Chapter 1186: Are they tears? No, they are sweat. (6)

After ending the livestream, I let out a relieved breath.

"This should be enough, right?"

"You did well, hyung."

"…My chest still feels tight."

There was nothing else we could do except turn on a livestream and ask people for help.

I looked over at the others.

"Are you guys okay?"

"Yeah. I mean, we lost quite a lot of things… but we left all the really important stuff on the plane."

"We should've left Rabbit Uncle there too."

We had brought him along because we wanted to take proof shots with him at the beach, and I suddenly regretted that decision.

Biju asked,

"What about you, hyung? Didn't you lose anything important?"

"It really hurts that the family photo is gone."

"Your family photo?"

"Yeah."

"Oh…."

"It's okay."

I wasn't the only one who had lost something.

While checking how everyone else was doing, I spotted Ri Hyuk sitting in the trunk of the vehicle with a devastated expression.

I went over and sat beside him.

"Are you okay?"

"My diary… I lost my diary."

"Ah…."

Was he heartbroken over losing a diary that probably contained precious personal records?

Ri Hyuk said blankly,

"In there…."

"Yeah."

"I wrote a lot of swear words. That's why I usually dispose of my diaries on a regular basis, but…."

"Let's hope the thief throws it away for you."

All we could do was hope the thief would rummage through the bag, see a diary written in Korean, think, What is this garbage?, and toss it.

As we waited for the police, we could see people making calls.

The Korean coordinator assigned to guide us locally scratched the back of his head, still wearing a Hawaiian shirt.

"Ah, this is a headache."

"Are the police coming?"

"They probably are."

The coordinator spoke to us.

"But they likely won't be much help. Maybe if this were Korea, but here in Mexico, the police are a little… well."

There seemed to be a great deal implied in the words a little well.

We asked the man, who was speaking in a low voice,

"What exactly do you mean by that…?"

"That kind of thing. The police pull you over, claim you were speeding, and tell you to pay a thousand-dollar fine or they'll take you to the station. Then, if you actually say you'll go to the station and pay the fine there, they lower it to a hundred dollars."

"Hmm."

"That's the general idea. The public authorities here aren't like the ones you're familiar with in Korea."

Seokhwan hyung groaned.

"Ugh. This really is a headache."

"Yes. At least it's fortunate that none of you lost your passports."

We heard various stories from someone who lived locally.

Apparently, the previous year, the Mexican Marines had come to Cancun, disarmed the local police, and arrested them on corruption charges.

It made us realize that the place we had thought of as nothing more than a tourist city was far more dangerous than expected.

Ri Hyuk said,

"No matter where you go, there are hardly any places safer than our country."

"I think you're right."

Just then, a couple of vehicles arrived.

As police officers in blue uniforms got out, a stocky man with a mustache approached us.

The person who appeared to be in charge spoke with a serious expression.

The coordinator translated for us.

"He says they'll do their best with the investigation."

"Ah, please tell him we appreciate it."

Even to us, though, these people didn't seem likely to help us recover our belongings.

The police chief stroked his mustache and said something else.

"He says he offers his deepest sympathies over what happened in this city, and hopes you leave with good memories rather than bad ones."

"Hmm."

In other words, Please don't say anything bad about our city.

I wondered why he was saying that.

"Damn it!"

One of the police officers cursed.

I didn't know much of the language Mexicans used, but I could tell it was the equivalent of "damn it."

Several vans fitted with television broadcasting equipment were approaching.

Judging by the broadcast cameras, they were probably news reporters, and the police officers were stopping them as they rushed over to interview us.

"The police say they'll escort you back to the hotel."

"Ah, all right."

We weren't exactly in the mood to give interviews either, so we accepted the offer.

It took some time.

Since we didn't know what else might have happened to the stolen vehicle, our bodyguards arranged a new one, and with their help, we headed back to the hotel.

I asked one of the guards, who was Mexican,

"Do you really think we'll be able to get our things back?"

"Hard to say, boss."

The man chewing gum shrugged.

"This is Mexico."

Hearing that, the others and I fell silent in thought.

Would Rabbit Uncle be okay?

More than any of the other things, he was the one item—no, doll—I was most attached to and treasured, so I desperately wanted to get him back.

But no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn't see any way to recover him.

It wasn't as though Rabbit Uncle would come cackling back like a haunted doll, and I doubted the police would easily find something stolen from a place without any CCTV.

"Wooju."

"Yeah?"

Seokhwan hyung, who had been cleaning his lenses with a cloth, looked embarrassed.

"I'm sorry. This was supposed to be a rare chance for you to relax, but I recommended the wrong travel destination."

"Why would that be your fault? This could've happened anywhere."

I waved it off and smiled.

Then Jiho, who had been looking out the window, suddenly said,

"The weather's really nice."

"It is."

We had been having such a great time while eating at the restaurant just moments ago, but now the mood felt strange.

"Still…."

Junghyun smoothly pulled something from inside his clothes.

"There's one thing we didn't lose."

"?"

"I still have the jelly book."

We burst out laughing as he triumphantly pulled the jelly book from his clothes.

