Chapter 67
Chapter 67
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: The Outsider Panicking at the Police Station
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Few people pass through the warehouse district as the sun sets.
Trucks on the road occasionally light up the central thoroughfare, but they just rumble past.
Their lights are far too feeble to pierce the darkness here.
The old-timers who've worked here for years sometimes say, with grave expressions:
They've heard screams in the dead of night.
They've never seen anyone enter a warehouse and come out.
Something terrifying is happening in this warehouse district.
No one takes those stories seriously, but for some reason, the rumors never die, no matter how much time passes.
.
.
.
"Do you remember what I told you to do?"
"Ugh... Protect and... monitor the young lady's group."
In a windowless secret room inside one of the warehouse buildings.
Normally a small production facility for extracting cosmetic ingredients from fish byproducts,
the green-coated floor is stained with red fish blood that won't come out.
But right now, no one could swear that all the blood stuck to the floor came from fish.
Because a bloodied man is writhing in agony in front of a haughty woman sitting arrogantly.
"Wrong. That's why trash like you who can't learn is useless... Or are you doing it on purpose? Who told you to screw me over?"
"I'm sorry...! I'm sorry! Protect the young lady's group and... monitor Jeong Yi-an!"
"Then why'd you leave the guy you're supposed to monitor alone and take upskirts of the girls? Why'd you ask for their phone numbers?"
"...I was lonely, and I thought maybe it could turn into something good!"
"Ugh, shut your disgusting mouth. Don't you know you're older than me?"
The haughty woman, hearing the battered man's words, beckons to a burly man waiting nearby.
He grabs a bat and starts beating the bloodied man.
After a few minutes, she gestures again, and he stops and returns to his spot.
"Hoo... Looks like you used your head a bit, since you didn't post Han Si-a's pictures online."
"Y-yes! I still know where to draw the line! I'll delete the young lady's pictures right away...!"
The man, who'd just been beaten with the bat, answers with a servile grin.
But she flies into a rage at his words.
"Haha! You think that's funny? Are you insane? You think my reputation hits rock bottom and bounces back if you do that? Because of you, I'll have to grovel to that Han Si-a bitch for months!!!!!"
"Ma'am. Should I beat him?"
"Beat him! Just not to death."
"Agh!! Ugh...!! I'm sorry!! I'm sor...!!!"
The bat-wielding man's thrashing continues for a while, and the warehouse district's ghost stories live on another day.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The day after I beat the hidden cam creep to a pulp by the Han River, I met him again at the police station.
The victim wants a settlement and no prosecution?
When the police called, my heart sank thinking it had come to this,
but if the guy who got pummeled doesn't want punishment... well, my mind eased up.
...
But when I saw the creep at the station, I was speechless.
"Wh-what!! I didn't beat you that bad!! You're a complete bloody mess!! You bastard!! Did you self-harm to squeeze more settlement money out of me!!!!!"
"Whoa... Calm down, Yi-an! You don't have to pay anything! The money's already settled, we're just here formally to confirm no prosecution!"
I'd come prepared to cover hospital bills, but the creep's lawyer said it wasn't necessary.
From what I gathered, Han Si-a's parents pulled strings behind the scenes...
Since their hired bodyguard caused the issue, they're handling the cleanup themselves.
Money and power really are the best... Hope Bitcoin moons soon.
.
.
.
Only after confirming the settlement and no-prosecution forms at the station could I explain the details to my friends.
Of course, since Han Si-a's parents helped cover my mess legally...
One of them already grasped the gist.
Still, better to explain it myself, so I told them everything I knew about the incident.
When I finished, Yoo So-mi was in tears.
"Sniff... Yi-an, thank you... You fought adults for me and even went to the police station... It must've been scary... Sob...!"
Yeah. It was scary.
Especially seeing that guy at the station, turned into complete bloody pulp—I thought the settlement was busted and nearly fainted.
But this wasn't the time to say that, so I just hugged her silently.
"Waaah!! If anyone bullies you, Yi-an, just tell me! Sniff... I'll run over and beat them up!"
Yoo So-mi sobbed in my arms for a while.
Even when she learned her footage had briefly circulated online, she'd acted composed.
But inside, she must've been really anxious...
Seeing her relax like this made the past few days' efforts—obsessively tracking the creep, street-fighting for the first time, getting hauled to the station—feel worth it.
.
.
.
After a few minutes, as she calmed and stopped crying,
I loosened my arms from hugging her and straightened up.
...
Or tried to, but So-mi wouldn't let go.
She ended up with her arms around my neck, legs gathered on my lap as I sat in the chair, perched on me.
"Can't we stay like this a little longer?"
Yoo So-mi's face is right in front of mine.
