Chapter 77
Chapter 77
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 77
Chapter Title: Club Infiltration
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At the suggestion of heading to a club, Inspector Oh Seo-hyun looked a bit flustered as she turned to Lee Jae-hyun.
“You mean we should check it out ourselves?”
“Yeah. How many clubs could there even be in Incheon? We swing by each one, and we’ll get a feel for it, right?”
Lee Jae-hyun spoke in a light tone.
If no leads came up right away, they’d just have to pound the pavement until something turned up.
On the other hand, Oh Seo-hyun looked uneasy about going to a club.
“…Well, there are three places you could even call clubs. One’s managed by the Tiger Gang, and the other two have shares from the Axe Gang.”
“Tiger Gang and Axe Gang… How original.”
Despite her reluctance, Oh Seo-hyun calmly laid it out for him.
She must have realized that, objectively speaking, his approach wasn’t a bad one.
Lee Jae-hyun chuckled at the names, which reeked of ’80s nostalgia.
This era was full of those childish gang names.
He had no idea why they caught on.
They called it romantic among themselves.
To Lee Jae-hyun, whose job was beating down criminals, it was utterly incomprehensible.
Oh Seo-hyun’s expression hardened as she continued in a grave tone.
“I’m not saying to dismiss them, but organized crime from those gangs happens pretty often around here. Don’t take them lightly.”
Inspector Oh Seo-hyun warned him.
Lee Jae-hyun scratched his cheek.
Her tone was dead serious.
Like she’d dealt with plenty of headaches from them.
“I’m not taking them lightly… But Tiger Gang and Axe Gang are still…”
“…Yeah, right? They’ve probably got to be embarrassed saying their own names.”
Oh Seo-hyun let her shoulders slump powerlessly before letting out a short laugh.
Even she thought Tiger Gang and Axe Gang sounded ridiculous.
Lee Jae-hyun gave a light laugh too.
Of course, a light laugh didn’t mean he was taking them lightly.
Tiger Gang aside, Axe Gang wasn’t to be underestimated, just as she’d said.
Despite the corny name, Axe Gang survived for years after this, solidifying their hold in Incheon as an organized crime group.
If they were running the few clubs around and holding shares, it meant they were top dogs in the local scene.
‘I’m not here to clean them out. No need to overtense… But can’t let my guard down either.’
With that thought, Lee Jae-hyun clapped his palms together to lighten the mood and spoke up.
“Anyway… We’re not going to bust gangsters. Let’s keep it low-key and quiet.”
“How?”
“What other way is there? We go as customers.”
Lee Jae-hyun grinned as he said it.
Inspector Oh Seo-hyun sucked in a breath and looked troubled.
Her sharp eyes from the briefing earlier now wandered blankly, shaking as if lost.
Lee Jae-hyun tilted his head, and she hesitantly raised a hand before speaking.
“There’s one problem.”
“Yes, Inspector Oh?”
“I’ve never been to a club. I might not pull off acting like a natural customer.”
“…Then we’ll play it as first-timers.”
Lee Jae-hyun looked at her with mild surprise.
It was refreshing to see her like this over never having been to a club.
But no choice.
Their goal was to meet PMC’s CEO, Park Man-seok.
Searching a huge club alone was inefficient, and who knew what dangers lurked.
To track down Park Man-seok and get intel, hitting the clubs together was the quickest, most efficient move.
Unable to deny that, Oh Seo-hyun let out a small sigh and stood up.
* * *
Friday evening, a street in Incheon brimmed with young men and women.
Oblivious that it was gang territory, the youths lost themselves in booze and beats.
In the heart of the street, at the club drawing the biggest crowd, a man and woman appeared.
“This should be good enough, right?”
Inspector Oh Seo-hyun tugged at her outfit, looking awkward about her getup.
Skinny jeans hugging her legs, white shirt tucked in.
A black belt cinched her waist, and small earrings dangled from her ears.
Not over the top, but it felt off thinking of it as clubwear.
“Looks perfect. Don’t worry.”
Tense, Inspector Oh Seo-hyun turned to Lee Jae-hyun.
He nodded in reassurance.
