First Happiness
Hyuk-jin stared at the Japanese sword leaning crookedly against the wall and swallowed hard. In this house, weapons lay scattered about without a second thought. Of course, Se-gun didn't trust him—he'd made damn sure no gun or blade ever found its way into Hyuk-jin's hands. Seo Rin, though, hadn't been wary of him at all. That sword was just a practice blade Seo Rin used for training.
Still. Who could have guessed Giovanni would play it this way?
Giovanni hadn't sent him to Seo Rin without a plan—he'd done it precisely for a day like this. If Giovanni had bothered cooking up some elaborate scheme and then briefed Hyuk-jin on it, the whole thing would go up in smoke the moment Se-gun decided to put him through a little torture.
So Giovanni had simply sent Hyuk-jin to Seo Rin. The only thing he'd needed to confirm was that competitive grudge against Seo Rin. That alone was enough.
To think that massive body housed a brain sharp enough to figure all this out. Apparently even his brain wasn't made of pure muscle.
Hyuk-jin reached for the Japanese sword and carefully drew it free. A blade of 420 stainless steel caught the fluorescent light and shyly revealed itself.
It had the shape of a katana, but strictly speaking it wasn't a real Japanese sword at all. A cheap knockoff, more like. Still, 420 stainless was the kind of steel they made actual blades out of.
Even a butcher's cleaver or a kitchen knife would kill a man if you just shoved it in deep enough. If you weren't planning to swing it through a long campaign—if you only needed to kill one person—you didn't need some famous masterwork sword. A box cutter would do the job just fine.
But when he thought about it, the whole thing was ridiculous. He and Seo Rin had been friends. They'd traded punches before. And now he was going to grab a Japanese sword and cut him down?
Hyuk-jin slid the blade back into its scabbard and stood. Seo Rin was pacing restlessly around the backyard, fretting over the possibility that his little sister might be kidnapped. The insect-repelling lamp out back cast a pale, sickly light, making Seo Rin look even more bloodless as he walked beneath it.
"His little sister, huh."
Whatever was coming would hit because of Seo Rin. Hyuk-jin had known for a long time that Seo Rin and his sister were only half-siblings. Normally, kids from broken homes with half-siblings like that turned dark and twisted. And the second that kind of story came up, they acted like they'd committed murder—clutching their wounds like medals, using the pain as an excuse to hurt everyone else without a second thought.
It was the same pattern in every drama, every movie, every comic, every novel. As if scars were some kind of badge of honor, a reverse scale that set off every single thing.
But Seo Rin had been different. He'd always been honest about his family and his birth, and any idiot who tried to mock him for it got the hell beaten out of him. He'd stood tall for himself and for his family alike.
Aside from the whole lycanthrope thing, Seo Rin had been remarkably straightforward and proud.
It wasn't like he was ignorant of the world's darkness, either—and yet he'd lived bright and kind. That was why Hyuk-jin had always liked him and hated him with equal ferocity.
Because Seo Rin had never had any reason to turn dark or crooked the way other kids did. He hadn't been abused by his parents. He wasn't from a single-parent home. He had a sibling, he wasn't lonely, and he wasn't sick.
The family wasn't rolling in money, but they weren't poor either… you could even call them well-off. That was exactly why Hyuk-jin had been drawn to Seo Rin—the complete opposite of himself—and why he'd hated him for it.
"Yeah… What am I so afraid of? It has to be now. Giovanni's counting on me for this too."
Hyuk-jin clenched his jaw. There was nothing left to think about. Giovanni had planted him here precisely to create this moment. So there was only one thing to do!
Smash Seo Rin right now and drag him to Giovanni!
But the moment that resolve settled in him, Hyuk-jin flinched—startled and afraid. At first he thought it was because he didn't know when Han Se-gun might come back, or because he wasn't certain he could actually beat Seo Rin.
Once he calmed down and looked at it clearly, though, he realized that wasn't what he was really afraid of.
He was afraid of being hated by Seo Rin.
They'd been friends. The idea that after doing something like this they wouldn't be friends anymore—that was what terrified him. Seo Rin was a good guy, sure, but he had a temper. There was no way their friendship would survive if Seo Rin forced himself to cover for a traitor.
No—after "something like this," forgiveness wouldn't even be an option. Because Seo Rin would be dead!
"Hahahaha."
Through the window he watched Seo Rin still pacing restlessly back and forth. Afraid of losing that guy? Feeling regret? How pathetic and ridiculous was that? Hyuk-jin slapped his own cheek in sheer disbelief.
Friends?
Hyuk-jin had never needed a friend once in his entire life. A person had to be complete on their own. For someone as prideful and iron-willed as him, that had always been the natural way of things. And yet here he was, afraid of losing Seo Rin?
