"And... that's how I got into this trouble..."
Daeho's voice became quieter as he finished his story.
His head slowly dropped.
For a few seconds, nobody said anything.
The room was unusually silent.
Only the faint hum of the computers filled the dark classroom, their monitors casting pale light across the walls. Daeho stared at the floor, his fingers nervously playing with the hem of his shirt.
He already knew what was coming.
They're definitely gonna laugh at me...
He had just confessed everything.
The gambling.
The loans.
The stolen house documents.
The money he had lost.
Everything.
He had expected anger.
Maybe disappointment.
But what he feared most was laughter.
And then-
Jamie covered his mouth.
His shoulders began shaking.
Daeho slowly looked up.
Jamie's eyes were squeezed shut as he desperately tried to hold something back.
His cheeks puffed up.
His entire body trembled.
Daeho's expression slowly changed.
No...
Jamie tried harder.
He really did.
But eventually-
"Pfft-"
He failed.
"Ba-buhahahahahaha!"
Jamie's laughter exploded through the room.
Daeho's face went blank.
Light immediately turned toward Jamie.
"Stop... laughing!"
But even Light couldn't keep a straight face.
His lips twitched.
His shoulders shook.
He covered his mouth.
"Pfft-"
He tried to suppress it.
It didn't work.
"HAHAHAHA-"
"Stop... laughing!"
Light repeated, but his voice was already breaking between laughs.
Jamie pointed toward Daeho while laughing.
"I-I'm sorry! It's just-"
"What's so funny?!"
Daeho's face reddened.
He clutched his pants tightly with both hands.
His fingers dug into the fabric.
I'm really dumb...
He lowered his head again.
There was no point defending himself.
He had done something incredibly stupid.
And now two strangers were laughing at him for it.
But strangely...
It didn't hurt as much as he expected.
Maybe because, underneath all that laughter, neither Light nor Jamie seemed to be looking down on him.
They weren't calling him worthless.
They weren't telling him that he deserved what happened.
They were just...
Laughing at how absurd the entire situation was.
Still embarrassing, though.
Very embarrassing.
After several more seconds, Light finally wiped his eyes.
"Alright. Alright, stop!"
Jamie took a deep breath.
"Yeah... yeah."
The room slowly became quiet again.
Daeho remained seated with his head lowered.
Magg, however, hadn't laughed even once.
Throughout the entire explanation, he had been staring down at the floor.
Silent.
Thinking.
His usual loud and greedy attitude had disappeared.
After a moment, he finally raised his head.
"Fine..."
His eyes shifted toward Daeho.
"Daeho, give me your phone."
Daeho immediately reached into his pocket.
He didn't even hesitate.
He unlocked the phone and handed it over.
Magg took it and stood up.
"I'm gonna run some tests on that app."
He turned toward his setup.
"Wait for me here."
He took a few steps.
Then stopped.
He looked back over his shoulder.
"And don't make any noise..."
Jamie blinked.
"What?"
Magg turned around completely.
"I said don't make any noise."
He pointed toward the three of them.
"I need to concentrate."
Light shrugged.
"Fine."
Magg returned to his setup.
His chair squeaked as he sat down.
Then his fingers moved.
Click.
Tap.
Click.
The monitors around him came alive with windows, data, and lines of information.
Light, Jamie, and Daeho eventually moved toward a corner of the classroom.
They sat together.
And waited.
For once, nobody joked.
Daeho sat with his knees pulled slightly toward himself.
His mind kept returning to the same thought.
The house...
That house wasn't just a building.
It was the place where his family lived.
The place where his parents had spent years building their life.
The place he had taken for granted.
And he had almost lost it because he wanted to become rich overnight.
Daeho looked down.
His stomach twisted.
What was I thinking?
Across from him, Jamie leaned against the wall.
Light sat beside him, staring toward Magg.
The room remained dark.
Minutes passed.
Ten.
Then twenty.
