The Paradise Hotel Operation
I arrived at the Paradise Hotel first and stepped into the lobby. It wasn't peak season, but people were still wandering along the Haeundae waterfront as if out for a casual stroll. The sight of that crowd, so far removed from my world, stirred a strange sense of déjà vu, yet the memory of Yeoni's face from that afternoon sent my anger surging back to life.
Just in case, I scanned the lobby for anyone who looked Japanese or like they belonged to an organization, but no one stood out. With the high season not yet begun, the place was fairly empty. My phone buzzed.
"Boss, we're almost at Paradise. Awaiting instructions."
It was the deputy team leader. I told him to park at the Haeundae public lot and wait. I remembered seeing the lot while taking the subway to the hotel, so I had them hold there for now. Then I slipped out of the lobby and headed toward the beach.
Ten minutes later I linked up with the deputy team leader and his strike team. I thanked them for their hard work and offered a few words of encouragement, though they insisted it was nothing. Even so, tension and fatigue showed on their faces.
"Let me see the phone."
I took the device belonging to the man they called Sevenstar and checked the records. Plenty of missed calls and KakaoTalk messages. When I tried to open the message inbox, a pattern lock blocked me.
"One moment."
I frowned. The deputy team leader pulled a finger-shaped item from a plastic bag and used it to unlock the phone with a fingerprint scan. When I raised an eyebrow, he explained it would work for a few hours—until the body temperature dropped.
The messages showed they had agreed to meet at six that evening at a sashimi restaurant near the Paradise Hotel. I shared the information with the team and told them to rest. They had already pulled off a job that afternoon and come straight down; they had to be exhausted, and we had no idea what the night would bring.
While they rested, I changed the lock from fingerprint to pattern and contacted Sevenstar's direct subordinate instead of the boss himself, keeping the tone as natural as possible. I wasn't sure if it worked.
"Tell the boss I can't make it today. Got into an accident on the way."
The reply came almost instantly, as if he had been waiting.
"Hyung-nim, why haven't you been answering? The yakuza's throwing a fit over his dead son. Just get here."
"It's not that important. He'll just repeat the same old story."
"The yakuza's already pissed about his son. If we get on his bad side it'll be trouble."
Sevenstar's words made sense.
"Then let Sang-pil know. Tell the girls to wait. The boss said he'd entertain them properly tonight."
"Contact me when you get to the lodging. I'll talk to Sang-pil."
"And right now even a taxi won't get you in. We're in Yeosu. Cover for me somehow."
"When did you get there? Weren't you supposed to be rooming with the guys yesterday? Ah, never mind. Are you stuck? If you don't answer he'll start wondering."
The younger man said he would handle the cover and told me to come down carefully. Not a bad kid to have around. I shared the situation with the resting team and gave them their orders. Since we had identified the sashimi restaurant, we would watch it, follow them to the lodging, and handle the job there. Priority one was the yakuza, priority two was Number One; the rest we could let go. Grabbing another mid-level guy wouldn't mean much, and everyone nodded in agreement.
"Deputy, hand me a pistol. If things get dangerous, weapons are authorized."
"If it comes to that, just get yourself out. The organization will handle the rest—whether it's getting you overseas or cleaning your identity."
The mood had grown too heavy. I was about to crack a joke to ease the tension when a report came in.
"They're leaving the hotel and moving."
One of our people must have spotted them heading from the Paradise toward the restaurant.
"This is Force. Third, hand over."
Four men had come out. I was First, the deputy was Second. Third would watch the restaurant, Force the hotel. They suggested quick call signs and kept them simple.
"This is Third. Handover complete. Tracking in progress."
"Second, take photos and share."
The four moved as a group. The Japanese executive was identified, one man looked like a bodyguard, and of the two Koreans we weren't sure which was Number One. I asked Sevenstar for a description—height, build, any distinctive features. His first reply pinpointed the man.
"About 175 cm, around 90 kg. No hair."
—Sevenstar (46.0) Right side.
