The Tough Guy Hides the Villainess

076 – Kore

076 – Kore

Yu Yeoreum had no idea what was happening outside.

The “zombie incident” and the “disaster text messages” were just stories from another world.

That didn’t mean Yu Yeoreum was having a peaceful time.

“…….”

Yu Yeoreum stared at the creature crouching quietly in the corner.

A sky-blue cotton candy creature.

It was like a cloud from a child’s dream, lying on the floor and trembling. Yu Yeoreum had been watching it for hours.

━Eeeeng Eeeeng.

“…Be quiet.”

Yu Yeoreum didn’t forget that this suspicious creature was a monster.

Han Namjin and Seo Gaeul thought of the monster as a pet or something similar, but no matter how it looked, a monster was a creature that killed and ate humans.

‘A monster is still a monster. An untamable beast.’

Yu Yeoreum expected that the cloud monster would attack her if it got hungry.

It was knowledge she had learned through experience.

‘I have to be especially careful since I have the concept of “candy”. Monsters seem to like candy.’

Fortunately, the monster was quietly on the bed.

It looked very cute, but feeling a bit uneasy, Yu Yeoreum brought a blanket and covered the monster’s body.

The monster, feeling good in the warm blanket, trembled.

━Gyuiiing.

Yu Yeoreum also felt a sense of security as the monster’s appearance was hidden by the blanket.

Five minutes, ten minutes, time kept passing by.

Yu Yeoreum felt frustrated, wondering how long she had to stay with the monster.

Creak-.

Then, there was a sound of something moving in the ceiling, and a very small secret window opened, revealing a round face.

“The nymph of the stream, Inonoi, has arrived…!”

It was the fairy Inonoi.

Probably a resident (?) of this great labyrinth, or something similar.

Inonoi looked around the room with honey-colored eyes.

“Eek…! One of the Kore has disappeared…! This Inonoi had something to ask that Kore…! I wonder where they have vanished to…!”

It was an incomprehensible conversation.

“What is Kore?”

“Explaining what Kore is, is not Kore-friendly at all…! But for example, our fairy princess’s nickname is Kore…!”

Could ‘Kore’ be the fairy language for princess or lady?

It seemed that the fairy Inonoi was looking for someone like Princess Seo Ga-eul.

“Why Seo Ga-eul? What do you want to ask?”

“I wanted to ask if you know the fairy princess…! Because that Kore gave me a similar feeling to the fairy princess….”

Fairy princess.

She must have been the woman who lived in this “Room of Flowers.”

“The feeling was so similar that I wondered if that Kore was the one born from the fairy princess…! Ah…! Now that I look closely, I get the feeling of the fairy princess from Candy Kore too…!”

Inonoi’s eyes sparkled brightly.

It seemed that ‘Candy Kore’ referred to Yoo Yeoreum.

“I wanted to ask if you were the Kore born from the fairy princess…!”

Yoo Yeoreum wondered if her mother was a princess of a strange fairy kingdom.

She was not.

“My mom is not a fairy. She was just an ordinary… single mother.”

Swoosh-.

As Yoo Yeoreum shook her head, Inonoi’s pointed fairy ears drooped. But only for a moment-.

“Then tell me how to use this thing…! If Inonoi can use this magical item, she will surely be able to find the fairy princess…!”

The fairy Inonoi handed something to Yoo Yeoreum, dangling from a string.

“A phone?”

“Inonoi saw people from outside the labyrinth talking into this…! It must be a mysterious magical tool that lets you hear other people’s voices…!”

It looked like a walkie-talkie, bigger and thicker than a cellphone.

It had an old, antique feel.

It wouldn’t turn on, perhaps because it was broken.

“But even the smartest nymph among the stream nymphs, Inonoi, couldn’t figure out how to use this, so she couldn’t talk to the princess….”

A broken walkie-talkie.

Fixing it wouldn’t likely allow her to talk to the princess, but-.

Yoo Yeoreum didn’t want to shatter the fairy’s dream.

