Yoon Mi-so, a member of the female duo Lemon Flower, explained.

“So we came to meet someone from ES Entertainment to ask if we could sign a contract under the condition of receiving a song from Dimension.”

Choi Soo-ah continued the explanation.

“But when we asked around about where to find ES Entertainment, those guys overheard us. That bastard Chief Jo even brought along some thugs and started chasing us.”

The drama’s male lead, Kang Seo-jun, jumped into the conversation.

“Wow, when you put it like that, it actually sounds pretty convincing. If I transfer to ES Entertainment, will Dimension give me songs too? Should I move there?”

Kwon Kyung-chul asked, “How much time do you have left on your contract?”

“Not much.”

“But if you go to ES Entertainment, do you think they can properly support you?”

“True. Dimension is a composer, and ES Entertainment’s president is a former singer, so they’re weak when it comes to dramas and movies.”

“They recruited a few actors before, but they all left in the end. Unless a powerful backer comes along, it’s not going to work. Right now, ES Entertainment is in no shape to handle you.”

Lee Seon-hwa listened to their conversation and thought to herself.

‘I can’t go. I still have a year left on my contract. Even if I force my way out, ES Entertainment is too small to back me up properly. Besides, ES Entertainment isn’t even Jung-woo’s company, so why would I go there?’

She glanced at Seo Sora.

‘Forget ES Entertainment, I should target her instead.’

Yoon Mi-so spoke up.

“But since things have come this far, there’s no need to sneak around and ask anymore. I’ll contact Senior Oh Dong-cheol and visit the company directly to ask if signing with ES Entertainment guarantees getting a song from Dimension.”

Choi Soo-ah clasped her hands together.

“I really hope we get one.”

Seo Jung-woo said, “Ah… yeah. Do your best.”

On the way back, Seo Sora asked, “Oppa, what are you going to do?”

“About what?”

“Lemon Flower. Are you going to give them a song?”

The other three also waited eagerly for his answer, their eyes shining.

“Well… I haven’t really thought about it yet.”

The reason he couldn’t give an immediate answer was that he didn’t know what the situation was like for Lemon Flower in the other world.

The next day, Seo Jung-woo reported to the police station. On his desk, there was an Americano coffee from a café.

Baek Sung-min saw it and complained.

“Wow. Discrimination in the 21st century. I’ve never once had even vending machine coffee waiting on my desk when I came to work. This is too much. Min-seok, don’t you think so?”

Jo Min-seok replied, “I’ve at least gotten vending machine coffee before.”

“Are you trying to get into the same department as Jung-woo? You’re in my department, you know?”

“Well, I need to date and get married someday too. So, you know…”

“I’ve been raising a little tiger!”

Seo Jung-woo took a sip of his coffee. ‘As expected, coffee from this world tastes good.’

A short while later, Violent Crimes Team Leader Kwon Byeong-cheol appeared, shaking a file.

“Jung-woo, you need to go somewhere.”

“Where to?”

Baek Sung-min jumped up in protest.

“Wait, Team Leader! What are we supposed to do if you send Jung-woo away?”

“What do you mean?”

“Ever since Jung-woo came, we’ve been living the good life! We need more of that! Where are you sending him? Who’s the bastard asking for him to be transferred?”

“So you do realize you’ve been slacking off, huh?”

“Well, it’s not exactly something you can hide. And Team Leader, you’ve been enjoying it too.”

Kwon Byeong-cheol waved his hand dismissively.

“We’re not the only ones enjoying it. The Chief and the Commissioner are benefiting too. Plenty of places have already requested to have Jung-woo transferred, but the Commissioner is blocking them with everything he’s got. He keeps saying if they want to take Jung-woo, they’ll have to take him down first.”

Baek Sung-min was taken aback.

“Wait, so he’s really being transferred?”

“Not permanently. Just for today, he’s been assigned as security support somewhere else.”

“Oh… so it’s just a one-day thing. Still, you can’t just send him off like that. One-day assignments turn into two days, two days turn into three, and before you know it, he’s always away on assignments. If you keep overloading him with work just because he’s good at it, who’s going to want to work hard?”

“That’s how things work in this country. If you’re good at something, they just give you more to do.”

