Anger.

“That’s not it. Regarding Squad Leader Sam and the squad members under him…”

“The subordinates did something wrong, so why are you taking it up with me? That’s the nuance I’m getting.”

“That isn’t it either. Since they are clearly under my command, it is right that I bear the ultimate responsibility.”

“Then please take care of it accordingly.”

Thump.

Tae-su even held out his hand, perfectly brazen.

It was probably the first time in his life that Colonel Clark had experienced anything like this.

The bewilderment did not fade easily and lingered on.

“Well, now.”

“In exchange, I’ll consider everything about the wolf’s escape settled with this.”

“Do you really mean that?”

“Depending on how much you take care of me.”

Tae-su remained exacting to the very end.

At a glance, it was a prickliness that would put even the strictest dormitory supervisor to shame.

He had seen and learned things from Kim Hyeok-gwon all this time.

If Tae-su put his mind to it, he could certainly give off this much prickliness.

Meanwhile, though Colonel Clark was flustered, he had enough sense to read the room.

He immediately took out his wallet, pulled out every bit of cash inside, and offered it over.

“Here. If it’s not enough, please tell me.”

“Ahem.”

Slide.

Tae-su accepted it and glanced through it.

The amount was far greater than Tae-su had expected.

‘Looks like the dispatch allowance is pretty sweet.’

It was enough to make him drastically revise upward the scale of the gifts he would send to the Korean village.

Tae-su naturally slipped it into the pocket of his patient gown.

He even added a reluctant air, as if he had been forced to accept it.

“I’m letting it go here because I don’t want things to get ugly with you, Director.”

“Are you truly not lacking anything?”

“It is just a little short, but, ahem! We do have a relationship built up over time.”

Because the amount had been set far too generously, Tae-su let out an unnecessary cough.

Colonel Clark seemed bothered by that cough.

“Please don’t say that… Wait just a moment.”

“Why all of a sudden?”

“It will only take a moment. Please sit and wait comfortably.”

Whoosh!

After asking for his understanding, Colonel Clark quickly moved.

Tae-su, looking puzzled, was about to sit down when he hesitated.

It was because Colonel Clark had approached the other soldiers in the office.

Whisper, whisper.

After he quietly said a few words, the other soldier’s wallet came out. Then all the cash inside was transferred into Colonel Clark’s hand.

It was, in its own way, the scene of a secret transaction.

In truth, however, it was only pretending no one could see, and everyone actually knew.

Perhaps because of that, some were even seen preparing in advance before Colonel Clark approached.

Tae-su’s expression, as he watched it all vividly, gradually became awkward as well.

‘Did I push too hard?’

Even so, what was done was done.

Part of the cost of PKO activities included South Korean taxes.

When he thought of that, his perspective shifted slightly.

He decided to simply pretend not to know, as if he were receiving a kind of payback.

Come to think of it, Jeong Min-su and Kim Hyeok-gwon had also returned injured.

‘Both of them were in mortal danger. Definitely.’

That was a part that diverged considerably from the truth.

But Tae-su even went so far as to fabricate his own memories as he struggled to justify it.

Colonel Clark returned and held out a yellow document envelope.

“I’m not sure if this will be enough.”

“Regardless of the amount, ahem. I’ll place greater importance on your sincerity, Director.”

“Thank you. But is your body all right?”

Worry still remained on Colonel Clark’s face.

Tae-su answered that part exactly as it was, without adding or subtracting anything.

“I’ll be discharged soon.”

“I heard as much, but seeing your face and hearing it directly puts me more at ease.”

“You said you would come visit. You must have been busy. Not that I’m saying I’m disappointed.”

Feeling pricked by his own words, Tae-su added the latter part.

Colonel Clark answered with a much more relieved expression.

“The Department of External Cooperation has no day or night, you see.”

“If you’re that busy, how did you find the time to think about completely replacing the escort squad?”

“I heard about that as well. I don’t think I can ask for your understanding on that matter, Dr. Choi.”

