Mercenary Black Mamba

Mu Ssang muttered the ending phrase of Chang Hen Ge[1].

A myriad of memories filled his mind—his lost mother; his uncle and aunt Jang; Hwa Ja; his uncles and aunts who had ignored him and made fun of him for no reason; Jang Young Suk who had committed suicide in the end; the sly prosecutor number seven Kim Dal Su; the violence and starvation he had suffered in prison; the guards who used to joke about not starving him to death; the judge who had given the final decision without expression; the unknown people who had bashed his head around with the butt of their gun; and unfamiliar faces.

The world was filled with animals. Several efforts were required for him to return to his hometown, but his clouded mind refused to lift.

"Mother, I wish to return to the Mu Ssang of the past who used to play around and get scolded. Namu Amita Bul!"

Mu Ssang shortly told Jin Soon of his return and left the phone booth feeling weak. His teacher had told him to go forward without attachments, but his heart raged with hatred every time he left the temple. At this rate, he didn't know when he would be able to erase the smell of blood from his body.

Jin Soon, who had received the call late in the evening, stayed awake the entire night. Her oppa[2], whom she'd missed in agony, had returned. Her heart, which had turned into coal from worry, began leaping in anticipation.

She boarded the first bus to the city and ran towards the northern city bus terminal. Jin Soon ran through the gates even before Mt. Chung Saeng's fog lifted.

Time was independent. Each one of the 500,000,000 people on Earth had their individual time. The status and frame of mind similarly altered the value of time. Two years could be meaningless to an old person.

Two years for a man in his early 20s was a long time. It was an even longer time for a woman who'd just bloomed. Jin Soon was no longer the countryside chick who used to wear baggy clothes and drag old, run-down rear cars around. She exuded shining youth and figure by dressing herself up in a bright, white two-piece on her skin and pearl-colored high heels.

Her hastened steps stopped right before the temple's entrance. A man was cutting down firewood; his upper half of the body left naked. He was wearing nothing but pants, and the thick firewood seemed to break apart like watermelon.

Scary at first sight, no one other than her oppa would swing a large ax like a whip. No, she could recognize her oppa from 10 li away because of the strong pheromones that her oppa exuded. It was 100, no, 1,000 times more addicting than drugs.

Jin Soon's two eyes plastered themselves on his light-brown skin and muscles.

Oppa!

She swallowed her heavy breaths. With a body like a statue and muscles made from God, her oppa had become even more handsome. The men who had competed in Mister Korea had amazing muscles, but compared to her oppa, it was nothing but water balloons.

Every time the ax moved up and down, his delicate biceps and tricep muscles moved dynamically with the trapezius like a wave. His back, which was drenched in sweat, reflected the sunlight. It temporarily blinded her eyes.

A drop of sweat rolled down from the moving triangular muscles to his spine. The body shone underneath the sunlight as though it had wrapped itself around. It was the beauty of wildness, the true charisma of men.

"Aa, ah!" Jin Soon moaned unconsciously.

"You're here!"

Mu Ssang turned around. The smile, which began from the corners of his mouth, creased through his cheeks and formed a wrinkle at the edge of his eyes. It was a comforting smile, the type of smile which greeted a sister after she had visited her neighbor. It was a calm smile.

Crazy b****!

Upon regaining her senses in a flash, Jin Soon wanted to punch her own eyes. She must be mad to feel excited by her oppa's body.

"Oppa!"

Jin Soon ran. When one of her heels came off, she threw the other pair off.

"Oppa, aah, hic!"

Jin Soon squeezed Mu Ssang's hip as though he'd run away and cried her eyes out.

"Ugh, you're a grown woman, why are you crying like a child?"

Mu Ssang patted her butt with his palm.

Hm!

He flinched. The feeling on his hands was new.

Ha, this kid's grown up now.

The scent of a grown woman and the sweet smell of shampoo tickled his nose. The girl who had brought him leftovers after stealing it from aunt Jang had grown into an adult. The high school teenager who had taken care of his solo life had become a woman.

"Did you worry a lot?"

"I hate you, oppa. My heart turned into coal because of you." Jin Soon beat Mu Ssang's chest.

Mu Ssang smiled and hugged her. She was his only remaining friend.

"Brat, you know how strong your oppa is. Stop worrying about needless things and make some useful pants."