“What are you planning to do by calling that princess?”

“I want to ask why she left Inonoi outside the labyrinth…! I wonder if she abandoned Inonoi because he was being a nuisance every day, pestering for candy….”

Yoo Yeoreum felt a familiar sensation from Inonoi’s expression.

Children made that face when they thought of the mom or dad who left them at the orphanage.

Was Yoo Yeoreum like that long ago too?

“Eek…! Come to think of it, this is not the time for Inonoi to be here…! We need to get food before the Red King’s darkness engulfs the pantry…!”

The Red King? Yoo Yeoreum wanted to ask what that was, but Inonoi had completely disappeared.

Instead, about 10 minutes later, Seo Ga-eul returned to the room.

“Ugh, so annoying!”

She rubbed her flushed cheeks furiously, as if something had happened outside.

“What’s wrong? Your heart rate is abnormally high.”

“Han Nam-jin kissed my cheek! That jerk!”

Han Nam-jin kissed Seo Ga-eul’s cheek?

How did that happen?

“What on earth happened outside?”

“Listen!”

Seo Ga-eul told Yoo Yeoreum about the “zombie incident” that happened outside.

After listening to the long explanation, Yoo Yeoreum felt like Seo Ga-eul was lying to her.

“Seo Ga-eul, you b*tch. Stop lying. Zombies, really.”

“What? Have you been living under a rock? It’s true!”

Seo Ga-eul recalled how skillfully Han Nam-jin had dealt with the zombies.

Even though they were corpses, he didn’t hesitate to crush their heads.

“Han Nam-jin is a real psychopath.”

“But how did Han Nam-jin know that cola was a zombie cure? The odds are too low for it to be a coincidence.”

“I don’t know. Anyway, give me that!”

Whoosh-!

Seo Ga-eul snatched the walkie-talkie from Yoo Yeoreum’s hand.

Her expression brightened considerably.

“This is a ‘VX Communicator’ made in Seonam! With this, we might be able to contact the outside even from within the labyrinth! Where did you get this?”

“Inonoi gave it to me. Do you know how to use it? It seems to be broken.”

It was a very old antique.

The “VX Communicator” was made at least 20 years ago, so it couldn’t be helped.

But Seo Ga-eul had the concept of “restoration.”

When Seo Ga-eul reached out, the communicator was restored by the power of a miracle.

“Oh, it’s done, it’s done. Actually, the real problem starts now.”

Unlike an ordinary phone, this “VX Communicator” did not use a communication network but a special short-range frequency.

It meant that you could only talk to someone who had the same communicator and matched the channel.

“Hello! Ah-ah! Hello!”

First, Seo Ga-eul adjusted the frequency with familiar hands and sought a response.

Was there anyone nearby with an antique over 20 years old? What were the chances of matching the channel frequency and having a conversation with that person?

Chizzz-.

How much time had passed? A strange voice came from the old communicator.

━Hello?

“Gasp!”

“……!”

Seo Ga-eul and Yoo Yeoreum’s hair stood on end.

They had made contact with someone outside─that alone was surprising.

It was truly a miraculous event.

“Excuse me! Can you hear me?”

━Yes, I can hear you. But what, a girl…!? Who are you?

“I am….”

Seo Ga-eul was at a loss for words.

If she revealed who she was and reported Han Nam-jin, would they be able to escape this kidnapping life?

While Seo Ga-eul and Yoo Yeoreum were looking at each other’s faces solemnly, the other side contacted them first, understanding the silence.

━Ah! When asking a stranger for their name, you should introduce yourself first. I’m Bom. My close friends also call me ‘Kore’!

Kore-.

Yoo Yeoreum’s mind snapped to attention at that story.

“…Are you perhaps that fairy princess?”

# # #

“Does this week’s content end here?”

The first morning after the martial law was declared arrived.

Time flew by as I watched cartoons.

“The content of cartoons hasn’t changed at all, whether in the past or now.”

