#79
“Alright then.”
To hide his flushed face, Seo Yi-young rose from his seat without hesitation. As his mood lightened while talking with Choi Do-jun, his heart simultaneously grew heavier. Amid this, he felt Choi Do-jun’s gaze following him. Did he have something else to say?
“Are you thinking of going to America?”
“America? Suddenly? What are you talking about?”
It was completely out of nowhere. Choi Do-jun was probably the only person who would throw out such an abrupt question without any context. Seo Yi-young’s face clearly showed his confusion.
“I heard rumors that James made you a scouting offer. The news reached even my ears.”
“Huh?”
It was surprising that such rumors were already circulating. And it was even more surprising to hear about it from none other than Choi Do-jun. Seo Yi-young recalled that Choi Do-jun owned his own agency.
He didn’t want to remain under Jo Tae-su’s affiliation anymore. He couldn’t. If he were to change agencies, it would be better to move to Choi Do-jun’s. But he couldn’t act on it immediately. Honestly, he wanted to leave no matter what the contract termination penalty was, but he couldn’t risk unnecessary misunderstandings until he figured out what was in that medicine bottle Jo Tae-su had given him. He felt he needed to appear cooperative with Jo Tae-su to learn even a little information about it.
Seo Yi-young faced Choi Do-jun and spoke.
“Why? Would you like me to move to your company?”
“If I said yes, what would you do?”
“I can’t answer that yet.”
Hearing Seo Yi-young’s response, Choi Do-jun narrowed his eyes.
“It’s not a ‘no’ or ‘impossible,’ I see.”
Choi Do-jun was quick to pick up on such nuances.
“Does it have something to do with Jo Tae-su?”
Seo Yi-young kept his mouth shut. He hadn’t expected such a question. Seeing Seo Yi-young’s inability to answer immediately, Choi Do-jun’s expression hardened.
“What kind of relationship do you have with Jo Tae-su?”
“Huh?”
He’d expected the conversation wouldn’t end there, but he hadn’t anticipated this question. What kind of relationship? What kind of question was this? If others heard, they might misunderstand… …misunderstand?
“What kind of relationship do you think it is?”
“You’re answering a question with a question.”
“No, whether it’s a question or whatever, just answer me.”
“I don’t really want to bring it up—”
“AAAAAH!”
Seo Yi-young, who had been gradually furrowing his brow, suddenly shouted. He saw Choi Do-jun’s gaze instantly change to one that seemed to say, ‘Has he gone mad?’ but he couldn’t help shouting. He couldn’t bear to hear any more. Just imagining anything like that with Jo Tae-su was unbearable.
And in reality, wasn’t it the opposite?
“It’s not like that. It’s not, so don’t say it.”
“…I see.”
“Really.”
“Alright.”
His short response made Seo Yi-young wonder if he truly believed him.
“I’m not going anywhere. Not to James, not to your side. Not for the time being.”
“So that means you’re thinking of moving eventually?”
“Can I give no comment on that?”
“Answering with a question again.”
Choi Do-jun wore an expression of dissatisfaction. Though he was generally expressionless, it was amusing how various emotions could be seen within that blankness.
“Fine. That’ll do.”
After responding like that, Choi Do-jun tried to get up from his seat, following Seo Yi-young. He seemed to want to escort him out. Seo Yi-young stopped him with one hand.
“I know the way out, so you don’t have to come.”
Seo Yi-young quickly added:
“The food was delicious. I’m leaving.”
After hastily finishing his words, Seo Yi-young turned to leave. He wondered if he shouldn’t have added that last comment, but the food had indeed been delicious, so it was fine. The guilt and sense of remorse Seo Yi-young felt were entirely his own. Regardless of confessing the truth to Choi Do-jun after finding out all the facts, he shouldn’t let it affect his attitude toward Choi Do-jun until then. Fortunately, he was able to leave right on time to meet Driver Jung.
After returning home, Seo Yi-young went straight to where he’d placed the items he’d collected from the new-type dungeon, without time to think about anything else.
“…Impossible.”
Seo Yi-young, who had muttered without realizing it, stared blankly into space for a while.
[???
Natural freshwater pearl necklace.
Passed through at least three owners. Well-maintained.]
[???
Lego block.
A block that was part of a globally limited 100-piece modular series. A special part that only came one per package.]
[???
Engraved electronic cigarette.
An item received as a gift. Repaired multiple times.]
[???
Partially used matchbox.
Used sparingly because it was difficult to obtain.]
.
.
.
Every single item Seo Yi-young had kept had a status window floating above it. As soon as Seo Yi-young checked a window, it automatically disappeared. Until then, they had been no different from other objects. Just to be sure, he examined other items in his house, but no status windows appeared. They only appeared on items Seo Yi-young had brought out from the new-type dungeon.
