Chapter 12 · 10 min

Chapter 12

A fairly decent day

A skeleton of giant size close to 3 meters slowly raises its body.

It was lying then lifted the upper body and sat, placed hands on the floor and bent the knees then raised the body.

The appearance of the skeleton made of pitch-black bones was fairly cool.

Seo I-hyeon nodded with a satisfied expression.

"Still since it's the first I should give a name. You are Black from now on."

The skeleton slightly shook its body. He doesn't know if it means good or bad, but Seo I-hyeon didn't care. This guy is just Black from now on.

By the way perhaps because he used the werewolf's bones the head is a bit different from a human skull. But it's not completely like a wolf either, it's somewhere in between.

He'll have to think a bit about what to do with this guy now.

"Enter."

As soon as Seo I-hyeon's command fell Black sank into the floor. It entered the shadow warehouse.

"Now I should sleep."

Seo I-hyeon left the rooftop in a good mood.

He locked the rooftop door again with the key he had made earlier by firmly hardening blood.

And stored the key in the shadow.

Since he doesn't know if there will be occasions to use it again later he should keep it well.

Returning home he roughly washed and lay on the bed. Taking the syringe needle and tube he had put away in one corner of the desk.

"I drew yesterday, and have to draw again today. Like this what's different from when I was in the other world."

At that time too he stuck a syringe needle in his arm and slept every day. Still unlike then he doesn't get sliced here and there every day so it's a bit better.

Seo I-hyeon stuck the syringe needle in his forearm, put the end of the tube into the shadow, and closed his eyes.

And forced himself to sleep while enduring the dirty sensation of blood rapidly leaving.

* * *

A week had passed since that day's incident.

Like a lie nothing happened.

Seo I-hyeon lived the same life as usual for a week.

Doing day labor and returning home and sleeping and going out to work again.

What changed was only one thing.

There was no longer Jeong Sang-cheol.

It was natural. Because Jeong Sang-cheol had now joined Myeongjin Pharmaceutical.

Talk about Jeong Sang-cheol was fairly famous even at the workplace. Jeong Sang-cheol wasn't a quiet personality and knew people here and there so everyone talked about Jeong Sang-cheol.

Doing day labor then joining a pharmaceutical company how amazing. Even a full-time employee.

Now it's the weekend, and on the weekend he didn't even go outside at all and rested fully.

There was no longer occasion to draw blood, nor occasion to cut the body.

Like this might he really be able to live quietly and ordinarily, a very slight expectation rose.

Would it be possible?

Seo I-hyeon thought that and rolled around on the bed.

Black after first being made had never come out from the shadow once.

Since there was no occasion to use it there was no occasion to take it out.

Seo I-hyeon thought inwardly.

'I hope there is no occasion to take it out at all from now on.'

At that time, the phone vibrated.

Wuuung.

Checking it was Jeong Sang-cheol.

Seo I-hyeon received the call right away with a glad heart.

"Oh, yeah. Sang-cheol."

- Hyung-nim! Today I'll buy you a drink! Come out!

"Yeah? The menu?"

- Samgyeopsal of course. Ah, shall we eat gamjatang after a long time? I know a delicious place.

"Let's do gamjatang. Thinking about it I haven't eaten in a long time."

It's really been a long time. Because he hasn't eaten it yet since returning to this world.

As if salivary glands suddenly exploded drool gathered.

- Then I'll send the address. Come that way. I'm departing now.

"Yeah."

Not even a few seconds after hanging up a text arrived.

It's a place not very far from here. Probably Jeong Sang-cheol deliberately chose a place close to Seo I-hyeon's house.

Seo I-hyeon hummed a tune in a good mood, roughly washed and put on clothes.

And moved toward the meeting place with light footsteps.

* * *

"Ha... got robbed like a dog. Nothing came out?"

At Park Gyeong-ho's words Section Chief Lee answered immediately as if waiting.

"I did put up a request on the dark web, but there's no particular result. We're also investigating on our own, but that's the same."

"The blood? Did DNA testing? Tracking?"

"It's in a state where not a single bit of ether remains, and the DNA structure was also all destroyed. Tracking... I entrusted requests to several places, but there is no one who succeeded yet."

"Is there possibility? What is Section Chief Lee's judgment?"

"In my thought there is almost no possibility. Because a guy of that level wouldn't have left his own blood at the scene without any preparation."

"Ha. What kind of guy is it really?"

Section Chief Lee roughly passed Park Gyeong-ho's interjection and continued the report.

"The Jeong Sang-cheol I mentioned before, he joined Myeongjin Pharmaceutical."

"As expected. Good that I didn't touch. If Myeongjin had moved in this situation it really wouldn't have ended with just getting robbed."

"Looking into it the possibility was high that it would have been like that. It seems expectations are fairly large on the Myeongjin side too."

Park Gyeong-ho who was listening to those words suddenly asked as if recalling.

"Wait, the guy who escaped then, it wasn't only Jeong Sang-cheol. Wasn't there one more guy?"

"That's right. A person named Seo I-hyeon who came with Jeong Sang-cheol, looking into it there was really nothing so I left it for now."

"Yeah? Then did Jeong Sang-cheol take care of Seo I-hyeon too and take him?"

"For now we're judging it that way."

"A bit frustrating. If there was at least CCTV we could have grasped the situation a bit more accurately."

Section Chief Lee didn't answer.

Because removing all the CCTV of the place used as the counseling room and nearby was due to Park Gyeong-ho's instruction.

There's no need to dig up such things as he won't see a good sight.

"Anyway there's nothing special..."

Park Gyeong-ho tapped the armrest of the chair with his finger.

"Is there all the personal information?"

"There's only name and account number."

"Well, we don't receive addresses and such. Still we can find it, right?"

"Of course."

