PASSION Chapter 4 part 1

4.

That Saturday morning, crocodile tears flowed.

They, who had been tormented by their training day and night for a whole week—having to keep their minds sharp and tense even outside of regular hours—couldn't rest on the weekend either.

Normally, they would have been free to go out from Friday evening until Sunday evening, but that Saturday, they couldn't even leave the designated area without permission, let alone go out. This was because training resumed on Saturday afternoon.

At least for Saturday morning, they were released to conserve some energy, but having been relentlessly overworked until Friday night, they gritted their teeth at the instructors' seemingly merciful words: "Rest in the morning and gather in the afternoon."

"If training starts this afternoon, couldn't we just grab one of the instructors' throats and pretend it’s an accident?"

"To grab an instructor's throat, you'd have to deal with the instructor as well as the assistant instructors, who are following them…… It'd be tough to handle just one of them, do you have the confidence to take on both at once?"

"That's true. Then should we form a team? I'll take the instructor, you take the assistant instructor."

"Shall we? Which instructor should we target?"

"Obviously, the European branch instructors!"

The men, who were lying sprawled on mattresses in the gym instead of exercising, were passing the time with such trivial chatter.

Three hours remained until assembly time. "Only two hours until we have to gather," "Only one hour of free time left,"—among those groaning in agony each time they looked at the clock, Jeong Tae-ui sat curled up, hugging his knees.

I would have preferred to comfortably lie down in my room and spend a few hours reading a book or solving puzzles— a habit I'd picked up while living with Maurer— but I couldn't achieve my wish because Tou, his roommate, had dragged me along, leaving me stuck here.

Jeong Tae-ui watched the European branch members sitting a distance away, examining each one with a deeply puzzled expression, and assumed similar conversations were taking place among them.

When Jeong Tae-ui let out a quiet sigh, Yeon Ho, who was lying next to him tossing and turning, asked him what was wrong. Jeong Tae-ui responded thoughtfully with an "Hmm."

"It just occurred to me. People outside think UNHRDO is an organization filled with incredibly talented individuals, but these are the men who are UNHRDO members…… Carlo over there, scratching his groin inside his trunks, or Tou, who's been agitated like an opium addict since morning because he ran out of cigarettes, or Qing, the die-hard fan—in our country, we'd call such a guy a 'ppadol'—who still clutches a photo of Mei Yanfang every night, sobbing, 'Why did you leave me and die?……’ If outsiders knew, they'd be utterly distraught." ("Ppadol" (빠돌) is a Korean slang term for an obsessive male fan, often used mockingly.)

"Unn……. ……Hearing you say that, it does seem a bit serious, our branch."

"But it's quite reassuring to see that they're just as bad over there, not just us."

Jeong Tae-ui gestured with his chin towards a group of European branch members huddled against the opposite wall. They were also behaving just as disgracefully. Among them, some were pretending to be barbarians, others who had been sleeping suddenly jumped up and struck someone nearby after being stepped on by a "barbarian," and in one corner, there were even those fiddling with hwatu cards—not even proper playing cards—who knows where they had gotten them from. (Note: "Hwatu" (화투) refers to traditional Korean playing cards used in games like Go-Stop.)

I recalled what my uncle had once said: that after leaving here, I wouldn't have to worry about finding a job. Instead, I would be agonizing over where to choose.

To deceive so many companies and hand over such individuals as "talented" people for money, this was practically a fraudulent organization……. Jeong Tae-ui stared at them with disdain before turning his head away.

But if I thought about it, those kinds of guys were still better. Even if they were a bit odd, from an employer's perspective, they'd be considered successful if they didn't cause problems and simply did what they were told exceptionally well. The problem was graduating guys who couldn't be controlled by an employer and had serious personality issues.

For example…….

Jeong Tae-ui tried to recall something for a moment, then quickly shook his head. I was about to think of someone it was better not to think about. Constantly thinking about such a person would make one gloomy.

"Ah— the break is almost over. I guess I'll have to go out soon. Time for another round of hell is approaching. Ugh, damn it, at times like this, if I could just light one up before going out, things would go smoothly."

The future opium addict nervously paced before slumping down next to Jeong Tae-ui. Jeong Tae-ui looked sympathetically at Tou, who, lacking cigarettes, was chewing on a matchstick instead.

"Does chewing that make it taste like a cigarette?"

"Do you think it would? Ugh…… just one cigarette, no, I don't even wish for that much, I'd just be happy if there was a leftover butt from someone else. Just one puff."

If I were to mention now that I hadn't properly smoked the cigarette I had taken from Tou earlier, and had thrown it away as a full-length one, I would surely be beaten to death. I felt the need to apologize to him.

"I wonder if any of the European branch guys have cigarettes. Hey, if you happen to smell cigarette smoke on any of the European branch guys during training, let me know later. I'll just beat the hell out of him and get some cigarettes out of him."

It seemed like the ideology of extortion, blackmail, and racketeering within the branch was laid bare. Jeong Tae-ui stared at Tou with blank eyes, then turned away. He'd have to buy him some quitting tobacco later.

