Interlude - Q&A with Deok-hoon
March 18, 2019 (Monday) | 06:35
Lee Joon - Round 2
Ghost Story Points: 436
Causal Rate: 10%
The golden weekend had passed, and Monday morning had arrived. Fortunately, I'd slept like a rock. Maybe because I'd slept too well, I woke up feeling refreshed even on a Monday morning—earlier than usual, no less.
Phew, still can't decide.
Lying on my bed, I mulled it over. The whopping 400 points I'd earned from defeating my first A-grade ghost story for the first time. I still hadn't figured out how to spend them.
Where should I put them so I won't regret it?
Options swirled in my head: use them on myself for new abilities, unlock powers for the club members, raise the club's level, and more.
If I used them on myself, my top priority would be acquiring Companion Regression. When I got Lip Reading before, I'd memorized a few promising abilities—and one was Companion Regression. As the name suggested, it probably let me regress along with someone else.
This latest A-grade ghost story—we'd all nearly died together to overcome it—but in the end, only I remembered it fully. At first, it seemed fine: we'd beaten the ghost story, the world was intact, all good. But if every ghost story ended like this? We'd all struggle together to uncover the truth, then I'd regress alone to wrap it up. That wasn't a good ending.
The gap between my experiences and the club members' levels would just keep widening. This was a fight dragging on for three long years. Especially for a mentally fragile guy like me, there was no way I could handle it solo.
I didn't know what the members themselves thought, but I'd dragged them into this mess—I had to help them grow alongside me.
I'm a little sorry... but it's not like I wanted to be president of this freak club. If it's for world peace, dragging my friends in is self-defense, right?!
With thoughts like that, I lay in bed early that morning, seriously pondering the Companion Regression ability.
The best would be if we all survived without the world going to hell and beat the ghost stories together—but will things really go that way? If we could just pull through together once, even once, it'd be way easier to convince them next time.
Or I could dump all 400 points into abilities like some online gacha pull and pray for Companion Regression.
But that was too risky. These were precious points earned staking my life. No matter how badly I needed it, I couldn't leave it to luck.
What about investing in raising the club's level?
Shop!
I didn't know what it sold, but the system had a shop that unlocked at club level 5. Unlike the uncertain Companion Regression, investing in the club guaranteed the shop opened—a solid merit.
My club's current level was 2. Investing 300 points would max it at 5, opening the shop, with 100 left over.
100 points might buy something in the shop.
Investing in the club was a safe bet with no downside. But the drawback? The next ghost story we faced might not benefit much from a higher club level. Spending all points there just unlocked new features like a bigger room—nice perks, but nothing game-changing.
Investing in myself was riskier but offered abilities I could use immediately in the next ghost story.
Hmm, what to do.
I had no intention of splitting the points. If abilities, I'd go all-in until Companion Regression dropped. If the club, all-in until the shop unlocked.
Headache. If I knew someone who really gets games, I'd ask for advice.
A bit later, at school. Break time.
"Games? Oh, Deok-hoon probably knows that stuff best."
"That guy?"
An Gyeong-won answered calmly as I yelped in surprise.
"He's your desk mate—how don't you know? All the anime he watches are like that. Isekai stuff where they adapt to game fantasies."
"Oh."
Come to think of it, from peeking at his screen, Deok-hoon's anime were all fantasy—monster-slaying, EXP-gaining, game-like plots.
"Thanks. You don't play games?"
"Too busy studying."
He chuckled. Typical.
And shortly after.
"Kuso, you think I only watch stuff with cute girls? That's ancient history, dude."
"Uh, sorry."
"Ask away. This body mastered Konosuba—I'm a total pro on game fantasies."
What's Konosuba? I shook my head and got to the point.
"Listen up, Deok-hoon. In this game I'm playing lately..."
"Title?"
"Uh, the title... dunno. Foreign language, slipped my mind."
"Indie game?"
"Indie? Yeah, something like that. Anyway."
I cleared my throat and explained.
"I... beat enemies and racked up a ton of points?"
"Points?"
"Yeah, points. The game calls 'em that."
"Hmm... not EXP?"
Deok-hoon scratched his double chin, tilting his head, but I pressed on.
"Now I'm stuck on where to spend 'em. Boost my own abilities, or unlock new game features like a shop."
"Kukuku. Why agonize? Joon-kun, you don't play much, huh?"
