M 57

“Ah… yes, the building is… very luxurious.”

Struggling to find something to say, Sehwa muttered whatever came to mind. Warrant Officer Choi nodded vigorously. His face was expressionless, but his twitching eyebrows betrayed his satisfaction.

“The Brigadier General doesn’t allow even visiting dignitaries into his residence. Let alone a civilian… That’s something we could never have imagined.”

In other words, except for a few direct subordinates, Sehwa was the first visitor to the residence. It wasn’t surprising. Inviting people over to his home for pleasant gatherings? As Warrant Officer Choi said, it was unimaginable. It would have been more believable if he had shot all visitors dead.

Afterward, Warrant Officer Choi kept trying to make conversation. It was nice of him to explain things, but the problem was that he kept hinting at stories about Ki Tae-jeong. How Ki Tae-jeong rarely let people get close to him, how indifferent he was to his previous partner… things like that. Sehwa didn’t understand why he kept bringing up stories I wasn’t curious about. Honestly, Sehwa felt a bit uncomfortable with Warrant Officer Choi. Teaching strange words like ‘husband’ and making things awkward for people.

“How much further do we have to go?”

“If you’re uncomfortable, just say so. We can recline the seat like a bed for you.”

Warrant Officer Choi muttered while looking at his wristwatch.

“Since we’re traveling by car, it will probably take quite a while.”

His watch was similar in design to the one Ki Tae-jeong wore, but less flashy. The face also looked a bit smaller. Is that natural due to the difference in rank? Looking at the watch reminded me of a few days ago when he used it to display a dictionary on the screen. Sehwa pressed his suddenly hot earlobes and averted his gaze.

“Still, I think we’ll arrive earlier than the Brigadier General. Today is the day the complaint against Lieutenant Kim is being filed.”

Sehwa, who had been staring blankly out the car window, turned around. A complaint?

“A complaint? That’s today?”

“Yes. The drvgs made by Lieutenant Kim Seok-cheol are piled up in the warehouse in 2-Hwan, aren’t they? He said he would collect all the remaining items and then immediately file the complaint.”

Sehwa kept his mouth shut. The warehouse in 2-Hwan…. Sehwa thought he knew which one Warrant Officer Choi meant. He had been there a few times.

“Then the drvgs stolen from the shelter will be revealed now too. Along with filing the complaint.”

“Yes. Did you hear about this from the Brigadier General?”

“…No.”

A complaint? Sehwa hadn’t heard anything about that. Of course, Ki Tae-jeong had no obligation to tell him about his future plans or thoughts. Strictly speaking, Sehwa was an accomplice in Lieutenant Kim’s drvg manufacturing. It would have been strange for him to explain how things would proceed when Sehwa’s abilities weren’t particularly needed in this situation. So it was natural that there had been no word about it, his reason said… but his heart stirred on its own.

Ki Tae-jeong had said that if necessary, he would use everything from his own constitution to stories about his parents. He said he might have him undergo various tests, or even talk about Sehwa’s personal history during the trial. If so… couldn’t he be considered more than just a simple accomplice now?

It’s not like he was asking to be told some great secret. After killing all the House staff, he could at least tell him why, or that such a thing had happened, instead of suddenly ordering him to pack up everything from his quarters and announcing that he would stay at the official residence for a few days. When he was wrapping patches around Sehwa’s genitals and tangling together, svcking each other off, it shouldn’t have been too difficult to mention that today was the day of filing the complaint against Lieutenant Kim…

“He’ll probably come back in a bad mood again tonight.”

Warrant Officer Choi didn’t seem to understand Sehwa’s meaning at first, rolling his eyes for a moment before suddenly nodding his head vigorously.

“Oh…, oh, yes! Come to think of it, he probably will. Filing a complaint against someone can’t be pleasant. Especially when it’s Lieutenant Kim.”

A bitter smile spread across Sehwa’s face at Warrant Officer Choi’s expectant gaze. As expected, he wanted him to offer his body to soothe his superior. As if everyone would be at peace if he just let himself be penetrated a few times.

“At least he’s not coming back after k1lling people, so that’s a relief.”

“Pardon?”

“The General’s mood sank after k1lling all the workers in the House, right? That’s why you told me about the word ‘husband’.”

