Embedded Files
Psst! We're moving!
The day after receiving their orders, Yoon Tae-ha was scheduled to watch the competition with Cheon Geon-young. The weather was bad from the morning. It looked like it could rain at any moment from the gray clouds, but since it was Geum Gang-seop's order, it couldn't be canceled or postponed.
She had to show Geum Gang-seop’s people that she was subtly handling Cheon Geon-young. It would be unnatural to act too familiar, but it would be good to consistently show that he was conscious of the Chimera. Since Lee Won-shik was also watching today's game, she also had the intention of observing him at the same time.
The two of them used a waterway to head to the area where the artificial dungeons were concentrated. Since the stadium was not near the main island, traveling by yacht was the fastest way. The employee driving the yacht was friendly toward the two of them.
“Unfortunately, the weather is bad. But the place you’re going to watch is not affected by the weather at all, so don't worry.”
Yoon Tae-ha asked, pretending to be interested.
“Will the people participating in the game get wet if it rains?”
“It depends on the type of artificial dungeon. And the one you two are going to today is a dungeon with a roof. Because the difficulty is high, various variables need to be controlled.”
The game that Yoon Tae-ha and Cheon Geon-young were going to watch was an exciting match that was called a “mistake of Gaia.” This was because two guilds that should have met in a higher round were pitted against each other in the highest-difficulty dungeon of the first round.
A moment later, when the yacht arrived at the artificial island, Cheon Geon-young got off first and escorted her. From that moment on, the curtain of a cringe-worthy but essential play was raised.
The stadium was shaped like an inverted seashell on a flat cylinder on the beach. The roof, which was more rounded on the right, was white, in sharp contrast to the gloomy sky. As they went inside, an employee in a shirt as clean as the roof approached and guided them.
“We’ve been waiting for you. This way, please.”
The place they were guided to was a VIP box one level above the broadcast booth. It was cozy, with the front open and the sides closed off.
About 30 minutes after they sat down, the lights in all directions went out, and the host’s voice rang out loudly. He enthusiastically explained the Class A artificial dungeon where two guilds, one from the Allied Nations and one from Korea, would compete.
“The team that climbs the tiered platform in the center and rings the giant bell first wins! There are no restrictions on how to ring the bell. You can politely pull the rope, or you can hit the opponent’s head against the bell!”
The people packed in the stands cheered.
“There is a protective shield between you and the stadium that even monsters and superhumans more powerful than monsters cannot cross. Please enjoy the game with peace of mind.”
As soon as the explanation about the dungeon was over, Yoon Tae-ha got up from her seat.
“Are you stuffy?”
“A little. Anyway, they’ll all be busy killing monsters at first, so I’ll go to the snack bar on the second floor. I’ll be back before the participants enter the main arena.”
Cheon Geon-young glanced at his watch for a moment and told her to go ahead. Without a communicator, Yoon Tae-ha strode out of the stands.
The hallway connected to the stadium was not deserted. Since it was a long game that would officially last for more than five hours, other people also didn't seem to want to wear themselves out from the start.
Arriving on the second floor, Yoon Tae-ha noticed that there were at least seven Titans in the long, vertical food stalls. They were watching her, pretending to buy beer or pizza. Just then, the phone the Chancellor had given her vibrated.
[Pillar in front of the candy store. Urgent rendezvous.]
After checking the message, Yoon Tae-ha pushed through the crowd holding snacks and went deep into the snack bar. When she arrived in front of the candy store, someone’s hand quickly grabbed her wrist.
Yoon Tae-ha, who was suddenly pulled behind a pillar, found her eyes meeting Lee Won-shik’s, who was smiling like a slippery snake. At that moment, the agents who were watching her approached fluidly, and they stood shoulder to shoulder to form a wall so that the two of them could not be seen by other spectators. The cheerful song coming from the candy store also suddenly got louder.
“Is it true that you were rolling around in the department store without any regard for propriety?”
Yoon Tae-ha impatiently shook off Lee Won-shik's hand. Lee Won-shik asked with an unusual amount of interest. She glared at the back of the Titan who was munching on pizza with his back turned, then shot back fiercely.
“You all came and ruined everything.”
“So you couldn’t go all the way?”
“I told you not to act like a voyeur. I said I’d handle it myself. Do I still look like I’m in a capsule?”
Since she had attacked the Chimera research center, she could easily guess the environment in which the subject she was impersonating had grown up. Lee Won-shik nonchalantly dismissed her threat with a sinister sneer. Judging from his actions, Lee Won-shik seemed to believe that a Chimera would never attack him. The old man in front of her didn't even have a minimal defense mechanism.
“We already respect you. You should know that we let you loose in the residential area.”
“Then don’t hang around here like a stray dog that hasn’t eaten for a week. That man is quick-witted. If he sees a similar face around him often, he’ll get suspicious of me.”
“If he gets suspicious but can't give you up, then the problem will be solved.”