"I do, but..."
Just LoL and shooters—other stuff was foreign.
"Kuso. No-brainer. Spend on unlocking new features, obviously."
He declared it confidently.
Oh, new features!
"Why? What's the reason?"
"Yare yare."
He preened a bit, dragging it out. Spit it out already, asshole.
"Duh, it's early game? Don't all-in on immediate power—expand your options first."
Expand options.
"Oh."
Yeah, unlocking the shop made sense. Early game, per him—better reveal everything, then decide investments long-term.
"Got it. That helps—a lot. Thanks!"
"Kukuku. Piece of cake for this body?"
"Sorry, but drop the speech pattern?"
He flinched.
"I answered, and that's how you—"
Yep, pissed.
"Sorry. It bugs me."
Was he sulking?
"Got a couple more questions. Can you?"
"Kuum. Shameless desk mate."
He turned away.
"Spit it."
I went for it, asking everything.
First: the last A-grade ghost story, where we hit three sub-ghost stories in a row. Totally abnormal. Felt like something was targeting us.
No, not just then!
This whole life. In my previous life, after transferring, three peaceful years—no ghost stories.
Where to start...
I organized my thoughts and dove in.
"My game... starts with a tutorial?"
Deok-hoon nodded quietly, listening.
"I skipped the tutorial once, ran to another area—no issues, peaceful. But restarting properly, finishing tutorial, doing quests... feels like constant interference."
"Hmm? Interference?"
He frowned. Vague, yeah.
"Details."
"Enemies pop up at the worst, random times. Super out of nowhere. Not even seeking 'em."
"Yare yare."
He sighed dramatically.
"Who's the final boss?"
"Demon King... something."
"Obviously the Demon King's sending assassins to take out the hero, duh."
"H-Hero?"
I blurted; he eyed me like really?
"Beating the Demon King? You're the hero."
"R-Right."
Obvious now. Hero beats Demon King—basic. I'd played arcade games as a kid, knew it conceptually. But reality? Didn't click till now.
Hero. I'm the hero!
Silly, but thrilling.
So that's it. In my past life, no head explosions after the first—'cause I had no will or power to stop the Demon King. Harmless, ignored. Revived on schedule.
But now, I'm fighting the game's flow. So the Demon King's fighting back—using monsters... ghost stories.
...Got it. That's how it is.
Over five ghost stories in under a month? Made sense.
"Oh Deok-hoon, you're the best."
"Hmph!"
He snorted proudly.
"One last thing?"
"Oho, go on."
Seemed flattered.
I fudged facts, framing as game.
"In the game... die fighting enemies, rewind to right before and retry? But lose to final boss, and it's not boss room—back to game start."
Weird as hell. Flow said rewind to pre-ghost story. Why jump three years to entrance ceremony on Demon King death?
"...End?"
He deadpanned, arms crossed.
"Yeah. Lose to Demon King, back to start. Why?"
"Kuu—seriously. So what?"
"Weird, right? Should retry from boss door."
"Baka. It's an ending branch."
Ending branch?
"Losing to boss is a choice. Bad end, now you're in New Game+."
Guy knew his stuff. Galge experience?
"New... Game? Explain."
"Sigh."
Break nearly over. Annoyed at lost anime time, he shook his head.
"Last answer: Round 2. Carry over past round experience, restart from beginning. Done."
He popped in earbuds, watched Konosuba. Noisy blue-haired girl tumbling.
New Game+... Round 2...
Loved games, but online only—no single-player with branches/endings.
One question popped: not beating final boss a choice? Some gamers pick it? Why?
Sigh.
Had to ask. Yanked his earbuds, whispered in fatty ear.
"Sorry, one more. Why's skipping boss a choice?"
"Nom! Interrupting my anime?!"
Genuinely mad, huffing.
"Bakery run, bread on me. Tell."
His chins jiggled in shock.
"You'll be my bread shuttle?"
"Today only."
"Kukuku."
Grinning, jiggling.
"This body—17 years delivering others' bread—finally gets its own shuttle? No joke—reality—"
"Answer."
He pondered, spat one word.
"True ending."
"...Got it. Thanks."
Otaku logic. But gains: Demon King. Dormant mega-monster under school. Final boss. Black curtain.
Not idle. Constantly targeting me.
Me, with club base atop it. School between us—invisible bloodbath raging.
Ghost Story Club