March Novel (Completed) - Chapter 138

Commander Oh Seonran wrinkled his nose for a moment, like someone who had swallowed something bitter. As he traced faded memories, he looked both pained and happy.

“I promised I would find your child no matter what, and cherish and love him like my own son… I made such a promise.”

It was a strange thing. Commander Oh Seonran, who seemed both crying and laughing, somehow felt similar to Sehwa. It was certain that the two were not related, but seeing them like this, they almost looked like father and son.

Do faces start to resemble each other if you pay attention? Or perhaps the expressions he learned from the person who resembled Sehwa still remained…

“That’s why I still can’t forgive you. The very mindset of wanting to treat Sehwa well now, after ruining him to that extent, and your apparent lack of conscience, I simply cannot understand, nor do I want to. However…”

Commander Oh Seonran looked at his empty, dangling hand, then clenched it tightly into a fist.

“But Sehwa is withering away day by day… what does my personal grudge matter?”

“……”

“If he were just an immature brat who kept whining and insisting, I might have stubbornly told him to find someone better… But because he’s not like that, Sehwa…”

Commander Oh Seonran, his face filled with sorrow as he recalled the recent Sehwa, then lit up his eyes with a fierce glare and firmly drew a line, saying, ‘That doesn’t mean Sehwa has been suffering and missing only you all this time.’ Don’t misunderstand, he said, Sehwa was truly doing his best to live on his own. If it hadn’t been for the attack, and if he hadn’t gotten entangled with you again, he would have forgotten smoothly.

“He tried to get healthy for Haerim’s sake, and he really did get much better… Yes, because he’s such an upright and strong child.”

But once, Commander Oh Seonran exhaled a long breath. As if he was very displeased to be saying such things himself.

“Before the rift deepened further… I thought there needed to be a time for you two to talk things out, so it wouldn’t become a lingering regret for Sehwa later.”

There was no other reason, and again, he truly disliked Gi Taejeong, Commander Oh Seonran shuddered.

“I understand what you mean.”

“……”

“Thank you.”

Gi Taejeong offered no excuses. He wasn’t someone to be swayed by empty words, and Commander Oh Seonran wouldn’t expect them either. Still, he was someone Sehwa relied on heavily. Regardless of his original character, without Commander Oh Seonran’s help, Sehwa’s wounds wouldn’t have healed this much. That much was undeniable. He himself had received various forms of help, so he had only thought he should express his gratitude at some point.

At Gi Taejeong’s gruff thanks, Commander Oh Seonran rubbed the bridge of his nose and sighed, “Phew.”

“Sometimes, you know, I find it truly amazing. That I can so purely wish for Sehwa’s happiness, that the children truly feel like my own son and grandson…”

Commander Oh Seonran’s sudden outpouring of his true feelings, after having been so angry just moments before, was a little surprising, but not incomprehensible. Rather, it seemed like a story he could only tell Gi Taejeong, not Lee Sehwa, as the listener. He couldn’t voice such doubts to Sehwa, whom he regarded as his own child.

“I’m still like this because I can’t forget that person, and well… rather than pure devotion… sometimes I feel ugly. Yes, ugly is exactly the right word. This isn’t devotion, it’s obsession. And a very desperate and pathetic one at that.”

“……”

“But the more painful truth is, I can’t ask the other person anything.”

Is it a sin that I still miss you? Will it be too much of a burden? But I love you. I still love you.

“I don’t even wish for you to say you love me. I want to ask if you’re not hurting anymore, and tell you I didn’t want to leave you alone then, that I truly didn’t know such a thing would happen… If I could just convey those words, I would…”

He would have no regrets, even if he died right then.

No, even if he couldn’t die and had to live alone for a long time, he felt he could somehow endure it.

Commander Oh Seonran, who seemed consumed by the sudden surge of longing, quickly shook his head to regain his composure. The focus returned sharply to the old general’s eyes, which had been dry and darkly clouded.

“Ahem, anyway… as I said before, I have no desire to be on friendly terms with you in the future. If you ever hurt Sehwa and Haerim again, know that I will separate you two forever, no matter what it takes.”

It might hurt a bit, but in the long run, it would be much better for Sehwa, Commander Oh Seonran clicked his tongue.

“At least be grateful that the one you need to ask forgiveness from is alive, and that Sehwa is enduring so well without breaking. Be grateful to Sehwa, not to me.”

After that, Commander Oh Seonran gruffly stated that Gi Taejeong should not stop him again to ask personal questions in this manner, and then he strode towards the protective room.

Gi Taejeong watched him pull his facial muscles several times, trying to smile brightly before grasping the doorknob of the protective room, then turned his back. Commander Oh Seonran’s advice to be grateful that Sehwa was alive and that he still had a chance to apologize stirred heavily within him.

“You’re here, Major General.”

One of the resident sitters rushed out to the protective room’s entrance and bowed respectfully. Gi Taejeong slowly surveyed the empty living room, then froze the gentle expression on his face. He had been smiling to look good for Sehwa, not to pretend to be a nice person to make some other guy feel good.

“Sehwa?”

Lee Sehwa, who would usually shyly show his face and ask if he had arrived, was nowhere to be seen. Was he sleeping? But there was no sign of anyone even from inside.

It wasn’t time to exercise, nor was it time for counseling… What was going on? Gi Taejeong’s eyes immediately turned cold. Even though security had been greatly reinforced since the last incident, anything was possible.

