Free Web NovelI left Joo Seowon to make a clown of himself alone and pulled out a few of the clothes I’d brought. I’d packed multiples just in case, and that turned out to be the right call. If we’d gone all the way to a department store in this situation, our schedule would’ve gotten tangled to hell.
“I’m going to fit it to you this evening, so want to nap a bit? We’ve got to stay up until dawn.”
Considering he hadn’t been in his right mind this morning either, it seemed smarter to knock him out now so things would be easier later.
But Joo Seowon looked a little sulky.
“I’m wide awake.”
“Yeah? Then don’t sleep. I will.”
I had zero intention of babysitting a sulky twenty-seven-year-old, so I gave up fast and lay down on the bed.
“You’re going to sleep now?”
“Yeah.”
“Can you fall asleep just like that?”
“If you stop yapping.”
“You rude little bastard....”
I tuned out the nonsense spilling from his mouth—guess he was tired after all—closed my eyes, and willed myself to sleep. When I didn’t answer, he asked in a quieter voice,
“...Want me to wake you up?”
“I’m fine. You sleep too.”
“......”
“Good night, Seowon.”
***
I hadn’t set an alarm or anything, but it was just a light nap, so I woke up at a decent hour. I checked the time and sat up; on the bed next to mine, Joo Seowon was asleep.
“So much for not sleeping.”
There was still plenty of time left, so I didn’t plan to wake him right away. I just got up and idly played with my phone.
About an hour later, I finally heard rustling next to me as His Highness stirred awake.
“...Seo Jehyun?”
“Mm.”
“...What the hell?”
“What.”
He blurted the words and then draped an arm over his eyes, groaning. Talking in his sleep?
“Are you up?”
“...What time is it?”
“Dinner time. We’ll eat and then move on.”
“I’m... not going to the restaurant.”
“I was going to order room service anyway.”
For someone who “couldn’t sleep,” he’d passed out, and now he was still half-asleep and dragging his feet. Hauling him to the restaurant would’ve been a colossal waste of energy. ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com
“Do you want anything?”
“I don’t like spices....”
If we cut out anything with spices, the options weren’t exactly plentiful.
I skimmed the menu and called in an order for steak and thick-cut fries.
I let him sleep a bit more until room service arrived, then woke him, and we knocked out dinner without much fuss.
“We should head out soon.”
I glanced at him—hair cleaned up nicely now—and tossed a few outfits onto the bed that looked like they’d work.
“Pick from there. Nothing with your ‘taste.’ Clean lines.”
“If I’m picking, why am I not allowed to use my taste?”
“Try living with a little doubt about your own eye.”
He made a face at that, but eventually picked something and behaved. I waited while he changed and gave him a quick once-over.
“Off-the-rack, but it fits well enough.”
“Wearing something that costs as much as a car for the set makes me feel bad.”
“Does it beat the watch you sold off to Nagao?”
“...Hey, give that back!”
I snickered and tossed him one of the watches I’d packed just in case.
“Wear that.”
“...Does this one have some function too? GPS tracker or ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ a bug or something?”
What, has he been popping paranoia pills lately?
I looked at him, exasperated, and humored him.
“When you get dumped in the middle of the street, it has a function where a pawn shop will turn it into cash.”
“So... it’s expensive?”
“I picked it up off the street.”
I answered with bullshit, and he let out a hollow laugh. Muttering to himself, he checked the brand and quietly strapped it on.
“Seowon, stop drooling over money....”
“...I wasn’t—hey! You’re the one who sold my watch!”
“I didn’t sell it. I just gave it away for free.”
“That’s worse, you psycho! That thing was expensive....”
“What you’re wearing now is about eight times pricier, so let it go.”
“What good is ‘expensive’ if it’s yours anyway?!”
Hmm. I had meant to give it to him. But his overblown reaction was funny, so I didn’t correct myself.
After the one-man tantrum, he finally quieted down and looked away.
“What about a belt?”
“Wear yours.”
“......”
“You going to steal the belt too?”
Unbelievable. Is he a thug or what?
I sighed, unbuckled my belt, and flicked it to him.
“Hand yours over.”
I crook-crooked my fingers, and he unbuckled the one he had on and passed it over without a fuss.
“Ah, wait....”
As he obediently buckled the belt, he made a weird little sound out of nowhere. I looked up, wondering what the hell that was about; he clamped his mouth shut and shook his head.
“What?”
“...It’s fine.”
“Are the clothes uncomfortable?”
“No. It’s fine.”
His face didn’t look fine. He looked oddly flushed. Weird expression.
I studied his face for a moment, checked the time, and stood.
“Let’s head out.”
“Uh....”
About thirty minutes later, we met Kang Sojeong near the hotel and moved to the Carman Hotel.
Kang Sojeong gave Seowon a head-to-toe once-over and dropped a quick verdict.
