Passion (BL Novel)

“It’s not just one day. Once the march is over, we’ll go straight into endurance training, you idiot. You won’t even have time to rest.”
Moron gritted his teeth in frustration, clearly irritated. He looked like he could go without resting for a while, his body still full of energy. Jeong Tae-yi smiled invisibly, but that smile quickly faded.

It was true—there was no time to rest. Day after day, they were in a constant state of tension. In the afternoons, they usually did group sparring, spending what felt like an endless series of fights with the European branch members, almost like a brawl. Today, like usual, they listened to lectures in the morning—but after a few days, even during lecture time, they would start dueling with their swords, sneaking in small fights. In the afternoon, they practiced martial arts training. It wasn’t just Jeong Tae-yi’s team; the others probably had the same schedule.
No matter how many opponents they knocked down, the next one always came charging. If it was a match between team members, they might take a break or pretend to lose a few rounds to give someone else a chance to rest, but if it was a fight with the European branch members—well, that wasn’t an option. Most of them were the kind of people who, even if they were about to collapse from exhaustion, thought that they had to throw their opponent so hard that they’d break their arm or neck in the process.
Jeong Tae-yi didn’t harbor any deep resentment toward them, and he’d prefer to go easy on them, but unfortunately, they didn’t feel the same way. It wasn’t like he could just give in to their onslaughts, offering up his limbs willingly.

At last, the regular daily routine came to an end. It seemed like the day was over, but then, just as they were packing up to leave, the instructor suddenly called them all back. He told them that there would be a 20-kilometer night march tonight, so they should head to the dining hall for a meal and gather again in 30 minutes.
At that moment, anyone holding a headgear in their hands probably wanted to throw it straight at the instructor. Exhausted, they had just about finished the day, only to be slapped with another grueling task.
The 20 kilometers wasn’t that long, really. It wasn’t far enough to warrant a dramatic reaction. The route was about half a lap around the island, a distance that could be completed in about five hours. If it had been a normal day, they’d have walked it casually, chatting and laughing, almost like going on a picnic.

But they were exhausted. Even during the 30-minute dinner break, the news of the unexpected night march arrived so suddenly that they didn’t even have time to chew their food properly, let alone enjoy the meal. The worst part was that they had to go out in full gear, as if they were preparing for a real battle.
“Uncle. You said it wasn’t the army. Then why are we marching and wearing gear like this?”
Jeong Tae-yi muttered curses at his uncle under his breath as he bore the weight of the heavy load pressing down on his shoulders, wondering how many times he had cursed since arriving on this island.

“If the instructor can’t take his uniform off, then I might as well strip and run out of this hellhole.”
Someone muttered from the front.
“If you want to strip, do it after the joint training is over. And for anyone who wants to strip my clothes off, come find me anytime after the march.”

That lively, unbothered voice came from right behind Jeong Tae-yi. The chatter in the front died down in an instant. The men who had been talking stopped, and even the people at the back were startled. They hadn’t even noticed the instructor in the crowd.
Jeong Tae-yi was also surprised by the familiar voice coming from so close behind him. He hadn’t meant for his thoughts to be heard, but now he couldn’t help but feel a bit self-conscious.
“Uncle... Are you going too?” Jeong Tae-yi asked, still a bit shaken.

“Why would I stay back in the instructor’s office? How would I know when an accident might happen? And besides, in another hour or two, we’ll start running into other teams.”
His uncle mumbled, as if it was all a hassle. True, they’d started at different times, but in a forest this dense, they were bound to run into other teams soon. It wouldn’t be a problem if they were from the same Asian branch, but if not, it would be troublesome.
“With all this fog, if we go deeper, no one would notice if someone were killed and buried. But, really, if you search the whole forest, you’d probably find a few bodies.”

His uncle spoke casually, almost like it was a joke. Jeong Tae-yi glanced nervously at his wristwatch, wondering if there was any truth to it. It had only been about an hour since they left.
“Maybe we’ve done about 3 or 4 kilometers by now. If we finish the 20 kilometers, we’ll be back around midnight.”
He muttered to himself, scratching the back of his neck. The surroundings were already dark, and with the dense forest and thick fog, it was hard to see anything ahead. They could easily get lost, and it wouldn’t be surprising if they did.
“Well, it’s not a huge island, so even if we get lost, we’ll just end up going in circles.”

Jeong Tae-yi’s uncle muttered in response to his thoughts.
“We won’t make it back by midnight. We’ll be staying in the forest tonight,” he added.
“What?” Jeong Tae-yi asked, confused.

