M 116

Something soft touched his cheek. Sehwa, who had been rubbing his face unconsciously as if whining, realized after a few seconds that it was the feeling of bedding. With a sudden chill at the back of his neck, he looked around. He really was on a bed.

Why is he lying here? He was clearly crouched on the floor, crying pitifully…

Coming to his senses a beat late, Sehwa hurriedly got up. Ignoring the slightly rumpled edge of the sheet, he slipped his feet into slippers. The person who had carried him to the bed after he had fallen asleep, the person who had sat beside him and watched him for so long that a trace of their presence remained… Needless to say, it must have been Ki Tae-jeong.

“So General Oh Seon-ran…”

He hastily opened the bedroom door carelessly. Ki Tae-jeong, dressed in uniform in the living room, and Lieutenant Park, who was reporting to him, both turned to look at him at the same time.

“…How are you feeling?”

Ki Tae-jeong didn’t ignore him. He didn’t show any awkward or unnatural attitude that might suggest he was recalling what happened yesterday. He was just as he always was, throwing out light words similar to usual. It was almost as if the commotion he had experienced last night was a dream.

“I’m going out to meet General Oh Seon-ran.”

“…”

“I don’t think it will take long. After that, I plan to work here continuously.”

The man quickly scanned Sehwa from head to toe and finished adjusting his cuffs. He seemed to have judged that there was no major problem at a glance.

“…Do you need anything? Something you want to eat?”

During the time he had briefly lost his memory, Ki Tae-jeong had developed a strange habit. Every time he was about to leave, he would briefly tell him what he was going to do and when he would return. The last thing was always a question asking if he wanted anything.

Sehwa blinked blankly, then rubbed his dry face with the back of his hand. …They couldn’t just gloss over what happened like this.

Over the past few days, including the day before yesterday and yesterday, he had shown Ki Tae-jeong everything he had left. Although it was a poorly constructed sentence, he had removed the biggest stone that had been weighing on his heart, and he had scraped away almost all of the lingering tears and resentment. He had also clearly expressed his desire to no longer continue their relationship after the trial was over. Yet Ki Tae-jeong was acting as if nothing had happened.

Sehwa gathered his resolve, puffing his cheeks with air. He couldn’t let it slide this time. If he let it go vaguely like this, this man would naturally assume he would come to live in the official residence, and he would try to be present as the father when they took the baby out of the incubator. It was obvious he would try to be naturally involved in all moments like registering the baby’s birth and residence.

He had to break this endless loop. Now was the time to properly put a period to his relationship with this man.

“When you come back… please let me know.”

Although his voice trembled like a goat’s at times, it was much smoother than yesterday. Enough to make Ki Tae-jeong and Lieutenant Park look at him with round, slightly surprised eyes.

“What I need to do… at the trial. You said it would be in a few days.”

Ki Tae-jeong’s hands, which were tightening his tie, seemed to slow down for a moment. But soon he continued to focus on his own tasks as if he hadn’t heard Sehwa’s words.

“Brigadier… General.”

Sehwa took large strides to stand in front of him, and Ki Tae-jeong closed his eyes tightly and then opened them. He must have been exerting so much force that deep lines appeared and disappeared in the hollows of his eyes.

“Anyway, apart from my story, Lieutenant Kim’s… explanation about the drugs will be difficult…”

“Don’t worry about it.” Ki Tae-jeong replied curtly, then added a longer explanation, as if realizing he had been too blunt.

“We’re preparing everything on our end so that you don’t have to get involved, so don’t think about anything.”

Although he wasn’t as intimidating as before, Sehwa knew well how to act when Ki Tae-jeong was like this. No pleading or begging would work, so he had no choice but to give up first.

Sehwa looked up at Ki Tae-jeong for a long time with teary eyes, then bowed his head deeply. He said he would listen to anything? That he could fix things if he told him? He was a fool for getting emotional when he brought something like baby shoes. In the end, Ki Tae-jeong was a person who did whatever he wanted while attaching various conditions…

Sehwa wasn’t planning to attend the trial as if going on a picnic either. Even if he couldn’t say anything, he wanted to be there at the moment when his name was mentioned, when his life might change. He just wanted to stand there, even if he couldn’t say anything. That was all.

“I’m doing this because I’m afraid you’ll get hurt.”

Reading something in Sehwa’s expression as he was about to give up and turn away, Ki Tae-jeong hurriedly grabbed him and offered an excuse.

