ASD 38

Thwack, thwack. The sound of blood-soaked blows echoed continuously inside the room. Manager Hwang, holding a golf club, was brutally beating the boy who was prostrated before him, his face completely contorted.

“Haa, ugh, haa…”

The head of the Cheonghyeon (靑現) organization, Gi Cheonghyeon, stared at his son with a piercing gaze.

Despite the endless punishment, Gijun showed no signs of breaking. Even as he dripped a mixture of blood and sweat, and sometimes gasped out pained breaths, he endured the downpour of violence without once flinching, taking it all in. His grit, which he bore by gritting his teeth, was not inferior even when compared to the many men Gi Cheonghyeon commanded.

However, if his one and only precious son’s grit was turned against him… He frowned and took a sip of whiskey.

‘Our Manager Hwang is probably going to need some soju when he gets home today.’

Meanwhile, Gijun was impassively thinking such thoughts. He knew better than anyone what was in Manager Hwang’s heart as he beat him—the man who had cared for him more affectionately than his own father since he was a child.

If he were to strike him half-heartedly, the endless beating would just start all over again from the beginning. Knowing this, Manager Hwang couldn’t stop the beating until the school uniform pants Gijun was wearing were not only soaked in blood but completely torn. The groans that occasionally escaped from his clenched teeth were full of anguish and pain. Perhaps more so than Gijun’s own.

The act of his father having Manager Hwang, of all people, beat him felt unjust, but on the other hand, it was also more like his father. He must have known that for a son who wouldn’t even bat an eye no matter how much he was beaten, psychological pressure would work better.

“Hyung-nim, that’s enough. The kid will die at this rate.”

His uncle, Gi Uhyeon, who had been watching the scene while drinking whiskey with his father, spoke up. He was feigning concern, but a faint hint of enjoyment was present in his voice. And in this room, the only one who sensitively picked up on that sign was Gijun, the one being beaten.

“For a disobedient dog, a beating is the only medicine.”

His father, Gi Cheonghyeon, said in a displeased voice and waved his hand as a sign to stop. Manager Hwang, who had been swinging the golf club while dripping with sweat, took a ragged breath and put the club down. He couldn’t bring himself to look at Gijun’s pulp-like body and lowered his head.

“Jun isn’t a dog, he’s your son, hyung-nim.”

“He’s my son only when he listens to me obediently. A guy who defies my will is not one of my people.”

His father, cutting him off sharply, took out a cigar. He instructed Gi Uhyeon, who naturally cut it as smoothly as flowing water and lit it for him.

“Contact Assemblyman Heo’s side first. The data related to Assemblyman Kim Jaeseon that they requested last time, just send it to them.”

“Are you sure about that? It was a card you were planning to hold onto for a bit longer.”

Gi Uhyeon said this as he glanced at Gijun. It was as good as openly rebuking him. It seemed he would have to pay a hefty price for the trouble he caused this time.

“It’s fine. He’s just a fading small-fry anyway. He’s an idiot who won’t even know how to use that data properly if I give it to him.”

His father waved his hand as if annoyed.

Understood, Gi Uhyeon replied respectfully and stood up, saying he should get going. Gijun wiped the blood dripping onto the floor with the back of his hand and glared at the closing door. Seeing him come over saying he had business, only to drink whiskey and leave, it seemed he had come just to watch him get beaten.

“Get up.”

Gijun raised his body and sat on his knees. For a moment, the world spun before his eyes. His whole body trembled from the beating that had lasted for nearly an hour, but he gritted his teeth and balanced himself.

“You know how much I cherish you.”

Thick cigar smoke burst from his mouth. Gijun stared straight at his father’s face through the hazy smoke floating in the air.

“To cherish means to go easy on. If it had been anyone else, I would have torn off all their limbs and buried them in the mountains… But for the sole reason that you’re my own flesh and blood, you still have all your limbs attached, don’t you?”

“Thank you. For letting me keep the arms and legs my father gave me, all this time.”

Gijun said with a blank expression. His father, who chuckled as if watching the antics of a cute son, slowly let his gaze slide to the window.

“At your last school, yes, you caused a huge mess as a group, so we solved it with a forced transfer. But now, it seems you did it all by yourself with no way out. And to Assemblyman Heo Ingu’s son, no less.”

“……”

“Anyway, that Assemblyman Heo, that fellow is amusing. When we played golf together last time, I heard him boasting about his son to the heavens… I wondered what kind of amazing guy he was.”

His father, with a smirk, threw a few photos he had picked up from the desk. The scattered photos fluttered down to the floor. The ridiculous sight of someone bloodied and wearing a wig was a photo Gijun himself had taken just a few hours ago.

