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The rain that had been pouring down like a waterfall since two hours before departure finally stopped just after midnight. Three people drove a luxury sedan into the underground parking garage of an apartment building located in central Seoul. Today's target was Kim Dong-myung, a man who ran a prostitution business targeting high-ranking officials. Fortunately, Gang Il-hyun had purchased a home in the same apartment complex, making it easy to enter the parking garage.
I wasn't curious about why he had bought an apartment here. According to what Sang-ju's wife once mentioned in passing, the real estate he owned was beyond counting. This was apparently just one of them.
"I wonder how much wealth he has."
"Who knows. Probably beyond imagination."
Haeun Group appeared like an ordinary company on the surface, but behind the scenes, it still committed many illegal activities. Of course, it operated within the bounds of cleverly evading the law, and even when investigated by prosecutors, it typically emerged without charges. In that process, bribing high-ranking officials likely played a part as well.
Wang Han waited in the car while Ja-kyeong and Wang Ryun packed guns, ropes, and knives into a bag and headed for the elevator. When they tapped the card, the doors opened. After getting off at the 15th floor, they went to the roof through the emergency exit.
The roof entrance door was completely locked. Wang Ryun took out tools from his bag to open it. After applying an electric shock, he tore off the opening mechanism, went inside, and checked the surroundings.
They found a suitable spot and took out a rope from the bag, securing it tightly around the ventilation system. After Wang Ryun pulled the rope several times to confirm it was safe, the two stood side by side and lit cigarettes. The city, with the sun gone, created a spectacular view with lights beaming from the buildings.
Wang Ryun exhaled smoke and laughed softly.
"The night view is amazing."
"Isn't it."
"How is it? You said you lived around here when you were young."
Ja-kyeong looked around. It wasn't exactly nearby but a bit further away, and the exact location didn't come to mind. Back then, I didn't even know Seoul was like this. It was dark, scary, and frightening—a hellish place for a ten-year-old child to survive day by day.
"Should we start our honeymoon in Seoul after finishing this job? With the money we've saved, it seems like we could buy a whole building and still have plenty left."
Ja-kyeong shook his head.
"No. I'm leaving right away."
Wang Ryun laughed with a cigarette in his mouth.
"Will Chairman Gang let you go that easily?"
"I don't care about that man's opinion."
"My, my. Judging by his behavior, it seems like he'd follow you not just to the island but all the way to hell."
Ja-kyeong didn't agree with that. I've seen many people like him. What interests them, they must hold tightly in their hands, and once they have it, they toss it away as if nothing happened. Right now, he's more anxious because it seems within reach yet not quite, but once he actually has it in hand, who knows how he'll change.
Just then, Wang Han's voice came through the earpiece.
[Target arrived. Coming up.]
"Is he alone?"
[Yeah. Seems quite drunk. Stumbling.]
Good. The job will end easier than expected. The 24-story apartment building is dizzying just to look down from. The target is on the 19th floor. As I was stretching to relax my muscles, Wang Ryun's phone vibrated in his pocket. Ja-kyeong frowned. Why bring a phone while working?
"Sorry."
He grinned and walked away. From what he was saying, it must be his girlfriend. Ja-kyeong attached a silencer to the automatic pistol, wondering if I should just shoot Wang Ryun like this, glaring at the back of his head. He quickly finished the call and walked back with a face still smiling.
"I'm telling Brother Han about this. Making phone calls with a woman during a job."
"Why are you being so uptight? Don't forget that your life is in my hands."
Ja-kyeong aimed the gun at Wang Ryun.
"So does that mean my life is in your hands now?"
"Don't mess around. It only takes one finger to subdue you."
He wiggled his middle finger mockingly, teasing Ja-kyeong. Ja-kyeong glared, cursed, and then connected the rope to the buckle. After checking the wristwatch, I placed my foot on the rooftop railing. Going up, the tilted angle caused my body to lean downward. Slowly unwinding the rope, I headed toward the destination.
Wang Ryun watched Ja-kyeong descend while checking that the rope wasn't tangled. Stepping on the wall with my feet and going down floor by floor, quite a few homes had their lights off since it was well past 2 AM. When I reached the 19th floor, patter, patter, the rain started pouring again.
