SLC 62

“Young master. You need to receive an IV.”

The man who was leaning against the sofa turned his head. Secretary Kang felt uneasy as he looked at that face, which had become noticeably haggard in just a few days.

A nurse entered with him and inserted a needle into the man’s arm. Mok Seongha watched the needle pierce his skin with an expressionless face for a moment, then looked away.

“This is an intravenous injection, so it will hurt a little.”

Despite the nurse’s explanation, the man did not care, he acted like it were none of his business. Once the nurse confirmed the medicine was flowing properly, she left the room.

“Did you skip your meal again today?”

Secretary Kang checked the tray on the table and asked with a frown. The food remained exactly as it was when brought in earlier.

“Yes.”

“You should eat at least a little bit. At this rate, you will collapse before the Chairman does, young master.”

“I can’t eat.”

Secretary Kang could not say anything more because he knew those words were not a mere excuse.

Mok Seongha could no longer swallow any food. Previously, Secretary Kang did not realize this and had tried to force porridge into his mouth out of concern. The young master had proceeded to throw everything up.

After seeing the young master suffer while vomiting even gastric juice, Secretary Kang stopped forcing food into his mouth.

“Shall I ask them to make something you like?”

“Forget it.”

Mok Seongha leaned back on the sofa while his arm, connected to the IV, hung down.

Secretary Kang’s insides boiled with frustration. He thought the situation would improve once the young master returned to human form, but the behavior was much the same whether he was a panther or a human.

“Young master. Would you like to go out for a change of pace?”

“I don’t want to.”

If there was one difference, it was that they could now communicate through speech.

“I will take you somewhere without people.”

Mok Seongha did not answer and simply closed his eyes.

The only time he showed any semblance of motivation was when he spent time with Chairman Choi. He only spoke and moved when he read books for his grandfather or pushed the wheelchair during garden walks. Every other moment, he just lay there like a corpse.

In his search for Kim Jinkyung, Mok Seongha had wandered through every place they had visited together like a madman every night. Since his initial range of movement was not wide, there were not many places to check. He searched and inspected every single spot without exception. In the end, he always waited for Kim Jinkyung all night at his studio apartment.

He only stopped everything after he confirmed that Kim Jinkyung had taken a leave of absence from school. He stopped searching for Kim Jinkyung, and he stopped waiting for him.

Secretary Kang rubbed his brow.

It was infuriating to watch the young master run around looking for that rude pro gay brat who turned off his phone and vanished, but seeing the young master just lying there exceeded that level of anger.

…Ah, I’m so pissed off.

It was actually better when he ran around looking for Kim Jinkyung like a crazy hunting dog. At least he tried to do something back then.

“Young master, please don’t be like this and eat something. That way…”

“I know tomorrow’s schedule.”

“Pardon?”

“7 PM. Yunhwa Construction.”

Mok Seongha recalled the prior appointment.

“…Are you going out?”

When Secretary Kang asked, Mok Seongha asked back, “Why?”

“Naturally…”

Secretary Kang wanted to scream and ask where a guy who wouldn’t even touch food or water thought he was going, but he continued calmly.

“Your condition is poor, so you may postpone the appointment.”

“It’s fine. I would have to go out eventually.”

Secretary Kang walked across the room and stood in front of Mok Seongha.

“Young master.”

Mok Seongha did not even open his closed eyes as he replied, “Yeah.”

“What is the reason you are going this far?”

“Because I promised.”

“Then, what is the reason you want to keep that promise?”

“He said that’s how one lives like a human.”

“What is ‘living like a human’?”

Mok Seongha opened his eyes. The pupils of his golden eyes constricted, and sharp teeth peeked out from between his lips.

“Are you going to bite me?”

Secretary Kang asked.

“Just bite me instead. That would be better than how things are now.”

Mok Seongha did not give his affection to employees. This was because he knew how they looked at him, and there were many humans who tried to take photos of his true identity to exploit him. This was the reason he made employees sign dozens of contracts, hand over their phones, and pass through security gates when they entered the mansion.

Aside from Chairman Choi, the only person he trusted inside the mansion was Kang Uicheol.

“Get out.”

If it had been anyone else, he would have pounced on them long ago. Because the opponent was Secretary Kang, Mok Seongha repressed his anger.

“The chairman is not always right.”

