Baaaaaaaaang─!
The sound of a horn echoes. It’s loud.
It was a successful life.
There’s a saying about a dragon rising from a small stream, and it was a proverb meant for me.
My parents spent their entire lives washing other people’s clothes. They raised me in a tiny laundromat of about ten pyeong, their hands chapping from the work.
But I didn’t like my parents’ job. It was a deep-seated grudge I wanted to hide; I hated the smell of oil that was common in the laundromat so much that it felt like a stench.
“Hyun, you need to take your lunchbox!”
“It’s okay.”
My mother packed a lunch for me every morning. However, I never took it with me.
The side dishes were always the same. Stir-fried anchovies, lotus root stew, and fermented kimchi. I hated those side dishes as much as the smell of oil. It was better to replace a meal with bread and milk from the school store.
I studied to death because I wanted many things from a young age. I didn’t want to conclude my life’s limits in the one-room attached to the ten-pyeong laundromat.
I studied so hard that I earned the nickname “freak.” There’s a saying that high school friends last a lifetime, but to me, that’s nonsense.
I had long trampled over human relationships. Only self-study books were my friends.
-3rd Year, Class 7 Kang Hyun, Accepted to Korea University Law School-
It was the moment that marked the end of my entrance exam life. My mother wiped her tears as she looked at the banner fluttering in front of the school gate. Even my usually stoic father had tears in his eyes.
Everyone congratulated me on getting into Korea University. Teachers who weren’t close to me rushed to take pictures and told me countless times that I had worked hard.
But it was a different dream for me. I thought differently. This was just the beginning, the first stepping stone for my new life.
“The topic is your opinion on the unfairness of sentencing.”
It was the topic of the third group interview for the bar exam.
Unfair sentencing refers to when the sentence is too light or heavy compared to the details of the crime, such as the process leading to the crime or the damages caused by it.
The eyes of the old professors sitting on the interview panel were sharp.
There are a hundred thoughts for a hundred people, and ten thousand thoughts for ten thousand people.
The law is also created by human hands. If a judge has a biased rather than a correct perspective, the judgment will naturally be different as well. The court’s decisions are not unchangeable. However.
“As I studied law, I had many doubts. I didn’t understand the judgments of senior judges and sometimes thought they were wrong. But as I studied further, I realized it was the arrogance of a young law student. Over time, as I delved deeper into law, I came to understand the court’s decisions and the true intentions of my senior legal professionals.”
It wasn’t a perfect answer. However, the corners of the mouths of the old professors sitting on the interview panel lifted.
Even among the judicial trainees, I was called a “freak.” Among the prodigies who were said to be the best of the best, I never missed being at the top.
The Judicial Training Institute was like a gateway for a new life. As I achieved outstanding grades, secret contacts also approached me.
“You know about Jeil Group, right?”
It was a question from an old professor. Who wouldn’t know Jeil Group?
There’s a saying about the “Jeil Republic.” It’s the top conglomerate in Korea, without question.
Especially for job seekers, it was called the dream job. There was an old saying that if you joined Jeil Group, marriage prospects would open up, and there would be a village celebration.
“Would you like to become a scholar of Jeil Group?”
Scholar, a metaphorical expression.
To put it bluntly, it was asking if I wanted to become a dog of Jeil Group.
I felt my heart pounding uncontrollably. It was the offer I had been waiting for. I didn’t care if I became a dog. As long as I could become a member of Jeil Group.
That evening.
Beethoven Symphony No.9 4th
I listened to Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 ‘Choral’ 4th movement.
The grand and thrilling Ode to Joy.
Based on the start of the string instruments, the intense percussion echoes like a chorus. Composed by Beethoven, who lost his hearing, it felt like a passion for human victory.
I liked classical music as a child. But I gave it up early because I had no talent. Moreover, classical music doesn’t make money in Korea.
Freude, schöner Götterfunken! Götterfunken!
Joy, beautiful spark of the gods! Spark of the gods!
I closed my eyes as I listened to the powerful cry of the choir. Now, it was the beginning of a new life.
The saying “smooth sailing” would be accurate. After graduating from the Judicial Training Institute, I lived as a prosecutor at the Western District Prosecutor’s Office.
I spent over a decade handling the secret affairs of Jeil Group while living as a prosecutor. It would be more accurate to say that I protected Jeil Group rather than the law and justice.