Her small face fits entirely in view—eyes, nose, mouth.
This is a room cafe, sure, but conversing like this feels... a bit much, right?
...
But looking into her eyes this close makes me hesitate to refuse.
I know it's a little weird, but part of me thinks maybe it's okay to stay like this longer.
Her teary eyes, still wet from crying, draw me in with a desperate pull,
tempting me to wrap her up in my arms again as she gazes at me, arms around my neck.
.
.
.
Then Han Si-a's icy voice cut in from ahead.
"You two... Even so, what are you doing right in front of me? So-mi, you've cried enough—get down now."
"Hee-hee. Si-a's gotten cold... Yi-an, text me when you get home later?"
Yoo So-mi made a sheepish face at Han Si-a's words, gave me one last tight hug, then returned to her seat.
Han Si-a sighed softly at the sight, then explained what she knew about the incident's aftermath.
"Sigh... Ahem. This incident is primarily the hidden cam guy's fault, but my parents bear responsibility too for assigning an unvetted private bodyguard. So, expect contact soon as a gesture of sincerity to you victims."
"Hmm... Like another gifted education invite?"
"Ah! I wanna go on the trip with you guys too!! I was bummed you left me out last time..."
"No, they haven't decided what yet. And So-mi, it's an education program, not a trip."
From the rundown, we'll hear specifics around when we finish contest prep.
Last time, her stepmom's "gesture" at Daegwallyeong netted us a nice payout...
Wonder how much this time.
Afterward, Han Si-a briefed us on handling the leaked footage online.
Her parents set up monitoring teams per site, ready to act if unauthorized videos or photos pop up.
Fortunately—or not—no detections yet.
Plus, the leaked footage so far has mosaics on So-mi's face,
And amid the internet’s sea of stimulating photos and videos, it’s fading from attention faster than expected.
"Finally, the bodyguard who filmed us secretly... He'll probably go to jail."
"Huh? Why?"
"Not sure exactly, but he turned in his home computer's contents to police and turned himself in. Must've had stuff warranting punishment. Probably unrelated to us."
This might tie to how beat-up the creep was today.
For someone I pummeled, his attitude toward me was surprisingly meek.
Unless someone held a knife to his throat and threatened self-surrender, what criminal hands over their own evidence?
...
I was curious about the details,
but decided not to ask what happened between the station and his surrender.
And... never piss off Si-a's parents.
I wanted to drop the creep topic, so I changed subjects with the girls.
"Alright. No more creep worries for now. As promised, let's talk about shooting at the Han River outdoor pool."
We continued brainstorming how to film at the outdoor pool by the Han River.
This time in swimsuits, so more caution than ever in planning.
We aimed to prevent any hidden filming, no matter what.
I pondered strategies based on the pool's layout and peak crowd times,
Han Si-a insisted on portable fences for smooth filming.
But our serious meeting ended anticlimactically with Yoo So-mi's suggestion.
"Why not go in before opening and finish shooting? No one but staff can enter, so no hidden cam issues..."
"...", "..."
Her simple fix left me and Han Si-a stunned, making our deliberations feel silly.
But her idea had no flaws beyond needing pool office approval.
"Yeah... We've only shot in open public spots till now, so we didn't think that way."
"I'll call the pool office and check. Results today or tomorrow."
After the meeting, I explained the contest prep and hidden cam concerns well to the office.
The rep was lukewarm at first over fairness to other users, but softened after hearing about the filming risk.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Speaking of which, time for me to buy a swimsuit soon.
I figured I'd wear my old middle school one from home,
but high school growth spurts make it too tight.
...
Ahem. My dragon's grown impressively.
But you're still young! This isn't the end—keep growing!
I barely used it pre-regression, but this time, I'll make the effort!
As I admired a certain body's growth, my smartphone pinged with a message.
...From Han Si-a.
Alone in my room, but texting a school girl bottomless felt off,
so I scrambled into clothes and checked.
Han Si-a: Got a swimsuit? If not, wanna shop with us this weekend?
Me: Need a new one... But didn't you and So-mi buy some at summer break start?
I remember clearly—they got them then, and she even sent pics.
But her next message showed they had reasons too.
Han Si-a: Those were for a beach trip just us. Using them for UCC contest video feels... You get it?
Yeah, I get it.
Especially Han Si-a's barely-there bikini—
dancing in that for submission would be embarrassing...
But just buy separately online.
Why tag along?
Following girls swimsuit shopping? Like some next-door anime.
I was typing a refusal when...
Han Si-a: FYI, no veto power. Refuse and I'll use command rights without hesitation. Already cleared with So-mi. Saturday 10 AM, school gate.
Han Si-a: Reply.
Me: ...Yes ma'am.