Let's Go to the Station Together

'Perfect.'

Chunhui clutched her slapped cheek and stared at me in utter bewilderment, while Baek Nopyeong remained half-propped on his cushion, gazing up at me. I shouted toward the old man.

"Father! I've only just realized it! I will honor your wishes and become a proud soldier in the Imperial Japanese Army!"

"……!"

At those words, the old man's sunken eyes widened even further in shock. Then—

"Yes, yes! You've finally come to your senses!"

He burst into laughter and even began clapping.

"Well thought out! Yes! You truly are my son! My own flesh and blood!"

He turned to Chunhui with a deliberately stern expression.

"You foolish girl! How dare you speak that way about the Japanese military! Watch your tongue!"

After scolding her, he looked back at me, still smiling.

"Now, Chulyeon, you must let go of your anger as well! No matter how thoughtless this girl may be, was it really necessary to strike her like that? You could have simply admonished her quietly…"

"My apologies. My patriotism suddenly boiled over and…"

I bowed my head to the old man. Baek Nopyeong regarded me with clear satisfaction before asking again.

"Good, good! Is there anything you lack? Your father will grant it all!"

'This is it!'

I opened my mouth as if I'd been waiting for exactly this.

"Actually, there are a few things. First, my bank account is currently managed by my older brother Chulwoo. Please transfer it back to my name."

This was something I'd learned a few days earlier during the preliminary practicum. After receiving a scholarship from some East Asia Leaf Society Foundation for subjugating an Onigumo, I'd discovered that my account was registered under my half-brother Baek Chulwoo's name.

"Yes! Quite right! Now that you've matured and grown wiser, you should manage your own money! Of course…"

"And please increase the living expenses deposited into my account."

"Living expenses? Wouldn't thirty won per month be sufficient? That's roughly what a skilled factory worker earns in a month…"

The old man had turned slightly defensive at the mention of money, but the moment I deployed the keyword again—

"Father! Attending school requires money in many places. And how could someone destined to become a soldier of the Imperial Japanese Army live like a mere factory laborer and become a laughingstock among the other students?"

—he folded immediately.

"Quite right! Your words are correct! Then I'll raise it to fifty won! That should be enough!"

I wasn't sure exactly how much fifty won was worth. In 21st-century terms, maybe a million won? Two million?

'It would be nice to get more, considering my preparations to go to America.'

But there was no need to empty the bowl in one gulp. Excessive greed might arouse suspicion and ruin everything. For now, this was enough.

"Thank you, Father!"

"Yes! My son! Mmm…!"

"Then I'll take my leave. Please rest comfortably…"

I performed a deep bow to the old man and rose to my feet. He had been watching me with a proud expression when he suddenly noticed Baek Chulwoo and his son lingering outside the master bedroom. His face transformed in an instant.

"What are you two doing standing there? Is this some kind of spectacle? Get out of my sight at once!"

At his roar, the father and son had no choice but to slink back to their respective rooms. As I too left the master bedroom, I paused to offer Chunhui a formal apology.

"I apologize for raising my hand to you just now."

"Not at all, young master. It's because this ignorant woman doesn't know ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠her place… My mouth runs away with me, that's all."

Chunhui answered with a charming smile, as if being slapped was of no consequence whatsoever.

I left the master bedroom, closed the door, and stepped into the courtyard. Takahiro, who had been waiting there the entire time, asked,

『……What happened?』

『It went well.』

『I'm going to sleep, so you should get some rest too. …You're not planning to follow me into the bedroom, are you?』

I called over the old servant—I wasn't sure if he was the house steward or what—and asked him to prepare a room for Takahiro. The Japanese youth gave a polite,

『Good night, sir.』

before following the servant toward the rear of the main house.

Alone once more, I stood motionless in a corner of the courtyard and reflected.

'Satisfactory.'

I had secured the old man's trust and even managed to increase my allowance. From now on, financial matters—whether attending school or gathering the funds needed to reach America—should present no major obstacles.

'The problem is that thieving cat of a woman.'

I glanced toward the master bedroom. On the surface she was merely the old man's concubine, but…

I recalled the status window I had confirmed through physical contact earlier.

