Good Luck
"I came because there was something I needed to verify." Kang Do-cheol gestured with a soft smile. "First, have a seat. Let’s talk over a cup of tea."
Park Hae-soo sat down, and Kang Do-cheol handed him a cup of tea he had poured himself. "Thank you."
However, Park Hae-soo did not drink the tea; he simply placed it on the table. Kang Do-cheol watched it for a moment before asking, "Isn't the Hunter Management Department the busiest place these days? I’m curious what you could possibly need to verify with me."
Park Hae-soo placed a photo on the table—a picture of Kang Do-cheol leaving a hostess bar at dawn. For an ordinary person, whether they had committed a crime or not, seeing a photo of themselves taken in secret would naturally cause embarrassment or anger. But Kang Do-cheol’s reaction was far from typical.
"Looks like a photo taken during a company dinner. So, what is it you want me to say?"
"After you left that day, I got the credit card number you used from the madam there. But when I checked it, it wasn't under your name."
"Well, I drank quite a bit that night, so I don't remember very well. Which card are you talking about..."
He even opened his wallet and showed his cards, acting as if he truly had no idea. He wore a look of complete confusion. That was when Park Hae-soo struck with a surprise question.
"Lee Kang-cheol, do you happen to know him?"
It was only for a split second. Kang Do-cheol’s face stiffened. But as if it had been a mere illusion, a relaxed smile returned to his face.
"Well, that's a name I'm hearing for the first time. But why are you asking me that?"
Park Hae-soo abruptly stood up from his seat. "Hahaha, I must have been mistaken. I came to the wrong place. Thank you for your cooperation today. Oh! I have a green tea allergy, so I'll just accept the thought behind the tea. Goodbye."
As Park Hae-soo turned his back and opened the door to leave, Kang Do-cheol’s cold gaze burned into his back.
Park Hae-soo, who had bought ramen and gimbap to grab a quick meal at a convenience store, immediately got into his car. "I need to wash up and change clothes before heading back out."
He hadn't been able to change for a week, and his clothes were starting to smell. There was a limit to how much perfume could cover it up. As he skillfully drove toward his home, his phone rang. It was Cheon Yooshin.
"Yes, Yooshin."
-Geez, it’s hard to see your face and hard to even get you on the phone. Where are you?
"Hahaha, it's a hit-and-run case without even a shred of evidence, so I'm losing my mind trying to pick it apart. These days. I'm going to stop by home for a moment and then head straight to the office."
It wasn't an exaggeration. There was no evidence, no witnesses. It was truly like headbutting a brick wall. But.
"Still, I have some results."
-Results?
"Yes! Regarding the hit-and-run case, the police and Yooshin's big..."
Before Park Hae-soo could finish his sentence, he heard the screeching sound of tires tearing against the asphalt.
Screeeech!
Park Hae-soo’s gaze whipped toward the window. In that instant, what entered his vision was a black sedan rushing toward him without slowing down.
CRASH!
The world he was watching filled with darkness.
Meanwhile, Cheon Yooshin was holding his phone to his ear in the empty office. "Hello? Team Leader?"
Groans could be heard from the other side of the receiver. "Are you okay? Say something. What is it? Did you get into an accident?"
That was when it happened.
-Boss! This bastard hasn't lost consciousness yet. What should we do?
-What do you mean, what should we do? Crack him in the head. That should knock him out.
'What is this?' Yooshin stopped even his breathing, focusing entirely on the phone.
Thud!
With the sound of something blunt striking, the groaning stopped. And then.
-Ah! We were on a call! Boss, we've got a problem!
-You bastard, stop making such a fuss. Give it here.
A man’s breathing could be heard through the phone. Then.
-Hello.
It was the voice of the man from earlier. "Who are you people? Did you cause this accident on purpose?"
-Hehehe. Yeah. You guessed it without even looking. Aren't you a genius?
