Written by: sarasirpishinhwa 

Chapter 6

Eric, Andy and Junjin walked slowly in Emerald City trying not to draw attention but hell, that wasn’t easy. The three men looked totally different compared to Emerald City’s people and it annoyed Eric. People of Emerald City looked poor and pitiful. They wore old clothes such as broken jeans and T-shirts. Some of them didn’t even wear shoes. Children looked terrible. Their faces were dirty and some of them just sat on the streets begging for money.

“This is horrendous.” Andy whispered to Eric who nodded.

“They look…sad…” Junjin’s voice was trembling.

Eric and Andy realized that for Junjin that was a real shocker. He had lived in jail, yes, but it was nothing compared to what they saw. It was seriously heartbreaking. One little girl came to Eric and nibbled his sleeve. Leader of the team looked down and the little girl opened her palm.

“Can you give me money?” she asked. Her nose was red and she seemed to have a cold according to her runny eyes and nose. Eric nodded and started to dig his pockets.

“Here you go.” He said to the girl who smiled really widely. Eric’s heart melted. He was happy to be able to make her smile.

“Thank you, Sir.” She bowed.  She was about to leave when Eric grabbed her little hand. She turned around and Eric undressed his coat. “Take it.” He said while passing the black leather jacket to her.

Her face brightened even more. She took it happily and ran away.

“Poor little girl.” Andy said.

“She looked so ill.” Junjin added to Andy’s sentence.

Eric breathed in and out before ordering them to disperse. Hyesung had to be found.

 Somewhere in Emerald City:

A huge sigh was heard from a silent and a big room. Someone was in the room, lying on his bed while everyone else was working. Usually he was working too but digging the mines of Emerald City wasn’t his cup of tea. It wasn’t his thing. He didn’t need his knowledge in it. It was his must do. He needed money so he had just agreed to the first job someone had offered to him. Of course he had blindly said yes without even knowing what he was going to do.

“Aish…” he mumbled. “This is seriously ing stupid.” He badmouthed and was about to turn to his side when someone banged the door open and ran towards other one’s bed.

“Get up!” furious one said and the other one did as told. “What the hell are you doing in here?” much older man shouted. Saliva flew out of his mouth and landed on the other one’s clear one 

 “I…I’m…um…” he tried but the older man cut him. “Go back to work Hyesung! If you need medication to your disease, you should keep earning money. I don’t want to fire you.” The man said and Hyesung nodded. “Didn’t your parents ever tell you that if you work, you can achieve lots of things in the future? If you work, you get money and with money you get your medication.” The boss explained.

Hyesung’s hands were trembling.

“What are you still doing here!? I’m not paying you for laziness!” the older man shouted and frantically shoved his arms.

Hyesung bowed defeated and ran out of the room. The boss was right though. Hyesung indeed needed the medication so the disease wouldn’t make him weak and look totally dead. But for his misfortune drugs were too expensive.

Hyesung had been working in the mines from the day his dad was announced dead. He was all alone, living in the Emerald City trying to live in the dorm they had organized to the workers. He felt lonely. Hyesung wanted and needed someone. He needed a friend.

Eric had told his friends to disperse. Andy had turned left from an intersection and Junjin had turned right. The leader of the team had chosen to go straight. For the first time Eric was alone without Andy and Junjin. It felt weird. He could practice of being alone.

He asked people about Hyesung but no one had any idea about him. People stared at Eric seriously and some of them didn’t even listen to his questions because he was so different. He was frustrated.

Junjin hadn’t luck either.

“Have you seen or heard about Shin Hyesung?” he asked.

“Piss off.” Someone answered.

Junjin pouted and started to look for another person to ask to.

“Have you seen or heard about Shin Hyesung?” he questioned devastatingly.

“Aish…Do I look like I care?”

Junjin clenched his fist. People in the Emerald City were rude.

Andy had a little tougher way of asking. If the person (he questioned about) didn’t answer or was impolite, he used force. He wasn’t a soldier and a double agent for nothing. People were afraid of him at the place, he, Eric and Junjin had lived and somehow he thought that maybe people in the Emerald City were the same. They were people after all.

“Have you seen or heard about Shin Hyesung?” Andy asked calmly.

“Give me money and off!” a young man answered to him.

Andy snorted coldly and without a warning, he grabbed the man’s collar and pushed him against the wall.

“I’ll ask again and if you still act like that, I will kill you.” He hissed.

The young man gulped.

“Where is Mr. Shin Hyesung?” Andy questioned behind his teeth while tightening his grasp on the collar.

“I-i-I swear, I don’t know. I haven’t heard about him!” the other one replied.

Andy looked deeply into his eyes but saw nothing but scare and sincerity. He let the man down.

“I believe you.” He commented. “Sorry.” He then added and left the man to shiver from scare.­­­

Eric felt tired and powerless but he was also alert and careful. He had a feeling that someone was eyeing and following him but when looking over his shoulder, he saw nothing.

He hadn’t given up on Hyesung yet because he truly wasn’t a give upper. No one in his family was. His mom had been brave woman who had seen the worst way of death. Eric remembered the day like it had happened yesterday. He had gotten power from his mother who he had loved so much. He wanted to find Hyesung for his mother’s sake.

“Have you seen or heard about Shin Hyesung?” Eric asked voice trembling.

The old lady stared at him quietly before shaking her head. Eric closed his eyes and bowed his head tiredly and suddenly he felt really exhausted.

“But if I were you, I’d look from The Emerald City’s mines. Many men work there to get money.” She suddenly responded.

“W-what?” Eric questioned.

Suddenly voices started to echo from the alley and the woman’s eyes became bigger. She gulped and turned to run away. Eric caught her wrist but she managed to struggle herself out of the grip.

“Don’t go!” Eric shouted.

“I have to but remember, The Emerald City mines!” she yelled and disappeared behind the corner.

Eric took his mobile phone out and started to dialect a number.

“Hyung!” Andy greeted.

Eric smiled. “I know where Hyesung is.”

Andy was silent a minute. “You did?” he asked. “Yup, he might be in the Emerald City mines.” Eric explained.

“Are you sure?” Andy questioned suspiciously.

Eric was just about to answer when he felt a gun behind his back. He turned around slowly and noticed a mask wearing man.

“Put the phone down…now.” The man ordered.

Eric grinned but did as told. He put the phone to the ground, but he never hung up.

“Satisfied?” Eric spilled out and the other man nodded. “Now, how can I help you?” Eric asked jokingly.

“Mr. Mun, we’re here to kill you.”