'Real name ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Gye Chunhui. A B-class poison secretion ability user.'

She was an awakened one, and the type that secreted toxic substances at that. For whatever reason—whether it was the inheritance or something else—this woman was threatening the old man's life.

I waited a while in the room prepared for me in the main house. Soon I heard faint voices from the master bedroom.

"I'll be going now, sir."

"Yes, yes! Chunhui… Be careful on your way back in the dark! And make sure you come tomorrow as well…"

"Of course. I'll see you tomorrow evening."

With those words, I heard the sound of the bedroom door opening. I quietly slipped out of my own room.

I vaulted over the stone wall beside the main gate and followed Chunhui at a distance, keeping my body hidden as she walked along the long stone wall.

Then, up ahead where the path continued, someone who had been hiding behind a utility pole stepped out furtively. The middle-aged man revealed in the darkness was, astonishingly, my half-brother Baek Chulwoo.

'What's he doing here?'

Surprised but still concealing my presence, I quietly observed the two. Baek Chulwoo, having appeared before Chunhui, lowered his voice and asked,

"Chunhui! When exactly is Father going to die?"

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

What? At that absurd question, Chunhui replied with clear irritation.

"Even with the medicine, the old bastard just won't die. What do you want me to do about it? How is he so tenacious…"

"Then just increase the dosage! You said since it's made with magic power, it leaves no evidence…"

"No matter how much it's made with mana, if you use too much it still leaves traces! It has to be done subtly…"

Wait. So Chunhui's attempt to poison the old man had been at Baek Chulwoo's direction?

Chunhui continued.

"Besides, what's the rush? The old man will die on his own when the time comes!"

"Didn't you see earlier? If that Chulyeon bastard really enlists and gets himself a major or captain's rank… Father might decide not to give me the title and hand it to him instead!"

In the end, it was all for the sake of inheriting the barony.

It had once been a given that the eldest legitimate son, Baek Chulwoo, would inherit. But my enrollment in the hunter program must have created a sense of crisis. That was why he had bribed Chunhui to kill the old man before his mind could change.

With his back against the wall, Baek Chulwoo pressed her further.

"The old man needs to die before that Chulyeon bastard graduates, don't you think? Just put in some effort! Once I inherit the title, I'll compensate you a hundredfold—no, a thousandfold…"

After making her promise several more times, Baek Chulwoo carefully turned and headed back to the house.

'This family is ridiculous…'

I emerged from the shadows and approached Chunhui once more. But before she could take more than a few steps, another figure stepped out from behind the next utility pole.

This time it was Baek Chulwoo's son, Baek Namsu. He glanced around nervously before asking her carefully.

"How are things progressing?"

"Progressing? You tell me!"

"Look, use hypnosis or whatever! Keep coaxing the old man until he dies. Understand? This Baek Namsu is the future of this family…"

Chunhui snapped back irritably.

"What good is coaxing? The hypnosis drug isn't working properly! …I'm already giving him paralytics, but using two or three different ones in succession weakens their effect…"

"Still, you have to try. That way I'll get a bigger share of the inheritance. And if I do, wouldn't it be natural for me to give you a portion as well?"

"Then give me more than your father is giving!"

"I'm not in a position to give more than my father right now, but think of the future! The future…"

Watching their sordid little conspiracy, I was completely dumbfounded.

'What a trash-heap family.'

Father and son working together, bribing one woman to exploit the old man's death for their own gain. And the woman herself was playing both of them, skimming profit from the middle.

At this point, I couldn't simply stand by and watch. Whether the old man died early or lost his mind, neither outcome was good for me. I had to do something about this Chunhui woman.

'Should I get rid of her?'

The thought flashed through my mind, but no. Even if I eliminated Chunhui, Baek Chulwoo and his son would simply find someone else to bribe.

After Baek Namsu left, I finally approached Chunhui, who was now walking alone.

"Oh my!"

Startled for a moment, she recognized me. Her heavily made-up eyes narrowed into a smile as she spoke.

"Isn't this the young master? What brings you here…"

I cut straight to the point.