Kang Uicheol was only seventeen when he first came up to Seoul and met Chairman Choi Dojung. He had taken the fall for the crimes of a man he served as a ‘Hyung-nim’ and was brought in facing a life-threatening crisis. That was when he met Chairman Choi Dojung…no, he met Choi Suhyeon.

‘I don’t think this oppa is the culprit.’

Choi Suhyeon pointed at Kang Uicheol, skipping over the person next to him who was crying and begging, claiming it wasn’t their fault.

‘Why do you think so?’

Even at his young daughter’s words, Chairman Choi Dojung did not show his displeasure and asked her directly.

‘Everyone else says it wasn’t them and that it’s unfair, but this oppa isn’t saying anything. He’s either the culprit, or he really knows nothing. I think it’s one of the two. But he’s too young to be a villain.’

The young girl was honest to the point of being bold. Chairman Choi Dojung looked at Kang Uicheol in silence.

‘I’m going to piano practice now.’

Choi Suhyeon often disappeared with her small bag. That was how he gained his opportunity. He did not win the Chairman’s trust from the start. He simply obtained a very small chance. However, that was enough. Kang Uicheol silently took on all sorts of menial and difficult tasks. Later, when he reached the age to get a driver license, he began to work as Choi Suhyeon’s driver.

They were not particularly close. Even after he heard the news that she died in a car accident, he was a man who had to do his job rather than express his grief.

However, he felt indebted to her. When Choi Suhyeon brought that man home to get married, he could not erase the memory of holding her back to separate the two of them, just as the chairman ordered.

‘A grandson? I don’t need such a thing! It’s obvious your life will be miserable because of him! Don’t regret it later and get rid of it right now!’

Chairman Choi Dojung lost his reason and said words that should never have left his mouth. After that, Choi Suhyeon left the country with the man and never returned to the mansion.

After the accident, when the young master entered the mansion, Kang Uicheol felt as if he had been given a second chance.

“The Chairman is sometimes wrong.”

Choi Suhyeon had once sent a letter to her father from America. She wrote a short greeting and included a photo of the child. Even then, Dojung’s anger had not cooled, and he tore the letter into shreds. The photo suffered the same fate.

Kang Uicheol silently picked up all the pieces of paper and spent the entire night taping the letter and photo back together. He kept the letter safely in a box, but he often looked at the photo at night.

How much has he grown?

Imagining such things was quite pleasant.

“The Chairman is wrong?”

Mok Seongha glared at Secretary Kang.

“Yes.”

If it were as the chairman said, this small and precious young master was an existence that should never have been born, and everyone would have been miserable because of him.

At least for himself, the time spent raising the young master since meeting him in the flower garden had not been miserable.

“Can you go right in front of the chairman and say those exact words?”

“No.”

Mok Seongha laughed in response to Secretary Kang’s answer.

“Even if he is wrong, I will live according to the chairman’s will. My life is a debt I owe to him.”

“Why don’t you just die with him then?”

“Naturally, if it weren’t for you, young master, I would have asked to be buried alive with him.”

At Secretary Kang’s brazen answer, Mok Seongha ripped the IV from the back of his hand and stood up.

“Where are you going?”

“I’m going to tell the chairman to have Secretary Kang buried alive.”

Secretary Kang moved aside to let him pass, simply saying, “Oh, is that so?” As Mok Seongha tried to leave the room while holding back his irritation, Secretary Kang called out to him again.

“Young master.”

Mok Seongha did not even pretend to listen and grabbed the doorknob.

“By the way, how should we handle the debt Teacher Kim owes?”

“What?”

“I am talking about Kim Jinkyung’s debt. To be precise, the principal is 4 million won, and with interest calculated up to today, it is just under 20 million won.”

“What kind of bullshit is that? How could he have debt? I never lent him money.”

“I checked the contract and found there were overpayments made due to a calculation error. If he does not show intent to repay by tomorrow, I will settle it on my own.”

Mok Seongha knew better than anyone what that meant by ‘settle’ it.

“What exactly are you going to settle?”

“I have to go get his stamp to guarantee debt fulfillment. After that, perhaps a physical waiver… Ugh.”

It happened in an instant.

Mok Seongha approached and grabbed Secretary Kang’s arm. The latter was quite surprised. Even if his opponent had the blood of a wild beast, Secretary Kang had spent years weathering real-life combat, yet he did not even notice the man approaching.

“What did you just say?”

