Chapter 23
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: Monster Tale Specialist Office: Centipede's Child (3)
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Taeju, left alone in the hallway, scratched his head for a moment before heading down to the first floor. Right on cue, the Director's car pulled up. It wasn't exactly surprising since it was the Director himself who had arrived.
An old yellow Volkswagen Beetle sputtered to a stop in front of the building, and Taeju stepped outside to stand beside it.
"You came out right on time?"
The Director said as he rolled down the window.
He'd clearly pulled an all-nighter, yet there wasn't a hint of fatigue on his face. Come to think of it, the Director always seemed to be in peak condition at the most crucial moments.
Taeju wondered if the man was even human as he replied.
"You timed it perfectly."
"Eh, same difference. Take the kid up with you. She should be awake by now."
No sooner had the Director spoken than a rustling sound came from the passenger seat. Taeju glanced that way. There sat a girl with black hair in a bob, the seat fully reclined as she slept.
"This is the one who tumbled down that mountain...?"
"That's her. Take her up."
"Huh? She still looks like she's sleeping."
Aside from a brief twitch, the girl remained lying there unchanged. The Director glanced at her, shook his head once, and said.
"Nah, she's faking it right now. Open the door and get her."
At his words, the girl cracked her eyes open and peeked at Taeju.
She looked about the same age as Woli, maybe high school age.
Whatever she'd been through, her whole body was caked in dirt, covered in scrapes everywhere.
Fallen leaves and twigs clung to her in spots she hadn't managed to brush off. She looked like she'd truly been lost in the wilderness.
When Taeju opened the car door, a wave of sweat hit him.
He grimaced for a split second before quickly schooling his expression. She was already pitiful enough; he couldn't make her shrink back by frowning.
Fortunately, she didn't seem to notice.
Taeju extended his hand. The girl hesitated for a moment before taking it, letting him pull her out of the car.
Her face flushed bright red, and the moment she was out, she let go of his hand.
As Taeju closed the door, the Director gave him a thumbs-up.
"Handle it yourself. I'm gonna park and crash. Oh, and for the site—call Sia and link up."
In the end, he hadn't given any real details.
With that, the Director zoomed off to park. The girl stood still, watching the car's taillights disappear. Maybe because her temporary guardian was gone, she seemed uneasy.
"Thank you...."
Her voice was a faint whisper. It wasn't directed at Taeju, and he hadn't done anything worthy of thanks yet, so it was probably meant for the Director.
Taeju pretended not to hear her fragile greeting. Instead, he spoke in the kindest tone he could muster.
"Hello. My name is Kang Taeju."
Hearing his introduction, the girl startled and bowed deeply, standing straight. The gesture was awkwardly formal.
"Hello...."
Her voice was small. She seemed wary of strangers.
At least her guard wasn't so high that they couldn't even talk. That was a relief.
Sometimes people like that came in, and it took so much energy just to put them at ease.
"I assume the Director gave you some rundown, but do you know what kind of place this is?"
The girl hesitated before nodding. She was clearly withdrawn, but she didn't avoid his eyes or act skittish.
"First things first, you need a shower. And treatment for those wounds. Follow me."
Taeju turned and headed toward the elevator inside the building.
They waited for the elevator, an awkward silence settling in.
"Um... is there a place to wash up here?"
The girl broke the silence first.
"Yes? Oh, there are showers on the third and fourth floors. But the fourth is the Director's space, so I'll show you ours on the third."
"Ah, I've never been to a place like this before...."
Her voice trailed off softer and softer. Whatever she'd endured, Taeju felt sorry for her.
The elevator arrived after that, and silence lingered on the ride up.
Finally, the doors opened. Woli was standing right there, apparently having come at the Director's mention.
"You're back...? Heek!! What the heck? What happened?!"
Woli gawked at the girl's state and made a huge fuss. It helped melt away some of the awkwardness.
"This is the one I mentioned. Can you show her to the shower?"
Woli nodded at Taeju's words and immediately approached the girl.
"Um..., come this way first. It's okay if you wear something else, right? It's my school gym clothes. Hmm, but before that, we should pick off all the stuff stuck to you."
Woli chattered away as she drew near. It was kinder than her usual demeanor.
Maybe because they were peers, the girl seemed more at ease with Woli's approach.
Taeju had been worried about Woli looking down earlier, but seeing her cheer up was a relief.
"Oh, right, what's your name?"
"Huh...? My name?"
The girl seemed flustered by Woli's question before answering.
"My name is Hanseol Lee. Hanseol Lee."
* * *
While Woli guided Hanseol to the shower, Taeju prepared breakfast again. This time for the new guest. It wasn't much work. He fried some fresh eggs and opened a can of preserved food he'd been saving, slicing and grilling it to bite-sized pieces.
