Chapter Text
Eun Haje was about to die.
This was a fact she accepted rather calmly. It was always going to happen eventually, after all, no matter how well their team worked together, how often luck had been on their side, or how strong their squad leader was. She was only disappointed that it was happening now, before she had accumulated enough points to purchase the potion she had set her eye on.
And, of course, before her teammates could get their wishes either.
“I don’t know! I don’t know the answer!” the final member of the other exploration squad, a man with a Jellyfish mask who Eun Haje had never had reason to learn the real name of, shouted in terror.
His head exploded.
Better than being added to the choir, though. Eun Haje grimly shifted her gaze to her teammates; Lee Jaheon looked as stoic as ever, his expression impossible to decipher, but from Park Minseong’s strained grimace at the new development, she could tell he was planning on getting himself disqualified too.
Eun Haje didn’t pay any particular attention to the host of the show as he prattled on about familiar faces and asked Park Minseong if he was ready. She just looked at her younger teammate and sent him her best attempt at a comforting smile, knowing there was nothing she could do right now but to try and make his final moments just a little bit less depressing.
[You’re ready! Great-]
But then a door on the opposite side of the stage burst open.
Eun Haje was a realist, so she wasn’t expecting this to be some sort of salvation. Instead, her first thought was simply ah, whoever this is interrupted the filming, so I guess they’re going to get incinerated too.
That was, of course, before she registered the giant antlers on the being’s head, and the way that even from this far away, their eyes flashed red in a distinctly inhuman way.
The host's screen went ominously blank for a moment as he turned to see whoever had dared to disturb him. But then, although Eun Haje couldn't see the emoji displayed on his face, his next words were overwhelmingly exuberant. [Mr. Roe Deer!] He even completely abandoned Park Minseong’s podium in favour of happily striding over to the intruder, clearly nothing but excited to have been interrupted in the middle of a segment. [To what do I owe the pleasure?]
Roe Deer, as his name apparently was, blinked as he looked around the room in confusion. It made him look... oddly human. “Oh, sorry… I only came over because I thought you were done filming.” He looked at the host apologetically.
[Nonsense! I am always happy to spend time with my good friend.]
Not that Eun Haje had been expecting a supernatural being of all things to rescue them, but this particular entity being confirmed to be the host’s friend just cemented the fact that this was just a small delay in them getting incinerated or exploded, nothing more.
Said entity, meanwhile, looked down at the ground somewhat bashfully. “Oh, well… what are you filming now, anyway? Isn’t the quiz show over until next week?”
[Ah.] The host’s antennae drooped again. Somehow, it felt genuine this time, though, like this wasn’t just an act for the cameras. [The quiz show is over forever, actually.]
“What?” Roe Deer took another glance around the set, this time his eyes settling on the pig and his choir of a single human head. It was clear that that head’s awful screaming was not giving him the same headache that it was giving to the humans in the room, because he only winced once his gaze actually landed on the head itself. Despite that, when he spoke again, it was about something else completely. “Is… this being pre-recorded?”
[It is! My friend is as astute as ever.]
Roe Deer didn’t look any happier at the compliment. “Braun… are you even the host anymore?”
[Of course I am, Mr. Roe Deer!] There was a conspicuous pause. […It’s true that I have more of a supporting role now, but I’m sure it will be just as – no, more entertaining than the quiz show was!]
Roe Deer frowned, not answering for several long seconds. “…This isn’t right,” he said finally, his voice quiet enough that it barely carried across the stage to Eun Haje. “There’s no more audience interaction at all? And they got rid of the band? Even the applause is canned…”
The host – Braun – was silent for another long moment. […Ah, your concern is heartening as always. But the creators have made it clear they think the audience will prefer this new format, so I must adapt!]
“…I preferred the old format.” Roe Deer pursed his lips in thought. “But… I can understand audiences being tired of the quiz show too. So… what about a show of your own?”
[…Oh?]
“A talk show. You’ve always wanted one, right?”
