BAI Ch 34

“You’re right, Captain. High-ranking people push dirty tasks onto others to protect themselves. And those who hope someone else will take the fall for them, without getting their own hands dirty, turn their backs the moment their demands are met, as if nothing happened.”

Hmph.

A sound of air escaping came from Kang Inwoo’s throat.

“Are you saying you’re washing your hands of this?”

“There’s nothing to wash my hands of. I never had a choice to begin with. I did my best. I’d appreciate it if you acknowledged that, but if you don’t, there’s nothing I can do.”

Uhm Seungwon bit his lip, then released it. He took off his glasses and pressed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. He stayed like that for a while. Kang Inwoo watched Uhm Seungwon’s plump chin tremble slightly. Finally, Uhm Seungwon put his glasses back on.

“If you want me to investigate further, I can go through the motions, but there won’t be any results.”

“I’ll pass that along.”

“As for the Jung Ryujin matter… please give me some time to think.”

“Haven’t you already decided?”

“Just a little.”

Uhm Seungwon said.

“I just want to think a little more.”

“Reporter.”

Kang Inwoo placed his clasped hands on the table. As he leaned forward, Uhm Seungwon took a sharp breath.

“The Chief is a cultured and patient man. But I’m a field operative. People who put their lives on the line in the field hate hesitation. I’ve seen too many cases end badly because of it. And this, the Jung Ryujin matter, is business between you and me, not the Chief.”

Now Uhm Seungwon was sweating profusely. He didn’t even pull out his usual handkerchief. Kang Inwoo locked eyes with him. To dominate someone, you had to be calm yet ruthless, cautious yet unwavering.

As a rookie in the Military Police Special Forces, Kang Inwoo had taken on various tasks beyond his assigned duties. One task from his mentor was to record himself interrogating criminals. After each interrogation, they reviewed the footage together, identifying mistakes and discussing areas that were good but could be improved.

He thought it was good training. Though the emphasis on perfection sometimes made his mentor seem like a sociopath, Kang Inwoo stayed by his side until he was forced to retire due to his background.

“The principle of business is simple. Make an offer and wait.”

Kang Inwoo pointed alternately at himself and Uhm Seungwon with his palm.

“I made an offer, and I waited for your response.”

But making someone wait too long was the end.

“In business, silence is rejection, and rejection means no further deals.”

Uhm Seungwon would waver. A long-desired exclusive interview with Shin Haebeom was within reach.

“Tomorrow.”

Uhm Seungwon said as he stood.

“I’ll contact you by tomorrow.”

Specifying a deadline was a good sign.

“Understood.”

Kang Inwoo nodded readily. He slipped the portable disk into his pants pocket, watching Uhm Seungwon sling his large backpack over his shoulder and walk away. His huffing gait resembled an angry bear.

Uhm Seungwon didn’t go straight home. He stopped at a Japanese diner near the station and ordered a plate of spicy stir-fried udon. He wasn’t usually a fan of spicy food, but when his chest felt this heavy, eating something spicy, salty, and hot often lifted his mood.

The diner was empty. Since Cheolhyeol Ilseong took power, the economy had been in a constant slump. Prices soared while ordinary people’s incomes stagnated. The competition rate for the Shinryongmun public recruitment for government jobs had surpassed one hundred to one this year. One hundred to one. Uhm Seungwon thought, Is this even reasonable? as he downed his beer.

The economy was completely frozen. Family-run businesses, passed down for generations, were going bankrupt one after another. The prices of land, buildings, houses, and cars had reached levels unattainable through individual effort. Outside the capital and economic zones, hundreds starved to death daily. Assault, theft, drugs, and human trafficking ran rampant, with gangsters thriving. While people died helplessly, the wealthy built higher walls to protect their own and indulged in their exclusive circles.

Uhm Seungwon kept ordering beers. What started as a quick drink turned into full-blown intoxication. Paying the bill with a flushed face, he thought to himself, In a world where the poor get poorer and the rich get richer, might as well let a war break out!

Outside, it was already midnight. Uhm Seungwon adjusted his bag. Even drunk, he was proud of securing his livelihood. He had a decent tolerance for alcohol, thanks to being dragged to drinking sessions day and night as a junior reporter.

