PASSION Chapter 4 Part 5

Chapter 4 Part 5

"...What's wrong? Did you fall in the bathroom and get stuck in the toilet?"

To Tae-ui's question, Tou only glared at him with fierce eyes, not answering.

His murderous entrance made him look like someone who had been beaten up somewhere and returned breathing heavily, unable to vent his anger.

"Why are you glaring at me so scary-like. ...Did you get into it with the European branch?"

When Tae-ui probed subtly, Tou's face became even fiercer with anger. Must have hit the mark.

Though it hadn't even been half an hour since the instructor had warned them not to cause trouble after the European branch members arrived, it seemed that warning had been in vain as expected. Or maybe this guy who had been sitting in the bathroom would insist "I never heard such a warning."

"Those bastards deliberately bumped into people as they passed. So when I tried to grab one and hit him, the instructor happened to show up then. ...Ah, maybe I should have just hit him regardless of the instructor being there."

"It's fine, you did well holding back. What good would come from causing trouble on the first day? There'll be plenty of chances to get back at them away from the instructors' eyes, right?"

Tae-ui patted Tou's shoulder while smiling. Though Tou still looked dissatisfied, he seemed to calm down a bit.

Having bad relations with Lieutenant Kim's platoon is helpful at times like this. Had to pacify those guys once or twice. Though that ended up with me causing trouble and getting discharged.

Tae-ui let out a breath and moved his feet. Tou, who had been downing a beer from the refrigerator in one go, saw him and asked:

"Where are you going?"

"Hmm... ...bathroom."

If he said he was going to get something from his room, Tou would definitely either insist on coming along or grind his teeth and try to stop him. Since neither was what he wanted, Tae-ui trailed off briefly before giving what seemed like the most neutral answer. At that, Tou offered advice while finishing his beer:

"If any of them bumps into you, you smash that bastard's face before the instructor shows up."

"Oh... I'll keep that in mind."

Tae-ui waved his hand without looking back as he left the room.

Indeed, from the moment he stepped into the corridor, he could feel that murderous atmosphere on his skin. He saw men gathered in groups of two or three here and there throughout the corridor, standing threateningly. Some were from this branch, some from that branch. The way they glared at each other while muttering was truly like a powder keg ready to explode.

"The relationship is... even more splendid than I imagined."

Tae-ui muttered with a sigh under his breath as he walked.

The distance from Tou's room to Tae-ui's room was quite far. A distance that didn't seem so close even normally felt even further walking in this atmosphere.

"Hey, Tae-ui. Where you headed?"

One of the groups standing in the corridor greeted him. It was a guy from another team who normally wouldn't even properly acknowledge him, let alone greet him. However, perhaps internal unity naturally formed when external enemies approached - he greeted very warmly in this situation with enemies stationed throughout the corridor. While conscious of the fierce gazes from unfamiliar faces standing some distance away, Tae-ui also casually raised his hand.

"Bathroom."

"The bathroom's right there."

Finding it strange that he was passing the bathroom right in front of him, the guy who had first spoken asked again. Tae-ui shrugged.

"I need the familiar toilet near my room. I'm a bit particular."

"Ahaha, what a weird guy."

Though he laughed as if dumbfounded, he didn't say anything more.

Tae-ui walked on with his hands lightly in his pockets. And he passed in front of where the European branch members were gathered. When Tae-ui passed right in front, one of them made a motion to step forward, but immediately two or three groups from this branch watching from a distance showed signs of approaching. They looked ready to start an immediate battle if even a finger was laid on one of their people.

The European man who had been about to approach Tae-ui seemed to hesitate briefly, but after exchanging glances with his colleagues, he crossed his arms and stepped back. At that, the colleagues who had been ready to help Tae-ui also stepped back.

Really now... It would be one thing if just my body was in danger, but how can I walk around comfortably carrying the risk of becoming a fuse?

Tae-ui clicked his tongue internally. The camaraderie from colleagues he wasn't even close with felt awkward and made him laugh emptily, like wearing ridiculous clothes.