I casually tossed my phone aside and started brushing my teeth.

Since I already knew the future content that would be serialized, there was no need to watch more cartoons.

It’s nice to save time!

When I turned on the TV news, they were talking about the martial law due to the “zombie incident.”

Panels claiming to be political science experts were having a conversation, and it was quite amusing.

─Isn’t it funny that an unknown virus is spreading in this situation right before the impeachment?

─So, Mr. Kim, you believe that the government intentionally spread the virus and declared martial law to prevent the protests from intensifying….

─I don’t even know if that zombie virus is real! And a cure being cola? Isn’t Seonam Foods colluding with the government to create a viral marketing campaign?

“Don’t worry too much, you’ll soon find out if it’s real or fake.”

“Zombie Mine” was undoubtedly real.

Thanks to Seo Ga-eul, I could roughly guess its identity, and from today, I planned to find a way to approach it.

Tap, tap, tap.

I sat at the computer and typed on the keyboard.

“Search results: Nam Tae-geon’s adopted sons”

“Let’s learn about Nam Tae-geon’s princes. The ‘supernova’ known as the crown prince of the 7th palace….”

It wasn’t the result I wanted.

It would be faster to investigate directly rather than typing on the keyboard.

But in the current martial law situation, it would be difficult to approach President Nam Tae-geon’s adopted sons by ordinary means.

I would need to use significant connections.

Should I contact Seo Do-cheol using my wife’s chance again?

No, Seo Do-cheol would be sharp due to yesterday’s incident. If I contacted him, it would be enough to arouse unnecessary suspicion.

While I was pondering for a long time, I remembered the time I first met Bbangdaengi in this house as I looked at the family photo hanging in the living room.

─What are you talking about? Are your parents presidents or something? I’m Baek Yeoul of Baekdang! Our family used to supply ingredients to the presidential office.

They say even if a rich family goes bankrupt, it lasts for three generations.

If I got help from “Baekdang,” which had connections with the presidential office, wouldn’t I be able to approach the president’s adopted sons?

And those adopted sons might know a lot about “Nam San-ho,” who was reported missing at N Mart that day.

“Nam San-ho,” who was said to be dead.

A living corpse, a “zombie”.

There was a smell.

“I smell something suspicious.”

“I don’t smell anything! Maybe it’s the smell of the grapes I crushed yesterday!”

When I came to my senses, Bbangdaengi was lifting his foot and sniffing.

Next to him, Changsik and Deoksun were also sniffing around.

“I don’t smell anything in particular.”

“Me neither…”

“When did you guys get here?”

I asked in surprise.

Then Bbangdaengi frowned and slapped my butt with his palm.

“Hanamjin! What are you talking about! You contacted us! You said we should meet today to find the cause of the zombie incident!”

“I watched the broadcast yesterday too! That masked man! If we catch him, will the martial law end?”

“…Is the zombie virus really rampant in the world? And cola is the cure…”

I had gathered everyone through the group chat of “No Leftovers Day”.

You came faster than I thought!

“I was already suspended, but with the martial law, all schools are closed, so it’s totally awesome!”

“Friend, did you see the soldiers patrolling outside? The city’s security is tight, I wonder if we can find that masked man.”

“…We have to move quietly. We must never broadcast…”

Everyone seemed tense and excited in this chaotic world.

It’s really nice to have comrades, no matter what!

“Then let’s go hit Namsanho right away!”

“Oh!”

“Sounds good!”

“…Wait, who?”

The kids who had raised their hands and shouted boldly turned pale.

Didn’t I tell you?

“I think the zombie mine is Namsanho. If we succeed in capturing him, we can find out if this pandemic was intended by the government or not. If it was intentional─.”

There was no more time to waste.

I would deliver fair judgment to the evil government and all those involved.

“I will end the unbearable void of the heavenly seat and become the president.”

From noble mtl dot com

The presidential declaration of the man, Han Nam-jin!

Only one year left until the end of the Republic of Korea!