Rest Easy, This Is Baek Hospital

Geumnara thought. The bastard was called the Mad Dog, but he was actually a Fighting Dog who threw himself into battle without hesitation for the sake of the organization. How the hell was he supposed to lure a son of a bitch like that outside? It couldn't be anything vague. Any guy with a working brain wouldn't abandon the organization. If he were just a brainless hothead, simple provocation might work, but not on Woo Hyun-woo. Woo Hyun-woo was the type who provoked his opponents first and made them lose their minds. Therefore, to make Woo Hyun-woo come bursting out, he had no choice but to use something more precious than the organization as collateral. There was only one thing in the entire world more precious to Woo Hyun-woo than the organization.

It seemed he'd received a voice phishing call.

"Mom as a hostage?"

A call had come in claiming they'd taken his mom hostage while she was in the mental hospital fighting painful memories. The caller didn't sound sane. Why? Because the hospital where he'd admitted his mom had zero connections to any syndicate. That hospital was the same place that had diagnosed him with amnesia when he was a kid. It was famous for focusing solely on treating patients. He'd felt that for himself.

"Hey, whoever the hell you are, don't mess with someone's mom. I'll let it slide just this once."

"Ah, no, it's really—"

Real my ass. No need to listen to any more of this shit. He coolly hit the end call button.

Just to be safe, he dialed the mental hospital. A nurse's gentle voice answered.

"Ah, yes. Could you check if Ms. Fuyuka, who's admitted to the psychiatric ward, is doing okay?"

"What is your relationship to the patient?"

"I'm her son."

"For identity verification, could you please provide your citizen registration number~"

After finishing the identity check, the nurse asked him to hold. About three minutes passed before her voice returned.

"See? Some voice phisher claimed they had my mom hostage."

"Oh my~ Are there still scams like that going around? We always put our patients' lives first, so please don't worry~"

"Thank you. That's reassuring."

With that, the voice phishing was confirmed. What a pathetic bastard. Did he really think I'd fall for something like ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠this? If you're going to scam someone, at least make the lie believable. He was sneering ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠inwardly when another call came in. This time with the caller ID blocked.

"Goddamn it, here we go again."

"Hyun-woo, what's wrong?"

"Boss Lady, is something the matter?"

"Some voice phisher keeps running his mouth about my mom. But she's perfectly fine at the hospital."

"What a fucking son of a bitch. Hand me the phone. I'll rip that bastard apart."

"Ah, no... I'll handle it myself."

If he gave the phone to Baekgom, the guy would probably just curse nonstop until the call ended. Voice phishers like this didn't give a shit about being sworn at anyway. He'd have to deal with it personally.

"What is it? Trying to pull some mom jokes again?"

"No, it's not a mom joke. I really have your mom with me."

"It's not even banking hours, so you're trying to lure me to an ATM to withdraw cash, right?"

"No, I really have her, I'm telling you!"

"Your speech is so awkward it's obviously voice phishing."

"My speech is awkward? What the fuck kind of bullshit is that?"

"Oh~ Getting mad now? You swear pretty well. Even retards are good at cursing, huh."

"Did you just call me a retard? Me?"

"Why, you don't like being called a retard? Want me to call you a fucking idiot instead?"

"You're going to regret this. I really have your mom."

"Does your mom do my laundry too?"

"Why the hell would my mom wash your underwear!"

The voice phisher's voice rose with clear anger. So even a voice phisher had a mom. He'd assumed the guy was doing this shit because he didn't have one.

"Oh, sorry. I figured you didn't have a mom, that's why."

"My mom's in a nursing home right now, you asshole?!"

"Nursing home? What an unfilial piece of shit! Can't take care of her yourself so you dump her there? I knew you were trash the moment you brought up someone else's mom, you pathetic excuse for a son!"

"Agh! I really have your mom, you bastard!"

"Really? Then do you know which hospital my mom is in?"

"You think I wouldn't know? She's at Baek Hospital, you fuck, because she's mentally ill!"

Ha. This bastard must have done his homework before calling. In that case, this was seriously fucking infuriating. Trying to mess with our mom, who's already suffering so much?

