The Genius Decided To Live An Ordinary Life [EN]: Chapter 245

Sniff-.

Jinhyuk ignored the sound from behind and walked on silently.

“Welcome.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

Seeing the SSS [Special Security Service] agents guarding the VIP ward, he wondered what his uncles were up to right now.

‘They must have handled it well. I saw a detective unit vehicle pass by; was that it?’

Moon Seokil had never disappointed him.

He had trusted the man and assigned the task, so now he would just wait for the results.

He decided not to tell Jo Seulchan what had happened.

– “A normal person would develop agoraphobia. They might even go crazy. People say, ‘This is a world where people live,’ but there are worlds you don’t need to know about.”

He somewhat agreed with Moon Seokil’s thoughts.

Even if Jo Seulchan had a strong mentality, honed by a tough upbringing, handling this would be a different matter.

‘It might be better if he doesn’t know.’

If they could completely prevent a recurrence, that is.

And Moon Seokil was moving personally to ensure that perfection.

Sniff-. He headed to the hospital with the girl who was sniffling from a runny nose.

Looking into the room from outside, he could see the grandmother talking with her family, who had arrived earlier.

Thanks to his mother, who visited the hospital every day with Yujin and Jeongwon, the room was full of life.

“Hiami, biyuung aeu-ttau-o? Ae-appa ba-buuuuuuung-.”

“That’s right, that’s right-. Oh, my baby is doing so well.”

Jeongwon seemed to like his grandmother, showing off his favorite airplane toy in front of her. There was no better laughter therapy than a baby’s antics.

When his mother left and Jeongwon went to Jo Seulchan, Yujin would secretly release Haengun, whom she had hidden in her arms, into the room.

“Grandma, this is Haengun.”

“Oh my, how can his head be so soft?”

The grandmother stroked the sparrow that had landed on her hand.

“Sometimes he brings back bugs, but he doesn’t bring back luck. I guess the bug’s name is luck.”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

“These days, he also brings back twigs, but even if I tell him he can’t eat them and to throw them away, he keeps bringing them. I think his tastes have changed.”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

There was a communication problem, but thanks to the children, the grandmother didn’t seem to have time to feel lonely.

When Jinhyuk opened the door to the room, Jo Seulchan’s face, who had been playing with Jeongwon’s airplane, lit up.

“Oh, I’m glad you’re here, but you don’t have to come every day.”

It hadn’t even been a few days since he was hospitalized, and it wasn’t like I was planning to come every day either. Jinhyuk, hiding his true feelings, gestured with his chin behind him, and the girl who had been sniffling behind him appeared with a shy smile.

“Jo Seul, I came too.”

“Oh, Eunjeong, you came again today.”

“Jo Seul, you must have been waiting for me too.”

“Huh?”

What are you talking about?

‘Sigh, I need to exercise.’

Jinhyuk was going to end up listening to UFO stories until late again today before going home.

Chatter, chatter-.

“It’s clear that a UFO was found in town.”

“Huh? Where?”

“I don’t know. I saw a bunch of police cars going.”

“Did a thief break in somewhere?”

“It was a detective unit car.”

“Huh? A detective unit?”

***

On a quiet road, black figures bustled and clamored among the rows of vans.

Even without the police and 119 ambulance emblems, the frantically flashing lights revealed the men’s identities.

Among the chaos, two men were relaxed, and one of them, Yeo Hyungman, clicked his tongue.

Click, click-.

“Will those guys even survive…?”

“They’ll live until they die.”

Moon Seokil, who spoke carelessly, adjusted his sunglasses.

He didn’t forget to pat Yeo Hyungman on the shoulder to encourage him.

“Detective Yeo, don’t forget to treat me when you get promoted.”

“Oh my-, I’d treat you twice over to avoid ending up like that. How about a shot of soju [Korean rice wine] with some pig skin?”

“Sounds good.”

“But do you have any specific orders you want?”

A question about what crime he wanted them charged with.

Moon Seokil shrugged, indicating he had no intention of getting involved.

“They’re the type who can’t live without committing crimes, even if they can live without food. Figure it out and lock them up. Isn’t that the police’s job? Just make sure our involvement doesn’t get out.”

“Don’t worry. If even a word gets out, I’ll be the one to lose my head.”

Yeo Hyungman waved his arms in horror.

Even if they were thugs, to arrest them without following proper legal procedures? And not even directly suppressing them, but those who had already been suppressed? The media would immediately tear the police apart. Not to mention human rights groups. In an instant, the responsibility would be questioned, and everyone from the police chief down would be fired.

Watching Moon Seokil and his group walk towards the city, Yeo Hyungman moved his lower jaw from side to side. As if he had injured his own jaw.

“They’re living as cripples…”

The jaws were severely broken.

Those guys that Moon Seokil had handed over.

Looking at the black blood flowing from their mouths, it was possible to guess where and how they were injured.

He turned sharply and shouted to a fellow detective.

“Hey! Is there anyone who can talk? Can we even get a statement?”

