Mun Hee-jeong Vanishes

7:30 a.m. I wake up before Shin Sua stirs, wash up, and finish getting ready for school early.

"Who would've thought I'd see Shin Yeon-ja here."

What I discovered in the secret passage at dawn exceeded all my expectations. The initial investor in the academy fleet Argo and former chairwoman of Goryeo Group—someone only mentioned in passing in the game's main story. I figured she'd be just a MacGuffin, but to think she was still lingering in the mansion.

It hits me anew, heavy in my chest: the world I'm living in now isn't confined to the game's data. This is a place where real people live. No matter how unreal it seems compared to my old life, with bizarre events piling up one after another, it's another reality where I can't just save and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠reload to change outcomes.

Rather than mechanically chasing a happy ending, I've concluded I need to pay close attention to my relationships with those around me. It's the rational choice from a practical standpoint, too.

<What an odd guy. If it were me, I'd have ditched a painting like that and gone to see my family.>

"She wasn't bound there by choice."

Shin Sua plans to take the painting with Shin Yeon-ja's ancestor spirit back to the Goryeo Group main house. Afterward, she'll decide on a reward and give it to me—that's the promise Shin Yeon-ja made. Gemma ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠confirmed there's no lie in it, since she can hear the voices of fellow ancestor spirits, so I can trust that.

"Pardon the intrusion."

I bow my head to the maids entering the room, then carefully gather the gloves and other items from the table. From there, I head straight to the garden.

Ectoplasm still faintly glows blue from the ring, soaking the soul stone.

<What's that?>

"I told you. I'm transferring the ring's blessing over here."

Jeanne d'Arc's ancestor spirit extracts only the blessing. Once the soul stone absorbs it all, I can use the built-in spiritual pressure to push the blessing into the gloves at once. The amount of ectoplasm is dwindling, so it's almost done. Any moment now.

<Oh. It stopped.>

Five minutes after placing the gloves on the garden table and waiting, the extraction finishes, just as Gemma said.

"Here."

I hand over Jeanne d'Arc's ring, and Gemma takes it with a reluctant expression.

"You were worried I'd do something bad to Jeanne d'Arc if I kept it."

<True.>

"As long as Jang Han-nam or the other Class A kids who saw it up close on Yeom Jin-gwan's finger don't spot it."

<Okay. Leave it to me.>

Gemma opens her top and slips the ring into her cleavage.

<It's a national treasure. Gotta hide it in the safest spot♡>

She zips up the now-tiny, invisible zipper, completely concealing the ring, and looks smug about it.

"Just say you're handling it carefully because it's expensive."

<How would I even sell this? You think thieves steal for money?>

"What did your family live on, then?"

<Stolen cash, obviously. But that's different! And I—>

Gemma shyly turns her head before continuing.

<—I've never gotten a ring as a gift before.>

"……"

Why does my face suddenly heat up like this?

"…Just pick out an offering you want for the Grand Offering."

<Hee hee.>

Gemma's back to her usual annoying grin. That seductive thief bitch.

"Hah."

I ignore Gemma and place both hands over the soul stone and gloves. Even without seeing it, circulating my spiritual power lightly lets me sense it. Thanks to being stuck together so long, there's definitely a channel open between the two items for spiritual power to flow.

The knight's blessing extracted from the ring is mixed with the spiritual power stored in the soul stone. Specifically, the spiritual power acts like a solvent, with the blessing dissolved into it.

A low hum rises as I pour a mass of spiritual power into the hand gripping the soul stone. The blessing, mingled with the spiritual power, starts pushing toward the gloves.

A sizzling sound erupts! I press down hard with both hands to keep the gloves and soul stone from separating. White smoke billows from the contact point, obscuring my vision, but I don't stop.

"Just a bit more…"

Forcing the unified mass of blessing and soul stone spiritual power into the gloves isn't easy.

"Nngh."

After three minutes of feeling my strength drain from my whole body, I finally transfer everything from the soul stone into the gloves.

A cracking sound—and the soul stone fractures and shatters.

<Kinda wasteful.>

Gemma mutters at the crumbling fragments.

"Be grateful you transferred the blessing once."

Forcing incompatible spiritual power into the soul stone to drag out its contents naturally breaks it. Still, like Gemma said, using up a soul stone just to hide snatching the ring from Yeom Jin-gwan feels a tad wasteful.

As I shake off my hands and slip on the gloves—

"Huh?"

* * *

We arrive at Argo in Shin Sua's car. Even on the way to the classroom, I keep glaring at the interface.

This much I expected, given what Mun Ik-jeom and Jeanne d'Arc did. Early to mid-game, acquiring Samu-dang's blessing from Mun Ik-jeom makes People-Loving Synergy easy to trigger alongside others. Most famous ancestor spirits in Ancestors Descend had histories of achievements ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠for the people.

People-Loving Synergy is a defensive synergy perfect for tank builds, early story with scarce resources, or late-game HP management where toughness matters. I didn't favor it much as a player dodging with a joystick, but now that I can't, it's a godsend.

But.

Thief Synergy? What's this? I've never seen it in the game.

"I need to understand what's going on."

