Three Eight-Chapter 76

And then, the man’s head was stomped on. Hongju clamped both hands over his mouth, horrified. His sharp inhale echoed loudly.

"Huup."

Yang Siljang stopped punching and straightened up. The eye not covered by the eyepatch gleamed sharply as he scanned the area. Hongju had always been especially scared of Yang Siljang as a child. He used to have nightmares just imagining what lay behind that eyepatch.

"I hear a squeaky little noise somewhere?"

The gleaming eye turned toward the corner. When Yang Siljang met Hongju’s gaze, he grinned wide enough to show off all his gold teeth.

"Heu, mmph."

Paralyzed by fear, Hongju couldn’t move a muscle. His eyes met the bloodied man’s on the floor.

"......"

A vacant, unfocused stare. The man’s face looked just like his father’s.

"A rat running around at this hour?"

At some point, Guppping had approached. The stub of his shortened pinky finger touched Hongju’s cheek, and Hongju flinched violently in terror.

"Why are you crawling around instead of sleeping? You wanna go back out and collect more money now?"

"N-No. No, sir."

Each time he shook his head desperately, fat tears fell. Guppping looked down at his finger where the tear had touched and clicked his tongue.

"Hongju. If you run away again, you’ll end up like that guy. You wanna end up like that?"

Hongju shook his head furiously. No. No. He mumbled through sobs, trembling with desperation. But Guppping didn’t look the least bit moved. He grabbed Hongju by the collar. With a rough yank, he dragged the small body around to face the direction of the collapsed debtor.

"Look. This is what happens when you run from your debts. And your old man? He borrowed money from me and then dumped you on me too."

"Hhup."

"You get how hard this is for me, right? Huh?"

At last, Guppping brought up his father. Hongju burst into loud tears. In his eyes, the man on the floor had already merged with the image of his father.

"I don’t want you and your old man ending up like that. I love all my clients, after all."

A phlegmy chuckle followed.

"Y-Yes."

Hongju wiped his tears with tiny hands, sniffling. Guppping’s greedy eyes gleamed as he brought his lips close to Hongju’s ear.

"Then let’s work hard to pay it back, huh? You gotta get up early tomorrow and earn more money so the interest doesn’t pile up. Right? Or not?"

You just had to walk around with gum or candy and act pitiful. But instead, all he did was cry—how exhausting. Maybe if he scared him enough, the kid would behave for a while.

"R-Right."

"Tomorrow we hit up the karaoke joints and food stalls too, okay?"

The little head nodded up and down quickly.

"Y-Yes, okay..."

It worked well. Rain or snow, heat or cold, after that, Hongju went out every day. It was pocket change to Guppping, but over the years, even that added up to a decent sum.

If he didn’t bring in enough, he’d get beaten that day. Just like the debtor who was hit for not paying up. Even though he had never borrowed a dime, little Hongju had to live in fear of violence, trembling every day. The next day, and the day after that, and again and again... until ten nights became fifteen years.

"Uuh, ugh...!"

Hongju writhed in agony, rubbing the back of his head into the pillow. He wanted to wake up, but his entire body felt like it was pinned under stone. He couldn’t move a single finger.

"Gu Hongju."

The voice calling him didn’t contain a single curse or hint of irritation. It simply carried his name. Who was it? Who was calling him?

"Gu Hongju, try to stay with me."

It wasn’t someone from the House. Not his father either. Then who...? His floating, dazed mind suddenly grounded itself in reality.

"Ah."

With a sharp gasp, he jolted his eyes open. Sitting ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ up abruptly, he couldn’t breathe right, clawing at his throat in distress. His eyes were wet, and his eyelids flushed red—as if he’d been crying throughout the dream.

"Breathe properly."

A hand steadied him and gently patted his back. Only then did his breath finally come through. A rush of gasping air poured out.

"Haah, haah."

You’re supposed to forget dreams once you wake up. But in Hongju’s head, everything remained vivid. The glint of that gold tooth aimed at him. The rough texture of those flaky, calloused hands. And the empty eyes that stared straight at him. He shuddered like he was convulsing and threw the blanket off. Immediately, a firm grip caught his arm.

"Where are you going?"

"I have to find Guppping! That bastard—I have to...!"

His swollen throat couldn’t even form proper sound, but he screamed with veins popping. A large hand seized his bandaged cheek.

Dark eyes met his.

"If you go in this state, you won’t be able to do anything."

The voice was soft, as if to soothe him. Hongju’s lips trembled, and wet, shuddering sobs spilled out. Fifteen years’ worth of rage and resentment clung to him, forming a thick, black sob.

"Tell me instead."

"Hhuuh, mmph."

"Gu Hongju."

