Kim Soleum's body sprinted through the maze-like, chaotic corridors of the studio.
Bam— Bam— BOOM!
The narrow indoor space shook with a deafening roar, yet Lee Jaheon traversed it at an impossible speed once again.
Even the original owner of the body, watching through the CCTV-like perspective, held his breath, his hands sweating from the sheer velocity and audacity of the movements.
And soon enough…
"The door."
A pair of double doors came into view, marked with a sign: Filming in Progress
Without hesitation, Lee Jaheon broke the lock and charged in.
Bang!
Beyond the doors…
– …!
…A vast studio set stretched out beyond, so massive that its sheer scale was overwhelming.
However, at the center, where the main talk show stage should have been… It no longer seemed functional.
– ...
The once-glittering ceiling lights had already half-collapsed. Shattered lighting fixtures, twisted metal beams, and dust covered the stage furniture and floor in a chaotic mess.
Even now, through the gaps in the destruction, the 'Sacred Fire' bombardment continued to rain down.
The audience was murmuring in confusion. Trapped in their seats, they had initially found this entire disaster entertaining due to their contamination— but soon, they would start screaming for their lives.
Kim Soleum swallowed back a sigh.
– …The live broadcast is completely ruined.
The remnants of a shattered variety show lay before them. And then.
[Oh.]
At the heart of the half-destroyed stage, a lone entertainer stood.
[You came of your own accord.]
The host.
Even as the stage was reduced to rubble, even as the 'Sacred Fire' bombardment fell like meteors, he merely leaned against his desk, illuminated by the very destruction raining down upon him. He already knew exactly who had dared to break the set. Yet, he did not scream in rage.
He simply stood there, gazing silently at the intruder who had stormed onto the stage.
And it was as if he already understood that the one moving inside that body was not his friend, but the mercenary summoned through the emergency beacon.
-...
For a moment, Kim Soleum felt as if his eyes had locked with the host's through the screen.
He swallowed dryly.
– Squad Leader.
"Yes."
– From here on out, something… completely absurd might just happen.
The host raised his hand.
As if he were still hosting the talk show— As if the program was still going on.
[I am delighted to introduce the mastermind behind this catastrophe!]
Click.
One of the few remaining spotlights suddenly illuminated Kim Soleum.
[The one who destroyed the talk show set and caused chaos during the live broadcast… oh my, how shocking! It's a member of the audience from the previous episode!]
[Please welcome him with applause! Ah, boos are an acceptable choice as well!]
He had immediately recognized Lee Jaheon for who he was.
[A villain who has committed such an atrocious crime must face a proper challenge—appropriate hardships and trials, and of course… PUNISHMENT!]
The stage grew darker and darker.
[Ah, yes. In the medieval era, executions were a public festival, weren't they? Of course, our talk show wouldn't do something as boring as a hanging!]
[Tonight, we introduce a surprise new segment! It's called…]
The host's silhouette raised both hands in the shadows.
And his shadow began to grow.
Larger—
Larger—
And larger still, until his shadow completely covered the wall behind him.
THUD.
The surrounding set walls vanished into darkness.
On the seemingly floating stage…
A massive, spherical TV head began descending.
THUD!
A colossal CRT television, as big as the entire stage itself, crashed down— crushing the guest entrance beneath it.
The host's gloved hand, now gigantic, rested beneath the massive TV as if propping up his chin, while the other hand pointed directly at Kim Soleum —as if firing a gun.
[A breathtaking performance! A dizzying thrill! Terrifyingly fun, and deliciously thrilling… 'Punishment Acrobatics'!]
On the TV screen, a dazzling, flashing neon sign lit up with dozens of light bulbs.
Braun's Exciting Punishment
Boom boom boom boom boom boom boom…
A drumroll began.
The host's gloved knuckles rapped against the ruined set, like a countdown to the show's next act.
The sound of drums, like the prelude to a circus stunt.
– …He won't try to kill me immediately.
Lee Jaheon lifted his gaze, listening to the words of the body's original owner.
– It's still a live broadcast.
The black TV screen— Came crashing down.
[And now… the show begins!]
BOOM.
Kim Soleum's silhouette was swallowed whole.
...
...
[Now then…]
The old-fashioned TV lifted its head once more.
Inside its screen—Kim Soleum's trapped figure was visible. The audience, thrilled by the spectacle, erupted into applause at this fascinating illusion.
[Shall we take a look at his skills?]
The stage lights flickered.
A subtitle appeared.
Punishment 1 Happy Ending Teddy
Inside the TV, a horde of teddy bear-shaped monsters bared their fangs and lunged toward Kim Soleum, attempting to peel away his skin—just as they had done to the neglectful owner of the past.
But Kim Soleum's body exhibited such unnatural strength, and he pried open the bears' maws, forcing them to bite into each other instead. He ran.
The TV's background shifted, forming a new setting.
A city at night.
An alleyway.
A manhole cover.
Punishment 2 The Manhole Arms
From the sewer grates, grotesque arms burst forth.
Kim Soleum stomped on them, then swung onto a streetlamp like an acrobat, narrowly avoiding the elongated, skeletal hands that clawed toward him.
Every challenge mirrored a past guest that Kim Soleum himself had once suggested for the show.
Merciless and absurd, each punishment pushed him closer and closer to a dead end.
[Oh dear.]
But, Kim Soleum survived them all.
His left arm was fractured.
His forehead was split open.
Yet, as long as he wasn't caught, the punishment wouldn't end.
As the punishment numbers increased, they grew even more brutal and horrifying.
Punishment 3, Punishment 4, Punishment 5…
Clang!
Kim Soleum barely escaped a gourmet restaurant that specialized in cooking sentient beings, dodging the chef's cleaver—at the cost of losing a few strands of hair.
