My uncle is not in the room
No, to be exact, it's more accurate to say that he wasn't in the room.
Preoccupied with worries and half-lost in other thoughts, Jeong Tae-ui entered without knocking, but no one was around to call him out on it.
The door wasn't locked, and there was no one in the room, so he paused for a moment, but then he heard the sound of water coming from inside and understood. Someone was probably in the attached shower room.
Jeong Tae-ui confirmed that this was indeed his uncle's room, noticing several familiar belongings carelessly scattered on the desk. He then entered and sat in the large chair in front of the desk, slowly looking around the room.
His uncle's private office was quite different from Jeong Tae-ui's own room.
Not only the furniture and electronics provided, but above all else, there were many books here. The bookshelves, filling the walls without a gap, were crammed full of books in no particular order.
Jeong Tae-ui ran his hand lightly across a bookshelf within reach. My uncle possessed a great many rare books. My uncle's house—though he spends most of the year at a branch office, returning home for less than ten days a year—belonged to a considerable bibliophile, and was filled with rare books that would make antique book collectors drool with envy. The fact that the house had been burgled by book thieves once spoke for itself.
So, Jeong Jae-ui would often go to his uncle's house and stay for several days at a time. However, he stopped going when he ran out of books to read. Before that, Jeong Tae-ui would sometimes go to his uncle's house to call for his older brother.
While Jeong Tae-ui didn't love books as much as his brother or uncle, he still enjoyed them enough to recognize a rare book when he saw one. Among the books within his reach, there was one—a book he had wanted to read but ultimately couldn't find.
Jeong Tae-ui raised his eyebrows slightly and picked up the book. It was a book I had tried desperately to find, but ultimately had to give up on because even the original edition was out of print.
I don't know where this person finds such things so well. It's convenient for me, though.
Jeong Tae-ui, impressed with his uncle, idly flipped through the pages of a book. However, he couldn't seem to concentrate on it.
It's because that young man he'd encountered earlier keeps appearing before his eyes.
"……Seriously. I’m not some lovesick teenager……. Get a grip, Jeong Tae-ui."
Jeong Tae-ui rubbed his face, which was starting to feel hot, and clicked his tongue. He even lightly slapped his own cheeks a couple of times.
What on earth is this branch like? How could they leave such a young and frail kid in the middle of this harsh island? But considering he was on this floor, he's probably not a staff member…….
Jeong Tae-ui, after considering that much, came to an abrupt halt.
This is the first basement floor. It's not a floor where staff members stay. The people who stay on this floor, ……I’m guessing that the kid is actually someone important, like the director, or the vice director, or an instructor…….
Jeong Tae-ui's face stiffened slightly. He only mechanically flipped through the pages of the book in his hand with his mind blank.
Just that moment.
What brought Jeong Tae-ui back from his brief lapse into unconsciousness was a very faint mechanical sound, one that could easily be heard in the quiet room.
Jeong Tae-ui turned his head towards the direction of the sound. It was coming from the phone on the desk. A quiet, soft mechanical sound. A monitor, about the size of a notebook, attached above the red flashing lamp, glowed dimly and faintly, as if urging him to press it.
Jeong Tae-ui turned his head. The sound of water was no longer coming from the bathroom. He thought someone would be coming out soon, but then he heard the sound of splashing water, along with a soft humming. It seemed like they were soaking in the bathtub.
The phone call did not end easily, so Jeong Tae-ui put the book down on the desk and stood up. He went to the bathroom and knocked lightly on the glass door.
"Uncle―, you got a phone call.”
A phone call? At this hour? ―――Aha, I think I know who it is. Please take the call for me and write down the message. I'll be out in a while."
In the uncle's voice, which responded to Jeong Tae-ui's words, there wasn't even a hint of surprise. It's certain that he already knew from the moment Jeong Tae-ui entered the room. Although he entered silently, his uncle wasn't the kind of person who wouldn't notice someone's presence, and Jeong Tae-ui, as expected, sighs, thinking, "Yeah, I figured."
"If you knew someone was coming, you should have thought about getting out sooner instead of leisurely taking a bath, Uncle."
As Jeong Tae-ui muttered, a low chuckle echoed from inside the bathroom
"I know it's you, so why would I hurry?"
