The Bear, the Boar, and the Red Pill (4): The Fire That Never Burned
The Dobong Mural Village. It used to be a shantytown, but now it was a place where many people had moved in. It had been preserved as a protected area, its walls covered in murals.
Even calling it a nice neighborhood would be a stretch. There were plenty of abandoned houses, and the security wasn't great. CCTV and things like that weren't properly installed. If a fire broke out here, what would happen?
'Perfect. Just perfect.'
Lee Il-je grinned. Sure, there were many derelict buildings, but plenty of people still lived here. Imagining those people fleeing in terror from the flames he would set made excitement surge through him. This is who I am. I dominate all of you. Drunk on an overwhelming sense of omnipotence, he walked through the darkness.
What was in his bag was lighter fluid. For a chemistry teacher like him, acquiring it wasn't difficult. Spray an appropriate amount, light a match, and it would be over.
In a shabby neighborhood like this, with no CCTV, people would just assume some local delinquents smoking cigarettes had done it. Lee Il-je laughed. Then he began spraying the lighter fluid.
The sharp, heady smell of the fluid that set the body on fire stung his nose. Surrendering himself to excitement, intoxication, and a godlike sense of power, he pulled a lighter from his pocket. All that remained was to set the blaze.
-Whoosh...!!
The fire caught on the paper and roared to life. Without hesitation, he flung it. The abandoned materials, thoroughly soaked in lighter fluid, burst into flames in an instant.
Now he just had to wait for this fire to swallow the entire mural village. He would slowly watch the news from home, savoring his own omnipotence.
"Got you!!"
Before the excitement surging through his body could even subside, pain struck. The agony of his head being slammed into the ground. The pain of his arm being twisted. In this incomprehensible situation, Lee Il-je panicked.
"Put out the fire! Hurry!"
"Yes, sir!"
Burly men stepped forward with fire extinguishers. He couldn't bear it. That fire. The fire he had created. The fire that was supposed to make him omnipotent was being snuffed out by a few measly extinguishers.
"No!! No!!"
"Shut up! Lee Il-je!! You are under arrest for arson in the act! You have the right to remain silent...!!"
Handcuffs clicked around his wrists. He had no mind left to complain about the pain. His eyes were fixed only on the dying flames.
And beyond those extinguished flames, he saw a man. A gruff-looking man with a blunt expression. It was unmistakably the detective who had made him flip cards back at the school.
"Thanks to you, we were able to arrest Lee Il-je. We also prevented the fire at the mural village."
I had been deep into a game of Dungeon & Saga when the phone rang. When I stepped outside, Gang In-jeong was waiting. And he hadn't come empty-handed—he'd brought a gift set of SPAM.
"I'm not sure if something like this will satisfy you, sir..."
"It's a relief that nothing major happened. You really didn't have to bring something like this."
"It's all thanks to you that I got promoted, too."
"Then you should treat me to a proper celebration meal."
"Understood. I'll make sure to treat you right."
Seeing him grin from ear to ear, he really did look thrilled.
"Thanks to you, sir, we were able to prevent a major disaster."
"That's good to hear."
"So, about that... If something like this comes up again in the future, would it be all right if I contact you?"
He let out a heavy sigh.
"There are still so many unresolved cases in this world. If you would step in..."
"I'll cooperate as much as I can."
"R-really? You mean that?"
"Yes. As you know, I was an orphan. I've been able to live this long thanks to the taxes and help from the citizens."
I had been able to survive thanks to the kindness of the Korean people. In that case, giving something back didn't sound so bad.
"But I won't get involved in political matters."
"I understand. Of course."
He chuckled as if he hadn't expected that anyway.
"And I've been watching your broadcasts. They're more entertaining than I thought."
"Really? Haha. Glad to hear it."
"The guy who was doubting and insulting you during today's broadcast got completely wrecked when you revealed his personal info. That was seriously satisfying."
"Haha. There'll be plenty more of that in the future."
