RG 84

“Why are you here?”

To think I would run into Eun Woojeong at a time like this, in a place like this. Flabbergasted, I asked, and Eun Woojeong shrugged nonchalantly as if saying I’d stolen his line. “Why else would I be at Gwanghwamun? Obviously, I came to attend the event here.”

“…Are you saying you’re also attending this fashion show?”

“Yes., he answered without hesitation and tilted his head with a smile at my hesitant reaction. “Why? Does it seem like I’m lying?”

“No, it’s just…”

Unable to answer, I glanced over at Kwon Taehyeok. Judging by his complicated expression, he hadn’t expected to run into Eun Woojeong here either.

Eun Woojeong’s claim to be attending the fashion show was baffling. We had already reviewed the participant list, and his name wasn’t on it. We had been extra thorough, especially with rumors of celebrities being invited, so we were confident. That’s why we’d been reassured in the first place.

“Hmm.” Noticing the glances exchanged between me and Kwon Taehyeok, Eun Woojeong smiled knowingly, his eyes crinkling. “I had another schedule, but it got canceled, so I decided to come here instead. I waited until everyone else entered because I wanted to avoid attention.”

“Ha.”

He decided last minute to attend? And the organizers let him? No matter how popular he is, can they really do that?

‘Wait, that’s not the issue right now.’

Shoving aside the pointless thoughts, I forced a smile and took a step back. “I see. Well then, you should go ahead and enter now. We have other matters to attend to, so we’ll take our leave…”

Interrupting my polite farewell, Eun Woojeong asked teasingly, “Your ‘other matters’ wouldn’t involve sneaking into the fashion show, would they?”

“They wouldn’t, actually.”

“Oh, so they wouldn’t. I thought maybe you were planning to climb the wall and sneak in unnoticed.”

“Did I do that? I don’t know what you’re talking about. Maybe you dreamed it?” Matching his amused smile, I replied boldly, but he continued unfazed.

“If that were the case, I was going to tell you it wouldn’t be a good plan. Too bad.”

What? Narrowing my eyes involuntarily, I stared at him as he went on.

“They say fans have gathered here to see an idol attending the fashion show. So instead of just managing the event area, security has been tightened all the way to the road beyond the wall.”

For a moment, I was speechless. This was news to me. Of course, an event like this, with so many high-profile attendees, would have tight security. But I hadn’t expected it to escalate because of something like this. Still, it didn’t sit well to trust his words immediately. Running into him here, of all places, after a supposedly spontaneous decision, felt too coincidental.

‘Even if the system designated him as the “main character,” it’s hard to trust him…’

I glanced up at Eun Woojeong, who was looking down at me with that faint smile. The more I looked, the less trustworthy he seemed.

“It might be better to confirm it ourselves,” Kwon Taehyeok said calmly, watching the standoff between me and Eun Woojeong. He was suggesting we stick to the original plan and head toward the entrance of the National Folk Museum.

When I’d seen the two of them talking before, they had seemed like old acquaintances. But now, even Kwon Taehyeok didn’t seem entirely convinced by Eun Woojeong’s story. That was surprising.

“I agree. Well then, Eun Woojeong, perhaps we’ll meet again another time.”

I quickly nodded and turned away.

Ryu Seonghyeon, who wasn’t familiar with Eun Woojeong, followed quietly without interjecting, while Kwon Taehyeok gave Eun Woojeong a polite nod and walked off.

I had hoped we could go our separate ways, but the sound of footsteps trailing behind us was impossible to ignore.

“What is it?”

Unable to hold back, I turned and snapped at him, only to find Eun Woojeong widening his eyes in mock innocence.

“Well, I need to go inside eventually too. Can’t I just tag along?”

“Gwanghwamun is literally right there. Why insist on walking all the way to the museum entrance with us?”

“You both clearly don’t believe me, so I feel a bit wronged. I just want to follow along and see the moment you admit I was right.” Grinning slyly, he raised the pitch of his voice at the end, which made him all the more infuriating.

‘What’s his deal? Could he have some ulterior motive?’

