Chapter 64
Chapter 64
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 64
Chapter Title: Thorough Persuasion
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Kim Min-gyu untied the ropes binding Park Jung-gi's hands and feet.
"You've had a rough time."
Lee Dae-hyuk smiled softly and extended his right hand to Park Jung-gi, who was staggering to his feet.
Park Jung-gi stared blankly at Lee Dae-hyuk's outstretched right hand.
"Wh-what is this...?"
Park Jung-gi was dumbfounded as he looked at Lee Dae-hyuk's right hand.
A handshake?
'Is this bastard playing with me?'
Rage boiled up inside Park Jung-gi, but he desperately controlled his expression.
If he lost his temper, he could end up dead.
'I have to endure it. I have to hold back.'
Park Jung-gi clenched his teeth and barely suppressed his anger.
At that moment, Lee Dae-hyuk's soft voice whispered in his ear.
"It's been a while since we last met."
"......"
Kidnapping, confinement, and now threats.
Yet he was extending his hand with a smiling face.
Park Jung-gi felt chills creeping up the back of his neck.
Deep down, he wanted to spit in his face.
But he had no choice.
He grabbed Lee Dae-hyuk's hand.
"Why are you doing this? What grudge do I owe you...?"
Even as he asked in an irritated tone, Park Jung-gi couldn't bring himself to meet Lee Dae-hyuk's eyes directly.
He had a guilty conscience.
Hadn't he commissioned Wolfgang for a hit?
'Wolfgang. You damn bastard. What? The best killer? Bullshit...'
Just as he was about to curse Wolfgang inwardly.
Thwack-!!!
Lee Dae-hyuk's fist drove into his abdomen.
A tearing pain ripped through his guts.
"Guh... kuhuk...."
Park Jung-gi let out a scream and doubled over, coughing violently.
His insides felt twisted and ruptured.
He clutched his stomach and rolled on the floor, hoping the pain would lessen even a little.
But with Lee Dae-hyuk gripping his right hand, he couldn't even collapse properly.
Yet.
Lee Dae-hyuk's fists didn't stop.
Thwack-!
"Kruk!"
Wham-! Thud-! Crack-!!!
The relentless blows targeted only his abdomen.
"......"
Not a single word.
Thwack-! Thwack-! Thwack-!
Mechanically and repeatedly, he hammered his fists into Park Jung-gi's stomach.
"......"
"......"
Even Jung Hee-ju, Kim Min-gyu, and Kim Hak-su, who had followed them in, felt a chill from Lee Dae-hyuk's cold gaze, devoid of any emotion.
Crack-!! Thwack-!!!
How many hits had it been?
Seeming somewhat satisfied, Lee Dae-hyuk finally released Park Jung-gi's hand.
Thud-!!
"Cough!! Cough!! Urk!!!"
Park Jung-gi, writhing in agony, vomited onto the floor.
Lee Dae-hyuk looked down at him with impassive eyes.
Even back when he was 'Kim Gun-woo,' he hadn't enjoyed doing this.
Beating someone who was utterly helpless, that is.
But.
'Sometimes you have to do what needs doing.'
Right now, he needed to instill fear in Park Jung-gi.
Absolute terror toward the man named Lee Dae-hyuk.
The most efficient way to plant fear was overwhelming violence.
And the 'violence' wasn't over yet.
"Min-gyu."
"Yes, President."
"Seat President Park properly."
Lee Dae-hyuk nodded toward an old chair in the corner.
One of Kim Min-gyu's quick-witted subordinates hurriedly fetched the chair.
Kim Min-gyu hooked his hands under Park Jung-gi's armpits.
Drag-!!!
He dragged the drooling Park Jung-gi across the floor and planted him in the chair before stepping back.
A few minutes later.
"Huh. Huh. Huh...."
With hazy eyes, Park Jung-gi looked up at Lee Dae-hyuk.
Reading the thick fear in his gaze, Lee Dae-hyuk flashed a strange smile.
'I need to make it stick.'
"......!!"
Humans are utterly powerless before overwhelming violence.
And the one delivering it was smiling?
"P-please spare me. P-please, I beg you. Why... why are you doing this?"