Yeah, he was originally someone with this kind of side to him.
Jeong Tae-ui clicked his tongue and returned to his desk, but in the meantime, the call had ended. "The call's disconnected, Uncle," Jeong Tae-ui shouted towards the bathroom, then picked up his book again and sat down.
A bath, huh? By now, that young man must have entered the bathroom too.…….
Jeong Tae-ui's face flushed again for no particular reason. Even his earlobes felt hot.
His fair, supple body, close to a peach's hue, would be flushed and beautifully colored in the warm water. His skin seemed like it would have a subtle, soft, and very pleasant scent. It made me involuntarily want to embrace him.
"…….This is serious, really serious…….It was just a fleeting moment. Why am I being like this? Jeong Tae-ui."
Jeong Tae-ui fanned his flushed face and sighed, muttering to himself. It wasn't like I had a crush on the young man or anything. I didn't know him well enough for that. But the guy kept popping into my head.
Jeong Tae-ui sighed for what felt like the hundredth time today, fanning himself with the thick book he was holding. Then, the quiet mechanical sound rang out once more. The lamp flickered again.
Jeong Tae-ui hesitated for a moment, considering whether to call his uncle, but thought he wouldn't come even if he did. He pressed the lamp, remembering that he was supposed to write down a message. But he couldn't find any paper or pen to write with. It would be nice if it was a message I could remember.
"Yes, hello."
As soon as I answered the phone, the LCD monitor on top of the lamp turned on. And a video image, presumably from the person who called, appeared.
The viewing angle wasn't very wide, so I couldn't see clearly, but it seemed to be indoors. It was probably a personal room, and I could vaguely see a built-in closet next to the white wall.
And, a human body filled about 1/3 of the screen.
Due to the narrow angle, I could only see a part of the middle of the body. About half of a light blue shirt around the chest area was visible. And there was a sleeve connected to that shirt, and at the end of the sleeve, there was a hand holding a mug.
They were white hands. Delicate and fine, they seemed best suited for dancing across piano keys. The large mug looked tiny in those hands, which were so large but also so white and beautiful. The nails at the end of each finger were neatly aligned and as clear as pale glass.
'―――Who’s this?'
An unpleasant mechanical sound.
It was as if I was listening to a pre-recorded message from an electronic device, with a stiff, layered voice, as if the phone's settings had been configured that way.
The white hand inside the screen set down the mug. Then, with a long finger, it tapped the rim of the mug.
'Instructor Jeong Chang-in?'
"Ah―…,he’s in the bathroom right now. If you have something to say, you can tell me."
Jeong Tae-ui's eyes were drawn to the exquisite hands, as transparent and delicate as carved ice, as he replied.
There was no reply from the other side for a moment.
As he was astonished to see the hand move, as if it were attached to a living being, a voice startled him with a sudden whisper.
'Therefore.'
"Unn?"
'Who are you, answering the phone in that room?'
It seemed like the voice had softened a bit, perhaps it was just my imagination. There was something almost hypnotic about it. The strange mechanical voice, combined with the sight of the abnormally beautiful hand slowly caressing the mug, only enhanced that feeling.
Jeong Tae-ui wondered what to say, but since he didn't know who the other person was, he chose the most neutral response.
"I'm the nephew of the person who's so relaxed they're taking a bath even though someone might come looking for them. If you have something to say, go ahead and tell me. But I don't see anything to write on, so please keep it short. My memory isn't very good."
Jeong Tae-ui finished speaking, and then there was a moment of silence broken only by a few chuckles.
‘I see, you must be the second nephew then. Your name is……?'
"…….Jeong Tae-ui. What about you?"
Jeong Tae-ui realized it then. This man knew about me. No, to be exact, he knew about Jeong Chang-in's family. He knew that Jeong Chang-in had two nieces, and that one of them was very intelligent and famous.
Given that everyone in the branch knows Jeong Jae-ui is Jeong Chang-in's nephew, it's not surprising someone would be aware of their family connection.
After a moment of silence, the man spoke.
'Ilay.'
Jeong Tae-ui nodded. Ilay. It's a good thing it's an easy name to remember.
The man named Ilay was silent for a moment. Another hand appeared on the screen. It was the left hand, symmetrical to the right hand that had been visible until now. The two white, beautiful hands clasped together.
