p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"4 years later, May 2015/span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;" /span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Every year, since 1988, the poor, the debt, the…insignificant, have been disappearing; one day they're calling their family, gambling, spending time at the market. The next, they're gone"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Chief Hwang In-ho stood, composed, as he presented his case to the other police chiefs from across South Korea. Being promoted for his incorruptibility and fair views was a surprise to all, but he would take full advantage of this position, and make his and Jun-ho's vision come to life./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Have they fled the country, fearing the police, their lone sharks, and the disappointment in their family's eyes? Or, is something more sinister happening here, in a land meant to pursue peace and security?". He paused, meeting each chief's equally tired and serious eyes, before continuing./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""These people are, seemingly, unsignificant. No one gives a shit about the debt-consumed low-lifer that decides to get lost and never speak to their family again./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""But, when you're a low-lifer like this, all you have is family. They're the only good thing in your sad, meaningless, small life, that makes you feel happy, and big. That's what's so strange about these disappearances- they're all leaving their loved ones behind. And, even stranger, 40% of the missing persons had family members pass away, due to medical issues that are highly expensive to treat, just weeks after they disappear. These people would not ditch their family like that. I am sure"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The chiefs around the room gaze at the pristine, white ceiling of the meeting room, hopefully deep in thought and not overcome with thoughts of emwho is this idiot and why the hell is he a police chief?/em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"In-ho opens his mouth, ready to continue his case, when the office door flings open, and Kap-Soo, a young, scruffy secretary, unceremoniously bursts inside the quiet, reserved area. Suddenly realising his intrusion, Kap-Soo straitens his back, nervously running one hand through his black, dishevelled hair and using the other to smooth the creases in his starched, crumpled shirt, as if playing some kind of nerve-racking coordination game./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Uh, Chief Hwang In-ho?", Kap-soo stuttered, "Someone is here to…see you. Now"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"In-ho opens his mouth to protest, annoyed but amused by the young man's excessive nerves, until the glass door swings farther, and a bright figure instantly catches In-ho's eye. A man standing behind the door, dressed in a bright-pink jumpsuit, with a hood, black gloves, and boots. A white circle sits in the top half of the man's strange, black mask. At first, In-ho thinks the man is some kind of joke, until the full demeanour of the strange figure seems to resonate./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The figure stands strangely, still, his gloved hands clenched over his front pockets as if he's hiding something, something more mysterious and threatening behind his innocent, bright pink outfit. An image of a children's toy found in a box of weapons- rusted knives, clubs and pistols- comes to In-ho's mind, a strange juxtaposition of innocence and danger./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Hwang In-ho's mind instantly begins to produce various arguments, excuses, to convince himself that following this man is the right choice./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"People rarely come to see me. I've already presented almost all my information, I should let my theory sit for a while before I start to sound even more ridiculous. I should take advantage of this strange situation, I may never be able to discover the secret behind this strange man./span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Finally, Chief Hwang nods, turning to the other, amused chiefs./span/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: dotted windowtext 3.0pt; padding: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: dotted windowtext 3.0pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""I'll be back shortly. Please, look through the files whilst you wait"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: dotted windowtext 3.0pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;" /span/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"In-ho follows the strange, mute guard, through the front office, expecting to be consumed in the usual buzz of officers, but instead faced with silence. The facility was completely empty. Frozen in abruptness and shock, In-ho simply stood, feeling his heart beat as a racing blow rippling through his whole body./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The masked man continued his path, his movements controlled, robotic as he reached a gloved hand and dragged a storage unit away from the facility's grey, brick wall, revealing a man-sized tunnel leading into darkness./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The guard's childish pink suit became engulfed in black, the only trace of his existence being heavy, echoing footsteps; a hollow sound that seemed infinite as it bounded off the passage's cavernous walls. