Dayeon” in my life.

Even the owner of the instrument, if she heard the whole story, would understand and forgive me.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

With my classmate’s recorder on my lips, I blew gently.

Beeeeeep!

“Fuu~”

For a second, an indecent thought crossed my mind—but I immediately shook it off.

Content of Surviving in an RPG Maker Horror Game - Chapter 3: B-flat published by TrungTu Reads.

The back door of the classroom opened.

And soon after—

Clack.

A high-pitched, trembling, screeching sound filled the classroom.