Episode 149
After finishing the conversation with the protagonist in the middle of the night, Lee Jae-heon made a decision immediately afterward.
‘Let’s go out.’
The time has come to escape the underworld.
The main character ‘Jeong In-ho’, who was originally active in the novel, was much stronger and more active than he is now, so perhaps Lee Jae-heon, who had a strong prejudice against novels, misunderstood. It’s not that I didn’t think that Jeong In-ho there and Jeong In-ho here would be different, but I didn’t completely understand.
However, as I realized from the conversation just before, the main character is currently in a soft and gentle state. It is true that Lee Jae-heon raised him with great care, but he gave him a contradictory education due to prejudice in his head.
It’s because I was in a daze between ‘Yes, I raised him well’ and ‘Still, he’s the main character, so isn’t this easy?’
‘So I thought it would be okay to proceed a little further…’
Now I understand.
“Chief, where are you hurting?”
“…It doesn’t hurt, it doesn’t hurt. “It doesn’t hurt anywhere.”
“You suddenly became dazed.”
No, this is not possible.
‘If this happens, the main character will leave before me and end up behind.’
Lee Jae-heon couldn’t hold back a sigh as Jeong In-ho looked at him with his dark eyes filled with suspicion.
That guy’s condition had already reached its limit. Perhaps, with the death of Lee Jae-heon in the last episode, the green algae monster leveled up. Of course, this is a guess, but listening to Jung In-ho’s story, it seems almost correct, so the main character was crazy for more than half of the time due to these two factors.
No matter how much Jaeheon Lee tried to coax him, there was a limit if the protagonist himself was this soft. Opening your mouth only works when you have enough room in the situation and freedom of mind and body, but if you start to go crazy like this, you can’t end the situation with just words.
First, I had to go outside and reorganize the situation.
‘But to do that…’
I have to kill the green algae monster.
“…Are you sure it doesn’t hurt?”
“…I don’t know what to answer….”
Lee Jae-heon narrowed his eyes and wiped the corner of his mouth at Jeong In-ho, who was looking at me. From the looks of it, it didn’t seem like a situation that could be glossed over by just saying, ‘It doesn’t hurt,’ so he removed his hand from his face and let out another long sigh.
“…Of course, it doesn’t hurt at all, but it’s not to the point where I suddenly go crazy. “I don’t think you need to worry.”
“Shall we stop by the pharmacy?”
“You’re not even listening to me anymore, Jeong In-ho.”
How on earth should I tell this bastard that I’m going to go kill the green algae monster?
‘Looks like you’re feeling a little relieved now.’
Even he is just trying to pretend not to notice the anxiety.
Lee Jae-heon, who remembered his past life, knew that usually in cases like this, most people want to settle for the current situation. To Jeong In-ho, who thought he had finally taken a step forward in a good way, he said, ‘Hey, have you cried enough now? I couldn’t say, ‘Then shall we go catch some green algae monsters?’
At that time, I don’t know if it could really end with a collar. There is no way that Deputy Jeong, who even grabbed the manager by the collar, would be polite to this point. For Lee Jae-heon’s own safety, he had to moderately stimulate the other person.
‘But it wouldn’t be good to drag this episode out and then go back a few more times…’
Walking down the dark night road, Lee Jae-heon looked back at Jeong In-ho.
“…Why do you look at me like that?”
“A subordinate who was always smiling shamelessly cried in front of me twice recently. So, do you think it doesn’t bother me? If you think about it, you cry every time you go back to the past like that. “Like a child.”
He covered up the other person’s doubts with sarcasm and continued his thoughts.
Although I feel the need, there is not enough time to focus solely on Jung In-ho’s mental management. Since it has regressed, the green algae monster would have been downgraded again, but if it uses someone as a new battery like in the last episode, things become more complicated.
In that case, having to go back one more time will be a given.
‘I don’t even know why the green algae monster replaces its skeleton in the first place.’
In the original novel, there was never even a story about the green algae monster using human corpses as skeletons. The main character was lucky enough to keep sucking and drinking other people’s blood, but every time information he didn’t know came out like this, his mood went down.
Jeong In-ho, who was quietly looking at Lee Jae-heon, who frowned as a habit, spoke with a sincere smile.
“…I am very happy that the manager, regardless of his physical condition, looks as healthy as his mouth. “Should I say that he is someone who has been going back and forth between the underworld since he was in elementary school?”
“…Did I even tell you that? “What on earth do you believe in?”
