Chapter 5
The low voice struck Seo Igeon’s ears precisely. He could be a voice actor. His voice is really good. But who is he talking to? Could he possibly be talking to me? Did he recognize me? Of course he recognized me. What a silly thought. But what does that have to do with me? Seo Igeon ignored Han Taekyung’s gaze as he organized the order.
Han Taekyung watched Igeon for a moment before giving a slight smile and making way for the customer waiting behind him. Then he quietly observed Seo Igeon working at the counter until his coffee was ready.
“Here’s your Americano, sir.”
The manager personally handed the Americano to Han Taekyung.
“Thank you. By the way, Manager.”
“Yes?”
“That part-timer at the counter… has he always worked here?”
“Oh, that young man?”
“Yes.”
“He’s probably the same age as you, Taekyung.”
“Yes, I know that.”
“You do? Do you know each other?”
“Yes. Though I think he doesn’t recognize me.”
“Ah… well, he’s a friend who comes in occasionally on weekends to help out. He’s diligent, kind, and has good stamina, so I ask him to help when I’m in a pinch.”
“I see. Thank you for the coffee.”
“Please give my regards to Jaekyung.”
“I will.”
As Han Taekyung left the café, Seo Igeon glanced at his retreating figure. They were both high school seniors, but seeing him walk away with his coat fluttering made Igeon feel like they were from different worlds. No, he shouldn’t think like that. Such thoughts would only make him miserable. When they faced each other in the arena, they were the same people under the same conditions.
“Yeonwoo is taking too long.”
The manager spoke, sounding worried.
“I was about to go to the bathroom anyway, so I’ll check on Yeonwoo on my way.”
“Okay. I’ll watch the counter.”
Leaving the counter to the manager temporarily, Igeon went to the employee break room. Inside, a part-timer who was responsible for the afternoon shift was changing into their uniform. But Yeonwoo was nowhere to be seen.
“Jin-ho hyung, have you seen Yeonwoo?”
“Hmm? She wasn’t here when I arrived.”
She said she felt stuffy, so maybe she went outside for some fresh air? Igeon was considering just going to the bathroom, but he was concerned about how unwell she had looked, so he opened the emergency door connected to the end of the break room corridor to look a bit more.
“Help me!!! No!!”
Beyond the large garbage bins where the café’s food waste and recyclables were disposed of, there was a rattling sound along with a familiar voice. A scream desperately calling for help. Seo Igeon quickly ran toward the sound. Perhaps hearing the noise, a dark figure hurriedly moved away, brushing past Igeon, and next to the garbage bin was Yeonwoo with her clothes in disarray, crying with a face that had turned completely red as if she had been hit.
“Oh my god, Yeonwoo!!”
“What happened?!”
Hearing the commotion, another part-timer rushed out from the break room.
“Yeonwoo! Are you okay?”
“…Igeon.”
Yeonwoo grabbed onto Igeon and cried. He could roughly guess what had happened. Yeonwoo was an omega. Moreover, judging by the pheromones he could sense now, she was undoubtedly in heat cycle… Igeon was thankfully aware that the other part-timer present was a beta.
“Jin-ho hyung, please take care of Yeonwoo. Give her suppressants and take her to the hospital. And let the manager know.”
Igeon took off his apron and rolled up his sleeves.
“What? What about you?”
“I need to catch that bastard.”
“What?!”
Before Jin-ho could stop him, Seo Igeon ran out of the alley in the direction that the garbage had fled. Though it was just a brief encounter, he had seen him clearly. Blue jeans and a black t-shirt, shorter than Seo Igeon but with a fairly solid build. Short hair with an unshaven, scruffy beard, and wearing sneakers. He remembered quite a lot of details for such a brief encounter, but the problem was the enormous crowd that spread out before him as soon as he left the alley. Given the famous bustling area where the NI headquarters building was located, and the size of the surrounding shopping center, this was perhaps to be expected.
The large intersection would make it difficult for him to cross the road or escape, so the direction that guy would likely choose was toward the crosswalk where many people were crossing. Moreover, once across the crosswalk, there was a shopping center where it would be even harder to find someone, so it was obvious he would flee that way. He needed to catch him before that. Where is he?
