I Became the Hidden Mastermind

022 – Formation of the Eternal Pirate Crew #1

022 – Formation of the Eternal Pirate Crew #1

The first meeting was at a cafe, and while deciding on the location for the second meeting, I received a text from my mom.

“Mom Mode: Mom won’t be able to come in today because of work. Since it seems like my son won’t be able to wake up tomorrow morning, I’ll make the call for him~”

It was a message saying that mom stayed up all night at work today.

Lately, my mom has been very busy, so I haven’t had time to see her.

Should I spend the night alone in a house where cockroaches and ghosts come out?

Every time my mom is not around, the ghosts come out.

It was a terrifying situation.

“Hey, guys. Let’s go to my place for the second meeting. If possible, stay overnight. Just spend the night at my place. With mom not around, there’s an extra room.”

I invited my classmates to my house and asked them to stay overnight at the same time.

Even if ghosts suddenly appear at home, it would be somewhat okay with friends around.

“Hey, are you guys going to sleep? Please!”

I asked again while looking at the crumbling villa building.

Jeongseok calmly replied, injecting a click into his words.

“Well, we did talk about sleeping first.”

Alright, alright!

I happily climbed the stairs, but Jeongseok frowned and couldn’t climb the stairs as readily.

“But do we have to walk up to the 4th floor?”

“Well, then let’s walk up. Should I carry you?”

“….”

Is it because he’s a noble?

He looked around as if he couldn’t understand the idea of walking up to the 4th floor.

But in the end, he gave up and climbed the stairs.

When we reached the 3rd floor, Jeongseok asked.

“Yang Joo-hee, are you okay? Your mom came to school when you stayed out that time. If you stay out again today, are they really going to expel you?”

Now that I think about it, that’s true.

When Kim Yeok Kwon-sa came to the classroom with scissors and roared as if he was going to cut all of Yang Joo-hee’s hair, we were overwhelmed by the atmosphere and terrified.

If we say that we’re going to sleep here with me and Jeongseok today… is Kwon-sa going to pull out Yang Joo-hee’s and my hair? Jeongseok might even get beaten up.

“It’ll be fine. Our mom really likes Yeong-won. He’s the son of the pastor. She’ll actually be happier if we’re together. Even if we say we’re going to sleep, she won’t pay much attention.”

Is that so?

It seems like I unintentionally scored a lot of points with Kim Yeok Kwon-sa. No matter which church it is, the sons of pastors always feel like their own sons.

“Was Hayoungwon the pastor’s son?”

Jungseok looked at me, his eyes sparkling.

“I thought you were from a stepmother’s family.”

“Well, circumstances vary from one household to another. Anyway, come in.”

Jungseok, without further probing into my vague story, shut his mouth. Perhaps because he was smart or courteous, he didn’t press further.

Tick, tick, tick.

As I opened the door and stepped inside, everything was dimly lit.

Thunk.

When I turned on the lights, the interior was a complete mess.

“Oh, right. I didn’t clean up all of this before going to school this morning.”

There were traces of a chaotic fight with copied moms this morning. I roughly tidied up, but there was still sand and dirt on the floor, making it a total mess.

“Hello.”

When Yang Joohee, taking off her sneakers to reveal white socks, confidently entered the room, Jungseok stopped at the shoe rack, glancing around.

His half-open mouth seemed to express either admiration or astonishment.

“….”

It was like the attitude of a politician from a chaebol family entering a dormitory for the first time. Coincidentally, both were from the same Jung family. Jokingly, I asked, thinking they might be distant relatives.

“Hey, Seok. Is our house bigger than your house shoe rack?”

“I don’t really know… Agh!”

Jungseok suddenly screamed, jumping up.

Damn, is a ghost already coming out?

These damn ghost bastards, are they just going to pop out even when all the lights in the house are on and three people are wide-eyed?

Just when I thought they were really shameless sons of b*tches, something went shasha-shak and passed by Jeongseok’s feet.

