The Beginning
Species hatred. Rags were fighting right in front of my eyes.
"I... I can explain everything, I swear?" (73 / 887 / 1 year 7 months ago)
"Shut the fuck up, you bitch!! Is this something you can explain?!" (117 / 2,233 / 1 year 7 months ago)
Kim Ho-chang was raging while gripping the bed rail tightly. Blood was flowing backward through the IV needle stuck in his arm. A red thread of blood rose through the transparent tube. Whether it was because of the commotion in the hospital room, there were sounds from outside, but no one came in. I couldn't tell if Kim Ho-chang's subordinates were blocking the door, or if everyone was eavesdropping because it was so entertaining.
Truthfully, I should have left by now…
But I couldn't bring myself to leave.
"I!! Put a whore!! In the city council!!"
"Whore... Please don't say that."
"If not a whore, then what? A virgin?"
It wasn't that someone was blocking me, but because a train wreck was unfolding right before my eyes. I needed to see how it would unfold to respond... No. Honestly, I was mostly watching because it was entertaining.
Han Chae-kyung, who had given me various unofficial tasks and even homework checks since I was assigned to the policy team. Other councilors were abusive too, but Han Chae-kyung uniquely conducted performance evaluations. An indescribably shitty evaluation. It wasn't unrelated that I immediately thought of the options for dealing with her once I knew she was a prostitute.
"Since when...? Huh!? Since when were you selling your body?!"
"Calm down, for now."
"I need to hear the number!!"
And here was Kim Ho-chang, thrashing about. I could have told him the number, but I held back. I planned to just watch until they kicked me out.
"In 2018, to make you a councilor for four years, I spent 200 million won! To put a twenty-nine-year-old slut in the district, I spent 80 million on the campaign... borrowed names here and there for 70 million in donations! Without that, what councilor would you be?!"
"Why are you saying that in front of Joo Sung-hyun?!"
"The statute of limitations is over, you bitch."
"..."
"You think that's all? After the election, 30 million in gift certificates…"
It all started with money. The nearly 2 billion won Kim Ho-chang poured into making his whore wife a re-elected councilor, vice chair of the city council, and eventually a candidate for the next Annam mayoral race… There was probably exaggeration, but that was Kim Ho-chang's claim. Actually, if you think about it, the money he recovered through Han Chae-kyung's support was probably more.
"What are you going to do with my money, you bitch?!"
"Honey."
"Stop calling me 'honey'...!"
But Kim Ho-chang didn't seem to consider the amount he'd recovered. He just saw Han Chae-kyung as a whore who ate up his 2 billion won, cleverly deceived him, and sucked his influence to climb the ladder… Han Chae-kyung's expression was hardening. She was about to snap. Honestly, I thought Han Chae-kyung might have something on him too.
"Th... dirty bitch." (117 / 2,233 / 1 year 7 months ago)
Given Kim Ho-chang's numbers, it was inevitable. The two rags got married in early 2018. I didn't think Kim Ho-chang had stopped his sex life just because he got married. Some of those 117 were definitely accumulated after marriage. Assuming he maintained his erectile function with Viagra until around 2022, Han Chae-kyung probably turned a blind eye to quite a few affairs. But unfortunately, Han Chae-kyung never got a chance to counterattack.
"You... bitch!! Huh... hah."
Right after Kim Ho-chang's rage struck the hospital wall, a rough breath burst from his throat. His lips, which had been speaking, began to tremble, his face flushed faintly red, then quickly covered by jaundice again. Other signs were abnormal too. Cold sweat constantly dripping down his jaw, the blood pressure monitor starting to beep erratically. Meanwhile, only his lips were turning blue.
This is dangerous. That's.
I guessed Kim Ho-chang was a man whose body had been wrecked from using cocktail hormone therapy alongside super Viagra. Men who needed that stuff... especially men over 50 (not impotent) often died during sex. They'd get excited with an erection, start pounding, and suddenly collapse from myocardial ischemia or arrhythmia. Or they'd manage to pull out, feel satisfied, take a short rest, and then fall asleep forever. I couldn't tell how many whores and rags had unintentionally become deathbed attendants during sex with drug users.
"Honey? Are you okay…"
"Wh... ore!"
But rage also had physiological responses similar to sex. Kim Ho-chang was already impotent, so he couldn't have sex, but rage was possible. He might actually die from this. Just as I was considering whether to call a nurse…
Kim Ho-chang, not wanting to die while chasing a whore, calmed his anger for now. And waited until his breathing stabilized—
This time, he turned to look at me, who had been quiet.
"Joo Sung-hyun. Evidence... What is evidence. Tell me." (117 / 2,233 / 1 year 7 months ago)
"Ask your wife. May I take my leave now?"
"...Go. Then your father."
"Representative. If you mention my family one more time, I will distribute that evidence right now. Just a few fatal ones. Then you'll be labeled as a sucker who gave money and connections to a whore... Are you okay with that?"
Kim Ho-chang flared up at my retort, then suddenly stopped. It didn't seem like he was afraid of dying from high blood pressure. Thanks to the word I deliberately mentioned (sucker), he seemed to be worrying about the future from today on.
His wife was a whore. If Han Chae-kyung was just a whore who stayed at home? They could just divorce. If they handled her prostitution history well, they could minimize damage and push her out. But Han Chae-kyung wasn't just a whore; she was a whore councilor. Just slapping 'divorce' in her face wasn't enough.
