n

n

nSung Siwan Tonight, I plan to go with the junior who reported it. Hahaha.

nSung Siwan Eushin, would you like to go too?

nSung Siwan seemed to be going to check the existence of the secret passage now.

nMe Yes. Where can I go?

nAfter checking Sung Siwan’s response, I prepared to go out again.

n* * * *

n

n

nCentral area. In front of the leadership hall.

nThere was a person standing with Sung Siwan, one I was seeing for the first time.

n“Hello.”

n“…”

nWhen I said hello, the other person nodded without even saying a word.

n‘Is there anything bad happening? Your expression is not good.’

nIn an atmosphere that was soon about to become awkward, Sung Siwan intervened. “Is this the first time Eushin and Gye Dam have met? He is a junior in the second year of Jiikhoe.”

nIt seemed that the junior of Jiikhoe, who said Sung Siwan likes ghost stories, was this ‘Gye Dam.’

nSomething didn’t fit with the silent image, however. Even after Sung Siwan finished introducing Gye Dam, the man kept his mouth shut.

n“Hahaha! Gye Dam likes to hide his face a lot.”

nI had never seen anyone in this world who didn’t speak like this.

n‘I guess it’s far better to talk less.’

nThe Gye clan belonged to a rare surname in Korea.

nThis one guy who talked a lot and annoyed me during the military appointment also harbored that surname.

nEven after being discharged from the military, there was an incident where we met by chance and almost got entangled, but even then, that “Gye” bastard liked to talk a lot.

nIf this guy had the same surname but a different personality, then he was welcome.

n“Why, aren’t you a God of Joy. Please.”

n“…”

nGye Dam still shook his head without even opening his mouth. When we finished with the greetings, Sung Siwan took the lead and started walking.

n“Then, let’s go to the Leadership Division Hall.”

n“Don’t you need an access code to enter the Department of Education at this point in time?”

n“It’s okay because Gye Dam will take a picture with his student ID and go in.”

nDidn’t he say that Gye Dam was the junior of Jiikhoe? I wondered, were they active in the Jiikhoe and the Seondobu at the same time?

n“Gye Dam was a leader in the freshman year. Since he was in his second year, he transferred to the Jiik Club, but I don’t think the leadership team did any rejection on this matter.”

nThere was no way the leadership team, led by Oh Hye-ji and supported by Cheon Dong-ha and Ma Jin-seung, would handle things poorly.

nGye Dam must have done that to mean that he could return to the leadership team at any time.

nIt didn’t look like he moved his secondary activities for a bad reason.

n“Then let’s go in!”

nWhen he followed Sung Siwan into the lobby of the leadership club, the first thing he saw was a huge insignia.

nA badge with the word ‘Seondo’ in large print was right next to the Eungwang High sign.

nIt stood out even more because there were no decorations in the lobby.

n‘The leaderboard badge I saw in the game was torn and on fire.’

nSo this was how it looked in its entirety.

n“Gye Dam, guide me.”

nAt Siwan’s words, Gye Dam nodded once and started walking towards the stairs. As he went down the stairs, he briefly explained how Sung Siwan came here.

n“Actually, if it is a ‘secret’ association between the student council and the leadership team, I felt worried because the students who are currently active in the student council or the leadership club might not keep the secret. I’m glad that there was Gye Dam who came out of the lead club among the juniors.”

n“What did you ask?”

n“Haha, actually, I didn’t know what to ask, so I told you about a ghost story. Then he researched on his own and found the way here.”

nIt seemed that Gye Dam was surprisingly good at collecting information.

n“I’m sure there is some kind of meeting between the student council and the leadership team. Well, first of all, I don’t know the exact name, so let’s call it ‘Secret Society’ temporarily. The secret society seems to be working with new members around the end of the first year.”

nWas it really such a complex structure?

n‘When the Plamago concrete floor collapsed, all the Year 3 students belonging to the student council and the leadership team died, and the Year 2 students were also wiped out, all except for a few. So that means that the secret society couldn’t be maintained…’

nI thought I could understand why Joo Soohyuk and An Da-in didn’t join a group like a secret society.

nWhen I collected clues hidden within Sung Siwan’s words one by one and deduced them, he soon stopped his speech, then speaking in a hoarse voice.

n“Uh? Is this the end?”

nThe basement of the Seondo Dept. Hall, all entangled like a maze.

nGye Dam stopped at a dead end.

n“…”

nThere was nothing about the wall.

nSung Siwan came forward and looked at the wall and tried to knock, but…

n“There must be more clues… What do we do?”

nThere was no need to worry about that.

nThis was because there was a deceased person from the National Mangam game here. I had been grasping the main gimmicks of the mazes that appeared in Plamago.

