The Military Rations Manager
The military rations manager Junghwan and his subordinates were transporting Jaehyuk, Sangjun, and Taeseok. Jaehyuk and Taeseok sat in the back seat of the car driven by Junghwan, while Sangjun rode with Junghwan’s men in a separate vehicle.
“Um… Who exactly are you people?”
Junghwan offered no reply to Taeseok’s question. Jaehyuk, seated beside him, turned the matter over in his mind.
They don’t carry themselves like police. The guns are wrong. Regular officers carry Smith & Wesson .38 revolvers. These men are holding 9mm SIG P226s—standard issue for South Korean special forces. Are they connected to a military black-ops unit? Or are they criminals running smuggled firearms?
While Jaehyuk was still thinking, Taeseok pressed again.
“Who the hell are you to wave guns around like—!”
“Detective Min Taeseok.”
Junghwan cut him off, his low voice carrying a clear warning.
“Knowing too much can get you hurt. I’d appreciate it if you stopped asking questions.”
“Are you threatening an active police officer?”
The light ahead turned red. Junghwan lifted the side of his jacket just enough to show the grip of the pistol at his waist and spoke again, still calm.
“Please don’t try to learn more. This isn’t a threat. It’s a request. A request made because I want you and everyone around you to stay safe.”
“What the—!”
“So please honor my request. I have no desire to put any of you in danger.”
The look in Junghwan’s eyes was not the savage glare of a criminal promising death if his identity was pursued. It was the courteous warning of a man urging others to stay out of a restricted zone where accidents could happen.
After that they rode in heavy silence. On the way, Junghwan’s subordinates dropped Sangjun off in front of his house. Several hours later they reached the apartment complex where Jaehyuk lived. Junghwan said nothing as he pulled away and drove back into the night.
“……Park Jaehyuk.”
Taeseok, who had been standing motionless, finally spoke. His voice was angrier than Jaehyuk had ever heard it.
“Are you out of your mind?!! You told me to put my own life first, yet you treat your own life like garbage and charge in like a lunatic?!! Huh?!!”
“……”
Jaehyuk kept his head bowed, aware of exactly how reckless he had been. Taeseok kept going.
“That foreigner had a knife. He had a gun, too! I don’t know why he didn’t use them on you, but if he had, you’d be dead right now!! Do you get that?!!”
“……Sorry for worrying you.”
“Haah… Jaehyuk. I’m grateful you stepped up to save me… but if you die trying to protect me, do you honestly think I could keep living with a clear conscience?”
“……”
Taeseok had always treated him like a real younger brother. That was exactly why Jaehyuk had been even more desperate to save him in this second life. It was why he had charged in without hesitation even when the opponent held a blade or a gun.
“……Let’s head inside. I’ll walk you to your door. Tell your family you slipped on the stairs while heading to the PC café.”
“Okay…”
As they walked toward the apartment entrance together, Taeseok draped an arm around Jaehyuk’s shoulders. His tone softened.
“Jaehyuk. You know I only got angry because I was worried about you, right? Don’t take it the wrong way.”
“……I know.”
“Good. Before you enter the dorms, let’s grab another drink. Just the two of us. Okay?”
“……Okay.”
A few days later, the files on the USB Taeseok had secured spread across the internet at lightning speed, released by reporter Ki Sangjun. Junghwan’s men had promised to protect Sangjun’s family on the condition that he publicize the USB’s contents.
For the sake of Taeseok—who had risked his life to save him—Sangjun chose to expose the truth about the corrupt authorities exactly as Taeseok had wanted.
The explosive revelation that the Russian mafia and domestic gangsters had been running a weapons deal with the tacit approval of prosecutors and police, and that they had murdered an undercover officer who discovered the truth while infiltrating the Gangryonghoe, shook the entire nation once again.
In the aftermath, International Crime Investigation Chief Kim Gyeonggeun and every other corrupt officer and prosecutor who had shielded the arms trade between the Gangryonghoe and the Komarov Bratva were all dismissed from their posts.
Several evenings later, inside a suite at the Crown Hotel, two executives of the Russian mafia Komarov Bratva—Ivan and Denis—were talking.
“Why couldn’t you kill Min Taeseok, Denis?”
Ivan stood by the window, slowly sipping wine. Denis sat on a single sofa, drinking Belenkaya vodka straight from the bottle.
“……There were interferers. I didn’t see them coming.”
“Well, if there were interferers, it can’t be helped.”
Ivan took another sip, then continued.
“The Gangryonghoe, along with the Korean police and prosecutors, plan to cut off the tail by claiming their underlings acted alone. We’ll do the same—say the lower Popov Bratva faction was behind it. After all, they were the ones who actually moved the weapons, so it’s not entirely a lie.”
Denis tilted the bottle again, gulping loudly, then spoke.
“Did Min Taeseok… have a younger brother?”
“Younger brother? He’s an only child. He shouldn’t have any siblings.”