“We’ll walk about 10 more kilometers and camp somewhere suitable. I told you to bring a sleeping bag. Didn’t you bring it?”
“Well, I just grabbed the gear bag that was already packed. I figured the sleeping bag was in there, but that’s not the problem. We’re camping in the forest?”
“Yeah. You have to train by sleeping outside once in a while. We’ll take turns standing guard and keep the fire going.”

“But you said there are snakes here. Poisonous snakes!”
“That’s why we’ll have a guard. You have to be able to trust your teammates and sleep too.”
“Why would we sleep in a forest full of poisonous snakes?!”

“Even poisonous snakes here aren’t that dangerous. If you get bitten, just treat it right away and you’ll be fine. Like I said before.”
“That’s not the problem! There are worse dangers than snakes around here!”
Jeong Tae-yi wanted to yell, but there was no real response from the others. The attitude they had shown, as if it wasn’t worth reacting to anymore, made him realize that this wasn’t a joke. This was their reality.

Jeong Tae-yi had done a lot of camping in the past. He had slept under the stars, in the dew, and even in places where snakes and centipedes slithered by. But those snakes weren’t poisonous, and the people he camped with weren’t trying to kill him.
“Aha, I see. You had a good reason for being careful with your life. But... When I looked at the notebook you gave me, I saw a strange handwriting. Whose writing was it?”
Suddenly, his uncle smiled slyly. Jeong Tae-yi closed his mouth. Saying “It’s his” would only bring the weight of ten copies of that book onto him, so it would be better to not say anything at all. However, just as he was about to open his mouth to say something, his uncle beat him to it.

“By the way, Tae-yi, that guy’s freedom and your lifespan might be linked somehow, but have you thought about the fact that it could make your life even more dangerous?”
Jeong Tae-yi fell silent again. It wasn’t surprising that his uncle had figured out who wrote in that notebook. His uncle could classify and process a mountain of documents in no time. It wasn’t hard to imagine he’d be aware of something like that.
But what his uncle said made Jeong Tae-yi hesitate. He’d been wondering whether helping Riglow would backfire. Perhaps it was going to end badly.

“Think wisely and answer me when we return to the branch tomorrow,” his uncle said with a smile. Jeong Tae-yi bitterly clicked his tongue. He was going to have to either deny it all and insist it was his handwriting or quietly write ten more books to bring back as his “safety.”
The forest grew denser. The sounds of his teammates breaking twigs and muttering complaints filled the air as Jeong Tae-yi walked quietly, resting against a tree to relieve the weight of his pack. He felt a little lighter.
After a while, the noise up ahead seemed to die down, and Jeong Tae-yi turned his head, wondering if something had happened. There were still many obstacles obscuring his view, but no unpleasant sounds followed. Instead, there were just grumbled complaints, quieter now but still harsh.

“Is someone fighting up there?” Jeong Tae-yi asked, glancing at Ching, who was standing ahead of him.
Ching went forward and came back with a scowl, shaking his head.
“That guy... The bastard we have to march with. It’s him. Damn it, what the hell are we supposed to do with that crazy bastard?”

Jeong Tae-yi’s face tightened at the words. “I’d rather walk into a snake pit than deal with these bastards.”
“Heh. If we go with worse ones, at least the snakes won’t come near.”
The sharp exchanges between them continued, with European branch members interjecting their vicious comments. Jeong Tae-yi pulled his hat low, his collar up, and lowered his head.

The line began to move forward again. As Jeong Tae-yi lagged behind, he glanced ahead and saw, partially obscured by the fog, a chilling back of someone’s head. The head, noticeably larger than the others, looked menacing at that moment, and Jeong Tae-yi immediately recognized who it was.
Little by little, step by step, Jeong Tae-yi slowed his pace, eventually falling to the very back of the line. The front and middle of the line were made up of members from the Asian branch, while those in the middle to the rear were mostly from the European branch.
As he realized most of the men around him were from the European branch, Jeong Tae-yi had no intention of approaching any of them. He continued walking at his own pace. After all, no one was really paying attention to him, as he was walking slightly apart, his face hidden under the brim of his hat.

As he got further back, the position where that terrifying head had been was now obscured by the fog. The fog was thick, and it was hard to see clearly, making everything feel even more ominous.
Thinking about it, this was probably the perfect opportunity for that man.
The fog was thick. They were deep in the forest, and they were supposed to spend the night there. This wasn’t a situation deep in enemy territory, but if someone wanted to kill another and bury the body in the forest, no one would notice. It was the kind of situation where, with a little resolve, a person could quietly murder someone and hide the body.