Ah, fuck. Ja-kyeong frowned and looked up. Wang Ryun was visible, looking at me worriedly. Ja-kyeong moved to the side and placed one foot on the balcony railing. It's slippery from the rain. Peeking inside, it's dark—perhaps already asleep.
With no moonlight and rain falling, it was even harder to see. Just as I was about to enter, suddenly, a chill ran through me. I patted behind my waist. It felt empty. I squeezed my eyes shut at the realization that I'd forgotten the night vision goggles.
Damn it. Nothing goes right.
I hurriedly called Wang Ryun through the earpiece.
"Brother! Send down the night vision goggles."
[So careless. Wait.]
Shortly after, the goggles came down on a line. Ja-kyeong received them and checked inside Kim Dong-myung's apartment, then froze. It felt like ice water being poured down my back. Through the gray lenses, I could see multiple pairs of human legs. When I raised the direction upward, fully armed men were standing there, just waiting for Ja-kyeong to enter.
Fuck. Ja-kyeong called Wang Ryun and Wang Han simultaneously through the earpiece.
"Something's gone wrong."
[What are you talking about?]
Wang Han's voice came through. But Wang Ryun was silent. The taut rope suddenly shook. Ja-kyeong looked up. Rain was pouring on my face so I couldn't see clearly, but Wang Ryun was extending his body beyond the railing.
"Brother Ryun?"
The rope shook more violently. Ja-kyeong braced with both legs against the wall and glared upward. Wiping the rain from my face, I called Ryun again, but he didn't answer.
Wang Han's voice came through the earpiece.
[What's wrong? What's happening?]
Only then did Ja-kyeong realize that the person looking down was not Ryun. Suddenly, I felt the rope drop downward. Ja-kyeong quickly kicked the wall for momentum and rolled onto the terrace. Thud, at the same time, the rope snapped.
Fuck. What the hell is going on.
Before I could counterattack, the terrace window shattered and bullets rained from inside.
Four men were aiming guns. Their leader raised his hand to signal them to stop. From the inner room, Kim Dong-myung poked out just his face, wearing a robe. His face was red and eyes unfocused, apparently drunk.
"Did you kill him? Did you kill him?"
When the lights came on, the ruined living room was revealed. On the terrace, Ja-kyeong in black clothes had collapsed. Kim Dong-myung looked around the living room and cursed. Fuck. How much is all this worth. The leader signaled Kim Dong-myung to go inside, then ordered a subordinate to check Ja-kyeong's condition.
After the subordinate took a few steps, Ja-kyeong, who had been limp like a corpse, flipped over and precisely blew away the approaching man's head. Then, while lying down, fired bullets at the standing men's legs. One man who was shot in the leg collapsed forward, and the surprised Kim Dong-myung fled to the bedroom.
In the meantime, Ja-kyeong rolled behind the terrace wall. Countless bullets flew and embedded into the wall. Breathing roughly, I changed the magazine and checked my condition. Blood was flowing quite a bit on my arm where a bullet must have grazed. I frowned and cursed.
With only a wall separating us from the enemy in a tense standoff, Wang Han's voice came through.
[Wei. Are you okay?]
Ja-kyeong gritted his teeth.
"Something went wrong. Go to the rooftop now. Brother Ryun isn't responding."
The rain grew stronger, but conversely, inside the house it was deadly silent. Ja-kyeong picked up a flower pot from the corner and threw it into the middle. As expected, bullets shattered the flower pot. The shootout briefly stopped and both sides caught their breath. One man stuck his head out to check the situation, and Ja-kyeong didn't miss that chance, blowing his head away instantly.
Due to the continued commotion, lights started turning on one by one in the otherwise quiet apartment building.
The police will swarm in at this rate. I need to finish this quickly and escape. Ja-kyeong looked to the side. It was far, but there was another terrace there. Earlier Kim Dong-myung fled to the right room, so it must be connected to that.
