GC Ch 20

If I was tied down working at the coffee shop on weekdays, I had to be tied down working at the gambling den on weekends. Though small in scale, small-time customers dropped in and out incessantly, making it no less busy than the coffee shop. Which meant, in other words, that I wouldn’t be able to sleep from now until the morning sun rose. There was another ashtray boy besides me, but when I went there, he was busy working me to the bone, making him practically useless whether he was there or not.

“Stop by the supermarket, buy this stuff, and go up to the office. Go quickly—they say it’s busy with lots of people.”

Kim Jeongsuk spoke while handing over a check card and a piece of paper with something written on it. Perhaps having run out of pre-bought cigarettes, various cigarette brand names were written in a long list on the paper. Letting out an inner sigh, I took the paper and went to the car. I wondered how much I’d have to be chased by sleep today before work would end. Having been unable to take even a single wink of a nap all day long and getting run ragged in all four directions, my body was already exhausted to the bone. Even so, there was one fortunate thing: thanks to it being a day off, I wouldn’t have to look at Boss Chu’s face tomorrow for the entire day.

Located in an entertainment alley in the center of downtown, the office was operating by directly taking over a place previously used as a karaoke room, unlike usual gambling dens. Removing the karaoke machines and replacing the square tables with round ones and the sofas with individual chairs was about the extent of it. Because it was located in a dark underground area where light and air didn’t circulate well, working was tough, but because the rooms were separated, there were outstanding advantages: it was less noisy, and there was no reason for fights to break out between tables.

After stopping by a nearby convenience store to buy cigarettes, I parked the car at the mouth of the alley and went to the office. Coming down the stairs, I typed in the password and entered, whereupon a thick cigarette scent rushed straight into my nose. In all the rooms where games were in full swing, thick cigarette smoke kept wafting out continuously. To the point where the narrow hallway looked hazy white all over. Thanks to that, whenever I worked here, no thought of wanting to smoke a cigarette separately crossed my mind whatsoever.

Coming out of Room 1, the ashtray boy Kim Mincheol hardened his expression sharply upon seeing me. Beckoning me with his finger, he jabbered vulgarly.

“This fucking bastard is walking around super late wanting to die. Hey. Don’t wanna work?”

“I came right after finishing up. Stopping by the convenience store to buy cigarettes was all I did, you know?”

“I know damn well you finished at 9 o’clock, you know? But it’s 9:30 right now, you know? It doesn’t even take ten minutes from the coffee shop to here, you know? This son of a bitch is asking to get hit super hard, right?”

Mocking me while mimicking a Seoul accent inappropriately, Kim Mincheol raised his fist high as if he were about to strike a blow. However, he couldn’t execute it and merely snatched away the black plastic bag held in my hand. Taking a pack of his own cigarettes out of the bag, he gave an order to boil a bowl of ramen and bring it over as he headed back to Room 1. Fucking bastard. Just because he was two years older than me, the way he tried so hard to be treated like a hyung was so eyesore I couldn’t stand to watch it. It was only because he didn’t have bad hands that I let it slide. So to speak, he was a guy whose mouth was the only thing alive.

Wiping away the sleepiness welling up in my eyelids, I went to the dirty, narrow kitchen where it wouldn’t be strange even if cockroaches were swarming. Filling a pot with water and putting it on the fire, I tore open a ramen packet, when an annoying voice was heard from behind.

“Boil one for me too.”

It was Gang Munsu. Having lost as much as five million yesterday, he came back today and was acting like this again. Just judging by his tone of speech, it looked like he had lost as much as yesterday. What kind of good point did a guy like that have that Kim Jeongsuk even provided gambling funds to live with him? She felt truly pathetic. No matter how good the taste of a young guy’s dick was.

Without answering, I found one more pot and put water in it, when my hair was suddenly grabbed and my head jerked around sharply. Bloodshot-eyed Gang Munsu looked down at me from up close and spat through grit teeth.

“Answer, you fucking bitch. Unless you want it all ripped out.”

“….”

The bastard had lost quite a bit of money, so his poison was raised sharp like a viper. If I touched him at a time like this, a bare patch on my head would really be left over. The urge to pour the pot water—which was starting to boil—straight onto his face surged up wildly, but I stopped at the thought and gave the answer he wanted.

“…Yes.”

Before loosening the strength in his hand, Gang Munsu squeezed my hair hard one last time. It was enough to make a groan come out, but I held it in with all my strength. Fortunately, that was the end of it. Releasing me as if he had touched something filthy, Gang Munsu left only the following words and exited the kitchen immediately.

