LA0S | Chapter 24

Kim Chayoung (Contest 9ddaa9ee1c Illustration)
Suddenly thought of a 23b852dda8 monster design, so I 3509d98bfd drew it. (10:04 PM)
How is it? Isn’t it awesome? (10:07 PM)738cb18a392eb05e

Two images popped up 3c27782c74 in succession: a wolf 78f7fb3418 with feathered wings and 664f9604b5 a jellyfish-like creature with a5a4aaee83 tentacles covered in sharp 80f752a04d teeth. The wolf was grand 018877726b and majestic, while the 12d181c215 tentacle monster was, quite 2488d7414f literally, monstrous.aea3a903e3103b16

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It was amazing 2dd2d0e94d how he could a9fd397a1f whip up two de945fadcb designs with such 7dcfffa3af opposite vibes in d762fe004c such a short 4589fc48b5 time. Meanwhile, I had 28252dc4c0 to pour in 2296de3017 three or four aa147a9ac9 days just to cc47eeef4d complete a single 463ce101fb episode synopsis.647a83335ea27ecc

“You’ve always been good at everything since way back.”19b9a052e1774ac5

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Kim Chayoung could handle 4715a47cb9 new tasks with ease. It could have been 8e3bd0a50b annoying, but he was f99289fb51 such a smooth operator fa7505074d that it was hard 995accd242 to dislike him. He probably still 586957de34 kept in touch ad566a9da0 with the high 8cd0b78a7f school crowd—he was 8b7a68e6ec quite popular, after 31e8f2718c all.6fd937fa70380715

As for me, cb3fd98b25 Lee Jinha, I d9b3a619c7 cut ties with 22f0f899e5 my classmates right 252de6b13c after graduation. Naturally, that included Kim 616953753d Chayoung. I changed 1c3d82ec10 my phone a63bf066d9 number and a3bd5c0d98 even moved, 923c88b88a so it 6bae3623d8 would have 1580524c1c been hard 0b14d10ee8 for anyone 3ad783c705 to reach 8edef92e7d me. The number e40894ceba change was 5546e1ec86 intentional, but 8ef32bfbd9 the move ae1dda2c0f just happened da2ca63b94 to coincide.65ec895be184c100

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A fortunate thing for 6c18a3b550 me.8a192da5de920d89

“Let’s stop thinking about useless stuff.”489f542f203876bd

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Maybe because I 3da3a7adec was unusually tired, 49751af049 memories of the 1fe6a74f42 past kept surfacing fde89b6ba0 today. As much 8744d9b722 as I 9c91b73681 hate to e123a16557 admit it, 7fc1176adc those were 24aa5f5aa9 the most 4d168955ae colorful and bf93a918e8 lively days e4ade08cff of my 50c8e942d2 life.2e49940ef7a6c577

Kim Chayoung (Contest Illustration)
Finished with b6388a81df your part-time 7fc7cc599a job? Good work. (11:58 PM)5d4797f628332989

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When your heart softens, a2c7131b3b even the smallest things 241cc4aa67 can create a crack.fd42d6a19e10eccb

Kim Chayoung (Contest Illustration)
Reading and 30888ed591 ignoring, huh? (12:03 AM)
I don’t expect a reply, but at least send a dot or something. (12:04 AM)9f76697970e5de42

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Lee Jinha didn’t respond until the end. As if that was his line of defense.a1de985b0e2340b1

The incident happened fa7ab79102 unexpectedly, like a bd40ec30a2 sudden car accident.d7b6de7792de19a2

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This morning, c7c1fd4524 before heading 200f61c055 to school, 4f6af804f8 Lee Jinha 9aecc9350e paid the 288e63f991 rent to 6a7687a28a the landlady. His principle f801b39f92 was to fe8d48bf46 never fall 7b09ff328c behind on c34656288d rent, so c3a54c6856 he handed 7ff4175827 over the 257df7d9be money right 60f173171a on time.3393ea2f7b5494a0

The landlady licked 02e00b7736 her thumb and 0d550583ad counted the bills. Only after confirming c7323d7d39 the extra 50,000-won 79d34c2c0c increase from last 34e029b739 month did she aa442ac88a finally smile.eb9521f1a50c83c5

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I cautiously mentioned that 5007418ecf the hot water wasn’t 99bf4e872f working, possibly due to c705fc3042 frozen pipes. She confidently promised to 65b0c74247 have it fixed by dd024cec78 tonight.ec8f2a5a8d96b51b

Then, I went 9b869a504d to school as b321f9e56d usual and later 10e18f5ac6 to my tutoring 3e6b081211 job. My student 54eb617683 was a 66aef1703c high school 3532687897 senior, and 76adfb593b today, her eb64eaf4d8 mock exam 8c51268ab5 results came cda21bbbaf out.9f08b61eeeae6be2