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"In-ho's pulse lowered, matching the pace of the masked man's uniform steps, as he, too, became swallowed by darkness./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Bare, stony corridors, each magnifying the eerie resonation of footprints, replaying the thumping sound through their cold, empty spaces. Like a confused animal using only echolocation in the sudden absence of all its senses, In-ho followed the ringing of vibrations to find his way as he weaved through the dark style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Finally, the guard stopped outside a rusted, steel door, deep, golden light peering from underneath, standing stationary against the wall opposite, remaining mute and motionless. Suspecting that the strange guard wouldn't answer any questions he puts forward, and wanting to remain composed, In-ho simply presses his palm against the door, its icy surface biting his skin, and pushes it open./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Then, he freezes, trepidation engulfing all senses./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The freezing room was dimply light by rich, orange lamplight, illuminating its contents./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"In its centre, a glossy, wooden desk sits on a velvet, rich blue carpet. Behind the desk, a man in a dark, pristine suit perches on a luxury, leather armchair, his hands folded on the desk and a glittering, jewelled owl mask concealing his face. Two of the pink guards stand on each side of the man, each with triangles instead of circles printed on their mask, and each holding a large, black firearm. The steel door emslams /emlike a gunshot behind In-ho, causing his blood to leap as he stands, frozen./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Hwang In-ho, please, sit down", the owl-man speaks in a voice rich in tones; wizened, gravelly, playful, cheery, dangerous, threatening; the words almost seemed rehearsed. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Cautiously, slowly, and somehow not overly threatened by this raspy owl man, In-ho pulls a plush, velvet stool out from under the desk and, slowly, sits down./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Why do you want to see me?", he asks, tracing the intricate carvings into the stool's varnished wood, concentrating on the slow motions of his finger. The movement helps him control the muscles in his face and throat, maintaining a façade; a composed demeanour./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""I want to talk to you, about your theories", the man's voice remains friendly, but In-ho can detect splashes of warning behind the words./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""My…theories?", he asks./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The masked man remains still and silent as the guards behind him instantly cock their rifles, unsubtly aiming their barrels centimetres from In-ho's head. His heart begins to thump, slamming itself against the bars of its ribcage to flee from the situation, but In-ho remains his composure, wearing a mask, hiding his emotions, just as much as everyone else in the room./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Your theories, about the missing people", the owl man continues, his voice still dripping with cheer./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Well…" In-ho deadpans, "All I know is that people are going missing. Poor people, people in debt. Living people in debt, with families that love them and file missing persons cases. To me. You seem in the position to know more about those cases than me so, hey, why don't emyou /emtalk to me about that? Because I, for one, know nothing."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The owl man sits motionless for a moment, then reaches into his coat pocket and pulls out 5 colourful, small stones./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Gonggi stones./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The man gazes at them for a moment, as if they call back an ancient, but happy memory from the depths of his mind./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""When I was young, me and my friends could never make a decision on what to do, so we played Gonggi to decide who would pick our game. I had so much fun, immersing myself in the simple yet colourful and intricate world of Gonggi, that I forgot the honour of choosing our game was at stake", the owl man chuckled, "I won every time, so much that we argued and decided to change our rules. But I didn't care, because, no matter what we played, I always had so much fun."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The owl man laid the small, bright stones on the desk, spacing them evenly apart on its drab surface. The colourful children's toys were so out of place in the dark, dangerous room./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Let's play a game. If I catch the most stones, you will pay me with your body. If you catch the most stones, I'll pay with information. I'll tell you anything you want to know"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Despite the fierce adrenaline rushing through his veins, his thundering heart, and the ferocious fight-or-flight sense fighting to overcome his thumping mind, In-ho had to cement his cheekbones in place to stop a smile slicing through his face as a memory overtook his senses./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"10 year old Jun-ho and 26 year old In-ho sit cross-legged on the ground, the colourful Gonggi stones laid evenly on the floor in between them./span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Why are we playing this game again?", Jun-ho asks, his wry smile evident in his tone./span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Four years ago, I told you how I want to make society fair, correct?", In-ho answered, "well, today at work, I was thinking about it, and thought I'd show you what exactly I meant"./span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""I know what you meant, In-ho!", Jun-ho laughed, "my friends cheat at /span/emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"mugunghwa kkochi piotsseumnida emall the time. I know what it feels like when the game is unfair"./em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Do I really need an excuse to play games with my younger brother? If this isn't convincing enough, I'll come up with another one."