I Became the Hidden Mastermind

008 – The Ajumma from Hell #1

008 – The Ajumma from Hell #1

『Congratulations! You have safely returned from the nightmare corridor!』

“The settlement begins, with one survivor and three deaths.”

The settlement had begun.

Shhhhh-.

I could hear the sound of countless coins falling, as the words appeared before me like an ending scroll.

“Encounter with a ghost: 3 times + 30 points”

“Number of escapees: 1 person + 100 points”

“Number of deaths: 3 people + 30 points”

“Item acquired: Battery-powered lantern (rare) + 100 points”

“Progress in the Nightmare Corridor: 5% + 50 points”

“Total: 310 points”

Wow! Oh wow!

Just a moment ago, I was feeling so troubled in many ways.

But now, my mood has become so clear that the sadness has completely washed away.

310 points!

I had only managed to accumulate 2 points a day, thanks to the special characteristics of the “Broken Clock”, so it would have taken me 155 days to reach 310 points.

It felt like suddenly winning the lottery and becoming rich.

Ah, this is what life is all about!

Since I had recently opened a shop, there were many things I could do with these points.

Let’s go to the shop right away and go shopping.

I tried to think about it, but unfamiliar characters came to mind, as if there were still things to settle.

『 3 people have acquired a “Kibyok” through death.』

『Kim Gun-ho ◀ Select to confirm』

『Jung So-jin ◀ Select to confirm』

『Yang Ju-hee ◀ Select to confirm』

Acquiring “Kibyok” after death.

It seemed that something strange was happening to those who had died in the nightmare corridor.

In this unfamiliar situation, it was quite puzzling to see Yang Ju-hee’s name here.

Did Yang Ju-hee really die…?

I wanted to ask what had happened, but it seemed that Yang Ju-hee had no memory of the corridor at all.

“Hey, who’s this girlfriend you’re so into? Is she from our school? Is she an ugly girl?”

“……”

“Alright, let’s start the class. Everyone, take your seats. Instead of class president So-jin… um, let’s have the vice president Jeong-seok greet you and start the class, shall we? Seok-ah, greet them.”

The middle-aged bald math teacher for the first period walked in.

Yang Ju-hee also stopped asking me questions and remained silent.

For now, I decided to use the “Advice” function to find out what a “Kibyok” was.

“Advice.”

『Advice from “Broken Clock”: “Kibyok” is a strangeness that resonates with the body, soul, and mind. If you possess two or more “Kibyok,” you will die. You can unlock the infirmary, a locked item in the store, and be healed by spending 100P.”』

Death-.

At that story, my body trembled.

In the corridor of nightmares, dying grants you points, and if this process repeats, you ultimately die in reality.

Could it be that everyone, except me, losing their memories is somehow connected to life and death?

If I had also died, I might have lost my memory and gained points.

With such thoughts, after obtaining points, the first action to take was determined.

*Snap*.

『Spending 100P to unlock the item.』

『The treatment center is open.』

『In the treatment center, you can heal the 《Barriers》.』

For now, I felt relieved.

If I acquire a barrier, I should spend 100P to heal it right away in this treatment center.

It seemed wise to accumulate points whenever possible.

But more importantly… what happens to that “Corridor of Nightmares” that I generously gave points to?

I manipulated the status window.

『Chapter 1. Starting the Corridor of Nightmares.』

『Please select a player from the list.』

『You can choose up to 4 players.』

『Re-entry waiting time – 32:15:44』

Oh, I can go there again.

Should I be happy about it or scared…

Seeing the waiting time, it felt like entering a dungeon with time and date restrictions.

“Hey!!! Apologize right now!”

Amidst a dull math class, the lively voice of a female student pierced through the air like a dagger.

Everyone paused what they were doing and turned their heads. Jeong Sojin, rising from her seat like a warrior, glared at her partner, An Yeongmi.

“An Yeongmi, you just said I smell! Like the scent of night flowers! Apologize now!”

“What… what’s going on? Sojin, why are you suddenly like this? What flower scent are you talking about? What did I say to make you say that? It’s creepy…”

What on earth is happening here?

