Chapter 17: Mom's Got Two of Everything (1)

"I'm home."

I called out as I entered.

The house feels eerily quiet. Mom must be working late again.

I head to my room and open my status window. It's time to re-enter the "Nightmare Corridor" now that the cooldown period has ended.

『Chapter 1. Nightmare Corridor begins.』

『Please select players from the list below.』

『You can choose up to 4 players.』

I'm still not used to this game-like system even after several days. It'll take some time to get the hang of it.

「Player List」

I scan the list of potential players for the corridor. There are familiar names like Yang Juhee, Jung Sojin, and Kim Geonho, along with some new additions I hadn't seen before.

Kang Ha-neul, Bong Ji-yeon.

I wonder why Ms. Kang and Ji-yeon were added. I spent a day at Ms. Kang's house once, but with Ji-yeon... well, aside from nearly losing my underwear today, we don't have much of a connection.

There must be some criteria for becoming a player, or maybe it's just random selection from people around me.

So, who should I send into the corridor today?

As I'm pondering this, I notice a "NEW" tag next to Yang Juhee, Jung Sojin, and Kim Geonho's names on the 「Player List」.

Let's check it out.

「Name: Yang Juhee Lv.2

Trait: 《Tool User》

Disposition: Brave

Quirk: None

Possessions: Eternal Box Cutter, Zippo Lighter, Multipurpose Room Key

An unstable and secretive delinquent girl. Bold, adventurous, and takes initiative. She'll likely be a reliable companion on this dark and treacherous journey.」

「《Tool User》: Can enter the corridor with up to 3 tools. Tool durability increased by 1.5x.」

「Possession: Eternal Box Cutter

Can stun a ghost briefly with one stab. Disappears after use.」

「Possession: Zippo Lighter

A regular lighter. Dimmer than a flashlight but less likely to attract ghosts. Somehow has infinite fuel.」

「Possession: Multipurpose Room Key

Opens the multipurpose room. Seems useless otherwise.」

Oh, wow... This feels like reading a game character description. This wasn't here before - I wonder why it appeared now.

Jung Sojin and Kim Geonho have it too. Maybe it only shows up for people who've been through the corridor once? I should check their profiles as well.

「Name: Jung Sojin Lv.2

Trait: 《Attentiveness》

Disposition: Cunning

Quirk: None

Possession: Class President's Glasses

A popular girl, class president of Class D. This crafty girl will be an excellent ally in most situations - at least when she feels safe.」

「《Attentiveness》: Increased chance of discovering ghosts, taboos, and tools.」

「Possession: Class President's Glasses

Stylish and expensive custom-made glasses. Increases the chance of spotting hidden or disguised ghosts.」

Sojin has the "Class President's Glasses" and the 《Attentiveness》 trait. The ability to spot ghosts and taboos more easily catches my eye.

Come to think of it, during the last corridor run, Sojin said she saw another ghost besides the Bell Woman and the Head Ghost. Maybe it was the synergy between her glasses and trait.

「Name: Kim Geonho Lv.2

Trait: 《Destroyer》

Disposition: Headstrong

Quirk: 《Coward》

Possessions: None

A delinquent who underestimates the world and adults. His exceptional physical abilities make him effective at surviving in various places. However, it's uncertain if he'll be a good teammate.」

「《Destroyer》: Can break locks and locked boxes without keys. Takes time and makes a lot of noise, potentially attracting ghosts. Use with caution.」

「《Coward》: Once bitten, twice shy. Easily startled.」

Geonho doesn't have any tools, but he has a quirk: 《Coward》.

A headstrong coward? Talk about contradictions. Taking this guy into a ghost-infested corridor seems like a recipe for disaster, but his 《Destroyer》 trait looks pretty useful.

Being able to break locks without keys...

Thinking back to the last corridor run when Sojin and I had that meltdown trying to get the multipurpose room key with that Head Ghost blocking the entrance... not needing 'keys' is a huge advantage.

But there's a catch: "Takes time and makes a lot of noise, potentially attracting ghosts. Use with caution."

It reminds me of how Geonho got torn apart trying to break the multipurpose room lock. He must have died after attracting ghosts with the noise.

"This really is like a game."

My heart races a little with excitement and anticipation.

To be honest, I'd been feeling vague fear and frustration about tackling the Nightmare Corridor. But now, seeing how I could combine each player's traits and tools to form a party, I feel a glimmer of hope that conquering the corridor might not be impossible after all.

I wonder if there's a description for me too?

『Name: Ha Young-won Lv.2

Trait: 《Broken Clock》 《Hold Breath》

Quirk: None

Funds: 311 Points

Description: Once promising, you now spend your days in meaningless routine, just killing time. But even a broken clock is right twice a day.』

「Tool: Battery-powered Flashlight

A flashlight that runs on batteries. Brighter than expected but increases the chance of being spotted by ghosts.」

My description is the same as my status window. The only difference is the "Battery-powered Flashlight" in the tool section. I guess if I start the Nightmare Corridor now, I'll wake up with this flashlight.

"Alright, let's put together a team."

I start to drag names from the list, but my hand freezes up like a poorly oiled machine.

"Do I really have to go back there?"

I thought I'd steeled myself, but the idea of entering that nightmare full of ghosts makes me tense up.

