Chapter 89
Chapter 89
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 89
Chapter Title: A Fleeting Dream
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Kanghyeok placed the communication device in his ear.
After confirming the device Leila had given him was working, he stared at the back of the terrorist's head, who was tied up in the passenger seat.
He was inside a car.
Sitting behind the passenger seat, Kanghyeok held a pistol in one hand and the seatbelt he had cut from the driver's side in the other.
The seatbelt was wrapped around the neck of the man tied in the passenger seat.
*Tap, tap.*
When Leila tapped on his window, Kanghyeok responded with a nod.
He watched Leila walk over to where Aiden and the other terrorist were, then turned to the man in the passenger seat and spoke.
“I’m going to ask you a few questions. Just tell the truth.”
The terrorist's face was visible in the rearview mirror.
He looked to be in agony from the gunshot wound in his stomach, his expression one of utter confusion as to why this was happening to him.
(You can begin.)
Hearing Leila’s voice, Kanghyeok posed his question to the man.
“Did Dive send you?”
The man’s mouth wasn’t gagged.
He could speak whenever he wanted.
Yet, crushed by the atmosphere, he couldn't bring himself to open it. Only after a considerable time had passed did he shake his head in response.
(This one says Dive sent him.)
“Is that so?”
Kanghyeok met the terrorist's eyes in the rearview mirror.
The terrorist was also looking at Kanghyeok, his eyes darting about with unnerving anxiety.
What mattered was that their answers didn't match.
Kanghyeok wrapped the seatbelt around his fist two more times, gripped it tightly, and yanked it down.
*Thud!*
The man’s head slammed back against the headrest, followed by the sound of him choking.
“Gck, gurgle, gurgle.”
Kanghyeok cracked open the window, took a cigarette from his pocket, and placed it between his lips.
“Gurgle!”
As the terrorist watched Kanghyeok in the rearview mirror, desperation and the fear of death flooded his eyes. Kanghyeok silently lit his cigarette with a Zippo lighter.
Then he watched the terrorist's face, now flushed crimson as if it were about to burst, in the mirror.
(Don't kill him.)
Kanghyeok didn't reply.
He just watched the terrorist in the mirror as if observing a tropical fish in a tank.
He knew what he was doing.
But this was the nature of the job, and showing any emotion here would only give the terrorist false hope and leeway.
“Gurgle.”
Only when foam started to leak from the man's mouth and all the blood vessels in the whites of his eyes had burst did Kanghyeok loosen the seatbelt.
“Hah, hah, hah!”
As the man gasped for air like someone who had just escaped from hell, Kanghyeok brought the cigarette to his lips.
*Sizzle.*
He took a drag from the cigarette, then yanked the seatbelt down again.
*Thwack!*
“Gck! Gurgle!”
Was it because his throat was choked again just as he was exhaling?
Or was it because he was being choked again the moment he thought he was saved?
“Gurgle! Gurgle!”
The man shed tears, his eyes pleading with Kanghyeok.
‘Not yet.’
There is a moment when a person becomes most truthful.
It is when they stand at the threshold of death.
At that point, they will spill all sorts of information, even in response to the most trivial questions.
Kanghyeok was waiting for that moment.
“Hoo!”
He dropped the finished cigarette on the car floor, crushed it with his foot, and turned his gaze to the terrorist, whose face had gone from deathly pale to blue.
Then, he loosened the strap.
“Haa! Haa! Pl-please. I’ll tell you everything I know…”
“Shut up.”
The terrorist obediently clamped his mouth shut and burst into tears.
The trembling of his body was transmitted through the seatbelt connected to his neck.
*Click.*
Kanghyeok pulled back the slide of his pistol and, as the man flinched, pressed the muzzle to his ear.
*Bang!*
“Hyaaaaaaaaaargh!”
A scream that could only be described as desperate erupted as the front windshield shattered.
“Hah, hah!”
The man gasped for breath, staring at the broken windshield, as Kanghyeok muttered under his breath.
“Pray. If your answer doesn’t match your friend's next time, you’ll be begging me to kill you.”
The man nodded, his eyes fixed on the spectacularly shattered windshield.
“It’s not hard. All you have to do is tell the truth.”
“Hah, hooo.”
The man nodded his head like a madman, and Kanghyeok calmly posed his question.
“Is your boss Dive?”
The man nodded before the question was even finished.
“Answer with your mouth.”
“Y-yes. That’s right. It’s Dive.”
(Same answer over here.)
That meant this one had just lied.
His eyes met Kanghyeok's again in the rearview mirror, and the man shook his head, crying.
“Where’s Jeff?”