“He’s not as good as my son. In looks, or anything else.”

“How can you even say that? Compared to a bastard like that.”

Seeing Gijun frown with a grim face, his father’s smile deepened. A bloody scent wafted from beyond his rather benevolent-looking smile.

“Yes, my son is an exceptional man no matter where you put him.”

He raised his whiskey glass and took a sip.

“But know when to stop when I’m being nice about it. When I’m supporting you without lack and turning a blind eye, you should at least know how to pretend to be submissive. That’s how you actually secure your own interests and profits. What you did today was completely unprofitable.”

“Are you satisfied with a guy like that?”

A rough, unrefined voice came out. His father glanced up.

“…What?”

“You told me to inherit Cheonghyeon. Do you want me to become the kind of guy who just grovels, calculating what scraps will fall to me?”

Gi Cheonghyeon looked at his grown son kneeling before him with a gaze that was half-interested, yet incredulous.

“You’re still a kid who hasn’t even dried the blood from his head, and you’ll need my protection for at least a few more years. Do you have any idea how much money it will take just to clean up the mess you made today? No, it would be easier if it could be solved with money. Is that really something the person who caused such a major incident should be saying?”

“You said it before, Father. That sometimes, the fist must come before reason or profit.”

Gijun, who had rudely cut him off, drove his point home. Just as he said, there were matters to be solved with money or reason, and there were matters to be solved with fists. Gi Cheonghyeon had taught his son this simple truth through his own life.

And now, his precious son was saying that that was what he had grown up watching. Taken aback, Gi Cheonghyeon let out a hollow laugh.

“So, that was today?”

“Yes.”

“……”

“I’m sorry for the loss my father incurred because of me. But, if something like that happens again in the future, I will crush that bastard in the same way. No, I’ll just kill him.”

Watching Gijun speak calmly with a face that wasn’t sorry at all, Gi Cheonghyeon ran his tongue over the inside of his mouth. He put down the half-smoked cigar in the ashtray and asked.

“Even if you can’t do what you’ve been doing?”

It was always the same thing put on the line. Sports. And the freedom to choose his future. Gijun closed his eyes deeply, utterly fed up. He let out a sigh filled with indignation inwardly. As his father said, he would have to swallow his anger on this testing ground for at least the next two years.

“Answer carefully. Don’t just spout irresponsible words you can’t take back just because you can’t control your anger.”

Gijun slowly opened his eyes. Then he silently stared at the man who was testing him.

For a moment, the face of Yoon Gawon, trembling and crying messily while wearing a wig, came to mind. The moment he recalled that face, all hesitation evaporated. He clenched the fists resting on his knees.

“Yes.”

At the clear answer, his father smiled faintly.

“Alright, so that’s how it is.”

His father stood up and slowly put on his jacket. He crushed out the half-smoked cigar and lit a new cigarette. While putting on his coat, he said to Gijun in a casual tone, as if it were an afterthought.

“I was told that a little while ago, a kid who looked so androgynous you couldn’t tell if he was a girl or a boy was waiting in front of the house. When asked who he was, he said he was your friend. Is that the kid who went to the police station with you earlier? The one who was being bullied by Assemblyman Heo’s son…”

It was when he had straightened his coat and turned to Gijun without much thought. Gi Cheonghyeon momentarily froze and fixed his gaze on his son’s face.

It was because Gijun was looking at him with a different expression than before. The guy who had been listless, as if telling him to do as he pleased no matter how much he was beaten. With a small laugh, he looked at his son, who had changed in an instant.

“What is it?”

There was no answer from Gijun. Though his mouth was firmly shut, his strangely on-edge appearance was like that of a wild animal about to bare its teeth. Gi Cheonghyeon watched his son’s new side with an interested gaze.

“He’s a kid who just studies quietly. And he’s kind.”

“Right. Who said otherwise?”

“He’s not some punk, so don’t touch an innocent kid.”

Revealing his hand just like that. Gi Cheonghyeon clicked his tongue but smirked. So, that’s how it is. Having finished getting ready to leave, he turned to his son, who was still kneeling, and asked lightly.

“Is it because of him? The reason you crushed Assemblyman Heo’s son.”

“No. I just beat him up because I hate the bastard.”

“…Hm.”

That didn’t align with what he had said earlier. Nevertheless, Gi Cheonghyeon didn’t add any more words. It was something that happened quite often among the men in this world, so there was no need to be surprised by his only son’s eccentric behavior. Furthermore, he had no intention of nagging him about his personal preferences, whether he was into men or women.

In any case, he had to take responsibility for his actions. That was more important than where his private feelings were directed. Gesturing with his chin to the driver who approached and bowed respectfully, he turned his back.

“Stay confined to the house for the time being.”