Joker 1 (Side Story) Ch 1

THE FOUL – Joker (wild card) 1

 

The neon sign of 强豪客栈 (Gangho Inn) had its last letter flickering like a one-eyed man. To make matters worse, a sinister current sound, like ‘jiiing, jing,’ mixed with the drizzle, as if there was a short circuit.

 

A man in a plain black changpao held an umbrella and looked up at the sign.

 

The transparent vinyl umbrella looked flimsy, its ribs appearing weak enough to flip inside out with the slightest breeze. One of the ribs had already come loose, and the vinyl, which should have been taut, hung loosely.

 

The man placed the umbrella by the shop door without shaking off the raindrops. When he lifted the red curtain at the entrance, the shop inside reeked of stale sweat from the men, likely due to the humid weather.

 

“Boss, a package arrived.”

 

Choryun, sitting at the counter, pointed to the second-floor manager’s office as soon as she saw Tangbang.

 

“When will the sign be fixed?”

 

“I told old man Wang, but I don’t know.”

 

“How is it that nothing gets done properly the first time?”

 

Tangbang brushed off the raindrops that had landed on his shoulder from his old umbrella. Choryun turned her palms towards the ceiling and shrugged, an action that conveyed she had delivered the message and it wasn’t her fault.

 

“Tell him if it’s not fixed by tomorrow, I’ll pluck out his other eye.”

 

Choryun nodded. Tangbang slowly climbed the creaking second-floor stairs towards the manager’s office.

 

The smell of marijuana burning in the basement wafted up through the cracks on rainy days. Frowning slightly, he opened the manager’s office door to find the package Choryun had mentioned lying on the desk.

 

Tangbang checked the sender of the package. It was a box from Germany, not from within Macau. Furthermore, the sender’s name was unknown.

 

Tangbang took a utility knife from his desk drawer and sliced open the tape-sealed box. As the blade sank deep into the opened seam, it seemed the contents were much smaller than the box.

 

He put down the utility knife and opened the box, his expression immediately hardening. He remained like that for a while, then curled his lips upwards and took out the contents.

 

The item, contained in a transparent plastic bag, was none other than a ship bolt.

 

And it was a bolt with the ‘EURE’ logo engraved on it.

 

Suddenly, the hellish burn scar next to the tattoo on his back flared up. The child who survived the father who murdered his entire family and intended to kill himself laughed, standing in the small castle he had built. It was just phantom pain, anyway.

 

“I wonder which bastard send such a gift.”

 

And from Germany, of all places.

 

It was impossible for Joo Hawon to have engaged in such a morbid act, and even less likely for Kwon Taeha. They had long forgotten about these back alleys, as if they had left for their own world.

 

BANG! A deafening roar shook the manager’s office floor. He thought the drunks were breaking tables again, but the office’s internal phone began to ring.

 

-Boss! We’re in big trouble!

 

Choryun’s voice was unusual.

 

“What is it?”

 

-The police suddenly raided us. The kids are blocking them, but they’ll reach the second floor soon! They somehow found out about the basement too and are trying to break down the stairs! Aah, what do we do?!

 

Her voice grew increasingly frantic. Tangbang, holding the receiver, looked up at the closed door.

 

“Evacuate for now.”

 

-What about you, Boss?

 

Tangbang replied, looking at the bolt on his desk.

 

“Maybe I’ll try illegal immigration this time.”

 

‘What?’ followed, but Tangbang unceremoniously hung up the receiver. If they were trying to break into the basement, it was highly likely someone had tipped them off.

 

Tangbang opened the safe behind the picture frame, took a key, and pulled aside the tapestry on the opposite wall. Then, he lifted a plastic cover, painted to match the wall color, to find the door lock.

 

He entered the password, and a hidden door, as if the wall were cracking, opened. Tangbang pressed the alarm button connected to the basement before glancing around the manager’s office.

 

‘I’ve been here for too long too. Well, it doesn’t matter where you dig a snake pit.’

 

That was his only thought about the small castle he had built.

 

Tangbang lit a Zippo lighter to erase his territory. Without hesitation, he threw the Zippo lighter onto the tapestry that had fallen to the floor. The flames quickly grew, scorching the wooden floor. The flames spread to the package box, but the bolt was nowhere to be seen.

 

Tangbang tossed the bolt upwards once, caught it, and put it in his pocket. His subordinates, following behind him, also set fire to the basement corridor.

 

“拜拜.” (Bye-bye)

 

Now, Gangho Inn was merely a snake pit abandoned by its leader and his subordinates.

 

***

 

A cold snap in 30 years, a severe cold in 100 years.

 

For some reason, it felt like something they said every winter. Still, perhaps it was just a feeling, but Korea, which he hadn’t visited in a long time, felt colder than Germany.

 

Joo Hawon pulled his muffler up to his chin.

 

Even in Macau, people wore light down jackets in midwinter, so he always shivered in the cold when he was wandering the streets. Back then, he would wrap his small body in a ragged muffler, but its cheap material easily chafed his tender skin.

 

Joo Hawon rubbed the cashmere that comfortably covered his chin. It was so soft that it didn’t matter if his skin got chapped now. After all, a single muffler like this cost hundreds.

 

“Hawon, we’re going to the hotel.”

 

Wagner opened the rear door of the sedan waiting in front of the Jeju Airport arrival hall. The car had arrived to meet Joo Hawon’s flight.

 

“Aren’t you cold?”

 

Joo Hawon looked at Wagner’s black suit and then pointed to his bald head.

 

“I’m cold.”

 

“Then wear something thicker.”