“Very well. But there is one thing I want an answer to.”

As Tae-su set the mood, Colonel Clark calmly nodded.

“Please ask.”

“You won’t punish them separately later over this incident, will you?”

“There will absolutely be no such thing.”

On that point, Colonel Clark gave a clear answer.

Tae-su trusted his pledge.

If he said there would not be, then there would not be.

Now he could set aside his worries about the escort squad.

It was after that.

Tae-su had not come to see Colonel Clark merely to force a sale on him.

If anything, there was more he was grateful for.

It was just that, tangled up with other matters, things had started this way.

Since that issue had passed, it was now time to settle the personal matter.

Tae-su slowly rose from his seat.

Scrape.

At the sight, Colonel Clark also stood up in surprise.

“Are you leaving already? Shouldn’t you at least have a cup of tea?”

“Of course I should have tea before I go.”

“Then why did you stand up?”

Colonel Clark’s face was filled with confusion.

To him, Tae-su slowly lowered his head and offered his thanks.

“Thank you. Thanks to the squad members, all of us were able to keep our lives.”

“What are you saying all of a sudden?”

“We survived thanks to the people you personally selected and trained, Director. So it is only right that I thank you.”

“This is so different from just a moment ago that I’m a little flustered.”

Colonel Clark could not adapt to Tae-su’s sudden change in behavior.

After finishing his bow, Tae-su explained the reason.

“I was being mean at first because I felt hurt.”

“You were that hurt that I said I would drive them out of the PKO?”

“Of course. Sam and the squad members worked hard and went through so much, and you said you’d kick them all out without acknowledging any of it. That would make anyone angry.”

Tae-su answered sullenly.

He had already answered why he had thanked him, so there was no reason to repeat it.

Only then did Colonel Clark smile gently.

“So that is why you got angry, and why you thanked me as well.”

“This is this, and that is that.”

“As expected, I like that you draw clear lines.”

“Then may I have that cup of tea now?”

Tae-su asked, subtly easing the atmosphere.

Contained in those words was the message that everything had now truly been neatly settled.

Colonel Clark also smiled gently and agreed.

“I will prepare a good tea.”

“I’ll have to taste it first. Haha!”

Tae-su laughed awkwardly, but Colonel Clark looked at him calmly.

And after shaking off all the old feelings, they drank tea with light hearts and chatted.

Before they knew it, an hour had flown by.

Tae-su was now leaving the Department of External Cooperation.

Click.

After closing the door, Tae-su smacked his lips slightly.

“The tea tasted clean and nice. Should I have asked what it was?”

He regretted only hearing that it was sold for quite a high price in England.

That was something he could ask next time.

Tae-su looked at the yellow document envelope in his hand.

The thickness that fit snugly in his grip was satisfying.

Its contents were all cash.

As Tae-su stared at it, an image unfolded in his mind.

“How many pigs should I buy and send? No. Should I buy cattle so they can work more easily?”

The scale of the gifts to be sent to the village had completely changed.

If it had been money going into his own pocket, it was something he would not even have attempted.

Thinking that the Korean village would become more abundant put him in a needlessly good mood.

The PKO Department of External Cooperation.

They did not know it, but they had certainly contributed to a meaningful and good cause.

“This is a kind of donation.”

The method and manner of collection were considerably different, but Tae-su’s conviction was firm.

However, this was a one-time thing.

The words the old man Jeon had spoken remained in Tae-su’s mind.

Now was the time for them to stand on their own.

Those words were certainly right.

Tae-su was not in a position to remain here forever and look after them.

A stable sales channel had to be secured.

That was what made his head hurt.

Tae-su was not well-versed in this kind of commerce.

Kim Hyeok-gwon?

He was not right in front of him at the moment.

Since Tae-su was the type to push ahead once he made a decision, he lacked the patience to wait.

At that moment, someone flashed through his mind.

Startled by his own thought, Tae-su quickly shook his head.

Shake, shake.

“No, not him. How can you compare a corner store to a large supermarket?”