As the traffic light changed, Seo Igeon became more anxious. Why were there so many people? He wasn’t among the people currently visible. Should he cross? Or should he look around more? The people who had been nearby were already halfway across the crosswalk. At that moment, a man wearing a black cap caught his eye. A cap? That guy wasn’t wearing a cap. So it’s not him? But somehow the build and clothes looked like that man. Igeon wanted the man to show even a slight side profile. That’s when it happened. The man turned slightly as if checking his surroundings.
“That bastard!!”
Seo Igeon ran toward the crosswalk with all his might. The man seemed to notice something and began walking quickly, almost running. Could he catch up? As he worried, someone entered Igeon’s field of vision. A man the suspect brushed past. A straight posture. And relaxed footsteps.
“Han Taekyung!!!”
He called out to him with all his might. Among the cars filling the road, the densely packed crowd, and the city noise that confused the ears, he thought his voice might not be heard. But miraculously, Taekyung immediately stopped and turned around. At that moment, their eyes met.
“In front!! Catch the man in the black cap going ahead!!! The man in jeans!! That bastard is an attempted rapist!!”
No sooner had Igeon finished speaking than Han Taekyung politely handed the coffee he was holding to a passerby and ran with all his might toward the man in the black cap who was fleeing. The man had safely crossed the crosswalk and was trying to go to the shopping center as Igeon had predicted, but as soon as he reached the entrance, Han Taekyung grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and mercilessly threw him to the ground.
“Fuck!! Who the hell are you?!”
The man in the black cap shouted at Han Taekyung as if he were being wronged. Han Taekyung twisted the man’s arm and held it firmly, while with his other hand he took out his phone and dialed 112 to report. By then, Seo Igeon had arrived, panting as he looked down at the garbage in the black cap with contempt.
“This crazy bastard, in broad daylight—!”
“Aagh!!!”
The man, who had been glaring at Seo Igeon with his teeth gritted as if wronged, suddenly writhed his body. Then, desperately moving the arm pinned under his body, he pulled out an army knife from somewhere in his waistband and swung it, and the blade grazed Han Taekyung’s arm.
“Han Taekyung!”
“Tsk.”
As Han Taekyung inevitably released the arm holding the man and stood up, the man also jumped up and swung the knife. Wow, this guy really is something else. Looking carefully, the man was also wearing an electronic ankle monitor on his right ankle. Such bastards shouldn’t be let out on the streets! Why is our country’s law still in this sorry state?
“Don’t come near me!! I’ll kill you!!”
Wow, even such a cliché line. Seo Igeon really sighed. But he couldn’t just leave it alone. There were too many people around. If he took someone hostage or if someone got hurt, things would get complicated. What should he do?
“Seo Igeon.”
Han Taekyung casually approached Igeon. Igeon was much more surprised that he called his name than by his sudden approach. For some reason, he was really startled.
“I’ll do a blocking kick, and you use your specialty inside kick to knock him down.”
When did he see me to speak so informally?
“What? Won’t that be dangerous for you?”
Then I’ll speak informally too.
“Not at all.”
Saying that, Han Taekyung walked toward the man. The man swung his knife and shouted not to come closer, but as he was gradually driven into a dead-end alley, he lunged at Han Taekyung as expected. Han Taekyung lightly pushed the man outward with a blocking kick. As the man staggered, Seo Igeon, as if he had been waiting for this moment, rushed forward with an inside kick to knock the man down, and simultaneously, Han Taekyung struck his wrist to make him drop the knife before subduing him. Soon after, the sound of police rushing over was heard. Han Taekyung and Seo Igeon glanced at each other and handed the man over to the police as soon as they arrived. But that wasn’t the end of it. They both had to go to the police station to testify about what had happened, and by the time they finished all the procedures and came out, it was already past 9 PM.
Once outside, an awkward atmosphere hovered around the two of them. What on earth was happening? It felt more surreal to have been with Han Taekyung than to have caught a crazy piece of trash. They both left the police station building without saying a word. As Seo Igeon suddenly glanced at Han Taekyung, he noticed that the sleeve of his coat was tattered. Oh, come to think of it, that bastard had swung a knife at Han Taekyung earlier, right?
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
