Chapter 15
Chapter 15
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Royal Family 5-2
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Tadak...
Seo Ji-hyeok leaped out lightly and clung to the man who had charged ahead first, slipping right into his embrace.
And then his hand moved.
- Thud!
Even though Han Ji-young was standing right behind him, she couldn't see what Ji-hyeok had done or how he'd done it.
She just heard a rough sound, and the man's eyes rolled back as he stood in front of Ji-hyeok.
"Ugh!"
In that instant, Ji-hyeok grabbed the man's collar and spun his body to the left like he was dancing a waltz, then shoved him away.
"Agh!"
The oncoming men tumbled over their flying comrade, and in that moment, Ji-hyeok spun to the right.
And again, thud...
This time, she could see Ji-hyeok's movements.
He simply swung his fists lightly left and right, like it was a game.
But the man who took that light punch to the jaw had his eyes roll back just like the previous one, his legs giving out beneath him.
Ji-hyeok grabbed the collar of the man who was about to collapse again, spun left, and flung him away.
"You fucking bastard!"
"G-Get out of the way!"
The two who had just gotten up after grabbing their earlier flying comrade ended up rolling on the ground again from this new one hurled at them.
And then Ji-hyeok, who had been moving subtly until now, soared into the air—whoosh—
- Crack!
As if defying gravity, he floated up lightly and slammed his knee into the face of a man who had hesitated for a moment.
- Thump!
The man toppled backward like an old tree falling.
But before he could even hit the ground fully, Ji-hyeok landed gracefully and went thud... again, lightly swinging his fists left and right at the last remaining man before flinging him away.
"Gaaah!"
That was it.
Just like a game...
It felt less like violence and more like watching a perfectly choreographed slapstick comedy...
To Ji-hyeok's right, only one man lay collapsed on the ground; no one else remained.
Instead, on the left, all eight men were clustered together, with only two still standing unscathed.
The rest were tangled up and sprawled on the ground from colliding with their incoming comrades.
That was when it happened.
"What the hell are you doing, you bastards?!"
One of the dazed men snapped to attention at their boss's shout, scowled, pulled out a knife, and charged at Ji-hyeok.
"You... fucking bastard!"
But Ji-hyeok simply stood there, watching the man rush toward him.
Han Ji-young was the one who screamed instead.
"Kyaaak!"
However, just before the man's knife could reach Ji-hyeok's stomach...
Ji-hyeok's hand moved lightly, grabbing the man's wrist and elbow, then pressed down hard like operating a lever.
Then—pffft—the man absurdly stabbed his own knife into his own shoulder.
"Aaaah!"
But that wasn't the end.
Ji-hyeok yanked the knife out of the man's shoulder in an instant and hurled it at the boss, who was snarling like a demon.
- Whoosh!
"Gurk!"
The knife pierced straight through the boss's shoe and into the top of his foot.
Just how much pain was it? One look at the boss's face told everything.
He collapsed right there, trembling uncontrollably, unable even to grasp the knife as he just pawed around it.
"Ugh... uuuugh..."
With that, the fight was over.
Of course, one man was left, but he'd completely lost the will to fight and just sat down on the spot.
Now, the only ones standing in the clearing were Ji-hyeok, Han Ji-young frozen in place as she filmed the scene, and the three managers.
When Ji-hyeok glanced at the managers, one of them, looking dazed, met his eyes and started hiccupping.
"Hic!"
Ji-hyeok gave her a brief look before walking over to the collapsed boss and squatting down in front of him.
"Does it hurt?"
"Ugh..."
Even as the boss groaned and glared fiercely at him, Ji-hyeok raised his hand and lightly flicked the knife's handle with his finger—ting.
Then...
"Gaaaah! D-Don't... don't do it!"
"Only those who've been stabbed know this spot. It hurts like hell, doesn't it? Feels like you're gonna die, right?"
"Wh-What are you...? Gaaah! Please! Don't do it."
When Ji-hyeok flicked the knife again at the boss's informal tone, a deathly scream erupted once more.
"Stop your whining and go tell them this. If they ask who I am, say just one thing: I'm from Taesung."
"Taesung...? Taesung Group?"
"Yeah. I'm tired today, so tell the old man to come to the hotel coffee shop tomorrow morning at ten. Not the kid—the geezer himself."
"T-Ten... gurk!"
In that moment, Ji-hyeok yanked the knife out of the top of the boss's foot.
A beastly wail of agony burst from the boss's mouth, but Ji-hyeok ignored it and slowly stood up.
"Get lost. Ten seconds. If you're late, you'll get a hole in your foot. Nine, eight..."
"H-Hey... help me up! Get me up! What are you doing, you bastard?"
The boss's shout mixed with screams, sounding utterly pathetic.
The men who had been groaning on the ground scrambled up and started tending to their unconscious comrades and the seated boss.
But at that moment...
"Seven. Hey! You managers stay. We haven't settled our bill. Six. Five."
Ji-hyeok's countdown stopped at three.
As all ten men disappeared around the corner, Ji-hyeok turned toward the manager standing in a bizarre pose like an emergency exit sign.
The manager, meeting his eyes, collapsed to the ground with a thud.
But Ji-hyeok walked past her, pulled a parasol chair from a stack against the wall, placed it in front of her, and sat down.
"I told you yesterday—if you got greedy, you'd get hurt."
"O-Oppa."
- Slap!
It wasn't the playful Ji-hyeok who had winked like a prankster moments ago.
The manager felt a burning sensation on her cheek and looked back at Ji-hyeok.
And the moment her eyes met his, her whole body began to tremble.
