Empire of the Ring

Youngho and Jongil tried to forget about the mission when meeting Sergey, they were suffering some kind of post-traumatic disorder after the attack. It was normal for soldiers who had been in battles where lives were taken. It was natural for a normal person to be shocked after killing people. Youngho wanted to get rid of the bad feelings before he returned to Baku since he thought he could not go back to his normal life at this state. He wanted to go travel but he had just been to a trip with the family not long ago.

Before leaving Tbilisi, Youngho bought quite a lot of classic music CDs in a music shop. He picked 200 of CDs including well-known musicians such as Mozart. As he listened to the classic music while driving back, Jongil finally opened his mouth.

“What are you doing? What is this improper music?”

“I’m in the middle of healing my soul. Since I’ve done something that a human shouldn’t do, I’m trying to soothe my soul. You should listen to it with your heart too.”

“…”

“Hey Jongil. I’m afraid that we’ll be doing things like this habitually. I don’t feel guilty anymore.”

Jongil replied to him after a while of silence,

“You die when you don’t kill in war. You’re thinking too much. Don’t be weak. Just face the fact and get over with it.”

Jongil was right but Youngho could not agree with him.

“That’s why I’m trying to listen to music, its relaxing. Since I can’t go on a trip, I’ll just be satisfied listening to the music for now.”

It was Jongil’s turn to drive, so they exchanged the seats. Listening to the heart-warming violin playing to Pablo de Sarasate piece, Youngho fell asleep.

***

After returning to Baku, Youngho spent his days quietly pruning grape vines with his farm employees, reading books about wine production, and listening to calm music. The siblings benefited the most by Youngho’s change since they loved having him on the farm. Youngho spent his time with the siblings as much as possible and made fun events for them. Making new, peaceful memories with them, Youngho was forgetting his horrendous experience little by little. He barely left the farm, so even Sevan came to visit him on the farm, saying that Youngho never showed his face at the police department anymore.

The traumatizing experience changed Youngho’s overall life.

It was around this time when Youngho started installing speakers around the farm, so that he could listen to music all the time anywhere he went. There was another reason for this; He had read from an agriculture-related book that music stimulates the growth of plants. The music was for the health of his soul and ss well as his grapes. The farm employees also welcomed the new change since they could hear music while they worked.

Youngho sometimes had struggles with the siblings to turn on the classic music which he liked since they were into K-Pop music lately. They insisted turning on K-Pop music. Those little arguments and struggles with the siblings made his life richer. The farm was as lively as usual.

“Shake it, shake it. Oppa, your butt! Shake it!”

Shaking her behind, Zeynep was singing along the tune of a K-Pop song.

“You’re not going to do it? SZE. CHE. NYI~ Do it!!! Why not?!”

The farm family was startled by Zeynep’s demand since she asked everyone to dance with her. Because of her cuteness while dancing with her small body, the family started dancing alongside her without thinking much. When Youngho stepped in the management building, he spotted Insoo and Jongil dancing and shaking their behinds, forced by Zeynep.

Youngho’s peaceful days of focusing on his farm except when he had to go for a monthly CIA meeting in Frankfurt were turned upside down by a call from Katya in South Ossetia.

He received a coded email from her once a week. Since there was nothing special going on, Youngho had been pushing back his visit to South Ossetia. However, Katya asked him to visit her to discuss something important. Youngho was getting tired of being on the farm all the time, so he reported the trip to the European chapter and left for South Ossetia with Jongil.

***

“Youngho, doesn’t your head hurt? Man, I’m getting a headache.”

Having an altitude sickness, Jongil rubbed his temples.

“We’ll be on a downhill soon. Hold on.”

“Who would make a country in this area? Man, you’ve got to have wise ancestors.”

Jongil kept complaining for his pain. Youngho knew that he would change his attitude as soon as he sees Katya.

“Do you think we’re traveling around these places because we have great ancestors?”

“You’re right. I’m jealous of Europeans, they live without worries. That’s why you need to have power first. Look at them, they always use other countries’ resources freely. They used Africans as their slaves and now their descendants are living in wealth.”

Jongil had a point. If Korea turned their eyes to overseas a little bit faster, Korea must have more power in the international society now. They cussed at their ancestors for a while and it seemed to relieve the symptoms of their altitude sickness.

They stopped by the restaurant that Youngho visited every time he came to South Ossetia. The chubby owner lady greeted Youngho with a big hug, Jongil looked at them as if he was surprised. Youngho shrugged and took out a variety of spices that he had bought for her. The lady was touched by him again. She tried to hug him again, so Youngho stopped her by saying that it was just a favor.