"Still, the moment you said one thing, they all vanished, didn't they? What was it you said? 'Kim Ju-hyun from Incheon. Don't you have to go to work tomorrow? Do you really have time to be doing this?' Right?"
"Haha..."
Once I started gaining popularity, a few trolls and troublemakers showed up. They would spam the chat or send one-gold donations along with all sorts of curses and explicit videos.
So I picked one who went too far, called him out directly, and just like that, those types disappeared in an instant. What amusing creatures they were.
Hiding behind anonymity and doing whatever they wanted—crazier than orphans who at least had the excuse of bad parenting. The world really was a strange place.
"Sir, I truly thank you from the bottom of my heart."
He stood up and bowed deeply, greeting me with utmost respect.
"And... I'm not sure if I'll be of any help, but..."
His eyes were endlessly serious.
"If there's ever a moment when you need me, please contact me anytime."
Help from the police. That would definitely come in handy someday.
"Don't worry. I'll make sure to put you to good use."
"Hahaha. Please do."
Gang In-jeong bowed once more and left. I took a sip of the remaining sweet coffee while looking at the SPAM gift set. Tonight's dinner would be grilled SPAM.
. . .
It was after today's broadcast had ended and I had been playing Dungeon & Saga for a while when the phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Hello, Mr. Kang. This is Han Yu-na."
"Ah, hello."
"If it's not too much trouble... would you happen to be free tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow?"
Tomorrow... I didn't have anything in particular planned. It wasn't a broadcast day, and since Hong Si-yeon was on a business trip in Japan right now, she probably wouldn't be introducing any clients.
"That's fine."
"Then, could you accompany me somewhere tomorrow?"
"Where?"
"It's... a party of sorts."
A party, huh. I'd never been to one of those before. I'd gone to a few birthday parties for friends who were nice to me even after finding out I was an orphan back in school, but the kind of party Han Yu-na was talking about was probably nothing like that.
"Do I need to prepare anything?"
"You'll need formal attire, but I'll take care of that for you."
"Understood."
If it was a party Han Yu-na was attending, it was bound to be one with some significance. There was no harm in going. And so the next day, Han Yu-na took me to a luxurious tailor shop.
"Please try this on."
"Whoa... this looks really expensive."
"It's around ten million won per suit."
"Ten... million!?"
Spending ten million won on a single outfit?!
"You've helped me so much, but I felt uneasy that I hadn't properly repaid you yet."
If she was going to put it that way, I might as well accept it. Han Yu-na casually bought me a ten-million-won suit and handed it over.
"Wow..."
"It suits you very well."
"For ten million won, it better. I originally wanted to get you something even better, but the party came up so suddenly..."
It was from some luxury brand I didn't even recognize. I wasn't sure if I should even be wearing this. But Han Yu-na moved on to the next place without batting an eye.
"A watch?"
"It's a necessary accessory."
"No, an Apple Watch is fine for me."
This was something I'd splurged on after becoming an outside director at Hong Si-yeon's company. I'd gotten it a bit cheaper on a secondhand app. Still, it had cost me nearly five hundred thousand won, but every watch Han Yu-na looked at easily exceeded ten times that amount.
"This one looks good."
"...Do you not consider anything under ten million won as actual money?"
Three million won for one watch...
"You'll need to wear at least this much if you want to be treated like a person there."
"Just where exactly are you taking me?"
"You'll find out when we get there."
After that came the tie, the shoes, and even a full hairstyle session. Only then did Han Yu-na look satisfied.
"Shall we go?"
The place we arrived at in her car was a hotel. The Striman Hotel—one of Seoul's five-star hotels. Apparently the party was being held on the top floor today.
"Could you wait here? I'll go change my clothes too."
Han Yu-na, dressed in a neat semi-formal suit, picked up her bag and headed somewhere. When she returned...
"Whoa..."
A black jacket with slits, paired with a black H-line skirt. She wore a white shirt, but the chest area was cut in a way that boldly revealed her impressive figure. It was both provocative and sophisticated—perfect for her sharp beauty.
