Don't Feed the Professor! - Chapter 55

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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People called it the Saryim Hotel.
Somewhere around Ganghwa Island, they said. According to rumors, the building vanished the moment it was completed.
But I didn’t find that story particularly credible.
“Ah, but here—it’s nothing much, but would you accept this? I heard you enjoy dessert.”
Kang Do-jin held out a cake box, and Kwon Tae-hyun let out a short laugh through his nose.
He opened the box, confirmed the amount of cash nestled beneath the cake, and his lips curved into the barest smile.
“You’ve got taste, Director Kang. My palate’s never changed all these years, you know. Have you seen that new café that opened nearby?”
“Ah, no—I’m not really knowledgeable about those things.”
“Well, young people these days are too busy managing their fitness, aren’t they? But if you get a chance next time, do stop by. They make homemade protein bars—quite good ones, actually.”
Kwon Tae-hyun pushed the cake box to the side and rubbed his palms together.
“Now then, let’s save the pleasantries for another time and get down to business. As you know, officially I’m not here at all.”
“Of course.”
He’d already checked to make sure no one was listening, but caution never hurt.
There were plenty of insiders with connections to the chairman, but sources of Kwon Tae-hyun’s caliber were rare.
If The Agency caught wind of this secret meeting, both of them would be in serious trouble.
Especially Kang Do-jin—he wouldn’t escape the chairman’s reproach.
Kwon Tae-hyun took another sip of orange juice, the ice clinking loudly, then opened his mouth.
“So you say you met Lee Yuri’s mother?”
‘Lee Yuri?’
Why was he referring to the target so casually?
“Surely you haven’t already made contact? With Lee Yuri?”
“Ah, well…”
Kwon Tae-hyun rolled his eyes shamelessly.
If what he was saying was true, then contrary to Kang Do-jin’s expectations, Lee Yuri was alive.
How was that possible? The loan sharks had forced Lee Yuri into the Fortress two months ago by crude means.
How could an untrained, completely ordinary young woman have survived there all this time?
“Well, even if I knew where she was, I couldn’t approach her recklessly. Right now, neither you nor I can do anything.”
“Can’t do anything…? Why not?”
“Because something frightening is attached to her side.”
As he said this, Kwon Tae-hyun tugged at his shirt collar, as if he were choking.
Before Kang Do-jin could ask what he meant, Kwon Tae-hyun awkwardly changed the subject.
“Ah, as for the religious group you mentioned in your email and their family’s activities—I really don’t have much to tell you about that.”
“…Are you saying you don’t know anything? Or that you can’t tell me?”
Kang Do-jin’s question made Kwon Tae-hyun bob his head vaguely.
“Well… I wouldn’t say I know nothing at all, but… That truth research group, or whatever it was called? It seemed tangled up in all sorts of things, very muddled.”
The Cheongsin Truth Research Society. Lee Yuri’s parents had been members, but now the cult had vanished without a trace.
“I heard some musical actress got dragged in there and went missing? I’m no expert in entertainment, but it was quite the scandal back then, wasn’t it?”
“Do you think that organization has connections to the Fortress?”
“Who knows. In a world like this, what doesn’t have connections to the Fortress?”
Another vague answer. Kang Do-jin was beginning to find this man irritating. But there was nothing else he could do.
“Then at least you could tell me what situation Lee Yuri is currently in…”
Kwon Tae-hyun drained the last of his juice with a loud slurp, crunching the ice between his teeth.
“I… Team Leader?”
“Actually, I’ve got a lot of things piling up, so I don’t have much time.”
“What? But this is so sudden…”
“Oh, that’s right.”
Kwon Tae-hyun stared at Kang Do-jin’s face for a moment, then smirked.
“When I heard your name, I wondered, but seeing your face, I’m certain now. You look exactly like Kang Woo-jin.”
“What…? How do you…?”
Kang Woo-jin. Kang Do-jin’s older brother, who’d disappeared about eight years ago.
He never imagined he’d hear that name from the mouth of someone at The Agency for the first time in his life.
“The chairman must keep his words close to his chest.”
“…Sorry?”
Kwon Tae-hyun glanced at his watch again and feigned surprise.
“Good heavens, is it really that late? They say you talk more as you get older. I’d better be going. Give the chairman my regards, would you? And tell him thanks for the cake.”
Kwon Tae-hyun bustled out of the café.
Only after the man had hurried through the lobby did Kang Do-jin realize he hadn’t obtained a single piece of solid information from him.
* * *
In the Fortress’s downtown, the Noon Moon appears exactly once at midday.
It is a time when the Physical Boundary Between Spaces grows thin, allowing one to move relatively freely between major locations in the downtown during that window.
Exiting Riverside Plaza and crossing the bridge to the south, one can enter the lobby of the Saryim Hotel, the Fortress’s only lodging facility.
The hotel is a blaze of gold and amber, opulent yet somehow faded.
A red carpet covers the marble floor, and a brass-trimmed crystal chandelier commands attention.
Passing the empty front desk and descending via the spiral staircase leads to an entirely different world.
Ding-ding, whirrrr.
The After Hours Casino. I was sitting in front of a slot machine in a red one-piece dress, pressing the button.
Seven, cherry, gun.
A man sitting in the opposite corridor gave me an encouraging nod. I managed to raise the corners of my mouth in a weak smile.
This place was busier than any spot in the Fortress I’d seen so far. Yet this strange sense of dissonance wouldn’t fade.
Click.
Lemon, bell, cherry.
I’d been uneasy from the moment Momo mentioned the casino.
I’d assumed it was just mimicking the appearance of one, but I never expected there to actually be a 24-hour hotel casino operating in the heart of the Fortress.
I’ve done all sorts of things in the outside world, but nothing is as grueling as round-the-clock night operations.
Especially in a casino with no windows and no clocks—the longer you stay, the duller your sense of reality becomes.
And besides.
‘How many of these people are even real…?’
I sighed, glancing at the gamblers clustered around the roulette table.
According to Momo, the After Hours Casino had no rules in principle. All you had to do was act naturally and not stand out.
‘That shouldn’t be too hard for humans. For humans, anyway.’
Everyone was equally absorbed in gambling, their eyes bloodshot. Anyone who comes all the way to the Fortress just to gamble can’t be normal.
But that man sitting in front of the slot machine over there—he’s been pretending to drink a cocktail.
Saying “gulp-gulp” while holding the glass to his lips.
And that woman standing in the corner has been rolling her eyes around and stuffing high-denomination chips into her mouth.
She’d managed to bite one in half, and some kind of black liquid was oozing from between her lips.
“Caught.”
Two security guards in black clothing approached and grabbed the woman’s arm. She was dragged out with a blank expression.
‘How many more are left.’
I glanced around. Most of the strange beings coming through here would be highly trained Mimicries.
Goldilock’s foolish clerks wouldn’t even be able to set foot at the entrance. I doubt they’d even make it past the revolving door before the doorman kicked them out.
“…But that aside.”
I took out my phone and checked my messages.
The mysterious message I’d received days ago was nowhere to be found.
It had clearly asked for help.
And the sender’s name—it was definitely the same as the one that had appeared in the prompt at Nest Building.
Was it really a message from Scarecrow?
I hadn’t met Scarecrow in person since that day.
I didn’t know his identity or his situation, but if Bibi’s words were true and he was one of the Survivors, shouldn’t I help him somehow?
That’s what the other Amelies would have done.
Just then, an arm suddenly extended from behind me and pressed the slot machine button.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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