177 – 177. Before the Conference (1)
Shortly after the conversation with mid-gyeol ended, the practice also ended. Ahn Soo-ho went straight to Ryu Tae-hyeon and Kang Ha-neul and told them about Xiao-mei’s future.
After bringing Xiao Mei into her house, she said that she would live with her Ji Ye-wen’s house for the time being.
At that decision, Ryu Tae-hyeon laughed and Kang Ha-neul glared at Ahn Su-ho with an expression of being stamped on the back of his foot by the ax he believed. However, as circumstances were circumstances, in the end, both of them respected An Su-ho’s decision. Because there was no other way.
So.
-Kikiiik.
A black sedan driven by Ahn Su-ho stopped in front of his house. The time is 9:00 PM, when the surroundings are immersed in complete darkness.
“Are you here?”
Xiao Mei, who was riding in the back seat, looks up at her studio with a disappointed look. That’s why it’s strange not to be disappointed with facilities that look poor at first glance.
“It would be much safer to move from hotel to hotel.”
“You can be relieved about that part. It has the best security system.”
Ahn Soo-ho took Xiao-Mei with an incomprehensible expression and headed to his room. Standing in front of the door, he took off his right glove.
“Sylvie.”
At his call, the primordial silver, Sylvie, popped out from the back of his right hand with a popping sound. The silver mass that dripped down to the floor with a thud began to slowly take shape.
“…… Huh?”
But the shape was a bit unexpected. Ahn Su-ho frowned and asked.
“What is that figure?”
Sylvie, who fell away from Ahn Soo-ho, took the shape of a girl who looked like a middle school student. She only took the form, but the outside was still a shiny silver color, but other than that, even the smallest details were properly implemented to the point of being mistaken for a human being.
-Master. Spider. I hated it. So I changed it. In the form you like. If it looks like this Isn’t it gross?
At those words, Ahn Su-ho shook his head and nodded. He recalled later. Come to think of it, I think Sylvie asked me to transform into a different form the other day when she was walking around in her spider form.
However, even so, why take the form of a woman? Besides, why do you bother adding modifiers such as ‘the owner’s favorite look’? In addition, why is it that she looks young at first glance, not an adult woman? It’s just good to buy a misunderstanding.
“Crazy… ….”
As Suho Ahn thought that way, sure enough, Xiao-Mei, who was unaware of the circumstances, looked at Sylvie and Suho Ahn alternately with a disgusted expression.
“Your taste is very different. Did you take the primordial silver from me to do something like this?”
“…… Now this is something I don’t know. This guy has changed into this on his own.”
“I heard you like the look? Besides what? Master? Did you really make the Artifact call you Master?”
“… ….”
Maybe it’s because I’m too lazy to make excuses. Or because there is no excuse. Ahn Soo-ho gestured to Sylvie without answering Xiao-Mei’s words. Then Sylvie nodded her head slightly.
The next moment.
– Cheolpeouk.
The shape of Sylvie melted and spread thinly in all directions. Some went into Ahn Su-ho’s room. Some went into Ji Ye-won’s room. Some were recessed into cracks in the walls or floors, while others were raised above the railings or roofs. As if he were trying to stretch his body all over the building.
At that unusual sight, Xiao-Mei asked.
“What did you do?”
“The primordial silver is placed throughout the building. If you do this, even if an intruder comes, you will be able to notice it right away. Because the sense of silver in the beginning is connected to me.”
In addition to that, Sylvie could react to the intruder on her own before Ahn Su-ho responded. At Ahn Suho’s explanation, Xiao Mei looked around her with her curious eyes.
“Let’s go in first. Because Yewon still has about an hour left to go home from work. In the meantime, let’s get things sorted out and get some rest.”
An Suho took Xiaomei and went into his room.
“Kuhm.”
Xiao Mei’s brow furrowed once more at the raw, self-contained scene unfolding before her eyes, but she did not openly voice her dissatisfaction as before.