Luckily, he'd cooked rice for four, so there was plenty.
With breakfast ready in no time, Taeju called Sia while he had a spare moment.
A few rings later, her voice came through.
[Man, you called quick. Didn't you?]
Fatigue laced her tone. Like the Director, Sia had probably been up all night. It was natural she'd sound sharp.
[Shouldn't you have called to check on me the second you woke up and saw I was gone?]
Taeju took her teasing complaints in stride.
"Haha, sorry. It's been hectic here since morning, all noisy and everything."
[What? Hey, I got dragged out of bed in the dead of night and shipped to the sticks. You think it's the same as sleeping like a log till morning?]
Sia grumbled, demanding to know how he dared compare.
"Aw, noona. Thanks for your hard work. So, got anything to tell us?"
[Look at you changing the subject. But I'm beat too, so I'll let it slide this time. I spent all night circling this mountain—I'm exhausted.]
"I heard about the mountain. Which one is it?"
[You know the name? You'll come later anyway, so I'll text you the location. This area's ridiculously huge. The perimeter's insane; just skimming the outskirts takes forever.]
Taeju let Sia's lament go in one ear and out the other as he got to the point.
"Got it, send the location later. So, what have you found so far?"
[Can you believe this cheeky punk? Can't even give a word of encouragement to someone who's been busting their ass?]
Sia griped at Taeju for ignoring her, hoping for even empty praise.
But Taeju had his own side.
"No, really, it's urgent right now. The star of this incident just showed up, and the kid's in bad shape. Covered in wounds head to toe, ugh.... We gotta move fast, even if you're tired!"
Taeju exaggerated a bit to speed things up.
[The Director ditched me here, so I haven't seen her. Why, is she hurt bad?]
His ploy worked; Sia's voice turned cautious.
"Don't get me started. How does a kid end up like that? At least no major injuries, thank goodness."
[If it's not serious, that's something. I've got a few findings, though the investigation's not done. I'll share what I can.]
Sensing it wasn't time for jokes, Sia dove right in.
[First off, this mountain I'm circling? No place for people.]
Taeju couldn't help scoffing at her serious tone stating the obvious.
"Well, yeah. Nobody lives in mountains these days. Hundred years ago, maybe."
Sia added.
[No, it's not just that—it's insane anyone was ever here. There's no paths at all. Survivalists or mountaineers might try, but it's no casual hike. Get what I'm saying?]
Taeju thought for a second.
"So, it's an insanely rugged mountain?"
[No paths exist, period. Listen, when the Director first told me at dawn about a girl escaping this mountain, I pictured one with trails. Your typical lost hiker scenario—got in deep, that's all. You thought the same, right?]
Taeju nodded on reflex, then remembered it was a voice call and hurried to reply.
"Yeah. Figured she was night-walking, ran into something, got lost."
[Exactly. That's the problem. It's not about getting lost— this mountain's no place a girl goes alone to begin with. Make sense now?]
Her smug tone irked him a little, but Taeju grasped the issue better.
"So, a person came from where no person should be."
[Pretty much. And right where she burst out, we found a boundary. Too convenient for coincidence. How'd she get in, get out? Beats me.]
Hearing that, Taeju's vague worry hardened into certainty.
"The Director really dumped something weird on us."
[Tell me about it. At least he tossed it our way before it hit rock bottom.]
Sia gave a wry chuckle. She wasn't wrong. The Director always brought jobs right before disaster. And honestly, that made it harder. They were salvageable, so you couldn't ignore them, and there was tons to handle.
Cleaning up total failures was thankless but easy. Near-misses were hell to fix—enough to make you think you'd die—but rewarding.
"How old's that boundary?"
[Analyzing it now. Needs a closer look. Feels like a new item from an ancient era; hard to pin down.]
"Huh? What does that mean?"
[Doesn't seem super old itself, but made with some archaic method. Gotta confirm more.]
Even Sia, the expert, couldn't say for sure, so this boundary was something special.
"Man, what a fulfilling day ahead."
Taeju sighed. Sia chuckled in agreement. It was fulfilling, sure. And miserable.
[Anyway, what's the victim's name?]
"Lee Hanseol, I think."
[Hanseol, Hanseol...]
Sia repeated it, then said.
[Okay. Record what she says and send it. I'll think over anything weird. God, my whole body's aching.]
"Uwaaaaaah!!!!"
Just as Sia's complaints resumed, a loud scream erupted from the shower room. Woli's voice.
"Hold on—something urgent came up! We'll talk downstairs!"
[What? Hey, wait!]
Sia tried to say more, but Taeju hung up and bolted toward the sound. It was coming from the shower room.