Chapter 9: Chapter 9: The Old School Building

For an excuse I hastily concocted, it fit remarkably well. I felt rather proud of myself.

It sounded like I was proposing a game raid, but that’s exactly what it was, so whatever.

The kids seemed to understand, but they hesitated, unable to easily imagine ‘taking down’ a ‘ghost’.

So I pulled a yellow talisman from my pocket and waved it.

Never thought I’d be the one bragging about this. But right now, completing the quest was more important.

“I may not have divine powers, but I have a talisman my mother wrote to repel evil spirits, and the knowledge to go with it. Plus, I’m a bit more used to this kind of situation than you all.”

“So, you mean it’s doable?” Yoon Soo-ah asked, pulling Han Bo-bae closer. It looked like she was petting a hamster to calm herself down.

Both of them seemed quite startled at the idea of having to take down ghosts themselves; their eyes were as wide as lanterns.

“If Jae-yoon is this confident, then of course it’s doable.” Seo Yi-han stepped forward in my stead.

He soothed the flustered kids with his usual demeanor and shot me a warm glance that was characteristic of him.

Those eyes, full of conviction and trust, felt heavy, yet I didn’t want to look away.

As we exchanged glances, Seo Yi-han gave me another eye-smile.

“I trust Jae-yoon. The Jae-yoon I’ve known for over ten years isn’t someone who makes empty promises.”

“Uh… thanks.” Ten years? What was he talking about now? I once again glossed over a setting I knew nothing about.

Not only do we live together, but now he’s claiming we’ve known each other since childhood? Seo Yi-han’s assertive words carried deep trust. It really seemed like he had been by my side for ten years.

Shouldn’t you at least give me a minimum explanation before we start! How long do I have to be surprised by my own settings? I mentally nagged the system to come out and elaborate, but it didn’t appear.

‘Do I have to get dragged to the hospital for you to show up?’ I had a feeling it wouldn’t be long before Seo Yi-han rushed me to the hospital. From his perspective, his childhood friend and roommate was acting strangely.

Then, red text appeared briefly before disappearing.

[Someday…]

Someday what, you bastard? Do you mean someday Seo Yi-han will drag me to the hospital, or that someday you’ll tell me my settings? Either way, it pissed me off, so I stomped my foot hard.

Poor Kim Ji-ho flinched and dropped the glasses he was holding to wipe away tears.

The glasses, already slightly bent at the bridge from a tree branch earlier, now snapped in two from the impact. I bought him those glasses, darn it.

Looking at the floor with regret, Kim Ji-ho hurriedly bent down and started rummaging in a strange place.

“S-sorry, Lee Jae-yoon. I’ll fix them!”

“You don’t have to. More importantly, can’t you see without your glasses?”

Kim Ji-ho nodded with a faint gesture that was barely visible. What a handful.

I already have poor night vision; if Kim Ji-ho joins the list of blind men, the situation gets a lot more complicated.

“Do you have spare glasses? Or contacts?”

“In the classroom… my phone too…”

“It’s too risky to go back right now.”

The area near that classroom was the ogre’s territory. Without any clues, going back there would be like offering ourselves up as daily bread.

“Hey, it can’t be helped. We’ll wrap it with tape later. Or just wear them with one arm.”

“You’re making a fool out of him…” I heard Yoon Soo-ah mutter quietly, but I ignored her. It’s not like I broke his glasses; I have no reason to feel guilty.

Han Bo-bae picked up the two lens pieces instead of Kim Ji-ho, who was fumbling aimlessly.

Taking them preciously, Kim Ji-ho put only the left lens piece to his eye as I had said.

Seo Yi-han, who had been watching the amusing scene in silence, opened his mouth.

“But how do we take down a ghost? It’s not something you have to do alone, right?”

“Of course I can’t do it alone. We just need to find what’s needed, then calm them down and either send them to heaven or seal them.” It was the kind of talk that would make real shamans or exorcists scoff, but I just rattled it off.

After all, it’s a game, so why worry about realism… Ah, so that’s why they wrote the story that way. It suddenly made sense. I felt a little sorry for criticizing it so harshly.

“What do we need?” Seo Yi-han tilted his head and asked. There was something about him acting cute despite his size.

“It depends on the ghost. Items related to their memories when they were alive, food… anything. First, we need to find out about the ghost.”

“Hmm, then shall we check the old school building first?”

“Why?” That last question came from Yoon Soo-ah. Even in the modern new building, ghosts were wandering around, so she apparently didn’t want to set foot in that already gloomy building.

