Goblin Library - Chapter 70

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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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Chapter 70

“I don’t want to talk about the past… but I nearly died back then.”
“Yet you didn’t die, so here we are meeting like this.”
Lee Hye-eun then spoke.
“For now, it’s difficult to talk for long. There’s a coffee shop called TT Coffee Shop in the next neighborhood. Let’s meet there in an hour.”
Choi Tae-sik nodded and picked up the bouquet, preparing to leave the shop. Watching him, Lee Hye-eun suddenly asked.
“But what if I don’t go? I could just disappear from here.”
At Lee Hye-eun’s question, Choi Tae-sik silently tapped the flower shop window with his finger and walked out.
Lee Hye-eun watched Choi Tae-sik’s retreating figure and the window alternately, then let out a soft laugh.
“So he’s saying if he found me once, he can find me twice?”
Lee Hye-eun pondered for a moment, then nodded.
“He doesn’t seem to be trying to capture me… I suppose I should at least hear what he has to say.”
Lee Hye-eun locked the shop door and left.

An hour later, Choi Tae-sik and Lee Hye-eun sat across from each other at TT Coffee Shop.
“Why did you come looking for me?”
At Lee Hye-eun’s question, Choi Tae-sik looked at her before answering.
“Let’s do a job together.”
“A job? What kind of job? Night work?”
At the mention of night work, Choi Tae-sik spat out the coffee he was drinking.
Lee Hye-eun quickly grabbed a tray to block the spray of coffee from hitting me.
“What the hell are you doing?”
Ignoring Lee Hye-eun’s complaint, Choi Tae-sik wiped his mouth with his hand and pulled out tissues to wipe the table.
“Don’t say things like that. Night work, really.”
“That’s just how I phrased it.”
Lee Hye-eun looked at the coffee stain on the tray and handed it to Choi Tae-sik.
He unconsciously took it and wiped it with tissues.
“So who are you trying to con?”
“How did you know?”
At Choi Tae-sik’s words, Lee Hye-eun laughed.
“When a con artist asks to do a job together, what else could it be?”
At Lee Hye-eun’s remark, Choi Tae-sik studied her carefully. Then he heard Lim Sung-un’s voice in his ear.
[The advantage has shifted to Lee Hye-eun’s side.]
Choi Tae-sik was currently listening to Lim Sung-un’s voice through a micro-earpiece connected to his phone.
[Pass the earpiece to Lee Hye-eun. I’ll talk to her directly.]
“My apologies.”
[No. You’re too rigid when dealing with con artists. The matchup isn’t favorable.]
At Lim Sung-un’s words, Choi Tae-sik pulled the nearly invisible thread connected to his ear.
Whoosh!
A tiny earphone dangling from the end of the impossibly thin, transparent thread slipped cleanly from his ear.
Lee Hye-eun watched the scene with curious eyes. When Choi Tae-sik had just said “My apologies,” she’d wondered what that was about, but seeing the earphone emerge, the situation became clear.
『So you really do need to talk to someone on your level for things to make sense.』
As Lee Hye-eun smiled and reached for the earphone, Choi Tae-sik grabbed her wrist.
『What are you doing? Trying to hold hands first?』
When Lee Hye-eun joked, Choi Tae-sik tightened his grip on her wrist and spoke.
『That you caused me to be stabbed doesn’t weigh on my conscience. But if you speak carelessly to this person… that will weigh on it.』
At Choi Tae-sik’s cold, forceful voice, Lee Hye-eun met his gaze.
His eyes clearly conveyed sincerity.
Lee Hye-eun studied Choi Tae-sik for a moment before speaking.
『I understand what you mean. Let go.』
At her words, Choi Tae-sik released her wrist and regarded her with a stern expression. At that gaze, Lee Hye-eun’s eyes flickered toward the earphone.
From the way his servile demeanor had transformed in an instant, she could infer that the person on the other end was no ordinary individual.
Lee Hye-eun inserted the earphone into her ear and spoke.
『Hello. This is Lee Hye-eun.』
[Speak plainly. We do one job together.]
『Fine. Since you’re being direct, let me ask directly too. What’s my cut?』
[A thousand.]
『Do you think I’m a beggar?』
Lee Hye-eun’s eyes narrowed.
