Chapter 179

< The Thieves (4) >

***

The SSS Agents were having a great time, enjoying the feast that had been prepared.

Min Yong-rak, who had been chatting with Jang Jin-nam, suddenly turned his attention to Yoo Tae-hwa.

“Tae-hwa, you should get married too. It’d be nice. Yong-rak is getting married next year, you know.”

Even without this encouragement from those around her, Yoo Tae-hwa, who had been a staunch single, was seriously considering marriage. Of course, this was assuming she found someone suitable.

“I’ll think about it if I meet the right person.”

Min Yong-rak picked up a bottle of makgeolli.

“Tae-hwa, have a drink too—”

“No, I’m on duty.”

Yoo Tae-hwa politely raised her hand in refusal.

She had only come because Han Yu-young was attending the party.

Yang Gang-wook and Myung Hyun-woo, seated near Son Kwang-yeon, had already eaten four bowls of galbitang without touching any alcohol. Yoo Tae-hwa couldn’t do the same.

She had never been good at romance, and her only goal in life had been to stay fit. That was until she became Han Yu-young’s personal bodyguard.

The wealthy people she had guarded before tended to show off to their neighbors and looked down on those they employed. But Han Yu-young was different. She treated Yoo Tae-hwa like a sister, not just an employee. She treated all the SSS Agents the same way.

They say that kindness breeds kindness, but these people were truly special. It must be because their good nature remained unchanged despite the trials of time.

Seeing Han Yu-young live harmoniously with her husband and children, Yoo Tae-hwa began to dream of having a family like that. She wondered if she could live like that too if she got married.

She was envious.

Han Yu-young, dressed in a beautiful hanbok, approached the group of SSS Agents.

“Tae-hwa, have you eaten enough?”

“Yes, I’ve had two bowls of galbitang.”

Oops, she didn’t need to report in such detail.

It was an occupational habit.

“Tae-hwa, have some makgeolli too.”

“Oh, I—”

“It’s fine. Just a sip on a day like this. Team Leader Yang gave permission.”

“Then just a little.”

Gulp—.

Ahh, this is amazing. She meant to just wet her lips but ended up emptying the bowl in one go.

It was probably the same makgeolli sold in bars or stores, but the homemade brew from the countryside had a different taste. Maybe it was the atmosphere and the people, but there was an inexplicable charm to it.

Even Jang Jin-nam, who had a sensitive palate, praised the taste and was already refilling his bowl.

“Is there saccharin in this? Agh—!”

Min Yong-rak, who always ruined the mood, got a headlock from Jang Jin-nam.

Min Yong-rak was a troublemaker when drunk, and even when sober, he was a bit of a handful.

As Yoo Tae-hwa was munching on a pumpkin pancake after finishing her bowl of makgeolli, her security phone buzzed.

‘Not my phone?’

It was Han Yu-young’s phone, which she had handed over because her hanbok was uncomfortable.

Han Yu-young’s brow furrowed as she saw the phone in Yoo Tae-hwa’s hand.

It was a number she had seen several times before.

‘The hospital?’

Her sister wouldn’t call at this late hour unless it was urgent.

Han Yu-young snatched the phone and stepped outside to avoid the noise.

***

Slap! Whack! Thud! Smack—!

“What good is money to me now, you jerk!”

“Agh! Jang Gun-i, you’re going to kill me!”

Hahaha—.

It seemed like some kind of amusing game was going on.

Jin Hyuk could only guess based on the voices.

Whenever Cheon Gil-ryong and Jo Il-hun teamed up, they always created a comedy act that had the whole village rolling with laughter.

“What! You’re going to Jang Gun-i! Even I can’t go! You heartless jerk!”

“Aghhh! Who said I couldn’t go! Someone save me! Honey! Hyang-rim!”

Ignoring the commotion, Jin Hyuk lingered near his parents.

He was curious about what was happening inside, but there was something more important right now.

He had followed his dad, who had left the house with a serious expression, and found his mom waiting outside. His dad must have asked Yoo Tae-hwa where his mom was.

“Did you book the venue?”

“Just the one attached to the hospital…”

The noisy party sounds were distracting, but Jin Hyuk could still make out his parents’ conversation.

‘Hwang Yeong-mo has passed away…’

He hadn’t met the man in this life.

He was just someone who existed somewhere, someone he never got to know, and now he was gone.

“Do we need to go right away?”

“No, I just… needed some air. I felt strange.”

“Let’s go together tomorrow evening. You’ll want to see your sister, right?”

His dad pretended not to notice Jin Hyuk and wrapped his arm around his mom’s shoulder as they went back inside.

After his parents left, Jin Hyuk stayed outside, resting his chin on his hand.

