Chapter 205
Theatrical Regression Life
Episode 205
Lee Jae-heon explained the so-called âLee Jae-heon Bastard Makingâ project to Kim Yeon-woo and Hong Gyeong-jun. Of course, I only thought about the name of the project in my mind. It was a name too blatantly vulgar to say out loud.
After finishing the explanation by drawing pictures on paper, the expressions on Hong Gyeong-jun and Kim Yeon-wooâs expressions were very strange.
âI have a question for you.â
ââ¦Are you seriousâ¦?â
âI donât know what you meant.â
âAre you serious about doing this?â
âWhy isnât it simple?â
Lee Jae-heon, who realized that he had the talent of a serial killer and had been hiding his real face for a long time, recently witnessed someoneâs âworkâ and wants to become a figure in the industry. The vicious Lee Jae-heon takes police officer Kim Yeon-woo hostage and wields detective Hong Gyeong-jun. On the other hand, he loses his ability to control his instincts and begins investigating people around him in order to create his own âworkâ⦠âThis is pretty well organized
. Isnât it? âWhat do you think?â
ââ¦I think it would be fun to make a movie out of thisâ¦â
âIn the first place, life is bigger than a movie.â
The other side of the world is like that, but the past life that Lee Jae-heon recalled was even more eventful and bizarre. Lee Jae-heonâs history would be much grander than that of anyone else living on this planet. The sight of Kim Yeon-woo mumbling in front of him, saying it was unrealistic, was not even noticeable.
Hong Gyeong-jun, who was tapping his fingers on the table as the two spoke, opened his mouth.
âSo what should we do?â
âDetective, you can do what you do and look for other survivors.â
Hong Gyeong-junâs top priority was to find survivors other than us, and the next one was Song In-myeong. In particular, there seemed to be a reason why survivors who entered and exited the underworld could panic and cause accidents for various reasons, such as mannequin monsters or a sense of disconnection from reality.
Well, the people around Lee Jae-heon, including Jung In-ho, were unusually calm, but that was not a typical reaction.
âI was really surprised when I first looked in the mirror. Actually, itâs not particularly good even nowâ¦â
âThe monster itself is very intimidating. âItâs natural to feel momentarily confused when you escape to reality but encounter the monster again.â
âPlus, it came out on the car mirror. âI think there is a possibility that an accident could occur while driving.â
As in the curious conversation between Kim Yeon-woo and Hong Gyeong-jun, the mannequin monster could appear in any mirror and scare the survivors. The existence of a monster that pops out at no set time and harasses people was enough to push the survivors to their limits.
Jaeheon Lee added a word.
âEven what you experience in the underworld can leave lasting aftereffects.â
âIâm worried about that too.â
Fortunately, the people who came to their senses in the underworld were either immune to mental pain or extremely healthy. In particular, the characters who were part of the main character in the novel seemed to be trying to find stability in their own way, as Lee Jae-heon confirmed last time, but in the case of other characters in the original work who could not survive for a long time, it was difficult to expect them to be in a good state even after escaping.
What Iâm most worried about at the moment is people like President Choi Jeong-man and Kim Ki-jeong. At least President Choi Jeong-man showed the will to hold on somehow because he had a son, but in the case of Kim Ki-jeong, who was sensitive by nature, even the smallest thing seemed to cause great stress. It was a situation that Jaeheon Lee could not help but be concerned about.
In such a story, Hong Gyeong-jun spoke.
âLuckily, Mr. Kim Ki-jeong knows where I live. He said he originally worked overseas and returned home after a long time. âAfter saying hello to his parents, he came to his home and said that on his way to the park to rest, he ended up in another world.â
âThen I guess you live around here.â
âIâm sorry, but I cannot tell you exactly where Mr. Kim Ki-jeong lives. We heard it directly from Kim Ki-jeong, but this is also personal information. âWe will meet with you first and ask if you would be willing to let Jaeheon Lee know.â
Jaeheon Lee thought about that.
âAs expected, Hong Gyeong-jun was a man who was sincere in protecting the survivors, even though his methods were poor.â
For an actor who played the role of a corrupt cop in this âMaking a Bastard Lee Jae-heonâ project, he was a very good detective. Lee Jae-heon, who was joking inwardly, opened his mouth after a moment of contemplation.
