Chapter 31
Chapter 31
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 31
Chapter Title: Shadows of the Iron Old Man
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Seo Ji-hyeok woke up from a short nap, reset the driver's seat to its original position, punched the address into the navigation, and slowly started driving.
A short while later, he arrived at a newly built commercial building.
But the building's entrance was cordoned off with yellow fencing, and a banner unfurled from the rooftop down the side read "Exercising Lien" in bold red letters.
Ji-hyeok parked tight against the fence, got out, and headed inside through the building's entrance.
As he passed through the dim entryway and ventured deeper, an incandescent bulb dangling from a string of extension cords—god knows where they'd pulled power from—was swaying and casting light around the interior.
Following the glow of that bulb to the end of the stairs on this floor, he spotted bloodstains that gleamed black in the light.
Far from startled, Ji-hyeok proceeded along the trail as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
About twenty meters in, he halted in front of an empty storefront with a wide glass window.
"Hyung!"
A booming voice echoed from inside.
It was Dong-hwi.
He bellowed at the top of his lungs, rushed to the door, flung it open, and planted himself in front of Ji-hyeok.
"What the hell? You come this late?"
"You okay?"
"Hyung, I discovered my strong suit. Turns out I'm tougher than I thought. I held up just fine."
Dong-hwi's face, grinning ear to ear for some reason, was covered in ugly purple bruises.
He'd clearly had a nosebleed, leaving crusty bloodstains on his upper lip, and his lip itself was split open, revealing raw red flesh.
But from the way he was charging over, it didn't seem like anything else was seriously wrong.
"What about besides your face?"
"Took a few hits to the chest and legs, but nothing lethal."
"Bruises hurt worse after time passes."
"Psh. I got that handled. Hyung, who's the charismatic guy over there?"
Dong-hwi was pointing at Jang Woo.
Jang Woo was seated in a chair, with one man kneeling before him.
"My little bro."
"Whoa, total bros... How old is he? I even used polite speech."
"Dong-hwi, I get your curiosity, but it'll be trouble having you around from here on out. Up till now, you were the victim, but things are gonna change. I don't wanna drag you in that deep. You get what I'm saying?"
Dong-hwi shut his mouth at Ji-hyeok's calm tone.
He seemed lost in thought for a moment, then slowly nodded.
"Got it. I understand. Then I'll head out. But introduce me to your bro later. Man, he's something else..."
"Yeah. Good work today. Here's my car key. Parked it at the entrance, so take it and go."
"What about you, hyung?"
"Don't worry about me. Go to the hospital first. Might be some hidden injury."
"Alright. See ya."
Dong-hwi turned and vanished without needing any further explanation.
That was the upside of working with smart people.
No need for lengthy breakdowns.
After sending Dong-hwi off, Ji-hyeok stepped into the storefront office.
Jang Woo rose from his chair to greet him.
"You made it."
Ji-hyeok naturally took the vacated seat and eyed the man kneeling there, glancing nervously.
"How many were there?"
"Eleven. Our guys took the rest."
"Where're they from?"
"Myeongdong, apparently."
"Myeongdong? They got an organization there?"
"Not that I know of. Heard there's some loan shark outfits, though. One of 'em, anyway."
The words "loan sharks" sparked a lightning bolt in Ji-hyeok's mind.
Slush fund cycling.
Kang Jun-woo had amassed at least 300 billion in hidden funds.
Would he really stash that domestically?
The answer was right in front of him.
Ji-hyeok leaned forward toward the man's face, eyes darting wildly.
"Kang Jun-woo send you?"
"I... I don't know. Just following orders..."
"Who? Who told you to grab Cha Dong-hwi and me?"
"............."
"Jang Woo."
-Shing!
Jang Woo, who'd been empty-handed till now, drew a knife.
The man, who'd been clamping his mouth shut, freaked out and shuffled backward on his knees.
"W-wait a sec. Please, spare me. If I talk, I'm really dead."
"You think you'll live if you don't?"
"Our jeonju's a scary bastard. For real."
"So who's the jeonju?"
"P-please... If I'd known the Cheongnyangni Viper was involved, I never would've come. Mercy..."
"Jeonju!"
"Pleeease... Gugh!"
In an instant, Jang Woo's blade sliced off the man's ear.
More shocked by his severed ear hitting the floor than the pain, the man clutched his wound with one hand and shakily scooped up the ear with the other.
"Not asking twice. Who's the jeonju?"
"We just call him Iron Old Man! Iron Old Man!"
"Iron Old Man?"
"Yeah! That's what everyone in Myeongdong calls him."
Iron Old Man?
An awkward moniker, as a nickname or surname.
Naturally, one word surfaced.
Sangcheon!
Ji-hyeok pulled a necklace made of red thread from his pocket.
"Ever seen this?"
"Huh?"
The man's expression gave away the answer.
Ji-hyeok and Jang Woo exchanged glances.
Seek, and ye shall find Sangcheon a step away.
He'd been growing impatient after finding zero evidence on the white-haired guy last time.
The white-hair had claimed his crew would come looking if he died, but the phone hadn't rung once.
Clean contacts, and not even proof he was Japanese.
Now another Sangcheon had surfaced.
"Besides Iron Old Man, how many others wear one like this?"