"Why are you carrying that around?"

"So I can get recommendations when choosing from menus. Anyway, I did well, right?"

"You're the best, our idiot."

"Heh heh."

We laughed at our third member's guileless smile as he tried to lift the mood.

Right.

We had lost a few important things, but… so what?

It had been the same when I played Peng in the post-credits scene not long ago. We hadn't lost what mattered most.

"And that is my love for Kim Deoksun."

"…."

I grinned at the underlings glaring sharply at me.

"I'm kidding. I mean you guys."

I heard their laughter.

After catching his breath, Jiho said,

"Ha, but seriously, do you think we'll really get our things back? I feel like there's no way we'll ever find them."

"We'll have to wait and see. The police might find them, or someone might answer our request for help and we could get lucky."

"I hope we find them."

"For now, let's stay positive. We've done everything we can."

At my words, the others nodded.

At the same time.

Someone was bursting into delighted laughter.

"Oh my God. What kind of windfall is this?"

"This is huge."

They were the thieves who had robbed NewBlack's van.

One of the three said,

"I told you. A lot of rich people come to that area. As long as you avoid the times when the armed police patrol, it's perfect for stealing."

"Honestly, I was suspicious at first, but I admit it now. This is a jackpot."

At first, they hadn't even known whose vehicle they were robbing.

But the contents inside were a jackpot.

NewBlack, of all people.

As long as they laundered the origins properly, it seemed like they could sell the items off here and there for high prices.

Of course, selling the belongings of celebrities that famous without getting caught by investigators would not be easy. But if they had possessed enough common sense to consider that, they would have been court clerks rather than thieves.

"Hahahaha!"

"Are we rich now?!"

The thieves happily laughed as they examined the stolen items.

Then one strange thing caught their attention.

"What the hell is this shabby rabbit?"

"You don't know this? It's Uncle Bunny! Watch some MyTube once in a while."

"Uncle Bunny?"

"You know. Bunny Bunny, Uncle Bunny~"

One of the thieves put rabbit ears over his head with his hands and danced. Another nodded and hummed along.

But the first man only blinked.

"So what is it?"

"It's an incredibly famous children's song. As for why this is in NewBlack's van…."

"Why?"

"Do you think I'd be stealing for a living if I knew that?"

"So it's useless."

As he said that, the thief nudged the box containing the rabbit doll and knocked it over.

Tap.

Perhaps he had hit some kind of switch, because the rabbit doll moved its arms.

"Ah, damn it! You scared me. This thing moves?!"

"You scared me more than it did."

"I'm telling you, it moves."

A soft whirring sound came from it.

The rabbit doll lying inside the box raised a sign that read [YES].

The rabbit was smiling brightly.

As they stared at the fluffy white rabbit beaming at them, they began to feel inexplicably uneasy.

"Good Lord, God Almighty!"

One thief crossed himself and held out his phone.

"Look at this."

"Why? Does it say the rabbit doll is possessed by an evil spirit?"

"No. It says this doll was made by NewBlack's Wooju. Look at the price of the original Rabbit Uncle."

They were reading an article from a celebrity gossip outlet.

It said that a wealthy Middle Eastern tycoon and a Russian natural-resource magnate had each offered an enormous sum to purchase the original Rabbit Uncle.

"…!"

The thieves stared at one another with wide eyes, then looked into empty space.

Boooooo—

They imagined the luxurious cruise ship they would soon be sailing on.

The scale of their dreams suddenly became enormous, and they flopped backward.

They could see gold in the sky.

The world was beautiful, and the sound of birds somewhere in the distance seemed to bless their future.

God had clearly bestowed His grace upon them.

But only for a moment.

A phone call came in, making them flinch.

"Should I answer it?"

Whirrr—

The rabbit doll raised [YES].

"Someone stop that thing."

"How do we open the box? It's sealed…."

Meanwhile, the one who answered the call received some fresh news.

"Hey, did you hear? This is huge."

"Huh?"

"NewBlack is in Cancun right now, and apparently their things got stolen."

"R-Really? But why?"

"NewBlack put out a request on social media. They said they'll reward anyone who helps, so everyone's going crazy trying to catch the thieves. Even I…."

Click.

He ended the call.

"What is it?"

"The internet… someone check the internet."

"?"

Soon, after turning on their phones, they swallowed hard.

[NewBlack Asks Tens of Millions of Fans for Help After Important Belongings Are Stolen in Mexico]

They could already imagine the sound of a restless crowd somewhere outside.

It felt as though hunters carrying torches and barking dogs were charging out to find them.

One of the three said,

"Uh… are we screwed?"

Whirrr—

"…."

Their heads creaked as they turned.

[YES]

The thieves silently looked at one another.

The power of collective intelligence was truly magnificent.

The moment NewBlack's broadcast ended, Souffles in the Cancun area and various other fans began working together.

Souffles immediately gathered in a video conference.

One Souffle who said they worked as a police officer in India shared their opinion.

[Judging by the amount of luggage in the van, it looks like there were around three healthy adult men. One of them was probably behind the wheel so they could escape quickly, while the other two emptied the vehicle as fast as possible.]

