KEG 83
He runs a gambling site and even deals in loan sharking, yet he’s still diligent about his studies. People like this usually have anxiety about the future or are being pressured by their parents.
“Are Lee Sangwoo’s parents strict?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never heard him talking about his parents.”
“You’d think his parents would be pushing him to attend a cram school of this caliber.”
I looked up at the imposing cram school building in Daechi-dong.
It was a ridiculously expensive cram school with famous instructors, great facilities, and a prime location. I didn’t know exactly what they were studying, but both the parents waiting in line and the kids getting into their cars all had a shadow over their faces.
“I think Lee Sangwoo’s father is a pastor, or something like that, someone involved with the church.”
Is being a pastor a high-paying job?
In contrast to my doubts, Kwon Hyunseok seemed convinced that if Lee Sangwoo’s father was a pastor, he’d naturally be able to send his son to a cram school like this.
“Give me the number to contact Lee Sangwoo.”
“Contact him on Telegram. He always uses different accounts. I don’t have a reliable contact for him either.”
He was damn thorough. Then again, he was the kind of guy who set up double traps, no way he’d let himself get caught easily.
So, does that mean I have no choice but to go to his house? Should I ask Kim Yiyun to dig through the student records?
“But….”
Kwon Hyunseok lowered his voice and leaned in close to me.
“I know Lee Sangwoo’s girlfriend.”
What is he talking about? He’s out committing crimes, and he’s even got a girlfriend?
He sure leads a busy life.
“How did you find out?”
“Take a look at this.”
Kwon Hyunseok showed me someone’s social media account on his phone screen.
An account with more photos of a snow-white Pomeranian and drinking parties than of people. The account owner was a pretty, glamorous-looking woman. She looked like what you’d call an influencer.
“She’s a Guide and broadcaster. But look at this photo she posted a month ago.”
A photo showing bottles of alcohol and cigarettes on a table, and a glimpse of a thigh.
The account owner was wearing a short miniskirt that exposed her thighs, and the man slightly visible next to her was also wearing short shorts, revealing his thighs as well.
Both of them had distinctive tattoos on their thighs.
“These are couple tattoos. I saw Lee Sangwoo with this tattoo last year when we were playing soccer.”
What a bunch of nonsense.
I guess I’d been viewing him as some kind of high-IQ criminal for committing all sorts of crimes. Couple tattoos while dating?
He was just a kid.
“Is this Guide a famous person?”
“Uh… well… in the underground scene, sort of…?”
“Underground scene?”
“She does strip shows…”
When I asked what “strip shows” was, Kwon Hyunseok looked exasperated.
“She takes her clothes off! Online strippers! Don’t you know? Don’t you have internet at home?”
He’s treating me like I’m the weird one for not knowing. It’s not like not knowing that would hinder my daily life.
“How did you even find out about it?”
“…Huh?”
“It doesn’t seem like the kind of thing you’d know just because you have an internet connection.”
“No, I was just looking up game walkthroughs…”
Kwon Hyunseok blushed and stammered. Regardless, I typed her name into the search bar to check.
A ton of racy images and bizarre photos showed up.
And even her agency.
“Is she a porn actress?”
“Hmm… It’s close. Don’t you look at stuff like this, Seongho?”
“Well, do you?”
“Uh… hmm… I don’t really go looking for it… just… I just know the name…”
If there’s an agency, that means there’s a supply, which implies there’s a demand. I don’t really want to judge her.
There are people who pay to watch, so there are people who take their clothes off. As long as she doesn’t cause me any trouble.
“Is Lee Sangwoo anywhere near this person?”
“Yeah, look at this photo. It was posted three hours ago.”
The account owner posted dozens of updates every single day. She posted so frequently that, if you looked closely, you could probably track her movements.
What she ate, where she went, which nail art shop sponsored her, and so on…
“Look, do you see the guy holding the puppy in the mirror?”
A man caught my eye. shirtless, wearing shorts, holding a puppy while taking a photo of the woman.
He had a tattoo on his thigh.
“It’s Lee Sangwoo. His face is distorted from editing, but I’m certain.”
A face distorted to follow the curves of the woman’s body, broken pixels.
I thought something was wrong, it was the editing.
“You’re pretty good at this.”
“Huh? Oh, well… t-thanks…”
When I gave him a simple compliment, he scratched his head. I watched him for a moment, then said something that suddenly occurred to me.
“I found the kid who’s being bullied in your class.”
It was my way of repaying him for asking around for information.
Kwon Hyunseok looked startled at my words and asked me back.
“Huh? Jongpil?”
