Chapter 106
Chapter 106
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 106
Chapter Title: Someone Was Watching (3)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The moment the man finished speaking.
Crack!
The knife plunged between the bones on the back of the Vice President's hand.
“Aaaargh!”
The man stared into the screaming Vice President’s eyes and twisted the knife. As the man’s screams grew more desperate, he grabbed a fistful of his hair, rose from his chair, and strode toward the office with the computer.
“Hnngh! Gaaah!”
Dragging the pathetically whimpering Vice President to the computer, the man jutted his chin at his subordinate, signaling him to move.
He then all but threw the Vice President into the chair and slammed the tip of his knife into the desk next to the keyboard.
“Password.”
The Vice President clutched the wrist of his mangled hand, breaking out in a cold sweat.
“Enter it.”
The man sneered, one corner of his mouth lifting. The other thugs around him, along with those gathered at the doorway, all laughed at the Vice President.
Before them all, the Vice President typed on the keyboard, one bloody finger at a time.
Click.
He hit the Enter key, and the password prompt disappeared, revealing a file.
“None of this would’ve happened if you’d just done as you were told.”
The man rubbed the top of the Vice President’s head as if stroking a wild animal he had successfully tamed.
He then scrolled through the list of requests with the mouse wheel before his finger stopped at a certain point.
‘Aiden?’
The moment the Vice President saw the name of the assigned mercenary on the request the man was looking at, he felt his body freeze.
Aiden, who had been declared missing.
This mission had been a huge problem for the mercenary company.
It was a simple escort and guide mission, but they had lost contact with the mercenaries. The search party eventually found only a half-destroyed vehicle, the body of the mercenary who had been driving, and the corpses of terrorists.
Aiden’s body was never found, and there wasn’t so much as a thread from the client, let alone a body, near the vehicle.
When they contacted the client, they received an enormous sum of money that forced them to keep their mouths shut.
The whole thing had been strange from start to finish.
‘And I thought it was all over...’
It was this very request that had brought these men here.
“This client, is this all you have?”
The client’s name and contact information.
Looking at the entry, which contained a brief memo with some basic personal details, the Vice President managed a weak nod.
“Tsk.”
With a look of satisfaction, the man sucked his lips and pulled his knife from the desk.
He was certain they would eliminate him now that they had what they wanted, but instead, they seemed to be preparing to leave.
Click. Click.
After photographing the monitor with his phone, the man turned his gaze to the fear-stricken Vice President.
The Vice President flinched and subconsciously tried to roll his chair away from the man.
Just then, the man grabbed the armrest of the chair.
“Since this is the end, I’ll let you know who we are.”
It was then.
Gush.
The sound of liquid being poured came from outside the door, and the smell of oil crept into the office.
Kerosene.
The Vice President had just turned his trembling eyes to the man.
Crack!
The man aimed precisely between his ribs and drove the knife in up to the hilt, a cruel smile on his face.
“Fear the Mascara de Hierro.”
The Vice President had no idea who he was.
But the words that followed seeped deep into his soul.
Fear.
As the terror of death fused with the name Mascara de Hierro and settled into his fading consciousness, the man pulled out the knife and walked toward the door.
His subordinates followed, while the men outside struck a match and tossed it onto the spilled oil.
Fwoosh! Whoosh!
Flames instantly spread throughout the safe house.
Pop! Bang!
The light bulbs shattered, plunging the room into darkness, but the raging fire illuminated the safe house in their place, bathing it in red.
Everything burned.
The CCTV, the connected monitors, the storage devices, the computers, and even the bodies were consumed by the fire, rapidly warping and melting.
“Gurgle.”
As the flames licked toward the still-breathing Vice President, the man sent the photos he’d taken with his phone and pressed the call button.
“This is B-Team.”
(Is it finished?)
“Yeah. Digging into that mercenary was the right move.”
The man put a cigarette to his lips, lit it, and spoke with a twisted smile.
“It’s America. Send people to America. You should be able to find an Asian man in a black suit there.”
(If it’s America, A-Team can move immediately.)
“Any casualties on A-Team?”
(Two wounded after retrieving the target.)
“Two? Ha, those American bastards.”
(Fortunately, the package is safe. We’ll send C-Team to America as well.)
“We’ll join you soon.”
Whoosh!
The man glanced back at the building engulfed in intense flames and nodded.
“Let’s hurry. Before this blows back on us.”
His voice was calm, but his eyes, reflecting the flames, were filled with fear.
Mascara de Hierro.
Their new master.
And the object of their fear.
He was also the one trying to find Kanghyeok.
Vroooom!
Inside the black sports car, where the slightest touch of the accelerator sent the RPMs skyrocketing, Kanghyeok held a cigarette between his lips.
He glanced at the phone he’d tossed on the passenger seat.
Bzzz!
[I’ve arrived.]
A text message appeared on the screen as if it had been waiting for him to look.
Bzzz!
[Don’t reply if you’re driving.]
So he didn’t reply.
Instead, he took out a lighter, lit his cigarette, and lowered the driver and passenger side windows a few inches.
It was the middle of the day, and he was driving on a busy road.
Gazes followed him through the crack in the window, wondering who could be driving such a killer car.
This car really did have a way of drawing too much attention.
“Hoo.”
Kanghyeok exhaled a cloud of smoke and followed the navigation.
When he’d said he was stepping out, Leila had offered to accompany him, but he had refused, explaining it was a private meeting.
The person he was meeting this time was someone he couldn’t speak comfortably with if Leila were present.
Gabriel.
A member of the Errant Priests.
‘No, not yet.’
You couldn’t call them the Errant Priests just yet.