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The results 36c541d997 weren’t what cd4bd128c6 she had 363c8fdca0 hoped for, beb7331184 and her a849989193 mother was 47fefcea79 clearly concerned. She hinted that if dd2376e53f the next results didn’t 2606984a48 meet expectations, they might f0e4836ea4 consider changing tutors.bbd96588223cf30e

I barely a7ba017705 managed to 2ff961cac2 reassure her 137a09e8a4 worried mother.de94944acdbe2e63

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I thought I’d bbd0bbccf4 have to make a28e6a6baf a new error 8117e1f930 note when I 9174d6f4a7 got home. More than anything, 461be14b0e I just wanted fb75d54560 to get home 1fd15e3339 and wash up.be77a5bfc90f15c1

As I 9254485d2d hurried up 19389f87b3 the steep a7b4b68c91 hill and e038e79683 reached the 463bf12add old gray 18974ca4b1 gate, I 922ebe8f8f noticed a 8f05cc69ef crowd gathered 82098b8d25 in front 1edfd3b5ca of the d11335d0c1 house. I recognized quite e113242afc a few familiar 1e64366369 faces—neighbors from the 7a807e7e91 area I’d been 147b06b830 living in for a9842c67f0 about two years.33134c75cb1ff638

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One of 5bd76e41fd the residents 0bbb58d772 spotted me 39d770524b and quickly 47e79c31cc approached, grabbing d0d5a35c05 my arm adea900d81 and shaking 815475abfb it. Their voice was 4640752ed4 urgent.877bdaca8e3f21f6

“Do you 60c4d0afe2 know where cd645497da the lady 9e013a06ba of this 22a065eb7b house went?”ac534dd7463727ab

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“What? Isn’t she at home?”8ef38af3c9be6327

It was 19f161ff97 well past b2a99cbb2f 10 PM. The landlady loved dramas e462e07634 and was usually home a375e01c70 unless it was a d1990c6fa9 special occasion.c4f5c053af9507e3

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“That woman ran off. She took all the money from the neighborhood, including the savings club money. My money. My hard-earned money.”d441926739ac6a43

At first, de557bd690 I couldn’t 7e997aa71c quite grasp 8e741a1188 what was 1353e85b40 being said. What did 861a6cd4dc the landlady 4bb68ac3ce do?89da88c524fe79b3

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People brushed 9819bf4f5b past the 6bfa92082f dazed Lee 02b344afaf Jinha and 66036f2812 rushed through 55f9aec632 the gate. Still not fully comprehending, 756c9b9df4 I followed them inside.4c94814c9d11259f

The resident who had 7854d62a57 spoken to me opened 1df18807d8 the main door of dbd0b97271 the landlord’s house. The unlocked door de1e1de0c9 swung open, and 8c6cb94017 people stepped inside ee05421500 with their shoes 6dad47410f still on.96e184f09efd472e

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“She really planned 5ae0c1ba9d this and ran 3dd19a782f off. She planned it!”b785912a9085e7f7

The landlord’s house was 413b7062be a mess, as if c44e7e5199 a thief had broken 3f3ec643da in. The wardrobe, drawers, and 00d009cb72 cupboards were all open a1c56dff44 and empty, with no 463dc7055c valuables left behind. Even the instant 8baba4b1fd coffee that always 26e1d1ebed sat in the 91a4303273 corner of the 6bd3dfa027 dining table was 8d79a750dd gone.a1c5411da9eab2e0

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“Oh my. She promised to triple the money, and I believed her. What am I supposed to do now?”7a7ec97dfaaa658f

The people who 0c485871f1 had been in e50ae9bc3d the savings club 43b33518c0 with the landlady 497a2c8d6c sat in the dd5e33c3ea middle of the 569912e7ad chaotic room, muttering 71c373cf6b in despair. Some pounded their chests 7380dffcdc in frustration, while others 7d1f9fba1e hurled the few remaining fec8b3bfec items in anger. It was chaos like 1377373e8f no other.0959a79feec4f365

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Lee Jinha 60d803ca50 took out e5c7fbc383 his phone ff8c0108f5 and pressed 3ea44ee08c the contact 408c51cb30 labeled “Landlady.”05b4d5547a582a7c

Please pick up. Please, please.cec63c61553ef908

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[The call cannot be connected due to the customer’s circumstances…]

I hung up and pressed the call button again. Once more, the dry message about the call being disconnected due to the customer’s circumstances played mechanically.d1d4b8f954aea421