“Cockroach! It’s huge! Whoa-.”

Jeongseok seemed extremely startled when he saw the cockroach.

No, I mean, is the guy so startled just by seeing a bug? I was so scared that tears welled up in my eyes and foam seemed to come out of my mouth.

“I have to catch that! I have to catch that! Otherwise, I won’t be able to sleep tonight! I have to catch it!”

I appealed emotionally and sensitively.

A cockroach the size of a human thumb was wandering near the shoe rack, and I couldn’t calm down enough to sleep.

Try sticking to my face while I’m sleeping!

I’m seriously going to die.

“Our Yeongwon is such a scaredy-cat. I thought I had seen a ghost.”

At that moment, Yang Juhee lifted her foot and quickly stepped on the black object.

Squish-. Splat.

It was a very cool action, but at the same time, I felt like I was losing my mind.

“No, you stepped on it with your socked foot…”

“I was going to throw away the socks today anyway. Once I wash my feet, it’s over.”

Shhh-.

Yang Juhee casually threw away her sock near the trash can. Then she said, “I’m going to use the bathroom,” and went inside.

Flushhh-.

I could hear the sound of water from the shower, so she must have been washing her hands and feet.

“…….”

Jeongseok and I listened quietly to the sound of water.

Jeongseok didn’t know what to expect, but the thought of a girl from our class turning on the water and showering in our house made him feel strange and oddly uncomfortable.

Coming from an all-boys’ school, I had some fantasies about women.

“Yeongwon, let’s start with the cleaning for now.”

Swoosh-.

Jeongseok stepped into our living room from the shoe rack. He grabbed the vacuum cleaner nearby and started to push it across the floor with a satisfying hum.

# # #

“Jami and Seok will sleep in my room, and Juhee, you can sleep in our mom’s room. If the pajamas or the size of the clothes are too big or uncomfortable, let me know. I’ll change them for you.”

I prepared blankets for each room and distributed pajamas and toothbrushes to my friends.

It felt awkward and tense to have friends sleep over at my house for the first time since elementary school.

At the same time, it was fun.

I never expected to have such an enjoyable experience after being haunted by ghosts. I was happy. I was really happy.

“Did you have an older sister too?”

While Jeongseok was drinking water from a cup, he noticed a picture of a woman and me hanging in the living room. He’s quite observant.

By the way, the picture Jeongseok saw was one of me and my mom taken at my middle school graduation.

“That’s our mom. By the way, our mom is turning thirty-four this year.”

“…….”

Jeongseok had a look of incomprehension in various ways.

Perhaps he was mentally calculating when he might have given birth, or something along those lines.

I decided to help with the calculation.

“He said he gave birth when he was in high school.”

Anyway.

I sat in the living room, determined to explain my “status window” to everyone.

At that moment, Yang Ju-hee, dressed in my pajamas, touched her own belly.

“Yeongwon, I’m hungry. Can’t you order just one chicken? Our baby says he’s hungry.”

“Puh-hup!”

Jeongseok sprayed the water he was drinking.

“Kid, you dirty bastard.”

“No, the baby…”

Jeongseok seemed genuinely surprised by Yang Ju-hee’s story.

Is he a friend with a weak immune system against female students’ jokes?

Jeongseok might have spent three years in middle school too.

“Of course, it’s a lie. But more importantly, about the chicken… Fine. I’ll pay. It’s nothing. But you have to help with the cleanup. Is chicken okay?”

“Oh, yes!”

Yang Ju-hee was delighted.

It seems like she still has room for chicken even after eating the carrot cake alone earlier.

Jeongseok also said a word.

“I only eat boneless chicken. Do you have any ‘ppuringkle’?”

“…No, do people really eat ‘ppuringkle’ as boneless? ‘Ppuringkle’ is better with bones.”

The rich kid seems to have different tastes.

As I was thinking that, Yang Ju-hee asked from beside me, “What’s ‘ppuringkle’?”

…I see.

We ordered two chickens.

