Chapter 1: Tilted Ship

‘Fuck.’

I looked at my colleagues standing before me, tied up.

“So, Jinwoo, you assaulted her?”

“Sob! Sob! Yes, he suddenly burst into my room and… and…”

“Bullshit…! I didn’t even know that was your room! You took your clothes off yourself in the first place.”

“Kim Jinwoo, quiet down.”

Team Leader Shin Seom-hwa’s sharp gaze fixed on me.

I was dying of injustice, but there was nothing I could do.

I was already the perpetrator, and Han So-young was the victim.

“Hoo! Alright, let’s sort out the situation first.”

Shin Seom-hwa said, pressing his forehead as if it ached.

“Han So-young, you were resting in your room after finishing work. Then, Kim Jinwoo suddenly entered your room. He forcibly took off your clothes and assaulted you. Is that correct so far?”

“Yes…”

Han So-young nodded, even starting to sob.

She wrapped her arms around her own shoulders.

She looked exactly like a pitiful victim who had just been assaulted.

‘Damn it.’

I was going crazy, but I had to endure.

Getting agitated here would only make things worse.

“So you screamed for help, and I heard it and rushed over. And that’s how we ended up in this situation… right?”

The first thing Shin Seom-hwa did upon arriving was subdue me and tie me up.

Though I was pissed, I couldn’t really fault him.

After all, Han So-young was indeed naked.

But I absolutely didn’t take her clothes off.

“Is there anything I’ve said so far that’s incorrect?”

The Team Leader’s gaze shifted to me this time.

“It’s all lies. I didn’t lay a finger on Han So-young.”

“Then why was Han So-young naked in front of you?”

“When I entered her room, she suddenly took off her clothes. And then she started screaming for help.”

“Hmm, you took your clothes off yourself, huh.”

Shin Seom-hwa’s finger beckoned.

He seemed to be checking if there were any contradictions in our statements.

“Then why did you enter Han So-young’s room?”

This was an unfavorable question for me.

But I had a perfectly valid reason.

“Because I received a letter.”

“A letter?”

Team Leader Shin Seom-hwa tilted his head.

“I received a letter from Hye-jeong-ssi.”

“…Hye-jeong?”

The Team Leader’s head turned towards his side.

Yoo Hye-jeong, my colleague since we joined the company.

Most people knew that she and I got along well.

But Hye-jeong shook her head left and right.

“I, I never sent such a letter… Oh, no! Of course, I’m not suspecting Jinwoo-ssi.”

“…Is that so.”

So it wasn’t sent by Hye-jeong after all.

I had expected as much.

Someone probably tried to frame me, impersonating Hye-jeong.

But it was enough to assert my innocence.

“Please check the outer pocket of my jacket. There should definitely be a letter inside. You can tell who wrote it by the handwriting.”

The Team Leader, looking slightly suspicious, rummaged through my pockets.

And what he pulled out was-

“……Underwear.”

…What?

I stared at the sight in disbelief.

In the Team Leader’s hand was a pair of black women’s panties.

How could this be? It couldn’t be.

There should have been a letter addressed to me there.

“Th-that’s mine…”

That’s when Han So-young spoke, sobbing.

“He must have taken it while undressing me. Since I was too scared to resist, he went that far…”

“What kind of nonsensical…!”

My head wasn’t working properly.

How the hell were panties in my pocket?

Who put them there, and when?

“It seems I need to hear the story in more detail.”

Team Leader Shin Seom-hwa’s icy gaze turned to me.

I felt a chill run down my spine from that look.

Unlike before, the scales had clearly tipped in Han So-young’s favor.

“No. I never put anything like that in my pocket.”

“Then why are the panties in your pocket, and the letter you mentioned isn’t even visible?”

“Th-that’s…”

Damn it. My voice involuntarily became anxious.

I knew I shouldn’t, but it was hard to stay calm.

Without that letter, proving my innocence would be difficult.

“Someone must have switched them. Otherwise, why would I mention a non-existent letter and put myself at a disadvantage?”

“Well, perhaps you’re just saying anything to escape after committing an impulsive crime.”

My lips felt parched.

With those panties, Team Leader Shin Seom-hwa was completely suspicious of me now.

Could the culprit have planned for Team Leader Shin Seom-hwa to investigate me like this?

“For now, there’s a victim, and I apprehended you at the scene. More importantly, Han So-young has no reason to lie to you while showing you her naked body.”

