novelraw Chapter 33 : Chapter 33
Chapter 33 : Chapter 33
Chapter 33
A staff room prepared deep inside the Hall.
On the door, a sign saying Authorized Personnel Only was attached, and inside, several hard multi-person wooden chairs were placed.
Originally, it was a rest area used by organization members of the Copper Mask called Bronze.
True to a place named a rest area, 6-outlet multi-taps were plugged into every wall, and power banks being charged were hanging in clusters from the multi-taps.
Three people were staying inside the rest area.
Although it was a rest area for Bronzes, there was no Bronze among the people occupying the rest area.
One was a player, and two were dealers.
I, Lee Ju-seong, monopolized one entire hard multi-person wooden chair and spoke toward the front.
"January, I heard you have business with me. Surely it's not bad news, right?"
The cheerful voice with undulating high and low tones was a metaphor for the fact that I was not feeling any pressure from January at all.
It was a firm declaration that the hierarchy of ‘dealer-player’ that had implicitly settled in this game did not apply to me.
January read my intent and treated me politely.
"It corresponds to neither good nor bad news, so please be at ease. Since I was bored during the rest period, I prepared this seat thinking it would be good to hear the player's opinion directly."
"If it's for understanding the field, I think it would be better to select another player."
"If it's someone who took down Yoon Ji-ho, the qualification is sufficient. To mix in a bit of exaggeration, wouldn't it rather be an insult to choose another player while leaving Mr. Ju-seong aside."
In response to the decent praise, I gave a hearty laugh.
The sound of laughter echoed and rumbled inside the rest area.
January and July maintained silence for a while while being surrounded by the sound of laughter.
Only after the laughter with the echo effect stopped did January open his mouth.
"Mr. Ju-seong, the words I just delivered are my complete sincerity. I believe you are the best player on this game site."
"It feels like an overestimation, but still, feeling praised isn't that bad."
"The best player. That means you have the ability to earn even more money."
January added words while staring intently at me as if he were about to jump into my eyes.
"But for what reason are you trying to give up the game at this time?"
As expected, he had called me to stop me from giving up the game.
It meant the date with the Doctor yesterday had worked.
Even though I received back the 5 million won I paid the Doctor, I had purely paid 10 million won for the dinner expense alone.
It was an action perfect for making a January mistake as me enjoying my last supper.
I leaned my back against the chair's backrest and crossed my legs.
And I held up two fingers toward January.
"January, your words contain two contradictions. Are you pretending not to know while knowing, or do you really not know?"
"Please do not force a difficult answer. I am a dealer, and you are a player. Please do not forget that we are not in a hostile relationship."
"Since you really seem not to know, I shall tell you. Do I have the capability to earn more money unconditionally? You would have given the same evaluation to Yoon Ji-ho? But he was eliminated."
January tilted his head back as if stretching and then returned it to the original angle.
He looked like he had been properly hit.
However, as expected of someone with the experience befitting his age, his agitation did not last long.
"You are absolutely right. I shall correct my statement. I had momentarily forgotten that even for a strong person, there are dangers lurking where they can be taken down at any time. I apologize."
"Since you apologize politely, I cannot help but accept. Please be careful with your statements from now on."
Snicker!
Suddenly, July let out a laugh.
He had ended up laughing after seeing January being one-sidedly swept away by my speech and being embarrassed.
January turned his head and stared at July without a word.
Inside the eye holes of the mask where the number ‘1’ was engraved, dry eyes were staying.
At the glare blaming the rudeness, July cleared his throat to steady his voice.
"Ahem, anyway, you're saying the first reason is that you can die at any time. What is the second reason?"
He was trying to escape from January's scolding by changing the subject.
It wasn't that I didn't want to see July being scolded by January like this.
But since playing too much would provide a pretext to be held accountable, I decided to stop here.
"You all know my ability. If it goes on like this, I have to participate in the 3rd round with no ability."
Instead of the heated January, July took charge of the response.
"Now that I hear it, that's true. Park So-yul left the game, and Bang Su-hyeok is penniless, so he can't be hospitalized and is groaning after being kicked out to the gym."
The fact that Bang Su-hyeok was in a weakened state was already known to all players.
It was obvious he would be eliminated right at the start even if he participated in the 3rd round.
Bang Su-hyeok's death meant that the only ability currently remaining for me would disappear.
I said January in a sly tone.
"Now, let's summarize. Even a strong person can die at any time according to game rules or ability compatibility. On top of that, I would not even be a strong person anymore because the ability disappears? On top of that, I'm even in a position that attracts attention because it's known that I killed Yoon Ji-ho? On top of that... ah, there's a lot of 'on top of thats'."
January fluttered his hand up and down once, saying it was fine.
And he put into words what I was trying to say instead.
"On top of that, even if you leave now, you can take more than 1 billion won, so there is no reason not to leave... that's what you wanted to say, right?"
"Yes, you guessed it right. Then, considering it as such, I'll be heading out now."
"Hmm...."
