I Returned, and Now I See Strange Things-Chapter 39: First Broadcast

In front of the chained-up school gate bathed in moonlight—

Footsteps echoed to announce the arrival of uninvited guests.

Three figures emerged.

Hyesung, sighing so heavily it sounded like the earth would cave in.

He grumbled under his breath, but held his smartphone tightly in one hand, ready for filming.

Next to him stood Hyeyeon, still bleary-eyed, her face blank with sleep.

She showed no sign of tension despite knowing she was about to appear on camera.

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And following behind them—

A girl.

Ayun, awkward in her outfit, walked with an unsteady gait.

When the moonlight revealed her body from the shadows, her appearance became clear.

Silver hair with a hint of violet shimmer, swaying from her shoulders.

Crimson eyes, clouded with anxiety about the future.

And because of Hyesung’s suggestion, she had removed her mask—revealing her tightly pressed red lips.

Beneath that—

She was wearing a school uniform.

A costume borrowed by Hyeyeon to match the theme of visiting an abandoned school.

Ayun had refused with a dumbfounded look, but when Hyeyeon asked if they weren’t supposed to succeed at this, she’d eventually given in.

That was how much Ayun's first broadcast meant to her.

Though really, it just meant she wore it for the money.

Either way, the broadcast time was fast approaching.

Ayun took a deep breath and tried to calm herself.

This felt nothing like the times she’d briefly appeared on Hyesung’s channel.

All the instincts she’d honed in life-or-death situations were useless now.

Sure, she could stand there calmly—but that was all.

It wasn’t like she’d learned how to livestream back in Entera, so it was only natural she was struggling.

Ayun clenched her fists tightly.

She’d handled worse than this—how hard could it be?

Just do what she always did. Stay the same.

But... should she speak formally? Hyesung always used formal speech with his viewers, right?

‘I don’t like that.’

Maybe it was a side effect of living in Entera, but some lingering Confucian boomer instinct in her blood just couldn’t stand the idea.

Ayun wrestled with the question in her head.

But before she could settle on a direction—

“It’s time. Let’s start the stream, yeah? Are you ready, noona?”

Hyesung’s voice snapped her out of it.

Still stuck in thought, Ayun simply nodded.

Keeping time was important.

Seeing that, Hyesung nodded too—

And Ayun’s first broadcast began.

The moment the stream started, viewers from that community flooded in like starving wolves.

The viewer count shot up fast.

And on-screen was Ayun’s face, stiff as she stared into the camera.

Huh?

That bastard’s gonna find peace now, fuck lol

Wait, is that noona...?

Actually kinda like this

AaaaAAaaa

What’s with the school uniform; is she a minor?

Why does she look so pissed though?

Seeing that last message, Hyesung quickly stepped in.

“N-Noona, since the stream’s started, say something. Like introduce yourself or something?”

“...Ah.”

Wait, that bastard's on too? Was I tricked?

He said it’s just for today, remember?

Ayun took a deep breath, rummaged through her pocket, and pulled out her ID.

She stepped forward and held it up to the camera, blocking out her birthdate and photo, but showing the rest.

“Uh... N-Noona?”

Hyesung wasn’t the only one caught off guard.

Uh... what’s this?

It’s really her!

Wait, so “noona” wasn’t just a bit? lol

Ignoring the reactions—

Ayun finally spoke.

“See this? From now on, I’m speaking informally. Anyone older than me can prove it and I’ll treat you accordingly. But you’re not here for me anyway, right? So it’s fine, yeah?”

Hyesung blinked, dumbstruck.

Off-camera, Hyeyeon was holding back laughter, her breath hitching.

“Uh... N-Noona?”

Hyesung glanced at the chat.

...The response wasn’t bad.

Fair enough, lol

Noona noona noona

Ah; this feels kinda electric.

You’re gonna die

I’m losing it lol first time I’ve seen someone start with casual speech

Ayun had skipped the intro and jumped straight into dropping honorifics.

No matter what anyone said, she looked satisfied.

She pulled the ID away from the camera, tucked it away, and scratched her head.

“...As for introductions... hmm.”

Now that she thought about it, she hadn’t decided what name to use for the channel.

‘...Guess I’ll just use my real name like Hyesung?’

“Just call me Ayun. Call me whatever you want. You all know what I do, right? I’ll skip the explanation.”

Ayun noona...

Ayun unnie...

