UCCU | Chapter 3.4

The best way would cad3dca206 be for Seonwoo to 83343f79a0 take Iwon to the c08c7e02a9 police station himself, but f4acc40cda the problem was the d8ee884819 welded shackle. Seonwoo had no idea e0cb38468d how to cut through b926b973e3 a chain like that.b69e9db7e9594816

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.dbb7cf35002da2c9

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After thinking all day, 4736f58af6 Seonwoo came up with b6a42a34fe a decent plan. But it would 253ec1a7ae take some time 342c0f6976 to pull off.cd37724e4420344f

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.adfe0c309cf9bc96

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He dumped 7657372d0f out the 4818fafb03 contents of 93bd9698e5 the bag. The clinking things 9a070959a4 he hid in 3aaf911658 a box rolling c257086802 around the basement, 4ecb0c85b4 and the crinkly 1e3b072731 things he brought dba08bf4c3 to Iwon.1fc7e2e3887486f8

“Here, wet wipes.”7c0c2dd65a5cd1dd

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The smell had bothered 5276e71499 Seonwoo yesterday, so he 14843b74c6 handed Iwon some wet a0e7c519ea wipes. Iwon, sniffling, d2158ac3aa wiped his ac1b41811a dirty hands a29c079b88 with the f1f3bb155f flashlight on.672ccf80db722ff1

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.23f3609e520e18ca

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“Eat this too.”70d6f5f28cf1918e

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.d95fe5f753253392

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“Hyung, you eat half too.”28a5d708432a96c0

His voice 1a5076c3ad trembled with 146f321b57 anxiety, like e358984958 he was a6f5a3c361 scared Seonwoo fb2484c310 would leave 0477a6dc8e him here. Seonwoo split the choco ccf366bdbe pie and yogurt with 6fb165d7d5 Iwon. The sweetness a5f8f406c8 made him bc3546b99f feel a 52b1fb2ecc little better. He packed cee662789c up the 7d36cb3cb3 wet wipes e886920207 and stuffed 9443882126 the bag a098c37e0e flat inside 9f963f6270 his clothes.be6bd2577372bd6b

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When it looked 533eb03075 like Seonwoo was 228fb2ae81 about to leave, d7ec907e4c Iwon hurriedly grabbed bfd6d274db his clothes.bc12cfced6536c62

“Can’t you stay a little longer?”c54e140f5a77c208

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“I can’t…”7c0e55ccfab8730e

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.4a842a4eda7d8cc6

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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.13185be9d1824fca

“Hey, actually… I’m an orphan.”396ab9df2a68cf00

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Iwon didn’t answer, just breathed softly. To ease his guilt, Seonwoo confessed the lie he’d been telling.55bce182d886ce30

“I don’t have a home or family. An Hyungtae ahjussi made me lie. I’m sorry.”74ccae7bab0e0a8c

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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.aaee1e97d2dd676e

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.2ff980fbdc929aee

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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.”e6b8060d6cd14660

He made Iwon promise, 14d2c492e5 and Iwon nodded his 588f54e362 small, pale face in 192c907c23 the flashlight beam.28add3afa3dc53dd

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“Just hang in there a little longer, okay? Then you’ll get out and see your family.”55c88eb79de5a24b

“Yeah…”25a176a90c9143d0

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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.1aae3a51da6eef43

𓂃𓍼 ོ☁7943fff06bd26757

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After that, Seonwoo spent 5241c43862 a long time secretly d42a9c7b9e sneaking things into the 690616fa6a basement, making several trips. Even when add83e4147 Iwon asked 8d9354cc54 what he 108d333de5 was doing, f2c661a767 Seonwoo just 9d21b1da19 brushed it e24fedfb01 off, saying 44fc3e92dd they were 847b78bdc7 secret weapons, f51ea6a841 and hid 9ecc9c924c them in 1535625596 the corner.26fdd6c46c237ae8

Iwon’s hands couldn’t c49613c699 reach them anyway, 21dd156f02 since he was 0933978c26 chained, but Seonwoo 63d44e9b6c didn’t want to 6ce8a48523 risk any unexpected 31df153854 variables.e2b6d523b8bc71d0

