Seong Si-wan’s Room.

Gae I-dam, who had become mentally wrecked, crouched in the corner.

Even now, Gae I-dam could vividly recall the cold gaze of Yong Je-geon, the contemptuous expression of Yeom Jun-yeol, the cold face of Cheon Dong-ha, and the shocked mouth of Ma Jin-seung.

Gae I-dam had confessed his past to the three 3rd-year classmates and Yong Je-geon.

‘Now that they know what I’ve done, I guess I won’t be able to hang out with them like before.’

As an internet troll, Gae I-dam had collected past remarks or incidents from celebrities, influencers, athletes, and community users—anything that could become a weak point. He dug up rumors without evidence, or past events that had been forgotten, and spread them under the guise of raising questions.

The most common thing he did was to add made-up comments whenever a new story was updated in Plmago and a new character was introduced, reminding people of past incidents in the game.

Whenever Gae I-dam posted, people eagerly joined in to trash-talk the game, since Plmago already had a reputation as a dead game.

Jo2god111 relentlessly tried to confirm the facts and countered him, but most people, like Gae I-dam, just needed someone to target and weren't interested in knowing the actual truth of the game.

‘That insane Christmas event ended, and then when Yeom Jun-yeol appeared, there was a surge in players. When it became popular, I wrote some posts, and that cold-hearted bastard Jo Yi-shin almost wrote a thesis in rebuttal.’

He had spread false rumors about the character gacha probability manipulation, the story errors that were pointed out by users who either misread or skimmed through the settings, and even bugs from other games, all aimed at provoking Jo Yi-shin.

In the middle of this, Gae I-dam cleverly mixed real problems with Plmago between his lies, leaving room for him to cover his tracks.

And so, as Gae I-dam stirred up false information and reminded third parties of other people's faults, it was inevitable that his own wrongdoings would come to light.

No, perhaps the consequence of revealing only what he had truly done was relatively light, considering everything.

Objectively, this might be the case, but it was unbearable for Gae I-dam to deal with the changed way people at Eungwang High School looked at him.

He wondered if it had been the right thing to reveal all of his wrongs rather than trying to hide or minimize them.

‘No, I should have said it. If I had tried to hide or deceive them, I would have lost Si-wan hyung too.’

It was true that Yong Je-geon was very skilled in rhetoric, but it wasn't as if Gae I-dam had no way to escape.

Having been a troll for decades, Gae I-dam was adept at manipulating words, exaggerating hidden truths, and concealing facts.

However, he didn’t hide anything this time.

That was because Seong Si-wan, who already knew everything, was there.

Had Gae I-dam acted like he did during his Gyeo Sang-jung days, Seong Si-wan might have gotten fed up and abandoned him.

“Was today difficult?”

Seong Si-wan's voice made Gae I-dam snap his head up.

In the middle of his thoughts, he belatedly realized that Seong Si-wan had been observing him up close all this time.

Seong Si-wan had the eyes of someone looking at a student who had committed a serious offense. Gae I-dam was startled and tried to step back but was blocked by the wall.

With nowhere to retreat, he was stuck in the corner.

“This is the way I-dam is treated because of what I-dam did, but Yi-shin has suffered for things he didn’t even do.”

Seong Si-wan didn’t specifically mention which event he was referring to, but Gae I-dam had a pretty good idea.

Seong Si-wan had witnessed Jo Yi-shin enduring all the absurdities of military life silently.

As Gae I-dam tried to avert his gaze, Seong Si-wan called his name, “I-dam,” and he couldn’t look away.

Seeing the clear, sincere eyes of Seong Si-wan, who exuded fairness, Gae I-dam felt filthy and almost couldn’t bear it, but he forced himself to hold on.

It felt as if Seong Si-wan could see right through his thoughts.

“Gyeo Sang-jung hyung couldn’t honestly admit or reveal his wrongs. But I-dam did.”

“...If Yong Je-geon hadn’t persistently asked, I wouldn’t have said anything.”

“You didn’t volunteer the information, not because you didn’t want to, but because you didn’t have the chance. It’s not just your past; it’s related to Yi-shin’s past too, so it’s not something you’d have volunteered to share.”

Seong Si-wan’s tone was calm, but his words had a way of soothing Gae I-dam.

Seong Si-wan still tried to view Gae I-dam as Gyeo Sang-jung, not as the person he had become.

After confirming that Gae I-dam had barely emerged from the abyss of despair, Seong Si-wan asked.

“If Yi-shin has shared information about Plmago with them, then it means something big is about to happen. I-dam, do you know anything about it?”

The words hit Gae I-dam like a hammer to the head.

He had been so focused on his own survival that he hadn’t even thought about it.

Looking back, it made sense that Jo Yi-shin, who only wished for the playable characters' happiness, would never share the hopeless game contents with them.

