episode_0026

A quiet cafe.

I met Yeonlim.

Perhaps because she had experienced such a spectacular event, Yeonlim’s mood had changed a lot.

It’s like Hye-yoon’s nose was completely broken at once and she became a bit more innocent and gentle.

Sitting in front of Yeonlim, I quenched my thirst with iced coffee and opened my mouth.

“Forget about the last incident. Hye-yoon has such a strange personality…….”

“No. It’s okay. It’s my fault, but what.”

Yeonrim answered while sweeping her hair back.

Of course, Yeonlim was pretty too. Even though she wasn’t a flashy beauty who caught the eye, if you looked closely, she had a style that gave off a strong charm.

The reason I first fell in love with Yeonrim was because I felt that kind of charm. It was a long time ago, but…

Yeonlim took a sip of her iced tea, smiled awkwardly, and continued speaking.

“Anyway, I feel a lot of emotions towards you. I’m grateful, I’m sorry, I thought I was the smartest person in the world. But I guess I wasn’t. I couldn’t see even an inch ahead of me.”

I didn’t answer anything.

To be honest, I didn’t completely lose my feelings for Yeonlim.

This is the woman who cheated on me and left me. And she is the woman who said some unspeakable things to me.

So I still felt a little uncomfortable with Yeonlim.

“How did you meet Bin Hye-yoon?”

Yeonrim put down her glass and asked carefully.

I looked at Yeonlim and shook my head.

“I don’t really want to talk about it. Our relationship has been around for longer than I thought… If I say everything, it’ll be too long.”

“Are you kidding me?”

“Not yet.”

Yeonlim looked out the window and muttered as if she was thinking back on what I had said.

“Not yet……. Not yet……. Yeah. Not yet. But Bin Hye-yoon is here.”

“Huh?”

“It seems like he cares for you and likes you a lot.”

“How do you know that?”

weird?

I don’t think Hye-yoon really showed her feelings for me in front of Yeon-rim.

Yeonrim smiled brightly and answered.

“If a woman like you sees it, you’ll know. Bin Hye-yoon is secretly watching you.”

Hyeyoon?

Has Hye-yoon ever noticed my expression? Isn’t Bin Hye-yoon a synonym for self-willed?

When did Hye-yoon ever notice me?

When I made a dumbfounded expression, Yeonlim looked at me and continued speaking.

“You’re always so insensitive, you’re the problem. Bin Hye-yoon is struggling in front of you… Don’t you know that?”

“What?”

“Bin Hye-yoon is an amazing person. That fact obscures Bin Hye-yoon’s feelings.”

Yeonrim looked around and confirmed that no one was listening, then lowered her voice unusually.

“Are you a mafia now?”

“No. That can’t be true. Don’t you know my personality?”

“Have you ever been advised by Bin Hye-yoon to join the mafia?”

…….To be honest, there is. And that was just a little while ago.

When I didn’t answer, Yeonrim smiled faintly and said.

“I see you’ve received an offer. Honestly, if it were me, I would have said okay.”

“What?”

“You don’t know how popular Black Emily is right now. Right now, Black Emily is something that no one in South Korea can touch. When it comes to illegal activities in our country, there’s almost nothing that Black Emily isn’t involved in.”

“Is that it?”

“Yeah. That’s about it. Even in a red-light district in a rural village, they pay tribute to Black Emily headquarters. You know what I mean?”

……If that’s the case, it means that Hye-yoon’s organization has a spider web-like network all over the country and is making dirty money.

Suddenly, I was curious and asked.

“But how do you know that in detail?”

“I did some research on my own after visiting Bin Hye-yoon’s house last time. As expected, Bin Hye-yoon is an amazing person. I deserved to kneel before that woman.”

Yeonlim seemed to feel something like awe towards Hyeyoon.

Hye-yoon’s eyes sparkled every time she told a story.

Something like that happened, but I can’t believe I feel that way about Hye-yoon… This kid is amazing.

“But Hye-yoon is the boss of a mafia organization. And Black Emily is a mafia organization.”

I answered like that.

I have always kept that fact in mind.

That fact was like the last safety pin that kept Hye-yoon from crossing the line.

The idea of my life being so deeply intertwined with the mafia seemed unbearable.

Even though I’m still involved with Hye-yoon here and there, I never forgot that Hye-yoon is a mafia. I was always careful not to cross the line.