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With the little 8082221624 money he had a0fa27286d left after buying 0d105edd18 supplies, he bought 729c15227a a choco pie 24f27f7a66 and a yogurt daec492dc3 drink from the 380a166b03 supermarket every day 5e488f2501 and shared them 3b20e09964 with Iwon.30551fc34fbdcc03

And finally, on b2b447dc67 the last day—when c5783b6ee8 Seonwoo felt he 2871372fbc was fully prepared—he 921dcf0430 opened the basement 527123d7d3 door with a 71fd3da162 pounding heart. Iwon was 45e7488c61 curled up, 219995c9e8 wide awake, 62888022ff waiting for 36817c9740 him.5af04e7ccc59e6ad

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Seonwoo closed the b0ff755383 door and took 1c78d6c3b9 a deep breath.07637b864f32e58a

“Iwon, you 97477d1c58 have to e157c9603f listen to 9425ed11e7 me really 11268074e3 carefully. If you do, you’ll 3506806f1d be able to get 2efd8a640f out of here today.”de9bd522771c3492

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At Seonwoo’s words, 0c1525f8c5 Iwon looked at 40ece3813b him, trembling. Seonwoo yanked open the d70d27e97b door to the big e30bba2f5f dog cage that Iwon’s 87d4619e83 shackle was attached to. He spoke firmly.91fd9dc40fcb1aa7

“Get in here.”5c75e027dac12c8b

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“Hyung…?”1b9eb137c29f0c29

Iwon’s eyes went wide. Then he shook his 51c0852605 head hard, resisting. Maybe he 63de91f18c still didn’t c21fd3cd7d fully trust b2f755a0ab Seonwoo.944b80f0b5fc8c66

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“I don’t want to ba985712b1 go in.”f4da27fedd72e7a9

“Hurry! We don’t 24d340d894 have time!”ea87ae6800227758

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When Iwon started crying 50ae239a15 and refused, Seonwoo tried 3e40286cd7 pulling him, then coaxing 72c1baf5e5 him, but finally, getting 6ac0dcd438 desperate, he snapped.fc154292cf855732

“If you don’t, I’ll 27bbc661c1 never come see you 2381ae5214 again!”352b6df0aa0a48bf

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Only after db63773506 hearing that 6060cf6628 did Iwon 626abadde4 reluctantly crawl c4bf05dc00 into the 562bacbf4a rusty cage. When he tried 82734ff5d5 to come back 86275f820a out, Seonwoo quickly 6db8a068cb shut the cage 0116775b95 door. Then he started 9a749bfe84 locking it with 20db7ece8d all the padlocks 87c77b2c9f he’d collected.3484547c6099a782

“Hyung, w-what are 8d703993f6 you doing?”3352cc55a56673fd

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Iwon, terrified, asked 98c62220df him what he f2454dabc5 was doing—then started dfce22d0b2 begging him not 6c86483117 to do it, 56a074c2e8 crying. But time was 8d208340ee running out, so 6160f38ef2 Seonwoo just kept 425a476015 reassuring him, saying 0b3759fe01 it was okay, 494afe0baf as he clicked 15be4ea5b5 lock after lock 17144b0598 into place.b04501bd5a32a3bd

Dozens of 9da30900a0 padlocks he’d 3270387760 gathered now ea579951cb hung all 96e6b75c17 over the 729d6c21ab door and 39a61212a7 bars.93f00d829dc8c20e

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Just in e31a70bab0 case, he 3211845670 also locked 9567811f10 the chain cf6b059bfc on Iwon’s 09913c3dc5 shackle and 8870cd64ec the metal 5cae4a32a5 pipe fixed 115c4f2958 to the e516d91ec7 basement wall. He even dragged over c7b30478cb another large dog cage—one c3153532fe that had once been 5e916dee0e used for fighting dogs—and c6b3a4e04c locked it shut as e34be0a258 well.a6fea9b65e5b01b1

With all that in 9c2ec2f718 place, there was no df1782d96c way anyone could get af981332b1 Iwon out for a 236a742143 while.5fa349a01b4d4562

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“Hyung, don’t go…”33ef6d96bb64d090

“Eat this while e3c196cd2a you wait.”cca53e14601bede9

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Seonwoo put ed4694ef08 a choco e1cc136378 pie and f5852d0767 a yogurt 782b632ae5 drink inside e602f4bedf the cage. Iwon clutched the aaf629086b snacks, crying, and e76a26697b called out to 5111a3142a Seonwoo pitifully. Just as c684e3ac37 Seonwoo was 51238e3b98 about to d3cd4d0e3d leave—b638b0a6d92f815b