Murmurs spread like a ripple.

The children started buzzing, and Jeong Sojin, seemingly unable to contain her anger, swiftly dashed out of the classroom towards the outside.

I pressed Jeong Sojin’s name on the barrier settlement window to check the results.

『Jeong Sojin: 《Delusional Victim》 – The parallel lines of dreams and reality that should never meet have inevitably crossed. Are the whispered stories in the ears really dreams? Or…』

Delusional Victim.

Imagining that others are causing harm without any basis.

The recent actions of Jeong Sojin suddenly made sense.

What about the others?

Around the time I finished checking Kim Geonho’s barrier and was about to check Yang Juhee’s.

Swoosh-.

The classroom door opened again.

I thought Jeong Sojin had already returned, but standing in front of the door was not a fresh-faced schoolgirl but rather a considerably aged and rugged-looking woman.

“What’s going on?”

“Who are you?”

I, too, was not without bewilderment at the unusual incidents unfolding during class.

The face of the middle-aged woman in a white dress contorted with a sinister rage, as if she could turn into some kind of evil spirit.

Upon closer inspection, she was holding a pair of scissors that looked ominous and unclean, stained with numerous spots.

“Um… isn’t that lady the one who was distributing flyers in front of the school yesterday?”

“The lady from Youngkwang Church? The one who tells us to go to church every day?”

“Hey, what’s with the scissors!”

The church lady marched confidently into the classroom and approached me.

Hey, why is she coming towards me? What’s going on here?

For a moment, I felt a fearful heart, wondering if I hadn’t fully escaped from the nightmare yet.

“Hey, you crazy bastard! Did you spend the night with a guy? You crazy woman! You devilish woman! Come out here!”

“Scream!”

Yang Ju-hee screamed.

Yang Ju-hee was dragged away, her long, yellow hair being pulled as if she were about to fall.

“Le… let go of her! Let’s talk without this! Go outside! Let go of this! Ahh!”

“You possessed woman! You witch! You need to repent in front of the priest! Let’s go! You need to cut off your phone and internet right now. Shave your head too! You devilish woman!”

“Ah! Let’s just go outside for now!”

“What’s this nonsense you’re saying to your mother right now? The devil has certainly possessed you. In the name of the child, I command the evil spirit to leave! In the name of the child, I command the devil to leave!”

The commotion seemed to echo down the corridor, and a young English teacher from the neighboring class came over to witness the scene.

“Ugh… should I report this to the police, math teacher?”

“Oh no, there was a missing person incident at the beginning of the semester, and the school atmosphere is already chaotic. Let’s handle it internally for now…”

“What’s going on? What is it?”

Other students from different classes gathered around, creating a chaotic scene as I felt embarrassed in many ways. I wanted to cover my ears and scream as loud as I could.

# # #

“Wasn’t Yang Joo-hee’s family wealthy? It gives me goosebumps.”

“She never talks about her house. She even prevents us from going there.”

“She’s such a fake. No wonder she only uses cheap shoes and cosmetics.”

School ended at the seventh period, time to go home.

The students were still gossiping about what happened in the morning.

The kids staying out overnight.

Jung So-jin causing a scene during class.

And of course, there was a lot of talk about Yang Joo-hee and her disgusting mother’s behavior.

Honestly, everything was shocking.

I couldn’t believe that all of this happened in just one day.

“Wow, has that fake girl been acting so high and mighty all this time? What a piece of sh*t.”

“And the girls from Class C were already planning to step on Yang Joo-hee. I was going to watch. You know I’m close with Ji-yeon from Class C.”

“Did you get caught by Bong Ji-yeon? Yang Joo-hee is really in big trouble. I should go and record a video too.”

First-year high school students are neither children nor adults.

Maybe that’s why the instability that lies in between makes it difficult to find the line that needs to be maintained.

Even in a school like Yeongji High School, where scum students were prevalent, it was even more difficult.

Lee Jin-seong.

Park In-bae.

Those bastards from Kim Geon-ho’s gang should be dealt with in “The Corridor of Nightmares” later.