[Every amount except the thousand I’m giving you will be donated to Angel Orphanage.]
At the mention of Angel Orphanage, Lee Hye-eun froze. Her expression hardened immediately. After a moment of silence, she glared—not precisely at Choi Tae-sik, but at the person beyond him.
More accurately, she was glaring at the person on the other end of the line.
『You’ve… investigated me quite thoroughly.』
[I investigated because I want to work with you.]
As Lee Hye-eun listened to the voice in her ear, she gently brushed her hair behind her ear.
She took a sip of coffee to collect her thoughts when Lim Sung-un asked.
[Do you need time to think?]
『Think? I don’t have a hobby of working with people I don’t even know.』
After a brief silence following Lee Hye-eun’s words, Lim Sung-un spoke.
[Target.]
Buzz!
At the same moment, Lee Hye-eun’s phone vibrated softly.
『You know my number too?』
[Look at it first, then we’ll talk.]
Lee Hye-eun took out her phone, tapped the screen several times, and stared at it.
After viewing the screen for a moment, Lee Hye-eun set her phone down. She remained silent for a while before speaking.
『You’re a bad person.』
[You’re similar to the people you scam.]
Lim Sung-un had chosen Lee Hye-eun because she didn’t con ordinary people—virtuous citizens—but rather targeted those with money and questionable character.
Her marks were always wealthy individuals with serious moral defects. Of course, the fact that fleecing such people yielded far more money than targeting decent ordinary folk was no small incentive.
『Fine. I like the target. But if I take only a thousand and donate everything else… why are you doing this?』
[Because I believe bad people deserve punishment.]
『You’re punishing them rather than taking their money?』
[That’s right.]
『And I’m supposed to believe that?』
Lee Hye-eun scoffed, and Lim Sung-un replied.
[Don’t you donate as well?]
『Even so, I keep half of what I earn. That’s enough to live comfortably….』
[If you can’t trust my word, then trust the man standing right in front of you instead.]
At Lim Sung-un’s words, Lee Hye-eun let out a soft laugh.
『Trust him? I don’t even know who this person is.』
[He’s the one who took a blade trying to save you. For someone you didn’t even know, as you said.]
At that, Lee Hye-eun studied Choi Tae-sik quietly before speaking.
『I need time to think about this.』
[I’ll contact you again tomorrow.]
『And… you seem to be the leader. Can’t we talk after seeing your face?』
[Do you want to see my face?]
『Nobody likes working with someone whose face they don’t know. And wouldn’t trust develop once we’ve seen each other?』
[I’m not naive enough to trust a con artist. And if you see my face, you’ll regret it later.]
『Regret?』
[Because once you know my face, you’ll have to keep working with me.]
『Ha! With you?』
[You’ll understand once you see my face.]
『Understand what?』
[That you shouldn’t have seen it.]
『Hmm… Are you saying you’re someone important enough that I’d recognize you?』
[I’ll only tell you that there’d be no problem if you didn’t see it. Think it over until tomorrow and give me your answer.]
『Wait!』
Lee Hye-eun hastily stopped Lim Sung-un from hanging up and asked.
『If I do this… is this the last time?』
[I have no intention of working with a con artist for long either.]
『Fine. I’ll do it.』
[Good. Contact me through Choi from now on.]
『You’re answering right away?』
[Is there a problem?]
『You told me to think until tomorrow. But you’re getting an answer right now—shouldn’t I expect you to ask why my mind changed so quickly?』
[The answer I wanted from you was yes, so everything else is meaningless. Hand over the earphone.]
At Lim Sung-un’s words, Lee Hye-eun pulled out her earbuds and handed them to Choi Tae-sik.
Choi Tae-sik inserted the earbuds into his ears after receiving them.
“Yes. Yes. I understand.”
After responding to several instructions flowing through the earbuds, Choi Tae-sik looked at Lee Hye-eun.
“I’ll come back tomorrow.”
As Choi Tae-sik prepared to stand, Lee Hye-eun lightly tapped the table with her fingers.
“Wait, sit for a moment.”
At Lee Hye-eun’s words, Choi Tae-sik looked at her before sitting back down.
“Do you have a plan worked out?”
“…”
Choi Tae-sik didn’t answer. He still didn’t have a plan yet.
