“That kid looks unusually cheerful today, doesn’t he?”

His uncle turned around with a look of mild surprise and remarked. Perhaps it was due to Ilay’s tone as he entered the office, with a slight smile and said: “Excuse me”, sounded so cheerful.

At that moment, Taeui was in the office handling some minor tasks on behalf of Hogan, who was still stuck in the medical room and couldn’t leave. Taeui muttered to himself without glancing at his uncle.

“Yeah, I guess…..”

“Hmmm. Well, that makes sense. Today marks the near-completion of the practical training. It’s only natural to feel cheerful, don’t you think? Everyone else looks like they’re about to be freed, practically floating on air.”

Nuh uh, that’s not the reason….., Taeui whispered inwardly, his face showing utter exhaustion.

It felt like he had ended up in the wrong line. At some unknown point, his path had veered away from the trajectory of a human life, drifting toward a dead end.

Jeong Taeui. You should think carefully. Are you truly going to spend your entire life by that person’s side? A person who can’t distinguish the line between human and beast – or rather, doesn’t even care to – and living your whole life with him would weigh so heavily on you.

Earlier this morning, Ilay had taken care of Taeui, who was clutching his stomach and groaning in the bathroom long before work hours began. Ilay didn’t mind the difficulty or the mess, cleaning everything up after telling Taeui that it would be better to let it all out.

But as he was helping Taeui ease his stomachache, and after Taeui finally said: “I’m fine now. No more pain.” Ilay calmly replied: “Is that so? Good.” and then suddenly pressed himself against Taeui with his lower body already hardened. To Taeui’s shock, Ilay brazenly declared: “We haven’t done the morning part yet.”

It was madness.

It would be better if he were still in a dark mood. Because in those moments, his mind was occupied with worries, making his body seem calmer, and sometimes he could even decline with the reason: “That’s enough. It’ll do.”

But as soon as his mood brightened, things turned out like this.

“Next time, even if he’s in a gloomy mood, I’ll just ignore him…..”

Contrary to Ilay, this time it was Taeui’s turn to ponder and murmur sadly. In front of him, his uncle had placed down a glass. It was barley tea with two ice cubes floating inside, offering him a bit of relief amid the weariness from all the small tasks.

Taeui paused his work, lifted the glass, and said: “Thank you, Uncle.” Then he moved closer to his uncle, who was leaning against the window. His uncle smiled: “No need”, and shifted slightly to make room for him.

Perhaps his uncle felt a bit guilty. Although he never intended it that way, he couldn’t deny that placing Taeui in that position had inevitably brought about some of the anticipated troubles.

Their eyes met. Taeui smiled slightly, then gazed out the window and said softly: “I’m sorry for taking my frustration out on you, Uncle.”

His uncle gently shook his head. His hand patted Taeui’s back lightly, conveying a subtle understanding beyond words.

Though he sometimes harbored resentment, in the end, he could never truly dislike this man. Because, no matter what actions his uncle took in his work, the care he showed Taeui never held even a hint of malice.

“That kid seems to be fine now; how about you?”

“Apart from being busy, everything’s fine.”

Taeui shrugged lightly. Except for the feeling of utter exhaustion that left his body numb and his lower half drained of strength, making him frequently need to sit down and rest, everything was fine.

Though Taeui had anticipated a hard day, the reality proved even tougher than he had imagined. It was nearly too much for him to handle.

Part of it was due to the lack of sleep – barely able to rest his eyes after a long tormented night – leaving his body exhausted. And above all, the workload awaiting him only made the situation more difficult.

It wasn’t just because he was taking on work that Hogan was supposed to do. The real issue was Hogan himself.

“Aah, yes….. because of that, everyone’s been busy” – His uncle remarked with a pained smile. Taeui didn’t respond, only clicked his tongue bitterly.

Hogan was currently lying in the medical room. Though he could still move a bit, the severity of his injuries meant he’d need several months of recovery, with the risk of lasting damage.

An external appointee, designated as a senior instructor, had been severely injured and was now recuperating. The troubling part was that this incident had been caused by an ordinary member, and the official explanation remained ambiguous.

The entire headquarters quickly became abuzz. Consequently, senior instructors and those handling administrative duties were now busier than ever.

“Intended to handle everything quietly, but in the end, it all turned noisy.” – Taeui’s uncle remarked.

Taeui glanced at his uncle with a hint of embarrassment. The task his uncle had instructed him to carry out had failed. When Taeui murmured an apology for his shortcomings, his uncle shook his head, showing neither annoyance nor disturbance.

“Yes, but at least the rumors about him stealing data haven’t spread. Besides…..”

