Regression Life of a Retired S-Class Mercenary

Episode 54. floor

Kang-soo’s hands trembled when he saw the wooden box’s name engraved in the clutter.

So, I approached the cafe owner.

“That wooden box over there, how long have you been here?”

“huh? What do you mean?”

“This one.”

When the cafe owner couldn’t recognize it properly, Kang-soo personally brought it and held it out.

“hmm···. Most of them were either donated or left by guests, so it says donated here.”

“Don’t you know when?”

“If this wooden box…”

“Are you sure this isn’t him?”

As he continued to blurt out, Kang-soo took out a picture of his mother that he had always kept and showed it.

The cafe owner, who saw it, checked it with the magnifying glasses that were hanging around his neck.

“Ah~ I look a little older, but that’s right. that’s right. Was it the early days of opening a cafe here? He is the guest who came because the day was far away.”

“Is this person right? Then, could it be this person who left this?”

The cafe owner had a surprised expression as if the momentary forgotten memories were biting on his tail.

“Right! This lady left it behind. But who knows?”

“…my mother. Is it okay if I take it?”

There was also a picture of Kangsu taken together in the photo.

The cafe owner seemed to think for a while, then nodded.

“Well, it doesn’t matter. But it’s an empty box, is it okay?”

“An empty box?”

Kangsu immediately opened the box.

On the inside of the lid, like Min Hwan-sik’s box, angel wings were engraved.

However, as the president said, the inside was empty.

“are you okay?”

“···it’s okay.”

There was no way my mother would have left the box as if it were donated to the cafe for no reason.

I had to take it in and check it out.

Meanwhile, Jin Soo-hyeok came out of the bathroom.

“What is that box?”

He saw Kangsu holding it with both hands.

“…my mother donated it here.”

“what?”

“Have you never seen it?”

Originally, in the future, it was a box that Jin Soo-hyeok passed away as a will through Song Tae-joon when he died.

At that time, I couldn’t even check if the words ‘Donated by Han Jin-hye’ were engraved on the box.

Kang-soo was indifferent to the box his father gave him.

Maybe it was as empty then as it is now…

“I’ve never seen one. What was inside?”

“no. An empty box. Still, I think there are traces of my mother, so I’m going to take it after asking the boss for his understanding.”

“I see. Would it be okay for me to take a look?”

Kang-soo held out the box to Jin Soo-hyeok.

After accepting it, Soo-hyeok Jin fiddled with the words ‘Donation of Han Jin-hye’ engraved in the corner.

I recognized Han Jin-hye’s handwriting.

“When your mother writes, the ‘ㅎ’ is unique. It sticks out like an apple stalk on top.”

“…”

It was a voice filled with longing.

Then, the two of them came down from the cafe and got into the car.

headed back to Seoul.

.

.

.

Kang-soo returned home and put the box on the table.

As I was staring at the box, my phone rang.

Woo-woo-woo-woo-

The number that appeared on the screen was Harold.

[Fortunately, I get it.]

“Isn’t it early morning there?”

It was now past 4pm in Korea.

So it must have been around 3 in the morning in America.

[That’s right. The confirmation of Jennifer Han’s entry record that you asked for has finally come over.]

“How was it?”

[I don’t think I ever came to the US. I’d rather check their departure records.]

That was right.

If it was certain that Jennifer Han had gone through the airport, it was more certain than anything to go through the departure records.

However, in a situation where it was unclear how far Infectus would extend, it was necessary to include the line to be touched by Gong Chi-young’s hacking.

It was good to be careful for a while because it was not enough to sell a trap by using Gil Tae-yong as a sacrifice, and even sent people armed with guns.

“Let me ask.”

I was thinking of finding another way.

Soon after, Kang-soo finished the call and shifted his gaze back to the box.

Missing Jennifer Han, who looked just like her mother, only added to her head.

Then, I opened the lid of the box and brought Min Hwan-sik’s box to compare.

After removing the letter inside, there was nothing other than the color of the bottom of the box.

Min Hwan-sik’s was just wooden, while my mother’s was covered with something like a red velvet fabric.

“Did your mother make the floor herself?”

While checking the floor like that, I found something strange.

It was slightly less deep than Min Hwan-sik’s box. The box itself is the same height.

Just looking at it, it was barely noticeable.

“Is it because of the velvet on the floor? or not······.”

Kang-soo took out a fruit knife from the kitchen drawer and tried to insert it through the crack in the bottom of the box.

Swoop—

As expected, the velvet-encased floor lifted.

But the floor was clean.

“Well, I wish I knew what was in this narrow gap.”

When I found out when the cafe opened, it was about 30 years ago, in the mid-1980s, long before computers were commercialized.

Of course, it was difficult to come up with a device that could fit into the narrow gap.

Then suddenly, when I was in Ejisto, I remembered the ways VVIPs used to hide important things.

“···huh? no way······.”

His gaze went to the velvet-covered floor he had just lifted with a knife.

I could see the seam of the velvet folded on the other side.

Kang-soo took off the tape at the seam and tried to undo it.

“···This······.”

The floor was made of two thin sheets of iron, not wood.

When I opened the gap, there was an envelope and a length of black transparent film pasted on one side of the nail.

Once I opened the envelope.

