SN | Chapter 1.2

Slung over the man’s shoulder like a sack, Yuwon listened to the voices. The words exchanged with the man were unusual. Boss, a title he had heard among the men, was directed at the man.

“Baek Jeshin, go clean up. The kid will be scared and cry.”

“……”

The man called Baek Jeshin was the one who had been sitting in the passenger seat. Without a word, he nodded and walked into the building, followed by the men. As soon as the place cleared, the man put Yuwon down on the ground.

“Ah…!”

Not expecting to be set down so suddenly, he stumbled and grabbed the man’s chest, then quickly withdrew his hand in surprise. The man, brushing back his wet hair, looked down with a smile.

“Wow, starting with sexual harassment on our first meeting.”

“No, that’s not it, I almost fell…”

“Are you interested in my chest? Is that it?”

“No, no, no.”

Even as he denied it with a flushed face, Yuwon’s mind was racing. First meeting? Could it be that he didn’t remember buying him?

“……”

Thinking he might have really forgotten, he looked up, but the gaze he met was intense. The man just stood there, staring at his face. The oppressive gaze felt like a downpour of rain, suffocating him.

“Boss.”

As he endured the silence, the building’s door opened, and Baek Jeshin came out again. The man moved at the gesture towards the inside. He put an arm around Yuwon’s shoulder, who hesitated, and led him into the building.

The damp air filled the building, which had a structure not easily found in the area. A stone building with gray bricks, all the doors were arched, and the floor was paved with solid stone. He walked unsteadily down the cold building corridor. Finally, following the man, he arrived at a room located at the deepest point of the building.

“Sit.”

As soon as he stepped inside, the man tapped Yuwon’s back, sending him to the center of the room. He staggered forward, but there was no chair. Was he supposed to sit on the floor? Biting his lip, he turned around to see the man leaning crookedly, raising an eyebrow, watching him. Witnessing this, Baek Jeshin approached from behind and kicked the back of his knee. It happened without warning.

“Ah…!”

Startled, he barely caught himself with his hands before completely collapsing. Feeling the sharp pain rising from his knees, he looked up with tears welling in his eyes.

The man, now sitting on a metal chair, was taking out a pack of cigarettes. He seemed uninterested in Yuwon. Filled with humiliation, Yuwon silently clenched his lips and adjusted his posture. Kneeling, he placed his hands on his thighs, noticing something seeping below his short shorts. Carefully flipping it over, he found his palm covered in red. Blood.

“Hup…!”

Startled, the man lighting his cigarette raised his eyebrows like a ridge and looked at Baek Jeshin reproachfully. Baek Jeshin shrugged without a word.

Yuwon tried to stay calm. The smell of blood from his hand made him feel faint, but there was nothing to gain from losing consciousness. They say if you keep your wits about you, you can survive even when caught by a tiger. So.

“Seo Yuwon.”

Suddenly, his name was called, and he looked up in surprise. Yuwon’s dark eyes trembled fiercely as they met the man’s gaze. The man, meeting his eyes, leisurely opened his mouth.

“You have to pay off the debt, right? The money your father, Seo Kyungyoung, borrowed from me.”

The conversation began directly, containing exactly what Yuwon had expected.

Seo Kyungyoung borrowed money from San.

How much was it? As Yuwon swallowed dryly and met his eyes, the man narrowed his eyes and gestured to Baek Jeshin. Baek Jeshin left the room and returned with something. Yuwon fixed his gaze on the file in his hand.

Loan contract.

The document, with the words printed in large letters, bore traces of his father, Seo Kyungyoung, borrowing money at an absurd interest rate. Principal 300 million. Equal principal repayment. Interest rate 300%. Unfortunately, it was a parade of terms Yuwon couldn’t fully grasp, but he clearly understood what had brought him here.

Anger slowly rose against the father who only dragged his life down.

…If the debtor neglects efforts to clear the debt, such as delaying interest payments or moving residence without notice, the creditor can expedite the collection at their discretion.

Anytime. Who knew how much power that vague word held? Seo Yuwon’s eyes trembled as he clenched his fists tightly. Even with a face that seemed like he was about to cry, he managed not to shed tears.

Guarantor: Seo Yuwon

But the moment he saw those words, he couldn’t hold back any longer.

“I never signed as a guarantor!”

“Oh, right.”

He shouted in anger, but the man didn’t care about his denial of obligation. Squinting one eye as if he had forgotten, he laughed and gestured to Baek Jeshin. The next moment, Baek Jeshin approached, pulling something out from his coat. Yuwon’s eyes widened at the sight of the black, round container.

“Why… don’t do it!”

Yuwon shouted, stumbling backward, but Baek Jeshin, much larger than him, grabbed his wrist first.

“Aagh!”

