A Very Mysterious Person
K-POP’s hottest girl group these days was Iris.
Made up of four members—Seo-rin, Yura, Loren, and Kami—the group exploded in popularity the moment they debuted.
They had it all: the dancing, the singing, and even that aura of mysterious beauty.
Before they had even officially debuted, a massive fandom had already formed around them, and they swept every music chart in the country. Now, their popularity was spreading with frightening speed through Southeast Asia and Japan as well.
Each member had her own appeal, but the leader, Seo-rin, boasted the largest fandom of them all.
Her skin was so pale it almost looked transparent.
Her features were the sort that called to mind a cat raised in a royal palace.
And then there was that haughty, sharp aura of hers—the sort that made it feel difficult to even strike up a conversation with her.
That cold, mysterious ice princess suddenly rolled down her car window, leaned out, and blurted, “Tan Oppa!!!!??? Oh my god!! What are you doing here today!? Are you on duty!?”
The sight of her shouting so wildly at someone left some of the fans rubbing their eyes.
They wondered if perhaps it was someone who merely resembled Seo-rin.
But no one else could possibly possess that kind of beauty and presence.
“Agh! If you were coming here today, you should’ve told me in advance! Do you want to die!?”
Seo-rin raised a tiny fist at Song Tan.
As if drawn by instinct, dozens of eyes immediately turned toward him.
“You’re staying until the concert ends, right!? If you run, I’ll kill you!? Seriously!”
In the end, she was subdued by a woman who looked like her manager, and Seo-rin vanished from view. The darkly tinted car window slid back up.
“....................”
The silence that followed was awkward enough to make one doubt there were that many people gathered there at all.
Then the murmuring began to swell.
“What did I just see?”
“That was Seo-rin, right? I’m not seeing things, am I?”
“It was Iris’s car. I know the plate number by heart.”
“Did Seo-rin-unnie really just act like that...? It feels like I dreamed it.”
“I was so shocked I didn’t even think to record it on my phone! Damn it!”
After discussing the unbelievable scene they’d just witnessed, the fans began glancing at Song Tan.
“Did Seo-rin-unnie just recognize that police officer?”
“It’s a little unclear. Maybe she was talking to the person behind him...”
“No, I don’t think so. She was definitely talking while looking at that police officer...”
Before long, an argument broke out over who Seo-rin had actually addressed.
It was all so sudden, and a top-tier female idol and a police officer on security detail simply didn’t seem like they belonged in the same frame.
A few bold fans even approached Song Tan directly and asked, “Um... are you acquainted with Iris’s Seo-rin-unnie?”
Without turning his head, Song Tan replied, “No.”
He really didn’t know Iris’s Seo-rin.
The only one he knew was Im Seo-rin, the spoiled youngest daughter of Mr. Im’s family.
“Then why was unnie acting like she knew you?”
“Maybe she mistook me for someone else, or was looking at another person.”
“Ah...”
“And I am not an old man.”
“Huh? Ah... yes.”
That was one point he absolutely could not let slide.
“See? I told you it wasn’t me.”
“I just wanted to make sure.”
The two girls slapped each other’s arms and wandered off.
Lee Seung-ho, who still looked as though his jaw might never close again, hurried over to Song Tan.
“Hey, hey, hey! You! You! What the hell is going on? Why is our Seo-rin acting like she knows you? What’s the deal!?”
“How would I know...? I’m confused too.”
Song Tan chose ignorance—for the moment.
But Seung-ho looked as though he had already drawn his own conclusion.
“Try fooling a ghost first. She definitely looked right at you and said, ‘Tan Oppa.’ Come on, spit it out already. You and Seo-rin are really acquainted, aren’t you?”
Realizing he couldn’t dodge it any longer, Song Tan reluctantly nodded.
“We’re not complete strangers.”
“Holy—... it was true.”
Seung-ho, stunned, let both arms droop at his sides.
Then his eyes blazed, and he lunged toward Song Tan like a leech.
“You bastard! What in the world are you to our Seo-rin!?”
“Just someone from the same neighborhood who grew up knowing her face.”
“Bullshit! If you only knew each other’s faces, would she greet you like that? Be honest! If you keep dancing around it, I swear I’ll shout it out right here and now! What if I tell everyone that Iris’s Seo-rin said, ‘I miss you, Oppa,’ to Song Tan of Macheon District Office in Annam City?”
