YM778.TV Chapter 311
‘Isn’t there a way to avoid Seo Dawon’s notice and meet up with Bang Eunji?’
I wracked my brain again and again.
Though Seo Dawon continued to travel with me, to and fro, we weren’t together all the time. He kept me in his office when he came to work and left me alone for a few hours, citing he had a meeting or whatever.
‘If I use that time well, I may be able to meet Bang Eunji…’
However, problematically, the Mage locked the cage door whenever he was away.
Seo Dawon only opened the door to the house when he was there and closed my only means of escape when he was absent. In other words, I couldn’t leave the house by myself while he was away.
‘Last time, I tried to exit through the window, but the windows wouldn’t open at all…’
In fact, Seo Dawon even cast a few skills on this home. Despite being a doll house, the home had running hot water, the kitchen could function with induction stovetops, and the lights could turn on and off. Therefore, the inability to open the windows reflected the Mage’s will.
‘What must I say in order to get out of here…’
If I said something wrong, the Mage would become warier. I wracked my brain for an escape method that wouldn’t raise his guard.
‘Should I say I want to take a look outside?’
However, if I used this method, I thought Seo Dawon would merely place me on his hand so I could take a quick ‘peek.’ He may even become suspicious of why I wanted to go outside so badly.
‘Or, should I ask him to call Bang Eunji here?’
However, it was least likely that Seo Dawon would comply with this method. Furthermore, I had no plausible excuse to request a meeting with Bang Eunji… Besides, he reacted so sharply when I simply asked how she fared.
“Haaah…” A deep sigh tumbled from my lips.
As I tore my hair while contemplating repeatedly, Seo Dawon entered the office with a loud bang.
Immediately afterwards, he unlocked the loop he installed in front of the house and opened the door. Then, he inspected me, who sat on the sofa. As I made eye contact with the Mage, I was unable to school my expression.
[What’s with you?]
“…..Huh?”
[Does your head hurt?]
The Mage must have seen my agonized expression.
‘……!’
At that moment, a brilliant idea struck me. Playing along, I frowned even more. I pretended to be weak and lacking energy. I avoided his eyes. “It… it hurts.”
[It hurts?]
“Mhmm…”
[So suddenly?]
I avoided his gaze as much as possible–I knew well how awkward my expression became when I lied. So, I turned around and crushed my face onto the back of the sofa. As soon as I rubbed my forehead on the soft velvet, I was seized by my shoulders.
‘D-Did he catch me in my act…?’
When I looked back at him, startled, Seo Dawon stared at me with a hitherto unseen grave expression. He placed his index finger on my forehead–not to push and apply pressure, as he had done before, but to try and measure my temperature.
However, once he touched my forehead, he removed his finger immediately. He muttered to himself–
[What kind of foolish…]
“Uh…Huh?”
[Hold on one second. I’m going to retrieve a thermometer.]
Then, Seo Dawon left the office.
As I looked stupidly at the door he exited through, I suddenly had a realization: Seo Dawon left the doll house unlocked. The office door hadn’t been closed properly, so I could see the world outside through a gap. Perhaps he was….flustered when I stated I felt sick?
“…I feel a bit guilty…” I scratched my cheek. However, I couldn’t let this opportunity go, so I quickly exited the doll house. After stepping on nothing but carpet for so long, I began to feel a strange anxiety when I stepped on the hard desk.
“It’s higher than I thought…?” The problem, though, was that as soon as I stood at the edge, I became frightened at the unexpected height that awaited me.
‘If I fall from here, I’ll be wounded seriously…’
However, rather than lingering, I quickly crossed the desk to the other side; I didn’t know when Seo Dawon would come back and push a thermometer at me.
And, there, I found a trash can with shredded documents underfoot. The wastebasket was right next to the desk, and, at first glance, the paper shreds were piled up high enough that someone would need to empty it out soon.
“…Can I survive this jump?” I swallowed and looked down. Then, I looked at the office door behind me. My eyes could only imagine how the door would open at any moment.
“…Damn!” I stood on the edge of the desk, trembling. Then, while swearing, I eventually jumped off. I wouldn’t have another chance if I didn’t escape now.
Shuffle–
Fortunately, just as I had guessed, the noodle-like shredded documents served well as a buffer.
Furthermore, I didn’t fall through the trash as deep as I had feared, and I was able to grip the rim of the trash can and haul myself over to the other side. Although the trash can was quite tall, I was able to land on the floor gently by sliding down, and holding the corners of the trash can with my arms.
“Whew… Haah…” Of course, this was an experience I never wanted to repeat. I swallowed back my saliva as I stared at the desk…the height I had fallen from. Fucking high. I mean–it felt taller than a 5 story building… I sat for a bit, but I couldn’t appreciate my feat of bravery for too long.
“Let’s go…!” I ran towards the door as fast as I could. The reality that Seo Dawon might return at any point and encounter me in front of his office door galvanized my thigh muscles.
I arrived at the door, panting, and looked outside through the small gap. Fortunately, there were no signs of movement in the hall.
“Haah…” Looking carefully at the corridors on both sides, I searched for a place to hide my body, and I noticed a fire extinguisher not too far away.
I half-rolled half-scurried to the extinguisher and hid. And, almost simultaneously, someone else stomped quickly towards my way.
It was Seo Dawon.
“……” I saw that he held something in his hand, but I shook my head. There was no time to be sentimental. He’d soon notice my absence and subsequent escape, thus he’d search this area soon.
I patted my thighs to loosen the muscles, turned my back, and ran.
* * *
[We repeat: All personnel within the building should cooperate with the search operation to find a golden-brown hamster. If found, report to Seo Dawon-nim immediately. Furthermore, we add the important point that the hamster must be captured alive and should never be forcibly handled.]
My ambitious escape was discovered in less than an hour.
And now, I hid in the gap in the ventilation shaft to avoid people’s eyes. This hiding spot surely wouldn’t last long.
“Seo Dawon, you crazy bastard…!”
A strange broadcast tone had blared throughout the building 30 minutes after I ran from the room. With that strange warning sound, the people in the offices rose from their seats, anxious expressions lining their faces. This was proof that the broadcast was no ordinary event.
Following that tone, Seo Dawon shamelessly broadcasted an announcement to have others help find his lost hamster. Of course, I guessed that he would attempt to find me, but even I didn’t think he would make a public announcement, as if I were a lost child in an amusement park.
Of course, I tried to avoid other people’s eyes in my original plan, but I thought I’d have more leeway since, to them, I appeared to be a normal hamster… Now, everyone in the building combed through hallways, shining flashlights into all sorts of nooks and crannies. It was clear that if I wandered around in this situation, I would be found immediately.
It was impossible to predict what would happen if I were to be caught and returned to the Mage. Since I heard I was wanted alive, I didn’t think he would kill me, but… That didn’t mean I’d be left in a good condition.
“I can’t get caught anymore…”
Above all, I had a strong feeling that if I were caught here, the [Vengeful Ghost Memory] would fail. My hunch didn’t necessarily have any basis, but, anxiety that I would never meet Bang Eunji unless I met her now rose within me.
So, I hid myself deeper in the vent, listening to the approaching footsteps. I felt uneasy and tried to crawl to a place light wouldn’t reach, but I had few paths available to me.
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TL: Oh my god, Seo Dawon you dramatic idiot! He’s utilizing the entire building to catch a hamster. I wonder if he’s an…. interesting…. boss to work for. Or if this is more one-off because of our Hamster.
Also! Sorry for the slow update, but my updates will continue to be erratic this week! I’m vacationing in Portugal!!! (Azores Islands and then onto Lisbon!)