Uhm Seungwon’s home was a four-story mansion, over twenty years old. The neighborhood was unsafe, lacked amenities, and was far from subway stations and bus stops. This wretched mansion ate up half his salary.

He sighed heavily, trudging along.

He walked down an alley without streetlights, relying on the glow of shop signs. Someone approached from the opposite direction. Uhm Seungwon pressed himself against the wall. Being large since childhood, he’d developed a habit of stepping aside on narrow paths.

“Ah!”

“Oh, oh, I’m so sorry.”

Uhm Seungwon apologized hurriedly. Bumping shoulders with a woman was unlike him.

“I’m sorry. Sorry…”

He kept bowing even after the passerby moved on. Just as he stopped apologizing and turned to leave, the woman he thought had passed called out to him.

“Hey! You dropped this.”

“What?”

She approached. The faint chemical scent of a hair salon wafted toward him.

“You dropped this.”

“Oh… Oh!”

Patting his back pocket, Uhm Seungwon realized his mistake. He’d adjusted his bag out of habit. He rushed to the passerby, who held his thin leather wallet.

“Oh, thank you. That could’ve been bad.”

Uhm Seungwon reached out, but she didn’t immediately return the wallet. Opening it, she said probing.

“Are you a reporter?”

“What?”

“It says so here.”

It was the business card he always kept in his wallet. Not one he used now. The card, with worn edges and yellowed from age, was the first he’d received when he became a reporter. Why did he still carry it? Perhaps a reminder to stay true to his beginnings?

Uhm Seungwon smiled awkwardly and said again.

“Thank you…”

He meant to say, Thank you, now please give it back. But he couldn’t finish. The moment he sensed her shoulder move, his vision shook violently. His breath caught, and the world flipped. It felt like an explosion inside him.

Collapsed on the ground, Uhm Seungwon’s mouth hung open limply. His limbs trembled as if electrocuted. The woman crouched beside him.

“Thank you.”

An eerily cold hand approached.

“Uh… ugh…”

Footsteps echoed from a distance. Uhm Seungwon tried to lift his head to look, but his body wouldn’t move.

“Don’t move. Just sleep.”

His strength drained completely. Uhm Seungwon’s head hit the ground.

His vision went black.

✶⋆.˚

A red siren flashed before his eyes.

Kwon Sehyuk clutched a blanket with trembling hands.

Feverish, he dreamed. A long, nostalgic dream. His childhood in Jangjin. He lived apart from his father, but his grandfather was more dependable than anyone.

Back then, Kwon Sehyuk’s day began at five in the morning. He folded his bedding, washed, and went to the indoor dojo. The instructor his grandfather assigned never arrived late. After two hours of training and meditation, his grandfather was waiting outside the dojo.

Jang Doohyun believed the early bird catches the worm. He started the day by seating his young grandson in the passenger seat of his military truck and driving along the coastal road.

The open coastal road was also Kwon Sehyuk’s route to school, but Jang Doohyun had another reason for this routine. He wanted to instill in his grandson: This land is yours. That sea is your stage.

Kwon Sehyuk didn’t mind waking early. His disciplined lifestyle was second nature. Above all, he loved Jang Doohyun’s large, black military truck—an Actros Armored, modified with custom wheels and mufflers, adorned with a red horse on the door. Jang Doohyun was pleased that Kwon Sehyuk could climb into the high seat without adult help.

Jang Doohyun smoked Cuban cigars. He perched Boeing sunglasses on his nose and rested his elbow on the open window. Kwon Sehyuk gazed at his grandfather’s white hair fluttering in the wind. Beyond his profile, the sun rose.

The sun on the horizon, the rippling jade sea.

No matter how many times he saw it, he never tired of it.

Kwon Sehyuk loved his grandfather. A man fearless of the world. He took whatever he wanted. Kind to women and children, strict with subordinates. Kwon Sehyuk wanted to emulate his grandfather’s dual nature—a spirited rogue and a dignified gentleman.

The scene changed.

A moldy rectangular ceiling came into view. Kwon Sehyuk blinked slowly. A sight unforgettable even in dreams. Fifty by thirty centimeters. An unlicensed underground bunker with a water vein running beneath.

A chilling sound accompanied the opening of the ceiling door. Light pierced eyes accustomed to darkness.