But Seo Yi-han cut off her reluctant question sharply.

“That male ghost earlier was wearing our school uniform. The pre-renovation uniform. So there might be something in the old building.”

He sure noticed in that short time. He had good observation skills and a sharp mind. Seo Yi-han, who had said the suggestion I should have made, gave me a gentle smile.

For a moment, that gentle smile made him look like a small animal seeking praise, but I quickly shook off the thought. What small animal with that build.

I had felt it since I first opened my eyes: this old school building was eerie and gloomy, and just approaching it made me feel awful.

I couldn’t understand why such a rich school would leave this building standing instead of demolishing it.

Given the nature of horror games, such dilapidated school buildings are a staple, so they probably left it for that reason…

Before entering the building, I recited a few precautions. It was to prevent trolling like Kim Ji-ho’s earlier.

Of course, no matter what I said, Kim Ji-ho’s pathetic setting would lead him to cause trouble, but prevention was important nonetheless.

“Don’t breathe loudly, and no matter how human they look, don’t answer if they speak to you. If you feel something is off, turn off the lights first. And keep your phone brightness to the minimum at all times.”

At my words, everyone except Kim Ji-ho, who had left his phone in the classroom, pulled out their phones and lowered the brightness.

Watching them, I emphasized the most important point.

“Especially, if you find something strangely enticing, never pick it up. The moment you notice it, you’re bewitched. If you see something like that, come find me immediately.”

If you pick it up and get unlucky, you could suffer a curse or sudden death. It could also become a medium for possession.

Since it was such an important matter, I deliberately spoke with gravity. The kids also nodded with serious expressions.

After getting a firm promise, I placed my hand on the doorknob of the old school building. I applied pressure carefully, and the door opened with a screeching sound that sent chills down the spine.

Beyond the crack of the door, pitch-black darkness stretched out. Swallowing my breath, I stepped inside, and the kids stuck close behind me.

Seo Yi-han stood beside me, lighting the way with the faint glow of his phone.

Unlike the impression that it was advertising itself as a den of evil spirits, it wasn’t swarming with ghosts yet.

There were floating unidentified will-o’-the-wisps and figures repeating the same actions, but they didn’t pay much attention to us.

Still, whether because they had seen a few things and gotten used to it, or because they were brave from the start, even Han Bo-bae and Kim Ji-ho, let alone Seo Yi-han and Yoon Soo-ah, endured without screaming.

With me and Seo Yi-han leading, we headed to the computer lab on the third floor.

I remembered that after running around picking up random junk, I had obtained key information about the ogre in the computer lab.

“Going straight to the computer lab is okay, right?” Instead of answering, the system window flashed the exorcism power gauge and the exploration quest window. The exorcism power was already 20% full.

Directly obtaining the item to clear the boss fight wasn’t allowed, but it seemed like a silent indication that breaking through the route quickly was permissible.

The computer lab, untouched for a long time, was filled with acrid dust. As soon as the door opened, dust burst out, and everyone covered their mouths to avoid coughing.

Seo Yi-han blocked me, then strode inside first and waved his hands. He opened the window and pulled off the cloth covering the computers, shaking it with familiar hands. Rain-moistened dust fluttered down onto the windowsill.

Contrary to his clean-cut appearance, he was surprisingly unperturbed by such tasks.

Only after the dust had settled a bit did Seo Yi-han pull my arm. Han Bo-bae, the last to enter the computer lab, carefully closed the iron door.

Kim Ji-ho borrowed Han Bo-bae’s phone and headed straight to the teacher’s desk at the front. Then he rummaged through the drawers to find tape.

“This tape is too old, it might not stick…”

“Still, you can’t keep wearing them with one arm.”

Kim Ji-ho and Han Bo-bae whispered and fidgeted, trying to piece the glasses together.

I immediately moved to the spot where computer number 29 was. Seo Yi-han followed closely behind and whispered, “There’s no internet anyway.”

“But old files might still be there.”

My goal was to find a video stored on this computer that showed the ogre’s appearance when it was alive. For reference, originally I had to click through all 35 computers one by one to check if there was a video.

Reflecting on it quietly, I felt a sense of regret for wasting precious time on this god-awful game.

[Sub Quest: Check the Computers! (0/5)] A kind quest to check at least 5 computers dropped.

Yeah, screw that. The reward would probably be +1 Insight or something. Since it was a sub quest with stingy rewards, ignoring it shouldn’t cause any trouble.

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