PAHO 74

“Chief Gwon.”

Spotting a familiar face while passing through the corridor, Nam Gyeonhwa naturally offered a greeting. Instead of a common greeting, Gwon Jongdae had a look of utter bewilderment. His expression, which seemed to say he hadn’t expected to see him here, was followed by a brief cough as he pointed to the mask on his mouth.

“Mr. Gyeonhwa, did you catch a cold? How did that happen?”

“I’m not sure. Maybe I didn’t cover myself properly with a blanket.”

With a cough mixed in with his answer, Nam Gyeonhwa hurriedly readjusted his mask. He couldn’t possibly reveal the whole story of having doused himself in cold water throughout the dawn. Clearing his throat, he checked his seemingly empty surroundings.

“Is the superintendent still in the Wiyeonggwan?”

“Excuse me? Ah, yes, the superintendent, that’s right. He said they need to monitor his condition for about two days.”

“For two days, you say?”

“Yes, so he told me to tell you that you’re on leave for two days as well, Mr. Nam Gyeonhwa. I was just on my way to see you, Mr. Gyeonhwa, but, yo-you’re already here at the Special Police Unit headquarters.”

Although his rambling, smiling tone hinted that he was hiding something, Nam Gyeonhwa simply nodded instead of deliberately probing. To the point of halting his schedule for two days, was the drug stronger than expected? The memory of Na Taebeom’s complexion from the previous night suddenly came to mind. Drenched in a cold sweat, he had complained of a headache and chills due to drug poisoning even while being handed over to Gil Useong. Perhaps because he had only ever seen his energetic face, the memory of his pale face kept flickering in his mind.

“…Since you’re going to the Wiyeonggwan, please tell the superintendent for me. To get well soon.”

“Excuse me? Ah, yes, I will.”

“Then, I’ll be on my way.”

Gwon Jongdae, who was watching Nam Gyeonhwa walk away, waited until he was alone before wiping his chest in relief. He had hastily made something up just now and the context was a bit strange, but he couldn’t tell if the man had pretended not to notice or just didn’t care. It was a huge relief that he hadn’t asked any follow-up questions. No, it wasn’t just a relief, was there really a need to hide it? It wasn’t a huge secret that Na Taebeom was currently in the annex, yet he was not only hiding it but also pretending to be sick for two days. He really couldn’t understand him. Gwon Jongdae, shaking his head, soon turned and walked in the opposite direction.

The basement, designed to be navigated solely by stairs without the common elevator, vibrated with a stronger, characteristically damp and bitter metallic smell with each floor descended. The two guards, who had been keenly on alert at the sound of footsteps, immediately straightened their backs and saluted as soon as the face appeared at the entrance. Na Taebeom, who nonchalantly accepted the sharp salute, gestured toward the inside with his eyes.

The iron door that had been blocking the passageway went up with a sharp, metallic screech. Na Taebeom hummed a tune as he entered. In a corner of the basement, Choi Seokdae was curled up, wrapped in a military uniform. Na Taebeom, who had been blankly looking down at his face, unable to tell if he was asleep or unconscious, suddenly kicked a chair hard. With a loud clatter, Choi Seokdae, who had scrambled to his feet, trembled upon seeing Na Taebeom before him.

“Su, Superintendent Na.”

“The sun’s been up for a while, yet you’re sleeping so well. Chairman.”

Choi Seokdae, who swallowed a dry gulp, immediately got on his knees and lowered his eyes. He had been thoroughly beaten like a dried pollack by several soldiers, led by Park Mingyu, the night before, and he looked ready to piss himself at a single stern word. Na Taebeom, who was looking at the pathetic sight as if it were pitiful, sat down on a chair that was still standing upright.

“First Lieutenant Park said you had something to tell me.”

“So, something to tell you. Right, the, the alcohol. I, I really didn’t know. I swear. I, I drank it too, and I was fine.”

“As a matter of fact, the test results for that alcohol we so amicably toasted with yesterday just came in.”

A Special Police Unit officer who was a few steps away handed over the prepared documents. Na Taebeom, who quickly flipped through the test paper, fluttered the paper in Choi Seokdae’s face.

“I was actually flustered because it was such a classic method. They had soaked the drug into the bottom of the cork stopper. So only I, who got the first glass, got fucked, and our Chairman Choi, who drank second, is perfectly fine.”

“I, it really wasn’t me! Please, just listen to me. Tha, that whiskey itself was a gift.”

“A gift? From whom?”

“Ho, how would I know that. It wasn’t just one or two people who gifted me whiskey.”

“Then fucking use your head and remember.”

Choi Seokdae, who had been trembling, finally muttered in a voice that trailed off.

“That, since that alcohol was a cognac, then, there’s only one person who comes to mind right away……”

“Who.”

At the tense silence, Na Taebeom slammed his fist on the table. The sound of swallowing echoed loudly.

“……So, that is, the, the Minister likes cognac, so, so-sometimes he gives it as a gift, but it’s not for certain.”

“The Minister? Are you telling me you’re talking about the Minister of National Defense right now?”

Choi Seokdae, drooling, nodded his head. At the unexpected target, Na Taebeom frowned. He had thought it was at most a solo act with sexual intentions, but this would make it difficult to deal with immediately.

“Si, since I told you, you’re, you’re going to let me go, right?”

Choi Seokdae, who was cautiously watching his expression, asked. Na Taebeom, who was pressing his forehead and suppressing a sigh, tilted his head from side to side.

“Let’s skip the alcohol issue for now. Next.”

“Ne, next? What, what are you going to do.”