Gone was her typical detective vibe; now she nailed the look of a ‘pure, curious college kid hitting a club for the first time.’
Not too revealing, not too plain—casual, just right.
It was the kind of safe bet someone clueless about club scenes would pick.
Not his description—her friend had coordinated it.
Only after his words did Oh Seo-hyun sigh in relief and turn to the long line snaking ahead.
“I’ve only ever come out here to deal with drunks. First time standing in this line myself.”
“It’ll thin out quick.”
Lee Jae-hyun eyed the line, whose front he couldn’t even see.
Must be peak hour on a Friday.
The queue stretched endlessly.
‘Even for this, seems like too many people…’
He furrowed his brow slightly at the line.
Friday night peak or not…
Not Hongdae or Gangnam, but Incheon pulling this crowd meant this spot was the hot one.
‘Means the highest chance he’ll show here.’
As he waited with that in mind, the line shrank just like Lee Jae-hyun said.
Soon, it was their turn.
“Next up, come on in. Men, 30,000 won. Ladies free.”
“Sure.”
Lee Jae-hyun pulled out his card, paid without fuss, and stepped into the club where music thumped.
Once away from the entrance, Oh Seo-hyun blinked and spoke.
“Entry’s really 30,000 won?”
“On the pricey side. Makes sense smack in Gangnam, but Incheon at 30k? Yeah, steep. Usually 10 or 20k.”
New to clubs, she looked shocked at the fee.
Lee Jae-hyun recalled spots he knew and answered.
Surprised, Oh Seo-hyun eyed him.
“You must go to clubs a lot?”
“Nah, not that often… Just not unfamiliar.”
“Hmm… I see.”
Lee Jae-hyun nodded firmly.
Back in his detective days, how many clubs had he prowled to nab criminals?
Later, his face got too known, and he’d get blocked at doors sometimes.
‘Hope I can wrap this quietly without showing my face.’
Remembering his past life, he winced.
No good getting recognized early.
Would mess up future undercover ops…
Above all, he couldn’t afford Hyeonmin Group’s attention yet.
‘Going head-on with them now would be stupid.’
He’d have to settle scores eventually, but not yet.
You pick fights in your weight class. To Hyeonmin Group, current Lee Jae-hyun was just an ant to squash.
‘For now, build strength quietly. Or chip away at theirs.’
He didn’t know exactly how Park Man-seok linked to Hyeonmin Group.
But nabbing him could at least scratch them a bit.
Not enough to kill, but enough to annoy them, furrow brows.
That buys time for Lee Jae-hyun to grow stronger.
Lost in thought, he followed the blasting music down the stairs.
“…Already so loud.”
“Yeah, clubs are usually noisy. Once inside, you won’t hear shit—Oh Ins…”
Lee Jae-hyun caught himself about to say ‘Inspector Oh’ to her.
She realized why he stopped, her face saying ‘oops.’
Cover ops 101: set nicknames ahead. They’d forgotten.
Minor slip, but critical.
Like entering a tiger’s den.
Careless with the tiger possibly inside? Suicide.
Oh Seo-hyun glanced around, lowered her voice.
“Let’s just act like friends. Call each other by name.”
“…Sure.”
Her voice drowned in the music, but he caught ‘friends’ and ‘name.’
He nodded, and the stairs to the basement ended.
Entering the club proper, she tapped his arm.
“I’ll touch up my makeup. Grab me any drink. Jae-hyun.”
“Yeah, got it. Go ahead.”
Spotting drinks in hands around, she’d clocked the vibe.
Lee Jae-hyun chuckled at how smoothly she played it and nodded.
Catching his nod, she smiled and walked off.
Makeup or scouting the scene? Unclear.
Lee Jae-hyun headed opposite, scanning the club’s layout and mood.
Dim room crossed by strobing lights.
Crude EDM mashups blasting ear-shatteringly.
Crowd writhed to the DJ’s tacky tracks.
“…”
Gazing at this world far from his own, Lee Jae-hyun took a deep breath.
Eyes sharper than ever, head up, he stared ahead, resolved.
‘Blend in naturally… And wait.’
Target: PMC CEO.
Park Man-seok.