He couldn’t understand what difference between then and now had caused this. But what was clear was that all items that came from inside the dungeon had status windows.
He still didn’t know what would go in those question marks. But if he continued investigating, perhaps he could find a clue.
Seo Yi-young carefully examined the items.
The phrase ‘globally limited 100-piece modular’ written on the block caught his eye. If there were only 100 of them, perhaps he could find a list of purchasers. Although it was limited, he couldn’t tell what product it belonged to, so he took a photo with his phone. Seo Yi-young decided to post a question online or search to find out more, but first, he left to attend to his schedule for the day.
*
Today, Seo Yi-young’s schedule included attending the Seoul Freedom Day ceremony.
There, he unexpectedly encountered a particular individual. It was Lee Han-pil. The National Assembly member connected to the person who had attacked Seo Yi-young in the underground parking lot. Lee Han-pil noticed Seo Yi-young while greeting others and approached with a smile.
“Hunter Seo Yi-young, I’ve only been able to admire your achievements from afar, but now we finally meet. I’m National Assembly Member Lee Han-pil.”
He extended his hand with a friendly and sociable smile. It was clearly a greeting meant to indicate that their previous meeting would remain a secret. Since Seo Yi-young had no intention of revealing that fact in this setting either, he returned the smile and shook the offered hand.
“Pleased to meet you, Assemblyman Lee Han-pil.”
Thinking back, he’d met many political and business figures at such events, but this was the first time he’d seen Lee Han-pil in such a setting.
“Unfortunately, our assigned seats are a bit far apart. I didn’t want to miss the opportunity, so I came before the ceremony started.”
“Hearing that, I’m disappointed too. But I think you’ll find a way, Assemblyman Lee.”
He spoke sarcastically, implying Lee Han-pil’s previous actions toward him. Childish as it might seem, he couldn’t help it. After all, Seo Yi-young had been genuinely surprised then and could have been injured. But to others listening, it wouldn’t have sounded like anything unusual.
Lee Han-pil seemed to catch Seo Yi-young’s underlying meaning and gave an eye-smile. A warm smile spread across his face. Indeed, not just anyone could become a National Assembly member. When he smiled, he looked so genuinely kind that Seo Yi-young almost let his guard down. But even amidst that, his eyes remained sharp.
He was indeed a politician with a background as a prosecutor.
After meeting Lee Han-pil previously, Seo Yi-young had searched his past and learned about him. He had been a famous star prosecutor who had taken down awakened drug criminals and had lost his wife a few years ago. The difference in his gaze compared to others was too distinct to be merely due to prejudice from learning he was a prosecutor or just a feeling.
“As an S-Class Healer, you must have participated in various dungeon raids.”
“Yes, I have, but…”
What was the reason for stating such an obvious fact? He didn’t seem the type to make pointless small talk.
“You must know better than I do that there hasn’t been a dungeon break in the past few years.”
Seo Yi-young blinked.
“I’m not sure what you’re getting at.”
Lee Han-pil patted Seo Yi-young’s shoulder and moved closer. It was almost like an embrace. There were often people who tried to demonstrate friendliness like this. They were the type who wanted to show off that they were this close to Seo Yi-young. Lee Han-pil hadn’t seemed like that type, so Seo Yi-young wondered if he’d misjudged him. As he stood still, Lee Han-pil quickly spoke in a low voice.
“Are you aware that after dungeon raids, Normal awakened individuals inevitably go missing in the surrounding area?”
“…What?”
Seo Yi-young stared at Lee Han-pil as he pulled away, not immediately understanding what he had just heard. Lee Han-pil still wore that seemingly kind smile.
“Contact me if you’re interested.”
Lee Han-pil shook hands with Seo Yi-young again, this time with the opposite hand from their initial handshake. Having finished his conversation, Lee Han-pil casually patted Seo Yi-young’s shoulder and walked away. He was as calm as if nothing had happened. Seo Yi-young watched Lee Han-pil as he greeted others cheerfully, then looked down at his palm, unfolding it. There was a folded piece of paper in his palm.
It had Lee Han-pil’s contact information.
Given that it was written on paper rather than a business card, it seemed to be a personal contact. He quickly put the memo in his pocket to avoid attracting others’ attention.
As he had felt during their previous encounter in the parking lot, Lee Han-pil was an enigmatic person. It was hard to know how much of what he said should be believed. But it was certainly not something to be dismissed.
However, Lee Han-pil seemed like the type who would make decisions without regard for the harm others might suffer to achieve his goals, so caution was necessary. Before contacting him, Seo Yi-young needed to verify the truth. After all, it seemed unlikely that Lee Han-pil would bring up such a matter to him without reason.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