Choi Seokdae couldn’t continue his words. Na Taebeom, who had suddenly grabbed him by the collar, planted his fist in Choi Seokdae’s face. His body, which fell backward, rolled on the floor with a loud noise.

“I heard implants are so expensive, our Chairman Choi is going to have to spend a lot of money on a new set of teeth on this occasion.”

Blood gushed from between his teeth. Choi Seokdae, his face ashen, shook his head.

“Why, why are you doing this. I, I told you everything. That it wasn’t me.”

“That’s why I said it. It’s not about the alcohol.”

“Wha, what else is there?”

Na Taebeom, who had cornered the intimidated Choi Seokdae against the wall, bent down to meet his eyes.

“There’s something I hold onto like a creed in this line of work. One is to not trust others too much, and the other is to treat what’s mine with care. But Chairman Choi, you went and did some fucking, bullshit to my puppy, didn’t you?”

“Pu, puppy? The, there, there wasn’t a do, dog there.”

Suddenly, a face flashed before Choi Seokdae’s eyes. That handsome man who had suddenly run into the hall and identified himself as the Wiyeonggwan’s direct bodyguard. Could it be that that bodyguard was Na Taebeom’s pet dog?

“What was it you said. A fleshlight? What the fuck, there’s a limit to how much trash you can spew.”

He finally understood the situation, but it was already too late. Na Taebeom, who fiercely slapped his tightly clenched right fist against his left palm, grinned.

“My puppy doesn’t really bite people other than me. So what can I do? As the owner, I have to beat you up for him.”

“Sa, save me! Save me!”

He finally started screaming for help from the Special Police Unit officers standing at the door, but no one reacted to Choi Seokdae’s screams. Na Taebeom, frowning, continued to swing his fists at Choi Seokdae. Knocked out after two punches, he groaned and struggled. Soon, the liquid that had flowed from his pants formed a yellow puddle on the floor.

“Fuck. Just one thing after another.”

Na Taebeom, who covered his nose, stepped back in disgust, lest it get on his sneakers. Soon, the medical team that had been on standby rushed to Choi Seokdae. Na Taebeom, who was watching Choi Seokdae being carried away on a stretcher, left the place first.

After going up two floors, the gloomy smell of the basement disappeared, and the corridor, imbued with the tranquil atmosphere unique to the Special Police Unit headquarters, was revealed before him. Gil Useong, who was waiting in the annex lobby, greeted him.

“You’ve worked hard.”

“Hard work, my ass, I’m just feeling restless.”

Na Taebeom irritably rolled his shoulders. If he had his way, he would have beaten him to the point where he couldn’t walk for a few weeks, but he had no choice but to preserve that damn bastard’s body to some extent in order to use him.

“You saw it on the surveillance camera, right?”

“I did not expect the Minister of National Defense to be mentioned.”

“Same here. Isn’t that bastard’s claim of being close to the Minister of National Defense a lie?”

“The fact that they were close doesn’t seem to be a lie. There’s also a rumor that they were so close that he attended private events like his children’s weddings, in addition to official events.”

“And yet he still left him like that. Or did he try to take out Choi Seokdae on this occasion, and I got caught in the crossfire?”

“That seems plausible.”

Choi Seokdae’s reputation within the military, as heard through First Lieutenant Park Mingyu, was difficult to describe as simply ‘bad’. Even though he was not part of the Ministry of National Defense or the Armed Forces, he used his authority over the budget and military-related legislation to conscript military personnel and work them literally like slaves. He even frequently forced them to perform bizarre perverted acts if they disobeyed orders, to the point that the head of security changed four times in a single year.

Even so, something was suspicious. Sending him in with drugged alcohol with the intention of ousting him had a very low probability of success in the first place. It would be a different story if they were drinking in the same place.

“Who was the current Minister of National Defense.”

“It is Minister Im Gitaek.”

“Im Gitaek?”

The name was strangely familiar. Gil Useong, who briefly fiddled with his cell phone, continued.

“I’ve looked up his history now, and until two years ago, he was a Lieutenant General in the army and the Commander of the Capital Defense Command. A noteworthy point is that about seven years ago, he was the Commander of the Military Police Division in the Yanggang military region.”

“Yanggang?”

It was that military region again. Hadn’t that Father Nam Gijun’s parish also been in Yanggang? Even if there was no obvious connection, it felt strangely unsettling to have it mentioned in succession.

Gwon Jongdae, who was walking slowly from a distance, quickened his pace upon seeing Na Taebeom and Gil Useong. Na Taebeom, who waved his hand perfunctorily, yawned and said.

“Did you deliver the message to the puppy?”

“We, I was about to, but he was already at the headquarters.”

“At the headquarters? Did you tell him it was a leave?”

“I did, but it seems he came out for training.”

At those words, Na Taebeom clicked his tongue. Doesn’t one usually want to rest on their own in a situation like this? No wonder his phone alarm went off saying he was nearby. More than that, the distance from his residence to the Special Police Unit headquarters wasn’t short, it was unlikely he took a taxi, so did he really walk?

“Ah, and, Mr. Nam Gyeonhwa said to tell you, to get well soon.”

“To me?”

“Yes. He seemed worried.”

At the words ‘seemed worried’, Na Taebeom’s scowling expression instantly softened. Gwon Jongdae wouldn’t lie for no reason, so it must be true. He thought he was indifferent, but he was still worried after all. A grin escaped his lips. Should I give my commendable puppy a gift for a change?

“Captain Gil.”

Gil Useong, who was suddenly called, turned his head and looked at Na Taebeom.

“By any chance, are there any spare bikes in the mobile unit?”