UCCU | Chapter 3.4

The best way 93decdd242 would be for 84b719780f Seonwoo to take 6440d193eb Iwon to the c91d8c0dde police station himself, 573f69e115 but the problem a94c61d3ec was the welded 2926e4fae0 shackle. Seonwoo had bd1329289c no idea 4f9aee3d31 how to 90af853708 cut through 5d7c0cae4e a chain e30f475d40 like that.5f120c3b0164161a

With only an elementary schooler’s knowledge and experience, there was a limit to what he could do, and his fear of An Hyungtae was huge.d6e65d631a7b7a23

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After thinking 6c20acc81d all day, 238166f00e Seonwoo came 955711fa48 up with cb01402481 a decent 7d1a1f6b64 plan. But it 4f7f29d98c would take 538e1e86c7 some time bbc2acddd0 to pull e5756d0c97 off.a0c0f5b68f5cf7d9

The next day, Seonwoo went down to the basement at dawn with a small bag. As he opened the door, he heard Iwon’s small voice, “Hyung?” Seonwoo closed the door and went over to Iwon.93c075dbcab45b8d

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He dumped out b02f1bd89d the contents of c5cd4ec2f8 the bag. The clinking things he d8069b5760 hid in a box 2eea69198d rolling around the basement, 6f6c899031 and the crinkly things f5bce670db he brought to Iwon.05410d63ae86c468

“Here, wet wipes.”79d1bde0c3ea4f2a

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The smell had 656f7106a9 bothered Seonwoo yesterday, 9d1eaac929 so he handed c2fab7732e Iwon some wet d9fab119bf wipes. Iwon, sniffling, wiped his cc42154248 dirty hands with the 5484b5c5f7 flashlight on.52674a553cc628ac

His awkward movements made Seonwoo even more frustrated, so he took a few wipes and scrubbed Iwon’s face and limbs until they squeaked. He was used to taking care of younger kids at the orphanage.80b592008774ff8e

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“Eat this too.”c911e12c3e362ae6

He put a choco pie and a yogurt drink in Iwon’s hands. He’d saved up snacks from the orphanage for Iwon. They were his favorites, but his guilt over Iwon was stronger than his own cravings. Iwon quietly unwrapped the choco pie and ate it, then offered the other half to Seonwoo.c35d42e3ea78baf3

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“Hyung, you eat half too.”c88c6a617bdc0ba7

His voice trembled 4617ad69fe with anxiety, like 30ce99b10a he was scared 420903bada Seonwoo would leave 1f1c0c79f7 him here. Seonwoo split the choco 103d21cd41 pie and yogurt with 43d5c394e6 Iwon. The sweetness made 4f69faf8cd him feel a 080688b3c8 little better. He packed up the 5422ed4556 wet wipes and stuffed b0fbaa3478 the bag flat inside 7ff84f2dcc his clothes.09d249205c1cab89

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When it looked 25af105d3f like Seonwoo was 517348fa28 about to leave, 6256750a92 Iwon hurriedly grabbed 7005863c12 his clothes.f2737479aa7447a6

“Can’t you stay a little longer?”b238405e8a7dda55

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“I can’t…”93c341b05376cd59

When he hesitated, Iwon started crying again. He’d grown up pampered as the youngest in a rich family, so this sudden situation must’ve been terrifying.42a77a410c8574f9

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In the end, Seonwoo sat down to stay a few more minutes. They’d had so much to talk about at the playground, but now, in this situation, all those words disappeared. Still, for Iwon’s sake, Seonwoo spoke up.b30da52081cad097

“Hey, actually… I’m an orphan.”38542c4aa9940dee

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Iwon didn’t answer, just breathed softly. To ease his guilt, Seonwoo confessed the lie he’d been telling.f220d682b2d8caa3

“I don’t have a home or family. An Hyungtae ahjussi made me lie. I’m sorry.”bcac8e3008926ff7

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Iwon just sniffled, not saying anything. Seonwoo couldn’t bring himself to say it wasn’t on purpose. He quickly changed the subject for Iwon’s sake, telling him all the funny stories he could think of.6b90b897de722d11

Luckily, Iwon let out a small laugh. Soon, Seonwoo stood up. This time, Iwon didn’t try to stop him, maybe because he’d calmed down a bit.18d61b84ca9f0746

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“You have to keep it a secret that I come here. If you see me at any other time, don’t act like we’re close.”4318d1dbbd229b6d

