I Became the Hidden Mastermind

035 – Courage Test #4

035 – Courage Test #4

Courage Test.

Entering abandoned houses, schools, or the like to retrieve items or explore.

Honestly, I don’t know why people do such things.

It seemed like Jeongseok felt the same way.

“Entering the school as a courage test? It seems like a risky business with no return, doesn’t it?”

Jeongseok was a good guy, but he was too smart, almost to a fault.

Sometimes, without questioning or hesitating with a passionate heart, you need to be able to say, “Sure, let’s give it a try!” but he lacked that.

Fortunately, I was a man who knew how to make deals.

“If you come with me, I might consider punishing that suspect. Just to be clear, I’m considering it, not confirming it. Don’t get confused.”

“….”

Jeongseok couldn’t forgive the criminal who brutally killed the girl next door and even hid the head, and yet continued to live in the world.

If this guy’s sense of justice was sincere, my proposal would have been tempting.

“You want to meet that guy?”

“Well, depending on what you do.”

“Don’t forget that promise. You’ll definitely know for sure when you meet him. He’s a really bad guy. Once you see him, you’ll realize that he’s not someone who should be freely roaming in society. Seriously.”

Jeongseok readily accepted my proposal, making me suddenly curious.

“But if I want to meet him, can I?”

“I’ve been in and out of prison for other crimes, but if I want to meet him, I can now. He’s at Yeonggwang Church. Have you heard of it? I’m living there as a caretaker and taking care of my meals.”

Yeonggwang Church.

Suddenly, the cross that was stuck in front of Yang Ju-hee’s house with various stickers came to mind.

Wasn’t that the church where Yang Ju-hee’s mother used to go?

“Is it Pastor Cheon Ae-su’s church by any chance?”

“You know it well. They say that when that pastor lays his hands on you, all kinds of illnesses are healed. In the past, I would have thought it was a scam, but after going through various things, I think maybe it could be true.”

This city of Yeonggwang is small.

Many things are intertwined like spider webs in places I never even thought of.

Anyway, the important thing is that we’re going to explore the church today.

“Ha Yeong-won. But why the church all of a sudden?”

“If we explore the church together today, Yoo Da-hee said she’ll grant a wish.”

“What?”

Jeong-seok’s face slightly reddened.

He’s a first-year high school student, full of hormones.

“You don’t mean…”

I knew very well what he was thinking.

Because I was thinking the same thing.

“That’s right. I want to ask Yoo Da-hee about the incident that happened in the 6th grade summer. I told her that if you want to hear the story, you should hear it directly from her. Maybe she’ll listen if we use a wish ticket.”

My suspicion of Yoo Da-hee’s wish ticket was based on my own rational thinking.

jeong seog quietly exclaimed, “Oh,” as he listened to my story.

“Hayoungwon. I saw you again. I thought you were the kind of guy who couldn’t refuse when girls asked for favors and just blindly listened. You know, the type of guy who is weak in front of girls.”

“Hey, man. Who says that? Weren’t you getting pushed around by Bong Jiyeon too?”

“I… I have my reasons. Come to think of it, it’s been quite a while since I last saw Bong Jiyeon. Seeing her quiet lately actually makes me more uneasy.”

A mix of anxiety and concern briefly crossed Jongseok’s face.

Suddenly, I realized that Jongseok didn’t just hate Bong Jiyeon, who had tormented him; there was more to it than simple dislike.

“Hey, Jongseok. Since we’re guys talking, do you happen to like Bong Jiyeon?”

Bong Jiyeon was a reasonably pretty girl.

She was less beautiful than Yudahee or Yang Juhee, but they were on a different level altogether.

Bong Jiyeon was the kind of girl who would definitely be chosen when picking three pretty girls from the class.

It was a clear-cut feeling.

If Yudahee or Yang Juhee were the types to self-deprecatingly think, “Could I date someone like her? No, it’s absolutely impossible,” Bong Jiyeon was the kind of girl you’d think, “I might have a chance if I play my cards right….” Yes, she was a solid 7.

But when talking about appearance alone, was she not a bit of a psycho rather than just eccentric?

