Chapter 22: The Secret Room and the Joker Card

The murmur of conversations reached my ears, muffled like water-soaked cotton.

Through the air that seemed to drift like mist over water, I slowly turned my head and looked around.

Visitors with calm expressions lingered in front of the paintings for a moment, then moved on.

A space where game and reality intersected, completely cut off from the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

Standing in the middle of the art museum, I was seized by a vague feeling, something almost within reach but not quite.

It was an emotion I hadn’t noticed during the ten frantic days I’d spent inside the game.

While staring blankly at the paintings on the wall, I reached out my hand without thinking.

Then, a beat too late, I realized it and hastily withdrew my hand.

“Ah…”

The painting gave off a faint smell of oil paint.

That scent naturally brought back the heavy grip of a brush in my hand and the rough texture of canvas.

Forgetting all my daily worries, the moments when I’d been immersed in my work at the school studio unfolded before my eyes.

When I realized that the feeling welling up inside me was longing, I felt a little deflated.

Come to think of it, ten days had passed since I’d last touched a paintbrush.

“Back then, just getting through each day felt dry and arduous…”

Looking back from a step away, it was strange to feel such a warm, fuzzy feeling.

Of course, unlike reality, at least I didn’t have to worry about money in the game, which was nice.

But still, I thought it would be good to return to my own life soon and have a moment where I could paint.

Chewing over the bittersweet taste spreading on my tongue, I stepped forward to the full moon painting.

The rippling moonlight washed over me in full.

“…”

The flow of air around me seemed to stop for an instant.

Under that tranquil full moon, I savored the feeling of being completely protected.

“…”

So I kept waiting patiently in the same spot.

With a reverent heart, I even closed my eyes tightly, waiting for the coming encounter.

But even so… nothing happened.

Puzzled, I tilted my head and blinked.

“…Hmm, why isn’t the director showing up?”

Cheon Yuhyeon had said I could meet him here anytime.

Since he was also an NPC in the game, I’d guessed that his character was probably bound to the art museum building.

Since this was the game, shouldn’t something like this happen: [Art Museum NPC Cheon Yuhyeon welcomes the player]?

Something like that.

“Director, where are you? Can you hear me?”

But my question only came back as an echo without an answer.

Still, no one was in front of the full moon painting except me.

Even the system didn’t help me in moments like this.

Only then did I become anxious in a sudden jolt.

Thinking about it now, “I can meet you if you come to the museum” was an extremely vague promise.

“If I’d known this would happen, I would have asked the director for more details then…”

My heart grew urgent, and I took out the business card from Cheon Yuhyeon that I’d kept carefully.

Could I just call him right now?

Of course, the card was given so I could contact him if needed.

But in contrast to his kind words to visit anytime, Cheon Yuhyeon wasn’t someone you could easily approach without hesitation.

“Wooju, you’re at the museum.”

Just when I was timidly hesitating for no reason, a soft yet clear voice rang out through the museum corridor.

When I turned around, Cheon Yuhyeon was walking toward me.

“I stepped out for a moment, so my greeting is late.”

Cheon Yuhyeon was dressed in a formal suit, just like last time.

As if he had just come in from outside, his hair was slightly disheveled, and a faint scent of the wind clung to his collar.

Really? Cheon Yuhyeon could leave the museum?

To me, he was a game NPC, but in “the reality of this place,” Cheon Yuhyeon was also a person, so it was only natural, I supposed… but still.

“Director!”

Maybe because I’d been so anxious, intense delight surged up from the pit of my stomach at meeting Cheon Yuhyeon safely.

As I greeted him eagerly, a faint smile spread across his previously expressionless face.

“What brings you here today?”

Cheon Yuhyeon asked me in a calm voice.

Just looking at his thoughtful face seemed to bring peace to my mind.

His even attitude, without the slightest agitation or fluctuation, conveyed a sense of stability.

“Director, hello!”

“…”

“I came to the museum hoping I could ask for your advice today.”

My head was a mess, which was why I’d come to the museum, but I had no idea where or how to start unraveling the tightly knotted tangle.

How I should deal with Kang Taeyang from now on, or rather, why I had to meet someone like Kang Taeyang in the first place, and why I needed to earn Kang Taeyang’s favor at all…

“Well, um…”

“…”

“Hmm, where and how should I start explaining this…”

Following the chain of worries, the core of every problem was ultimately the fact that I was trapped in a game right now.

I wrinkled my eyebrows into a mess.

Cheon Yuhyeon was patiently waiting for me.

But was it even possible to explain all of this to him without telling him that this place was actually a game?

“It seems you’re having difficulty talking about it here, Wooju.”

“Ah, Director.”

“There are many prying eyes around, after all.”

“…”

“Let’s move somewhere quiet, and I’ll offer you a cup of tea as well.”

A quiet place?

I was puzzled by the unexpected words.

Just as I was wondering whether the museum even had such a spot, Cheon Yuhyeon lightly placed a hand on my shoulder and turned to lead the way.