Han Ji-young, standing behind, couldn't see Ji-hyeok's eyes, but the manager had looked into them and felt a terror that sealed her lips.
"Planning to leave Korea probably wasn't a lie. Right?"
At Ji-hyeok's question, the manager nodded shakily.
"You must've maxed out everything—house, bank, loan sharks, all the cash you could squeeze. This was probably your last stop."
She nodded again, eyes filled with fear.
"Take out your phone. Gambling's like that, isn't it? Win double, lose it all. You've lost everything now."
"P-Please spare me. If I don't leave Korea, I'm really dead."
"Then go. After you spit out my money. That's the right thing, isn't it?"
"O-Oppa, please..."
The manager shifted to her knees, clasping her hands in supplication.
Ji-hyeok let out a smirk.
"What I hate most is stupidity. And you did something stupid. Know why stupid people keep repeating stupid things? It doesn't stick in their bodies. So they forget and do it again."
"Kyaaak!"
Ji-hyeok raised the knife he held and pierced right through the backs of the manager's clasped hands, as if performing a prayer.
The motion was so natural that Han Ji-young almost wondered if it was a trick or a fake knife.
How else could someone's hands be skewered so easily?
But contrary to her hopes, the manager's endless groans confirmed it was real.
What was this?
This person... what was he?
Someone who could stab into flesh with a knife so effortlessly.
Han Ji-young felt chills creeping over her entire body as she watched the manager's sobbing moans and Ji-hyeok's indifferent, terrifying actions.
"Carry this scar for life and engrave it in your heart: don't be stupid. Got it?"
"Y-Yes... yes. Please... please spare m—kyaaaah!"
Ji-hyeok grabbed her wrist and lightly pulled the knife out.
He flung the bloody knife aside and instead snatched the manager's luxury bag from the ground, tossing it into her lap.
"If you don't want another lesson carved in, puke up what you ate right now."
"I-I'll give it back."
"Now."
"Y-Yes. Yes."
The manager fumbled with her blood-soaked hands, shaking, pulled out her phone from the bag, and tapped away for a while.
- Ding!
After a moment, Ji-hyeok checked his phone and smirked.
"You didn't get my point? All or nothing. Know what that means? Everything or nothing."
"But that's..."
"That's the price of gambling. But today, for the sake of advice, I'll take double. Not happy with my math?"
"No! I-I'll send it."
The terrified manager frantically tapped her phone again.
After confirming once more, Ji-hyeok nodded, and only then did she exhale deeply.
"Haa... then... I'll..."
"Hand over the phone."
"The ph-phone..."
"Do I look like I'm shaking you down? I'm saving your life. You think Kim Jeong-sik will let you live if he knows you have this?"
"Got it. Here..."
"One more."
"There aren't any. Really."
"A club manager with one phone? A dog would laugh. You said you liked my personality? If you don't hand it over, I'll make sure you remember me forever."
"No, here. Here it is."
Finally, the manager dug deep into her bag and pulled out another phone.
Having collected both phones, Ji-hyeok stood from the chair.
"You think Kim Jeong-sik gave you money because you took my phone? If it were someone else, you'd give the same advice: prepare countermeasures or give up. So why'd you do it? Greed blinded you. From now on, look at that scar and live wisely. You need to run fast. Kim Jeong-sik will find out he failed and take it out on Paradise Room. A manager who bugged the VVIP room. Once word spreads, Paradise Room is done. So don't look back—just go. That's the end of my advice."
The moment he finished, the manager groaned as she stood, leaving a trail of dripping blood, and hurried away.
Ji-hyeok turned only after she vanished around the corner.
He slowly approached Han Ji-young.
And carefully took the phone from her frozen hand.
"You okay?"
"Y-Yes... yes... I'm f-fine... hng!"
That was when it happened.
Thud...
Han Ji-young's legs gave out, and she sank to the ground.
And then, tears streamed down her face.
'Hmm, she held up well.'
Watching her quietly, Ji-hyeok smiled faintly.
Everything from the restaurant to now would terrify most men.
She'd endured it all this time.
Trembling all over, yet she hadn't let go of the phone he'd given her.
Now, she was finally ready for a real conversation with him.
"Can you stand? Want me carried? But fair warning: I can tell your exact weight down to half a gram if I carry you."
Perhaps the fear had washed away with her tears.
At Ji-hyeok's slightly joking tone, Han Ji-young looked up and glared at him.
Then, bracing her hands on her knees, she slowly stood.
"Things like this will keep happening if I'm with Seo Ji-hyeok, right?"
"Yes. I'd love to say no, but telling Assistant Han the truth is better."
"You're really not going to tell me who you are?"
"You'll find out soon. But here's one thing: I told you to question the truth of information."
"Yes."
"I am the Royal Family."
At Ji-hyeok's answer, Han Ji-young lowered her head in thought.
After a moment, she slowly looked up at him.
"Annual revenue of 350 trillion, 28% of GDP—that path Seo Ji-hyeok is on leads to the throne of Taesung Group, right?"
"Exactly."
"Compared to what's coming on that path, this is nothing."
"Yes. It won't be an elegant fight."
"High risk, high return, huh."
"Correct."
"In that fight, the people Seo Ji-hyeok needs are capable ones, right?"
"One more."
"Loyalty."
"Yes. Loyalty first."
"Can I follow you?"
"Of course."
Ji-hyeok smiled brightly as he answered.
Then Han Ji-young slowly bowed her head.
"Please take care of me from now on."
"Likewise."
Ji-hyeok extended his hand to Han Ji-young, who lifted her head again.
And with tear stains still on her face, she smiled radiantly and took his hand.