Episode 200
It is said that they somehow escaped from the other side of the world, but that doesn’t mean the whole situation was resolved. The confusion must have been doubled because Lee Jae-heon fell asleep without saying anything during the evening. Of course, only the chicks didn’t know that this was a very merciful situation compared to the original novel.
Lee Jae-heon sipped coffee from a loose paper cup and watched the situation around the office.
“…If In-ho is really sick, I’ll tell the manager, so you can get some rest…” “
Haha, no. it’s okay.”
“It’s because you look really bad…”
Jeong In-ho became a smiling machine.
“Ugh…!”
“Chief Kang, are you very surprised? “The road is narrow… I’m sorry…!”
“No, no, I’m truly sorry….”
Kang Min-ah, whose liver has become the size of a bean.
“Yeonseok?”
“…Yes, yes.”
“…Did I do something wrong…?”
Noh Yeon-seok looks like he was thrown into the wild.
“….”
Jigssi.
Lee Jae-heon thought as he looked at the survivors in the other side of the world.
‘In the end, everyone went to work.’
Should we call this a evil of modern society, or should we admire the mentality of the characters in the 19-year-old impoverished survivor? Lee Jae-heon nodded inwardly as he sipped his second mixed coffee today.
Anyway, it’s nice to see that you’re sincere.
Lee Jae-heon was an old man down to his soul.
* * *
Although he had many worries, Lee Jae-heon was worried about the problems that were right in front of him.
‘What will I do after escaping the other side of the world?’
All of the current survivors, whether Miu or Gou, are bound by a common destiny. Not to mention the possessed person, who was deleted so quickly that it was unreasonable before anything could be properly figured out.
Lee Jae-heon, who put aside something that was not worth considering, often thought about how to run this community of destiny. There were many survivors who had already survived as the original content had been distorted to the extent that it was distorted, and there was no telling what would happen in the future. Lee Jae-heon remembers the contents of the 19-year-old impoverished survivor novel along with his past life, so all that is left is at best a set-up.
However, as a result, the protagonist began to attach some meaning to or become obsessed with this community of destiny, and Lee Jae-heon was fully willing to join in if it was for his own wealth and fame. He felt the need to run this kind of community of destiny more safely.
“…So…”
Jeong In-ho continued with a gentle smile that he often displayed before being consumed by the secret world.
“Why are we gathered here, Manager?”
“Did I tell you to come to a place I couldn’t come to?”
“In what sense?”
“You’re saying a lot because you’re trying to feed me an expensive meal.”
Currently, all the survivors except the existing Jeong In-ho team, Hong Gyeong-jun team, and the Park siblings were gathered in one place. After everyone had finished their work for the day, they came to the address Jaeheon Lee had sent in a message. It was a Korean restaurant that even required qualifications to enter.
Kwon Yeon-hee, who was forced to take sick leave 30 minutes after going to work, muttered with a blank face.
“…I’ve been around here often, but I didn’t even know this building was a restaurant…”
“I made it look like a common building on purpose so that no one would come in without knowing it. “It’s not a place to do business with the general public.”
“No matter how much I think about it, I think it’s true that we’re in a place we can’t come to, Manager.”
Kang Min-ah and Noh Yeon-seok nodded with similar expressions at the sight of Kwon Yeon-hee shrinking slightly, and Jeong In-ho looked around and let out an insincere laugh. It seemed like he had regained his normal pace no matter how long it had been since he escaped from the other side of the world.
“It’s amazing, there’s no menu.”
“For the amount of money you pay, they will make it just the way you want. The concept inside the building is a Korean restaurant, but you can also have Western, Chinese, and Japanese food… and cocktails if you want. “We can have cheap snacks that are commonly sold. Is there anything you would like?”
“Even though I look like this, my stomach is sore and I want to eat comfort food.”
“Then Jeong In-ho, Korean food. “If you don’t have anything in particular, I can ask the chef for a recommendation.”
“…Do whatever you want.”
After saying that, he pretended not to look away and tried to keep up the pace, but it seemed like he was on high alert in an unfamiliar environment. The same was true for Dr. Ha Seong-yoon, who managed to finish his work.
“It seems that there are no brave warriors who want to eat something here, so let’s do as the manager said and unify it as Korean food and get a recommendation from the chef. Oh, what about Boss Yoon?”
“I’m fine too. “I already had dinner and came back.”
