novelraw Chapter 175 : Request (4)
Chapter 175 : Request (4)
It was Han Myeongju's grown son who responded to Su-hyeon's proposal.
"Please understand. My mother is bedridden with anger and shock so..."
"Not at all. I'm sorry for coming like this. Thank you for graciously responding to my sudden contact."
At Su-hyeon's words, the son smiled bitterly.
"What can I do? When the family is in ruins, I have to do something."
"......"
After moistening his throat with coffee, he said.
"Let me be straightforward. Something is strange."
"In what way?"
"You might think this is nonsense, but even to me as his child, my father was a very family-oriented person."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. He wasn't the type to cause woman problems. Our relationship was enviable to others, and he treated me very well too."
"If I may be bold, the fact that there was an affair is undeniable. There is clear evidence, isn't there?"
"I know. I know."
He sighed deeply and spoke as if murmuring.
"There are people like that. Those who pretend to be more devoted to their family to hide their affair or to alleviate guilt. Maybe my father was such a person. Maybe I'm just trying to ignore it because he's my father."
"......"
"Why wouldn't I? Even now, my teeth chatter when I think about my mother collapsing from shock, and the betrayal I felt from my father. But..."
"But you still feel something doesn't add up, is that right?"
"Yes. He doesn't seem like the father I knew."
"By any chance, did you notice anything strange recently? Like his speech patterns or habits..."
"Let me see."
After thinking about something, he said with an uncertain expression.
"Come to think of it, he suddenly started snoring badly."
"Snoring?"
"Yes. He never did that before, but his snoring became so severe that it was difficult for my mother to sleep with him..."
'There it is.'
Su-hyeon's eyes gleamed.
"Did he also become somewhat distant from your mother around that time?"
"Hmm, yes. How should I put it? Rather than having frequent conversations like before, it felt like they only exchanged everyday talk? I visited the family home occasionally, but whereas he used to enjoy drinking, he would now put down his soju after just one or two shots..."
'Indeed.'
"I have some insight now."
Su-hyeon said.
"Ah! Really?"
"Yes. It's difficult to give you a definitive answer right now, but I think this could be quite helpful in finding Director Han."
"Please, I'm counting on you."
"I'll do my best."
Su-hyeon's expression wasn't very bright as he answered.
'This makes the problem more complicated.'
There was a terribly suspicious smell about this.
And above all.
Through his previous gameplay, Su-hyeon had experienced several times whose conspiracy these kinds of incidents were orchestrated by.
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"......Hmm."
Old Man Jang closed his eyes after hearing Su-hyeon's story.
"Well, I'm a bit skeptical."
Moon Seongil said.
"Of course a family might think that way. 'My father wouldn't do such a thing. That woman must have seduced him.' Unable to resent their family, they place the blame on someone else to hate them. Otherwise, they couldn't bear it."
Su-hyeon agreed that such cases weren't uncommon.
"Of course, that might be the case."
But.
"According to my inference, Han Myeongju wasn't simply worked on by them."
"Oh?"
Old Man Jang opened his closed eyes with interest.
"Then what is it?"
"Rather, it was Secretary Kim and Team Leader Oh who were hooked. Han Myeongju deliberately exposed himself as someone easily susceptible to temptation... that's what I think."
"Director Han Myeongju? For what purpose?"
"What if there's a third force, and someone used Han Myeongju as bait to pit SS Communications against the Laura Group?"
"That's too much of a stretch."
Moon Seongil shook his head.
"This is just at the level of talking about conspiracy theories without any solid evidence or reasonable suspicion. Aren't you taking too much of a risk?"
Even Old Man Jang seemed to somewhat agree with Moon Seongil's criticism of disappointment.
"It's not entirely far-fetched. But there's nothing to support your opinion either."
"That's right. Nevertheless, what I'm focusing on is that Han Myeongju showed behavior different from usual at some point, and this coincidentally aligns with when he started committing adultery."
"Yes, that's certainly a coincidence. What do you think is the reason?"
"In my guess, Han Myeongju's identity is a 'doppelgänger'."
Su-hyeon said.
"The real Han Myeongju probably died months ago."
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Han Myeongju.
No, 'doppelgänger' Kim Inbeom.
Having returned to his original face, he was standing respectfully with his hands clasped before a man.
"Kim Inbeom, it seems there are many people looking for you."
"Yes, the operation is successful."
"As it should be."
With lifeless pale skin and a cold expression devoid of discernible emotion.
Song Jaejun, a vampire with aristocratic features, spoke in a monotone voice.
"Among those tracking you this time is Director Moon, Old Man Jang's hunting dog."
"......!"
Kim Inbeom asked in surprise.
"That old man sent quite a heavyweight."
"Yes. He's a skilled individual I cannot underestimate either."
"Your side has steeled its resolve too."
"That's a good thing. But it's still soft. To think that the one sent along with Director Moon is merely Jeong Su-hyeon, that youngster."
Song Jaejun sneered.
"That fellow Jeong Su-hyeon, I heard he met Alistair in the black market."
Alistair.
Another vassal of his lord, the Vampire Queen, and a half-baked individual who, despite gaining the honorable power of a vampire, had yet to shed his human constraints.
"He seems to be highly rated due to his recent accomplishments, but he's still just a novice. He's merely at the level of running errands for Director Moon."
Song Jaejun was quite displeased with that youngster who had interfered with his plans.
'I'd like to just kill him, if I had my way.'
But considering his lord's intentions, he shouldn't act on his own like that.
"What will you do?"
"No need to worry about it. They won't even know what's happening."
Song Jaejun replied.
"We'll just pit those two companies against each other, and then take advantage of their mutual destruction. There's no reason for our existence to be revealed in the process."
