‘Trembling Giant.’ Since I gained a fascination with water on that white and misty winter day in the forest, there had been one small improvent in my life. I could now easily remove the moisture that built up between my silicone mask and my skin. In a hot country like xico, this was a trendous advantage. I used to wonder how CIA agents, the pioneers of this kind of disguise technology, managed to wear or attach these things all day long, as if they had so kind of secret technique. But now, it had beco sowhat manageable for too. I might not have their skills and patience, but I made do with a bit of magic.
However, wearing it continuously for several days was still challenging. Even after removing the moisture, the oil residue remained, and no matter how thin and finely sculpted the mask was, it still felt stuffy to wear. Furthermore, achieving perfect coordination with facial muscles required the use of pressure and adhesive agents to squeeze and adhere to the face. So, if the material lost its elasticity or adhesion, I had to replace it with a spare mask. This was especially true if it wasn’t a full-cover type like the one I currently used. The more improvent there was in disguise and comfort, the more parts needed attention.
Therefore, when I was out in public, engaged in activities under disguise, I rarely had the chance to use my own room. Firstly, it was for security asure, and secondly, it was a safety asure to ensure that I wouldn’t accidentally expose my bare face while resting.
“I’ll check it briefly.”
It was the 12th morning of my stay in Puerto Vallarta. Suyeon, who had finished preparing to go out, carefully examined my mask. Originally, wearing and finishing the adhesive on this thing was her job, but lately, I’d been doing it myself while looking in the mirror, using precise telekinesis techniques.
Suyeon poked my cheek with her fingers and turned my chin here and there. She soon nodded with an okay sign.
“Everything looks fine.”
With a passing grade, I shifted my gaze to the glass bottle on the table. It contained the crazy ant queen, which had been kidnapped by a regular ant with the help of another ant, receiving nutrition from it. Since I left Houston, checking this every morning had beco part of my daily routine. In my subordinates’ personal belongings, there was also one glass bottle each.
Beyond the table, curtains bathed in the morning sun were softly glowing. Through the gap in the curtains, a calm sea sparkled like a river. The harbor was still peaceful.
“Perucho is waiting outside.”
Suyeon’s report made smile lightly even in my half-awake state.
“That guy is begging like he’s asking for your seat.”
“What do you an…?”
“He’s acting like my secretary.”
It was just a casual remark, but Suyeon’s gaze beca chillingly sharp. I had occasionally felt this before, but there was definitely a sowhat obsessive side to my chief secretary’s attachnt to her position. She reacted strongly even when lightly touched.
‘In the end, it must be because of her older brother’s legacy.’
In Singapore, Suyeon answered that she had been living for herself for 10 years. But from my perspective, it seed more like the younger sister’s possessiveness regarding the role that should have been her older brother’s. It was an obsession as unchanging as the seasons during rivers and mountains transformation.
So, if I were to ask whether I disliked it, the answer was no. Why would I dislike it? As long as this obsession didn’t change, her loyalty to wouldn’t change either. I diverted the attention with a casual question.
“What ti did that guy start waiting outside today?”
“He’s been waiting since 5 in the morning.”
“He’s quite dedicated.”
“He didn’t even go ho yesterday. He stayed at this hotel.”
Did he have that kind of money? That thought quickly faded away. Naturally, he wouldn’t have paid. He probably used our close relationship as leverage to demand special treatnt from the hotel or the hotel took care of it themselves. I had figured out that he was the kind of person who would do that over the past few days. He believed himself to be different from others, but in reality, he was no different.
“What about the others? Did anything unusual happen last night?”
“Nothing.”
“They probably wouldn’t be the ones, but don’t let your guard down for a mont. After putting in so much effort to co this far, we can’t turn back without a plan.”
“Understood.”
The subject of my inquiry, the other sites, naturally referred to the command center and safe houses. Currently, I was pretending to be a businessman staying in a hotel, but I had plans to move my residence when the ti ca. The guys deployed there were monitoring areas beyond my line of sight using satellites and drones. Eavesdropping on the satellite communication of the “Northeastern Faction” was part of their job, and they were also putting in the effort to collect radio frequencies from the Sinaloa Cartel. Even just securing the communication channels of the lesser sicarios would be a great help in understanding their overall movents.
“Kyung-tae.”
“Yes?”
“Get a suitable watch and let’s go out.”
