33.
Besides Park Dongsu, the head of security, Choi Mujin had several subordinates working for him, but the one who truly stood out was Kim Chunbong. Unlike Park Dongsu who was always physically active, Kim Chunbong styled himself as an intellectual and was skilled at finding and persuading people. If he hadn’t joined under Choi Mujin, he probably would have been running scams somewhere.
“Sion? What kind of name is that?”
He wore a perfectly fitted suit with leather shoes and glasses. Rather than slicking his hair back, Kim Chunbong maintained a comma hairstyle, giving him an exceptionally innocent-looking appearance.
“But seeing how clumsily he’s running away, he’s obviously not experienced. Not someone who planned to flee.”
What idiot would commit a crime and then honestly travel by train? If he had backing, he should have moved by car, or at least used some kind of decoy. Seeing how he moved in a straight line, this guy wasn’t the culprit. Of course, that didn’t mean Kim Chunbong was planning to let him go.
At the very least, he must have met the real culprit. Considering Sion’s reputation, they might even be close.
“So keep an eye on this guy Sion’s house too. Got it?”
“Yes, boss!”
“Ah, that’s good.”
This was why he joined under Choi Mujin. Born as the youngest in a rural family and always treated as the baby, he had a fascination with being called “boss.” Park Dongsu, who knew this, would criticize him with exasperation whenever he heard it, but it never changed.
“What era are we living in that you still use ‘boss’?”
“Why? It sounds cool, doesn’t it?”
“There’s nothing cool about it.”
“Oh well. You’re rejecting such a nice thing. Anyway, I’m off on my business trip now. Let’s see. He went to Donghae. What’s famous in Donghae~”
Kim Chunbong left Park Dongsu behind and traced Sion’s movements. With several people under him and his clever thinking, he found Sion at a small guest house in Donghae.
He seemed to have maintained a rather cold image at the establishment, but according to investigations, that wasn’t his true nature. Upon closer inspection, he was quite naive, so Kim Chunbong didn’t plan to threaten him from the start. He slicked back his hair with his hand and grinned.
“He’s just my type.”
Someone easier to deceive than most—Kim Chunbong loved such personalities. He suppressed his playful nature, put on a kind expression, and slowly knocked on the guest house door.
“Sion-ssi, are you there?”
There was a thud from inside as something fell.
‘Bingo!’
When Kim Chunbong sat down determinedly in front of the door and began his persuasion, it didn’t take long for the door to open.
Creak.
Then everything was over.
Bzzzz.
At the vibration sound, Park Dongsu picked up his phone. The name “Kim Chunbong” appeared on the screen, with a heart attached at the end. Since he wasn’t the type to use such things, the culprit was obvious.
“Again?”
That Kim Chunbong. When Park Dongsu pressed the call button, a cheerful voice immediately came through.
— Boss!
“Yes.”
— I’ve caught this guy Sion, and I’ll deliver the urgent information first. From what I’ve heard, the one who committed the crime isn’t him but a guy named Sion. They’re old friends, so he completely believed what that guy said. Other than that, there’s nothing at all. Oh, at first he wouldn’t even open his mouth, and it took a lot of effort to persuade him. Who else but me could have made him talk?
The boasting continued at length, but Park Dongsu had no intention of listening to the end. He pressed end call without hearing everything. Soon after hanging up, the phone rang madly again, but he ignored it.
He had received the important information now, and needed to relay it to Choi Mujin. Park Dongsu let out a quiet sigh and left the lounge. The hospital room where Lee Haseo was admitted was right next door, so he didn’t have far to go. He politely knocked on the white door.
“Director.”
“Come in.”
When he opened the door and entered, he saw Lee Haseo sleeping with a pale face and Choi Mujin sitting beside him. Even though they said he hadn’t taken much of the drug, Haseo strangely couldn’t wake up.
‘What will happen to that guy?’
Among those who had betrayed Choi Mujin so far, none had met a peaceful end. That’s how this world worked. If you were wronged, you had to pay back at least double to avoid being looked down upon. Occasionally there were those who showed mercy due to soft hearts, but such people didn’t last long.
Look at Choi Mujin by comparison. He felt no fear in seeing his enemies’ blood. He had never shown weakness, never avoided confrontation. That’s why Park Dongsu followed him, despite being younger.
‘But this time is somewhat different.’