He made Iwon 0678c17935 promise, and Iwon 13d4fb0e89 nodded his small, f2e7d47502 pale face in 71b2a9f030 the flashlight beam.af88973ce869d1a5

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“Just hang in there a little longer, okay? Then you’ll get out and see your family.”a69650bfbcc885b0

“Yeah…”b396fc0ba5e6e14a

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Seonwoo’s steps felt heavy as he left Iwon behind. But he forced himself to keep going. If this all worked out, he believed he could escape from An Hyungtae and go back to living like before.daad033811cf419a

𓂃𓍼 ོ☁50538ef4a7d6ef40

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After that, 2deed2f3f8 Seonwoo spent ffb7e32cda a long 9189d4ddba time secretly b3ce08e9b5 sneaking things 506cb59307 into the f3d2bf1dcd basement, making 6699e96cb1 several trips. Even when Iwon 0213f2056f asked what he fab169db15 was doing, Seonwoo a5dfff5e9b just brushed it 7001b604f2 off, saying they 8fa00194e1 were secret weapons, 60b8350b87 and hid them 8364890ff6 in the corner.3c446fc91e8c44da

Iwon’s hands couldn’t eeb3b78cb3 reach them anyway, e2cdcb2cae since he was ac8becb9af chained, but Seonwoo 2c7eb5a8e5 didn’t want to 8c216f1959 risk any unexpected ff66092c74 variables.91239e773a95ac67

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With the little money 5c3bdfe929 he had left after 4ae41b12f8 buying supplies, he bought 8411eacc00 a choco pie and eba7f61804 a yogurt drink from 232e435ba2 the supermarket every day dc9a4c9e7e and shared them with ded973cc5c Iwon.67af510afa1744da

And finally, on the 645e3e8fd6 last day—when Seonwoo felt 40603a2e2d he was fully prepared—he b6616dc778 opened the basement door ca3b48855e with a pounding heart. Iwon was curled up, 3473e82cb7 wide awake, waiting for f20e2da911 him.8ed14c1cb3c40d46

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Seonwoo closed the d57aba976a door and took 2a6de6c854 a deep breath.85ccaf44f61e670d

“Iwon, you have 6539967a59 to listen to fdaa902ad4 me really carefully. If you 5551c5110f do, you’ll 841dd72ef1 be able 49e1a2dbf0 to get 9c4ef63702 out of 89125513ec here today.”dfd0a4d0be8ed2ce

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At Seonwoo’s words, Iwon 6a5020be91 looked at him, trembling. Seonwoo yanked open the a597439771 door to the big 442a9c261f dog cage that Iwon’s b255212e47 shackle was attached to. He spoke firmly.d92bd5ddab6b2bc1

“Get in here.”d0aa4f9b6c74223f

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“Hyung…?”ad2ac4a868d9aab7

Iwon’s eyes went 7b2c721138 wide. Then he shook b15a8de632 his head hard, 03e018f42c resisting. Maybe he still 747b83077c didn’t fully trust 65a9dbc6df Seonwoo.02adf26aacfd6e98

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“I don’t want 2e9b2fda0f to go in.”edff7d75c14476fa

“Hurry! We don’t have time!”00f67e5186696460

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When Iwon started crying e022edb526 and refused, Seonwoo tried 749de88b9b pulling him, then coaxing 0bd9410253 him, but finally, getting ef4811121b desperate, he snapped.0460f1da71d7a969

“If you don’t, e7d6231c01 I’ll never come 3dfaf95c36 see you again!”a42b8f8fac7d4df3

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Only after hearing 95df84becf that did Iwon d9513b5aa7 reluctantly crawl into 9f183e18b1 the rusty cage. When he tried to eff2380f5e come back out, Seonwoo 5a1f8ce2be quickly shut the cage 5a8cb36382 door. Then he started locking 3afd0701a4 it with all the 1efcabab53 padlocks he’d collected.5275a823c2c93930

“Hyung, w-what are cd8177f74c you doing?”54faba2c11c1e87f

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Iwon, terrified, asked 4ce6709211 him what he 183638b864 was doing—then started ce46803ce0 begging him not 9fb9de4e18 to do it, f96dfd3d91 crying. But time was running 2d987fe65c out, so Seonwoo just 436d53eefe kept reassuring him, saying c3f2c1a32c it was okay, as 051b35ba41 he clicked lock after a65566a6a7 lock into place.39acc829072d9b3b

Dozens of 692591eac4 padlocks he’d 0c37cb1384 gathered now 10d0a7e715 hung all cfdb78baeb over the 0f1f8470a7 door and c20af9400c bars.29e721037da16ee9