“Let’s unpack our luggage first.”
The two started unpacking the luggage that Xiao-Mei had brought with them. However, it took less than 10 minutes as the luggage was only a few clothes and daily necessities that I bought in a hurry in Korea. The residential facility was also a small studio, so there was nothing to explain.
With nothing to do, an awkward silence fell between the two. Ahn Suho asked coolly.
“Would you like something to drink?”
“Do you have a car?”
“There are cheap green tea bags I bought at the mart.”
“…… Okay then. Just give me some water.”
Xiaomei sat down on the bed. After handing her her water, Ahn Su-ho sat down on the floor across from her. He asks, looking up at her Xiao Mei.
“So what are you going to do now? It doesn’t matter if you stay here for a while, but that doesn’t mean you’ll stay forever. Do you have any future plans?”
“Of course not. Do you think I didn’t prepare anything for the two weeks I was stuck in Taehyun-ssi’s room?”
Contrary to her confident tone, her face showed a hint of uneasiness. Although he had a plan, he himself was not sure about the plan, so it was inevitable.
“I’m going to ask you to confirm. You have no intention of returning the primordial silver to me or the Winter Alliance, right?”
“That has already been discussed. Sylvie doesn’t want to leave me, so even if she wants to return it, she can’t. I wonder if you or Seong Yu-jin can convince Sylvie.”
Ahn Su-ho’s shameless answer made Xiao-Mei stunned. However, it would be a waste of time to further investigate and listen to issues that had already been concluded. She let out a deep sigh and continued her words.
“You did that last time. I will negotiate with the Winter Alliance by providing what information? If the negotiations go well, it would be safer to stay in Korea as it is……. If not, you should go abroad. To a third country where the Winter Alliance and public security are powerless.”
“If the public security is after you, it means that you have become a criminal in China. Then, isn’t everything like a passport blocked?”
“Perhaps. Even if you can’t openly investigate because you’re noticing the standing committee member involved in the transaction, it’s easy enough to ask Interpol to cooperate with the investigation by putting a plausible charge on it.”
As expected by Xiao-Mei, the Chinese public security had already blocked Xiao-Mei’s flight route through Interpol on an international scale. If she leisurely went to the airport with her passport, she would be immediately arrested and dragged into the hands of the police.
She, however, did not interfere with her smuggling because of her trade.
“Even if your passport is blocked, there are many ways to get out of this country. You can use a fake passport, or you can disguise yourself as a crew member on a ferry somewhere as an undercover identity. If anything, there is a way to stow away through a fellow broker. Of course, nothing is 100% safe, but…….”
“Have you decided which country to go to?”
“First, go to Japan. After that, we should jump across the Pacific to America or Mexico.”
Ahn Soo-ho let out a sigh of relief at the sight of her looking for a way out on her own. I was worried inside, but I thought there must be a way to survive somehow.
At that time.
-Tiririririri.
In Suho Ahn’s pocket, the cell phone rang loudly. It was a call from Seol Ah-hyun.
“Hello?”
– Mr. Suho. Can I call you now?
“Yes, it is fine. What did you call for?”
Xiaomei’s expression was slightly wary at the sudden phone call. Ahn Soo-ho winked at her saying that it was okay.
– Mr. Suho. Do you have free time tomorrow?
“Tomorrow…… If so, it’s empty all day. But I don’t think I can go up to Seoul for a while.”
-Isn’t it because of daytime work? Do not worry. Because tomorrow I will go there.
“Are you okay with your work?”
-It’s Saturday. It’s not a vicious company that makes our company work even on weekends.
Ahn Su-ho thought it was really funny that the president said that. He smiled inaudible over the phone and continued.
“By the way, why are you here?”
-I have something urgent to discuss. That is… ….
Seol Ah-hyun, who was speechless for a moment, spoke in a small voice.
-…… I got a call from Sung Yoo-jin. Let’s all meet again the day after tomorrow on Sunday.
