Chapter 1579. Comprehending (4)

CLUNK!

Creaaaaaak!

The steel bars let goosebumps-inducing metallic noises while opening wide to the side.

South Korea’s Prime Minister, Goh Han-Bong, leisurely followed the prison guard into the foreboding corridor.

The stench here was unpleasant, to say the least. A chaotic blend of metallic odor, the distinctive chlorine smell, and some other unmentionable stench wafted in the air to assault Goh Han-Bong’s olfactory senses.

This wasn’t his first time visiting a prison, of course. Even then, this stench, unique to incarceration facilities, always made him uncomfortable. Maybe his stay in one of these institutions many decades ago had left a deep-seated trauma.

Instead of a badge of honor, should I say it’s a trauma of honor?

He wasn’t sure about it anymore, though.

Back then, he believed that spending time in jail as the price for resisting the dictatorship and bringing democracy to this country was a rite of passage.

But now?

What did those memories and the trauma leave Goh Han-Bong with? Did he finally acquire what he had been fighting for? With his own two hands?

Did he?

I... don’t know.

Goh Han-Bong shook his head to rid himself of the vestiges of long-buried memories threatening to reemerge. He sucked in a deep breath while telling himself to get familiarized with this unpleasant stench filling his nostrils up.

His nose became numb, but that was still not enough to alleviate this unpleasantness. Maybe that was because the person he wanted to visit was an existence that rejected so many things that made Goh Han-Bong who he was.

“We’re here, sir,” said the warden as the group stopped before a thick steel door to a solitary prison cell.

“...” Goh Han-Bong narrowed his eyes. “Open it.”

“Sir, that’s...”

“Open the door.”

“...Yes, sir.”

The warden glanced at the guard, prompting the latter to unlock the bulky steel door with a key. He then slowly opened the door wide.

The warden looked back at Goh Han-Bong. “Sir, I recommend that a guard accompany you in...”

“I will allow no one to follow me inside. Both of you, return to your posts. Make sure there is no one nearby to eavesdrop.”

“Understood.” The warden urgently nodded.

Goh Han-Bong stayed for a second to stare meaningfully at the warden and his quick-witted response, then stepped inside the open doorway.

Scribble, scribble, scribble...

The stench in the cell was just as bad. And it was accompanied by a noise that seemed familiar but not so much at the same time.

Goh Han-Bong was greeted by the sight of a skinny and tiny old man sitting by a desk, busy scribbling something.

Scribble, scribble, scratch...

The noises sounded machine-like in their consistency and frequency. Goh Han-Bong’s attention was grabbed by the tall stacks of papers next to the desk. But then, his gaze shifted back to the old man facing away from him.

So small! That old man’s back was so small and frail.

There was a time when Goh Han-Bong found that back the widest and most dependable in the entire world. The man with that back always belonged to a leader who had gallantly led Goh Han-Bong and his cohorts, and even the country itself, forward toward a better future.

The burning lamp of democracy, its light shining so bright that simply following him in his footsteps presented such a challenge...!

That old man had shone his rays on every person living in this country. Yet, in his final years... Here he was, decrepit, forgotten, and pitiful.

He never demanded a reward for all his hard work. Even though that was true, wasn’t this sight still too unfair? Wasn’t this end too tragic for a man who led South Korea to its current prosperous state?

“Senior Kim...”

“...”

The former Prime Minister of South Korea, Kim Myeong-Chan, didn’t bother to turn his head. He simply focused his attention on scribbling something down on the paper.

Goh Han-Bong wasn’t interested in what Kim Myeong-Chan could be writing down. No, that wasn’t quite right.

He didn’t want to pay attention, because if he did and saw what had been written down... He might not be able to hold his emotions back and break down on the spot.

“Senior Kim, it’s me, Han-Bong.”

Kim Myeong-Chan’s writing hand stopped immediately. Then, his head slowly turned around.

“...!” Goh Han-Bong subtly bit his lip when he looked into Kim Myeong-Chan’s eyes.

The rumors stated that the former Prime Minister had turned into a madman, that his senses had completely abandoned him. However, his eyes were far too clear and lucid for him to be the protagonist of those rumors.

Although the flames of passion, something Goh Han-Bong admired so much in the past, no longer burned in them, all the years had deepened the unfathomable depths in Kim Myeong-Chan’s eyes.

“What brings you here, Han-Bong?”

“I... don’t need a pretext to visit you, senior.”

“Right... Yes, that’s right.”

