Salt Society Chapter 15

Kihyun, knowing it was a pathetic thing to do, searched for “dating an Alpha.” He scrolled past various search results without reading them. Among them was a commercial advertisement selling perfume that smelled like an Omega. He was not particularly curious about what an Omega or Alpha smelled like, but it seemed others did not think the same way.

Having looked that far, Kihyun simply turned off the phone screen. This was because a sense of self-loathing rushed in the moment he searched. Leaving his phone tossed on the bed, he let out a pained groan. Remorse for his own actions washed over him, questioning what on earth he was doing.

The chime rang, signaling that his meal had arrived, and Kihyun asked them to leave the food at the door before opening it to bring the tray inside. He took a beer out of the minibar and ate it with the food. It was when he had finished the jjamppong in just three mouthfuls while the TV was on that his phone rang.

“…”

Kihyun watched the light flicker on top of the phone he had tossed aside carelessly. A familiar name was flashing on the liquid crystal display.

Kihyun, who was about to turn his head and drink his beer again, set the can down and reached out to pick up the phone. He pressed the hold button as it was to reject the call. After that, he switched it to manner mode. This was because he knew all too well that if he turned the power off entirely, Cho Yeonoh’s fit would turn into a total frenzy.

In that manner, Kihyun finished off his dinner along with the remaining beer. After placing the dishes outside the room, he opened the window to ventilate and brushed his teeth. It was nice not having to care about the loosely hanging robe. He looked at his phone to see what time it was, only to be half-appalled by the sight of calls coming in continuously.

When he rejected the call once more, Cho Yeonoh’s name appeared on the screen along with a missed call notification. Next to the fellow’s name was the number “16.” It meant there were sixteen missed calls in total.

“Is he a madman…”

Because he was so appalled, the words came out as a monologue. Kihyun eventually turned off the phone, plugged it into the phone charger provided by the hotel, closed the window, and even drew the curtains.

Finally, it was time to try and sleep with a peaceful mind.

—Don’t do it—!

—Wow, you really are something, Second Lieutenant So! You’re finally opening that high-and-mighty mouth of yours. Do you know how much we’ve lost just to hear your voice once?

The man, speaking as if he were delighted, was gripping Kihyun’s ankle. It felt like an insect crawling on him, so he wanted to kick him away, but it was not easy.

In reality, it was he himself who was acting like a larva crawling on the ground. He tried to squirm and escape from them, but his ankle was caught and he was dragged back instantly, causing small stones to scrape against his cheek and leave wounds.

The man was looking down at Kihyun and laughing as if he were enjoying himself. Like a person who had hoped for this day only.

—So, why does a soldier who needs to maintain his dignity go around doing such dog-like shit?

A giggling sound followed those words. It was the men surrounding Kihyun. Every single one of them wore a joyful expression. To them, this situation might feel like entertainment. Only Kihyun, with a hardened expression, prayed for time to pass. This was because it was highly unlikely that someone would find them and give Kihyun help.

The man spat, “Ptooey,” onto Kihyun’s military uniform. Then the bastards standing around him also spat on Kihyun like foolish beasts imitating their leader. Filth even stained the top of his head, which he had cut short just a few days ago like a private full of military spirit because Cho Yeonoh said he wanted to see short hair.

Kihyun groaned, “Ahhh.” It was not because this situation was shitty or sorrowful, but because the places where he had been beaten screamed in pain every time he breathed. It seemed his ribs were messed up. He gasped for breath while clutching his right rib cage. It was a relief as long as they weren’t broken and piercing his lungs.

During the past few hours of being trampled by combat boots, Kihyun had not let out a single groan, but as the pain gradually grew, it felt like something was wrong. However, this too shall pass. He only had to endure it for now.

Kihyun had suffered even greater insults, and although his bones hadn’t broken like this back then, his soul had ached. What he was experiencing now was not to that extent. The filth on his face could be wiped away, and the wounds on his body were bound to heal over time. Kihyun tried to think that way.

They precisely disliked that part of Kihyun. They seemed like people who had grown stubborn because they wanted to pin him down, but it was not easy. Kihyun could not fully know their dark hearts, but he could guess. He knew that if he had crawled toward them on his knees here, or if he had offered a blind apology saying he was wrong even though he had done nothing wrong, it wouldn’t have escalated this far.

However.

—These days, fuck, is it something to be proud of for a Republic of Korea Army Second Lieutenant to sleep around with an Alpha bastard? Hey, have you ever seen a professional soldier who voluntarily gives up his ass? Can you even call that a soldier?

