TS 056
by AoiThe sleek car body came to a smooth stop. For a party venue, it was an area far from the city center, but the walls surrounding the vast estate, the streetlights at regular intervals, and the expensive cars parked orderly around them were reminiscent of a medieval castle.
An employee approached the sleek black car. When the door opened, a long leg stepped onto the ground.
The shoes seemed to be a direct reflection of the man’s car. They had elegant curves in all the right places, and the black leather was stretched long in a sleek shape.
It was an unremarkable design, but the static color and restrained design paradoxically gave off a reigning feeling.
“I will guide you.”
Finally, the suit tailored to his body moved along with the man’s footsteps.
The suit was also black. The fabric that enveloped his long legs moved as if the muscles were moving with every step the man took.
Unlike the employee’s clomping footsteps, he walked without making any presence. His movements were uninhibited, like a nocturnal beast confidently traversing the grasslands.
“I will check your invitation.”
Guards were standing at the entrance. Through the high iron mesh fence that seemed to pierce the sky, a part of the mansion was revealed. A large fountain, a landscaped garden, and people wearing masks and wandering around were visible.
So tacky I can’t even look. Yoon Taehwa held out the invitation.
“I will check the code.”
A guard who had bowed politely took the invitation to a scanning machine. It seemed he was checking for forgeries. A woman sitting on the other side, looking at a screen, nodded her head.
“Thank you for your cooperation. We have prepared something separately for guests who have forgotten their masks.”
Another guard approached and opened a large box. Yoon Taehwa, with a careless hand, picked up the mask on the very top. The mask, designed to cover the forehead and the bridge of the nose, had black feathers attached.
“We hope you have a good time.”
Despite the deep bow, Yoon Taehwa, instead of acting awkwardly, naturally entered the mansion. The habits ingrained in his body were quite helpful at times like these.
‘Yoon Taeseon was right.’
The man, who had entered with seamless movements, walked through the garden, taking in the atmosphere, instead of heading straight for the mansion. As Yoon Taeseon had said, it wasn’t a party for business conversations. The garden alone looked no different from any charity party, but Yoon Taehwa easily recognized the pleasures the mansion offered.
‘I have to admit her business sense is good.’
It was a party where it was better not to attend than to be caught up in unnecessary gossip.
Why did he throw a party like this in Korea? Yoon Taehwa leisurely wandered the garden, like someone enjoying a stroll.
“Would you like some champagne?”
An unmasked employee approached and showed him the champagne on a silver tray. Yoon Taehwa silently picked a champagne flute and held it in his hand. It was more convenient to move around if he at least looked the part.
‘Elijah Hernandez seems to be inside the mansion.’
The reason he had attended in Yoon Taeseon’s place, even though he didn’t enjoy such gatherings, was simple. It was because he felt strangely suspicious. Moreover, such intuitions were rarely wrong.
‘The bomb used in the Center terror attack this time…’
Unless it was copied by another company, it was definitely a Hernandez product. He thought he could find out which route the bomb had taken to reach the Ants if he obtained the data.
It was possible that he had joined hands with them. Yoon Taehwa brought the champagne flute to his lips, thinking of the unpleasant possibility. He had no intention of drinking, but he had the decency to pretend to drink.
Sexual interest is a given at parties like these. Moreover, the masquerade theme was downright blatant. Yoon Taehwa’s senses were not dull enough to miss the gazes that were sticking to him.
‘And Espers tend to stand out even more.’
He rolled his eyes and scanned the people’s faces. Since most of them were wearing masks that clearly revealed their mouths, like him, it was not difficult to read their identities.
An ordinary person might not be able to tell them apart easily, but for Yoon Taehwa, it was a simple task. Being an Esper and having seen many people from a young age had given him a good eye for people.
‘There are more familiar faces than I thought.’
Above all, to be invited to a party like this, they had to be people he was familiar with. Yoon Taehwa pretended not to see Yoon Taeseon’s friend passing by and brought the glass to his lips again.
“There’s no way this is just a party…”
If it were the publicly known Elijah Hernandez, there was a high possibility that it was just an ordinary party, but Yoon Taehwa thought differently.
