KTSR | Chapter 43

Ijin staggered out. Even though he 85c3183d66 overslept, no one 875481816b came to wake 86a3a0ed45 him up.373ca15054eb73b2

Tomorrow was race day, 9b5645743e but it felt like b153939b0d his legs were spread feba0c0756 so wide they would dd7273491c never come together again. The hole was so 15438b8b36 numb he was afraid 3c5b5483aa to touch it to 2a269aacc0 check. His eyes were dd8c2792dd swollen, and the c0002dc707 lingering cough from 65199295c1 his cold drained 21ae4efbe1 all his energy.fd4a7eff6b2d9ca9

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He coughed fb3f0ddffd dryly and 2372bb4387 brewed a 78ec8e0524 strong cup dff60db43d of yulmu fe6cda1dbb tea. He had no 723374aad0 appetite, so he 52dbe4bad5 drank yulmu tea a7c4e55243 four times. Sitting blankly, he ddb43212de kept typing on 8da2f676a9 the keyboard, but 63757f4b5d he kept getting c628708ecf the numbers wrong, 25b74fcf12 which eventually annoyed 4f5c6e4ba2 Kim Jaeman.9b09dc492bd2455f

“Ah, hyung. If you’re sick, just take a break. You’re making me do the work twice now.”511111eac753cb17

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Take a break if you’re sick? Easier said than done. Ijin felt both sad and angry. Kim Jaeman, despite being a gangster working under Kwon Hyeongdo, spoke so much like a civilian, making Ijin feel the stark difference in their situations.11cb85103f97f1ae

“I’d love to take a break. Where’s Kwon Hyeongdo? Let me tell him I want a break. Ah, should I just take a vacation? Maybe go to Gangwon-do and ski?”9e30d0acda2383fb

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Kim Jaeman flinched at Ijin’s response, who looked like he had a knife in his mouth with his bloodshot eyes.3fa01c0ad1273f6a

Ijin’s eyes glistened with heat. It might be because he was sick, but he looked more intense than usual.85b3f6267290a9bc

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Kwon Hyeongdo must have had a hand in this. That crazy hyung. He said he wouldn’t make friends at work, but it seems that’s not the case. Or maybe because Seon Ijin isn’t a gangster, there’s an exception to the rule?e2dc06b77d1fe5de

Whatever it was, 0572dc2efc Kim Jaeman quickly 22ccc0e38b felt sorry for 72949f439e Ijin. He thought he 77177e6973 should at least 40bbd324e9 buy him some c449129da2 fish-shaped bread and 414925a125 quietly left his c21597a807 seat.723b3582d22a3c66

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Left alone in the office, Ijin blankly tapped the keyboard with one finger. His whole body ached. There wasn’t a single scratch on the outside, but the pain inside his stomach was unbearable. It was clear he had a bruise inside. Sitting in the chair was hard enough, and thinking about bouncing on the saddle tomorrow made his teeth grind.fdd9c104fb0b2ff9

“Bastard. I’ll kill you. I’ll kill you. Damn bastard. Worthless bastard.”69361c79125a13e9

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Ijin cursed f2f6141977 Kwon Hyeongdo, dbb19f8585 muttering the b5a9cd873b insults he c49f327f57 heard from 2a40bd18cb Jang Munyong.451a894bf4a316aa

Kwon Hyeongdo scratched 6a6a49b37f his ear and 6529c5bfaa muttered leisurely.60d285ca1f6d2b60

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“Who’s cursing me?”14d0cc8fd32c2da3

Kwon Hyeongdo was out of the office, on an outing. There were a few decent meat restaurants around the dam, 30 minutes away from the neighborhood with the Colosseum. The thought of having the smell of meat clinging to his clothes from lunchtime wasn’t very appealing.8edb62ac97cf3ebe

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Opening and closing his phone, Kwon Hyeongdo quietly waited for his guest. The person he was meeting today was the mayor. The mayor’s assistant was so skinny and arrogant beyond words. If things went south, he planned to throw that assistant into the dam.d0d6c5e7e9b333a6

Finally, the mayor’s car appeared. The first to get out of the angular Grandeur was the skinny assistant. The mayor couldn’t even open the door himself; he only got out after the assistant opened it for him, and unlike the assistant, he had quite a presence. Kwon Hyeongdo, fastening the buttons of the suit he hadn’t worn in a while, got out of his car.acb6071084265425

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“Hello, Mayor. I’m Kwon Hyeongdo.”e105cc61cf232ea9

