M 132

“Stay back!”

He leaped between the doctor and Sehwa, blocking their view. He pushed Sehwa back slightly while urging him, and fortunately, the presence began to recede. It seems he sensed something was amiss even in his confusion.

Judging that things might go wrong, the nurse, or rather the one disguised as a nurse, quickly clung to the front door. It seemed he intended to prevent entry from outside.

Ki Tae-jeong kicked over the 3-tier wagon they had brought, then shoved it forcefully towards the entrance.

“Urgh!”

The one who was about to place a small metal object on the door’s lock sat down with an ugly cry, seemingly hurting his leg from the incoming wagon. The others hesitated and just observed the situation, surprised by Ki Tae-jeong’s unexpectedly aggressive response.

“Hwaaah…!”

“It’s okay, it’s okay…”

Anxiety and fear were evident in Sehwa’s voice as he held and comforted the child startled by the loud noise.

Ki Tae-jeong quickly scanned the floor. The items they brought were ordinary medical supplies like syringes, scalpels, reagent bottles, and heart rate monitors. Seeing the emergency room code engraved on the wagon, it seems they managed to pass internal inspections under that pretext.

It’s fortunate there are no guns or explosives, but… still, did they really attempt this with just a scalpel? Of course, he could kill someone barehanded, but these guys looked like civilians.

What could be the motive of these incompetent guys coming all the way here with such inadequate tools? They must have known that General Oh Seon-ran had doubled the usual security personnel.

If they were moles planted by Colonel Kim, it made even less sense why they would do this. Colonel Kim didn’t have the resources for such a conspicuous act due to the 2-Hwan fire damage compensation case. Recently, even forces that had been relatively gentle in approaching the case were tightening their grip on Colonel Kim’s throat after his bankruptcy filing attempt.

“D-Don’t move!”

The man in the doctor’s gown picked up a scalpel from the floor and screamed.

“I-I didn’t want to do this… but I have a child too.”

At the mention of a child, Sehwa’s body jerked noticeably behind him. Ah… so this is what these bastards were aiming for.

“Contact General Ki Tae-jeong.”

The doctor waved the scalpel in his hand while uttering the words that would make Sehwa most vulnerable right now.

“We won’t harm you or the child at all, and once an agreement is reached, we’ll take responsibility for persuading even General Ki Tae-jeong’s opposing forces…. Just contact General Ki Tae-jeong for now. If you set up a meeting, we’ll take care of everything…”

‘Agreement my ass, to hell with that agreement.’

How should he handle this? The trajectory to evacuate Sehwa to the bedroom was awkward. Even if he covers him while moving, the side might be slightly exposed, which would create a perfect angle for stabbing the baby he’s holding.

Ki Tae-jeong anxiously chewed his lip. Massacring them would be easy. But he didn’t know how to protect someone without leaving a single scar… He had never done that before, so he wasn’t sure.

How many possibilities should he consider?

He didn’t want to kill people in front of Sehwa.

When he threatened Sehwa by holding the lives of Song and others at the port of the 2nd Ring, when he blew up a ship right in front of his eyes…. How did Sehwa look at him then?

So Ki Tae-jeong couldn’t move comfortably as he usually would.

Not a single hair on Sehwa and the child should be harmed. He wouldn’t let them see any brutal scenes with blood splattering. They had just started to smile… If Sehwa were to be troubled by memories of past events, if it happened again because of something related to him, he felt it would be truly unbearable this time.

“Crouch behind the bouncer as much as you can. It could be dangerous to stick too close to the window, so it’s better to keep some distance.”

He whispered quietly so only Sehwa could hear, while keeping his eyes fixed forward.

“I’m going to spare those bastards anyway. I need to interrogate them about who’s behind this.”

“…”

“It might get a bit noisy, but no one’s going to die. I promise.”

He wasn’t worried. Though the unfamiliar method he’s never tried before feels strange, it will be resolved without much difficulty.

But even with such a commotion, he probably can’t keep staying by Sehwa’s side. Even though he’s pretending not to know and speaking formally again, Sehwa might have already realized who he is because he called him casually earlier when surprised.

It’s bitter that the last moment is such a mess… but he was glad he could see Sehwa and the child for a whole week. Really glad.