“If it all goes to hell, you can sell the clothes and walk. Looks expensive.”
“......”
I ignored her and handed Seowon the Space-Saving Box.
“Brought it as a spare. Cash and a few items inside. Use as needed.”
“Okay.”
Was I done here? Feeling like I’d wrapped up my part, I ditched the two of them and headed for the lounge.
“Have a good trip.”
“You say that real simply.”
“Fighting!”
With the cheer, the two of them seemed to swell with motivation and vanished toward the auction with a curse. I’d left plenty of buffer, so even if something cropped up now, I figured we’d have enough time to put out the fire.
“Alright, let’s wait and see.”
I settled into the hotel lounge and started handling the SH internal work I’d been putting off, with a glass of water.
How much time passed?
When a glance at my watch told me it had been a good while, I closed the laptop.
“Should be about time to wrap up.”
I was checking flights, thinking I’d move our departure up to tomorrow morning, when a call suddenly came through.
“What now?”
I’d told them not to connect unless they had to, so a call at all was a bad sign.
—Seo Jehyun.
“Problem?”
—Uh... a little.
A little? If it’s only “a little,” deal with it and come out.
I frowned and asked for details.
“What is it.”
—Tae Hyunjin’s sword came up... we won the bid. We even finished the exchange, but now they suddenly said they’re doing another inspection.
“...Passport?”
—Yeah. I only came in as her partner, so I just read the room and slipped away from the spot, but Sojeong’s side is kind of—
“...She’s under suspicion?”
—For now.
If it were Seowon, fine, but if she was the one under suspicion, what the hell was I supposed to do?
I weighed the options for a beat and asked again.
“Where exactly are you?”
—This looks like... a security waiting room. Ms. Sojeong stepped out “to talk for a moment.” They might send someone from upstairs....
“Do you actually have Tae Hyunjin’s sword on you?”
—I’ve got it. But they might take it.
“What happens if they take it?”
—It goes to the second-highest bidder.
Fuck. First real headache in a while.
I sighed, pressed a hand to my head, and got a grip on the situation.
“If they’ve openly grabbed you, they’re definitely suspicious.”
“On a scale of one to ten, how screwed are we?”
—From what number is it serious?
“Seven?”
—Right now... about a five.
So I don’t need to go? If they’re under watch, it’d be tricky to reach them through the crowd.
I was about to tell him to handle it and come out when his voice came again.
—It just hit seven.
Goddamn it, can nothing run smoothly for once.
***
As soon as Seowon’s report ended, I hurried out of the lounge and headed for the lobby. It was quiet at the desk—dawn.
I gave the staffer a polite nod and got straight to the point.
“Would it be possible to check in right now?”
“Ah, I’m sorry. At the moment, check-in is a bit difficult.”
Right, no reason for a hotel to take in some lunatic trying to check in at dawn. But I had the quickest fix for this situation.
“I’m in a bit of a hurry, and there’s nowhere else nearby to stay.”
“.......”
“Would a little extra tip help?”
I rolled some cash and handed it over, and I could see the war in the staffer’s eyes.
A moment later, after checking the computer, they lifted the corners of their mouth neatly and answered,
“Yes. Shall I put you in a suite?”
“Anything is fine.”
The first thing I did in the hastily secured room was set up the Teleport Box. I’d brought one just in case, but I didn’t think I’d actually end up using it.
I handled the setup while listening to Seowon’s updates in one ear.
For how rushed everything was, I had more breathing room than expected. Since every auction attendee was VIP or higher, the hosts couldn’t detain someone on suspicion alone.
—And Ms. Sojeong is kind of...
“Kind of?”
—Good at making things confusing.
“What does that mean.”
—She just shouted.
“Aha....”
In other words, she was doing a full “problem VIP” act. It looked cheap, but it worked directly. If you can casually drop the price of an auction item, you’re a big shot by existence alone. No matter how suspicious you are, you’re not easy to touch.
If they corner a pissed-off VIP right now, the ones who get screwed are the hosts. While Kang Sojeong wasted time being a pain, I prepared at a comfortable pace.
“Setup’s done....”
Then I heard Seowon’s voice.
—How are you even going to get in there?
“Who knows.”
—Huh?
“I do have one idea, but no clue if it’ll work.”
Lately even solid plans have been falling apart. A rushed plan working wasn’t exactly likely. Not that I’d made a real plan anyway.
With that, I left the room again and headed down to the first basement level.
I watched people trickle out after the auction and then gave a casual greeting to the security posted in place.
“Hello.”
“...Hello.”
The line was still open, so hearing my voice, Seowon asked, puzzled,
—What... what are you going to do?
What else is there in this situation?
I let my eyes drop to the access badge on the security guard’s chest and smiled.
“I saw someone suspicious earlier. Could you come with me for a moment?”
