IN GAMAND
NO. 12
W. Seolha
“No, it’s dangerous to go alone.”
Hmph, I let out a sigh and rubbed my forehead. In the end, we’ve come full circle back to square one. I faced Kim Taehyung with an expressionless face as he continued to frown and refute my words.
“Ah, right. Then the three of us can just swarm over without a plan and interrogate them about why they called me, huh? It’s the perfect way to throw away our lives, isn’t it?”
“So you think you’re going to crawl in there alone? What if the person who wrote that note is the killer who murdered Aria, Kanna, and Deon? Considering you went around scattering your dorm room number all over the school, don’t you have any sense of caution? Stop playing games with your life.”
“You’re the one who needs to get a grip. Is this the time to be arguing about loyalty? I know my life is precious, but that doesn’t mean I want to protect it through unnecessary sacrifices.”
“It’s not an unnecessary sacrifice…,”
“Then what is it? How is the three of us swarming in any way any different from revealing our hand? We don't even know who sent this note. It’s like we’re exposing our own hand without knowing a single thing about the opponent’s!”
I shouted as I tossed the cards I was holding onto the table. "No pair." Kim Taehyung bit his lip as he looked down at his worst hand. Eleven o'clock, East Garden. The repercussions of that single short sentence were enormous. There wasn't a single second to waste on such trivial matters of "you go" or "I go," yet Kim Taehyung kept repeating that he couldn't go alone, as if possessed by something. I had been the bait from the very beginning when he started using my dorm room, so I couldn't understand why he was being so stubborn now.
“Why don’t you guys just stop? It’s not like we’re having a battle of egos…”
Jeon Jungkook, who had been occupying a corner of the sofa and watching the argument between me and Kim Taehyung as if it were none of his business, finally spoke up. "Let's settle this by majority vote. We came from a democratic society." At those words, I slumped onto the sofa. Regarding me heading to the East Garden alone, I was in favor, while Kim Taehyung was against—in short, it meant the outcome depended on Jeon Jungkook's choice.
“Yulia is in favor, Kim Taehyung is against, so I'm the only one left.”
“…….”
“…….”
In that case, I,
“…….”
“…….”
Half for, half against.
It was absurd. Kim Taehyung and I dropped our mouths in disbelief at Jeon Jungkook, who was spouting such nonsense. Kim Taehyung, in particular, wore a menacing expression, looking as if he were about to pounce on Jeon Jungkook at any moment. My patience had completely worn out, and I hurriedly spoke up before the unfortunate incident of the Marquis's son beating up the Empire's Crown Prince could occur.
“Hey, I’m not in the mood for jokes right now.”
"This isn't chicken, so where does the 'half-and-half' rule come from in a majority vote?" Jeon Jungkook wore a dazed expression at my crude remark. Scratching the back of his neck at Kim Taehyung and my cold reaction, Jeon Jungkook continued speaking.
“Listen to me until the end in Korean… You guys are usually so clever, so why are you suddenly acting like this? I meant that there are other ways besides Yulia going alone or the three of us swarming in,”
The words "half for, half against" rose to the tip of my tongue, asking if there was such a deep meaning behind them. I swallowed those words, stared straight at Jeon Jungkook, and said, "Tell me in detail." At my words, Jeon Jungkook grinned. Shuffling the cards scattered haphazardly on the table with skillful movements, he continued. "Is it really necessary to lay out all the cards?" He drew five cards and slowly placed them face down on the table. Of the five face-down cards, Jeon Jungkook flipped over the one in the very middle.
“If you have no choice but to lay down a card for your opponent,”
Jeon Jungkook, who pushed the Diamond Queen (Q) forward, hid the remaining cards.
“Wouldn’t it be obvious to hide the rest?”
“…So you’re saying that in the end, it’s right for me to step forward alone?”
“No, no. I told you, I’m half for, half against.”
Stop the wordplay.
