episode_0033

“You drank well.”

Il-sim’s Sangmun politely greets me.

I bow deeply in response.

“Thank you for helping with the reconstruction of the store… I’m really grateful.”

The fallen store is filled with members of the Joksah organization.

They climb up the ladder themselves, fix the roof, and repair the floor.

Most companies hesitated to request help from Il-sim and his protected store due to the association’s watchful eye.

Thanks to this, Il-sim’s organization members have become versatile workers.

Although I once did some odd jobs in the military, these people are almost like professionals.

All I could do was offer them cocktails one by one.

“Now that the renovation is almost done, you can go back.”

“Is it really okay…? I feel so irresponsible…”

“Women can’t handle this kind of work. The smell of chemicals is strong…”

At the mention of ‘women,’ my mind momentarily stops.

While I show such a reaction, Sangmun turns his head and starts giving orders for the renovation work.

And perhaps feeling frustrated, he rushes to the site himself.

Left alone, I just stare blankly at his figure.

Am I not supposed to be doing this kind of thing anymore?

A sour bitterness lingers in my mouth.

I leave the store, rolling the taste around on my tongue, feeling lonely.

On my way out, I almost collide with one of the organization members.

He didn’t see me because he was carrying a concrete block on his shoulder.

“Sorry…”

“It’s okay.”

I quickly exit the store.

Because I keenly felt Sangmun’s words.

I walked the streets alone.

With sudden leisure time, I could think about various things.

Maybe I should visit the market.

Since I used up the last vegetables at home, there might be nothing to eat when I return.

“Come to think of it… I heard a department store recently opened.”

I opened my phone.

And searched for one of the few surviving department stores after the monster incident.

Gasan.

Close to Sindorim.

Might as well walk there to save money.

I firmly held a large crossbody bag over my shoulder and started walking.

It should be relatively safe during the day.

Unless a monster suddenly appears, that is.

“—.”

The sunlight brightly hits the road.

Even though it’s still spring, the hot asphalt shimmers with heat waves.

I wiped the sweat off my palm.

Wait, is the department store this far…?

It used to be a short distance that you could walk quickly.

But now, even moving my legs frantically takes a while.

“Should I take a taxi…?”

I gaze down the road.

A black taxi is visible at the intersection.

Black taxis are originally for the wealthy, and in this lawless era, the basic fare is a whopping 20,000 won.

Spending 20,000 won on a taxi ride just to go shopping?

That’s unreasonable.

I sighed deeply.

Then I looked at an old car standing confidently on the spacious road.

Not just any ‘old car.’

In smooth milk color, a beautiful Jaguar emblem is embedded on the front.

Even if it’s old, it must be a very expensive car.

Someone who drives such a car in this era.

They must be at least a member of the association or a corporate leader.

I look at the person sitting alone in the driver’s seat.

A woman with long black hair and sunglasses.

I stared intently at her profile.

Suddenly, I realize that she has a familiar face.

Who was she again?

“—.”

As I pondered intensely, the window rolled down.

And the woman, who had been in profile, began to look directly at me.

Did she notice my gaze?

Instinctively, I bowed deeply.

What should I do…

She wouldn’t ask why I was staring, right?

“Siho.”

However, what came out of the woman’s mouth was something I hadn’t expected at all.

She knows my name!

Moreover, this voice…

Joksah.

She takes off her sunglasses and casually asks me with a relaxed expression, “What are you doing here when you’re supposed to be busy with store repairs?”

“Uh, that’s…”

“No way, you didn’t just leave everything to my employees and come out to play, did you?”

She asks, raising an eyebrow.

I vigorously shook my head.

“There’s no way… I just came out because they said they didn’t need any more help today.”

“So where are you going now?”

“To the department store…”

I mumbled.

At that, Jucksah’s eyes narrowed.

“It looks like you’ve made some money in the meantime. Going shopping leisurely, huh?”

I bristled at her mocking tone.

I boldly shouted at her.

“That’s not it! I just ran out of food at home…”

At the mention of running out of food, Jucksah stared at me intently.

I swallowed hard under her gaze.

Then, clutching my crossbody bag tightly, I waited for her response.

“Get in.”

“Huh…?”

“I happen to need industrial adhesive too.”

She makes a bold U-turn right on the road.

And she drove the car closer to where I was standing on the sidewalk.

I was taken aback by Jucksah’s unexpected kindness.

But soon, I heard the sound of the car unlocking, which helped snap me back to reality.

I hesitantly climbed into the passenger seat.

She went out of her way to make a U-turn for me, and refusing seemed daunting.

As soon as I got into the car, the first thing I noticed was the smell of leather.

I wrinkled my nose at the rich, strong scent.

And I straightened up, fixing my gaze ahead.

“—.”

With a refreshing engine start, the car began to move forward.

I can’t believe I thought of walking such a long distance alone…

Having a car is really convenient.

I wanted to say this line directly to Jucksah to break the awkward atmosphere.

However, she just froze, staring straight ahead.

Jucksah seemed to have sensed my emotions as she reached for the audio controls.