Seized by the terror of imminent death, Park Jung-gi pleaded desperately.
Even as he listened to the pleas, Lee Dae-hyuk smirked coldly.
And a few seconds later.
Answering the pleas with mockery, Lee Dae-hyuk replied.
"Do you really not know? Do you seriously have no idea why I'm doing this shit, why you deserve to get beaten?"
"I d-don't know. I really don't!!! Why the hell are you doing this!!"
Park Jung-gi cried out, gripped by fear.
On the other hand.
'Fine. Gonna hold out to the end, huh?'
Defiance reared its head.
At the same time, one fact dawned on him.
'Trash like this doesn't get it with words.'
Scum who only understand when you pull out fear and violence.
You have to treat trash like trash.
"Since you gave me a gift, I'm returning the favor. But it looks like this level of payback isn't enough. Min-gyu, hand me that."
Lee Dae-hyuk pointed to an old aluminum bat leaning against the wall.
"Here it is."
As soon as he spoke, Kim Min-gyu rushed over with the aluminum bat.
Clack-!!!
'Good, let's keep going.'
Lee Dae-hyuk raised the bat and said.
"Wolfgang."
"Wh-what... who the hell is that?!'
Park Jung-gi flinched and shook his head reflexively.
But.
"Thanks."
Lee Dae-hyuk gave a curt acknowledgment.
He was genuinely grateful to Park Jung-gi.
If he had spilled everything about Wolfgang right away.
This rare chance to revert to his 'past Kim Gun-woo' self would have ended boringly.
With him stonewalling like this, he could enjoy being 'Kim Gun-woo' a bit longer.
Whoosh-!! Crack-!!!
"Arrrgh!!"
Eyes blazing with venom and murderous intent, lips twisted in a vicious grin, Lee Dae-hyuk swung the bat repeatedly.
"No way!!"
Whoosh-! Crunch-!!
"Still denying it! Impressive!"
Crunch!! Thud-! Thwack-!!
"You're gonna get hit until you spill."
Crack-!
Lee Dae-hyuk carefully controlled his strength, pummeling Park Jung-gi's body evenly.
Hitting only spots that caused pain without fatal injury.
Of course, it was just enough to avoid broken bones or ruptured organs.
From Park Jung-gi's perspective, it was plenty painful abuse.
"Grraaah!"
In the end, Park Jung-gi couldn't even scream, his head slumping forward.
He had passed out completely.
"Hoo... hoo...."
Lee Dae-hyuk breathed heavily too.
Controlling your power while beating someone was no easy task.
"Hoo-!!!"
After deep breaths to steady himself, Lee Dae-hyuk looked down at Park Jung-gi.
Gazing at the unconscious man, he tossed the aluminum bat to the floor.
Park Jung-gi still needed to be in one piece.
'I have to use him to the end.'
He needed Park Jung-gi to catch Min Seung-su and Kim Jin-taek.
Just as Lee Dae-hyuk stepped toward Park Jung-gi.
Jung Hee-ju blocked his path.
"Are you going to kill him?"
"My hands are too clean to dirty them killing trash like this."
"Then...."
"I was persuading him. And I'll keep persuading."
Jung Hee-ju was slightly exasperated.
What kind of persuasion was this?
"This isn't persuasion; it's torture."
"Sometimes this kind of persuasion is necessary. Watch and learn."
Lee Dae-hyuk pushed Jung Hee-ju aside.
He lifted Park Jung-gi's chin.
Flash-!
Following the earlier handshake.
'...Hmm.'
Information seeped in again.
Lee Dae-hyuk leisurely scanned the data.
Most of it was useless, but there were gems.
'He was looking out for himself, huh.'
First.
The wiretap files Park Jung-gi possessed. The voices belonged to Kim Jin-taek and Min Seung-su.
Most of the content involved conversations about bribes spread to high-ranking officials related to the Jesong-dong redevelopment.
'Insurance for the worst case, where he'd take the fall alone. Not a bad policy.'
Now he saw it—Park Jung-gi was wiser than him in this regard.
He had trusted Yoo Jae-man and never thought to make such insurance.
'......'
With a wry, self-deprecating chuckle, Lee Dae-hyuk moved to the second piece of info.