“What a temper… To be precise, you just have to make the other person believe that you’ve hidden your hand.”
Jeon Jungkook's fingertips were pointing toward the table. I looked down at the cards on the table. The Queen of Diamonds (Q), and the King of Spades (K).
Actually, we revealed two cards, but making the opponent believe we have only one.
“…….”
"You understood, right?"
Jeon Jungkook asked with a smile. Without answering, I covered the corners of my mouth with my hand and grinned. The moment the worst hand becomes the best hand. My mind was racing.
IN GAME
The garden, devoid of a single ray of light, was dark. With every step I took, I sharpened every sense in my body. It wouldn't have been surprising if a dagger had come flying at me from anywhere at any moment. For someone facing a situation where my life could crumble at any moment, I walked on with the nonchalant thought that there was a place like this in the Academy. It was the perfect spot for someone to die stealthily.
The Academy's East Annex was a building primarily used as a private training ground for military science students. With grueling training scheduled from the early dawn just before sunrise, these students rarely set foot in the private training ground after their evening drills were over. As for the enthusiastic freshmen of the Academy, there was even less to say, as they hadn't even been assigned a private training ground yet. In short, it meant that the East Building was practically empty now, as it was nearly eleven o'clock at night. In this world, where there were hardly any CCTVs or proper investigative agencies, was there any place better optimized for killing someone? Simply put, as long as there were no witnesses, it was all that mattered.
Looking at the empty garden, I clenched my fists tightly. It is a situation where I cannot help but be tense. One wrong move and my head would be chopped off, and regrettably, I have no intention of giving up on life yet. Even if it is not my life, but Julia's.
You tend to greet people a bit roughly.
I spoke as I deflected the flying projectile with the dagger Kim Taehyung had given me. I hadn't thrown it with murderous intent, but it was the perfect angle to lose an eye at the slightest provocation. Picking up the dagger that had fallen to the ground, I threw it back toward where it had come. With a clang, someone who had been clumsily hiding behind the dark bushes walked out, laughing. A couple of leaves clinging to their disheveled hair, and something faintly visible even in this darkness devoid of light—
“You have a really good intuition? But,”
“…….”
“Which one has the better instincts? Princess Julia, or the other person inside?”
Red hair, I watched the girl twisting her hair with a playful smile.
Karen Caitlin,
At the girl's name flowing from my lips, she widened her eyes. "Do you know me?" The hunched posture, timid attitude, and gaze fixed on the ground were nowhere to be seen; instead, a girl with a bright and cheerful smile stood before me. There was a rustling sound as bushes brushed against each other.
“Well, that is my name now. I don’t like it, but… ah, how I wish I had woken up as a princess like you? Not as some clumsy Baron’s daughter.”
Karen frowned and scanned the clothes I was wearing. Stained sleeves, a skirt with a frayed hem, and shoes with patched soles. Her attire perfectly illustrated the declining fortunes of the Baron Kettlen family. I glanced toward the dimly lit back of the garden, then stood crookedly with my arms crossed. At my question, "Why did you call me out?", Karen's eyes widened, then she approached me with a bright smile spreading across her face.
"Oh my, I thought you came knowing a little bit. I guess I was being rude."
I'm sorry, but I really hate beating around the bush.
“Why? Don’t nobles like things like this? I mean polite words. Or is it pretending? Pretending to be polite, pretending to be happy, pretending to be glad to see you,”
“…….”
“While cursing inside, wrapping up the facade with nice words…”
“You should know better than anyone that I’m not a ‘noble.’”
Karen wiped the smile off her face at my words, which were spat out as if she had nothing left to hold her back. Ridiculous. She's the one who sent the note in Korean, yet she's pretending not to know until the very end. I replaced my inner thoughts with a "tsk" and looked at Karen.
“This is boring, Julia Bian Orte.”
“…….”
“Alright. I’ll get straight to the point, which you like. You got the quest, right? I need your cooperation.”
“What do I trust you for?”