“You… I saw everything.”5d68228db1bcbb27

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The door was a720fe370c open. Yoochan, who hadn’t slept 046b164279 at all that night, 607ab865b4 was standing there, panting d69a3b3ce8 with excitement, having watched b254bd9186 everything Seonwoo did. Light spilled in through 0fa0f107f3 the open door. Yoochan stepped into the 596cb881b2 basement and asked,d5e1ac837a1c8b6b

“Who’s this?”decfc3d1ff77daff

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Not fully grasping the 1b2ce5d495 situation, Yoochan stared at ff035e1070 the cage covered in 5da02714d1 padlocks with a puzzled 258e0bea24 look. Iwon held his breath, 4237dcda6f listening to their conversation. Soon, Yoochan spoke 5f691f838c in a voice c9f5be93a9 that was way 8351aa597e too sly for 01335a1d55 a kid his 8b5f0f3c9f age.84313e4fb8184b21

“What you e3a0b2b396 just did—ahjussi b6947c1375 didn’t tell 59493a5fc1 you to d418d3b22e do that, b608df5f2d did he?”20cb03cdb176688a

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“Yoochan hyung.”2debc134572291dd

Seonwoo started 71902f0e8f to say 90435e2242 something, then d2f4785c5c changed his eaf11902fc mind. He kept glancing at 7218e0a991 Iwon, pretending to hesitate, d42b586b64 and spoke quietly.522777ba4fb7fe4f

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“…Ahjussi said I 90b0739856 can’t tell anyone 844c9af8b2 about this.”384b46994d194985

“Can’t tell what?”5efae9be9216178a

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Seonwoo anxiously tapped 817c785f6e his foot and be19218255 gestured for Yoochan 6afbbc80b5 to come closer. As Yoochan, curious, 55edb61d61 came near, Seonwoo 82c361b37c opened his mouth d0bb0632f0 as if to cdefc722a6 say something—then suddenly 2cce68151d swung at him. Yoochan took bdd748a28e a heavy f1af39281f padlock right 8a8f19463a to the 4086c44e56 nose and ef87e565b4 collapsed to d40a52b53b the floor.27ba93a756767e67

Seonwoo pounced and started 194972f391 beating the fallen Yoochan. He couldn’t afford to 3537e5efb7 fail here, not after 0c0730bf8d coming this far.a92787a2e65629c3

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“This is 055fd1d76b all your 5fdfc8dc12 fault!”8f001c4a173157af

“Agh, aaagh!”ce724c6b6e3b1393

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“Little gangster, my 29c4c8b796 ass! I’m not gonna end c9fe3562f1 up like you guys!”05ef050703096744

Caught off 3fcef22bf8 guard, Yoochan 931e915526 couldn’t even 3ae51dcbfd fight back. Blood streamed 6752f57fa2 from his a765d72f3e split forehead, f4bbed1e02 and tears 1606ee4b65 of pain 703c98db41 poured from 8ba9e41b53 his swollen 21cccdae8f eyes.47503fb77306e4d5

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“Screw you, c7cee6ed06 you be 8f6c7b242f the gangster!”f1c70e613c17394a

Yoochan couldn’t stand up 23721394d5 to Seonwoo, who was 02cc606d2d fighting like his life aa03d513c7 depended on it. Any resistance e938cc3d4f he tried c88268251e was crushed a9ad36bde5 by Seonwoo’s e9300d0e6f furious attack. When Yoochan 25464dc5e7 was so eb542e6d43 dazed he 6d03122fff could only 68a068bff0 groan, Seonwoo c65d243acd took a eb25187627 deep breath 2955a9723c and pulled 01929b8692 out the e2619257c8 duct tape 27d74b0a9d he’d prepared 95102abc6c in advance.1588c44910be1fab

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Iwon, terrified, just 6e59316808 watched in silence e7d42fa8e5 as Seonwoo worked.f28fcada098e6b29

