Chapter 95
“I’m also from the research facility.”
The moment I heard Shin Hae-jun’s words, I could feel as if a heavy fog was enveloping my mind. I wanted to believe he was lying, but deep down, a part of me thought it might not be a lie.
Was Shin Hae-jun really just an ordinary person? Was his body truly unmodified?
Even if he fell into the midst of an infected horde, did anyone ever think he would die? No, no one ever worried about that. Even if he got injured, we never took any special measures, assuming he would quickly recover. Yes, everyone took his combat abilities for granted.
“General, aren’t you hurt?”
“Oh. It’ll be fine if you leave it be.”
And sure enough, within a few days, he showed a clean recovery. There were a few occasions when everyone was surprised and impressed, but even those moments didn’t last long. Later on, I used to think that Shin Hae-jun would get better on his own if he got hurt, so I passed it over.
Only now did I realize his astounding recovery was due to his modified body from the research facility, leaving me utterly confused.
The reason I eventually joined the military, despite previously tracking down the now seemingly disappeared research facility, was because the trail of the facility had been cut off within the military. I thought there must still be some connection between the military and the facility, so I chose to enlist and even managed to get promoted. But even with my promotion, there wasn’t much I could find out. All I knew was that there was some connection between the facility and the military.
So, I decided to climb a little higher. Maybe I could find out more if I climbed higher. That’s why I faithfully followed the orders of the military until the infected outbreak occurred.
After that, I went AWOL to focus on finding my younger brother, rather than searching for the research facility. Finding the facility was important, but nothing was as important to me as finding my brother. And that’s how my military life came to an end.
But what about Shin Hae-jun?
Shin Hae-jun is a General, six ranks above me with stars on his shoulders, with access to much more information and resources than I have.
And yet,
“Research facility…. Or so they say. I don’t know what kind of experiments were done there.”
He claims to be an experiment subject like me, yet with more information available to him.
You lied to me like that. Pretending not to know anything, acting like you would look into the research facility since I was focused on finding my brother, putting on that whole act.
Screech! After shaking off the infected, the motorcycle came to a stop in a deserted area. As I continued dwelling on my thoughts, I lost count of how many infected I had killed. But in any case, I survived this time too, allowing me to confront Shin Hae-jun. Clearing my head of the incessant ruminations, I quickly got off the motorcycle.
“You pretended not to know anything about it, didn’t you?”
Even to my own ears, my voice was laced with rage – the maximum emotion a betrayed person can feel. How laughable of me. I thought I never trusted Shin Hae-jun to begin with…but it seems I did, judging by how angry I am now.
“Why did you pretend not to know?”
In response to my heated words, Shin Hae-jun tilted his head askance before abruptly removing his goggles and said,
“It was a fact I didn’t want to reveal.”
“Then why reveal it now?”
“Well…”
His expression became inscrutable—a look I had never seen from him before. The corners of his mouth hinted at a faint smile, yet resembled the shadows that appear when one can no longer bear the weight of solitude. A face like a melancholic monochrome painting.
“Because I’m lonely?”
Even his voice contained traces of long-standing loneliness and quiet contemplation. So I couldn’t help but be surprised. Shin Hae-jun, feeling lonely? The great Shin Hae-jun himself.
But that’s exactly why I was so dumbfounded—loneliness didn’t seem like an emotion grand enough to fully retract the deception he had subjected me to all this time. Perhaps I just can’t understand, having rarely felt loneliness myself.
“Please tell me another reason.”
“The truth is…”
“I don’t understand.”
“Hmm.”
Shin Hae-jun let out a low hum as he stared piercingly at me. Then, as if struck by a thought, he exhaled in seeming exasperation and shook his head.
“It seems Lieutenant Min always thinks I’m lying. Having a subordinate who doesn’t trust their superior is quite disappointing.”
“You are no longer my superior, General.”
“We’re still working together, so in a sense, I am.”
“I don’t want to play with words.”
I said firmly, furrowing my brows.
“I, I don’t understand.”
“What?”
“……”
I couldn’t bring myself to answer. How could I ask how he ended up like this despite being at ‘that’ research facility? But though I didn’t voice it, I still didn’t understand Shin Hae-jun.
I recalled my own experience.
How was I when I was at the research facility? I sought life beyond the transparent glass walls, yearning to find answers to the innate curiosity and infinite questions etched into my brain, at any cost. I was a caged bird, constantly flapping my wings to be ready to fly free anytime.
But it seems Shin Hae-jun was different. Perhaps curiosity wasn’t what was etched into his brain, but something else that made him a different person from me.
“Lieutenant Min.”
Shin Hae-jun interrupted my train of thought.
“Why is it so strange that despite the hell I went through at that place, I ended up obediently following the military’s orders like a dog?”
He hit the nail on the head regarding my thoughts. At a loss for words, I averted my gaze and responded vaguely.
“…You were quite observant.”
“Yeah, they did personality tests on me when I was young.”
I barely stopped myself from laughing. In this tense atmosphere, laughing would surely dilute the sense of betrayal and anger I felt.
So into the silence between us, carried by the passing breeze, Shin Hae-jun spoke again.
“I also find you quite strange.”
“Pardon me?”
“How can you live like that after going through that? I find myself wondering the same thing when I look at you.”
“…Did I really hear that right?”
His words made no sense, so I tilted my head in confusion. Shin Hae-jun then laughed at my reaction. He laughed for quite a while, and I couldn’t fathom why, which only irritated me. Wait, I’m the one feeling betrayed here. I should be angry after he has deceived me all this time. Why is he the one guffawing like that?
“General Shin.”
I clenched my fists tightly and looked up. I wanted to punch Shin Hae-jun’s face right then and there, but I restrained myself with difficulty. Taking deep breaths, I forced myself to look at him.
“Did you find amusement in deceiving me all this time?”
Finally stopping his laughter, Shin Hae-jun responded.
“I didn’t deceive you. I just didn’t tell you.”
But his answer did not sit well with me. I clenched my fists even tighter.
“If you had told me sooner, General, I would have known in advance that there was more than one research facility. That me and my brother weren’t the only experiment subjects.”
Yes, this is what I should be angry about. Not just the personal sense of betrayal I felt, but the objective fact of how greatly he erred.
“Just because you didn’t want to say one thing, I missed out on information about my brother. If I had known a little earlier, I would have acted differently. Don’t you agree?”
My voice trembled. Thinking about Woo-joo made me like this. I clenched my teeth and breathed heavily. Looking at me like that, Shin Hae-jun casually spoke up.
“Ah, I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“Shin Hae-jun!”
This bastard.
“You know how desperately I want to find my brother. How could you hide that from me!”
I grabbed his collar and shouted. I could feel myself on the verge of losing it. However, Shin Hae-jun remained incredibly calm. As if nothing was wrong, as if nothing had happened.
“Ahyeon-ah.”
He spoke with a peaceful tone, gently holding my hand with warmth.
“Are you really angry at me because you believe your brother is still alive?”
🕂
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