CH 351

To some people, nighttime might be a good thing. Nighttime was the time of rest, time to recharge their batteries, after all. To those who got knocked around at work and harassed by the tribulations of life, nighttime could be the only time they were free from other people's intrusions.

However, Choi Yeon-Ha wasn't able to enjoy the night. Due to the unique quirks of her profession, she never really viewed nighttime as the time to rest. If the shooting schedule got delayed, she'd be filming her scenes night and day. Quite literally, too—filming in sound stages could often last twenty-four hours. Sometimes more.

She thought of herself as a night owl, but... Lately, she came to realize that those nights had been kind to her by letting her relax. Well, that was because she wasn't scared of nights back then.

'I've gotten too pathetic.'

Choi Yeon-Ha prided herself as a tough woman. And those who knew her would have to agree with her assessment. Despite having nearly zero backing, Choi Yeon-Ha still managed to climb to her current position in the entertainment industry while overcoming so many different temptations.

Some people called her tenacious, determined, and driven. Some condemned her while labeling her a cold-hearted b*tch. Despite all the jealousy and envy aimed at her bubbling away in the shadows, Choi Yeon-Ha didn't even bat an eyelid.

That was why everyone believed she was a tough ol' cookie. Even she came to believe that. But the tunnel incident had shattered that illusion.

Choi Yeon-Ha knew all too well that mental trauma couldn't be overcome with one's willpower alone. That knowledge didn't help her out when it came to alleviating this tightening sensation in her chest, though.

The night's breeze felt a little icy to her cheeks. Choi Yeon-Ha was currently on the hospital's roof to get some fresh air. The amber glow of the sunset cast over the western mountains looked beautiful.

'I feel... weird lately.'

Choi Yeon-Ha faced the sunset while closing her eyes. What a strange feeling this was. She was certain that the tunnel incident wasn't responsible for making her feel this way. Even if she didn't go through that ordeal, a similar thought would've popped up in Choi Yeon-Ha's head eventually.

Until recently, Choi Yeon-Ha lived her life with only one goal in mind: to become an even better actor. And to become an even more successful actor, too.

To achieve that goal, Choi Yeon-Ha swore not to get derailed from her current path.

She had been constantly running ahead for that singular goal. But her life began to get out of whack recently.

Choi Yeon-Ha had become... derailed. And she had no excuses for it. The past her would've done anything to get back on track, but the current Choi Yeon-Ha was thinking, 'So what?'

She came to learn that there was more than one way to live one's life. Becoming more successful would certainly be nice, but she'd have to throw the 'now' away. Once Choi Yeon-Ha got older and looked back on her life, would Choi Yeon-Ha be satisfied by her only accomplishment of being a successful actress?

In the not-too-long-ago past, she might have answered yes. But that wasn't the case anymore.

'...Kang Jin-Ho.'

Choi Yeon-Ha ended up witnessing him. And that 'him' was Kang Jin-Ho.

From her perspective, Kang Jin-Ho was a genuinely strange person. He possessed all the qualifications that Choi Yeon-Ha ardently wished for but didn't seem particularly interested in being successful.

If he wanted, Kang Jin-Ho could have easily acquired all the fame and wealth. But he ran a pizzeria with his friends. Very poorly, too. And on his off days, he'd go to an orphanage to do sundry chores. It didn't even look like he was helping out much, either.

Kang Jin-Ho's way of life was like an unsolvable mystery to Choi Yeon-Ha.

“He's such a strange creature. Seriously!”

Maybe that was why she developed an interest in Kang Jin-Ho. Initially, Choi Yeon-Ha merely wanted to use his good looks to advance her career. However, when she got to know him better, Choi Yeon-Ha grew less interested in his looks and more intrigued by the man himself.

Was it curiosity toward someone living a completely different life to hers?

After experiencing various events with him, a certain impression branded itself powerfully in her mind.