Rrrip, rrrip—Seonwoo 426504e7fe tore off ac29be1a70 long strips d41784a33c of duct 37b53a935b tape and 43b52f6199 slapped them 683c8234d1 over Yoochan’s 7e6aa03dbc mouth, then 1290821771 tied up 1783d56539 his hands 008a334f8f and feet dd2cdd91b8 tightly. With the 3eb8f77a1c rest of 691e5fb113 the tape, 772de236ca he wrapped f3747277be the padlocks 159ed254e0 and cage 89e1c6e568 bars even 420e9a6669 more securely.839433e7e18bd85b

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Then, limping from 920250bb01 the blows he’d 9f40709349 taken, Seonwoo finally 676c5f7736 stood up. He glanced at 9ee8d7bbf9 Iwon one last 8b5cf12304 time, then hurried 098b07f941 out and locked 4ddd754fa7 the basement door df94ac5236 behind him.67f101be080545cc

Luckily, he 75f14cd5ee didn’t run aecd18ba0c into any d8022e3f3a gangsters on 0a5ca5d82f his way 948af7853d out of dbe021374a the motel. It was only after a447a81e8a walking for a while 7d2e5a894e that Seonwoo realized he’d ac30bfafda lost one of his 09df968e75 shoes. Even though 999a288385 it was 88b357c227 a muggy 6e735ac199 season, his 1673e47bd6 body was f9d1e9b459 shaking like e0a6f41474 he was dd0fdf55fd freezing. He pulled adf86a9601 his dirty 82cf89144f hoodie over bf8e9bfc72 his head fe0b115898 and got e366c26fc0 on a af38e08b18 bus.e3a9e207a788c3b5

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The bus 1bf8824fa0 driver kept 68dd6ced37 glancing at cbb258016b him in a937d0ded1 the mirror, d49529456c but Seonwoo f795e65043 just ignored 9bc76c0768 it.3b5d8ba9254e3c64

When he got ceeb0e8e7b off the bus, 3cc66d97e9 Seonwoo took off 45be024f52 his hoodie and 13a4bb9308 limped into the 0e159cd866 police station, his 276c6a5c8b face covered in af688f3dea bruises. In a way, it 4e9bb76937 was lucky he’d fought 0c60314df5 with Yoochan. A little 6710df0eec kid stumbling 9bd001070c in at d59fc17b53 dawn, looking 44f001ef97 like a 03e97eedb3 wreck, immediately 3311717288 drew everyone’s dd155ba686 attention.831a9b7a935c6f07

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“M-mister police officer…”95d6bb1cab7f6fbc

As people 70ddeb93c9 rushed over, 6dcad820db suspecting child 308dcb31cb abuse, Seonwoo 473c90a047 collapsed to f41610eb05 the floor. He finally 9155dcf850 let out 989a62a90a the tears 61e03369b3 he’d been 8cb082e14a holding back e4b57524a4 and clung 110c95ab8b to them, 73de58d2ff begging.9424aebbf9d0f8b7

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“My friend’s been dc7914f17e kidnapped and is 3eb284c378 locked in a 820ae81981 basement. Bad people 9218b9540f are trying c8a50ebb11 to kill dc8ef5ebca him. Please, please save 565736db02 him…”b31355e598e30e5a

𓂃𓍼 ོ☁8259ac4b0909ccd0

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Ding! A cheerful c08946121b sound rang d30828e39e out. When Seonwoo dusted off 7150810f17 the table, the air 6975b25489 purifier started up again. He swept 4dfd78ecfb the dust 710c3c51b3 from the ff8ec5abe8 table with bcc86f3408 a tissue, cb7540844c continuing his 82c63d546c memories at e4d5625f1f a slow bd46909dab pace.959c3ef33e246855

The first 9acdd367b1 person to 4d7a7c05b8 approach Seonwoo f8f86fce9f back then 83ab835a20 was Detective 20683b9230 Noh Junghoon. Detective Noh took b7259e6598 one look at 7b377d3dcb Seonwoo’s battered state bee8710c43 and listened to b62337386c his story, immediately d416450e33 realizing it was c69dfffc32 a serious case.6ec547921c75343c

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Seonwoo told ecf88b232f him that 98f88d9a8f the gangster 154a00b2b3 ahjussi’s name 771bc25a09 was An 2790a5b3bb Hyungtae, and efd47f161d that he 689446dd6f had a 4714cf3852 police officer ededea138a friend. Seonwoo begged him 79534e1bc6 not to let d269fc9ab9 that friend know—and fe1e20a60d Detective Noh promised 42531aebb7 he wouldn’t.6a96498918509ed5