Yooshin, who had been lounging on the sofa, sat up. "I don't know who you bastards are. I don't know why you intentionally caused a traffic accident, either. If you did this for money, give me your account number. I'll wire whatever amount you want right now."
-Wow, you're pretty cool, aren't you? But what to do? The person I serve wants to see this guy.
The person he serves... It was a premeditated crime. Yooshin’s hand gripping the phone began to tighten. Just then, Baek Woohyun opened the office door and walked in. He was carrying a lunch box. But Baek Woohyun couldn't open his mouth. Cheon Yooshin’s face was frozen cold.
"This is a warning. If you know what's good for you, just leave that person there and call an ambulance right now. If you do, I'll end it here. I won't even try to find you. I promise. But if you don't do as I say, I will find you no matter what it takes. And I will kill you."
For a moment, there was silence on the other end of the line. It felt like they might have hung up, but the opponent's breathing could still be heard. And then.
-Good luck.
Beep, beep, beep, beep.
Snap!
At the same time, the phone couldn't withstand Yooshin’s grip and shattered.
"What's going on?" Baek Woohyun, who had already set down the lunch box, asked.
"Something happened. Where is Team Leader Park Hae-soo’s house? Let’s go together."
"Understood."
Baek Woohyun didn't ask for further explanation. He seemed to have anticipated the severity of the situation. The car carrying the two of them sped off.
"I think he’s been kidnapped." At Yooshin’s words, Baek Woohyun’s face hardened.
"What do you mean by that?"
Yooshin quickly explained the situation. "I was on the phone with the Team Leader when the accident happened. It seems like a traffic accident, but the problem is that it was planned. Someone intentionally caused the accident and took the Team Leader."
"Who would dare to take the Team Leader..."
The car began to speed even faster. On their way to Park Hae-soo’s house, they spotted the scene of the traffic accident.
"I think this is the place."
Police had already arrived and set up yellow police tape. The two hurriedly got out of the car and approached an officer.
"Sir, where is the traffic accident victim? Where are they?"
When Yooshin asked, the police officer looked at them with suspicious eyes. "Who are you?"
Just then, Baek Woohyun stepped forward and pulled out his Hunter Management Department badge. "Hunter Management Department. The traffic accident victim here is one of our people. Please tell us."
The police officer’s expression changed instantly. His wary gaze turned to one of politeness.
"The victim has disappeared. The dashcam is missing its SD card, and the CCTV isn't working either, so we're in a difficult situation."
When Baek Woohyun looked at Yooshin with a troubled expression, Yooshin had already closed his eyes. Magi began to rise from his hands. The Magi writhed as if it were alive, seeping into the ground. Watching this scene, Baek Woohyun stared intently at the dark, dense Magi, and the police officer was also watching with his eyes wide open in shock.
Whether they were watching or not, Yooshin was focusing on the Magi. At first, he felt the energy of the asphalt. But as he poured more Magi into it, something began to change. Suddenly, images flooded into Yooshin’s mind. The sound of tires sliding as if they were tearing. A sharp scream. The sound of metal crumpling violently. Yooshin was witnessing the moment of the accident vividly.
But it didn't stop there. Thankfully, the ground remembered even more. Figures appeared in the darkness. Even though they had caused the accident, they didn't panic and moved in perfect order. They loaded the limp, unconscious Team Leader Park Hae-soo into their car. And then, a man with a gear-shaped tattoo on his neck was talking to someone on the phone. It was undoubtedly the bastard he had been talking to. Yooshin remembered his face clearly. And in the final moment, Yooshin was able to see it. The bastards' license plate number.
59-Ma-8315.
'Found you.'
Yooshin, who had severed his connection to the Magi, snapped his eyes open. "59-Ma-8315, please find this vehicle."
"Pardon?" The police officer blinked. A sudden vehicle search request? But.
