Thwack! The man’s blow was so fierce that Jeong Tae-ui didn’t just feel the punch—he slammed his back into the wooden board behind him, twisting his face in pain.

Though he was used to rough treatment from living among tough men, the pain was still damn brutal. No matter how hardened he got, he never got used to the hurt.

Thinking silently, I’m used to getting hit, Tae-ui rubbed his bruised face and glared sullenly at the man. But seeing the three burly men standing behind him, he gave up that thought. If he tried to fight back, he’d probably get beaten to a pulp. He was an unimportant “extra” hostage, brought in just as a warning—one of them might decide to kill him as an example. Tae-ui had expected bad luck, but this was really unlucky. He’d hoped for some halfway decent captors by just being locked up quietly, but clearly that wasn’t the case. This man was especially unlucky.

Instead of a few sloppy hits, the man pummeled Tae-ui as if he’d been slapped in the face before and wanted revenge. Two more punches to the face, three or four kicks to the stomach. Each time, Tae-ui tried to look as pathetic as possible and even let out small screams to avoid worse damage—while cursing fiercely inside.

If only those other bastards hadn’t been there, he would have just bitten down and passed out. Or if this weren’t a kidnapping and there was no real threat of death, he would have braced himself to be carried off to a hospital while those bastards, fever or no fever, charged in after him.

He sighed and endured the beating. He wasn’t sure if being with that crazy bastard made him timid or bold. But... it really hurt.

That man also seemed hardened to beating. Though different in personality from Tae-ui, his attitude and vibe screamed ‘rotten military guy.’ They say you can spot police or soldiers just by the way they walk outside the venue. Tae-ui understood now. Especially foreigners who joined the army voluntarily were even easier to spot. Not a soldier? Former soldier. Probably someone who left the army and joined some rebel or revolutionary group. But originally from the slums. His fists were well trained. After running from Ilay, what a stroke of luck to get this guy—Tae-ui cursed internally, gritting his teeth.

After finishing the beating, # Nоvеlight # the man saw Tae-ui lying on the floor unable to move, kicked him once more in the stomach, and then turned away. He shouted threats at the others:

“Don’t try any stupid shit and just stay put! Outside, you might hear the boss or teacher’s voice, but we don’t care! We could kill every one of you here!”

The man left the room grumbling with bravado. His comrades, who had only watched before, followed him out. The last man to close the door clicked his tongue at Tae-ui’s battered state.

“But we’re different from those lowlifes. If the talks go well, you’ll be let go alive. Besides, the terrain here is rough. It’s easy to get lost. Wolves roam at night, so don’t get any stupid ideas—stay put.”

Tae-ui looked at the man with distant eyes as he left, then slowly got up. He had been beaten hard but hadn’t broken any bones or suffered serious injury. That guy must really know how to hit—he hurt like hell but didn’t cause major damage.

Still, that was just judging by life-threatening severity. Visibly, Tae-ui looked a complete mess.

“Hey, you okay?”

A man nearby asked with concern. Though no mirror was around, his face must have been a sorry sight judging by the man’s grimace and tongue-click.

Tae-ui swallowed the metallic taste of blood in his mouth and wiped it with the back of his hand. Blood showed on his hand. His lip must have been split. But no other bleeding. He wiped his face but found no open wounds. Yet just touching it was so painful he might scream. In a few hours—no, minutes—his whole face would probably be swollen dark purple.

“You okay?”

When Tae-ui didn’t answer, the man asked again, his expression no better. Seeing someone in the same situation get beaten right in front of him didn’t make anyone feel good. It wasn’t just someone else’s problem.

“No... I’m not okay. Damn it, it hurts like hell...”

Tae-ui mumbled, glancing at the window. The wooden board was still split open.

Seeing it left open, he figured escaping that way was impossible. Or as the last man said before leaving, escape that way and you’d probably die in the forest.

Tae-ui sighed deeply and stood. Approaching the window, he gripped the split boards with both hands and twisted with all his might. Crack! A loud sound echoed. Crack, crack, crack! Every time he spread his hands apart, the wood groaned and cracked.

People widened their eyes and looked at him and the door, trying to stop him, but Tae-ui shook his head dismissively.

“If I’m going to get beaten anyway, might as well get a clear view. Since they left it open like this, it means escaping through here is tough. Seems they just blocked the view... What’s the use now?”

Like a man who’d given up, Tae-ui slammed his full strength against the boards. The wood cracked and eventually three or four planks broke off. The view opened wide.

“Ah. Much better. ...Hmm. Now I get why they locked this.”

It wasn’t just the second floor. Right below was a steep valley. No nearby natural ramp or path to climb down. If it was just the second floor, you might risk breaking a bone jumping down, but this valley was a gaping maw. You’d have to bet your life.

The day was nearly bright. The sun had just risen. Dawn faded and morning had fully begun. The hot midday would come in a few hours.

“Maybe around seven o’clock...?”

“Probably seven or eight.”

A disinterested voice answered Tae-ui’s murmuring.

Seven or eight. Probably they hadn’t contacted Kyle’s company yet. Even idiots would think personal deals were more advantageous. So the contact would come after Kyle got home, usually for dinner around seven or eight.

If they contacted then, it’d already be twelve hours. And after a night passes, a conclusion would be reached. The odds of being held longer were slim. It wasn’t a kidnapping of a child, and political crimes like this didn’t drag on.