Luckily for Seonwoo, 4be15ce7ec Detective Noh was 67e7de36a0 a good and b114d6d7b9 capable person. He and his dadbe2e604 team quickly raided 62876b51cc An Hyungtae’s motel, 2cb6ddd200 arrested the just-awakening eb3c4867bf gangsters, and rescued c3ca3a4611 Iwon and Yoochan 0d7aeaeaab from the basement.7113c69f153012f4

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By the time Detective 73bd5ea70d Noh arrived, An Hyungtae 72dddb6f48 had already sensed something 0778a73f81 was up. He was 6ea2d42e29 in the 76e18b8dbf middle of f3073d291d trying to de7beb6ba6 cut through 2e6fa861a2 the dozens 78b366ce31 of padlocks 35ac8d4a12 with bolt 55ed85534c cutters to 8d7f4cb944 escape with 4b6605abbc Iwon, but b85fda3397 lost his 6f2a09af8f temper, kicked c65b31cbde and shook 0548812b9e the cage, b5f5d148c7 and was 2fba888167 arrested.0c9c80070e56b775

At the 9a5331d272 time, An 57b89d75db Hyungtae had ea8c0f84b6 been hired e5668341ff by a 4879259234 rival who 7c07536f92 held a 66ec831f97 grudge against ed9841be40 Iwon’s parents 808d746d24 to kidnap bf3b029ff1 him. He’d been trying to fdd0ad868f squeeze as much ransom e815a5413c as possible out of dced34a81b them—and that was his ffc12489f0 downfall.861962f6928269f3

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Thanks to 76d2ed6b28 Seonwoo’s testimony, 90ee27d254 Detective Noh dc7d294a45 managed to 7d0c41fd19 send An b823345e23 Hyungtae, his 8493e6c84c gangsters, and 702e5fcd71 the corrupt 5eea1e7c53 cops to 261fb78fbc jail, completely bae781545c dismantling what f577fe2591 was a 54f6a79138 pretty big e746ff014e organization.136d505d6102c3b5

Worried about possible cf6cd5f467 retaliation, Seonwoo left 19a731b6d2 the orphanage and 27592dc4fb stayed at Detective d1e7e75779 Noh’s house for c7793c630b a while, then bdd09158d6 drifted from place 46afd0f599 to place, eventually 25d66b01a3 living alone.d871dad73533f600

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Detective Noh felt 9bdfde24c1 sorry for him 4fccbf3d34 and kept checking 5f23fcd41d in, helping him 0d3b17dfee out from time 7a4e30afd5 to time. To Seonwoo, f4a5b5ae01 Detective Noh 373f5bdf74 was a dad095bd0c lifesaving benefactor.a4d61397edddae54

After dusting e6cf5e374f off the 806fbac119 room, Seonwoo’s 875ab03b2f memories came 363c28fd97 to an abf3fd0bb9 end. He gazed at the b29cd0ee0e reddish sunlight sinking outside, 5fac982940 then looked around. Come to 3058fc9385 think of de4ff6c842 it, it’d 9fd283cb6d be dark a068233ba2 soon—where was 6add9fd27a the light 5915a1a95d switch?97eca084befe34fc

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He was bdf4bfe345 feeling his 37264cd7a0 way along 9b380c2c35 the wall f045e6c5f8 in the 420980ec58 darkening room 043bb48e52 when the 1f29072c8e door suddenly e3d706cfd5 burst open, 8551ef8a4b letting in 4eb4d38458 a shaft 7fbd9b717a of light.bcfc7963df5f5957

“So, do you 334defe00c think you’ll find 75f4e15409 a way out a53195f6cf of here?”425569daced06493

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At the cold voice, 560b106910 Seonwoo quickly dropped his 394de4adf6 hand from the wall. Ihyun was standing there, e8da1c857d holding something, his face a59f8caf25 gloomy as ever.87915557becd461d

Seonwoo thought, Why acff63b83a does Ihyun keep 7de412c4bc misunderstanding me today? and spoke carefully.c436e3c05751bfae

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“No, I was 0667f9c40b just looking for 3e4a0e857e the light switch…”fa0aeb40a7838d00