"what?"
“I trust you, they wouldn’t spout such bullshit as to blindly tell you to trust them in a situation where players are dying one after another.”
Karen, who had been staring at me stunned by my words, finally burst into laughter. It was just a pure laugh, without a shred of falsehood. I watched Karen, who was laughing so hard she was practically bending over at the waist. What was so funny? Surely she wasn't actually planning to blindly tell me to trust her? If she was the culprit behind the Player murder, she was being careless; if not, she was being stupid.
“Ah, right. Fine! Then, what do I need to do? What do I have to do for you to trust me?”
Karen stopped laughing and asked me. At this point, I was dumbfounded. I tilted my head as I untangled my hair, which was being blown by the wind.
“Why are you asking me that?”
"…uh?"
“Why are you asking me that?”
"That look of sheer panic," I said as I approached Karen. "Did you really come out to persuade me without any evidence? Just relying on the fact that we are both 'Players'?" Karen took a step back in surprise. I heard the rustling sound of branches breaking under her feet. The sound of my footsteps approaching Karen was drowned out by the sound of the wind sweeping through the leaves.
"You know, I don't think unconditional trust exists," I said softly. "Your life is on the line; do you really think such a thing could exist?" Karen was pushed back with every step I took toward her. If I went just a little further, she would trip over the bushes where she had been hiding earlier. And there, her trump card would be.
“I don’t know about you, but you know, I’m someone who has almost no faith in people,”
“Ugh, wait, just a moment…,”
“I think about everything, and think about it again. I doubt, and doubt again, to the point of exhaustion.”
“……."
"If you do that, you can notice things a bit faster. For example, someone's flaws, weaknesses, or the hidden cause behind something."
Karen's expression changed. Her eyes, which had been trembling in confusion, turned sharp as they stared directly at me, and the corners of her mouth, which had been contorted in a tearful expression, were stiff.
“Like your clumsy bad acting,”
“…Raon!”
"Catch it."
I recoiled the moment a pitch-black creature sprang from the bushes behind Karen. The spot where I had just been standing was gouged out with a deafening crash. Watching the scene, I glanced at Karen's expression. A wry laugh escaped my lips at the look of relief on her face. She was hiding something bigger than I thought. The pitch-black creature blocking the space between Karen and me let out a growl.
"Raon!" Karen shouted, her expression triumphant. I quickly scanned the massive beast blocking my path. Its enormous body, the muscles packed tightly inside, the sharp claws on its four legs, and a strength capable of digging into the ground. The circumstances fit together perfectly, like a puzzle. I bit my lip tightly. I found it. The culprit.
“Raon! Kill the princess… uh…?”
The massive object, which had been swaying precariously, collapses. With a heavy thud, the beast's body crashed to the ground and convulsed briefly. I watched the sight with emotionless eyes before shifting my gaze to Karen. Her bewildered expression—unlike when she merely pretended to be—and her eyes, which were genuinely trembling uncontrollably, as she clutched the hem of her skirt and looked at the fallen beast with disbelief.
As if unaware that a knife was at her throat, Karen frantically tended only to the fallen beast. "Ah, ah, this can't be... I, I have to kill all the players... I have to kill them... That's the only way... I... I..." Listening to her frantic outburst, I moved my feet. With the crunching sound of earth underfoot, I bent over before the fallen beast. Pulling out the dagger stuck right in the center of my brow, I straightened my back once again. I willingly smiled at Karen, who was staring blankly at me while still held captive by Kim Taehyung.
“Beast Tamer, Karen Caitlin.”
"iced coffee…,"
“You’re going to have to prepare to make up for the three players you killed.”
Kim Taehyung struck Karen on the back of the neck. I smiled brightly as I watched him lift Karen up as she collapsed helplessly. Ah, what a relief. My steps were light as I returned to the dormitory.