“Their jaws are all broken. Except for the guy with the injured wrist, they don’t have any other injuries.”

It wasn’t over just because the bones were mended and the joints recovered.

The pain from the malocclusion would eventually transfer terrible pain to the spine and lower back, and before long, the spine would curve, and one leg would become lame.

‘His name was Yoon… what was it?’

He had recently caught a guy in Dangjin who had eaten without paying and then committed robbery. The guy’s spine was curved, and his leg was so badly lame that he couldn’t even run away.

He was just over twenty years old, and he said he had lived doing odd jobs because he had no education, but he could no longer work and had no money. He said he was so hungry that he had committed the crime, and he even asked if he wasn’t supposed to live.

Click, click-.

Shielding the cold wind with his hand, he flicked the lighter’s flint, and his fingers felt precious again. In his reckless youth, he had often fought, but he was suddenly proud of himself for not picking fights with guys who looked strong.

Yeo Hyungman, who lit a cigarette, got into the passenger seat and waved his hand in the air.

“For uneducated guys like us, having all our limbs is the best. Let’s go-”

“Yes, sir. I’ll start the car.”

Why-ee-ee-ee-.

Following the smoke scattering through the open window, the lined-up vehicles all started at once.

“Detective Lee, what was that guy’s name?”

“Who are you talking about?”

“The young guy who was causing trouble at the station the other day. The one we locked up because we felt sorry for him, so he could at least get some prison food.”

“Ah, that guy who bragged in front of the chief that his father was a famous gangster? Yoon- what was it?”

They said that Yoon-something had been like that since he injured his jaw after being beaten by someone in school. He had received treatment in time, but because he had no guardian or money, he had temporarily stopped treatment, and then his body had become strange.

‘The damaged nerves must have twisted his body strangely.’

This was a guess based on the knowledge he had gained from dealing with a variety of criminals.

He had been imprisoned as the guy had requested. He would have been detained even if he hadn’t asked.

Living with an uncomfortable body in a world that doesn’t take care of you would be hell in itself, so it would be better to at least eat the food provided by the state. They said his father had committed murder and fled, and his whereabouts were unknown.

‘Ugh- that bastard had a terrible temper…’

Was it because he was originally aggressive, or did the world make him that way? He had dealt with many criminals, but it was difficult to make a simple judgment. He was too busy making a living to analyze their psychology, and he didn’t have the time. Their behavior, which only caused fatigue, was just annoying.

Tsk, tsk-. He clicked his tongue involuntarily.

Why-ee-ee-ee-.

The ambulance in the rear sped up and overtook Yeo Hyungman’s car.

‘Those guys were lucky to have survived even after running into scary people.’

From their perspective, it might be better to die.

It would be difficult to expect proper treatment.

‘The guys who were running the water business have dried up, and now they’re running rampant in the land business.’

As numerous organizations collapsed, thugs turned their eyes to construction and development. They were good at making money through threats and extortion, as that was what they had learned.

It was also a crime to illegally punish illegal acts. No matter how lenient the law was, in a country ruled by law, the law was an absolute value that must be obeyed.

For Yeo Hyungman, who had grown up under the strong protection of the law, the law was like a religion, and the legal code was the greatest scripture. It was because of practical reasons such as livelihood, advancement, and fear that he was intimidated by Moon Seokil, though.

‘He’s an interesting guy.’

Moon Seokil was an unusual person.

He had asked why he, as a security guard for a large corporation, was doing things that even a detective wouldn’t do. Why didn’t he, with his skills, join the religion of law?

He had expected a cynical answer like, ‘Because the law isn’t doing its job,’ but like the relaxed person he was, he had given a humorous answer.

– “Think of me as a cultist who worships idols.”

If that was the case, then it was a fitting thing to do.

***

Jeong Sangtae, who was chewing gum on the right, nudged Moon Seokil’s arm.

“They’re getting the death penalty, right?”

“Yeah. Death penalty.”

“Then why did you hand them over? Do you feel guilty? Does it bother you to lay a hand on guys who don’t resist?”

That was true. Kang Heonchang, who was listening from the side, muttered under his breath.

Moon Seokil chuckled.

“It’s ‘sa’ as in private, ‘sa’ as in company, you idiot. Our company gave them a private punishment.”

“Ahahaha! So that’s why it’s the death penalty? But I think you handed them over too nicely.”

That was also true. Kang Heonchang, who had chimed in, looked around at the store signs that were lighting up one by one and adjusted his collar.

Kang Heonchang was neither a psychopath nor a gangster. He didn’t have the bad habit of hitting guys who didn’t resist and were just standing still. Still, he couldn’t understand why they were being handed over to the safety of the police without being punished.

“No matter how you sugarcoat it, we’re criminals. We’re not cleaner or more righteous than those guys. We’re not qualified.”

He patted Jeong Sangtae’s back once, who was nodding with a gloomy expression, and continued.

“What’s the point of killing guys who don’t even know who we are? They’ll be cripples for life, and they won’t be able to cause any trouble. If things go wrong, they might even end up in wheelchairs.”