His uncle’s eyes lingered on Taeui’s left thumb, the one Ilay had carefully bandaged for him before he left the room that morning.

“As long as you’re not seriously hurt, that’s what matters.”

Taeui moved his finger slightly and sighed.

No rumors circulated about Hogan’s attempt to steal data. Moreover, there was no evidence that could leak, as Taeui had smashed his storage device in a fit of rage, leaving him too furious to think of anything else at the time.

He scratched his head.

“Should I have kept the storage as evidence?”

“Well….. no. If you had, things would have gotten truly noisy, and Jaeui would’ve been dragged into it too. This way, it might have been for the best.”

“In any situation, the branch isn’t aiming to prevent noise but rather to conceal Jaeui’s research results.” – And his uncle muttered this and then fell silent, using his thumb to gently wipe the condensation on the glass as he sank into thought, letting out a soft sigh – “Hmm…..”

“The issue is Rick. He’s the one who caused Hogan to end up like this, but it’s difficult this time to claim it was self-defense. Nor can we say he was caught in the act—if we did, we’d only face more trouble.”

Taeui frowned slightly. It seemed the situation was taking a turn he didn’t quite like. He still remembered glimpsing Ilay’s name once or twice while hastily flipping through related documents.

“So, how will you handle it?”

“Well….. if they formally press charges, avoiding it might be impossible. The branch would also have to answer for its poor management, though that’s not too serious. As for Rick, things could get complicated. If it goes badly, he might end up detained in Eoryeong for quite a while.”

Taeui quietly looked down at his glass.

‘Is this my fault? Did I cause all this chaos? Damn it. I should never have gotten involved in saving Hogan from the start.’

“In such a difficult situation, that kid seemed cheerful from early morning. Strange.”

“……….”

‘Is that also my fault?’ …..Taeui wasn’t typically a self-centered person, but somehow, he felt that might be true.

His uncle looked at Taeui, who was silently lost in thought, eyes shifting back and forth. After a moment, his uncle gently patted his shoulder, speaking in a comforting tone:

“Don’t worry too much. At worst, he’ll just have to stay in for a few months to a few years.”

“A few years?”

“I just stopped by the medical room to see Hogan, and things look pretty bad.”

Taeui paused for a few seconds, recalling the last image of Hogan he’d seen the previous night. Clearly, he no longer appeared like an ordinary person.

“…..Is it that serious?”

His uncle hesitated and forced a faint awkward smile.

“His hand was severely injured. It will take several months for functional recovery, and while daily activities might not pose much difficulty, tasks that require strength or precise actions will be quite challenging.”

That means a disability will follow him for the rest of his life.

Even surviving leaves him with the harsh reality of disability, a burden that will weigh heavily on him as he continues living.

“…..Not a very pleasant ending.” – Taeui remarked with a bitter smile.

“The branch only partially achieved its aim. They failed to extract a confession from Hogan and expose his actions, so in a way, Ilay didn’t fully complete his mission either….. At least the fact that Hogan didn’t succeed in stealing the data is a small consolation.”

As Taeui sighed and murmured, Chang-in was sitting beside him, sipping his tea and spoke, almost to himself: “No, not entirely.”

“This morning, I briefly met Rick, just in passing, and exchanged a few words. He said that extracting a confession from Hogan again wouldn’t be difficult, but because you’re here, he’ll let it go. Thank you, Taeui. Thanks to you, perhaps there won’t be another murder here.”

“If someone had died, the consequences would’ve been extremely troublesome, with reports stacking up higher than a person’s height.” – His uncle said with a calm expression, like someone accustomed to terrible things after years of working here.

When Taeui was about to respond: ‘It’s nothing’, he suddenly stopped. He tilted his head, frowning as he looked at his uncle.

“…..’Letting it go here’—what does that mean?”

“Well, it seems that once the training ends and he leaves here, he plans to deal with Hogan again.”

“I thought you said he would be prosecuted and locked up in Eoryeong.”

“Since the cause and consequence aren’t clear-cut, it’ll take some time for a decision from the higher-ups. Before that happens, he seems intent on handling matters himself.”

“……….”

Suddenly, Taeui felt a bit sorry for Hogan. With a face terrifying enough to haunt dreams, even after leaving here, he’d still have to face more.

“As long as he doesn’t drag Hogan right in front of me, that’s fine.”

For some reason, he felt as though living close to that person was gradually making him abandon each of his core human values….. Taeui muttered to himself, feeling a weight in his heart. Perhaps sensing Taeui’s mood, his uncle gently patted his back in comfort.

“Don’t worry too much. It doesn’t seem like he intends to kill anyone.”