The only sounds were the soft tapping of keys and the occasional movement of Magg's chair.
Daeho's anxiety grew with every passing minute.
He didn't know what Magg would find.
He didn't even know if anything could be done anymore.
But for the first time since he had taken that loan...
He wasn't facing the problem alone.
Thirty Minutes Later
"Hey guys!"
Everyone's gaze immediately turned toward Magg.
He was sitting upright now.
His hands had stopped moving.
A grin had appeared on his face.
"I found some clues."
He raised one finger.
"MAJOR clues!"
Light immediately stood up.
Jamie followed.
Daeho practically jumped to his feet.
All three rushed toward Magg and gathered around his setup.
Light leaned forward.
"So... what is it?"
Magg didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he glanced at Daeho.
His expression changed slightly.
He sighed.
"Here we go..."
Daeho swallowed.
Magg turned back toward the screen.
"Like you already know, that gambling app is an illegal one..."
He paused.
"And rigged at that."
Daeho's heart seemed to stop.
For a moment, he couldn't even breathe properly.
Sweat formed along his forehead.
His lips trembled.
"R-r-rigged?!"
Magg looked at him.
"Yeah, dumbass."
His voice was blunt.
"Any normal human being would've figured it out."
Daeho's face tightened.
"W-What...?"
Magg pointed toward the information on the screen.
"Just think again."
He leaned back slightly.
"You won most of the bets on your first day."
Daeho slowly nodded.
"Yeah..."
"But then your success rate started dropping."
Magg's finger moved across the screen.
"First day, you were winning most of the time."
He paused.
"Then it slowly decreased."
Another pause.
"Until eventually..."
He looked directly at Daeho.
"Zero."
Daeho stared at him.
His mouth opened slightly.
"Wh-what do you mean?"
"I mean that dice game you were playing wasn't fair at all."
Magg's expression became serious.
"The outcomes were being controlled by someone."
Silence.
Daeho stared at the screen.
His mind went blank.
The memories came rushing back.
That first day.
The excitement.
The money.
The feeling that he had finally discovered a way out.
Then the losses.
The frustration.
The loans.
The house documents.
All of it suddenly looked different.
He hadn't simply been unlucky.
He had been playing a game that was designed to make him lose.
Thud!
Daeho's legs suddenly gave out.
His knees hit the floor.
"I..."
His hands trembled.
"I lost my house and money to a rigged game...?"
His voice cracked.
He covered his face with both hands.
"I..."
His shoulders dropped.
"What do I do now...?"
His fingers tightened against his face.
"That house was the only thing we had left..."
For the first time, Magg's expression completely softened.
He pushed himself away from his chair.
The chair rolled backward slightly as he stood.
He walked over to Daeho.
Then stopped directly in front of him.
"Don't worry..."
Daeho slowly lowered his hands.
Magg looked down at him.
"I'm gonna get your assets back."
Daeho's eyes widened.
Magg pointed toward Light and Jamie.
"That's why I have these two idiots here."
Jamie immediately raised his hand.
"Yeah, buddy."
He grinned.
"We're gonna get your shit back to you."
Then he looked at Light.
"Right, Light?"
Light nodded.
"Yeah."
Daeho stared at the three of them.
For several seconds, he couldn't say anything.
These people barely knew him.
He had only met them because of Magg.
And yet...
They were standing beside him.
Helping him.
Even after hearing how stupidly he had gotten himself into this situation.
Daeho's eyes softened.
They're all really kind...
For the first time in weeks, something unfamiliar appeared inside his chest.
Hope.
Maybe there is hope...
But before that feeling could settle-
Magg spoke again.
"But-"
Daeho froze.
Magg raised one finger.
"Don't be too relieved yet."
His expression became serious again.
"We still don't know who's behind all this."
Daeho's small smile disappeared.
Magg's gaze shifted toward him.
"And Daeho..."
He paused.
"If we fail to catch them before your loan repayment time..."