“That’s right, I don’t know what you believed and why you told that to the detective you first met. “You never told us either.”
I’m sure Jeong In-ho wasn’t feeling jealous, but he was probably just saying it out of insecurity.
‘Well, in the last episode, was he arrested right after having this conversation?’
Since the situation was similar in many ways, it was understandable that the main character felt anxious. Even back then, while we were talking about returning, wasn’t he comforted, cried, and dragged on his way back? Since it was a world where mental power was the main thing, I could think of it as not being a baseless delusion.
He blinked once, changed his tone, and continued.
“…Are you scolding me for not telling you first? To the manager? Assistant Manager Jeong?”
“…I’m really annoyed that you’re slipping away like a loach like that. “You only act when you are at a disadvantage, always.”
“You guys are very prejudiced against me…”
Lee Jae-heon joked, wiping his eyes with his thumb and averting his gaze as if he was fed up. It may not be possible in the previous episode, but I knew that the main character would feel more comfortable physically and mentally if I showed him a little bit of the same light side as before.
Above all, in the end, the protagonist must feel that the current ‘Lee Jae-heon’ and the ‘Lee Jae-heon’ of the previous episode are the same.
‘…Then we’ll have to finish organizing the inside first.’
He nodded inwardly.
I thought I was going to throw this episode away and take care of the main character, but I don’t have enough time. However, I couldn’t urge them to go and kill the green algae monster right away. If so, there wasn’t much that could be done right away.
“Aren’t there signs of prejudice that have been shown so far?”
“Uh huh, why are you criticizing something an adult says? Assistant Manager Jeong is very oblivious. Just look at him.”
“Isn’t it time to stop doing that?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
First, we need to organize the interior. All that needs to be done is to find out what Ha Seong-yoon’s true purpose is and control Yoon Gar-ram’s trauma.
Then, I will have time to tour the park a second time. In this way, we learned about the child and the two adults who had been questioned in the previous episode, and in the process, we became acquainted with Hong Kyung-jun’s team.
‘If we properly tie things up and send Song In-myeong to hell, then create a situation where we can catch the green algae monster right after the commotion subsides…’
He looked down the dark path and quietly made up his mind.
Yes, I had to finish all of this within this episode if possible. For the main character’s mental health, Lee Jae-heon must gently comfort Jung In-ho and help him complete all tasks.
“….”
I was already at a loss.
‘But there’s no change in the fact that it’s something that needs to be done.’
The immediate problem at hand was internal organization. From Lee Jae-heon’s perspective, the most urgent people were Ha Seong-yoon and Yoon Gar-ram, but from other people’s perspective, there were more urgent problems than that.
That was ‘Lee Jae-heon’.
“…Really, why did you do that earlier? “Didn’t I ask you where it hurt?”
“…No….”
“Is that really it? Who do you want to kill? “If I’m in a daze or just dreaming…”
Look, if you feel like you’re speechless right now, don’t you ask me this?
‘If I can’t finish this episode, I’m going to be really mentally ill.’
Lee Jae-heon couldn’t help but feel nervous.
To be honest, the relationship between Lee Jae-heon and Jung In-ho cannot be said to be good, but the fact that they cared and fretted so much meant that his death was imprinted as a trauma.
And that was bad news for both of us.
He answered, his face showing fatigue and embarrassment.
“How many times do I have to tell you that it doesn’t hurt that much, man?”
“Did you think you could believe that? “That’s nonsense.”
“Huh.”
Lee Jae-heon, who was convinced that he would not be able to win on this topic, tried to change his mind. Of course, since it was a blatant change of topic, it had to be something that the other person had no choice but to nod and follow along.
“…Anyway… I will reveal the details of the details myself.”
“…What is the situation?”
“Aren’t there things I told the detective first? It looks like he told me about my past history and the green algae monster… and even the influence he had on me. “I’ll tell you on my own, so don’t worry.”
“Isn’t the most important thing to know is when you announce it?”
“No ha… I’ll let you know tomorrow. “No, it will be today. Can you let me know when it’s daylight today?”
As Jeong In-ho’s pressure made him bow as if he had no choice, the protagonist smiled sincerely with a very satisfied face.
“I think that’s good, Manager.”
“…You really are a disgusting bastard…”
The most creepy thing was that the venom in his eyes did not go away.
‘Guys like that always go on a shooting rampage.’
In fact, it was a bit lacking to describe it as poison.
