Resuming the Infiltration (4)
In a high-end Chinese restaurant in Suwon, Seo Myungwoo stood outside, speaking on the phone with his subordinate Kim Sehan.
Seo Myungwoo
Crown Hotel Suwon Branch Manager
"Who the hell attacked you?"
"I don't know the guy that well. But since he knew the code word, it doesn't seem like it's his first time here..."
"Sigh... How are the boys doing?"
"Including me, not a single one of us is uninjured. That's why I..."
Furious, Myungwoo gritted his teeth, took a deep breath, and answered Sehan.
"Understood. I'll bring the guys over tomorrow. Just focus on getting better."
"Yes, hyung-nim. I'm truly sorry."
"As long as you know that."
Myungwoo hung up the phone and stepped back into the restaurant.
"Hyung-nim. Was that Sehan?"
Song Juntae
Seo Myungwoo's Subordinate
The man eating jjambbong looked up and asked. As Myungwoo sat down beside him, the man eating jajangmyeon across from him spoke.
"You don't look so good. Something happen with Sehan?"
Ha Seongjun
Representative of Crown Hotel
Seongjun's eyebrows twitched. Juntae set his chopsticks down and asked.
"Who the hell managed to take Sehan down?"
"Not who, but one guy."
"One guy? You're saying a single person took down Sehan and all his boys?"
"That's right."
Seongjun set his chopsticks down and looked at Myungwoo.
"What happened?"
"The guy caught on to the work we were running at the gambling den. When the boys tried to shut him up, he took most of them out, including Sehan."
"So he noticed the patterns on the backs of the cards?"
"Yes."
"Huh... Must have sharp eyes. How did he even spot that?"
The gambling dens run by Gangryonghoe worked by using dealers to deliberately give certain patrons strong hands, luring them back again and again. Later, they would hand out normal cards, but by then the patrons were hooked on the memory of that first big win. The syndicate turned them into gambling addicts.
"So Sehan asked you for help?"
"Yeah. I'm planning to head over with the boys tomorrow. The bastard demanded three hundred million won as compensation from Sehan."
"Hmm... Would it be all right if I came along?"
Myungwoo's eyes widened at Seongjun's words.
"You're coming too, boss?"
"It's been a while since I've seen anything interesting. Plus, I want to see how much your skills have improved, Myungwoo."
"Beating up one guy with a whole crowd doesn't sound like interesting entertainment."
"You never know. That one guy might be surprisingly good. Too much for you, maybe."
Seongjun flashed a grin at Myungwoo, who looked back at him with a proud expression.
"Of course not. That bastard will be a half-corpse in three days."
Meanwhile, Jeonghan entered the headquarters of Crown Entertainment in Seoul alongside Taeyang and followed him into the executive office.
"Want a cup of coffee? Instant mix? Americano?"
"Uh... I'll have..."
"Speak comfortably. You remind me of my nephew."
Taeyang, already preparing his own instant coffee, offered Jeonghan a gentle smile. Jeonghan replied.
"Then a cold Americano, please..."
Taeyang spooned coffee powder into a paper cup, filled it with cold water from the purifier, and stirred it in a W motion. He carried both cups over and handed the Americano to Jeonghan.
"Here you go."
"Thank you."
Taeyang sat across from Jeonghan and spoke.
"All right. Before we sign the employment contract, let me tell you about the benefits you'll receive. First, your annual salary starting from the day you join will be around eighty million won."
"Eighty million?"
"We'll cover the four major insurances and regular health checkups. You can use your paid leave whenever you want. There will be occasional overtime or special assignments, but we offer additional bonuses for those. In some cases, it can go up to a hundred million won. One of our people even pulled in four hundred and fifty million in a single year. There are various other benefits too. Check the employment contract for the details."
What kind of work gets you a hundred-million-won bonus? And four hundred and fifty million a year? Even a high-ranking syndicate executive shouldn't be able to pull in that much.
"None of these benefits are exclusive to you. Every employee who does the kind of work you'll be handling receives them as standard."
"Then what exactly will I be doing?"
Taeyang's expression hardened slightly as he asked Jeonghan.
"First, I want your answer. Will you take this job knowing the benefits I mentioned? Or will you refuse? There will be no repercussions if you decline."