“—.”

A song was playing on the radio.

And I know the singer of that song.

Jaehui.

No, JEI.

She recently changed her stage name.

Jaehui exposed all the absurdities through a press conference.

Thanks to her, even the Aimer completely disintegrated.

But she wasn’t disappointed.

She joined a unified entertainment company, Yellow Snake, and recently debuted as a solo singer.

And this song was her debut single.

‘Hola’ means ‘hello’ in Spanish.

It’s a song she’s greeting the public with as an adult for the first time.

“—.”

I was already familiar with that song.

JEI, who successfully debuted, was the one who first told me about it.

Thanks to her threat that she would bother me if I didn’t know the lyrics when she asked later.

I can’t forget her terrifying words that she would touch me once for every letter I couldn’t remember.

Unconsciously, I hummed along to the song.

Jucksah glanced at me sharply.

“The song’s not bad.”

“Yeah.”

“I didn’t know Hwangs… could produce too…”

Jucksah seemed displeased, chewing on her words.

Hwang…?

Was she talking about that man I met on the stairs when I first went to Unified?

The one who warned me to be careful of Jucksah’s teasing…

The fact that he, who seemed more like a thug than anyone else, is an idol maker.

It’s unimaginable.

Despite Jucksah’s notorious reputation and glamorous background, she seems kinder than expected…

Just like now, giving me a ride in her car.

I looked up at her noble gesture.

“What… why are you staring so intently?”

Jucksah cynically asked, looking straight ahead, then coughed awkwardly.

“Oh, it’s just cool.”

I chuckled, and Jucksah smirked sideways.

Then she changed lanes.

“—!”

Just as she was changing lanes, a taxi suddenly cut us off and sped ahead.

Thanks to that, Jucksah’s elegant Jaguar XJ 12f had to swerve quickly.

“That son of a b…!”

Her voice grows somewhat heavy.

Before long, a chilling aura is felt emanating from my shoulders.

“Surely… you’re not trying to kill me?”

I ask with a worried heart.

In response, Jexa immediately withdraws her aura and gives me a bewildered look.

“Why would I want to kill you?”

“Well… you’re a killer.”

As I inquire as if it were obvious, the woman in front of me doesn’t respond right away.

It wasn’t until after we entered the department store parking lot that I could hear her answer.

“I don’t kill unless it’s my business. I’m different from others.”

I could quickly infer who she meant by ‘others.’

“As for him…”

As I seemed to be defending her, Jexa promptly cut me off.

“He’s a psychopath who kills anyone he doesn’t like.”

Well, considering an enemy like Jexa with a lost temper could have been angry at Anna.

But I roughly know about Anna’s past.

That she wasn’t born inherently evil.

“Still… there must be reasons why things turned out that way. Not everyone is inherently bad…”

As I mumble to myself, Jexa skillfully parks the car.

And without hesitation, she pulls out the key.

Somehow, she seems a little upset.

“It’s because of your ambiguous pretense of being good that you’re suffering.”

Her red eyes faintly gleam in the dark parking lot.

In the past, those eyes were just intimidating.

But gradually, I was getting used to that color.

They looked refreshing like red eye contacts, not blood-red.

Thanks to that, I could squarely face her sharp question.

I narrow my eyes and look up at her.

“Still, maybe it’s because of this side of me that I’ve been able to get closer to you?”

Getting closer.

Jexa furrows her eyebrows.

Then, she swiftly turns her head and grabs the handle, but even though she pulls, the lock doesn’t automatically release.

Thanks to that, Jexa had to keep pulling on the door until she could finally open it.

The killer seemed to be angry at her own actions as she walked ahead quickly.

I just shake my head as I watch her.

“Why are you angry?”

I follow her into the department store.

And I stand close beside her as we wait for the elevator.

Before long, the elevator stops on the first basement floor where the food corner is located.

The smell of delicious food tickles my nostrils.

I swallow and scan the wide-open stores around me.

Jexa turns her head towards where I’m looking.

“Haven’t had lunch?”

She asks in a cold voice.

I slowly shake my head.

“Then grab something before we go.”

Jexa steps forward and looks at the kiosk.

Then she casually scrolls past the screen showing pasta and tteokbokki.

“Wanna have pasta?”

“No. That stuff goes out quickly inside.”

I cautiously raise my finger.

And press the Korean food section.

“Pork bulgogi.”

“Bone hangover soup.”

“Pork cutlet.”

“This. This is food.”

I smile broadly and nod my head.

However, upon seeing my choice, the woman in front of me lets out a sigh of exasperation.

“Your taste… is so… old-fashioned.”

“How is it? Just eating these three, you can live forever.”

I say confidently, and Jexa shakes her head.

“Just by looks, you seem like someone who’d eat rose tteokbokki…”

“That’s for kids.”

I maintain an unpleasant expression, and Jexa shrugs as if to say, “Of course.”

“Yeah, you’re also like kids these days.”

I couldn’t quite understand her words.

How does my appearance match with such greasy food?

I try to forget those words and click on the pork cutlet.