Jongil who also received a forceful hug of the stinky lady stared at Youngho. He could see that blades are coming out of Jongil’s eyes.

“Dude, why did you let her hug me? I’m a married man and a father-to-be.”

“Oh yeah? That’s great. So, you wouldn’t care about the agent that we’ll be meeting today. She’s also a mother.”

“Man, why would I care about a married woman? I can’t even handle Karajan these days.”

Youngho smiled in his mind. It was funny to think how Jongil would react to Katya.

“She has an eight-year-old daughter but she’s still beautiful. Don’t you ignore a married woman although she’s widowed now. She’s an important information agent for us.”

“Don’t you worry. I won’t blink even if a miss universe shows up.”

Youngho narrowly held his laughter. There would be an affair that he could make fun out of Jongil for the rest of his life.

Youngho had brought Jongil to this trip to draw the line with Katya, he did not want her to misunderstand his favors. If they had conflicts, it would also affect their work. He wanted to prevent things before they got out of his hands. Of course, being a young and healthy man, Youngho liked beautiful girls but he needed to be professional for now since he was not ready to settle down.

***

After checking in at a hotel near the bus terminal of Tskhinvali, the capital of South Ossetia, Jongil seemed to be surprised by the environments lagging behind. The hotel’s facility was worse than inns in small European towns. The only thing that seemed proper for a hotel was the people in the cafe dressed up in business attires.

Jongil finally asked a question to Youngho,

“You had been sleeping here every time you visited here?”

“Yeah. Where else can I go? There are ruins all around the city. They say that Tskhinvali was not attacked because of the foreign journalists in here during a war against Georgia. This is the safest place in the country.”

“Huh, is that so? I think it’d be better to rebuild the town after getting attacked.”

“People here only make 300 dollars a year. Well, the statistics could be wrong but look. I heard that they found oil field in the low lands. Who knows, they might be a powerful country in a few years?”

“Man, say no more. This country is giving me headaches.”

Jongil seemed to want return to Baku as soon as possible, which was thoroughly understandable. The country was full of winding roads that gave them nausea and the altitude of 2000 meters above sea level was only the beginning.

The two stopped talking at the appearance of Katya who just stepped inside the café. Her gorgeous beauty could make any man stop doing whatever he was doing. Spotting Youngho, she came near him and gave him a big hug and a kiss. Jongil looked at the two as if he was confused.

“Katya, let me introduce Jongil. He’s our colleague and a good friend, Park Jongil.”

Katya greeted Jongil the same way as she did to Youngho. Still in confusion, Jongil seemed to be frozen.

“Boss, I prepared dinner at my house. Let’s go eat first and we can talk about work later.”

“Alright. How’s Rena by the way?”

“She’s so excited to see you. You didn’t forget to bring her a gift, did you?”

“Of course I didn’t forget, I have a whole lot prepared for her. Hey Jongil. Let’s go, Katya has dinner ready for us.”

Holding his laughter, Youngho slapped Jongil’s back and he got up regaining his consciousness. The unimaginable beauty of Katya was enough to stun Jongil.

“Papa.”

Rena waited at the front door of the house and ran into Youngho’s arms as soon as she saw him and kissed him. She courteously greeted Jongil too and went back to Youngho’s arms. Katya’s mom also greeted Youngho brightly.

Inside the house now looked tidied up. It looked like a regular house of a middle class family. Since Youngho had been giving Katya information commission and added some of his payments to her commission, she was financially supported well now. Youngho had been saving the earnings from the retailer shop in the city because he planned to buy the hotel that he was staying someday and develop it to expand the business.

Watching Youngho playing with Katya at the dinner table, Jongil called him out with an excuse of smoking.

“Man, you are a man with a lot secret. Do you have anything to say in this situation?”

Youngho only smiled because Jongil just started giving full scope to his imagination.

“‘Papa’? Are you her dad now? How far did you go with Katya? Man, I’m so frustrated. Tell me what happened now!”

“Keep going with your fiction.”

“What if Fatima finds out about this? Oh, sweet Fatima. She’ll be torn into pieces. She’s been living for you. What are you going to do?”

“Are you done?”

“Done with what?”

Jongil yelled at him with frustration since Youngho was not telling him anything.

“If what I’m imagining is true, you’d be dead by me today. You’re a cheater!”

Youngho could not stop holding his laughter anymore. Now he just became a cheater in Jongil’s imagination.

“Hahaha…”

“…”

Later at a café, Katya scolded Jongil who was drooping as if he was a sinner. She poured a drink in his cup and said.

“How can you imagine something like that? Aren’t you his friend? You still don’t know about boss?”