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Choi Yeon-Ha had no idea if Kang Jin-Ho's life was the right way to live. Everyone had a different way of living, didn't they? And she didn't have the qualifications to judge other people's lives, anyway.

However, she was a hundred percent certain that Kang Jin-Ho was enjoying his life to the fullest. That was the impression Choi Yeon-Ha got, even though Kang Se-Ah might vehemently disagree.

Kang Jin-Ho enjoyed living in the moment. He didn't sacrifice the present for the sake of the future. He lived as if the present meant everything to him.

And that... was so blindingly bright to Choi Yeon-Ha's eyes. She always thought being patient in the present for the sake of her future was the wisest thing for her, but then, she witnessed a life diametrically opposed to her way of living.

And that was why she began thinking this way.

'The end result of that is this... Whew.'

Choi Yeon-Ha was having a torrid time thanks to Kang Jin-Ho's face that haunted her mind whenever she breathed. When her fear waned, her mind would inevitably wonder what that man was doing after locking her away in this hospital.

'You're such a... uncaring man!'

Choi Yeon-Ha didn't mind that Kang Jin-Ho was away, taking care of... whatever it was. However, he knew she was stuck in a hospital room all by herself. The least he could do for her was check up on her every now and then through chat apps or something!

“He really doesn't have any common sense…”

Choi Yeon-Ha knew oh-so-well that Kang Jin-Ho was uncaring, too stoic to say anything even if he wasn't happy about something, and most importantly... Searching for any semblance of kindness or thoughtfulness in Kang Jin-Ho was a fool's errand. However, rather than an incorrigible, uncouth man, Kang Jin-Ho was more like... A bit too old-fashioned?

'Still, I'm wrong about one thing...'

A grin etched on Choi Yeon-Ha's lips. “Yeah, he can be a little considerate if he wants to.”

While they were trapped underground, Kang Jin-Ho behaved somewhat differently from what she knew. He kept trying to chat with her and worried for her.

Choi Yeon-Ha never imagined Kang Jin-Ho would have such sides to him. And without him, she might have never endured being trapped down there. Her only solace back then was knowing someone who cared about her and thought about her safety was in the same space as her.

“I must've really gone crazy…” Choi Yeon-Ha hurriedly tried to suppress the rising corners of her lips.

She felt flustered by how she was grinning like a hapless idiot while thinking about a man. Didn't she mock and ridicule her juniors who smiled like they owned the world after finding themselves boyfriends?

But here she was, doing similar things to those girls. At least, those actresses behaved that way after finding boyfriends. Choi Yeon-Ha was alone on the rooftop, busy daydreaming by herself. A hollow chuckle was the first thing to leak out of her mouth after she grew conscious of that sad reality.

'I need to pull my socks up, but...'

Unfortunately for her, her already-in-trouble mind didn't want to go back to how it was before.

“Maybe, he's the slightly considerate type...?”

Maybe, Kang Jin-Ho was pretending to be a stiff, unfriendly hedgehog as he was too shy and socially awkward. When Choi Yeon-Ha logically thought about it, a dull and uncaring person wouldn't behave that comfortably around the orphanage's kids.

After realizing that Kang Jin-Ho also had a... 'somewhat' adorable side, Choi Yeon-Ha began grinning softly.

***

Cruuunch-!

That noise was far too vivid. And far too bone-chilling, too. Nomura Ryoji clenched his fists tightly without even realizing it.

'Something... Something is wrong here!'

He had been briefed as much as possible before coming here. A new, unknown Korean returner had murdered Nomura Ryoji's comrades dispatched from the clan. So, Ryoji and his subordinates were sent to Korea to punish the returner and to carry out the long-delayed incursion into the Korean peninsula.

Their priority was to punish the returner. Although the warriors of the Great Nihon Empire losing to a low-leveled Korean punk sounded unbelievable, the reality was reality. And returners sometimes could transcend the environment and situation facing them, so Nomura Ryoji had little choice but to accept it.

