TRIPLE 12

It was long after sunset when Siyeon returned to the Nagwon-dong church after his conversation with Beom Yisu. It was partly because of the prolonged bickering with Chief Kang and others, but Siyeon had stayed behind in the place everyone had left to continue thinking by himself.

‘Was it the right choice?’

Taking Beom Yisu’s hand while leaving Chief Kang out was likely the best route for now. Even if I tried to come up with other alternatives by making all sorts of assumptions, no better path came to mind.

After all, the money I’d receive is a staggering 3.7 billion!

The protagonist himself hadn’t received such a huge sum, let alone my past self, who lived in a single room and worked at a small printing shop. Therefore, this opportunity was effectively the first success Siyeon himself had achieved.

And yet, one corner of my heart kept feeling bothered. No matter how much money I get, there was a considerable psychological aversion.

‘To give birth to a child, I have to… ha, have sex too. Even with three people!’

Fundamentally, we are all men, so how on earth do we have relations? I should have read the high-rated scenes in detail instead of just skimming over them. Since I knew nothing, I felt even more anxious for no reason.

‘Dammit. Whatever. I’ll figure it out when the time comes.’

After agonizing over it for a long time, Siyeon eventually returned to the church without finding any other alternatives. It was just when Siyeon was opening the church door, leading his aching body.

A pungent, burning smell. His nose reflexively wrinkled at the strange smoke and the unnatural odor.

‘What is this?’

There was no time to gauge the situation. As soon as I stepped inside, coughing sounds and a raspy voice flowed from within.

“…Is that you, Siyeon?”

Deacon Kim’s face was deathly pale. It was certain that something must have happened while I was away.

“Deacon Kim!”

Startled, Siyeon rushed over and supported the Deacon, who looked like they were about to collapse. There were no visible wounds, but the way their shoulders were trembling showed clear signs of being shocked beyond that.

“Siyeon, when you weren’t here, a man came by.”

Deacon Kim continued after finally calming down. They didn’t specify who it was, but Siyeon had a bad premonition, and his mouth went bone-dry.

“What on earth… is this….”

The church I entered in a hurry following the Deacon was literally a mess. Torn Bibles were scattered on the floor, and water stains and mud footprints were tangled and dirtied.

Above all, the photos that had been hanging on the wall. Among them, only the ones with Siyeon’s face were meticulously damaged. Like someone precisely cutting out only the face, there were chaotic, persistent traces of tearing. This wasn’t the work of hired thugs. Such vivid malice… surely.

Suddenly looking up, Deacon Kim held out a note they were gripping in their hand. Roughly scribbled writing was written on the crumpled paper.

「Lucky bastard. Don’t expect to be let off next time.」

…Chief Kang, that son of a bitch. How did he find out about this place? I never expected him to storm in here, so my hands trembled slightly. Could it be because of the hired thugs gathered earlier? They were looking at my face quite closely.

Right. Even if they were guys dispatched from Beom-yeong, one or two low-life individuals might have ties to Chief Kang. Since the Hong Siyeon in the original story was also chased by Chief Kang’s lackeys, it was a plausible assumption.

‘If I had known, I would have just stayed holed up in the church instead of going for a walk.’

Then I wouldn’t have met Beom Yisu, and I wouldn’t have met Chief Kang either. Of course, getting through today safely wouldn’t be a fundamental solution. Still, I felt needlessly regretful. As Siyeon looked alternately at the torn photos and the note, Deacon Kim’s voice followed cautiously.

“Siyeon, are you going to report this to the police?”

What would be the point of reporting it to the police? Strictly speaking, I’m the one who ran away to avoid a debt collector.

“Ah, no! It’s just… I have some personal circumstances.”

“I didn’t even know you were being chased by such a person… Does Mr. Seong know about this?”

The protagonist’s adoptive parents don’t even appear in the original work. Since it had been a long time since the adoption was officially dissolved, and I had no reason to meet or contact that “Mr. Seong,” Siyeon shook his head firmly. I don’t know what meaning they took from that, but Deacon Kim grabbed my hand with a worried face.

“You must have suffered a lot of inner pain alone.”

It was unconditional concern, something I had never received in reality. What kind of relationship did they have with the protagonist in childhood for them to treat him so well?

Because she is a religious person? No way. I, Siyeon, who was an orphan, was also from an orphanage affiliated with the church. This was just because Deacon Kim was a warm-hearted person by nature. Even my remaining distrust seemed to melt in that warmth.

