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墨書 Inktalez
The sound of the Midnight Bell floated through the night sky, particularly distant in the quiet countryside. Christmas, peace. Does God really exist? If He does, why do so many tearful events occur? Why doesn’t He use His omnipotent hand to intervene just a little? Just that small intervention could change everything, making it as beautiful as the Bell Sound on this Christmas Eve.
Survival of the fittest, hunting and killing—God has never intervened.
Sad farewells, entangled love and hate—God has never intervened either.
So what is the meaning of His existence? Is it merely to be praised and revered by so many every week, becoming the object for those people to confess their sins, or is He just a reason for celebrating certain holidays?
Can the voice of prayer be heard? Can a fair judgment truly be made?
If all humans are Your children, why not treat them all kindly instead of showing favoritism, leading some to live in endless suffering?
At this point, Anna didn’t know who to blame—herself for resembling Yura? Hogga for being ruthless and cunning? Park Chan-yeol for being stubbornly blinded by the pain of losing his father? Or Park Anqing for being unkind and sowing the seeds of disaster back then?
No matter who it was, they all seemed to bear more misfortune than they could handle.
Anna was trapped in this cage, unsure how to break free. Is there an end to all this?
Her phone rang; it was Kwang-soo calling. Anna looked at it for a moment before answering.
“Hello, Anna! Merry Christmas! I must be the first one to call you, right?” Lee Kwang-soo’s voice came through, still filled with the sounds of fireworks in the background. He sounded cheerful as he shouted happily into the phone.
“Oh, yes.” Anna smiled slightly, though her nose felt a bit sour.
"Are you at home by yourself? If not, come out and play, I'll take you to see the fireworks."
"I'm not going. I'm going to sleep."
"Alright, then sleep well."
"Yeah, thank you, Brother Kwangsoo."
"Sleep tight, goodbye."
"Goodbye."
After hanging up the phone, the room fell silent, and the Bell Sound faded away. Anna had no idea when she would be able to leave this place and escape his control. All she knew was that, at the very least, what Park Chan-yeol wanted to protect most was finally safe. That was enough; she would deal with everything else later.
A sleepless night passed, with the white snow reflecting the moonlight, blurring the boundaries of time. Before she realized it, dawn arrived in a hurry. It seemed that more people had suddenly appeared in the house; Anna knew they were there for negotiations.
She didn't know how long it had been, but it was close to noon. Anna got out of bed and left her room, walking down the stairs just as the meeting was breaking up. Her gaze met that of Park Chan-yeol and Jang Bo-Yeon. The suppressed anger in Park Chan-yeol's eyes and Jang Bo-Yeon's piercing disdain felt like sharp blades, cutting Anna deeply.
"Anna Zheng! You really are! Just as I thought!" Park Chan-yeol suddenly shouted in anger, rushing toward Anna but was held back by a group of people. "Anna Zheng! Why?! Why on earth?!"
Anna clenched her fists, maintaining her composure. She couldn't show any emotion or reaction; that was the best choice.
"Anna Zheng!!" The drastic fluctuation in Park Chan-yeol's emotions made many elders from Park Group sigh repeatedly in disappointment. Their leader was losing his composure during such an important negotiation; how could they not feel let down?
In the end, Park Chan-yeol was taken out of the house by a group of people, and whispers filled the living room, but nothing more followed.
Hogga, who had been silently watching everything, smiled lightly.
Finally, only Anna was left, and her strength seemed to suddenly drain away as she sat down on the sofa.
"You did well," Hogga said as he approached, moving in front of Anna and attempting to lift her chin, but Anna quickly turned away.
"Stay away from me," Anna said, forcing a smile. "This time, it really went as you wished."
"Even if you don't come out, I still have other ways to let him know you're here."
"What was the result?"
Hogga sat down on the sofa beside her. "The result is that Park Chan-yeol just said he wants to leave Park Group."