That was why the clan was extra cautious. Even if their target easily exceeded the Korean martial arts' standards, only the elites capable of killing such an individual had been brought together. And the result of that... was unfolding right before Nomura Ryoji's eyes.

Nomura Ryoji's subordinate was gripped in Kang Jin-Ho's hand, his tongue hanging loose while his neck bent at a weird angle.

Instant death!

From the body of his subordinate who was alive only a minute ago, the heat was quickly ebbing away. What an unbelievable sight this was.

'No, no need to get shocked!'

Nomura Ryoji bit his lip, hard.

He and his men were also here to kill. And Kang Jin-Ho was their target. If everything had gone according to plan, the one with the broken neck would've been Kang Jin-Ho. So, seeing someone die shouldn't come as a surprise. But, why...?

Why was Nomura Ryoji sensing this inexplicable disharmony from this situation?

Plop...

Kang Jin-Ho released his grip, causing the corpse of Nomura Ryoji's subordinate to crash onto the ground.

'Ah. So, that was why.'

Only then did Ryoji figure out the truth of that weird disharmony. Every single individual present in this place was capable of killing another person. And all of them probably had blood on their hands already.

Even then, Nomura Ryoji still felt that disharmony. Why? It was simple. He didn't sense a single hint of psychological unwillingness to take a human life from Kang Jin-Ho.

What would the emotions running inside a person's head be like as they killed someone?

Not as in shooting someone from afar, but breaking someone's neck with their own hands. How would the murderer feel at that moment?

Most might feel spooked. If not, they might feel uneasy. At the very least, some amount of repulsion and unwillingness.

Or, those serial killers addicted to murdering humans would feel ecstasy during their deeds.

However, none of those things could be sensed from Kang Jin-Ho. He looked so... natural and practiced.

Kang Jin-Ho was simply doing what had to be done, and his emotions didn't have a part in it. That didn't mean he was emotionless, of course.

'How should I describe this...?'

A butcher slicing and chopping meat in his butchery wouldn't feel anything special while doing his job. A fruit picker employed by an orchard wouldn't feel anything while picking apples.

Kang Jin-Ho killing people was something like that. The act of murder seemed too natural for him. He was performing the horrifying act of breaking another person's neck and turning a perfectly-alive human being into a corpse as if he was a factory worker tightening bolts in an assembly line.

'That man is a lunatic!'

This was not the problem of whether he was strong or weak. Even if Kang Jin-Ho was a weakling who couldn't even win against a little child, Nomura Ryoji would've arrived at the same conclusion.

A human should have at least the minimum level of respect toward their fellow human beings. If a person no longer viewed others as their fellow men, that person didn't deserve to be called a human being.

In that case...

What was Nomura Ryoji supposed to call Kang Jin-Ho?

Just as Nomura Ryoji's thoughts reached that far, Kang Jin-Ho began leisurely moving from his spot.

“Not yet,” said Kang Jin-Ho.

Craaack...!

As Kang Jin-Ho clenched his fists, the sound of bones cracking rang out in the air. That noise was far more threatening and terrifying than any spoken word could ever be.

“No. Not yet...!”

Kang Jin-Ho's eyes were bloodshot. They were like a wild predator's that had been blinded by month-long starvation.

And, for the first time in Nomura Ryoji's professional career, he thought about fleeing this place after looking into those burning eyes. Never before in his life did he feel like he was a helpless lamb shivering in front of a predator baring its fangs.

Kang Jin-Ho flashed a toothy grin. “You were the ones that started this. Do you agree?”

Kang Jin-Ho's crimson eyes burning vividly in the middle of nowhere covered in the veil of darkness exerted unspeakable pressure on the Japanese.

“In that case, I should finish it.”

Kang Jin-Ho leisurely closed the distance, his smile getting deeper.

Choi Yeon-Ha's thoughts were only half-right. Unexpectedly, Kang Jin-Ho was being considerate toward the Japanese, after all!

The painless death was the greatest act of mercy Kang Jin-Ho could bestow on these men.