Eating chicken late at night with friends at home was really fun. We didn’t do anything special, but it was possible for a day to be this enjoyable.

“Hey, this is ginseng liquor. Hey, let’s have a glass of this!”

Having eaten a lot of chicken, Yang Ju-hee now had her eye on the ginseng liquor.

It was something my mom had brought from work, and the roots shimmering in the golden container were overwhelmingly impressive.

Is Yang Ju-hee trying to meddle in our household affairs?

I had that thought, but I also wanted to try a glass of the ginseng liquor.

“Wait.”

Thud-.

Jeong-seok lightly slammed the table with the palm of his hand.

It was a gesture similar to when he drew the attention of the kids in the class.

“The reason we gathered here isn’t for this. Ha Yeong-won, you said you have superpowers. Explain what that is first.”

Right.

I was going to talk about the status window today.

However…the status window was the ultimate weapon for me, as well as the most top-secret of all secrets that should be hidden from everyone.

If rumors spread that I have the status window, they might even kidnap me and try to open my brain at places like the National Intelligence Service.

If someone were to ask me if I trust Yang Joo-hee and Jeong Seok, I honestly couldn’t guarantee it.

My relationship with Yang Joo-hee was never really good, and I could count on one hand the number of conversations I had with Deputy Jeong Seok.

But I wanted to trust my friends in front of me.

The world was too harsh for me to handle all of this alone.

So I opened the lid of the ginseng liquor and poured it into as many cups as there were people.

Swoosh-.

“Hey. From the moment we drink this, we become true allies and comrades. The secret we talk about here must be kept until the end. If the secret is not kept, you guys could really die. I’m not joking.”

I handed the cups to Yang Joo-hee and Jeong Seok.

A moment of tension in many ways.

“Why do you keep saying the same thing? Because we’re going together. If we can find our sister, return our mother to normal, and restore our family to what it used to be. Ahh, fine.”

Yang Joo-hee emptied the contents of the cup in one gulp.

She was indeed tough.

Then, what’s left is Jeong Seok.

Jeong Seok looked at the ginseng liquor in the cup.

In fact, Jeong Seok and I had a somewhat loose connection. Even though we fought off Feng Shui ghosts together, it meant that this guy had no obligation to go with me until the end.

Swish-.

Jeong Seok emptied the cup in an instant.

“I’m going too. But your supernatural ability has to be a definite help in my life. That has to be reliable information. I’m going to become a prosecutor in South Korea someday. I’ll throw all the criminals─.”

The way Jeongseok spoke was more serious than I had expected, yet there was a hint of sadness in his words.

“All right.”

I quickly finished my drink.

It was bitter and tasteless.

“Ugh, it’s awful. Anyway, now we’re all members of the Hayoungwon Pirate Crew. Let me tell you guys something. I have something called a Status Window. It looks something like this when drawn as a picture.”

# # #

Swiftly, I wrote the familiar characters in my notebook.

“I started having this one day. To be precise, it was during the territorial rights ceremony at school. There’s a score that accumulates 2 points per day. I gathered 100 points and opened a shop with them.”

Swiftly.

I drew the shop window for everyone to see.

Jeongseok asked me.

“Can you exchange those points for money, or can you buy money?”

“Yeah. It’s 10,000 won per point. And you can also earn points by defeating or driving away ghosts. It’s a bit of a flexible rule. It seems to depend on the difficulty or something.”

I also explained that I had 821P points at the moment.

Soon, Yang Joo-hee’s eyes lit up.

“So, you’re saying you have 8 million won? That’s amazing.”

8 million won.

It was a huge sum of money for a first-year high school student.

But Jeongseok shook his head.

“Drawing points as cash is the opposite. If what I’m saying is all true, then honestly, one point must be worth more than 10,000 won. I think it’s better to start by unlocking the locked items in the store section. The choices will expand.”

It was a reasonable thought.

“Or maybe raise the store level. If you raise the store level, discounts will be applied to the products, they say? Things like these should be purchased early to maximize benefits.”