As similar quiet voices exchanged, Jeong In-ho’s smile deepened and the expressions of the other three chicks became strange. Jaeheon Lee felt uncomfortable with the situation that was going on so recklessly, but he seemed to not have the courage to deviate, so he gave a small laugh and nodded.
Lee Jae-heon, who wrote ‘Please recommend Korean food’ on the tablet PC placed on the table and delivered it by email, turned his head again and looked at the group.
“Then…”
“….”
“I’ll take your questions.”
Jeong In-ho smiled and raised his hand.
“I’m curious as to why I haven’t heard from you since the evening.”
“To sum it up, I slept because I was tired.”
“I’ll correct that. I’d like to hear your excuse for that.”
“Your will to accept an apology from my mouth stands out. I’m sorry. I was so tired that I was on the verge of passing out, but I thought it was a bit light since this wasn’t the first time something like this had happened. I couldn’t do this to all of you who saw the final situation. “I apologize again.”
Jaeheon Lee thought to himself.
‘I’ve had enough of losing my anger now.’
Since the situation was like this, it was inevitable that a question would come out right away, rather than a question about ‘Why didn’t you contact me?’ However, he raised this question as if he did not want to hear the same story twice, perhaps because he had already confessed his feelings to the fullest extent on the company’s rooftop garden. It was an annoyingly disgusting decision, but Lee Jae-heon thought he would accept it because it made him feel better.
As they sat around the round table, leaving the others dumbfounded by the sight of Jeong In-ho playing quickly, Garam Yoon, who was sitting quietly between Jaeheon Lee and Seongyoon Ha, asked.
“…Are you feeling okay?”
“That’s… okay too.”
“I thought you were dead.”
“sorry.”
“I knew you would say that.”
Yoon Garam’s eyelids, which had fallen gently, folded into a curved line.
“Please be sure to contact me next time.”
“…All right.”
If I didn’t do it, he would burn me to death first, so I nodded obediently. Although she may not be as good as Ha Seong-yoon, I was even more scared because I felt like Yoon Gar-ram could happily kill Lee Jae-heon at any time as she was within her limits.
Noh Yeon-seok, who was feeling restless while listening to the two’s story, slowly raised his hand and asked.
“So, did we… escape?”
Silence fell for an instant.
The emotions the survivors were feeling were likely to be very complex. Is this reality or was what I saw real? I felt mentally shaken slightly by the relief of finally escaping and the anxiety of not knowing when I might be caught again, but this was not a secret world. The survivors seemed to be more focused on relief than anxiety.
When the vaguely light and soft air settled down slightly, Kang Min-ah seemed to have relaxed a bit, lowering her heavily raised shoulders and sighing.
“…So… is that what it was? “The monster that was holding the manager…”
“…”
“Yes, it actually died on its own because it was out of the water for about three days. Also, luckily, that guy was the key player, so we ended up like this.”
There were no clear words like ‘backside world’ or ‘green algae monster’, perhaps because Lee Jae-heon’s intent was evident from his gaze. The word ‘monster’, which was barely able to come out, entered quickly and did not come out. Lee Jae-heon was secretly impressed, saying that his wit itself was not bad.
“What you said is correct. “If you remember that, you will remember it later, right?”
“…You said you never know when it will happen again.”
“So now you can’t figure out why I called you here?”
“….”
“I called you to prepare for that incident as much as possible.”
Rattling.
Jaeheon Lee drank water with ice in it. It was a cold day, so Lee Jae-heon deliberately asked for warm tea. That’s why the other people’s cups were ceramic, unlike Lee Jae-heon’s, which were glass, and contained steaming green tea.
“Honestly, we have a lot to talk about… And, as you may already know, I come from a family that deals with money. “There were a lot of people around us who were suspected of having the disease, so we had to gather in a place like this on purpose.”
“Wow, it’s like a drama.”
“It’s not that I don’t think it’s a bit excessive, but with this many people, I think we can handle it before it gets caught… More than anything, I thought a restaurant where we can briefly meet and part ways would be better than at yours or my house. “Even if I got caught, I would sometimes make money in front of people who couldn’t make a living, so it can’t be seen as a very unusual way of moving.”
“Those who couldn’t eat well… that’s not even the case.”
Ha Seong-yoon asked with a strange expression in response to Lee Jae-heon’s words.
“Is something going on at home? Is there a power struggle or something like that…? “It may seem rude, but I’m asking because I think there’s a problem when you consider security so important.”
