Chapter 1: Something Is Watching

Although it was a weekday, the art museum was far from empty.

A standing placard near the entrance read “‘Midnight’ New Works — Photography Exhibition.”

The museum had been built unusually tall.

The ceiling loomed far above the floor, creating a grand, hollow vastness.

For the moment, that sense of space diluted the irritation caused by the noisy crowd flowing back and forth.

The young man’s finely shaped brows drew together slightly, and his expression could hardly be called pleasant.

His figure was slim and upright.

He wore a light trench coat and stood before a photograph dominated by red tones.

Even seen only from behind, he drew more than a few glances.

Beside him, a couple had stopped in front of another photograph, whispering to each other.

“I’ve always really liked Teacher Midnight’s work,” the girl said with a soft giggle.

“He became famous two years ago, and his debut alone swept nearly every major domestic award.

His style is completely different from most photographers, and even now, no one knows what he looks like.”

The boy looked listless and merely forced a smile.

“I didn’t even know you understood photography.

Honestly, I can’t make sense of this stuff at all.”

As he spoke, his eyes drifted back to that photograph.

The image made him shudder instinctively.

A chill crawled up his spine, and he hurriedly looked away.

The photograph was laid out in pure black.

Yet a thin, vertical streak of light cut through it.

It was as if, in a pitch-dark bedroom with the door tightly shut, the door slowly creaked open—“creeeak”—revealing a narrow slit.

From that slit, a single eye peered out, silently watching the sleeping figure on the bed.

The photograph was taken from the monster’s point of view.

What kind of problem did the photographer have, making something this frightening for no reason?

“No, don’t you think it’s mysterious?” the girl said, her tone oddly excited.

“A death photographer.”

She lifted her finger and traced the monster’s outline in the image.

“I heard Teacher Midnight never shows his face because he himself is one of the monsters…”

All of his works used extremely unconventional perspectives.

Before this, no one had ever observed humans from a monster’s point of view.

Because of that, the angles felt bizarre, twisted, even carrying a hint of grotesque fascination that made the heart pound uncontrollably.

“Maybe there’s something wrong with his head,” the boy muttered.

His displeasure was obvious, likely sparked by his girlfriend’s admiration for another man.

“Or maybe he’s just chasing fame.

So many people came today—wasn’t it just because he’s holding a meet-and-greet?

That’s classic hunger marketing…”

The young man beside them tilted his head slightly and cast a cool, detached glance at the boy.

“……”

That single look made the boy’s skin erupt in goosebumps.

He didn’t know why such fear surged up inside him.

It felt as though he had been locked onto by something dangerous.

His girlfriend immediately noticed something was wrong.

She turned to look at him and realized his face had gone deathly pale.

“What’s wrong?”

“N-nothing.”

As the words left his mouth, he felt someone pat his shoulder—not hard, not light.

The hand withdrew almost immediately, the motion carrying a faint sense of disdain.

The boy turned around and saw it was the same young man who had been standing beside him earlier.

He snapped irritably, “What are you doing?”

He didn’t even realize his body was trembling on its own.

The young man’s expression didn’t change.

He simply stepped a little closer and spoke in a low voice that only the two of them could hear.

After saying that one sentence, he straightened calmly and looked at the boy with leisurely composure.

“……”

Under his gaze, the boy’s expression changed instantly.

It felt as if he had plunged into an icy abyss.

His lips trembled.

His pupils dilated violently with fear.

His entire body shook uncontrollably.

The way he stared made it seem as though the young man had turned into a monster before his eyes.

And yet, at that very moment, the other person kindly gave him a smile.

“Y-you… how did you know…”

After a long while, it was as if he suddenly snapped awake.

He jolted violently, grabbed the girl’s hand, and bolted toward the museum exit without hesitation.

It was as if a man-eating monster were chasing them from behind.

He clearly didn’t dare remain there for even a second longer.

The young man watched his retreating figure.

After a moment, he let out a low, mocking snort.

“Found you at last.

I never thought you’d be here!”

A slightly breathless voice sounded beside him.

The young man turned around and saw Xiao Zhang.

Xiao Zhang quickly looked him over.

After confirming there was nothing wrong, he finally let out a sigh of relief.

Then he glanced suspiciously at the couple fleeing past them and immediately tensed up.

“What happened?

Don’t tell me you scared fans again—you couldn’t help yourself, could you…”

“No,” he cut in flatly.

They weren’t his fans.

And he had only said one sentence.

“Really?”

Xiao Zhang asked doubtfully.

He couldn’t be bothered to answer again.

Xiao Zhang shot him a mildly reproachful look.

Seeing that the other man didn’t even twitch an eyebrow, he sighed helplessly.

“Alright, let’s talk business.

Teacher Midnight, the meet-and-greet starts in half an hour.

Come with me backstage to prepare.”

Even though no one knew what Teacher Midnight looked like, for safety’s sake, waiting backstage was still better.

And the young man standing here was precisely the photographer everyone speculated about—“Midnight” himself.

Xiao Zhang had become his manager half a year ago.

Even in daily life, the man’s identity remained elusive and his whereabouts unpredictable.

He clearly valued his privacy.

It wasn’t until the contract was signed that Xiao Zhang finally learned his real name—Yu Ziyu.

Xiao Zhang handled commercial affairs and negotiations, allowing Yu Ziyu to focus solely on photography.

After two years together, his impression of this famous photographer could be summed up in one phrase—extremely difficult to deal with.

Reclusive.

Irritable.