"What?!" Anna jumped up. "You have no credibility; you clearly promised me."
"This isn't my decision; it's Park Chan-yeol's choice to hand over Park Group to me."
"How is that possible... He clearly said he would hold on."
"That's something you'll have to ask him yourself," Hogga chuckled. "I've fulfilled my promise to you. Now, you should also fulfill yours."
"You've already gotten what you wanted; you can let me go now."
"Just wait a bit longer; we're almost there."
"What is wrong?"
"Very soon, you'll have the answer. Just listen." Hogga seemed to be listening intently, and Anna also tried to discern what it was. Sure enough, it was the sound of a car, followed by a sudden screech of brakes. The door burst open, and Park Chan-yeol stood in the doorway, with Jang Bo-Yeon rushing in behind him.
"Brother Canlie, you need to stop worrying about her," Jang Bo-Yeon said, grabbing Park Chan-yeol's arm in an attempt to pull him away, but he shook her off forcefully.
Anna stood up, unable to react; everything was beyond her expectations.
"Why are you here? Why did you come here?" Park Chan-yeol grabbed Anna's shoulders and shook her vigorously. "Come on, let's go. We need to leave this place." He seized Anna's wrist and tried to pull her outside.
"Wait." Hogga stood up.
But Park Chan-yeol seemed not to hear and continued walking. A gunshot rang out, deafening. Anna felt as if her ears were about to burst. The bullet ricocheted off the door and struck a nearby vase, shattering it instantly.
"Ah!!" Jang Bo-Yeon screamed, sitting on the ground, too frightened to move.
Park Chan-yeol and Anna stopped in their tracks.
"If you take one more step, I will shoot Anna Zheng in the head," Hogga said with a smile.
Anna turned around; she had never imagined that one day Hogga would do something to harm her. That gunshot completely shattered all her previous assumptions.
Park Chan-yeol turned around and positioned himself protectively behind Anna.
"We were wrong in the past. I will give you Park Group; just let Anna go," Park Chan-yeol said.
Hogga sneered, "Park Group? Hmph, I don't care. It's just that making you suffer is what makes me happiest."
"Park Yoon-chun!!"
"Park Yoon-chun is dead!!" Anna had never seen Hogga so emotionally charged; he had always treated everything with indifference. "Park Yoon-chun died over a decade ago."
Sitting by the door, Jang Bo-Yeon tried to sneak away amidst the chaos, but she couldn't escape Hogga's gaze. A gunshot rang out, followed by a scream. Jang Bo-Yeon's leg was pierced, blood gushing out uncontrollably.
"Jiang Baoyan!!"
"You want to deal with me, don't involve others!" Park Chan-yeol said.
"This woman is a nuisance. Because of her, my plans have been forced to change many times. But fortunately, the outcome hasn't changed."
"What do you want?"
"Do you know how I felt when Yura died in front of me? ... Everything in my life has been ruined by Park Anqing, even the last remaining Yura was destroyed by him." Hogga glanced at Yura's photo and continued, "I have nothing left..."
"I know, because Anna Zheng resembles Sister Yura to some extent, but she is not Yura!"
"I certainly know that. They don't resemble each other at all..."
"Then why won't you let her go?"
"Because Yura can no longer be with me. I want her to be with me in life and death."
"You've gone mad."
Hogga slowly raised the gun again, looking at Anna and Park Chan-yeol. He said, "Anna, as long as you promise to stay with me now, then everyone will be fine."
"Hogga, you..." Anna was about to speak.
"Anna, don't agree to him," Park Chan-yeol interrupted Anna.
Hogga smiled slightly, wanting to say something, but suddenly furrowed his brow. His hand holding the gun trembled for a moment. In that instant of distraction, Park Chan-yeol rushed forward and grabbed Hogga's hand fiercely. Gunshots rang out in succession, bullets scattering everywhere, shattering glass and destroying furniture.