/span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""No, In-ho", Jun-ho grinned "this excuse is fine"./span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"In-ho stared the owl man in the eyes, and, despite the quiet room's thick tension and the black barrels aimed at his head, he finally let a grin creep across his face and held out his hand./span/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: dotted windowtext 3.0pt; padding: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: dotted windowtext 3.0pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""You've got a deal"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: dotted windowtext 3.0pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;" /span/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The owl man began the game, skilfully tossing the Gonggi stones into the air with swiftness and dexterity, each finishing their dance of pattern and colours carefully in the palm of his hand. His movements were nimble, agile and clearly the work of a person that had played and won this game his whole life./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"After he had flicked all his stones into the air and perfectly caught them on the back of his hand, the owl man poured them into his other palm and held them to In-ho./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""You're turn", he spoke in a voice abundant in joy and eagerness, either at playing a game and returning to his childhood, or eagerness to finally wedge a bullet into this nosy chief's skull and paint the walls with his blood./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"In-ho calmly accepted the stones from owl man's steady palm into his shaking hands, the only part of his body where he's never been able to disguise emotions, feeling their smooth surfaces against his trembling fingers, and laid them out on the desk. Breathing deeply to steady his hands and calm the nervous buzz threatening to break his composure, he began./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"In-ho gracefully tossed the grape-sized stones into the air, catching them flawlessly each time, allowing himself to relax slightly. He had played Gonggi with Jun-ho countless times, and, despite the many years it had been since the brothers played the game, discussing how to make it as unfair as possible- giving one player bigger stones, making them close their eyes or toss them a metre into the air- his muscle memory returned with ease, transporting his mind into the rhythm of the game as he caught the vibrant stones on his knuckles, almost as smoothly as the owl man./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"When the owl man offered that they play once more, In-ho didn't object./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"As In-ho immersed himself in the game, letting its rhythm overtake his mind, the room's atmosphere shifted. The passion evident in memories of Jun-ho and his passion to stay alive in the moment swirled together, melding, as the tiny, colourful stones consumed his thoughts. The owl man became less of a threatening figure in a mysterious mask, likely responsible for the disappearance of hundreds of people, and more like a worthy opponent engaged in a simple, fun game that transformed them both to a simpler, better time in their lives./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"Finally, when In-ho handed the Gonggi stones back to the owl man after a flawless round, he simply shook his head and released a slow, wheezy laugh. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""You're a worthy opponent, In-ho. A very good player", he bantered, taking the stones, scraping them against the desk and concealing them in his blazer pocket once more, lifting his gaze to stare into the distance of his memories, "It's been such a long time…since I played such a good game."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"In-ho simply sat, his hands folded on the desk, mute, only interested./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""When I played with my friends, we always joked, they said I had fingers agile as a empepeo, /emand they would practise and practise, and get really good at flicking the stones into the air and catching them on the backs of their hand", the owl man continued, rubbing his right palm over his left knuckles and chuckling, "but I was always the best player. Thank you for letting me have fun again. I spend so much time watching the games, I forget how much I enjoyed playing them so long ago…I forget how fun they are."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""You like gambling, sir?", In-ho asks after a beat, trying to sound casual, interpreting the man's simple chatter with a buzzing mind. The owl man's head instantly snaped back in place./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Hm?", he asks./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""You mentioned games. Horse racing? Gambling? I gamble a little myself. It really does bring us back to the simple rules and high stakes of…childhood", In-ho laughs, resisting the urge to continue tracing the smooth patterns of his stool to keep his thoughts arranged./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Yes", the man states wistfully, "gambling, I guess you could say that."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Horse racing?", In-ho pushes in a friendly tone./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Very…very similar to horse racing. And…more fun to watch"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Does this…gambling…involve people? You know, people that like to gamble?"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"The owl man suddenly stares at In-ho, his simple yet piercing brown eyes becoming suddenly apparent through the glamour of his jewelled mask, until they glazed over once more, overtaken by a memory./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""In-ho… I am an old man. A sad old man, yet even when I was young, I was still sad"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"Hwang In-ho leaned forward slightly, still meeting the owl man's eyes, despite the brown irises becoming cloudy and distant. