“Following right behind my uncle, who had stepped onto the ship first, Taeui set foot on the boarding ramp. His uncle planted one foot on the deck, extended his hand. When Taeui took it, that generous hand—larger than his uncle’s slight frame would suggest—enveloped Taeui’s and pulled him aboard.It seemed Taeui was the last passenger; no sooner had he set foot on the deck under his uncle’s lead than they weighed anchor.The ship slowly began to drift away from the pier. Only after it had gotten some distance did it start to pick up speed, riding the waves out into the open. On the deck, Uncle turned to look at Taeui.“Of course. Your only task is to protect your assigned instructor. Make sure nothing untoward happens to him—nothing, absolutely nothing else.”Saying that, Uncle smiled fondly, the shoreline now a receding backdrop behind him.They say the mountains and rivers may change, but the people remain. And they say in ten years even the landscape shifts. Yet I wonder why these people stay exactly the same.“Huh? You…?”That man—legs trembling like a panic sufferer in front of the elevator—widened his eyes at Taeui and blurted, “Oh!”Having encountered several familiar faces in similar circumstances, Taeui, who by now remembered all their names, raised a hand in casual greeting. “Hey there, long time no see, Alta.”From the ground floor down to basement level seven, each floor spanning two thousand pyeong, with barely a hundred or so people in total. Despite the low population density, Taeui ran into his former acquaintances one by one every few minutes. When he reached the basement lobby, he found himself face to face with the very first person who’d spotted him entering the UNHRDO Asia Branch building, cigarette ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) in hand—down to the exact moment and expression of their first encounter.“Taei! Hey, you’re alive? We thought you’d finally been offed by that crazy Rick and buried in some forest!”Alta’s hearty slap on his shoulder stung more than usual—he’d been on the receiving end of that exact move several times by now.Carlo, who’d stormed up to him unannounced and berated him for vanishing without a word; Moro, who’d been poring over a weapons compendium in the library and looked aghast, as if seeing a ghost, when he caught sight of Taeui; even Ching in the office corridor—they’d all greeted him with exactly the same shoulder-knocking slap.“Hey, I’m heading to the mess hall. Want to come? You need to eat, too.”The dinner hour hadn’t changed, either; Alta checked his watch, which pointed precisely to the usual time. Taeui shook his head.“I’ve already eaten.”“Really? Got it. I’ll drop by your room later tonight. Oh, right—what room? Who’s your roommate?”Alta’s question, delivered with the enthusiasm of someone about to crash in with snacks, booze, and cards at midnight, left Taeui scratching his head.“Um… basement level one.”“Eh? …You’re here as an instructor or deputy?”“No, not instructor—deputy. It’s temporary, and I’ll be done soon.”“Deputy? Then why basement one?”“Exactly my question…”In fact, Taeui himself wondered at that. After colliding with familiar faces at minutes’ intervals, he was led by his uncle to his lodging—basement one. As he remembered, that floor was reserved for instructors and above; deputies and other staff stayed at basement six. The people remained, but the building’s layout couldn’t have changed so drastically.‘This is basement one, Uncle.’‘I know, I know. And you remember my room is just down the hall past that corner—same as before.’‘Don’t deputies and instructors stay on separate floors now?’Taeui eyed the room with suspicion as his uncle opened the door. Inside was a compact living room, and two doors likely leading to individual bedrooms. ‘Left is your room,’ his uncle had said, implying the right-hand door belonged to the external instructor.‘So why am I sharing with the instructor?’‘The bedrooms are separate—what’s the fuss? And it’s way better than a three-man dorm.’‘Well, I guess…’Taeui scratched his head, telling himself it must be because he was an outside deputy, and nodded along. His uncle—who’d started the trend of shoulder pats—smiled.‘Do your utmost to serve diligently. Since you’re sharing a wing with the instructor, nothing unfortunate must befall him. Your role is crucial.’Uncle’s teasing tone prompted Taeui to respond in kind.‘Ha ha, surely my assigned instructor isn’t Ilrey? The guy who plants enemies everywhere and keeps his life hanging by a thread?’‘Ha, no way. There aren’t two such people even if you counted ’em. Your instructor is perfectly ordinary.’Laughing, Taeui entered the room and dumped his bag on the sofa. His uncle, still with matters to attend, didn’t step inside but called over his shoulder.