Chapter 34

EP 7 - North Wind (5)

There is something called the physiology of a politician.

In simple terms, it's about tearing each other apart in front of the camera, and then shaking hands while peeling garlic in the sauna.

Why do they do this?

Because if you can't finish someone off in one go, a backlash will follow.

If you don't have the confidence to cut off their air supply in one go, the best strategy is to be friendly with everyone.

Therefore, when attacking someone,

you need to measure the angle well before you charge.

It's not for nothing that it's said in modern society that those who hold information can sweep away great nations. You need to know the information to gauge the angle.

In that sense,

"......"

I was most afraid of Pi Chae-won.

* * *

What is a lie,

and where does the truth begin?

Whose game am I in?

"......I understand the current situation as you have grasped it, Mr. Gam. I also understand what role you expect me to play."

Cut off Cha Jae-geun's air supply. Isn't that what you mean?

But is it as easy as that?

More information is needed.

"Mr. Gam and Miss Pi Chae-won, how did you find out about this fact?"

The story of a journalist and a high school student breaking through ironclad security to infiltrate an underground bunker doesn't sound very credible.

The problem is, as I keep talking, something feels off.

"An experiment conducted in an underground bunker, how did you manage to get these photos and experimental records......"

As I raise questions, several assumptions come to mind, and finally, a shocking guess strikes me.

"Unless there's a collaborator inside, this, this can't be......"

The table fell into silence.

"......"

"......"

"......Is there a collaborator?"

A long silence followed,

and that silence was soon an affirmation.

After a long hesitation, Mr. Gam began to speak.

"Indeed, we had suspicions about the biological experiments, but no concrete evidence. I don't have superpowers, so how could I infiltrate a military facility?"

Honestly, I thought this uncle could do it, but I didn't add anything.

"While I was struggling to find a way to investigate, Chae-won came to me first."

"......"

"And she guided me to a nearby mountain—"

"Stop."

Pi Chae-won cut off the conversation, jumped up in shock, and looked around like a meerkat.

Mr. Gam asked meaningfully,

"Did you hear that!?"

"Nearby...!"

"Oh no...!"

He grabbed his bag and quickly stood up.

"The agents have tracked us down to this area!"

"What, what?"

"I have a car ready, so let's get up!"

"Our, our car—"

"Mine is a cannonball!"

What kind of uncle is this?

"Let's go!"

And what about Pi Chae-won? Could she have future sight?

For a moment, I was dazed and had a bewildered look on my face.

Chin, Pi Chae-won tugged at my sleeve.

"Sorry, but......"

"......"

"I just have good hearing......"

I looked at him with a dazed expression.

It wasn't that she had predicted the rooftop door opening,

she just heard a sound?

It wasn't that she heard a helicopter falling,

she just heard a sound?

I followed him out of the cabin with a confused look.

Pi Chae-won was, as always, smiling bitterly.

*

We got into Mr. Gam's van and headed to the fourth-floor restaurant area of a Homeplus in a quiet city.

We chose a sparsely populated shop in the crowd and ordered four Japanese pork cutlets, then sat down.

The food arrived, but Pi Chae-won and I remained silent, while Hong Seon-ah ate the pork cutlets with a face that was hard to tell if she was expressionless or smiling.

Mr. Gam, looking tired, spoke up.

"Where was I in the story?"

"Miss Pi Chae-won came to you."

"Oh, right. Chae-won came to me."

Mr. Gam took a sip of water, then continued.

"Chae-won called me out in the middle of the night and guided me to a nearby mountain. There, I met Ms. Yi Yoon-a, who was lying there."

"......Did you meet an insider?"

Mr. Gam smiled bitterly.

"Did we just meet?"

"Excuse me?"

"We also got an interview."

Swish,

someone sat at our table.

A girl in a hoodie, who at first glance seemed ordinary but had completely black eyes, which made her stand out.

I shook my knee to tap Hong Seon-ah's thigh.

It was a signal to burn her if things went wrong. Hong Seon-ah also tapped me.

"......"

"......"

A suffocating silence ensued.

"......Nice to meet you."

The black-eyed girl spoke to us.

It sounded like a lion or a leopard growling and imitating human speech.

"Th, that criminal, ah, cough! Cough! Keek!"

Trying to speak like a human seemed to be a struggle, and she coughed violently, spitting out green phlegm.

......The table melted.

The black-eyed girl wiped her mouth gloomily and sniffled, then looked at Mr. Gam.

Unable to bear it, Mr. Gam took over the explanation.

"......This is Ms. Yi Yoon-a, who was studying at a university in Siheung. She was taken and experimented on after visiting a prisoner at the Cheongsong prison."

"Ah, so she's not a former prisoner?"

Mr. Gam nodded calmly, but it was hard to believe.

He continued,

"With Ms. Yoon-a's help, we continued our investigation. Chae-won also provided a lot of help. You can think of us as having made a few spy movies together."

"......So she's a reliable person?"

