2025-12-25 18:14:15
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Chapter 13
Min-joon returned to find Tae-hyun waiting anxiously in the hospital room with food containers spread across the small table."Where did you go?" Tae-hyun asked. "I was worried.""Just needed some air," Min-joon lied. The drain was minimal. He was getting better at small lies.They ate dinner together. Tae-hyun talked about his scholarship essay, about his dreams of becoming a doctor, about the future he wanted to build. Min-joon listened and smiled, but his mind was elsewhere.The notebook in his pocket felt heavy. Like it was pulling him toward a decision he was not ready to make.After Tae-hyun left for the night, promising to return in the morning, Min-joon pulled out the notebook and opened it.The first page had a title written in bold letters: THE DEBT SYSTEM - A STUDY IN CONTROL.Below that, Lee Joon-seok had written: "Everything the System tells you is designed to make you compliant. Question everything."Min-joon turned the page and started reading.Lee Joon-seok's notes wer
Chapter 12
Han Woo-jin sat in the chair Tae-hyun had vacated. "Task three was psychological, was it not? Questions about your deepest feelings and fears.""How did you know?""Because task three is always psychological. The System follows a pattern. Physical challenge, navigation and rules, psychological torture, then it gets creative.""Creative how?""You will see," Han Woo-jin said cryptically. "But you have three days to prepare. Use them. Train your body and mind. The next task will require both.""Someone named Lee Joon-seok texted me," Min-joon said. "He said he wants to help me. Do you know who that is?"Han Woo-jin's expression darkened. "Lee Joon-seok. Yes, I know him. He is trouble.""Trouble how?""He is also a former player who completed the System. But unlike me, he is obsessed with destroying it. He thinks he has found a way to break free completely, to escape the System's influence even after completion.""Is that possible?""I do not know," Han Woo-jin admitted. "But Lee Joon-se
Chapter 11
Min-joon woke up in a hospital bed.The ceiling was white and clean. Fluorescent lights hummed above him. For a terrifying moment, he thought he was still in the mirror world. But then he heard familiar sounds. Machines beeping. People talking in the hallway. The smell of disinfectant.A real hospital."Hyung! You are awake!"Tae-hyun was sitting in a chair next to the bed. His eyes were red from crying."What happened?" Min-joon asked. His voice was rough."I found you in the parking lot," Tae-hyun said. "You were unconscious and barely breathing. I called an ambulance. The doctors said you collapsed from exhaustion and malnutrition. They want to keep you here for observation."Min-joon tried to sit up, but his body would not cooperate. Every muscle ached."How long have I been here?""Eight hours," Tae-hyun said. "It is morning now."Min-joon reached for his phone on the bedside table. Tae-hyun had plugged it in to charge. The screen showed several notifications.One was from the ba
Chapter 10
Min-joon opened his eyes in a classroom.He was sitting at a desk in the middle of a large room. Other desks surrounded him, all empty. A chalkboard covered the front wall. The windows showed darkness outside.His phone buzzed.TASK: PASS THE TEST.TIME LIMIT: 3 HOURS.REWARD: 8,000,000 WON REMOVED FROM YOUR DEBT.PENALTY FOR FAILURE: DEATH.SPECIAL CONDITION: YOU MUST ANSWER EVERY QUESTION TRUTHFULLY.TIME REMAINING: 2:59:58.Min-joon read the special condition three times, his heart sinking.Answer every question truthfully.That meant speaking truths. Lots of them. And he was already drained from the collector encounter. Speaking truths in his weakened state would destroy him.The System had set him up to fail.A piece of paper appeared on his desk. A test. Min-joon picked it up and read the first question.Question 1: What is your greatest fear?Min-joon stared at the question. This was not a normal test. These were questions designed to hurt him.He picked up the pencil on his de
Chapter 9
Min-joon spent the next day practicing. He woke up early, left the apartment before Tae-hyun was awake, and went to the abandoned parking lot.He practiced lying and speaking truths, over and over. Building his confidence, learning to feel the flow of power. It was like exercising a muscle he never knew he had.By noon, he could make small objects disappear with barely any effort. By evening, he could change the properties of materials without draining himself completely.He was getting stronger.NEXT TASK IN 6 HOURS.Min-joon checked the notification and took a deep breath. Time to prepare.He went home and found Tae-hyun cooking dinner. The apartment smelled like soy sauce and garlic."Perfect timing," Tae-hyun said cheerfully. "I made japchae. Your favorite."They ate together, talking about Tae-hyun's day at school. He had aced another test. The scholarship essay was going well. Everything seemed normal and peaceful.Min-joon wished he could freeze this moment forever.After dinne
Chapter 8
"Why would you help me?" Min-joon asked suspiciously. "What do you get out of it?""Nothing," Han Woo-jin said. "The System requires it. If I refuse to help you, my debt will be reinstated. I worked too hard to let that happen."Min-joon studied the man carefully. Han Woo-jin looked healthy, successful, nothing like someone who had been through the nightmare Min-joon was experiencing. But his eyes told a different story. They were hard. Cold. The eyes of someone who had seen terrible things."What do you want to teach me?" Min-joon asked carefully."How to use your curse properly," Han Woo-jin said. "You are wasting its potential. I can show you techniques that will increase your chances of survival significantly.""How do you know about my curse? Each person gets a different one, right?""Correct. Mine was different from yours. But I have helped three other players since completing my tasks. I have seen various curses. Yours is rare, but not unique. I know how it works."Min-joon wan
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