“Because of me, this happened… I’m really sorry, Deacon Kim.”

“No, why is this your fault? And we were planning to leave here soon anyway, so it’s fine, Siyeon.”

Deacon Kim quietly shook their head. Siyeon let out a long sigh he had been holding in. Haa— as I exhaled deeply, the burning smell permeated deep into my lungs, and the unpleasant air stung the inside of my nose.

It was strange that a person who wasn’t family cared for me like this, but a feeling of gratitude took precedence. And I felt sorry, thinking I had needlessly put the Deacon in danger as well.

“We have to vacate this place now, too…. Do you have a place to go?”

I did have a place decided. I just didn’t want to go. If I could, I wanted to go to the workplace Deacon Kim introduced me to, or follow them and leave for somewhere else entirely.

But it was obvious that Chief Kang or that couple would track me down. Since I couldn’t be a burden to the Deacon any longer, Siyeon forced a smile, pretending to be fine.

“Yes, I actually just met an acquaintance earlier. I decided to stay there for the time being.”

“Is it a good person? If anything seems strange, please tell me.”

“They’re really fine. Just with the help you’ve given me so far… it’s enough.”

Siyeon nodded at the words, which they confirmed once more. Pretending it was no big deal, I picked up and gathered the torn photo pieces one by one. Then, with a sudden thought, I carefully tucked the fragments of the crumpled face in the photo into my chest and said.

“Um… I do have one favor to ask.”

∞ ∞ ∞

That night, Siyeon didn’t go straight to Beom Yisu’s house and stayed at the church. Since it was scheduled to be demolished soon, it would likely be the last night I spent here.

Deacon Kim told me they would finish packing, and sent Siyeon to the room first. When they brought out a blanket and handed it to Siyeon and turned on the light in the inner room, a flickering yellow light illuminated the small room.

“Don’t think about anything and get some good rest. Even if it seems like you’re fine, it takes a long time to fully recover, so don’t overdo it.”

As the Deacon closed the door and left, my physical condition, which I thought had gotten a bit better, was sinking back down. Putting aside the scratched and scraped wounds, it was hard to endure the feeling that the fever I had suppressed with medicine was about to flare up again.

Every time I inhaled, the inside of my stomach burned. It was the aftermath of contacting an Alpha. If my condition is like this just from meeting Beom Yisu briefly, what would it be like when I go to live in the couple’s house?

“Let’s stop thinking about it. Will I die or something?”

Yes. The original protagonist did have a miserable ending of death.

Dammit… No matter how strong my nerves were like steel wire, anxiety kept surging up from time to time. Siyeon, who gnashed insults through his teeth, held his aching stomach and walked around the room for no reason.

Then, the traces that needed to be erased caught my eye. I cleared away the toothbrush I had kept next to the sink and rubbed the handprints left on the mirror with my sleeve to erase them. Until the face became blurry, like a person who was never here in the first place.

‘What else do I need to do?’

Siyeon also folded the pajamas he had borrowed neatly and placed them on the bed. Siyeon, who had been cleanly erasing his traces from this room, stopped in front of the desk.

He opened the drawer and took out a few sheets of paper he had tucked inside. The disposable notepad I received from Deacon Kim and the memo with the job information she introduced me to. Even the sticker that was attached to the medicine bottle. These were trivial but things I couldn’t throw away because they could become clues.

‘Now… there shouldn’t be anything else to pack.’

Siyeon gathered the things he absolutely had to keep and tucked them inside his coat in advance. Just when I was moving busily. Bzzt-, the cell phone in my pocket rang.

[Contract Clause – Prior Consent]

Because of Chief Kang, my mind was elsewhere for a moment. It seemed that the simple contract Beom Yisu had warned me about had finally arrived. In the dim room, with the cell phone screen glowing blue, Siyeon stared at the screen for a long time. Although I had a mountain of desire to avoid it, I muttered as if to urge myself on.

“It’s fine. They say that even if you enter a tiger’s den, you can survive if you keep your wits about you.”

That’s right, who am I? Am I not the only one who knows the ending of this place? There is nothing solved by just worrying all day while feeling discouraged like this. Taking a deep breath, Siyeon slowly opened the message. Inside the screen, the contract clauses I had expected to some extent were densely written.

From now on, I have to spend the whole night examining the simple contract. Whether there are any loopholes. What clauses are disadvantageous to me. I read the clauses, vowing to find faults and fix them all.