It Must Be Nice to Have Two Moms

"I'm home."

The atmosphere felt noticeably chilly when I returned. Mom must be working overtime. I headed straight to my room and opened the status window. I needed to enter the Nightmare Corridor again once the re-entry cooldown ended.

Several days had already passed, yet I still couldn't get used to this game-like system. It would probably take quite some time before it felt natural.

I first checked the list of players I could send into the corridor. Familiar names like Yang Ju-hui, Jeong Sojin, and Kim Geon-ho appeared, along with some I hadn't seen before. Kang Ha-neul. Bong Ji-yeon. There ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠had to be some reason Kang Ha-neul and Bong Ji-yeon were newly added. I'd spent a whole day with Kang Ha-neul in the same house, but with Bong Ji-yeon… aside from nearly having my underwear stripped off today, we didn't have much of a connection. There must be some criteria for becoming a player. Or maybe they're just randomly selected from the people around me.

So who should I send into the corridor today? While I was thinking, I noticed "NEW" markers next to Yang Ju-hui, Jeong Sojin, and Kim Geon-ho in the player list. I tapped one.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Whoa, shit… It felt like reading a game character profile. This hadn't been here last time. Why did it appear now? The same markers showed up next to Jeong Sojin and Kim Geon-ho. Maybe these details only appear for people who've already entered the corridor once. I should check their profiles too.

Jeong Sojin possessed the "Class President's Glasses" and the trait 《Attentiveness》. The increased discovery rate for spirits and taboos caught my eye. Come to think of it, during our last run she mentioned seeing one more ghost besides the Bell Girl and the Head Ghost. Maybe the glasses and trait worked together.

Kim Geon-ho had no tools but possessed a quirk: 《Coward》. An arbitrary coward. Taking someone like him into a corridor full of ghosts would probably end in disaster in multiple ways. Still, his trait 《Destroyer》 looked pretty good. Being able to break locks without a key was an enormous advantage. Remembering how we'd struggled to get the multipurpose room key last time because the Head Ghost blocked the entrance… not needing a key was a huge plus. But there was also the penalty: "Takes time and makes a very loud noise, which may attract spirits—use with caution." The image of Kim Geon-ho being torn apart while trying to break the multipurpose room lock flashed through my mind. He'd definitely been discovered and killed because of the noise.

"This really feels like a game."

A faint thrill and excitement made my heart race. I'd been feeling vague fear and frustration about conquering the Nightmare Corridor, but now a spark of hope ignited. If I could combine each player's traits and tools to form parties, clearing the corridor might not be impossible after all.

Maybe there's a description for me too?

My description matched the status window exactly. The only difference was the tool section listing "Battery Lantern."

If I started the Nightmare Corridor like this, would I wake up holding this "Battery Lantern"?

"Alright. Time to form a party."

I tried dragging names from the list, but my hand moved stiffly, like a machine that hadn't been oiled.

"Do I really have to go back there again?"

I thought I'd steeled myself, but the thought of stepping into that ghost-infested nightmare made me tense up. I didn't have to go in myself—I could just send other people. But I'd personally experienced how much a "quirk" born in the corridor could affect someone, and I knew it cost 100P to fix. Was it okay for me to arbitrarily ruin other people's lives? Yet if I didn't explore the corridor, I might keep getting attacked every day by unknown spirits like the "Auntie Crow," "Death Game," and "Placebo." My life. Other people's lives. After weighing both sides for a long time, I reached a conclusion.

"If possible, I'll start with the guys who won't make me feel as guilty about throwing them into a nightmare…"

This time, I wouldn't go in myself. I'd observe the situation first. Kim Yeong-ho, Lee Jin-seong, Park In-bae. I found the names of Kim Geon-ho's lackeys—guys who'd treated me like a punching bag and caused trouble—in the player list. I also dragged in Bong Ji-yeon's name, the one who'd tried to strip my underwear after school today. Should I send the class president again too? I was curious what changes would happen on a second entry. Class president Jeong Sojin, go as the representative of the first-round party one more time.

When I woke up in the morning, points had been deposited. My total points were now 521P. I wasn't sure if I should say this, but it felt like I'd set up an auto-farm. Even though they were the delinquents who'd bullied me, sending kids into a terrifying nightmare still weighed on my conscience a little. But getting this many points honestly exceeded my expectations.

What concerned me most was Jeong Sojin, who had entered the corridor for the second time. During this expedition, she had acquired a "map."

"Oh yeah!"

Obtaining a map item for the corridor was fantastic news! Jeong Sojin had more talent than I'd thought.

All four explorers had gained quirks: 《Gambling Addict》, 《Fanatic》, 《Gambler》, and 《Androphobia》 respectively. So they all died in the corridor after all. I didn't know what had happened in the nightmare last night, but I mourned them for a moment.

"……"

I'd overslept a little and was short on time. I quickly washed up and changed into my uniform. Time for breakfast. With that thought, I stepped into the living room—only to find Mom crouched under the dining table clutching a kitchen knife, trembling violently. She looked like a cat that had been suddenly doused with cold water.

"…Mom. What are you doing there?"

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

…Someone in the bathroom? In a house without Dad, I was the only male. I was terrified, but thinking I had to protect Mom, I grabbed the nearest flowerpot I could see. It was a large one. Weapon in hand, I slowly opened the bathroom door, my mind clouded with tension and confusion.

"…Mom, what are you doing there?"

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

There was a Mom in the kitchen and a Mom in the bathroom. Suddenly faced with two moms, I felt disoriented and then scared. I looked back and forth between the kitchen and the bathroom. Both the Mom in the bathroom and the Mom in the kitchen looked exactly like a 34-year-old married woman. Did Mom have a twin? No, I'd never heard anything like that! Then there was only one answer. A ghost! One of them was definitely a fake mom! I never expected something like this to happen first thing in the morning. I wanted to burst into tears, but there was no one to complain to. In that case, I had to solve this myself.

"Mom. Come out for a second."

I called the Mom in the bathroom out to the living room. Then I took the knife away from the Mom crouched in the kitchen as well.

"I… I'm the real one! Yeong-won, you don't recognize your own mom?"

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

Both claimed to be the real one. I thought for a long time, then a good idea popped into my head.

"Kitchen Mom ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠also says she's real, and Bathroom Mom also says she's real, so honestly there's no answer. So I'll cut myself in half and you can each take a piece."

Swish. I placed the kitchen knife on the table and thought. King Solomon had brought a child and told the women claiming to be the mother, "Cut the baby in half!" The fake mother, lacking maternal love, would agree, "Let's do that!" while the real mother would cry, "I'd rather give up!" 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 with the knife to divide me in half.

Swish. At that moment, Kitchen Mom picked up the kitchen knife. Her eyes were anything but ordinary.

"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?"

Whoa, shit! I was startled out of my wits and chose to run back to my room!

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

"Mom's a person too! A person! Please come out of the room! Mom trusted you!"

Bang bang, bang bang bang bang. The moms kept pounding on the door. I was terrified and thought I had to ask for help from outside no matter what!