Ch.12Chapter 12. Two-Piece Bastards (3)

I found everything in the house smashed to pieces.

The bed, chairs, wardrobe, pantry, and everything else…

They’d trashed every room except for the garage, which was blocked by a steel door.

The telephone survived because it was analog, and they probably thought it was just a model.

The one fortunate thing was that I didn’t have any cash at home.

If they’d taken my money and car too, I’d probably be jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge right now.

So what am I doing now?

If you were to ask:

“Where are you going now?”

“To get revenge.”

That’s the answer.

I’m on my way to meet the bastard who did this to me.

I’d barely walked for 30 minutes when the quiet, clean streets disappeared, replaced by the scenery of a slum with trash blowing in the wind.

“Look carefully. Without me, you’d end up like that collapsed dead woman over there. Got it?”

“Why would that happen?”

“Because you have no money, idiot. Having no money is a sin in this world. Do you understand?”

“Sort of…”

Well, if I died, Cuss’s true identity would be exposed, so she’d be dragged to a dissection room before ending up on the streets.

One way or another, Cuss is stuck with me.

As we entered the heart of the slum, the number of people loitering around increased.

The looks we were getting were concerning.

Though not expensive brands, we were wearing clean clothes that clearly showed we weren’t from around here.

A man and woman who obviously didn’t belong would naturally attract attention.

Dangerous things could easily happen.

“Stay close to me.”

“Why?”

“Because someone might come on a motorcycle and snatch you away.”

“Why would they snatch me?”

“To kidnap you and demand ransom from me.”

“You wouldn’t pay it anyway, would you?”

“Well, that’s true.”

“Then there’s no point in telling me to stay close, is there?”

“…I’m saying this for your sake, you little shit.”

This bitch gives me attitude even when I’m trying to be considerate.

Maybe I should just sell her to some porn studio in the slum.

I could get a good amount of money for her.

…No, that won’t work.

I’d definitely get caught by Juliane from the Justice Department.

Damn it, why did I have to seduce Juliane in the first place?

“We’re here.”

“Where is this? Are we meeting someone?”

“An old friend.”

We stood in front of the steel door of an abandoned factory.

I knocked on the door loudly.

Soon, a small window in the door slid open, and a pair of eyes peeked out.

“Who is it?”

“I’m here to see Bob Mitchell.”

“Bob Mitchell? Who’s that?”

“You don’t even know your boss’s real name?”

“…One moment, please.”

The window slammed shut.

Well, I guess his nickname is more famous than his real name.

But a subordinate should know his boss’s name.

“May I ask your name, sir?”

The window opened again in less than three seconds.

“Jinsoo Kim. Tell him that and he’ll know.”

“…Yes, sir.”

The window closed again.

What an idiot.

After waiting for about three minutes, the steel door swung open.

“Why did it take so lo—”

“Jinsoo!”

“Oh, shit, you came out yourself?”

The person who appeared from inside was a black—no, brown—cocoa puff.

He used to have some hair around the edges, but it seems he’s lost it all now.

Or maybe he shaved it all off.

He has a good head shape, so the bald look suits him better.

With just his head poking out, he looks like he could be a Digda Pokémon.

“Of course I came out myself! When I heard you were coming! Come in.”

“Yeah. How long has it been?”

“Let’s see… 5 years, no, 6 years since I got out.”

He’s someone I served time with in the human experimentation facility.

This guy used to love electric skillets so much.

I thought he was just a perverted masochist, but later I found out he was the head of an organization that controlled LA.

Though “control” is a stretch since his influence doesn’t extend beyond the slums.

“Weren’t you on death row? How did you get out?”

“Well… I got lucky.”

“Who’s that beside you?”

I couldn’t tell him I’d caught her host and received a special pardon.

“An orphan. I recently took her in and I’m raising her.”

“Hehe. She’s still quite underdeveloped. Are you raising her to eat later?”

“Uh… I haven’t thought about that yet.”

Damn it.

If she puts on some weight, she might become quite attractive.

Maybe raising her to be desirable and then having my way with her would be compensation for all this trouble I’m going through now.

“Welcome to LA, Jinsoo.”

“Actually, I’ve been here for about 3 years.”

“What? Then why are you only visiting now?”

“I only found out you were here recently.”

To be honest, I’ve known for quite a while.

I had just barely escaped the slums, and I didn’t want to create connections with the king of the underworld.

But now I need his help, so I had no choice.

“So. What brings you here? You always only look for people when you need something.”

“Why do you have to say it like that? Someone might think I’m a complete bastard.”

“Well, it seems accurate…”

“Wait a minute. Hey! Cuss! Where did you go?”

Damn, this girl disappeared again.

She was right next to me, but now she’s gone.

“The kid’s name is Cuss? What kind of fucked-up name is that?”

“She’s actually a fucked-up girl. Hey! Where did you go?”

This place has an open structure with nowhere to hide.

After looking around, I finally found Cuss in the distance.

She was sitting on a grimy mattress, intensely pressing buttons on a console game in front of a large monitor.

“This is the A button.”

“A button. I understand. So what does it do?”

