Boy Monster Chapter 15

Jae Eunho’s ability was being managed not by the S.E.T.U. control room, but by the Joint Chiefs of Staff headquarters at the Blue House. After hearing Eunho’s chilling rage, Lim Geonhwi’s cold voice broke the silence of the unresponsive radio.

—Using your ability too much is dangerous. Stop it. It could cause psychosis.

“Shut up. Release it now.”

—The military is also mobilizing. You stay quiet today.

“Lim Geonhwi. We have to catch them as soon as possible. There’s a risk of organ harvesting!”

—Murders and kidnappings happen every day. It’s nothing special. However, the situation where you exhaust your powers with excessive wide-range sensing and become powerless for several weeks is unacceptable in the judgment of our Joint Chiefs of Staff headquarters.

“Wow, how ignorant can you be about determining the value of a life? The Jade Emperor would laugh at you.”

—I understand your…

Lim Geonhwi, who was trying to persuade Eunho step by step, suddenly stopped talking.

—Captain Jae Eunho, you are drunk on delusion. Do you think you’re some kind of god representing good?

The voice that interrupted the radio was the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Eunho roughly pulled out the radio and threw it away. There was nothing more to say to the Joint Chiefs of Staff headquarters.

He called Monk Chogwang. He received a call from Lim Geonhwi on his personal cell phone, but he didn’t answer it. Monk Chogwang was the only powerful person in the Blue House who could take S.E.T.U.’s side. He might be able to press the control release button. However, Monk Chogwang did not answer the phone.

Is there no way? Jae Eunho came down the rock, lost in thought. He calmed the raging Choi Jungkyung and went to the helicopter. Listening to the pilots communicating with the control center, it was Lim Geonhwi’s order to bring Eunho to the Blue House.

Eunho boarded the helicopter as if he knew nothing.

“Where are we going?”

“The Joint Chiefs of Staff headquarters…”

Eunho leaned toward the cockpit and struck both temples of the two pilots hard. It was instantaneous. The pilots fainted before they knew what had happened.

“If they won’t give me permission, I’ll have to make it as if they did.”

Jae Eunho called Choi Jungkyung and Hyeon Jaewoong into the helicopter.

“I’ll tell Deputy Director Oh Jigeun to release your controls, so listen carefully. Choi Jungkyung, once your control is released, carry me and fly up here.”

“Got it.”

“Hyeon Jaewoong, this is your first solo mission. You can turn invisible, right? Sneak into the Blue House and press the button that releases my ability control. I’ll ask Monk Chogwang for help. The control system is inside the Joint Chiefs of Staff headquarters.”

“Yes. Yes! I understand, Captain! Yes! I can do it! I can do it!”

Hyeon Jaewoong, who was frantically hypnotizing himself, suddenly came to his senses.

“What if I lose control?”

“What are you worried about? I’m here. Once my ability is released, controlling you will be a piece of cake.”

Hyeon Jaewoong’s face flushed at Eunho’s words. He nodded, looking at Eunho with admiration.

Even now, knives might be cutting the bellies of the weak and helpless people inside the smuggling ship. When the tension was at its peak, he received a call from Deputy Director Oh Jigeun.

“Yes.”

—We’ve located the Philippine smuggling ship! Fortunately, it seems someone fired a distress flare!

“Ah…!”

Eunho let out a big sigh and slumped down. The tension suppressed by the urgent stress was released in an instant.

Choi Jungkyung and Hyeon Jaewoong also leaned against the helicopter wall and slid down.

—Our navy’s satellite images captured the smuggling ship drifting 7km west of Gunsan Port.

“Phew… That’s a relief. What about survivors?”

—We’re still figuring that out.

“But if it was found 7km off the coast, it didn’t get far.”

—Right, that’s strange. It seems the engine was off while it was drifting. Wait a minute… The on-site footage just came in…

Deputy Director Oh Jigeun, who had been silent for a moment, muttered in a frustrated voice.

—Ah… I have a bad feeling about this. The inside of the ship is a bloodbath. It seems someone went berserk inside…

The NIS Special Crimes Investigation Team was busy analyzing the real-time footage sent by the Coast Guard. Deputy Director Oh Jigeun, who was busy assessing the situation, shouted, forgetting his phone connection with Eunho.

—Are there any survivors? What? Someone surrendered?

Deputy Director Oh Jigeun urged for an answer in a surprised voice.

—Who is the one who surrendered? A man? A Korean gangster? …18 years old?!

:･⚜️⊹.️

Jae Eunho slammed open the door of the NIS Special Crimes Investigation Team situation room. Hyeon Jaewoong, who followed Eunho as he strode in angrily, awkwardly gauged Eunho’s mood, unlike his large physique. Deputy Director Oh Jigeun also refrained from speaking, seeing Eunho angrier than ever before. When Choi Jungkyung whispered about the fight with the Joint Chiefs of Staff headquarters, Deputy Director Oh Jigeun also fumed.

