Chapter 151 – Hey, What Are You Doing?
‘I’m sorry you contacted me, master… I was a bit busy…’
“No, I’m sorry for making you worry, but Noah.
I’m sorry I’m busy, but there’s something I need to check. Is the time okay?”
‘Yes of course, what’s going on?’
The owner of the mask who ran away, the saint who ceased to be a saint, and the woman with red hair.
She leaves the cleanup of the mess to Hye-mi’s sister and communicates telepathically with Noah.
“Do you remember the red-dyed girl I entrusted to you earlier?
“If you find out anything about that woman, please tell me everything.”
‘Ah… You’re talking about the woman you saw at the Korean branch.
Well, I’m really sorry, but I haven’t found out anything about her yet.
We confirmed the identities of Korean branch agents and their entry and exit details through security footage…’
Does that mean there was nothing to worry about?
Noah blurts out the end of her words and thinks about that woman before she forgets.
Her bright red hair was hanging down long enough to touch the ground, and she was wearing a pure white robe.
The elegant steps and leisurely laughter were a strange feeling in themselves.
An aura that has the shape of a human, but can never be considered ordinary.
She had an outstanding appearance that made you feel beautiful just by looking at her, but
She was a mysterious woman who somehow made you feel bad just by looking at her.
‘I’m sorry, I’ll investigate as quickly as possible and report it to my master.’
“… It’s okay, Noah, if she had been easy to find in the first place, you would have found her a long time ago.”
Even Noah, who has a habit of joking around, shows a serious side when working.
After occupying the Korean branch, things like Taejun’s affairs and accidents caused by other saints, etc.
Her ability to support Noah is quite high as she single-handedly took care of our clean-up.
The fact that she couldn’t figure it out… I guess it’s difficult to use normal methods.
“You don’t have to worry too much about her, so let her take care of her busy work right now and get some rest.”
She can no longer burden Noah, who is busy, for no reason.
For now, she just tells Noah that she found the mask over here, and lets him rest…
‘Haa… Thank you, master… The Korean branch has suddenly become busy as well…
I’m currently on my way back to Seoul with masks from the local area. Whoa, I’m sleepy…
‘This is the second mask that has appeared in Korea, so the whole headquarters is in an uproar right now.’
“…Huh? Wait, there too?”
‘…Yes? What do you mean… Master, are you there right now…’
Another mask had appeared in a place I didn’t know about without my knowledge.
Coincidentally, it was around the same time I met the owner of the mask.
“…Noah. I’ll contact you later, so stop by my school as soon as you get to Seoul. I’ll hang up.”
I guess not.
“Since it’s all over, Hye-mi, buy us something called Takoyaki~”
“That’s right, we did all the hard work, so buy us that much.”
“Our moon and stars look nothing like your brother, do they? This thing doesn’t just have a sword, it’s a very strong robber.”
“Huh? If I pick up a knife, you’ll buy it for me?”
The older sister and the twins are exchanging puns after finishing cleaning up.
He walked quickly towards them, snatched Byul’s hand, and turned away.
“Wow, brother? Why suddenly…”
“To the cabin.”
Shuuu──
“…”
“Brother? Why did you suddenly come to the cabin? There shouldn’t be anything left to see…”
“I came to see what was left.”
After exchanging information with Noah, I went straight into the ‘Witch’s Hut’ with Byeol.
A separate space far from reality, a strange cabin located in the corner of the bedroom of desire.
I stride into this dark, old space where all masks are born and look around.
Furniture that hasn’t been touched in a long time and bookshelves that I organized.
An old carving knife and sawdust from trees that still feel vibrant remain on the workbench.
That means─
“I came to see what’s left~ Don’t be difficult and finish it quickly~
“Dalgi, the takoyaki I bought, ate it all by herself… Huh…?”
“…Fuck.”
Another space next to the workshop, which looks like a warehouse, has pitch-black walls.
A pitch-black wall stretched out infinitely wide and high, as if it had transcended the concept of space.
There were thousands upon thousands of white-painted wooden masks hanging on the wall.
The masks look identical, as if they were made by a craftsman who was dissatisfied with his own work.
“…Is it gone?”
The masks hanging on the wall had disappeared.
Not all of them have disappeared, but there are gaps between the masks that were neatly hung.
Even if I were to guess the number of blank spaces and missing masks at a glance, it seemed like there would be more than 100.
“…Brother, this is…”
“…”
There is someone else who can enter the witch’s hut besides me.
And that someone probably has red hair.