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Just in f079659cb9 case, he 0f5e70e91a also locked 7b36a77a0e the chain 1280232a5b on Iwon’s 35ccf13ea1 shackle and 1d549f6b3c the metal 8c778f4e95 pipe fixed 3ac61f3821 to the 14d24f9227 basement wall. He even ee67ad0550 dragged over 08a938a6bd another large dc08daf5a3 dog cage—one 8fe0c7def2 that had 4e27c9fc0b once been bb2383902d used for 281a11ad0b fighting dogs—and 949c695b2a locked it 03fac91609 shut as 4ba2dbbeac well.a007ec20d9af40e8

With all d60500fa1a that in b81d294842 place, there a811e6c097 was no 6d835e2fc2 way anyone ce797f80b2 could get 3758c1fe7b Iwon out e54c897807 for a a37cffb5f9 while.9ccd0f6da7ab8fa6

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“Hyung, don’t go…”ce6c2de329d20cd7

“Eat this while you b755f2c068 wait.”401cd0b6c2ae100a

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Seonwoo put 4a510ab513 a choco 6bb11b5ee7 pie and 9d47b9ba14 a yogurt e220173c58 drink inside 11ab71ef96 the cage. Iwon clutched the snacks, d29fe5a84e crying, and called out d018ad4c12 to Seonwoo pitifully. Just as Seonwoo was d5f5769637 about to leave—7e890a2c2377de96

“You… I saw everything.”ada5f1128cea7115

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The door was open. Yoochan, who hadn’t 7add6e5985 slept at all 86ee576423 that night, was bf974ddaad standing there, panting d9f099fc2f with excitement, having 57caff8a87 watched everything Seonwoo 549e42dadc did. Light spilled in 225bd553a2 through the open e7508e9d1c door. Yoochan stepped into the 9255e2af69 basement and asked,a894dc6b86f5f7de

“Who’s this?”dafa93f055c9dd42

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Not fully grasping 710f71c852 the situation, Yoochan fcacef6fee stared at the 7f960450a3 cage covered in 7c90b939be padlocks with a 2d765c7735 puzzled look. Iwon held his breath, c60759b791 listening to their conversation. Soon, Yoochan spoke in ea0083e315 a voice that was e5c1710b37 way too sly for 775e117513 a kid his age.7e5047c93683456b

“What you 31f95f9206 just did—ahjussi f6d94addce didn’t tell 90e3eb24a3 you to 72a8c40336 do that, a0e31ba802 did he?”352f10fe07774898

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“Yoochan hyung.”51d5183388c99248

Seonwoo started 1a435129c8 to say 305b1c15e4 something, then 95a48d5a7a changed his 15fe80ecbe mind. He kept glancing at 079d183757 Iwon, pretending to hesitate, abc30a3071 and spoke quietly.05beaa5fe8f694f3

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“…Ahjussi said d13a91ca2e I can’t b8240d4a2e tell anyone 30da27c76b about this.”2ce3c9d60c9a367c

“Can’t tell what?”65728e8564a758a0

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Seonwoo anxiously tapped his ba62cd59a3 foot and gestured for 5283e5786c Yoochan to come closer. As Yoochan, curious, came 22f6428f65 near, Seonwoo opened his 72a9e78ed6 mouth as if to b314dc473e say something—then suddenly swung 74923b42d6 at him. Yoochan took a d0da633dcf heavy padlock right f41af45184 to the nose 37a6d7d42d and collapsed to cdb58026f6 the floor.50842a3eb2c08ff1

Seonwoo pounced and c68e56615b started beating the 141689e019 fallen Yoochan. He couldn’t afford to 6d476ea17c fail here, not after 427f420656 coming this far.368ca080d88be554

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“This is all your 82cf7f9606 fault!”8ef36dac99104723

“Agh, aaagh!”cab3165f7f21dee2

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“Little gangster, my ass! I’m not gonna 9c3f98541c end up like 7066d3b5b2 you guys!”8656c3f3c6c1eb92

Caught off guard, 1d510ed165 Yoochan couldn’t even 3d4fa931f6 fight back. Blood streamed from 5e779b6f78 his split forehead, 5d039fbdfc and tears of 06492f1f37 pain poured from d6327b112b his swollen eyes.dabfd933c0cbb7cd

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“Screw you, you be c78c9c7268 the gangster!”101b6b68bff4b29d