Yeonrim laughed in vain at my answer and replied.

“What does that matter? Bin Hye-yoon is rich and powerful.”

“Huh?”

“The reality is that no one can ignore or mock Bin Hye-yoon as a mafia member. If they do, they’ll die. And Bin Hye-yoon has a lot of money. That’s true. Right?”

Yeonlim seems like a realist.

I heard that your family circumstances were difficult… Could that be the reason?

Yeonlim, who had been observing my expression, carefully brought up the main topic.

“That…… When Dad’s work is done well, you know. Can you tell Bin Hye-yoon? Me…… That…… So……”

Yeonlim stuttered and lowered her head in embarrassment.

“Huh? What do you want me to tell you?”

“Honestly, I think Bin Hye-yoon has become my life’s role model. I want to be that kind of woman.”

“What, what did you say?”

“Yeah. Okay. So……… Can I get into Black Emily?”

“……..”

I stared at Yeonlim without answering.

Yeonlim, like Hye-yoon, sometimes had strange thoughts or said strange things. But what I just heard from Yeonlim was one of the strangest things.

Yeonlim is a mafia?

“You don’t know what kind of people the mafia is”

When I asked, Yeonrim nodded, swallowed hard, and answered.

“I know. But that doesn’t matter. I want to have money and power like Bin Hye-yoon. That’s all.”

Yeonlim is very honest about her desires.

“No. Absolutely not.”

I flatly refused.

“Why”

“Your life is messed up. Put that thought aside, because I’m giving you sincere advice.”

“Your annoying personality is still the same. Even though you are so loved by Bin Hye-yoon.”

Yeonlim answered like that and stood up from her seat.

I also got up from my seat. After paying the bill, we headed out of the cafe.

The streets were quiet, perhaps because a gentle drizzle was falling.

As I opened the umbrella I bought at the convenience store, Yeonlim looked up at my face and opened her mouth.

“Want to rest for a bit at the motel?”

“What?”

“It’s raining. And……didn’t we ever do that when we were dating?”

Hmm…… You can’t waver here.

“No. We broke up. You were the one who told us to break up.”

“You’re so old-fashioned. I didn’t like that naive side of you……. I guess Bin Hye-yoon isn’t like that?”

“Why are you telling Hye-yoon’s story again?”

“If you want, tell me as much as you want.”

What, what?

Yeonlim continued speaking, looking up at the dark clouds with rain falling.

“I can start over with you any time. To be honest, I regret breaking up with you so much. I’m okay with it anytime. Got it? If you want to date again, we will. If you want to break up, we will.”

…….I’m sick of it.

I, who was trying to give a reasonable answer, ended up giving a rude answer.

“Hye-yoon will hate it.”

Yeonlim smiled brightly after hearing my answer.

“I may be inferior to Bin Hye-yoon in looks, money, power, and everything else. But I have one thing I win against.”

“What?”

“Woo Sung-won’s first girlfriend was me. Even if Bin Hye-yoon were to date you now, Bin Hye-yoon would still be the second. Right?”

***

That moment.

Yeonrim’s house.

Yeonrim’s father, Shin Man-sik, was talking on the phone with Red Cross.

“Now everything is ready.”

Shin Man-sik started his journey like that.

“Now, all you have to do is for Bin Hye-yoon to come to the restaurant. Then, we will proceed strictly according to the scenario.”

“Okay. Okay.”

The Red Cross member smiled with satisfaction. He asked.

“What will Shin Man-sik do after Bin Hye-yoon dies?”

“After receiving all the money, I will take my family and run away abroad.”

“You are smart as expected. After Bin Hye-yoon dies, you will have to run away from our country as far as possible. If not, you will have to go to Africa to hide in peace.”

“Yes. I’ve thought of a place to hide. You’ll really give me the money when Bin Hye-yoon dies, right?”

“Heh heh heh…… Of course.”

The Red Cross member answered with a smile.

In fact, Shin Man-sik was just a long-term pawn.

Red Cross had no intention of keeping Shin Man-sik alive after Bin Hye-yoon died. Shin Man-sik was destined to be eliminated as soon as Bin Hye-yoon died.

However, Shin Man-sik, who was in dire financial straits and had a naive personality, believed Red Cross’s words that he would give him money.

The Red Cross member stopped laughing and spoke in a polite tone.