“Bring it to Room 3. With water.”

My violently pulled scalp throbbed severely. Son of a bitch. The day that bastard’s wrists get chopped off will definitely come eventually.

In that manner, I worked for 4 hours straight. Meanwhile, Kim Jeongsuk came as well, and today without fail, she sat stuck right beside her gigolo playing cards. Before Kim Jeongsuk came, Gang Munsu had no luck the whole time and walked on thin ice, but after Kim Jeongsuk arrived, his momentum revived, making up for all the money lost yesterday and today with plenty to spare. Seeing that, the two were a match made in heaven. When they hit it off like that, what did a mere age gap matter? I hoped the two would stick together for a lifetime without being released into the wild.

“I’m gonna bring money, so don’t break up the game and stay put. It’s not over yet!”

Boss Go from the butcher shop, who was doing well but lost all his money at the final stretch, huffed and puffed as he bolted up from his seat and spoke. His angry face was flush red as if he were drunk. Kim Jeongsuk seated Boss Go back down and calmly placated him.

“What’s the point of going back and forth? The loan shark here operates together, so just borrow money and play today. It’s something you can pay back tomorrow, and if you leave your cards behind, your luck won’t flow as well.”

“Then first lend me just five million. I’ll transfer it to you right away tomorrow.”

“You shouldn’t ask me, you have to tell the kid working here.”

Kim Jeongsuk sent me a subtle glance as she continued speaking.

“Hey kid, run quickly over to Boss Yu and borrow five million. Say Boss Go here said he’d send it during tomorrow morning. By the way, you’ll pay interest properly, right? Since this place unconditionally collects interest even for a single day.”

“Don’t ask about obvious things. Doesn’t your mouth even hurt? Hey, Boss Park, let’s deal the cards first over there. What the fuck are you standing there doing? Didn’t you hear her tell you to go borrow the money!”

Boss Go, with his bloodshot eyes, urged Boss Park sitting next to Gang Munsu, then let out a thunderous shout at me. Looking at his gone eyes, he looked more than likely to lose his entire fortune today. Without staying to watch, I stepped out and headed for the very end room. Tsk tsk, even clicking my tongue was too good for them.

The gambling den was operated by Kim Jeongsuk, but few among the customers coming in and out knew that fact. Because it was operated by putting up her maternal cousin Yu Gicheol—who ran the loan sharking in the end room—as a front Boss, to avoid suspicion while she pulled off gambling scams together with Gang Munsu from time to time.

I went to Yu Gicheol, received cash with a ten percent fee deducted, and was on my way back to Room 3. The sound of the entrance door being knocked on roughly with thuds was heard. I was dying of fatigue, but it seemed customers had come again. Even though all five rooms were already full and running at capacity. Looking at how things were going, it didn’t seem like it would end even when morning came.

Thud, thud. Once again, the door was knocked on roughly. The sound of Kim Mincheol, who was in Room 1 near the entrance door, running over saying, “Yes, I’m coming!” was heard. The moment I thought that he shouldn’t just open the door for anyone, the sound of the door opening and customers stepping inside was heard.

“Why is the reaction so slow? If you set up a place in a strange spot, you should accept customers extra fast. Hey. Isn’t that right?”

The voice piercing my ears was a voice I had heard somewhere. On the other hand, Kim Mincheol, perhaps seeing the person for the first time, spoke hesitatingly as follows:

“Ah, yes, yes. I’m sorry. But Bosses, by any chance… did someone introduce you so you came, or did you think it was a karaoke room….”

“Are you joking? Does it look like we came here to sing right now?”

“Ah, n—no, it’s not that… I have a bit of an apologetic thing to say….”

“What? What apologetic thing?”

“That is… because we run on a membership system, if you don’t make a reservation in advance, it’s a bit troublesome for you to enter.”

It was true. If it was someone whose identity wasn’t certain, they weren’t accepted at all from the start. Because it might be a detective on a bust, or it might be a professional player who came to secretly sweep the table. Even if that weren’t the case, being wary of strangers was the nature of this bottom-tier world. Because only by doing so could one survive for a long time. However, as if Kim Mincheol’s words displeased him, a somewhat familiar voice let out a loud shout out of nowhere.

“Is this guy crazy! Hey! Don’t you know who the Boss here is! Where the fuck do you think you’re picking and choosing people?”

“Am I some celebrity, Jangbae? So that everyone recognizes me just by looking. Tsk.”

“I’m sorry, hyung-nim. It’s because I heard such absurd words.”