Dust swirled thickly. Ziplock bags flew in. The tightly sealed bags hit the stairs, sometimes falling straight to the floor without bursting. All had precarious expiration dates, some containing half-eaten food.

A cream bun with bite marks, a triangular rice ball with torn seaweed stuck to it. Occasionally, snack bags sealed with fluorescent hair ties, containing a child’s fistful of remnants. The last scraps of convenience store discards were Kwon Sehyuk’s share.

He’d tried escaping on his own. It was a time when he couldn’t tell what day it was, what time it was, his own name, or his age. The result of a piercing stench, eerie silence, fear of never being rescued, and a desperate will to survive.

Kwon Sehyuk sought someone to exploit. Even a sliver of kindness would do. He emphasized his obedience and manners. At the same time, he had to show he wasn’t foolish. I won’t escape. All I want is a bit of companionship and fresh air.

He targeted the moment the ceiling door opened once a day. When ziplock bags and a chamber pot came down together. Kwon Sehyuk said his stomach hurt. Laughter mocked him. A voice sneered, What, is your appendix bursting?

Kwon Sehyuk begged for digestive medicine. He recalled the name of a pill his grandfather kept nearby. True to a family ruling a port city, their household was full of imported goods. Even supplies for employees were all foreign-made.

A man came down. The hand passing him cabbage pills smelled of disinfectant. Kwon Sehyuk instinctively knew this was the man who’d treated his tongue wound. The same scent lingered in his faint memories. The sharp smell of ethanol. The foul odor of iodine.

Kwon Sehyuk grabbed his hand. He pleaded to stay together. Trembling wasn’t hard. The bunker was cold. It was strange not to be sick in a moldy, sealed space. Kwon Sehyuk begged again.

Take me upstairs. Just for a moment.

After three pleas, a fleeting moment of freedom was granted. Kwon Sehyuk felt a glimmer of light in the darkness. He just needed to map the space and locate the exit.

He realized how naive that was when the disinfectant-scented man blindfolded him with black cloth. Kwon Sehyuk resisted instinctively. A tsk sounded near his ear, followed by a kick to his solar plexus. Collapsing, he thought.

A good child gets one chance, and he’d just blown it.

His face was plunged into a foul-smelling puddle. He tried to rise, but his limbs wouldn’t move. A large foot pressed his head down.

“Lick.”

The man said. Suffocating, Kwon Sehyuk obeyed. To prove he was a good child.

His consciousness faded beyond the puddle.

The scene changed.

He was inside a shaking suppression vehicle. Kwon Sehyuk let out a sigh of relief. He’d escaped the dream. His body was soaked in cold sweat.

A blurry ceiling came into view. His vision was hazy. He recalled the hemp Shin Haebeom had given him. The drug’s effects lingered in his lungs and bloodstream. It would take time for his vision and consciousness to clear.

Kwon Sehyuk touched his forehead with the back of his hand. Between blinking eyelids, bloodshot whites appeared and vanished.

He didn’t want to be alone.

Kwon Sehyuk’s palm groped the vehicle’s inner wall. It was cold and hard. He wanted to touch something else. Something warmer, softer, fragrant. Something that brought happiness when near. Ryujin hyung.

But his hand touched nothing. He groaned, eyes wide. The heightened senses from the hemp craved wildly. Sweets, drinks, breeze, music. But above all, he needed Ryujin. With him, nothing else mattered.

Kwon Sehyuk strained to move his stiff neck. He turned his head.

Moonlight streamed through the window.

In Kwon Sehyuk’s wide-open view, Shin Haebeom appeared, his face buried in Ryujin’s neck.

“…”

His lips parted, but no sound came. Kwon Sehyuk realized he hadn’t escaped the dream.

Ryujin’s face was visible past Shin Haebeom’s ear. A feverish expression. Disheveled bangs, tightly closed eyes, cheeks flushed pink. Lips wet with saliva.

Recognizing it as a dream, his body froze. From neck to toes, he stiffened. Kwon Sehyuk realized this was a nightmare. He was paralyzed. A vicious demon, not easily shaken, had come.

Long, knobby fingers undid the buttons of Ryujin’s uniform shirt. His slender neck was exposed. The graceful neck, where small hollows formed beside his Adam’s apple when he spoke, was kissed by Shin Haebeom.