“Hey, Bong Jiyeon is a total queen bee with a terrible personality, and she’s like a gang leader. Why do you like a girl like that? Do you have a fetish for being harassed by a delinquent girl?”

“No. Are you the one to talk about that? You’re the same. Hayoungwon. You even imitated Pikachu in front of Yang Juhee. You’re no different. You shouldn’t say such things to me.”

Well, that was true.

Listening to it, it seemed that way.

This is a case of seeing things from the other person’s perspective.

“Still, if Yang Juhee is just a normal delinquent, Bong Jiyeon is a hardcore mode delinquent. Bong Jiyeon is even close to those more dangerous senior delinquents.”

[Preserving line breaks]

Yang Ju-hee was a solitary, tough guy among the delinquents, while Bong Ji-yeon was the type to form a group.

And, naturally, it wasn’t a particularly high-quality group.

From what I heard, there were even people who had been to juvenile detention among the seniors.

“It wasn’t always like this. He used to be decent until he was doing short-distance track and field. We used to do homework together before that. …He just suddenly started hanging out with strange kids.”

According to Jung-seok, Bong Ji-yeon used to come over to Jung-seok’s house when he was studying and annoyingly act up or play pranks.

…Was it like childhood friends?

This Jung-seok guy, I thought he was just a fellow middle schooler with me, but it turns out they were going to each other’s houses and having fun with a pretty girl as a childhood friend?

Suddenly, a feeling of betrayal surged within me. My three years of middle school were… truly hell!

Is this the insurmountable difference between the rich and the poor?

“But. Everything changed after the third year of middle school. Bong Ji-yeon got injured and had to quit track and field. Since then, it’s like he entered a rebellious phase or something, and the kid changed.”

Was Jung-seok watching his childhood friend change while hanging out with delinquents?

A friend who used to come over and play pranks to the point of being lively and mischievous, now playing with the delinquents, smoking cigarettes, and spreading rumors about dating each other… That might be a kind of hell for a boy in its own way.

# # #

As Jung-seok and I chatted for a while, we unknowingly arrived at school.

Today is Saturday.

School on the weekend is usually quiet.

“Looks like that security uncle isn’t here today.”

I thought about the security guard who held us back when we escaped from school without permission to find my missing mom in the elevator.

I had a slight feeling of resentment towards the security guard, but Jung-seok unexpectedly said something.

“The security guard uncle was quite helpful when looking for your mom. Seems like he used to be a police officer. He contacted the police and asked for various favors, it seems.”

“Oh, really?”

He was just someone with an unwavering professional spirit.

I thought I should buy him some fruits later.

Even such a dedicated guy couldn’t resist skipping school on Saturdays.

Jeongseok looked around.

“In the old days, they used to come to school even on Saturdays. They made us study until 5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, forcing us to do self-study. They did the same during vacations.”

“Wow, seriously? That sounds terrible. Like a ghost story. So where is the hole that Yang Ju-hee mentioned? She said there’s a hole in the wall.”

The school gate was firmly locked.

It was difficult to get over it, and it seemed better to sneak into the school through the hole.

Should I contact Yang Ju-hee… The thought crossed my mind, but it felt a bit awkward to contact her now that I knew why Yuda-hee disliked me.

I should contact her when things are sorted out.

Fortunately or unfortunately, I found a hole in the fence of the school tennis court.

Someone had taped it up, and it would be fine to just remove it.

Rip…

I crawled through the narrow hole and said, “Our mom’s attending doctor said that even if you’ve lost your memory, exposing yourself to familiar stimuli can sometimes help you recall forgotten memories.”

My mom, who had gone missing and returned, had even forgotten about me, her son.

She was still a bit shaky now.

But I made efforts to stimulate her brain in various ways, and thanks to that, she was in much better condition now.

Going forward, things will surely improve.

If my guess that Yudahee truly “lost her memory” is correct, then wouldn’t today’s visit to Gugyo-sa trigger various recollections?

In that case, memories of when I witnessed Yang Joo-hee’s sister should also come back.