I asked Mr. Gam, but the black-eyed girl quickly nodded and answered enthusiastically. Her black eyes sparkled. She said she was reliable.

...She even looked aggrieved and was on the verge of tears.

"I, I, my dad was a gangster...! When I went to visit him, I saw prisoners being loaded into a truck. Cough! The soldiers caught me...!"

The black-eyed girl argued in a voice that was almost torn.

"I'm so aggrieved...! I, I, really...!"

Now she was sniffling and sobbing. Pi Chae-won smiled sadly and patted her back, and the black-eyed test subject wiped her yellow tears with a tissue.

Mr. Gam spoke with a sympathetic look.

"You can stop now."

"Ah, sir...! I really...!"

"Sure, sure......"

The black-eyed girl seemed to want to say something to me but, choked with emotion, she collapsed and cried.

But how can I tell if this woman is a criminal or not?

"She's not a criminal."

Noticing my skeptical look, Pi Chae-won smiled sadly and patted the black-eyed girl's back. The black-eyed girl wiped her tears and looked up.

"Y, you said—"

Bang.

Her head exploded.

The body of the headless Yi Yoon-a fell messily.

I wiped the blood splattered on my face in a daze. Everyone shuddered in shock.

Bang!

The gunshot was heard only then. The window was already broken.

It was a sniper shot.

*

The police came to clean up the scene.

I don't think we need to worry about minor issues.

After all, there are bigger concerns.

"Are you going to be a soldier, a police officer, and then a member of parliament?"

"Not at all."

I was in a police car with Inspector Jang, heading somewhere.

The National Intelligence Service, pretending to be soldiers, who had surrounded the underground parliament.

"I'm the head of the Anti-Terror Security Bureau."

Inspector Jang smiled slyly and I looked out the window indifferently.

"This road seems familiar."

"We are taking you to the martial law command post."

"Did Director Jang call me? I was just about to visit him."

Inspector Jang looked very tired. I asked calmly.

"You don't seem to have slept well."

"Ah, yes. Your friend caused a bit of trouble......"

"Friends, you say?"

We had already cut off the tail, but Inspector Jang just smiled without saying anything.

The martial law command post came into view at the end of the hill.

*

A familiar millet tea fragrance wafted through the air.

"Ah, you're here?"

Cha Jae-geun handed me a cup of millet tea.

"......It's been a while, Director Cha."

"Nice to see you again."

He greeted me with a calm smile.

"I assume this is a shock for you."

I leaned back on the soft sofa, and he sat across from me, sipping millet tea.

I went straight to the point.

"You conducted biological experiments on criminals to create a special forces unit of superhumans. During the final disposal process, the test subjects escaped, leading to the declaration of martial law. Is that correct?"

Cha Jae-geun's answer was concise and clear.

"Yes."

Interpretation: Since I've clearly admitted to you that I did it, you're either going to join my team or be silenced forever.

My expression stiffened, and Cha Jae-geun chuckled and sipped his millet tea.

"Do you know that the person next to a smoker is more at risk than the smoker?"

Suddenly, the topic of smoking. I answered instinctively.

"......Are you talking about secondhand smoke?"

"Smokers have a filter, but the person next to them is forced to inhale the poison, right?"

He smiled bitterly with his wrinkled eyes.

"That's why I'm fine, but my wife died. At the age of twenty-nine."

"......Ah."

"I was a successful soldier, smoking at home. It's strange that she didn't get cancer. In fact, I killed her."

Cha Jae-geun's voice had a tone for the first time.

He began to tell me a story in a more relaxed manner.

"After the funeral, I came home to find my two-year-old daughter crying. I held her small bundle and cried for a long time."

Cha Jae-geun took out his wallet from his inner pocket.

"So, for 30 years, I lived only for my daughter. I'm very grateful that she grew up well and beautifully under the care of a widowed father."

He took out a photo from his wallet and showed it to me across the desk, even pointing to the people in the photo.

"This, this is my daughter, Jae-hee. Next to her is our lawyer, Song Seo-bang. The two small dogs below are our granddaughters."

"......"

"The one in the stroller is Su-min, and the one hanging on the father's leg is Seo-jung. Aren't they cute?"

Cha Jae-geun laughed without a care.

"On the first day of the crisis, I disposed of the bodies."

He put the photo back in his wallet and returned it to his inner pocket, still smiling.

He leaned back on the sofa, crossed his legs, and placed his clasped hands on his knee, smiling more relaxedly. He looked almost relieved.

He spoke to me in a low voice.

"Mr. Congressman, you once asked me what my goal was.

What did I say then?"

The answer he gave came out of my mouth.

"......To eliminate the monsters."

Cha Jae-geun said,

"Didn't I tell you that many times?"

The most soldier-like soldier said,

"I am a soldier, and everything I do ultimately involves killing. In that sense, I consider myself a good soldier."

He smiled.

"I won't go into details."

"......"

"The fewest people and the most monsters will die."

The old avenger laughed heartily.

"There is no greater patriot than me in this land."