Jin Soon rolled her eyes until all the whites could be seen. She hated her brother for saying something that had flipped her insides without knowing what she had felt.

"Hmph, where do I find such useful pants? I'll bring something if you're worth half a won. My youthful business went haywire because of you, good brother. Can you believe this body of mine is still single?"

Jin Soon pushed her chest out slightly. Jin Soon's chest had already surpassed Hae Young's once she had entered university. Mu Ssang began sweating as the plentiful breasts advanced.

"Brat, your makeup is coming off."

He was naked with steam coming off. Jin Soon didn't budge, her face buried in his chest. She was drunk on the man's strong skin scent.

Her brain, which was addicted to the strong male's pheromone, lost its control over the body. Her legs twisted, and her hearing closed off. She forgot where she was, what she was doing, and had lost touch with reality.

Her brain, which closed off connections to the outside world, began replaying her long-term memories. Time began to rewind.

There had been a stream near the bridge, which flowed into a river. Usually, it flowed gently and wrapped around her ankles, but things turned different when rain fell.

The stream, which used to flow gently, reached the 10-years-old girl's belly button. Her oppa used to save her when she was stuck in the stream and had offered his back without a word. Despite their one year age difference, her oppa's back had been strong like a stone.

Oppa walked with ease across the strong stream that carried rocks beyond. Frankly, the stream wasn't scary at all. She'd waited because she enjoyed being carried by her oppa. She used to squat in front of the river and wait until her oppa had shown up.

When her oppa finally showed up, she sniffed his scent with an extremely unfortunate face. Once she had jumped onto his large back and buried her cheeks in, she would fall asleep. She liked the smell of her oppa. When the river's water had fallen below her knees, she became disappointed. The cheeky girl used to wait for the summer rain every year.

And so, 10 years had passed. Oppa's scent could wake her up from her dreams. She was happy. She was so, so happy.

"Ahem, aren't you attached to him for too long? A flower's going to bloom on the streets."

Her mind, which had been ruffling through her stored memories, returned to reality.

"Oh my God!"

Surprised, Jin Soon finally released his arm.

"Huhu, Soon, you've come. What do you exactly like about that slow b*stard to attach yourself like that?"

"I don't like you, monk grandpa!"

Jin Soon glared at the monk with a blushed face.

"Huhuhu!"

Monk Dae Woo only laughed.

"Oh, oppa!"

It was then that Jin Soon noticed the new scar on Mu Ssang's face and screamed. Her eyes ran across Mu Ssang's body.

"Oh, gosh! What happened!"

He originally had a body full of scars. Now, it was covered with scars to the point that his original skin color couldn't be seen. At least, the keloid[3] didn't appear due to his fast regeneration. White scars were scattered all over his brown skin.

Tears fell from Jin Soon's eyes.

"Ugh, oh my God, I went to school because of your torn body. My siblings and I drank your blood to study. Oh my God, what should I do?"

Jin Soon's face had turned blotchy from the tears. When he was younger, he had been scarred by his uncle and aunt's violence. When he grew older, he was scarred from an accident. He gained a job overseas but returned riddled with scars. Her heart was torn into pieces.

"Brat, that's why people say you need to earn like a dog and spend like the dead. Your good results bring worth to my earnings. Stop crying. Teacher's watching, and it's embarrassing."

Hands like strong hooks rubbed Jin Soon's head.

"Oppa, seriously, what happened?"

"You brat, you keep digging into things you're not meant to know. I've been having fun by myself."

Monk Dae Woo stepped forward. He was about to starve with his disciple at this rate.

"Soon, that b*stard's someone who can avoid the grim reaper. Stop worrying and prepare the meal. What's the point of that b*stard having skills? A woman's kind hands are 100 times better than hands like iron."

"Hey, teacher!"

Jin Soon wiped her tears and entered the kitchen. Monk Dae Woo began to scold Mu Ssang.

"You b*stard, what's the point of showing such a horrible sight to a young girl? Think of how scared she would have been to see scars of bullet holes and torn skin. With your senses, you would have known that she was here even before she reached the gate."

Mu Ssang scratched his head as he wore his clothes.

"Hehe, you're right. I should have quickly put on some clothes."

Monk Dae Woo pressed on the bullet wound on his shoulder to check.

"It's a clear shot. The bullet was removed cleanly without the need for skin surgery. Your body should be a national treasure, that's for sure. Were there any internal injuries?"

