# Chapter 29
The club guy’s friends were already sitting around the circular table. Following his direction, they made room until there was just barely enough space for the two of them to sit. It was so cramped that Iyeon had to sit with his thigh pressed directly against Sano’s.
Sitting down was fine, but they were too close. The muscle of Sano’s leg was distinctly felt through their touching jeans, making Iyeon swallow a fake cough.
The thigh that was clearly about one and a half times thicker than Iyeon’s didn’t move at all. Right, it’s weirder to be bothered by this kind of thing. To distract himself, Iyeon needlessly stroked Mungchi’s head. Mungchi, sitting under the sofa, seemed pleased and rubbed its tail against Iyeon’s ankle.
“Who’s this friend? What’s with the goggles? So cute.”
The person who spoke was a woman sitting next to Iyeon. Wearing a crop top with the fabric below her chest seemingly deleted, the long-haired woman was smiling brightly while holding a sparkling glass of alcohol. She seemed already half-drunk.
Iyeon, who had made eye contact without much thought, rolled his eyes. There was something strangely familiar about her face. Had he seen her somewhere before?
“I found them at the bar and brought them over.”
The one who answered was the club guy sitting next to Sano. At his boastful comment, not only the woman but everyone at the table cheered. It seemed like this wasn’t his first or second time “hunting” like this.
“What’s your name? How old are you?”
“Jung Iyeon. Twenty-four.”
“I’m Han Subin. How old do you think I am?”
“Well… younger than me?”
“Oh my, you must have some real-world experience?”
Subin laughed and slapped Iyeon’s shoulder, saying it was funny. It hurt.
“I’m twenty-five. Feel free to speak casually!”
Not just from the alcohol but perhaps naturally sociable, Subin continued to chat about various things. That worked out well. Iyeon, not wanting to be conscious of Sano next to him, turned his body and actively engaged in conversation.
After exchanging a few words, Iyeon learned that Subin had grown up in a wealthy family. Looking at the labels on the bottles on the table, the club guy clearly wasn’t an ordinary office worker either. It really hit home that this was a playground for rich kids.
“What, you live there? That’s where my sister lives!”
When Subin heard Iyeon’s residential area during their casual chat, her eyes widened. The unexpected coincidence clearly amazed her.
If anything, Iyeon was the one who should be surprised. Although property prices in Chohosi were generally high, Iyeon’s neighborhood in the southern district was one of the less expensive areas. It wasn’t the kind of place someone who could be invited to a club like this would choose.
“Really? It’s not a rich neighborhood though.”
“My sister is a bit eccentric~”
Look at her, not even denying being rich. Iyeon was convinced she was truly wealthy.
“I guess yours has already received training. I’m jealous.”
Subin looked at Mungchi and muttered glumly.
“I still have to wait my turn.”
From the sound of it, this “training” wasn’t simply the concept of pet training. Iyeon was curious, but asking about it would be equivalent to advertising himself as a suspicious person. He just went along with it and clinked glasses with her.
“It’ll come quickly if you wait.”
“Right. I might win the lottery too!”
Subin’s expression quickly lightened as she laughed loudly. After downing her drink in one go, she put her arm around Iyeon’s shoulders and chattered about how nice it was to have a cute younger brother.
Apart from the conversation being moderately entertaining, Subin wasn’t wearing anything over her crop top, so not only her bare arms but also her chest pressed closely against Iyeon. It was a somewhat uncomfortable position. Iyeon tried to twist his body inconspicuously, but since they were all sitting so tightly packed together, there was a limit to how far he could move away.
Just then, the arm wrapped around his shoulder slipped off. Someone had struck away Subin’s hand, which had been not only embracing Iyeon’s shoulder but also occasionally brushing against their own. At the end of Iyeon and Subin’s surprised gazes was Sano, with irritation plastered all over his face.
The fact that even that looked handsome was a problem, if anything.
“Wow, what’s this? I was so focused on Iyeon that I’m just now seeing this friend’s face. How can someone be this handsome? Are you two friends?”
It was a rapid-fire stream of chatter. When Iyeon nodded reflexively, Subin’s eyes sparkled as she leaned her upper body toward Sano.
“Nice to meet you! I’m Han Subin.”
Thanks to this, Iyeon, almost buried under Subin, had to remain frozen in place, unable to move. If I breathe deeply, her chest will touch me. Once that thought occurred, he couldn’t even take deep breaths.
Sano’s face grew increasingly cold. Though Iyeon didn’t know why he was acting that way, one wrong move and he might hit someone. Even though Sano had become quite docile lately, his core was still Je Sano, so Iyeon couldn’t let his guard down. Who knows, maybe he becomes unmanageably violent when drinking… As if aware of Iyeon’s anxious gaze, Sano irritably opened his mouth.
“Move.”
“Huh?”
Sano grabbed a bottle of alcohol on Iyeon’s side. As the puzzled Subin raised her glass, Sano immediately put the bottle’s mouth to it. It was such an aggressive pour that it made a gurgling sound.
“Whoa, that much?”
The glass, filled precariously to the point where surface tension made it bulge, wobbled dangerously. What Sano had poured wasn’t soju but whiskey. Just like someone who wasn’t new to clubs. Drinking alcohol like that was a perfect way to end up in a grave.
But Subin calmly winked.
“Feeling affectionate? Will you tell me your name if I down it in one shot?”