First case: demands met, hostages released. That would probably be concluded today, but the hostage time might still drag a bit as they verified conditions before release.

Second: negotiations clash, adjustment needed. That wouldn’t take long either. Both sides knew there was no benefit to delay, so they’d likely reach a decision soon.

Worst: demands fail, hostage life threatened. If they ignored hostages entirely, they’d die. If forces tried to rescue without meeting demands... well, they’d probably die anyway. Hostages would be killed immediately once news came.

Tae-ui thought about smoking and instinctively looked around asking if anyone had a cigarette, but seeing everyone in just their underwear, he turned his head slowly. His own dusty, grubby underwear was far less appealing than any of theirs.

“...”

Tae-ui sighed instead of smoking.

From his perspective, the best outcome was of course the first. But thinking of Kyle’s style, the second was most likely. How the negotiations went was none of Tae-ui’s business. He just wanted to get out fast. If a mountain herb hunter passed by, he’d shout for help, but the forest was so empty.

Leaning his arm on the window frame, he gazed blankly outside. White birch branches stretched all around. Watching their stillness, his heart calmed.

“Well... it’ll work out somehow.”

He sighed silently and murmured a faint smile. Life doesn’t always go badly.

Two minutes later, Tae-ui changed his mind.

Feeling uneasy, he tilted his head. Something was different. A strange discomfort.

He looked back. Everyone was still in the room. Talking or lost in thought—no change.

He looked outside again. Was anything different? The scene hadn’t changed since before. He tilted his head, sensing something off.

For example, if nothing looked wrong...

He realized the source of discomfort.

The birds were silent.

The birds that had occasionally chirped from the dense forest just a moment ago had stopped. Birdsong still came faintly from the opposite side, but not from the dense trees nearby. As if a terrifying beast had appeared.

The silent side wasn’t the path, but a thick forest path unseen from here on the right. The men were probably watching that trail. The side where birds suddenly stopped was the dense forest.

Cars might stop birds, but no cars could come here.

Almost at the same time, a faint buzzing sound came. Like a cellphone vibration. But there was nothing in the room, and the men outside couldn’t be vibrating phones. Still, the vibration was getting louder and closer, from the side where birds stopped.

Something was roaring, approaching fast down the narrow forest path.

Tae-ui’s expression vanished. Something was crashing through the woods, smashing small trees aside. As the roar neared, sounds of breaking branches mixed in. When it became clear the sound wasn’t a hallucination, others approached the window confused.

“What’s that? What’s that sound?”

“Sounds like a motor...”

“No way someone’s running a mower out here...” someone muttered jokingly, but no one laughed. The roar was close.

Then, suddenly,

Everyone in the room was speechless. The men outside shouted noisily, but inside, no one spoke. The low birch trees at the forest edge were being crushed mercilessly, and the source of the roar revealed itself.

“That’s... Rewako...”

Someone murmured. Might have added it was a discontinued model long ago, but Tae-ui didn’t hear it. What tore up the forest path with deafening noise was a three-wheeled bike.

Though called a bike, it was just three wheels. Not really a bike anymore. Probably heavily modified for mountain use, unlike any vehicle Tae-ui had seen. Its menacing bulk came crashing like a tank. A man sat atop, alone, holding the handlebars with one hand and cradling something large on his shoulder with the other. His casual, indifferent expression swept across the faces of those staring blankly.

Tae-ui watched, stunned, as if his soul had left him.

The monstrous man atop the monstrous bike looked at Tae-ui. A flicker crossed his pale lips. Tae-ui’s face hardened instantly, his eyes wide and terrified. For a few seconds, their eyes locked.

“Can’t... speak...”

From his pale lips came faint words, trembling and unclear. Someone nearby recognized the man and gasped brokenly,

“No, that’s... Ri...!”

Before the words finished, the impossible happened.

The monstrous man smiled darkly and lightly tapped the huge, crude metal mass on his shoulder.

The moment Tae-ui saw the long metal lump, he was horrified. Panzerfaust. An anti-tank weapon. One that could easily destroy an armored vehicle.

“Wait, Pi—!!”

Before Tae-ui finished, the monstrous man grinned and aimed the Panzerfaust toward them. He rose from the bike, placed one foot on the handlebar, and pulled the trigger with his empty hand.

Tae-ui dropped low as if knocking down the people beside him, flattening them to the ground.

This crazy bastard...!

Tae-ui cursed inside. Maybe he even screamed, though no sound was heard.

Instead,

An earth-shaking explosion erupted right beside his ear.

Tae-ui covered his head with his hands. Though he thought he screamed, no sound was heard. Or rather, the next explosion drowned out everything else. Thick smoke rose, mixed with dust that blanketed the area. Stones flew. Large and small rocks rained down.

Tae-ui curled up flat, covering his head and shoulders as concrete chunks rained on him. A large rock hit his shoulder, twisting his face in pain.

When the stone rain stopped, Tae-ui slowly lifted his head. White stone dust drifted off him. The room was wrecked. Collapsed walls covered the people.

“This crazy bastard... this insane son of a bitch...!!”

Even barely conscious, curses poured out.

Looking back, a whole wall was gone. The boarded-up window was gone without a trace, replaced by a wide-open view. Not just the wall—also the ceiling was gone, and the opposite wall was half collapsed.

“Who shoots an anti-tank weapon at a person, you crazy bastard!!”

Tae-ui shouted wildly, not caring if anyone heard. But it probably didn’t matter. Explosions continued nearby.