"Well, shall we go together for now?"

"Go? To the police station?"

"That's right."

But she didn't even blink. She simply laughed and said,

"Hoho! You must have been hiding and overheard what the eldest young master and his nephew were saying. Go ahead and report it to the police! There's no evidence, so they'll just question me and let me go!"

As she said, mana-based poisons dissipated over time. There would be no detectable toxins left in Baek Nopyeong's body or room. Ordinary people needed specialized equipment to detect mana, so in this rural area there was even less chance of getting caught.

But in front of my status window, that was meaningless.

"Chunhui."

"Why are you using my name?"

"Your real name is Gye Chunhui. Nineteen years old. B-class bodily secretion-type ability user."

The moment her real name and exact ability left my mouth, Chunhui's face turned deathly pale.

"H-how did you…?"

"There are ways of knowing. Your file happens to be in the Special Higher Mana Crime Investigation Division's records."

Of course it was a lie. I had no idea what the current era called an ability that showed up as Poison Secretion / B-class in the status window, so I'd made something up. The part about the Special Higher Mana Crime Investigation Division was obviously fabricated as well.

But Chunhui's face had gone completely blue.

"Hiiik…"

Realizing that denial was pointless now, she threw up both hands and began begging.

"Y-young master! Little young master! P-please spare me. What do you want me to do? Should I kill the old man? Or forge a will? I'll do whatever you say!"

I told her,

"Keep him alive."

"What? …Keep him alive?"

The old man had to live. Since I couldn't earn money on my own yet, his survival was essential if I wanted to secure tuition and living expenses.

If he died and Baek Chulwoo inherited the title and fortune, or if my nephew Baek Namsu seized all the assets? From that day forward I'd be unable to attend school and would end up penniless!

No matter how I thought about it, there was no way Baek Chulwoo or Baek Namsu would pay for my education. I was already a thorn in their side—why would they spend a fortune feeding, clothing, and educating me?

'I absolutely refuse to let that happen!'

I continued.

"Yes. At least keep him alive until I graduate. But don't make him too healthy—just barely clinging to life like he is now. And make sure it doesn't go according to Baek Chulwoo or Baek Namsu's plans. Understood? If you listen carefully, I'll erase your file at the Jongno Police Station."

Chunhui looked even more shocked than before.

"Y-you can really erase it…?"

"I'm quite close with Murasaki from the Jongno station. You've heard the name, haven't you? We work together every day, so removing a single document is as easy as eating cold porridge…"

Of course I'd only learned her name and ability through the status window and had never seen any such document. As for Murasaki from the Jongno station, it wasn't entirely a lie since I was in the same class and squad as the police chief's son who shared that name.

Completely taken in, Chunhui kept nodding and repeating her thanks. I spoke in a haughty tone.

"Good. That settles that… Oh, right."

I suddenly thought of something and asked,

"Can you make antidotes as well?"

It was a question prompted by the memory of Professor Saigane.

I had just remembered that ever since suffering from the anesthetic poison at the teahouse, the professor had been breaking out in hives due to an allergic reaction.

"An antidote?"

"Yes. An antidote for anesthetic poison. Someone I know has an allergy to it… They've been suffering for days because of it."

"Oh, that. I have one."

She took out a small glass vial about the size of a Bacchus bottle. The vial was tightly wrapped in black paper.

"Why is it wrapped up so thoroughly?"

"It's an antidote, but if it touches sunlight it evaporates and turns back into anesthetic gas. Tell them to skip it during the day and take it at night."

"Understood."

I slipped it into the inner pocket of my school uniform jacket. Then a question occurred to me. If she could create both anesthetic poisons and their antidotes, wasn't this an ability that could shine in the medical field?

Of course, from what I'd seen so far, it was common for Korean awakened ones to fall into crime. Still, Chunhui was only nineteen—just a girl who had recently turned twenty. Why had she ended up doing this dirty, cruel work?

I asked her.

"By the way, why are you doing this kind of thing? Don't your parents know?"

"…Hmph! If my parents were alive and well, would my fate have turned out like this?"