“……At the time, some kid claiming to be his brother threw himself in front of him to save his life. Even though I was holding a knife, he didn’t hesitate for a second.”
Denis drained the rest of the bottle in one long pull.
“So, are you jealous?”
“There are relationships worse than strangers even when blood ties them together.”
“True… My wife once said the exact same thing.”
Ivan set his wineglass on a nearby shelf.
“Will you head to New York as scheduled?”
“Yes. ‘That child’s’ birthday is approaching.”
Ivan gave a short, dismissive laugh.
“Such devotion. You really want to concern yourself with the bloodline of a woman who abandoned her own family?”
“It was also the late Pahan’s order. What exactly is your complaint?”
Denis’s eyes flashed with irritation. Ivan immediately backpedaled like a dog that had barked too loudly and now tucked its tail with a whimper.
“Well… to the late Pahan, this is the first grandchild from his most beloved daughter. It would be strange if he felt no affection. Still, it does seem a bit excessive.”
With that, Ivan left the room. Denis set the empty vodka bottle on the table.
The woman who abandoned that family… was the only person we could truly call our own blood.
Meanwhile, after the investigation concluded, Kim Gyeonggeun climbed into his car to head home. Rage boiled inside him because things had not gone according to plan.
“Goddamn it!! Fuck!!”
He screamed for a moment, then took several deep breaths and began considering his future. The more he thought about it, the faster his anger transformed into fear.
Damn it… I haven’t said a word yet… But what if the others mention that the weapons sent from the Komarov Bratva to the Gangryonghoe are being funneled to Assemblyman Cha Jinyong’s private army? What if they decide I might talk and try to silence me?
Breathing hard to calm himself, Gyeonggeun desperately searched for a way to survive.
What do I do…? Is there any way to sell the others out and save myself…?
Just then his phone rang. Seeing “Caller ID Restricted,” he swallowed dryly and answered with a shaking voice.
“……Hello?”
“Chief Inspector Kim Gyeonggeun?”
The caller was Cha Jinyong, leader of the ruling Seonmin Party. A gaunt man in his late forties with streaks of white in his hair and gold-rimmed glasses, he sat in his office speaking calmly into the phone.
“I hear you’ve become entangled in the weapons deal between the Gangryonghoe and the Komarov Bratva.”
“A-Assemblyman… I…”
“Say nothing, Chief Inspector Kim Gyeonggeun.”
Cha Jinyong smiled softly and continued.
“I know exactly how hard you’ve worked all this time. I know very well.”
Gyeonggeun dared to hope that the assemblyman might spare him.
“Have you ever read the Romance of the Three Kingdoms? When Cao Cao attacked Yuan Shu, the military rations were consumed at an astonishing rate and the soldiers began to starve. Their discontent grew dangerous. Do you remember what clever plan Cao Cao devised?”
“Uh…”
A chill ran down Gyeonggeun’s spine. He lunged for the door, but suddenly a fishing line whipped around his neck from behind and tightened viciously. Lee Myeonggang—Cha Jinyong’s chief enforcer—had been waiting in the back seat.
“Gkk—! Gaaah—!!”
Gyeonggeun dropped the phone and thrashed wildly, but he could not break free from the grip of a man who had murdered countless people in exactly this manner.
“They announced that the military rations manager had embezzled supplies, then executed him and distributed extra rations to the troops, raising their morale. Thanks to the sacrifice of the military rations manager known as Chief Kim… our own morale will rise the same way.”
Roughly one year later.
Jaehyuk, his hair now cut military-short, stood with a hollow expression, staring blankly at the sign in front of him. Other young men with identically cropped hair waited nearby.
CRADLE OF NATIONAL DEFENSE
This can’t be happening…
Second enlistment… Fuck, a second enlistment…
“Wow. Our kiddo swore that by the time I went to the army, the country would be unified. Yet here we are.”
“Shut up…”
When Jaehyuk answered Taeseok, Jeonghan—who stood with Jihun and Suyeon—chuckled.
“For real? So this is the price you pay for that wild statement back then?”
Jihun gave Jaehyuk a bitter smile.
“Wait for me. I’m up in five months.”
Suyeon immediately hugged Jihun tight.
“Hng… Then I have to wait two whole years for Jihun oppa?”
“Service time’s been shortened to one year and seven months now, so don’t worry too much.”
“But that’s still one year and seven months without seeing you.”
“I’ll call every time I get leave.”
When Suyeon remained gloomy, Jihun comforted her. Dahyun spoke up as well.
“My friend says one year and seven months flies by. Just think of it as your husband going on a long overseas business trip and wait comfortably.”
“Okay…”
Sejin pulled Jaehyuk into a tight hug.
“When did our son grow up to look so dependable…? You’ll do well, won’t you?”
“I… I can do it.”
Jaehyuk offered his worried mother a reassuring smile.
It’s annoying that it’s the second time, but I’m confident I’ll handle it just fine.
And so, having regressed in time, Park Jaehyuk enlisted in the military for the second time.