Kim Ho-chang would be thinking of a clean break by now.
If he's human. And a businessman.
Meanwhile, Han Chae-kyung seemed to misunderstand my attitude. She nodded slightly, her face saying 'Just do that.'... She thought I wouldn't go as far as the evidence. Her mental flower garden wasn't completely withered yet. It didn't matter if Han Chae-kyung misunderstood. It was almost over anyway.
"Joo Sung-hyun. Let me ask you one thing." (117 / 2,233 / 1 year 7 months ago)
"I'll listen and decide whether to answer."
"That bitch... Hoo. What's the reason you helped her knowing Han Chae-kyung was a whore... What the hell."
He was about to consider me an accomplice for hiding his wife's past. I hesitated for a moment in front of Kim Ho-chang, whose eyes had turned yellow.
My target was Han Chae-kyung. But if I measured the angle right, I could send the husband along too... It wasn't impossible, but I gave up immediately. Kim Ho-chang was already falling into the abyss without needing to be sent. One more sudden acceleration and he'd be in the ICU. He didn't seem like he'd live long. Killing was a bit much, so I changed my approach.
"Why did you ask me why I did errands for Councilor Han Chae-kyung?"
"Right. Why the hell." (117 / 2,233 / 1 year 7 months ago)
"I'm sorry, but it's because of you, Representative."
"...?"
I'd crush Kim Ho-chang's self-esteem a bit, direct all his anger at Han Chae-kyung, and escape.
"Councilor Han Chae-kyung? Of course, as a councilor, she could make my work evaluation a mess. But I didn't contribute to hiding an active councilor's whoring just because I was scared of that."
"So it's because of me...?"
"I thought if I didn't cooperate, the Representative would retaliate against me. So I complied."
"What the hell...!"
Kim Ho-chang raged again, not fearing liver cell damage from cortisol secretion. I looked at him with a moment of unease.
"I thought you knew everything, Representative. About Councilor Han Chae-kyung's past."
I spat out two words as if deflated. I thought you knew all about your wife's past whoring, and that you were tolerating it for adult reasons.
Kim Ho-chang sat with a 'what is this bastard doing' expression, then slowly turned to look at Han Chae-kyung. Han Chae-kyung's gaze was fixed on me, not her husband. Now I just needed to speak well. After a brief pause, I revealed the doubt I'd been holding (actually just thought of).
"Representative. Let me ask you in return. How could you not know? It's not one or two, but dozens."
"Joo Sung-hyun, officer!!" (73 / 887 / 1 year 7 months ago)
"You better shut up before you get slapped. Tell me." (117 / 2,233 / 1 year 7 months ago)
He told me to speak, so I did. I immediately pointed at Han Chae-kyung.
"Councilor Han Chae-kyung was born in '88. She's a '07 class."
'07 class. A great class for being a sponsor girl. The early days of social dating apps. And an era when explicit condition-based meeting sites were rampant. But she was in her prime beauty years during 2007-2011, when enforcement was almost non-existent.
"Councilor Han Chae-kyung probably started in chat cafes around 2007-2008. Evermeeting, 20s dating cafes. Places like that. ...Back then, it was conditional. At twenty, with decent looks, she could have earned up to 250,000 won per session."
"F...uck." (117 / 2,233 / 1 year 7 months ago)
"But around her junior year, she probably realized that being a sponsor was more advantageous and safer than one-time sessions. From then on, she likely reduced cafe activities and met a few sponsors through high-end sponsor communities or closed networks."
And after becoming a working adult, it was no longer web-based but self-referential.
"At some point, she probably stopped using the term 'sponsor' altogether."
"..." (117 / 2,233 / 1 year 7 months ago)
"Through a broker system ensuring perfect safety, she probably developed it into sponsorship by pursuing natural meetings in the form of 'introductions' rather than negotiations. At that time, Councilor Han Chae-kyung was already building political credentials."
Kim Ho-chang's expression grew more serious, as if something was clicking. Looking at the partner count, that guy probably had quite a bit of entertainment experience… His age group was higher than Han Chae-kyung's, but originally, sponsorship was young women receiving from older men. Han Chae-kyung's clients and Kim Ho-chang were almost the same age. Maybe Kim Ho-chang had sponsor experience too. Even if not, he'd have seen young companions brought by business friends to golf courses or dinners many times.
"Representative. Where did you first meet Councilor Han Chae-kyung?"
"Introduction... Huh?"
"I see."
Kim Ho-chang's face didn't suddenly turn pale. His jaundice was too severe. Instead, a red flush briefly spread over the yellow, then turned to ash gray. Evidence that a suspicion had arisen in Kim Ho-chang's mind. I couldn't know the truth either. Whether Han Chae-kyung tried to make Kim Ho-chang a sponsor but switched to romance when marriage prospects appeared, or if they truly met through an introduction and married. Anyway, I'd planted the doubt, so it was time to leave.
"May I take my leave now?"
"Go." (117 / 2,233 / 1 year 7 months ago)
Kim Ho-chang answered in a subdued voice, then pressed the call button. With a more grotesque face than when he was cursing and spewing raw anger... drooling. Like he called the nurse because he didn't want to faint while angry?
This was enough. I decided to skip the farewell and leave the room. But I had something to say to Han Chae-kyung.
"I'm sorry, Councilor Han Chae-kyung."
"..." (73 / 887 / 1 year 7 months ago)
It would be a very long night for Han Chae-kyung.