Seung-ho brandished his shoulder-mounted radio in a threatening gesture.
Song Tan exhaled faintly and told the truth as it was.
They had played together in the same neighborhood back when he still had a runny nose and scraped knees, but as they grew up, they drifted apart.
He had only known that she’d become a trainee; he had never imagined she’d turn into such a famous singer.
They had homeschooled together for about two years and clung to each other every day, but he omitted the part where he had once been her emotional anchor.
It would only make things more troublesome.
“Hah...”
Still, even that much was enough to leave Seung-ho dazed.
“How many times were you the helmsman of Turtle Ship in your past life?”
“What?”
“If you didn’t save the nation in your past life, this doesn’t make any sense!”
The words that nearly rose to his throat—that he had not saved the nation but had instead been a wretched bastard—were barely held back by Song Tan.
“My God... Iris’s Seo-rin was your little neighbor? And she still remembers you! She even greeted you! Does that make any sense?” Seung-ho muttered to himself before suddenly snapping his head up as if remembering something. “Wait, didn’t she tell you to stay until the concert ends?”
“Did she? I didn’t hear that.”
“You punk! You dare brush off Lady Seo-rin’s words like that? She absolutely said it!”
“Then I guess she did.”
“Hey, Song Tan.”
Seung-ho’s face hardened, and he lowered his voice.
“I’m being very serious right now, so listen carefully to what I’m about to say.”
When the usually grinning fool suddenly went grave, Song Tan couldn’t afford to half-listen.
They were classmates, yes—but Seung-ho was also a brother he liked.
“I’m begging you. Please get me one autograph. Please.”
Looking at Seung-ho as he bowed so low his crown was nearly visible, Song Tan had no choice but to say he would try his best.
***
“I really can’t live like this. Because of you!”
To the female manager’s scolding, Seo-rin smiled brightly and acted cute.
“Hehe, sorry, unnie. I was just so happy to see him...”
“If I left a child with a runny nose by the riverside, I wouldn’t be as worried as I am right now. Haa... We messed up the concept from the start. Can someone this scatterbrained really pull off a sharp, haughty charisma?”
“That’s why I said I hated it to death! Who was it that forced me into it, saying the leader has to carry herself with weight? Hmph.”
“Fine, fine. It’s my sin. Oh, what a miserable fate I have.”
As the two of them bickered like a comedy skit, Kami laughed and asked lightly, “But that police oppa really is the one you were talking about, right? The one you said was your lifesaver?”
“Yep, that’s him. Handsome, isn’t he?”
“Handsome isn’t really the word... He had this scary sort of vibe, though. Maybe because he’s a cop?”
“Right, right. You used to go on and on about how warm and kind he was, but when he actually saw you, he was pretty indifferent too, wasn’t he?”
When Loren chimed in as well, Seo-rin shook her head firmly.
“That’s because you guys know absolutely nothing about Tan Oppa. Our Tan Oppa is... how should I put it...”
Seo-rin pursed her glossy pink lips and smiled.
“He’s a really, really mysterious person.”
“So what exactly is so mysterious?”
“Hmm... He’s mature, but... sometimes when he just stands there, he can feel kind of scary, and yet he’s also really attentive in this oddly meticulous way...”
“A tsundere?”
“Oh! Right! That! Anyway, he’s a really special oppa to me. If I hadn’t had him, I don’t think I’d be who I am now.”
“We know. You’ve said it so much our ears have worn thin.”
In fact, the members weren’t all that unfamiliar with Song Tan’s existence.
They had heard about him so many times during those brutal trainee years that they could recite the story in their sleep.
Clack.
Just then, Yura, who had been sitting quietly in the back and reading, snapped her book shut.
“Even so, Im Seo-rin, what you just did was extremely careless. What if someone misinterprets it and an article gets published?”
“I... I was just happy to see him...”
At the chill in Yura’s voice, Im Seo-rin quickly shrank in on herself.
Among all the people around her, the only one she truly minded was her childhood friend, Go Yura.
“We’re idols. We have to remember that even the smallest action can draw attention. More importantly, we’re a team. If your behavior causes trouble for the rest of us, do you think you’ll be the only one who suffers?”