Jeong Tae-ui scratched his head and checked his watch. There wasn't much time left until 1 o'clock, which is supposed to be when the assembly time starts. He rotated his head left and right to loosen his neck and asked, to no one in particular.

"But can you really pretend to hit an instructor during training and call it an accident?"

"Hmm, basically it's a free-for-all sparring match. Oh, right, you're new to this. The rules are simple: if you catch 'em, you just beat 'em. And if you get caught, you just get beaten. If you don't want to get hit, you break free and run. When the time is up, the predators become the prey and all the ones chased can do is defend themselves. The predators are strictly on defense. Attacks are only allowed if you’re trying to run away. That's it. However, because the rules are so simple, a lot of accidents happen. In fact, the clause that allows counterattacking to break free and escape, if you think about it, means you can counterattack someone who's attacking you. So, it's only a matter of time before it turns into a free-for-all dogfight."

"What kind of rule is that? Can't I just hide somewhere until the time runs out?"

"If you hide and get caught, you'll most likely get a group beating. It's better to just run. Well, if you're confident in hiding properly, you can, but the area is limited."

Jeong Tae-ui stared dumbfounded at Tou, who was explaining. He couldn't tell if such an utterly barbaric method was truly effective training, but Tou and the others had serious expressions.

"It’s no joke, you'd better be careful. If you let down your guard, you’ll be in big trouble." 

Carlo mumbled from where he was lying a little distance away. Jeong Tae-ui glanced back at him.

I get what they are trying to say. Indeed, as they said, the simpler the rules, the more dangerous the game tends to become. Not only those rules seem to encourage a lot of risks and dangers. Either run unconditionally, or catch the one running and beat them unconditionally.

"Seems like, if you can't break free and escape, you could get beaten to death."

Jeong Tae-ui clicked his tongue and muttered. It was half a joke, but Qing nodded with a solemn face. 

"You might, if you're unlucky. If you’re unlucky enough to be hit in a critical spot, then yeah. Um…… and in your case, you need to be even more careful. The worst degenerate of all has a grudge against you."

"……."

I didn't need to ask who that degenerate guy was. Even though the man had said he wasn't in the mood to quarrel yesterday, you never knew. His mood might have changed today. That man also seemed to live quite as he pleased.

"You have to keep your guards up, because sometimes guys who usually have a grudge against someone take advantage of this time to do terrible things. And though we hope it's not among us, sometimes even teammates take this opportunity to settle scores. It's truly cutthroat."

As Qing clicked his tongue and spoke, Alta, standing next to him, replied with sparkling eyes.

"On the other hand, if there's someone you usually hate, you can give them a little smack during this opportunity." 

Jeong Tae-ui offered a silent prayer for the unknown opponent that Alta held a grudge against.

It had been almost a week since the training began, but I still couldn't quite grasp this brutal and vicious atmosphere. Every day, people were injured in various accidents, big and small, and carried away. There were even some who had already died. Within this small island, things that defied common sense were happening as if they were nothing.

"I have to get out of here in six months, somehow, or I really feel like I might become like them." 

Jeong Tae-ui sighed and mumbled to himself. What I feared most in this situation was precisely this. No matter how unfamiliar the situation a person is thrown into, they gradually adapt over time. It happens without even realizing that they are gradually being dyed by the situation.

Everything has its pros and cons, and this place certainly had its advantages, but the disadvantages were just too bad.

"It seems like you're not quite getting the hang of it," 

"Remember that video we saw during the combat analysis before the joint training started? That was an edited compilation of footage from this kind of weekend training."

Tou said from beside him. Jeong Tae-ui mumbled, "What video...?" before his face hardened.

It’s that. The vivid, striking red marks that left scattered traces in that video were unforgettable.

"So, you’re saying we’re about to start a training where people can just kill others like it’s nothing? It's kind of funny to even call it training." 

Jeong Tae-ui clicked his tongue and muttered, and Tou shrugged.

"Not exactly. That was because that guy was a lunatic unlike anyone else. In truth, even if someone isn't the enemy who killed my parents, I wouldn't beat them to death no matter how much I hated them. Sometimes, people die in accidents, but deliberately killing someone is rare. You just have to make sure you don’t run into someone insane like him."

After listening to Tou, Jeong Tae-ui was half convinced. Indeed, normally, no matter how much someone dislikes another person, they wouldn't think of killing them unless they were truly extreme. Even without having experienced it, it's due to an instinctive understanding of the weight of murder.

……If that's the case, then just how terrifying a grudge has that guy accumulated for so many people to line up and rush at him, while willing to risk their own lives to kill him?

Jeong Tae-ui's mouth felt bitter. Well, in life, it's possible to encounter people you'd want to kill even if it meant throwing everything away. A life without such encounters would probably be a happy one.

"Hey, time's up. Shall we get going?"

"Aah, yeah. Let's make it out alive."

Carlo stood up first and spoke, and the other men also rose from their seats, responded.

When Carlo stood up and spoke in front of him, the other men rose from their seats and responded.

Jeong Tae-ui desperately wished he could stay put, not wanting to face the bleak hell that awaited him outside. However, Tou grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him up, forcing him to reluctantly rise.

***

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Credits:

Translator: Hoshi Miya

Editor/Proofreader: Tâmago

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