Kim Myeong-Chan pushed the desk away. The desk was shoved against the stacks of paper, causing them to fall and scatter messily. However, he simply pushed the stacks further away with his foot with an annoyed look on his face.

Despite being the author, his attitude suggested that he didn’t care about what he wrote. And Goh Han-Bong found that difficult to comprehend. Then again, that was also true in the past, so not much had changed even now.

“Here. Take a seat,” said Kim Myeong-Chan.

“Thank you.”

As Kim Myeong-Cheol leaned against the wall, Goh Han-Bong settled on a chair facing the former Prime Minister.

“Senior, I heard that you’re refusing the transfer.”

Kim Myeong-Cheol replied flatly. “What’s the point?”

“The public has lost interest in this matter now. That means it should be fine to transfer you to a better facility.”

“What will that change?”

Goh Han-Bong bit his lip again when he heard that reply

Kim Myeong-Chan wasn’t being curt here. No, he was simply stating the fact.

“Better facility or not, it’ll still be a prison. What difference does being comfortable or not in prison make, anyway?”

“But, senior...”

“Thank you for your consideration, but...” Kim Myeong-Chan slowly shook his head. “I no longer need such considerations.”

Goh Han-Bong’s head faltered.

He knew he should’ve visited his senior sooner, but couldn’t. Why? He couldn’t bring himself to witness Kim Myeong-Chan being incarcerated like this.

He did not want to see a man who kept his head held high even during the dangerous dictatorship days looking so pitiful like this, having lost in the game of politics.

“Senior...”

“I heard you’ve become the new Prime Minister.”

“...Yes, I have. But I wouldn’t have dreamed of becoming one if you were still around, senior.”

“Don’t be so humble, Han-Bong. It’s not as if I’d be occupying that position forever, after all. Besides, you were always a better candidate to serve as the Prime Minister of the country than me, anyway. I never had what’s needed for such a role.”

“That’s not true, senior.”

Kim Myeong-Chan shook his head. “Let’s not waste each other’s time with this pointless talk. Being the Prime Minister is a difficult ask, especially in the current era. The burden you carry must be enormous.”

“It... is.”

“That’s enough preamble, don’t you think? What brings you here, Han-Bong?”

“Senior, I don’t need a reason to...”

“As I’ve said before, let’s not waste each other’s time, shall we? The Prime Minister of this country doesn’t have a lot of free time, after all. If you have too much time to kill, then well, you must be doing something wrong.”

Goh Han-Bong’s head faltered. He sighed deeply, then looked up at Kim Myeong-Chan. “I was wondering if you could give me some advice.”

“Advice, you say?”

“Yes, senior. This position is proving tougher than I expected.”

“Ohh... It must be Kang Jin-Ho, then.”

“...”

Goh Han-Bong didn’t reply, simply choosing to chew on his lip. But his silence was as good a confirmation as any.

“Indeed, it’s tough. Very tough...” Kim Myeong-Chan muttered.

“I don’t know what to do, senior.” Goh Han-Bong sighed deeply again. “We’ve dedicated our lives to building this country. But that man... He has escaped the rule of this country’s government. Of course, you know I’m not an imperialist or the type to favor government involvement in every facet of our lives. I believe that no government is above its people. In fact, I lean much closer to being a liberal on most issues. Even so, that man is...”

Kim Myeong-Chan narrowed his eyes. “He’s outside the rule of law.”

“Yes.” Goh Han-Bong slowly shook his head. “While you’ve been in here, things have gotten far worse on the outside, senior. Those people independently negotiated with the Chinese government to do this to you, and now, they even made a deal with the American government. They are actively trying to increase the number of American servicemen in our country. The Americans are even pressuring our side so that we would cough up a piece of land to build a new base.”

“Mm...!”

Kim Myeong-Chan closed his eyes while listening to information that could not be found in newspapers or news broadcasts.

Goh Han-Bong continued to speak. “I know I shouldn’t think this, but... I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do as the Prime Minister. A supposed citizen of this country is attempting something with another country’s government, but we don’t have a say in this. We can’t even interfere.”

“Do you feel powerless?”

“...Yes, I do.”

Kim Myeong-Chan chuckled softly. Goh Han-Bong frowned slightly after failing to understand why the former Prime Minister would chuckle at this news. What could be so funny about this situation?

“I’m sorry, Han-Bong. I didn’t mean to. But it was a little too amusing for me, you see?”

“I... am not quite sure what was so amusing, senior.”