 

“I’m sluggish.”

 

He considered buying a wool hat, but decided against it, thinking it would look rather strange. Wagner saw Joo Hawon settle in and closed the back door. Wagner, sitting in the passenger seat and fastening the belt around his large frame, peered intently at the driver’s face.

 

It was a habit he’d developed after being ambushed in Macau some time ago. The driver was a familiar face to Wagner, so he felt at ease and gave the signal to depart.

 

Inside the car heading towards downtown Jeju, Joo Hawon stared only out the window. Wagner wondered what there was to see, but he simply monitored Joo Hawon’s condition periodically.

 

The night scenery seeped into Joo Hawon’s skin in ever-changing colors. Joo Hawon, who hadn’t moved as if he were even breathing, slowly closed and then opened his eyelids. It felt like catching a glimpse of a painting or a doll, forgotten to blink, resuming its human guise.

 

“What?”

 

Joo Hawon’s lips moved, forming the word as he looked at Wagner.

 

“I was worried.”

 

“Stop being overprotective. It’s been quite a while since the last seizure.”

 

“Still, I watch.”

 

“Do as you please.”

 

Joo Hawon rested his chin on the car window and blinked naturally this time.

 

“I’ll wake you if you fall asleep.”

 

“Mm.”

 

He should have had a healthy complexion and gained weight, given how easy it was to make a living, yet the strange feeling, like when he saw the “Beauty” painting, persisted. Wagner absently ran his hand over his own bald head. Unlike his own hair, which needed regular shaving, Joo Hawon had changed very little since he first saw him. If anything, he seemed paler, his sickly appearance deepened.

 

Joo Hawon closed his eyes, avoiding Wagner’s gaze. “I don’t want to be looked at like a patient waiting to die…”

 

Of course, it was true that he was a bit tired from the long flight. He had arrived at Incheon Airport from Germany, then transferred to Gimpo, and finally reached Jeju Island, so it was no exaggeration to say he had spent the entire day in transit.

 

As they drove from downtown Jeju to Seogwipo, his phone rang. Joo Hawon, who had dozed off, took out his ringing phone from his pocket.

 

“Yes, this is Joo Hawon.”

 

– Yes, this is the CEO.

 

He smiled faintly, still groggy, unsure if the reply was acknowledging the title or just a simple response.

 

– Why say that every time you answer the phone?

 

All domestic and Macau schedules were entrusted to Joo Hawon. Naturally, he received one or two calls a day. Thus, saying his name had become more familiar than a simple “Hello” these days.

 

“Where are you, CEO?”

 

– I’m waiting for you.

 

“Right now… I am in…”

 

Joo Hawon looked around, but on both sides of the road, only tall reeds resembling pampas grass grew densely.

 

“We’ll be there in 20 minutes.”

 

Wagner quickly provided the answer.

 

“He says we’ll be there in 20 minutes.”

 

– Aren’t you tired? I told you to just stay in Seoul.

 

“We agreed that I would handle all the Korean schedules with you.”

 

“Handle, handle…” Wagner muttered. He supposed Joo Hawon’s proficiency in Korean was due to his academic drive.

 

– I’ll wait.

 

“Yes, I’ll be there soon.”

 

After hanging up, Joo Hawon held his phone with both hands.

 

Originally, they were supposed to travel to Korea together on the same flight, but Kwon Taeha had a schedule to visit Malaysia. Joo Hawon had intended to accompany him on that trip as well, but due to a sudden contact from Tex, he had to send only the interpreter. A meeting of the STA family was scheduled at the Jeju Tex Resort.

 

Because of this, domestic schedules had to be rearranged, making Joo Hawon incredibly busy. In any case, he had no fondness for the people at Tex. Joo Hawon clicked his tongue inwardly.

 

It was a fresh realization, but Joo Hawon was constantly reminded of how busy Kwon Taeha was. He also naturally understood how much time Kwon Taeha had to allocate to come see him in Macau.

 

– You can’t even distinguish these things, so don’t think about going head-to-head with me. I’m not so idle that I can afford to waste time like this.

 

At the time, he had even mistakenly thought Kwon Taeha had slept with someone else that day. He also vividly remembered the day Kwon Taeha had told him to wait just 17 hours to come to Macau from Germany.

 

Living in the confined space of Macau, it hadn’t felt real, but now that he was out in the world, he realized how vast it was. Therefore, he understood why Kwon Taeha said that time spent on a plane was the most regrettable.

 

Usually, when traveling to multiple countries or cities on short trips, they used a private jet. However, after seeing Joo Hawon’s flight records for the past month, commuting between Berlin and Munich, he was astonished. He had only thought he was traveling frantically, but he hadn’t realized it was nearly 50 flights.

 

Of course, the new STA headquarters being built in Berlin had made it an unusually busy period. Even so, when you thought about it, it was equivalent to flying between Seoul and Jeju 50 times one way in a single month. And he had visited other countries in between, so it was only natural that Joo Hawon gave the pilot a thank-you note and an expensive gift.

 

Joo Hawon, who had been gazing out the window, shook off his boredom the moment he spotted the Jeju Tex Resort.

 

The Tex Resort, with its focus on the casino business, had a gaudy exterior, unlike a typical resort. Joo Hawon openly clicked his tongue whenever he saw the Tex Resort.

 

Macau was practically a country run by the casino industry, so flashy hotels suited it, but such dazzling lights didn’t quite blend with a resort. It had even received noise complaints asking for the lights to be turned off late at night. Joo Hawon’s grumbling was more frequent than usual, specifically concerning Tex.