Inside was a letter. It was my mother’s handwriting.

“Soohyeok’s older brother…. When I read this letter, I probably won’t belong to this world…”

Her lung cancer worsened and she died struggling day after day.

However, in a letter from 30 years ago, the mother had already predicted her own death.

“We have a child… Han Kang-soo as a son, Han Hee-soo as a daughter… You must be better-looking or prettier than anyone else. And he’s a nice, smart kid.”

It was also possible to know that the contents were written before Kang-su was born.

“And even if my brother sees this letter, please don’t look for my child. Just know you have kids. Otherwise… my brother or my child, both of you may be in danger.”

why is it dangerous? Could it be that my mother had a relationship with Savnak or Infectus?

What does it mean? And why did he only worry about Jin Soo-hyuk and Kang-soo and not include his comfort?

Suspicion of the river grew even bigger.

“If… but if… if you really want to see my child… come visit me when you’re over 30 years old. That is my last and only request.”

Jin Soo-hyeok was clearly aware of Kang-soo’s existence. That’s why he must have sent a box with a suicide note through Song Tae-joon.

But I couldn’t see him because he died in a car accident.

“If I meet that child even later… deliver my letter Sorry. And I loved you.”

Then there was a letter.

The content was not long.

“My child, I don’t know if it’s a daughter or a son. I love you, and I’m sorry.”

Kang-soo’s teeth clenched.

Why the hell did my mother leave something like this? It wasn’t even a time limit 30 years ago.

Just looking at the contents of the letter, it felt like a person who would die as soon as he gave birth to Kangsu.

However, no reason was given in the letter.

“For what reason?”

This time, Kang-soo’s gaze went to a film the size of a fingernail found with the letter.

I went into the air and looked at it in the fluorescent light, but I saw something densely engraved inside.

“…Microfilm?”

It was also a film compressed to an incredibly small size.

Along with escorting VVIPs at Ejisto, he sometimes delivered items containing important company secrets.

Among them, there were times when we safely delivered microfilm containing important data such as blueprints.

Kang-soo immediately called Gong Chi-yeong.

“Chiyoung, do you have a machine that can read microfilm?”

[huh? You mean a microfilm scanner?”]

“Probably right.”

[It’s not an office multifunction device, is it in a PC room?]

“Can I get it? Right now.”

[I’ll call an electronics store I know. But what happened? Didn’t you say you were going somewhere after work today?]

“It has to happen. I’m going to the internet cafe right now, so save me.”

After the phone call, Kang-soo wrapped the microfilm around the paper so it wouldn’t get lost, and put it in her wallet along with her mother’s picture.

Then I went outside and headed to Gong Chi-young’s Internet cafe.

* * *

Meanwhile, Teresa and Yoo So-hyun went to the place where the first reading of the script for ＜My Neighbor Diablo＞ was scheduled.

One by one the actors came in and sat down.

In response, Yoo So-hyun exchanged greetings whenever she had time, and then recited the lines of Jessica Kim, her role.

In the meantime, Teresa stood behind Yoo So-hyun while wearing sunglasses as a bodyguard, exuding a cool look.

“sister! Oh hello! hello!”

Hong Ah-jin, Yoo So-hyun’s close sister, entered the room where she was preparing for a reading.

This time, Hong Ah-jin was also selected for the role of Oh Ji-young, Jessica Kim’s college classmate and close sister.

Hong Ah-jin greeted other senior actors in the room and approached Yoo So-hyun.

“how have you been doing?”

“Hey, you’ve been so good! Oh, sister, did you hear the news?”

“Oh, is that?”

Both of their expressions became serious.

In fact, it was because Yuseong Jin also passed for ＜My Neighbor Diablo＞.

Aside from his trashy personality, his acting wasn’t bad. In addition, the role he was to play in ＜My Neighbor Diablo＞ was similar to his original personality.

Hawk O’Brien recognized it at once and pulled out Jinyuseong.

“How is Jin Yoo-seong really doing?”

“phew-“

It was because of an article that appeared this morning.

It was a shocking article that put off the mysterious corpses found in the hills of Siheung.

[The radical private life of famous actor J. Ugly eccentricity made in Guam.]

[The first distributor was a former employee of Red Star Entertainment. Confessed that he wanted to rid the world of dirty people.]

The video that Gong Chi-young distributed to the people of Red Star Entertainment was leaked.

The problem was that the contact information of Red Star Enter written by Gong Chi-young last time was an old version that included people who had left the company.

“How will it be?”

It was to ask what would happen to Yuseong Jin’s appearance in ＜My Neighbor Diablo＞.

Looking at the situation, it seemed clear that it would be difficult, but since Red Star Entertainment is famous for being so brazen, everyone was worried.

Then all the other actors came in.

When everything was ready, the director, Hawk O’Brien, came in with an interpreter and sat down.

“It is a bad situation. The role of Gye Jae-sik, which was decided this time, is difficult for Jin Yoo-seong, so he is urgently looking for another actor. First of all, today’s reading will be handled by someone different in that role.”

Reading started like that.

Theresa stayed quiet, then walked to the window for a moment and looked out. Then my eyes were fixed on a black car parked on the side of the road.

With the engine off, a human figure was reflected in the window.

Returning life of a retired S-class mercenary