TPLTW Chapter 10

Chapter 10

“Yes, I found it in the medicine cabinet.”

The woman habitually coiled the tangled landline cord around her finger.

“Yes, I will.”

It was quite funny how she was kneeling down politely and answering the phone as if she were an elderly person, even though all she had in front of her was an old telephone covered in dirt.

“Yes, welcome.”

The woman, who had ended the call by bowing her head as if asking what to do next, opened the mother-of-pearl chest in the corner of the living room and took out a medicine box.

As Taegeon watched her rustling through the contents, he could tell that she was double-checking the “something” that she had said she saw in the medicine cabinet.

Before long, she took out a blue bag of patches.

“Here it is.”

She muttered to herself without realizing it, then turned around to look at him and coughed for no reason.

Taegeon, who was sitting in the corner of the floor with his arms crossed, raised the corners of his lips silently.

Here. It is.

The voice in those three syllables was so innocent that it made him laugh.

No, he didn’t know much about women, so he wouldn’t say there was no innocence. She always seemed quiet and timid in front of him, but it suddenly occurred to him that maybe she had been a pretty cheerful person to begin with.

She went to her room and reappeared fully bundled up in a white padded jumper and a muffler of the same color.

Masks, sunglasses, hats, and now even mufflers.

Taegeon had thought about it while cleaning the yard—if she were to wear a mask and a muffler wrapped around her like that, then he wasn’t sure if she’d be able to breathe properly.

She spoke, her sneakers neatly tied as she hunched over.

“I have to go to Grandma Mokrye’s house to give her some paste.”

Taegeon, now quite used to the woman’s mask, stared blankly at her and swallowed the laughter that was about to burst out.

Why are you reporting it in such a detail again?

She was someone who was awkward yet amusing when she insisted on formality, but her actions were secretly funny.

“Okay. Have a nice trip.”

She walked briskly across the yard, her head slightly bowed as stiffly as ever. The bohemian skirt flowing down to her ankles beneath the long white padded jumper fluttered with her every step.

His gaze dropped further, resting on her thin ankles that looked like they would break if he so much as snapped them.

Looking at her roughly, it seemed like her head would barely reach his chest. If her skeleton was that small, how tiny must her body be beneath all that thick clothing? He wondered again.

The green gate, which reached the woman’s shoulders, shut firmly. A round mask like a snowman’s head bobbed away beyond the low stone wall.

Taegeon, who had followed her with his gaze until she disappeared, smiled more harmlessly than ever before.

It felt like he was the reason she had to wear a mask even inside the house, so he had a mischievous feeling that he was going to stay here for a very long time.

Though it wasn’t the time for such peaceful thoughts.

“Ha….”

He smiled as if he had never smiled before, sighed, and wiped his face.

For several days after regaining his full consciousness, he had sighed countless times a day as his emotions shifted so rapidly.

If it weren’t for Soo-chul constantly chasing him around and that woman who made him laugh just by looking at her, he wouldn’t have had anything to smile about for even a second.

He had no idea what the situation in Seoul was.

There was still no contact from the vice president, let alone Chun-seop.

If the power had been turned on, he would have checked the number of missed calls and contacted them. If there was still no response, that meant something was wrong with both of them.

It would be fortunate if they were still alive, but as time passed by without any news, he couldn’t help but feel more anxious.

If he had known this would happen, he would have memorized the contact information of his other subordinates. Unfortunately, aside from those two, he couldn’t recall any numbers—not even vaguely.

It was clear that this was a total mess, and yet, he just sat there peacefully, sometimes even laughing…

Squeak, squeak.

The electric heater next to him spun stiffly, melting the cold air. Taegeon leaned the back of his head against the pillar and stared blankly at the squeaking red heating wire.

“……”

It was extremely peaceful.

The sound of the waves, the scent of the ocean, the occasional smell of cooking from the kitchen, and even this old electric stove.

It was a place so comfortable and tranquil that he could simply sit and listen, smell, and observe.

Seven years ago, when he had drifted here after being attacked by the assassin that Jo Seok-hyeon had secretly sent after him, he had liked this lonely peace so much that he had considered giving up everything.

Back then, he had come here just to die cleanly, like a human being, so he had no regrets about anything he left behind in Seoul.

Every single day had been unbearably difficult and tedious. He had followed his father and ended up in this life, but even though he had lived fiercely, risking everything, it was still exhausting and empty.

So at that time, he had been ready to throw everything away. But now, things were different.

Having risen to the position of executive director under Masangbae, he had built a large following under him over the past seven years.

If something were to happen to Masangbae, he alone would be responsible for the hundreds of subordinates left behind. Even if that wasn’t the only reason enough, the fury he had been harboring towards Jo Seok-hyeon had now reached its peak.

He had to get back to Seoul somehow and fix this fucked-up situation.

But how? Where should he even start? Even if he was lucky, half of his troops were probably gone. He didn’t even know if his leader was alive or dead.

How was he supposed to handle this?

Before he knew it, Taegeon was lying stretched out on the floor, deep in thought, covering his eyes with his arm.

He habitually fiddled with his shiny gold lighter, letting his vague thoughts drift.

He had no idea how much time had passed.

Click. He flicked the lighter cap open with his thumb.

Thump. He snapped it shut again, repeating the motion a few times.

