Is This Really Your First Time?
After spending roughly a few hours together, Jiyong left the room with Dongseok and the other bodyguards. Once outside, he spoke to the men who had been waiting in the hallway.
“Let’s go.”
Jiyong rode the elevator down to the first floor with his bodyguards. During the descent, Dongseok cautiously asked him,
“Do you trust those Jawolbang bastards, sir?”
“You know better than anyone that pure trust doesn’t exist in this world. We’ll have to keep a close eye on them from now on.”
With that, Jiyong pulled out his phone and called his subordinate, Ha Seongjun.
“Yes, Chairman.”
“I just met that Jawolbang guy you mentioned.”
“Did you sign the contract?”
“I did. They said they’re hitting the Honglyeonbang in Taiwan at dawn this coming Sunday.”
Jiyong’s eyes gleamed like a golden eagle that had spotted its prey as he continued,
“We move at the same time.”
A few days later, Friday afternoon.
Jeonghan and Jihun were in the middle of sparring while Jaehyuk watched from the sidelines. When Jihun threw a punch, Jeonghan raised both arms to maintain his guard, shifting side to side to either block the strikes or dodge them with quick footwork.
This Jeonghan bastard… he seems even faster than before.
Jihun stepped back to create distance. Seeing this, Jeonghan kept his guard up and stepped forward slightly, closing the gap just a little. Then he lifted his right leg as if preparing a low kick toward Jihun’s left leg.
A low kick?
Jihun instinctively raised his left leg to block with his shin. At that exact moment, Jeonghan pulled his right foot back, planted it on the floor, and spun clockwise. As he turned, he unleashed a spinning back kick aimed at the right side of Jihun’s head.
Jihun dropped his left leg, planted his left foot, and raised his right arm to guard. At the same time, a loud thwack echoed as Jeonghan’s right foot slammed into Jihun’s guarding arm.
Watching their spar, Jaehyuk mentally assessed Jeonghan’s skills.
Jeonghan’s a bit weaker than me and Jihun in grappling, but his striking speed and accuracy are better than both of us. His kicking technique is especially impressive.
Time passed, and once the sparring between the trainees ended, Jaehyuk approached Jihun while Jeonghan was doing bodyweight exercises a short distance away. In a low voice, he asked,
“What about Suyeon’s protection detail?”
“Don’t worry. I put one reliable uncle on her.”
“Just one? That doesn’t seem like enough…”
“Too many people would get noticed right away. Besides, Suyeon and Jeonghan both felt uncomfortable having bodyguards around in the first place. And that uncle fights like a demon, so he’s genuinely trustworthy. He’s trained in Jeet Kune Do and… what was it? Kali? Anyway, he apparently learned some Filipino martial arts too.”
Jeet Kune Do and Kali Arnis… Could it be Shin Taebum?
In Jaehyuk’s mind flashed the image of Shin Taebum, the Gangryonghoe assassin so skilled that few would dare claim second place. At the same time, he recalled the experiences from his previous life—learning Kali Arnis and Jeet Kune Do from Taebum, and one particular scene from the gang wars.
Once, he had gone with Jeonghan and a few other gangsters to help Taebum during a war with a rival organization. They arrived at a scene where dozens of tough men lay dead and bloodied on the ground. There stood Shin Taebum, covered in blood, holding nothing but a single knife, calmly waiting for them with a relaxed expression.
If it’s that monster of an uncle, then yeah, he’s reliable. He’s so quiet it makes you wonder if he has communication issues, but since he’s guarding her in secret, he probably won’t need to talk to Suyeon anyway.
Jaehyuk fell silent, lost in thought.
This Saturday is the day Giant Bomb is performing at that concert… Now that I know Lee Seunghun is involved in Suyeon’s kidnapping, I can’t shake this uneasy feeling.
At that moment, Jihun changed the subject.
“By the way, Jaehyuk, do you like Giant Bomb?”
“Giant Bomb? Well… I don’t particularly dislike them. Their songs are good. Why?”