“W-What are you two whispering about! Mr. Lee Sehwa, I told you to contact Major General Ki Tae-jeong!”

As if the doctor’s outburst was a signal, Ki Tae-jeong’s body shot forward like a trigger had been pulled.

“Why do you keep calling?”

“Aaargh!”

“You called, so I came, Major General Ki Tae-jeong.”

He grabbed the doctor who had been spouting nonsense about having a child too, and whispered quietly so only he could hear.

Kicking away another stupid guy who tried to dive in from the side, thinking it would be hard for Ki Tae-jeong to move much while holding someone, he felt around the doctor’s gown collar. As he suspected, he felt a tiny electronic device about the size of a fingernail near the bottom.

“Huk, huuurk…!”

Gripping the guy’s collar as if to strangle him, he ripped the part of the fabric with the chip.

“I told you not to touch Lee Sehwa and the kid.”

He whispered savagely close to the chip. Hoping that Colonel Kim, who would be watching this situation in real-time, would be glad to hear the voice he had been desperately searching for. Ah. He’s wearing a voice modulator now, so maybe it doesn’t feel like it’s really him?

“G-Grab them! Someone needs to grab that child first…!”

Realizing that taking Sehwa or the child hostage was their only chance of survival, the vermin-like guys all rushed in at once. They seemed to think that since there were four of them, they could charge in to divide his attention, and if even one of them could reach Sehwa during that time, it would be enough.

Ki Tae-jeong moved with an indifferent expression. Having survived being shot multiple times, a small scalpel didn’t faze him at all.

“You c-crazy bastard…!”

He firmly grasped the blade part with his hand, pulling the one holding the scalpel towards himself as if daring him to try anything.

“Urgh!”

Grinning at the guy who was shocked by the overwhelming difference in grip strength, he forcefully planted a fist in his solar plexus. A heavy impact sound resonated, like a cotton ball bursting.

Kicking away the guy who fainted without even being able to retch, he grabbed the face of another rat-like guy who was just about to pass his shoulder line.

Now that he looked closely, the key personnel in this terror act were the ones dressed as nurses. At least these guys seemed to have received some professional training. Of course, by Ki Tae-jeong’s standards, they were utterly amateurish….

He kneed the guy in the stomach as he struggled with his feet off the ground, caught by Ki Tae-jeong. But then,

“B-Behind you…!”

Sehwa’s shrill scream rang out, and simultaneously, he felt a sharp sensation on the nape of his neck.

“You think we disguised ourselves as doctors and nurses for nothing?”

The one who hadn’t been hit by him yet giggled, waving a syringe.

“You should have listened when we said we wanted to negotiate nicely.”

He felt a slight spreading sensation of the drug through his blood vessels. Hmm, since they passed inspection, it must be emergency room stock… So it’s probably just an anesthetic at best. He didn’t even feel the needle going in deep…. Disappointingly, it likely won’t have much impact.

“Did we ask for money? Did we say we’d kill Lee Sehwa right away? We just, ugh…!”

Ki Tae-jeong rubbed the area near his neck where he’d been injected, then drove his fist into the face of the guy who had been mouthing off in front of him. The guy’s eyes widened in shock, probably thinking Ki Tae-jeong wouldn’t be able to move. Judging by how he alternately looked at the dropped syringe and Ki Tae-jeong’s face, he seemed to realize the injection had failed.

“Ah. I only mentioned it to that bastard earlier, didn’t I?”

He’s famous for not usually accepting harmful things like sleeping pills or poison in his body.

“Th-That…!”

“Bring about 30 milligrams of Tiranin. That seems to make me close my eyes for a bit at least.”

As Ki Tae-jeong grabbed his collar and whispered, the guy sprawled on the floor pointed accusingly, seeming to realize what those words meant.

“What? Y-You, h-how did you get h-here…!”

“Shut up, Sehwa doesn’t know yet.”

By this point, Sehwa might have figured it out…. Anyway, clicking his tongue softly, he gave the stupid guy one more hit and looked at the remaining two people who were terrified. He wasn’t sure of the exact dosage and type of anesthetic, but he could handle it. It seemed entirely possible to clean up all these bastards and keep watch until General Oh Seon-ran arrived.

