The Foreigner on the Periphery (English Translation)

Three Ways to Kill Your Boss (8)

"Are we done with the questions now? I'm sorry, but I'm quite busy."

Jeong-pal glanced at his colleague, a silent question of whether they had dragged things on long enough.

Min-jun spoke up for the first time.

"I heard that the missing person's report was filed by another executive from the company."

"Well, it's classified information that the executives share, so we didn't feel the need to each call the police individually, did we?"

"I heard Executive Kim Yeon-ju opposed filing the report."

"It seemed a bit hasty. I thought she might just come back soon."

"Did you know the CEO well enough to make that judgment?"

"······."

They had worked together for over ten years, so it was instinctive to say they knew each other well, but she kept her mouth shut. She was carefully considering whether her previous statement about "sharing private lives" contradicted this.

Without waiting for an answer, Min-jun asked another question.

"Who would benefit the most if the CEO were to disappear like this?"

She gave a exaggerated, forced laugh.

"Isn't that question a bit too blunt?"

"Is my question uncomfortable for you?"

Kim Yeon-ju gripped the armrest of her chair.

"······ It wouldn't benefit anyone, nor would it harm anyone. It's not just me; everyone in the company feels the same."

"What do you think the CEO would feel right now?"

"I hope they're safe and doing fine somewhere."

"Executive Kim, don't you tend to form close bonds with non-human creatures?"

"······."

The sudden, piercing question threw her off balance. Her expression wavered for a moment, as though her carefully constructed composure had crumbled like a sandcastle. She must have realized it herself. A tense silence filled the air.

'Bingo!'

Min-jun silently cheered.

"I have a special ability, you see."

He pointed to his nose with a finger.

"I've heard of such abilities before."

In the end, Executive Kim didn't deny it but flushed and confessed.

"Yes, that's correct. I'm an ISP activator. But what does that have to do with the investigation?"

ISP.

To clarify, Interspecific Sex Pheromone.

It was one of the biological mysteries still not fully understood.

Normally, pheromones only affect individuals within the same species capable of mating, but sometimes, an individual unexpectedly emits pheromones that attract species with which they cannot reproduce. Like a mutation.

A famous example would be the tragic unrequited love story of the salamander's counterpart, Si Serpent, from a popular fairy tale.

Min-jun habitually focused on the string of characters only he could see.

B. Special mission requested by the agency:

.

.

.

Investigating the principle of some unique individuals emitting pheromones that attract species incapable of mating: 50,000 Dalants

With a calm gaze, he asked,

"What species does someone like you affect?"

Kim Yeon-ju gave him a look of open anger.

It was an intentionally rude question, and Min-jun sensed a poorly concealed performance in her reaction. It didn't seem like real anger, but rather an attempt to convince Min-jun that she was really upset.

Instead of making an aggressive gesture, Kim Yeon-ju grabbed her opposite elbow, a defensive posture. Slightly parted lips, tense eyes.

Underneath that, there was still anxiety.

"There's no reason for me to share personal matters here."

"I heard ISP is activated when you're in frequent contact with a species. That would mean it's a species that's well-established on Earth and socially active."

"You...!"

"When elves, orcs can have children with humans, they can be excluded. The species that meet the conditions are trolls, goblins, dragons..."

When Min-jun said "dragons," Kim Yeon-ju's pupils briefly shrank. It was a change so subtle that it couldn't be caught by normal vision.

'We're almost there.'

As Kim Yeon-ju angrily walked toward the door, Min-jun threw one last question.

"How long have you known Edelrines?"

"······!"

The air in the room grew cold.

Executive Kim, unable to answer any more rude questions, left the room. When Jeong-pal and Min-jun returned to the car, they parked it in a public lot near Hyosung Industries.

"It definitely seemed strange."

Jeong-pal began to feel more confident after hearing the response to the question about "CEO Jang Tae-jun's current mindset." When asked about his mental state, the answer was unexpectedly about his safety and survival, not his emotional state.

"When asked to imagine his 'psychological state,' she gave a strange response about his 'safety and survival.'"

"I always thought the first possibility was unlikely, but after seeing Executive Kim Yeon-ju's reaction, my guess became more certain."

"Go on."

"If he was indeed captured by a dragon... the name was Edelrines, right? CEO Jang Tae-jun probably gave up all his stocks and revealed the location of the secret safe. He must have been under a lot of pressure."

But the current CEO's stake in the company was still intact, and the dragon had hired the society to handle the matter.

"I think so too."

"So if he ran away on his own, why did he sneak away instead of relying on the police?"

