Chapter 68
Chapter 68
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 68
Chapter Title: Rakgwi II
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Rakgwi, the leader of the pirate crew that had seized the cruise ship, spoke up.
"Once we get close to Chinese waters, no Korean fighter jets will be able to fly in."
One of his underlings chimed in.
"Even if fighters do show up, they wouldn't dare sink this ship with so many hostages aboard."
"Of course they can't fire missiles. But that's just fighters— warships would be a real problem, wouldn't they?"
When they pirated in Southeast Asia, aircraft weren't much of a threat. Warships were the issue. Warships wouldn't shell a ship full of civilians either, but they had plenty of other attack options.
Rakgwi said,
"We need to hug the Chinese coast so Korean warships and helicopters can't approach."
"Boss, should we head to the bridge and just steer straight west?"
"No. Head for where the Chinese fishing boats are clustered. We'll blend in with them, then slip away on our own."
"Got it."
Jackal glanced down at the deck.
"Of course, we need to secure the target first."
The pirate hesitated.
"Those guys have guns too. And they're properly trained. To grab them, we'd have to cross the open deck..."
Sprinting across the wide-open deck would turn them into target practice for the armed bodyguards, no matter the covering fire.
But backing down out of fear would just piss off Rakgwi.
The underling tried another excuse.
"To take them down in that situation, we'd have to lay down a ton of fire. What if a stray bullet hits the target? We'd do all the work and get nothing for it."
Rakgwi thought for a moment, then decided.
"Fine. Lure the target out first."
"Huh?"
Rakgwi pointed his pistol at the people on the deck.
"Execute the ones still on deck one by one until the target shows. Traditional method—dump 'em in the sea."
Kim Yu-chan and Shin Eun-ha were still on deck.
Kim Yu-chan was trembling.
"W-what the hell? Pirates in the West Sea? Are they after me?"
Shin Eun-ha had been through something like this before, so she was calmer than Kim Yu-chan.
"Oppa, why are you so scared?"
"Eun-ha, you're not scared in this situation?"
"I am. But I have something to rely on."
Kim Yu-chan, desperate for any straw to grasp, asked quickly.
"You do? What?"
"Gang-in oppa's on this ship."
Kim Yu-chan blinked. The Na Gang-in he knew was a martial arts master.
"Hey! There are so many guys with guns— what can Gang-in do alone?"
Na Gang-in had taken down Jackal's gang single-handedly when they seized that seven-story building in Gangnam. A few people on the ship knew that.
Lee Tae-ho was hiding behind an overturned table. Lee Min-ji was alone under a table a short distance away.
To reach Lee Min-ji from his position, Lee Tae-ho would have to cross the deck. That would expose them both.
Lee Tae-ho whispered quietly.
"Min-ji, it's okay. Just trust Daddy."
Her voice was too soft to hear clearly, but Lee Min-ji got the gist.
Lee Min-ji asked,
"Is the snack uncle gonna save us again?"
"Huh? Yeah. Yeah, of course he will."
Park Mi-jeong was with Lee Tae-ho. She scolded him.
"Hey, why'd you drag us to a party like this?"
Lee Tae-ho made excuses.
"It's all because of my brother. Last time he asked me to go in his place, and now this— again because of him. He slips away every time! And this time Min-ji's here too!"
"And me?"
"You're here too, Mi-jeong!"
"You're dead... Just you wait!"
The police weren't sitting idle. They quickly secured the passenger list for the cruise ship deck party.
The data was forwarded immediately to the relevant departments.
It reached the police operations room too.
The operations chief spoke into the mic.
"This could turn into a disaster. Everyone, stay sharp and focus on field intel."
Not every ops room staffer could be pulled in— there were regular duties to handle.
The passenger list went only to those assigned to this incident.
One of them had been on the response team for the Gangnam seven-story building takeover.
"Huh?"
He went to the chief and spoke quietly.
"Chief, come here a sec."
"What?"
The agent led the chief to a quieter spot and whispered,
"Na Gang-in's on that ship right now."
The chief was startled.
"What? That Na Gang-in from the Gangnam Jackal case?"
"Yes. That one."
Setting up a new police task force for this would take too long.
For now, they designated an existing unit as the temporary emergency response team to analyze intel.
The ops agent who'd handled Na Gang-in during the Gangnam Jackal case grabbed the files and joined them.
Almost no one in the police knew much about Na Gang-in. The agent gave a quick briefing on who he was.
A photo appeared on the large monitor linked to a laptop— pulled from video footage.
"During the apartment fire in northeast Seoul, he strung a line between buildings and rescued people. That's Na Gang-in on the wire."
The photo switched to the arsonist's face.
"Thanks to Na Gang-in sketching the perp's composite, we caught the killer and busted the drug party."
Another photo.
"Kidnapping at a film set in Gangwon Province— he jumped onto a moving car, took down the kidnappers, and saved the girl."
The task force leader pretended to recognize it.
"Oh, yeah, I know that scene. From the 'Sunny Day' set, right?"
"Yes. And that's Na Gang-in too."
Now a photo from the Gangnam seven-story building when Jackal's crew stormed it. No footage from the incident survived; this was taken after police entered.