The pupils in Mok Seongha’s eyes turned into slits. Secretary Kang swallowed dryly. It wasn’t just the shape of his eyes that had changed. The overwhelming pressure in the surrounding atmosphere was something only a predator at the top of the food chain could emit.

“Did I say something wrong? If money was lent, we should get something back.”

“Don’t you dare lay a single finger on him.”

After Kim Jinkyung took a leave of absence and vanished, Mok Seongha had given up on finding him. When Secretary Kang had tested the waters by asking, ‘Are you no longer looking for Teacher Kim Jinkyung?’, Mok Seongha simply replied, ‘Who is that?’

“Didn’t you say he was someone you don’t know?”

“Obviously that was… Fuck.”

Mok Seongha released his grip on Secretary Kang. Blood dripped down from his fingertips.

“Don’t touch him.”

Mok Seongha spoke as he turned his head away.

“Understood.”

When Secretary Kang replied, Mok Seongha slammed the door and left. Just a few seconds later, he burst the door open and ran back in.

“Did you find him?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You said you were going to get his stamp! You just said you’d make him sign a physical waiver by tomorrow!”

The veins stood out on Mok Seongha’s neck. Secretary Kang replied as if it were nothing important, “Ah, that?”

“Yes. Finding a person isn’t exactly difficult.”

“Where is he?!”

“Who?”

“Kim Jinkyung!”

“Who is that?”

With an expressionless face, Secretary Kang returned the very words Mok Seongha had used. He grabbed Secretary Kang’s arm.

“I’ll lick you! I’ll lick you, so hurry up! Fuck, move!”

“……”

Secretary Kang pulled a piece of paper from his pocket and handed it over. Mok Seongha’s face turned deathly pale as he checked the contents on the paper.

“Why are you giving me this now…. Just wait until I get back! I’ll bury you alive just like you wanted!”

Mok Seongha gnashed his teeth and ran out.

People say there is no point in raising kids.

Secretary Kang shook the blood off his arm, which was marked with vertical scratches, and watched the door Mok Seongha had exited. Not long after, the door opened again.

“Give me a ride!”

As if he expected this, Secretary Kang showed the car keys from his pocket and followed him out. He still had too much work to do to be buried alive.

‎

‎

‎

‎

“Do you have any luggage to check?”

“No. I’m fine.”

“It’s Gate 112, and you must arrive before the time checked here. You need to take the train to move between gates.”

The airline employee explained while drawing circles on the flight ticket with a red colored pencil.

“Thank you.”

Kim Jinkyung, who received the ticket at the airport counter, dragged his carry-on suitcase toward the security gate.

‘Get out! Get out of this house! Get out of this country too!’

Seo Sangil eventually shouted at Kim Jinkyung, who had spent days lying down without even opening the curtains.

‘…Eh?’

‘I already contacted my uncle in Australia. Go to the strawberry farm there and pick strawberries. You picked apples before, so you’re good at picking anything.’

‘What?’

‘I booked the flight with the money you gave me. I went to that house and got your passport back. So just get the hell out of my sight.’

Seo Sangil threw the passport in front of Kim Jinkyung and shouted like a shaman exorcising a ghost. His explanation was that his uncle managed a strawberry farm in Brisbane, so Kim Jinkyung should go there for a month and just do manual labor without thinking.

‘What do you mean, a strawberry farm all of a sudden? How can I stay in Australia for a month?’

‘You were even thinking of going back to the military, so you can go anywhere. Go! Just go.’

Thus, Kim Jinkyung ended going to the airport in a daze, pushed along by Seo Sangil.

Is this the right thing to do?

Kim Jinkyung sighed as he pushed the small suitcase Seo Sangil had lent him. He didn’t have many belongings to begin with. Since underwear and clothes were everything, one small suitcase held all his luggage.

He planned to contact his parents once he arrived in Australia. He did not want to cause them unnecessary worry.

‘Contact this number. He will be at the airport on time.’

‘I can find my way.’

‘Looking at your current state, you’re the perfect target to get scammed by Aussies and dumped in the outback. Stop talking back and just get in my uncle’s car.’

‘But it’s the first time I’ll meet him…’

‘Then go to the farm and pick a ton of strawberries every day to offer to my uncle.’

Kim Jinkyung laughed softly at the ridiculous remark. Only then did Seo Sangil sigh.

‘That’s right, man. Just go and pick strawberries without a single thought.’