"O-one. Don't know his name. Just this silent, stuck-up prick who never leaves Iron Old Man's side..."
"Good. Taesung Card folks show up regularly?"
"Not really sure... We just track down deadbeats who skip out on interest or eat and run... Don't know internals."
Ji-hyeok fired off a few more questions after that.
Once he decided nothing more could be squeezed out of the man, he stood from the chair.
"Listen up good. This is how you survive. Head to a hospital, get that ear reattached. Then Dongdaemun— they'll hide you till it's over. But the second you contact Iron Old Man, you're dead. By him, not me. Need me to explain why?"
"No, sir. I get it. Won't contact him. Just spare me."
Ji-hyeok gave a nod, and the man scrambled up, bowed deeply, and bolted out.
"Hyung, we bouncing now?"
"Nah, cut the tail like last time? Can't risk it. Put some guys on their office. Wiretap if you can. Dig up everything on this Iron Old Man."
"Gotcha. But hyung, aren't you pressed for those docs?"
"It's fine. Thanks to this, I can take a few days' vacation. If my underlings can't reach me, they'll suspect me first. With me and Dong-hwi vanished, they won't move easy. Use that window to see who Iron Old Man talks to."
"Understood. Oh, hyung... I took one out."
Ji-hyeok eyed Jang Woo's heavy expression.
No name dropped, but he'd know the guy too.
Meant they'd been together since Cheongnyangni days—long-shared loyalty.
Cutting him out meant betrayal, and it hurt.
"Hard to trust people, huh?"
"Yeah."
"But distrust makes it worse."
Jang Woo nodded faintly at Ji-hyeok's words.
He knew it in his head, but his heart wasn't there yet.
Ji-hyeok gazed at him a moment, then patted his shoulder.
"Your last trust card will always have my name on it. Don't fear flipping it. You won't lose everything. I won't let you."
Jang Woo's face brightened instantly.
Grinning his usual grin, back to the trusting expression full of faith in Ji-hyeok.
After parting with Jang Woo, Ji-hyeok hit the main road and pulled out his phone.
"Where you at?"
"Almost home. You? Work done?"
"Yeah. Grab your passport and head to my place. Punch my address in the navi—it'll come up."
"Passport? We going somewhere?"
"Yeah. Macau."
"Macau? Why?"
"Vacation."
"For real? On my way."
Ji-hyeok hung up, hailed a cab, and went home.
Dong-hwi showed up right after he'd packed a simple travel bag.
"Hyung, this is legit, right? Actually going to Macau? Then I can use the card today?"
Ji-hyeok couldn't help chuckling at Dong-hwi's outfit.
Face black-and-blue with bruises, but brighter than ever.
And no clue why he owned it, but the Hawaiian shirt had him cracking up.
"What's with the shirt?"
"This? Bought it for a Europe trip. Hung it on my office door every day to remind me to quit ASAP. And now I'm wearing it. Heh heh heh."
Ji-hyeok herded the hyped-up Dong-hwi inside and told him to wait.
Dong-hwi, figuring they'd jet to the airport right away, bounced on the sofa like a kid.
But ten minutes turned to thirty, then an hour, and his patience snapped.
"What gives, hyung? Be straight. Not Macau—Bangkok? Unpack here?"
"Told you, it's Macau. You just enjoy."
"Then why we still here?"
"Wait a bit, like I said."
"A bit's an hour now! We flying out today?"
Right then.
-Ring ring, ring ring.
Ji-hyeok's phone buzzed on the table. He answered.
"Yes. Got it. Coming down now."
He hung up, and Dong-hwi sprang up like a coiled spring.
"We going? Right now?"
"Yeah. Grab your stuff."
"Yahoo!"
Heading down to the first floor with the hyper Dong-hwi, a luxury sedan awaited them.
A suited man gave a polite bow, took their bags, and loaded the trunk.
Ji-hyeok brushed past him to the back seat.
"Hyung, what's this?"
Dong-hwi climbed in after, lowering his voice and rolling his eyes.
"Macau Grand Hotel VIP service."
"Huh? Why?"
"'Cause I'm VIP."
"You? How?"
"Sent thirty billion through a domestic agency."
"Thirty billion? Hyung... you're loaded? Why didn't you say sooner? I'd have stepped up my game. You like me, right?"
Dong-hwi latched onto Ji-hyeok's arm, rubbing his cheek against it.
Snickering, Ji-hyeok shoved his head away.
"Get off."
"Eww, total goosebumps. Can't even. But seriously, whose money?"
"Borrowed."
"What? Who loans thirty billion?"
"My dongsaeng."
"Ah, the charisma! Wow, the real bro to buddy up with is him, not you. Can't ask how things wrapped up earlier, huh?"
"All good. No worries."
"Cool. That's enough for me. But level with me— not really vacation, is it?"
As the two bantered, the man finished loading the trunk, slid into the driver's seat, and pulled away smoothly.
Soon after, they reached the airport, where another hotel staffer gave them the royal treatment through check-in and boarding.
Their seats were first class.
"Yahoo! First class, my first time. Love you, hyung."
"Pipe down."
On the plane, Dong-hwi was literally bouncing in his seat.
And so their flight to Macau began.