Ki Tae-jeong shook his head briefly and threw himself forward. He had tried to be gentle to avoid scaring Sehwa with loud sounds of bones breaking or impacts, but it might be better to just end this quickly, just in case.

He kicked away the guy who was desperately grabbing a scalpel and syringe, then grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and threw him towards the wagon. Despite trying to control his strength, the guy’s scream as he fell and the sound of furniture breaking rang out loudly.

“If you’re going to scream like you’re dying from just this much, what guts did you have to pull off something like this, huh?”

“Kuk, heu-up, ugh… W-We… C-Colonel Kim threatened us…”

There was nothing more to hear. He broke the wrists of the last villain. Learning from when he threw people earlier, this time he was extra careful not to make the sound of bones breaking.

After that, there was nothing more to deal with. He had secured the chip planted by Colonel Kim…. Judging by the small vibration sound from the door, it seemed they had begun dismantling work from outside too. Everywhere, just a bunch of slow bastards.

Ki Tae-jeong looked down at the guys who had shattered Sehwa’s peaceful space, cracking his neck left and right. They probably never imagined that someone other than an ordinary soldier would be guarding the inside.

Perhaps General Oh Seon-ran had called him in anticipating moments like this? If so, he had fulfilled his duty… that’s good.

Ki Tae-jeong turned towards Sehwa with a bitter smile. The baby was still crying intermittently, and Sehwa… had an expression that was hard to describe.

The groans of the fallen guys, the sound of the door being dismantled, the shallow cries of the tired baby…. Though it was quite noisy around, somehow it felt eerily quiet. As if he and Sehwa were trapped in a different world, a terribly chilling silence flowed leisurely.

“…Go inside.”

When he spoke politely, Sehwa’s body jerked.

Anyway… outwardly he still had someone else’s face, and his voice was still not his own, so he planned to deny it to the end.

“It seems it will take some time to clean up.”

Ki Tae-jeong raised his hand that wasn’t bleeding and gently covered Sehwa’s eyes. It was a very awkward gesture, neither pressing firmly on his eyes nor completely removing his hand….

Shaking off the blood droplets dripping from his other hand, he barely grasped the edge of Sehwa’s clothes and gently pulled him forward. Obediently, Sehwa swayed softly as Ki Tae-jeong led him. The child caught between them stirred, making a “woong” sound.

“General Oh Seon-ran will be here soon. And the attending physician too.”

“……”

“Still, just in case, keep the door locked.”

It wasn’t his role to comfort the startled Sehwa and child. He’d leave the aftermath to General Oh Seon-ran, and he should focus on uncovering the full story of this ridiculous incident.

“Ah, and…”

Feeling a sudden gaze, Ki Tae-jeong glanced down and abruptly stopped speaking, closing his mouth.

The child, who had been dropping pearl-like teardrops in surprise at the sudden commotion, was looking up at him. Perhaps it found the tall person interesting? With its mouth agape, blinking its eyes that seemed as big as fists with some exaggeration, the baby was… so pretty it could have been a doll.

“Um, well… after this…”

Ki Tae-jeong, who had been blankly staring at the baby, belatedly came to his senses and quickly turned his head away. He knew it must have looked unnatural, but he couldn’t help it.

Sehwa and the baby who looked exactly like him were staring at him with the same expression. Even the speed of their blinking, the shape and angle of their slightly open mouths were identical as if stamped from the same mold. It was the sight, not the anesthetic, that made his head spin. His mind went blank, unable to think of anything.

“Anyway, keep the door locked and…”

He was about to turn around after reassuring Sehwa that he’d be guarding outside the bedroom door until General Oh Seon-ran arrived, when a long, unfamiliar shadow stealthily fell over the intertwined shadows of him and Sehwa.

‘Damn it….’ Ki Tae-jeong quickly turned around, pushing Sehwa into the bedroom. The child, whose crying had just begun to subside, burst into loud wails at the sudden rough movement, and then…

“Brigadier General…!”

Before he could assess the situation, a sharp scalpel was deeply plunged into Ki Tae-jeong’s throat.