‘Unpack and rest for now. The external guests arrive next week—only three or four days away—but get a good rest until then. It’ll get busy after that.’With a wave, Uncle departed.With only a change of clothes, Taeui went straight to the ground floor to collect the spare key to his uncle’s room from the quartermaster, then headed back down. Along the way he’d passed familiar faces—ending up encountering Alta once more.‘Basement one… I guess I can’t just drop by late at night and hang out.’‘Don’t worry. I’ll come down to level six later. Just have some beers ready and wait.’Alta’s face lit up. ‘Got it! After dinner is free time—come anytime!’ he declared, pounding his chest, before trotting off toward the mess hall.Left alone, Taeui chuckled. ‘Nothing’s changed at all.’ He twirled the Mickey Mouse keychain around his finger as he leisurely descended the stairs—Uncle’s spare key firmly in hand.…Come to think of it, one thing has changed. Shinru.When Taeui had last been here years ago, the deputy in charge of living quarters was Shinru. A faint pang of longing and apology welled in him, quickly dulled by relief. Unlike Taeui—whose age had crept forward by a decade—Shinru would still be in that same role, unaged. After parting in Johannesburg, they’d never met. All he’d heard was via Kyle—or rather, Kyle’s former subordinate Gable, who’d stayed on after helping a wounded Shinru home—that Shinru was doing well.Then last year, just once, he’d heard from Shinru. It was shortly after the nightmare in Frankfurt and after receiving a pardon from Raman, lifting his international warrant.‘Congratulations on regaining your freedom. P.S. You still have a long way to go before you lose any inhumanity, it seems. Keep going.’That was all, on paper matching the elegant envelope’s texture. Taeui laughed at the playful lines. He hadn’t been forgotten. He was free and remembered.(Of course, that happiness was short-lived—Ilrey had snatched the note and, eyebrow arched, muttered, “Loss of inhumanity, is it? Interesting choice of words,” and relentlessly pressed Taeui with questions—an outcome not quite as pleasant.)“…”Taeui slowed his steps. Remembering Shinru inevitably summoned memories of Ilrey. And those memories—etched over many years—were unforgettable.At least I survived to wander here again. Good enough.“Well, less inhuman than before, at least for me. Probably.”These days Ilrey still discards bloody gloves every so often—at least he usually does it before coming home—Taeui sighed, convincing himself of this minor comfort.“Right, think only good thoughts, only good thoughts. I won’t see him until next month in Seoul, so it’s fine to forget the dark past.”Tapping his chest, trying to push away dim recollections, Taeui paused. He realized he hadn’t told Ilrey about being stuck in Hong Kong. He couldn’t have—until just hours ago, he himself had no idea he’d end up here.“…Does it matter? He said his job would run long until next month anyway, and I’ll be in Seoul after these two weeks.”As long as Ilrey doesn’t find out he rerouted and isn’t there, it’ll be fine. If they connect before then, he’ll say he’s awaiting transfer in Hong Kong; otherwise, they’ll meet in Korea as planned.Humming a tune, Taeui reached his uncle’s room. He wondered if Uncle had returned early, but the room was empty.Like everything else, this room hadn’t changed: the familiar scent of books wafting out as he opened the door, the same layout revealed by the light. Taeui gave the room a quick once-over, tossed the Mickey Mouse keychain onto the desk, and stretched out on the bed.Burying his face in the pillow that smelled of his uncle, he lay flat, and only then did fatigue wash over him in waves. Perhaps he’d been tense without realizing it.No wonder he was tired: after over twenty hours of traveling by plane, a panicked layover, a frantic sprint around the airport, and being dumped outside the gate with his bags, then meeting his uncle and arriving here without a moment to rest.“You really are like a jack-in-the-box… You could’ve at least called before leaving…”Taeui muttered half to himself at his absent uncle, closing his eyes. A tender smile formed.Familiarity brings ten percent boredom, twenty percent longing, seventy percent relief. Now it was relief’s turn.Rock… rock…Though it wasn’t a waterbed, the gentle motion felt soothing.He might have drifted off. Half in dream, half in drowsy awareness, he sank into the soft covers. His body felt pleasantly supported.Then, half-asleep, a thought surfaced. This feels good—so good.At the same moment, another thought struck him. Can such lasting peace really be allowed in my life?“…!”Startled out of slumber as if doused with cold water, Taeui bolted upright in bed.“Hey, come on—that’s absurd. Of course it’s allowed. What are you talking about?”

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