“Do you know what a military trial is like? It’s where they call people in, sit them in the middle, and old fogeys play around as they please.”

“…”

“Let’s kill this guy because he looks unpleasant, let’s leave that one alone because I got a request from a brother I know… The bastards sitting as jurors spout this kind of nonsense, then take a vote by raising hands to kill or save people on the spot for fun, that’s what a military trial is.”

“…”

“It’s obvious what kind of bullshit those bastards with armbands will spout at you, how can I send you there?”

Sehwa lightly shook his wrist that was being held as if it wasn’t needed. At that insignificant movement, which seemed weaker than even the baby’s breath, Ki Tae-jeong easily loosened his grip.

“You wanted to win in such a place, to ruin Lieutenant Kim… that’s why you dragged me in, right?”

“…Lee Sehwa.”

“Ahem, well, Mr. Lee Sehwa. There are many ways to testify without necessarily appearing in person.”

Lieutenant Park, who had been watching the two people nervously from behind, seized the opportunity to interject.

“This was mentioned before, but how about filming a hologram containing your testimony in the presence of General Oh Seon-ran? If you could briefly talk about the drug manufactured by Lieutenant Kim or the distribution process there,”

“Filming… you say.”

At Sehwa’s voice, which had sunk even lower than before, Lieutenant Park’s face, who had been smiling unusually in an attempt to lighten the mood, gradually hardened. He finally remembered the reason why Sehwa’s body had become so weak, why he was now staying in the recovery room.

“Ah, that… I’m sorry. I didn’t mean anything by it. What I was trying to say was…”

“That won’t happen.” Ki Tae-jeong cut off Lieutenant Park’s clumsy excuse and let out a long sigh through his nose.

“I was about to discuss other methods with General Oh Seon-ran today as well…”

“…”

“I’ll wrap things up so you don’t have to go out and do things like filming, okay?”

“…Do as you please, but. In any case, my very existence… is evidence that’s favorable to you, Brigadier General, right?”

“That talk,”

“Then just… keep your promise.”

The atmosphere suggested that he wouldn’t even be allowed to follow to the courtroom, let alone appear as a witness. If there was no other way except something like hologram filming, what more could he say here? People were already discussing his treatment as they pleased, and as always, it didn’t seem like he would be given any decision-making power.

If that was the case, he wanted to secure what he could. The child… He would never let Saessak live like this. Hadn’t he vowed before that he would rather have died together than make the child have a fate like him?

Sehwa turned around, pressing his swollen, rubber-like eyelids that had cried so much. He hadn’t meant to look, but he caught a glimpse of Ki Tae-jeong grinding his teeth. Even that was just for a moment, so he couldn’t be sure…

And… surprisingly, that was all. The man didn’t call his name, nor did he turn him around saying he was impudent. Only a thread-like breeze brushed somewhere on his wrist.

Although he wasn’t unaware that Ki Tae-jeong had belatedly tried to gently hold him, that the air fluttered like this due to the movement of his outstretched fingertips, Sehwa walked steadfastly towards the bedroom, looking only forward as if he felt nothing.

***

“Where’s Lee Sehwa?”

Ki Tae-jeong threw his uniform cap and sat down heavily on the sofa.

“He’s in the incubator protection room. I’ve called for him, so Lieutenant Na will bring him.”

Lieutenant Park pressed various parts of the tablet and repeatedly checked if the screen and hologram were working properly. He planned to explain the trial proceedings to Sehwa as briefly as possible, omitting the difficult parts.

He knew well that putting Lee Sehwa in the courtroom was insane. No matter how hard he tried, he wouldn’t be able to avoid the stoning directed at Lee Sehwa. He could hide him behind himself to prevent him from being hit by sharp edges, but it was obvious that the vulgar scene itself of pointed words flying around indiscriminately would be painful for Sehwa.

“Are you really… planning to bring out Lee Sehwa as a witness?”

“…Yes.”

Yes, he knew… but he just couldn’t win. So when Sehwa asked with glass-like eyes and extinguished emotions if he was going to film him, how he could use such means on him again, if he was going to wield his name and life as he pleased… Ki Tae-jeong finally decided to take a step back. No, he had no choice.

“Tell Lee Sehwa everything he’s curious about. How Colonel Kim is trying to corner Sehwa… everything that’s expected.”