Jang Bo-Yeon was terrified and covered her head. Anna also rushed forward, grabbing Hogga's hand. However, with no combat experience, the two of them fell to the ground together.
Hogga was completely enraged. He pointed the gun at Anna and said, "I just want you by my side. I just want to hold you. Why does everything I have have to be taken away by them? Why?!"
Anna seemed to see Hogga gradually pressing the trigger. The gun was right in front of her eyes; the apocalypse had truly arrived. Park Chan-yeol leaped from the side to block him, but how could he catch up to such a small movement? Anna closed her eyes.
Bang!
There was another sound of shattering glass. She felt a few drops of warm liquid fall on her face, but there was no pain, no blankness of death. When she opened her eyes, she saw Hogga smiling as he slowly fell to the ground.
Blood gushed from his chest, soaking into the black carpet. Although it was sticky and slippery with a pungent smell, there was not a trace of bright red.
"Hogga!" Anna crawled over to Hogga's side. He still had his eyes open, looking at her with a smile.
"I still want... to hold... you..." That was all he managed to say before finally closing his eyes, leaving nothing more.
No matter how fearful or confused, Anna's tears could not be stopped from flowing. This person, who had always been there for her, might have ulterior motives, and he could be deep and ruthless. However, Anna had once trusted him infinitely, as if he were an older brother or a father figure. He had his own sorrows; those dark years must have been filled with a cruelty that Anna could never imagine. His white hair was a result of the tragedies he had endured over the years. No wonder she could never see through him; he had already changed his appearance and sealed off his heart. He was waiting for redemption, but his sins were too deep to ever be fully atoned for.
Hogga was dead, yet Jin Yu Cheng appeared.
Anna was quite surprised.
"I've returned the favor for the five-year friendship agreement; I consider this my repayment for your help back then," Jin Yu Cheng said.
"How did you know?" Anna asked in confusion.
"I've been keeping an eye on this person; I didn't expect him to be connected to you," Jin Yu Cheng smiled, lighting a cigarette and calmly looking at the lifeless body on the ground. "You really do have a knack for finding trouble."
"Yeah..." Anna sighed helplessly.
Jin Yu Cheng instructed two people to take Jang Bo-Yeon away in a car and left first.
Jin Yu Cheng took a couple of steps closer and glanced at Park Chan-yeol. "Your entanglement with Miki is over; she's doing well now. I don't intend to pursue it any further. As for this person..." Jin Yu Cheng looked at Hogga, "He came from Germany and has done quite a lot in Korea over the years. You know very well what your relationship with him is. No one saw anything today; I wasn't here."
"What exactly does he do? How do you know?" Park Chan-yeol asked.
Jin Yu Cheng smiled lightly. "Accidents..."
"What kind of accidents?"
"Various 'accidental deaths.' He has many mercenaries under him who get paid to make targets 'accidentally die.' Do you understand? He's quite capable; over the years, many in the entertainment industry, politicians, and business circles have fallen into his hands. His existence is a threat," Jin Yu Cheng explained.
"Is it also a threat to you?" Anna asked.
"Kind of, but not anymore," Jin Yucheng said. "You all should leave; I'll handle the rest."
"What are you going to do with him?" Anna inquired.
The sound of high heels interrupted their conversation, and no one expected anyone else to appear here.
"How about this, Boss Lady Jin, give me a favor and let me take care of him," Cat's enchanting voice suggested.
Anna was extremely surprised. "How did you end up here..."
"It’s you," Jin Yucheng said, slightly surprised before smiling. "But I want to hear how you plan to handle this."
"The police won't know about this happening; it will be quietly buried, just that simple. Boss Lady Jin, are you satisfied?"
Jin Yucheng nodded, a smile forming on his lips as he exhaled smoke. "Good, just like that; I'm very satisfied. I believe you don't want to attract trouble and create unnecessary complications."
"Of course," Cat replied with a smile.
