I Hate Persistent People 15: Chapter 15.
I Hate Persistent People * * * “…Cough.” Hyeon-yul stopped halfway after stepping off the bus and coughed briefly.
It was something most people could dismiss, but he took it quite seriously.
Because medication was the only thing keeping his immune system balanced, Jeongmin had warned him for years that even minor symptoms had to be treated carefully.
‘I should go see the doctor.’ Jeongmin would probably scold him if he did not.
Hyeon-yul searched through his pocket and pulled out an emergency pill.
Just in case, he chewed and swallowed it.
Then he checked the time displayed on his device.
There were twenty minutes left before theory training.
He still had more than enough time before class.
It was the kind of life where evenings actually belonged to him.
A life where he could visit the hospital without worrying about anyone’s reaction.
Hyeon-yul found the entire arrangement almost unbelievably wonderful.
* * * After seeing Jeongmin, Hyeon-yul entered Team 3’s room and found Nayun sitting inside.
She appeared to be maintaining her weapon, with countless components scattered around her.
“Hello.” “…!” Nayun looked at Hyeon-yul in surprise.
Despite her startled expression, the muzzle of her handgun was already aimed precisely at his head.
She hurriedly lowered the gun and gave an awkward smile.
“Hello.
Did I…
startle you?” “No.
I think that reaction is understandable.” Considering the nature of their work, they needed to be capable of responding at any moment.
In that sense, Nayun’s reflexes were certainly reliable.
“…The Team Leader stepped out for a little while.” “Then could you let her know that I arrived for work?” “Hyeon-yul.” “…Yes?” Hyeon-yul hesitated for a moment before turning fully toward her.
What was she about to say?
A small amount of nervousness crept into his otherwise calm expression.
“Don’t tense up.
Just listen.
I’m not going to make this long.” “…I’m listening.” “You don’t need to report every single arrival to the Team Leader.” “Then how does she know that I came to work?” At Hyeon-yul’s question, Nayun pointed to his smartwatch and smiled.
“The time is recorded automatically the moment you enter through the main gate.
The same thing happens when you leave.
There are sensors installed.” ‘There are sensors installed…?’ In other words, if he never physically left, the system would continue recording him as being inside.
The corners of Hyeon-yul’s mouth nearly rose at the realization, but he forced them down.
He could think of many ways that information might be useful.
“Thank you for telling me.” “Honestly, I want to teach you more, but most of it comes up in theory class, so I should probably hold back.
Don’t you think?” Nayun asked with a teasing expression full of mischief.
Her expression seemed to be teasing him about how lucky he was.
That seemed to be what her face was asking.
Hyeon-yul nodded, then looked at the gun.
“It looks different.” “It was custom-made for me, so it’s a little different from ordinary guns.” Nayun’s hands paused in the middle of maintenance.
Hyeon-yul could see her fingers tightening.
“If I followed my feelings, I’d put a bullet through the heads of every bastard talking behind your back.
I’m calming myself down by maintaining my weapons instead.” “Have the rumors spread that widely?” Nayun bit her lip hard at the question.
“They’re everywhere.
People are spreading them openly.
They may not know everything, but they know you’re in Team 3.
Still, don’t worry.
Those rumors are going to disappear soon.” “How can you be sure?” “It’s a little embarrassing to say it myself, but I know a lot of people.
I asked some of them for a favor.” She spoke as though embarrassed, but her eyes somehow shone even brighter.
“But it’s true, isn’t it?” “There are things that are true but still embarrassing to say about yourself.” “I…
don’t really understand.” “…Ah!
I know something.” Nayun’s eyes narrowed for just a moment.
“What are you talking about?” “I saw you yesterday.” Nayun let out a light laugh.
The smile on her face was subtle and strangely suggestive.
Hyeon-yul briefly wondered what exactly she had seen the previous day.
Hyeon-yul kept his expression completely steady while waiting for the answer.
“You like cake, don’t you?” “You saw me?” “Yes.
You were sitting by a window eating cheesecake.
I considered talking to you, but decided not to.” Nayun had thought Hyeon-yul and cake made for a strange combination.
But he had been eating it so contentedly that she had not wanted to interrupt him.
“You can talk to me.” A smile appeared on Hyeon-yul’s lips.
Without the scars covering parts of his face, the expression might have looked more natural.
“Really…?
You shouldn’t say things like that casually.