“Which is exactly why we, as law enforcers, shouldn’t go along with it! This is exploitation! Exploitation!”

“You’re talking a lot of sense today. Honestly, Sung-min, you’re only motivated when you have something to complain about.”

“I’ll go grab them by the collar and demand answers, so just tell me which bastard ordered Jung-woo to be sent!”

“It’s an order from way up high, so we have no choice.”

“How high up are we talking?”

“The Commissioner.”

Baek Sung-min hesitated.

“Ah. Well, then he has to go.”

“The Commissioner received a request from a minister of another department.”

“Then he really has to go. Wait, what kind of minister even knows the name of a low-ranking officer?”

Baek Sung-min, who had been grumbling, tilted his head.

“But security support instead of an investigation? For Jung-woo? Why? He’s famous for catching murderers.”

“How should I know? The location is in Samseong-dong, and they told me to just send him. They didn’t even tell me who he’s supposed to protect.”

Violent Crimes Team Leader Kwon Byeong-cheol asked Seo Jung-woo, “Have you ever done a security mission before? They specifically requested you from above, so I’m sending you.”

Seo Jung-woo had plenty of experience protecting people from external dangers. However, it wasn’t from people but from monsters.

In the other world, Seo Jung-woo frequently entered monster-occupied zones to rescue survivors. As long as they were still alive when he arrived, he brought them all out safely. That meant he had to be capable of protecting them from monster attacks while breaking through enemy lines.

His detection skill and shooting skill were extremely useful in such missions.

Seo Jung-woo shrugged. He finished his coffee and tossed the cup into the trash bin.

“So where do I need to go?”

He didn’t notice the phone number written in a woman’s handwriting on the bottom of the cup. Such things never showed up in his detection skill.

Kwon Byeong-cheol handed him the file.

“They want you to come here. The contact details of the person in charge are inside.”

Seo Jung-woo arrived at a hotel in Samseong-dong. An international academic seminar was scheduled to take place there today.

After reviewing the file, Seo Jung-woo contacted the person in charge.

A government official from a central ministry came to meet him.

“Detective Seo Jung-woo? Wow, it’s a pleasure to meet you in person.”

“Ah, yes. First of all, I’d like to understand the situation. I haven’t been informed of the security target yet. I also need to know what kind of threats are involved.”

The official waved his hand and smiled.

“Ah, security? There’s no actual danger. This is just a matter of courtesy. No need to worry.”

“Excuse me?”

He showed him a photograph.

“This is the person you’ll be guarding, but the situation is a bit complicated…”

The person in the photo was someone Seo Jung-woo knew.

“Dr. Jeong?”

The official looked flustered.

“Oh? How do you know Dr. Jeong Ki-hoon, Detective Seo?”

Jeong Ki-hoon was a well-known weapons developer in the other world.

A Korean-American, he returned to Korea in 2000 when the Gate opened and war broke out against the monsters, dedicating himself to developing weapons. Some of the weapons Seo Jung-woo used were designed by Jeong Ki-hoon. Even the pink compact caseless pistol that Lee Seon-hwa used had been personally modified and enhanced by Jeong Ki-hoon at Seo Jung-woo’s request.

But there was no reason to tell a government official in this world such things. He improvised an excuse.

“I read about him in an article.”

“Most people outside of academic or technical fields wouldn’t know who he is.”

“I happened to see an article about Dr. Jeong. I have a good memory for faces—it helps with catching criminals. But aside from what I read in the article, I don’t know much about him. Could you explain who he is?”

Seo Jung-woo had no idea what kind of life Jeong Ki-hoon led in this world. He wanted that information.

“Dr. Jeong Ki-hoon is a mechanical engineer conducting research in the U.S. He’s also a physicist. He has an outstanding reputation in both fields. Oh, and his nationality is American—he’s a Korean-American.”

Seo Jung-woo thought to himself.

‘So, in this world, he’s been living in America the whole time.’

The official continued explaining.

“He’s been providing a lot of consultation for our national defense research. He came to Korea to attend this international academic seminar, and since our government owes him a lot, we can’t treat him poorly. But directly offering him money would attract unwanted attention from the U.S. government. If it looks like we’re trying to recruit him, that wouldn’t be good for either side. So instead, we’re making sure to show him proper hospitality. The security support is part of that.”

