episode_0017

Countermeasure

“Uhhhh”

On this still somewhat dark early morning, Arthur got up from his bed.

(Swish)

“Going for a run?”

Seohyun asked as she came down the stairs, seeing me, who was just putting on a simple hoodie.

“Yeah, I’ll sleep a bit more.”

“Alright, I usually wake up around this time anyway. Want to run together?”

“…I won’t be able to keep up, though.”

“Then you should sleep more.”

Seohyun went back into the room, and I opened the door and left the house.

(Tap, tap, tap, tap)

I started running through the neighborhood with light steps.

“…”

The situation has changed a lot.

Hero Snow Flower Yang now works at my casino under the name Yi Seolha (which might actually be her real name). Right now, there’s no suspicion, but someday, there will be doubts about me. Or maybe I could be the prime suspect, and Snow Flower might have come to my casino to monitor me closely.

There are many reasons for me to be suspected as Mad Hatter.

First, Mad Hatter strangely stopped her activities as soon as she arrived in this area.

If we assume that Snow Flower revealed her true identity here, the inference becomes even easier. Mad Hatter knows Snow Flower’s true identity. And the reason Mad Hatter stopped her activities is that she’s in a position where her true identity can easily be exposed. The person in that position is none other than Arthur Riddle, who spends half of his day with her.

Second, the information Snow Flower gained while engaging in hero activities.

There are many possibilities besides this. My unconscious tone, behavior, and so on.

“…I need to figure this out.”

A week has passed. Snow Flower, or rather Yi Seolha, has become so accustomed to her job at the casino that she’s now directly involved in some of the casino’s operations. In other words, there’s a possibility that this undercover operation could be prolonged.

Oh, of course, she hasn’t forgotten her hero activities.

She often disappeared after receiving a call. Since before she took on this undercover job, she said there would be many times when she couldn’t hold her position, so other employees overlooked it, but in my eyes, it seemed like she was just openly revealing herself as a hero.

Why? Because she had to disappear for Hero Snow Flower to appear.

“…I need to come up with a plan.”

(Tap, tap, tap)

I almost arrived in front of my house after going around the neighborhood. However, I saw a car and a person standing in front of the house.

“…?!”

As I almost arrived in front of the house, I could see that the person standing in front of the car was Yi Seol-ha, Snow Flower.

“…Seol-ha?”

“Oh, sir.”

Yi Seol-ha, who was fixing her hair in the mirror, put down the mirror and looked at me as I approached.

“How did you find this place?”

“Oh, the master told me.”

“…”

Hashimoto had given my home address.

Oh, Hashimoto doesn’t know that Yi Seol-ha is Snow Flower. I should tell him later… No, if he knows, it might be too obvious.

“Are you here to pick me up?”

“I am your secretary.”

“Uh… would you like to come in?”

“Yes.”

Damn, what did I just say? But Yi Seol-ha’s response was very quick. Is the weather cold?

“Please come in.”

(Ring, ring, ring, ring)

“Would you like to sit on the sofa for a moment?”

I seated Yi Seol-ha in the living room and quickly went upstairs.

(Creak)

“Hey, don’t come out of your room.”

When Seo-hyun appeared as Red Queen, I hadn’t prepared anything except a voice changer due to the suddenness of the visit. Fortunately, there were no cameras around, so my face wasn’t exposed, but still, Snow Flower fought directly. She might realize my identity.

“Hmm? Why?”

There was no reaction when she entered the girl’s room like it was her own.

“Seol-ha is here.”

“…Snow Flower?”

“Yeah.”

“Why do you call her Seol-ha?”

“Huh?”

“When did you become so close?”

“Is that the issue now? You absolutely must not come out of the room.”

“The important thing is!-”

(Creak)

Ignoring Seo-hyun, I changed clothes and washed myself.

“Alice, we have to go to school.”

“Mmm.”

I woke up Alice, who was sleeping in her room, and came in.

“Let’s eat, let’s go to school early today.”

“Why~~”

“Hmm? I’m asking you as a favor.”

“…Okay.”

Alice, with sleepy eyes, followed me downstairs.

“Sir?! Behind… Could it be his daughter?!”

When Yi Seol-ha saw Alice in the living room, she was surprised and said,

“No, she’s my younger sister, she’s older than me. Her name is Alice.”

Seeing Yi Seol-ha’s reaction, Arthur raised his hand and answered seriously,

“Oh, she’s your sister.”

Alice, who was dozing off at the table, made a simple toast and left.

“Seolha, have some too.”

“Yes, I will. Thank you.”

At the dining table, a villain, a hero, and the villain’s younger sister, three completely mismatched individuals, were having breakfast.

“I’ll be back.”

“Okay.”

Alice, rubbing her sleepy eyes, left the house.

“Shall we go too?”

Arthur came downstairs dressed in a suit and said.

(Vroom!)

“…”

Arthur, sitting in the back seat of the car driven by Seolha, was looking at a tablet.

“Is there something you want to say?”

As their eyes met through the rearview mirror, Seolha glanced at Arthur and spoke.

“Oh, um, do you wear glasses by any chance?”

“Sometimes. When reading books.”

“They would suit you well if you wore them.”

“Hmm.”

What’s this, are they suggesting I try on monocles? What is it? Do they mean they know your true identity? Is it a warning? What is it? Have they seen through me? What is it? What is it?

“…”

After briefly pondering, Arthur focused on the question on the tablet again.