It was certain that it would be helpful in finding Yang Joo-hee’s sister.

“But… are we really going in there? It looks really ominous.”

Jeongseok stood in front of the Gugyo-sa building, his mouth agape.

The Gugyo-sa building, illuminated by the dusky evening glow, had corners that were darker and more somber than I had thought.

The first-floor windows were shattered here and there, and graffiti painted with an unknown identity covered the walls. Mold of unknown origin even bloomed on the walls.

The building was much larger than the new school building.

There used to be something called the Baby Boom, with up to 40-50 students in one class, and there were up to 10 classes. Perhaps that’s why Gugyo-sa felt like a much larger existence than the school I knew.

“There’s a rumor that a school was built in a communal graveyard. It’s a bit creepy.”

To shake off the slight chill and recall the time when he fought with feng shui ghosts, Jeongseok spoke.

“I looked into it. Before this school was built, there was a mansion owned by Cheon Ilsik, the landlord of this area. It was a mansion built during the Japanese occupation. It was the only modern-style mansion in this area, very grand in Western style.”

A Western-style mansion.

It was hard to imagine.

“Cheon Ilsik received a title during the Japanese era. A count or something. It was a family that transcended the aristocracy in Korea, going beyond the yangban. Quite remarkable, isn’t it?”

“It is remarkable. What are they doing now?”

“You didn’t know? Yudahee, who you’re waiting for right now, is Cheon Ilsik’s great-granddaughter.”

Is it true?

Yudahee turned out to be a more remarkable person than I had thought.

If she were born in the past, would she be like a noble lady?

“There’s a saying that even now, if you want to engage in politics or business in Gaeryong City, you have to go through the Chens. My dad also met them when he ran for mayor. There’s also a rumor that Oseong Electronics was raised by the Chens.”

“There must be an abundance of wealth. But Yudahee is from the Yus, not the Chens. Is she an adopted granddaughter or something?”

“…Could be?”

Jeongseok didn’t seem to have much doubt about Yudahee’s last name being Yu.

Ssshh-.

As we chatted, the evening sun set, and the world was completely immersed in darkness.

The missionary, which had felt somewhat like a human building, now began to look like a massive gray tombstone embedded in the land. Should I really go in there? Should I just say I won’t do it now?

As I pondered, a message came from Yudahee.

“Yudahee: I’ve arrived at school, but the door is locked!”

“There’s a loophole, hahahaha. I’ll guide you.”

I directed Yudahee to the loophole at the tennis court.

Creak, creak.

“Narrower than I thought.”

Watching Yudahee wriggling out of the loophole, something felt strangely odd.

Tap, tap-.

While Yudahee was brushing off her knees, I asked, “So where should we go in the missionary? Can we just go inside?”

“Well… Let’s go underground for now.”

The first floor of the old school building? Not even the basement?

I began to feel a creepy sensation for some reason.

Perhaps it was because I thought there might be a lot of cockroaches.

But now it was too late to turn back.

It was when I slowly entered through the open door of the old school building and walked down the chaotic first-floor corridor.

“Hey! Who’s there?”

At that moment, someone outside the old school building shouted at us.

Did they catch us?

Jung-seok said.

“I think there was a duty teacher! Ha Young-won! What should we do? If we get caught going into the old school building, it’s over.”

“What can we do? For now… For now, let’s hide! Da-hee, we need to hide! There should be a staff room nearby, let’s go there!”

“Yeah…!?”

Startled, we entered the staff room on the first floor.

It was a damp room, filled with dust.

“For now, let’s hide! Let’s hide somehow!”

Creak. Creak. Creak.

Soon, we began to hear the sharp sound of a woman’s high-heeled shoes in the first-floor corridor of the old school building.

I tilted my head discreetly under the desk and looked towards the entrance of the staff room.

Soon, along with the faint light from a cellphone flashlight, bright red high heels appeared at the entrance of the staff room.

Creak. Creak.

And as I shone the light around my hidden desk, I approached it.

While I was surveying the situation under the desk, something strange caught my eye.

“……”

On the left ankle, adorned with high heels, there was a tattoo or a peculiar mark.