"Wow, you investigated so thoroughly but didn't know I have no money? What's the point of voice phishing a broke guy like me? Oh, by the way, your mom just took my underwear with her."

"Money! You son of a bitch! I don't need money, fuck! Let's see your fucking face, you bastard! Why the hell do you keep bringing up my mom!"

Who started it first, yet here he was acting all innocent.

"Fine. Let's meet then, bastard. Give me the address."

Meeting up with a voice phisher for a throwdown would make for a legendary drinking story until the day he died.

"Guess I have to prove I'm serious... Come inside the abandoned ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Phone Cash building."

Phone Cash? The moment he heard that name, every question he'd had was answered. The red-eyed mad dog cards that had been left behind everywhere he went—the nickname had become known during the Phone Cash massacre. Then it was obvious who had left the red-eyed mad dog. One hundred percent the remnants of Phone Cash. This voice phisher had to be one of them too. The reason he was doing this now seemed to be to lure him outside and take the organization members hostage.

What now? He wasn't alone anymore.

"Baekgom, can you win even if someone comes at you with a gun?"

"It depends on who comes at me."

"Guys who aren't from the three major syndicates."

"I haven't fought them before, so I don't know. When I did protection services, I never faced opponents carrying guns..."

Then he had no choice but to tell him.

"Baekgom, you probably haven't killed anyone until now, but you need to change how you think. To protect Boss Lady, you have to be prepared to kill. Understand? Especially against guys with guns, you have to kill them without hesitation if you want to win."

—Because if they're the type to pull a gun with the intent to kill, leaving them alive will definitely lead to retaliation.

At his words, Baekgom fell silent in thought for a moment. Soon he opened his eyes with a solemn, resolute gleam.

"Leave it to me. If anyone looks like an enemy at first glance, I'll cut them down without mercy. I don't want to watch my family die anymore."

It was a bitter statement, but it was reliable. Reliable, yet it made him feel sorry. He swallowed that guilt and forced a cheerful tone.

"Okay. Then I'll trust you and head out, Baekgom? The voice phisher keeps demanding we meet up for a fight."

At the cheerful attitude, Baekgom shook off the heavy mood and responded in kind.

"Just fuck him up real good, Boss! No matter what happens here, I'll protect this place without fail!"

Yeah. He could protect it. Looking at the house's layout, it wasn't a bad position for a fight. Even if multiple enemies came, there was only one door, and the windows were ridiculously small, so no one could sneak in. It meant only one-on-one fights could happen. And if Baekgom got hurt, Eris would heal him. How perfect was that? It was the safest possible situation.

"Very reliable! I'll be back then."

"Wait!"

As he was putting on his shoes to leave, Eris suddenly called out. When he turned around, she held up the empty candy stick she'd finished eating.

"Bring candy when you come back!"

She still hadn't thrown that away? It had been over three hours since he gave it to her. Just how badly did she want candy?

"Got it. I'll buy hundreds of those stupid candies, no problem."

They wouldn't cost much at the supermarket. Only convenience stores would be open at this hour, but even they would be cheaper than the candy-selling girl.

"Yay! Hyun-woo's buying candy!"

"Hyun-woo, while you're stopping by the convenience store, could you pick up some triangle kimbap? We don't have anything for breakfast tomorrow."

"No, I'm literally going to fight right now."

He's going out to brawl, yet they're treating it like a casual grocery run.

"That's because! People who pull voice phishing scams are definitely small fry, right? If Hyun-woo puts his mind to it, it'll be an easy win!"

"In that sense, are you asking me to buy something for you too?"

"No! It just means I really want triangle kimbap! Though nutritionally, regular kimbap would be better!"

"Kimbap, huh. That sounds good. I'll stop by a 24-hour kimbap place and buy some."

"Does that mean you want to roll me up in a blanket and eat me like kimbap?! G-great discovery...!"

Crazy bitch. She definitely brought up kimbap just to lead into that. He lightly ignored Yu Jin-ri's nonsense and stepped outside.

Under the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠glowing neon signs, he walked at a leisurely pace, bathed in the colorful lights. Last time he'd been like this, Mohanya had appeared. Maybe not this time?

"Meow meow~"

"The fuck?"

Speak of the devil and she appears. Or in this case, speak of the cat. Was she pretending to be a cat again?