With a pain that felt like his bones were shattering, his fingers were caught. His thumb was forcibly pressed into the red ink. The spreading red on his skin felt like the bleeding of his life. Yuwon, about to have his life stolen before his eyes, struggled desperately to escape.

“Don’t…! Don’t! I don’t want to!!”

But when the man got up and grabbed Yuwon by the neck, all resistance was futile. Thud, his head hit the floor, and a sharp pain ran up his neck. As he gasped under the oppressive grip that seemed to cut off his breath, his finger was forced closer to the contract.

“No, no…! No…!”

Tears he had held back burst forth as he was about to be devoured by a contract that had nothing to do with him until a moment ago. He had anticipated tragedy from the moment he realized those who came for him were from the mountain, but he never imagined everything would proceed so hopelessly like this.

Losing his life in a way he never expected, at a moment he never imagined.

“Why do I… why do I have to pay this…!”

From the moment he left the casino and descended to the shantytown, the weak lived in a lawless world. The strong ruled that world, and the mountain’s owner was a standout among them.

He recalls the house that closed its doors just because the minions appeared, the gamblers who hid, the shantytown that was as quiet as a mouse. He should have done the same. Held his breath, hid, and escaped as if dead. Not been dragged here like a fool…

In frustration, tears finally poured out. The man who was about to take his fingerprint paused and raised an eyebrow. At his signal, Baek Jeshin withdrew with the contract, and the man released Yuwon, but once the tears started, they couldn’t be controlled. Yuwon sat there, staring blankly into space, crying silently. It was hard to accept the upheaval that had come to his life.

This was entirely different from deciding to sell his body. On the day he turned twenty, Yuwon decided to follow Seo Kyungyoung for a reason. He thought he had to protect his mother from Seo Kyungyoung, who mentioned her, so he endured the subsequent fall. Therefore, he had no regrets.

But this wasn’t it. Here, Yuwon could gain nothing and protect nothing.

“Why do I have to….”

Knowing he had no power, knowing he couldn’t resist the flow of this life, made it all the more frustrating and resentful.

“Tell Dad to pay…! I don’t want to! I’d rather die…!”

The scream, torn and cracked like a wail, was directed at the man in front of him. The man, who had been silently watching Yuwon cry, met his tearful eyes and raised an eyebrow like a ridge. Then, suddenly, he reached out and grabbed Yuwon’s hair tightly.

“But.”

“Let go…!”

“Your words are short?”

His head snapped back in an instant. Smack, a hand brushed past his cheek, and his lip split open.

“Ow!”

The man who let go of Yuwon’s hair, groaning in pain, then gently patted his head as if nothing had happened. Slowly and kindly. Calming the trembling Yuwon, he spoke in a languid voice.

“Crawl when I’m being nice. Don’t climb up.”

It was a statement that clearly defined the hierarchy. Even though tears were flowing nonstop, the command to crawl made him choke up. His eyes burned hot, and his chest felt so tight it was hard to breathe. It even pricked like chestnuts were packed tightly inside his ribs. Yuwon stared at the man with clenched fists.

Meeting those sorrowful eyes, the man lit a cigarette. As the flame flared, the tobacco turned to ash, and smoke obscured his view, he faced Yuwon without blinking. The man broke the short silence.

“Damn, you’re worth your face.”

Muttering something incomprehensible, he then grabbed Yuwon’s swollen cheek with the hand that had been patting his head. The man caressed Yuwon’s slender jawline and brushed his thumb across his eye.

“What’s got you so upset?”

His tone was playful, unfitting for the situation. It felt as if the pressure that had been weighing him down since he knelt had lifted. But that made it even scarier. Flipping attitudes like eating was something only those in absolute positions could do.

“If you don’t know, think about it.”

When Yuwon didn’t answer right away, the man shrugged as if willing to wait and stood up. Then he went to sit in an empty metal chair. The chair creaked.

The man leaned back against the chair, letting his body relax as he looked over. After a while, when Yuwon’s sobs subsided, he took the contract from Baek Jeshin and waved it in front of Yuwon’s face. His wet eyes widened.

“Choose your words carefully?”

It meant he was giving him a chance to argue. After trying to forcibly steal his life, now he was saying if it was so unfair, let’s hear it. It was a ridiculous deception. But pathetically, Yuwon couldn’t afford to refuse the opportunity. With clenched fists, he wiped his tear-streaked cheeks and spoke in a cracked voice.

“I don’t want to pay that money….”

“I thought you were going to say something.”

But before he could properly explain, the man cut him off. His body flinched at the words spat out irritably. The man, with a mocking smile on his lips, asked Yuwon.

“You’re just saying to keep doing what you’ve been doing, so what’s so unfair? What, do you hate the customers’ faces? I doubt it.”

“…So you’re telling me now.”