“To whom are you giving this item?”
“Perucho.”
Kyung-tae brought the watch and received my approval, then I nodded silently.
“Let’s go.”
As we passed through the living room of the suite and stepped outside, Perucho, who had been waiting like a servant in the corridor, greeted .
“Presidente Huan! Good morning.”
“Yes, good morning. You’re diligent as always.”
“It’s my job, after all, to serve the Presidente.”
It was an utterly sincere-sounding remark, to the point of being amusing. Where had that slightly annoying attitude he had when we first t gone? Even when addressing , he always added “Chairman” or the respectful term “Don.” Now, he seed to have beco genuinely fervent in his worship.
“Thank you very much, but isn’t your official duty more important? I heard you were reinstated recently.”
A montary twitch crossed Perucho’s face at my words.
“No, it’s not like that. You don’t have to worry about it. After all, this isn’t a complicated port where many ships co and go. Do you think I’m needed here? Rather, Presidente‘s business is the way to prosperity for the port. I am in the position where I should be.”
Abu had certainly grown in the past few days. I nodded lightly.
“If you think so. Then I’ll accept your kindness a little more.”
“Kindness? You’re saying too much, Presidente.”
In fact, it had been two days since Perucho had switched from a leave of absence to active duty. However, this chubby man, full of enthusiasm, eagerly followed around and took on the role of a local assistant, not caring about the position he had regained and his duties.
The reason I kept this lesser governnt official by my side was simple: he looked unassuming. Every ti people of all ages and backgrounds saw this unassuming, chubby man, they would reflect on the coincidences, fate, and luck that might have made him theirs.
Tap, tap. I signaled Kyung-tae with my fingers. Understanding the accompanied gesture, Kyung-tae opened the case containing the watch in front of Perucho.
“What’s this…?”
Blue wave patterns engraved on the dial behind the sapphire glass. The contents of the case were a mid-range model of an Oga Seamaster. To the slightly confused yet expectant obese governnt official with the watch and , I gave a reassuring gesture.
“It’s because the old watch looked worn out.”
“Oh, my goodness!”
“It’s a product that costs less than $10,000, so please feel free to wear it.”
“Thank you! Thank you!”
It was an entry-level item, but it cost over $6,000. It was a luxury item that one could barely afford to buy with several months’ worth of a governnt official’s salary. Perucho, now wearing the watch, started to act like soone trying on a suit that didn’t fit. It was because he was paying too much attention to the watch on his wrist. And thus, the impression of this chubby man had moved beyond being unassuming and entered the realm of being an idiot, which was exactly what I had hoped for.
A $6,000 improvent in the acting skills of an actor who didn’t even know he had a role. It was not a bad price. Especially when you were swindling tens of thousands of people.
As we reached the lobby, the crowd outside the main gate had erupted in excitent.
Huan! Huan! Huan! Huan!
Their chanting of my false na created a rhythmic and overwhelming resonance. Ard police officers were struggling to control the crowd. From the mont we passed through the lobby entrance, I couldn’t hear anything anymore. In the midst of the noise, which felt like a ho run hit outside the Major League Baseball championship stage, I waved to the citizens who loved Huan for quite so ti before exposing the watch-clad actor and then boarded the waiting limousine.
Thunk!
After the door closed, I spoke to Perucho, who was sitting across from .
“I feel like I’m receiving too much favor. Everything I’ve done so far is just sharing a bit of food with everyone.”
“Too much favor? Absolutely not!”
The chubby man shook both his hands and head.
“Presidente is doing things for us that even the governnt couldn’t do! That damned governnt didn’t give us a single grain of rice or a single kernel of corn!”
The chubby man beca so excited that he swung his fist in the air.
“Can you believe it? In such difficult tis, the governnt didn’t give a single peso to the suffering common people! Other countries give cash and food, but how can there be such a difference? Can’t they just delay the tax paynts a bit?”
“Please calm down.”
To calm down the excited chubby man, a calm word was enough.
As Perucho ntioned, the xican governnt hadn’t co up with any relief asures for individual citizens struggling with the health crisis and the resulting economic crisis. Thanks to that, the relief goods worth 141 pesos that I distributed to each person had a trendous impact on this starving port. I was truly grateful to the xican governnt.
141 pesos was roughly 7,900 Korean won.