“An uncle I know found out I like them and gave me three VIP tickets to their concert.”
“VIP seats? When is it?”
“This Saturday at 2 p.m.”
It was the same day Dahyun and Suyeon planned to attend the Giant Bomb concert together.
Right. Instead of just watching over them from outside the venue, it’d be better to go inside and keep a close eye. You never know what could happen even inside the concert hall.
Just then, Jeonghan, who had finished his bodyweight exercises, walked over and asked,
“Are you guys going to the Giant Bomb concert?”
“Yeah. I was going to ask you too. Want to come with us?”
“I’m down. It’s a Giant Bomb concert, after all. And VIP seats? Why would I turn that down?”
“What about you, Jaehyuk?”
“Okay. I’ll go too.”
Then Jihun asked both of them,
“It’s Friday night. After training, where do you want to hang out?”
“Where? PC bang? Or karaoke?”
Jihun grinned at Jaehyuk’s question and answered with a smirk.
“I know a place. It’s fucking fun.”
A short while later.
“Hmm… So this ‘fucking fun place’… is here?”
“Why? Don’t you think it’s unique and fun for high schoolers?”
At Jaehyuk’s dumbfounded question, Jihun grinned as if it were no big deal. Jeonghan, looking completely baffled, muttered,
“It’s definitely fucking unique, I’ll give you that.”
The place they had arrived at was a shooting range. Not an airsoft range, but a live-fire range that used real bullets and real firearms capable of killing people.
Jeonghan asked Jihun with a worried expression,
“But… isn’t this place off-limits for minors like us?”
“It used to be, a long time ago. But now they allow anyone fourteen or older with a student ID. Plus, the owner here is a close friend of mine, so don’t worry about it.”
“Oh… You must come here pretty often if you’re that close.”
“I first came out of curiosity three years ago, and I’ve been coming whenever I have time to shoot.”
The three friends entered the shooting range. As the door opened, a kind-looking man in his late forties with salt-and-pepper hair, who had been sitting on the sofa in the waiting area, greeted Jihun warmly.
“Jihun, you’re here? It’s been a while.”
“Hello, sir.”
“And this time you didn’t come alone—you brought friends?”
“I wanted to give them some good experience.”
The owner stood up from the sofa with a warm smile and said to them,
“Have a seat and wait a moment. I’ll bring the guidebook.”
A little later, the guidebook the owner handed them contained photos of numerous handguns along with their specifications.
“Pick whatever you want.”
“Yeah, don’t worry about the price. Just choose.”
At the owner and Jihun’s words, Jeonghan’s eyes widened when he saw the prices.
“Twenty-five thousand won for ten rounds…?”
“That’s for 9mm. It gets more expensive the larger the caliber. But since I’m paying, pick whatever you like.”
“If all three of us shoot, that’s seventy-five thousand won??”
“Yep. So go ahead.”
Suddenly, Jeonghan remembered the day he first met Jihun in that alley. Jihun had given Jaehyuk three hundred thousand won in cash to thank him for helping out.
This Jihun guy… he must have way more money than I thought.
Meanwhile, Jaehyuk had already chosen his firearm.
“I’ll take this one. Beretta 92FS.”
The Beretta 92FS was the handgun Jaehyuk had used during his undercover days in his previous life. Along with the Ontario-498 knife, it had been one of his primary weapons while infiltrating.
“Okay, one Beretta. What about you, Jihun?”
“The usual for me.”
At Jihun’s words, Jaehyuk stared at him blankly.
He’s ordering a handgun like it’s a personal menu item at a fancy restaurant…
“One SIG P226. And the handsome friend over there?”
The owner, jotting down the types of firearms on a notepad, turned to Jeonghan.
“I… um… this is my first time shooting a handgun. Could you recommend one?”
“Recommendation? I personally like the Glock 17… but is there anything that catches your eye?”
Jeonghan thought for a moment before choosing the German-made H&K VP9 handgun listed at the very bottom of the booklet.
“This one.”