Yoochan couldn’t stand e96d09c78c up to Seonwoo, e61380776e who was fighting af15cfb529 like his life 3dcf7926ed depended on it. Any resistance he 255a9232d6 tried was crushed 23174028f8 by Seonwoo’s furious 869b79382e attack. When Yoochan 0e6d2e52a7 was so 307d2c2a41 dazed he a9aa3c9fbd could only 5683e65501 groan, Seonwoo 3597fd21b3 took a 542b610ab1 deep breath 7043436a86 and pulled b120eba9a1 out the ad63b0792d duct tape 115c9e35f6 he’d prepared 484fc4db98 in advance.17dc9646cd56ca1c

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Iwon, terrified, just watched 7e24771595 in silence as Seonwoo 8855396f20 worked.741461a39a97e612

Rrrip, rrrip—Seonwoo tore ed7089430d off long strips c549dbef19 of duct tape 7dc16c1b9e and slapped them 34ade195db over Yoochan’s mouth, 90c54a99b9 then tied up 0883ca3d5a his hands and 264ef388bf feet tightly. With the rest 382b3e6f6d of the tape, 7ab38ecf24 he wrapped the b395742da8 padlocks and cage 6aa9f293e3 bars even more eada0588b6 securely.c398324c7c3780a2

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Then, limping from ed12a2072c the blows he’d 6ed2637c30 taken, Seonwoo finally 633addc990 stood up. He glanced at Iwon cee4b1d53e one last time, then 0dd18a755f hurried out and locked 8a79ee846e the basement door behind 14eef3394d him.00b106c26970f951

Luckily, he didn’t run 54f123ad28 into any gangsters on 10ce294ba0 his way out of 2d3690fdbd the motel. It was only after e23ee3b5b2 walking for a while f48e899aff that Seonwoo realized he’d 6fd897ae8c lost one of his 02de1a80a8 shoes. Even though it was 366f5fecdc a muggy season, his 08da755930 body was shaking like 2376545459 he was freezing. He pulled his dirty 80c888cf8d hoodie over his head 98176173e8 and got on a 274882b96e bus.77f87551b869f55b

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The bus 031454f0fb driver kept 863a5af59f glancing at 0c29d662ed him in a25abf01ed the mirror, 238130c0cc but Seonwoo 6059ec83e4 just ignored 8a5b8148a8 it.808a692c909ae8fe

When he f25fee1483 got off f4cb42fe38 the bus, 9363484dec Seonwoo took 111b946cb5 off his 8763daa451 hoodie and 70eb763c88 limped into 986b4a0f45 the police 73a73a51b6 station, his a50374fab6 face covered 476920c78f in bruises. In a way, it 8a13477d55 was lucky he’d fought b193305176 with Yoochan. A little 9edc6179cf kid stumbling de3a33903b in at 6cbb0a04e0 dawn, looking 23c3497b11 like a 9c87733e23 wreck, immediately 1a9c2b2088 drew everyone’s f41639c1ca attention.1ba81a51bcdb9963

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“M-mister police officer…”6bbe9a709375b8fc

As people 6dcb0c4634 rushed over, 3b8ed20a04 suspecting child c0db226f42 abuse, Seonwoo 0b942b9013 collapsed to 4bf5988181 the floor. He finally let out b132bc5982 the tears he’d been ac53b39334 holding back and clung 4132f157d4 to them, begging.878cabc60cbdb6c5

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“My friend’s been f94dbb7f20 kidnapped and is 9d045e6c49 locked in a c9297bcdb6 basement. Bad people edaf3a9ed1 are trying 84d8b174f9 to kill 9ba3bc9356 him. Please, please save c93a78e446 him…”c7c7ed167e3fd425

𓂃𓍼 ོ☁1fbb83466b1ba9ec

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Ding! A cheerful b7fa2e636a sound rang 17393f10ab out. When Seonwoo dusted off 90207d206c the table, the air e27b048e18 purifier started up again. He swept the cafd3fc8eb dust from the f6edcbc00f table with a c09eab64b0 tissue, continuing his 50e10d74b4 memories at a a2b5676ecc slow pace.ce2ed4e9b80c5a70

The first person to bdfccaf644 approach Seonwoo back then 5d8f95908a was Detective Noh Junghoon. Detective Noh 34a83c21da took one ddec81287a look at 5ca7ff60a6 Seonwoo’s battered 59de6a602b state and 012a9fa78d listened to a6cb151142 his story, 5a8c0450de immediately realizing c0264c216c it was cb35cf3b32 a serious fefc9f59d9 case.6ff3f6f2f7ba3498