"Damn it. We’re stuck with the Asians. You expect me to spend the night with those filthy bastards?" one of the European branch men muttered.
"Don’t joke. We’ll have to set up our sleeping arrangements and divide the area. How can we sleep with those bastards around? It’s already bad enough having to walk a few meters next to them," another one complained.
"Just my luck. Ever since I got here to this damn Asian branch, nothing useful has happened," the first man grumbled.

Jeong Tae-yi couldn’t help but let out a small laugh. He had heard the exact same complaints, just with the words "European" swapped with "Asian." It seemed like these people lacked any creativity even in their insults—they were all just variations of the same old grumbling.
"But you know, I’m more worried about Simon than the Asians... Is that guy really okay?" one of them suddenly mumbled. The voice carried a faint trace of anxiety and concern.
"Yeah, but he’s not here now. Where’d he go?"

"He was heading up front, behind Rick. Do you think it’s okay to just leave him like that? I’m really worried."
"Hmm... I don’t think it’s anything to worry about. He’s not the type to go off doing something reckless."
"Who knows? If a person snaps, who knows what they might do? What if he loses it and makes a fatal move? The game would be over."

"Ha. Even if he tries to do something sneakily, Rick would catch it right away. If he even brushed past him, it’d be impressive."
"Even if Rick noticed, I doubt the blade would actually land. There might not even be a drop of blood."
"You’d have to see blood for that, but with that guy, I’m pretty sure no blood would come out."

They spoke in a joking manner, but there were no laughs. They just twisted their mouths bitterly, cautiously, as if speaking the words might bring some ill fate upon them.
Walking a few steps behind, Jeong Tae-yi could feel the same sense of unease and subtle nervousness spreading through him, the same feelings the men were expressing.
It didn’t take long for Jeong Tae-yi to realize who they were talking about. It wasn’t just the other branch members—this man, Riglow, or Rick as they called him, inspired fear and unease in his own branch members too.

"Ha. I don’t care if Simon kills Rick, but I hope he doesn’t do it while we’re stuck with these Asians. What good would it do to show our weak side to those bastards?"
"True. But if I were Simon, I’d want to kill Rick too."
"I don’t like that guy, even without being like Simon. Why do we have to be on the same team as that jerk? Every day it’s just ugly business. Damn, why can’t we be on separate teams?"

"Ever since we got stuck on the same team with him, I can’t even look at a piece of meat without feeling sick. Looks like I’ll be forced to become a vegetarian by the end of this."
"Honestly, at least we’re on the same branch, same team. It could’ve been worse if we had to face him as an opponent in joint training or something."
Jeong Tae-yi felt a subtle bitterness as he listened to them. It was clear to him now what kind of person Riglow was. Even within his own team, he didn’t fit in, standing out like a sore thumb. The others felt both relief and an underlying fear, knowing he was on their team. He was someone they didn’t want to get close to, but couldn’t treat as an enemy either.

Jeong Tae-yi wasn’t sure why he felt so bitter about it. Perhaps it wasn’t something Riglow himself cared about, but Jeong Tae-yi couldn’t help but feel this strange discomfort.
Still, it made sense to fear someone like him.
Jeong Tae-yi didn’t want to hear more of their chatter, so he quickened his pace. As he distanced himself from the group, he saw Riglow again up ahead. It was as if a barrier had been set around him; very few people were nearby.

Seeing that, Jeong Tae-yi couldn’t help but smile bitterly. He was the kind of man who had earned so many enemies that even within his own branch, people avoided him like he was a ticking time bomb. If he had people around him casually mingling, that would have been even stranger.
Jeong Tae-yi also realized that if someone were to attack Riglow right now, he probably wouldn’t step in to help. The cold, lustful gaze Riglow had shown him earlier when he looked at Shiloo made it clear—he was dangerous. Intimidating. Overbearing. He was someone you could never stand next to with a relaxed heart, especially if he wanted something of yours, or worse, considered you beneath him.
That was when it happened. Suddenly, Riglow seemed to slow his pace. Jeong Tae-yi, who had been watching him from behind, instinctively slowed down as well. Riglow turned around. Jeong Tae-yi reflexively lowered his head to avoid looking at him. Riglow briefly spoke to someone behind him before turning back around.

Jeong Tae-yi sighed, pressing his hat lower, pulling it down even further over his face.
 
The group stopped after walking for about three or four more hours. The sound of the sea faintly reached them, indicating that the ocean wasn’t far off. As the sound of the water drifted in, Jeong Tae-yi involuntarily relaxed his expression, remembering Shinroo.

