“Hmm, I thought so.”
“……”
“To be honest, Xie Wei, at first your pronunciation did sound a bit unfamiliar to me.”
Ray Jun added kindly.
“But your pronunciation is improving rapidly. I’m also a gyopo, so I know how much effort you’ve put in.”
“Thanks.”
Kang Siwon replied awkwardly. He hadn’t particularly been looking for comfort, and it didn’t seem like Ray Jun had meant it as comfort either, but his mind was put somewhat at ease.
“……Hm? Wait a minute. You’re also a gyopo?”
“Yeah, I’m similar to you. I used to be bad at Chinese too. I struggled so much learning it.”
“But you’re perfect now? I never would have thought you were a gyopo. That’s amazing.”
Kang Siwon was genuinely impressed. Even if you learned it as a child, it wasn’t easy to master a second language to a native level, but Ray Jun had accomplished that difficult feat. For someone who was always anxious because of his poor language skills, it was enviable.
“What’s your secret?”
“Mm…… having a mother with a fiery temper? She once ripped up my Chinese character textbook while teaching me.”
“……That’s not a method just anyone can follow.”
“Then should I tell you another method?”
“What is it?”
Ray Jun approached Kang Siwon. Leaning his head in close enough to almost touch him, he whispered into his ear.
“Date a lover who’s good at Chinese. Then you’ll improve quickly.”
“What are you saying?”
It was so absurd he almost blurted out a response in Korean. He thought there must be some amazing secret since he was even whispering in his ear, but it was just a childish joke.
“I’m serious though?”
“Forget it. That’s a method only good-looking guys like you can use.”
“Hmm.”
Ray Jun blatantly looked Kang Siwon up and down. He seemed like he had something to say, but Kang Siwon just ignored it.
“It’s half joking but half serious. Language improves the more you use it, right? Especially pronunciation is hard to correct on your own. The more you avoid other people, the harder it’ll be to improve your Chinese.”
“……That’s true.”
Avoiding colleagues all the time wasn’t the answer either. Silence is golden, but that didn’t mean he shouldn’t even make small talk. Even without Ray Jun telling him, he knew he was standing out in a bad way.
“Should I help you?”
“Huh?”
At Ray Jun’s suggestion, Kang Siwon looked back at him with an unfamiliar feeling.
“If you want, just say the word. I’ll help you practice conversation.”
“I can’t trouble you like that……”
“It’s not that much trouble. I don’t have the skill to teach you like some professional instructor. I’m just saying let’s chat like friends.”
“……”
“What do you think?”
In truth, this was a golden opportunity for Kang Siwon. It would be hard to find anywhere else someone who wouldn’t think his poor Chinese was strange while helping him practice conversation. Moreover, since Ray Jun said Chinese was his second language too, he would understand him even better.
Nevertheless, he couldn’t readily step forward because the suddenly narrowed distance with Ray Jun felt burdensome. Kang Siwon made an appropriate excuse.
“I feel bad asking with empty hands.”
“You’re so upright. If you feel that way, then at least make me something delicious. You like cooking, don’t you?”
“Well, yeah.”
“Good, then you’ve agreed to practice conversation with me?”
He had only acknowledged the statement “You like cooking, don’t you,” but when he came to his senses, he had ended up learning Chinese from Ray Jun. It was sudden, but it seemed to have worked out reasonably well.
“……Then I’ll ask you to help me.”
“Of course.”
Ray Jun smiled brightly. His eyes curved like a fox’s, which was quite pretty.
To be so willing despite being the one doing the favor—perhaps Ray Jun was a purer person than he had thought. Kang Siwon thought this while rubbing down his forearm, which had gotten goosebumps for some reason.
* * *
If there was one thing Kang Siwon had realized while working in the cage room, it was that office work didn’t suit his constitution. Even if it was physically demanding, shaking a wok in a dynamic kitchen was much better—staring at numbers all day made him antsy.
In fact, when he had just infiltrated as a cage staff member, every minute and second was like walking on thin ice. He was even careful about breathing, thinking his identity could be exposed at any moment. But after repeating the same routine work for several months, he now even felt bored. It was probably because he was naturally meticulous and confident in mental arithmetic.
Kang Siwon checked his wristwatch. There were still 40 minutes until he got off work. When he last checked, there had been 45 minutes left, but disappointingly only 5 minutes had passed since then. He wanted to get off work quickly and hole up in the dormitory.
Ray Jun would be in the dormitory. For the past five months, Ray Jun had been nothing more and nothing less to Kang Siwon than a roommate who was a bit uncomfortable but not bad to live with. However, lately Ray Jun had been having quite a significant impact on Kang Siwon.
It had been two weeks since he started practicing conversation with Ray Jun, and in that short period, Kang Siwon’s Chinese skills had grown remarkably. Being good at something and being good at teaching were different matters, but Ray Jun was skilled at both.
Thanks to that, conversing with colleagues wasn’t as burdensome as before. He had to acknowledge it was all thanks to Ray Jun.
