TE Ch 06

“Something else.”

“…..”

“You have to answer something else.”

“Like what?”

He hadn’t asked anything else, so there was nothing more to answer. Hongju quietly lowered his hand to unfasten the seatbelt. But Mookyeong was faster, reaching out his arm. He covered the fastened part of the seatbelt with his large palm and asked again, “You didn’t answer my question from before.”

“…Before?”

What did he ask? Hongju racked his brain. He remembered answering even the trivial questions diligently, thanks to Koo Bbing’s insistence not to offend him. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t recall anything. Mookyeong, staring at Hongju’s furrowed brow, finally spoke.

“I asked if you wanted to kill Madam Koo. You never answered that until the end.”

Hongju turned his head and immediately met Mookyeong’s gaze. His red lips slid up smoothly. As soon as he saw Mookyeong’s smile, goosebumps rose on the back of his neck. He felt like this had happened before.

“…Yes.”

This time, he didn’t lie. There was no particular reason. Maybe it was because he felt like this might be the last thing he said alive. He felt no need to hide his true feelings.

“You should have answered sooner.”

Even though his voice was more relaxed, Hongju remained on guard. Since he couldn’t rely on sound, he watched every little movement Mookyeong made, even the slightest flick of his hand.

“It’s not like I hit you or anything. Why are you so scared?”

He straightened up from leaning against the steering wheel. Then, he lifted his open coat and slid his hand inside his suit jacket. Hongju stared intently at his fingertips. What would come out of there? A knife? An anesthetic? Or maybe a rope? Hongju regulated his breathing, recalling the countless times he had been subjected to such things while collecting debts. Finally, Mookyeong’s hand began to withdraw from inside his jacket. Hongju narrowed his eyes, trying to guess what he was holding.

Thud, Mookyeong threw the object he had taken out onto Hongju’s lap.

“If Madam Koo does anything strange, contact me. I’ll take care of your share separately.”

“…..”

It was a cell phone. It was a different color and model from the one Mookyeong carried.

“You want me to… spy on him?”

Mookyeong nodded. The way he raised his eyebrows seemed to say, “Is there a problem?”

“Why me…?”

“I can’t entrust it to some thug who’s all bark and no bite. Like Madam Koo said, you’ve got guts, so you’ve got the nerve to do something behind his back. And since you can take a beating, you won’t die even if you get caught, right?”

His tone was so laced with laughter that it was hard to tell if he was serious or joking. Then, Mookyeong added an explanation.

“The other guys grovel before Madam Koo. But you don’t.”

“…..”

“You don’t know what kind of look you give Madam Koo, do you?”

He could roughly guess. ‘Fucking bastard, just die already.’ That’s all he thought about when he looked at Koo Bbing. He had become more resigned now, but he couldn’t hide his emotions. Hongju pressed his lips together, and Mookyeong chuckled.

“Don’t overthink it. They say you can’t trust the words of a card sharp¹. I lent him a lot of money, so isn’t it fair that I can do this much?”

“…If I get caught, I’m the one who’s dead. It’s not like you’re going to help me.”

Did he even know how much he’d been beaten up because of him last time? Even though he was used to violence, he didn’t want to get beaten up for no reason. Hongju didn’t even touch the cell phone on his lap. He was afraid that even touching it would be seen as agreeing to get on board with him.

“Hmm.”

Mookyeong leaned back deeply into the seat. He also let go of the seatbelt clip he had been holding. He crossed his arms and exhaled slowly.

“You can’t leave that place because of your debt, right?”

Hongju hesitated for a moment before nodding. Every time he did, his fine hair brushed against the wound on his forehead.

“If you do as I say, I’ll help you. I can get you out before the new gambling house opens.”

Just as you shouldn’t easily trust a card sharp, you shouldn’t readily believe the words of a suspicious person. But to Hongju, this felt more like an opportunity. Wouldn’t this man be better than Koo Bbing, who was always thinking about how to take advantage of him, or Manager Yang, who was always itching to harass him? Wouldn’t it be easier to pay off his debt under this man, rather than getting beaten up constantly while collecting debts? He had a lot of money, so surely he could wait for him to pay off his debt slowly. If he had to deal with a swindler, wouldn’t this man be better than Koo Bbing? It was the first opportunity he had faced in 15 years, and Hongju was secretly swayed.

“H-How?”

“H-How do you think?”

Mookyeong mimicked Hongju’s trembling voice and laughed softly. Hongju furrowed his brow. He didn’t like his playful attitude.

“If you’re still suspicious of me as a swindler, don’t worry, I’ll definitely get you out. I’m a man who has nothing but money.”

“…..”

“I’ll help you leave the gambling house, and I’ll save you when you get beaten up. How about it?”

Mookyeong grinned and shrugged. But there wasn’t a trace of a smile on Hongju’s pale face. His chapped lips moved slowly.

“What if I refuse?”

“Then, well…”

The fingers holding the steering wheel tapped rhythmically. Just when the heavy silence started to make his ears ring, Mookyeong jerked his chin. He was pointing to the lake right in front of the car.

“I step on it. I wonder if you can even swim?”

“…..”

Hongju’s gaze moved between the dark lake and the cell phone. It would take decades to pay off his debt under Koo Bbing. He wouldn’t mind dying now, but still, he wanted to live like a human being at least once. Blood finally seeped out from his cracked lips. Hongju picked up the cell phone on his lap. It still held the warmth from being in Mookyeong’s pocket. He put the cell phone in the chest pocket of his rarely-used padding and zipped it up. If push came to shove, he might have to show this phone to Koo Bbing and say, ‘That man told me to spy on you.’