A famous Japanese detective manga artist with experience working for an investigative agency agreed.

[The vehicle was parked somewhere that wasn't very visible to other people. I checked the road view, and it seems possible that someone may have captured something along the route from the beach to that location. If anyone took photos there, something might be in the background.]

As the intellectual faction put their heads to work like Seo Ri Hyuk in NewBlack, the Souffle version of underlings moved like worker ants.

[Looking for photos!]

Hundreds of reports immediately poured in from people who had taken photos that day.

The Souffles' eyes flicked rapidly across them.

Something… We need to find something.

And they quickly did.

In a selfie taken by a couple, a red car could be seen beyond the trees near what appeared to be NewBlack's van.

A red car!

The fans asked one another for opinions.

-What model is that?

-I know!

A Souffle who worked for the company that sold the car explained the model and production year.

Everyone moved quickly in response.

[Seeking information. Reward offered.]

As soon as they announced that they were looking for anyone who had seen the vehicle or had the red car in the background of a photo, thousands of images flooded in.

Checking each one was a massive task, but the sheer size of the Souffle fandom made it possible to do quickly.

"Hmm…."

"Mmm."

The Souffles rapidly checked the photos assigned to them, discussing and verifying whether each one was genuine.

Soon, they mapped out the route.

Where it had passed around 1:30, where it had gone around 1:45, and so on.

[Everyone!]

Someone spoke up.

[I'll share the route we've organized. Based on rough measurements, the thieves should be somewhere within a ten-hectare radius between here and here. Since there doesn't seem to have been any additional vehicle movement, they either continued on foot or are hiding somewhere in this area.]

An ordinary investigative agency might have needed dozens of days to do the same work.

But the enormous scale of the Souffle fandom made it possible.

With tens of millions of fans, they functioned like distributed cloud computing and finished the task in only a few hours.

The problem was that they had no physical force.

-So what do we do now???

-Realistically, we've done everything we can. All that's left is to give the information to the investigators.

-I already reported it.

-I heard their phone lines are being flooded right now, so I don't think everyone needs to call. It would be bad if something happened while the lines were jammed because of this.

-Got it… So are we disbanding?

-We are.

-Good work, everyone. Let's enjoy being fans.

After spending only a few hours holding an intense meeting as though they had known one another their entire lives, the Souffles coolly dispersed.

The incident would later become known as Operation Uncle Bunny.

We were sunbathing on the hotel terrace to calm ourselves when—

Bang!

The door flew open and Mingi hyung rushed in.

"Guys!"

"??"

"They caught the culprits!"

"Really?!"

…We exclaimed in shock, then checked the time and blinked.

Only a few hours had passed.

"Already?"

"Y-Yeah? Anyway, the police station called, so let's go."

"Okay."

And so we headed straight to the police station.

A reporter among the gathered press held out a microphone toward us and shouted,

"Have you heard? An hour ago, the culprits were found tied up with rope in front of the police station!"

Rope?

Blinking, we entered the station.

The person in charge who had greeted us earlier smiled broadly and said they had "arrested the culprits," so we asked,

"We heard they were tied up with rope?"

"Ah, well…."

The coordinator translated.

"Technically, they 'arrested' the culprits after finding them tied up in front of the police station."

"Ahh, so that's the story."

But why had they been tied up in the first place?

No one could guess who had caught them and left them in front of the station.

The coordinator said,

"According to this officer, the culprits insist they weren't caught by frightening people and dragged here. They say they turned themselves in. No, that's their story. That's the concept."

"Ahh, so that's how it is."

"Yes. Apparently that's how it is."

We didn't know exactly what had happened, but wasn't it good enough that the culprits had been caught?

We couldn't see their faces because they were currently in a holding cell, but while we were hearing that they were a group of three men, a police officer approached with a smile and proudly brought out our belongings.

"Here they are."

"Thank you!"

The underlings and I rummaged through the bags.

Each person searched for the item most important to them.

Ri Hyuk hugged his diary to his chest and let out a relieved breath. Junghyun found the camera that held precious memories, and Biju found his recipe book.

As for Jiho….

"Ah, what am I missing…?"

It seemed he had barely had anything in his bag to begin with, so he couldn't really tell.

As I smiled, Biju turned to me and asked,

"What about you, hyung? Is the family photo safe?"

"Yeah."

"That's a relief."

Biju placed a hand over his chest and took a deep breath as though it were his own problem.

"It's the only photo you have of your father and mother. If you'd lost that…."

"That's not the one."

"What?"

"It's one of a kind, yes, but… it isn't that family photo."

I took out a frame.

But the picture inside wasn't of my parents and me.

It was a picture of the five of us.

Twenty-two-year-old me stood at Eulwangri Beach.

Biju and Junghyun, both newly twenty, had their arms around each other's shoulders, with our youngest members still in their first and second years of high school beside them.

As the others stared blankly, I held up the five-year-old Polaroid and smiled.

"It's important to me. It's the only photo in the world from the set of our Fireworks music video."

It was another family photo that I always carried with me.