Ryujin tilted his head back and moaned.

Shin Haebeom’s hand gripped Ryujin’s white t-shirt. He pulled the hem from the belt. Ryujin’s hands clutched Shin Haebeom’s wrists. But Shin Haebeom didn’t stop. His hand slipped under Ryujin’s t-shirt.

Ryujin hunched his shoulders, resting his forehead on Shin Haebeom’s shoulder. Shin Haebeom’s large, solid body, positioned between Ryujin’s legs, shifted. He was laughing.

“Hng… ah, aah…”

Ryujin twisted his body. Shin Haebeom’s hand must have been cold. He grabbed Ryujin’s trembling legs and wrapped them around his waist.

Kwon Sehyuk inhaled sharply. Blood vessels stood out in his wide eyes. Someone, anyone, wake me. Douse me with cold water, swing a bat, anything. Get me out of this nightmare.

The white t-shirt rolled up. Shin Haebeom’s hand rested on Ryujin’s chest. The veins on his hand were blue. Shin Haebeom made Ryujin bite the t-shirt’s hem. Ryujin’s back hit the wall. Shin Haebeom’s hands cupped Ryujin’s cheeks, stroking gently. Ryujin’s eyes, biting the fabric, glistened wetly.

Shin Haebeom leaned down. His lips traced Ryujin’s body. Neck, collarbone, chest exposed beyond the t-shirt. He licked, sucked, and bit the firm nipples repeatedly. Kwon Sehyuk clenched his teeth. He saw Ryujin’s face, legs spread, feeling Shin Haebeom’s mouth on his chest. Each time moonlight lit Ryujin’s face, his cheeks grew redder.

The sound of sucking nipples was loud. When Shin Haebeom lifted his head, Ryujin’s chest was exposed. His pale, thin body glistened with saliva. The skin, reflecting moonlight, looked tantalizing. Kwon Sehyuk swallowed dryly.

Ryujin’s hand groped Shin Haebeom’s neck. His slender fingers trembled.

“Ugh…”

The fingers toying with Shin Haebeom’s uniform collar suddenly clenched into a fist. Shin Haebeom slid his hand into Ryujin’s pants.

“Ahh… ngh, hngh. Hah!”

Kwon Sehyuk knew what Shin Haebeom was touching, kneading.

Ryujin, surrendering his genitals to Shin Haebeom’s hand, covered his mouth with both hands. Sobs leaked through his fingers. Shin Haebeom didn’t stop. Shaking Ryujin’s genitals to induce ejaculation, he suddenly bit Ryujin’s ear.

“Ah!”

The thin body jolted. The sobs grew louder. The sound of flesh being bitten was louder than anything. Kwon Sehyuk saw Shin Haebeom roughly pull down Ryujin’s pants and slip his hand into his underwear. A large hand kneaded the cheeks, supporting the hips. Ryujin was held in Shin Haebeom’s grasp.

“Haa, ah, ngh… ah!”

Ryujin threw his head back, and a thud sounded. His head hit the wall. Shin Haebeom didn’t care, moving his hand. Kwon Sehyuk knew what he wanted. The secret hole between the firm buttocks.

Ryujin’s legs, wrapped around Shin Haebeom’s waist, showed taut muscles. He wasn’t wearing boots from the start. His toes, in black socks, curled tightly.

Kwon Sehyuk’s bloodshot eyes welled up.

The thin legs clung to Shin Haebeom’s waist, as if he were the only thing to rely on. Pale fingers scratched Shin Haebeom’s back. Ryujin’s palms crumpled Shin Haebeom’s clothes.

Shin Haebeom breathed heavily. The hand kneading Ryujin’s buttocks withdrew from the underwear. Growling like a beast, he tore at his uniform shirt buttons. The crumpled garment was flung to the floor. Shin Haebeom wore a black t-shirt underneath.

He raised his arms. His biceps were tightly muscled. Ryujin, face flushed, lifted the black t-shirt. Under faint moonlight, Shin Haebeom’s bare back looked like a Michelangelo statue.

His broad shoulders heaved roughly. Ryujin, looking up, leaned forward. He buried his face in Shin Haebeom’s chest. A red tongue peeked between wet lips. Shin Haebeom’s large hand stroked Ryujin’s head.