“I’m not saying I’ll do it. I’ll see how you help me, and then I’ll decide whether to contact you or not.”

There was one thing he had learned while paying off his debt through beatings at the gambling house. You have to look before you leap. He had never been able to stretch his legs comfortably, so Hongju decided to be cautious.

“Suit yourself.”

Mookyeong started the engine. The wheels began to roll noisily over the snow. The icy lake gradually receded. Just having a cell phone in his pocket made his chest feel incredibly heavy.

On the way back, he explained what Hongju had to do. If Koo Bbing left the gambling house, made separate contact with another wealthy sucker, or if there were signs that he was going to close up shop and run, he should contact him immediately. And at the end, he added, “You can also contact me when you feel like, ‘I wish that Madam Koo bastard would just die already.'”

He could call him dozens of times a day for that. He wanted to ask him to kill him right now. After that, Mookyeong explained a few more rules. Hongju didn’t answer, but he memorized each one.

“Get out.”

He thought they would go back to the gambling house since they were done, but the car headed elsewhere. He stopped the car in front of a building and unfastened his seatbelt. Hongju just looked around, wondering what was going on this time, and Mookyeong unbuckled Hongju’s seatbelt for him.

“What are you doing? You have to go do what you’re good at.”

“Ah.”

So, he did have a debt to collect. Hongju awkwardly grabbed the door handle and got out of the car. The building and the people passing by were very clean and well-dressed. He was the only one wearing a worn-out padding jacket. He hadn’t realized it when he was going around the neighborhood collecting debts, but being out here, he felt how shabby he looked. Hongju kept his head down and followed Mookyeong’s footsteps.

The interior was very warm and had a nice fragrance. Most of the conversations of the people passing by were mixed with laughter. Hongju deliberately avoided looking around. He and Mookyeong took the elevator up for a long time. They arrived at a quiet office.

“Is Minho in?”

“Yes, one moment please.”

The woman who answered in a calm voice made a call somewhere. Meanwhile, Mookyeong strolled leisurely down the hallway with his hands in his pockets. He even stopped to look at a large picture frame hanging on the wall for a while. Hongju stood there like an out-of-place object.

“You may go in.”

“Thank you.”

Mookyeong snapped his middle finger and thumb together. At the sound, Hongju looked up, and Mookyeong gestured for him to come over. He opened the office door with a very familiar movement. He leaned halfway through the door and spoke to the person inside.

“I’m here to collect what I lent.”

“What you lent?”

A puzzled voice came back. Mookyeong wrapped his arm around Hongju’s neck and pulled him in roughly. Hongju stumbled in, and his eyes fell on the spacious and clean interior. Mookyeong leaned down and whispered in Hongju’s ear, so only he could hear.

“Go get the cigarettes.”

“What? Cigarettes?”

At his question, Mookyeong silently nodded. He also jerked his chin as if to tell him to hurry up. Sometimes, when collecting debts, they would receive goods instead of money. Usually, it was jewelry or documents, but he had never collected cigarettes. Hongju hesitated, and Mookyeong pushed him hard on his back. His hesitant steps moved towards the man sitting at the desk. The man raised his glasses slightly and then lowered them, narrowing his eyes.

“…I’m here to collect the cigarettes you owe to Boss Mookyeong.”

“W-What happened? Did you get beaten up or something?”

The man looked Hongju up and down, clearly flustered. Hongju was just as puzzled by the situation. He glanced back, and Mookyeong was leaning against the door with his arms crossed. Hongju straightened his head and looked at the man again.

“Please give them to me.”

Instead of giving him the cigarettes he asked for, the man took off his glasses and set them down on the desk with a thud. Then he leaned forward on the desk and whispered to Hongju.

“Did that guy hit you?”

Hongju quietly shook his head. It probably wasn’t very convincing. That’s how messed up Hongju’s face was. Hongju held out his hand, urging the man. Then, the man leaned his body sideways and shouted towards Mookyeong, who was standing by the door.

“Who is he? What the hell are you doing?”

“Just give it to him. The debt collector is waiting.”

Mookyeong checked his wristwatch and urged the man. Judging from the atmosphere, they seemed to be very close. It was clear that it wasn’t a real debtor-creditor relationship if he could do such absurd things without hesitation.

“Crazy bastard. What the hell is this now?”

The man muttered and got up from his seat. He started searching for something, rummaging through the pockets of the suit and coat hanging on the coat rack. He finally found a pack of cigarettes and placed it in Hongju’s palm. It was half-empty since it had been used, but he had still obtained what Mookyeong had requested. Hongju held the pack of cigarettes and went to Mookyeong, who was standing by the door. When he handed over what the man had given him, Mookyeong smiled and shook it in the air.

“When you borrow something, pay it back quickly. So you don’t get charged interest.”

“Why is he like that, that crazy bastard.”

He could hear someone muttering from behind, but Mookyeong pulled Hongju closer as if he didn’t hear it. Without saying goodbye, he closed the door and headed straight for the elevator. He didn’t even glance at the cigarettes he had received and only checked his watch.

“Just say you got the money from some building. Say it looked like there were bills inside the cigarette pack.”

So, this was to create an alibi for when they returned to the gambling house. If they had gone straight back, he would have had to make up lies to Koo Bbing, who would have questioned him about everything. Now he could just tell the truth.

“Okay.”

Just then, the elevator arrived, and they got on together.