“What? But…”

Originally, he had planned to just briefly recite something like, “Kim’s family is trying to pin all the blame on you.” He was going to keep emphasizing until the day of the trial that he should stay quiet no matter what he heard, as they were bastards used to dirty instigation.

However… as he returned to the hospital and considered the layers of loss that Lee Sehwa must have experienced without his knowledge, even that seemed like deception. Hadn’t yesterday’s Lee Sehwa wept, buckling his knees again at the kindness he had tried to bestow arbitrarily?

“But if he knows too much, there’s a high possibility that Lee Sehwa might react in unexpected ways. To minimize variables,”

“Still, he won’t turn to the Kim Family’s side.”

Sehwa would eventually realize that it would be better for the child’s sake to assert his innocence, to follow his lead. Even so…

“Of course, it wouldn’t hurt to have contingency plans, so we should modify our approach somewhat.”

“When you say modify the approach…”

“If there are things I can compromise on, things I can adjust… prepare them for now.”

Lieutenant Park looked at Ki Tae-jeong with his mouth wide open, as if he had heard something unbelievable.

“Brigadier General…”

“It’s not that I’m giving Colonel Kim’s side an advantage. I’m going to fucking destroy them completely… But you know, there are other bastards. If there are guys who can definitely sway votes to my side even if Lee Sehwa happens to say something off…”

Even as he said this, Ki Tae-jeong snorted derisively, finding his own behavior ridiculous. He could go this far. He was even prepared to do this… Why had he made Lee Sehwa cry so much before?

“Spread the word that I might delay their discharge, maybe help a bit with the businesses those bastards are running.”

‘Would you know what I’m willing to give up because I don’t want to make you cry anymore? No, you probably don’t even want to know now.’

“…I can let go of this much, at least.”

“Brigadier General.”

Behind Lieutenant Park, who was gaping in bewilderment, Chief Warrant Officer Choi’s voice was heard.

“I’ve finished confirming that the items you ordered for the official residence were properly placed, and there was a lot of accumulated mail, so I brought it.”

Chief Warrant Officer Choi bowed slightly through the open door of the recovery room before entering.

“I’ve sorted out only the ones that you should probably check.”

Leaving Lieutenant Park frozen by his superior’s unexpected declaration, Ki Tae-jeong received the package handed over by Chief Warrant Officer Choi with an indifferent expression. The purpose of sending mail in this day and age was obvious. Pleas for donations, nonsense about inviting him to social gatherings within the military…

“What’s this?”

As he was flipping through the envelopes listlessly, something that had been stuck between them fell to the floor. It was a small envelope with nothing written on the outside.

“Ah, this was reportedly found in the pocket of your uniform when it was being cleaned previously, sir. After checking the laundry room footage, we confirmed that the person in charge immediately sealed it in a storage envelope upon discovery, and it hasn’t been touched since.”

“Something from my clothes?”

He doesn’t remember putting anything in his pockets. Ki Tae-jeong examined the small envelope with a slight frown. Its size and appearance were very suspicious. If there had been a problem, for example, if explosives had been planted, they would have gone off long ago in the mail storage box inside the official residence before even reaching his hands, so it probably wasn’t anything serious…

“Open it.”

Chief Warrant Officer Choi, who had taken the item back from Ki Tae-jeong, carefully examined it with a scanner and then cautiously opened the surface with specialized equipment.

“It appears to be nothing unusual, sir.”

What Chief Warrant Officer Choi handed over after completing the inspection was disappointingly trivial. The contents were a scrap of paper crumpled into a strange shape.

“Just in case, pay special attention to Lee Sehwa’s patient gown and meals as well.”

“Ah, yes. I’ll check right away, sir.”

“If there are people putting this kind of thing in my pocket, do you think they’d leave Lee Sehwa alone?”

They probably wouldn’t plant a bomb in the most prestigious hospital with 5 stars, but they’re the kind of people who would easily slip in something like a threatening letter just to upset someone.

Ki Tae-jeong unfolded the scrap of paper, smaller than his palm, with an expressionless face. It had been so crumpled that deep white creases were carved along the folded lines. And what was written inside was…

“Brigadier General? What’s wrong?”

As Ki Tae-jeong, who had been quietly clicking his tongue, suddenly opened his eyes wide and stared at the scrap of paper, the confused Chief Warrant Officer Choi tilted his head and asked.

“Is there a problem?”

“…”

There… inside the crumpled memo… it was filled with crooked handwriting that was clearly Lee Sehwa’s.