Only the framework existed. The first generation, like Gabriel and Amos, were just beginning to move, and they hadn’t even acquired the outfits that would become their identity.
Still, it was only a matter of time.
He had gotten Jeff’s approval to provide them with the clothes.
Thanks to that, he had been able to request a meeting to share information about the Iron Mask with a clear conscience.
Grrr.
Just then, Kanghyeok stopped at a red light, picked up his phone, and sent a reply.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
[Almost there.]
Bzzz!
[Where should I wait for you?]
Tap. Tap. Tap.
[Come out to where the taxis are.]
Just as he was thinking it would be better to call, the light changed.
Kanghyeok put the phone down again and drove toward the airport. He slowed down where taxis were lined up like a swarm of ants on a piece of food and lowered the passenger window to look for Gabriel.
He ended up circling twice.
‘Why isn’t she here?’
Just as he was about to pick up his phone again, thinking they might have missed each other, he spotted a young woman craning her neck, looking left and right.
A beige dress with a short, white padded jacket.
Thin-soled sneakers.
The combination wasn’t bad, but the pieces clashed strangely, making her look like a typical woman in her early twenties who had tried to dress up without really knowing how. He was about to look away.
But the moment he saw her face, Kanghyeok subconsciously hit the brakes.
It was Gabriel.
His impression of her wrapped head-to-toe in black like a special forces operative was so strong that he hadn’t recognized her at all.
Honk!
The car behind him honked as if to snap him out of it. Thanks to that, Gabriel’s gaze turned his way, and their eyes met.
Gabriel’s expression mirrored Kanghyeok’s.
Bewilderment, and a hint of shock.
“Get in.”
At Kanghyeok’s word, Gabriel scurried over but hesitated in front of the passenger door.
‘What’s with her?’
Kanghyeok reached over and opened the passenger door from the inside, and only then did Gabriel climb in.
Vrooom.
Kanghyeok gave the car behind them an apologetic wave and stepped on the accelerator. Gabriel looked like her soul had left her body again.
“You… what is this car?”
Gabriel’s eyes held a strange sense of betrayal as she looked at Kanghyeok.
She had never imagined that Kanghyeok would be in this ridiculously eye-catching car she’d been noticing.
“And what about you? What are you wearing?”
Gabriel flinched and answered in a voice that grew smaller and smaller.
“This is… well. It doesn’t matter.”
An awkward silence fell between them, as neither looked as the other had expected.
Kanghyeok shook his head, exited the airport, and pulled onto the main road to find a suitable place to talk.
Vroooom!
Every time the engine roared, Gabriel seemed to shrink, as if this were her first time in such a car.
It was a sight that would leave anyone dumbfounded.
She could kill people without batting an eye, yet she was intimidated by a car.
But considering she had likely spent her entire life training in a cathedral, her reaction was understandable.
‘She probably isn’t used to cars like this.’
Her life had probably been nothing but restraint and training.
Gabriel was exuding the aura of a newly adopted puppy from the passenger seat, so Kanghyeok sighed and spoke up.
“Have you eaten?”
“No, not yet.”
“Then let’s eat first.”
Gabriel’s eyes widened, whether because she was genuinely hungry or because she saw it as a chance to escape this intimidating car.
“There’s a sandwich shop over there.”
Gabriel said in a high-pitched voice—the first since they’d met—spotting a small sandwich shop in a strip mall.
“No.”
It wasn’t that he disliked traditional American sandwiches piled high with cheese and thinly sliced beef.
But it wasn’t the kind of food you could eat while having a serious conversation, so Kanghyeok drove a bit further and stopped in front of a suitable establishment.
Click.
“Valet, sir?”
“Please.”
As Kanghyeok got out and handed the keys to the valet, Gabriel’s bewildered gaze followed him.
“What are you doing? Come on.”
“You… seriously.”
“It’s a good place to talk. I used to come here sometimes.”
It wasn’t a company-owned restaurant, which was precisely why he had often visited when he was with the company.
Kanghyeok led the way, and Gabriel followed hesitantly.
Ding.
At the counter of the restaurant, which was more classic than flashy, Kanghyeok gave his name.
He requested a quiet table in the back and was politely guided to his seat by a waiter.
It was a four-person table in a curtained-off booth.
Swish.
Once the curtain was drawn, Gabriel, sitting across from him, rubbed the space between her eyebrows.
“Isn’t this place expensive?”
“More than a sandwich shop.”
“Then why did you come here?”
“Sorry, but this is the only kind of place I know.”
“Liar.”
It was true, in a way.
He hadn’t been to a place like this in about two years.
For the past year, he had mostly been eating garbage food in Harlem.
But taking her to a place like that wouldn’t be polite, so this was the best he could do.
“You came a long way. This is the least I can do.”
“But this place must be very expensive.”
“It’s not like we’re renting out the whole place.”
He’d meant it as a joke, but Gabriel looked completely appalled. A middle-aged waiter entered, placing menus and crystal finger bowls on the table.
Clink.
Gabriel reached for the bottom of her bowl, thinking it was for drinking.
Kanghyeok, however, opened his menu, dipped his fingers into the bowl, and rinsed them lightly. Realizing it wasn’t drinking water, Gabriel awkwardly copied him.
“What’s good today?”
“We recommend the baby lamb. Shall I bring that for you?”
“That, and whatever else the chef recommends. You can decide on the cooking.”
“Very good, sir.”
After the middle-aged waiter left, a younger one brought out bread, olive oil with balsamic vinegar, and soup.
Gabriel couldn’t bring herself to touch the bread and bit her lower lip.
“Didn’t you say you haven’t eaten?”
“To be honest… I wanted to treat you today.”
Gabriel swept her hair back, her expression one of frustration.