Earning Mutual Recognition - 13
"Hmm..."
Unfortunately, the food was abysmal compared to the generous space. After agonizing over whether to eat it or not, I ultimately decided against it.
Fortunately, nothing out of the ordinary happened overnight. I stayed wide awake, analyzing their movements with my ear pressed to the prison wall. The sounds were too chaotic to pick out exactly who was saying what, but it didn't seem like any large-scale combat forces were mobilizing. There were people coming and going from the settlement, sure, but not enough to pose a real threat to my base.
Well... that's to be expected, I suppose.
They already had me in custody. So rather than straining to move their hunters around, it made far more sense to leverage me to swallow up my settlement whole.
Before I knew it, morning had arrived. I could hear birdsong. And then the sound of Yeonhyeon approaching.
"...It's time. The Responsibility Council is summoning you."
"Good thing, too. I was starting to get bored waiting."
If Yeonhyeon hadn't kept me company with her chatter, it would've been unbearably dull. Regrettably, I'd forgotten to hide my phone when they threw me in here. They apparently didn't think it would work and just stashed it with my clothes. No work to do, no zombies popping out of nowhere, not even a phone—it was like being forced into a dopamine detox. Her conversation had been a real lifesaver. I could kind of see why they say at nursing homes that "just having someone to talk to makes a big difference."
"Let's get going."
"...Yes."
She bowed her head to me like she'd committed some grave sin.
Why's she acting like that...? She really helped me out a lot.
If she hadn't been so reasonable, a few of Seohee's subordinates or merchants might've died in that first skirmish—and that wouldn't have been surprising at all. If it came to that, unfortunately, I'd have had no choice but to gun down whoever fired first to suppress them.
Yeonhyeon had made the wise choice, saving countless lives in the process. Protecting human life against zombies was noble, of course, but saving people in a situation where they might kill or be killed was just as valuable. Sure, there was that minor blemish of failing to stand up to the Responsibility Council's abuses of power, but by my settlement's standards, it wasn't a huge blunder.
And she knows exactly who needs reining in.
This place didn't seem to run on anything resembling true democracy. I wasn't about to criticize—that would be hypocritical, since I didn't put every little decision in my own settlement to a full vote either. But the fact that these power-holders hadn't even gone through the motions of a popular election meant it wouldn't be hard for them to get their tails cut off if push came to shove.
I didn't need to grill every single person in Seven Seed to hold them accountable for what they'd done to me. Depending on how I framed it, they could all become pitiable, innocent victims who "just couldn't resist the Responsibility Council's tyranny."
That might not even be the truth. The Council might be wary of the settlers' eyes, and the settlers might support them even without directly electing them. But that didn't matter.
I'll make it so.
Chaeyun stared at the captured Kim Sunwoo alongside the other Responsibility Council members.
...This is weird.
She'd figured a day in prison would change something—make him anxious, angry, hateful, or at least shake him into realizing his place. But he was utterly composed. He didn't look like a prisoner at all.
"Didn't expect to see you again like this."
He flashed a faint smile. Lounging in his chair with such ease, he looked more like an insider than a hostage.
The man took a seat at the far end of the massive round table, with Responsibility Council members filling the other spots.
"You're an idiot. I knew it."
"Come on, though—a guy you were laughing and chatting with right in front of you? How could I predict he'd stab me in the back? And hey, you were with the Council, right?"
"Yes."
"Ha... damn. I'm getting pissed. What should I do...?"
His words spoke of anger, but his expression and demeanor were far too light. It was the irritation of someone who'd wasted time on a tiresome prank, not a man raging over being kidnapped.
"Let's cut to the chase."
Chaeyun saw no need for small talk. She wasn't alone here—the other Council members were watching to see how this played out.
"You've built an organization in Anseongu, haven't you? And taken in Seohee."
"Yes."
"You know the unwritten rule: once someone's exiled from the organization, we don't take them back. That could be seen as an act of hostility toward us, couldn't it?"
"No idea. Why would it be hostile?"
"...Your attitude leaves much to be desired."
The man was bound. And Chaeyun's level wasn't low. With the drugs keeping his level suppressed, she had no reason to fear him. Dagger in hand, she stepped closer.
"Let me say it again. That could be seen as an act of hostility, right?"
"What answer are you looking for?"
"The honest one."
"It's not."
The moment his words ended, Chaeyun slammed the dagger down—toward the desk where his hand rested.
"Try saying it again."
She flashed a cruel smile. She'd never intended to stab him outright. If possible, cooperation from him would be more efficient than treating him as an enemy. As a man, he was a valuable resource essential to his entire organization, one way or another.
But with the dagger embedded right next to where his hand had been, she figured he'd panic.
"It's not."
He was utterly unflappable.
...Ha. Does he think I won't actually stab him?
If so, he was dead wrong. Chaeyun knew her way around a dagger, though she wasn't a master. Slamming it down blind could slice or sever fingers. And she was fine with that. If she didn't show him she was that kind of person, she wouldn't be able to dominate him.
But he didn't waver. He just looked at her like she was amusing.
The first button hadn't been fastened right. If he'd buckled under the pressure and admitted fault, she could've accepted his apology in exchange for his base. But with him brazening it out like this, even Seven Seed would have to concede they had "no justification" on their side.
She'd had no choice but to confide the full story in Shin Yeonhyeon, who was practically an insider, but if ordinary folk learned of it, distrust in the Council could grow.
"At first..."
He opened his mouth.
"Shut up! I didn't give you permission to speak!"
"Then stop me."
He leaned forward slightly, offering his neck.
...What the hell?
Chaeyun faltered for a moment. She couldn't fathom where this baseless confidence came from. Seizing the opening, Sunwoo pressed on.
"I was hoping we could talk. About the truth behind... the dead man's death."
"What?"
One Council member shot to his feet, eyes bulging.
"Seohee killed my brother! I've suspected it all along! That Seohee you kept with you! You're the one who killed him!"
He shook his head pityingly, then glanced at Yeonhyeon.
"Didn't tell them?"
"I submitted all the reports, but... some people don't trust your word."
He let out a hollow chuckle and turned away.
"Can't be helped, I guess. That's why I came to talk. For forgiveness or understanding or whatever... I know it's ridiculous to force those feelings, but I have to do what I have to."
"Forgiveness? Don't give me that bullshit! You killed my brother—"
One Council member ranted wildly, but the others didn't react as heatedly. They just mocked him.
"What an idiotic move."
"Yeah. Looking back, maybe a bit foolish. Understanding is between people, right? What's the point if there's no will to talk?"
He sighed deeply, as if truly regretful.
"First things first, we both need a little fear of each other."
"Fear?"
"People don't see something as an entity if it's not scary. Zombies that could come lunging out of nowhere terrify us, but telephone poles don't."
If something couldn't harm you, it was just background. Humans personified storms and waves out of fear. Even in eras when people slaughtered and buried each other alive without a second thought, they didn't see fellow humans as people.
"To understand and respect each other, we need to at least recognize each other as entities first."
"What are you even blabbering about...? Ha! What do you think you can do right now?"
This time, Chaeyun resolved to stab him for real. Not fatally—just enough to pin his shoulder or arm and subdue him.
"Huh?"
In an instant, as she closed in, Kim Chaeyun found herself overpowered and slammed face-first onto the desk.
"Let's fight. That seems easiest for you guys. No time wasted."
He muttered in a voice laced with a sigh.