n“Let’s radiate a synoptic wave.”

n“Huh?”

nWhen one discovered a suspicious place while exploring, the first thing the player needed to do was to select the command ‘Emitting the Universal Wave.’

nPaah!

nThat was when the psychic wave that flowed from my fingertips flowed right into the wall.

nGoo-gu-gu-

nAs the walls began to move, the structure of the hallway began to change.

n“Wow, it was a good thing Eushin brought you here! How did you come up with this right away?!”

nThat was because I was the rotten water of Mangem.

n“…”

nUnlike Sung Siwan, who spoke brightly, Gye Dam narrowed his brow and looked at me.

nI didn’t know what he was thinking.

nKoo!

nAs if the secret passage under the ground had finished changing, the sound soon stopped.

n“Let’s go in!”

nSung Siwan soon took the lead. This passage seemed to be connected to the student center.

n‘I think there must be something in the basement somewhere between the student center and the senior vice center.’

nDid the nobles know that such a facility existed in the basement? If someone made this known without the knowledge of the baron, how and for what?

n‘The answer must be known by Seong Guk-eon.’

nAnd in order to hear Seong Guk-eon’s answer, it was necessary to solve all the tasks he had given him.

n“How could such a place exist in the basement of our school!”

nSung Siwan soon burst into exclamation. As we walked along the hidden passage for a long time, a fork soon came into view.

n“Looking in the direction, this leads right into the student center. There must be something on the other side.”

nI also had the same opinion as Sung Siwan. After a few dozen minutes of walking in the direction he suggested.

nThe place we reached was a room covered with foreign metal on all sides.

n‘It’s similar to the simulator room.’

nIt was a little different from what I had seen at school or in the game.

n“I saw this in a modern history museum! Nowadays, even smartphones do not use LCDs. amazing.”

nIn this world, LCD and liquid crystal display type screens had become difficult to see because of holograms.

nBelow it was the operation panel. Sung Siwan, who was excitedly observing the LCD, spoke while looking at the panel.

n“This is an old virtual simulator. Why are you like this?”

nAs expected, this seemed to be the simulator room.

n“Shall we turn it on?”

nAt Siwan’s suggestion, Gye Dam also nodded.

n* * * *

nSeong Guk-eon’s Eunkwang-gu regional office.

nWhile most of his aides had already left work, Seong Guk-eon stayed in his office and read the printed materials.

n“When do you plan to leave work?”

nWhen the chief aide Mu-yeong Jeon asked a question, Seong Guk-son answered, still not taking his eyes off the document.

n“After checking player association audit data and satellite inspection records only.”

n“An hour ago, you said that you would leave work after only checking the financial analysis report of the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education.”

n“Is that so?”

n“Yes. By the way, you said something different two hours ago.”

n“Ha ha ha!”

nInstead of making excuses, Seong Guk-eon laughed cheerfully and turned the page faster, skimming through every page before reaching for another file.

nJeon Moo-young began to ask abruptly.

n“Why did you tell Siwan to investigate the ghost story now? Did he wait until he was in third grade?”

nSeongguk-eon stopped his hand and answered. “If it’s Siwan, he can break through on his own, but he’d rather have a partner to get into that room, right? I didn’t even attack until you were in your third year.”

n“There are a lot of good kids among the current 2nd and 3rd years in Eunad.”

n“Yeah, a lot. But among them, there are descendants, and most of them are students who have businessmen or players connected with the Jin family as their families.”

nSeeing Seong Guk-eon making a grim expression, Jeon Moo-young swallowed his words.

n“You still have not erased your distrust of the Jin people and their descendants.”

nAt this, Seong Guk-eon continued, “Currently, we have no control over which new members the children belonging to the ‘secret society’ in the ghost story will receive.”

n“There is a saying at that meeting, ‘Be careful with the Jin people and their descendants,’ but they won’t check whether the family or teachers of the Buwon are connected with the Jin people.”

n“Yes. that can’t be helped So, at least, I wanted Siwan and the partner who will enter ‘that room’ to be sure of their identity.”

nAfter saying those words, Seong Guk-eon got up from his seat and stared at the silver advertisement seen through the office window.

n“I like that Eushin has excellent abilities and performance, but the background is clean.”

n* * * *

nThe program set in the old simulator was an SSR—class descending tower simulation. It was a descending tower type otherworld that cleared when one were to go down and face the boss on the lowest floor.

nIt seemed difficult to attack with only three people, but it was easy to do so with Sung Siwan’s performance.

nPaah…

nBehind Sung Siwan, the effect of annihilation of energy could be seen. He had already defeated four SR -class enemies and two SR—class enemies.

