episode_0227

“Alright.”

“D-don’t pull! Damn it! I told you it hurts!”

“I said I get it.”

“You son of a bitch, aaargh!”

“Ah. Hold on. Your friend’s jaw is going to break off.”

Manager Kim, who was acting petty (?), was dragged back the entire distance he’d run to escape. Considering how he kept screaming without a break, his vocal cords seemed top-notch….

“…Seriously.”

When I let go of his ankle and turned roughly, Manager Kim flinched greatly.

“Wha—why, why are you—”

Thwack!

Thud—

I silenced the incessant chattering with a light kick.

A bit of blood and a few white kernels spraying from his mouth was unintentional.

Once the audio stressing my eardrums turned off, a sense of calm finally settled in my mind.

I liked the quietness of the dark street, where not even a breeze blew.

However, the scene of my fight was a bit of a mess.

A transport vehicle, half-destroyed, burning fiercely with increasing intensity.

Corpses, relatively clean, but still oozing fluids.

Among them, I grabbed Team Leader Lee by the nape of his neck, where he lay sprawled on the cold ground, and lifted him.

The chaotic scene on the road, which had become a mess in an instant, lacked a solemn atmosphere.

The conditions for a productive conversation.

Wouldn’t that be the topic, the opponent, and the location?

If fine dining, alcohol, and mysterious envelopes served as lubrication for smooth conversation, then I always had excellent lubrication ready.

Of course, it was a different genre from the things I just listed.

The topic could be created, and an opponent was difficult to acquire but found.

The location was the problem…

[Blue Tile Hangover Soup]

Looking around, I entered the hangover soup restaurant prominently located at the intersection, gripping two chunks of meat in my hands.

“……”

I wasn’t sure if someone had searched through it or if zombies had stormed in.

Overturned tables and chairs, utensils scattered across the floor.

Sadly broken, familiar black earthenware pots.

The restaurant’s interior, chaotically and messily broken and discarded, was overflowing with an eerie feeling.

Thud—

I casually threw the two unconscious men down and surveyed the interior.

As it was quiet, there didn’t seem to be anything problematic.

No zombies or corpses were visible in either the hall or the kitchen.

The large refrigerator, devoid of power and function, stood with its door wide open, revealing an empty interior.

Not even common kitchen knives or frying pans were visible.

Whoever it was, they seemed to have thoroughly scavenged the place.

‘None here.’

After thoroughly searching the kitchen, a slight regret remained.

One thing that was always depicted in kitchens in foreign movies was missing.

An S-shaped pointed hook and a rack for hanging large chunks of meat.

Those were not in this kitchen.

“Ugh…”

As I came out, smacking my lips, one of them twitched, trying to get up.

He was tougher than I thought.

The Team Leader, whom I’d intended to knock out for just a moment, indeed woke up after only a moment.

“He-here is… you!”

“You’re awake?”

“You! Ugh!”

Staggering to his feet, the Team Leader shook his head violently to clear his mind.

His eyes darting around, he surveyed his surroundings, then grit his teeth.

His gaze, radiating a ferocious intent to tear me apart, was a bit scary.

He lowered his stance, fixing his eyes on me.

I responded to him with a faint, relaxed smile.

“Come at me if you dare.”

“……”

“You’re fiddling with your hand so openly, how could I not know? You seem pretty pissed off, but you should calm down before we start.”

Grind—!

Whether he took it as a taunt, he scowled and pulled a pistol from his waist.

There was no hesitation; he was quick.

His agility, hard to believe for someone who had just been unconscious, stood out.

But the moment he made his move, I, too, burst from my spot.

Bang—!!

By the time the first shot was fired, I was already sticking to him.

He couldn’t hide his agitation, seemingly genuinely surprised by my direct movement.

I felt it was a bit odd for him to hold a mere pistol, not a rifle, so carefully with both hands, but he immediately began to show me why.

Whoosh—Swish—!

I thought he was just posing with the pistol held flat beneath his chin, but he attacked from that very stance.

He swung his elbow towards the vital points on my face.

Keeping his low stance, he stepped within my range.

He thrust his shoulder and torso forward, crashing into me.

His upper body used a half-rotation.

He attacked, utilizing the power of his waist and lower body.

They were… somehow flashy attacks, but easy to block.

He seemed to be… trying to create an opening to shoot…

Thwack—Bang—!