Daeho's eyes widened.
"You might legally lose your house."
The word legally hit him harder than anything else.
Daeho's breathing became unsteady.
His fingers curled into fists.
His house.
His parents.
Everything could disappear.
Not because someone broke into their home.
Not because someone stole it.
But because the people behind the scheme had found a way to take it from him through the system itself.
Daeho stood abruptly.
"Then..."
His voice shook.
"Then get back to work!"
Magg blinked.
Then laughed.
"Fine, fine."
He turned around and walked back toward his setup.
"You better give me my pay when all this is over, brat..."
Daeho nodded quickly.
"Whatever! Just get my house back!"
Magg sat down.
His fingers immediately returned to the keyboard.
His hands flew across the keys.
The atmosphere changed once again.
This wasn't a joke anymore.
They had a deadline.
They needed a name.
They needed an account.
They needed someone to point to.
Magg stared at the screens.
"Ugh..."
He rubbed his forehead.
"There are so many gambling ads to track down..."
He leaned back against his seat.
His eyes scanned the information in front of him.
"This is gonna take forever."
Jamie suddenly looked toward the screen.
His eyes widened slightly.
"Wait."
Magg glanced at him.
"What?"
Jamie pointed toward the computer.
"Why are you tracking every single ad down?"
Magg frowned.
"What kind of question is that?"
Jamie shrugged.
"Since Daeho put his money into it..."
He paused.
"The money has to go to someone's account, right?"
Magg stared at him.
Jamie continued.
"If we just track whose account it is..."
Magg slowly sat upright.
His expression changed.
"Did you think I was dumb?"
Jamie blinked.
"What?"
"Any sane developer would secure information like that carefully."
Magg scoffed.
"You think they're gonna leave their bank information sitting around for anyone to find?"
Jamie scratched his cheek.
"Just try once."
Magg narrowed his eyes.
"Why?"
"Who knows?"
Jamie smiled.
"It might help."
Magg stared at him.
For a few seconds, neither spoke.
Then-
"Hmph!"
Magg crossed his arms.
"Fine."
He turned toward the keyboard.
"I'll prove you wrong!"
His fingers landed on the keys.
This time, there was something different in his movements.
Pride.
His hands moved faster.
His eyes narrowed.
One screen changed.
Then another.
Then another.
Magg's expression slowly shifted.
His confidence disappeared.
His eyebrows lowered.
His fingers stopped.
"..."
Jamie leaned forward.
"What?"
Magg didn't answer.
His eyes remained fixed on the screen.
"...Jamie."
Jamie smiled.
"Yeah?"
Magg's jaw tightened.
"You idiot..."
Jamie tilted his head.
"What did I do?"
Magg slowly turned toward him.
"You were right."
Jamie froze.
Light looked between them.
Daeho's eyes widened.
Magg pointed toward the screen.
"I found the account!!"
"What?!"
Light immediately leaned toward the monitor.
Jamie's face lit up.
Then-
He started giggling like a kid who had just won a game.
"Heh..."
Light looked at him.
"Why are you laughing?"
Jamie pointed at Magg.
"I told you!"
Magg ignored him.
His fingers moved again.
His eyes scanned the information.
Then his expression became focused.
"I got his location."
Light's eyes widened.
"You got his location?"
Magg nodded.
"Yeah."
He looked at Light and Jamie.
Then pointed toward the door.
"You two go."
Light raised an eyebrow.
"Go where?"
Magg grinned.
"My henchmen."
Light stared at him.
"Henchmen?"
Magg nodded proudly.
"Yep."
Light scoffed.
"Fine..."
He started walking toward the door.
"Just until I get my work done..."
Jamie followed him.
Daeho hesitated for a second before following.
Behind them, Magg returned his attention to the screens.
The laughter was gone.
The jokes were gone.
Now there was only one thing left.
A location.
And somewhere in that location...
Was the first person who could lead them to whoever was really behind Daeho's nightmare.