SU | Chapter 2.1

“Han-ah. Mom is…”

Yoohan opened his eyes to a cramped room that smelled of mold. As he lay curled up, a gentle hand stroked his hair, and he let out a contented sigh.

“Mom.”

The sunset poured in through the small window, casting a light that was more violet than orange. The light etched a distorted rectangle on the floor.

“Mom.”

The woman didn’t respond. Even though his mother’s blurry face was right in front of him, it felt strangely out of reach.

“Han-ah. Mom is…”

“Yeah, Mom.”

“Han-ah. Mom is…”

It was odd. His mother’s voice kept repeating like a broken record. Mom, Mom. Eventually, when his own voice failed to come out, Yoohan desperately thrashed about. But it was just a futile struggle, not even able to move a pinky.

“Han-ah. Mom is…”

“Ugh, ugh.”

“…If you don’t wake up in one second, you’re going to get beaten.”

Bam! Yoohan’s eyes shot open, as if he had been jolted awake. He felt like he was pinned down, unable to move even a finger. As he finally managed to roll his eyes around, a sigh escaped his lips.

“Hah…”

Yoohan, who had been slumped against the second-row door of a gray Starex, straightened his body. As he sat up properly, nausea hit him. The car was bumping along an unpaved road, making a ruckus.

“Such a waste. You wake up right away when I say I’ll hit you.”

At that moment, a half-serious joke came from beside him. Yoohan slowly pressed his temples and glanced at Ji Youngwon.

Just this morning, Youngwon had been dressed in a suit, but now he was in casual clothes—a white turtleneck, a brown suede jacket, and sunglasses perched on his nose. Even though the space between the front seats wasn’t particularly cramped, Youngwon’s long legs were spread wide and folded.

“We’re almost there. Wipe your drool.”

Still half-asleep, Yoohan awkwardly rubbed his mouth with the back of his hand. His dazed gaze remained fixed on Youngwon.

“I’m not interested in guys with dicks, so get your face out of my sight.”

Youngwon pushed his sliding sunglasses back up with his middle finger while looking at his phone. No matter how much he liked the character Yoohan, he had no interest in guys like him in real life.

Feeling a bit sulky, Yoohan’s eyes turned bright. It seemed like Youngwon had eyes on the sides of his head, as he easily caught Yoohan’s expression with his peripheral vision.

“Ugh… damn it.”

Being around Yoohan often made Youngwon want to laugh in disbelief. They were heading out for their first job, and here was Yoohan, lazily sleeping and even drooling as he woke up.

Hearing Youngwon’s sigh, Yoohan stubbornly stifled a yawn. It felt like he had dreamt something, but he couldn’t quite remember what it was. When had he even fallen asleep?

He had barely eaten breakfast before getting into the Starex, and it seemed the warmth of the heater had lulled him into sleep. Yoohan was amazed at himself for managing to doze off in a space filled with his older brothers and Youngwon. So, Youngwon must have been even more amazed. To break the awkward silence, Yoohan threw out a question.

“By the way, Director, why did you change your clothes?”

Youngwon wasn’t one to stick to formal wear unless he was entertaining a client from Seongsim Planning. He glanced at Yoohan while leaning back against the seat, arms crossed, and closed his eyes.

“Why would I wear a suit? Am I advertising that I’m here to catch someone? Use your head a bit, okay? Think, Han-ah.”

The snake sitting behind them snickered. Yoohan, who hadn’t even gotten his money’s worth, bit his lip and turned his gaze out the window. Seriously, damn. Even when he spoke, it had to be like that. That pretty-faced bastard… Since Kim Minjae had left and he had met Youngwon, Yoohan’s vocabulary for curses had expanded significantly.

Not even five minutes after waking up, the car came to a stop in an alley. The outskirts of the city, far from the bustling center, had a bright day, yet there was a gloomy and eerie corner to it.

“We’ve arrived. According to the map, that blue gate over there should be it.”

The driver, who looked like a monkey, pointed out the window. Gu Kangsan, who had leaned forward from the passenger seat, handed over a piece of paper.

“Hey, check this out. It’s the debtor’s information.”

Yoohan swallowed hard as he took the document. The moment the car stopped, a wave of tension washed over him, causing his hands to tremble slightly. Youngwon, seemingly uninterested, leaned back against the seat, arms crossed, and closed his eyes.

“Name: Lee Seongmin, Age: 25… He borrowed about 92 million won from the client and has been missing for exactly 28 days…”

He looked perfectly normal, yet he was a bad guy. It was unfortunate that he was about the same age as Yoohan’s ex-boyfriend, making Yoohan frown.

As Yoohan read out the client’s information, Youngwon asked, “Kangsan.”

“Yes, Director.”

“Did you get the location info from President Baek?”

“No, the client provided the address.”

“……”

Youngwon made a short sound of doubt, “Hmm.”

“Just in case, make sure to pass the creditor information to me on the way back.”

“Yes, understood.”

Listening to the cryptic conversation, Yoohan shifted his gaze back to the paper. There was a brief note written below the personal information.

※ Main route – Home

※ Living situation – Rent

※ Co-habitant – Biological mother 1

※ Notable point – The client is believed to buy food at a 24-hour convenience store 500m away during the early morning when no one is around. He doesn’t open the door even when the delivery person comes.