Finally understanding the thorn in Sehwa’s words, Warrant Officer Choi could only gape in surprise. From Sehwa’s perspective, it seemed like he was pushing him to try and soothe Ki Tae-jeong with his body.

“If I’ve offended you, I apologize. But that was absolutely not my intention.”

If it had been just a physical relationship, he wouldn’t have told Sehwa about endearments like ‘husband’. Warrant Officer Choi firmly believed that Sehwa had become something meaningful to Ki Tae-jeong. If anyone else had said something about ‘husband’ or ‘spouse’, the sofa would have been stained with blood instead of alcohol. Warrant Officer Choi had an instinctive certainty that Ki Tae-jeong wouldn’t do that to Sehwa, and indeed, when he met his superior the next day, he seemed to be in a better mood than ever before. He even gave instructions to prepare clothes in advance for Sehwa’s potential regular outings.

“Of course, my interference was strictly from Brigadier  General’s perspective, so it must have seemed selfish to you, Mr. Lee Sehwa. I admit that. However, I absolutely, absolutely did not push you with the expectation of pillow talk or anything like that.”

It’s true that in hoping the superior could find comfort in human warmth, he had failed to consider Sehwa’s feelings. However, Warrant Officer Choi thought that the way to soothe Ki Tae-jeong didn’t necessarily have to be s3x. He had prodded Sehwa’s side believing in that possibility.

“Above all, that day…”

Warrant Officer Choi was about to add that the Brigadier General had shot all the staff because they had insulted Sehwa with unworthy words, but a passing thought made him close his mouth again.

He had naturally assumed that Ki Tae-jeong would have explained the circumstances of that incident to Sehwa. Something like, ‘I went to some trouble to k1ll all those guys who were bothering you.’ But it seemed that Sehwa didn’t know the reason for the massacre of the servants. Could it be that the Brigadier General didn’t want Sehwa to be hurt by hearing the truth? If that was the case…

“…My public name is Choi Seok-young.”

After a moment’s hesitation, Warrant Officer Choi abruptly brought up a long-buried story. He didn’t want to uncover the details of the massacre that Ki Tae-jeong had glossed over. That was truly beyond his authority. However, he had presumptuously pushed Sehwa into an awkward situation, and now he was clearly misunderstanding something. He wanted to somehow clear up at least this part.

“My actual name on the resident registration is Choi Po-tan.”

Sehwa’s eyes, which had been narrowed, suddenly widened. Warrant Officer Choi smiled awkwardly, confirming that it referred to the ‘tan’ (shell) Sehwa was thinking of.

“Lieutenant Park’s public name is Park Seong-hak, but his actual name on paper is Park Yeon-jung. The Lieutenant Na we’ll meet tomorrow will probably introduce herself as Na So-yeon, but her real name is Na Dae-po. Among ourselves, we comfortably use Choi Po-tan, Na Dae-po, Park Yeon-jung… but when introducing ourselves to others outside, we always use our public names.”

Ah…. Sehwa tried not to let his expression crumble. He himself was more sensitive than anyone to what others called him, to forms of address. He thought that he shouldn’t be surprised or curious about other people’s names. Warrant Officer Choi added that it was natural to be surprised, briefly comforting Sehwa, then continued his explanation.

“In the camp, we weren’t people but k1lling machines, so our names were casually given like code names. I belonged to group ‘Ba’, so I received the surname Ba. Yes, my original name was Ba Po-tan.”

They divided groups by ‘ga-na-da-ra-ma-ba-sa^[1]‘ or ‘1-2-3-4-5-6-7^[2]‘, assigned those as surnames, and then attached the name of any noticeable object. In the case of Ki Tae-jeong and Lieutenant Park, they were named after parts of mission names classified as ‘Tae-jeong-tae-se-mun-dan-se^[3]‘, while Warrant Officer Choi and Lieutenant Na received weapon names that the training instructor thought of at the moment.

“Thanks to diligently accumulating military merits under the Brigadier General, I at least got the chance to change my surname, but not yet my given name. We can’t change our names at will.”

“Why? If you’ve come out from there and become a soldier like this now… shouldn’t that be over?”

“Yes, everything from the camp is over, and all the survivors have been commissioned. However, there are some restraints put on those of us from the camp.”

