Chapter 42

Chapter 42

“I think Ji-hyeon is the prettiest girl in our team. You know, the one who’s not just pretty but also has a good personality. But apparently, that’s not what the world thinks. Baek Ae-young seems to be the most popular.”

“I see.”

I looked up to see the lights that were so high up I had to tilt my head back to see them. Then I nodded.

“You know, there are those trashy guys who are always causing girl problems. Confessing, getting rejected, confessing again, rejected again. They just can’t take a hint! There’s a saying, ‘Even the toughest tree falls after ten strikes,’ but they don’t seem to realize humans aren’t trees. Do they even consider how much damage they’re doing with their persistence? Selfish jerks. Why don’t they date someone from their own team? Or date someone while they’re on vacation? Or if they’re single. I just don’t understand why married guys are acting like this.”

“Ugh...”

“The issue is there are at least three or four guys who like Baek Ae-young. And she doesn’t want to date anyone. She thinks there’s no point in dating anyone in a restricted, closed-off place like this, as it won’t benefit her life in any way. She also mentioned she doesn’t have a preference.”

“And so?”

“So some assholes decided to break into someone else’s room.”

Upon hearing that, I almost dropped my jaw to the floor.

“That’s... insane!”Cheêck out latest novels on novel/bin(.)com

“Exactly. Ji-hyeon found out about this plan. She’s really smart, you know. Speaks five languages. Normally acts like she doesn’t even understand Korean, let alone other languages, which makes her even smarter. Anyway, Ji-hyeon told our team leader everything.”

Seo Jihyuk glanced at Shin Haeryang next to me, who remained silent.

“And then?”

“Our team leader swapped rooms with A-yeong. You know how A-yeong is only loyal to our team leader, right?”

I heard a soft chuckle from the darkness. It seemed like Shin Haeryang was smiling.

“That’s a bit of an exaggeration.”

“Anyway! During our team’s rest period, her room was forcefully entered. They must have thought she was sleeping in, since the corridor lights were off. They must have been shocked to find a 193cm-tall man in the dark, lifting a 20kg dumbbell borrowed from Soo-jung.”

“And then?”

“I had to stop climbing the stairs just to hear this story, and then, urged by Shin Haeryang, I reluctantly continued my climb.”

“So what happened after?”

“We closed the door forcefully. One guy tried to run away, but Jaehee and I ran after him and caught him. The other three had already been severely beaten up. Especially the one who tried to block the dumbbell with his arm, his arm was broken, and when it fell on his foot, his foot also broke.”

“They screen them?”

“Yes.”

What is this all about? Was I screened before I came here? What was I screened for?

“I was also screened before I came here, but how exactly are they screening people to enter the underwater base?”

“You took a personality test, didn’t you?”

“Ah... Yes. I took it online twice and also had an interview.”

“Besides, there probably would’ve been a few more evaluations regarding ethics and ideology. You don’t know, Muhyun-ssi? Anyone with a fine exceeding 300,000 won would have been disqualified as well. I’m not sure about the rest; those criteria were implemented after I joined.”

The only sound that was heard was that of footsteps ascending the staircase in silence. After climbing a few more steps, Seo Jihyuk suddenly exclaimed, “Ah!” I looked over, wondering if his leg was hurting, but it turned out Seo Jihyuk was calling out to me.

“So, the reason women switching rooms with other people isn’t suspicious is because of this!”

What was proven to me was rather that Seo Jihyuk has a good memory. My mind was preoccupied with the state of the underwater base that seemed to have poor security rather than suspicions about Kang Soo-jung and Yoo Geum-yi.

I rubbed my forehead a few times and spoke while recalling my unsettling dental treatment.

“Sato seemed to hold a deep grudge against Shin Haeryang.”

Seo Jihyuk chuckled and said, “Well, of course, around the time Sato’s right arm, right hand, right foot, and, well, his right ‘thing’ were messed up, our team leader just got away with a sprained finger from punching him.”

As Seo Jihyuk swung his arms as if boxing, I unintentionally stepped forward with my injured left foot. The rhythm got messed up, and all three of us stumbled. Ooof!

“.....”

Both Shin Haeryang and I, as we got back up using the staircase railing, said nothing. But it seemed that Seo Jihyuk took the silence as condemnation.

“Ah... Sorry, both of you. It’s tough to carry someone who weighs 96kg up. Bear with me a little longer. I’ll buy a lot of drinks when we get up there.”

“Didn’t they say they don’t sell alcohol here?”

“That’s what I’m saying.”

Despite Seo Jihyuk’s nonsensical comment, I chuckled, feeling drained. Babbling while climbing somehow felt faster than climbing in silence.

But if I were to confirm with Yoo Geum-yi, we probably hadn’t climbed all that much. At first, she kept asking how many steps we had climbed. Now, she hardly asked anymore. If the number didn’t meet my expectations, it only resulted in disappointment or loss of energy.