I love this character analysis
Thanks, I really like Yejin because his brightness has more complexity than just him being silly comedy relief for the top to take care of. It’s a common trope that usually results in the mc being the relief character that contrasts with the serious and competent top/ml.
I appreciate that his internal monologue and behaviors clearly show that he is unwell and uses positivity as a coping mechanism and just does not fully think through his decision making process. I hope the story continues to reveal and develop his character like this
Ok comedy aside, I think this chapter encapsulates the difference in psychology really well. Yejin was raised normally, away from crime and violence, and had only had superficial interactions with the gangsters he owed the debt to until he joined up. Trauma, loss, rage, and desperation have really put him in an altered mental state.
His loose cannon, crazy behavior sort of gets treated as a quirky personality trait, but it’s really all a trauma response. He’s trying very hard to adapt to a very extreme environment and really doesn’t understand what is normal/reasonable anymore. Nothing we see of his personality before the betrayal indicates that he was prone to such risky behavior.
Taekmu did something extreme (according to the status quo of gangster conduct) to scare him into putting more distance between them, but Yejin wasn’t aware, and thought it was just a normal aspect of that life, and therefore did the same without understanding the inevitable fallout.
Yejin is someone with nothing to lose, whose judgement is badly compromised by his trauma, so even by gangster standards he is prone to risky and erratic behaviors so long as it serves his revenge and/or helps him stabilize his new place int the world.
His wildcard, Devil may care attitude is only because he has nothing to hold back for. He has nothing and no one else to protect, and he considers his safety of minor importance compared to the relative gains of doing well in the gang and getting closer to revenge.
His disregard for his own life is due to his trauma and I don’t think anyone around him has fully recognized the root of that behavior. Even Taekmu has been assuming it’s an over enthusiasm and recklessness, but it’s rooted in an anger and despair that has completely engulfed Yejin’s sense of self.
I think Taekmu is starting to realize the mental state that Yejin is in, and that he is not dealing with someone capable of thinking and reacting “rationally” to the situations he has, and will continue to be placed in.