Thud—Bang—!

Swish—Swish! Bang!

The bullets flew in random directions.

Did he feel he had a chance just because I was only defending?

His flashy antics didn’t stop.

Hook—!

Clack—!!

When he aimed for my jaw, striking upwards with his elbow, I responded with my jaw.

“Gah!”

I snapped my neck down, pressing my jaw onto the point of his elbow.

As the Team Leader’s left arm jolted and went limp, he reflexively thrust his pistol forward.

Thud—!

“Gasp?!”

I grabbed his wrist and twisted it upward; he grimaced and dropped his pistol.

Tremble, tremble—

Whoosh—

Deciding it was difficult to pull his wrist free, he delivered a knee kick.

Towards my precious Johnson.

Squish—!!

Crack—Snap—

“Aaaargh!!”

I easily neutralized him by applying pressure to the grabbed wrist.

With his knee bent, the Team Leader didn’t know what to do.

I looked down at him, drooling, then let go of his hand.

“Gasp—!!”

“Stop playing around and do it properly.”

“Grind!!”

The Team Leader seemed truly enraged, his eyes bulging with an unsettling intensity.

“Ah. Don’t grind your teeth. You’ll lose them, you know?”

“……”

Whether my sincere advice reached him, he pressed his lips shut.

I scratched under my chin and said with a hint of disappointment,

“Can’t you use a knife? The crazy bastard I met before came at me with a pretty good one.”

“…What?”

I scoffed at the Team Leader’s stunned expression.

“Don’t pretend you don’t know. There was that lunatic your company sent to catch Dr. Jang, right? A crazy one. You’re the Team Leader, aren’t you? Don’t you have anything hidden? If you do, take it out now. Don’t regret it later.”

Whether my words were shocking, his eyes, which had been trembling subtly, suddenly grew cold.

“…What did you do to that man?”

“?”

“Tell me!!”

To the man who expressed his sudden outburst with a yell, I casually said,

“Can’t you tell by looking at me? He died long ago.”

“You!!”

“If it were you, would you let someone live who shot at you, stabbed at you, and even detonated grenades?”

At my sincere mockery, the Team Leader’s face stiffened coldly.

Crack, snap—!

‘Oh… that’s quite painful to do by himself.’

He slowly grabbed his limp left arm and deftly twisted it, setting the bone.

I thought it was broken, but it must have been dislocated.

The Team Leader, flexing his left hand, pulled something out of the utility pouch behind his waist.

‘…What is that?’

A small syringe, small enough to fit in one hand.

As if it were a familiar object, he uncapped it and injected it into his neck without hesitation.

“Ughhh!!”

“…Woah.”

Thick veins protruded on his body, which turned bright red from the neck down, as if blood was rushing through him.

With his eyes slightly bloodshot, he had a sufficiently maddened appearance.

After trembling for a moment, the Team Leader took a deep breath and visibly calmed down.

The Team Leader slowly drew a knife from his thigh.

And then, as if to show off, he displayed it to me.

“It must be the same shape as this one, right?”

“Uh… are you two… a couple or something? Matching knives instead of rings…”

“I’m the one who gifted that knife.”

“Uh… but I gifted that to another woman…”

When I told him the truth, he instead smiled chillingly.

“Kim Junhyeon.”

“?”

“He was my junior, like a brother to me, and the man you killed.”

“I… don’t really care, do I have to know?”

“…It doesn’t matter.”

The Team Leader, having received the injection and holding the knife, regained his composure.

“Because I’ll carve it directly into your hide.”

*That bastard. Good line.*

“Go on, try it.”

“Painfully… I will definitely kill you.”

All his subordinates had died in vain, and just now, he couldn’t even put up a fight against me.

Even so, his fighting spirit didn’t wane.

I picked up a piece of the black earthenware pot rolling on the floor.

The broken fragment had a pointed end, like a chipped stone tool.

But it wasn’t sharp.

At this level, the opponent might not die.

Flick, flick~

The man, who had been staring at the pot shard in disbelief, growled lowly.

“Arrogant bastard.”

When I gave a signal with my index finger, the reaction came immediately.

Stomp, stomp—

Contrary to the momentum that suggested he would rush in, he walked leisurely.

Unlike before, I could feel a newfound power in him.

Had he reached striking distance?

Whiz—!

The moment his toe reached a certain distance, his knife surged forward.