That fear only hardened his resolve further. Whenever he'd been afraid of a blade, he'd cut himself with it. Whenever he'd been afraid of fire, he'd deliberately put his hand into the flames. That was how he'd always carved away his own weaknesses and tempered himself—so deciding this was easy.
Hyuk-jin shoved himself up from his seat and opened the door. He walked toward Seo Rin, who was still fretting in the yard.
Somewhere, the chirping of insects drifted through the grass. And with it, the sound of footsteps pushing through the weeds. Seo Rin had been pacing the backyard without stop when he saw Hyuk-jin approaching and lifted his head.
"Hyuk-jin? What's up?"
"Nothing. Instead of stewing over every little thing—how about a spar with me?"
Hyuk-jin walked toward him with a smile. But something about his expression was tight.
"A spar? Heh, sorry. I'm not really in the mood. And we shouldn't get ourselves banged up right now. We don't know when Se-gun hyung might need us."
Seo Rin had already sensed that something about the situation was off. Those bastards had smashed the cameras. Why? Just because they didn't want anyone watching? No—that couldn't be it.
The cameras Se-gun had installed weren't for peeping into private lives; they were meant to identify anyone approaching or passing nearby. If they'd been for spying on private moments, that would just be a hidden-camera pervert job. And a hidden camera invading a high school girl's privacy? Seo Rin never would have allowed that.
Not that Se-gun would have asked for Seo Rin's permission either.
When Se-gun decided something was necessary, he just did it—no matter what anyone said. Anyway, among the cameras Se-gun had set up, some were near Young-eun's house, but others overlooked the main road traffic leading into the area.
To smash those, you'd have to run building to building hunting them down. It would be far faster to just raid the house and drag Yoon Young-eun out by force—if kidnapping her was truly what they wanted.
So why had the enemies destroyed the cameras? To draw Se-gun in. And those cameras had been positioned at the sniper points Se-gun himself had selected. They'd probably smashed them all in advance so they could place their own snipers without Se-gun watching.
Se-gun had always drilled one particular lesson into Seo Rin: dodging a bullet was next to impossible. No matter how superior your physical abilities, actually dodging a bullet was absolutely impossible. Keanu Reeves had pulled off that bullet-dodging act in The Matrix, but that was a movie and nothing more.
Saying "it's only a movie" felt a little absurd when vampires who belonged in movies and comics actually existed—but the physically impossible was still impossible.
Human or vampire, you couldn't dodge a bullet, and the impact was lethal. A vampire could sense hostility and murderous intent from people nearby within about ten meters; for a lycanthrope, it was about fifteen. Outside that range, reading killing intent and dodging—or sensing a presence and dodging—was impossible. You had to take the first shot completely unaware. Sniping was the most dangerous form of attack there was, and a sniper was a reaper. Taking that into account, Han Se-gun might already be in serious danger.
Hyuk-jin watched Seo Rin sink deep into thought and asked,
"Huh? Has he ever actually needed your help?"
"Of course he has."
Seo Rin answered with complete confidence. Seeing him look that sure of himself, it must have actually happened. Unexpected. Han Se-gun needing Seo Rin's help? Hyuk-jin found himself wanting to know and looked at him.
"Like what?"
"Well, for example—holding a picture frame while he hammers a nail into the wall."
"Ah. Yeah, I get the picture. That's enough."
Hyuk-jin waved him off like he didn't need to hear another word. Seo Rin grumbled in a sulky voice.
"That hurts, you know. At least listen to the end of my story."
"Don't wanna, asshole."
Hyuk-jin muttered that as he closed the distance. A little closer. Just a little more.
"Then just trust Se-gun hyung. Your little sister'll get rescued in a flash."
"I hope so. Anyway, it's Se-gun hyung we're talking about—not just anybody. He won't go down that easy."
"Yeah. Not like you, after all."
Choi Hyuk-jin took one more step in. The gap between them was now close enough that an elbow would land. That was enough. Seo Rin looked at him without the slightest suspicion.
"Huh? Why am I suddenly in this? Of course I can't match Se-gun hyung, but…"
"Meaning you went down easy."
"Huh?"
In that instant, Hyuk-jin whipped his elbow around and smashed it into Seo Rin's face.
Thud!
Seo Rin flew about two meters and caught his foot on a pipe sticking out of the ground, pitching forward. It was a copper conduit meant to protect the power cable for a washing machine. Normally you wouldn't even trip on it if you tried—but the blow just now had been ferocious.
He tried to push himself up in shock. But what the hell was this? His legs were tingling and his whole body was shaking. When he opened his mouth, six molars tumbled out and his mouth filled with blood. His cheek had split open, bleeding both inside and out in considerable volume.
"W-what?!"
That elbow… had that been a joke? But it was far too dangerous to call a joke. If he'd been human, his skull would have burst and he'd be dead.