"Alright, it's up to you now," Jin Yucheng turned around. "Let's go." After saying that, he left the house with those who had followed him.
Cat walked over to Hogga, standing beside him and looking at his calm face, devoid of expression.
"You really know him," Park Chan-yeol remarked.
"He's gone, and he's dead. What else is there to say?" Cat said, looking up at Anna with a thoughtful expression.
"How do you know each other?" Anna asked in surprise.
"In this world, there will always be many things we don't know," Cat replied. "What happened today should not be spoken of. After all, Park Yoon-chun has been dead for many years. Today's event is merely an unrecognized Hogga in this world. He has left, and no one will notice. You should go; I'll stay with him for a while."
"Cat…"
"Go," Cat said.
Park Chan-yeol helped Anna up, and the two exchanged a few final glances before leaving the house.
My name is Nanya. In Germany's Underground Bar, I met the boy who was chained and disfigured. I was fifteen that year, and everyone called me Cat.
Germany's Underground Bar, as its name suggests, is located dozens of meters underground. The Germans, who are meticulous and lack creativity in naming things, did not come up with anything more inventive. However, "Underground Bar" carries additional meanings.
Here, there are no laws, including those governing death. Above ground is bright; in the light, everything follows the inherent rules of this world, where everyone lives their lives with a facade of decency. Below ground, in the darkness, all ugliness is laid bare.
The boy was covered in repulsive sores; his face was unrecognizable. He remained silent, regardless of how those around him insulted or beat him.
Was he mute? How did he end up here?
At that time, my boyfriend and manager was a man in his fifties. It was my birthday that day, and he asked me what I wanted. I took a drag from the cigarette he offered and pointed at the boy.
"What use is such a dirty thing?" the German man asked.
"How fun," I said.
Just like that, I led the boy home on a chain, as if I had adopted a stray dog. In this city, I needed a loyalty that belonged solely to me.
I removed the chain from his neck and handed him a glass of Johnny Walker.
The boy's silent gaze, with amber-colored pupils, was an image I would never forget in my lifetime. I knew that within that image lay an indelible story, destined to be entangled.
The boy took the glass and drank it all in one go. Clearly, he had never had alcohol before, but when the liquid entered his mouth, it was particularly resolute.
"Where are you from? What is your name?" I tried to ask him in German and then in my native Korean. Ultimately, the boy responded in my familiar language, "Korea, Park Yoon-chun."
I smiled and took the empty, dirty glass from him. Looking at it, I thought for a moment and said, "No matter what you were called before, from now on, I give you a new name... Hogga... From today on, your name is Hogga."
This house was bought for me by a German man. He liked younger girls; after all, I had accompanied him for nearly three years here, so I didn't feel indebted to him in any way. I also knew that in Germany, he had bought many such houses to shelter different girls. I was just one of the girls he favored a bit more.
"Let's go; I'll take you for plastic surgery. Staring at this face every day makes me afraid that one day I'll throw you away," I said to Hogga, who was staring blankly out the window.
"Where did you get the money?"
"You don't need to worry about that; you are mine. Of course, I want to take good care of you."
And so it was that on a whim, I took my pet Hogga to the hospital for surgery. The credit cards and bank cards were all funded by that German man; swiping them didn't hurt at all. Everything was done with the best quality possible. If it could make that German man frown even slightly, it brought me some satisfaction inside. Otherwise, every time he rode on top of me and inflicted pain, I wouldn't know how to repay it.
Skin grafting and facial reconstruction—these were scenes I had only seen in domestic dramas before, now unfolding right before my eyes. At that moment, I realized how cruel it could be. Even someone as calm as me found it hard to watch. Afterward, Hogga spent a long time with thick bandages wrapped around his head, swollen like a monster.
I laughed at him, but he remained silent, still lost in thought, and I couldn't tell what he was thinking. In the dead of night, I could vaguely hear him in his room, growling like a beast, eerie and terrifying.