/
Karen was dragged to my dormitory on Kim Tae-hyung's back. After tying the unconscious Karen tightly to the bedpost, the first thing Kim Tae-hyung and I did was,
"…So, we need a place to lock this student up,"
It was to call Jin, Yulia's older brother. Kim Tae-hyung, having heard that he had discovered I wasn't 'Yulia,' had also agreed that it would be much better to ask him to handle Karen. I shrugged my shoulders as I looked at Jin, who was staring at me in bewilderment.
"I can't kill him."
It would be cleaner to just kill you, Lia.
I felt my heart sink for a moment. Perhaps it was because of the way Jin spoke of someone's death so casually. Clutching my trembling hands, I cleared my throat. Yes, this is not the place I used to live. A world where killing the daughter of a crumbling Baron is considered nothing more than a trivial matter for someone of the rank of a Young Duke.
"If I do that, won't I get framed for the previous murder case too? Anyway, I don't really want to kill anyone."
"Lia, if this student is locked up somewhere and escapes, you're the one in danger. It's not that I'm willing to kill someone, but for your safety."
This child is in the same situation as me, brother.
"…what?"
The person inside this body isn't Karen Caitlin.
"……."
That's why I don't want to kill him. It might be different if I find a way to send him back to his original world later.
At my words, Jin fell silent. Covering his mouth with one hand while observing Karen, he glanced at Kim Taehyung, who was leaning against the doorway. It was clear he was thinking something along the lines of, "The young Marquis of Lumian, Vante La Lumian—is that why they became so close so quickly, since he is also in the same situation as my younger sister, Yulia?"
"…It would be safest to send him to the Duke's mansion. Since RM is there, if you explain the situation, he will take care of it."
After being lost in thought for a long time, Jin spoke. "Duke... is that really the only way? I believe it is best to keep Karen confined within my sight, but I can't just lock her up in the Academy either. I don't know when she might try to kill a player again."
As soon as I heard Jin's answer, I sat at my desk and began writing a letter to RM. As I wrote that there were quite a few people in the same situation as me, that one of them was trying to kill the others and that I needed a place to confine him, and that since it would be difficult for Jin or me to look after him at the Academy, I intended to send him to the Duke's mansion, I could hear the sound of Jin and Kim Taehyung's conversation behind me.
"…Are you also from another world?"
That's right. You seem to have a lot of questions, so let's sit down and talk.
"Just... how many people are there like you and Julia?"
I would guess about 10 people. It might be more than that.
"then…,"
Listening to their conversation, I put a period at the end of the letter. I neatly folded the letter, containing my purpose along with a brief greeting, and placed it in an envelope. After melting beeswax and pouring it over the letter, I pressed the seal engraved with the Ortega family crest firmly onto it. Now, if only I could find a way to safely transport Karen to the Duke's residence…
With a deafening bang, the sound of a door shattering echoed. Thinking Karen might have woken up, I looked toward the bed where she was tied, but all I saw was Kim Taehyung still unconscious, in the exact position he had been bound in. Next to him, I saw Kim Taehyung clutching a dagger with his eyes wide with surprise, and Jin staring at the door, half-raised. I looked at the door. The person who had burst through, looking as if to smash it down, was none other than Jeon Jungkook.
"…Your Highness the Crown Prince?"
Jin muttered with a dazed expression.
Did you catch it?
Jeon Jungkook strode into the room and asked me. I quietly gestured toward Karen, who was tied up. As Jeon Jungkook checked Karen's relatively clean appearance, he noticed small scratches on his face. He examined them closely, which looked like traces of a battle. Come to think of it, it seemed like something that looked like a person had been dragged in.
What is that?
When I pointed out the figure who clearly looked like they had been dragged there by Jeon Jungkook's hand and asked about it, he finally seemed to remember the person in his grasp and loosened his grip. It seemed as though I could hear gasping sounds coming from the mouths of the two figures that had fallen to the floor with a thud. Of course, I wasn't the only one who was flustered.