It was fast and powerful.

I slapped away the side of the knife with my left hand as it aimed precisely for my eye.

Utilizing the rebound from being deflected, he swung the knife wildly.

Faster than before, a clear intent to slash my throat was apparent.

Grab—Poke!

“!!”

I easily snatched his swinging arm and, at the same time, lightly poked his wrist.

A very small wound.

Startled, the Team Leader recoiled and stared at the bead of blood welling up on his wrist.

“……”

“What are you doing? Aren’t you coming?”

The Team Leader scowled and spurred himself on.

He charged in instantly, stabbing with his knife as if to express his rage.

A little faster, a little stronger.

‘……’

The speed of the knife slicing through the air was considerable.

It was probably fast enough that an ordinary person would have difficulty even seeing it properly.

The wrist’s rebound force from my light deflections was also more than ordinary.

His physical strength was also significant.

Furthermore, he had fluid knife-fighting techniques.

The combination of his knife work, bearing traces of long training, and his physical abilities produced considerable results.

He precisely targeted only the fatal areas of the body: the face, neck, inner parts of the body where major blood vessels passed.

Joints, or areas where pain would be greatly felt.

There was no hesitation whatsoever at the tip of his knife.

His attacks were deflected, parried, and rendered futile.

His firm resolve to somehow stab the knife in was palpable.

‘Hmm.’

His intense, continuous movements suddenly changed height.

Swish—!

I deflected the knife that suddenly plunged toward my thigh and extended the pot shard.

Poke!

“Ugh!!”

“You should be careful.”

When I drew a shallow cut on his neck, which was left unguarded as he aimed low, his reaction was instantaneous.

“Graaargh!!”

He attempted an attack with a yell-like battle cry, but it didn’t reach.

I demonstrated the danger of his opening with swift hand movements.

Poke! Poke! Poke! Pierce, pierce!

Each time a small opening appeared, I jabbed him in the neck.

The center of his Adam’s apple and the areas where blood vessels passed on either side.

Even a thin line etched right below his eye as the final blow.

The Team Leader, retreating again, couldn’t hide his look of disbelief.

Drip, drip—

The Team Leader, wiping away the tiny drops of blood that fell with his fingertips, his pupils trembling.

“Are you done?”

“H-how…”

“Well, that’s because you’re weaker than me.”

“Bullshit!!”

I seriously warned the man who was about to charge again.

“If you have nothing more to show me, I’ll end it this time. It’s getting dark, too.”

“Gasp!”

“I’m telling you in advance, it’s going to hurt like hell.”

Hesitate, hesitate—

“If you run, I’ll burn you to death. You goddamn bastard.”

“……”

When I made a genuine threat, the Team Leader swallowed dryly.

“W-wait a mi—”

“The only way for you to live is to kill me. I don’t accept negotiations, and surrender is even less necessary.”

“……”

“If you want to live, keep coming at me.”

“Gasp!!”

“If it’s too hard, I’ll come to you.”

I slowly took a step forward.

In response, his knees seemed to buckle slightly, then he charged again.

“Diiiiieee!!”

Grab—Snap!

Crack—

“Ugh?!!”

I snatched the arm that was striking down towards my face from above and twisted it outwards.

Unable to resist any further, the man, with his upper body wide open, trembled his neck and glared at me.

‘……’

His recent attack had no power at all.

It was limp, as if the fierce attacks from a moment ago had been a lie…

“So that injection earlier was doping, huh?”

“Ugh!!”

“You really have all sorts of things. Hey~ Don’t resist.”

As he kept twitching, I tightened my grip and twisted the arm I held even further.

Suddenly, he stretched out his injured left hand, attempting to stab my eye.

Thunk—Squish!!

“Aaaaaaaaaaaargh!!!!!”

“You bastard, you want to die.”

I knocked away his arm, which had no speed or force behind it, and plunged the pot shard into his left eye. It was my answer for him targeting my left eye.

“Is he really a crazy bastard?”

Spin, spin—

Poke, poke—

“Gaaaaah…”

“You have good tenacity, but you’re really asking for a beating.”

The man, trembling as if seized by a fit, couldn’t respond.

His mouth gaped open, but only breath escaped.

Seeing him unable to even scream, I knew it was over.

“Tsk.”

I clicked my tongue lowly and lifted the pot shard.

As if scooping soft tofu with a spoon.