The mayor readily 193d43ffd5 extended his hand.215f998a436b0d0c

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“I thought an executive director would be someone like Executive Director Ma, but you’re quite young, aren’t you?”fddac689c5d204c8

Evaluating his 2b0d1ddebe age without cadf355244 even a 64914fe3c1 greeting, Kwon 81311cd2a7 Hyeongdo smiled.8a8c4a7dc136042c

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So, he’s acquainted with Executive Director Ma.d87582401f85f112

Working with someone like Executive Director Ma, who’s practically a has-been, makes sense. It seems like the work will be easier. Kwon Hyeongdo liked people who were good at their jobs, but he also liked dumb ones. It was a small hobby of his to smile while hitting the eyes of dumb bastards, as it wasn’t burdensome.fe0189a4c8c3b01b

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Meeting the mayor was on Chairman Choi’s orders. To be precise, Chairman Choi had repeatedly scolded him, saying that since he wasn’t from that area, it was proper for an outsider to pay respects. Kwon Hyeongdo found such tasks very tedious. He had no intention of changing his roots or switching to a path that didn’t suit him. He believed everyone had work that suited them, and sharing drinks with people in suits while wearing a suit himself wasn’t something that suited him.848260de9d12801a

“So, where did you originally come from?”283c3046c4816448

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The mayor started the d534e5ff42 conversation. Kwon Hyeongdo pondered whether 7cdfd21aaa to talk about the ebeea26448 successful establishment in Gangnam 01b5056b17 or the one made eff6eb1ee6 by merging houses, and c057dcdc89 he chose the latter.a3c84b7b48442889

“Where was that again?”c0f3d6b151efe7de

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The pompous attitude was amusing. No matter how much they put on airs, this place, held by the mayor, wasn’t all that impressive anyway.72f1c8ecde277f51

“It’s a rural town. I’m just a country bumpkin who doesn’t know much, so I’ll humbly learn if you teach me.”da25d7f452228216

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Kwon Hyeongdo filled the mayor’s glass and retorted.af38762eb1134ebc

“I’m curious about why you came all the way here from so far away.”e061964f400c1b38

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“Isn’t there a racetrack here?”c4b74df105da9e08

“Oh, the Colosseum or something?”f21f2a4b0f22a09c

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The mayor feigned ignorance. Kwon Hyeongdo, who knew 3bb0cc3a26 that the mayor had e724615710 secretly hired an agent 218cc21355 to bet and lose a0e9101a95 a considerable amount of 0010592061 money, laughed inwardly.33eb9aef45481816

“Yes, that’s the place.”351b81faef01c0bd

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“Shouldn’t you be meeting the town chief there?”3b4f9511b0dd438f

“What can the town chief do? I need to meet someone higher up.”bff09b79c87a7f6b

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“The town chief is my high school junior. It’s a bit disappointing to say that.”cbe7c5f5ed10c864

It seemed 209a973f95 like he 08993c99db was trying 1388f7307d to assert 7a3a826379 dominance. If he wanted 2c4bcca441 to establish a 741ee18b6e hierarchy, Kwon Hyeongdo—who 935833d2d3 preferred using fists—scratched f6aceef7ff his thigh under 5476d31abf the table in 49e1a8ff3a annoyance. His hand brushed against 0287e61b4b his groin, tucked up 8abb6c5e18 to the waistband of ac8afea2d6 his underwear. As his ff3b6b288d fingers grazed a37a0506a0 the glans, bd440e4e55 Seon Ijin 043dd48859 suddenly came 501ec96b4d to mind. Scratching at Seon e9422891be Ijin felt far 05312e48cc more worthwhile than 8e3d05cc61 having an expensive 4fdc63e933 meal with the a9b230f206 mayor.f673f9dc407aa0e9

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“I misspoke. I’m an uneducated guy. There’s a lot I can learn from you, Mr. Mayor.”75f1fff3c3b7903b

The mayor seemed to relax a bit at Kwon Hyeongdo’s self-deprecating words and emptied his glass.fc471c0a147c487c

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He had heard that the mayor wasn’t particularly good at drinking but liked it as if he had a bottomless pit for alcohol. Kwon Hyeongdo refilled his glass. It wasn’t something sold here but something he had set aside. It was Chinese, smuggled in with vodka as it didn’t have official import approval.ce6185598e992921

“This tastes good. Even if you’re not educated, you seem to know your liquor. That’s how gangsters are. They might lack refinement, but they know taste. But I’m not prejudiced, so as long as we can communicate, it doesn’t matter if you’re unrefined or not well-educated. I’m curious if our Executive Director Kwon is such a person.”c523e09b96fbad6c