Looking down, it was dizzying. With the rain, one wrong move would mean falling straight down. The position was unfavorable, and facing fully armed men alone in a narrow space was overwhelming. There was no other choice. I holstered the gun and rubbed my palms together. Please. Please.
I stepped on the railing and jumped forcefully toward it. The distance was far so my feet didn't reach, but I barely grabbed the railing with my hands. Climbing up and rolling into the terrace, I saw Kim Dong-myung trembling with his ear against the door.
Haha, found the right place. Fortunately, the window was open so I entered immediately. Kim Dong-myung, who was looking around, widened his eyes and collapsed to the floor. Before he could open the door to escape, Ja-kyeong pressed a gun to his head.
He was trembling like a newborn calf with a tearful expression. The man who a year ago had confidently told Ja-kyeong he would save young women was nowhere to be found. Taking Kim Dong-myung as a hostage, I opened the door and went out.
Passing through the hallway to the living room, one of the men who had been shooting earlier turned around first. He aimed his gun at Ja-kyeong. The man behind him did the same. They wore masks so their faces couldn't be confirmed, but they weren't ordinary skilled fighters.
Ja-kyeong pressed the gun to the back of Kim Dong-myung's head and warned them.
"If you don't want a hole in your client's head, put down the guns."
But the men didn't listen. When they didn't back down easily, Kim Dong-myung screamed with veins popping in his neck.
"You fuckers! Listen! You want to see me die?"
They didn't even blink. Suddenly, I thought they might not be people Kim Dong-myung had hired. I didn't know whose orders they came under, but now that it had come to this, the hostage wasn't necessary.
Ja-kyeong used Kim Dong-myung as a shield, charged forward, and fired at them. Pfft, pfft, one was hit in the chest and head, dying instantly, and the remaining one barely hid behind the wall. The bullets they fired hit Kim Dong-myung's head and legs.
Aagh, Kim Dong-myung screamed and writhed. Ja-kyeong held him up and used him as a shield until the end, approaching the remaining man. A standoff with a wall between us. The sound of the clock's second hand on the wall was particularly loud.
Amidst that, the faint sound of a magazine being removed was heard, and Ja-kyeong tossed Kim Dong-myung aside and rushed straight ahead, finding the man hiding behind the wall and aiming the gun. The man who was just inserting a magazine froze. Ja-kyeong aimed at his head and removed his mask.
Ja-kyeong's expression distorted upon seeing his face. A foreigner. And a very young one at that. With fear-filled eyes, he slowly opened his mouth. Please, please spare me. Ja-kyeong looked at the man with a cold gaze. The man pleaded to be spared.
Ja-kyeong first held a gun at eighteen. First killed a person at nineteen. It was like seeing my younger self, but that wasn't a reason to let him live. When I pulled the trigger, the back of his head exploded and blood splattered on Ja-kyeong's face.
Wiping off the blood, I turned around. Now only one person remained. Kim Dong-myung, even while gasping for breath, was trying to crawl away. I walked toward him. When I stepped on his bullet-ridden leg with my foot, he screamed as if tearing apart.
Ja-kyeong laid him flat and looked at him with cold eyes.
"You knew we were coming, didn't you?"
Kim Dong-myung's face was red with pain, looking like it might burst any moment.
"Aagh! I, I don't know what you're talking about!"
"Answer me. How did you know?"
Finally, whether from madness or not, Kim Dong-myung cried and grinned.
"Fuck, do you think I'd, haha. Tell you that? Then I'd die too—"
Bang, Ja-kyeong blew away Kim Dong-myung's head without hesitation. As blood splattered everywhere, Wang Han's voice came through the earpiece.
[Wei, are you okay?]
Ja-kyeong roughly wiped the blood from the gun and face and walked toward the entrance.
"Yeah. I'm okay. Everything's taken care of here."
[Thank god.]
His relieved voice trembled slightly. Ja-kyeong hid the anxiety and asked.
"What about Brother Ryun?"
Wang Han didn't answer. Ja-kyeong gritted his teeth and checked again.
"What about Brother Ryun!"
His voice cracked as if he was about to cry.
[He lost a lot of blood... He's unconscious. We need to get him to the hospital right away.]