“You said you’re not an imperialist. And you certainly are not a government-first type of guy, either. You and I? We both risked our lives to fight against the dictatorship that treated people’s lives like dirt.”

“Yes, we have.”

“But now... You’re troubled by the government’s inability to control one of its citizens. Don’t you think that’s amusing? The wise old they said that your point of view would change depending on how high you stand, and it seems they were right all along.”

“Senior, it’s not like that,” said Goh Han-Bong with a firm shake of his head. “You can’t call that man a citizen of this country. He’s not even human at this stage. He has set up a country of his own within the territory of the Republic of South Korea. I would even say that he’s the leader of some twisted puppet state.”

“Well, yes. You are not incorrect in your assertion.”

“Even if I view this matter as an ordinary citizen of this country and not as the Prime Minister, how am I supposed to accept this state of affairs? And I’m supposed to take this secret to my grave? And keep everything under wraps so that other citizens would never know the truth?”

Kim Myeong-Chan sighed. “Look, Han-Bong.”

“Yes, senior.”

“Stop whining.”

“...?” Goh Han-Bong dazedly stared at his predecessor.

“What you’re saying is something ordinary citizens should say, not the Prime Minister of this country. Whether it’s the Prime Minister or the President, the ones tasked with running the country are not permitted to whine. No, your duty is to rack your head until you find solutions. Whatever the situation is, you must always strive to find the best solution regardless of how you feel.”

“...”

“Do I have to tell you what happens if you fail to do that? Even though you’re looking at the end result with your own two eyes?”

“...!”

“Don’t try to make excuses. You simply didn’t like what was happening. That’s all. It got on your nerves. You’re unhappy that there’s a man you can’t crush with your power. Even though you’ve fought and clawed your way to reach this position! What’s more, you’re pissed because that position will never be yours no matter what you try.”

“Senior!”

“That was the case for me, after all,” said Kim Myeong-Chan, his voice getting icier. “Yes, that was my story. I tried to dress it up with various excuses, but being thrown in here opened my eyes. Now I know why I did all those things. It was simply because I didn’t like what they were doing.”

Goh Han-Bong’s shoulders trembled slightly. “Senior, just what...”

“You think it was any different back then?”

“I beg your pardon?”

Kim Myeong-Chan cackled coldly. “Fighting for the great cause, for our country... The passion we’ve poured in to secure a better future... Kekekeke! What a laughable notion they all were. In reality, I simply hated the dictatorship. That was all.”

“...”

“People who sacrificed themselves for a better future? Yes, I’m sure people like that exist. But I’m not one of them. I just wanted to sh*t and piss on their faces. That was all. I used that passion, that fervor of mine, to give the dictatorship a middle finger. And before I realized it, I had somehow become the symbol of democracy in this country. Ironically enough.”

“Senior, I don’t understand what you’re trying to tell me.”

“Stop trying to dress it up. That’s what I’m saying.”

“...”

“Stop dressing yourself up like some kind of noble hero, even in your eyes. Don’t fool yourself into thinking that way. Whether it’s you or me, we’re lowly human beings who get angry at things and start bullying other people for stupid reasons.”

Goh Han-Bong was left speechless just then. Was it because what Kim Myeong-Chan had said was too shocking?

No, not really. The real reason was that something the former Prime Minister had said stabbed him painfully in a place he couldn’t quite locate on his body.

“Let me summarize it for you,” Kim Myeong-Chan said with a smile. “Don’t fight back.”

“...”

“Don’t resist. Don’t fight them. Just kowtow and wait for the storm to pass you by. He’s that kind of man, you see? As long as you don’t provoke him first, he won’t come after you. You have no reason to get on his nerves. And he hasn’t done anything bad to you, now has he?”

“Senior? But he’s...”

“Do you want to know?”

“...? Sorry?”

Kim Myeong-Chan’s expression gradually morphed. His eyes quaked weirdly, while his complexion rapidly paled. His fingertips visibly trembled, his hands not knowing where to go.

“Do you want to know? Do you? Should I tell you what happens to someone stupid enough to fight him without knowing a damn thing?! Do you want to learn what a living hell is like? Will you only understand the truth after becoming me?! Do you have any idea what I’m looking at right now?!”

“S-senior?”

“How dare you run your stupid mouth off when you know nothing?! You goddamn brat! Aaaaaaahk!”

Kim Myeong-Chan yelled and pounced on Goh Han-Bong without warning.