I could just send other people in without going myself. But I've personally experienced how much the 'quirks' from the corridor can affect someone, and I know it costs 100P to fix them.

Is it okay for me to potentially ruin other people's lives on a whim?

Then again, if I don't explore this corridor, I might keep getting attacked by ghosts like "Auntie Ghost," "Death Game," and "Placebo" every day without knowing why.

My life or other people's lives. After weighing it for a while, I came to a decision.

"If possible, I'll start with the ones I'd feel less guilty about throwing into a nightmare..."

This time, let's just watch and see what happens without going in myself.

Kim Young-ho, Lee Jinsung, Park In-bae.

I found the names of Kim Geonho's lackeys who usually treat me like a punching bag. I also dragged Bong Ji-yeon's name into the player slot - she tried to strip off my underwear after school today.

Should I send the class president in again? I'm curious to see what changes after entering twice.

Class president Jung Sojin, you're up for another round as the first-party representative.

***

『Ghost Encounters: 3 times + 30P』

『Deaths: 4 people + 30P』

『Item Acquired: [Jung Sojin - Map (Rare) + 100P]』

『Nightmare Corridor Progress: 10% + 50P』

『Total: 210P Gained』

When I woke up in the morning, the points had come in. My total points are now 521P.

I hate to say it, but it felt like I'd left an auto-farming bot running.

I felt a little guilty about throwing those kids into a terrifying nightmare, even if they were bullies. But honestly, seeing this many points come in exceeded my expectations.

I was most interested in Jung Sojin, who entered the corridor for the second time. This time, Sojin acquired a 'map'.

「Tool: Map

A detailed map of the 1st floor of the old school building. Seems like someone drew it carefully by hand. This might allow you to go deeper. But... who could have drawn this?」

"Oh yeah!"

Getting a map item for the corridor is fantastic news! Sojin's more talented than I thought.

『The 4 deceased acquire quirks.』

『Kim Young-ho ◀ Select to view』

『Lee Jinsung ◀ Select to view』

『Jung Sojin ◀ Select to view』

『Bong Ji-yeon ◀ Select to view』

The four explorers developed quirks.

They were 《Gambling Addiction》, 《Fanaticism》, 《Gambler》, and 《Androphobia》 respectively.

So they all died in the corridor.

I don't know what happened in last night's nightmare, but... I took a moment to mourn them.

"......"

I overslept a bit, so I was short on time. I quickly washed up and changed into my school uniform.

And now it’s time for breakfast.

With that thought, I went to the living room, only to find Mom crouched under the dining table, shaking and clutching a kitchen knife. She looked like a cat that had been suddenly doused with cold water.

"...Mom. What are you doing down there?"

"Young-won, there's someone in the bathroom! Be careful, Young-won! There's something there! Something!"

...Someone in the bathroom?

In this house without Dad, I was the only male.

I was terrified, but thinking I had to protect Mom, I grabbed a nearby flower pot. It was a big one.

As I slowly opened the bathroom door with my makeshift weapon, my mind was a mess of tension and confusion.

"...Mom, what are you doing there?"

"Young-won, there's someone in the kitchen! Something's under the kitchen table!"

There was a Mom in the kitchen and a Mom in the bathroom.

Suddenly having two Moms, I was confused and scared out of my wits. I looked back and forth between the kitchen and the bathroom.

Both the Mom in the bathroom and the Mom in the kitchen were identical copies of my 34-year-old married mother.

Did Mom have a twin?

No, I've never heard anything about that!

Then there's only one answer!

It's a ghost! Clearly, one of them must be a fake Mom!

I never expected this situation first thing in the morning.

I felt like bursting into tears, but there was no one to turn to. In this situation, I had to solve this myself.

"Mom. Come out for a second."

I called the Mom in the bathroom to the living room. Then, I took the knife away from the Mom crouching in the kitchen.

"I'm... I'm the real one! Young-won, don't you recognize your mother?"

"I'm the real one! I'm Young-won's mom!"

A situation where both claim to be real.

After much thought, I had a brilliant idea.

"Kitchen Mom says she's real. Bathroom Mom says she's real too. Honestly, there's no way to tell. So, let's cut me in half and share."

Swish-.

I put the kitchen knife on the table as I thought.

King Solomon brought a child and told two women claiming to be the mother, "Cut the baby in half!" The fake mother, lacking maternal love, agreed, "Let's do that!" But the real mother cried, "I'd rather give up my claim!"

This story was exactly the same.

The real Mom would be shocked and say, "How could you do that!" while the fake Mom would try to stab me and cut me in half.

Swish-.

Just then, Kitchen Mom picked up the kitchen knife. That look in her eyes was unsettling.

"Hey. You take the lower half. I'll take the upper half."

"No. I'll take the upper half. You take the lower half. Or let's split left and right."

"Huh?"

Oh, shit!

I was shocked and decided to run to my room.

"Son! Come out! You have to go to school!"

"Moms are people too! People! Please come out of your room! Mom trusted you!"

Bang bang, bang bang bang bang-.

The Moms kept pounding on the door.

I was terrified and thought I needed to call for help somehow.

「Hey! Hey! Come to our house! Our house! Hurry! Hurry! Hurry!」

「Yang Juhee: ?????」

「Yang Juhee: Is this about meeting in our dreams yesterday? Pervert lol」