They can’t freely change the name they were first given. It’s to prevent easily erasing the stigma of being from the camp. Of course, they can’t discharge at will either. If they want to change their surname and given name, if they want to expedite their discharge, they need to achieve merits recognized by everyone. They have to complete extremely dangerous missions where just surviving is commendable before they can even submit an application.

“Instead, if you have the ability, you can rise to become an officer even without graduating from the military academy. Like Brigadier General Ki Tae-jeong.”

Warrant Officer Choi let out an exaggerated sigh, saying he still had a long way to go. He seemed to be trying his best to keep the atmosphere from becoming too heavy. Feeling how earnestly this usually expressionless man was laying out his story, Sehwa decided to abandon his sarcastic attitude.

“For a k1lling machine from a camp to earn a Star solely based on ability in a military tightly bound by connections… everything Brigadier General Ki Tae-jeong accomplished to do that… ordinary people couldn’t even imagine. The Brigadier General, from the camp…”

“Yes, I roughly understand the situation. You don’t need to say more.”

Sehwa gently stopped Warrant Officer Choi’s words.

“It’s not that I don’t want to hear it, but it seems like a story I shouldn’t hear from someone else’s mouth.”

“Ah… yes, that’s true. Anyway, the reason I brought up this uncomfortable past was because I wanted to let you know that there are reasons why the Brigadier General’s personality is a bit, um… well, why he’s become this way. I wasn’t hoping for you to soothe the Brigadier General with your body either. I judged that just seeing your face would be enough to improve his mood.”

Warrant Officer Choi bowed his head, saying it was an overstepping interference and he was sorry. Sehwa hesitated for a long time about how to respond, then just nodded vaguely. It would be strange to affirm understanding here. Saying he’d try or that he understood would be even more ridiculous.

“I’m sorry for taking out my frustrations on you too, Warrant Officer Choi.”

“Not at all. It was my mistake. I won’t interfere unnecessarily from now on.”

Sehwa fiddled with his earlobe and averted his gaze. In truth, he wanted to hold Warrant Officer Choi and ask him. What did Ki Tae-jeong usually say about him? Were there any comments he made while taking care of his meals or entertainment? To the extent that a mere aide was confident that just seeing his face would improve his mood… was he treating him differently from others? But these were things that would be meaningless unless heard directly from Ki Tae-jeong’s mouth.

“…Do you think he might dislike it?”

A question that he would have usually swallowed back suddenly popped out. It came out before he even thought about it, to the point where he only realized after hearing his own voice.

“Pardon? Dislike what?”

“Ah, well… if I ask about various things.”

“What… Oh, you mean to the Brigadier General? Oh no, absolutely not. He won’t dislike it.”

Warrant Officer Choi waved his hands vigorously. Though his expression didn’t change, his gesture was so fervent that it felt sincere.

“If any problem arises for you because of this, I’ll take full responsibility. Whether I get beaten or k1lled in your place, I’ll make sure you won’t get hurt at all, so don’t worry and ask whatever you’re curious about.”

Sehwa looked out the window without responding. Perhaps because he had been touching it too much, his earlobe felt hot.

As if telling him to take in all the visible scenery, the limousine moved forward at a moderate speed. The sky just before sunset was pink, and clouds were lazily hanging on unfamiliarly tall buildings. It was a scene that felt completely unreal.

***

“You idiots! What are you doing? Aren’t you lighting the fire?”

“But Lieutenant…”

Several soldiers turned hesitantly to look at Kim Seok-cheol. The warehouse wasn’t large, but it was filled with unidentifiable hazardous substances. They don’t even burn simple medicines to dispose of them, yet he was ordering them to set fire to the warehouse.

“If we burn it completely, things could really get out of hand.”

“You stupid bastard, the biggest problem here is if Ki Tae-jeong shows up!”

Kim Seok-cheol kicked the hesitating soldier and snatched the flamethrower. He hadn’t been able to sleep a wink since hearing that the shelter had been raided. It was practically a given that Ki Tae-jeong was behind it, and the family elders and investors were pressuring Kim Seok-cheol every minute and second.

“Fuck, that wh0re Lee Sehwa…”

He had called his pretty, pretty, but clearly, he didn’t even know to be grateful and had sold all the information to Ki Tae-jeong.