Chapter 247: Rebirth-2
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 247: Rebirth-2
Even as he descended the stairs, his opponent didn't move.
He simply watched In-ho as he struggled down, leaning heavily on his crutches.
Once In-ho reached the bottom, he took a moment to catch his breath. He inhaled deeply, looking at the other boy with a face full of disbelief.
"Can I ask what kind of balls you have, showing up here?"
After a brief pause to steady his breathing, In-ho was the first to speak.
"……."
The man he addressed, Kim Jin-tae, remained silent. He did nothing but glare.
In-ho didn't particularly care for that look, but he wasn't hot-headed enough to flip the table right from the start. Considering his opponent was a kid half his age, he felt inclined to give him a little more time.
Kim Jin-tae’s sharp eyes carefully scanned In-ho’s arms and legs. In-ho let out a short, dry laugh at the sight. It reminded him of the time he’d faced bandits in the mountains; they had watched him just as intently, searching for an opening.
"My arms, my legs… seeing them like this, do you think you actually have a chance?" In-ho provoked him, a corner of his mouth curling into a smirk.
Kim Jin-tae weighed his chances of victory, just as he had back in the school cafeteria.
If I play it right, I might be able to take him.
The thought flashed through his mind, but Jin-tae decided to wait and see how the situation unfolded.
Perhaps annoyed by the continued silence, Kang In-ho sat down on a bench arranged in a square formation.
"I was going to give you the chance to speak first, but since you’re keeping your mouth shut, I’ll start."
I have a lot of questions, In-ho added mentally.
"Why the hell did you do it? What does the teacher have to do with you that you’d go that far?"
He swallowed hard before asking. He kept his voice as soft as possible, stripping it of any hostility.
But the only response was more silence. In-ho scratched his head vigorously with his good hand.
"Ha… I really hate repeating myself."
At In-ho’s low murmur, Kim Jin-tae’s body instinctively flinched. The cheek that had been severely struck the other day seemed to throb with phantom pain.
"If you’re just going to stand there like the cat got your tongue, why are you even loitering around here? It’s a waste of time for both of us. You have business with me too, don't you?"
As Kang In-ho spoke, thumping his chest in frustration, Kim Jin-tae—who had been standing still as a stone—finally moved.
In-ho looked up from his seat at the boy with the fierce eyes.
"Hey. Let’s go."
Despite the chilly weather, Kim Jin-tae stripped off his jacket.
"…Fine, whatever."
This guy only does what he damn well pleases, In-ho grumbled inwardly.
Knowing that male students of that age were often brimming with bravado and reckless pride, he endured it one more time. With a reluctant expression, he stood up, propped his crutches to one side, and took an awkward stance.
Though his posture was clumsy, he possessed the memories of his training. He was confident he could suppress his opponent even in this state.
He looked at Kim Jin-tae’s face.
"…?"
He leaned his head forward, scrutinizing the boy again. Kim Jin-tae had shed his jacket and looked ready to fight at any moment, but his eyes betrayed a fear he couldn't hide.
In-ho was certain that the emotion in those eyes wasn't something manifesting from the subconscious. It was conscious terror.
In-ho slowly observed him. He saw the clenched fists, the tensed arms, and the legs planted on the ground trembling ever so slightly. The color had drained from the boy's face, and his lips bore the clear marks of being bitten raw.
"You…"
Just as In-ho was about to ask, What’s wrong with you? Kim Jin-tae lunged forward.
He came in low with a right hook.
In-ho easily evaded the attack, which seemed to move in slow motion, and struck the boy’s Adam’s apple with the edge of his hand.
"Ack!"
Kim Jin-tae let out a sound like he was about to choke and stumbled back. In-ho looked at the boy’s completely unguarded torso and considered following up with another blow, but ultimately lowered his hand.
Kim Jin-tae’s eyes bulged as he charged again. Did he think that because In-ho’s legs were injured, he could knock him over by simply tackling him?
In-ho completely avoided the rush with just a few steps. With no one to catch the momentum of his charge, Kim Jin-tae went rolling across the park ground. His pants tore as they scraped against the stone pavement, and blood began to seep through the gap.
"Fuuuuck!!!"
Kim Jin-tae screamed a curse and lunged once more.
[If fear is carried in an attack, one cannot cut even a single sheet of paper, no matter how sharp the sword they hold.]
So-yu’s words from the past drifted through In-ho’s mind. Fear still saturated Kim Jin-tae’s eyes.
Sigh…
Kang In-ho took a deep breath. Then, he raised his arm—the one encased in a cast—high and brought it down hard onto the crown of the boy's head.
With a dull thud, Kim Jin-tae was slammed into the ground. He twitched on the pavement for a long while, like a frog struck by a stone. In-ho spoke to the boy, who couldn't even lift his head.
"Let’s stop now."
*
Kim Jin-tae hated Kang In-ho. Everything from his looks to his actions.
At first, he thought he’d met a kindred spirit. He believed they’d formed a group that would make their boring school life interesting. If someone had asked him if alcohol, cigarettes, and extortion constituted an "interesting" school life, he would have nodded proudly.
Their fundamental way of thinking was simply different from others.
But even to Kim Jin-tae, Kang In-ho was a different breed of monster.
Kang In-ho was more vicious, more of a piece of trash.
It happened on a day they had lured a middle schooler into an alleyway to shake him down. As was typical for students, the kid didn't have much on him. Just as they were about to leave after taking less than five thousand won, Kang In-ho suddenly slapped the middle schooler across the face.
The boy collapsed instantly with a sharp crack.
[What are you doing?]
When Kim Jin-tae questioned him with wide eyes, Kang In-ho just shrugged.
[He wasted my damn time.]
There was another time. After it became known that Kang In-ho came from a fairly wealthy family, Kim Jin-tae, who was smoking behind the school, asked him a question. He asked why In-ho bothered stealing money when he already had plenty.
[Just because? It’s fun.]
Kang In-ho had taken a deep drag of his cigarette and exhaled slowly before answering.
If that had been all, they might have continued to get along. Yes, if it had stayed like that, they could have remained on good terms.
If only Kang In-ho hadn't brought that woman along one day.
[Me? I’m… Shin Jeong-ah.]
"You asked why I did it?"
Kim Jin-tae, sprawled on the ground, cried out through half-sobs. Blood flowed from his face where it had been scraped against the hard ground. Even though it was difficult to even open his eyes because of the blood running down from his forehead, he lifted his head to look at Kang In-ho.
"Then why the fuck are you suddenly acting like this to us?"
"No…"
With his breath hitched from being pinned down, Kim Jin-tae wailed.
"At the very least… you should have… been good to Jeong-ah… you son of a bitch…!"
Kim Jin-tae hated Kang In-ho.
Everything from his looks to his actions.