Only after experiencing such incidents a couple more times was Tae-ui able to reach his room.

Perhaps because it was located deep in the corridor, the human presence disappeared as he neared his room. Neither colleagues from this side nor men from that side were visible. Though one European branch member was visible watching from some distance away, he didn't seem to have any intention of approaching to pick a fight. Rather, he was staring intently at Tae-ui with an extremely strange expression.

Tae-ui gave him a puzzled look before opening his room door.

"Good grief... even a path of thorns would be better than this."

Clicking his tongue while sighing involuntarily, Tae-ui steeled himself internally as he opened the door.

Given how hostile their relationship was that even just passing in the corridor could become cause for conflict, what would happen meeting in the same room? What Tou had said about territory violation might become no joke. Really, he might have to just grab the book and run if anything happened.

Wondering what kind of fierce-looking brute would be using his room, Tae-ui entered with a heart pounding that felt almost like anticipation, then stopped in his tracks upon seeing the person inside.

There was one person in the room.

The man who had been naturally lying length-wise on Tae-ui's bed turning pages as if he had lived there for a long time merely glanced up when he heard the door, looking at Tae-ui.

That book you're reading costs $3,500. You shouldn't handle it so carelessly.

However, those words got stuck in his throat and wouldn't come out. Because he recognized who the man was at a glance.

Tae-ui's gaze fixed on the man's face.

His face was so white it looked almost transparent, pale enough to seem sickly. His delicate features showed clearly even behind thick-framed glasses. Though he looked like a diligent and gentle researcher quietly devoted to research in some laboratory, when their eyes met, those narrow eyes looking straight at people made Tae-ui's heart grow cold.

Tae-ui knew this man. The dark red traces burned vividly in his mind.

Rigrow... Rick.

The man who had stained the screen with blood while wearing that same slight eye-smile.

Tae-ui closed the door behind him in a daze, then only after hearing the door close did he come to his senses and regret it. Why had he closed the door? Though it probably wouldn't mean much, still having the door open would have made him feel at least slightly better being connected to the outside. Or it would have been better for running away too.

Now he understood what that European guy's strange expression meant as he watched him enter this room. That guy had already known who would be staying in this room.

[You damn bastard. Even if we're Asian branch people you consider enemies, as fellow humans shouldn't you have warned me when my life was in danger?]

Though Tae-ui had only half-listened the hundreds of times Tou and other colleagues had denounced the European branch members, for the first time he felt fierce resentment toward a European branch member.

"Owner of this book?"

As Tae-ui was chewing over curses in his mind, Rigrow's quiet voice came.

Tae-ui froze.

It was a low, quiet voice. That strange voice that seeped into the ears like water was a sound he had never expected or imagined. Moreover, for this man called Rigrow's voice, he hadn't imagined anything remotely similar.

As he quietly asked while holding up the book, he showed no signs of suddenly rushing to slit Tae-ui's throat or cause bloodshed. Rather, the faint smile at his lips even made him look good-natured.

"No... it's borrowed. It's a rare book so I came to get it since I need to take good care of it and return it."

"You're taking it now?"

Rigrow asked as if disappointed. His face showed regret as if he had been reading a particularly interesting part.

"I think I could finish reading it in two or three hours, could you wait?"

"...That's fine."

Tae-ui answered with a strange feeling.

Somehow it was different from what he had imagined. Exchanging these few words felt like dealing with a normal person. Maybe he had remembered that madman's face wrong? Since the video quality wasn't very good, maybe it wasn't this face... ...No way.

While watching Rigrow thank him with a full smile saying "Thanks," Tae-ui briefly doubted his memory, but his eyes had never been wrong about people before. Especially with such a striking figure, there was no way he could be wrong.

"Well he's not mentally ill, even a madman probably isn't running at full abnormal capacity 24 hours a day."

"Hm? What was that?"

Tae-ui, who had been muttering to himself moving his lips with a voice too quiet for even his own ears to hear, nearly jumped out of his skin when the man asked.