I don't have any reason to refuse. My goal is to infiltrate Gangryonghoe anyway. Getting in as a full-time employee at Crown Entertainment might actually make gathering information easier than going in as irregular staff at the Crown Hotel.
Having thought it through, Jeonghan answered.
"Yes. I'll do it."
"Good. Review the detailed benefits in the contract and sign it."
A short while later, Jeonghan signed the employment contract. Taeyang skimmed through it and said.
"I heard you're staying in Incheon. We'll move all your belongings to one of the company-managed buildings. We'll send people and a vehicle, so don't worry about a thing."
"Understood."
"Report for work the day after tomorrow. Moving will be tiring, so you should rest properly before starting, right?"
The warm smile Taeyang gave Jeonghan made him look less like a high-ranking executive of the infamous Gangryonghoe syndicate and more like a benevolent businessman who put his employees first.
"Yes. I'll see you the day after tomorrow."
Jeonghan left the executive office. Taeyang looked at the signed contract, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly as he muttered.
"Hmm... Special forces veteran...? Shouldn't be any problems with job performance."
He then dialed a number.
"It's me. A new recruit starts the day after tomorrow. Once he arrives, put him on a team with you, Minsoo, and Jooseong. Yeah. I'll leave it to you."
In an underground room at the National Intelligence Service, Yeonghwan, having received a report from I.O who was monitoring Jeonghan, spoke to the man in front of him.
"Sergeant Lee Jeonghan has entered Crown Entertainment. It looks like we'll need to revise the overall plan for Sergeant Lee's operation."
Lee Yeonghwan
NIS Director for the Big Brother Project
"Is a revision really necessary? The things Gangryonghoe does are all pretty much the same, aren't they?"
Colonel Jin Seho
Military Director for the Big Brother Project
"It may look that way, but unlike Crown Construction, Crown Hotel, and Crown Mu-yeok, whose primary business is drug trafficking, Crown Entertainment barely touches drug-related work. While they do handle some drug sales occasionally, their main operations are weapons smuggling and contract killings. If he had gone into construction or trading, there would be no need to change the plan. But Entertainment is different."
"That's correct. If he had infiltrated another branch, the undercover agents would rarely have to directly harm civilians. However, the Entertainment side requires carrying out contract killings, which means he may have no choice but to kill innocent civilians to maintain his cover. In that case, we must revise the plan to minimize civilian casualties while still completing the mission."
Ma Seungcheol
Police Director for the Big Brother Project
"Since the topic has come up, I'll distribute documents containing information on Crown Holdings' subsidiaries. Chief Ma seems to know some of it but not the finer details, and Colonel Jin appears to know nothing at all."
Yeonghwan handed documents to Seungcheol and Seho.
"First, Crown Holdings oversees all of Gangryonghoe's illegal businesses. Unlike the holding company, which only manages and supervises whether operations are running smoothly, the representatives of Crown Holdings' subsidiaries directly carry out various illegal activities."
Seungcheol and Seho examined the information in the documents. Seho, reading through them, spoke up.
"Those Gangryonghoe bastards have their tentacles in every kind of crime imaginable."
"With business interests this wide, it's no wonder they've become the largest syndicate in South Korea. They're even big enough to cause concern in Naegok-dong."
"In any case, like with Sergeant Lee's situation, the project may not proceed in the direction we originally planned. Let's prepare countermeasures for such scenarios in advance."
At Yeonghwan's words, both Seho and Seungcheol replied.
"Yes. Understood."
In Suwon, Jaehyuk was working out shirtless in the one-room apartment where he was staying. With his solid, muscular build on full display, he performed one-handed push-ups. His upper body carried a few scars from stab wounds sustained while performing his duties as a police officer. Beads of sweat formed on Jaehyuk's face and torso before dripping onto the floor. After finishing a set, he rose and caught his breath.
"Hoo..."
Wiping his sweat with a towel, Jaehyuk thought about his plan moving forward.
Kim Sehan must have realized he couldn't handle me on his own and asked Seo Myungwoo for help. So when I show up at the meeting place in three days, Myungwoo will be waiting to take me down. I'll fight him, press the advantage, then deliberately lose in a way that looks natural. He'll be impressed and try to recruit me into his crew.
