SOG Ch 66

Back at the theater.

Seon Jae-chan, hiding his eyes with 3D glasses, was still frozen. Waah, waahhh! A young boy sitting next to him had been crying at the top of his lungs, but Sun Jae-chan didn’t even flinch. His focus was solely on the man standing next to the corpse.

‘Blink.’

Among the key figures of Black Swan, only three had code names.

First, there was ‘Angel’ and ‘Technician,’ the leader and strategist of the Black Swan.

Then there was ‘Blink,’ the leader of the operation.

Unlike Angel, whose identity had remained deep in the abyss until the very end, the Technician and Blink had a considerable amount of information exposed. While Angel served as the leader and brains of Black Swan, the Technician, and Blink were the ones who acted directly.

In particular, Blink was also an Esper who was in charge of the core power of Black Swan. While his individual combat capabilities weren’t exceptional, he was estimated to be an A-class Esper, and the unique characteristics of his abilities made him a formidable force.

He was also famous for his unstoppable and cruel disposition.

He was that guy who took away Go Woo-jin’s right eye during the Ross Clinic incident. To be more specific, he had been holding hospital patients hostage for several days during that time. He eventually joined forces with the Technician and forced Go Woo-jin to damage his own eye.

Seon Jae-chan clenched his jaw as he remembered that time. He gripped his phone tightly as well. The name “Go Woo-jin” on his dimmed screen was overlaid with the guiding app banner that had already appeared.

Frigging bastard…

Seon Jae-chan’s eyes were filled with quiet anger.

However, the moment the guy got closer, Jae-chan pretended to tremble like the rest of the audience and lowered his gaze to the floor.

Now was the time to conceal his emotions. Blink was particularly sensitive. Ironically, wearing 3D glasses was seen as a blessing. It allowed him to perfectly conceal his gaze.

While Seon Jae-chan made his decision, the boy’s cries continued.

“Can’t you shut up?”

Blink’s chilling voice passed through the top of Seon Jae-chan’s head. It was directed at the boy’s mother.

The boy covered his unfocused eyes with his hands, and a middle-aged woman quickly embraced him.

“I-I’m sorry. My, my child is in pain… He has disabilities…”

“Shut him up now, before I decide to blow his head off that guy.”

“Uhh, uhh…”

The boy cried out again, and the mother finally used her hands to cover his mouth.

Meanwhile, the leader of the criminals was questioning the audience member seated closest to him.

“What’s your occupation?”

He snatched the wallet from the trembling man, and a few banknotes and receipts fluttered to the ground. Only a business card and an ID card remained.

“What is it? An insurance salesman?”

After taking in the man’s name and title, the leader of the criminals chuckled.

“Well, lucky us. Call the police station and do some talking on our behalf. Tell them to get your sales up.”

“What… What do you mean?”

The man in the checkered shirt was filled with anxiety. The leader continued.

“You’ll be their messenger.”

Clink, the leader loaded the bullets. The barrel was now pointed at the man who worked for an insurance company.

“Universal Park has been infiltrated by terrorists. They’ve taken more than 80 people hostage. They’re prepared for a suicide attack, and there are bombs placed throughout the theater. As soon as special forces or esper units are deployed, they plan to detonate the bombs. They’re also planning to kill one civilian at a time.”

As the leader continued, whimpers and groans could be heard among the hostages. Some were even crying. The blood from the recently deceased body had not yet dried. Only the leader’s voice echoed calmly in the space.

“Their only demand is one thing.”

At those words, people stopped and raised their heads without realizing it. Seon Jae-chan also stared at the leader.

“The only thing they demand is a direct conversation with the President. If negotiations are successful, they will release all the hostages.”

*

Slap! Slap! The man who called the police and told them about the criminals’ demands was slapped. The reason was that he could not convey their demands without making a single mistake. The merciless hand continued, and the man’s glasses flew from his ears as he was slapped in the face.

“Can’t even make a simple phone call properly? So annoying. You have to call them again!”

Even as he spoke harsh words, the boss looked a little tired. Slap! It was his petite coworker who was still slapping the man.

‘What a cruel bastard.’

Won Seong-il.