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""I wanted to feel like a child again. Playing games, risking, forming alliances to be the best player…So, I got together with some younger colleagues of mine, and we set up a game. It has a great prize, the best we could provide, so the players really enjoy themselves."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""A game?", In-ho asked, "and…the players? I'd bet they're people who'd really appreciate that prize", In-ho tried to quip in a joking tone. The owl man continued staring into the distance, eyes covered in a glossy layer of remembrance./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""The games are very simple, but sometimes people get too carried away thinking of the prize. They forget to think about each other. When I watch them, I remind myself why I don't trust people. We…we'd all eliminate each other for that prize"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Eliminate?", In-ho asks "where do the players go after they're eliminated?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""The players…they see the games as their refuge, as much as I see it as mine. They don't want to return to their horrible lives. I bet…when they're eliminated, they feel like they're trapped. In a box. And the box is on fire, and the smoke and flames are overcoming them. They're trapped in the mess they've made for themselves, the mess they'd probably rather emdie /emthan return to"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"The owl man turns to In-ho suddenly, his tone becoming desperate, tragic, begging./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""If I tell you everything about my games, will you cancel your investigation? They bring me so much joy. My games are an escape for so many people. They choose to play, choose to leave their sad lives and family behind, for this escape"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"Hwang In-ho stares at the deep-coloured wooden desk, letting thoughts and memories bound around his skull. He remembers the many times he'd played with his brother, remembers comparing society to the games they played, remembers saying how children's games were perfect, an ideal world where everything was fair. But he also remembers making Jun-ho swear to never be corrupt, to never listen to the rich men in their suits who thinks they're bigger than you because their bank account is./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"But Hwang In-ho let the former thoughts swarm his brain, overcoming the latter. Excuses, excuses, always beating his values out of the picture with clubs of justification once something new opens up in his life, something bigger he could work towards, something that interests him./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"In-ho held out his hand once more to the strange man in the owl mask and the suit, his pink guards still standing with their pistols aimed at his forehead./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Deal"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;" /span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Every year, since 1988, the poor, the debt, the…insignificant, have been disappearing; one day they're calling their family, gambling, spending time at the market. The next, they're gone"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Chief Hwang In-ho stood, composed, as he presented his case to the other police chiefs from across South Korea. Being promoted for his incorruptibility and fair views was a surprise to all, but he would take full advantage of this position, and make his and Jun-ho's vision come to life./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Have they fled the country, fearing the police, their lone sharks, and the disappointment in their family's eyes? Or, is something more sinister happening here, in a land meant to pursue peace and security?". He paused, meeting each chief's equally tired and serious eyes, before continuing./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""These people are, seemingly, unsignificant. No one gives a shit about the debt-consumed low-lifer that decides to get lost and never speak to their family again./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""But, when you're a low-lifer like this, all you have is family. They're the only good thing in your sad, meaningless, small life, that makes you feel happy, and big. That's what's so strange about these disappearances- they're all leaving their loved ones behind. And, even stranger, 40% of the missing persons had family members pass away, due to medical issues that are highly expensive to treat, just weeks after they disappear. These people would not ditch their family like that. I am sure"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The chiefs around the room gaze at the pristine, white ceiling of the meeting room, hopefully deep in thought and not overcome with thoughts of emwho is this idiot and why the hell is he a police chief?/em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"In-ho opens his mouth, ready to continue his case, when the office door flings open, and Kap-Soo, a young, scruffy secretary, unceremoniously bursts inside the quiet, reserved area. Suddenly realising his intrusion, Kap-Soo straitens his back, nervously running one hand through his black, dishevelled hair and using the other to smooth the creases in his starched, crumpled shirt, as if playing some kind of nerve-racking coordination game./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Uh, Chief Hwang In-ho?", Kap-soo stuttered, "Someone is here to…see you. Now"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"In-ho opens his mouth to protest, annoyed but amused by the young man's excessive nerves, until the glass door swings farther, and a bright figure instantly catches In-ho's eye. A man standing behind the door, dressed in a bright-pink jumpsuit, with a hood, black gloves, and boots. A white circle sits in the top half of the man's strange, black mask. At first, In-ho thinks the man is some kind of joke, until the