Cold.

And even a bit sharp-tongued.

But artists always had their quirks.

Xiao Zhang had seen people self-harm, drink themselves unconscious, take drugs…
Some even ended their own lives for inspiration.

Compared to that, Yu Ziyu’s condition wasn’t excessive at all.

And as far as Xiao Zhang knew, Yu Ziyu regularly saw a psychologist and was very cooperative.

“Who hung up this photograph.”

Yu Ziyu suddenly pointed at the picture the couple had been looking at earlier.

His voice was cold.

“This isn’t my work.”

“……What?”

Xiao Zhang looked at the photograph, confusion spreading across his face.

“Isn’t it this one…?”

He had personally checked every piece.

A mistake like this shouldn’t have been possible.

But Yu Ziyu crossed his arms and stared at him expressionlessly, clearly unconvinced.

“It isn’t,” Yu Ziyu said, giving a small nod.

“Look again.”

…What had changed?

Xiao Zhang forced himself to examine the photograph again.

No matter how he looked, he couldn’t find any difference.

He suddenly felt like one of those men being interrogated about lipstick shades.

In the end, he could only shake his head honestly.

“I don’t know.”

“That’s how I know the photo was taken by me alone,” Yu Ziyu said.

Xiao Zhang laughed awkwardly.

“That’s not fair to say.

I even helped you push that door open.

I was standing right next to you…”

Halfway through the sentence, his voice froze.

Something clicked.

He snapped his gaze back to the photograph.

One look was enough to make his soul nearly leave his body.

Xiao Zhang began trembling violently.

“The gap—the gap…”

“The gap is widening,” Yu Ziyu said calmly.

“Something wants to come out.”

Xiao Zhang remembered now.

Originally, there had been no eye.

Only a slit—meant to leave space for imagination.

A restrained kind of terror.

But now—

Yu Ziyu pointed at the photograph, his voice flat and merciless.

“It was only a slit before.

Now the door has been pushed open.

That eye—whose is it?

I never composed it this way.

Is someone playing a prank?”

A prank.

It had to be a prank.

That word finally dragged Xiao Zhang back to reality.

This was a materialist world.

There was no way something supernatural could happen.

He steadied himself and said shakily, “I’ll contact the person in charge and replace the photo right away.”

“As for this one—”

“It’s mine.”

Yu Ziyu pulled out a fountain pen and sliced straight through the casing.

The display board split open far too easily.

Then came a clean, merciless “rip—”.

Before Xiao Zhang could react, Yu Ziyu tore the photograph down, rolled it up, and stuffed it into his trench coat pocket.

The movements were smooth, decisive, almost elegant.

“……”

“I thought security banned dangerous items.”

Yu Ziyu capped the pen and clipped it back into his pocket.

“This is my signing event.

I have privileges.”

“……”

“Good thing you reminded me to bring a pen for autographs,” Yu Ziyu added casually.

“Too bad it’s ruined now.”

The pen’s nib had twisted from the force.

Despite that, his tone carried no regret whatsoever.

He twirled the pen lightly.

It had been a gift from Xiao Zhang.

A bad feeling rose in Xiao Zhang’s chest.

He reached out to grab Yu Ziyu’s sleeve, but the other sidestepped easily.

“Wait?!

Don’t tell me you’re not attending the signing?!

This is your first photography collection—everyone is waiting for you to appear!”

His raised voice drew attention.

But Xiao Zhang didn’t care anymore.

So many people were here just for him.

If Teacher Midnight didn’t show up, the consequences would be disastrous.

“Find a stand-in or say I’m sick,” Yu Ziyu said coolly.

“You’re the manager.

Figure it out.”

With that, he turned and walked away without hesitation.

Xiao Zhang stood frozen, staring after him in disbelief.

***

Outside the museum, Yu Ziyu strode to the parking lot and opened his car door.

After sitting in the driver’s seat, he shut the door with a hard click.

He reached into his pocket and took out the photograph.

The door gap had widened even further.

If Xiao Zhang were here, he would have screamed.

A pale, bloodless arm—nearly two meters long—was forcing its way out, struggling desperately to escape the photograph that imprisoned it.

Yu Ziyu recognized this monster.

In one instance, it was a surprise enemy.

No one ever expected a monster to hide inside a photograph hanging on the wall.

It would slowly approach as time passed—then suddenly lunge forward and slaughter players at will.

Yes.

An instance.

About two years ago, an unknown horror game existed.

It randomly selected people from the real world and dragged them into a mysterious realm.

Only by clearing seven instances before dying could one return.

And now—

“Long time no see,” Yu Ziyu said expressionlessly.

“I know you’re here for me.”

“……”

“My answer is—get lost.”

He tore the photograph apart.

The moment he did, it let out a shrill, inhuman scream.

It thrashed wildly, but no matter how it struggled, it was utterly suppressed by Yu Ziyu’s effortless grip.

Countless distorted souls seemed to scream at once.

A violent supernatural force shattered every window of the car.

Yu Ziyu didn’t even flinch.

He tore it to pieces.

Then he took out a lighter and burned the remains into ash.

After everything was done, Yu Ziyu leaned back in the driver’s seat, momentarily lost in thought.

He didn’t question why monsters were appearing in reality.

He was only mildly annoyed, wondering how many more would show up to disturb his peaceful life.

Tsk.

There was no point wasting time questioning it.

Because the truth was simple—

Yu Ziyu himself was the first being from that horror game to appear in the real world.

He was its final boss.