Section Chief Lee answered while slightly uneasy. Park Gyeong-ho is a person who doesn't know where he'll bounce.

"Then find him and bring him."

"Yes?"

"Anyway he broke the machine and escaped, right. We have to catch him and make him pay the price."

Section Chief Lee blankly looked at Park Gyeong-ho. Because he wanted to confirm his exact thoughts.

"Just in case. There might be some relation. And even if not there's nothing to lose. Incidentally we can also shake Jeong Sang-cheol or whatever."

Park Gyeong-ho who said up to there flicked his finger.

"Ah, thinking about it there's no need for us to get involved. Put that in the request too. Recruit a few dirty guys from the dark web. It would be good if they get a bit scared while coming."

Section Chief Lee hesitated for a moment then soon bowed his head.

"Yes. I'll send a few."

"Ah, and how is looking into a werewolf substitute?"

"Contacting a few places. Among them there's a guy who combined with a bear due to a curse, and it seems we can obtain it relatively cheaply and quickly."

"Oh. Bear? Then is it a werebear?"

"Not up to werebear, it's a degree where bear traits invaded and deformed some body parts."

"The important thing is recovery power. Is it usable?"

"Yes. Recovery power is also good and strength is strong. The body is sturdy too."

"Not bad."

"The price is also on the cheap side compared to werewolf."

"Excellent. Now we just have to bring it."

Park Gyeong-ho clapped his hands.

"Good. Then proceed actively. And Seo I-hyeon or whatever, put in the request right now."

Section Chief Lee slightly bowed his head.

"Yes."

A fragment of unease still remained in his expression as he bowed his head.

* * *

Looking down at the gamjatang boiling on the gas fire, Seo I-hyeon swallowed drool.

Gamjatang is really after a long time. Honestly until now he couldn't even think of eating. He has to recall to eat.

Since he ate with the thought of filling a meal rather than the thought of eating delicious things there was no way he ate proper food.

Roughly filling with convenience store lunch boxes or triangle kimbap, cup ramen and such was enough.

Come to think of it the first time he ate proper food was also the samgyeopsal eaten with Jeong Sang-cheol.

"It comes to mind when eating samgyeopsal."

At the words Seo I-hyeon muttered absentmindedly Jeong Sang-cheol trembled his body.

"Ugh, I don't even want to think. Don't you remember then, hyung-nim?"

"I remember."

"In my thought those guys are probably the National Intelligence Service."

"National Intelligence Service? Are there such guys in the National Intelligence Service too?"

"They say there are. It's called the National Intelligence Service Supernatural Ability Management Bureau, practically an independent institution and they manage this side very strictly?"

"I see."

Seo I-hyeon let out a hollow laugh.

He didn't know a board this big would be unfolded.

Well, since he already saw two companies handling supernatural ability, even if there's a national institution there's nothing strange.

"Is the company, livable?"

"Yes. There are good people too, it's okay. I can't tell you about company-related talk. Because this is prohibited."

Seo I-hyeon nodded as if understanding.

"They must have put something like a restriction? Organizations are all like that."

Jeong Sang-cheol looked at Seo I-hyeon with curious eyes.

"How does hyung-nim know all that?"

Seo I-hyeon chuckled.

"Just looking at a few web novels you know all that level. By the way, as long as it's not about the company, that is Myeongjin Pharmaceutical, you can tell me, right?"

"Of course. Didn't I gather a lot of stories to tell again."

Jeong Sang-cheol excitedly talked hard about things that happened during the past week. No, more precisely it was stories he picked up this and that during the week.

Stories heard from seniors at the same company.

It was only stories like city ghost stories. Honestly speaking there's not much credibility. To Seo I-hyeon listening it was like that.

If there was one thing gained it was this.

"Hyung-nim, do you know dark web by any chance?"

"I've heard of it."

"This side's work is mostly done on the dark web."

"Yeah? You've tried it too?"

"Yes. A little."

"How do you do it?"

"First the dark web isn't done with a general web browser but you have to use something else."

He heard some explanation about the dark web from Jeong Sang-cheol and also installed the necessary application.

"Ah, and hyung-nim do you do coin by any chance?"

Seo I-hyeon frowned at the word coin. Didn't he lose the house and take leave from university because of that damn coin going bust.

"To do something with the dark web you have to do coin? There's something called E coin."

"E coin?"

"More precisely it's called ether coin."

At the word ether Seo I-hyeon's eyes flashed. It's a word he's heard. When robbing Etherix.

Come to think of it Etherix is also a word transforming ether.

"This side's work all uses E coin. When receiving requests or such the price is also all given and received in E coin."

When Seo I-hyeon showed curiosity Jeong Sang-cheol excitedly continued the explanation.

"Looking at the recent E coin market price it's about 100,000 won each? This also sometimes rises sharply so if done well one can eat profitably, but well, honestly I don't know such things well."

He should look into this a bit. Seo I-hyeon ate the gamjatang while rolling his head this way and that about the dark web and E coin.

It's really delicious.

* * *

The drinking session with Jeong Sang-cheol was fairly enjoyable. It wasn't long but it was substantial, and they decided to meet again next time.

At the end of the drinking session Jeong Sang-cheol said thank you several times.

After joining Myeongjin Pharmaceutical, he investigated the person who introduced the Etherix job. More precisely Myeongjin Pharmaceutical investigated on their own and informed Jeong Sang-cheol.

It was correct that they deliberately drew him in. If it wasn't Seo I-hyeon he wouldn't have been able to escape, and if Seo I-hyeon hadn't stopped him when escaping he would have been caught again.

While telling that he said thank you several times, and he just said buy him another drink later.

Anyway for Seo I-hyeon today is a fairly decent day.

If only there weren't the guys who secretly entered his one-room and are waiting.