“I will tell you tomorrow how to set the bomb and how to set the time for it to explode. And I will tell you as soon as I get information on the day Bin Hye-yoon visits the restaurant. Are you mentally prepared now?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Okay. Okay. Then I will only trust Mr. Shin Man-sik.”

So the call ended.

Shin Man-sik looked at his phone with a solemn expression and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Yeah… Fuck. I’m going to starve to death because of debt anyway… Isn’t it the same whether I die this way or that way?

Once you draw your sword, you have to cut through anything before you die.

He went to the bathroom and washed his face with the expression of a soldier about to go to war.

Shin Man-sik didn’t know that a small, flat, battery-sized wiretapping device was blinking behind the family photo frame.

***

That night.

I sat on the sofa with Hyeyoon and played video games for the first time in a while.

Hyeyoon, who was sitting on the sofa wearing only a baggy t-shirt and panties as usual, was busy fiddling with the gamepad.

“Ah…… Ah……. Oh my…….”

Hye-yoon’s face turned red when she lost the game.

Hehehe… It’s not like I just played around at home. My gaming skills have already reached a semi-professional level.

The game we played was a soccer game.

As the soccer player I was controlling hit a mid-range shot on the large screen, the goal net shook refreshingly.

“Another goal~~~~~~~!”

When I showed her a cheering celebration, Hye-yoon’s face turned bright red and she put the pad down next to her and asked sarcastically.

“Did you just play games at home?”

“No. What…… This is called sense. Then I guess I can consider it my victory?”

“There’s no way I can lose in any field. Wait a minute. Try again.”

Hyeyoon jumped up and went to the water purifier, pouring water and gulping it down.

As I was looking at Hye-yoon’s well-toned butt, I started nagging her as I always do.

“Didn’t I tell you not to walk around the house in your underwear? Put on pants. Pants.”

“Why do you keep doing this when I said it’s comfortable?”

“If you keep doing that, I’ll just wear panties too.”

“Do whatever you want.”

Hyeyoon sat down on the sofa again and picked up the gamepad.

Then I started to get a little worried.

I don’t know when or where an assassination operation is being planned right now…. Can I just play the game peacefully like this?

I was holding the gamepad with both hands and asked Hye-yoon carefully.

“……Are you okay?”

“What?”

“There are people who want to kill you.”

Hyeyoon, who was choosing a soccer team to play for with an indifferent expression, answered nonchalantly.

“It’s okay. It’s not like it’s been a day or two.”

“That would be fortunate…….”

“Information is already being gathered steadily. There will probably be a twist event. You’ll be surprised when you hear it, right?”

“Reversal event?”

“Yeah. It was a good thing Shin Yeon-rim gave us the information. To be honest, it was dangerous this time. If I hadn’t known anything, I might have been helpless.”

“Yeonrim, will you save her father?”

Then Hye-yoon turned her head and stared at my face.

Huh? Why are you staring at me like that?

Hyeyoon opened her mouth, staring intently at my face and smiling faintly with meaning.

◦Looking at what you’re doing.”

Seeing what you’re doing?

Who do you see doing it?

Did Hye-yoon know that I met Yeon-rim today and proposed a reunion?

No. Even if it’s Hye-yoon, there’s no way that’s…….

Somehow a cold sweat ran down my spine.

Of course, I had no intention of having an affair with Yeonlim at a motel, nor did I intend to reunite with her.

So, you can be confident in front of Hye-yoon.

Hyeyoon, who was sitting with her knees hugged as if it were her habit and playing with the gamepad, said innocently.

“I don’t really want to talk about who lives and dies right now. We’ll decide that later.”

“Yeah…….”

I asked just in case.

“If… Seriously, if I committed a mortal sin and had to die… Do you think you could kill me?”

Hyeyoon, who had been touching the gamepad, remained silent for a moment.

Then she reached out, lightly scratched her thigh, and answered.

“That won’t happen.”

“Huh?”

“There’s no way you could disappoint me. You never even imagined that?”

Does Hye-yoon have high expectations of me?

Do you think I’m a perfect human being?

“No. I mean, if. If-”

“It’s okay. When you get there, we can die together.”

What?

“I think a world without you would be too boring. Then I can just kill you with my own hands and shoot myself in the head. That would be fine. Right?”

…….That’s a typical Hye-yoon answer.