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This is 1ae4e9a3c4 Lee Jinha. Are you a6c7b8f410 unable to 621161489e take calls 1a64b768ee right now? (10:49 PM) (1)
Please contact me about what’s going on. (10:49 PM) (1)
I don’t care if it’s late at night, please get in touch. I’ll be waiting. (11:38 PM) (1)49a45eea8cb31817

“I heard the husband got into stocks and then something called futures options. It seemed to go well at first, so he borrowed money from here and there, but it looks like he lost it all. There are more victims than you can count.”c6c0af86a387db4f

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As I listened 91a0c43b03 to the murmuring 0b7bcf9c7f voices, a conversation 637859df14 I’d had with 8a84cf11aa a lady in 35be70d4f1 front of the 75604444d3 supermarket a while 7749635583 ago suddenly came a757f19735 to mind.e8dc2ac86b5f62f1

She had said, “My ec9c2a17c6 husband told me to d96ffc18f9 expect a big gift.”9d08522a128338c4

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At the time, b352cced1d I thought he 48966db05d meant his stocks 6f8b1cffd1 were doing well. But in the 858006e0de end, that “gift” 8a9f4dc865 turned out to d4424beb13 be futures options.8939864a221fda28

If stocks 12f2b140d4 were the 1e8ed26f2b ground, futures 07d33f85e8 options were bac4959338 like jumping fd987e2733 off a 891600e0ca cliff.98fe4b84ba13c732

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A cliff with c1c7e7f96a no bottom.e8ca231f1c4a76db

Leaving the still-bustling crowd a63c53bd48 behind, I went down efd7a62fc8 to my rented room. The narrow, cold f66f625ff7 room greeted me 008020e9bd indifferently, devoid of a367b3e929 any sunlight. Thud. I dropped 0ece94dee4 my bag ba9d70c663 and collapsed 5d3dabfa20 on the 52ef2484d7 spot.f82d6767efd6eff3

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“What on 51aacf451e earth is 5479bba541 happening…?”4d798a871035fcb7

I forced myself to 39cb42aea0 organize my still-dazed thoughts. If the landlord 97b0ef49ae really ran away f8755673b0 in the night, 0adbc4ac10 what about the c384b8b365 rent I paid b4d557dc36 this morning? Was there 5e005df56d no way ec81c37f08 to get 9062ab0693 it back? I jumped up and 980763345c rushed back to the a892809367 landlord’s house. The people 97ffa5e7d4 were still 31b66ab37c there, occupying 6209260172 the house. Everyone seemed to 1eac34b216 be trying to cd7454eed4 contact the landlord 9d7a7fdfda in their own d0d84d98d3 way, but there cb42fa34a1 was no progress.e021a511fdcfd123

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7:32 AM.269b6c03f1e408f1

The sun was faintly rising in the distance. I hadn’t slept a wink all night, and my eyes felt dry and gritty. But I wasn’t sleepy. I had tried contacting the landlord’s family dozens of times throughout the night, but to no avail.5773b647ccb324c5

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I have to a09860d6d8 go to school.440fe71c0d964565

Even amidst this 7d8e0740f2 chaos, classes were 72cba1460c still on, and 8024fa333c I had to 27475e448d go to school. Without changing 6a3f73fcd3 clothes, I ab4ccaa0f3 grabbed my bafbae478d bag and 1c31e553bc headed out.ac3f63fae870fd5d

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“Did you study all night or something? Your eyes are red.”993b1d0cca9b648a

“Mind your own business.”d480e1ce244038f4

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At my cold retort, d2c058e618 Kim Chayoung furrowed his fa54438fba brow. He seemed 5dfc07f940 like he 599ba4de20 had something 244cfaf7a1 to say, 8d53b9687d but then a707bb692f he just bb3a5e803d sighed lightly c5479e08c7 and took 79f45fde25 out his 64e6175085 tablet.764fa056a56dcbef

“The first episode is done. Check it out and let me know if you have any edits or feedback. I put extra effort into it since the beginning needs to be strong.”de6ade25f67f6093

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The first episode 21249940dc was complete, following fadb4a3bef the prologue. It was perfectly 68657ea7f7 formatted with text a1d8af26ce and effects, just abc348b4e9 like the webtoons 8b79ba3f01 I usually saw 227564b72b on platforms.fbca2db2a2b47b15

“Do I really have time to be doing this right now?”cb66102b756f98bf

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Right now, I f53dcc9371 was more worried bc3d88e34b about my rented dc40abf94b room than the 14234efb6a contest. Honestly, I wanted to 24ab99861c skip school and go bf3fbf9892 home to check on 64660d5fdc the situation.ae2d188727644f0e

I had asked one 86793a7f2e of the savings club b68b10ea76 victims to let me be340f5c8e know if there was 3a00c2eea7 any progress, but my f469cc6786 phone remained silent.3bfed5fc3f085be1