"The fog is incredible, but the sound of the water makes it even better."
"Does that mean it's incredible in a good way, or in an ominous way?"
Following the instructors' orders, the men stopped walking, recognizing that this would be the place they would spend the night. They started picking spots for themselves. There was a small clearing in the middle of the forest, not too wide. Although it was an open area, it wasn’t entirely free of obstacles, with shrubs and stones scattered throughout, making it take some time to pick a good spot.

The instructors, perhaps not wanting to cross any dangerous bridges, moved to another clearing a little farther from the others. Although the areas were close enough to see each other, they were at least physically separated.
"I’ll take the farthest corner… yeah, under that rock, that’s the spot."
Jeong Tae-yi quickly claimed a spot farthest from the European branch, under a large rock that cast a shadow. The rock shielded him from prying eyes.

"You know, places like that corner are where snakes and bugs like to hide," To-u, who was cutting through the bushes, warned him. But Jeong Tae-yi shook his head. There was someone he wanted to stay far from more than snakes or bugs. To-u must’ve understood, as he didn’t say anything further.
After chasing away some lizards from under the rock’s shadow, Jeong Tae-yi settled into his place. The distant sound of the sea made him listen intently. The sound of the water, faint through the fog, mixed with the dark surroundings, creating a strange, eerie feeling.
As Jeong Tae-yi relaxed into the sound of the water, his comrades began gathering branches and setting up a fire in the center of the clearing. They formed a circle around the fire, and after deciding who would take the night watch, the seven or so men, though exhausted from the day’s work, remained awake and quietly murmured to each other instead of sleeping.

A similar scene unfolded in the group behind them. They weren’t speaking cheerfully, but they too had made their own circle around their fire, sitting down in their own spaces.
Though there was a sense of vigilance, wondering if a fight would break out or if something sinister might happen in the cover of night, neither side seemed to want to start trouble. They were all exhausted, and their own fatigue took priority.
In fact, Jeong Tae-yi briefly wondered whether there was even any real need for the night watch, but he knew it would be useless to voice his opinion. All he would hear is "Can’t you see the enemies who are watching you carefully?" It was better to just avoid complaints and rest when it was his turn to take watch.

Suddenly, Jeong Tae-yi sensed a gaze and looked up. His uncle had climbed onto the rock where Jeong Tae-yi had settled. It seemed uncomfortable to sit there with the uneven surface, but his uncle calmly surveyed the surroundings before turning his gaze to Jeong Tae-yi.
"Isn’t that uncomfortable, sitting there?" his uncle asked.
"For now, as the head, I have to sit somewhere where everyone can see me," Jeong Tae-yi replied, half-joking, half-serious.

His uncle laughed, and Jeong Tae-yi noticed the guards who were standing nearby, keeping watch.
With a quiet smile, Jeong Tae-yi lay down into his sleeping bag. His turn to take the night watch would be third.
Around one or two in the morning, he woke up slightly, thinking he’d be awake for an hour or so before drifting off again. He let out a quiet sigh as he closed his eyes. Though he was still awake, the faint sound of the water mixed with the murmurs of his comrades talking softly filled his ears.

"I wonder where the other teams are now. Which teams did they meet?"
The voice that came through was Carlo’s. He must have been talking to his uncle. From the rock, his uncle muttered, "Probably somewhere similar. I doubt anyone will meet an opponent worse than us."
His uncle tried to joke, and quiet laughter spread among the men. After a long day, the laughter was subdued, more of a tired release than anything else. Jeong Tae-yi, already starting to drift off to sleep, couldn’t help but smile faintly.

"I saw that Instructor Grimson’s team did pretty well recently. I think their sparring results were quite good this week."
Someone else asked, and his uncle responded, "Yeah, the results were good this week, but who knows? We still have another week left."
Jeong Tae-yi tilted his head as he closed his eyes. It seemed they were ranking teams based on their performances during joint training. He vaguely remembered hearing something about it before.

"The prize for last joint training was a one-week vacation for the whole team, right? I wonder what they’ll give this time."
"Last time it was a $30,000 team bonus. They’ll probably match it this time."
"I’d prefer the vacation over the money. Honestly, I just want to sleep for three days straight."

"Of course, you only get that if you have the best performance. Not everyone gets it... Well, we’ll just do our best next week."
They chatted quietly, and Jeong Tae-yi nodded in agreement, thinking, "Yeah, I’d prefer a vacation over money." From what he gathered, the best-performing team in the joint training would receive a reward afterward.
"I don’t need to be in first place, but at least I hope we do better than Grimson’s team," his uncle said, letting out a deep sigh, which made everyone chuckle.

"Yeah, lately Instructor Grimson’s team has been under a lot of pressure... Could it be that his promotion exam is coming up?"
Carlo joked, and his uncle responded with a laugh, "When you put it that way, it doesn’t sound like a joke anymore."
Promotion exam. Now that he thought about it, Jeong Tae-yi had forgotten, but that was the main reason why they were all here.

