Ch.150150 – A Woman’s Heart 4

# 150 – A Woman’s Heart # 4

Wang Jahyeon’s group was in a state of panic because of the ghost they encountered in the Old School Building.

‘At least we managed to drive it away.’

Wang Jahyeon belonged to the Gwanak Jeil Presbyterian Church.

Gwanak Jeil was not only one of the largest churches in Korea but also one that embraced charismatic practices, and it remained one of the few churches that still talked about Satan, demons, and ghosts.

Because of this, their pastors were sometimes condemned as heretics, but it also meant they knew a lot about dealing with ghosts.

Crumble-

The cross in Wang Jahyeon’s hand burned black and crumbled to ash.

The crosses that Kim Geonho and Gong Yerin had were probably in the same condition.

“You bitch, are you so desperate to get us all killed?”

Kim Geonho yelled at Lim Huiyeon, who was sitting on the floor of the Old School Building.

He was furious that Lim Huiyeon had frozen in fear when they were confronting the Dancing Ghost earlier.

Gong Yerin seemed equally angry.

“Could it be her? The mafia. Did she sell us out to Ha Yeongwon’s group?”

“W-what? It’s not me! It’s not me! Gong Yerin, what are you saying? Why are you falsely accusing me? It’s definitely not me! Jahyeon, you know me!”

Grab-

The cowardly Lim Huiyeon clung to Wang Jahyeon’s leg.

Wang Jahyeon was merely annoyed.

‘…Women.’

He knew that Lim Huiyeon and Gong Yerin were jealous of each other and disliked one another.

In fact, it was half-intentional on Wang Jahyeon’s part.

It was convenient to use them when the two girls competed for his affection and obeyed him like loyal dogs, fawning over him.

But he didn’t expect them to attack and falsely accuse each other even in this situation.

‘They may look different, but in the end, all women are the same.’

Wang Jahyeon had none of the fantasies about women that boys his age typically had.

That’s why he could think coldly.

‘Could Lim Huiyeon really be the mafia?’

Wang Jahyeon carefully observed Lim Huiyeon, who was clinging to his leg.

She was a girl with her hair tied back.

Originally, Lim Huiyeon had long hair that she wore freely, but after Wang Jahyeon told her to tie it back, she had done so every day without fail.

The same was true for Gong Yerin.

Gong Yerin also had long hair, but as soon as Wang Jahyeon told her to cut it short, she did.

‘They would both play dead if I told them to. Would Lim Huiyeon really betray me?’

Something didn’t add up.

Even as Wang Jahyeon was lost in thought, time was ticking away.

Gong Yerin spoke urgently, like a rabbit being chased by a lion.

“Lim Huiyeon is the traitor! Jahyeon! There’s nothing more to see!”

“It’s not me! It’s not! Gong Yerin! Why are you trying to drive a wedge between us? Aren’t you the traitor? What do you gain by interfering between me and Jahyeon! You’re the traitor!”

“What are you saying! You crazy bitch!”

Gong Yerin and Lim Huiyeon started fighting, clinging to each other.

Watching them, Kim Geonho sighed.

“Shit, this is a mess. What are we doing now? We should either get out of this place or find out who the mafia is! Can’t you all get your act together?”

Kim Geonho’s words had no effect on Gong Yerin and Lim Huiyeon.

The girls were still pulling each other’s hair or biting each other’s arms.

Wang Jahyeon calmly looked at his phone and thought.

“Failure to find the mafia results in the death of citizens…”

Wang Jahyeon recalled the rules of the “Mafia Game.”

It was a game about finding a criminal hidden among a group of citizens, where each night, someone was hanged through a “vote.”

If that person was the mafia, it would be confirmed with “The mafia has died.” If they were an innocent citizen, it would say “They were an innocent citizen.”

In the end, the only way to confirm whether someone was the mafia or a citizen was to kill them.

‘…One of these four must die within an hour. Excluding myself, that leaves three. Gong Yerin, Lim Huiyeon, and Kim Geonho.’

In Wang Jahyeon’s mind, the most suspicious one was Kim Geonho, who had joined them recently.

Since he was a recent addition to the group, his loyalty was the weakest, and he was most likely to be a traitor.

Also, Wang Jahyeon was confident that the girls would never betray him.

‘The culprit is Kim Geonho.’

Wang Jahyeon, Lim Huiyeon, and Gong Yerin had an alibi for the day the talisman was stolen—they were at church together. Kim Geonho said he was meeting with the female teacher, Hong Miri, at that time.

‘Hong Miri is a teacher at the Yeongji Foundation. That means she’s the Chairman’s person. The Chairman and Yu Dahui are family. And Yu Dahui and Ha Yeongwon are friends who hang out together…’

It was a rough deduction, but it was convincing.

The probability that Kim Geonho was communicating with Ha Yeongwon through Hong Miri.

The question was “why.”

‘Didn’t Kim Geonho hate Ha Yeongwon?’

When he suspected that Ha Yeongwon’s group had stolen the talisman, Kim Geonho was the one who said, “I’ll kill that bastard with my own hands,” grinding his teeth.

But what if it was all an act?

‘It wouldn’t be strange if Kim Geonho was persuaded by Ha Yeongwon. There’s a story told to people who walk this corridor. That there’s a clock at the end of the corridor that grants wishes…’

What if Ha Yeongwon promised to grant Kim Geonho’s wish?

‘That makes sense.’

The more he thought about it, the more suspicious things he found about Kim Geonho.

The problem was how to hang Kim Geonho.

‘If Kim Geonho goes wild, we can’t stop him.’

After a long silence, Wang Jahyeon came to a conclusion.