[Well, yes…]
Roe Deer gave a little smile. “So what better time to take the plunge than now? It’s the kind of show you can easily adapt over time to make sure it always appeals to viewers, and you won’t have to rely on recorded applause or be forced into a supporting role.”
Silence for several long seconds.
[…You’re right.] Braun turned around where he stood, as if seeing the stage in a new light. [The fact that they changed the essence of the show without even informing me until the last second…!]
Roe Deer let out a small sound of shock. “They did that?”
[They did!] Braun responded, his voice now oddly enthusiastic considering the content. Clearly, he had made some sort of decision. [They don’t respect the show. None of them do!]
The sound of crackling started to fill the area; Eun Haje was startled to see Braun’s normal incineration gimmick now applied to the very room they were standing in – well, after the pig conductor, who was the first thing to go completely into ashes (and she was equally happy that that nauseating singing was finally gone).
[Yes… I will make my own show! Better than any of the creators here could even dream of!] The host’s voice was loud and frenzied now, his arms raised in the air as the entire setting continued to burn. [Braun’s Late Night Talk Show!]
This was bad. He had completely forgotten about D-squad, but of course that didn’t matter when it looked like they were about to be incinerated anyway.
Well, Eun Haje had already resigned herself to her fate, so it wasn’t like this was going to be any worse.
“Um, Braun…”
Roe Deer piped up, clearly happy that his advice had been taken under effect, but his expression also somewhat uneasy for some reason.
Braun seemed to catch some hidden meaning in those words though, because he perked up even more. [Oh! My good friend, would you like to work on my new show with me? You have the talent to be a show creator… perhaps even co-host!]
Eun Haje could feel her eyebrows raising even as she was forced to step away from her now-burning podium towards her teammates. That was a very big offer, from an entity who seemed to be entirely revolved around his showman persona.
Roe Deer flushed. “Ah… thank you, Braun, but no, you know I don’t really love performing.”
The TV’s screen flickered to an emoji with a playful frown. [Nonsense! You would be perfect for the role!]
“Well… maybe a guest spot every so often,” Roe Deer conceded, although he still didn’t look entirely certain. “But, um, what I actually wanted to mention was your contestants.”
For the first time in a while, the TV turned directly to face them. Eun Haje, Lee Jaheon, and Park Minseong were now standing together in one of the few patches of floor not yet burning or crushed by falling rubble, and she almost expected Braun to incinerate them right there for not staying in their designated places.
He didn’t, though. [Goodness, I almost forgot they were still here!]
Roe Deer tilted his head to the side, although the host wasn’t facing him him right now. “You’ll send them home, right? They did fulfill their role in the first show, and now that the second one is over…”
Braun made a sound like a light chuckle, which was almost inaudible over the crackling burning around them. [Oh, Mr. Roe Deer, don’t think I don’t know what you’re trying to do! You always did behave so oddly around human death. But I suppose you’re right, so very well!]
The last thing Eun Haje saw before they appeared back in the D-squad office room was Roe Deer’s eyes, locked with hers once more, a faint smile on his face.
They pulled A-class dream essence out of that Darkness.
It was hard to put into words the degree of whiplash their squad had gone through – a routine D-class Darkness, turned into a horrifying nightmare they were sure was going to be the end of them, to… Roe Deer. A Darkness entity who had actually helped them.
They didn’t write that in the actual report, of course, because there was no telling what Baekilmong’s researchers would do if they heard about a seemingly benevolent entity. Even if Eun Haje or Park Minseong had written the information into their reports, Lee Jaheon unquestionably would have stricken those parts out. Luckily, when the report was sent out, nobody asked any questions; their D-class-to-A-class story was more than interesting enough already for anybody to assume that any details had been left out.
They did have to mention Roe Deer at least a little bit, though, and thus the entity was given his own Darkness identification code, designated to match the class of story they had just escaped from – Qterw-A-1847.
It was rare for an entity to cross over between multiple Darknesses. And yet somehow... Eun Haje got the feeling she would be seeing Roe Deer in the future once again.