“Not a chance.”
Subin laughed at the blunt response and tossed the drink into her mouth. Thanks to her straightening her back to drink, Iyeon could finally be free.
Wait a minute. Was he actually trying to help? Does this guy have that kind of awareness… Looking at Sano with appreciative eyes, Iyeon found that Sano’s face hadn’t softened at all.
“Enjoying yourself?”
“What?”
He didn’t even answer that question. What’s his problem? Even as Iyeon looked at him in confusion, Sano stubbornly kept his mouth shut and soon buried himself deep in the sofa, expressing his intention not to talk. What a temperamental character. Only Iyeon was confused, facing Je Sano who was irritated for unknown reasons.
“Hey, just drink. Alcohol makes you feel better.”
“Get it away.”
“Don’t be like that…”
Iyeon, engaged in this pointless back-and-forth, blinked and trailed off. It was because a man standing far away against the wall suddenly came into his view.
Iyeon shouldn’t know anyone wealthy enough to enter this place, but the face was strangely familiar. Why does everyone look so familiar? Was I a rich young master in my past life?
Moreover, his attire was distinctive enough that it wouldn’t be easily forgotten once seen. A long-haired man dressed up like a peacock. Where on earth… Ah.
“I’m going to the bathroom.”
Iyeon abruptly announced and quickly stood up. By the time he managed to extricate himself from the table, the man was moving along the perimeter of the hall. It was such a bizarre situation, like a dream or something, that he had momentarily forgotten.
It was the bloodied man he had seen in the park this morning.
It wasn’t easy following the man through the crowd of people. Trapped among the swaying masses, Iyeon looked around.
“Hyegang. Did you see that man with long hair in a purple suit who was just in my line of sight?”
– Just a moment.
While Hyegang turned the camera on the goggles to look, a voice fell near Iyeon’s ear. It was a cool, slow voice.
– Where are you going.
Iyeon flinched and looked around, but Sano wasn’t there. When he looked toward the table, Sano immediately made eye contact with him. The gesture of tapping his ear was clear.
Come to think of it, he had given him a communicator. I really thought he was whispering right in my ear. Iyeon rubbed the goosebumps that had risen below his ear and quickly explained.
“I saw a familiar face, so I’ll be right back. Take care of Mungchi.”
– You keep wandering off alone.
The low voice being transmitted directly to his ear was eerie. When communicating with Hyegang, he didn’t feel this way… Iyeon shook his head slightly to get rid of the distracting thoughts.
“I just want to talk to him.”
Even from a distance, Iyeon could clearly see Sano’s eyes narrowing immediately. After a moment of silence, a sulky order was issued.
– I’ll kill you if you cut off communication in the middle.
After Sano finished his sincere message, Hyegang took over the microphone.
– Hyung. There’s a small door next to the stage, right? It probably leads to a staff area. He went through there.
“Okay.”
– Why the sudden stalking? Who is that person?
“Someone I met by chance…”
Iyeon trailed off, glancing at the stage area. Thinking simply, the man could be someone who works here, or someone who knows an employee. The ordinary possibility was much higher. There was no real need for Iyeon to follow and confirm.
However.
“Something feels off.”
He had a feeling that the deep bloodstains that had colored the man’s stomach were somehow related to this place. It was an intuition close to certainty.
Iyeon moved his feet again. To get to the place Hyegang had indicated, he had to cross the entire hall where people were dancing. Without any warning, Iyeon plunged in and showed off his possessed dance moves, naturally making his way through the hall.
– Hyung, are you some kind of dance genius?
“What kind of outdated expression is that?”
Even if it was amateurish, it was still infiltration, so it was better to act without causing discomfort to others. Maybe he overdid it a bit; as people tried to hold him back, saying he should dance a little more before going, Iyeon lied about needing the bathroom urgently and slipped to the side of the stage. People high on excitement soon forgot about Iyeon and focused on enjoying themselves with those around them.
The door with a small sign reading ‘Staff Only’ was painted the same color as the wall to make it inconspicuous. When he gently turned the doorknob, it opened easily.
Opening the door and stepping inside revealed an employee break room, but it was completely empty. The break room was small, so there was no space for an adult man to hide. Where did he go? Iyeon looked around a bit and discovered a door with a small sign reading ‘No Entry’ behind the sofa.
Opening that door revealed a long corridor.
The space, with its walls painted stark white, was silent. It was a strange quietness beyond just the absence of music.
It felt out of place as part of a club’s interior. Iyeon, who had been wearing the goggles just resting on his forehead, properly pulled them down and whispered to Hyegang.
“Help me find the way.”
– Just a moment.
Because the corridor was quiet, Iyeon walked slowly, careful not to make footsteps. He worried about encountering staff from the opposite direction, but after some time, he realized he didn’t need to worry about that.
No matter how much he walked, he couldn’t find any staff, let alone an exit door.
“Is it far?”
Thanks to Hyegang’s perfect support, Iyeon had become a weak body unable to walk without a map. Getting tired quickly, Iyeon whined to Hyegang, who muttered in a puzzled voice.
– It seems like there’s no communication line there.
“What?”
At that moment, a hand shot out from the wall.
– Hyung, to your side!
Hyegang’s urgent voice came right after. There wasn’t even time to scream. Without being able to put up any proper resistance, Iyeon was swallowed by the wall.
The corridor was empty again.