n“Come on, next!”

nKwonbeop and daggers.

nSung Siwan began to fight by combining the two. His main attack skill was Kwonbeop, but he also used daggers in the right place.

n‘At first glance, it doesn’t seem like a good combination.’

nWhoops!

nSung Siwan’s fist, which had been encased in a protective shield, pierced the stomach of the virtual enemy.

nWatching the staggering Enemy, he took the stiletto in his hand.

n“This is our weakness!”

nA slender stiletto with a duality.

nIt didn’t have much power, but when it stabbed the vital point between the thick armor, the enemy’s HP had been greatly reduced.

nQuick profit-!

nThe sharp screams of the virtual enemy eventually resounded.

nLee Nung-pa ended up being buried in the scream.

n‘Are you the type that does damage even with sound? Is Sung Siwan even okay?’

nSung Siwan, who was closest to the Enemy, had a calm expression on his face. He materialized three stilettos without shaking, stabbing at the vital point, and slamming his fists whenever the enemy ran wild.

nAt Siwan’s onslaught, the Enemy began to disappear without even being able to properly resist.

nPaah…!

n“If this is enough, I can continue to do it on my own. Then let’s go downstairs!”

nChairman Jiik had not been chosen by force, but Sung Siwan counted ignorantly. The subtle skill combination of kwonbeop and swordsmanship had also been used very well.

nHowever, why was he wearing a stiletto that didn’t suit his size? After thinking for a while, I came up with a plausible answer.

n‘Wearing a bare-handed combat shield makes it difficult to handle weapons such as swords and guns. That’s why you’re using a stiletto, which is light and has a narrow blade, and which is easier to carry.’

nAfter that, battles continued in a narrow space, and Sung Siwan’s solo battle continued.

nThere were also gimmicks with traps, but as I showed off the knowledge of the deceased and dismantled it, it continued on without any problems. Among them, the most surplus party member was Gye Dam, even though I had nothing to do.

n“Were the student council and the leadership team secretly training? Well, the facility is outdated, but the Enemy composition seems to be fine.” Sung Siwan remarked, wiping sweat with the back of his hand.

nAlthough he was dedicated to the attack alone, he still looked full of leeway. Then, the air became heavy.

n“It seems you have arrived in the boss area.”

n“…That’s right. From here on, Gye Dam and Eushin may have to fight together.”

nA door seemed to be the boundary on the lowest floor. Sung Siwan looked at the door and started to check the number of stilettos remaining after changing the guard.

nHowever…

n‘Strange. There is no Enemy Approach Notification message in the dedicated menu.’

nEven during an alien simulation, if one approached the boss room to a certain extent, a ‘’ notification popped up.

n“I don’t think there is any boss enemy.”

n“Huh? Adam, what do you think?”

nGye Dam looked at the door of the boss area and shook his head. He seemed to think he didn’t.

n“Is there an error because it is an old simulation? Let’s open it first.”

nWhen Sung Siwan put his hand on the door.

nWoo-woo-woong—

nWith a mechanical sound, a phrase began to float above the door.

nOnly humans can pass through this door.

n“Huh? What is this sound? Does that mean that there will be no Jin clan or descendants allowed? …All three of us here are human, so it shouldn’t be a problem!”

nWhen Sung Siwan put his hand on the door, the door started to open.

nInside the door was a room full of light. Someone’s imprint was faintly visible.

n“Uh? That one…”

nSung Siwan heard a voice muttering something with a surprised face, but it was buried by the system message that followed.

n‹Fate has been activated.›

nPaaaah!

nWhen a momentary intense light obscured your vision and then disappeared. There was nobody around.

nThe moment the fate power was activated, it was this space that was thrown over and over again.

nHowever, there was one thing different.

n‘What is this?’

nThere was a screen floating in the dark space.

n🥺

nThe screen turned on, and someone was being projected on it. He was the one I saw in the game.

n‘You’re the head of the Korean branch of the Players’ Association who spent the dark ages!’

nAt this, the person began to speak calmly.

nI don’t believe in Jin or descendants. The reason why Jinjok left it here in Eungwang High is because this is the safest place I know.

nA thick voice similar to Seong Guk-eon’s could be heard. I didn’t know this because Plamago didn’t have any voice support, so there was no way to compare it in the game, but I could have mistaken it for the same person if I were to listen with my eyes closed.

n

n

nLeaving my legacy in my alma mater and the most prestigious high school in Korea.

nThe old Korean branch manager disappeared from the screen, and a picture came to mind instead.

nThis is one of the clues I left.

nWhat is projected on the screen was ‘Imoogi’s Ghost.’

nThis was an unfinished version before Min Green had brushed and finished the painting.

n