I told the team the bald Korean on the right was Number One. We gave the Korean executive the call sign Number One and the Japanese one Japan One.
After about an hour of waiting, the entrance to the restaurant grew noisy. Still no word from the younger brother. When I saw them heading back to the hotel, I issued orders.
"Second, lobby. Third, track. Force, defend."
Defend meant breaking any surveillance our own organization might be running. I contacted the younger brother.
"Hey, you didn't finish eating? I told you to call Sang-pil."
"It's done. Sang-pil went in as your stand-in. He looked excited."
So the man beside Number One was Sang-pil.
"This is Second. Should we infiltrate?"
Already?
"Report the situation."
"Two women waiting in the lobby. We have the room number. Infiltration looks possible."
"Support?"
"Solo. I'll report after. Entering now."
I saw Number One and the man called Sang-pil coming out of the lobby and assigned Third and Force to watch them while I entered myself. I couldn't send him in alone; I had to stay ready for emergencies.
"Report the room number."
"1701. Bodyguard posted outside."
"I'll handle the bodyguard. Secure the room and extract."
"Third and Force, move the vehicles to the underground parking."
"Received."
"Received."
The elevator chimed on the seventeenth floor. The room was at the far end of the hall. I was about to turn the corner and go straight in when someone attacked from the side. Without panicking, I reached down to throw the assailant, but the strength drained from my arms.
"It's me."
The deputy team leader. He hadn't even given the signal.
"Oppa, seriously… why are you in such a rush?"
I'd have words with him later. Somehow he had already taken my earpiece; I had no mic either. We walked toward 1701 like a couple. From a distance I spotted the large man I had seen earlier standing guard. The deputy leaned in and whispered.
"When I give the signal, we take him together."
"Excuse me, we reserved 1701. Could you move aside?"
The deputy was shameless.
"私は韓国語ができない"
"Ah, you don't speak Korean."
She turned slightly, creating a blind spot.
"Sumimasen," she said, winking at me, then dropped the bodyguard. It was my specialty—attacking from behind.
"He's really heavy. Help me."
She suggested moving him aside, then rang the bell. She pulled her top down just enough to show her shoulder and chest line. I was startled—what was she doing? But the door opened without suspicion. After that it was easy; they were completely off guard. I slung the bodyguard over my shoulder, carried him to the elevator, and rode down, doing my best to look like I was just helping a drunk friend. It seemed to work. I handed him off to Third and Force waiting below, then went back up. I told the deputy to extract on her own, took Japan One down to the parking garage, loaded him into the car, and left the scene.
"We're not taking Number One?"
At the public lot I had to listen to the deputy’s greedy tone.
"It's greed. We don't have enough people to watch, and no good position."
"First, I have an idea. Would you like to hear it?"
While we waited I might as well listen. She suggested renting another car, leaving one person to watch, and running the operation with three. I asked what would happen if he woke up.
"There is a way."
Before I could ask, she arrived with the car. When I opened the door she suddenly pulled out a pistol and put two rounds into each of Japan One's and the bodyguard's legs. Turn the damn blinkers on before you drive in!
"Boss, Number One and that executive might still be at the restaurant."
"If they're there, track and capture them. If not, let it go."
I split the assignments. The deputy and I had already shown our faces, so I planned to leave the two of them to handle it. She said to trust her. Since we had trained together, I had to. I gave the orders: she would command from here, and I would go rent the car.
I opened the sharing app and found an SUV near Haeundae District Office. I ran there, reserved it through the app, and drove it out. I hadn't expected that previous test drive to come in handy so soon.
"Vehicle acquired. Proceed with the operation."
I waited near the Western Hotel so we wouldn't be seen together. Thirty minutes later I received a call to come to the restaurant's basement. When I drove in, each of them had one man. They looked too unsteady for simple drunkenness. We loaded them into the car, pulled out of the basement, and I ordered the withdrawal. Then I asked Third and Force what they had done.
"We used some of our merchandise."