After getting the drink he wanted, the person forthwith left in front of the vending machine. This time, he walked back toward the escalator again. This made Chioujen a bit confused and worried at the same time. If he really intended to go down to a floor far below, he shouldn't have had to stop by that floor. Drink vending machines were available on every floor. He could directly buy a drink at the vending machine on the floor he went to. Chioujen was worried about the possibility that the person had already realized that Chioujen was following him. If that was the case, that person dropped by the floor they were on, only to confirm whether Chioujen had really followed him. Chioujen stood frozen, thinking about the possibility. But after a while, he decided to continue his action. Everything was already done. Had that person known, Chioujen would have been ready. Chioujen was sure that person wouldn't do anything dangerous.
While walking, the person did not look in any direction at all. He walked on without stopping at all. This made Chioujen even more confused. In the conversation he had heard earlier, that person had considerable experience observing or supervising people. If that was true, he would have known that Chioujen had been following him all along. Chioujen was worried that the person was deliberately letting Chioujen follow him for some reason. However, since he was determined to continue following that person, Chioujen could no longer retreat.
The person took the escalator to the lowest floor. If people want to go straight to the bottom floor, they usually use the elevator, not the escalator. Chioujen could only guess that the person might be afraid of being in an enclosed space like an elevator. That conjecture flashed through Chioujen's mind.
The bottom floor had several tenants. Because the most famous was Shindongchaang, many people think the bottom floor was identical to Shindongchaang. In fact, several other companies had opened businesses there. But after midnight like that, it was certain that no one was passing by there, so it was silent.
Chioujen strode discreetly. He didn't want to make a sound that would arouse suspicion. Such silence, even the faintest sound, might be heard clearly.
When Chioujen reached the bottom floor, he couldn't see that person anymore. Chioujen noticed his surroundings. There was hardly anyone else there. For a moment, his mind was stuck. He didn't know what to do next.
Chioujen sighed. Due to his careful steps, he lost track of that person. Maybe that person had come down there on purpose to outwit him. He pretended to go down to the lowest floor. But actually, when Chioujen couldn't see him, the person immediately returned to where he was before or went up to one floor above.
In his confusion, Chioujen just circled around in that place. Except for the Shindongchaang warehouse, all the business units there were locked, so it was almost impossible for anyone to enter any of the rooms used as offices or shops on that floor. But then Chioujen realized the possibility that the person was one tenant of the place there. If that's the case, that person could be hiding somewhere on the floor right now.
The atmosphere was tranquil. Two guards were sitting in front of Shindongchaang's office. Not only them but there were also still two other guards on the floor. Chioujen decided to stop looking for that person anymore. He didn't want to attract the guards' attention who were there. He decided to return to where he had previously eaten a delicious meal. If the person wearing the light blue shirt is no longer at the stall selling the tuna dish, then he will posthaste return to his room and resume his interrupted sleep.
Before leaving the floor, Chioujen took the time to stop by the restroom. There were several restrooms on that floor. Intuitively, Chioujen chose the one closest to him. The washroom was in one corner of the floor. Of course, that was just Chioujen's estimation. He didn't know for sure what the shape of the building on the bottom floor was. Chioujen had to go through a winding hallway to get to the restroom. Chioujen had never even explored the bottom floor, so he relied solely on the signs written on the walls there.
He went into the restroom and urinated there. As he came out of the restroom, he realized there was something important. In the hallway, it turned out that there was another turn that did not lead to the restroom. The turn was not visible from the direction he came in earlier, but people walking from the restroom to the outside would notice it easily. Even so, it was impossible for people returning from the toilet to enter the turn because it was so dark. There were no lights in the hallway after the other turn.
Chioujen was in no hurry to do anything else. He decided to see where the turn would lead. He walked carefully. Luckily, he had grabbed a flashlight before leaving the room, so he didn't have to worry about walking in the dark.
The other aisle turned out to be quite long. Chioujen had already walked about fifty meters from where he had turned earlier. Maybe more. Chioujen couldn't be sure because he was focused on the dark passage, not on the distance he had walked. He didn't know what place it was and why people had built the passage. He could only surmise that there might have been a plan to create a larger space. For some reason, the plan was not continued. Some of the hallways that had already been built in the project were abandoned. After that, people might forget about the existence of these passages.