The fingers gripping his cheek slowly brushed his earlobe. Strangely, the wild emotions started to settle under that warmth.

He exhaled in sync with the ticking of the clock on the wall. Then swallowed. Then again. His trembling tears finally crossed his cheeks and fell.

"What should I do with Gu Madam?"

He read the words on Mu-gyeong’s lips.

"I want him to die in pain, in agony. He should live way more miserably than I did before he dies."

"Keep going."

"That disgusting mutt in heat. I want him to never pull that sick shit again..."

Hongju couldn’t finish. A large hand came up to cover his remaining ear.

The sounds of footsteps and honking outside the room faded away. All that remained were his ragged breaths and his sobs. As if he were the only one left in the world, Hongju cried freely without holding back.

After sobbing like a child for a long time, he finally fell asleep again—only after taking more meds. Mu-gyeong quietly pulled up the blanket and wiped the damp corners of his eyes.

"What, already forgot I said I’d handle it?"

He’d clearly promised to follow Mu-gyeong’s lead. And now he was thrashing around, threatening to kill Guppping. Normally, that would’ve pissed him off. But Mu-gyeong couldn’t feel anger or irritation toward Gu Hongju anymore. Calmly, he picked up his phone to check it.

[He’s sleeping at the House.]

So the one who got beaten can’t sleep without jolting awake, while the bastard who did the beating is sprawled out comfy as can be. Mu-gyeong let out a cold chuckle. With a disgusted sneer, he typed a reply.

[Let’s raise their price and sell them off.]

The response came back in seconds.

[What???]

Mu-gyeong flipped the phone over without replying.

"If it’s crooked, I’ll just fix it again."

Back then, he would've done anything to force people into his plans. He wouldn’t have clung to someone just because they brushed past him. But now, he couldn’t bring himself to force Gu Hongju or let him go.

He stared long and hard at Hongju, who still slept with a furrowed brow.

Maybe he didn’t want to stay in that unconscious world long. Even with the meds, Hongju never slept more than two hours. When he woke, he would cry and thrash in torment, demanding to find Guppping.

Mu-gyeong took him home without a sound. Discharge would be handled quietly. There was no way he’d send him back to that fucking House now. He’d just tell Guppping that Gu Hongju had run away. If he erased Hongju’s shadow altogether, they wouldn’t be able to come after him.

Fortunately, there were no major fractures. He was a bit sluggish but could still move fine. Mu-gyeong neither sent him back to the dorm nor left him alone at home.

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Instead, he sat him on the bed in the suite where they used to run gambling games and kept a close, silent watch for two full days. Hongju had a record of running off before, and now he had a clear goal—to kill Guppping. No telling when he’d bolt again.

Though he trembled with rage the whole time, Hongju gradually began to stabilize.

"People from the House will be here soon. Even if you hear their voices, don’t get riled up."

"...Can’t I be somewhere else? I’ll stay still. But if I hear Guppping’s voice... I don’t think I can control myself."

His dry fists trembled in tight little knots. Mu-gyeong turned his back, fastening his watch.

"You need to hear that bastard go down with your own ears."

As if hearing tinnitus again, Hongju clutched his ear and grimaced. Then parted his lips.

"Are you gonna switch the cards like when we caught Il-Sam-Gwang-Ttaeng? So Guppping loses?"

When we caught Il-Sam-Gwang-Ttaeng, huh. Mu-gyeong repeated it under his breath, trying to recall something he hadn’t thought much of before.

"When that idiot tried to hustle me and got caught?"

Hongju nodded. Just a few gauze pads covered his face, but it still looked half-hidden. Mu-gyeong lightly lifted Hongju’s bony chin.

"I’m not a card sharp. I can’t pull that crap. You’ve been watching my hands—don’t you know that?"

Even as he answered, his eyes scanned Hongju’s face. The swelling had gone down a bit, but now the bruises were turning dark. The sight annoyed him so much his hand nearly clenched on its own. Mu-gyeong let go of the chin.

"Yeah, but... then how are you gonna screw him over? Yang Siljang’s been sharpening his game since last time. He won’t mess up the hands now."

"There’s always a way. You waited two days, so what’s with the sudden nerves?"

Not that he’d waited quietly. Mu-gyeong chuckled softly and checked his phone.

"It’s time."

Time to welcome the House members.

"You didn’t forget, right?"

A cautious voice came from behind. Mu-gyeong glanced over his shoulder. Hongju was clutching the sheets tightly, lips twitching.

"That Yang Siljang recruited some thugs. Even if they changed the room, the plan won’t change."

Didn’t he say he was done with this kind of shit? Still, even without a single cent in his pocket, Gu Hongju was the only one worrying about him.

That strange emotion made his breath catch for a moment. So he paused and gathered himself.