Just then, the rustic phone rang. His arm, which had been covering his eyes, immediately dropped. The monotonous, loud ringing came from the woman’s room next to the guest room.

It must be her cell phone.

Taegeon sat up straight, ignoring the sharp pain stabbing his lower abdomen. He walked slowly towards the woman’s room without hesitation.

He opened the door and scanned the room, following the sound. His gaze soon landed on the desk drawer to the left.

Without delay, Taegeon opened the drawer and snatched the loudly ringing cell phone. The moment he checked the number displayed on the small LCD screen—

“Ha….”

He tilted his head back and let out a deep sigh of relief. As he pressed the call button and brought the phone to his ear, a familiar voice cautiously came through the receiver.

“…Sir? Is that you?”

The tone was unmistakably Yang Chun-seop.

Taegeon smirked.

“It’s me.”

There was a brief silence, then the man on the other end suddenly raised his voice.

“…Sir? Is it really you Sir?!”

Taegeon pressed his forehead, feeling a strange chill settle over him. The weight of everything that had been stifling him seemed to lift just a little.

Maybe he had been more anxious and worried than he realized. Even so, he simply asked in a calm tone.

“Where are you?”

– Oh my, sir! Are you really Mr. Taegeon? Yes?

After confirming once again that it was him, Chun-seop, who could not calm down his excitement at all, finally started sobbing and talking incoherently.

– Wow, shit, seriously…! My heart is pounding, I was worried that they might have done something wrong to you, wow, seriously!

Taegeon waited for Chun-seop’s excitement to subside, by remaining somewhat silent. For about a minute or two, all he could say was, “Wow, really, what the hell, Mr. Taegeon, what is this?”

I had forgotten for a moment, but Yang Chun-seop is one step ahead of Kim Soo-chul when it comes to being absent-minded.

Chun-seop, who had barely calmed down his excitement, answered his previous question by saying that he was in Daegu.

“Daegu?”

He barely managed to shake off the persistent pursuers and hid in his younger sister Chun-hee’s house, and Chun-hee took Chun-seop with her to avoid the pursuers and they went to their hometown, Daegu.

– Yes. Then we came down to Daegu and seriously sir, I felt like we almost came back to life again. Wow… Man, this spirit of mine came and went, and it seems like I am alive again. It’s been a week now.

Chun-seop added that he barely regained consciousness after going between life and death and that he looked for his cell phone. Chun-seop’s cell phone was reportedly found in the backseat of the car with a dead battery.

– Sir, where are you? Sir, where are you staying currently?

“I’m in Anjin.”

– In Anjin? Oh! Are you talking about that old man’s house?

The only person who knew about Taegeon’s connection to this village was Chunseop. When he came down here seven years ago, he had secretly been thinking about settling down, but it was Chunseop who came to get him.

He knew that even after all this, whenever Taegeon got particularly tired at night in Seoul, he would often say, “Should I go to Songdae Village?” out of habit, longing for rest.

Chun-seop couldn’t hide his worry, fearing that he might have the same thoughts again.

-Are you injured?

Taegeon smiled as if to tell him not to worry and looked at his body, which had not yet fully recovered.

“Not much. I won’t be able to eat or drink in this condition. I still have trouble moving around.”

It was a moment when his gaze, which had been near his abdomen, meaninglessly passed over the desk.

“First, let’s figure out the situation of Sang bae….”

“Hey, what are you doing right now?!”

A sharp, shrill voice rose up, as if the roof were about to fall off.

When Taegeon looked back in surprise, the woman had thrown down the basket of vegetables she was holding and had run into the room, grumbling without even taking off her shoes.

The woman suddenly pulled a blanket over the desk and covered herself with it, then reached out desperately for her cell phone.

“Please!”

Taegeon instinctively moved his body slightly and grabbed the hand of the woman who was reaching out in front of him.

“What is it, all of a sudden?”

“Give me my cell phone!”

She didn’t give up and quickly reached out to him from her other hand. The moment she reached out to him, he raised his hand holding the phone above his head, it was mainly because his reflexes were uselessly excellent.

It was a situation that had occurred in just 2 seconds. Taegeon, who was shocked, furrowed his brow and asked in a rather prickly tone.

“What are you doing?”

“That’s what I should be saying. What are you doing, in someone else’s room!”

“I’m on the phone. Can’t you see?”

“It’s my phone. Why are you using it without permission?”

“I just got the call I was waiting for.”

“But why did you come into my room like that…!”

“Calm down. Why are you so excited? You are acting as if I am stealing something from your room.”

The fierce exchange of voices, more agitated than ever yet forced to remain low, left no time to catch one’s breath. It was a heated argument that flared up in an instant—so much so that Taegeon didn’t even realized that he had unknowingly dropped his honorifics.

Hae-In was staring blankly at her cell phone, which had fallen far away, grumbling under her breath. She no longer cared about the hat that had slipped from her head.

Taegeon let out a sigh, unable to understand her sudden outburst.

It was completely unexpected. Could a phone call from inside a room really cause such a stir? It was hard to reconcile with this timid woman, one who had quietly stepped out the front door just minutes ago.

Hae-In’s gaze, which had been fixed on the phone, suddenly shifted. She clenched her teeth and glared at him venomously.

“Give me my phone and get out right now.”

Taegeon scoffed in disbelief, letting out a dry laugh.

“Hey, Lee Soon-Jung.”