"But she's not here?"

Startled, he looked around, but Mohanya was nowhere to be seen. Drunk people were staggering down the street just fine. Then what was that sound just now? As he looked around in confusion, he noticed an animation of the heroic Mohanya playing inside an open bar. He'd gotten startled because of the "meow meow" from the animation. Was this some kind of meow meow lighting? Too scary.

Still, it was fortunate that Mohanya hadn't actually appeared. The opponent he was meeting this time seemed to be the lowest of the low-tier small fry.

He walked casually into the Phone Cash building. It was pitch black. Didn't the voice phisher bastard mind the darkness? It was an abandoned building, but he could at least turn the lights on. As he thought that, the lights suddenly came on. The bastard had been standing by the switch, probably trying to look cool. Grinding his teeth while pretending not to be angry was fucking hilarious.

Was there a title floating above his head? Nope. If he didn't even have a title, he was a genuine fucking idiot. What was he relying on to act so cocky? The moment he wondered that, he noticed the snake-shaped badge pinned to the bastard's chest. Carpediem. The instant he saw the Carpediem badge, his body felt like it had frozen solid. No way. It wasn't remnants of Phone Cash after all. Had Carpediem been pretending to be Phone Cash remnants? Then what was real and what was fake? Was the part about his mom being safe at Baek Hospital also a lie? If it was Carpediem, they were more than capable of actually taking hostages—

All sorts of thoughts raced through his mind, leaving his mouth dry.

Seeing his reaction, the bastard laughed.

"Oh? Looks like you were surprised by my badge. Yeah, the fact that your mom went crazy is all thanks to us, you know?"

His stomach churned. He'd assumed it was Phone Cash remnants and left it to Baekgom, but if this was the case, the entire organization might be in danger. But calm down. We haven't done anything wrong to Carpediem. They have no justification. In this world, even when killing, you needed some kind of excuse. Like how Choon-sik had said he killed because the ramen his mom made wasn't tasty. You needed at least that much of a pretext. So let's test the waters.

"Why are you doing this to us...?"

"Why? Because you touched our Carpediem first."

"What?"

He felt a surge of anger. When the hell had he touched Carpediem first? They were the ones who destroyed the PC bang first. They were the ones who aimed the scope laser at him when he came to buy a tie. They were the ones who picked the fight. If anything, they had every justification to attack Carpediem.

"When did I ever touch you guys first?"

"Phone Cash. And Seung-chang."

"Huh?"

Why were those bastards' names coming out of his mouth?

"They were my subordinate loan sharks that you killed."

"Loan sharks?"

"That's right!"

The bastard smiled confidently.

"I'm Geumnara Saiko, president of the loan company Money Monster. Since my subordinate loan sharks lent money all over Fantasia, I figured I had to get rid of you and made my plans accordingly."

"Saiko..."

As far as he knew, within Carpediem, anyone using the surname Saiko was bottom-tier trash. Guys who called themselves Carpediem even though the actual syndicate didn't acknowledge them.

"Ah, fuck. I got scared for nothing, you bastard."

"Uh, huh?"

When his attitude suddenly changed, the guy—whether Geumnara or Eun-nara—made a clacking sound as his head jerked in confusion.

"You called yourself Saiko, you bastard. You're fucking weak as shit, aren't you?"

"Ah."

It seemed the bastard thought he wouldn't know what "Saiko" meant. Or maybe he'd just blurted his full name without thinking. Either way, he was definitely an idiot.

"Yeah, I'm weak. So what? Now all that's left is to deal with you, clear the debts, and get my promotion."

He's grinding his teeth and pretending not to be surprised. His entire hand had been revealed.

"Debts? Good choice of words. You said those bastards were all your underlings, right? I'll fuck you up and take all the money, you bastard."

"Can you even do that? By now my subordinates should have taken all your organization members hostage?"

"Your subordinates took the organization members hostage... When was the last time you collected information on our organization?"

"Yesterday."

"Yesterday, huh. Then this should be fun."

"What's fun? Is it fun that your organization members have been taken hostage?"

As Geumnara asked in confusion, he shrugged his shoulders leisurely.

"No, just."

—Baekgom is the type to rip people apart.