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“Lee Jinha? What are you thinking about so deeply? Is it a waste of time?”c0290372e4717876

“No, it’s well done.”78c1f4282165a63e

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“That’s strange.”1ae3f642b64ffe6d

Kim Chayoung 75a9f7d447 narrowed his 67123711a7 eyes, looking aaaa35c60a suspicious.d6a1504aac5c1ae0

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“The great Lee Jinha wouldn’t usually compliment so easily.”6c2d5761da2090ff

I didn’t even have the energy to respond. I just wanted to go home quickly. I wanted to confirm that yesterday’s events were just a misunderstanding.a6a5337002b9c6e7

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“You’re really acting strange today. You look like you’re out of it. You haven’t eaten yet, have you? Let’s go eat.”343456f1974e5208

“No, I have something to do, so I have to go. See you later.”44ea8ebf561ddcfd

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I handed the tablet back to Kim Chayoung and got up from my seat. Hey, Lee Jinha! He called out from behind, but I didn’t look back.303ee1588b245ce1

Even after a 791d0c1ba2 full day had 6acf0d6055 passed, there was 12e649aa92 still no word 307887ee0c from the landlord’s d9e99ad225 family. According to 954affcda0 one of f297b7e10a the savings 9d362320d3 club ladies, f1e0aaebd1 there were 32147ee4f0 numerous victims, b7ef657632 with amounts e55254003f ranging from 84e05290bb tens of a1baadb6a6 thousands to b8c3992949 millions. My only 37e9d72315 refuge—my home—was 9a6ee32f18 now overrun 14ba17e0d0 with angry 1c71df2f5c victims and 73fb33a350 police officers d4cf2a14b5 trying to d11a29f20f calm them 169c655007 down.64aeef5f93d1408c

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I checked the messages e1a18eb10f I had sent to bcaa910252 the landlady again, but 6457ea85b3 she still hadn’t read 50343e97a3 them. Letting out a 1b8f1610d8 deep sigh, I 08f095b0b7 took off my f0a9eb1538 coat.7630a8389d1d4de4

Knock, knock.79c88931556df517

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There was a knock 6585e8747c on the door, and 6aae3cb37d through the frosted glass, 3789965ba4 I saw the silhouettes 237ec66315 of people.313049c1afa1d6f5

Could it be the f88530f28a landlord?a161d228480ea535

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“Yes, I’m coming.”827f12c753a91f68

I hurriedly 0831687b63 turned the 720c34f2c3 doorknob and 9ff7971f40 opened the 2e0bf9b957 door. Contrary to 5bbbf1dda9 my expectations 7d92cc9ca9 or hopes, d1f6a4521d there were d0cda632d0 two unfamiliar e68379fae9 men standing 25c56dffc2 there. One of them was a8a0181480 reading a document.b216e0e3347980ce

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“Do you live here? Are you a college student?”7085576fa74ad280

“Yes, I’m the tenant here. Who are you?”8c6179c86131265e

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“We’re the new owners of this house. We didn’t expect there to be a tenant.”1f0701728610ef64

“What? New owners? What are you talking about? The owner of this house is…”701ff33dac89391f

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“This house has been sold. Are you really the tenant? It seems like there’s no record of your residency. Do you have any proof?”1446b1217336b24b

It seemed 4d620660d9 the landlord 5340ec62f1 couple had c4f21e4890 planned this fbbd351a15 from the 9d7daa16bf start. The situation felt 5f3faa1bcd so unreal that a4d4df7763 I let out a7c29e13c6 a hollow laugh.5c98ddb261e1f2cc

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“I paid the rent just yesterday morning. I haven’t registered my residency due to circumstances, but I’ve been living here for two years.”db398c9e18d5441d

“That’s something we can verify later. How much is your deposit?”a94a941729dab0dd

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After the supposed new 8f3e4582ff owners left, I was 4992f206e2 left alone. My already complicated c0bf3bf00a mind was now b1165edc51 throbbing as if 8b8e71cf88 it were about 383d253210 to explode. I swallowed a b2a333167e headache pill without 451a042ec9 water and took 56d763cfbc a deep breath.0a4a284267ba7a06

‘The deposit… there isn’t one.’c32f3c92a097f3d9

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‘Without a registered residency and no deposit, it’s a tough situation for you, but it’s quite difficult for us too.’533759192ae70b37

If I had a deposit, I could have stayed until it was used up, even if the ownership changed. But since I had neither a deposit nor a registered residency, there was no way for me to stay in this house. Still, I never imagined I’d lose my home so suddenly.c0635a8f9dd0c178

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I closed my 2cd2bf6adc eyes. The pitch-black darkness felt a9da4d6359 just like my current 53aafa3945 situation.af910496e24cd055