Kwon Sehyuk didn’t close his eyes. He knew blinking was futile. It was a succubus, the worst of demons. Kwon Sehyuk understood why Shin Haebeom and Ryujin were the dream’s protagonists. One was the person he wanted to be. The other, the person he wanted to have.

The vehicle turned. An empty Vaseline jar rolled into Kwon Sehyuk’s view. The pair’s position changed.

Shin Haebeom sat in a chair. Ryujin, legs spread, was about to lower himself onto him. The buttocks, crushed in Shin Haebeom’s hands, looked pitiful. Except for the socks on his feet, Ryujin was completely naked. His pale, long, thin body flushed red, helpless atop Shin Haebeom.

A thick, veined penis twitched menacingly. Stroking Ryujin’s neck, Shin Haebeom urged him. Ryujin nodded. A small, sweat-soaked face. Struggling with intercourse but immersed in pleasure.

“Ugh, ah!”

Shin Haebeom moved his hand. Fingers, slick with melted grease, probed Ryujin’s entrance. Each insertion and withdrawal made a squelching sound.

Ryujin threw his head back, moaning. Tears formed at the corners of his tightly closed eyes, rolling down his flushed cheeks.

“Hng… aah…!”

Shin Haebeom moved his hand quickly. Long, knobby fingers repeatedly breached the entrance. The hole, accepting Shin Haebeom’s fingers, looked like a mouth eating food. It gaped, eagerly taking the fingers.

Shin Haebeom laughed, his pointed canines visible between his lips.

“Ack! Ah!”

Ryujin flailed helplessly. Shin Haebeom wrapped his sculpted arms around Ryujin’s thin back. Kwon Sehyuk’s eyes widened. A menacingly erect penis, far bulkier than fingers, pushed between Ryujin’s buttocks.

The gaping hole was forced open by its size. It was thrust in with force.

“Ugh… uwa… it hurts, Commander, it hurts…!”

“Shh. Shh. It’s okay… it’s okay.”

The hand stroking the protruding shoulder blades on the thin back was gentle. Supporting the sobbing Ryujin’s neck and stroking his back, Shin Haebeom forced the still-uninserted penis deeper.

“Stop, stop. No. It won’t… ah, it won’t fit…!”

Ryujin’s hands pushed at Shin Haebeom’s thighs. He tried to rise. Shin Haebeom laughed with a deflating sound. He opened his mouth. His sharp canines bit Ryujin’s neck. The bite was so strong it broke the skin. Though not as sharp as a beast’s, the skin tore instantly. Tears spilled from Kwon Sehyuk’s eyelids. Stop, stop. Don’t hurt Ryujin hyung.

Don’t kill him!

Ryujin’s resistance ceased. He sobbed faintly, burying his face in Shin Haebeom’s neck.

A demon whispered nearby. This is what you want, isn’t it? You’ve always wanted this. Look closely. This is your desire. Your dream.

Kwon Sehyuk shook his head. Tears spread across his sweat-soaked face. But he couldn’t close his eyes. Ryujin’s naked body filled his tear-blurred vision. A back gleaming in moonlight. A body covered in scars, large and small, old and recent.

Ryujin, sobbing while accepting Shin Haebeom’s penis, looked undeniably pitiful. He raised his hips, trying to match Shin Haebeom’s rhythm. He kept whimpering, Wait, slow down, stop, it hurts, in near-sobbing moans.

Ryujin seemed like a robot programmed to say only four things. If he were, could Kwon Sehyuk have avoided loving him? Like the security robot his grandfather secretly developed with engineers after the kidnapping. No matter how human-like in appearance, speech, or interaction…

The threateningly erect penis plunged into the narrow hole, emerged, and slammed back in with a thud. Ryujin’s screams shook the vehicle with each of Shin Haebeom’s movements.

A bead of precum glistened at the tip of the veined penis. The droplet, mixing with melted Vaseline, dripped like honey. Movement became easier, but Ryujin was already exhausted. His arms dangled, his legs splayed limply.

In Shin Haebeom’s arms, Ryujin shook like a doll. Violent thrusting continued. Kwon Sehyuk’s gaze was fixed on the hole where the raging penis moved. He saw a hole that had lost all resistance, fully open. Each time Shin Haebeom’s penis thrust in, melted Vaseline splashed with a squirt.