And then.
Punishment 6 The Crimson Scarecrow
A vast cornfield.
From the thickly grown stalks and leaves, a twisted, multi-limbed creature slithered, chasing Kim Soleum like a centipede.
By this point, escape seemed impossible…
But the one controlling Kim Soleum's body was a named character from the —Employee D of the Field Exploration Team. Dodging like an acrobat, he counterattacked.
And with a flash of the bloodsucking knife— Slash! Three or four scarecrow limbs were severed. The audience gasped in awe. However, it was only a matter of time.
In a ghost story about a monster in a cornfield, one could never win by brute force.
His already-wounded body had limits…
'…So this punishment was designed for me to die.'
Kim Soleum waited.
Waited—
Waited for the moment—
Just as the scarecrow lunged to pounce…
– NOW!
Following Kim Soleum's advice, Lee Jaheon abruptly turned at a sharp angle.
And then—sprinted at full speed.
Towards the TV screen.
"Wha—?!"
"He's getting bigger!"
And then.
[Oh!]
He jumped straight out of the TV.
Kim Soleum's body rolled onto the floor, and Lee Jaheon landed in a controlled breakfall.
WAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!
Crazy!!
The audience went wild.
[Unbelievable! My goodness!]
For a moment, the host himself seemed to forget his anger. What mattered now was that the show had reached new heights. As if the only thing that mattered in the world was that a good show could be completed, a smiling emoticon flashed on the massive vintage television's screen with the accompaniment of a showman's bright voice.
[To clear six punishments! That was absolutely thrilling! A breathtaking, edge-of-your-seat spectacle! Ah, truly delightful. Everyone, did you enjoy it?!]
YES!!!
The audience erupted in cheers.
And then—
The host, speaking in a velvety smooth voice from within the colossal TV, responded.
[Well then…]
[Get back in and take the 7th punishment.]
The TV screen loomed closer once more.
[The audience's cheers were sweet, weren't they? You must repay their enthusiasm. Oh, we can't possibly end it now—look how much they love it! Keep going. KEEP GOING…]
At that moment.
From the rubble, an anonymous, faceless crew member barely managed to retrieve a sketchbook and held it up from below the stage.
—EMERGENCY ALERT.
[…Aha!]
The TV stopped.
[Oh, would you look at that?]
[It's time for a commercial break.]
The audience groaned in disappointment.
[Haha, as much as I regret it, we must wrap up this surprise segment here. But don't worry—an extravagant finale awaits you all!]
[And of course, this brief commercial break will only heighten your anticipation!]
With a smiling emoticon on its screen, the TV head made a bow to his audience.
[Yes. When the cameras turn off, when the audience's eyes are gone, when the stage lights go dark…]
The host addressed Kim Soleum's figure.
[Who can say what wonderful things might happen to a guest after their segment ends?]
"..."
[We'll be back shortly.]
Click.
The camera lights went out.
Yet, the crew members did not come up to clear the half-destroyed stage. In the darkness, with the murmuring voices of the audience still vividly present…
The host raised his hand.
He fixed his gaze upon the now-useless guest of a finished segment— Upon the reckless fool who dared destroy his set and break his dear friend. And then, the giant gloved fingers slowly pressed together, about to produce a chilling snap….
"Braun."
The hand stopped.
"Did you incinerate my 'stuffed body'?"
...
[Aha. So you've returned to that form.]
[Did you come crawling back to ask for help? How shameless. Then again, shamelessness is a virtue in showbusiness…]
"No."
Lee Jaheon, still piloting Kim Soleum's body, calmly recited his words.
"I just had a question."
The emoticon disappeared from the TV screen.
'I knew it.'
Kim Soleum was certain.
Braun couldn't read his thoughts right now.
Because the one speaking directly to Braun was Lee Jaheon. Just as reading a script aloud doesn't mean knowing the playwright's full intent, Braun had no way of deciphering the true mind behind the words. And the same applied to Kim Soleum.
'Because I'm not really here.'
He was seeing and hearing everything indirectly.
In persuasion, context and atmosphere play a crucial role. But right now, all information was being filtered solely through words and visuals. Without the full sensory experience, he could withstand the 'persuasion' of the great host.
That meant, for the first time, they could have a real conversation. A genuine conversation. One where neither party could see into the other's mind—where they would have to listen, interpret, and truly engage.
"Will you hear me out? I think you won't be expecting this question…"
[Ah. Bluffing can sometimes have its uses on stage.]
[But such tactics only work on amateurs—not on a true entertainer.]
The master of this talk show creepypasta fixed his unseen gaze upon him.
[Do you really believe that reciting tired old scripts, common ghost stories, or dull platitudes will be enough to move me?]
But.
"That's not it. It's just a personal question."
His voice was calm.
['A personal question'?]
"Yeah."
Kim Soleum's lips moved.
"Was it frustrating being a good friend?"
[]
The TV screen froze.
But still—his smooth voice continued.
[A performer who finds their given role suffocating does not deserve to be on stage.]
[In that sense, this Braun has never once felt confined by masks.]
"I see. Because when I was a stuffed doll, I felt pretty trapped and scared. I was just wondering if you ever felt the same way."
[Oh, forming empathy and connection? Predictable, and oh, how boring.]
[Go ahead, waste your breath trying to justify why I shouldn't incinerate you and that grunt right here and now.]
[Before the commercials end.]
"..."
Kim Soleum thought.
He knew—if he simply ran away now, he would inevitably face an even worse end in the future.
Still, putting all his bets on this gamble remained an option to him. But to Kim Soleum, a gamble was only worth taking if there's a real chance of success.
And he had his reasons for taking this bet.
This was the possibility he was holding onto.
"Then. Did being a good friend make you happy?"