Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: Legless Ghost
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Thud thud thud.
Ji So-yeon jumped in surprise.
Why the hell was a story like this in the textbook?
Current time: 11:30 PM.
She stared out the window and suddenly felt a question arise.
‘What kind of school has classes at night....'
One student raised their hand and spoke.
“Teacher. Time to go play soccer now.”
“Soccer? Isn't this PE time?”
“Yeah. You don't even know that? Are you really the teacher?”
The students all stood up at once and left the classroom.
All that remained were Ji So-yeon and one female student.
She was dumbfounded by the sudden turn of events.
The female student rested her chin on her hand and stared at Ji So-yeon.
Ji So-yeon turned her head because the girl's gaze felt eerily chilling for some reason.
“Ah~ It's PE time, guess I should go out.”
“Everyone left, but is there still a student who hasn't gone?”
She pretended to talk to herself and looked away casually.
An uncomfortable standoff continued for 10 minutes like that.
Ji So-yeon started feeling anxious.
Anyone could see this kid was weird.
She hadn't changed her posture for 10 minutes and kept staring at her.
As the standoff dragged on, Ji So-yeon finally broke the silence.
“Hey, why aren't you going out?”
The female student lifted her head as if she'd been waiting for it and answered.
“Actually... I don't have legs.”
Ji So-yeon's gaze naturally drifted under the female student's desk.
There was nothing beneath her skirt.
Rumble—crash.
Thunder struck.
A downpour began.
“Ah, ahh.”
-------------[Alert?]-----------------
[‘Legless Ghost’ has appeared.]
---------------------------------------
A translucent message appeared before Ji So-yeon's eyes.
In an instant, the world flipped upside down.
Up became down, and down became up.
Boom.
Desks, podiums, and everything else in the classroom fell to the floor (ceiling).
Ji So-yeon fell to the floor as well.
“Ugh!”
She slammed headfirst into the floor.
Somewhere, a heavy thudding sound echoed.
Thud thud thud thud.
The legless female student.
She stood upside down like a handstand.
Supporting her body with her head instead of her arms.
“Give me your legs!”
Tears welled up in her eyes involuntarily.
“Kyaaack!”
Ji So-yeon screamed and turned her back.
She bolted out of the classroom and ran down the hallway.
The teachers and students wandering the halls chased after her.
“Teacher Ji So-yeon! What are you doing? Skipping class?!”
“Are you really a teacher?!”
“Abandoning your students?”
Tears streamed down Ji So-yeon's face as she kept running.
“Hueeng. Save me!”
The more she ran, the more aggro she pulled, and more pursuers joined.
Thud thud thud thud.
The ‘Legless Ghost’ approaching by bouncing its head off the floor.
It closed in on Ji So-yeon far faster than she could run.
“Give me your legs!”
Ji So-yeon had no weapons and no way to fight back.
She could only flee.
As she descended the stairs, Ji So-yeon noticed the ‘Legless Ghost's’ movement slowing.
‘It's slower on the stairs!’
She skipped two, three steps at a time to widen the gap.
“Huh?”
In that moment, Ji So-yeon's foot slipped.
She tumbled down the stairs.
The floor marker showed the second floor.
“Oww....”
Ji So-yeon bent her knees to stand back up.
......
“You don't have legs anymore.”
The ‘Legless Ghost,’ positioned between the second and third floors on the 2.5 landing, looked at Ji So-yeon and said.
“Kyaaack!”
Ji So-yeon felt nothing below her waist.
Looking down, her legs were really gone!
“My leegs! Hwaaang.”
“Hehehehehe. Serves you right!”
A truly eerie mocking laugh.
Ji So-yeon crawled down the stairs, propping herself with her arms.
Her skin scraped against the floor, causing pain, but with the ghost bouncing down headfirst—thud, thud—that pain wasn't important.
She finally reached the first floor.
Her face brightened.
There, beyond the glass door, Shin Noda approached, hanging bat-like from the ceiling (floor).
Ji So-yeon shouted for help at the top of her lungs.
“Shin Noda! Save meee!”
***
I spotted Ji So-yeon crawling around legless—I'd already gotten wrecked.
‘Oof, she must've fallen.’
If you fall during combat with the ‘Legless Ghost,’ it uses a skill to make your legs disappear.
They come back if you defeat it, but losing your legs mid-fight is a big deal.
I opened the door and entered the academy building.
Suddenly, the inverted world flipped again.
Up became down, and down became up.
I nimbly twisted my body and landed safely on the floor (ceiling).
“What is it?”
“It's the ‘Legless Ghost’! And creepy-looking people are chasing me too. Save meee.”
Ji So-yeon hid behind my back.
Thud thud thud thud.
I drew my sword.
The ‘Legless Ghost’ paused and looked up at me.
Disheveled hair and a face streaming bloody tears.