full demeanour of the strange figure seems to resonate./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The figure stands strangely, still, his gloved hands clenched over his front pockets as if he's hiding something, something more mysterious and threatening behind his innocent, bright pink outfit. An image of a children's toy found in a box of weapons- rusted knives, clubs and pistols- comes to In-ho's mind, a strange juxtaposition of innocence and danger./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Hwang In-ho's mind instantly begins to produce various arguments, excuses, to convince himself that following this man is the right choice./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"People rarely come to see me. I've already presented almost all my information, I should let my theory sit for a while before I start to sound even more ridiculous. I should take advantage of this strange situation, I may never be able to discover the secret behind this strange man./span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Finally, Chief Hwang nods, turning to the other, amused chiefs./span/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: dotted windowtext 3.0pt; padding: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: dotted windowtext 3.0pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""I'll be back shortly. Please, look through the files whilst you wait"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: dotted windowtext 3.0pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;" /span/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"In-ho follows the strange, mute guard, through the front office, expecting to be consumed in the usual buzz of officers, but instead faced with silence. The facility was completely empty. Frozen in abruptness and shock, In-ho simply stood, feeling his heart beat as a racing blow rippling through his whole body./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The masked man continued his path, his movements controlled, robotic as he reached a gloved hand and dragged a storage unit away from the facility's grey, brick wall, revealing a man-sized tunnel leading into darkness./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The guard's childish pink suit became engulfed in black, the only trace of his existence being heavy, echoing footsteps; a hollow sound that seemed infinite as it bounded off the passage's cavernous walls. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"In-ho's pulse lowered, matching the pace of the masked man's uniform steps, as he, too, became swallowed by darkness./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Bare, stony corridors, each magnifying the eerie resonation of footprints, replaying the thumping sound through their cold, empty spaces. Like a confused animal using only echolocation in the sudden absence of all its senses, In-ho followed the ringing of vibrations to find his way as he weaved through the dark style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Finally, the guard stopped outside a rusted, steel door, deep, golden light peering from underneath, standing stationary against the wall opposite, remaining mute and motionless. Suspecting that the strange guard wouldn't answer any questions he puts forward, and wanting to remain composed, In-ho simply presses his palm against the door, its icy surface biting his skin, and pushes it open./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Then, he freezes, trepidation engulfing all senses./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The freezing room was dimply light by rich, orange lamplight, illuminating its contents./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"In its centre, a glossy, wooden desk sits on a velvet, rich blue carpet. Behind the desk, a man in a dark, pristine suit perches on a luxury, leather armchair, his hands folded on the desk and a glittering, jewelled owl mask concealing his face. Two of the pink guards stand on each side of the man, each with triangles instead of circles printed on their mask, and each holding a large, black firearm. The steel door emslams /emlike a gunshot behind In-ho, causing his blood to leap as he stands, frozen./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Hwang In-ho, please, sit down", the owl-man speaks in a voice rich in tones; wizened, gravelly, playful, cheery, dangerous, threatening; the words almost seemed rehearsed. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Cautiously, slowly, and somehow not overly threatened by this raspy owl man, In-ho pulls a plush, velvet stool out from under the desk and, slowly, sits down./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Why do you want to see me?", he asks, tracing the intricate carvings into the stool's varnished wood, concentrating on the slow motions of his finger. The movement helps him control the muscles in his face and throat, maintaining a façade; a composed demeanour./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""I want to talk to you, about your theories", the man's voice remains friendly, but In-ho can detect splashes of warning behind the words./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""My…theories?", he asks./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The masked man remains still and silent as the guards behind him instantly cock their rifles, unsubtly aiming their barrels centimetres from In-ho's head. His heart begins to thump, slamming itself against the bars of its ribcage to flee from the situation, but In-ho remains his composure, wearing a mask, hiding his emotions, just as much as everyone else in the room./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Your theories, about the missing people", the owl man continues, his voice still dripping with cheer./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Well…" In-ho deadpans, "All I know is that people are going missing. Poor people, people in debt. Living people in debt, with families that love them and file missing persons cases. To me. You seem in the position to know more about those cases than me so, hey, why don't emyou /emtalk to me about that? Because I, for one, know nothing."