An informal hideout of the so-called Phantom Thieves located in Eungwang District.

Since it was the first weekend after the midterm exams, Guseulbi and Ong Gildong were completely relaxed and lounging around.

Although they had received very good grades, they had sacrificed a lot to achieve them.

Reduced sleep hours, the consequent exhaustion of physical and mental strength, the pain of not being able to play, and the suffering of having to endure studying — the bitterness and pain they endured were beyond words.

Their fundamental motivation for studying was simply to gain attention, but recently an additional resolve had been added: to earn grades worthy of being a Phantom Thief’s partner, which increased their patience.

However, just because they could endure it didn’t mean it wasn’t painful, and since both Guseulbi and Ong Gildong had no real passion for academics, the toll of the exam period felt even heavier.

Lying sideways on the sofa in the living room, Guseulbi spoke weakly.

“I'm hungry... What should we eat?”

“The fridge is empty because we ate all the snacks during exam week. Ordering delivery food would be best.”

“Then let’s order from the pizza place where we collect coupons. I’ll place the order.”

“Sounds good! Let’s add cheese oven-baked spaghetti too!”

Since neither of them was skilled at cooking, they usually ate at the school cafeteria or dined out.

Guseulbi was about to order the pizza they often had when a message arrived from a classmate.

Chatting with classmates over devices on weekends was common, so Guseulbi checked the hologram casually.

The sender was Kwon Rena.

[Kwon Rena] Slbi, are you having a good weekend? >_<

[Kwon Rena] Can you make time after the holiday? Luis and Sun-o will be there too.

The following message included a meeting time: the afternoon after the substitute holiday.

After reading the message, Guseulbi glanced at Ong Gildong.

He was slouched unusually on a single-person sofa, feet on a footstool, reading news articles.

Unlike Guseulbi, who was absorbed only in her interests, Ong Gildong was well informed about current affairs, diligently reading articles on all sorts of topics whenever he had time.

‘He said he has no plans that day, so it should be fine. I’ll have to ask if Sun-o has a game appointment.’

Another classmate living in the same hideout, In Sun-o, was currently playing PlayerZ.

Guseulbi didn’t understand much but knew In Sun-o referred to this as “doing the homework postponed during exam period.”

In online games, missions with daily or weekly reset rewards encourage players to keep logging in; these missions were called homework.

Guseulbi planned to ask In Sun-o after he finished his game homework, when another message arrived.

[Kwon Rena] I have something to say to our class about family matters!

Seeing the word ‘family,’ Guseulbi instinctively furrowed her brows and stared at the screen.

She vaguely knew Kwon Rena’s family was involved with the Dream Auction.

Of course, Lee Yeoreum, whom she met previously, was a good person, and Kwon Rena was a good classmate, so neither Guseulbi nor Ong Gildong held grudges.

The reason the topic stuck in her mind was because Jo Yi-shin, the Phantom Thieves’ partner, had played a major role in the Dream Auction.

‘I hope it’s not as much of a mess as my house.’

Guseulbi recalled her parents’ home where electricity and gas were cut off.

If her parents had used the money for utilities instead of drinking, her childhood would have been much better.

Then she wouldn’t have been hit by drunk parents or felt miserable in a cold, dark house.

“Partner, your expression’s gloomy. Don’t tell me the ricotta cheese topping option is sold out at that pizza place again?”

Ong Gildong didn’t read her thoughts at all but noticed the shadow over her face and asked kindly.

One unexpected fact they learned while living in the hideout was that Ong Gildong had grown up in a wealthy and harmonious family.

Having spent a long time abroad and always being alone, Guseulbi had assumed Ong Gildong’s situation was similar to hers, but it was just that his family was overly liberal; their situations were completely different.

Judging by his family background alone, Ong Gildong didn’t need to take dangerous player activities like Otherworld raids or do crazy Phantom Thief stuff for a living.

Moreover, he could have enjoyed a glamorous, enviable life as a designer if he wanted.

He had chosen this precarious life purely out of goodwill and a desire to stand out.

‘Thinking that way makes him look even cooler...! He’s so cool on the outside, what if the others start to see him as special?’

Since few saw Ong Gildong so admirably, Guseulbi worried needlessly.

Even when resting, Ong Gildong maintained his flair, wearing indoor clothes decorated with beads and sequins that looked like ballroom dancewear.

The sunlight made him look even more dazzling and radiant.

Trying to calm her pounding heart, Guseulbi forced herself to sound blunt.

“No, I haven’t ordered the pizza yet. Rena said she has something to say about family. Let’s keep the time free.”

“Hmm, family, huh. As a friend, I’ll listen well. I should prepare an outfit suitable for that day!”

“It’s after school, so we’ll meet in our uniforms.”