“Ah, shit……”
Just when he was lost in random thoughts, a senior colleague at the next station clutched their head. Kang Siwon pushed his musings aside and asked.
“What’s wrong?”
“There are extra chips.”
“Ah……”
No matter how thorough the settlement system was, there couldn’t be zero mistakes. Chips often ended up short or in excess, and today seemed to be one of those unlucky days.
“What denomination is extra?”
“Ten thousand-pataca chips.”
The senior groaned. Kang Siwon also swallowed a sigh. While 10,000 wasn’t a large amount at this casino, the fact that the settlement didn’t match was annoying in itself. Not only would getting off work be delayed, but a scolding from the manager would follow.
“What’s going on?”
Just then, the manager approached. The senior, looking miserable, explained the situation.
“There are ten extra thousand-pataca chips, and two five-thousand-pataca chips are short.”
“Where and how did it get mixed up? So the total amount matches?”
“Yes.”
“Ha…… What if someone who exchanged wrong makes a complaint? Think about how this happened.”
The manager said with a frown. While the intimidated senior carefully reviewed the day’s events, Kang Siwon also retraced his day.
How many customers had exchanged chips for cash at the cage today, which of them had exchanged chips of smaller denominations, whether anyone had changed their chip request.
He had a good memory to begin with, but since he always worked with his nerves on edge, each person’s face passed vividly through his mind. There was no particularly impressive customer among them. However……
“Wait, senior. Do you remember the customer who came around 4:40 today? I remember you handled them.”
“4:40? I’m not sure……?”
“You know, the person about 175cm tall wearing a dark purple shirt. The customer who paid 10,000 patacas in cash and asked for ten thousand-pataca chips.”
“Uh…… yeah.”
The senior nodded, but judging by their expression, they seemed uncertain. Kang Siwon pointed it out in more detail.
“But they changed their request in the middle. They asked if you could change it to five-thousand chips. So you gave them two five-thousand chips.”
“Ah! Oh, I remember. Right, that happened.”
Only then did the senior let out an exclamation.
“Oh no…… I made a mistake. I entered it as ten thousand-pataca chips at first, then forgot to change it.”
“That’s why the total amount matched, I think.”
“Really?”
The manager, who had been listening to the conversation, asked with skeptical eyes. Kang Siwon nodded.
“Yes, if you check the CCTV, it’ll show. It was a transaction around 4:40.”
“Alright, let me take a look.”
The manager headed toward the CCTV. Meanwhile, Kang Siwon counted the number of chips once more with the senior.
Before long, the manager returned to their station. Their face showed disbelief.
“Huh, it’s true. It was exactly a transaction around 4:40.”
“We’ve also finished double-checking. It’s the same as what the senior confirmed. The total amount matches too.”
“I’ll fix the settlement record. Be careful next time.”
“Yes, I’m sorry.”
With the senior’s apology, the problem was resolved. Kang Siwon swallowed a sigh of relief. He thought he might not be able to leave even past shift change time, but he could avoid such a disaster. Moreover, thanks to the commotion just now, time had passed quickly. It was finally time to get off work.
“Everyone, good work.”
“You too, good work, Xie Wei.”
Kang Siwon, who had been waiting for this moment, stood up from his seat. The senior and colleagues also left the cage room one by one. Just before following them, the manager called out to Kang Siwon.
“Xie Wei, just a moment.”
“Yes?”
Kang Siwon made an effort to hide his sense of dismay. Setting aside getting off work late, he was a bit anxious because he didn’t know why the manager was calling him.
Could it be because of that awful rumor? Had he finally been caught doing spy work? Perhaps his identity theft had been discovered. The anxiety that always lurked in one corner of his heart slowly rose up.
When he finally met their gaze, the manager opened their mouth.
“Xie Wei, you didn’t even handle it yourself, so how did you remember? I’ve noticed before, but your observational skills are exceptional. As expected of an ace.”
Fortunately, the manager’s business was praise. Kang Siwon answered with relief.
“No. My counter just happened to be free at that time. And that customer was memorable.”
“That’s what I mean by good observational skills. It was a small transaction with nothing special about it. You really did well joining the cage team.”
“……”
For Kang Siwon, who loathed casinos, the words “you did well joining the cage team” weren’t very welcome. Of course, knowing the manager meant it kindly, he lifted the corners of his mouth.
“Thank you for seeing me favorably.”
“Yeah. You worked hard, go on in quickly.”
“Yes. You worked hard too, manager.”
Kang Siwon turned around. Now it was really time to get off work.
Even until the moment he left the cage room, the manager’s pleased gaze followed him. At this, Kang Siwon regretted stepping forward unnecessarily.
He had thought this level of involvement was fine since it was just cage staff work, but apparently not. For him as a spy, being recognized by the manager only made him stand out unnecessarily, yet he’d done something pointless. Kang Siwon resolved to be careful next time.