※ Relationship with acquaintances – No main connections

※ Family relationship – Biological mother 1 (ill)

※ Other notes

⁝

At that moment, Gu Kangsan called out to Yoohan.

“Hey.”

“Yes?”

“It’s your first job, so you need to do well.”

“…Yes.”

He wanted to do well, but he had no idea how to approach it specifically. Yoohan wiped the sweat from his forehead. Youngwon, who had his sunglasses back on his nose, whistled lightly.

“Do you have any ideas on how to lure him out?”

“…Do I have to come up with ideas too?”

As if he expected this, Youngwon snatched the paper from Yoohan’s hands.

“Kangsan. What were you doing while the kid was sleeping? You should have woken him up and shown him this earlier.”

“Sorry.”

The arrow of blame unintentionally shot back at Kangsan. Yoohan felt a wave of discomfort wash over him and shifted in his seat. Youngwon gestured dismissively at Yoohan, as if he had something to say.

“Should we pretend to be new neighbors and knock on the door with some rice cakes? That might work.”

“Can’t you see what’s written on the paper? He doesn’t even open the door for delivery people.”

“Hmm. Then how about pretending to be a distant relative? I know his name and age, so if I call him in a friendly way—”

“Ha… He’s got only his mom living with him. What kind of distant relative would that be? Plus, he lives with his mom. Knowing his name and age would be even more suspicious, don’t you think?”

“…What about waiting until he comes out to buy food?”

“Are you blind? It says he comes out in the early morning. If we stake out, when are we going to handle other clients, huh?”

Every idea he suggested was shot down, making Yoohan’s lips pout. So what was he supposed to do? It was obvious he wouldn’t come out no matter what.

“…What if we just break in with the staff here? We could approach through the window.”

“No way. Desperate people tend to harm themselves or get hurt while trying to escape. The priority is to catch them off guard. And until we catch them ourselves, any use of force is dangerous. This isn’t the street; it’s a residential area, and…”

“……”

“Tsk. Look at the paper again.”

Youngwon slapped Yoohan’s forehead lightly, as if he was frustrated.

“Ah!”

Even though it was a light hit, it hurt like hell. Yoohan rubbed his stinging forehead and glared at Youngwon. Ignoring his gaze, Youngwon snatched the paper back.

“In this case, using the living situation or co-habitant is a favorable approach.”

“How so?”

“It’s easy since he’s living with his mom who’s battling cancer, and it’s a rented room. Whether he’s put the house up for rent or not, if a real estate agent and a client knock on the door to check out the room, he’ll definitely respond.”

Yoohan listened intently to Youngwon’s serious voice.

“If there’s no response, pretend to unlock the door. Most landlords have a master key. Of course, in a shabby place like that, it’s probably just a regular key.”

“Will that work?”

“It should work for your face. You look like someone who would come to check out a one-room in a poor neighborhood. That’s why I hired you.”

“……”

Unaware that he was being exploited under the guise of employment, Yoohan silently agreed. Even though he was wearing shabby clothes, Youngwon hadn’t commented on his outfit for this very reason.

“Director, do I have to keep coming up with ideas from now on?”

Youngwon turned his stiff neck to the side and smiled.

“From now on, we’ll have meetings with the team here before heading out. Today was a rush job, so we’ll let it slide.”

What the hell? If it was going to be like this, why did he bother to be so serious? Feeling mocked, Yoohan’s eyes turned cold again.

“Stop messing around before I poke your eyes out.”

“Just me? We need a real estate agent, we really do.”

“Ugh, fine. Just get out already.”

Youngwon’s jaw muscles twitched. Thinking that if he kept pushing, he might really get hit, Yoohan hurriedly opened the door.

The alley was narrow enough for just one car to barely pass through. Yoohan almost stepped in some unknown sludge and quickly pulled back. It was a familiar poor neighborhood littered with empty bottles. As Yoohan looked around, Youngwon got out of the car behind him. Following him, Gu Kangsan and his lackeys chimed in unison.

“We’ll be waiting, Director!”

“Call me if you need me.”

“Yes!”

Yoohan’s eyes widened in surprise as he realized that Gu Kangsan or the other employees could mimic a real estate agent.

Contrary to Yoohan’s expectations, it was quite common for Ji Youngwon to get his hands dirty. He had no qualms about taking on enticing requests. Even though he held a respectable title as a director and was raking in big bucks through Seongsim Planning, his street-smart tenacity was something he couldn’t easily shake off.

When Seongsim Planning was just starting out, they spent a lot of time on high-end requests, but now that the two private investigation agencies were well-established, they focused more on speedy errands. The reason was simple: primitive tasks were far more stimulating than lofty ones.

“Just go to the blue house, right?”

As Yoohan pointed ahead with his finger, Ji Youngwon nodded without much enthusiasm. Once he took off his sunglasses, his neatly combed hair and smooth forehead became even more noticeable. In his hand, he held a hastily concocted bundle of papers.

“Let’s go, customer.”

Was this some kind of role play? Ji Youngwon suddenly exclaimed. Yoohan, fastening the buttons of his cardigan, nodded vigorously.

After walking exactly twenty steps, they arrived at the front gate. The blue iron door, with its paint peeling off, had gaps here and there like iron bars. Yoohan peered through the openings. There was a rather shabby space that could barely be called a yard, and in front of it stood a square-handled iron door that looked like something you’d find on a storage building rather than a home. No signs of life could be felt beyond the opaque glass.

“What do we do now?”