If I were to express it a bit frivolously, I would say it felt like I was spinning around in a hurry. However, for a person who turned around like that, it was also funny that he was holding on to reason properly. That guy was crazy, but he wasn’t crazy.
And Jaeheon Lee always called those guys ‘mentally ill’.
“What is going on in the middle of the night….”
These are the people who live their lives with their minds turned upside down.
He didn’t bother to hold back his lament. Even from the perspective of ‘Lee Jae-heon’, not necessarily Lee Jae-heon, the fact that he came out secretly to vomit some blood and then found out about his subordinate’s return would have been a thunderbolt in the sky.
“They usually call it karma.”
“You need to do something about that group… “I guarantee it.”
“What joy would an employee like me have in living if he didn’t at least clean his mouth?”
“I wish you wouldn’t do that in front of the person involved if possible.”
Jaeheon Lee was at a loss as to where he should set the mood and release it.
It seems like Jung In-ho really welcomes this light and frivolous talk, so I’m roughly adjusting to it, but ‘Lee Jae-heon’ in the current time zone is not as relaxed in many ways as he was last time.
‘If you talk too much, they’ll think it’s strange, so you have to find the right line…’
I couldn’t stop walking because of the strange pain in my head.
“….”
Suddenly, I felt a sense of popularity.
“…Chief Kang?”
Kang Min-ah, who was standing hidden between the trees and looking at Lee Jae-heon and Jung In-ho, was the owner.
The sight of a woman standing against one of the completely black trees, with the only light coming from a small flame from a lighter, was quite creepy. The limp black hair was scattered here and there, further heightening the fear unique to the underworld.
Of course, it wasn’t a big problem because both Jung In-ho and Lee Jae-heon were too crazy to be scared at that level, but I could tell that Kang Min-ah’s condition didn’t look very good.
The expression disappeared from Jeong In-ho’s face, as if he remembered that green algae monsters can drive people crazy.
“…I…”
She opened her mouth after a moment of silence.
“…I woke up… but there was no one there.”
“…what?”
“I am alone. No, it’s not that there is no one. There was something, huh? No, that…”
Kang Min-ah looked a little confused.
Dark brown eyes roll to the left and then move to the right. I looked up briefly and then down again.
Then, my gaze at Lee Jae-heon and Jeong In-ho slightly trembled. All of the reactions were so horribly static that Jaeheon Lee thought for a moment that Minah Kang was truly crazy.
But fortunately for them, she soon returned to her usual Kang Min-ah.
“…I’m sorry. “I had a dream and woke up… I guess I was scared because I suddenly couldn’t see you two.”
“…I’m sorry for suddenly disappearing, Mina.”
“no. I didn’t set out to look for it so blindly, but I think I did it because I was half-asleep. “I keep saying things in vain.”
“You can do that if you’re tired.”
“Still, I’m glad our paths didn’t diverge…”
A faint trace of nervousness appeared on his calm face. Lee Jae-heon internally breathed a sigh of relief as he saw those round, slightly drooping eyes. From the moment I thought it was necessary to organize internally, I didn’t want to fail without knowing the reason.
The protagonist was probably relieved that his colleague’s condition was not as bad as he imagined, but Lee Jae-heon pretended not to know and pushed Jeong In-ho towards Kang Min-ah.
“Let’s get some sleep, you guys. “How can you guys not sleep?”
“…the manager is awake too….”
Kang Min-ah stuck to Jung In-ho, who was approaching her without any suspicion, but the protagonist’s glance at Lee Jae-heon seemed to be different.
Jaeheon Lee looked at him like that and secretly raised his eyebrows at Kang Minah.
‘It would be even weirder if Lee Jae-heon approached other members of the group without hesitation.’
No matter how much we talked and how much easier the conversation was than last time, it was different from the danger that ‘Jae-heon Lee’ felt about himself. For that to be resolved, ‘Lee Jae-heon’s condition would have to be reduced to the point where anyone could kill him, or the green algae monster would have to be completely killed.
“…Boss.”
“what.”
“…No, let’s go quickly.”
And Jeong In-ho seemed to have just thought of that too.
‘…Let’s use this to encourage hunting of green algae monsters.’
Lee Jae-heon, who was still holding the lighter’s flame, thought so and calmly walked. It was a tired and dull step that suited ‘Lee Jae-heon’ at this point.
He glanced at the back of Kang Min-ah’s head and blinked slowly.
“….”
That was all.
(Continued in the next part)