“Everyone, stop fighting. I think we need to talk individually. Huiyeon, come here. Let’s talk. Yerin, Geonho, you two wait here.”

As he said this, Wang Jahyeon stroked his neck.

Soon, Wang Jahyeon and Lim Huiyeon disappeared into the faculty office, leaving Gong Yerin and Kim Geonho alone in the corridor.

Kim Geonho looked around the corridor and shivered slightly at the eerie feeling.

‘What an unlucky place. Every time I come here, I feel disgusted.’

Gong Yerin spoke to Kim Geonho.

“It’s definitely Lim Huiyeon.”

“What? The traitor?”

“Yes. Jahyeon told only me, but the talismans that were 11 have been reduced to 10. Lim Huiyeon must have stolen one.”

“Is that so? Now that I think about it, Lim Huiyeon is really suspicious. She’s always trembling in fear, like someone who has a lot to hide.”

“You and I need to protect Jahyeon well. Even if it costs us our lives.”

Gong Yerin spoke with determination to Kim Geonho.

Kim Geonho suddenly became curious.

“Even your life?”

“Yes.”

Kim Geonho thought that women were truly frightening creatures.

But at the same time, they were also amusing.

“The counseling will take a long time, right? We don’t have much time left, do we? How about here, now?”

Slide-

As Kim Geonho placed his hand on Gong Yerin’s shoulder, she freaked out.

“What? Are you really crazy?”

“Five minutes. Just five minutes. Depending on how you act, I’ll decide whether to cooperate with Wang Jahyeon or not. Don’t you desperately need my strength right now?”

Kim Geonho, attacked by the eerie place and inexplicable horrors, was mentally overwhelmed.

It was natural for a high school boy soaked in coldness to want to feel human warmth.

It wasn’t unusual—Kim Geonho and Gong Yerin occasionally shared each other’s warmth.

A secret from Wang Jahyeon.

‘Gong Yerin, aren’t you the traitor?’

Kim Geonho found Gong Yerin amusing.

But he didn’t show it.

Gong Yerin soon grabbed the wall and bent over.

“Finish quickly.”

“Alright. It’s not something to brag about, but I’m confident in finishing quickly.”

“Wait, let’s kiss first.”

“What? You said you didn’t like kissing?”

Kim Geonho smiled at Gong Yerin.

‘She didn’t say it, but maybe she was scared too and wanted to rely on someone.’

Just as Kim Geonho and Gong Yerin were about to kiss, Kim Geonho felt a sharp pain in his neck.

“Urgh!”

Hot blood gushed from Kim Geonho’s neck.

In Gong Yerin’s hand was a folding knife.

It was something she always carried.

“Ughk…”

“It’s you. You traitor bastard. You stole the talisman. You sold all our information to Ha Yeongwon!”

As Gong Yerin approached Kim Geonho with the knife, he grabbed his neck and backed away.

Even for Kim Geonho, it was too dangerous to face Gong Yerin with a severely cut neck.

Soon, Lim Huiyeon and Wang Jahyeon, who had gone into the faculty office, came out.

“Jahyeon, the plan really worked.”

“Yerin, good job. You understood well.”

“When you left with Huiyeon and touched your neck, it meant to eliminate Kim Geonho.”

“Y-you crazy bastards…”

Thud-

Kim Geonho collapsed on the floor.

Gong Yerin kicked his body repeatedly.

“You bastard, did you think I liked you? If Jahyeon hadn’t asked, I wouldn’t even have held hands with a bastard like you. You idiot. Bastard! Asshole!”

Thud-! Thud-!

Kim Geonho trembled under Gong Yerin’s kicks.

His fading mind couldn’t understand at all.

‘…She’d do such a thing because Wang Jahyeon asked? These crazy bitches…’

To Kim Geonho, women were more difficult and frightening than ghosts and school.

Soon, a phone rang.

“Geonho: Kim Geonho was the mafia.”

“Geonho: The citizens’ peace has been preserved.”

“Let’s go, guys.”

“Yes!”

“Let’s go!”

Lim Huiyeon and Gong Yerin grabbed Wang Jahyeon’s arms.

They were finally able to leave the dreaded Old School Building.

Thud-!

As they were about to exit through the back door they had left open, there was a flash before their eyes.

Someone who had been waiting at the entrance of the Old School Building had struck them on the back of their heads.

# # #

“……”

Kim Geonho disappeared from the player list.

That meant only one thing.

The guy was dead.

I felt like ants were crawling all over my body.

A complex mix of emotions—fear, tension, guilt, and relief—made my heart race.

I couldn’t calm down easily.

To think that I had gotten someone killed.

He was someone who had bullied me and threatened my life, but I wasn’t bold enough to say, “He got what he deserved.”

Slap slap-

I slapped both my cheeks as if I were drunk, trying to wake up my dizzy mind.

I needed to pull myself together now more than ever.

“It’s okay. I started this, so I have to take responsibility.”

It was better for me to dirty my hands than to put my friends in danger because of me.

In the end, there had to be a hierarchy in our lives.

“Kim Geonho brought it upon himself. He deserved it.”

How should I explain Kim Geonho’s death to my friends?

Would my friends be afraid of me if they knew I had gotten someone killed?

As I started to worry about various things, feeling like my head was about to split, my phone rang.

“Wang Jahyeon: Hey, let’s meet, just the two of us. Keep it a secret from the others”

“……”

My heart sank.

I hadn’t expected him to contact me so directly.

Keep it a secret from others and meet?

I immediately called Jeongseok.

“Hey, Wang Jahyeon is asking to meet secretly, without telling others. What should I do?”