“Wh-who is that…?”
As Kanghyeok made to pull the seatbelt again, the man’s mouth flew open.
“I don’t know who that is! I don’t know! Who’s Jeff?!”
“Full name, Jeff Black. The hostage you captured. An old man in a black suit, an employee of Milli-Weapon.”
Kanghyeok continued, his gaze chilling.
“Speak.”
“I don’t know! We don’t know things like that!”
(He said the same thing here.)
Kanghyeok sucked on his lips and asked another question.
“Then tell me who does know where Jeff is.”
The man fell silent.
Then, with an even more intense and pleading look than before, he mouthed the words.
*Please.*
“Hoo.”
Afraid of someone else even in this situation?
Kanghyeok leaned his head back and sank into thought for a moment, preparing to pull the seatbelt.
“W-wait! I’ll talk! I’ll talk!”
“Too late.”
*Yank!*
“Gurgle!”
Kanghyeok waited until the man was on the verge of passing out before loosening the seatbelt.
“Hah, haah.”
Kanghyeok unwrapped the seatbelt from his hand and opened the car door. He got out, then fully reclined the passenger seat so the man was lying down, facing the car's ceiling.
*Click.*
He could feel the man’s body freeze like ice through the gun pressed against his forehead.
“I’ll give you three seconds.”
“Please.”
“Two.”
Kanghyeok looked down at the man with a gaze colder than ice.
“One.”
“Rashid! Rashid would know!”
“Rashid?”
“Dive’s cousin! I know he contacts Dive often! He would definitely know!”
“Where is he now?”
“All I know is a place called Bazarak. I don’t know anything else.”
(Just a moment. I’ll ask this one.)
Kanghyeok removed the pistol.
The man let out a huge sigh of relief. Kanghyeok gently pressed the communication device in his ear, focusing his attention.
(Their stories match.)
“They do?”
(Yes, this one even says he has a photo.)
That one must have been desperate too.
Just as desperate as the man in front of Kanghyeok.
Kanghyeok looked down at the man, who looked back up at him with a complex, begging expression.
*Click.*
The moment Kanghyeok raised his pistol, the man burst into tears and squeezed his eyes shut.
*Bang!*
As Kanghyeok tossed the pistol aside, a gunshot rang out from where Leila was.
*Slam!*
Kanghyeok shut the car door and walked toward where Leila and Aiden were standing.
*Click.*
Leila met him, handing back the pistol with the safety on.
“Our next destination is set.”
“Let’s leave at once.”
It felt like the chances of rescuing Jeff alive were diminishing with every passing moment, and that probability would only increase once Dive found out all his men were dead.
Kanghyeok shifted his gaze to Aiden.
“It’s time we parted ways.”
Aiden flinched, and Leila stood behind Kanghyeok, waiting for his next words.
“Go back. You must realize by now that we don’t need your help.”
Aiden had clearly said it himself.
That he would help.
He probably said it because he thought he was the only one who could fight, but Aiden knew better now.
He knew that, injured as he was, there was nothing he could do.
That he couldn't be of any help.
“I’m sure you remember what I said earlier.”
As Aiden remained silent, Leila continued in a business-like tone.
“We hope you’ll forget you ever saw us. This will be handled as if you never took the job in the first place. If you swear to keep silent, your medical expenses and a fee will be provided.”
It was standard procedure.
Of course, since this was unrelated to the company, William would make the final decision on everything concerning Aiden.
Aiden would likely be under surveillance for some time.
Everything he saw, heard, ate, and said would be recorded, and if he tried to say anything unnecessary, it would be censored.
“I sincerely hope there will be no unpleasantness.”
Leila's heartfelt words reached Aiden.
“I’m going with you.”
“Did you not understand what I said?”
Leila frowned, but Aiden’s gaze remained fixed on Kanghyeok.
“There’s something I need to see for myself.”
Kanghyeok stared at Aiden for a long time.
His gaze was markedly different from when he had considered him a civilian.
There was a certain desperation in his eyes.
They reminded him of Yohan, and Kanghyeok found himself asking a question.
“What?”
“I’ll confirm it with my own two eyes.”
Aiden answered without blinking. Kanghyeok ran his tongue over the inside of his cheek, then spoke.
“Your last post when you were in the military?”
“It was Kamdesh.”
The answer made it seem clear why Aiden was acting this way.
Leila, who seemed to have reached the same conclusion as Kanghyeok, tensed up. Kanghyeok stared into Aiden's eyes, lost in thought.
‘Kamdesh, one year ago.’
The land where many American soldiers had fallen in a Taliban attack.
