Episode 2 Moving (1)
Choi Kang-min looked at his cell phone clock nervously at the convenience store checkout counter.
– 9:55 minutes.
‘Why aren’t you coming like this? I have an appointment with a loan shark at 10 o’clock, but if this continues, won’t all of my organs be sold and I’ll end up floating in the Han River as a corpse?’
I felt like my heart was burning.
Kangmin opened his cell phone contacts and opened ‘Recent Records’.
– Convenience store owner (8)
There were records of eight phone calls with the president. Kang Min called the president again.
The president answered after five beeps.
– Hey, Choi Kang-min. I told you I was coming!
“Boss, my shift was at 8 o’clock. I told you I had an urgent appointment today. “I’m going to die like this!”
-Are you just busy? I’m busy too! I’m dying too!
“president!”
The boss hung up the phone.
“Fuck you!”
Kangmin wanted to work at a convenience store as a part-time job or something. But he couldn’t. He said today was payday and he had to take the money and give it to the loan shark.
Five minutes later, the owner came into the convenience store with a red face.
“Welcome… … .”
Kang Min’s face hardened as he looked at the face of the president with gray hair.
“Hey, you bastard. I said I was coming! “Why are you calling me like that?”
As soon as the boss arrived, he shouted at Kang Min.
Kangmin was dumbfounded. He said now that he was the one he had to shout at.
I wanted to grab him by the collar and argue with him right away, but there was no time. Even now, Kangmin had to run.
“Please take over the handover quickly.”
Kang Min said that and showed that the amount on the force sign matched the cash.
The boss looked at it, ignored it, and pointed to the display stand with his finger.
“Didn’t you clean up last night? “What is this dust?”
“I cleaned it.”
“Then what is this dust?”
Kangmin’s face turned red. The president was now deliberately making excuses. He did it on purpose, knowing his own situation.
‘pup!’
I wanted to get rid of this place right away, but this convenience store paid the highest hourly wage for part-time night work nearby.
Kangmin answered while clenching his fist.
“I’ll clean it some more this evening. “I’m busy, so please pay me my salary.”
“You ask me for a salary while working like this? really… “Because the law sucks.”
The president clicked his tongue as if he was displeased and made a bank transfer using his cell phone.
“Thank you, boss.”
Kangmin took off his convenience store apron and left the convenience store.
As he was closing the door, Kangmin heard the boss’s voice.
“Why can’t a part-time job come to the boss?” This is why children without parents are not allowed.”
Kangmin ran, biting his lip until it bled.
I had to run. The place I had to go to now was a scary place that could not be compared to the convenience store owner.
* * *
Kang Min opened the office door that had ‘Happiness Loan’ written on it and entered.
No one was seen in the office except one female employee. The female employee was chewing gum and filing her nails.
“I… hello. “I came because I had an appointment with the boss?”
The female employee glanced at Kangmin and answered while touching her fingernails again.
“The boss has left.”
The secretary wearing heavy makeup answered while chewing gum.
“uh… “When did you go?”
“It’s been about 20 minutes. coffee? green tea?”
Kangmin shook his head at the secretary’s words.
“Fine… “Yes.”
My whole body felt weak.
“You are Choi Kang-min, right? Wasn’t the appointment time at 10 o’clock? “The boss left at 10:01.”
“sorry. The convenience store owner came late today. “I got this month’s interest. What should I do?”
At Kangmin’s words, the secretary spat the gum into a tissue and put it in the trash can.
“Money? late. As you know, what the boss hates the most is breaking promises. “The boss wants me to tell you this.”
The secretary deepened her voice a little and imitated the boss’s tone.
“Bring in all interest owed so far by 6pm on Monday, all in cash. Otherwise you have to move out on Monday. “You said this.”
Kangmin closed his eyes tightly. Today was Saturday. Even if he sold the organ, he wouldn’t have the money until Monday.
‘Are we done here?’
As loan sharks, they had no blood or tears. The reason I watched him until now was all because of my small relationship with my father.
Kangmin stood up weakly and left the ‘Happiness Loan’ office.
“goodbye!”
As I was closing the door, I heard the secretary’s unimpressed voice.
“Ha, how do you get 20 million won?”
It was dark before my eyes.
When I left the building, the weather was sunny today. Kangmin started walking weakly.
* * *
It was 11:30 when I arrived home. Kangmin looked at his house.
It was a very old Hanok with a wall full of vines at the end of Bukhansan Mountain.
‘Do I really have to leave this house?’
Kangmin entered the house helplessly. A yard was visible and an old U-shaped Hanok appeared.
There was a large persimmon tree planted in the yard.
Kangmin stroked the persimmon tree. It brought back memories of when he was young, calling his friends over, showing off the persimmon tree, and picking persimmons together.
‘no! You can never leave this house! What kind of house is this! ‘This is a house that has been around since my great-great-grandfather!’
It was a house filled with memories of himself, his parents, and his grandfather.
‘Let’s sell everything. I will protect this house even if it means selling all the old things in the house.’
Kangmin bit his lip tightly and entered the master bedroom through the yard.