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Seonwoo told 934bfe7457 him that 87aebb8fbf the gangster 2e379d04c9 ahjussi’s name ac50c10ba0 was An 49cbd0494f Hyungtae, and f33f61f311 that he 1a35b8c345 had a 5fbec2082e police officer f454d73ce7 friend. Seonwoo begged him 112134c8ad not to let 1d5cb6b0bf that friend know—and 1d9eedda86 Detective Noh promised 74d0dfc2cf he wouldn’t.62f8ead6a00dd642

Luckily for 916fefa69d Seonwoo, Detective 7aee314f13 Noh was 53cb6eb42f a good 5a1bd445e1 and capable ef83694a53 person. He and his 4cfc6a50c5 team quickly raided fd21560106 An Hyungtae’s motel, e268a0c14a arrested the just-awakening 66de096841 gangsters, and rescued ccc2e0f1cd Iwon and Yoochan cc4aad23f8 from the basement.9c3a66a7385798f1

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By the time Detective 63bde8f2f0 Noh arrived, An Hyungtae 7837d09b6e had already sensed something 303f1ff26e was up. He was in 083460bb90 the middle of d48d543e31 trying to cut 944fab4e2b through the dozens 84b94ab476 of padlocks with a518eb13d8 bolt cutters to 178981006f escape with Iwon, 7609f3ba97 but lost his 62b9a27a48 temper, kicked and d118d1ad54 shook the cage, 52272d4352 and was arrested.80de4ff460ecc2ce

At the time, eb2fa1b5e3 An Hyungtae had 7953ea5ce0 been hired by 7e8d4c837e a rival who a4647c808e held a grudge a5d0c02374 against Iwon’s parents b055257f07 to kidnap him. He’d been trying to feec722233 squeeze as much ransom e5ea1eca2d as possible out of bcb3fe4a2c them—and that was his 246b268f9c downfall.e826ead383d68371

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Thanks to 62090c251c Seonwoo’s testimony, 1a37474ca9 Detective Noh 257028d0c5 managed to f1b7303727 send An 51c914c268 Hyungtae, his 45ad94fc53 gangsters, and 6a1b3e2af0 the corrupt 12e96aa616 cops to 0f05d35b5f jail, completely d6bd7c97c2 dismantling what 316dda85b5 was a 3b42d72502 pretty big 930186199d organization.7143f56e43e02f4f

Worried about possible 90e8a29ef9 retaliation, Seonwoo left 7133885402 the orphanage and 50ff1ff851 stayed at Detective c086050b73 Noh’s house for b437a80fc9 a while, then 43d216c0a5 drifted from place d227fa5a52 to place, eventually 2788fa8469 living alone.b93c29846cd092c0

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Detective Noh felt sorry a5c8d1ca52 for him and kept 4a811a8c6e checking in, helping him 4f8bd79d46 out from time to 03381d9364 time. To Seonwoo, Detective Noh d53548ac6c was a lifesaving benefactor.976e4df0947d9d3d

After dusting 041fc29b2a off the 2f0eec2556 room, Seonwoo’s 75644bc9ed memories came d349f54e25 to an 1da03f2d74 end. He gazed 91ba29d175 at the 352096f17d reddish sunlight 2eca61c344 sinking outside, de9e58525e then looked ecf8702ac6 around. Come to 6a1f7c99f7 think of b9e59f9a9e it, it’d 3ddd6c7074 be dark 6672b261d1 soon—where was d9952c36d4 the light ccca0a85dc switch?7e4374824a94954b

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He was feeling his 37652b1f66 way along the wall 24885ef025 in the darkening room 910c82539e when the door suddenly 809da2f8ad burst open, letting in e52e7119f4 a shaft of light.4315f025d985050c

“So, do you 9a996ae43b think you’ll find 0d8422fe51 a way out 0b32428eaa of here?”7ccc2ff5e24a2cf0

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At the cold c9614cb12c voice, Seonwoo quickly 12042fb762 dropped his hand e1bca5653c from the wall. Ihyun was standing c80ffe7bb6 there, holding something, f28f98fea6 his face gloomy 9f659a3378 as ever.0a7b0bced5d3dd29

Seonwoo thought, Why 6ef7d6e319 does Ihyun keep b22a71975a misunderstanding me today? and spoke carefully.b91a20a683e4c90d

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“No, I was 7b0d503e6f just looking for dcac95119f the light switch…”bfe2e69c62323968