Just then, Monk Chogwang arrived at the situation room. Monk Chogwang, who entered with quickened steps, leaving his protocol staff waiting outside the door, assessed the atmosphere and spoke.

“It’s rare to see Captain Jae Eunho this angry. What’s going on? You called, right? I was on my way to Jogyesa Temple to see you, but something came up and I had to turn around.”

“Am I the government’s puppet?”

Jae Eunho spoke informally from the very first word. It was the first time Jae Eunho, who always used honorifics with everyone, had spoken so informally. Hyeon Jaewoong, overwhelmed by Eunho’s aura, blinked his large eyes and pursed his lips.

“I see the Joint Chiefs of Staff refused to release your ability control.”

“As a policy decision-maker, Chogwang, you need to make this clear. I fight for good and evil, not for the government’s interests!”

As Eunho shouted his last words with a fierce glare, Monk Chogwang nodded as if in understanding.

“Alright. I’m lobbying and persuading them in various ways, so just be patient. As you know, changing those people’s minds isn’t easy.”

Listening to Chogwang’s calm voice, seasoned from a long time in the chaotic political arena, his anger subsided. As his head cooled down, he finally heard the conversations of the people reviewing the photos of the smuggling ship.

“Oh my, how horrible… This is a worse hell. The engine stopped because of the blood? My goodness…”

“It’s a living hell. Jaewoong, don’t look at this, you won’t be able to sleep!”

“No, I’m not! I… can… see… it…”

From Hyeon Jaewoong’s gradually slowing speech as he gulped, one could imagine how gruesome the inside of the smuggling ship was. He had no intention of staying put if the organ harvesting was already over. Fortunately, the team leader of the Special Crimes Investigation Team delivered good news.

“All seven kidnapped victims have survived! They’re injured, but safe!”

“Ha…”

Eunho didn’t even bother looking at the screen and slumped down in a chair. He was exhausted from the fact that the hostages were all safe. The breathless situation reports continued.

“As expected, it was the work of the Philippine drug cartel we were after. We’ve also obtained a list of their Korean drug labs and network. We’ve also detected signs that they were preparing for organ trafficking.”

“So, what’s their condition? Are they all dead?”

“No, all eleven are in critical condition, but not dead.”

Deputy Director Oh Jigeun and Monk Chogwang exchanged surprised glances. Deputy Director Oh Jigeun asked.

“Thanks for putting them in critical condition instead of killing them, but who in the world beat them to near-death and then surrendered? Did he do it alone? Why?”

“Well… It’s a Korean gangster. It seems he was trying to kill everyone under the influence of drugs. Well, thanks to him, we were able to apprehend the smuggling ship quickly and bust the organization, but…”

The team leader of the Special Crimes Investigation Team, who had been hesitant to speak, added an explanation.

“The scene was so horrific. The inside of the ship was practically submerged in blood… The engine, the crew quarters’ machinery, none of it worked because of the blood. Fortunately, the kidnapped victims were locked in the room below and didn’t witness the scene.”

Information about the Korean gangster who had turned the criminals into half-dead corpses was transmitted. It was a video of the arrest taken by the Korea Coast Guard Special Operations Group. The man’s clothes, wearing a black mask and a black hat, were soaked in blood and clung to his massive frame, and the reddish irezumi covering his arms were also covered in crimson blood.

“Eighteen years old? What is his identity?”

“We don’t know how he got on the ship yet. The police station just sent us a temporary mugshot taken before detention.”

While waiting for the suspect’s mugshot, Deputy Director Oh Jigeun gave instructions.

“Keep the media blocked for now. Don’t release any news about the arrest, just wait.”

“There will be strong opposition from the Coast Guard…”

“Those higher-ups will take care of it!”

“Yes!”

Eunho wasn’t interested in the suspect’s appearance. He just desperately needed a cigarette. People gathered in front of the mugshot photo that arrived soon and began to murmur.

“Wow, what a huge guy… One hit and you’d be done for.”

“Even though I work out really hard, to be that big, honestly, you have to be born with it, right?”

“Jaewoong, yours is fake madness, and this is real madness. Look at his eyes, they’re crazed.”

Choi Jungkyung, who was reviewing the on-site forensic results from the Coast Guard, lowered his excited voice.

“He tested positive for drugs… but it’s too intelligent to be just a drug-induced act. He destroyed the control system first to prevent emergency rescue requests and neutralized all emergency devices before starting the killing.”

Only after hearing Choi Jungkyung’s words did Jae Eunho become interested in the suspect. Monk Chogwang’s eyes also sharpened. While Monk Chogwang quietly examined the forensic results, Eunho belatedly got up and headed to the monitor.

“His name is Shi Taehyun. His age is listed as 18, but it’s an identity given by the organization, so his real age is unknown. He himself doesn’t know his exact age.”

The man in the temporary mugshot wasn’t wearing a shirt. He was someone who suited the ferocious appearance with unwashed bloodstains all over his body. Dried bloodstains also covered the bandages wrapped around the hands that had held the axe and knife.