Before the officer could even open his mouth, Baek Woohyun pulled out his phone. "Heewon. Take a memo. 59-Ma-8315. Trace this vehicle. Find out who the owner is. And send an official request for cooperation to the Traffic Investigation Division. Tell them to track the movement path of the vehicle I mentioned. Yes. This is an emergency."
Baek Woohyun finished the call and nodded at Yooshin. "It will take some time to track the vehicle's path. Let’s go to the car and wait for a moment."
Yooshin nodded.
Splash!
A cold shock hit his face. Did he fall into water? His breath caught in his throat. Because of that, Park Hae-soo, who had woken up from his faint, jerked his body up. No, he tried to jerk it up, but as if he were tied to something, all he could do was widen his eyes. Water droplets stung his eyes, but Park Hae-soo blinked and scanned his surroundings. His blurry vision began to clear.
A high ceiling, rusted steel structures, and faint moonlight seeping through broken windows. And dozens of large men in suits, with one man sitting in front of them.
"Are you awake?"
"Wh-who are you?"
Park Hae-soo focused his gaze on the man who had spoken to him. Then, in the dim lighting, the man’s face was revealed.
"...Kang Do-cheol?"
"Yeah. Since we already exchanged greetings earlier, there's no need for you to reveal your name."
Kang Do-cheol stood up and walked toward him with heavy footsteps. "Tell me what you know. How much do you know?"
"So it was you after all. You were the one who personally covered up the hit-and-run case."
Unlike before, Kang Do-cheol’s face was filled with a sneer. "That's right. I covered it up. That’s why I’m sitting here like this right now."
Park Hae-soo suppressed the pain that made his whole body feel like it was shattering from the aftereffects of the traffic accident and opened his mouth. "Do you even know who the victim of that hit-and-run is? It’s none other than Cheon..."
"Cheon Yooshin?"
Kang Do-cheol shook his shoulders and laughed loudly. The men in suits behind him laughed along. "Of course I'm scared. When I found out that the victim of the hit-and-run case I covered up was his father and him, I felt like the sky was falling."
"Th-then why..."
"Why didn't I turn myself in? Why should I? Listen. I was just a part of that accident. You don't think I led the hit-and-run case, do you? Why would I have to take the fall for that? Rather, I think of this as an opportunity. I had been thinking the kickbacks I was getting from him were getting a bit low."
Park Hae-soo glared at his eyes. "Then it really was Yooshin’s uncle who..."
Kang Do-cheol grinned at his question. "Well. I don't think you need to know that. You're going to die today anyway."
Kang Do-cheol stood up and signaled to the men in suits. The men began to move. One man dragged over a large oil drum. Another man appeared with a sack of cement on his shoulder. They stood the drum in front of Park Hae-soo. And they began to pour the cement sack into the drum. Gray dust rose into the air. A scene commonly seen in movies. Park Hae-soo widened his eyes, feeling his flesh tremble.
"How is it, scary?" Kang Do-cheol leaned in and laughed. In the midst of that, a man brought a hose and began pouring water into the drum filled with cement powder. The cement and water mixed, turning into a sticky liquid.
"I don't usually prefer such barbaric methods either. But you know, too. If this secret reaches the ears of that young brat Cheon Yooshin, even I won't be able to handle it. So, this time, I have no choice but to use a barbaric method."
Kang Do-cheol flicked his finger toward the air. Two men approached and lifted Park Hae-soo, whose hands and feet were tied. "You, you sons of bitches!"
Park Hae-soo struggled desperately to break free, but resistance while his entire body was already bound was effectively meaningless. Before he knew it, Park Hae-soo’s body was shoved into the drum, and the thick, cold cement rose up to his neck.
Kang Do-cheol lit a cigarette, took a puff, and gently tossed it into the drum. "Farewell. For your information, the place where the traffic accident happened is under my jurisdiction. So this case will remain a cold case forever. Don't resent me too much. This is force majeure, after all."
Along with Kang Do-cheol’s sneer, the lid of the drum began to slowly close.