Squish—Snap, snap—

A few strands sounded like they were tearing in the orbital region.

“Graaaaaaaah—!!!”

“Don’t scream. You won’t die from just this.”

“S-stooooop it!!!”

“It’s only just begun, what do you mean, stop?”

“?!!!”

Thwack—!!

“Gaaaaaaah!!”

The pot shard, slowly pulled out, had a slightly crushed and pierced round object attached to it.

I shoved it into the mouth of the Team Leader, who was screaming and clutching his gouged eye.

“Choke!”

“Swallow it. Or chew and swallow it.”

“U-Ugh!”

Splat—!

Gulp—

As he tried to spit it out, I cupped my palm and lightly slapped his jaw.

Thanks to that, he reenacted the anecdote of a famous general with his body.

At the same time, the Team Leader’s head slumped.

“You should cherish what your parents made for you. Trying to spit it out, where? Ah! Do you not know because you don’t have parents?”

“……”

“Hey? You sleeping?”

The man, whose head was slumped, had lost consciousness and didn’t move.

Fortunately, I could hear his breathing.

I grabbed his limp body, dragged it, and threw it onto Manager Kim, who was still unconscious.

Thud—

“These guys are a pain in the ass.”

They come with upgraded gear, and even doping potions.

They’re interesting bastards.

“For now…”

I pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and began preparations for ‘conversation’.

I took out my supplies one by one from my inventory.

First, I took out a flashlight and stood it upright to illuminate the ceiling.

I took out a 4m long scaffolding pole and approached the pillar supporting the ceiling.

‘If it’s not there, I’ll make it.’

Bang—! Crumble—

Crumble—

I hammered it in horizontally at a height slightly above 2m, using it as a meat hanger.

Then I approached the two unconscious men.

Zip! Click! Click!

I used thick cable ties, linked them like handcuffs, and bound them tightly.

What was already difficult to break with one layer, I did with two, three, many layers.

I meticulously bound their thumbs too, to prevent any petty tricks.

Their ankles were similarly bound tightly to prevent struggling.

After finishing the binding, I hung the two men directly onto the temporary hanger.

And to prevent them from slipping out, I bent both ends at a right angle, finishing the job.

“Hmm.”

Their wrists would probably hurt a lot, but that wasn’t my concern.

I took out medical cotton and gauze and performed some minor repairs.

For the Team Leader, whose eye was gouged, I filled the hole with cotton and covered it with gauze.

A white medical eye patch was a small gift.

For Manager Kim, who had a hole in his thigh, I wrapped it tightly with packing tape to stop the bleeding.

“…Ah!”

I took off their shoes and even their socks.

Finally, to prevent any unforeseen incidents, I shoved their socks into their mouths and taped them shut.

It was visually a bit… something, but the preparations were complete.

“…I’ll be back soon.”

I headed back outside.

The corpses of the security guards lay discarded at the scene of the fight.

I examined each corpse with my flashlight.

‘…Good.’

I stripped everything off except the clothes they were wearing.

Helmets, vests, protective gear for each part of the body, and utility pouches—all were removed.

All the items in good condition were placed in my inventory.

The knives worn on their thighs, grenades and magazines attached to their vests.

I even picked up the rifles lying on the ground.

I’d carried all this stuff here, and it would be a waste to leave it behind, so I decided to use it myself.

It took a bit of time to strip everything off without damaging it, but that was fine.

I had plenty of time, and the guys hanging inside couldn’t escape anyway.

I returned with leisurely steps, but the men were still asleep.

In a way, it was as if they were maturing…

‘……’

In the meantime, night had fallen outside.

The night sky was clear, but clouds moved at a considerable speed.

When the half-moon appeared, the street became a little brighter.

As the clouds passed and covered the moon, the street became eerie.

The street repeatedly brightened and darkened, as if the sky were playing a trick.

‘Don’t be late!’

“Ah…”

Jihyeok hyung’s last words came to mind.

I wondered if Shia was scolding him instead of me right now.

I became curious about what expression Shia would make while scolding hyung.

‘Hyung, I’m sorry.’

Since he was already being scolded, I hoped he’d get scolded a bit more.

It was too early to go back.

Winter nights were long.

I bought a long night ticket for the two of them.

Staring at the two men dangling, I took out a few more items from my inventory and laid them out.

…Our night was just beginning.