Who’s that woman teaching her?

With short hair, bridge-colored dye, and a nose piercing, she looked exactly like a prostitute from a 2000s cyberpunk movie.

“Why did that whore take my kid without saying anything—”

“That’s my daughter.”

“I meant she looks like she’d be very popular with men, you know what I mean?”

“Sigh… I can’t even get mad at you. How have you not changed at all?”

What’s this cocoa puff talking about?

I’ve changed so much in the last three years.

Do I still look like that criminal bastard Jinsoo Kim?

I’m now a law-abiding middle-class salary man.

“Don’t worry. Your kid seems to be good with people.”

“My kid doesn’t have good social skills…”

“Let the kids be. So, tell me why you’re here.”

“I’m looking for someone. Probably one of your guys, or rather, two of them.”

“Our guys? Why?”

“They hit me on the head, split my scalp, and trashed my house.”

“Oh… shit. Two guys? I think I know who they are.”

“I saw one of them. Pretty young, with a ridiculous mustache that doesn’t suit him at all.”

“Yeah, that’s them. There were some guys recently bragging about robbing a house but not finding much. So that was your place…”

Bob gritted his teeth in anger.

The reason he treats me so well is simple.

In the experimental facility, I drew all the aggro and endured all kinds of terrible experiments.

Even Bob, who had an electric skillet fetish, avoided electric skull massages, but I endured many of those.

Come to think of it, maybe that’s why my brain seems to have gotten worse since then?

Anyway, there wasn’t a single person in that facility who didn’t respect me.

Even the gay guys didn’t try to rape me.

“Jack!”

“Yes, boss?”

“Tell Colin and Sazanski to come here.”

“Right now?”

“No, not urgent, how about ten years from now?”

“I’ll get them here as quickly as possible.”

“They’ll be kneeling in front of you soon, just wait a bit—”

“Son of a bitch!”

“…?”

Just then, a sharp scream came from behind us.

I turned around reflexively and saw that crazy Cuss grabbing the cyberpunk whore by the neck and shaking her.

The woman responded by grabbing Cuss’s hair.

“Hey, kid. Why are you picking fights with someone who was minding their own business?”

“She keeps winning and mocking me!”

“That’s because you suck—gack—at this!”

Looking at the screen, it seemed they were playing a one-on-one fighting game.

Wow, isn’t this a really old game?

But damn, what’s with that score?

10-0? That’s ridiculous.

“You pathetic girl, how can you not win even one round? You need to win in real life.”

“I got it!”

That’s right.

At least her response has some energy.

“Uh… should we let them fight?”

“Kids grow by fighting. Want to bet who’ll win? 100 dollars.”

“Deal. My daughter has taken down several boys before.”

“R-really? Should we cancel the bet?”

“No.”

And so a small match began.

The cyberpunk whore versus the scruffy silver-haired girl.

Soon spectators gathered, placing their own bets separate from the one between Bob and me.

Damn, I thought she’d fight well since she’s basically a monster, but she started losing.

“Urgh…! Not letting go? Want me to hurt you more?”

“Jinsoo hits harder! This is nothing!”

Hey…

Now I sound like a domestic abuser who beats his daughter all the time.

“Let go. I said let go!”

“Argh! Aah! My hair is being pulled out!”

How is she losing when she had the neck hold first?

Is it because she lacks grip strength?

Well, looking at how thick that woman’s neck is, it would be hard for me to choke her too.

She definitely inherited her father’s genes properly.

Just as I thought I was about to lose 100 dollars:

“Eeeeeeeeek!!!”

“So this is your weak point!”

The cyberpunk whore’s pig-like squeal echoed throughout the abandoned factory.

Cuss had grabbed onto her nose piercing.

That’s right, damn it. Despite appearances, Cuss is intelligent enough to learn human language instantly.

She’s on a different level from someone who just mindlessly pulls hair.

With her piercing grabbed, the cyberpunk whore was dragged around until:

“I surrender! Fuck, I surrender! Aah! My nose is going to tear!”

“Yes! The underdog wins!”

“No way, this doesn’t make sense…”

Soon the GG declaration came.

Only then did Cuss release the piercing and walk proudly back to me.

That’s my daughter.

“She was so bad at the game that I couldn’t stand it and had to teach her a lesson.”

“Well done, kid.”

Bob shook his head and handed me some crumpled bills.

Pleased with the unexpected gain, I roughly patted Cuss’s head.

Made an easy 100 dollars.

Should we go home now?

Wait, I think I came here for a different reason.

Probably nothing important.

Bang!

“You called for us, boss?”

Just then, the door opened loudly and two men wearing motorcycle helmets entered.

As soon as they took off their helmets, I recognized them.

That’s him. The guy who hit me from behind.

Right, I came here because of those bastards.

“Is it them?”

“Yeah, that’s them.”

“Boys, make these two kneel in front of me.”

“Yes, boss.”

Bob said casually while taking off his glasses and wiping them on his clothes.

The door slammed shut, and organization members approached the two with tools in their hands.

The two men turned pale, their eyes darting around frantically.