Boy Monster Chapter 42

That wasn’t all Shi Taehyun had collected. The remaining records about the Sashimcheon clan, butterfly and plum blossom patterns, and…

A photo of the monster that had exploded and died, and even a group photo of the Hwelju and Yeonri gathered at the Sashimcheon family mansion.

Everything that remained as a record filled the room. Every trace of Jae Eunho’s life.

—When that monster came back to life, it couldn’t understand why. Why its blood, cells, and life had to be exploded for so long. It had to find out the reason first. And the answer was you. So it dug into you, investigated you one by one… and now, it has reached a conclusion. That Jae Eunho has never loved himself, and still doesn’t.

Jae Eunho, standing in front of the last table, was in such shock that he couldn’t hear Shi Taehyun’s words to the end. On a computer placed in a corner of the room, a system for deactivating the Hwelju and Yeonri’s ability control was turned on! It was the exact same screen as the control system in the NIS control room. Jae Eunho barely managed to speak.

“The Hwelju’s… ability control… even this device… you replicated it? Just what the hell are you….”

His heart began to pound heavily. A thick sense of fear crept over him. As if sensing Jae Eunho’s agitation, Shi Taehyun instructed him on the next action in a controlled voice.

—It’s a game from now on. Don’t hang up the phone.

A text message arrived on the phone he was on. Jae Eunho tapped the screen with a trembling hand.

—I got a room with a killer view. I have a lot of money, mostly cash.

The address sent to Jae Eunho’s phone was for a high-floor room in a hotel with a view of Jogyesa Temple and Hwangu-dan Altar.

—Since your leg hurts, Sir, I’ll give you a handicap and leave in 10 minutes. Let’s meet in that hotel room. The reservation is under the name Han Yoonhoe. If you’re tailed by me on your way, you lose, and you’ll be rolling around with me all night. If you succeed in getting there without me catching you, I’ll let you meet the monster.

The condition of losing if he was tailed was a game very much in Jae Eunho’s favor. Not only was he accustomed to being more careful to compensate for his limp, but detecting a tail was an essential skill he had practiced to death on countless missions.

—You can run away right now. You can take off the signal jammer right now, go to your NIS friends, and snitch on the house’s location to your superiors. No assassin will hold a knife or gun to you on your way.

Shi Taehyun continued without a pause until the very last word.

—But if you don’t want to run away, go there. Try coming without getting caught by me.

The call ended. Eunho had already made his decision. Since he had no intention of throwing away the signal jammer and running, he had to leave quickly.

He searched for things that could be used as a weapon. A blunt object wouldn’t work, as it would arouse suspicion. Something small like a pistol or a grenade would be good. The pistols on the decorative table were all models and useless, so he looked for a place where a gun might be.

Eunho went to the bathroom. He pushed open the dome ceiling and felt around, his hands grasping several guns. The pistols were all different types; he chose the smallest 3-inch revolver and checked if it was loaded. It had five bullets.

He hid the pistol deep inside the inner pocket of his suit jacket.

He went to the small room and also took his old cell phone, and took pictures of the inside of the man’s room as evidence. The problem was the Hwelju’s ability control deactivation device. Should he leave the system, which was an exact replica of the program in the NIS control room, as it was? The problem was that he coveted it too much to just smash the computer.

With this device, he could freely deactivate the Hwelju’s abilities. Moreover, if someone tried to detonate the bombs in their blood vessels, he could also stop that from happening. For now, he disabled it by disconnecting all the attached wires. He planned to come back for it later.

Finally, he rummaged through the man’s desk and clothes and grabbed a few ten-thousand-won bills. He also stole a hat and put it on. To avoid being tailed, subways or buses were out of the question. He had to disrupt his trail by switching taxis in the middle.

Jae Eunho hurriedly ran out of the villa. It was an ordinary residential alley. Since it was a rainy night, there were few people around.

First, he went out to a main street with many people and blended into the crowd. Eunho looked for a clothing store first. He saw the sign of a large SPA brand. Entering the most crowded shop, Jae Eunho chose clothes in a style he didn’t usually wear. It was an oversized white short-sleeved shirt and blue jeans.

“Excuse me, isn’t this yours?”

“Ah, yes. Thank you.”

A young man passing behind the checkout counter tapped Eunho’s arm and handed him a necktie. He must have dropped it when he came out after changing. Taking the black necktie and giving the man a simple word of thanks, Eunho paid for the clothes while still wearing them and left the store. He put the suit in a shopping bag and threw it away next to a telephone pole on the street.