“An S-rank hero is injured…”

“?”

“S-rank hero ‘Luna’ has been injured.”

(Squeak!!)

“Huh!”

As soon as Arthur finished speaking, the car suddenly made an abrupt stop.

“…”

And Seolha turned her head to look at Arthur.

“L-Luna is hurt?”

Do they know each other?

“Yes, she’s injured. But apparently, it’s not a big problem.”

“What’s the name of the villain who injured the S-rank hero?”

“Let me see… It’s Dukyokshini.”

Dukyokshini

He is an S-rank villain and one of the strongest villains in this world.

His strength and cruelty make him stand out even in a world overflowing with various types of villains.

And he is also the first to kill an S-rank hero.

“He attacked Luna, who was doing a rescue mission.”

“…”

“Well, Seolha, is that a blue light?”

Pointing to the changed traffic light, I asked Seolha, who had a vacant expression.

“Oh, sorry.”

Seolha drove the car again.

“Are you a fan of Hero Luna?”

“Oh, it’s not that. If an S-rank hero gets injured, it’s a big deal, isn’t it?”

“True.”

“…By any chance, do you have a favorite hero?”

“A favorite hero? Yes, I do.”

“Who is it?”

“Snow Flower.”

“R-really?”

“Yes, I’m the hero in charge of the business area, and I like it with the hope that you will protect me.”

“Ah…”

“And it’s beautiful too.”

“Snow Flower? Oh, hahaha! Snow Flower is pretty, isn’t it?!”

Isn’t that self-praise? Aren’t you embarrassed? Oh, your face turned red.

Seolha’s expression, visible through the rearview mirror, looked even more noticeable due to her already fair skin turning red.

“Boss! Have you arrived!”

“Yes, thank you for your hard work.”

Upon arriving at the casino, the staff greeted them.

“Oh, Seolha, please.”

“Yes.”

Seolha left to take the documents to the office as she always did in the morning.

“…”

As soon as I noticed Seolha’s absence, I quickly went into the office and made coffee.

In fact, I could have asked someone else to take the documents to the office. But there’s a reason I asked Seolha to do it.

Seolha is terrible at making coffee or tea.

She can’t even make instant coffee. She can’t adjust the water. It’s really bad.

So, to ensure a smooth start to my day, I send Seolha and personally make tea and coffee for the day.

(Clink)

“Oh, you did it yourself again today.”

Arthur, who had come into the office with the documents, said as he saw Isolha pouring coffee.

“Hahaha, I can do this myself.”

I must do it.

“Well, have a cup.”

Arthur poured another cup of coffee for Isolha.

“Thank you.”

Isolha took the cup and took a sip of the coffee.

“I found the coffee Arthur gave me more delicious than the coffee shop’s coffee.”

“I’m glad it suits your taste.”

“Where did you get the coffee beans?”

“I got them from the central area.”

The central area, as the name suggests, is the central part of the union city. It’s also called Seoul, the pure Korean word for the capital, as the company that built this city is a Korean company.

“They used to say that the coffee beans from a place called Colombia in the past were much better.”

“Really? I’d like to try it.”

“Haha, but now the land itself has disappeared, so we can’t eat it.”

(Clink!)

While savoring the taste of the coffee, the ruler of this place, Hashimoto, entered.

“Sir, the boss’s guest has arrived.”

“Guest?”

“Yes. They are in the VIP section.”

“Who is it?”

(Swish, swish)

At the blackjack table, the dealer dealt cards to the people.

(Swiftly)

The man at the beginning of the order skimmed his hand and stayed.

(Thud, swiftly)

The woman sitting next to him tapped the table with her index finger, and the dealer gave out more cards.

“Bust!”

“Ah!”

When the sum of the cards given by the dealer and the original cards exceeded 21, causing a bust, Vivian Choi, a short-haired woman who received the cards, shouted.

(Swish)

“Is this seat taken?”

Arthur asked as he sat down next to Vivian Choi.

“Of course.”

“~~~~~”

Approaching another man at the table, Hashimoto whispered.

“Haha, hope you have fun playing.”

(Slide)

Then the man got up and moved to another place.

So only the dealer, Vivian Choi, and Arthur remained at the table.

“You’ve become the branch manager of Section F at Union Bank.”

“Yes, I volunteered.”

Vivian Choi had returned as the branch manager of Section F at Union Bank.

“Are you enjoying yourself?”

“I’ve busted three times in a row, but it’s still fun.”

“Then I’m glad.”

“Isn’t Section F04 the area of the mad hatter?”

“…Yes.”

“But did you decide to run a casino? And did our Union Bank approve that?”

“Hahaha, I’m good at persuasion.”

To get a very special “persuasion” from Union Bank people to get a generous investment fund, she was able to build a casino like this. Still, this time, it was not robbery, but a very legal loan. Thanks to that, she was paying off the loan steadily with added interest.

“But even with a loan, it seems difficult to build a casino of this scale.”

“Haha, I had saved up some money.”

“Is that so?”

“Did the branch manager come to greet the debtor?”

“Yes, I am the individual with the largest loan in the entire area, the only casino, and most importantly…”

“?”

“You’re handsome, aren’t you?”

“…Hahaha! Thank you.”

Arthur, momentarily flustered, responded in his usual awkward manner.

“Well then, I hope you have a pleasant time.”

I greeted Vivian Choi and got up from my seat.

“We need a plan.”