In situations that required violence, they often utilized him. He was a man who didn’t hesitate when it came to violence, especially in matters like murder or serious assaults. His brutality helped in dominating the situation.

The order to hit the man came from the leader himself, and every time a slap resounded, the leader couldn’t help but flinch involuntarily. He didn’t like feeling overwhelmed by his colleague’s brutality.

Eventually, the leader forced himself to stand up. He pushed Won Sung-il away and grabbed the man by the collar even more forcefully.

“Get up! Can’t you pull yourself together?”

The insurance salesman’s swollen cheeks looked like inflated balloons, oozing blood and saliva. He seemed to have even wet himself. Upon closer inspection, water marks were visible on the pants, along with a pungent odor. The leader’s face under the black beanie twisted slightly.

He tossed the useless man aside and turned his attention to the other hostages, who were still paralyzed by fear.

“What are you doing? Get up and gather here comfortably. Come on!”

He urged the hostages to get up from their seats.

Hundreds of hostages were herded to one side of the theater, against the wall, which mirrored the location of the now cold corpse.

“…”

Meanwhile, Seon Jae-chan had his eyes on the body.

It was later revealed by the media, the first person killed was a traitor within the criminals. He had been smuggling weapons and supplies to another terrorist organization within the group. He was tied up and had his mouth taped shut as if he were prepared for this. He even wore a disheveled appearance, as if he had suffered for a long time.

However, if Seon Jae-chan had to exclude the hostage situation itself, this person, despite being a criminal, might have survived.

Turning his gaze again, Seon Jae-chan caught the sniffles of children and the air of despair floating above the heads of innocent citizens. He had to make a difficult choice.

Should he save a minority of lives, even if it meant sacrificing the majority of them, or should he seek information that could save the majority, even if it meant the sacrifice of a few?

He had chosen the latter.

‘For now, it’s still okay.’

Despite effectively using the execution of their former comrade as a means, the criminals had not gone so far as to ruthlessly kill civilians. This gave him some flimsy justification for his decision.

‘Of course, tomorrow… It will be different though.’

Tomorrow, at midnight, would mark the beginning of the second day.

An inexplicable collapse accident was scheduled to occur.

According to the media, cracks had started to appear from within the building. When part of the building collapsed due to an unknown shock, the hostages rushed out of the area. As they escaped, the armed terrorists started shooting indiscriminately, resulting in dozens of casualties. All these deaths happened in that moment.

In other words, if they could prevent that event, the number of casualties might be reduced.

“…”

As the hostages, each of them gathered in small groups with their acquaintances, became quiet, Seon Jae-chan recalled the structure of the building.

Jae-chan recalled the building’s layout. The area where the hostages were gathered was the thinnest part of the building’s walls. Unlike the other areas, which were protected by layers of walls and led to different rooms, the walls on either side of the screen were directly connected to the outside. If one of these walls were to collapse, they might have a clear view of the river only a few dozen meters away.

‘Is this wall going to collapse?’

That’s why people who were close to him ran away without realizing it.

Seon Jae-chan turned his hand back and smoothed the extremely hard wall. He remembered what he had told former team leader Hong Ye-deok earlier.

For now, all he could do was hope that the stone he had thrown would become at least a small starting point that would lead to a change that was different from the past.

*

As the night grew deeper, both the hostages and the criminals had somewhat adapted to the situation.  The room was eerily silent, with only the sound of the air conditioner whirring away.

– Are you ready to leave with the Jungle Family? Come to the happy jungle! It’s where cute animal friends gather!

Beyond the broken screen, only the voice actor’s repetitive lines would occasionally echo through the speakers. With the dead body still lying unattended, the screen’s characters waving their hands with splattered blood created a grotesque sight.

The criminals also distributed black envelopes and confiscated their phones. Seon Jae-chan had no hesitations as he handed in his cell phone. It was because he had anticipated the situation and bought a cell phone for immediate use a few days before.

The only thing the hostages could do was go to the bathroom. Even when going to the bathroom, they had to go with the criminals.

The criminals had arranged for food from the office cafeteria to be delivered and managed their meals. They kept a close eye on the hostages while eating. Of course, the hostages were not given any food. A young child whispered, “Mom, I’m hungry,” but it was hushed quickly by his mother’s urgent whisper.