The end of a story.

by Han Yong-un · 2026-03-20

Sun-young was filled with confusion and curiosity. Since seeing a person like Dae-cheol, her doubts had not been resolved, and she struggled to uncover his identity. After hearing Bong-rim's words, she thought that person might be Dae-cheol, but she believed that Dae-cheol could not have changed so much. She did not want to believe Bong-rim's words at face value.

Sun-young waited for that person to return, but there was no news even after two days. Unable to overcome her impatience, Sun-young decided to visit the place where Bong-rim said opium was sold. Even while going to meet that person, she wanted to be the only one to recognize him and took care not to let him recognize her. So she covered her mouth and nose with a handkerchief and lowered her head. However, her heart raced every time she encountered a destitute person, and seeing someone like a beggar did not seem ordinary to her.

Sun-young could not reach the door of the house that sold opium and stood at one corner of Jung-hak-dong, looking across. However, although there were many ordinary people coming and going, she did not see anyone who could be called an opium dealer. There were beggar-like people, but no one entered or exited that house. So Sun-young began to doubt whether the place Bong-rim mentioned was correct.

Fearing that standing in one place for too long might seem strange to others, she gradually moved away and waited for almost an hour, but as evening approached, she became angry and was about to turn back. However, there were not many places to ask. She did not have the courage to ask a well-dressed person or a police officer. She also lacked the courage to ask in a place with many people. Then she discovered an old man dozing against a cart on one side of the main road. There were not many other people around.

“Hello?”

Sun-young's voice seemed to tremble.

“......”

He, who had been dozing, did not respond.

“Hello. May I ask you something?”

Sun-young's voice grew a little louder.

“Yeah.”

As he opened his eyes and wiped the drool that had dripped onto his beard, he looked at Sun-young and spoke as if he were tired.

“Ah, I'm quite tired.”

“Look at this, may I ask you something?”

“What do you want to ask?”

He answered bluntly, as if displeased that he had been woken from a deep sleep.

“What kind of house is that over there?”

Sun-young pointed to a house that sold opium.

“Which house?”

“That house over there. There’s a road that leads into my neighborhood. That house built like a Western-style house to the south of the first road leading in.”

“Oh, that house? Why do you ask about that house?”

He asked while looking Sun-young up and down.

“Well, you see.”

Sun-young felt her face heat up.

“That house sells opium, right? Why do you want to buy opium?”

“No, I heard that many opium dealers come and go there.”

“Whether many opium dealers come and go or not, that’s the opium dealer's district. Why would there be someone to meet an opium dealer?”

“No, well, you see. Then are the opium dealers inside there?”

“No, in the morning, they all come to buy opium and leave. Why would they be there?”

“So they only come in the morning?”

Sun-young realized that the reason she could not see the opium dealers was that it was evening.

“Right, why are you asking so specifically? You don’t seem like someone who would be interested in that.”

Sun-young returned feeling a bad mood rising within her.

On the next day, Sun-young went early and waited at the place where she stood yesterday. She became so embarrassed in front of others that she went to the corner of the opium den and stood there with her face half-covered by a towel.

As it became eight o'clock, the opium addicts began to gather. They were a colorful sight. Some came dressed in their formal attire, but most looked like beggars. Their faces were all gaunt and had a yellowish tint, and they were in no condition to walk properly. Among them, the most peculiar were the young women.

“Why did those damn things start taking opium and end up like that?”

“Even if they look like this now, they probably had some money and were doing well when they first started taking opium.”

“They'll all be dead in a few days if they keep this up, what can be done?”

Passersby were glancing and chatting among themselves.

“Even if they’ve reached this state, if they have the determination, they can recover, but they need to have that determination.”

There were people saying things like this.

Sun-young couldn't help but listen closely to any talk about the opium den from the passersby. While she wished that Dae-cheol wouldn't come there as an opium addict, on the other hand, her desire to see him at least once was even stronger. Sun-young's eyes did not stay in one place.

I looked at the road coming from Naejadong, and sometimes glanced towards Junghakdong or Gwanghwamun-dong, and at times turned my head to look towards Dongshimja-inna or Seoshimja-gak. Sun-young's eyes were quite tired. While looking towards Junghakdong and watching a carriage being pulled, I was captivated by the sight of a horse running in anger, and when I looked back towards Sajik-dong, I suddenly made eye contact with a man who had come very close to me, coughing and looking at me. That man was the same person who had come to my house begging the day before.

Sun-young realized that he was the person she had been waiting for, but when their eyes met, she was startled and flinched, almost screaming. The man, who had been observing the scene closely, quickly turned around and entered the house with other people.

Sun-young stood there, thinking about watching the man come out again, but somehow lacked the courage to stay longer, hesitating for a moment before turning back without looking behind. This time, she carefully observed the man's face, body, and appearance. His face was thin and had a yellowish tint, but from all appearances, he was definitely Dae-cheol.

His clothing, as Bong-rim had mentioned, was not terrible, but it could not be considered the attire of an ordinary person. It seemed better than the clothes worn while begging. Thus, it felt as though there was a separate outfit for casual wear.

Sun-young had doubts about whether Dae-cheol could have become that way, and the thought that there could be someone like him crossed her mind. However, putting aside such forced thoughts, it was clear that that person was Dae-cheol. Sun-young also thought about what if that person recognized her. She believed that covering her face with a towel would make it hard for others to recognize her, but thinking about how that person suddenly turned away while looking at her made her feel like he knew it was her. Sun-young covered her face with a towel and looked in the mirror, but she also found it hard to recognize herself, which somewhat reassured her. However, thinking again, she found it rather silly to worry that much.