When Jeong Tae-ui sighed without realizing it, only then did Ilay open his mouth.
'What’s wrong?'
"It’s nothing……. Don't you get told that your hands are beautiful?”
'My hands?'
Ilay looked puzzled and asked back, looking at his own hands. Within the monitor, his hands unclasped and moved. His fingers, bent at each joint, were a work of art in themselves.
He clenched and unclenched his hands once, then clasped them together again, saying playfully.
'I've never been told that before. You like my hands?’
"Unn, they’re beautiful."
'Haha, sure. You can take it. But only after I'm dead. And put your hand on my arm instead. Even a corpse would feel sorry for not having hands.’
"……I’ll pass. My hands are all wrong for something like that. If I attached your hand to my body, it would just look out of place."
Jeong Tae-ui wrinkled his nose. He's the type to make a deadly serious joke.
Ilay chuckled softly for a while, as if amused by something that had been said.
'Nah, it wouldn't suit you. Your hands are much more suited to your face.'
A chuckle escaped their lips as he spoke.
Knowing that the other side could see him more clearly, Jeong Tae-ui tapped on the phone's lens.
"It seems like this lens has a wider angle. Well, it's not a bad thing to see only your beautiful hand filling the screen."
Ilay let out a chuckle.
'Does that mean you are working for the Asian branch now?'
Jeong Tae-ui shrugged in response to Ilay's question.
"Yeah, thanks to my uncle, I was able to get in without going through any procedures."
'Aha, a parachute hire.'
Jeong Tae-ui couldn't help but laugh at Illay's amusing remark. I guess you're right.
Just then, he heard the sound of water again from the bathroom. It seemed like my uncle, who must have finished his bath by now, was rinsing off.
"My uncle will be out soon. Do you want to wait a bit, or should I pass on your message? Or would you prefer to call back?”
Realizing he hadn't even heard the reason for the call, Jeong Tae-ui spoke. Ilay murmured 'Umm' in a languid tone before replying.
‘Tell him I found the book he was looking for. It's Laurent Gastié's Mythology, the 1925 edition. It's 3500 dollars.’
"Got it. The 1925 edition of Laurent Gastié's Mythology. It's 3500……."
Jeong Tae-ui paused to think about what had been said.
Jeong Tae-ui had heard of Laurent Gastié's Mythology before and wanted to read it. However.
"3500 dollars? For a book?"
Muttering in disbelief, Ilay laughed out loud as if he understood exactly what he was thinking.
'If I tell Instructor Jeong that I got it for a really cheap price, he'll be so pleased. So tell him that, and let's see if we can meet up again sometime.’
A beautiful hand waved slightly in greeting, and with that, the screen went dark, and the call ended.
Staring blankly at the screen that had turned pitch black once more, Jeong Tae-ui sighed deeply and leaned back into his chair.
I knew rare books could fetch a high price, but I had no idea it was this much. Now that I see this room and my uncle's house, it's like a treasure trove. I can understand why someone would steal the books.
With a newfound curiosity, Jeong Tae-ui eyed the book on the desk, pondering its value. Just then, his uncle, fresh out of the shower, patted him on the shoulder.
"Why are you having a staring contest with a book? If you want to read it, you can borrow it. But since it was hard to find, please be careful with it and return it in good condition."
"I don't have the guts to borrow books that cost 3500 dollars."
"3500 dollars? I didn't give that much for the book, who said that?"
His uncle carefully wrapped a wet towel around Jeong Tae-ui's neck and took out a gown from the built-in closet and put it on.
Removing the damp towel, Jeong Tae-ui leaned back in his chair and, in a relaxed manner, spoke to his uncle who was visible upside down.
"It was someone who seemed to be the owner of an old bookstore. They had such beautiful hands.”
“Hands? Who are you talking about?"
Jeong Tae-ui raised his eyebrows slightly, somewhat unexpectedly. I thought that if I said only that much, my uncle would understand. Am I the only one who thought those white, delicate hands were beautiful?
"They apparently found a copy of Laurent Gasthier's mythology book. The 1925 edition. They said it was 3,500 dollars"
"What? Laurent Gasthier's mythology book?”