“Aah… ah…”

Kwon Sehyuk clenched his molars. He couldn’t tear his eyes from the hole that contracted as if sighing when the penis withdrew, then stretched wide to swallow the furious flesh.

Shin Haebeom’s hands gripped Ryujin’s hips. He lifted the body swallowing his penis and slammed it down.

“Hngh! Ack!”

It was engulfed to the root in one go. Ryujin trembled like a fawn hit by a taser. Thud, thud. The mercilessly stretched hole seemed like it would never return to its original shape. Terrified, Ryujin wailed.

“Ah, it’s… no, it’ll break. It’ll break!”

His sobs slurred his words. Still, they were understandable.

“Shh… it’s okay.”

Shin Haebeom rocked his hips, kneading Ryujin’s buttocks. He pressed his index finger against the hole, stretched to its limit. Ryujin screamed in panic. No, don’t. Please, Commander, don’t.

Shin Haebeom’s laughter echoed. He licked Ryujin’s earlobe, whispering to calm the trembling body. But his finger still circled the entrance holding the penis. Tapping the red flesh, stroking it. Testing with his fingertip as if asking, Really not okay?

“Really not okay? Hmm… not possible?”

“No… I don’t want it. It hurts. No…”

“Too bad.”

Shin Haebeom kept coaxing. He grabbed Ryujin’s chin, locking eyes. Kwon Sehyuk knew the expressions they wore, even without seeing.

“No, no. Don’t. Commander, don’t…”

Ryujin’s slender arms wrapped around Shin Haebeom’s neck. He kissed his cheek, acting coy. He rocked his hips, still enveloping the penis. Compared to Shin Haebeom’s rough movements, it was clumsy. But it was endearing. Enough for the finger teasing the hole to retreat, to lift sweat-soaked hair and stroke the scar on his temple. Shin Haebeom sighed.

“You’re driving me crazy, aren’t you?”

The penis’s thrusting intensified. Ryujin could no longer move on his own. Shin Haebeom, restraining the thin body, accelerated his movements.

“Agh! Aah! Aaah… ack!”

Ryujin’s body stiffened. His buttock muscles contracted tightly. Shin Haebeom roared like a beast, biting Ryujin’s neck. Blood welled from the new wound. He licked every drop.

Thud, thud. The rigid penis roughly stirred the overworked inner walls.

“Ah… hng…”

Shin Haebeom ejaculated inside Ryujin only after his limbs went limp and his body fully collapsed. The thin thighs twitched. Shin Haebeom rocked his hips as if determined to pour every last drop inside.

“Stop. Stop.”

Ryujin cried. His head drooped limply. He buried his face in Shin Haebeom’s neck, breathing faintly.

Ryujin looked like he might die. His body filled with Shin Haebeom’s semen.

No. It can’t be.

Blood bubbled in Kwon Sehyuk’s throat.

Shin Haebeom took his time. He clenched his teeth, desperately restraining himself. He withdrew his penis bit by bit, ejaculating. If the crying Ryujin moved his hips to hasten the withdrawal, Shin Haebeom gripped his pelvis and forced him back down. Relentlessly meticulous. Shin Haebeom seemed intent on violating every cell of Ryujin’s inner walls.

Shin Haebeom buried his lips in Ryujin’s chest. His red tongue rolled over the erect nipple. It looked like sucking candy. After playing with the nipple in his mouth for a while, Shin Haebeom opened wide, enveloping the entire areola. The swollen nipple appeared and vanished with his movements.

“Ahn…”

Ryujin moaned. Shin Haebeom’s hand moved downward. It traced the area around the half-withdrawn penis. The semen he’d released soaked the cheeks and flowed down the convulsing thighs. Scooping his own semen with his fingers, Shin Haebeom smeared it on Ryujin’s chest. Looking at the harshly abused nipple, he smiled.

“Pretty.”

“Ngh.”

“Say you like it.”

“Ngh…”

“Come on.”

“I… like it.”

“Again.”

“I like it…”

“Properly. To the end.”

“I like it… Commander.”

Kwon Sehyuk closed his eyes. The demon giggled beside his ear.