"Ah… I'm sorry. I didn't realize they had passed…"

I apologized for my unintentional verbal jab. But Chunhui burst out laughing.

"Passed away? Hoho!"

She pulled a cigarette case from her handbag, lit one, and said,

"Who knows if they're dead or alive! They sold me to a gisaeng house when I was little and ran away. Whether they're dead or alive somewhere, I'd rather they just drop dead!"

"If you're done talking, I'm leaving."

"Ah, yes…"

She turned with a flip of her short bob, and I returned to the main house to sleep.

The next day was Sunday morning.

After greeting the old man, I left the family home and returned to Gyeongseong. At Gyeongseong Station, I got into a taxi.

『Hai! Doko ni ikimasu ka?』

"Moneyam-jeong streetcar terminus, please."

"Ah, you're Korean. Understood."

The driver had naturally assumed I was Japanese. Well, most customers who could afford taxis probably were.

'Even in the 21st century I couldn't just take taxis whenever I wanted.'

Money really was everything in any era… With that satisfying thought, I sank into the back seat. Then Takahiro naturally opened the passenger door and climbed in. I asked him,

『What are you doing? Aren't you going home?』

『……Didn't I tell you? I have the young lady's orders to attend to you, young master…』

Was he really planning to follow me all the way to the boarding house?

『Hey! There's no room for you at the boarding house!』

『…….』

『Well, there is a room, but… Ha…』

Ham Won-sam and his daughter were still at the hospital, so the room they had been using should be empty.

In the end, he really did follow me all the way to the boarding house. Since I couldn't possibly put him in Ham Won-sam's room, I let him stay in a corner of mine. I lay down for a while before thinking,

'Whatever, I have nothing else to do. Might as well visit the hospital.'

and got up. Takahiro, who had been kneeling in the corner, looked up and asked,

『Where are you going?』

『The hospital.』

『I'll come with you.』

I stopped him as he began to rise.

『Hey, hey. No. You stay here… Right. If you're free, make some food or something.』

At that, Takahiro—who had been halfway to his feet—paused awkwardly and frowned.

『……Food, you say?』

『You came to attend me, didn't you? The kid who usually cooks is at the hospital, so we need someone to make food. You know how to cook, right?』

『……Understood.』

Having shaken him off, I left the room and was putting on my shoes when I heard the creak of the main gate opening.

『Is this the place?』

『Yes! This is it.』

Two men entered through the gate. One was the police sergeant with the insignia I had seen at the teahouse the other day.

Next to him was a man wearing a leather jacket and a hunting cap.

The man in the leather jacket glanced at me, strode across the courtyard, and flung open the door to Ham Won-sam’s room. Then he turned back to me and asked bluntly,

"You're the student who's staying here? What was the name—Shirabayashi Tetsuzen? Baek ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Chulyeon?"

"……? Yes. Why?"

"Where did Ham Won-sam go? And that daughter of his?"

His tone was so offensive that I glared at him and answered curtly.

"They're both injured and in the hospital… What do you want?"

"What do I want? This kid is treating me like a complete idiot…"

The leather-jacketed man snorted, then pulled out a wallet from inside his jacket, flashed it briefly, and said,

"I'm Detective Kang from the Special Higher Section of the Jongno Police Station in Gyeongseong. This is Sergeant Tanimura Ichiro."

I had seen the sergeant a few days ago, but Special Higher? That referred to the Special Higher Police—the ones who arrested people on charges of being "thought criminals" and the like. Why was someone from such a fearsome organization here?

The leather-jacketed man who had identified himself as Detective Kang put his wallet away and continued.

"Anyway, Ham Won-sam isn't involved today. We're here for you."

"Me?"

"That's right. You were at the teahouse robbery the day before yesterday, weren't you? Sergeant Tanimura here saw you."

Detective Kang gestured to the sergeant beside him. Yes, that man had definitely taken down my name at the time. I answered,

"I was."

"Good. We caught the robber from that incident but later released him… He went missing last night and was found dead this morning. That makes you—one of the awakened individuals connected to him—one of the suspects. We'll talk about the details at the station."

What?

"A suspect…?"