Kihyun had something to protect. If he apologized now, even the emotions Kihyun had cherished most dearly would turn into trash. Kihyun wanted to protect that. Getting hurt for the sake of that was bearable.

Rather, he might have been trying to prove his masculinity through that kind of self-sacrifice. At any rate, Kihyun did not want to drag his love into this miserable situation.

—Look at this, his mouth is shut tight again. Hey there, Lieutenant. Just how great is your backing that you’re always so confident? Why don’t you yield some of that high-and-mighty backing to your juniors?

The Captain, who had been tormenting Kihyun the whole time, pressed down on the cheek of the man lying on the ground in a huddle with his index finger, then took out a ballpoint pen from his military uniform chest pocket and wrote. “Male Prostitute.” Kihyun could never forget that day when those letters were carved onto his face.

—Discharge yourself, you son of a bitch. Don’t ruin military discipline. Do you know how bad it was that the Lieutenant Colonel even asked me a favor, huh?

—…

Kihyun did not answer. It was obvious that whatever answer he gave would return as an insult. He knew very well the reason why they were doing this.

The fact that a Beta male was dating an Alpha was merely a pretext. With his promotion to First Lieutenant ahead of him, orders to constantly do dirty work followed. Kihyun had simply refused them.

And the result was the current situation. The Lieutenant Colonel did not leave Kihyun alone after he refused his orders. There was a cold side to it for it to be called retaliatory. He wanted to remove Kihyun, who refused his unreasonable orders, from the military. Moreover, he wanted Kihyun to be discharged by his own will.

Kihyun was in a state of having refused even that. That was the full story of this situation where Kihyun was currently receiving someone else’s phlegm on the ground.

The man let out a smirk, threw the ballpoint pen on the ground, and had the others grab Kihyun’s ankles.

—It’ll be enough if a couple of ligaments snap, right? Get discharged comfortably, Senior.

It seemed the Lieutenant Colonel had promised the man a promotion. Since the next in line after the senior, Kihyun, was discharged would be the man. Kihyun let out a sigh. He had held on for dear life for the past few months, but now he felt tired and thought he couldn’t do it anymore. This was as far as he goes. Dignity or honor as a soldier. Those were not the kinds of things Kihyun had harmed. Therefore, it was right for him to stop here.

The man’s face contorted as he looked at Kihyun, who had become quiet and uncharacteristic for the situation. He grabbed Kihyun’s jaw and spoke.

—Senior, you are always—… —…

“Gasp—!”

“So Kihyun.”

Someone shook Kihyun’s shoulder. His eyes were stinging as if they were burning. It was like that even with just the mood lamp turned on inside the hotel room. Though he frowned at the rushing light, the other person was still stroking Kihyun’s shoulder.

To the man he was trying to shake off, thinking it was an extension of the dream, a familiar voice spoke in a low tone.

“I woke you up because you were having a nightmare again. Wake up for a moment before you go back to sleep.”

At those words, his strength gave way completely. Only then did Kihyun realize he had been tensing his muscles to the point where his whole body was trembling. When he opened his eyes, which had slowly grown accustomed to the light, Cho Yeonoh was there, looking down at him.

Kihyun let out a low sigh.

“…When…”

“When did I get here?”

Yeonoh asked Kihyun’s question for him. When he nodded slightly, Yeonoh let out a sigh and spoke.

“Finding you in the lobby and having Manager Yoo confirm it wasn’t just someone else was four hours ago; knowing it was you after receiving the report but almost dying from the heat in my head while humoring bastards who act like absolute shit was two and a half hours ago; calling all sorts of idiots to find out the hotel floor and room number you were in was an hour ago; and coming out after washing up because I was pissed off to find Doctor So sleeping without a care for how I felt after I picked the lock and entered was twenty minutes ago.”

“…I’m sick of it. Stop grumbling.”

Kihyun did not even listen to the chronological order Cho Yeonoh laid out; he turned his body and pulled the blanket up over his head. It would have been fine to just leave him alone for one day, but finding him all the way here was truly like Cho Yeonoh.

However, Yeonoh climbed up and lay down in the spot next to Kihyun. Judging by the pajamas he was wearing, it was certain he had pestered Manager Yoo into bringing his own sleepwear. Because he was the type who wouldn’t even wear a hotel robe since someone else had used it.

“I checked and they said you ate, and seeing the minibar, you drained all the beer, so what’s the reason for running away? Did you want to eat room service in a hotel room?”