SOG Ch 102

It was a chat room with the guide of Team 9, the source who had received the image of Seon Eun-soo’s nose bridge earlier. Yu-ram, who was chewing radish and checking her chat room, let out a surprised sound.

“Your future lunch date is getting sued?”

Jae-chan, who had been adding rice, stopped.

*

Seon Jae-chan’s prediction was correct. Gyeong Chang-hyun was sued for allegedly drugging a woman with TZ on their date at the motel ‘Little Alien’, as found by the Team 9 informant.

Rumors were spreading around the Center as well, making it clear that this was something that had never happened in the past. Why did something that never happened happen?

‘Was it simply because his movements changed?’

The only apparent variable was that unlike in the past, anti-terrorism training was carried out, and the movement route on that day changed while having lunch with Jae-chan on the day of the incident. No other variables were found.

Therefore, they decided to focus on the probability that the incident occurred by chance, but not to overlook other possibilities. There was also the possibility that Chang-hyun was directly involved. Although he was a clean guy who wouldn’t typically get caught up in such trouble, there was always a chance.

Unfortunately, Jae-chan was on the afternoon shift recently. As the evening approached, without even eating dinner, he made time during mealtime to visit Chang-hyun.

“I don’t remember. I really don’t…”

However, Chang-hyun was strangely uncooperative.

It was great to be able to coax a guy who wouldn’t even open the door to let Jae-chan go into his studio apartment. However, Chang-hyun crouched down in the dark without any lights on and kept repeating like a parrot that he couldn’t remember.

“…”

Under the dim light, with his dyed hair not properly set, his evasive eyes avoided Jae-chan’s gaze. Jae-chan felt like he was hiding something. It was a stark contrast to a month ago when he had come to the dorm seeking help, and being proactive in his statements.

“Did you remember something?”

“… I don’t.”

“You remembered. Who were you with last time?”

He was not good at lying. Jae-chan could clearly see him avoiding the answer. Then, his phone rang. Chang-hyun’s face turned pale in the dim light.

Jae-chan glanced at the caller ID but it was a false alarm. The screen displayed [Mom♡]. Chang-hyun was quite afraid of his own mother.

“Think carefully. Who was the last person you met before losing consciousness?”

Jae-chan continued to persuade him, but Chang-hyun, who had put his phone down in a hurry, just pondered in silence and never said anything.

There was no choice.

Jae-chan stood up and sighed. Giving up on what couldn’t be done for now, he needed to buy time and come up with another plan. That guy would eventually talk.

Since he had guiding duties left, Jae-chan left Chang-hyun’s house and headed back to the center. He quickly grabbed a few convenience store sandwiches to fill his stomach, then guided the two rather unstable Espers.

After finishing work around 11 o’clock, he headed straight to the pub. It was the only pub within the Center, the same place Chang-hyun claimed to have stayed until the end.

Jae-chan pushed his way through the crowd of customers and approached the bartender.

“Can I see the store’s CCTV?”

After explaining the situation, and given that the police had recently visited, the bartender quickly understood. “Just a moment. Let me check with the boss.” He disappeared into the staff room and returned looking uneasy.

“The boss says no. He says to leave the investigation to the police.”

“Well, I guess there’s nothing I can do. Could I at least speak with the boss?”

Jae-chan asked the question as politely as possible. The bartender smiled awkwardly and refused. Jae-chan had no choice but to suggest the next method.

“Then, how about this… I’m really desperate.”

He apologized if this seemed impolite. Jae-chan added a little and took out an envelope so that it could not be seen by the guests.  As he opened it, a stack of high-value vouchers he had withdrawn earlier was revealed.

In the future, he would often buy information from the bartender here. Jae-chan wasn’t sure if it would work because it was a different employee now than it was then.

“…”

The current employee was silent. At this time, another customer approached, and Jae-chan quickly put the envelope back into his coat pocket.

“If you change your mind, please contact me. I need help.”

Jae-chan, who was about to leave, stopped and turned around as if he remembered something.

“Tell me one thing. Was he with someone before leaving?”

The bartender’s eyes shook slightly.

“Well… I don’t exactly remember, but it seems like I was with someone before leaving.”

With that said, the bartender left to take orders.

Jae-chan recalled Chang-hyun’s evasion once again. Who could he have been with last that he wouldn’t talk about?

But it was too late to visit him again. He checked the clock approaching midnight and sighed lightly. Jae-chan headed back to his dorm in the increasingly chilly night air.

*

The next day, Gyeong Chang-hyun did not come to work at the Guide Team 1 office. Although he was officially on sick leave, whispers that it might have been because of the lawsuit swept through the Guide Bureau.

In the evening after work, Seon Jae-chan visited Gyeong Chang-hyun’s house and was faced with a brief moment of regret, wondering if he should have come to see him late last night. It was because he encountered an unwelcome visitor at Chang-hyun’s house.

“Jae-chan, it’s been a while.”

It was Jeong Yeon-oh. The guy asked with droopy, gentle eyes.