Neither Lim Sung-un nor Choi Tae-sik knew anything about fraud. Well, Lim Sung-un had handled many fraud cases, so he knew quite a bit.
But knowing something and executing it are two different things. Just because a doctor has read many surgical textbooks doesn’t guarantee they’ll perform surgery well.
Knowing something theoretically and actually knowing how to do it were fundamentally different domains.
[Tell her exactly what I say.]
As Choi Tae-sik remained silent, Lim Sung-un’s instruction came through, and he nodded. Then he relayed his words directly to Lee Hye-eun.
“We’ve never worked on this type of fraud before. So you’ll handle the planning and execution.”
“So you’re telling me to do everything?”
“In exchange, we’ll provide whatever you need. Information about the target, necessary equipment, and a solid cover identity. Isn’t that enough for you?”
At Choi Tae-sik’s words, Lee Hye-eun fell into thought for a moment, then looked at her phone. After scrolling through the Convenience Store Owner’s information displayed on the screen, she spoke.
“First, set up a monthly rental room near the convenience store. A duplex with the vibe of a fresh graduate living on their own for the first time. Even if it’s a bit cramped, make it bright and cheerful. Deposit of 500,000 won with monthly rent between 55 and 65. It can’t be less than that or more than that.”
“Is there a reason?”
“I’m a fresh graduate. A deposit of 500,000 or more would be burdensome.”
“What about 55 to 65?”
“Same thing. I could go cheaper, but that would look too shabby. Even though parental support has been cut off temporarily, I need to play the role of a fresh graduate who dresses well and gets by. There’s a minimum standard I can’t compromise on. Between 55 and 65 is the bare minimum for a livable space.”
Lee Hye-eun spoke with an expression that suggested she was tired of having to explain even this much.
“Just do exactly as I say.”
“But if you’re a fresh graduate, are you setting your age as early twenties?”
“Twenty-four.”
“Will that work with your appearance?”
At Choi Tae-sik’s carelessly uttered words, Lee Hye-eun squinted her eyes.
“What’s wrong with how I look?”
“You look a bit old to be twenty-four, don’t you? Your style too.”
Though Lee Hye-eun had a youthful face, considering her clothing and overall style, she didn’t look twenty-four. Even being generous, she looked like she was in her late twenties.
“You’ll get slapped if you say things like that to a woman. And I’ll handle that myself, so don’t worry about it.”
“Understood. Is there anything else you need?”
“I need a bicycle…”
“A bicycle?”
Seeing Choi Tae-sik asking why that would be needed, Lee Hye-eun shook her head and spoke.
“Never mind. I’ll get that myself. Oh! I’ll buy the items needed for the plan, so you’ll need to reimburse me.”
“Attach the receipt.”
“Being stingy, huh… Fine. I need to organize things anyway, so I’ll contact you once I find a place.”
Lee Hye-eun rose from her seat and turned to leave, then paused. She glanced at Choi Tae-sik and spoke.
“Is the knife wound okay?”
At her abrupt question, Choi Tae-sik looked at her and replied.
“It’s fine.”
“Good then. And… thanks for back then.”
Whoosh!
As Lee Hye-eun turned and walked out of the Coffee Shop, Choi Tae-sik brought his cup to his lips, watching her receding figure disappear into the distance.
[Don’t get bewitched.]
At Lim Sung-un’s voice suddenly echoing in his ear, Choi Tae-sik quickly responded.
“I’m not bewitched.”
[You already are, hyung. Look at your heart rate.]
At Jang Ma-ru’s words, Choi Tae-sik’s eyes narrowed.
“How would you know my heart rate?”
[Why wouldn’t I know? You think I equipped the bio ring for nothing? I can see your heart rate. At this level, it’s practically cardiac arrest….]
At Jang Ma-ru’s words, Choi Tae-sik removed the earpiece from his ear and slipped it into his pocket, then glanced at the silver ring on his finger.
It was the bio ring that Jang Ma-ru had given him to monitor the team’s GPS information and physical condition.
Synchronized with his phone to check real-time location and heart rate….
“My heart was beating that hard?”
Choi Tae-sik, who had been holding his hand to his chest for a moment, shook his head and took a sip of coffee.
Then, as if making an excuse, he muttered to himself.
“It’s because of the coffee. It’s the coffee.”

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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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