It’s not like I had a sense of justice, but Yang Joo-hee was someone who was briefly my girlfriend. Honestly, I felt annoyed seeing others cursing at him.

I unknowingly turned out to be a romanticist.

Since learning that entering the corridor of nightmares earns points, I wanted to test and verify various things.

If only I had lived a good life without bothering anyone.

“Honestly, the guys from Class D wouldn’t mind being thrown into the corridor like Maruta without missing a beat.”

Class D consists entirely of either perpetrators or bystanders.

Especially that Kim Geon-ho…

Well, Kim Geon-ho obtained such a barrier, so it was only a matter of time before he became well-behaved.

With those thoughts in mind, I unpacked my bag at the library.

I was a library committee member, and whenever there was spare time after classes, I managed books or cleaned the floor at Yeongji High School’s library.

Although Yeongji High is a conservative school, the library facilities were quite good, and the study environment was pleasant due to the absence of students reading books. In other words, this was my oasis.

And the ‘literature girl’ I secretly admired often came to the library and read difficult books like Baudelaire’s “The Flowers of Evil” or Nietzsche’s “Thus Spoke Zarathustra.”

“Which class is she in?”

Didn’t see her today.

It’s a pity; it’s always interesting to watch her in the library.

Anyway.

I had a lot of things I wanted to find out about the substitute teacher.

What’s the deal with the old teacher? Why would a ghost come out in the hallway?

Is there a book about the history of the school or something like that?

I was looking for something like that when it happened.

“Yeongwon.”

A soft and gentle voice called me.

As I turned my head, a woman in a black suit was looking at me. It was Teacher Kang Haneul.

“Yeongwon, I want to talk to you for a moment. Is that okay?”

“Yes. Of course.”

Swiftly, I sat facing the teacher in a corner of the library.

Some students glanced in our direction.

Teacher Kang Haneul was beautiful.

If the girls of the same age were fresh, what should I call the teacher who turned thirty this year… Should I express it as well-ripened? Should I say she had the confident charm of a successful professional… It was difficult to express the allure of an adult woman with my vocabulary.

She was quite popular among other teachers and guys, and I heard she received quite a few confessions.

Honestly, if I had the courage, I might have playfully confessed at least once.

“Yeongwon, are you going through a tough time or something?”

“No. Not really.”

“Really? Lately, you’ve been putting on a brave face, but I noticed you had bruises on your face often.”

“I just tripped.”

“So, can you figure out what this is?”

Swish-.

Teacher Kang Haneul extended a piece of paper to me.

On that paper was written, “An incident of bullying is occurring in Class D.”

It was neatly written. Cleanly punctuated with periods.

“…I have no idea about this.”

Really, I don’t know.

Who wrote this?

Is it the same person who wrote the letter to the office yesterday?

“Yeongwon, you can tell the truth. The teacher can help. We can hold a teacher meeting and involve the disciplinary committee. We can even contact the police.”

“No, really. You don’t have to. There’s really no problem in Class D.”

“Teacher Kang Haneul thinks you’re an honest and good kid. Your poem at that time was really good… So, can you be honest with me?”

Sigh.

At the beginning of the semester, Teacher Kang Haneul asked the students to write poems as homework.

The poem I wrote, “Splash, Splash, Splashing Water,” received a lot of praise from Teacher Kang Haneul, and she even read it in front of the students.

It was Teacher Kang Haneul who recommended me for the position of a literary club member.

“Teacher, I’m really not being bullied or anything like that. And I’m not as honest and good as you think.”

“Is it because of your mother? Worried that she might be concerned if something unnecessary happens? But Yeongwon, considering your mother raising you alone, it’s better to be honest than to hide…”

“No, really! There’s nothing like that. Teacher, I’m honestly embarrassed. By the way, Teacher, you mentioned that you’re a graduate of Yeongji High School, right?”

“Yeah. If you look closely, you’re my junior. I was also a high school student once. So, I can help with the things you’re worried and struggling about…”

“Then… Do you happen to know what happened at the old temple in the past? Like when a shaman with a bell came or something… If you tell me, I might be able to think a bit more.”