“Can that really be true?”

“Yeah. That kid seems especially cheerful today. He even had such a bright smile that it made me uncomfortable just looking at him, and he said something like this: ‘Looks like my mood will be good for a while, so Hogan is lucky. I’ll stop at just a few toes.’”

“A few toes……”

“He said that living without toes wouldn’t be a problem, and when he smiled, he looked completely serious about it.”

“…..Are you really sure there’s nothing to worry about?”

Taeui shuddered slightly, feeling an ache in his own intact toes, and couldn’t help but shiver as he imagined Ilay’s beaming expression when he said that. Undoubtedly, with a nonchalant air, his face lit up with a carefree smile as if nothing mattered except his good mood today, Ilay would certainly say that losing a few toes was no big deal.

Taeui had witnessed a similar scene before. Not too long ago, just a few months back, when Ilay returned from a business trip. Though he didn’t usually go to meet him, that day Taeui happened to be near the bus station and decided to wait for him.

Just as Taeui was about to approach Ilay as he stepped off the bus, a man who seemed to have been waiting for Ilay as well, suddenly lunged at him with a knife in hand.

Of course, the attack had no effect. Ilay simply leaned back to avoid it, then struck the man’s arm hard, causing the knife to drop to the ground.

But the man, with bloodshot eyes, didn’t stop there. Ignoring everything, he grabbed Ilay’s arm and bit down hard. His sheer will to harm was shocking, as if he were willing to sacrifice everything to achieve his goal.

Though it was through a thin coat, and the bite must have been painful, Ilay merely looked down at the man with a face that seemed to ask: ‘What the hell is this?’ Then he let out a cold smile.

“You don’t need these teeth, do you?”

Without bothering to offer a warning, Ilay punched the man squarely in the nose. As the attacker’s nose began to bleed, Ilay swiftly grabbed his jaw with one hand and reached into his mouth with the other.

“Let’s start with the front teeth.” – At the same time he said, and a cracking sound echoed as he broke the first tooth. Ignoring the man’s agonized scream and his attempt to close his mouth, Ilay used two fingers to snap off a perfectly white tooth and let it drop to the floor. One by one, each tooth shattered and fell as Ilay calmly spoke.

“Don’t worry. Losing about twenty teeth won’t kill you. I’ll leave your molars intact. I’m in a good mood today, having finally reunited with someone after a few days apart.”

After saying that, he gave a faint smile, as if a good mood was all he needed.

“………..”

Surely, when he spoke about dealing with Hogan’s toes, Ilay had the same expression.

“At least he said he’d leave him alive. If he’s only stopping at a few toes, then he’s already showing considerable restraint, isn’t he?”

Next to Taeui, noticing his pensive face, his uncle continued, trying to reassure him. Taeui looked down at the barley tea, its slight bitterness lingering, and asked with a doubtful expression.

“If he goes to Eoryeong, won’t it be a few years before they see each other again?”

“Hmm….. You might have to make an effort to visit him, Taeui.”

“I’m not joking.”

Taeui sighed.

It might not be years, but even a few months wouldn’t be short. Hogan didn’t concern him much; he didn’t care if others thought him cold-hearted. What Taeui was truly worried about was Ilay.

After all, Ilay wasn’t someone he should have to worry about, but as his uncle said, if this case went to trial, things would definitely get complicated. If luck wasn’t on their side, they might truly be separated for months.

….. If he’d known things would turn out like this, he should’ve kept that storage device instead of destroying it. Even if it caused trouble for the branch or inconvenience for Jaeui…..But keeping it might have been the better choice.

Thinking that made Taeui frown, and suddenly he felt his legs weaken. He leaned against the windowsill and slid down, sitting on the floor. Realizing this left a heavy feeling in his chest.

Without realizing when, both the branch (which didn’t matter much) and even his brother had taken a back seat to Ilay in Taeui’s heart. Ilay had become the top priority, surpassing everyone and everything else….. Though he’d vaguely sensed this before, recognizing it so clearly now was a shock.

‘Sorry, Jaeui-hyung. But if I have to justify it, well, you already have that royal supporting you so enthusiastically, so I don’t need to worry about you anymore….. (Besides, you’re not someone who needs anyone’s worry anyway.)’

As he thought that, another worry suddenly arose in his mind.

‘Speaking of that royal….. I wonder how you’re doing with him. He seems mysterious and intriguing; have the two of you….. gotten that close already? From my observations, that royal seems like the type to act quickly—once he decides, he moves immediately. ….. Anyway, I reminded you to be careful, and I know you don’t like pain, so I’m sure you wouldn’t let yourself be at a disadvantage. At least that’s a small comfort.’