A look of delight immediately spread across his uncle's face. His eyes widened, he gave a broad smile, and approached Jeong Tae-ui again. Even the way he adjusted the lapels of his gown seemed joyful.
"Uncle······. these books, did you collect them for such a huge amount of money? I'd be devastated if a fire broke out."
"What are you talking about? A 1925 edition of the mythology book for that price is a steal, a steal! By the way, who is this generous broker? I should call them back and thank them.”
"Ilay."
When Jeong Tae-ui mentioned the hand's owner's name, his uncle paused. Then, he looked at Jeong Tae-ui with a very strange expression. For the first few seconds, he seemed unfamiliar with the name, as if he didn't recognize it, but soon he seemed to remember. 'Ah,' he said, nodding his head. However, the next moment, he stared intently at Jeong Tae-ui with an even more peculiar look on his face.
"······Who did you say?"
"He said his name is Ilay. I didn't hear his full name. You two seemed to be close acquaintances with you, Uncle. Judging by how he immediately knew I was your second nephew when I said I was your nephew, it seems like you two know each other well."
"Ilay······. he said that? Him?"
"That's what I heard······. But since you're saying that, I'm getting a little unsure. Maybe I misheard the pronunciation because it was a mechanical voice. Do you have any idea who it might be?”
When Jeong Tae-ui added, 'Then you can just call back using the caller ID, so don't worry about the book,' his uncle shook his head.
"No, I know who it is. It's just that I haven't heard that name for a long time, so I had forgotten it."
"Does he have multiple names?"
That's a sign of a con artist, Jeong Tae-ui muttered with a smirk. However, the calm tone of his low, cool voice, and the image of his elegant, beautiful hands, were not at all associated with the word "con artist." But it's also difficult to say that the image of an old book dealer fits perfectly, so you can't judge a person just by their voice and hands.
"His hands were really pretty."
As Jeong Tae-ui muttered, his uncle, who was taking out wine from the cellar, looked at Jeong Tae-ui with a complicated expression.
"Hands······. Yeah, I've never really paid attention to them, but now that I think about it, his hands might have been graceful."
"Maybe it's just me who thinks that. Since that person said it's the first time they've heard someone say their hands are beautiful."
"Probably so."
The way he spoke as if it were so obvious made Jeong Tae-ui briefly question his sense of aesthetics.
With a face as calm as ever, his uncle turned back and, smiling nonchalantly, twirled the screw with his fingertips. As he effortlessly drove it into the wine cork and pulled it out, he muttered to himself.
"Even if it were 'scary hands,' maybe, but when would he have ever heard someone say he has 'pretty hands'?"
“? Indeed, his fingernails were neatly arranged like pieces of glass……. They were hands that were beautiful to the point of being almost frightening.”
The uncle, hearing what Jeong Tae-ui said, simply smiled without replying.
"So, this place was where Tou told you about? It's right near the elevator, so it wasn't hard to find, was it?"
His uncle changed the subject. Jeong Tae-ui, who had been briefly thinking about those white hands, then remembered a minor grudge he held against his uncle. While wandering around and getting lost, he had even cursed at his innocent uncle, blaming him for the building's ridiculous layout. Then, what came to mind again was the cotton candy-like young man he had encountered in the shared bathroom.
His face turned red again.
As his uncle brought out two glasses, he looked at Jeong Tae-ui with a curious gaze, as if he found it amusing. It seemed he found it entertaining to watch Jeong Tae-ui's face change from flushed to blank and then gradually turn red again.
"Why? Did something happen?……Did the guys on our team play some kind of mean prank on you? They're usually like that. They're not bad guys, but when a newbie joins, they're happy to have a new colleague, so they play pranks on them. You can think of it like little kids teasing someone they like."
His uncle, imagining some situation, comforted Jeong Tae-ui, saying, 'Don't worry too much about it, it's just between guys.' Jeong Tae-ui, while suspecting that the situation his uncle was imagining might be even more problematic if it was just between guys, shook his head.
"I don't know what you're thinking, but there were no problems with my teammates. I got lightly roughed up a bit, but that's because I was also at fault."
"Really? Then what's the problem? Since Tou took you there, you must have been with them right away. So, did the problem occur after you parted ways with them?”
As my uncle handed me the golden liquid, a sweet scent wafted out. Jeong Tae-ui, smelling the sweet aroma, clicked his tongue with a bitter expression.