Seo Rin brought a hand to his mouth, spat out his teeth, and stared at Hyuk-jin with stunned eyes. But Hyuk-jin didn't show a shred of concern or apology at the state of him. He just looked down with cold eyes.
It was the look you gave a beggar squatting in front of your house. The look you gave a bothersome, contemptible insect—so cold it seemed to freeze him all the way through to the heart.
"Get up, Seo Rin. Going down from that much isn't any fun."
Hyuk-jin said it with his arms crossed. Seo Rin immediately kicked off the ground and stood.
"W-what the hell was that?"
"…Who knows? A little test for a friend, maybe? I got curious, Seo Rin. Whether… now that you're a lycanthrope, whether I can still beat you or not."
What the hell was this guy saying right now? An ominous thought flashed through Seo Rin's mind. But he desperately shoved it away. You had to trust your friends. Se-gun had said that the moment you started doubting trust, you were already a failure as a friend. Even so—Seo Rin still wanted to believe in Hyuk-jin.
"N-no! Is this because of the sparring? If that's it, once Young-eun's rescued I'll spar with you as much as you want!"
"Don't make me laugh. I want a fight with our lives on the line. Sparring? It's nothing that soft. Get it? You and me—we're testing which of us is better at killing!"
Hyuk-jin roared that and charged, launching a front kick. Startled, Seo Rin twisted his body and dodged it—but the moment Hyuk-jin's foot touched the ground he was already diving in, throwing another fist at Seo Rin's face. Seo Rin slipped his head out of the way.
Shhk!
Even the graze tore open his skin and spattered blood. Realizing the punch had been packed with genuine murderous intent, Seo Rin immediately drove a fist into Hyuk-jin's midsection.
"Ha!"
But Hyuk-jin twisted his body, dropping the fist he'd just thrown to sweep Seo Rin's punch aside. Then he whipped a reverse spinning knuckle with his other arm. A head slip alone wouldn't cut it this time.
"Kh!"
A full-body centrifugal punch slammed into Seo Rin's forehead.
Crack!
Hyuk-jin's fist fractured and split. But Seo Rin also staggered, his neck jerking as he stumbled back several steps.
"Kh!"
It was a serious hit. His skull had cracked, and even the neck bones supporting his head were rattling. It might not have been a perfect attack, but it was more than enough to announce that his opponent was completely serious.
But why the hell was Hyuk-jin doing this?
Seo Rin had always known he hated to lose—but why unleash this kind of vicious assault out of nowhere? Had Giovanni really planted some suggestion in him after all?
No. No. He'd known from the start that wasn't it. That ominous thought had been right. From the very beginning, Hyuk-jin had wanted to beat Seo Rin!
"Hyuk-jin, you! You pathetic bastard!"
How much could winning and losing possibly matter that he'd obsess over it like this?! Seo Rin was speechless. But seeing Seo Rin refuse to obsess over it would only make Hyuk-jin hate him more.
"Shut up!"
In that instant a kick came slicing through the air. Seo Rin reflexively threw up a cover, but the razor-sharp kick exploded against his guard. His body lifted into the air and slammed into a pine tree.
Crrrack!
Branches snapped as Seo Rin's body crashed down into the underbrush. He spun and tried to rise—but his arm dropped limply. The arm he'd used to block was completely broken.
"Damn it!"
"Weak! Seo Rin, this is all you amount to? Back when you used to drop me in one hit… you felt like a wall I couldn't climb. Looking at you now, that was just pure lycanthrope strength, wasn't it?"
Hyuk-jin sneered at him in disbelief. To think he'd been nursing a complex over a guy like this—even he found it laughable.
"What!"
"You're weak. Weak enough to make me sick."
"Hey! You bastard! You're the one who's weak as hell! What are you, a little kid? Holding onto old crap and finally blowing it up like this!"
Seo Rin couldn't take it anymore. He surged to his feet, regenerated his arm in a single breath, and charged Hyuk-jin. Then he threw a clean, composed straight.
Hyuk-jin stepped back to dodge and countered with a kick. But Seo Rin ducked forward and sent Hyuk-jin's kick sailing over his head—then whipped a low kick at the supporting leg Hyuk-jin still had planted. Hyuk-jin hopped clean over him on a single leg.
"Not bad. You've improved a lot. All thanks to that Se-gun guy?"
Hyuk-jin was quietly impressed by how much better Seo Rin's movement had become. But instead of answering, Seo Rin lunged forward with a front kick.
Hyuk-jin slipped back with ease and avoided it. With the light, bouncing switching steps of a tae kwon do fighter, he pushed off the ground with his toes and drove in low for a tackle. Startled, Seo Rin grabbed his belt.
"Ah?"
This time it was Hyuk-jin who went flying. In a fight between ordinary humans, once a tackle locked in properly, you couldn't power your way out of it. Between lycanthropes it was different. Everyone was absurdly strong relative to their weight—apply a little vertical force and they lifted right up.