Pulling his hat down low, Jae Eunho got into a taxi and gave a destination in the opposite direction of the hotel. After crossing the river and getting out once near Sinnonhyeon, Jae Eunho took another taxi from the opposite direction. The taxi, which crossed the dark Han River, circled around Myeongdong as per Eunho’s instructions and stopped in front of Seoul Station.

Seoul Station had a lot of traffic. In front of the bus stop, which was divided into several layers depending on the route, Eunho waited for the signal and looked around.

There was no one with a build similar to Shi Taehyun’s. As he crossed while looking in all directions, he bumped into an office worker who was rushing from the bus stop. Jae Eunho didn’t hide his annoyance. The man he bumped into dropped his documents on the ground.

“I’m sorry!”

The man shouted an apology and picked up the scattered papers. Normally he would have helped, but right now he was in a game with a vicious man. Turning his back, Eunho limped and ran towards the taxi stand.

The taxi headed for the hotel, again having set a different destination. While the taxi drove around, the rain continued to pour. The sound of the raindrops hitting the car window grew stronger.

Jae Eunho once again carefully checked the taxi driver’s appearance. It wasn’t Shi Taehyun.

The air from the air conditioner was chilly. The night cityscape viewed from inside the taxi was lofty and splendid. The Financial Supervisory Service, investment and securities firms, banks… it used to be a street where streetcars and horses passed. The Mitsukoshi Department Store next to the streetcar tracks, the post office, Gyeongseong Station, Namdaemun Gate….

It was the path Jae Eunho had lived on and was living on. He had never imagined that such a splendid city’s darkness would fall upon the land where he had wandered for so long.

The voice of darkness that was searching for Eunho now was also the land where it had lived, coiled up. In the distance were the dome of the National Assembly Building and various tall towers, corporate buildings with their lights packed tightly on. In the darkness of this city, there is always evil. Jae Eunho had fought against the darkest things. What did he gain from fighting and winning against evil that was sometimes not even visible? The mystical power that comes alive at night, uncontrollable destructiveness, darkness creates desires and monsters grow within it.

Where could Shi Taehyun be now?

The car window fogged up. It was as if the body heat radiating from his body, somewhere in the darkness, had covered the glass.

Eunho fiddled with the rosary beads on both his wrists. It felt like he was heading towards the middle of a single-log bridge. Would Jae Eunho be able to get what he wanted from the man who was emitting a scorching heat? He had to stand facing the man on the single-log bridge, solve all the mysteries surrounding him, and find out where the monster was.

To face Shi Taehyun without his sympathy ability, he needed a weapon. The pistol in his coat was his last resort.

The car stopped in front of the hotel that stood tall under the black night sky. As he walked into the magnificent building, Jae Eunho’s heart began to pound wildly.

He folded his umbrella and entered the revolving door. He stood close to the front and looked at the glass, trying to check the person reflected in the section behind him. There was only one elderly woman behind him. The middle-aged woman brushed the rainwater from her hair and picked up her cell phone with a ringed hand. Jae Eunho quietly turned his head.

There was no tail even by the time he passed through the revolving door and entered the lobby. Jae Eunho’s tail-evasion record was flawless. It was a success. Shi Taehyun had failed to follow Jae Eunho.

But it was too early to be relieved. He hadn’t reached the room yet. Fortunately, there was no one waiting at the front desk. Jae Eunho walked to the front desk at a moderate pace and gave the reservation name.

“Reservation for Han Yoonhoe. Room 0000.”

The employee made a call somewhere to confirm, had him sign the guest list, and then handed Eunho a card key. Naturally, the name written on the list was not Jae Eunho. He wondered just how many fake identities Shi Taehyun had.

Eunho took the card and headed for the elevator. After confirming that no one was there, he pressed the button for the top floor, but just as the doors were about to close, an elderly foreign man rushed in.

They exchanged simple greetings and the doors closed. The elderly foreign man was focused on his cell phone the entire time they were in the elevator together, and there was no need to watch him further. As the man got off on the floor just below, Eunho quickly pressed the close button.

Just before the elevator doors opened one floor higher, he discreetly gripped the pistol inside his jacket. There was no one in the hallway in front of him.

Eunho checked the room number sign visible in the distance and moved to the right. He was just about to approach the hallway, staying close to the corner to be on guard.

A foot suddenly jutted out from below the right wall. It was a sneaker covered by suit pants.

“You’re a little late.”

Shi Taehyun’s attitude, as he appeared before him with a wide stride, was vastly different from last night. The fierce spirit he had while rampaging on top of the transport vehicle was gone. Only dry indifference and coldness filled his face.

It was the first time they had properly faced each other since parting at the hospital. Jae Eunho’s chest tightened painfully once.