It seemed I had raised a rather untameable beast. I mocked myself.
The German Man came to see me that day, nearly a month after he last bought Hogga at the Underground Bar. Ha, I thought he might be dead.
He staggered in, reeking of alcohol, glanced at Hogga who was still sitting there unresponsive, tossed aside the empty bottle, and threw me onto the sofa. The European's massive frame made me feel like my shoulders were about to break.
In a bad mood, I frowned and pushed away his hands that were trying to unbutton my shirt.
Smack!
A hot slap landed on my cheek, leaving a metallic taste in my mouth, and the ringing in my ears was quite unpleasant.
"You spent so much money just to get that monster surgery?"
"Why ask if you already know?"
The German Man grabbed my neck and threw me to the ground; my head hit the table leg and blood oozed out.
Ouch, that really hurt.
"Do you really think of yourself as human? Huh?! Korean Pig!"
I coldly smiled, shifted into a more comfortable position while sitting up, and looked at him. "You want a pig? Isn't that even more disgusting?"
Actually, I didn't know what was going on at that moment; I just suddenly wanted to maintain a bit of dignity in front of a pet that was even lower in rank than me.
"I see you're getting impatient. In Germany, this is my territory. If you disappear, no one will notice," the German man said, completely enraged. He picked up a fruit knife from the table and pressed it against my neck, the tip piercing my skin, causing pain that overshadowed the bump on my head. "You've always been obedient; now you've really disappointed me."
I looked at him without backing down. Neither in my heart nor in my gaze had I ever been afraid of him. As a teenager here, following this German man was the easiest way for me to make a living. He was a means of survival, not my master; when I no longer wanted to eat from his hand, there was no need to wag my tail and beg for pity.
"Hurry up, is the knife rusty or what?" I sneered, provoking him. When I took Hogga for cosmetic surgery, I also underwent a health check. Having already undergone two medical abortions privately, I would never be able to bear children again. This means of survival had completely buried my future. With no future left, there was no meaning anymore. All along, I had thought that when I became stronger, I would secretly return to Korea, erase everything here, and become an ordinary Korean mother, finding a traditional man who might not be wealthy but would love me and have a bunch of kids. Now that everything was gone and ruined, it might as well be destroyed more thoroughly.
"You filthy whore..." the German man cursed under his breath, his eyes revealing murderous intent.
Having seen such looks many times in the Underground Bar with him, I roughly knew that my end was near.
Just when I thought my life would quietly disappear at this moment, Hogga, who had been sitting there, appeared behind him at some point. The knife pierced through the back of his neck, blood dripping onto my face and making me feel nauseous.
The German man lay on the ground with wide eyes, convulsing as blood stained the carpet and his pants filled with excrement. Even after his convulsions ceased, his eyes remained wide open.
"Disgusting..." I scoffed as I looked at Hogga standing there expressionless and smiled slightly. "This is going to be a problem; this guy will keep us in prison for life."
"Not going to happen," Hogga replied. His tone remained emotionless but very certain.
"What?"
"Let's move him to the bathroom."
At that time, I didn't know what he intended to do; I simply followed his lead and helped him carry the lifeless bulk into the bathtub in the bathroom.
"Go outside and clean up, burn the carpet. Leave this to me."
Thus, we divided our tasks; I cleaned outside while Hogga stayed in the bathroom for a while before closing the door. He said not to open that door for three days.
I followed his instructions and did not ask any questions.
Three days later, the police indeed came knocking. It seemed they had already questioned many of the girls associated with the German Man, and I was just one of them. They conducted a rational search and opened the bathroom door, but inside it was completely clean, with nothing left behind.
This became a cold case, one of many. After all, there are too many unsolvable cases and too many suspects. The idealistic police only exist in movies; in real life, solving cases often comes down to coincidence.
I still did not ask him how he did it. Later, I heard that soaking a body in Nitric Acid could completely dissolve it, leaving no trace behind.
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