I grimaced slightly but quickly regained my composure.
The ‘Legless Ghost’ was a C-rank monster—not that strong.
It looked S-rank visually, though.
This was an event dungeon to begin with.
The hardest part, the ‘Guard,’ could one-shot even SSS-rankers, making it seem high difficulty, but conversely, even F-rankers could clear it.
For the ‘Teacher’ role, you just had to teach class like a real teacher to clear.
If you panicked or messed up, you'd get attacked by these poorly made mobs.
Thud thud thud.
The ‘Legless Ghost’ charged at me.
Intent on grabbing my legs.
“Kyak!”
Ji So-yeon squeezed her eyes shut.
Such a scaredy-cat.
The ‘Legless Ghost’ rushed right up to my nose in an instant.
It was fast, but I could see it all.
I assumed a stance and waited.
Ghost-type monsters are hard to hit without skills that damage ethereal bodies.
The sword just passes through.
But there was an opening.
Right at their attack timing.
When they attack, they gain physical form, so the sword sticks.
The ‘Legless Ghost’ attacked my legs.
Predictable.
Slash.
My sword sliced through the ghost's arm.
“Kieee... legs....”
Once more.
This time, aiming for the neck.
Roll.
The ghost's head rolled across the floor.
I picked it up.
The face was still alive, twitching.
It opened and closed its mouth as if trying to bite my wrist.
Gotta scare Ji So-yeon with this.
A moment later.
I deliberately made no sound.
Soon, Ji So-yeon cautiously opened one eye.
And what she saw was.
“Leegs....”
The ghost's face shedding bloody tears.
“Kyaaaaack! Hwaaang.”
The terrifying face shook side to side.
“Heh heh.”
I'd grabbed it by the hair and thrust the severed head right in front of Ji So-yeon's eyes.
What a great reaction.
I stabbed the ‘Legless Ghost's’ face with my sword to finish it.
-------------[Alert?]-----------------
[You have defeated the ‘Legless Ghost.’]
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In an instant, the flipped world returned to normal.
Everything on the floor (ceiling) fell to the real floor.
“Legs. They're back now, right?”
Ji So-yeon looked down at her lower body.
Her two legs were perfectly fine.
“Oh! My legs are back!”
She bent them, touched them, expressing gratitude to her reborn legs.
Then, with trembling fingers, she pointed at the severed head.
“Y-you took it down?!”
“Yeah.”
“No way! It looked super strong!”
“At best, it's on the level of that ‘Luna Bear’ I killed last time.”
Ji So-yeon nodded as if she understood.
The poorly made humans started appearing one by one.
“Teacher Ji So-yeon... how could you just leave us....”
“Teacher, you abandoned us?”
“Don't gooo.......”
Ji So-yeon must pull a ton of aggro everywhere.
Not easy.
I left her and slipped into the crowd.
I was a wolf among sheep in the midst of D-rank monsters.
Every sword swing sent student limbs flying and heads rolling.
“Ji So-yeon. Haven't seen Park Ha-yeon?”
“Nn.”
“She's not in the school right now, so not the ‘Duty Student’... must be the ‘Bystander.’”
If Bystander, she'd be in the gym storage by now.
Knowing her personality, probably beating the crap out of everything.
“I'll take all the Orbs of Growth. Cool?”
“Y-yeah. You beat them all......”
Her expression said she thought I rightfully should.
I stuffed the orbs into my pocket.
“Heading to the gym storage.”
I notified Ji So-yeon and started walking.
On the way, she cautiously asked.
“But who's that?”
The one she meant was the white-haired, red-eyed girl, Jang Seo-yoon.
Jang Seo-yoon had been following me around since earlier.
Keeping some distance, tailing me.
If I looked her way, she'd hide somewhere.
“Oh. Yeah. Jang Seo-yoon. Nothing much.”
“Jang Seo-yoon? Sounds familiar... wait, the textbook definitely had......”
Ji So-yeon stared piercingly at Jang Seo-yoon, who was pretending not to follow, then gaped.
“Aaack! The bathroom ghost...!”
Shin Noda hurriedly clamped his hand over her mouth.
“Hey now. Stop there. Mention ghosts around her, and she might snap and attack.”
Bringing up ghosts around Jang Seo-yoon makes clearing impossible.
This dungeon is Jang Seo-yoon's vicarious fantasy world.
Piss her off, and endless students spawn to attack.
“Uu. Got it.”
Ji So-yeon nodded with an uneasy face.
We'd arrived at the gym storage before long.
Normally, you'd interact with the persistently following Jang Seo-yoon to solve riddles and such.
But I already knew the strategy, so I skipped it all.
The final destination was the gym storage in the corner behind the annex.
The last spot to clear the dungeon, where the ‘Bystander’ role player spawns.
Opening the door, a fishy blood stench and musty mold smell assaulted my nose.