The master bedroom was not the room where he lived. This was the room where my deceased parents lived.
Kangmin opened the old cabinet in the master bedroom. There was a small box there that looked old.
Kang Min took out the box and opened it. Inside the box was a gold ring with a large green jade in it.
At first glance, it was not an ordinary item. The gold decorations were very detailed, and the jade had a reddish aura, not like regular jade.
‘Wouldn’t I get at least 500 for this ring? Even if you combine it with your salary, you won’t be able to get any interest, but wouldn’t it be possible to get some time if you do it?’
Kang Min recalled a conversation he had with his father about this ring when he was young.
– Dad, what is this ring? Very tacky!
– It’s tacky! Kang Min, this is the ring our family’s progenitor received from a immortal.
– fresh? Hey, lie!
– It’s not a lie. It is said that if you wear this ring, you will never get sick and live long.
– Then why doesn’t Dad join in?
– Hmm, so your dad is wearing a wedding ring, right? Anyway, Kang Min-ah, this is a family treasure. No matter what happens, you must protect it and later pass it on to your descendants. This is an old family promise.
Kangmin, who remembered his father for the first time in a long time, closed his eyes and opened them.
“Father, I’m sorry. I don’t think I can keep that promise. No matter how good a gem is, it’s not more important than a person, right? I like this house. “I will sell this to pay the interest and keep this house full of memories.”
I promised that, but it felt like I was committing a big sin.
Kangmin took out the ring and examined it closely. The green gem sparkled in the sunlight shining outside the window.
There seemed to be a pattern engraved inside the green gem, but it couldn’t be seen clearly.
“I don’t think there are any scratches. please… “There has to be a place that pays more.”
I heard from my father that it was a ring that was over 1,000 years old. He didn’t believe it all, but he figured that in just 500 years he could win a pretty penny.
‘please… ‘If I could get about 20 million won, I wouldn’t have anything to wish for.’
Kang Min put the ring on his left index finger. He seemed a little big so it fit on his middle finger. He was a perfect fit.
Kang Min tightly clasped his left hand wearing a ring with a solemn expression.
“I’m sorry, ancestors. I had to sell this ring because I couldn’t have any descendants. But I will definitely succeed and get this ring back. Please be sure to watch.”
Although I spoke softly, I was miserable on the inside. I lamented how my once wealthy family came to this point.
‘If it wasn’t for that bastard.’
Everything was because of ‘that guy’ who betrayed his father. Because of him, the company went bankrupt and my father passed away.
Now the house seems to be flying away too.
‘Kim Sang-cheol!’
Kangmin chewed the name over and over again and bit his lip until it bled. The lip was torn and a drop of blood fell onto the ring.
Then, heat radiated from the ring and my whole body became warm.
‘what? ‘Did I turn on the boiler?’
When I checked the boiler, it was off.
My body got hotter. Feeling strange, I looked and found that the ring was radiating heat.
Surprised, Kangmin quickly tried to remove the ring, but strangely, his body was weak. Maybe it was because I worked part-time at a convenience store all night, but I suddenly felt sleepy.
“why… Like this. not… “It works.”
Kangmin unconsciously collapsed in the living room and closed his eyes. Soon, the sound of Kangmin’s snoring echoed throughout the living room.
It was then that a strange phenomenon occurred. The green gem where the blood fell gave off a bright light. The light that started from the jewel soon emanated from the entire ring.
The glowing ring became mushy and turned into green liquid. The green liquid flowed onto the back of Kangmin’s left hand and created a unique pattern. It was a pattern inside a green gem.
The green liquid penetrated into Kangmin’s flesh. After a while, a dark green tattoo was engraved on the back of Kangmin’s hand.
Tattoos have gradually changed. The tattoo, which initially had a geometric shape, gradually changed into a flame shape. The color also changed to red.
Even though changes occurred in his body, Kangmin was still snoring.
The red flame tattoo shined brightly. The light enveloped Kangmin’s body and disappeared for an instant.
A message appeared in front of Kangmin’s eyes. But I didn’t see Kangmin sleeping.
After a while the message disappeared. At the same time, Kang Min also disappeared.
* * *
Kangmin felt like he had slept soundly for the first time in a long time.
It was so comfortable that I didn’t want to get up. Her body was light, the sun was warm, the air was… It was stuffy.
“to… to… Hitch!”
My throat felt itchy and I coughed. My eyes suddenly opened and I saw a familiar ceiling.
“Why am I sleeping here?”
I looked around and saw that it was the master bedroom. The memory came quickly.
“ring!”
Kangmin quickly looked at his left hand. The ring had disappeared there. His eyes grew wide as if they were tearing apart.
There was something like paint on the back of my hand, but I couldn’t even see it.
“no!”
What kind of ring was that? It was the last hope to save this house.
Kangmin searched the master bedroom as if turning it over. Even though the room was cleaned every day, for some reason, dust had accumulated so much that I started coughing.
I kept coughing, but it didn’t matter. As long as I could find the ring, I could eat as much dust as I wanted.
Kang Min took all the furniture outside, but couldn’t find the ring.
“finished.”
It was clear that there had been a thief while he was asleep.