“He just went for a check-up.”

The sitter, who had come out to greet him unwillingly, reported politely, flustered.

“A check-up?”

Are these bastards crazy…? Sehwa was gone for that reason, and they didn’t tell me? He was about to turn around to interrogate the guys outside, but the sitter shook his head and held Gi Taejeong back.

“Dr. Park urgently called him regarding his constitution. Captain Na personally escorted him, and it didn’t seem like anything bad, so perhaps you should wait a bit…”

“This bastard is going to…”

“The, it’s not complicated, but it was an unscheduled check-up… and Captain Na earnestly requested that if the Major General arrived, we absolutely keep him here, as it might be difficult to assess the values if Lee Sehwa-nim is surprised or stressed.”

The sitter squeezed his eyes shut, saying something he knew the difficult Major General would surely dislike.

“I apologize, Major General.”

Gi Taejeong stood askew, rolling his tongue inside his cheek, then reluctantly stepped into the protective room. What could he do? The goal was a smooth check-up, so they told him not to follow recklessly.

No, but then, damn it, at least send an alarm. They said it wasn’t complicated or bad, so what was so hard about sending a quick report?

Gi Taejeong washed his hands first, habitually checking his attire. Fortunately, he looked presentable. He had been swamped for the past few days with fighter jet and weapon inspections. It had been almost a week since he last set foot in the protective room.

He had sent Sehwa a few messages even while busy, but there was no reply. Seeing the ‘read’ notification, it seemed Sehwa hadn’t thrown away the phone he had arbitrarily given him…

Coming out of the bathroom and heading for the living room sofa, that sitter was still suspiciously loitering near the entrance. He was fidgeting with his radio non-stop, clearly hiding something from Gi Taejeong.

“What are you doing?”

“Excuse me?”

“What are you doing there?”

Gi Taejeong quickly closed the distance and grabbed the sitter by the collar, making him turn pale and tremble.

“Ma-Major General, that…”

“It’s true I act like an idiot when it comes to Lee Sehwa, but you’re not Lee Sehwa, are you?”

“Gasp, Major General…!”

“These sons of bitches, I let them off easy a few times, and now they’re loose screws…”

“N-No, it’s just… the radio is broken.”

The sitter indignantly removed the tiny receiver attached to his ear.

“It’s time to receive diapers and sterilized bottles for the baby, but I can’t reach anyone…”

As contact with the protective room was strictly forbidden without prior procedure, the sitter stammered an excuse, saying that the person in charge wouldn’t even bring the items unless he contacted them first.

“I think I’ll have to go get them myself… If you don’t trust me, well, Captain Oh Seonran’s direct subordinate is outside, so I’ll go with him.”

The sitter pleaded in a dying voice, saying he would even bring three or four more guards with him. Gi Taejeong clicked his tongue and released his grip on the man’s collar.

“Th-Then I’ll be back quickly…”

“Wait. What about the baby, then?”

“Oh, he’s sleeping. It’s nap time.”

You, you motherf***er, is that what you call an answer…! Gi Taejeong, about to unleash a torrent of harsh words, suppressed his surging irritation and asked in a small voice. It would be a disaster if the baby woke up.

“Couldn’t the kid wake up while sleeping? What if no one’s there?”

“Uh, hmm… He’s very gentle and his sleep pattern is regular, so… at this time, you don’t really need to worry. Of course, he might wake up if his diaper gets wet, but we’re trying to restock supplies in advance considering that…”

The sitter timidly offered his opinion, saying it would be better to change the diaper quickly and soothe him well, even if he cried a little alone because no one was there, rather than constantly fretting because there were no necessary items.

Since he put it that way, Gi Taejeong had no choice but to dismiss him with an indifferent nod of his chin. He didn’t forget to order Lieutenant Park and Commander Oh Seonran’s subordinate to re-investigate the sitter’s background.

There were currently three resident sitters in the protective room, working in three shifts. He had heard they were talents selected by a professional agency, but seeing their clumsy behavior today… he wondered if they would even be helpful when Sehwa was having a hard time.

Gi Taejeong stared at his wristwatch, which still showed no notifications, then buried the back of his head deep into the sofa’s headrest.

Sehwa was scheduled to be discharged in three days. The mansion Commander Oh Seonran had found was not far from the hospital and major government offices, and was known for its excellent security system and various amenities. He knew it was a popular residential area with no available properties even at a premium, but with the Commander stepping in, nothing was impossible.

“…Since it’s come to this, maybe I should go all the way up.”

Promotion to Lieutenant General was guaranteed. It was originally scheduled for next year, but it seemed he would change ranks once more before the end of the year. He had poked around so much before reuniting with Sehwa that, regardless of his own wishes, the military’s prestige would be undermined if they didn’t show him a token of appreciation.

Anyway, an early discharge was out of the question… He should work harder and seriously aim for the position of General.

Even now, he lacked nothing in terms of money or power, but becoming a General would open up another world. Even if he became an elder later, his influence would be different… And most importantly, he didn’t have a family to back him up, so if he climbed as high as possible, he could continue to protect Sehwa…

“…Hoo, woong…”

Gi Taejeong, who had been lost in thought, tapping the armrest with his index finger, suddenly stopped.

A presence that could not be ignored was felt from inside the bedroom. He didn’t know if it was crying or laughing, but it was definitely the sound of a child waking up.