Chapter 60
“…Shhh. Wait here for a bit.”
At that moment, Choi Kkang-kang, who had been discussing the issue of ‘why no children were visible’, suddenly stood up.
He then headed towards a group of middle-aged women gathered in a corner of the conference room.
Grinning, with a pretty smile, unlike his usual stolid expression.
Being a handsome man with flowing brown hair and even a beauty mark, the effect of that smile was tremendous.
And a little while later.
“Oh my, my, my!”
“Ah, such a handsome young man with such pretty words!”
Giggles erupted from the group of women.
And I was watching Choi Kkang-kang, who had naturally blended into that group, with a bewildered expression.
‘…Is he really the same person?’
Usually always grumbling with an annoyed expression.
I already knew he was the only one in this group of moral compasses with normal self-interest.
But it seems he also had the flexibility to become appropriately sly according to the situation.
“But, you know…”
Choi Kkang-kang, who had somehow received a dried squid leg and was chewing it, casually asked.
“Why are there so few kids here?”
The women looked at each other and then…
“Oh, who could live here, it’s so scary.”
Starting with those words, they began to spill everything that had happened.
From some time ago, children in the camp started disappearing one by one.
With the number approaching thirty already, guardians with children don’t even come out to where people are.
And the first child to disappear was the second son of Kim Seo-min, who had guided us here.
“Oh my, oh my. That person? So that’s why he to Sehun earlier…”
As Choi Kkang-kang expressed surprise with appropriate interjections, the women waved their hands as if to say ‘don’t even mention it’.
“That’s right! Ah, if it were me, I couldn’t stay sane like that.”
“Exactly. How could it be easy to work like that when the kidnapper might be inside here?”
“As expected, not just anyone can be a civil servant. That, law-abiding spirit! It’s really outstanding. And you know…”
A woman who had been looking around suddenly lowered her voice, so I glanced at Yu.
Fortunately, it seemed to be clearly audible to her ears as Yu moved her lips to relay the message to me.
“…She says that man sitting in the corner is suspected by everyone. They say he’s an ex-convict.”
An ex-convict?
I turned my head towards the corner of the room, following her gaze.
There sat a man with unkempt hair and beard, leaning against the wall with a dark expression.
Come to think of it, in this spacious conference room, there were no people around that man.
“But how do other people know that man is an ex-convict?”
When I asked in a low voice, Yuga, who had been listening towards the women for a moment, soon answered.
“They say some civil servants checked the identities of all survivors at the beginning of the camp when electricity and internet were working. On orders from above.”
That’s when it happened.
Perhaps feeling the whispering gazes looking at him, the man sitting with a disgruntled expression suddenly shouted.
“Hey! What are you looking at! You women over there! What are you whispering about again!”
“Oh my, oh my. What’s this…”
“Come on. In times like these, what’s the big deal about a few brats disappearing! Fewer mouths to feed, isn’t that good!”
The atmosphere in the conference room became sharp as if on edge at those words.
Yet the bearded man didn’t stop and continued shouting.
“Honestly, in times like these, how long would kids live anyway! It’s better that they…”
“You.”
At that moment, a low, resonating voice cut off the man’s words.
It was Baek Yi-heon, glaring at the man while emitting a terrifying aura.
“Watch your words.”
The man immediately shut his mouth.
The entire conference room fell silent for a moment under the pressure Baek Yi-heon was emitting.
“Haha. When Hyung-nim gets angry like that, it’s really scary. Well then, I’ll be…”
Choi Kkang-kang, sensing the mood, wrapped things up and came back to us, plopping down as he spoke.
“Well, that’s roughly it. You heard, right?”
Yu nodded and asked.
“I thought the proportion of young children was unusually low. So there have been kidnappings. …Who could be the culprit?”
“Can’t we use Sehun’s ability? At least on the people here.”
At that, Sehun quickly closed his eyes and concentrated.
[(Messenger) Avatar ‘Lee Sehun’ casts ‘Lie Detection Lv4.’]
[(Messenger) Avatar ‘Lee Sehun’ casts ‘Evil Discernment Lv5.’]
However…
“Gasp.”
A moment later, the child, his face turning pale, hastily drew in a breath.
“What’s wrong, Sehun?”
“Ugh, I’m feeling, a bit unwell…”
As if feeling nauseous, the child muttered softly while covering his mouth with his small hand.
“Everyone.”
“Huh? What do you mean…”
“He means everyone here has evil intentions.”
As I answered in a chilling tone, Sehun quickly nodded.
“No way…”
“Are you saying that everyone gathered in this room has evil intentions and is lying to each other?”
It’s not really surprising.
In this kind of situation, humans maintaining good intentions would be rarer.
Moreover, Kim Seo-min deliberately assigned us newcomers to this room. He even guided us here personally.
Since they said they had completed background checks on all survivors, this room is probably where they’ve gathered criminals and people with unfavorable conditions.
“Everyone… It won’t be easy to find the culprit.”
As Yu sighed as if troubled, Choi Kkang-kang quickly whispered.
“From what I saw, that man is clearly the culprit. The way he talks, and the women were saying he committed a truly terrible crime?”
“It’s wrong to pinpoint someone as a suspect just because they’re an ex-convict.”
As Baek Yi-heon solemnly recited his moral lesson, Choi Kkang-kang quickly waved his hand.
“Hyung-nim! Originally, such heinous criminals are fundamentally wrong…! Huh? Why are you poking me? Even your light pokes hurt quite a bit, Hyung-nim.”
“……”
Baek Yi-heon glanced at me discreetly.
It’s not a particularly welcome topic.
I tried to act nonchalant and quickly changed the subject.
“We should find the culprit as soon as possible. Before more damage is done.”
Of course, I already knew who the culprit of this incident was.
But I couldn’t say that to my companions who knew nothing, so instead…
“Let’s split up and investigate.”
Baek Yi-heon immediately nodded at my words.
“I agree.”
After further discussion, we decided to split into teams: Baek Yi-heon and Sehun, and the rest of us.
My suggestion that Sehun, being the most vulnerable as a child, should pair with the strongest, Baek Yi-heon, was accepted.
Of course, I had another reason for suggesting this.
‘When we confront those “higher-ups,” there will likely be some harsh words exchanged.’
They wouldn’t just meekly admit, “Yes, we’re the culprits.”
We might need to use quite bad language, and if words don’t work, some rather bad actions might be necessary. I didn’t want the moral protagonist and the child to see that.
Having made that judgment, I said to Yu and Choi Kkang-kang.
“We should first look for those ‘higher-ups’.”
“The higher-ups?”
“In such a closed place, it’s impossible that those in charge didn’t know while nearly thirty children disappeared.”
“Hmm…”
“Their intention to manage people through paperwork from that official is also suspicious.”
My companions immediately nodded.
“That makes sense. They clearly said earlier that they’re staying in the adjacent building, right?”
“Yes. And while we investigate the adjacent building, you two…”
I turned towards Baek Yi-heon and Sehun.
In a situation where the culprit is already determined, what should I have them do?
After pondering for a moment, I suggested.
“…How about investigating Kim Seo-min-ssi here first?”
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Thank you for reading! ♡