“If you don’t mind, this way.”

Deep inside the museum, up a winding corridor, there were offices where staff were working.

Having only ever visited the spaces open to visitors, I’d never been anywhere near this area even in real life.

He walked to the end of the corridor, then parted the heavy curtains that hung like draperies and opened them wide.

Behind the curtains was a dead end.

Unlike me, who was baffled, Cheon Yuhyeon wasn’t flustered in the slightest.

He simply pressed his palm against the surface, and the wall slid back smoothly.

“Goodness, is this some kind of secret passage?”

“Haha. The stairs are steep, so follow me down carefully.”

A door without a doorknob.

It was the kind of device I’d only seen in books I read as a child.

With a strangely fluttering heart, I went down the wooden stairs with Cheon Yuhyeon.

Half a floor below, his private space was hidden.

“Wow…”

A chandelier casting a soft glow, silk wallpaper embroidered with antique patterns, a Persian rug, and old books and collectibles densely packed in a paulownia cabinet.

In stark contrast to the museum, which felt almost pale and sterile, Cheon Yuhyeon’s space was as splendid and old-fashioned as a medieval nobleman’s drawing room.

Even as I worried that I might seem rude, I kept glancing around with wide eyes.

Although the arrangement could easily have felt excessive, everything was in harmonious balance, and I couldn’t help but admire the owner’s refined taste.

“I had no idea there was a place like this in the museum.”

“This is a space for special guests.”

When I muttered as if entranced, Cheon Yuhyeon gave a charming smile, his eyes curving softly.

For no reason, my heart swelled like a balloon.

They said he was the museum director, and indeed his artistic sense was outstanding.

The gentle yet mysterious Cheon Yuhyeon himself seemed to naturally harmonize with the secret underground space of the museum.

“Would you like to sit here?”

Cheon Yuhyeon politely invited me to sit on the leather sofa and served black tea and madeleines on a small table.

As I took a sip of the warm tea, my tension melted away into drowsy relaxation.

Combined with the dreamlike atmosphere of the secret space, all my senses were softened.

For a moment, my vision blurred, and I nearly forgot all the worries I’d had before coming here.

“We were talking about your concerns earlier, weren’t we?”

“Ah, Director…”

“I remember that when we met last time, you mentioned you had many things to do.”

Cheon Yuhyeon’s question pulled me, blinking dazedly, back to reality.

So the director had remembered what I’d said that time…

“Yes, Director! The thing is, there’s a task I must complete within a given time.”

“…”

“The situation is a bit complicated. It’s not exactly a bet, but it’s kind of like being cursed.”

“…”

“Or rather, should I call it a mission?”

I opened my mouth with a heavy heart, but instead of getting into the real conversation, my words kept circling around the edges.

The more I spoke with my brows deeply furrowed, the more skeptical Cheon Yuhyeon’s expression became.

“So you’re saying it’s something you must do, even though you don’t want to?”

Cheon Yuhyeon asked back with a look of incomprehension.

Ah, this won’t do at all.

There was a limit to beating around the bush; it was as clear as day that we’d just keep chasing clouds.

Without explaining concretely, proper communication was impossible.

“Haah…”

In the end, I couldn’t receive any help unless I was honest about my situation.

Of course, I couldn’t just grab anyone and pour out my circumstances, and I shouldn’t.

But Cheon Yuhyeon was, even in the official game lore, my supporter.

Even aside from that, he was someone who gave off a solid sense of stability that made me want to trust and lean on him.

“You might think I’m crazy… but Director, would you still listen to what I have to say?”

“I’m already scared to hear what you’re about to say.”

“Phew…”

“I’ll listen. Speak comfortably.”

It was all or nothing anyway.

I clenched both fists under the table and steeled my resolve.

Summoning every bit of courage I had, I decided to just close my eyes and go for it.

“Director, do you remember that day we first met, when we talked about parallel universes?”

“Hmm… you mean that romantic space where love alone is the reason and purpose of existence?”

Cheon Yuhyeon chuckled, his narrowed eyes glancing down briefly.

Hearing him repeat it, it sounded embarrassing even to me.

Especially to a mature man like Cheon Yuhyeon, it must have seemed all the more ridiculous.

“Haah…”

But all of that wasn’t a naive fantasy; it was reality that I had to resolve.

“So, for me, this place is exactly that parallel universe.”

“…”

“I’m not originally from this world. Here, um… I’m in the middle of clearing a game.”

In the end, my voice came out uncertain.

Cheon Yuhyeon, who had been listening intently, said nothing for a while.

The ensuing silence stung.

Still, he had trusted me (?) and invited me to this secret space, and here I was spouting such absurd nonsense…

“So you’re saying you’ve dimension-traveled into a game, Wooju?”

Ahem.

After a moment of silence, Cheon Yuhyeon cleared his throat.

As he asked calmly, a system window appeared before my eyes.

[NPC Cheon Yuhyeon is attempting to access the system. Will you allow it? [Yes/No]]

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