Taeui scratched his head in agitation.

Life seemed to be an endless cycle of worries. But right now, the most important thing was to focus on the upcoming safety of Ilay.

“Oh, goodness…..” – Taeui sighed wearily. His uncle gave him a gentle pat on the back as if to console him, then quickly gathered the necessary documents from the office, preparing to leave after finishing his tea.

“Well, just a few more hours to get through today’s work. After today, most of the training process will be complete….. You’ve worked hard, Taeui.”

His uncle paused at the door, looking at Taeui for a long moment. His final words held a hint of gratitude and a touch of regret. Taeui met his gaze, shrugged slightly, and shook his head as if to reassure him. His uncle smiled warmly before turning to leave.

However, just as he reached the threshold, his uncle unexpectedly stopped. As if remembering something, he turned back to look at Taeui, catching him by surprise.

“Taeui, it seems you have a visitor.”

He leaned slightly to the side, gesturing toward the hallway. Taeui blinked and pointed to himself to confirm, then leaned forward to see who it was.

Standing there was Kim Jeongpil, his face cold and his lips tightly pressed together, looking at Taeui with a stern expression.

*******************************

‘This guy really does have quite a colorful face.’

As he stood facing Jeongpil, Taeui thought to himself. Of course, he wasn’t in much of a position to judge anyone else’s appearance.

He recalled catching a glimpse of himself in the mirror earlier, startled by his own face: bruised and blotchy, looking like a painting. Thinking back, he found it strange that Ilay was comfortable lying in bed with him in such a state; the guy was truly fearless.

“………..”

“………..”

‘If you’re going to drag someone out to a deserted hallway, at least say something, kid.’

After nodding for Taeui to follow him, Jeongpil led him out of the office and down the hallway. They descended a few flights of stairs and arrived at an internal connecting corridor, a place rarely frequented by others.

Like a showdown in a desert, the two stood facing each other, neither speaking first.

Taeui’s eyes drifted to the bandage on Jeongpil’s head, where he could see dried dark blood—that’s a mark that left from yesterday when Taeui had hit him with a chair.

He felt no remorse. It was well-deserved. This guy had it coming—he brought it upon himself. So there was no reason to feel guilty.

“………..”

After a brief silence, Taeui rolled up his sleeves, revealing two wrists roughened by dried blood from rope burns, along with his left hand, now bandaged from a dislocated joint. Jeongpil’s gaze wavered for a moment, which gave Taeui a small sense of satisfaction. Yes, there was no need to feel any guilt!

“I don’t have much time. Keep it short.”

Taeui raised his head a bit and spoke in a firm tone. Jeongpil, still staring at him tensely, pursed his lips as if holding back words, then suddenly blurted out:

“Hogan….. is really miserable.”

“I know.”

“They say that the guy with….. ambiguous ties to you is the one who did that to him.”

“I already know that too.”

He didn’t even mention that he had been there at the scene. Bracing himself with a bitter feeling, Taeui prepared for the insults that Jeongpil was surely about to unleash about Ilay.

As expected, when he heard Taeui’s response, Jeongpil’s fists trembled. Even the corners of his eyes twitched, and finally…..

“Are you insane?”

That familiar phrase finally escaped his lips. Taeui shot him a cold glare. It was as if this guy had planned to drag him out here to stir up trouble again before the training ended, wanting to make one last point clear. Taeui had tried to forget Jeongpil’s despicable behavior from before, but now he was at it again.

“Lieutenant Jeong, have you completely thrown your life away? Don’t you know how to choose who you date? If you want to date, pick someone decent, you idiot!”

It was true that Taeui couldn’t deny Ilay wasn’t exactly a ‘normal person’, but hearing insults directed at Ilay right to his face still infuriated him. Taeui gritted his teeth, glaring at Jeongpil.

“Oh, so now I should date someone ‘decent’ huh? What’s wrong? Not calling people ‘gay trash’ anymore? That makes sense—after trying to assault that so-called ‘gay trash’ yesterday, you’ve lost any right to say that. Being gay isn’t a crime, but someone almost committing sexual assault? Now that is a crime!”

Taeui pointed at Jeongpil and shouted. Jeongpil flinched and fell silent, his mouth opening and closing but unable to form words. Seeing his bewildered expression, Taeui felt as if a weight that had been pressing down on him for ten years was finally lifted.

Ah, so refreshing. From now on, this guy would surely think twice before calling someone ‘gay trash’.

His mood was starting to improve.