I might get so happy that I talk to you for hours.” “Then please keep it somewhat shorter.” When Hyeon-yul immediately amended his invitation, Nayun giggled.
“Were you working at the time?” “Ah.
I was on a search mission.
I was looking around through my scope and happened to spot you.” Nayun mimed aiming a gun, then suddenly remembered something.
“Oh!” She slapped her forehead hard once.
“I was assigned to search the secondary location connected to the experimental subjects in your place.
I figured you’d be curious, so I planned to tell you the instant I saw you.
Then I started wondering whether it would be okay to text you.” It had honestly been one of the most serious dilemmas of her entire life.
When she casually asked Shinwoo, he had told her absolutely, absolutely not to send the message, so she had stopped herself.
“You can text me.” “Are you really sure?” “Yes.
Was there any result?” “…Hmm.” Nayun dragged the sound out for a long time.
She repeated the thoughtful hum several times while searching for the right words.
Hyeon-yul lost count of how many times she repeated it.
“We may have trouble finding a third location.
A villain none of us recognized attacked, and the site exploded.
We still rescued several people, but…
they passed away today.” Nayun spoke carefully while constantly watching Hyeon-yul’s expression.
Shinwoo had told her that Hyeon-yul himself had been an experimental subject.
Depending on how one looked at it, this was an extremely sensitive subject, so her heart pounded throughout the explanation.
‘…Ah.
So that’s why the doctor seemed upset.’ Hyeon-yul immediately remembered the expression Jeongmin had worn earlier.
He had seen him only a short while earlier.
“Still, because of you, the victims’ families won’t have to spend years wandering without answers.
…Thank you.” “Choo Nayun, you did that work.
There’s no reason for me to receive your thanks.” “No, it really was because of you.
These cases almost never ended well before.
A lot of victims were found in such terrible condition that we couldn’t even identify them properly.
Every time I saw a missing-person poster, I wondered whether that person might have been one of them.
But today was different.” They had not been able to save them, but at least the victims could return to their families.
That fact alone gave Nayun some comfort as well.
“That…
is a good thing.” Nayun carefully studied the faint smile that appeared on Hyeon-yul’s face.
She wondered whether the faint change meant that he felt relieved.
He was still difficult to read.
“Is that why the Team Leader is away too?” “Maybe.” “Thank you for telling me.
Then I’ll head out first.” “Sure.
Do your best in class today too.” Nayun made a fist and gave him a light encouraging shake.
After Hyeon-yul bowed and left, Nayun placed a hand on her chest and slowly released a long breath.
‘…I handled that properly, right?
I stopped at the right point and let him go at the right time, didn’t I?’ Shinwoo had warned her not to get too close too quickly, so she was trying to respect that.
Honestly, though, she wanted to talk with Hyeon-yul about all kinds of things.
Part of it was simply excitement over having a new recruit after so long, but the more she spoke with him, the more strongly she felt that he was not a bad person.
His awkwardness might actually make her want to talk with him even more.
‘He’d get along perfectly with Jihwan.’ Was it their atmosphere, or perhaps their way of thinking?
Something about their atmosphere and way of thinking felt strangely similar.
‘…Come to think of it, there’s something about him that resembles Shinwoo too.’ Nayun blinked several times as another realization occurred to her.
Their personalities and many other things were different, yet Hyeon-yul somehow shared a certain underlying quality with Shinwoo.
‘Was Hyeon-yul destined to end up in Team 3 from the start?’ Nayun grinned quietly to herself at the thought.
* * * “…Excuse me.” At the quiet voice, Hyeon-yul lifted his eyes from the book and looked up.
He had already heard the approaching footsteps.
The moment he saw the sparrow emblem on the visitor’s left sleeve, anticipation stirred inside him.
The visitors were unmistakably members of the White Sparrows.
There were two likely reasons for them to seek him out.
One was the Manager he killed yesterday.
The other was the Managers who had been fired because of the incident involving him.
He could not think of anything else.
“What can I do for you?” When Hyeon-yul answered gently, surprise appeared on their faces.
Apparently, they had not expected him to speak that way.
The unexpected reaction made them glance at one another, and they seemed to hesitate over whatever they had planned to say.
“Do you have something you need to tell me?
Theory training will start soon, so I’d appreciate it if you could be quick.” “Have you…
ever seen this person?” One of the Managers held out a phone.