No matter how he thought about it, dragging Chairman Seok Jeong-hyeon into this seemed forced.

Then Tae-su stopped short.

If he thought only of commerce, of course he should not do it, but if he approached it differently, who knew?

Slide.

Tae-su took out his cell phone.

Then, with a face sunk in anguish, he kept fiddling with it as he walked down the corridor.

The place where Tae-su stopped was a secluded spot in the lounge.

It was far from other areas, so it was always quiet.

It was the same now.

Occupying a bench alone, Tae-su was still fiddling with his phone.

He was agonizing over it again and again.

When he still seemed unable to come up with an answer, Tae-su took a coin out of his pocket.

“Whatever. Heads, I call. Tails, I pretend this never happened.”

Ting!

He immediately flicked the coin.

But perhaps he had misjudged his strength, because it shot off in a strange direction.

Tae-su, realizing his mistake, hurried over to find the coin that had fallen to the ground.

Fortunately, it was not far away.

What he saw was tails.

The moment he saw it, Tae-su’s eyes darted rapidly left and right.

Then, pretending he had not seen it, he quietly turned it over to heads.

“It’s heads. Guess I have to call.”

It was a moment that rendered all his conflict meaningless, but Tae-su’s expression did not change in the slightest.

Returning to the bench, Tae-su immediately made the call.

Ring, ring.

Since Korean time was ahead, it should be around lunchtime there.

As he was thinking that, the call connected, and the calm, deep voice of Chief Secretary Jeong Yong-cheol came through. Because it was an international call, he spoke in English.

“Hello.”

“Chief Secretary, this is Choi Tae-su.”

“Huh? Ah, oh! Dr. Choi, it’s been a long time since you called.”

“Even if I tried to make an excuse, too much time has passed. I have no shame.”

When Tae-su spoke bitterly, Chief Secretary Jeong Yong-cheol instead soothed him.

“Doctors, nurses—everyone must be terribly busy. And in that area, you must be even busier.”

“Exactly. I don’t even know how the days pass… Well. That’s how it is.”

Because he was wearing a patient gown, Tae-su gave a vague answer.

Perhaps because the call quality was not very good, Chief Secretary Jeong Yong-cheol did not seem to notice.

“Did you call to see how we were doing?”

“Yes. Among other things. Would it be possible to speak with the Chairman?”

“He is looking right at me. Just a moment.”

Chief Secretary Jeong Yong-cheol’s voice moved away along with a joke.

Soon, Chairman Seok Jeong-hyeon’s dignified, weighty voice came through.

“Everyone seems to think I’m very easy to deal with. What do you think, Dr. Choi?”

“I think it’s because you’re a man of broad embrace, so you have room to spare.”

“Before, you were cultivating the Way. Now have you begun going around preaching it in earnest?”

“Maybe because I recently met some overseas Koreans, my Korean has improved a great deal.”

Tae-su’s voice flowed out more comfortably than it had in some time.

That was one of Chairman Seok Jeong-hyeon’s charms.

Even after a long time without talking, he held the center firmly and made the other person comfortable.

The fact that they had met separately in India had also played a major role.

Perhaps because they had seen each other one more time, the sense of familiarity was even stronger than before.

But Chairman Seok Jeong-hyeon was indeed sharp.

He accurately caught a single phrase Tae-su had let slip without thinking.

“Don’t people use the term gyopo more often than jaeoe dongpo?”

“Do… they?”

“It’s not exactly wrong, but that expression is mostly the way people influenced by the Chinese side speak.”

As Chairman Seok Jeong-hyeon explained the meaning, he naturally added his suspicion.

His conversational skill was at a level Tae-su could not even come close to.

Since Tae-su had been asked a question, he had to answer.

Since it seemed the Chairman had noticed something, he decided to tell him outright.

“Actually, it was at the beginning of last winter. During medical volunteer work…”

Starting from his meeting with Lee Chang-gyu, Tae-su laid out the entire story.

He had called for that purpose, so he hid nothing.