After each of them had selected their firearms, they put on bulletproof vests with the staff’s help and prepared to shoot. Jeonghan asked Jihun,
“If this hits someone… will they die?”
“Obviously. All these guns fire live rounds. Get hit and you’re dead.”
“Whoa…”
The staff explained the shooting techniques to Jaehyuk, Jeonghan, and Jihun. The three friends put on earmuffs and entered the range.
How long has it been since I regressed, and I’m already holding a handgun again? And as a high school senior, no less.
The staff loaded the Beretta 92FS in front of Jaehyuk. When he picked it up, the heavy weight settled firmly in his hand.
Still as heavy as ever. By the way, Jeonghan used to be insanely good with a gun…
Holding the pistol, Jaehyuk slightly turned his head to look at Jeonghan through the transparent wall on his right. Jeonghan, gripping the VP9, had his eyes wide open and was examining the handgun with a fascinated expression, turning it this way and that.
Jaehyuk recalled how, in his previous life, Jeonghan had used his exceptional marksmanship to take down gangsters as swiftly and accurately as the hero of an old Western movie gunning down outlaws. Seeing him now, holding a real gun for the very first time, Jaehyuk couldn’t help but chuckle.
He’s probably going to come in last with that clumsy start. But everyone has a first time, so it makes sense.
With that thought, Jaehyuk aimed the Beretta at the target in front of him. He slowly exhaled, held his breath, and pulled the trigger.
A dull thump rang out, accompanied by a powerful recoil that felt like someone had slapped his hand upward from below. At the same time, a small brass object flew out, and the acrid smell of gunpowder stung his nose.
Ugh, that gunpowder smell. No matter how many times I smell it… it’s just unpleasant.
Since Jaehyuk had only ever used live ammunition for killing—whether in the military or as a police officer—the scent could never hold fond memories for him.
About three minutes after the three friends began live-fire shooting, they finished and checked their scores.
“I got 90. What about you guys?”
Jihun was confident his score would be the highest since he had more live-fire experience than the others.
“Me? 93.”
Jaehyuk casually showed his target. Jihun looked momentarily stunned by the unexpected result.
“Uh… Jeonghan. What about you, Jeonghan?”
Look at him panicking. You’re not the only one with experience here, kid.
Jaehyuk smirked slightly as he watched the flustered Jihun. Jeonghan stared at his target with a somewhat disappointed expression and scratched the back of his head with his right hand.
“Hmm…”
Jihun, relieved that he wasn’t in last place, grinned and tried to comfort him.
“What? Is it too low? It’s fine. Everyone’s like that their first time shooting live rounds. I only got 62 points the first time. Everyone has a first time…”
“If I had just landed one more 10, I would’ve gotten 100…”
At the completely unexpected result, both Jaehyuk and Jihun stared at Jeonghan with wide eyes.
“98 points… Where the hell did you miss?”
“……Are you sure this is your first time…?”
“Yeah. It’s my first time.”
Jaehyuk stared blankly at Jeonghan and thought,
Everyone has a first time, but… isn’t his first-time score way too good??
“Again. Again. Let’s do it again. This can’t be right. I’ll pay for everything, so let’s go one more time.”
After saying that, Jihun dragged Jaehyuk and Jeonghan back for several more rounds of live-fire shooting.
After the fifth round ended,
Thanks to him, I got free live-fire practice.
“What did you get this time?”
“Um… 88.”
“Fuck, I finally escaped last place… I got 92.”
“I finally got 100 points.”
Jeonghan beamed as he told Jaehyuk and Jihun about his perfect score. Jihun muttered as if he had completely given up on beating Jeonghan at shooting.
“That bastard is definitely a genius… A shooting genius… There’s no way a normal person can do that…”
“Now that I think about it, Jeonghan’s been in first place the whole time.”
“Yeah… Every single one of his scores was in the high 90s. And the last one was a perfect 100.”
Even while Jaehyuk and Jihun were talking, Jeonghan simply smiled brightly as he gazed at his target—where every bullet hole was clustered tightly inside the small circle marked 10 in the very center.