Jo Yi-shin had definitely acted to gather information.

Gae I-dam tried to recall his memories about Plmago but could only remember that the character who had served as the shield protecting Andain had disappeared.

“I think something big happened with Yeom Jun-yeol during the school trip...”

Gae I-dam spoke in an uncertain voice.

The story had been pretty bad, and Andain hadn’t even appeared in the event, so Gae I-dam had just kept pressing buttons without paying attention to the screen.

He knew for sure that Yeom Jun-yeol, who had been protecting Andain, was gone after the school trip, but he couldn’t recall what had happened to Cheon Dong-ha or Ma Jin-seung.

Back then, he’d just thought they probably didn’t graduate and had died.

But now, thinking of them as classmates from his high school days, the thought sent a chill down his spine.

“It was a school trip for the 3rd years, so you didn’t care about Andain not showing up, huh?”

At Seong Si-wan’s words, Gae I-dam couldn’t deny it and muttered in agreement.

It was all true, and there was nothing to argue against.

Seong Si-wan asked.

“I-dam, are you going to the school trip?”

Something was definitely going to happen at the school trip.

Although Gae I-dam didn’t remember the Plmago story well, he knew just how vicious the mastermind was.

To catch Yeom Jun-yeol, who was a descendant of the dragon clan, they would probably use even more brutal measures than when Plmago had turned into chaos.

Since Jo Yi-shin had already moved, he’d deal with it on his own, and since Gae I-dam hadn’t received any word, it meant he didn’t need to step in.

For his own safety, Gae I-dam thought it might be best to come up with an excuse and not go to the school trip.

Some students would [N O V E L I G H T] surely have personal schedules and wouldn’t be going, so no one would comment if Gae I-dam didn’t go.

And, it could be uncomfortable to go on the school trip with the 3rd years who knew what Gae I-dam had done.

Even knowing that, Gae I-dam still didn’t feel like running away.

“I’ll go.”

Gae I-dam answered firmly.

Although he was no match for Cheon Dong-ha or Yeom Jun-yeol, he was considered one of the stronger players among the 3rd years.

He was strong enough to easily overpower Ma Jin-seung.

There weren’t many players stronger than Gae I-dam among the 3rd years.

If something happened to the 3rd years, at least Gae I-dam wouldn’t be the one to hold them back.

“I’ll go and fight.”

Hearing Gae I-dam’s answer, Seong Si-wan nodded in relief.

Gae I-dam realized late that the question he had just been asked was a test that Seong Si-wan had put him through.

Since finding out about Gyeo Sang-jung, Seong Si-wan had occasionally tested him with these kinds of questions.

“Then, let’s take care of the delayed Ji Ik-hoe duties. Have you confirmed the new and departing students?”

“...Not yet.”

“School’s about to start, and you haven’t done it yet? I heard you still haven’t memorized the dorm students’ faces. You’re not going to be like this in the second semester, right?”

During the first semester, Gae I-dam had been preoccupied with dealing with Andain’s trolls, so he had done the bare minimum with his Ji Ik-hoe duties.

Memorizing the faces of dorm students wasn’t a mandatory task, so he had put it off.

Seong Si-wan knew this, so he hadn’t scolded him too harshly, but now that the manipulator was gone, he would be stricter in the second semester.

Instead of making excuses, Gae I-dam decided to act quickly.

He stood up from where he had been leaning against the wall, sat at his desk, and inserted the data chip from the Ji Ik-hoe office into the device to check.

‘To separate out non-dorm students and keep an eye on them, memorizing their faces and names is basic.’

The most important task was definitely the Zero Class.

But Gae I-dam still hadn’t memorized the faces of Zero Class students.

‘Didn’t Dong-ha’s younger sibling say they were in Zero Class?’

He had heard the rumor vaguely, but he had never paid attention or had the luxury to care.

When Gae I-dam confirmed the name and face of Cheon Eun-ha, he couldn’t look away.

Though she didn’t look much like Cheon Dong-ha, both of them had good looks that could be considered noteworthy.

‘I feel like I’ve seen this face before...’

He tried to recall, but couldn’t quite place it.

Then, he remembered the soft smile and the words that had come with it, sharp as a blade.

“You think you’ll be fine after bullying Yi-shin hyung and taking his place? Don’t you fear heaven, living like that?”

Clang!

“I-dam!”

Gae I-dam lost his balance and fell.

Seong Si-wan hurriedly supported him, but instead of feeling the warmth on his shoulder, Gae I-dam was distracted by the face of Cheon Eun-ha.

The fear he had felt back then had faded, but as he looked at her face and thought deeply, his memory resurfaced.

The face of Eun Ho, who had led the stock community to ruin during his time as Cheon Seong-heon.

Cheon Dong-ha’s younger sibling looked strikingly similar to him.