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The owl man sits motionless for a moment, then reaches into his coat pocket and pulls out 5 colourful, small stones./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Gonggi stones./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The man gazes at them for a moment, as if they call back an ancient, but happy memory from the depths of his mind./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""When I was young, me and my friends could never make a decision on what to do, so we played Gonggi to decide who would pick our game. I had so much fun, immersing myself in the simple yet colourful and intricate world of Gonggi, that I forgot the honour of choosing our game was at stake", the owl man chuckled, "I won every time, so much that we argued and decided to change our rules. But I didn't care, because, no matter what we played, I always had so much fun."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The owl man laid the small, bright stones on the desk, spacing them evenly apart on its drab surface. The colourful children's toys were so out of place in the dark, dangerous room./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Let's play a game. If I catch the most stones, you will pay me with your body. If you catch the most stones, I'll pay with information. I'll tell you anything you want to know"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"Despite the fierce adrenaline rushing through his veins, his thundering heart, and the ferocious fight-or-flight sense fighting to overcome his thumping mind, In-ho had to cement his cheekbones in place to stop a smile slicing through his face as a memory overtook his senses./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"10 year old Jun-ho and 26 year old In-ho sit cross-legged on the ground, the colourful Gonggi stones laid evenly on the floor in between them./span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Why are we playing this game again?", Jun-ho asks, his wry smile evident in his tone./span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""Four years ago, I told you how I want to make society fair, correct?", In-ho answered, "well, today at work, I was thinking about it, and thought I'd show you what exactly I meant"./span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""I know what you meant, In-ho!", Jun-ho laughed, "my friends cheat at /span/emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"mugunghwa kkochi piotsseumnida emall the time. I know what it feels like when the game is unfair"./em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Do I really need an excuse to play games with my younger brother? If this isn't convincing enough, I'll come up with another one."/span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"emspan style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""No, In-ho", Jun-ho grinned "this excuse is fine"./span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"In-ho stared the owl man in the eyes, and, despite the quiet room's thick tension and the black barrels aimed at his head, he finally let a grin creep across his face and held out his hand./span/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: dotted windowtext 3.0pt; padding: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: dotted windowtext 3.0pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""You've got a deal"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: dotted windowtext 3.0pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;" /span/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"The owl man began the game, skilfully tossing the Gonggi stones into the air with swiftness and dexterity, each finishing their dance of pattern and colours carefully in the palm of his hand. His movements were nimble, agile and clearly the work of a person that had played and won this game his whole life./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;"After he had flicked all his stones into the air and perfectly caught them on the back of his hand, the owl man poured them into his other palm and held them to In-ho./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif;""You're turn", he spoke in a voice abundant in joy and eagerness, either at playing a game and returning to his childhood, or eagerness to finally wedge a bullet into this nosy chief's skull and paint the walls with his blood./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"In-ho calmly accepted the stones from owl man's steady palm into his shaking hands, the only part of his body where he's never been able to disguise emotions, feeling their smooth surfaces against his trembling fingers, and laid them out on the desk. Breathing deeply to steady his hands and calm the nervous buzz threatening to break his composure, he began./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"In-ho gracefully tossed the grape-sized stones into the air, catching them flawlessly each time, allowing himself to relax slightly. He had played Gonggi with Jun-ho countless times, and, despite the many years it had been since the brothers played the game, discussing how to make it as unfair as possible- giving one player bigger stones, making them close their eyes or toss them a metre into the air- his muscle memory returned with ease, transporting his mind into the rhythm of the game as he caught the vibrant stones on his knuckles, almost as smoothly as the owl man./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"When the owl man offered that they play once more, In-ho didn't object./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"As In-ho immersed himself in the game, letting its rhythm overtake his mind, the room's atmosphere shifted. The passion evident in memories of Jun-ho and his passion to stay alive in the moment swirled together, melding, as the tiny, colourful stones consumed his thoughts. The owl man became less of a threatening figure in a mysterious mask, likely responsible for the disappearance of hundreds of people, and more like a worthy opponent engaged in a simple, fun game that transformed them both to a simpler, better time in their lives./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"Finally, when In-ho handed the Gonggi stones back to the owl man after a flawless round, he simply shook his head and released a slow, wheezy laugh. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""You're a worthy opponent, In-ho. A very good player", he bantered, taking the stones, scraping them against the desk and concealing them in his blazer pocket once more, lifting his gaze to stare into the distance of his memories, "It's been such a long time…since I played such a good game."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"In-ho simply sat, his hands folded on the desk, mute, only interested./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""When I played with my friends, we always joked, they said I had fingers agile as a empepeo, /emand they would practise and practise, and get really good at flicking the stones into the air and catching them on the backs of their hand", the owl man continued, rubbing his right palm over his left knuckles and chuckling, "but I was always the best player. Thank you for letting me have fun again. I spend so much time watching the games, I forget how much I enjoyed playing them so long ago…I forget how fun they are."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""You like gambling, sir?", In-ho asks after a beat, trying to sound casual, interpreting the man's simple chatter with a buzzing mind. The owl man's head instantly snaped back in place./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Hm?", he asks./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""You mentioned games. Horse racing? Gambling? I gamble a little myself. It really does bring us back to the simple rules and high stakes of…childhood", In-ho laughs, resisting the urge to continue tracing the smooth patterns of his stool to keep his thoughts arranged./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Yes", the man states wistfully, "gambling, I guess you could say that."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Horse racing?", In-ho pushes in a friendly tone./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Very…very similar to horse racing. And…more fun to watch"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Does this…gambling…involve people? You know, people that like to gamble?"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"The owl man suddenly stares at In-ho, his simple yet piercing brown eyes becoming suddenly apparent through the glamour of his jewelled mask, until they glazed over once more, overtaken by a memory./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""In-ho… I am an old man. A sad old man, yet even when I was young, I was still sad"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"Hwang In-ho leaned forward slightly, still meeting the owl man's eyes, despite the brown irises becoming cloudy and distant. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""I wanted to feel like a child again. Playing games, risking, forming alliances to be the best player…So, I got together with some younger colleagues of mine, and we set up a game. It has a great prize, the best we could provide, so the players really enjoy themselves."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""A game?", In-ho asked, "and…the players? I'd bet they're people who'd really appreciate that prize", In-ho tried to quip in a joking tone. The owl man continued staring into the distance, eyes covered in a glossy layer of remembrance./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""The games are very simple, but sometimes people get too carried away thinking of the prize. They forget to think about each other. When I watch them, I remind myself why I don't trust people. We…we'd all eliminate each other for that prize"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Eliminate?", In-ho asks "where do the players go after they're eliminated?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""The players…they see the games as their refuge, as much as I see it as mine. They don't want to return to their horrible lives. I bet…when they're eliminated, they feel like they're trapped. In a box. And the box is on fire, and the smoke and flames are overcoming them. They're trapped in the mess they've made for themselves, the mess they'd probably rather emdie /emthan return to"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"The owl man turns to In-ho suddenly, his tone becoming desperate, tragic, begging./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""If I tell you everything about my games, will you cancel your investigation? They bring me so much joy. My games are an escape for so many people. They choose to play, choose to leave their sad lives and family behind, for this escape"./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"Hwang In-ho stares at the deep-coloured wooden desk, letting thoughts and memories bound around his skull. He remembers the many times he'd played with his brother, remembers comparing society to the games they played, remembers saying how children's games were perfect, an ideal world where everything was fair. But he also remembers making Jun-ho swear to never be corrupt, to never listen to the rich men in their suits who thinks they're bigger than you because their bank account is./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"But Hwang In-ho let the former thoughts swarm his brain, overcoming the latter. Excuses, excuses, always beating his values out of the picture with clubs of justification once something new opens up in his life, something bigger he could work towards, something that interests him./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;"In-ho held out his hand once more to the strange man in the owl mask and the suit, his pink guards still standing with their pistols aimed at his forehead./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Segoe UI',sans-serif; color: black; background: white;""Deal"./span/p