Straightforward, this guy.

Smarter than I thought!

I decided to follow his advice.

I spent 100P to raise the store level for now.

Then, with a ding sound, the store changed!

“Welcome to the Level 2 Store.

In our store, we sell various items that will help you in battles with warriors.”

“Raising the store level adds products and discounts.

Store Level 2 Lv (0/500)

1. Trait Drawing Ticket – 90P

2. Capsule Drawing Ticket – 90P

3. Unlock Locked Item – 90P

4. Open Second Floor of the Academy – 900P”

“Oh. All items have become about 10 percent cheaper across the board. And to raise the store level again, you’ll need 500 points this time.”

Spending 500 on store upgrades seemed a bit wasteful.

Remaining points: 721.

According to Jeongseok’s advice, unlocking locked items broadens the range of choices, so it’s good.

“Spending 90P unlocks the locked item.”

“The training ground is now open.”

“In the training ground, players can be trained.”

“You can acquire abilities by spending 100 points.”

“A level 3 store is required to unlock the locked item.”

Training ground!

Training!

Acquiring abilities by spending points!

I see.

Now, I can gift abilities to colleagues like Yang Ju-hee and Jung-seok by spending 100 points!

“There’s a training ground in the locked item. They say you can gain abilities through training. And it seems that you need to raise the store level to 3 to unlock the next locked item.”

“Abilities? Honestly, there’s still a part that’s hard to believe. Can I develop a surprising talent too?”

Yang Ju-hee expressed subtle curiosity while feeling uncertain.

Jung-seok also showed great interest.

“Try using it once. Let me know what happens.”

Is this like using Yang Ju-hee as a test subject for a Momo?

Swoosh-. I dragged Yang Ju-hee’s name into the training ground.

“Yang Ju-hee – Training List!”

“Push-ups 0/1000 times”

“Running at a speed of over 2Km 0/100Km”

『Reward: “Swift Legs”』

『”Swift Legs”: Can run 1.5 times faster for 10 seconds.』

“What is this?”

“Demand and reward. Feels like a game quest, doesn’t it?”

Jungseok evaluated.

I agreed with his expression.

The person in question, Yang Joo-hee, frowned as if something was ambiguous.

“Hundred push-ups and run 100 km. It’s a bit tough. Running 1.5 times faster for 10 seconds… Is it worth the trouble to obtain this?”

Is it?

At that moment, Jungseok got excited.

“No, this is amazing! The average for high school girls’ short-distance 100 meters is around 20 seconds, you know? The top-ranked Shin Woo-joo has a frequency of 12.1 seconds! But if you get 1.5 times faster from the average, it becomes 13.3 seconds!”

“Wow, really? I ran 100 meters in about 16 or 17 seconds during the last P.E. class. If I get 1.5 times faster… I can run in the 10-second range?”

“By the way, the world record for women’s short-distance 100 meters is 10.49 seconds!”

“Wow, amazing! I might be able to go to the Olympics with just a little exercise!”

Yang Joo-hee was very happy.

But I was a little concerned that Jungseok knew too much about the record of women’s short-distance frequency races.

Do smart guys usually know that much?

Is he a pervert?

Come to think of it, wasn’t Bong Ji-yeon from Class C the ace of our school’s track and field team?

“Ha Young-won! This is amazing! Seriously, this could change our lives and still leave something behind. Can I do it too? How many people can enter the training ground at the same time?”

Jeongseok, who had maintained a calm attitude until just now, was surprisingly excited to the point of disbelief. His nostrils flared, and he even blew out air through his nose, which was somewhat intimidating.

“Alright. Can I try pulling one capsule before that?”

He was curious about the capsule vending machine.

I spent another 90 points.

Now, I have 541P left.

As I was thinking about what might happen, the image of a capsule toy machine popped up in front of me, and the round capsules began rattling.

I wondered what was going to happen.

『The items have been placed in front of the entrance.』

『15 steps to the northeast.』