Lee Won-shik took out two rustling candies from his suit pocket and handed them to Yoon Tae-ha. She asked in a cold, icy tone.
“What are these?”
“The red candy is a drug that encourages impulsive traits in Espers. The yellow one is a powerful sleeping pill. Give these to the man when I give the order.”
If she hadn't come back, Cheon Geon-young would have been frequently exposed to such childish schemes. Disgust filled her to the top of her head. Yoon Tae-ha, who had taken the candies, narrowed the distance between them.
“What kind of impulse does it encourage?”
She whispered affectionately, and as she moved her hand, she subtly grabbed Lee Won-shik’s tie, pretending to straighten it. She could clearly feel Lee Won-shik exhaling a hot breath and scanning her neck, shoulders, and the top of her chest.
“The impulse to be attracted to the power you possess. It’s natural for an Esper to want a Guide.”
Just at that moment, a strange object caught on Yoon Tae-ha’s fingertip as she was straightening his crooked tie. It was something like a hard, thin string between the soft fabric of the tie. Instantly, the key came to her mind. It was the key that Lee Won-shik had to protect dearly, his lifeline.
“I’m not trying to move your emotions. At the necessary moment, all that needs to happen is for the man to be so obsessed with your body that he pants like a dog.”
While his tongue was saying dirty words, Yoon Tae-ha took her hand off the tie. Lee Won-shik scolded her for tightening it too much and loosened the knot himself.
“There's no time. We will start with a small one soon.”
Leaving behind words that sounded like an omen that a fissure would open, Lee Won-shik disappeared. As he came out from behind the pillar, the agents who had snacks in their mouths also scattered into the crowd. Yoon Tae-ha also did not delay and moved toward the stands where Cheon Geon-young was waiting.
After a while, she was moving when she found an unexpected person in front of the stairs connecting the second and third floors. It was Baek Sang-ho, the leader of the Alpha team, with whom she had faced various difficulties in the green sea.
Holding a new hot dog that he hadn't touched, he stopped in the middle of the stairs after confirming Yoon Tae-ha's face. The people around him turned to avoid him. Yoon Tae-ha naturally walked up the stairs.
“I didn’t expect to meet you here.”
Just as she was about to pass Baek Sang-ho, he spoke to her first.
“Agent Yoon Tae-ha. I’m glad you look healthy.”
Only then did Yoon Tae-ha pretend to know him.
“You’re Agent Baek Sang-ho of the Alpha team, right? I’m glad to meet you too. Did you come with your friend?”
“I came with my team. For the exhibition. My teammates like to collect weapons.”
Baek Sang-ho stared at her with an expression that was hard to read. One thing was for sure: he didn’t seem to be treating Yoon Tae-ha with the same cheerful attitude as before.
“I see. There were a lot of interesting seminars, I don’t know if you heard any of them. I enjoyed the seminar given by Professor Na Young-gyo.”
Baek Sang-ho and the Korean Alpha team had not been informed of Changcheon’s plan. The biggest reason was the leader, Baek Sang-ho. It was because there was a possibility that he harbored resentment toward Yoon Tae-ha due to the sorrow of losing I-ro-a, and thus could become a turncoat.
Yoon Tae-ha thought such a suspicion was an insult to Baek Sang-ho, but it was not a judgment she could change on her own. Since she couldn’t tell his teammates a secret that even the team leader wasn’t told, it was natural that other Alpha team agents, including Choi Bo-mi, didn’t know she was alive.
“Where are you watching the game? I know there are two breaks in the middle, and I’d like to buy your teammates a beer or something. In a way, the Alpha team is the one that saved me.”
“My team didn't save you. Center Director Lee Hae-kyung did.”
He rejected her offer without mercy.
“But it’s true that you guys provided support, isn’t it?”
Finally, Baek Sang-ho showed signs of displeasure.
“Do you think I wouldn’t know?”
For a moment, Yoon Tae-ha was very surprised, thinking that he had figured out her identity. Her heart rate suddenly shot up.
“You seem to think that we would seriously believe something like 'the Ark agent who was dramatically rescued from the research center'... You should know that there aren't only fools in the office.”
But Baek Sang-ho was talking about something completely different.
“I feel like you’re getting too arrogant just because you fooled the Center Director. The fact that you’re Yoon Tae-ha is really hard to believe. It’s not a matter that ends just by copying a face exactly the same.”
Baek Sang-ho couldn’t distinguish between her and the Chimera. But he also didn't brand the missing Agent Yoon Tae-ha as a villain. On the contrary, he suspected that the Yoon Tae-ha brought by Ark was suspicious. He didn’t believe the slander that the agent he had worked with in the rain was a traitor.
“Be careful. I don’t trust you.”
After giving a final warning, Baek Sang-ho took a bite of the hot dog in his hand and walked down the stairs.
Although she had received a harsh lecture, Yoon Tae-ha’s mood did not get worse; instead, it got better. She bought two hot dogs identical to the one he had bought and headed to the stands.
Google Sites
Report abuse