‘Would it be arrogant to say I understand how Mom feels?’

It was a strange feeling.

This was the second time he had heard of Hwang Yeong-mo’s death.

In his past life, he had only heard about it from Shin Woo-sung long after Hwang Yeong-mo had died and Kim Eung-nyeo and her daughters had disappeared. A family running a tea house had been chased out by loan sharks, leaving without even holding a proper funeral.

‘This time, there’ll be a funeral.’

A man who stole from his mom and committed robbery.

He was ugly in every way—his appearance, his words, his thoughts. Even his actions were so despicable that you couldn’t help but feel sorry for his miserable life.

But Jin Hyuk didn’t feel pity.

Nor did he feel any satisfaction or joy.

‘It’s just… unsettling.’

There were times when he thought about how he would punish the man if they ever met again, but now it all felt anticlimactic.

He was just… dead.

That’s how it feels when someone you know by name dies.

Hong Ki-jun once said, ‘A life consumed by revenge is a pitiful one, and its end is hollow.’

Even without his advice, Jin Hyuk had never been particularly interested in the man.

Not because he was foolish or magnanimous.

‘He’s just… insignificant.’

Unpleasant emotions only get in the way of a happy family life.

Isn’t forgetting the only blessing given to humans?

Jin Hyuk chose to ignore and forget the man’s existence to maintain his happiness.

‘Maybe it’s because of my focus.’

Whether it was love or hate, he treated emotions as fleeting distractions.

Jin Hyuk aimed for happiness and hit the mark. It was a painful effort to avoid wasting his life and energy. Who wouldn’t want to dig into the past if they had the chance? But the present happiness was what mattered most.

In that sense, his mom was truly magnanimous.

If his mom, the actual victim in this life, had wanted revenge, he would have gladly stepped forward. But she didn’t want that.

– “Mom thinks of those people as fragments of a chaotic era. Mom was just hit by one of those fragments. There were so many despicable people back then. When I was young, all sorts of things happened. A friend’s older brother, addicted to gambling, threatened his parents with a sickle to get the house deed…”

She hadn’t forgotten, nor had she forgiven.

But she didn’t see herself as the only unfortunate one among countless victims of the times.

– “People who think they’re the only ones suffering will never be loved by anyone. They don’t know how to love others. How could someone like that build a happy family? In the end, the whole family would be miserable. If that happened, Mom would just become a thief stealing other people’s lives, just like that person.”

She didn’t want pity, and she believed that anger could be released with a sigh if you stepped back and looked at it objectively.

In a way, it was truly admirable objectivity.

She seemed so cheerful at times, but the more you got to know her, the deeper and more generous she was.

Jin Hyuk couldn’t help but be influenced by her.

Through conversations with his mom, his hatred had unknowingly turned into indifference.

Of course, his own worn-out personality played a part too.

‘My past is an unsolvable problem.’

The sense of reality that had taken root in his mind as he grew up in this new life couldn’t be ignored.

In a society where he longed to live as a human being, he had no intention of becoming an outlaw for the sake of personal revenge.

Perhaps the most perfect revenge is to completely ignore the annoying things and focus entirely on living your life as you wish.

‘I like living the way I am now.’

He decided to put it all behind him.

Though no one else recognized his efforts, Jin Hyuk felt it was time to move on.

***

Jang Gun-i’s long ears twitched repeatedly.

{Hiii-, kiii-, kueee-.}

A sound only a sensitive dog could hear!

The other dogs were clueless, but Jang Gun-i knew exactly what it was.

Grrr—.

That’s…

The sound a dog makes when it’s too scared to resist, curling its tail and backing away. The air is already expelled for a bark, but the body retreats, leaving the sound powerless. Jang Gun-i, being a smart dog, knew this too.

Jang Gun-i looked around.

From his close subordinate, the yellow dog, to the indifferent white, black, gray, and brown dogs…

Why are there so many “gu” dogs? Anyway, it’s a total mess.

Only one human was left guarding Son Wang-wang’s house while the others were at the party.

That meant there was no human here to help Jang Gun-i.

So, it was up to the dogs.

Jang Gun-i, being smart, quickly assessed the situation.

Grrr—.

All the dogs in this neighborhood were his subordinates.

He couldn’t let his subordinates be kidnapped by the man in black.

Woof woof woof!

Let’s go, dogs!

Woof!

Cowardly yellow dog, stay put and guard your pups!

The guest dogs couldn’t follow anyway because of their leashes.

Thud thud thud—! Pant pant—.

It was a terrifying sprint. Led by Jang Gun-i, four elite dogs disappeared into the darkness in an instant.

Jang Gun-i’s commanding bark shattered the stillness of the night.

Woof woof woof!

Follow me, dogs!