ââ¦Rather, I would like to have a place where we can have a conversation. Other survivors also gathered together. I asked Ohsung employees for their consent to infringe on their personal information, butâ¦â â
â¦Iâll pass it on to you.â
Jiik.
Lee Jae-heon, who drew a line over the name âKim Ki-jeongâ with a pen, continued.
âThen, as of now, the only people who know where they live are Kim Ki-jeong, Han Do-yoon, Lee Yun-byeol, Choi Jeong-man, and Korean University students.â
âYou said you asked for consent from Ohseong employees, Mr. Garam Yoon, and the doctor. âThen, do you know anything about the residence of that high school sibling?â
âI know about school uniforms, but I donât know exactly where they live and where they study. These were kids who didnât talk about things like that. âI will take care of finding and meeting those friends.â
âWell, for those students, it would be better for Jaeheon Lee to approach them. âIt seemed like he was on high alert.â
Talk.
Hong Gyeong-jun asked, tapping the table once more with his finger.
âDo you know anything about Mr. Munsanâ¦?â
âdoesnât exist.â
ââ¦You joined late. understand.â
âI will conduct a separate investigation for Mr. Munsan-gun and other people for whom I have no information. âI wonât go into much detail, but I will just find out where you live, so you donât have to worry too much.â
ââ¦.â
âEven if you glare at me with that expression, itâs not scary at all. Would I waste my time knowing that I would be dragged into the other world at some point? âYouâre saying they wonât investigate the details?â
ââ¦.â
âLook at you not answering until the end.â
Of course, it would be strange for the police to say outright, âOkay, do a follow-up investigation.â Lee Jae-heon could not hold back his laughter and scolded Hong Gyeong-jun.
âI donât know if Iâll be able to have a proper social life without this level of flexibility.â
It was just a joke, though.
ââ¦.â
ââ¦Detective?â
I saw Hong Gyeong-junâs eyes sink for a moment and then come back again.
âI have a good social life as well.â
âOf course it is.â
âI see Jaeheon Lee is worrying for nothing.â
Kim Yeon-woo also looked at him with a puzzled look, as if he felt it, but Hong Gyeong-jun just ignored him. Jaeheon Lee felt a determination not to tell anything, so he didnât bother to ask any more questions.
But I felt clearly interested.
ââ¦Who on earth did I overlap with?â
Perhaps someone watching Lee Jae-heon had said something similar to what he had just said, but I thought it would be better to investigate this in advance without asking for consent. If anything, there might come a day when we have to use that âsomeoneâ to cultivate Hong Kyung-junâs sociability.
Lee Jae-heon swallowed his true feelings and continued speaking.
âThen, we will contact you as soon as we find out the residences of other survivors, so please search for those who know the residences first. âI think it would be better to look for Seo Jang-hwa and Vivian first.â
ââ¦those students had a great attachment to Song In-myeong. I understand. Even if Song In-myeong approaches first or tries to meet Song In-myeong there, it will be a problem, so letâs talk in advance. There is a high possibility that we have already metâ¦â
âAnd I will meet President Choi Jeong-man.â
âIs there any other reason?â
âItâs nothing specialâ¦â
The face of a child who was massaging my hand as if it were a toy came to mind.
âIsnât Choi Min-hong a child over there?â
âI guess youâre worried.â
âThatâs because young children often do strange things. President Choi Jeong-man must have been in a difficult situation, but he was doing business not far from the company anyway. âItâs not difficult to get there.â
âHmmâ¦.â
It meant that I, who was close to the child, was going to visit him because I was afraid he might cause an accident.
âDid you think it was out of pure concern?â
At Lee Jae-heonâs words, Hong Gyeong-jun looked at Lee Jae-heon gently, and Kim Yeon-woo gave him a strangely warm look. I know it was a misunderstanding, but it wasnât a particularly harmful misunderstanding, so I decided to just accept it. If you look at me favorably, I feel comfortable.
He pretended not to notice and made fun of the pen.
