Mutual Acknowledgment - 3
Shin Yeonhyeon was walking away from the base with her subordinates in tow.
"Still, it's a relief everything turned out okay. I was pretty shocked that Seohee wasn't the culprit, though..."
Her subordinates sighed in relief, bright smiles on their faces. The shock they'd felt upon learning Seohee had joined another group hadn't been small. It was surprising enough that any organization would take in a woman who'd once been chased out, but the real issue was that it massively increased their workload. No matter how well-armed they were, going head-to-head with an entire other group just to kill a criminal could lead to who-knows-how-many casualties. Solving the problem without fighting them was nothing but good news.
"And they said they'd cooperate from now on, right? So those criminal bastards won't be wandering around our turf anymore, yeah?"
Her subordinates chattered excitedly, but Yeonhyeon didn't smile.
"Quiet."
"...Pardon?"
"I need to sort through my thoughts, so just be quiet for a bit."
Yeonhyeon was relentlessly analyzing everything she'd seen. The base's internal facilities, their level of development, rough headcount and combat strength. There were far too many suspicious points about that place to just overlook.
The leader's that man. He brought Seohee... and the ones following him were Soi and her mercenaries.
Normal people wouldn't get close to mercenaries. They were that dangerous. But he controlled them effortlessly.
I don't know how much to believe about him taking Seohee down in one shot... but there's more to him than meets the eye.
He might have the strength befitting a 'man,' after all. But even including Yeonhyeon herself, countless people knew he was strong on paper—yet had no concrete data on just how strong. Almost no one had seen him fight firsthand; most dealt with his authority and organization, not his personal power.
No proper facilities... but a bathhouse. Unnaturally large.
It was probably where that man carried out his tortures and sex. Bathhouses were perfect for washing away flowing blood, and in such a rundown base, it was the only fitting spot for relations.
Other facilities are half-assed, yet they built something this big just for desire...
By itself, that wasn't a huge flaw. Especially considering he was a man. Still, it bore watching. No telling when his desires might extend outward.
"Don't forget, this is Anseongu. Everyone, stay alert. No chit-chat—only essential talk. We're still on mission."
"Aw, Captain, do we really need to be that strict? That base seemed pretty livable, in its own way—"
"Did you see the power generator?"
"Pardon?"
"Did you see how they were generating electricity?"
There had been a heavily used bicycle-style generator, probably cranked hard as recently as yesterday. Its efficiency per space wasn't bad, but forcing ordinary people to pedal it was torture in itself. A manpower generator you could push with body weight might be different, but that design had poor efficiency per person—practically built for torture over power generation. And there were clear signs of heavy use: footprints, subtle machine warping, seat impressions.
Yet when she'd looked, not a soul was operating it.
"N-no idea!"
"I... I saw it! That weird bicycle generator—"
"Yeah."
Someone was being tortured. Slaves or prisoners were being worked. Of course, it wasn't much different from the bathhouse. Not a good thing, but it didn't make the group some monstrous evil organization either—you had to tilt your head at that.
Killing people, working them, exploiting them. None were major flaws. Unless they were eating human flesh despite abundant food, there was no reason not to respect them.
"We'll report this to command and await judgment. No telling what happens next, so stay sharp."
Yeonhyeon bit her lip hard.
Things were heading in a bad direction.
After seeing them off, I watched Seohee.
"...You gonna ask or what?"
Unable to bear the long silence, she spat it out.
"If you wanna tell me, you will."
"Quit bullshitting. Hey, put your hand on your heart and think—am I the smart one here?"
"Dunno..."
"No cushioning. Look, I handed everything over to you, okay? I figured your judgment's better than my dumbass brain."
Yeah, she had. Back when her arms and legs were wrecked, Seohee made herself my slave. She thought it more right and rational for me—the guy who'd saved her—to act on her behalf with my judgment, rather than her dragging her broken self around making decisions.
It was a brutally deep despair. Basically suicide, like jumping from a high place. But at the same time, it was trust in me. Faith that I'd always act for her happiness.
Even so, I couldn't answer that question now.
"I don't know."
"The fuck you mean you don't know!"
"I don't know what you want."
Seohee thumped her chest in frustration.
"Not me—what you want! Those women who were your subordinates—what do you wanna do with 'em?"
"I don't wanna deal with it. And if we do cross paths..."
I closed my eyes, swallowing my rage. It had been brutal beatings. I didn't even want to imagine her pain.
I'd seen countless pains and deaths. Never suffered them myself, but watching people die was as common as breathing. And death by neglect, isolation, thirst, agony—slow and creeping—that ranked among the worst.
"I'll... make them pay."
"Kill 'em?"
"...Not sure. Truth is, I haven't had to make emotional calls on killing or sparing much."
As a hero, I'd moved purely on efficiency. Even if I didn't want to kill someone, if they weren't needed right then, I'd end them without hesitation. Even if I desperately wanted someone dead, if they could save more lives or be useful against the Demon King, I'd spare them.
Not always, but probably more times I'd spared people I wanted dead than saved those I wanted to save... and killed more I wanted to save than those I wanted dead.
Illusion, probably. Good memories fade like daily life; bad ones stick like mud.
"But this is your call. You have to choose."
Deep down, I knew. Her eyes, her heart, her expression, her tone—they all screamed what she wanted.
But that's exactly why I shouldn't choose.
"Fuck, you're my master. That's why I said pick for me—this shit's why I became a slave in the first goddamn place, 'cause deciding this crap always turns into a clusterfuck..."
"I told you—if it wasn't for you, those women mean nothing to me."
Her face darkened further at my words.
"...My fault?"
"What?"
"If those pussies had just handed over the damn cracker crumbs and fucked off... they're such cowards, right? If I hadn't flipped out, they wouldn't have had reason to fuck with the boss—"
Han Seohee knew. How kind I could be to 'strangers.' I didn't fear them, didn't need to, didn't push for anything. Like the orphanage kids, like the new settlers—they could've had my protection.
Of course, back then I lacked facilities and a doctor, so it'd take time.
"Not your fault."
"You wouldn't get it, but I ran with those assholes a lot..."
She spoke softly. She was right. I couldn't understand or know what happened without me.
"I was the worst bitch of the bunch. Trash bastards too. So when they came at me with bats... I just snapped—"
I calmly gripped her shoulder.
"Like you said, I don't know. That's why, at minimum, this is your decision."
Whatever she wanted, I'd help within reason. Couldn't blindly protect or forgive, but I'd take her side.
"Tell me what you want."
Tears welled in Han Seohee's eyes. She forced her mouth open.
"I wanna... see them again."
The sight was a little pitiful.