“It’s been a while. What’s brought you here?”

Jae-chan clicked his tongue as he looked at Yeon-oh’s puppy-like eyes. Jae-chan could tell Jeong Yeon-oh was looking down on him, possibly because he knew the difference between his outside and within himself.

Originally, among the Gyeong Chang-hyun group, Jeong Yeon-oh tended to look down on this group. Jae-chan didn’t know about it in the past, but at this time, Jeong Yeon-oh had secretly been building a friendship with Seon Eun-soo. Jeong Yeon-oh was also secretly interested in Seon Eun-soo.

Therefore, Jeong Yeon-oh knew how Jae-chan was treated in the family.

“I have something to ask that guy.”

As he walked past Jeong Yeon-oh, Jae-chan pointed at Chang-hyun, who was stuck in the studio. However, he soon felt something unfamiliar from Chang-hyun.

There was no sign of the same anxiety as yesterday in Chang-hyun, who sat in the well-lit room with neatly dried hair.

And Chang-hyun didn’t even look in his direction.

Gyeong Chang-hyun turned away from him with an expressionless face and only played with the laptop that seemed to have been brought by Jeong Yeon-oh. He seemed engrossed in playing a game.

A spectacle of flesh-colored images flashed across the monitor. It was the adult shooting game that Yeon-oh always played.

“Good to see you. I was just talking about you.”

Jeong Yeon-oh approached Chang-hyun and patted his shoulder. Chang-hyun laughed and said, “What’s up, dude?” and jokingly elbowed Yeon-oh’s side. At the same time, Jeong Yeon-oh pointed to the screen.

“Stop for a moment. Oh, you’re driving me crazy.”

Looking at the revealing costumes of the game characters, Yeon-oh licked his lips in satisfaction. Jae-chan had been standing there blankly all this time. A moment passed, and Chang-hyun, who had been furrowing his eyebrows little by little, spoke up.

“Hey, leave.”

Although his eyes were still focused on the monitor, it was clear to whom he was speaking. Jae-chan heard it. Chang-hyun, still immersed in the game, clicked the mouse and said jokingly,

“What’s up? Want to join? If you do, stay.”

“But you hate this stuff, don’t you?”

Yeon-oh added mockingly.

“Jae-chan is too refined for this.”

Jae-chan glanced between the frenetic game character, Yeon-oh, and Chang-hyun in turn. Yeon-oh was smiling slightly, and Chang-hyun was just furrowing his eyebrows.

“Aren’t you hungry?”

Chang-hyun’s hand that was operating the mouse was strained when Jae-chan’s voice suddenly broke the silence.

Bang! Bang bang! Argh! A futile gunshot sound and a small scream rang out, and Chang-hyun let go of the mouse and answered.

“Yeah. I’m not hungry.”

Jae-chan immediately turned around and came out.

It was when he was putting on his sneakers in the cluttered entrance filled with bills and notices. Yeon-oh, who followed him out, came closer.

“Eun-soo hyung contacted me.”

Still smiling, Jeong Yeon-oh, whispered in a voice that could not be heard in the room.

“Be nice to your brother. He’s also good at guarding his neck.”

It sounded threatening, but it also carried a double meaning. It was a remark acknowledging Seon Eun-soo’s intimidating demeanor.

“Well, it was something you can just see with your eyes.”

Jae-chan whispered back in a voice too low to be heard.

“Just hang out with Seon Eun-soo in moderation.”

“…”

“Stop consuming sexual content for show.”

Why can’t guys just be honest about liking guys? He inwardly scoffed. Yeon-oh looked frozen in place. Jae-chan gently patted his shoulder with a sympathetic touch before leaving.

He paused briefly as he reached the entrance of the villa.

He looked up at the dim sky. Various thoughts raced through his mind, furrowing his usually calm brows.

Like Black Swan, the trio were more like crumbling buildings due to disasters rather than the disasters themselves, so they had been put on the back burner for now. It was more urgent to prevent a catastrophe that could shake the entire Alliance.

He also recalled Gyeong Chang-hyun, who hadn’t looked his way until the end. The moment when he had come looking for Jae-chan with a pale face, and the relief when it was confirmed he wasn’t a murderer.

“…”

Jae-chan took out his cell phone. He was thinking about contacting Han Ji-hoon, who had ties to the police, but then he remembered that the second request was still in progress. It wouldn’t be wise to ask for too many favors at once.

The choice was clear in the end. With a slightly reassured heart, Jae-chan moved his fingers with determination.

[Do you have a moment?

10:00 PM]

He sent a message to Woo-jin The chat window, which had cut off even one-sided contact with Jae-chan before his regression, has been continuing frequently these days. Since he was in the position of asking for a favor, Jae-chan was planning to go see Woo-jin himself if he said it was okay.

The moment he started walking towards the main road with his phone in hand, a call came in.

As expected, he had a good sponsor. A smile naturally appeared on Jae-chan’s lips as he accepted the call.