"Uncle. I heard that a prison guard lives on this floor.”
"That's right. The other members, including the warden, are on the sixth floor below. Why, do you want to go up? Then you'll be successful."
His uncle joked with a broad smile. His gaze, however, held a hint of trying to discern the true reason why Jeong Tae-ui had suddenly brought up that topic.
"…….I took the wrong elevator and was wandering around a bit when I met someone."
Jeong Tae-ui began the story as if nothing was amiss. However, as that person came to mind again, he became inexplicably anxious. His uncle, with amusement, observed Jeong Tae-ui's expression and prompted him, 'And then?'
"I think it was just before I was about to go into the bathroom when that person gave me directions, which is how I found my way here."
"……Ah……. Okay, so who was it? Didn't you ask for their name?"
His uncle, with a slight upturn of his lips as if he understood something, asked again. Jeong Tae-ui shook his head.
"No, I just asked for directions. He seemed a bit young, and depending on how you look at it, he might not even be an adult yet. He had a soft, fluffy feeling……. and although he looked somewhat Western, he seemed to be of Chinese descent.”
"Aha, he seemed young? Tsk tsk, your taste never changes. I had my doubts, but."
His uncle shook his head, as if he had figured something out. Jeong Tae-ui, feeling a surge of anger, glared at his uncle.
"So, is there a minor here, then?"
"There isn't. ……And so what if they are a minor? You just have to wait patiently for a while, then reap the rewards after they've grown up. Kids grow up in the blink of an eye, you know."
"Uncle, it's not about that kind of thing.……. …….So, who is he? That person."
"Anyway, since it's you, Uncle, you probably already know who it is, right?" he grumbled, asking sullenly.
While turning his head away stiffly, his uncle glanced at his nephew, whose face was flushed, cocked his head to the side, quietly observed him, and then chuckled.
"……You innocent guy. I heard from Jae-ui that your romantic relationships were quite complicated, so why are you reacting so naively? I even heard there was a time when two men had a knife fight over you.”
"Did my Hyung even say that?"
Jeong Tae-ui frowned and clicked his tongue.
That did happen once. There was a young man I thought was cute and had slept with a few times, but he had an incredibly picky and feisty personality.
But we didn't date. That young man himself said so. We were just partners in bed when we felt like it.
So I believed that without a doubt, but it seems that wasn't the case.
Jeong Tae-ui himself didn't know why, but he was quite popular in clubs of that kind. So, after a while, another person approached me. And------things went wrong.
This person who approached me also had a far-from-ordinary personality, so a truly bloody and chaotic scene unfolded.
Thanks to that, Jeong Tae-ui himself was even called to the police station as a witness and investigated, and in the process, rumors even spread discreetly to Jeong Tae-ui's school, where he was a cadet at the time. After that, it was a series of hardships.
"So, who is that person?"
As Jeong Tae-ui muttered more curtly, his uncle, seemingly thinking about something, grinned, shrugged his shoulders, and then opened his mouth to speak.
"You'll probably meet him again soon. Since he's the administrative officer in charge of member welfare and internal affairs."
"------You mean Xinlu, that......? Do Administrative officers also live on this floor?"
"Um. Everyone except the team members stays on this floor. Even outside guests stay on this floor. When people from other branches come for joint training, they stay on the same floor as you guys."
"Haa……."
Jeong Tae-ui muttered as if he were in a daze.
I see. I didn't think about the administrative officer category. Yeah, now that I think about it, he didn't have many muscles on his body, and I couldn't find any scars or blemishes. There's no way someone with that kind of body could be a team member, and it's unlikely he's a prison guard who's been through a lot. Then, of course, the only one left is the administrative officer, but why couldn't I think of that?
Jeong Tae-ui, scratching the back of his neck, thought about it, and then suddenly recalled that smooth, soft skin without any blemishes, and his face flushed again. He shook his head, trying to clear his mind, feeling the gaze of his uncle watching him from the side, but it was no use.
"Seeing this side of you, I really feel like I've lived a long life. You really do see all sorts of things in a lifetime."
His uncle, in a tone of wonder—yet with a clearly joyful voice—spoke, shaking his head slightly.