"Shit!"
Hurled into the dark pine grove, Hyuk-jin caught a branch midair and recovered his balance. The moment he landed he found a rock on the ground and hurled it at Seo Rin.
Crunch!
Seo Rin threw up a hand without thinking—and his fingers snapped. While he staggered in shock, Hyuk-jin dove back in and drove a fist toward Seo Rin's jaw.
Wham!
A clean hit! Seo Rin's body reeled under the impact. But in that same instant Hyuk-jin felt the left side of his vision vanish. Seo Rin had caught the rock with his shattered hand and thrown it right back. His fingers couldn't grip properly, so the control was garbage and there was no real power behind it—but it still smashed into the ridge above Hyuk-jin's left eye and nearly blew his face open.
"Gah!"
Seo Rin threw an uppercut. An uppercut out of nowhere! Hyuk-jin leaned back into a guard—but this time the uppercut came in sideways and cracked him across the nose. It was basically a reverse flat-fist thrust disguised as an uppercut, so the reach was longer than a regular one. Leaning back wasn't a great way to dodge. The only reason he managed it at all was because Seo Rin's technique was still so raw.
"Kh!"
Hyuk-jin spun his overextended body sideways, still bent forward, and drove a hook into Seo Rin's midsection. For a normal person it would have been a precarious stance with zero power—but Hyuk-jin's fist, riding a dancing kind of rhythm, buried itself in Seo Rin's ribs.
"Huk!"
Seo Rin's body locked up. Hyuk-jin didn't miss the opening—he threw another uppercut. The fist cracked clean into the jaw and Seo Rin staggered backward.
But it wasn't over. Hyuk-jin looked ready to kill him for real—he low-kicked Seo Rin's stance apart, then slammed an elbow into the dropping head.
Crack!
The moment Seo Rin's head caught the elbow, his body spun and sprawled across the ground. That last sequence had already left him completely drenched in blood. For an ordinary human it would have been the kind of critical injury where even five skilled surgeons working flat-out on an operating table couldn't have kept him alive.
"Hah… hah!"
But Seo Rin cracked his eyes open a slit and planted a hand on the ground. Attacks of this level weren't enough to kill him. Hyuk-jin watched and caught his breath.
"…Ha! Tough bastard."
"W-why the hell are you doing this? Are you actually trying to kill me?"
"You asking because you don't know? Then die without knowing."
Hyuk-jin charged again. Seo Rin raised a guard to defend—but Hyuk-jin snapped a double jab to pry the guard open, then drove a straight through the gap.
Once Seo Rin was a bloody mess, Hyuk-jin stomped the ground hard, whipped his other leg up, and drove a knee in at the same time. With a wet crack of shattering ribs, Seo Rin was slammed into a pine tree.
Crrrack!
The pine's roots tore free of the earth as it toppled backward. Opposite the falling tree, Seo Rin's body pitched forward onto the ground. Whether the last attack had completely wrecked his diaphragm or the shock of the knee had gone straight to his heart, he couldn't breathe—he just clawed at the dirt.
"Hhk… Haaaaahhk!"
Hyuk-jin looked down at him and laughed.
"Ha—hahahahahaha! Ahahahahah! So that was all you were! Just… nothing special, huh? Yeah? That's right! I can kill you. I said I could kill you, didn't I?"
Up until a moment ago, he'd been afraid of losing Seo Rin as a friend. But… Hyuk-jin realized how foolish that thought had been. Looking at Seo Rin now—bloody and dying—was far too enjoyable.
Beating him to death with his own hands was pure delight. Who knew it could be this fun, this pleasurable? This… yes, you could call this happiness. He'd never felt happy once since the day he was born—and today, killing his friend with his own hands, he felt happiness for the first time.
Ahh… he was glad he'd lived.
Hyuk-jin closed his eyes, filled with a deep satisfaction. Tormenting some total stranger was nothing compared to destroying a friend who'd actually mattered—who knew it could feel this good! Ahh, if he'd known, he would have made a lot more friends.
Hyuk-jin felt a lingering regret. The more friends he had, the more he could keep tasting this joy—but the only person who could give him this much of it was Seo Rin.
Smiling, Hyuk-jin walked over to him. Then he lifted his foot and stomped down on the fallen Seo Rin's throat.
Crrrack!
The neck bones twisted and the throat snapped. The pained breathing cut off, and the heart came to a complete stop. Seo Rin, already turned into a blood-soaked wreck by Hyuk-jin's assault… with this, he finally stopped breathing.
"Hahahahahahahaha!"
Hyuk-jin threw his head back and howled with laughter at the sky. It was a black, moonless night, the heavens packed with stars. Maybe because of the rain the past few days, the night sky was unusually bright and clear.