Vampire Queen Seong Yeonhui.
This was generally how she had exerted her enormous influence on the underworld and the business world.
'Once SS Communications and Laura Communications diminish, that's when we'll raise Austin Communications, which is currently third in the industry.'
This strategy had been implemented not just in the communication equipment industry.
"That youngster Team Leader Oh, he must have been proud thinking his plan was working out."
Without even knowing it was all a trap they had set.
But what about now?
Han Myeongju, whom they thought they had properly leashed, suddenly disappeared.
SS Communications, which had suffered a severe blow from behind, losing both confidential information and an executive, had spent a significant amount of money to commission Old Man Jang, who sent Director Moon and Jeong Su-hyeon to track down Han Myeongju.
"I heard Team Leader Oh suddenly disappeared. Director Moon probably kidnapped him. That's typically how he handles things."
What would happen now if they just slightly spread this fact to the Laura Group?
'All-out war.'
Director Han Myeongju was merely the fuse.
'A fuse that successfully ignites simply turns to ash and disappears.'
The real Han Myeongju was already dead, and the doppelgänger Kim Inbeom, who had worn the disguise of the fake Han Myeongju, was his subordinate.
"This is what you call a perfect crime."
Song Jaejun murmured, elegantly crossing his legs.
"Everything proceeds and ends according to the picture drawn by my lord."
How difficult could it be to conduct operations against those who aren't even aware of their existence?
If they persistently follow his trail and find their way here...
His gaze turned to the men who had become mummies, completely drained of blood and withered.
'I'll just make them end up like those.'
In fact.
He was hoping that Director Moon and Su-hyeon would come to find him.
'Then I can rightfully sever your neck.'
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"The Vampire Queen, huh."
Old Man Jang sank deep into his backrest, lost in thought.
"Yes. That would explain it."
"Sir."
At Moon Seongil's call, as if questioning whether he really believed what I said, Old Man Jang chuckled.
"Director Moon, isn't it more plausible than your inference?"
"......"
Moon Seongil, who had boasted about making a bet but failed to extract any special information from the three hostages, remained silent.
'He must be embarrassed too.'
I thought.
"Of course, there's no definitive evidence. But that's the kind of person the Queen is. Meticulous and subtle. Rather, if we could confidently find plausible connections like detectives, that would more likely be a trap deliberately set by the Queen to ensnare us."
"......"
Vampire Queen.
No one here was unaware of the weight that name carried.
"I've heard rumors that she's affiliated with the Sword of Belphegor."
"That's a possibility."
Old Man Jang chuckled.
"By the way, how were you able to think of that woman's name with just those circumstances?"
"......It was easy after considering the possibility of a doppelgänger."
I answered.
"Among the rumors circulating about the Vampire Queen, there were stories about how she built her power through such operations."
"Hmm. I don't know where you heard such things, but that's correct."
Old Man Jang said.
In the world of Edge of Gate, organizations dominating the underworld don't necessarily mean Ma-in organizations.
'Just look at Old Man Jang right in front of us, who's human yet holds a position in the underworld.'
Strictly speaking, it's a gray area.
'If I were to use a martial arts novel analogy, the Execution Force and hunters would be the righteous faction, the Ma-in and Ma-in groups would be the demonic cult, and the mixture of humans and Ma-in in the underworld would be the unorthodox faction.'
The underworld was a place where the human Old Man Jang and the Ma-in Vampire Queen could coexist in the same industry.
'There are also groups like Nam Tae-hoon's that follow independent paths, but the largest forces are still the Execution Force and the hunters.'
Roughly speaking, the Execution Force was similar to the Nine Schools Alliance, and the hunters to the Five Great Sects.
'Civilian society and politics would be the officials, and the business world would be something like the merchant guilds and trade bureaus?'
While thinking about various things on my own, a thought suddenly occurred to me.
'So am I, as the third-generation disciple of the Nine Schools Alliance, diving into a conflict between merchant guilds through a deal with an unorthodox sect that received a request from a merchant guild, and now searching for an unidentified unorthodox villain?'
"......"
Thinking about it this way, I'm a crazy guy too.
"Well, let's assume as you say that Director Han Myeongju intentionally disappeared under the orders of the Vampire Queen."
Old Man Jang said.
"Then the problem becomes more difficult. He'll be in one of the Queen's hideouts."
"Is there effectively no way to find him? If we did..."
"That's right. Open confrontation would mean war."
Old Man Jang clicked his tongue.
"And the one to be swept away would be us."
"......"
Even for Old Man Jang, bearing the wrath of the Vampire Queen was impossible.
Moreover, hadn't I already touched the Queen's domain once in the black market?
"Ahem."
I cleared my throat, showing discomfort.
"......Sir, what do you intend to do?"
"I hate to say this, but."
Old Man Jang looked at us and said.
"We need to make it appear as if you two, without knowing of the Queen's existence, tracked down a lead and attacked the place after your pursuit."
"What's the objective?"
I asked.
"If, as I've inferred, Director Han Myeongju is already dead and this was someone's plot using a doppelgänger?"
"We need to provide at least an acceptable result to the client."
"An acceptable result."
"It's a difficult request, but I'd like you to secure physical evidence that can reveal the full truth of this matter."
"You mean?"
"Yes. Capture that doppelgänger."
"This is getting bigger. In this case..."
Just as I was about to express some complaint.
"I'll give you 1.5 billion. This case is worth that much."
With an instant increase of 500 million added, my irritation melted away like snow.
"Then I have to do it."
"......"
Envy appeared in Moon Seongil's eyes.
'If you're jealous, become a freelancer.'