The items provided per person for this amount were as follows: 4 kg of tortillas, 4 kg of rice, 2 kg of tomatoes, 2 kg of bananas, 1 liter of cooking oil, 48 eggs, one loaf of 500-gram white bread, and 1 kg of chicken. Among them, the eggs and white bread were obtained as extra bonuses, thanks to the influence of the Catholic diocese due to bulk purchasing and price reduction.
The man who helped with this task, Bishop Pérez Ortega of the Autlán diocese, started from being an unassuming chubby man and connected three bridges to beco the person he was today.
“Um, Presidente, I have one thing to ask…”
“What is it?”
As I looked at him, Perucho hesitated for a mont, rolling his eyes carefully before speaking with great difficulty.
“Uh, excuse if this is an impertinent question, but, Presidente, are you particularly close to Señorita Choi?”
Señorita Choi, or Choi, was the fake last na Suyeon used. In other words, this chubby man was asking if there was sothing between Suyeon and . Right after the question was asked, Suyeon stared at the questioner with an icy expression, not blinking once. Perucho seed uncomfortable pretending not to notice that gaze.
“No, we are not.”
I replied, turning the slightly annoying question back at him.
“But why are you asking that when you know it might be impertinent?”
“Oh, well… Señorita Choi is so exceptional, and even though she has several bedrooms, she seems to use the sa suite, and she doesn’t seem to call any other woman. She’s always close to Presidente, so I was wondering if that’s the case…”
Listening, I got irritated.
“I am a celibate. Got it?”
“It’s just a question, not a judgnt. You are indeed a faithful believer.”
The governnt official who had disembarked took on an unnatural posture like a puppet on strings. I suppressed a sigh and looked out the car window.
‘Celibacy is nonsense.’
My body might not have had a ‘proper’ experience yet, but the reason was not so stupid abstinence. It was because of these eyes. These damn eyes that wouldn’t close even if they want to.
How many perverted assholes were there in this world who would build an X-ray machine to peer into veins filled with flowing blood, a beating heart, a liver secreting bile, and intestines filled with feces, all flashing brilliantly with various information, souls, and mana? Even if all the components of the human body were vividly displayed with a variety of colors due to the influence of various factors, I was not a pervert who got excited while watching the mysterious spectacle of the human body. I could analyze the ‘objective’ beauty, but I couldn’t feel the ‘subjective’ charm.
In human desire, the visual stimulus played a significant role. Perhaps no one felt this fact more urgently than I did.
‘I’d rather have a blank slate of visual stimulation.’
I found it difficult to even imagine a human body with blood, flesh, and organs wriggling. I was exposed to the otherworldly sights all day long. While I maintained an objective image of humans through drawings and photos, connecting that image to real people in the realm of instincts was another difficult task. Perhaps in terms of sexual aspects, innate equipnt was superior to mine.
However, for soone like , sexual desire beca a tornt the more it accumulated.
Experience? If we must define it, I had so. There were monts in this line of work that you couldn’t avoid, and there was a need to prepare for them in advance. But that was rely concealing disabilities with elaborate imitation and technical accumulation. It was sothing far from being called normal behavior.
In other words, I was visually impaired.
The coldness Suyeon showed a while ago was probably annoyance at touching a sensitive nerve.
The scenery outside the car window was the street flowing north. It wasn’t far from the Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Perucho, deciding that the unbearable mont had passed, started muttering again. He emphasized that his daughter was a good child and, despite dropping out of college, if only they had money, she had the ability to graduate and repeatedly emphasized that Korea was a very good country. He even interjected anecdotes that a man needed a good wife for a stable life.
Interrupting his ongoing chatter, I spoke up.
“Perucho.”
“Yes, Presidente!”
“Korea is indeed a good country, but xico is also a good country. Where else can you find such a beautiful country in the world?”
“……”
Perucho’s chubby face showed a hint of disappointnt.
Author's Thoughts
Disclair:
This novel is a work of fiction! While it may incorporate elents inspired by our "real" historical world, including historical events, settings, and cultures, it is important to note that the story and characters are entirely products of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to real persons, living or deceased, or actual events is purely coincidental. This work should be enjoyed and interpreted as a work of fiction and not as a representation of historical facts or reality.
Also, if you find so error in translation please do let know by tagging (@_dawn24) in our Discord server. Since this series is kinda hard to translate. But I'll try my best to make it at least readable :)
Enjoy reading~!
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