That’s the part that was driving me insane.

Han So-young and I were colleagues, not close friends, but we didn’t have a particularly bad relationship either.

She held no particular grudge against me, nor did I ask her for money.

I was quite good at my job, so I thought I had helped her quite a bit.

Why would she go to such lengths to frame me and lie?

‘Wait, lie?’

At that moment, one person flashed through my mind.

“Xiao Lin! We can call Xiao Lin!”

“Xiao Lin?”

“Can’t her Skill determine whether I’m lying or not?!”

Xiao Lin was a colleague on the same team, who joined two months before me.

She usually didn’t talk much, but her ‘Lie Detection’ Skill could unfailingly expose lies.

‘Of course, it can only determine ‘lie or not,’ and it consumes all of my daily Magic Power.’

But right now, it was the only way to prove my innocence.

“Xiao Lin…”

Team Leader Shin Seom-hwa seemed to be contemplating for a moment.

If I ended up like this, and Xiao Lin was also unable to fight, this expedition would be a failure.

However, this situation couldn’t just be brushed aside either.

Finally, the Team Leader nodded as if he had made up his mind.

“Did you call for me?”

Soon after, Xiao Lin entered the room.

She remained expressionless even in this situation.

I still couldn’t figure out what she was thinking, but she was undoubtedly my only hope.

After hearing the Team Leader’s explanation, Xiao Lin slightly opened her mouth.

“Kim Jinwoo assaulted So-young?”

“To be precise, he claims innocence. I want to verify that.”

“Hmm, understood.”

Xiao Lin’s eyes shone brightly.

This was the characteristic sign that appeared when she used Lie Detection.

Either way, my innocence would be proven now, so there was no problem.

“It’s a lie.”

At those words, my face lit up.

“Really?”

“Yes, I confirmed it with my Ability, so it’s certain.”

Xiao Lin nodded.

“What Kim Jinwoo said is a lie. It seems he really did assault So-young.”

“Huh?”

I let out a dumbfounded sound without realizing it.

I couldn’t comprehend the situation.

What did that mean?

I… lied? I assaulted Han So-young?

Or perhaps…

“J-Jinwoo-ssi…”

“Ha! I recommended you for the next promotion to the higher-ups. This is the worst.”

Hye-jeong and Team Leader Shin Seom-hwa looked at me with disappointed eyes.

“Naturally, your position is revoked as of today. Once this matter is concluded, you will head straight to the police station. How dare you do such a thing in my team. Even after your release, I’ll make sure you can never set foot in this industry again.”

Team Leader Shin Seom-hwa spoke in a cold tone.

However, I was still staring blankly at Xiao Lin.

She also looked intently at me, then let out a deep sigh.

“To assault a woman, and even steal her panties. Truly pathetic. To think I considered someone like that my rival.”

And then, subtly, very subtly, she smiled, just enough for me to see.

At the same time, my mind started racing.

Han So-young, false accusation, plan, motive, Xiao Lin, two months, promotion, rival.

And above all, what Xiao Lin had just said.

‘…The Team Leader didn’t tell Xiao Lin anything about the panties.’

The puzzle pieces in my head quickly clicked into place.

If Han So-young and Xiao Lin were in cahoots from the start…

“Team Leader!”

KWA-A-ANG!

Suddenly, the ship began to shake violently.

The lights went out, and my body was automatically flipped over.

“Kya-a-aak!”

“Wh-what the?!”

My bound body was flung away.

The sensation of my feet leaving the ground.

An unfamiliar feeling of emptiness washed over my entire body.

I wasn’t the only one experiencing this.

Team Leader Shin Seom-hwa, Han So-young, Hye-jeong, Xiao Lin.

Everyone was flying through the air.

‘What’s happening?’

It didn’t take long for the world to turn upside down.

Perhaps due to the loss of concentration, the magically created ropes snapped.

Without even a moment to rejoice, the furniture inside the cabin tilted, and objects spilled out.

The deafening roar made it impossible to even hear screams properly.

‘Damn it, if the ship itself is like this… I can’t do anything…’

Were they all caught off guard by the sudden situation?

Despite being highly capable individuals, none of them could react.

The windows shattered, revealing the churning waves to our eyes.

The vast ocean was right before us.

‘The ship overturned-‘

That was my last thought.

The gurgling sound of water swallowed the sound, deafening my ears.

And I lost consciousness.