Afterward, the U.S. military had requested the company's help to retaliate against the Taliban, but what did that matter?
He had witnessed his comrades die in a faraway land.
“Hoooo.”
Kanghyeok let out a long sigh, turned away, and pulled out a cigarette.
“Do as you please.”
Leila, alarmed, moved to Kanghyeok’s side, giving him a look that asked if he was sure.
“He’s the type to leave on his own once he finds the answer he’s looking for.”
What if Kanghyeok had never been a soldier?
What if he had been on a company mission?
He would not have made the same decision.
“Are you really sure about this?”
To Leila, who questioned him in a low voice, Kanghyeok nodded and lit his cigarette.
They were on their way to fight kidnappers.
But he had already seen their level.
Aiden’s presence wouldn’t be a problem.
“Ugh.”
Aiden let out a pained grunt and followed behind Kanghyeok.
“Hoo!”
Kanghyeok exhaled a cloud of smoke and started walking, intent on finding the man named Rashid in Bazarak.
They were in the desert, where countless stars, a sight rare in both America and Korea, twinkled as if dancing.
***
In the late hours of the morning.
It was deep in the night, but Dive couldn't sleep.
Slumped in his chair, Dive rubbed his grim face and pulled out a cigarette.
But it seemed a cigarette wouldn’t be enough to quell his anxiety, so he reached for the liquor bottle on his desk.
*Glug, glug, glug.*
He was just about to bring the half-filled glass to his lips.
*Bzzzt!*
Dive hastily grabbed his phone, then scowled and clicked his tongue.
“These bastards, calling at this hour…”
It was annoying that it wasn't the call he was waiting for, but what was more annoying was that the callers were agents of the Iron Mask.
*Bzzzt! Bzzzt!*
As if demanding he answer immediately, the phone buzzed a few more times before Dive finally pressed the call button.
“Do you have any idea what time it is…”
(We’d like to know the current status.)
Dive took a sip of his drink and put a cigarette to his lips.
*Clink! Fwoosh!*
“Hoo, didn’t I say I’d contact you when things were more or less wrapped up?”
(We were curious.)
“Look, I’m grateful you made the deal, but I’d appreciate it if you showed some courtesy. To be blunt, this isn’t equipment I begged for; it’s my property, which I rightfully bought and paid for.”
(Do you really think so?)
The agent’s unchanging voice was all the more chilling.
As Dive was momentarily at a loss for words, the agent continued.
(So, how far have you progressed?)
Feeling a lump in his throat, Dive took another sip of alcohol before speaking.
“I sent men to attack the ones trying to rescue the hostage.”
This was what the Iron Mask’s agent had demanded.
To be precise, it was the agent’s demand, so it was correct to think of it as a direct order from the Iron Mask himself.
That’s why it felt unfair.
The Iron Mask was someone most people couldn’t even get involved with.
Dive, who was carrying out his orders, should be an important person too, and he greedily wished for treatment befitting that status.
(And the result?)
“Things seem to be a bit delayed, so for now…”
(How many did you send?)
“More than ten.”
(A mere ten?)
“I said *more* than ten. And they’re just guys carrying money bags. Isn’t that more than enough?”
This was the source of Dive’s anxiety.
The men he was waiting to hear from were the ones sent to secure the money bags and the Milli-Weapon employees.
His plan was to increase the number of hostages to extort more money.
But he had lost contact with his men.
*Did those bastards run off with the money?*
Such thoughts kept creeping in, making it impossible for him to sleep.
(This is a message from the Iron Mask.)
“Hmm?”
(Check on your men, and if you find you need additional equipment…)
The agent paused for a moment before speaking in a low voice.
(Tell us what you need. We will gladly make an additional transaction.)
Dive stood up without realizing it.
“Really? An additional transaction?”
(However, this job must be completed, no matter what. If not, we will conclude that our equipment is too much for you, Mr. Dive, and we will retrieve it.)
Dive’s eyes narrowed.
The word ‘retrieve’ sounded as if they would even kill him to get back what they had sold.
But the thought of refuting it never crossed his mind.
His opponent was the Iron Mask.
A being who could truly eliminate Dive if he so chose.
(We will be waiting, so please check immediately and contact us.)
“Let me just ask you this.”
(Yes.)
“You sound as if you’re afraid of them. Is it just my imagination?”
It was a question born of petty pride.
A question thrown without thinking of the consequences, so much so that he immediately regretted it.
(Heh, good luck.)
Even after the call ended, Dive couldn't put down his phone for a while.
‘Good luck?’
He didn’t know why.
But something unsettling and ominous felt like it was crawling up from beneath his feet to choke him.