"You can wear clothes like this too?"
"I don't particularly like them. But given the occasion, it's better than a dress."
She pointed to the side. There, a woman in a red party dress was being escorted by a man in a suit.
"I should be wearing something like that, but since I'm essentially here for work..."
"I see..."
"Shall we go in?"
"Shouldn't I be the one escorting you?"
"Hm. That's true."
After thinking for a moment, Han Yu-na extended her hand.
"Shall we?"
Wait, wasn't I supposed to be the one offering my arm?
. . .
Escorted by Han Yu-na, we arrived at the party on the top floor. There weren't that many people, despite how ridiculously spacious the venue was.
"Oh. Look who it is. Isn't that Han Yu-na?"
The person who approached was a sharp-looking man wearing silver-rimmed glasses. With his tie fastened so tightly it looked suffocating, he glanced back and forth between me and Han Yu-na.
"I heard you've been taking successor classes lately. Didn't think you'd have time to come to a place like this."
"I came because I had the time."
"So? Who is this gentleman?"
"Someone I know. This is Mr. Kang. And this is Jang Ik-gyeom, the second son of Chairman Jang Ok-su of Taeyoung Construction."
"Ah... I see. Nice to meet you. I'm Kang Noah."
"...And what do you do...?"
"I'm an outside director at Sejin Trade."
"Sejin Trade? Was there a company like that...?"
He tilted his head, didn't say much else, and walked away.
After that, several more people came over to greet us. As expected, since Han Yu-na was one of the heirs to a chaebol family, she knew a lot of people.
"Mr. Kang. Can you read fortunes here?"
"It's possible. Do I need to read for these people?"
"No. The person I want you to read for is someone else."
It was then that the party hall suddenly fell silent.
"Chairman Han has arrived."
Saseong Group. A conglomerate that held the lowest position among Korea's top thirty chaebol families. It was particularly well-known in the hotel and construction sectors. Its chairman, Han Jun-ho, had appeared at the party.
The big shot of Korea. With a blunt face, he scanned the room, spotted us, and walked over.
"Well, well. I found it strange that my daughter suddenly decided to attend a party, so I came to see for myself. What a surprise."
His gaze landed on me. He was sixty this year, but his eyes were as sharp as any young man's.
"Is this our Yu-na's boyfriend?"
"I'm hoping it turns out that way."
This woman? She suddenly linked her arm with mine. What was going on? The soft pressure against my arm was making my heart race.
"Hahaha! Is that so? By the way, may I ask what you do for a living? You look quite young."
"I'm an outside director at Sejin Trade."
"Sejin Trade? Was there a company by that name...? I see. And what do your parents do?"
"I'm an orphan."
His expression hardened. Yeah. That was the normal reaction. Among the parents of my close friends, quite a few had made that face. And most of them had hoped I wouldn't get too close to their children. I didn't particularly mind. That was the social perception of orphans, after all.
"Ahem. I see."
It must have been uncomfortable for him. But he didn't show it. Just that alone told me he was a good person—for a chaebol.
"Mr. Noah."
"Yes?"
"If it's possible... could you read my father's fortune?"
Reading the fortune of Chairman Han of Saseong Group, huh.
"Fortune-telling? I don't believe in that sort of thing."
"Mr. Noah's readings are incredibly accurate. Father, please trust me and give it a try just once."
I took out the tarot cards from my pocket. Whether or not he would get his fortune read was up to him. The chairman looked back and forth between me and Han Yu-na with a face that showed more displeasure at the mention of fortune-telling than at the fact that I was an orphan. In the end, he flipped one of my cards.
Then I suppose it was all right to speak now.
"Chairman Han."
"What is it?"
"You'll be receiving a prosecutor's investigation soon."
"...What? Why would I..."
"The apartment complex you're currently building is going to collapse."
Because your son skimped on the rebar like there was no tomorrow.