The Eavesdropper's Trap and the Onsen Escape
"Then have a great time sightseeing."
"Hold on."
With my words, the three girls fell silent. A hush lasted about two seconds in the room, and then I spoke in an utterly casual tone.
"Alright~ Now we're good? You all see how cramped a single room is, right?"
"Yeah...?"
"Sudden..."
"Come on, tour's over. Time to head back to your rooms~ We've got intense sightseeing starting tomorrow, so you need to get to bed early. You're already tired from the event."
With that, the four sets of footsteps faded away. Creak... click... beep. The door closed and locked again, plunging the room into darkness at the same time.
Left alone, Yu Ga-hye pondered what had just happened.
Something's off. What the hell? They just left all of a sudden. Did they notice I was hiding?
Yu Ga-hye thought back to whether she'd made any mistakes entering the room. The only thing she'd touched was the bag, and she'd put everything back exactly as it was. She'd slipped under the bed lightning-fast, and there were no footprints or other traces.
Yes, the chance of being caught was extremely low.
So they really were just here to check it out...
If so, maybe The Queens were out of hypnosis now. They'd probably commanded them to act normal except when working, to avoid suspicion after she started poking around.
They were totally natural at dinner earlier.
It might be a standing order to behave normally, but either way, it amounted to the same thing.
What a shame. I wanted to hear what commands he was giving.
She'd have to rely on the bug for that.
Should've added recording while I was at it. Making me go through all this trouble...
She inwardly cursed whoever was behind this far away when her phone buzzed.
Bzzz. Yu Ga-hye's phone alarm went off.
Damn, forgot to silence it. If they'd still been here, I'd be busted.
She sighed and checked the screen.
Phew... Factoring in the time for Lee Sejin to take the elevator down from in front of his room... I'd leave in 5 minutes. At least I hadn't been caught—that was a relief.
Yu Ga-hye took a deep breath and lay still under the bed for those full 5 minutes. The musty dust smell from under the bed was incredibly unpleasant.
"What's up~?"
As soon as I stepped out of my room, Soye asked right away.
"Well... I just figured we should be careful in a hotel. Like I said before coming to Japan."
"Suddenly~? You were all gung-ho on the way here..."
"Sorry. Just bear with it a bit longer. It's only one day."
Soye nodded reluctantly, though disappointed. I'd gotten all worked up at the conveyor-belt sushi place earlier too, so holding back like this sucked for me as well.
"Whine... It's not like anything's gonna happen..."
"No, Sejin's right."
At least Haeun backed me up.
"Alright, head to your rooms and rest. I'll just finish up what I was doing."
"You still have work left?"
"Always do."
I shoved the three of them into the just-arriving elevator as I said that.
"See you later, Sejin. I'll text you."
"Got it."
"Ah, unnie... this time it's my—"
Thud. The elevator doors closed and went up.
Once they were gone, I headed down the hall to the far end.
The bag's zipper was off-position.
After discovering Yu Ga-hye had erased the CCTV footage, I'd been extra cautious about my surroundings. One of those things was my bag—I always checked if someone had rummaged through it while I was away. My method? The zipper position. I always zipped it the same way: slightly off to the left, with the pull aligned perfectly to the end of the left shoulder strap. Any shift meant someone had opened it.
Only Soye and Yu Ga-hye have spare keys. Soye was with me, so not her. Leaves Yu Ga-hye.
A hotel staff might've tidied up, but unlikely they'd open the zipper. So, the shifted position meant Yu Ga-hye had snooped in my bag.
That led to the conclusion she might be up to something shady.
Which means high chance she's hiding in my room right now.
We'd returned to the hotel soon after she left. Too short a window for schemes, so yeah—Yu Ga-hye had probably been hiding in my room just moments ago.
Tap tap tap.
I messaged Yu Ga-hye: Where are you? Need to talk.
She replied instantly. Good—she'd come out feeling safe soon.
"......"
About 5 minutes of holding my breath in silence. Just as I wondered if she'd already slipped out, the door opened.
She glanced around...