With this newfound ease, Taeui continued to counter Jeongpil:

“And as for Ilay, even if he isn’t decent in the usual sense, he has his good points!”

Just don’t ask what those good points are…..

“What good points?!”

This bastard was definitely doing it on purpose! This time, Taeui felt like an idiot for letting his words slip, so he fell silent immediately. At the same time, Jeongpil looked at him with a suspicious slightly smug expression, as if he were challenging Taeui to respond.

“Really, Lieutenant Jeong? Have you made it this far in life without thinking? Why do you always live in such a mess? Can’t you be a little more easygoing or flexible?”

Taeui hated that self-righteous, smug look on his face, as if he were trying to lecture him on life. He should have stitched that mouth shut instead of hitting his head. Furious, Taeui shouted.

“You’re the one who messed up my life, you bastard! If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have had to leave the military, and if I hadn’t, I wouldn’t be living like this!”

In truth, Taeui didn’t really regret or blame his life that much, but in this moment, he just wanted to take this guy down right away. Fueled by anger, he kept pointing at him and shouting: “IT’S YOUR FAULT, ALL YOUR FAULT!”

Jeongpil’s eyes widened, and he growled in response: “Fine! Then let me take responsibility!”

“Take responsibility for what? What are you going to do to take responsibility? Can you turn back time?!”

“I’ll find you someone decent to date, instead of that insane murderer, you idiot!”

Not only the condescending tone but also the absurdity of what he was saying shocked Taeui to his core. He was both furious and amused. Unable to hold back, he retorted sarcastically:

“What do you think I am…..?”

Taeui glanced around instinctively. If there had been a chair nearby, he’d have definitely smashed it into this guy’s mouth, but unfortunately, aside from a fixed bench, there was nothing within reach. He couldn’t help but feel disappointed that he didn’t have Ilay’s superhuman strength at that moment.

Telling someone to break up with their partner might be a clumsy show of concern, but when this guy dared to decide who should date whom, he crossed a line—it was excessive interference. Worse, in this moment, he was looking at Taeui as if he were somehow beneath him.

Yesterday, he showed his true colors, and today he wants to wrap it all up?

“There’s no one decent around you anyway, rotten Kim Jeongpil!”

“How dare you use ‘Kim Jeongpil’ like an insult, you damn Lieutenant Jeong!”

Taeui shouted, and Jeongpil shot back, his voice filled with anger.

Taeui almost grabbed him by the collar, but seeing his rainbow-colored, bruised face made him pause; it looked like a messy painting. He imagined the two of them brawling with faces that looked like abstract art—it was almost laughable.

Forget it. He didn’t have the energy to spar with this guy today.

“Enough. Just get to the point of why you called me out here. I still have work to finish.”

Despite saying that, Taeui felt utterly drained. He suddenly felt as though he’d aged a hundred years, so he shook his head and clicked his tongue. This only made Jeongpil angrier.

“Are you deaf? I mean, instead of that lunatic, you should date someone decent!”

Taeui sighed, raising a hand to rub his furrowed forehead.

It was ridiculous that he even showed up just because this guy called him out. He’d thought maybe Jung-pil would apologize or something….. Turns out this guy really had a knack for making people want to explode with frustration.

“Look, not that I care about your advice, but is there anyone remotely decent around you?! And besides, with your homophobia, do you even know anyone to introduce me to?”

“I’m not gay, but I already told you I’ll take responsibility!”

“And what are you gonna do, huh? Introduce me to a woman? You’re the type who thinks bringing a woman around will ‘cure’ being gay! Just so you know, I’m not dating any women!”

“Do I look like a woman to you, idiot?! That’s why I’m saying I’ll take responsibility, you thick-headed moron!”

‘Are you planning to insult me here…..?!’ – Taeui angrily rolled up his sleeves, ready to grab him, but he suddenly stopped. Huh? His expression changed slightly, as if he’d noticed something strange. Something wasn’t right….. Taeui thought for a moment, then looked at Jeongpil with a puzzled expression.

“…..What?”

Taeui was momentarily speechless. He glanced at Jeongpil, who stood there with a smug look on his face, and clicked his tongue in confusion. This was weird—he wasn’t usually slow to catch on, but he couldn’t make sense of this situation.

After a few seconds of hard thinking, he looked at Jeongpil, suspicion in his eyes.

“The decent person you’re talking about….. is it….. you?”

“Why does it have to be ‘is it’?” – Jeongpil replied with an expression suggesting Taeui should be grateful.

Taeui stood there, speechless, staring at him before finally letting out a mocking laugh: “Ha…..”

“What’s gotten into you…..? Do you think I have time to play around with you?––Enough, I’m leaving.”