Knowing he was the leader of that insufferable Spider’s Web, I couldn’t help but grow more suspicious of his persistence.

As I wracked my brain for a way to shake off this fox-like pest, Kwon Taehyeok sighed and stepped in. “Let’s drop it and move along. We have too much to do to waste more time here.”

He wasn’t wrong. In the short time we’d spent bickering, the surroundings had already grown noticeably darker. I shot Eun Woojeong a glare but begrudgingly relented.

“…Fine.”

***

When we reached the alley across from the National Folk Museum entrance, we saw guards stationed in front of a closed iron gate. They were positioned far enough apart to prevent anyone from scaling the wall, and all of them were Awakened, making it near impossible to sneak in.

Ryu Seonghyeon, staring at the guards with a grim expression, spoke softly, “What now?”

“Hmm…”

With entry completely blocked, I felt stuck. I had thought through what to do after meeting Kwak Seunggyu, but I’d assumed sneaking into the venue would be the easy part. I hadn’t given it much thought. That assumption had made sense earlier when I believed only Kwon Taehyeok and I would be going. If he carried me, it wouldn’t take a second to get over the wall. Even with Ryu Seonghyeon added to the team, it wouldn’t have been an issue since he, too, was an S-class and could move so fast no ordinary person would notice.

‘Who would’ve guessed security would get this tight because of idol fans…’

This was getting complicated. While I struggled to come up with an alternative, Eun Woojeong spoke up first, “Didn’t plan ahead at all, did you? This kind of scene happens all the time at events with celebrities.”

Why does he keep sticking his nose in?

“Now that we know your claim was true, don’t you think it’s time for you to leave?” I held back my irritation and sincerely asked him to go, but he ignored me completely and addressed Kwon Taehyeok instead.

“If you absolutely have to get in, wouldn’t it be better to just reveal your position? If you request it, the guildmaster’s attendance won’t be made public.”

“The media is not the issue. I don’t want it known that I’m here at all.”

“Ah, I see.” With a light tone of realization, Eun Woojeong blinked as if finally understanding. “So your target must be one of the event participants?”

Kwon Taehyeok silently turned his gaze away. Regardless, it was clear all three of us were equally uncomfortable with Eun Woojeong’s presence here.

‘This is a bigger problem, though.’

Kwon Taehyeok was right about time being short. The event would last no more than four hours, after which the participants would move to a hotel for an after-party. The after-party, being indoors, would have even tighter security than now. We had to get inside and find Kwak Seunggyu during the main event.

I swallowed my rising anxiety and considered various routes to sneak past the guards when suddenly—

Buzz!

A vibration came from somewhere. Confused, I fumbled in my coat pocket and found the phone Kwon Taehyeok had given me earlier shaking.

Could it be Cha Sahyeon? Alarmed, I quickly pulled it out, only to see an unfamiliar number on the screen.

“Kwon Taehyeok, do you recognize this number?”

When I showed him, he frowned slightly and shook his head. “No. Answer it.”

“Me?” Why was I being asked to answer his phone? I only need to take my brother’s calls.

“It could be someone trying to reach me through this number for an urgent reason.”

“Ah.”

It wasn’t entirely impossible. I gave Kwon Taehyeok a subtle nod before answering the call. The moment I put the phone to my ear, a cheerful voice rang out.

― Big bro!

The instant I recognized the voice, my face twisted into an ugly grimace. “How the hell did you—?”

― You want to get inside, right?

“What?”

— I’ll guide you in, no problem~

“Wait, what? You—!”

Before I could process the absurdity of the situation, the call abruptly ended. At the same time, the three standing beside me sharply turned their gazes past me. It seemed the S-classes had already sensed the presence of someone approaching. Shortly after, even I heard the sound of footsteps drawing closer.

A wave of dread washed over me. My neck felt stiff, as though rusted, but I forced myself to turn and look. From the shadows of the dimly lit alley emerged a relaxed figure.

“Big broooo!”

The disheveled hair bounced lightly with every step, and the ears glinted with piercings adorned with dazzling, colorful gems. 

Kwon Seoyul waved energetically at me.