“Yes? Are you talking about Sung Eugene? No, she’s more like that…….”
-Me, Suho, and Seong Yujin. Well, I’m going to take Kacha with me, and Seong Yu-jin won’t come alone, so it won’t be a three-way meeting.
Ahn Su-ho was quite surprised by Seol Ah-hyun’s words. Because the timing is so precise.
It was during the day when an intruder who seemed to belong to Seong Yu-jin attempted to kidnap Xiao-Mei. However, as soon as the attempt failed, he contacted Seol Ah-hyun directly. Ahn Su-ho thought that even if Seong Yu-jin was in a hurry, he was quite in a hurry.
Or perhaps the primordial silver is an important thing to them.
“The place and time of the meeting?”
-Time is Sunday evening. The place was decided by us. Since it is not possible for Suho to come up to Seoul, I will probably meet him there.
“That sounds very nice.”
Ahn Su-ho was in a situation where he could not go far for the time being. Min Chae-ryeong’s recommendation is also recommended, but because Xiao-Mei was staying at his house. He preferred not to leave the house if at all possible, unless he knew when the police or the Winter Alliance might harm him.
‘Wait.’
At that time, a question popped up in Ahn Su-ho’s mind.
“Ahyeon. He said the meeting time is on Sunday. But why is Mr. Ahyeon coming down tomorrow?”
-That’s because we have to prepare as much as possible for Sunday.
“Prepare…… Yo. This?”
Ahn Su-ho asked awkwardly, and after a while, Ah! I exclaimed, and only then did I understand Seol Ah-hyun’s meaning.
“You said something about preparation, so you mean future poetry.”
-Yes. What else could there be? There are only two days until the summit, so we need to observe as much as we can before then.
Just yesterday. Seol Ah-hyun witnessed the terrible future coming to Ahn Su-ho. Seeing him lying in a dark underground parking lot with his right arm cut off.
To prevent that terrible future, Seol Ah-hyun repeated the future poem dozens of times while holding Ahn Su-ho’s hand yesterday. In the fragmentary scenes that come to mind at random, maybe there are hints that can break the future.
Although that day’s attempt ended up failing, observing only a meaningless future…….
-…… Please, I hope this time I can see a useful future.
Saying that, Seol Ah-hyeon’s voice radiated a subtle sense of uneasiness.
***
Two days later. Sunday.
Seong Yu-jin stretched as hard as she could as she left the Sokcho Station platform. After that, his subordinates who will be with him for this meeting followed suit.
“Is the car ready?”
“Yes. They said they were waiting in front of the station for 20 minutes.”
At those words, Sung Yu-jin looked at the main street in front of the station from the top of the stairs. A wide six-lane road beyond the station plaza. He spotted a black sedan standing on the side of the road and hurriedly moved towards it.
‘It’s been a while since I’ve been here.’
It’s been three years since I graduated from the academy. Seong Yu-jin had a new feeling about the land of Sokcho, which she had not stepped on in a long time. Memories of her from her school days flashed rapidly through his mind, now adorned with pages of memories.
At that time.
“Hmm? Who is this? Aren’t you our cute junior?”
He heard a familiar voice in his ears as he was soaked in memories. It was a voice that I couldn’t help but get used to because I was reminiscing about my academy days.
As Seong Yu-jin turned her head away, Min Chae-ryeong appeared from the shadow of the pillars of the building. As if she was waiting for him.
“Company work, guild work, what are you doing here when you are busy?”
“Senior Chaeryeong… ….”
“Is there still some time left until the appointment time? If you don’t mind, where would you like to talk to me for a second?”
A deep smile appeared on Chaeryeong Min’s lips when she said that. Maybe it’s because she has the sunset behind her, but her smile looks strangely creepy.
From nob le mt l dot com
Looking at that smile, Seong Yu-jin thought.
Three years have passed, but that smile is still the same as back then.