“I don’t know his name. Anyway, I found the kid Lee Sangwoo was tormenting with hypnosis.”
“…I see.”
“He’s in the hospital. Teacher Kim Yiyun is his guardian.”
Kwon Hyunseok stared at the floor without answering. Don’t guys who love to brag also love other people’s stories? I went out of my way to tell him because I thought it was commendable, why is he acting like that?
“Room 304 at Paradise Hospital.”
I told him the name of the hospital and the room number where the bullied kid was staying. At those words, Kwon Hyunseok lifted his gaze from the ground and looked at me.
“They say he’s malnourished.”
“…Should I bring him some porridge or something?”
“You figure it out. I’m leaving.”
I turned my back on the dazed Kwon Hyunseok and got into the car.
I told Baek Yejun where to go, and even as the car pulled away, Kwon Hyunseok remained rooted to the spot.
I’d done my part; he’d figure out the rest on his own.
“Hyung, what does ‘Yamete Agency’ do?”
Baek Yejun, who was driving, asked as he glanced at the navigation screen.
That tacky name. It was the name of the agency that the Guide broadcaster Kwon Hyunseok had mentioned was affiliated with.
“I don’t know. Maybe pimps.”
That was the conclusion I’d reached after searching to gather information.
The people affiliated with it all did pornographic broadcasts, and agency staff members occasionally appeared on the streams to drink. It was just a typical pimp operation, only now operating online.
I rummaged through my wallet and found my Guide license.
It was a license with no date of birth, only a serial number and my affiliation.
“Does my face look much different now than it did back then?”
“Wow, looks like a photo from your early twenties.”
It was a license where I’d used an old photo because I couldn’t be bothered to get a new ID shot. Back then, before I enlisted, I had no scars and my skin was clear.
“The photo looks a bit young, so it doesn’t seem like there’s much of an age difference from now.”
“So, do you think it’d work if I said I had repeated a few school years?”
“Huh…?”
Baek Yejun looked at me, completely baffled.
“Watch the road.”
He looked straight ahead, but Baek Yejun still had a look on his face like he had no idea what was going on.
“These guys go crazy for younger people, so let’s take advantage of that.”
“What do you mean…?”
I rested my chin on my hand by the window and watched the street scenery flash by, thinking about what to say at the interview.
“Yes, from now on, I’m an aspiring BJ Guide stripper .”
***
‘Yamete Agency’.
I was able to easily find the location of their headquarters with a simple internet search.
A nameless commercial space in a newly constructed building in the new town. The newly planted street trees in front of the building looked more like dignitaries than actual trees. In this entirely artificial place, the air was saturated with the smell of wet paint and asphalt.
“Ah~ the person who contacted us…? Huh? Are you a student? You’re wearing a school uniform.”
A man who appeared to have been waiting for me in front of the building, smoking a cigarette, acknowledged me.
“I’m an adult. I repeated a few years.”
I showed him my Guide license. Since this license is issued only to adults, it also serves as a form of identification.
“Nah, let’s just say you’re about 18.”
He brushed my license aside and grabbed my face. It was rude, but I didn’t exactly pull away.
I figured there was no point in being prickly. I wanted him to see me as someone desperate for money, the kind of person who’d come to a strip club.
“Are you telling me to play the 18-year-old role?”
“Yeah, pretend to be a student for about two years, milk those suckers dry, and then make a sizzling adult debut once you turn 20.”
“Suckers”?
It was clearly a harmless word, but hearing it in this context made it sound off. It didn’t seem to have a good meaning.
“I… I’m not sure. Do you think I’ll make money?”
The man looked slightly dazed for a moment, then quickly put on a friendly smile. But his eyes were sizing up my body.
“Foreign girls really like Korean guys, you know~ You don’t even need to speak a foreign language. We’ll provide an interpreter.”
They’re even providing an interpreter? It’s more organized than I thought.
“You’ll pick it up as you go~ We’ve got a guy at our company who used to entertain Chinese audiences and is practically a native speaker now.”
The man casually slung his arm around my shoulders and led me into the building. From the arm draped over my shoulder to the way he was leading me, there wasn’t a single trace of consideration.
It felt like I was being kidnapped.
“Oh~ why are you so stiff! Smile a little! The ‘robot’ concept doesn’t really work these days~”
He sure had a lot of demands. But it was better to look compliant than to put up a fight.
I relaxed my face and twisted my mouth and eyes into a smile.
“…Oh, that’s actually pretty goo–”
Bang!
Just then, I heard the sound of a car door slamming.
“Seongho.”
Baek Yejun called out to me from behind.
His face was hidden behind a mask and a hat.
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