Chapter 37
Chapter 37
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Access Code
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AI Jeon Ji-in could speak incredibly quickly, but Na Gang-in could not. While he and AI Jeon Ji-in traded a few words about countermeasures, ten seconds had already passed.
Three people wearing face masks stormed into the cafe. All three were armed with pistols, each fitted with a long cylindrical suppressor on the barrel.
The first one to enter waved his pistol and shouted.
"Don’t move! Hands up!"
If this were America, where gun ownership is easy, people might have hit the floor the moment they saw the guns. But this was Korea.
In Korea, if someone’s holding something that looks like a pistol, there’s a high chance it’s fake. To really threaten people here, flashing a sharp knife blade is far more effective.
Only a few people shrank back at the sight of the pistols. If anything, there were folks chatting away with their groups, oblivious to how serious things were.
"What’s this? Are those guys internet streamers?"
"Comedians? They filming some online gag show?"
"Who’s gonna confess today?"
"This cafe’s events are wild."
Some people even pulled out their phones to film them.
But they quickly realized something was wrong.
"Huh? Why’s it saying out of service area?"
"Wi-Fi’s down, and data’s not working either?"
The lead masked man raised his pistol toward the ceiling lights hanging above.
"You bastards! I said—"
He pulled the trigger in a rage. The pistol let out a muffled sound, not too loud.
The bullet shattered the ceiling light. The crash of the light breaking was louder than the gunshot.
Glass shards rained down amid sparks as the fixture exploded.
In Korea, people rarely see real pistols, but almost no one’s clueless about how dangerous guns are.
Screams erupted immediately.
"Kyaaak!"
"It’s a real gun!"
The masked thug who’d shot out the light aimed at the crowd and bellowed.
"I said hands up! You all wanna die?!"
People frantically shot their hands into the air.
Na Gang-in raised his hands like everyone else to avoid suspicion and gave an order.
"Confirm enemy armament."
AI Jeon Ji-in reported via voice as well.
"Look at that fancy gear. These aren’t your average thugs."
Getting a pistol in Korea is incredibly difficult. One with a suppressor and extra noise-reduction module? No ordinary crook could pull that off.
AI Jeon Ji-in laid out the current situation first.
Then she made a suggestion.
"I told you, no retreat."
Na Gang-in glanced upward.
"Eun-ha’s on the seventh floor and not coming down. That means they’ve taken it first."
Shin Eun-ha was in the Penelope restaurant on the seventh floor. It too had been seized by armed thugs.
If they’d been knife-wielding villains, she’d trust Na Gang-in and wait. But these guys had guns. She and Na Gang-in had only known each other for less than a month.
She asked Lee Tae-ho.
"Gang-in oppa really won’t come up here, right?"
"Of course not. He’d get shot."
"So what happens to us now?"
THO Entertainment President Lee Tae-ho glanced at the foreign woman held by the masked thugs.
The leader of the masked thugs was holding the foreign woman and talking quietly with her.
Their conversation wasn’t audible from afar. The other masked thugs had herded people into a corner and gathered around the woman.
Lee Tae-ho watched them and said.
"They couldn’t care less about us. That woman’s their target."
"Who is she? Some foreign minister or something?"
"She’s the president and chief research officer of Omega Tech."
"Omega? Where’s that? Some supplement company?"
"American company. Famous for advanced tech."
Shin Eun-ha didn’t know many American high-tech companies.
"Oh. Like the apple company or the search engine one?"
"Not the kind you’re thinking of. They’re known for something else: all sorts of gear and robots, and…"
Omega Tech developed weapons for the military.
Lee Tae-ho’s father was president of Cheolin Machinery, which made gear for the military and police. His brother, Lee Tae-seong, was the headquarters chief there.
The moment Headquarters Chief Lee Tae-seong learned Scarlett Kelly, Omega Tech’s president, would be dining here tonight, he’d asked his brother, THO Entertainment President Lee Tae-ho, to make a reservation. That was last night.
THO Entertainment was a big name in films and performances. Naturally, President Lee Tae-ho had plenty of connections in entertainment.
Penelope’s owner and head chef, Oh Gyu-cheol, often appeared on TV. He had ties to the industry too.
Believing his brother’s claim that it was important, Lee Tae-ho pulled strings with Oh Gyu-cheol. Unable to refuse, Oh Gyu-cheol arranged a dinner spot at Penelope.
Lee Tae-ho grumbled.
"My brother’s the one who told me to book this place last night, but I’m the one they grabbed."
Shin Eun-ha paused.
"Wait. What? You booked here last night too, President Lee?"
"Yeah."
"What time?"
"Around eight…"
"Mine was seven, so you booked later than me?"
Shin Eun-ha realized why her reservation had been canceled.
"Wow. So you snatched my spot? Unbelievable. I suspected it when you lowballed Gang-in oppa’s appearance fee, but yeah…"
"Huh? What? Oh, right. Did I?"
"If my reservation had held, I’d be sipping coffee with Gang-in oppa at the second-floor cafe right now. This whole mess is your fault, President Lee."
Lee Tae-ho quickly changed the subject.
"That’s not what matters now, is it? We’re being held by guys with guns."