"But who knows. If some kind-hearted person pays for Mr. Su-hyeok's hospital fee instead, I might be able to participate in the next game at ease. Since the ability copied from Mr. Su-hyeok will continue to be maintained."
Inside January's mask eye holes, his wrinkled eyes narrowed sharply.
He was glaring at me with sharpened eyes.
Since I acted slyly so openly, he must have realized by now.
That if the organization covers the hospitalization fee, they can keep me.
I didn't have to handle an injured person like Bang Su-hyeok directly, and since even the hospital fee became free as a bonus, it was killing two birds with one stone.
There was nothing for the organization to lose.
Since it was their own facility anyway, no financial loss occurred just because they hospitalized one person, Bang Su-hyeok.
Even if there was a loss, it was just the hospitalization cost for one person, which could never reach a level that could be called a loss for the organization.
However, there was only one person who suffered a loss in this transaction.
It was January.
The fact that he was one-sidedly listening to the demands even while knowing he was being played by me personally.
He wasn't an ordinary dealer, and if someone who was about the head of the dealers was toyed with by a mere player, the organization would have no choice but to doubt January's capability.
Then January would have to overexert himself to prove his capability to the organization, and if he overexerted himself, gaps were bound to appear.
In short, for now, it had the pretext of maintaining the ability, but looking at it from a long-term perspective, it could be said to be a move to pressure January.
Whether he knew that I was looking far ahead or not, January accepted the condition unexpectedly readily.
"Fine. The organization will cover Bang Su-hyeok's hospital fee."
"But whether Mr. Su-hyeok is hospitalized or not, if I say I'm going back home, it will be troublesome for you in its own way."
"Mr. Lee Ju-seong."
"Hahaha, I'm joking. If the copied ability remains, there's no reason to pay a high fee and return in a hurry."
January soon nodded his head silently.
Like a chess player who accepted quietly giving up one minor piece.
According to the rules, he shouldn't take an action that favors a specific player, so he would have to work hard to find a way to hospitalize Bang Su-hyeok for free.
"Then, considering that we have reached an agreement, I will look forward to you showing a good side in the next 3rd round as well."
I stood up from the seat with a sly smile.
As my body, which had been leaning against the backrest, leaned forward, a creak sounded from inside the backrest that had been pressed by my weight.
"I'm relieved to find out that the dealers are unexpectedly people one can communicate with. Next time, let's meet in a room with a brighter atmosphere. For example, a place with windows."
July let out a giggle.
"If you say it like that, it sounds as if we are people who met in a prison."
"If you stop a person who wants to return from returning, that place is soon a prison."
"My my, we did not hold you back by force. Mr. Ju-seong remained by his own will to the end."
"Heh, let's go with that."
Afterward, I headed outside while turning my back on the two dealers, and passed through by opening the door just enough for one person to pass.
As if knowing that the two dealers would not come out immediately.
With this, I finished the most bothersome task among the things to be handled within the rest period.
Since I had finalized the maintenance of the ability, it was time to stock up on materials to exhibit the ability.
If it was a place to secure materials, I had already chosen it in advance.
I pushed up the corners of my mouth while leaving the Hall and heading toward the shopping mall.
"I'm bored, so I should go play at the hospital. It's just right since it's lunchtime."
I headed toward the hospital while putting my hands behind my back and skipping with high knees.
While imagining the Doctor who would be disgusted at seeing me visiting.
***
After Lee Ju-seong left, January stared at the firmly closed door for a while.
From outside the door, footsteps presumed to be Lee Ju-seong's were being heard.
Around the time those sounds gradually became faint, January muttered as if talking to himself.
"Lee Ju-seong... quite a tricky man."
July added a word from the side.
"Because he's tricky, his play data will possess high value."
Instead of an answer, January let out a long breath from behind the mask.
That breath was a long breath as if a seasoned dealer, seeing the board being messily disarranged, was quietly drawing a new card.
Instead of the silent January, July brought up a plan.
"He can probably bring up the words of returning without lingering because his pocket situation is affluent. Wouldn't reducing Lee Ju-seong's balance be the most effective way to keep him? For example, giving an excessive penalty only to Lee Ju-seong."
"July, this game must be fair. Only then can we obtain valid data for research. We cannot give a disadvantage to a player to the point of breaking the game rules set by the research team."
July adjusted the angle of the mask to let him know it was a joke.
As the mask tilted obliquely, the angle became crooked.
"Yes, I know. Our dealer's authority is observation, control, and a bit of coordination. Listing them like this, we too are nothing but an extremely small part within this Money Game."
"Anyway, since we have higher degrees of freedom than players, let us utilize the advantages given to us well."
"I'm not sure if it's just my imagination, but it seems January has already thought of a plan?"
"Under the current situation, there is only one way to reduce Lee Ju-seong's balance while keeping the rules."
The moment January firmly brought it up as if he had made up his mind, July flicked his tongue inside the mask.
Like a poisonous snake coveting prey.
Unlike July, who welcomed it as if he had been waiting for an environment like the current one to be created, January declared in a tone full of unpleasantness.
"Let's deploy a dealer into the game for the 3rd round."