Chapter 13: Split in Half.
Chapter 13: Split in Half.
Ahn Hyun seemed deeply conflicted by Park Donggeol’s proposal. Had anyone else suggested forming a team, he likely wouldn’t have hesitated this much. Instinctively, Ahn Hyun did not trust Park Donggeol. No matter how smooth his words were, he reeked of something dark and murky.
In any case, Park Donggeol had the justification on his side. Regardless of how he’d phrased it, he had ultimately taken in two members of the deadweight trio—Ahn Sol, Lee Shinwoo, and Lee Borim.
Ahn Hyun’s anxiety had already grown to its peak. He couldn’t abandon his sister, but the incident in the clearing had already shown what consequences her actions could bring. To make matters worse, Ahn Hyun no longer had a choice. By leaving the door open, Park Donggeol had put him in a dilemma where he could neither advance nor retreat.
If things tilted just a little more in Park Donggeol’s favor, it was highly likely that Ahn Hyun, Ahn Sol, and Lee Yoojung would be left behind. And Park Donggeol had no idea that he was digging his own grave. My perspective and that of the others here were worlds apart. I judged people based on their dispositions and abilities to determine who could survive. But Park Donggeol neither had that ability nor the desire for it.
From the very beginning, Park Donggeol and I had different standards for the kind of team we wanted. I wanted comrades who would be useful after entering the Hall Plain, while he wanted a team he could control as he pleased.
In other words, this situation was a stroke of good fortune for me.
In any case, which side would gain more strength now depended on my choice and Kim Hanbyul’s. Since I wasn’t there, everyone’s attention naturally turned to her. After a moment of quiet contemplation, she glanced around before dusting herself off and standing up. However, the way she bit her lip slightly suggested she still hadn’t made a decision.
“I think we should bring back the person on watch duty.”
The words that finally came after a long pause were not a choice. The others, who had been holding their breath in tense anticipation of her decision, let out a collective sigh.
Park Donggeol, acting as if he were someone important, muttered, “Ah. Right,” before speaking in a permissive tone.
“Fine… bring him back. On your way, give that guy the gist of it and tell him to make a choice. We don’t have much time, so you should make up your mind on the way back, too. Ah, wait a minute.”
Just as Kim Hanbyul turned to leave, Park Donggeol’s words stopped her. He put on the most charming smile he could muster and continued.
“You and that guy could be useful. So have a good talk on your way back. I won’t treat you poorly. I mean, either way…”
He trailed off, intentionally blurring the end of his sentence as he glanced at Ahn Hyun.
“Anyway, you two are welcome. I hope you choose wisely.”
Park Donggeol’s performance was in full swing and nearing its climax. Lee Shinwoo, already finding him reassuring, gave Kim Hanbyul a small fist pump of encouragement. As it stood, Park Donggeol was as good as the winner of this round. I hated to admit it, but he had already achieved his initial goal.
Things may have started off rocky, but it seemed all those years weren’t for nothing. Lee Shinwoo and Lee Borim were oblivious to the fact that they could be used as bait or cum dumps. Or perhaps they knew, and had simply surrendered in the face of death.
Watching Kim Hanbyul approach, I slowly closed my eyes. My head ached, but at the same time, I felt a sense of relief. I could have interfered with Park Donggeol if I’d wanted to, but that would have defeated the purpose of leaving my post. More importantly, though unintentional, this whole affair might turn out to be a win-win for him and me.
Park Donggeol had managed to push out Ahn Hyun and Lee Yoojung, who were obstacles to his leadership, while I could secure three of the four people I had my eye on. Park Donggeol had been getting on my nerves enough to make me want to kill him, so I’d have been a fool to stop him from disappearing on his own. It was frustrating that talented people had been swayed by his fancy words, but that was their problem, not mine. I had a feeling that if I could just pull in the last remaining person, things would resolve much more quickly than I’d expected.
Step, step.
With my eyes closed, I heard the sound of grass rustling behind me. I knew who it was without having to look. I quickly rose and strapped the crossbow to my left arm. For some reason, just looking at Kim Hanbyul brought back memories of ‘her,’ stirring a strange, unfamiliar feeling within me. I aimed the crossbow forward and pretended to be diligently scanning the area. Soon, she seemed to spot me, and her quiet voice reached my ears.
“Excuse me…”
“Yes?”
I turned around, feigning surprise. Kim Hanbyul was looking at me with calm eyes. I deliberately rubbed my left arm, feigning soreness, and spoke.
“I heard a cry once or twice, but there doesn’t seem to be anything around.”
“Thank you for your hard work. The discussion is almost over, so I think you should come back now.”
“Then let’s go right away.”
I was about to turn around with a nonchalant expression. As expected, Kim Hanbyul stopped me.
“Just a moment.”
When I turned back, she opened her mouth with a hesitant look.
“Well… things went in a strange direction.”
“A strange direction?”
“Yes. What happened was…”
Kim Hanbyul nodded at my question and began to recount the events. Honestly, I wanted to gauge her inner thoughts as she spoke, but she summarized only the key points from a very objective perspective. In a situation like this, a person’s account would normally become biased one way or the other, whether favorably or unfavorably. I was genuinely impressed with her.
“So that’s the current situation. Um… what are you going to do?”