"Wow, you're asking that now? I'm completely fine. My body's as strong as gold since you have trained me so hard, teacher."

"You little b*stard, now you're blaming me? Should we exchange some sparring rounds, as teacher and apprentice?"

"Ugh, you're going to beat me up with churi sul and throw me around with ball air explosions, aren't you? Jin Soon's here, so let me go."

When Monk Dae Woo raised his staff with a smile, Mu Ssang ran away with his hands on his head.

"Hohoho! Old monk, give him a sound beating." Jin Soon laughed with her arms around her belly by the kitchen door.

"I will. There's not a single b*stard who has turned out well after making a woman wait. Be kind to that b*stard, won't you? A man's made according to a woman's effort. Even Buddha has said to raise as many children as possible. Now, should this old man start washing away his disciple's wrongdoings? Hahaha!"

The monk's face was full of smiles as he headed towards the prayer room. Still blushing, Jin Soon hurriedly removed her gaze from Mu Ssang's back. The monk's words of bearing many children echoed in her ears.

Mu Ssang finished his evening service and began to enjoy his leisure time with his head on Jin Soon's knee. Jin Soon fished out an earpick from her handbag and raised Mu Ssang's head to her lap. He used to have difficulties sleeping after Hae Young had left, half wasting away until he barely fell asleep from Jin Soon's ear picking.

"Hm, it isn't refreshing. Why are my ears so ticklish? Someone must be talking behind my back. Is it general Philip or Bonipas? Could it be those old Oecophylla smaragdina? Is that Sang Han b*stard chewing me out for not contacting him? Could it be the lackey b*stard talking bad about me? I think it's the lackey after all," Mu Ssang muttered.

"I have no idea what you're saying. Why do you have so much ear wax?"

The foreign substances that Jin Soon had dug out of his ears were building up like a mountain.

"Mm, you see. I went to this horrible desert called the Sahel for over a month. It's a place where no human or water can be found even if you travel an entire day. Sandstorms occurred every day, so sand went into every hole in my body. There's nothing to eat, and once, I saw a child drinking milk from the mother who was already skin and bones. Guerilla b*stards would attack randomly, rape women, and eat the children…"

"God!"

"Oh, shoot."

Mu Ssang slapped his own mouth for running off. It wasn't something that Jin Soon should have heard.

"Oppa, be honest. What did you do overseas?"

"Your oppa is a soldier."

"Soldier?"

Jin Soon's eyes grew wide. A soldier? What on earth was this devil ascending news! He'd said he had gained a job, but what was this about being a soldier?

"The foreign mercenary division, to be precise."

There was no way for Jin Soon to know the difference between soldiers and mercenaries. Her heart sank at the news. The stories she had heard since her youth of the FAP's violent actions, the defense military's rebellion, and the partisans armed with spears, filled her head.

"Oppa, get rid of that job. You don't know what could happen to you."

Jin Soon's eyes were filled with fear. Her life would be meaningless if something happened to her oppa.

"Men have their duties. Some work for their family to live, while some pick up the gun to protect their family and nation. I realized something while I was overseas. The basis of my body is of this land's soil, and the basis of my mind is of this land's water."

"Huh, you've become weird oppa. Didn't you leave because you didn't like all that dirty stuff in our country?"

Jin Soon's large and refreshing eyes grew larger.

This brat, she's a beauty.

Mu Ssang smiled. Frankly, Jin Soon was a pretty girl who wouldn't lose out against anyone, anywhere. She was thin and tall, at around 170 centimeters, with clear and healthy features.

"If you look up, you don't see the ceiling, and if you look down, you don't see the ground. When you're in a well, the sky is all you can see."

"You must have contracted some virus from the old monk to be talking about Buddhism. Look at you. There's not an area without a scar. Is your body some canvas, oppa? How much did you suffer to become like this? Buddha must have sent you back alive."

Mu Ssang smiled inwardly. The Muslims paid their gratitude to Allah, while the Christians paid their gratitude to Jesus. Jin Soon had said it was because of Buddha. Humans created the idea of gods to reassure themselves and blame someone else.

[1] A literary masterpiece from the Tang dynasty by the famous Chinese poet Bai Juyi.

[2] An older male, or older brother. It is a term used by females to males.

[3] An overgrowth of scar tissues that are usually benign and not contagious. In serious cases, it could affect skin movement.