"Right. It is all your fault, though."
"Eun-ha-ssi, you seem braver than you look. Bringing that up in this situation."
"After dealing with collapsing sets, my guts got bigger on their own."
And after hanging around with Na Gang-in, hardly anything scared her anymore.
"You’re the only one who looks cheerful right now, Eun-ha-ssi… You okay?"
"Of course. Because…"
She was an entertainer with no ties to high-tech or the military. She glanced at the armed masked thugs and asked.
"So this is some beef between arms dealers, right?"
Lee Tae-ho corrected her.
"Scarlett Kelly isn’t an arms dealer like you think. She’s Omega Tech’s chief researcher. An engineer-turned-president."
She asked again.
"Still, we’re unrelated, right? Yeah?"
Lee Tae-ho was in films, but his family made military and police gear. He had some sense of the weapons industry vibe.
"I’d love for us to be out of it…"
Shin Eun-ha grumbled.
"If my reservation hadn’t been jacked, I’d be on the second floor and totally uninvolved."
"Eun-ha-ssi, I’m sorry for stealing the reservation. Please drop it."
The masked armed thugs who’d burst into the second-floor cafe waved their pistols and ordered the staff.
"Confiscate all phones. If even one’s missed, that’s how many bullets I put in bodies!"
Terrified staff moved through the crowd collecting phones. They didn’t dare miss any, fearing they’d really get shot.
All phones were already out of service anyway. The customers handed them over without resistance.
After collecting the phones, the thugs herded people toward the back.
"Over by the glass wall. Anyone thinking of signaling out for help gets shot first. No funny business."
The cafe’s glass was tinted. From outside, the interior wasn’t visible anyway. To signal from inside, someone would have to press right up against it.
No one tried that with guns trained on them.
A few people from the first floor were dragged up to the second-floor cafe too. The masked thugs shoved them into the corner with the rest.
The leader of the armed group on the seventh-floor restaurant went by Jackal. Jackal made an offer to Omega Tech President Scarlett Kelly.
"Just give me the access code, and you live. Money’s great, but not more than your life, right?"
Scarlett countered.
"How much? Whatever they’re paying you, I’ll double it. No one’s hurt yet, so let’s call it quits. Best for everyone."
Jackal smirked.
"Pass. This isn’t about a few extra bucks."
Scarlett glared fiercely.
"I refuse too. Even if you torture me, I won’t give the access code."
"We’ll see about that. Plenty of time."
"You think Korean police will sit idle?"
Jackal’s laugh leaked from under his mask.
"We’ve fully taken the building’s control room. Smashed all CCTV and security systems. Cut every landline."
He turned on her phone screen and waved it.
"Cell signals blocked too, naturally."
Scarlett glared and demanded.
"Who the hell are you?"
Jackal pointed at his face.
"Why do you think I’m masked? So cops won’t ID me if I let hostages go. You want me to reveal myself? Shall I unmask? Anyone who sees my face dies. That what you want?"
Scarlett swallowed hard.
"No. Not curious. For real."
Jackal prodded her with his pistol barrel.
"Wanna live? Spill the code. Say it while I’m masked, and you might."
Scarlett hesitated.
Her secretary, Jessica, lay collapsed beside her. Jessica had tripped in shock when the first shot rang out and hit her head on a chair, knocking herself out.
Scarlett eyed Jessica, grimaced, and whispered.
"Prometheus, Ouroboros, Pandora. Input them in order for each authentication stage of the three-level access code. There, I said it. Keep your promise."
The leader grinned and grabbed his short-range radio.
"Verify first."
Scarlett panicked.
"W-wait. You said you cut all wired and wireless in the building!"
"Didn’t think I’d have guys waiting outside? But hey, if that code’s fake, I’ll be pissed. Might kill a few from that cornered bunch."
The leader aimed his pistol at Secretary Jessica’s chest.
"Or start with this one?"
Scarlett blurted desperately.
"It was a lie! Don’t check!"
Jackal chuckled slyly.
"Knew it. Too easy for a code. Should’ve mixed in numbers. Might’ve bought doubt."
Jackal swung his pistol toward the huddled crowd.
"Practice round’s over. Real access code? Save your secretary and them."
Scarlett agonized, face pale. She didn’t want to watch people get shot in front of her.
But no matter how she thought, only one conclusion.
If Omega Tech’s secret weapon tech fell to terrorists, mass slaughter could follow.
Omega Tech President Scarlett Kelly gritted her teeth.
"Kill me. I won’t tell."
Jackal pulled the trigger.
The shot wasn’t loud. Suppressor, extra chamber silencer, subsonic low-noise ammo.
The bullet pierced a wine display cabinet.
Glass shattered like a waterfall. Impact sent bottles crashing, red wine spilling like blood across the restaurant floor.
The breaking glass and bottles drowned out the silenced shot.
Screams filled the air. Shin Eun-ha screamed too.
"Kyaaak!"
Jackal told Scarlett.
"Shutters down or lines cut won’t prompt reports. My guys at the first floor send walk-ins packing."
Jackal laughed lowly.
"We’ve got all the time and bullets in the world. You’ll talk eventually."
Scarlett despaired. No hope of rescue in sight.