Chapter 4 Part 1

From that morning, a murderous atmosphere permeated the air.

From the moment he got up and took a step out of his room, that stinging air was palpably conveyed, felt clearly on his skin.

With half of the members having left for the South America Branch, the Branch, which already had far too few personnel for its building, felt empty. Yet, with the murderous tension deepening by the moment, there was hardly any feeling of solitude.

Jeong Tae-ui felt a little fed up with the stiff expressions on the faces he encountered on his way to the bathroom.

It wasn’t as if some band of sworn enemies was coming, for them to be so stiff with tension.

Scratching his head, he entered the bathroom. Tou, who seemed to have already finished breakfast and was brushing his teeth, mumbled a greeting with his toothbrush still in his mouth.

“Hey, Tae-ui. You woke up late. Did you pack all your belongings?”

“The foam is splashing… It would be good if you spat that out first before speaking.”

Jeong Tae-ui mumbled, taking half a step back. Tou laughed aloud, then started brushing his teeth again.

Still, this guy was better. Seeing at least one face that wasn’t grim like the others made him feel better. Jeong Tae-ui approached the sink next to Tou, turned on the warm water, and wetting his neck first, he spoke.

“I don’t really have any belongings, so what is there to pack? I’ll just go myself later.”

“Hmm… Still, you’ll be staying for half a month, are you sure it’s okay?”

Tou spoke sporadically, rinsing his mouth.

Jeong Tae-ui was in a situation where he had to vacate his room by this evening. Not just Jeong Tae-ui, but several members were in that situation. When members from the Europe Branch arrived, members from less-populated rooms would temporarily move to other rooms to accommodate them.

Early Saturday morning, the members who were going to the South America Branch left for the airport, and only those who would remain were left.

And then it was Sunday. Normally, they would be enjoying their holiday leisurely, but now was not the atmosphere for that. In just a few hours, people no different from sworn enemies would swarm in droves.

Jeong Tae-ui ended up staying in Tou’s room. One member who shared a room with Tou was going to South America, so he decided to move there.

While grumbling, “Damn it, why do I have to give my room to those damn guys?” the members who had to move rooms packed simple belongings and relocated one or two at a time. Among them, there were some who, hating even the thought of “those damn guys” touching their belongings, were preparing to move completely.

Lifting his wet eyes, which he had wiped several times with water, Jeong Tae-ui looked at Tou reflected in the mirror and shrugged.

“If I think of anything I need later, I can just drop by the room and get it, what’s the big deal?”

“Don’t do that. If you run into a Europe Branch guy using that room, what good will come of it?”

“Why? It’s originally my room.”

“That won’t work. It would be equivalent to a territorial invasion and cause an uproar.”

“…For crying out loud.”

Jeong Tae-ui mumbled “For crying out loud” for what must have been the nth time. It was a shortened version of, “For crying out loud, I really can’t understand such a hostile relationship.”

The digital clock on the bathroom wall indicated a time that was late for morning and early for lunch.

Jeong Tae-ui took out a dry towel, piled high on the shelf, and wiped his face. His complexion reflected in the mirror wasn’t very good. He had forgotten it as soon as he woke up, but his dream must have been disturbing.

The talk of hideous, disgustingly repulsive guys coming from the Europe Branch—according to his colleagues—though he himself hadn’t consciously realized it, might have subtly weighed on his mind. He thought of himself as someone who didn’t get nervous about such things, but he seemed to be unexpectedly sensitive.

What vaguely flashed through his mind in the dream was gloves so dark they were almost black, not just red. The spot brushed by those dark gloves was stained dark crimson. That hand detached from the neck of a man who collapsed, eyes rolled back. A vivid, scarlet mark remained on his neck.

…

The warm moisture remaining on his neck, as it cooled and dried, perhaps because it was taking away his body heat, sent a chill down his spine.

“What’s wrong? Standing there blankly all of a sudden.”

Tou spoke curiously from beside him and lightly patted Jeong Tae-ui’s back. Jeong Tae-ui, who had his face half-covered with a dry towel, cast a sidelong glance at Tou.

“He’ll be coming in here soon.”

“? Who?”

“Rick.”

Tou closed his mouth. As if he too had been instantly infected by the unsettling atmosphere, he stared silently at Jeong Tae-ui. Then he clicked his tongue and shrugged.

“Well, if we wait for the final confirmation, there are rare cases where the person coming changes, so we can’t know. But if that guy comes… it will be very grim for half a month. You’ll see quite a few unpleasant things.”

Tou, as if remembering something, mumbled with a face like he’d bitten into a bug. After all, he was also present during the last Joint Training with the Europe Branch, so he must have experienced the situation back then firsthand. Even if he didn’t personally experience it, he must have felt the bloody incidents and rumors of that time viscerally.

“If that guy just shows up, there are quite a few guys saying they’ll finally cut his throat this time.”

Jeong Tae-ui mumbled, remembering the sounds of several guys from other teams chatting in groups nearby, sometimes when he was in the lounge or eating in the dining hall. Tou’s complexion grew even grimmer.

“Of course, if I could cut it, I’d want to too. There’s no one among us who wouldn’t want to cut off that crazy bastard’s head and hang it on a pole. But…”

Tou didn’t finish his sentence, but Jeong Tae-ui could easily guess. It would be difficult, or even if possible, it would demand significant sacrifices beyond expectation.

The moment he saw the video, he knew. That man should not be confronted but avoided.

“Furthermore, that guy is not only bad at fighting, but also bad in other ways, so if you provoke him wrongly, you’ll really bleed.”

Tou clicked his tongue and said bitterly. Jeong Tae-ui, wiping his chin again with a towel as water droplets from his hair rolled down, looked at Tou curiously. Tou, looking at the mirror with a displeased expression as if he didn’t even want to speak, blurted out.