131 – Bait – 5
A week has passed. Slowly, I decided to put the second plan into action. Actually, a week is a bit early timing compared to what I originally thought. With common sense, it would be difficult to get rid of all the drugs in a week. If you go back and ask for more medicine within a few days, you will be looked upon with quite a bit of suspicion.
However, there are several reasons to move. And the biggest reason is that one of Cordelia’s friends has gone missing. He was the child of the poorest family. A few days ago, he showed a strange sign, so in the end he didn’t come to class, and he wasn’t even in his room in the dormitory. Even more tragically, only Cordelia was shocked by the incident. Another of her friends was living a normal life as if nothing had happened.
Cordelia also tried not to show off to us, but it was impossible to completely prevent the leaking emotions. We were close enough to her that we knew right away that her Cordelia was having a hard time.
Although Hestia and Seol-A worked hard to comfort her, the vacant eyes that Cordelia sees from time to time showed that comforting like this was not an essential solution. Besides, since Cordelia was having such a hard time, naturally, Hestia and Seol-ah were having a hard time as well.
I felt I couldn’t delay any longer. I no longer want to see the people around me suffer through no fault of their own. If there is something I can do, shouldn’t I do it myself? So, I decided to go a little sooner than I thought.
The location indicated by the map left on the note left by the merchant was a typical back alley pub. That’s why, it’s a place that often comes out when you see cartoons. Under the dim orange lamp lighting, tough-looking men are playing card games with beer in front of them with loud voices.
I slammed the door and went in. The man who seemed to be the owner looked at me and narrowed her eyes.
“Hmm? Being a student… Go?”
“… “
“Not a place for kids to come.”
The man was a large skinhead. He looked me up and down, quietly wiping his drink at the counter, and gave me a rather moderate word to get out of the way. In fact, the owner wasn’t the only one telling me to quit. As soon as you open the door and enter, the eyes full of hostility pour out.
I don’t think I would have been so hostile if I had come in a normal fashion, but I wonder if this mask and robe are the problem. Even if it were me, I think I would be very wary of such a suspicious person entering my hideout. But anyways, this isn’t much.
-Kwajik!
“Quaaagh!”
“You bastard!”
“Is this bastard the one who touched you first?”
I can tolerate just staring at you, but I can’t stand physical discipline. I lightly dodged the outstretched leg, perhaps intending to strangle it, and instead stepped on my ankle gently. The sound is unusual, probably, the trampled one will have difficulty walking straight for the time being.
It’s a bit of an overreaction, considering that it was just an attempt to cross the bridge, but it didn’t bother me much. They must all be the same guys anyway, well.
“Be patient for now.”
“But!”
“What are you proud of being stepped on while tripping over your leg? Aren’t you ashamed?”
The bald man seemed to be right about the owner of this shop, and he suppressed the other big guys with words that were trying to stand up. Maybe they didn’t want to go against the owner’s heart, but when I was told to be patient, they really didn’t try to attack me anymore.
Instead, the hostility that had been making the back of my head tingle from earlier became more intense and clearer. There were also guys who put their hands on the hilt and let out a cool metallic sound. It wasn’t that I was particularly scared, but it seemed like it wouldn’t be a very wise choice to provoke it any further. I just decided to get things done quickly.
“Your appearance is splendid.”
“Unintentionally.”
Unlike those nasty bullies who were still staring at me from the table, the shop owner was more of a gentleman than I thought. Except that shiny hair reflects the light so it’s hard to look straight at it.
“As you can see, they are rather rough friends.”
“… “
“You are a very cautious friend. Like that mask or robe.”
“There is nothing wrong with being cautious.”
At my words, the owner let out a smile.
“I’m not wrong, but… , Do you know what is more important than money to a life like ours?”
“What, trust?”
“I know that.”
I could barely hold back the burst of laughter. These bastards, where do you go to school? How can you say that all of them are the same? Even when I found out this place right away, I pretended to have trust or something, and in the end, didn’t I fall for a bigger amount of money?
“I didn’t come here because I had something to do anyway.”
“What?”
“I heard you would understand if I said it was a banquet for rats.”
The moment I put the code in my mouth, the owner’s expression changed at once. From an expression of caution and curiosity, an emotion close to disgust was revealed on the face at once. He chewed and spit out words with such a force that he would spit on me at any moment.