The moment Hyeon-yul saw the photo displayed on it, he tilted his head slightly.
He genuinely had no idea who it was.
“Who is that?” The instinctive question startled the Managers.
He truly seemed not to recognize the person.
“Am I supposed to know him?” Hyeon-yul’s counterquestion made them quickly hide their emotions.
If they pushed harder here, they would be the ones placed at a disadvantage.
“No.
Excuse us.” The Managers hurriedly bowed before retreating from the area.
Watching them leave in such a rush, Hyeon-yul reached a conclusion.
‘This is about the Manager I killed.’ Apparently, quite a few people around here paid close attention to one another.
The situation had grown this serious just because a single person had failed to report for work.
‘No.
They must all be connected, right?’ Who else would have told them information about him?
Wouldn’t it have circulated through the anonymous group chat he had discovered?
Yesterday, Haeryeon had taken action, and now a Manager involved in spreading rumors about him had vanished.
From their perspective, that combination had to be terrifying.
Pretending to rest his chin on one hand, Hyeon-yul listened.
Hyeon-yul decided their conversation was more than worth listening to.
It took longer than expected before their voices finally reached him.
“…Hey.
He said he doesn’t know him.” “He really looked like he had no idea.” “But he didn’t come in today.
He isn’t answering his phone either.” “He could be sick.” “Right.
Y-Yeah.
Maybe he’s sick.” They were trying to dismiss it as though someone else were simply being oversensitive, but they were not doing a very good job.
“Don’t you remember what happened yesterday?
Two people were fired, and Team 3 was involved.
This has to be connected too.” “He might just be unable to answer his phone.
If we move carelessly right now, we could end up looking suspicious ourselves.” “No.
I’m going to his house tonight.” After the heavy footsteps faded away, Hyeon-yul lowered his hand.
‘Something interesting is going to happen after class.’ Hyeon-yul looked back down at his theory book.
Two Black Eagles passed beside him and entered the room.
They still looked as though they had plenty they wanted to say, but once again they kept it to themselves.
White Sparrows might rarely need to meet him directly, but Black Eagles could end up cooperating with one another in the field.
Apparently, they had made the wiser choice.
A short while later, the instructor entered.
Hyeon-yul looked toward the front of the training room with focused attention.
Haeryeon had told him the material would become important starting today, so he watched with genuine interest.
The fact that someone was teaching him anything at all was something worth appreciating.
It was completely different from the past, when he had been expected to find everything out by himself and teach himself whatever he needed to know.
* * * Just as Haeryeon had said, today’s lessons contained plenty of important information.
They learned about the structure of the Nest, the relationship between the Black Eagles and White Sparrows, why the Black Eagle organization had been founded, and many other matters.
Of everything he learned, the most interesting section concerned the origin of supernatural power.
It was theory about where power originated and what caused it to emerge.
—The most widely accepted hypothesis is that power is born from pain and fear.
‘Pain and fear…’ Hyeon-yul found the hypothesis quite plausible.
Those were the two emotions he remembered most vividly from his time as an experimental subject.
“…That concludes today’s class.” At the instructor’s words, Hyeon-yul closed his book and started toward the exit before quietly smiling.
‘It’s noisy outside.’ Hyeon-yul deliberately made sure that he was the first person to walk out.
The moment he passed through the door and turned into the corridor, he saw a hand reaching toward him.
Hyeon-yul deliberately pretended that he had failed to notice the hand.
Acting completely unaware, he took another step forward.
Only after someone grabbed him by the collar did Hyeon-yul let his book fall as though startled.
THUD.
The sound immediately pulled every nearby gaze toward the commotion.
“…What are you doing?” Pretending to be confused, Hyeon-yul looked at the Manager gripping his collar.
It was one of the faces that had visited before class.
“It was you, wasn’t it?” “What are you talking about?” “You killed him!” The shouted accusation plunged the corridor into silence.
Only after a beat did Hyeon-yul release a long breath, maintaining his bewildered reaction.
“…Let go of me.” He had allowed himself to be grabbed deliberately, but the hand clutching his collar was also pressing against his throat.
Hyeon-yul found the sensation deeply unpleasant.
Before the desire to slaughter them one by one could sink too deeply into his thoughts, the Manager tightened his grip around Hyeon-yul’s throat and forced a cough from him.