The way Choi Mujin looked at Lee Haseo wasn’t normal. After Seo Jaewoo, Park Dongsu thought he wouldn’t care for anyone else. But it seemed Lee Haseo mattered to him. With these thoughts, Park Dongsu carefully spoke.
“We’ve caught Sion.”
“And?”
“Sion says he’s not the culprit. It seems we need to catch someone named Sion.”
“Did Kim Chunbong say that?”
“Yes.”
“Then it must be true.”
Though he was a frivolous guy, his work was impeccable. Because of that, Choi Mujin trusted him.
“I’ve already assigned people, so it won’t take long to catch him. Where should we move him to?”
“The third warehouse.”
“I’ll relay that.”
“Let me know when you catch him.”
“Will you go to the warehouse yourself?”
“Yes.”
He’s really angry. The third warehouse was mainly used for torturing enemies to extract information. And to take him there… The end of this guy named Sion was predictable without even seeing it.
“I’ll prepare the car.”
Park Dongsu backed out of the hospital room. On his way out, he made eye contact with a passing doctor, but the doctor calmly greeted him and went on his way. Well, with that kind of personality, he could handle such situations.
Sion, sitting on the sofa with his body crumpled, suddenly rose when he sensed someone’s presence.
Knock, knock.
Someone was knocking on the door. They could have just rung the bell, so why knock? After hesitating briefly, Sion got up and looked outside through the small glass on the door.
“Are you home?”
As if knowing she was being watched, the woman standing in front of the door spoke.
“Who are you?”
Since it was an unfamiliar face, he asked, and she answered with a bright smile.
“I live in the apartment below. There’s a water leak. Can I come in and check for a moment?”
Did such a person live downstairs? He hadn’t paid attention to his neighbors, so he couldn’t remember properly.
“Are you really from downstairs?”
“What? Don’t you know me? We’ve greeted each other when we’ve run into each other.”
Sion tried to assess the situation further through the glass, but before he could, the woman knocked on the door again. This time, instead of lightly tapping like before, she pounded with force.
“Excuse me! Hello!”
At the loud noise, he could see the neighbor across the hall opening their door.
“Okay! Wait a moment!”
Sion unlocked the door he had secured in case of emergencies. When the door opened and things quieted down, the neighbor’s door closed again.
“Why are you so distrustful?”
The woman grumbled as she stepped into the entryway. Then a large man followed behind her. The startled Sion tried to push the woman away and close the door, but it was already too late.
“Too late, too late.”
The woman grinned, grabbed Sion’s arm, and pushed him toward the man. The man immediately grabbed Sion, and a strange chemical smell invaded his nostrils.
“Sleep tight.”
That voice was Sion’s last memory.
When Sion regained consciousness, he was in the back seat of a car. His head was resting on the woman’s shoulder. As he raised his upper body in panic, he fell forward.
“Be careful.”
The woman scolded him but helped steady him.
“The road is rough here.”
“Wh-where am I?”
“Curious? Want to guess?”
Her smiling face in this situation didn’t seem normal at all.
“Why, why are you doing this?”
“Why, why are you doing this?”
“I don’t understand why you’re doing this to me.”
“I don’t understand why you’re doing this to me.”
The way she mimicked his words exactly sent chills down his spine.
“Oh my, he’s scared.”
“Is he scared?”
One of the two men sitting in the front turned around. That face was somewhat familiar. He was the nice-looking older man who had been lurking around the villa recently.
“I know what you’re thinking. He’s still in his 20s, right?”
“What? That’s not what I’m curious about.”
“I know, I know.”
“What do you know!”
“You know too, don’t you? Why you’ve been brought here.”
The woman said this while tapping her chest. Not understanding what she meant, he stared blankly, which made her laugh again. She was truly a woman who laughed a lot.
“Hey. Did you think you could mess with Director Choi and get away with it?”
The worst-case scenario he had only imagined was becoming reality. Sion’s hands trembled as he tried somehow to explain. Until now, he had been quite good at getting out of unfavorable situations. So he thought he could do it this time too.
“It wasn’t me. Why would I mess with Director Choi? I never did that. There must be some misunderstanding.”
But somehow, this time felt different. The woman showed no interest in Sion’s words, and neither did the men sitting in front.
“It’s a misunderstanding.”
The car passed through some unknown rough terrain and arrived in front of a small building.
“I’m telling you, it’s a misunderstanding!”
The woman who had been constantly smiling suddenly closed her mouth tightly. Sion wished she would smile again. The silence was more frightening.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
