“Dancing Daggers.” Jae-sun answered my question. “That was Bong-Chol’s in game name.”

I don’t have a good feeling about this. “And have you heard of Great East Winds or Audaciously Awesome? They might have played Valor with Bong-Chol.”

“No.” Jae-sun replied. “But I will check with Bong-Chol’s sister.”

“Okay, let me know as soon as possible.”

After a short pause, Jae-sun spoke up. I think he noticed a hint of frustration in my voice. “Hyung, is this related to Bong-Chol’s disappearance?”

“I don’t know. Maybe.” I could sense some hesitation with that question of his. “Why?”

“Hyung, could you not look into it.” Jae-sun answered.

I took a deep breath. I knew my instincts were bang on – something seemed off about this call. “Why?” I asked while holding back my impatience or any sign of annoyance.

With great hesitation Jae-sun meekly replied, “I am not too sure but Sangnim said someone offered her a large compensation package if she agreed to withdraw the case filed with the police and sign a non-disclosure. They said this was bad PR for the company and they would personally assist with finding her brother.”

I silently swore under my breath. My mind raced as I considered the possibilities. The only one who would suffer from a PR catastrophe if top gamers go missing is Laureta Inc. I quickly take Sangnim’s number from Jae-sun and drop the call.

It’s likely Juan Lee’s father must have been contacted. I first call Sangnim to ask stop her from signing the NDA. I won’t get into the details of the call: we spoke briefly and it seems that the silly stupid girl signed the NDA and took the compensation. So much for blood relations. While I was annoyed with her, it was interesting to note that some “movers and packers” came from the company and took away the gaming capsule – apparently, Bong-chol was an ‘invited’ player and thus, was “lent” a gaming capsule.

I wouldn’t say this is necessarily mysterious but definitely suspicious. I have a feeling Laureta Inc. is more involved in these disappearances than I previously imagined. I am willing to bet that the ridiculous gaming prize money involved is inciting not only jealousy but kidnappings.

I had researched about the company when I undertook this investigation. Other than the fact that it exists no other details were available. For example: I know it’s incorporated in USA (Delaware) but no mention of its employee names can be found anywhere. They have a spokesperson but he only announces information through twitter. Yet, suddenly a person turns in front of Sangnim’s house when he goes missing for a week? Suspicious.

I quickly dial Jaun Lee’s father. “Ahjussi, were you contacted by the gaming company, Laureta?” I courteously asked him.

“Do not worry.” The old man replied. “Finding my son is your only priority. I will take care of the rest.”

I breath out a sigh of relief. If the old man had agreed to the NDA or withdrew the case, investigating these missing people cases would have been a lot more difficult.

“Stan, I have lived a good many number of years and during that time I have learnt to read people. These people don’t seem like your ordinary white-collar employees but rather professional thugs.” The old man continued.

“Thank you so much, sir. I will not let you down.” I promised him. I am not doing this to find his son but to find out what happened here – there are just too many moving parts to this case.

“Were they very insistent on recovering the gaming capsule?” I asked.

“Yes, they were. They wanted everything related to the game back. Even the packaging.”

“Everything related?” I mumbled. I quickly thanked the old man again and got off the call.

***

As I hastily dug through the boxes, I found a pen drive. This is it – a clue. My heart is racing as I insert the pen drive into my laptop….its a user manual. Well that’s disappointing.

I wouldn’t say this is a breakthrough in the case but its somewhat helpful to verify a conjecture. I search for the word ‘coma’ and I find it immediately.

“If the player chooses no action before logging out or exits the capsule abruptly, the character will be in the default state of coma. Hence, please choose your character options.”

That’s basically a confirmation that “Great East Winds” too “abruptly” left his gaming capsule. In other words, there is a third person missing. I reach out to my laptop and quickly sent a few emails to my ‘friends’ in the police department. If these missing cases are linked, then it’s likely this is the work of a highly dangerous individual. I am sure the Korean police in some district must have encountered a missing person case similar to the ones I am investigating.

Once I am done, I throw myself back into my chair and stare at the gaming capsule. Somehow, ‘you’ are related to all of this. The things people do for a game.

***

I log back in and find my character ‘resting’. As I open my eyes, I find a man and a woman, suited in complete armour, sitting beside my bed. The man wore a thick deep red armor: like a knight? The woman on the other hand was dressed in plain clothing – nothing about her attire told me anything about her or her in-game profession.

“You’re back?” The man asked.

He’s a player – NPCs wouldn’t ask such a question. Did he know Juan Lee? “Yes.” I replied as I considered who he might be.

“What happened?” he asked impatiently as he moved around in his chair. Both the man and woman were looking terribly impatient as though they had been waiting here for hours.

“I don’t know. What do you mean?” I asked while looking confused. I am just pretending: I don’t know who they are- friends or foes? My experiences have taught me that some times its better to pretend to be stupid than reveal all your cards in one go. There are 3 people missing, it would be foolish to tell others this without knowing their intentions.

“You!” The woman angrily swore under her breath as her eyes tried to pierce through my skin. Trust me lady, I have a very thick skin. You won’t get anything out of me by glaring at me like that.

“Don’t know what I mean? Don’t joke with me. I told you to uncover what Dancing Daggers found. You even borrowed Great East from my mission to help you and suddenly the three of you disappear for a week? Are you testing my patience as your team captain?”

Team captain? Interesting. “Why didn’t you call me? You could have just found out what happened.” I casually replied while slowly sitting up in my bed.

The duo stare at me as though they were looking at a stupid stranger.

“What?” I asked.

“Who are you?” The woman curiously asked.