“No... I’m sorry.”
Seo-rin’s shoulders slumped.
Watching her, Go Yura let out a faint sigh.
“What I mean is... let’s keep work and private life separate. We know exactly how you feel about that person, and we also know he saved you when you almost made a very bad choice.”
Im Seo-rin was intimidated by Go Yura, and Go Yura—who was T to the core—was likewise only ever careful around Im Seo-rin.
“Got it. I’ll be more careful from now on.”
Seo-rin nodded readily, knowing that Yura was only speaking out of concern for her.
To lift the mood, the manager clapped her hands loudly three times.
“All right, all right! Let’s give today’s performance everything we’ve got. How about we all shout the slogan together?”
The quick-witted Kami raised her voice first.
“One, two, three! Dye the world with light!”
“I–R–I–S! Iris!”
***
At last, the long, long event came to an end.
After returning his equipment, Song Tan turned at the sound of a faint but heated shouting nearby.
A police official who looked to be part of headquarters was in the command tent, gripping a phone and bellowing at the top of his lungs.
Then Seung-ho appeared from somewhere and clicked his tongue repeatedly.
“We’re screwed. Totally screwed.”
“Why? What happened?”
“That bastard Han Gi-tae. He really went and caused trouble.”
“Trouble?”
“Earlier, he was parading around with the female officers like he was King Uija himself, bragging that he got to listen to the singers perform.”
“And why is that a problem?”
“That lunatic secretly changed into plain clothes and went to watch the concert. He was with those female officers earlier too.”
“Seriously?”
“He didn’t have an entrance wristband on, so the event staff must’ve come to question him. That’s when he got caught.”
“What happens now?”
“How should I know? We’ll find out once the disciplinary committee is convened. But this doesn’t look like it’ll go away easily. Unluckily for him, a reporter apparently saw the whole thing.”
“He’s really in trouble.”
“You could say he’s properly screwed, yeah. Tch, what an idiot.”
Seung-ho, still clicking his tongue, draped an arm over Song Tan’s shoulder.
“Anyway, good work today. When I see you next time, will it be as a detective on the violent crimes team?”
“Well... probably.”
“Damn, you’ve really grown up. Already getting called ‘detective.’”
Nodding with satisfaction, Seung-ho glanced around, then leaned in and whispered, “Make sure you get Lady Seo-rin’s autograph with your life on the line, okay? I’m not pressuring you or anything, but I’ll be waiting. Hm? Right? Right?”
At his terrifying determination, Song Tan could only nod again.
***
That night, the moment he arrived at his studio apartment, his phone started ringing insistently.
“Hello?”
[Oppppaaaa! You just left, didn’t you? You’re home already, right? Lying on the sofa, aren’t you?]
“How did you know?”
Song Tan sat up and, without thinking, glanced around the room.
He half-wondered whether a camera had been installed somewhere.
[You really think I don’t know you, Oppa? Honestly, you’re so cold. Your lovely little sister begged you to stay, and you still just—ugh.]
“How was I supposed to know when it would end? I’m exhausted.”
[You’re awful!! Seriously!!]
Im Seo-rin poured out the hurt she’d been sitting on for so long.
Song Tan merely listened in silence.
Once she’d finally said her piece, she seemed to feel better and quickly shifted into a brighter tone, giggling.
[Anyway, call me more often. Even if you can’t always answer calls, you can text.]
“I’ll try.”
[So, Oppa, you don’t have anything on the Saturday after next, do you?]
“Why? I’ve got field support duty.”
[What, you work even on weekends!? And you’re a civil servant!?]
“That’s how most police officers are. Why do you ask?”
[Hee-ing. We’re having our first fan meeting then. We’re inviting all our families too... I’m really so disappointed. If you can’t come, then I guess there’s nothing to be done. Don’t feel pressured.]
As the sorrow in her voice deepened, Song Tan was just about to say something when—
Whoosh—
A chill swept across the back of his neck, and every fine hair on his body stood on end at once.
“Ah...”
Startled, Song Tan slowly parted his lips.
The talent that had allowed Number Twenty-Eight to survive to the very end, despite having none to speak of.
The secret he had never once revealed to anyone.
The ability to sense the approach of death—now, across time itself, it was awakening in the present world.