“I often had accidents when I was young, so I regularly check my movements around the house. more.”
“You’re not going to end it with ‘over’ as if it’s nothing, are you?”
“…Oh, of course I’m pretending not to know. “He was raised so well that he barely notices the tears of an ant, so it would be strange for someone with such high self-esteem to know that.”
“I didn’t ask that, sir.”
“There are other enemies as well. But most of the time, the purpose is not for me, but for the family behind me… As I just said, even if I get caught, I will use my money to put an end to this matter, so you don’t have to worry too much.”
“After hearing that, I think you should definitely be worried…”
Even during the short conversation, I could feel Ha Seong-yoon’s expression becoming more and more tired. Jeong In-ho was looking at me with pitch-black eyes for the first time in a long time, and Yoon Gar-ram was acting pitiful and acting like people who couldn’t hear the rest. For Lee Jae-heon, it was a ridiculous thing.
“Who is worrying about whom right now? Do you think I’ve tried this once or twice?”
“I have a question.”
Jeong In-ho asked with a slightly exaggerated expression of puzzlement. It was also disgusting.
“You’re talking as if your movements will be revealed anyway. If that was going to happen, was there a need to put in this much effort?”
“I was saying this on the assumption that I wouldn’t get caught. Although this Korean restaurant looks like this, it has good security and I paid cash and took a taxi to get there. However, if it becomes known that I have come this far and met you, it would mean that the old manager image I had worked so hard to create would be over, right? Of course, if you insist that it was a coincidence born of miraculous stupidity, it will be resolved.”
“I think it would be a better image for it to end…”
“When I said it wouldn’t be a problem even if I got discovered, I meant that it could be easily resolved, but that didn’t mean that was the goal… But that’s right.”
Lee Jae-heon’s eyes landed on Kwon Yeon-hee, who was lazily enduring the awkwardness of the environment. He lightly brushed the corner of his mouth with his hand.
“I was thinking of moving Kwon Yeon-hee to the planning team, so I thought this might be more likely. “The fact that I called her here probably means that I’m expecting something from ‘Kwon Yeon-hee.’”
“…uh? yes? ah? Are you going with that plan? “Me?”
“So did you plan on staying there?”
He frowned and continued speaking.
“What did you see when you got to work?”
“….”
Kwon Yeon-hee, who was embarrassed by Lee Jae-heon’s words for a while and then turned pale, then wiped her face once and opened her mouth, spitting out words like someone struggling to hold on.
“…that… monster… you know, that pale thing. “When you look in the mirror, you see everything.”
“Didn’t I say last time that the empty seat would be replaced by someone else?”
“I had heard about it, but it was my first time seeing it in person… so I was very embarrassed. “Almost the entire department I worked in was like that.”
Kwon Yeon-hee testified that most people in the marketing department where Kwon Yeon-hee was working were preyed upon by the underworld, and that there was a slaughter war in the company, killing each other. Since there were no survivors, she must have been the one who saw the mannequin monster walking around the most among the group.
‘It’s not for nothing that I got kicked out 30 minutes after showing up for work.’
I thought at the same time.
‘But he’s basically a mental guy… I guess he managed to get it together somehow.’
It would have been a different story in a world where mental strength was diminished just by taking a breath, but in a reality where comfortable air was the main focus, it seemed like I was able to deal with the mannequin monster with some resoluteness even though it was my first time encountering it. There were no rumors that Kwon Yeon-hee screamed.
Lee Jae-heon muttered inwardly and spoke again.
“Fortunately, the planning team doesn’t have that kind of phenomenon, and the people gathered here can handle it. “I feel bad saying this, but first of all, I’m there too.”
“Ah…”
“If you don’t plan on submitting your resignation, this would be better.”
“But… does that mean I want it…?”
“I can do it if I want?”
“Golden spoon…!”
Of course, this was not as easy as it sounds. Since Lee Jae-heon himself had no power, but his family had power, he, a mere manager, could not go beyond the line, so he had to use his hands as gently as possible to adjust the situation. By messing with this person and that.
In the process, ‘Lee Jae-heon’, who is not the old manager, will inevitably be revealed…
“… Well, we are trying to solve it one by one in this way.”
“Your solution is too grand.”
“Get help when you give it, when you give it.”
That might not be bad either.
“People who are already having a hard time making a living.”
Lee Jae-heon, a member of the royal family, was also curious about who Song In-myeong’s ‘sponsor’ was.
I think I can act as bait at this level.