âAnd in fact, it is not probable that I chose Hong Gyeong-jun just because he was the âdetective chasing Song In-myeongâ⦠so letâs just say that there is a detective in my âworkâ as well.â
âIs it okay to just put it together like that?â
âWhat can you do in a situation where Police Officer Kim Yeon-woo has already been included? âWhat more do you want when you get to this point?â
Lee Jae-heon said, typing the names âHong Gyeong-junâ and âKim Yeon-wooâ written on the paper with a pen.
âSo, detectives and police officers, you can show that you are uncomfortable with topics related to me. If youâre not good at acting, just donât say anything. âIf thatâs the case, I can take care of it myself.â
ââ¦I donât think youâve done something like this once or twice.â
Lee Jae-heon responded to Kim Yeon-woo, who was muttering between admiration, surprise, and confusion.
âWell, I also have to eat to survive.â
ââ¦Uh, yesâ¦.â
âYou donât seem to understand it at all, but it doesnât matter.â
Tuk.
I lightly put down my pen.
âI guess thatâs what needs to be done right now. Detective Hong Gyeong-jun, please talk to Seo Jang-hwa and Vivian first. After youâre done, please look for other survivors who know where they are. âThe information I requested will probably be obtained somewhere in the middle.â
ââ¦In the end, background investigationâ¦.â
âOf course, please check Song In-myeongâs movements during that time. You canât fail to do your duty as a detective just because youâre protecting the survivors. If you work in parallel and find out the condition of all the survivors, I think you can arrange a place to talk with me. âI would appreciate it if you could mention in advance that I have conducted a background investigation regarding the survivorsâ residence.â
âAll right.â
Lee Jae-heonâs gaze returned to Kim Yeon-woo.
âKim Yeon-woo, please accompany the detective as much as possible. All you have to do is contact him often, meet him often, and express your anxiety about âLee Jae-heonâ in the meantime. Even something very small is okay. âI also like the feeling of guilt that Detective Hong Gyeong-jun got caught by the collar because of the police officer.â
ââ¦Isnât this almost how you prepare for a play?â
âIf you think of it as a play, Iâm fine with it. There is no need to think too hard about it. âI guess Kim Yeon-woo was planning to go after Song In-myeong with the detective anyway, right?â
âThatâs true, butâ¦.â
âThen itâs enough just to keep an expressionless face and focus on your job with the detective.â
After saying that, Kim Yeon-woo looked at Lee Jae-heon with a very confused expression. Perhaps it was anxiety stemming from the inability to clearly define the person named âLee Jae-heonâ. Maybe alertness has gone up.
âBut it wonât be a meaningful level of caution.â
Kim Yeon-woo has a bad habit of trying to look good on people in any way possible.
âI will contact you as soon as I meet survivors and gather information. First, letâs meet with President Choi Jeong-man. Next, I will have a conversation with students Da-young Park and Da-hoon Park.â
âI guess youâll play that damn villain too.â
âIsnât it fun?â
âItâs not fun at all.â
âI have fun.â
He let out a quiet, low laugh.
âReally.â
* * *
Hong Gyeong-jun blinked at the sight of Lee Jae-heon saying that.
âWell⦠I called you to my house as a threat, but wouldnât it be a bit weird if I left out too unscathed? Would you like a drink? âI will follow you as a poisonous bastard.â
âIs there any significance to that?â
âYou said you drank it because I threatened you. When I watch noir movies, I often see people having such oppressive conversations and drinking together. Itâs not a bad idea to try to create a similar atmosphereâ¦â
His voice is faintly excited.
Lee Jae-heon looked happy, as if a helpless person had found something to do. He seemed genuinely happy, and although he wasnât full of motivation, he seemed to have gained enough energy to take active action. It resembled a patient organizing his life just before death.
Hong Gyeong-jun knew such a person.
âWe will be drinking, so please call a taxi when you go. That way, our play will spread well.â
ââ¦.â
âDetective Hong Gyeong-jun?â
âAll right.â
Wow.
I clenched my hands into fists without saying a word.
ââ¦I donât want to overlap.â
Itâs so similar that itâs so strange.
I felt sick.