Ong Gildong’s exaggerated gesture as he stood up caught Guseulbi’s eye on the hologram.

He was reading an article about a recent incident at the Ministry of Defense research facility within the military academy grounds.

Next to it were links to other articles and notes.

The collection included reports on everything from a big third-year school trip incident, damage caused by a typhoon during a Korea-China-Japan exchange, to announcements of someone’s hundred-day birthday party at Hwangmyeong Building.

The combination was random, and Guseulbi found no pattern, but Ong Gildong was gathering information with clear intent.

He focused on articles involving deliberate information restrictions by the association or large-scale movements by powerful Jin clans.

‘I have to steal something huge, dark, and terrifying. I’ll go steal it with them!’

Just as Guseulbi steeled her resolve, In Sun-o came out of the room.

He looked pale, probably from staying up playing to finish his postponed game homework.

Knowing how seriously he played PlayerZ, they hadn’t disturbed him, but seeing him look so unhealthy made them regret it a bit.

The two chatterboxes hurriedly spoke to him.

“We’re ordering pizza—what do you want? Olive and tomato toppings are good for circulation, so let’s put those on! We’ll add lots of pickles too!”

“Good timing. Rena says she has something to say about family next week, so how about keeping that time free?”

“Since Slbi enjoyed the cheese toppings last time, I think that’s best. Like Luis said, we’ll keep the time free next week.”

In Sun-o answered each of their haphazard remarks one by one.

Guseulbi was secretly glad they prioritized taste over health benefits, and Ong Gildong was satisfied with the quick approval.

While waiting for delivery, they chatted, and thanks to Kwon Rena’s message, the topic turned to family.

‘What’s Sun-o’s family like? I’ve never seen him contact them.’

‘It’s nice to spend the holidays together, but I wonder if it’s because he chose to stay or if there’s some reason.’

The three had spent time together at the hideout during the Chuseok holiday, so they knew each other’s situations to some extent, but Sun-o’s background remained a mystery.

The chatterboxes were curious but didn’t ask, and Sun-o wasn’t reckless enough to reveal his family affairs to strangers.

However, as their curiosity showed and they struggled to hold back, Sun-o eventually gave in.

“My parents are probably healthy. Probably.”

“Probably? So it’s been a while since you contacted them?”

“Yeah, it’s been a long time.”

The mood darkened with his answer, so Guseulbi tried to cheer up, adding, “Same here! I don’t even know their numbers, so I have no reason to contact them!” 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Sun-o smiled faintly and lightly brought up a heavy topic.

“There won’t be any contact until my parents change their religious views.”

There had been many events before coming to the Tiger Mansion, but the walk with the two angels on Cheonik Mountain was the best.

Olmu and Heukho welcomed me as soon as I arrived.

They welcomed me more warmly than the white tiger’s gift.

The angels were also brave and smart enough to pioneer a new walking route on Cheonik Mountain.

‘Cheonik Mountain feels bigger than before. It’s like the space has expanded.’

Comparing with the guide map made by the Woo Gihwan group, the difference was clear.

Cheonik Mountain had grown larger and wider.

Although the satellite map showed the same scale, moving inside under the influence of earth energy felt different.

The mountain’s energy was increasing daily.

It had gathered °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° spiritual energy over a long time to protect the lost Heukho as a mountain spirit.

But now that Heukho was back, there was no need, so the mountain’s energy remained.

‘A similar phenomenon happened in Gangwon Province, the background of the demon world scenario.

There, not only earth energy but other forces caused even greater space expansion and distortion.’

Eighty-one percent of Gangwon Province is mountainous.

Some mountain areas were rugged, and spatial distortion made maps useless.

Therefore, the “Demon Cult Extermination Squad,” formed around Heukrim the Sword Saint to stop the demon god’s fanatics, had a harder fight.

The creatures summoned by the demon god’s priests had survived the more brutal demon world mountains, making it difficult for players to cope.

“This trail ends at the star-gazing rock! Since stars come in here, I wanted to come with you!”

“Roar!”

When the trail guide ended, Heukho and Olmu proudly spoke.

I was proud that I had braved the rough path, but more honored that they showed me this new trail first.

Compared to the gifts they gave me now, the presents I prepared felt humble and embarrassing.

I had thought hard about gifts that were necessary yet not burdensome to the tigers, but it still felt lacking.

For example, the gift for the kind tiger who was almost as good as Heukho.

“Jo Yi-shin, do I have two gifts?”

On October 3rd, the tiger’s birthday, Hwang Ji-ho said with a face trying to hold back a smile, holding two gift boxes.

“Not all of them are for you. One is for Hwang Yu-ho.”

The tigers’ birthday was also Hwang Yu-ho’s birthday.