You people are insane... Ayun hyung...

It’s always the freaks who say stuff like that who ruin everything

“And...”

With her short introduction done, Ayun gestured for Hyeyeon to come into frame. Wearing her mask, Hyeyeon walked over and stood beside her.

Now they were both on screen.

Hyeyeon’s chest loomed behind Ayun’s head like a slab of meat.

Ah...

Hm...

Is this the wealth gap?

Unaware of the chat, Ayun continued calmly.

“Today, Hyesung—who you all know—will be helping us. But from the next stream on, the person behind me... mm, my assistant, will be helping.”

“Hello. I’m the assistant.”

Watching the chat fill with weird energy, Hyesung thought:

“Good thing she can’t see this.”

Not that Ayun would care much even if she did.

With introductions complete, Ayun turned to the main event.

Her skirt fluttered lightly with the motion.

“...Shit.”

She quickly grabbed her skirt—and Hyesung’s pre-selected mods had to start banning some users immediately.

Word had spread beyond just that one community, and a whole crowd had shown up.

But Ayun didn’t know any of this yet.

Dusting off her skirt with a few sharp pats, she spoke in a composed tone.

“As mentioned in the title, today we’re at an abandoned school rumored to have statues that move at night. The goal is to go inside and find out if that’s true.”

Despite her nerves, Ayun began the broadcast smoothly.

It felt a bit flat, but her unique appearance made it work without seeming out of place.

She gestured off-screen, and Hyeyeon handed her a flashlight and a baseball bat.

Hyesung asked:

“They’re wondering why you brought the baseball bat?”

Ayun turned around and slung the bat over her shoulder.

It was a posture that could probably trigger someone’s PTSD.

“In case the moving statue tries to hurt me.”

“...S-So that’s what it’s for, folks.”

Ayun’s threat to bash any ghosts or whatever came her way.

Given her history from the last stream, the viewers took it seriously.

So this is... ghost hunting?

If it were me, I’d run lol

For real lol

Lol yeah, against statues you use a bat, not salt

The broadcast seemed to be going smoothly.

***

With her “successful” intro finished, Ayun climbed over the school gate, bat slung over her shoulder, followed by the other two.

The moon had slipped behind the clouds, so only Ayun’s flashlight and Hyesung’s phone light lit their way.

The air felt suddenly heavier, more ominous—Hyesung felt a chill crawl up his spine.

He hadn’t filmed much with Ayun yet, but every time they had, something always happened.

He recalled what Hyeyeon had told him:

“They say the statue at school moves late at night.”

He shivered and aimed his camera at Ayun.

The good thing was, even if the audio was quiet, it didn’t seem like a problem.

For this kind of content, atmosphere mattered more than words.

“...She’s actually handling herself better than I thought.”

With that thought, the three slowly crossed the neglected schoolyard.

The ground was a mess, the weeds brushing against their ankles—no one had stepped here in ages.

Every step brought them closer to the abandoned building.

And to the statue that was their goal tonight.

Its towering silhouette loomed before them.

Hyesung gulped and focused the flashlight on the figure.

A typical statue of some “great figure,” like those found at many schools.

Its lifeless face looked stern, but not like it was going to start moving.

At its waist, oddly enough, was a sword.

Also made of stone.

“It’d be scary if that thing did move.”

But honestly, it wasn’t that scary right now.

If it really moved every night, it would’ve moved last night too.

And yet, the weather-worn statue showed clear signs of erosion.

“It’d probably break apart the second it moved.”

Vines clung /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ to the statue in thick layers, with no signs of being disturbed.

“If nothing happens... that’d actually be a good thing... right?”

Now Hyesung’s worry had shifted to the stream being too boring.

Then Ayun, who had been carefully examining the statue, spoke.

“This just looks like a regular statue to me.”

She tapped it lightly with the bat—thunk, thunk.

And for a second, Hyesung thought the stream really might flop.

“...No, let’s just call it a debut and—”

Just then.

A sound.

From inside the abandoned school—where no one should be.

Something moving. Maybe a person. Maybe an animal. Impossible to tell.

Cold sweat rolled down Hyesung’s back.

“N-Noona...”

Ayun grinned.

She smiled.

“Looks like the real deal’s in there.”

With a look of delight, Ayun walked toward the building.

And Hyesung, on the verge of tears, followed while filming her—

Scolding himself for worrying earlier.