The claim that Mun Ik-jeom smuggled cotton seeds isn't true. Yuan didn't ban cotton exports back then. The story of him stealing seeds from fields is just later generations dramatizing by referencing similar tales—pure fiction.

So why did Mun Ik-jeom's blessing and Gemma's ancestral power trigger this synergy?

<What're you fretting over?>

Gemma asks as we near the classroom.

"…It's…"

I hesitate on how to explain, then use sensory sharing with Gemma.

A faint buzz—spiritual and ancestral power flows through the Soul Thread Bracelet, and Gemma points at the interface I'm seeing, looking intrigued.

<What's this now?>

"It means you and Mun Ik-jeom's blessing in the gloves are reacting synergistically."

<Oh, Big-Tits Nerd Ghost?>

"…Do you have to call her that?"

<It's true. Big tits, total nerd. So, this interaction means…?>

"Their ancestral powers have similar qualities since both are thieves, so you get extra effects. Anyway, do you know who Mun Ik-jeom is?"

<Homeschooled on it.>

"In real history, she never stole or smuggled cotton seeds."

<That's not what I learned.>

"The story of hiding them in a writing brush spread because it's funnier. Truth is, she just imported them nicely."

<Hmph. So what's the big worry?>

"Why does Thief Synergy activate if Mun Ik-jeom stole nothing?"

<Are you dumb?>

Gemma snorts pityingly.

<How many bureaucrats or priests steal? But not all get labeled thieves by the people.>

"Ah…"

<It's even worse for the long-dead. Thieves are named by others. If later gens call you one, even the innocent get remembered as thieves.>

I get it now.

History is written by the victors. For Mun Ik-jeom, even if the details differ, people remember her as the thief who stole cotton seeds, facts be damned. That's why Thief Synergy triggered.

"Makes sense now."

One nagging worry lifts. An unknown synergy not in the game. Collect the right ancestor spirits to upgrade it, and I could get even stronger.

"Lightning Thief, Patent Thief, Throne Thief…"

Gemma shoots me looks like I'm crazy as I mutter entering the classroom, but I don't care. My head's full of names of ancestor spirits I need to contract.

* * *

That day, Mun Hee-jeong doesn't come to school. I wanted to thank her in person.

No ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠reply on the chat app. Jang Han-nam says it's unauthorized absence.

"Hee-jeong? No word from her."

"Haven't heard from her since last night."

U Hyo-chung's one thing, but even Seol Romi is out of touch.

"This is weird…"

In the game, Mun Hee-jeong never skips without reason. Her scholarship from Argo covers dorm life; cut that, and she's out on the street.

<Worried? Go check yourself.>

"That's the plan."

<Wait, didn't you say aesthetics and spa today?>

"Tomorrow's fine."

After school, I get Shin Sua's okay and drag Gemma, who's pouting with puffed cheeks, to Mun Hee-jeong's dorm.

"This the place…"

Her dorm's an apartment building with multiple rooms per floor. Memory fuzzy, so I confirmed the address with Jang Han-nam under pretense of handing over flyers for today.

<Building looks clean.>

"It's new."

I visited in the game route picking Seol Romi as protagonist. Smaller than my place but fully furnished—cozy.

"Room 802…"

No response from the intercom.

"Out somewhere?"

Hate asking for help on this, but no choice. I channel spiritual power into my contact lenses.

"Kim Yun-ju sunbae."

Ancestral power comms connect, and her irritated voice blasts straight into my head.

"Hee-jeong's location. Quick."

Three seconds pass.

A beep—and red and blue dots appear on the Great East Map in the corner of my vision. Mine and Mun Hee-jeong's names linked by a thin line, clustered together.

"3D view."

Upgraded access from rising relation rank adds Z-axis; her position sharpens.

Dorm 8th floor. She's inside.

<She's in?>

"…Yeah."

<Then why no answer?>

A bad premonition chills me. Something I don't know is happening.

"Gotta hurry."

A second-year couple exits the front gate, eyeing me suspiciously, arms linked—but I slip through the open door without hesitation.

Ding!

Elevator's coming down, but no time to wait.

<Just run!>

Gemma and I reach the same conclusion.

Whoosh!

Spirit Descent launches me to the 8th floor in one leap.

Ding-dong!

"Hee-jeong!"

Bang bang!

No answer to my knocks. Ear to the door: faint wriggling sounds inside.

Did Mun Hee-jeong collapse from sudden illness in the game? No. Snap out of it, Kim Taeyang. This is reality, not a game. How long ago did I decide to take people seriously—and I'm already panicking?

Gemma tries phasing through the door but bounces back—talisman warding, maybe.

"Gemma, back off."

No choice. Better misunderstandings later; quench the fire now.

"Hoo."

Fingerprint electronic lock. Can't pick it like Baek Je-in's desk drawer with a clip.

"Passepartout."

I draw the swordstick, activate Spirit Lord Transformation. Aim at the lock, twist wrist left.

Click.

Clear metallic sound—the door opens. Right beyond it—

"Ah, ahh… H-Hi?"

Mun Hee-jeong, in a glossy latex bodysuit clinging to her curves, writhes bashfully, face flushed with shame.