"…Yulia, what on earth…,"
It was only after hearing Jin's voice trembling that I took a look around my room. Kim Taehyung scrutinizing the two men Jeon Jungkook had brought, Jeon Jungkook sitting on my bed as if it were the most natural thing in the world checking on Karen's condition, and Jin, frozen solid by the sudden appearance of the Crown Prince. It's a total mess. Yeah, it really is. I said, sighing and clutching my forehead.
"First... shall we take our time and talk?"
/
Jin let out a sigh of relief only after hearing my explanation, which was laced with various lies. I told him that while Kim Taehyung and I were catching the culprit, Jeon Jungkook had agreed to take on the role of finding and protecting others in the same situation as us. My claim that the fight had likely stemmed from a misunderstanding was half true and half false. The part about a misunderstanding leading to a fight was the truth, while the rest was closer to a lie. Upon hearing this, Jin said he didn't feel like he had a place to get involved and left the room with my letter to RM. Of course, before leaving, he didn't forget to leave me with worried warnings several times to be careful.
The truth hidden from Jin was this: while Kim Taehyung and I were in the East Garden checking who had sent the note, Jeon Jungkook was on his way to the West Annex at my request. It was an agreement reached after all three of us agreed that there might be an "accomplice." I sat on the sofa and watched a man rubbing the corner of his split lip, and another man fidgeting with his hands while constantly glancing at Jeon Jungkook. After pressing Jeon Jungkook to find out exactly what had happened, I learned that they were also "Players"—and that they had been loitering around the West Annex in an attempt to find a solution, as people kept dying while they were already cooperating among themselves. They had spotted Jeon Jungkook heading there, and the ridiculous farce that ensued from mistaking each other for a "murderer" had left their faces in that state. Of course, the ones who got beaten up were the strangers. A Necromancer and a Summoner. The mage-class classes lacked the talent for physical strength to stand a chance against Jeon Jungkook, a Knight. Although Jeon Jungkook had a few scratches on his face and arms, he was no match for them.
[Main Quest: Cooperation]
Essential quests
[Main Quest: Academy]I have completed the.
Linked quests proceed automatically.
.
.
.
Time Limit: 2D 23H 2M
Remaining players : 4
Progress : 57%
Excluded players: 1
deceased player: 3
Thinking it was better to just let things be, I formed a partnership with them and looked at the progress rate, which had risen to 57%. A success rate of just over half, a painful loss of power. I turned my gaze toward Karen, who could be considered the cause of this quest's failure. Perhaps because she had accumulated a lot of pent-up anger, she was still unconscious, as Kim Tae-hyung had struck the back of her neck quite hard. I stared with a rather sour expression at the bluish bruise forming on the back of Karen's neck.
"…Is that woman the one who went around killing the rest?"
The necromancer, Min Yoon-gi, spoke. Did he say his name here was Suga? I answered that it was, while making the rude thought that, aside from being white, his appearance didn't suit that sweet powder at all. The frown on his face, as if he were displeased, was quite a sight to behold.
"But, it seems like I've secured all the cooperation possible among the survivors..., so why isn't the quest completing?"
"Because we failed to get the dead person's cooperation. And you might have forgotten, but he's a player, too."
Kim Taehyung answered Summoner Jung Hoseok's question by pointing his finger at Karen. As he said, the progress rate, which had stalled at 57%, would have no way to increase further unless the dead came back to life. What an inflexible system; why do they keep forcing the dead into the count when they could at least leave them out?
"What are you planning to do now?" Min Yoon-gi asked. I checked the people gathered in my room while practically buried in the sofa. A Reaper, a Knight, a Summoner, and a Necromancer. If this were really just an RPG, wouldn't that be a pretty decent combination, including me as a Blaster? I thought to myself as I gazed at the timer with plenty of time remaining and replied nonchalantly, "Well, is there anything else to do?"
We have to wait.
"……."
The next quest.
The tutorial had just finished.
✨