“…Cough, cough, cough!” As the violent coughing continued, the surrounding people finally rushed to stop the Manager attacking him.
“Hey!
Stop!
You’re actually going to kill him!” “Let go of me!
That bastard is a murderer!” The Manager shook people off and pointed a finger at Hyeon-yul.
“I knew it the moment this villain bastard crawled in here!
Did it feel good killing him?
Were you happy?!” Even as accusations and curses poured over him, Hyeon-yul continued coughing.
‘That bastard…’ His throat had already been in poor condition today, which was why he had visited Jeongmin.
His immune system was abnormal and controlled with medication, and some days were simply like this.
As long as he avoided irritation, it was not a major problem, but the grip on his throat had been much harsher than expected.
Hyeon-yul had known he needed to create a scene this large, but that did not make the experience any less disgusting.
‘I will definitely kill you.’ Those people had been the ones interfering with his attempt to maintain a peaceful working life.
He had never planned to harm them.
Why was it so difficult for them to simply continue working as they always had while he adapted to this place and did the same?
“What exactly is going on here…?!” A familiar voice cut through the corridor.
The familiar voice belonged to Baek Shinwoo.
Hyeon-yul watched the expressions around him change at that single sentence.
There was no hostility in Shinwoo’s face whatsoever.
Hyeon-yul turned his gaze toward Shinwoo as he approached.
“Are you all right?” Shinwoo asked the question with obvious urgency in his voice.
Hyeon-yul’s neck had turned bright red.
“…I’m fine.” “Let’s go to the doctor.” Shinwoo had heard that Haeryeon brought in a physician specializing in experimental subjects specifically for Hyeon-yul.
“I already went today.” “Today…?” The moment he heard that answer, Shinwoo glared at the Manager being restrained by the others.
“I don’t know what happened, but what kind of person attacks someone who is already sick without even asking a question first?” Shinwoo openly rebuked the Manager for the reckless assault.
The Manager looked at Shinwoo with an aggrieved expression entirely different from the one he had shown Hyeon-yul.
“…That bastard killed our colleague!” “You should close your mouth.” Shinwoo warned the Manager in a voice that had gone completely cold.
“…I’d like to know what’s happening too.
Before class, they suddenly came to me and showed me someone’s photograph.
Now he grabs me by the collar and calls me a murderer.
How am I supposed to respond to that…
cough.” Hyeon-yul coughed and lightly covered his mouth.
When he lowered his hand, a small smear of blood remained on it.
He was accustomed to the sight.
Whenever his immune system malfunctioned, things like this happened.
He had experienced it so often that it barely concerned him.
The small cut on his finger actually posed a greater risk.
“How is that supposed to count as fine?
We’re going now!
If you can’t walk, I’ll…” “No.
I need to clear up this misunderstanding first.
If I leave now, who knows what other rumor will spread?” Hyeon-yul stopped Shinwoo while openly aiming the remark at everyone gathered around them.
For Hyeon-yul, this silence was the most satisfying part of the entire scene.
Everyone had become as silent as though their mouths had been sealed.
“Who exactly are you saying I killed?” Hyeon-yul looked directly at the Manager and asked clearly.
“This person!
You killed him!” The Manager raised his phone and displayed the photograph.
“That’s the same photo you showed me earlier.
Who is this person?” “He’s the colleague you killed!
He was my friend!” “I’ve never met this person.
What exactly are you using to accuse me of murder?
Show me the evidence first.” Hyeon-yul demanded the evidence openly in front of everyone gathered there.
Suspicion alone could never establish anything that actually mattered.
For an accusation like this, evidence was necessary.
“…” The Manager opened his mouth but found himself unable to provide an answer.
The stares around him intensified and rapidly cooled.
People might have heard the rumors surrounding Hyeon-yul, but this had gone far beyond that.
Driving someone into a corner on nothing more than speculation and without a shred of evidence was unreasonable.
“You don’t have evidence?” Shinwoo pressed the question on Hyeon-yul’s behalf.
“H-He died in the evening.
We checked the apartment security cameras, and they show him entering the building that evening!” “And?” Hyeon-yul asked the question without giving him any room to retreat.
“What do you mean, and?” “Is that all?” “You finished early because of training yesterday, so it was possible!
You could have hidden there and waited for him!” “So do those security cameras show me entering the building?” Hyeon-yul asked as though the accusation were utterly absurd.