Jeong Tae-ui looked disapprovingly at his uncle, then suddenly remembered the reason he had come to this place.
"But really, Uncle, aren't you being too much? I was just planning on keeping a low profile and going back in six months, but from what I'm hearing, this is a complete survival game."
"Um?"
"I heard that a countless number of people die during joint training. And the number of injured people is beyond counting. Even so, how can you drag your own nephew into such a dangerous place? That's too much!”
"While there might be some cases of minor injuries or even trips to the hospital for severe cases, deaths are rare. So, rest assured.”
"Yes……. But you also know, Uncle, that it would be difficult for me if I were seriously injured."
"Aah, I know. If you get seriously injured, I'll personally take you to the best-equipped hospital right away, so don't get angry. I didn't bring you here to kill you."
His uncle, still speaking in a light tone and smiling, said that. Jeong Tae-ui sighed.
Just as he said, he would immediately take care of things if I got hurt. It was less of affection for his nephew and more of a sense of duty for what he should do, but he had never once been negligent in handling such matters.
So, Jeong Tae-ui wasn't worried about that point. It was just that, with signs of a difficult future appearing everywhere, he simply wanted to complain a bit.
And in fact, it was also true that it would be problematic for Jeong Tae-ui if he were injured beyond a certain point.
Of course, everyone has trouble when they get seriously injured, but Jeong Tae-ui has difficulty with surgery due to his constitution. Regardless of his own will, his body is quite finicky, and his rejection response to foreign substances is much higher than the average person. In the past, when he was seriously injured while clearing mines and was immediately taken to the hospital, they inserted metal pins to connect the fragmented and broken bones, but a severe rejection reaction occurred, requiring him to undergo major surgery again.
"Well then, I'll be going before it gets any later. You must be tired too, Uncle, so please rest."
"Hasn't this book been brought out to look at? I'll lend it to you, so go and read it.”
As Jeong Tae-ui stood up, his uncle picked up the book he had taken out and placed on the desk, and held it out to him.
Jeong Tae-ui looked at the book for a moment in silence. It was carefully preserved, but the passage of time couldn't be stopped, and it was yellowed. As the number 3500 hovered in his mind, he was afraid to even touch it.
"No……rather, I'll just read it here. It's too precious a book for me to borrow."
"Is that so? I don't mind either way, but if that's more comfortable for you, then that's fine. When you go to get the room key from Xinlu, ask him for a spare key to my room as well. I'll let him know. So, you'll go right away to get the key and the rules sheet?”
Jeong Tae-ui paused at his uncle's words.
Certainly, after leaving this room, I was planning to go to the administrative office to get the keys and so on. And I was about to grab whoever was on duty and ask them to call the person in charge, Administrative officer.
But right now, that person in charge, the Administrative officer, should be in the bathroom. Even if I call him, I'm not sure if I'll be able to reach him properly, and even if I do, it would only bother him.
Seeing Jeong Tae-ui, whose face was flushed and who looked a little embarrassed, wondering what to do, his uncle opened his mouth as if he knew what he was thinking.
"Xinlu has probably already finished his bath and is working in his room. He has low blood pressure so he doesn't stay in the tub for long, and besides, he's a bit of a workaholic. Since he's going to be working anyway, it won't be a bother if you call him."
As Jeong Tae-ui met his uncle's gaze, who was looking at him with a subtle smile, he felt a surge of emotion for no reason, glared at his uncle with a sullen face, but seeing his uncle's nonchalant demeanor, as if nothing had happened, he could only sigh.
Yeah, I'm really drawn to that Administrative officer. Even if I don't recognize it as liking him, I want to see him again and know more about him. So what.
Jeong Tae-ui's face became a little shameless. Feeling attracted to someone isn't something to hide.
Sensing Jeong Tae-ui's change of mood, his uncle gave a slightly regretful look, but then, as if he had changed his mind, smiled calmly.
"It's wonderful to fall in love with someone. To love and be loved. That's the foundation of the world."
"…….Uncle, you really have a knack for saying things that make me cringe sometimes."
Jeong Tae-ui, with a face that was neither displeased nor pleased, muttered, glancing at his uncle. And leaving his uncle's laughter behind, he left the room.
------
Credits:
Translator: Hoshi Miya
Editor/Proofreader: Tâmago
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