After she finished, Kim Hanbyul immediately asked which side I would choose, curious about my decision. I had already made up my mind, but I tilted my head with a conflicted expression.
“I didn’t know it would turn out like this. I can’t decide yet.”
“Me neither.”
“What do you think of what that ahjussi said?”
At my question, Kim Hanbyul met my eyes for a moment before answering more quietly than usual.
“I don’t think he was wrong. But…”
“Something doesn’t sit right with you?”
“…Yes. Just looking at that ahjussi gives me a bad feeling. But strangely, at the time, I couldn’t find anything wrong with what he said.”
Lee Shinwoo and Lee Borim had been swayed. Seeing that must have made Kim Hanbyul hesitate.
And I finally understood why she had volunteered to come get me herself. I wanted to talk more, but a considerable amount of time had already passed, so I started walking and kept my mouth shut for a moment. Now that I had confirmed at least a part of her feelings, all I needed to do was add a little seasoning on the way back.
Neither of us spoke, but I was certain Kim Hanbyul was following me. When I felt I had let the silence linger long enough, I spoke up.
“I don’t like what that ahjussi said.”
“……”
“He cleverly mixed the merits of his logic with its loopholes. Of course nothing he said sounded outright wrong. He wrapped the loopholes in the merits and tilted the entire argument in his favor.”
There was no reply, but I felt an unspoken gaze urging me to explain further. Park Donggeol had been quite cunning, but I couldn’t afford to lose Kim Hanbyul. So, I decided to explain, one by one, the answers to the things she was struggling with.
“Not lying and being honest require one condition: whether you can keep your word. Does that ahjussi look like someone who does?”
“No.”
Kim Hanbyul answered immediately.
“My impression of him has been poor from our first meeting, and his actions are destroying the team’s harmony. I’d rather stay with the original group than join a team based on promises I couldn’t trust. So, I’ll stay with the original members.”
I glanced back and saw Kim Hanbyul deep in thought, mulling over my words. Less than a minute later, as the people came into view in the distance, I heard her whisper from behind me.
“I’m worried about the two who already joined him.”
Her words were as good as a declaration that she had made up her mind. I was glad I’d spoken indirectly instead of being blunt. If I had started by saying something like, “That fucking bastard Park Donggeol just wants to use Lee Shinwoo and fuck Lee Borim. So don’t go. You’ll be used too if you do,” she would have distrusted me as well. She seemed sharp enough; a little nudge was all it took for her to grasp the general meaning of my words.
Soon, we were close enough to clearly see the two groups split on the hill. Nothing had changed from the last time I saw them.
On one side were Ahn Hyun, Ahn Sol, and Lee Yoojung. On the other were Lee Shinwoo and Lee Borim, with Park Donggeol at their head.
The moment Kim Hanbyul and I reached the top of the hill, six pairs of eyes turned to us.
*
“Here you are. Anyway, thanks for keeping watch.”
A surge of irritation rose in me at the sight of Park Donggeol already acting like he was in charge, but I forced it down. Ahn Hyun’s silent eyes. Ahn Sol’s anxious eyes. Lee Yoojung’s tense eyes. Lee Shinwoo’s trembling eyes. Lee Borim’s listless eyes. Those different gazes left me with a strange feeling. I stopped walking before reaching either group. Behind me, Kim Hanbyul’s steps halted as well.
“I thought you’d be back sooner. Anyway, you heard what’s going on, right?”
“I did.”
“This is just how things turned out. It’s tough, but I hope you understand. We’re all just trying to survive, after all.”
As Park Donggeol finished, I could hear Lee Yoojung mutter a curse under her breath. Ignoring her, he strode toward me and held out his large hand.
“Join our team. We can be friends. You, and the young lady behind you, are welcome.”
The tension in the air peaked as everyone waited for my answer. I understood how anxiously everyone was awaiting my answer, but I ignored his hand and replied coldly.
“I can decide for myself who to be friends with. Thank you for the offer, but I decline.”
Park Donggeol didn’t even blink. With his hand still outstretched, he turned to Kim Hanbyul and asked.
“…And you?”
“I can’t trust you.”
Of course, Kim Hanbyul ignored him as well. As the two of us walked past him, Park Donggeol spoke in a sneering voice.
“Hah. So that’s how you’re going to be. I don’t know what that little fox told you on the way here, but you’ll definitely regret this.”
“If you value your own life, you should know to value the lives of others.”
“What nonsense. After I was so considerate… Fine, do whatever you want. I have no intention of forcing anyone who doesn’t want to join. Just don’t come begging to be let back into the team later.”
“That won’t happen.”
“Shinwoo-ya. Borim-ah. Let’s go! If we stay with hypocrites like them, our own lives will be at risk.”
Had they already introduced themselves? Watching him drag Lee Shinwoo and Lee Borim away, I felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders. I walked calmly and stood before the remaining people. In their eyes, I could see a mixture of relief and an unreadable goodwill directed at me. Ahn Hyun let out a deep sigh and spoke.
“You’ve been through a lot. As you can see… this is what happened.”
“Hmph. Good riddance. No need to feel down, right? They left because they wanted to, so let them do what they want. Whether they live or die is their own business.”
I couldn’t help but chuckle at Lee Yoojung’s barbed remark. She was right. They were the ones who left. And we weren’t the ones who were left behind; we were the ones who remained.
There was a world of difference between the two.