It was Yu Ga-hye. I confirmed she was peeking in, then hid my face. Moments later, I peeked out again and watched her stride off in her secretary heels, business as usual.
Once she was gone, I entered my room.
Whoosh.
I opened the bag and inspected inside. It looked normal, but deep in the hidden corner, I spotted something attached.
This was... a bug?
This woman is digging into me...!
That sealed it. Erasing the CCTV was about me and the girls, and she knew something about our relationships.
Beep.
As I photographed the suspected bug, a message popped up on my phone.
Guess I'd deal with Yu Ga-hye first. Plan later.
I left it and hurried out.
The next morning, at the hotel entrance, as we boarded the car, Yu Ga-hye appeared with water bottles as usual.
"Then, see you all at the airport tomorrow. Enjoy your vacation, and please don't be late."
"Haha, that's why I'm tagging along."
"Of course."
She nodded and handed over the bottles naturally. I took one first, then the girls each grabbed theirs and boarded.
"Have a great time sightseeing."
"We're off~"
Tachibana spoke with her farewell, and the car pulled away.
"Haa... somehow... my heart's racing..."
"First time hitting an onsen this seriously."
"Finally some rest... the last few weeks were brutal~"
"Thanks to our manager here working us hard."
"Haha, seriously grateful. You all powered through these past weeks."
Strike while the iron's hot, I'd pushed them hard, but they kept up. I was just thankful. Maybe because I thanked them, Haeun—who'd grumbled before—blushed and poked my backpack.
"Why bring that bag? We're going to relax."
"Oh, this? Might need it. I carry it everywhere anyway, even without work."
"I see..."
"What're we doing first at the onsen~?"
At Soye's question, the four of us went quiet. Eyes met, then we all subtly glanced at Tachibana.
"That onsen's quite famous, so plenty to enjoy."
Tachibana switched to guide mode.
"There's a walking path nearby, and a nicely kept shrine on the back mountain. It's for the gods of love and fertility, so maybe not your thing, haha."
"I, I see..."
"No need to stick to sightseeing. They cook rice in the onsen water—it's legendary. Just eat well and soak; it'll recharge you perfectly. Ah, wish I could stay a day too."
"Where you headed after dropping us off, Tachibana?"
"A nearby business hotel. Some office work... about 10 minutes by car. Call if anything urgent."
"Got it, thanks."
Vroom.
"(Japanese) Onsen~ Warm waters~ Forget it all~"
Tachibana hummed some old Japanese tune as he drove. Meanwhile, the four of us quietly exchanged glances.
An hour later, we arrived at a luxurious-looking onsen ryokan. The road leading up had been all scenic like a tourist spot, and stepping out in front of the entrance drew gasps.
"Whoa. So authentically old-style."
"But super clean. Amazing."
"Ooh... whoa... ahhh...!"
Haeun grabbed Minji, who was losing it over the garden trees, and we four entered the wooden building.
"Irasshaimase~ Welcome to Hachimiro Onsen. 'I' party, correct?"
Inside, a kimono-clad lady greeted us in awkward Korean.
"I'm Morie, your guide. This way, please."
Clip clop clip. Following her down the wooden corridor, our footsteps echoed thud thud thud.
"Whoa... really... something... wow..."
"Minji, you're total normie mode right now."
"She is a normie."
"Hehe~ Check out that garden view. So atmospheric~"
As we chattered along, Morie stopped at a small room.
"This is Mr. I's room."
She opened the door. Another woman who'd followed stepped forward to the girls.
"Ladies, I'll show you to yours."
With that, the four headed off. I went in with Morie.
The seemingly small room opened up inside. A wooden tub sat outside the window, and tangerines on the central table added a cute touch.
"This is the reception area. Ring the bell, and staff arrives in 5 minutes. Also..."
I nodded vaguely through her explanations until she bowed and left.
"Phew... now for this..."
I stuffed my backpack deep into a room drawer and covered it with a cushion. Soundproofed like this, pulling it out occasionally to mumble recordings should fool Yu Ga-hye a bit.
"Alright then..."
Bag hidden away. Time to head to the girls' room.
Heart pounding, I stepped out the door.