"The one who wiped out Jackal's international mercenary crew in that building? Na Gang-in."
A temporary task force agent asked, stunned.
"Wait, he did all that alone?"
"Yes. Not officially announced, but confirmed by the joint investigation HQ."
"Whoa..."
The ops agent continued. Now it was other records, not incidents.
"Na Gang-in worked as martial arts director and stunt double on the movie 'Sunny Day'..."
The leader raised a hand.
"Hold up."
He knew the ops agent.
"So Na Gang-in was at the Gangnam Jackal scene, and now he's on site again? In the middle of the ocean on a ship? Coincidence?"
"Probably."
"No. Suspicion is our job. At this point, it's not coincidence— maybe Na Gang-in's connected to those pirates?"
The ops agent shook his head.
"In the Gangnam Jackal case, actress Shin Eun-ha invited him there to buy him a meal. Confirmed in joint HQ files. And this time..."
The leader asked,
"This time?"
The agent checked newly acquired docs.
"OmegaTech President Scarlett Kelly personally invited Na Gang-in."
Everyone knew what OmegaTech was from the briefings.
The leader asked,
"Why invite an action actor?"
"Not as a guest— as a chef."
"Huh?"
"I reviewed files on him from the Gangnam case. Na Gang-in's an amazing cook."
"Is he a restaurant chef?"
"No. He runs a food truck too..."
"Food truck?"
"Sells meals at PC bangs. Actors and local detectives say his food's incredible..."
The temporary leader waved him off.
"Whoa, whoa, hold on. So the president of US-based OmegaTech, hosting this deck party, hired as chef the food truck guy who follows movie sets around?"
"Y-yeah?"
"That doesn't seem off to you?"
"But his cooking really is that good..."
"No. There's some other connection with Scarlett Kelly. What is it?"
The ops agent said,
"Leader, Scarlett Kelly was at the Gangnam Jackal scene too. Maybe she's repaying a debt— he basically saved her life."
The leader nodded.
"Okay, that tracks. Now I get it. Grateful for that, so she hired the food truck guy for the party catering. Giving him some work. Na Gang-in's not in league with the pirates."
The ops agent muttered under his breath.
"That's what I've been saying."
A temporary agent asked,
"Leader, think Na Gang-in can handle this one too?"
The leader scowled.
"Don't just sit back banking on him— if it goes south, we're all screwed. Unless you wanna get shipped to some uninhabited island outpost, respond like Na Gang-in's not even there."
"Yes, sir."
Another agent suggested,
"Leader, what if Scarlett brought Na Gang-in as a bodyguard?"
"Huh?"
"The Americans pulled strings with our government to assign her two armed guards. If Scarlett anticipated something and called in Na Gang-in..."
The leader scratched his chin.
"That makes more sense. Guy cleared a whole building solo— handy to have around."
"Then Scarlett expected trouble to some degree?"
"Gotta assume so."
Scarlett didn't even know about the two armed bodyguards.
"Jessica, how could you assign armed guards without telling me?"
"It was just in case. No way I expected this. I handled it so you could enjoy the party worry-free."
"You still should've told me."
Jessica stood firm.
"And thanks to me, you didn't get shot."
"...Okay, fair."
Rakgwi had prepared his original Plans A and B.
Plan A: seize the ship, then coerce Scarlett into giving the classified server access code.
He figured with the ship at sea, all comms would be jammed, buying plenty of time to extract and exploit the data.
If Scarlett wouldn't crack under any pressure, Plan B was straight-up kidnap her and escape. But both required capturing her alive first. A firefight risked shooting her.
Jackal peered down at the deck. The two bodyguards were tucked under the edge, out of sight.
Rakgwi bellowed,
"Keep hiding, and I'll kill everyone on deck!"
He gestured. Pirates aimed at the deck.
Just then, the tablecloth over Lee Min-ji's hiding spot fluttered away in the wind.
Rakgwi shouted excitedly.
"Oh! There's a kid! You don't come out, she goes in the sea first!"
Scarlett said,
"Can't risk it. I'll go up."
Jessica grabbed her.
"Are you insane? You'll get killed! No plan, just charging in?"
Scarlett wasn't without a plan.
"I have a plan."
"What?"
Scarlett whispered,
"Mr. Na Gang-in's on our ship."
Jessica was dumbfounded.
"That's your plan?"
"What else? No other options. At least draw their attention."
Scarlett climbed the stairs to the deck. She only poked her upper body out and yelled,
"I'm coming up! Lower the guns! Guns down, or I don't move!"
Her position let her dive back down if needed.
Rakgwi told his men,
"Heh. Lower 'em."
The pirates lowered their barrels.
Rakgwi grinned at Scarlett.
"Kuhahaha. Just like they say. Hostages are the best leverage."
Lee Min-ji, staring fearfully at the pirates, glanced down a bit. The door below the second deck quietly opened. Na Gang-in emerged.
Her face lit up.
Na Gang-in spotted Lee Min-ji and held a finger to his lips.
She clamped her mouth shut, silent.
Na Gang-in covered his eyes with his hand, then held up two fingers together.
Lee Min-ji got the signal and squeezed her eyes shut.