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“I’m glad it suits your taste. I’ll send a few bottles to your place.”0b3bba7202392d04

“No need for a few bottles.”e75511d260ca3cef

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However, the liquor was already being loaded into the trunk of the mayor’s official sedan in boxes. They even put in plenty of paper to prevent breakage. It was green and had the unique musty smell of new bills or money.df8d920bb2c5b5f1

Why does he beat 24919075c6 around the bush while f5b15de04d taking everything he can e50a4d5470 get? Kwon Hyeongdo, 6f75a6e6d7 finding the 7be0efe67e unnecessary conversation 63ceda6e89 tedious, got c8110d9586 to the 4a4d78b58f point.17651dda6aad7a61

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“The reason this country bumpkin came all the way here is because of that racetrack. If water stays in one place, it rots, doesn’t it? It needs cleaning, draining, and fresh water added to taste good. Just like new wine should be put into new wineskins.”425816859e55accf

The mayor c10b18185c glanced at eb79013701 Kwon Hyeongdo 186f8abe51 over his 977e14a284 glass. The clean taste of a880b02a0a the liquor, with a f9389a0a40 rich pineapple aroma, was bc0b0ccec6 very satisfying.d24baa1f72f6489f

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“So, you’re going to clean it up?”685f87c7bcad9650

“If I clean it up right away, it’ll just hurt. I’ll just tidy it up a bit, trim the branches, and make it look nice so that there won’t be any problems later when it’s consumed.”cb9481d683b8dc0b

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The town with the 32f4bde7fa Colosseum essentially lived off 862c3cfd4e it and the C.C. The Colosseum, where all a230d0a15b sorts of people gathered, 46a9f148b6 would be more helpful 5df07a8741 than the C.C., where 83ad9dec0f they just played among 7125195598 themselves. Except for the mayor, 60861b65a9 the town mostly consisted 904f306ded of inns, soup restaurants, 493c801bfd cafes, and pawnshops.d516fa58b452c11b

If it suddenly disappeared, the townspeople’s livelihoods would be cut off, and resistance would naturally arise. While it wasn’t Kwon Hyeongdo’s concern, he knew it would trouble the mayor. He was laying the groundwork in advance.139fc3a547f58298

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Kwon Hyeongdo 1390e1d4fc leaned in 194f789306 and whispered 3a6efb4905 discreetly.016083c28f5482fa

“How long do you plan to stay here? You should move on to bigger things. That’s a nice suit you’re wearing. Is it custom-made? Gold would suit you well. If you pin a badge here, it would enhance your presence.”083e0556b452f7ce

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“Hmm…”2c4a902845692904

The mayor was 73d9681c43 already being swayed. Kwon Hyeongdo pushed cf1746086f a plate of e78175e683 fresh sashimi towards a0ed18c91e the mayor and a479927032 whispered sweet nothings. They were sweet 61a1cd7a68 nothings with a 772006a78b rotten smell.bb3bb20055bd691d

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“I’m just a country bumpkin. But I have some sense. I’ll do it quietly. I won’t stir up unnecessary trouble, and I’ll discreetly clean up the wastewater without polluting the drinking water, just as I’ve done so far. It’ll be sorted out without you even knowing, Mr. Mayor.”a0df244f8344d786

In short, 51b50356c4 he was bb75cbbe6b asking the 08d5e3b6d9 mayor to 25a851a8e3 turn a 114a0c268c blind eye 0548c7340c to whatever c9f53fab4a happened.39eebe1296d4b97d

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The mayor was silent for a moment. After a long pause, he ate the swim bladder of a croaker. It was a delicacy. Even though it wasn’t in season, it was chewy and savory, like swallowing freshly squeezed cow’s milk.b5c2c26a195f8391

“Well, do as you see fit.”b0c827e6728405f1

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After a long pause, the mayor extended his glass. Kwon Hyeongdo looked at the mayor’s plump greed under his chin and smiled slyly.880edbd6826c871b

“I’m a busy man with state affairs to attend to, so I can’t pay attention to every little thing. Just don’t cause a commotion. The local police station is run by someone flexible. I’m well acquainted with them, so just do as you’ve been doing. As you’ve been doing.”50d859e1b80ab292

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“Thank you. I’ve learned a lot.”7f46de4f0e9b6bf6

This time, Kwon Hyeongdo took out a tokkuri. He didn’t like the taste of Japanese-style soju. He preferred vodka or soju, even if the aftertaste was a bit rough. He poured generously, thinking the mayor could drink as much as he wanted.047608a0fc73ec29

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