Then he spotted something.
His eyes narrowed at the unfamiliar name.
'Eve?'
An intriguing figure he hadn't anticipated.
Eve.
A genius hacker and information broker running a group called 'White Storm.'
She bought and sold all the info in this country, even brokering jobs sometimes.
She must have connected killers like Wolfgang with clients like Park Jung-gi.
'Could I... make use of her?'
Intriguing indeed.
But having money alone wouldn't get you in with Eve's White Storm.
It operated on strict membership.
New members only via recommendations from existing ones.
No leaks, ironclad security.
But.
'Park Jung-gi's recommendation should do it.'
Park Jung-gi was a White Storm member.
He could meet Eve through him.
He'd use Park Jung-gi in many ways going forward.
First, he needed to break him thoroughly.
"What's wrong with this? You're awake. I know everything, so open your eyes."
He whispered in Park Jung-gi's ear in a changed tone.
But.
"......"
Park Jung-gi's eyelids trembled but didn't open.
It was obvious he was conscious.
"Fine. Then we'll start over...."
As Lee Dae-hyuk raised the aluminum bat, Park Jung-gi desperately snapped his eyes open.
"S-spare.... Cough!! Please.... I was wrong...."
"You know what? I crushed Park Chun-ho too."
"!!!"
Park Jung-gi's jaw dropped at Lee Dae-hyuk's words.
'Come to think of it....'
Park Jung-gi rolled his eyes toward Kim Min-gyu behind Lee Dae-hyuk.
He'd seemed familiar....
Probably from the clash with Park Chun-ho's crew.
'That's why... that's what happened....'
He'd heard Park Chun-ho bit off more than he could chew with a sponsor tied to Daekwang Group.
And now, Lee Dae-hyuk had smashed him.
'No more sleuthing.'
Park Jung-gi halted his deductions.
His instincts screamed it was dangerous to dig deeper.
But even without questions.
The fear only grew.
The monster who dismantled Park Chun-ho's gang was Lee Dae-hyuk...
He'd picked the wrong opponent from the start.
Daekwang Group's youngest son, with enough power to crush Park Chun-ho's crew.
'He's not someone I can mess with from Busan.'
Despair washed over Park Jung-gi as he dropped his head.
Knowing the overwhelming power gap sapped his will to resist.
But right on cue.
Lee Dae-hyuk offered an opening.
"Hand over the info on Wolfgang. Do that, and I'll let you live."
"If I do... Wolfgang... he'll kill me."
Park Jung-gi involuntarily switched to polite speech.
But Lee Dae-hyuk wasn't satisfied.
"You don't seem to grasp your situation...."
Lee Dae-hyuk pointed out what Park Jung-gi was missing.
"Wolfgang isn't here right now. But I am, right in front of you."
"......"
"If you want to walk out of here alive, get a read on the situation."
With that, Lee Dae-hyuk scanned the room.
Old tools hanging on the walls.
A tarp spread on the floor.
"Nice setup for cleanup."
"......"
Despair settled in Park Jung-gi's eyes as he followed Lee Dae-hyuk's gaze around the room.
"......"
Park Jung-gi's body shuddered.
He wanted to spill everything.
But fear of Wolfgang held his tongue.
'What do I do? What....'
How could he survive this?
Park Jung-gi wrestled with the most desperate dilemma of his life.
To him, Lee Dae-hyuk threw a lifeline.
"I'm going to catch Wolfgang. Help me, and you'll be safe too. You'll go to prison, of course."
"Prison... you say?"
"Yeah. But with this method, you might avoid it altogether. Maybe just probation. Or two years at most."
Park Jung-gi didn't agonize long over the proposal.
The answer was decided anyway.
"I-I'll tell you everything."
Park Jung-gi chose Lee Dae-hyuk.
He had no choice.
Choosing him offered the best shot at survival.
'...Damn it. I dug my own grave.'
He berated himself in despair, but what could he do?
For now, he could only pray Lee Dae-hyuk dealt with Wolfgang.
Seemingly pleased with the prayer.
Lee Dae-hyuk replied with a satisfied expression.
"Good. Then I'll tell you how you can live."
Boss, Become a Conglomerate