“…Ah, Woo-ju oppa! Where have you been? Something happened…”
“Oh, no… It’s nothing to worry about, I just wanted to take a quick look.”
As soon as I opened the door of the cabin and came out, the person who greeted me with reality was Yunbyeol, dressed as a maid.
Behind the stage, under the shadow of a deserted street tree, I look around and sigh.
“… My sister said she would just clean up the store and prepare for tomorrow.
And Hye-mi said she was bringing a woman to her infirmary.
Besides, soon…? He told me to guard this place because someone called him is coming…”
“…Yes, you did well. Nothing special happened, right?”
“Yes, the performance has just started, so let’s just wait for the sisters and go watch it together.”
With a grin, Yunbyeol entered the audience first and took out her cell phone.
As she racks her brain over a much more complicated situation, she sends Noah a message.
Many masks and a woman with red hair disappeared from the cabin.
What if that woman is spreading the cabin’s masks into reality?
What exactly is it, and for what purpose is it doing such a thing?
Moreover, when he finally appeared in front of me, why did he laugh at me and then disappear?
“…”
Even if she tries to guess the inner thoughts of a woman whose identity she does not know, there is nothing she can find out.
For now, the best thing to do is invest everything I know into Noah and track down the woman.
And from today onwards, let’s go into the cabin once a day and continue investigating.
If you’re really lucky, you might run into that woman at the cabin.
“…Brother.”
”Why are you doing that? Oh, takoyaki? Dal-i and Byeol-i must have bought yours too.
Don’t worry too much, I was thankful for today. Let’s go and see the performance.”
“No, that’s not it… I can feel the desire of that man from before very strongly.”
Byul, who was sniffing the scent floating in the air, pointed to a shadow beyond the stage.
That direction is the parking lot, and you can feel that fat guy’s desire there just now? What is that…
“…It’s so dark? That person isn’t even the owner of the mask anymore?”
“We broke the mask, but we didn’t break the man’s desire, right?
“I can feel something a bit gloomy, something much dirtier than my brother’s sexual desires.”
“…It’s so dirty…”
While muttering to herself in response to Byul’s words, her eyes turn to the back of the stage.
“…Let’s go.”
I looked out into the darkness blankly and took a step forward due to a surge of anxiety.
In addition to the masks that disappeared from the cabin, the red woman, and me, there were two other mask owners who appeared in Korea.
I don’t think these are related.
If that woman made them pick up the mask…
What was the Red Woman’s standard and why did she give them the masks?
I pass by a streetlight, driven by an anxious delusion that makes me walk faster and faster.
The loud noise of the concert hall recedes behind me, and silence comes.
In the middle of a parking lot filled with cold cars, there really was that man…
“Star, I’m sure it’s here──”
Slap──
The moment he looked down at Byul and stepped on his foot, he stepped on a puddle of water.
It wasn’t supposed to rain today.
Feeling a sense of déjà vu in the dry air, he turned his head to face the other side of Byul.
There was definitely a puddle of water. Although it was incredibly small, it was dark red in color.
Blood.
A shivering woman was leaning against her tire, her white sweater soaked in it.
“Help me…”
“────”
Without having time to reply, Byeol-i, who had changed his appearance into a mask, sat in front of her.
Pressing her bleeding wound with one hand, I held up her star and prayed for her desire.
“Get well…!”
“I. Ah. La.”
The flow of blood is immediately stopped by the faintly spreading purple wave.
But the scars still remain. Was there a lack of desire? A little stronger…
“Oppa… I heard a sound from behind…”
I took my stance once again, and just as I was about to borrow her desire, Byeol-i warned me.
Thanks to that warning, I realized something strange that I had not noticed when I was tense.
The car and van that the woman was leaning against were shaking.
Hearing the faint, muffled scream coming from inside, he slowly wakes up and looks at the seat in front of her.
The man in the driver’s seat was bleeding from his neck and mouth and had googly eyes.
Is that person dead…?
Barely moving her trembling hands and feet, she opens the van door and looks around inside her car.
“Big black, huh …! Save, please, please live …!”
“…Whoop…! Whoosh…!?”
Inside that spacious car, she was crying with her clothes torn to shreds.
The man from earlier was there with Miho, a familiar face to me.
A man holding Miho down, completely taking off his clothes, exposing his ugly body.
He was breathing heavily and holding a small, blood-covered knife in one hand.
I was scared. Anyone would feel fear in this situation.
But regret came before fear to me.
“… Hey, a dog, what are you doing now?”
I should have just killed this bastard earlier, but I regret it.
* *
