Ch 5
"I can't believe that actually worked so easily…"
He had been holding his breath the entire way—because it wasn't just one Disciplinary boy patrolling, but several of them on every floor.
Thankfully, the cursed tool she got from the System helped them slip into hiding without being seen.
"And… there has to be a reason we're in this exact place right now, right?" he asked in a low whisper, glancing around the female restroom—or more specifically, the cubicle they were quietly hiding in.
"Are you more concerned about being in the girls' restroom… than being in this awkward position with me?"
Hiru blinked at her question.
She wasn't wrong. The position wasn't exactly comfortable. The cubicle was small—she sat on the seat while he crouched in front of her, so close that they could feel each other's breath.
"Are you… uncomfortable with me?" he asked hesitantly.
"Fufu… I'm just teasing. And no, I'm not," she replied. "Because if a guy can take a slap from a girl without fighting back in this day and age, then he either has incredible self-control… or he's a genuinely good person."
He turned away slightly, a bit embarrassed.
"Sorry for spying on you, but you know why I did that."
Her smile deepened before she explained, "And this isn't my first time sneaking out here. Coincidentally, the disciplinary boys don't check the girls' restroom—and this specific cubicle can even muffle our voices. After all, we need a place to plan our strategies and escape this place safely."
"As expected, you really came prepared…" He nodded, then glanced at her bracelet. "I'm guessing it can't hide us forever, right? Does it have a limit?"
"It does," she said, touching it lightly. "It can be used three times, for ten minutes each."
"So that means… we have two uses left."
"Yep. And most importantly, it only works on Malicious-Rank ghosts. Luckily, we haven't run into anything stronger—yet."
Hiru went quiet, lost in thought.
From what he understood, every ghost and every human who awakened in the Ghost Realm had distinct rankings based on their power and influence.
For humans, the starting rank was Awakened-Rank, while for ghosts, it was Malicious-Rank.
Though the two sounded equivalent, there was a major difference.
Humans at the Awakened-Rank did gain strength beyond normal human limits—but in raw power, they couldn't compare to Malicious-Rank ghosts. A direct fight would leave them easily overwhelmed.
Given that it was the Tutorial, the beginning phase of the Ghost Realm, most of the ghosts they were facing were Malicious-Rank. However, there were rare cases—especially during dangerous Quest-scenarios—where ghosts higher than Malicious-Rank could appear.
And Hiru was sure… the scenario they were trapped in wasn't a simple one. There could be one or two Vengeful-Rank ghosts—just above Malicious-Rank.
'Nothing goes as initially planned within the Ghost Realm… so always think out of the box.'
That was the most common advice given by survivors to newcomers like him.
"I was hoping we could hide from dangerous ghosts with that… anyway, how much did that cost—!?"
As he scrolled through the Store menu himself, his eyes landed on the item.
"—15 GC!?"
The price nearly made him choke.
At the start, every person was given 30 Ghost Currency (GC) as a bonus for unlocking the system. And that bracelet alone had cost her half of it.
Just to note, the more GC one had, the higher their chances of survival.
"Yes, but we had no choice back there. Fighting wasn't even an option," Miami sighed, clearly a bit drained. Then she turned a little serious, even scolding.
"—And what were you thinking, trying to fight a ghost? Don't you know a Malicious-Rank could crush your arms like a cookie?"
"I know but…" scratching his right cheek, he said while looking at his Status, "it seems my stats are incredibly high…"
"How high?" she asked, curious.
"If I'm not wrong, a typical Malicious-Rank ghost has stats around 15. I'm… double that."
"What?" Her expression shifted as she quickly asked, "Don't tell me you bought some temporary enhancement potion from the Store!?"
"Hey! Keep it down!" He hurriedly covered her mouth, worried about the noise.
"And no, don't worry. I didn't use any potions. I also know their infamous side effects. And this is permanent and safe." He paused, rubbing the back of his neck. "Honestly… I think a small incident—or maybe a misunderstanding—led to these stats."
His thoughts drifted to that awful tea… and his beautiful teacher.
'Now I can clearly feel the effects of enhancing spiritual body. She didn't lie…' Though he still had questions about her, he pushed them aside for now.
"I wish I had that kind of misunderstanding…"
"Trust me—you don't want to go through it."
She raised an eyebrow, clearly doubtful, but didn't press further. Instead, she focused on the real issue.
"So, shall we plan our way out of this fake world?"
"Hm." Hiru nodded.
It couldn't have been more than fifteen minutes since they escaped the Disciplinary ghost and hid inside the cubicle. But time was still against them.
"Since you can handle a Malicious-Rank ghost, our chances of escaping just went up." Her voice now carried more confidence.
And so, they quickly made their first plan—finding the keys.
For that, they needed certain items—not expensive, but effective enough—from the System Store to help them move forward.
The System Store was versatile, offering a wide variety of items under categories: Cursed Items, Weapons, Potions, and more. Though, most of them were locked due to rank restrictions or other requirements.
'Before buying anything, I'll use my free Gacha Spin…'
The system offered one free daily Gacha Spin, which could grant any random item, regardless of rank—though, of course, it all depended on luck.
So, he tried his.
[Ting!]
[You have obtained a Junk: Gambler's Chip.]
[Want to try your luck again? Cost: 5 GC]
"…" He didn't even need to read the description to know how trash his luck and item was.
"I'm guessing you didn't get anything good," Miami said, chuckling at his unimpressed face.
"A junk…"
"That was expected. Just get the item we need for the first plan."
"Hm." He nodded and returned his focus to the Store.
##################
Name — Wisp of Distraction
Description — Whoever, apart from the owner, gazes upon it shall be distracted by its beauty for one full minute.
Note: Only effective against Malicious-Rank Ghosts.
Cost — 1 GC
##################
[Do you wish to buy
[Price: 10 GC]
[GC Balance: 30]
He didn't hesitate. He knew exactly how useful they'd be.
[Congratulations! You have bought
'All set! 10 GC might seem a bit expensive, but these can save us in that situation. Now, I have 30 GC left… hmm? Wait a minute—'
As he checked his status after the purchase, his heart nearly skipped a beat.
'Are my eyes playing tricks on me!?'
Despite spending 10 GC, his current balance still showed 30 GC.