An apartment with a clear view of the Han River is not something you can buy with a prosecutor’s salary. It was all thanks to Jeil Group.
-Son, are you doing well?
My old mother’s voice lacked energy. It had already been over a decade since I visited my parents’ house.
Occasionally, my parents would come to Seoul with lots of food, but it was still hard for them to see my face.
I didn’t even properly introduce my wife during the marriage meeting. My wife was the daughter of a city council member, commonly known as a “golden spoon.”
“I’ll send you some pocket money.”
-Son, that’s not it…
“I don’t have time, so I’ll hang up now.”
I abruptly ended the call as if I were running away. I thought I was being filial by sending my parents pocket money every month.
I had told them not to run the laundromat, but my parents never left the place they had grown attached to. But I still hated the smell of oil.
After finishing my term as a chief prosecutor, I left the Western District Prosecutor’s Office.
It was to transfer to Jeil Group. Most people looked at me with envy. Before I knew it, I was the deputy head of the legal team at Jeil Group, cleaning up all sorts of their corrupt practices, day and night.
“Kang, shouldn’t you now set your sights on the political arena?”
It was an order from my father-in-law, who was a three-term assemblyman. Jeil Group also welcomed it with open arms. How great would it be for them if their dog held a position in the government? It was a highly useful position in many ways.
“Jeil will take care of the funding issues, and your family background is quite good, isn’t it?”
“Pardon?”
“The common people love the saying about a dragon rising from a small stream, and you fit that perfectly. It’s like a dragon emerged from a family that used to do sewing work in the old days. Let’s highlight your difficult childhood in our campaign.”
My father-in-law openly looked down on me. He just adopted the dog of a family to maintain a close relationship with Jeil Group.
But it didn’t last long.
While preparing to enter politics,
I found out that I had terminal pancreatic cancer.
I had thought it was just indigestion. The doctor said that the progression of cancer up to the early and mid-stages doesn’t show much difference. However, in the terminal stage, sudden changes occur in the body.
As evidence, my weight rapidly dropped, and my face was filled with jaundice.
Jeil Group no longer wanted me. Neither did my father-in-law.
Entering politics became a pipe dream, and my wife proceeded with the divorce as if she had been waiting for it.
Of course, I couldn’t get a single penny in alimony. I could fight a legal battle, but I no longer had the time.
Plod.
My steps were heavy. It felt as if someone was grabbing my feet and pulling me down.
The doctor recommended chemotherapy, but I refused. I didn’t want to spend my remaining days in the hospital.
-Son, are you doing well?
My old mother’s voice made me choke up.
“I’m doing well…”
-Son. Why does your voice sound so bad, are you busy with work?
“No, I’ll come down soon.”
I hastily ended the call. I wanted to see my parents’ faces one last time, even from a distance.
I headed to the subway to go to Seoul Station. It was the first time I had taken the subway since my school days. It had changed a lot from decades ago.
The sound of boisterous laughter filled the air.
There were female students carrying large cello cases and violin cases on their backs. Their fingers were full of calluses, which didn’t match their youthful faces.
I too liked music that much once. In a very distant past that I can barely remember…
[The subway is now entering Noryangjin Station.]
The clattering sound signaled the arrival of the subway. A faint light could be seen in the distance.
Everyone was stepping outside the yellow safety line. I noticed a staggering drunkard alone.
“Oh, oh…!”
Just like someone’s shout,
Thud!
It happened in an instant. The drunkard fell onto the tracks.
Drunk out of his mind, the drunkard lay on the tracks like it was a bed, showing no intention of moving. People were stomping their feet and watching the scene.
I could see the subway approaching from afar. No one dared to step forward.
But why?
Pop.
I stepped forward. I, who lived selfishly all my life. But as if possessed, I jumped onto the tracks.
My heavy body felt light as it did in the past, just for that moment. The strong smell of alcohol from the drunkard stung my nose.
“Mister…!”
As I pushed the drunkard with all my might to the side of the tracks, the girl carrying the violin case shouted with her eyes wide open. At that moment,
Baaaaaaaaang─!
The sound of the horn echoed. It was loud.
The faint light of the subway quickly approached right before my eyes.
I could see the horrified looks of people, and some even closed their eyes tightly.
But why, at that moment, did I suddenly remember?
Freude, schöner Götterfunken! Götterfunken!
Joy, beautiful spark of the gods! Spark of the gods!