“Ahh!”
Kangmin slammed his fist on the floor and shouted. I felt like my frustrated heart was going to explode. He struck again and again.
Then his eyes lit up.
“police! “Maybe the thief was caught on nearby CCTV!”
I couldn’t give up like this. The ring was Kang Min’s last hope.
Kangmin put on his shoes, opened the front door, and went out.
The neighborhood appeared before my eyes.
“huh?”
Kang Min was about to run to the police station right away, but he had no choice but to stop at the sight in front of him.
“this… what’s the matter?”
It was definitely a neighborhood that Kangmin knew.
But it was different. It was strange. Many of the windows were broken and some houses were damaged.
It looked like a neighborhood that was undergoing redevelopment and had not been accessible for several months.
There was another strange thing. Even though the sun was still up, there was not a single person in sight.
“what?”
Kangmin came out the front door.
There was something black on the floor and walls of the alley. There were iron pipes and wooden blocks rolling around in the alley, and they were all covered in something dark and red.
“Did a gang fight break out during redevelopment?”
It made no sense. No matter how deeply she was asleep, there was no way she would have noticed this much of an uproar.
Something was strange, but it couldn’t stay like this. I had to find the ring.
Kangmin went down carefully. Then it stopped again.
Kangmin’s eyes were shaking and he was breaking into a cold sweat. Underneath Kangmin’s sneakers was a thick wallet.
I looked around. There was no one.
“ah… “The laces on my sneakers are untied.”
Kangmin, who was talking alone in an empty place, squatted down, grabbed the laces of his sneakers, and moved his foot, which was holding his wallet, to the side.
‘It’s crazy.’
When I opened my wallet, it was full of bills.
These days, when we use credit cards a lot, we don’t carry a lot of bills, but for some reason, the owner of the wallet seemed to need cash.
‘What do we do?’
It was a lot of money. At first glance, it looked like it was worth 500,000 won. Kangmin’s eyes wavered.
‘Fuck, I don’t have any money. ‘Don’t you have any pride!’
Kangmin put his wallet in his pocket. I was on my way to the police station anyway. He decided to go and give it.
‘They say that if you find the wallet, they give you a reward… Please give me some.’
Kangmin prayed in his heart and walked down the road again. But not long after, Kangmin stopped again.
‘Fuck, is today the day of trials?’
Kangmin sat down again. There was a shiny ring under the sneakers.
It was covered in dirt, but it sparkled brightly in the sunlight, like gold.
Kang-min wiped the dirt on the ring on his jeans, put it in his mouth, and bit into it.
‘This is 24k. In terms of weight, it’s one penny. ‘It’s 260,000 won at yesterday’s price.’
Kangmin quickly put the ring in his pocket. This was different from his wallet.
Even if you brought it to the police station, it would have been difficult to find the owner, and it wouldn’t have been a big deal if you kept it yourself.
‘They give you a gift for doing something good. ‘What kind of gold or silver ax is this?’
Kangmin laughed heartily, but at the same time, he had a strange thought.
‘Bangji, you may not have seen it. But people just pass by my wallet with this many bills?’
It made no sense. Unless you were rich, people had no choice but to give in to money.
‘what? Did something really happen here?’
Kangmin put the ring in his pocket and looked around. Then I saw torn clothes scattered here and there.
Kangmin went further down. He went down near the intersection.
The further down I went, the more torn clothes I saw. The wallet also looked unusual. Of course, Kangmin took all the wallets. Of course he only took a wallet full of cash.
Then he stopped walking. I saw something sparkling under the sunlight shining through the buildings.
‘That! Diamond!’
It was a completely different light from gold. It may have been cubic, but the light was somehow unusual.
I looked around and there was still no one.
It was strange that there were no people at the intersection, but all of Kangmin’s nerves were already focused on the diamond.
The diamond was on the stairs leading down to the semi-basement next to the road.
Kangmin approached cautiously and stretched out his hand to grab the diamond. But when I got closer, I saw that the diamond was hanging on something.
White and thin. It was a bone.
“Ahh!”
Kangmin screamed and collapsed on the spot.
“what… what!”
Only then did everything come into sight in Kangmin’s eyes. There was a corpse, or rather a white skeleton, lying on the stairs going down.
The white skeleton died with the hand with the ring outstretched.
Frightened, Kangmin crawled back. Then I stood up and ran.
‘crazy! What on earth happened while I was asleep! ‘I don’t think I’ve slept much!’
Things happened that could not possibly have occurred.
‘Hidden camera? Or filming a movie?’
It couldn’t have been that way. He says he’s doing hidden cameras? Additionally, the set was too large to film a movie.
Dojin stopped in front of a cell phone store.
When I looked inside the store, the whole place was a mess and the latest model cell phones were rolling around here and there.
‘What if it’s not a hidden camera or a movie shoot? War? Or is the world ruined?’
I racked my brain, but I couldn’t think of anything that I thought was the right answer.
It was then.
– Clink.
I heard a tin can rolling behind me.
Kangmin immediately turned around.
‘person?’
About 30 meters away, someone was moving slightly.