"It seems a bit weak to say it's because he's an alien, right? If he'd been hiding this long, he could've hidden it even after reporting to the police. Was he scared of the dragon? How would he know the dragon was after him?"

They had searched through hard drives and call records, but there was no evidence that he had been threatened.

And...

'That homunculus.'

Minjun had not yet told Jeongpal about it, nor had he reported it to the immigration office.

If what he had asked Lakefield for had been delayed by just one day, the fake corpse would have been discovered and the shares would have been inherited according to the will.

'Who could have orchestrated that...? A dragon? Kim Yeonju? Jang Taejoon himself? It would be impossible with just their power. Unless one of the seven major conglomerates is involved.'

It was not something a feeble dragon or an alien, suspected of being so, could manage, especially not a man who was barely running a company.

"By the way, how did you pinpoint the dragon's name? Kim Yeonju looked like she'd seen the Grim Reaper, her face turning pale."

"Oh, that? It's nothing special."

Minjun explained the reasoning that allowed him to narrow down the suspects to three dragons, and Jeongpal listened intently, clearly intrigued by this new information. Just as he was about to bring up why he specifically mentioned Edelenes' name.

-Woong! Wooong!

The frying pan began to resonate again.

"Ah, this annoying guy!"

Minjun roughly reached for the handle in the back seat, cursing and preparing to shout at the interrupter.

=Ah! I'm sorry! I'm really sorry! I heard you were heading to Hyoseong Industries, and I had to interrupt because I had something to say. I couldn't help it when I heard you talking about someone I know...=

"Someone you know?"

=Yes, Yeonju noona!=

Minjun's gaze turned cold.

Jang Taejoon wouldn't have been carrying this frying pan around while commuting to the company.

But how did this entity know about Yeonju?

"Do you know Kim Yeonju?"

Jeongpal, who couldn't hear the mental transmission from the frying pan, finally reacted.

=Yes, of course!=

"How?"

=She came to our master's house! She used to come every week or two and stay over. Recently, she's been coming less, though.=

"...."

At that moment.

"Hey, hyung! I hear talking!"

When Minjun told Jeongpal to stall earlier, it wasn't just to catch anything suspicious.

-Woong! Zzzziiik!

Minjun had secretly placed a spell on Kim Yeonju's body without her noticing. A listening spell that absorbed surrounding sounds and transmitted them to the caster, following her all day.

Voices were now coming from the crystal ball mounted in the center of the vehicle. After they left, no one had met her, so there had only been silence until now.

She was on the phone. After a long waiting tone, the other party picked up.

"Hello. Keep it short."

Minjun raised his hand to enhance the sensitivity of the spell, making the voice clearer. The woman on the other end spoke in a blunt tone. As soon as the call was connected, Kim Yeonju urgently spoke in a suppressed voice.

"Two detectives just came by!"

Her panic was evident. Minjun's efforts had paid off—she was acting quickly.

She explained in haste, but the other party remained silent.

"...."

Kim Yeonju then shouted irritably.

"Why are you silent? What are we going to do about this? If we hadn't let it slip, it wouldn't have happened! How have we not found a single person by now?"

"Stop whining. It's annoying. I'm doing my best."

"The police have already tracked us down here. It's a dragon, so shouldn't we find it before humans or orcs? What kind of dragon can't summon a spirit?"

Jeongpal's eyes widened. He held his breath, waiting for what would come next.

"....Stop talking nonsense. Normally, dragons don't have a strong affinity for spirits. That's why I've been working hard these past few days. Do you know how many elves I've had to catch to find Jang Taejoon?"

The same thought flashed through both of their minds at the same time.

The Elven Serial Disappearances.

It was the case that Detective Team Leader 2 had handed off to Jeongpal, replacing it with the Jang Taejoon disappearance case.

"I can't help that their spirit magic was too weak to find him!"

The other person yelled, then after a pause, spoke in a slightly softer tone.

"Don't get so worked up, just wait a bit. One of the elves we caught today spilled some interesting information. Apparently, there's a rare, skilled hermit spirit mage among them."

"....Really?"

"Yes. No matter how much I pressured them, they kept quiet for hours. Then, after a weird look, one of them finally cracked. Thanks to that, we don't have to deal with his daughter, so it's easier now."

The person on the other end chuckled.

"So now, I'm heading to catch that great spirit mage. Oh, I just arrived. I'll hang up now."

Only then did Minjun and Jeongpal realize that the person on the other end was outside.

Footsteps. A little later, a voice came through the receiver with a duller tone.

"Ah... customer... Is here. Welcome! ...Sir! There's a customer..."

Both of them froze.

The faint background noise was the familiar voice of the goblin they both knew well.