“Ah, I see. But why me, of all people?”

“When we offered security support, they specifically requested Detective Seo Jung-woo.”

Seo Jung-woo’s expression stiffened slightly.

‘Why? How do they know me? Don’t tell me Dr. Jeong has figured out that the other world exists?’

He swallowed hard. If someone had discovered the existence of the other world, his current relaxed, leisurely, and comfortable life would be over. From then on, he’d have to run around figuring out who knew what.

“Why me…”

“It’s because of the video where you caught Lee Seon-hwa’s stalker. That video went viral in the U.S. Apparently, even Dr. Jeong Ki-hoon’s daughter saw it.”

“Ahh.”

Now the situation made sense.

‘So I was called here because of Jessica. It’s not because they know about the other world. Well, of course. People from this world figuring that out would be impossible.’

His tension eased.

In the other world, Jeong Ki-hoon had a daughter named Jessica Jeong. She was an adult.

From the age of the twins, Park Ha-yeon and Park Da-yeon, and beyond, the same individuals existed in both worlds. It was only natural that Jessica existed in this one as well.

Seo Jung-woo met Jeong Ki-hoon and Jessica at the hotel in Samseong-dong.

He greeted them first.

“I’m Seo Jung-woo.”

“I’m Jeong Ki-hoon. And this is my daughter, Jessica.”

In the other world, Seo Jung-woo had once saved their lives.

But they didn’t recognize him.

‘Of course. We probably never had any connection in this world.’

Jessica’s eyes sparkled as she excitedly exclaimed, “Wow! You’re really the guy who went ‘papapap’ in that video?”

In the other world, Jessica spoke fluent Korean. She had been born in the U.S. but had grown up in Korea since childhood, so it was only natural.

In this world, Jessica also spoke Korean well, but her accent felt slightly unnatural.

‘Did she learn Korean from watching videos?’

“Ah, yes.”

“Wow! Then let’s have a match!”

“A match? What do you mean…”

“I have a black belt in Taekwondo too!”

“What about Kendo?”

“Whoa! How did you know I have a Kendo rank? Can you just tell by looking?”

It wasn’t just from looking.

In the other world, Jessica had awakened a swordsmanship skill.

“You just seem like someone who would like swords.”

Jessica got even more excited.

“Wow! You really are like Conan, just like a real detective!”

ES Entertainment’s president, Oh Dong-cheol, shouted from his office.

“We finally got an event!”

All four members of 4cats jumped up at the same time.

Seo Sora raised both arms high.

“Hooray! I can finally pay off my laptop debt! No more errands!”

Yoon Nana asked, “What kind of event is it?”

Oh Dong-cheol grinned as he explained.

“Originally, another girl group was scheduled for this event, but they had a scheduling conflict and couldn’t make it. So we’re taking their place.”

Yoon Nana looked slightly disappointed.

“Oh. So we’re just a backup. Our historic first event is as a fill-in.”

The twins protested.

“You said you’d get us a good event!”

“The president gave up on us and is selling us as leftovers!”

“If this was the plan, you should’ve let us do that gaming tournament event!”

“There were probably people there who remembered our dad!”

Oh Dong-cheol quickly explained.

“Hey, hey. This isn’t just any backup gig. It’s a major international academic seminar at a hotel in Samseong-dong. It’s an important event, so a lot of big companies will be there. You’re performing at the banquet dinner of the seminar. That means your first event isn’t even a domestic one—it’s an international one! You’re debuting on the global stage! Isn’t that amazing?”

The twins immediately changed their stance.

“From now on, we specialize in backup gigs!”

“Woohoo! We’re international backups now!”

Yoon Nana asked, “What kind of seminar is it?”

“Something about physics and mechanical engineering… I didn’t really get it.”

“We don’t have to do any event support work, right?”

“Nope. All you have to do is perform. Oh, and after the performance, they’ll provide dinner there. You’ll get to eat among famous scientists and company executives.”

Seo Sora looked worried.

“What if all those nerdy scholars get so mesmerized by my charm that they can’t even eat properly?”

Oh Dong-cheol responded, “Nana, if you have any leftover meds, share some with Sora.”