Jaehyuk took a one-liter bottle of water from the refrigerator and drank it straight from the bottle. He recalled the time he had faced Myungwoo in the past.
"Wow... Not bad at all. I didn't think you'd last this long against me."
In his previous life, Jaehyuk had gone to Incheon to infiltrate Gangryonghoe. Now he stood before Myungwoo, covered in blood and gasping for air. Myungwoo was bleeding from both nostrils but looked far better off than Jaehyuk. Myungwoo wiped the blood from his face with the back of his hand and asked.
"Hey. How old are you?"
"......Born in '01."
"Hmm... '01 makes you... twenty-six? Eight years younger than me. Kahahaha!! A kid like you has some real spirit. Huh?"
Myungwoo approached Jaehyuk, who charged at him. Myungwoo easily dodged the attack, hooked Jaehyuk's ankle with his foot, and shoved him to the ground with one hand. As Jaehyuk struggled back to his feet, Myungwoo smiled and offered advice.
"Your movements are too big. Come at me like that and you're finished, kid."
This time will be different from back then. After all... I did manage to beat him once...
Jaehyuk recalled the time in his previous life when he had defeated Myungwoo while fleeing from Gangryonghoe.
"Huff... Huff..."
On a rainy day, Jaehyuk had taken down every Gangryonghoe thug chasing him, including Seo Myungwoo. Bleeding heavily, he gritted his teeth and slowly pulled the knife out of his shoulder.
"Puhuhuhu... Should we call this the student surpassing the master...? Myungwoo lay on the ground, gasping for breath. Even though he had collapsed covered in blood, he bared his teeth in a grin as if something was funny.
"Haa... Never thought you were a damn cop... Did I raise a tiger cub...?"
"......Shut your mouth and stay down."
Jaehyuk's phone rang. He answered it.
"Yeah, Jeonghan."
"Hey, Park Jaehyuk!! What about Myungwoo?!! Did you take him out?!!"
"Yeah. I took him out."
"Then get to the meeting point!! I'll grab the guns and knives and head there as fast as I can!!"
"Got it."
Jaehyuk ended the call. Myungwoo, still lying on the ground, spoke to Jaehyuk as he tried to leave.
"Where are you going now...? Officer Park... The entire Gangryonghoe is moving to catch you..."
There was a hint of concern in Myungwoo's voice. Jaehyuk paused. Myungwoo continued.
"Kill me and go... An opportunity like this... won't come again... If I get back up... I'll definitely kill you..."
"......Be grateful I don't have time to kill you."
Without even glancing at the fallen Myungwoo, Jaehyuk spoke with a complicated expression. He left Myungwoo behind, breathing alone in the pouring rain, and walked away.
Jaehyuk shook his head, shaking off the thoughts of his previous life.
Get a grip, Park Jaehyuk. Don't dwell on what happened back then. It's just... a life that's already over.
Having cleared his mind of the distracting memories, Jaehyuk steadied his breathing and dropped back down to continue push-ups with his other hand. Perhaps to completely drive away any lingering thoughts of his past life, Jaehyuk's workout grew even more intense than before.
Three days later, Jaehyuk arrived at the appointed location. The moment he opened the door to the gambling den, dozens of gangsters holding weapons appeared before him.
"You came, you son of a bitch!!"
From among them, Kim Sehan, his face wrapped in bandages, shouted at Jaehyuk. Jaehyuk spotted two familiar faces among the crowd.
"Seo Myungwoo... and Ha Seongjun? Why is that guy here?"
He hadn't expected the appearance of Ha Seongjun, the representative of Crown Hotel and third-in-command of Gangryonghoe. Jaehyuk was momentarily flustered, but he quickly regained his composure and asked Sehan.
"I'm here to collect the three hundred million. Hand it over."
"Fuck off!!! You're dying here today, you bastard!!!"
Myungwoo, seated on the table, asked Jaehyuk.
"Did you do that to his face?"
"If I did, what are you going to do about it?"
"I'll make your face look exactly the same."
With those words, Myungwoo jumped down from the table and ordered his subordinates.
"Get him."
"Yaaaaah!!!"
At Myungwoo's command, the gangsters charged at Jaehyuk with their weapons raised, roaring. Jaehyuk charged right back at them, clashing with the gangsters swinging their weapons at him.