Chapter 5

Suddenly, Se-Ra and Bo-Ryeong were startled by the sudden movement beside them. Ju-Hyung, having had a hunch this would happen, felt a headache coming on.

Do-Hwi, holding his tray, abruptly stood up and walked over to Wina’s table without hesitation. It was then that Bo-Ryeong yelled after him.

“Hey, Captain Seok! Where are you going? Didn’t you hear the broadcast? They said not to touch her!”

“Preferably,” she muttered.

Ignoring Bo-Ryeong’s outburst, Do-Hwi pulled out a chair and sat down across from Wina.

Wina, who had been hunched over her bowl of soup, looked up. Her silky hair slid down her cheek.

“I couldn’t resist my curiosity.”

Despite Do-Hwi’s sudden intrusion, Wina’s long eyelashes remained still.

“Can you see me right now?”

Do-Hwi asked directly. Wina tilted her head, seemingly pondering something unrelated to his question.

After a moment, she softly mumbled.

“Diamond. Cigarette.”

Do-Hwi realized that Wina had recognized his voice and remembered who he was. His heart itched slightly.

Wina, having resolved her own thoughts, replied simply,.

“No.”

“Then how? How do you know everything?”

“I can’t see forms, but I can see colors.”

“Colors?”

Wina took a breath.

“Yes. Colors faintly shimmer even with my eyes closed. It’s blurry, but I can make out what’s what. It’s easy to distinguish because the shapes extend or curve accordingly. I can quickly identify what things are. Especially people.”

Her gentle voice matched her appearance. Do-Hwi blinked, a bit surprised.

As soon as she finished speaking, Wina continued eating her stir-fried potatoes. Do-Hwi let out a sigh. Was she possessed by a ghost who died while eating?

“Why especially people?”

“People…”

Wina paused, then seemed to look into Do-Hwi’s eyes, or at least give the impression that she was.

“Because people have eyes.”

At that moment, Do-Hwi felt a strong urge to pry Wina’s eyelids open. Had he forgotten the command to kill her if she opened her eyes, he might have acted on the impulse.

“The colors in the eyes of a living person swirl like light.”

Her calm explanation left a bitter taste in his mouth. Wina, with her indifferent expression, resumed her meal. Her closed eyes made her seem even more detached.

Aside from the bruise on her forehead, there were no new wounds compared to when Do-Hwi left the interrogation room. This indicated she hadn’t been severely tortured since. He had suspected as much when she appeared in the cafeteria unassisted. Shin Hae-Gon had never left anyone capable of walking after a real torture session.

Even when given the chance to punish the culprit behind his sister’s death, it seemed he hadn’t let personal feelings interfere.

As expected of his superior.

“Fuck, you bitch. What about the eyes of the dead?”

Do-Hwi’s personal feelings were now boiling over. He didn’t stop Bo-Ryeong in time as she upended her tray over Wina’s head, creating a mess.

“Well? How about it? You’ve seen plenty, haven’t you?”

Bo-Ryeong sneered.

Soup trickled down Wina’s nose and dripped off her chin. The spilled side dishes stained her white T-shirt with various colors.

“Captain Yoon Bo-Ryeong… Have you lost your mind?”

Do-Hwi scratched his temple, showing his frustration, while Bo-Ryeong continued to empty the tray with a bright smile.

“I couldn’t stand watching you chat so friendly with this piece of trash.”

The tension between Bo-Ryeong and Do-Hwi crackled, almost visibly, like electricity.

Se-Ra whistled and clapped, encouraging a fight instead of trying to de-escalate the situation. The other mischievous soldiers joined in. Despite being called an elite special forces unit, it was more like a den of fight-hungry kids.

Bo-Ryeong turned her back on Do-Hwi in disgust.

“If you want to report me, go ahead. Better lock me up in the brig sooner. I plan to torment her every chance I get.”

Although she had poured out her meal, her insides felt relieved. She wished for Seok Do-Hwi, that fool, to get his eyes burst by that pretty bitch and die.

“The eyes of the dead are…”

Then, unexpectedly, Wina, who had remained unresponsive to the food assault, opened her lips. Bo-Ryeong, who was heading out, stopped and turned around.

Do-Hwi felt a sense of foreboding. Every word from Wina’s red lips seemed to provoke Bo-Ryeong. This time, he feared it would be even worse.

“Blackened. Completely burnt out.”

Wina continued, peeling a bean sprout off her cheek.

“But there was someone who had blackened eyes even while alive.”

Bo-Ryeong, with eyes glaring sharply, demanded to know who it was. Wina, perceiving only the color of her fury, had no idea how vicious her glare was.

“Shin Hae-Gon.”

The impact of that name was profound.

For a moment, Wina felt the temperature around her drop several degrees. It was similar to the atmosphere right after the broadcast warning to kill her if she opened her eyes. Then she felt a gaze burning into her cheek.

“You fucking bitch!”

See, I knew this would be bad.

It took three soldiers to hold back the furious Bo-Ryeong from attacking Wina. Shouting and swearing, Bo-Ryeong was dragged out.

“Oh, she really needs to watch her blood pressure,” Se-Ra muttered snidely, though she quickly followed the group out.

Ju-Hyung, who had already finished his meal, clicked his tongue and stood up. He tossed a handkerchief onto Wina’s lap as he walked past her.

“Do you know what you’re doing?”

Do-Hwi found Wina, who was holding the handkerchief in confusion, quite intriguing.

“Yoon Bo-Ryeong’s Achilles’ heel. The one who just dumped food on you and got dragged out, she’s Captain Shin Hae-Gon’s watchdog. Next time, she’ll really tear you apart.”

“…Watchdog?”

“Yeah, a dog. A barking dog.”

“Barking…”

“Stop mimicking. Besides Yoon Bo-Ryeong, there’s something else you should know.”

Wina belatedly used the handkerchief to wipe her wet cheek, listening to Do-Hwi.

“Among the soldiers in the Island of Special Forces unit, it’s hard to find anyone who doesn’t worship Captain Shin Hae-Gon like a god. You should be aware of that.”

Do-Hwi’s eyes suddenly turned cold.

“Got it? You witch. Don’t act so arrogantly.”

* * *

Island of Mist and Fire ‘Muhwado’ (霧火島) – Mist Fire Island.

Several decades ago, a wildfire broke out on an uninhabited island in the southern West Sea. The island was shrouded in mist, making it impossible to distinguish smoke from fog, thus giving the island its name.

During the wars waged by various countries, a military facility was constructed on the Island. It was a special organization designed to cultivate human resources for emergency situations.

After the war, Salli’s successive terrorist attacks destabilized the public. The government decided to draft exceptional soldiers into a special unit, thus forming the so-called Scarlet Break ‘Jeokpa’ (赤破) Unit.

The Scarlet Break Unit moved to the previously vacant the Island two years ago, following a bus explosion in broad daylight that left 14 passengers dead and over 40 seriously injured by shrapnel. The road was drenched in blood, filled with the smoke of an erupting volcano and the screams of pain.

Among the victims was Shin Hae-Gon’s sister, Shin So-Yeon.

A ballerina on her way to the airport for an overseas performance, So-Yeon was caught in the explosion and, while trying to avoid a car swerving from the blast, crashed into a guardrail.

Though she escaped the car uninjured, she was abducted by men believed to be Salli members.

After extensive intelligence gathering, the Scarlet Break Unit discovered Salli’s hideout and captured some members, extracting information about their leader, Wi Shi-kyung. However, they couldn’t find So-Y on’s whereabouts.

A week later, So-Yeon was found.

Her left chest and both eyes were gaping holes.