I wonder how that’s going. His uncle’s superior was Rudolf Jantil. He had to be promoted to the position of Chief General, but how was that going?
But thinking back, Jeong Tae-yi couldn’t figure out why he was even brought into this. He didn’t think it was the kind of dangerous, life-threatening atmosphere people spoke of. It seemed more like a few unlucky people getting caught up in accidents.
His uncle had originally wanted his older brother to come, but he must have brought Jeong Tae-yi instead as a substitute. The thought crossed his mind.

...
Well, what does it matter? He was just waiting for time to pass in the current situation. If his uncle needed something, he’d help him. If not, he would simply do what was in front of him, whether it helped or hurt.
Jeong Tae-yi exhaled deeply. The wet, earthy scent of the grass mixed with the salty smell of the sea. This was the smell of the ocean. The sound of the waves. The smell of the grass and earth. Somewhere nearby, the quiet rustling of insects. The sound of leaves crunching in the wind. All these things stirred a strange, nostalgic feeling in him.

The night was quiet, broken only by the occasional sound of the wind. It was calm, but the scent of the night that penetrated his nostrils made him feel strangely uneasy, while his body relaxed.
It was the perfect kind of lonely, solitary time.
Just as he was about to close his eyes again, someone gently shook his shoulder. Jeong Tae-yi opened his eyes. Carlo, standing in front of him, was tapping his wristwatch and pointing at it.

Jeong Tae-yi blinked in confusion as he sat up and saw that everyone else had already fallen asleep, with only the fire crackling in the center.
He looked around, but his uncle, who had been sitting on the rock, was nowhere to be seen.
He hadn’t realized it, but he had somehow fallen asleep during his brief rest.

"It’s already this late. I thought I was just resting my eyes for a moment," Jeong Tae-yi murmured, stretching and rubbing his back as he stood up, his body stiff from the cold night air.
His watchman for the night, Ching, was already crawling into his sleeping bag, looking exhausted.
"Take care of it for an hour. I’m going to sleep first. See you in {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} the morning."

Ching pulled his sleeping bag up over his head, leaving just his fingers peeking out to wave. Jeong Tae-yi smiled faintly and rubbed his cold arm as he leaned against the rock where his uncle had been sitting earlier.
It was quiet. The only sounds were the crackling fire, the rustling bushes and leaves carried by the wind, and the occasional small animal scurrying off in the distance. Everything else was wrapped in the silence of the night.
Jeong Tae-yi turned his head suddenly. Beyond the trees, the European branch team was visible. They were still quietly resting in the night’s forest. A young man standing guard in the distance was rubbing his eyes, yawning. When their eyes met, he quickly straightened up, trying to look serious.

Jeong Tae-yi almost thought about waving, but just smiled instead.
Looking up at the sky, the dense leaves blocked most of his view, but through the gaps, the sky was faintly glowing with a reddish hue. The night lights of Hong Kong had blurred the colors of the sky. It felt odd, seeing such peaceful nature so close to a bustling, neon-lit city.
He checked his watch. It was deep into the night. He glanced around at the people still sleeping, recognizing their bags and belongings. That’s Carlo, that’s Ching, and that’s Wen Ho...

Then, in the distance, he heard the sound of the sea again. A soft, faint sound, awakening a slight unease in him.
He thought about his past trip to the night sea. The dark water had been invisible, with only a few squid boats lighting up the horizon. The waves crashing on the rocks had glistened in the moonlight, leaving a faint, powdery glow behind as they faded away.
I wonder if it’s still like that.

Jeong Tae-yi turned toward the sound of the water. He was already wide awake. As he turned, he saw another guard from the European team dozing against a tree stump.
“Maybe I should take a quick walk,” he muttered softly, a small smile crossing his face.
If anyone woke up in the middle of this, they’d probably yell at him, saying he was abandoning his post, putting everyone in danger, but realistically, nothing would happen. He could confidently say there was no real danger.

With that thought, Jeong Tae-yi quietly greeted his sleeping comrades and took a step forward.
The path to the sea wasn’t well-marked. Like before, he had to dodge through the rough grass, branches, and sharp rocks along the way.
It wasn’t easy to find the right direction, but fortunately, Jeong Tae-yi had a good sense of direction. Though the path wasn’t clear, he was relying on the fact that he was getting closer to the sound of the waves.

A soft rustle.
Jeong Tae-yi paused. He thought he heard someone’s presence. He stopped and turned to the direction of the sound. All he saw was the dark forest ahead.