“What is it, a drug addict?”
“A bit rough for a customer attitude.”
“What about customers? I wondered if a decent friend had come, and it looked like this.”
He snorted. A drug dealer, I don’t think that’s something to say to people who come to buy the medicine they spray. He shook his head as if he didn’t want to look at him. It looked like a kind of disappointment. He cleared a few bottles behind the counter and pushed hard against the wall. Then, a narrow staircase appeared that only one person could pass through.
“Let’s go in quickly.”
The owner pointed to the stairs with his chin. Without further reply, I followed his guide and entered the narrow staircase.
After a while, the wall closed again. Through the wall came the sound of coarse spitting along with faint talk of raccoon burrows. Apparently, the drug dealer and the bar owner don’t get along very well.
The stairs were narrow and dark. The flickering dim lights intermittently attached to the ceiling were the only source of light illuminating the aisle. If I accidentally stumble, I think it would hurt quite a bit.
No matter how far I went down, a strange smell came from below. Something resembling the smell of burning grass hit my nose. It was quick from there. At the end of the stairs was a creaking door. I think this musty smell is coming from beyond that door.
After. I took a deep breath and opened the door. It was only then that I realized why the owner of the bar upstairs had used the term drug dealer or raccoon den, and what the acrid smell was. The underground space, which was not very wide, was filled with thick smoke. I had to cough repeatedly as the smoke stung my eyes and nose.
“Cool, cool!”
“Are you here?”
And as if I had just waited, a familiar voice greeted me. I can’t see his face because he’s wearing the hood all the way to his face, but his voice and body make it clear that he’s the same person as the merchant who handed me a note and medicine a week ago. He greeted me as if he was familiar with this environment.
“You came a little earlier than I thought. It’s hard to believe you’ve already used them all.”
“What kind of respect is that?”
“Someone else doesn’t know if they will come back or not, but if they come back like this, they will be customers from then on.”
I am a customer. I have no intention of paying more money to buy anything here. I nodded my head, hiding my feelings. No matter how I figured it out, he guided me through with a very satisfied smile.
“No, but did you really use all of them?”
“That can’t be. After using it, I realized that it was real, not a fake sold by quackery. So I’m going to buy some more.”
“Um… , that would be fine. However, reselling them is a bit difficult.”
It was good that you had prepared an answer to that question in advance. Besides, he seemed to be quite friendly with me, probably because I overvalued him in the first deal. Even though it was a sufficiently suspicious situation, he went in with a crush saying that it would be okay in moderation. However, strong caution was given to the part related to resale. Maybe it’s because their rice bowl is a problem.
“What is resale? Wandering around the back alleys like this to hide your identity, then selling it to other students? Could it be?”
“That’s right. Then, follow me for a second.”
I said pointing to my mask. The merchant, apparently convinced by my words, didn’t discuss the resale any more.
Instead, he led me somewhere and asked me to follow him for a while. The corridor he led was full of small, tightly closed doors. Smoke billowed continuously from within each door.
The place he finally guided me to was also one of those small rooms attached to the hallway. There are no windows, so there is no ventilation, and it is such a perfect closed room where you can’t understand the situation outside. The merchant who pushed me into the secret room put something in my hand.
“If you wait here for a moment, I will bring the goods. In the meantime, you are free to do that. It is a kind of service.”
“Service?”
At my question, he let out an unpleasant laugh as expected and then disappeared. After he closed the door and left, I took a closer look at the object in his hand. Dried leaves wrapped in thick rolled paper. And one small matchbox. It was obvious without even looking at it. Drug. A terrible thing that destroys the human brain and mind.
“The worst of the worst.”
I don’t even get mad at this because it’s absurd. They gather students with something similar to drugs, drag them into a real drug den, and then even give it to their hands as a service to give them a try. The pungent smell and identity of the smoke, and the whereabouts of the suddenly disappeared students. I roughly expected it, but it’s a much more filthy method than I thought.
However, ironically, thanks to this filthy trick, the plan was much easier to carry out. I struck a match, lit it, and lit a suspicious cigarette (?). And took a big sip.
At the same time as my head went hazy, I heard giggling outside the door. It was the voice that had been whispering to me until just before.
“Asshole. Do you really suck this?”
What is an asshole? Since you are number 1, just take a number ticket and wait.