Elijah Hernandez. The man responsible for raising the stock price of Hernandez Inc.
Yoon Taehwa gently stroked the stem of the glass and began to chew over the information he had gathered through the Center and Yoon Taeseon.
Elijah Hernandez was a man with an immense talent for weapon development. The number of weapons he had created so far was countless. He was also the one who had first created special bullets that could break a monster’s core by mixing in minerals found in dungeons.
『Hello.』
It was just as he was contemplating whether to look around a bit more or to move to find Elijah. A woman approached and spoke to him. She was a person in whom a deeply cut blue dress, an updo, and a white mask harmonized elegantly.
『Hello.』
Yoon Taehwa spoke English with a smooth pronunciation and gave a short bow to the woman.
『I’ve had my eye on you for a while.』
The eyes behind the mask were a vivid green. The eyes, which had a blue tint even under the dark night sky, told him that the woman was a Beastman.
『I see.』
『You came without a partner, right?』
Yoon Taehwa gave a polite smile and shrugged his shoulders.
『You don’t seem to be a Beastman… An Esper?』
『And you seem to be a Beastman.』
『Aren’t you curious what species I am?』
The woman, who had brought the champagne flute to her lips, asked with a smile. Her elegant lips drew an arc.
『I wonder.』
『Do you have a Guide? Your reaction is dull.』
『I never said I was an Esper. It’s not that you’re not attractive, but I’m here to meet someone.』
『Aha. Elijah Hernandez? That’s good. He’s someone I know well.』
There was no sign of her lying. Yoon Taehwa tilted his head askew at the woman and crinkled his eyes.
『Is there something you want from me?』
『Could you join me for a moment? There’s someone who’s being a nuisance.』
The woman pointed behind her and made a bored face. Yoon Taehwa naturally moved his body to cover her.
『Thank you. My name is… Hmm, shall you call me Christina?』
『Call me Yoon.』
It couldn’t have been her real name. Yoon Taehwa, too, instead of telling her his real name, made up a plausible one.
『Alright, Yoon. Actually, I came this way because there’s someone who keeps bothering me. Men are quick to recognize a superior male.』
『I’m glad I appeared that way.』
Yoon Taehwa was used to social conversations. Even though he acted mercilessly when working as an Esper, he knew how to show the appropriate attitude in gatherings like these. No matter how long he had rolled around in the field, he couldn’t hide the habits he had learned from his family.
『By the way, what’s your business with Elijah?』
『Let’s just say it’s a personal interest.』
He planned to first extract clues related to the new bomb, and then, depending on the situation, dig for more information.
‘This is something I could use Han Suryeon for…’
Since they were acquainted, it wouldn’t be bad to find out through Kasatka. But putting aside the fact that Han Suryeon was nowhere to be seen, the party, which was being held in Korea out of the blue, bothered him.
‘And more than half of the guests are foreigners.’
A party held in a foreign country, not their own, and people who had come all this way. No matter how much of a party animal he was, there were some suspicious aspects.
『You’re not interested in that sort of thing, are you?』
Christina asked, drinking her champagne. He couldn’t read her exact expression because of the mask, but the movement of her muscles seemed to indicate a frown.
『That sort of thing? …If you’re asking if I like men, let’s just say no.』
『Ah, I didn’t mean it that way. Elijah has a rather unique… hobby.』
『It sounds like a strange hobby.』
Christina just shrugged her shoulders in response. Her exposed shoulders shone white under the moonlight.
A snake Beastman? Just as he was instinctively trying to identify her species, Christina raised her head and met his eyes. Her green eyes narrowed, as if sizing him up.
『Well, Yoon seems to be handsome, so.』
『I don’t know what you’re talking about all of a sudden, but I’ll take it as a compliment.』
『It is a compliment.』
She turned her body elegantly and gestured with her head toward the mansion entrance.
『There he is, the person you were looking for.』
A man in a white suit walked out with a cheerful gait. As the host of the party, he was wearing a mask, as if he intended to perfectly adhere to the concept.
“..…”
The moment the man’s gaze turned this way, Yoon Taehwa squinted one eye.