That was true.

Making them live as disabled people for the rest of their lives was a much harsher punishment than killing them.

Even if they tried to cause trouble, there was nothing to be afraid of. Then they could just use that as an excuse to really send them off.

“We just do as we’re told.”

“Is it the chairman’s order?”

“Jinhyuk told me to handle the guys who didn’t directly move like that. Do I have any power?”

They said Jinhyuk was starting to resemble Hong Gijun, but the two were clearly walking different paths.

Hong Gijun was decisive and ruthless, while Son Jinhyuk seemed like a person who had removed the ruthlessness from Hong Gijun. That didn’t mean he was benevolent, though.

– “Death is too easy of a punishment.”

Since they had decided to move Jo Seulchan’s house anyway, it was better to resolve the compensation issue cleanly. To do that, it was more realistic to get as much out of them as possible rather than making the problem bigger. Yeo Hyungman would leak the information to the prosecution and make them negotiate a sentence. Moon Seokil had already set that up.

“Hyung, where did those two guys go? The ones who went to Seulchan’s house.”

“They must have taken care of it themselves. Isn’t it obvious? They’re probably floating somewhere off the coast of Daecheon right now…”

According to the information the subdued guys had coughed up, they were using low-level members of the organization or impoverished personnel from other organizations to do dirty work and then get rid of them. They were so-called ‘knife shields.’ The meaning and form had changed to fit the market and the times.

“Why didn’t they hand them over to the police and handle it themselves?”

“They didn’t even consider the possibility of failure. And if those guys told the police the truth, it would become even more troublesome.”

“Ah-.”

Kang Heonchang was also a veteran warrior, but he still had a lot to learn from Jeong Sangtae. Especially when it came to things related to the outside world.

Kang Heonchang nodded at Jeong Sangtae’s words, pondered for a moment, and then shouted as if he had made an amazing discovery.

“Wow-! Did this happen because Inrang was trying to help his girlfriend?”

“You idiot, what are you talking about out of the blue?”

“Think about it. How did those guys end up in this rural area, eating dirt? They’re not the type of guys who would live in a place like this. And didn’t you see the fancy dragon tattoos on their bodies?”

He had wrecked a night club as a result of punishing the loan sharks at the teahouse, and as a result, the New Boss faction from Seoul had invaded General Farm, only to be crushed by Yang Gangwook. Son Gwangyeon, enraged, had demanded that Hong Gijun take responsibility, and Hong Gijun had released the SAKDO [Special Assault and Combat Doctrine] agents, cleaning up not only the New Boss faction but also the corporatized gangsters.

“Oh-, now that I hear it, it makes sense?”

“Hehe-. Am I right?”

“Heonchang is still smarter than Inrang.”

So, in the end, was it the loan shark that Jang Jinnam had thrown away that had come back to Jo Seulchan like a boomerang?

Jeong Sangtae scratched his forehead, suddenly feeling tired.

That’s why it’s easier to just kill them cleanly and get rid of them, considering the future. Those guys had only survived thanks to the law and the system. At this point, he didn’t know who the law was really protecting.

Moon Seokil, who had been aware of the entire process, kept quiet.

He hadn’t been able to open up completely to his colleagues, but this was what had come up when he had discussed the handling of this matter with Jinhyuk. Jinhyuk had vaguely analyzed the background of the incident.

“It’s a shame I couldn’t see those two guys directly.”

“Jinhyuk must feel the same way.”

Moon Seokil comforted Jeong Sangtae, who was expressing his regret.

He was still a bit more human than Hong Gijun.

Generous when he was generous, and ruthless when he was angry.

He had even smashed a 5-ton truck.

Moon Seokil stretched out his arms wide.

A refreshing feeling that made him feel good to the bone. It was the pleasure that only those who had finished their homework could get.

The more he saw him, the more he experienced him, the more amazing and scary he was.

Even Chairman Hong Gijun hadn’t foreseen this far.

“Man, should I carve him and carry him around instead of a knife?”

Wouldn’t it be more effective than any amulet?

Kang Heonchang, who had grasped Moon Seokil’s intention, chuckled.

“Why bother when you have a picture?”

“Ah…”

Kang Heonchang, who had made a rather smart remark, took out a neatly folded piece of paper from his pocket. It was a picture of Jinhyuk that he had cut out from a newspaper.

Jeong Sangtae also took out the same picture from his wallet and unfolded it.

“I carry it around because of that grim reaper-like guy. I look at it so I don’t make any mistakes.”

“Me too. I feel sad if I don’t see it. It’s an amulet that makes me live in tension.”

Moon Seokil made a rare, dumbfounded expression.

“You guys are crazy.”

“Ah, why-? You have a lot of guts, so you don’t know how we feel.”

“Still, what are you guys, some kind of uncle squad?”

Kang Heonchang pursed his lips at the unexpected expression.

“Oh, that makes sense.”

That’s right…

He had forgotten that talking to you guys for too long would make even him stupid. Moon Seokil increased his walking speed.