My First Girlfriend's Family Is No Ordinary Bunch
Park Jaehyuk slowly opened his eyes the next morning, still wrapped around Alina. The first thing he saw was her, nestled against him and breathing softly in her sleep.
What the… When did I start holding her like this?
She remained fast asleep in his arms. Jaehyuk gazed at her slightly plump, rose-colored lips and thought, She's insanely cute… Should I just kiss her awake?
As he watched her breathe with her eyes closed, the corners of his mouth lifted without him realizing it.
"Mmm…?"
Just as he was staring at her, Alina slowly opened her eyes. Jaehyuk gave her a bright smile when their gazes met.
"Sleep well?"
"Yeah… What about you, oppa?"
"I slept great too."
The two of them sat up together. Suddenly, Alina winced, clutching her waist.
"Ouch…!!"
"What's wrong?"
"Ah, it's nothing… My back just feels a little sore."
"Isn't that because we went pretty hard yesterday?"
"Went pretty hard…?"
She blinked at him blankly, not understanding what he meant. But moments later, the memories of what they'd done the night before flooded back. Her face flushed bright red, and she quietly lowered her head.
"You were shaking so intensely yesterday. All cute and crying while you—"
"Shut up…"
God, seriously… If she's this adorable, isn't that cheating?
Jaehyuk watched her with eyes practically dripping honey, a satisfied smile spreading across his face.
A little while later, the couple were having breakfast at a restaurant. As they ate, Jaehyuk suddenly asked,
"Are you really okay with being put in danger because of me?"
"Yes. If I wasn't, I wouldn't have told you I liked you in the first place."
She continued, "Besides, compared to my mother's side of the family, it doesn't seem like that big of a risk."
"Huh? What about your mother's relatives?"
Alina slowly set down her utensils and looked at him.
"My mother's relatives are… pretty scary people. That's why my mother ran away from them. She met my father during her escape. Because of them… my mother has been overprotective of me."
"Overprotective? I didn't really get that impression…"
"Remember when I told you I sent someone to save you in Busan? That person was one of the bodyguards my mother hired to protect me. They guard me twenty-four hours a day."
One of them…? Does that mean there are multiple people like that still watching over her right now? What on earth for…?
Jaehyuk glanced around the restaurant, then asked in a low voice,
"It doesn't look like anyone's here right now…? Did you tell them not to follow you today?"
"Even if I say that, they still guard me. I can't see where they are, but one thing's certain—they're watching me even now. They might even be hiding among the people here."
Alina took a sip of water from her cup before continuing.
"Thanks to them, I don't feel completely uneasy, but it also feels like I'm under constant surveillance. Whatever I do, most of it gets reported to my mother, so she interferes with every little thing in my daily life."
"Then does that mean she knows we're dating…?"
"Fortunately, no. I got close to those bodyguards and asked them to keep it a secret in exchange for proper compensation. So only some information gets sent to her. You can relax."
"Why does your mother protect you to that extent? I understand wanting to protect her daughter, but having bodyguards watch you twenty-four seven seems a bit excessive…"
Alina hesitated for a moment, then asked,
"Oppa… No matter what my family is like… can you keep loving me until the end…?"
"......Yes. Even though I'm doing dangerous work, you're still loving me like this. How could I not do the same for you?"
After a brief silence, Alina finally told him the reason.
"The truth is… my mother's relatives are… the Russian mafia. The biggest mafia organization in Russia."
The biggest mafia in Russia…? Then is it the Komarov Bratva??
At the mention of the largest mafia group in Russia, Jaehyuk immediately thought of the massive Red Mafia syndicate known as the Komarov Bratva.
"My mother was the eldest daughter of that organization's boss. So… that boss is my maternal grandfather. I don't know the exact details, but my mother caused the organization a huge loss. Because of that, my uncles tried to kill her. She fled to America, became a naturalized citizen, and completely cut ties with her family after that."
A huge loss… No matter how ruthless the mafia is, what kind of loss would make them try to kill the boss's own eldest daughter?
"Even after I was born, my mother was constantly worried that her brothers and the rest of her family would harm me. When I was seven, I was kidnapped by mafia members sent by my uncles. After I was rescued, both my parents used every resource and connection they had to protect me at all costs."
Jaehyuk suddenly remembered something from two years ago—meeting a black-haired Caucasian man in New York's Central Park who had introduced himself as Alina's uncle.
"But didn't you say you met one of your uncles in New York a couple years ago?"
"That was my youngest uncle. The ones who held a grudge against my mother were my older uncles. He didn't do anything when I was kidnapped. Not all of my mother's relatives hate her. Still… my mother despises all of them equally as mafia."
Her family is way more intense than I thought. Not just any mafia—the Komarov Bratva…
"Oppa… Even if I have the blood of criminals running through my veins… do you still like me? I like you so much it drives me crazy… but I'm scared you'll feel repulsed by someone like me."
Jaehyuk blinked at her for a moment, then gave her a gentle smile.
"It's not like you sympathized with your mother's family and committed crimes with them. Plus, your mother cut all ties with that organization. That makes them complete strangers who have nothing to do with you. And if I felt any repulsion toward something like that, I wouldn't have started dating you in the first place. Right?"
At his answer, Alina gave a soft, radiant smile. Jaehyuk kept smiling gently back at her.
At that same moment, on a vast ranch somewhere in Russia, Yozef Komarov was inspecting the sheep with his subordinates.
One of his men, armed with an AK-105 assault rifle loaded with various attachments, approached and reported,
> [Deputy Leader. Sobolov has arrived.]
> [......Understood.]
Yozef Komarov. Second-in-command of the Komarov Bratva.
Alina Kim's second maternal uncle.
Upon hearing the report, Yozef walked with his men toward the ranch entrance. A blond Russian man in his late fifties, wearing horn-rimmed glasses and a gray suit, was just stepping out of a car with several armed subordinates. He was Dmitri, boss of the Sobolov Bratva—a subordinate organization under the Komarov Bratva.
The moment Dmitri saw Yozef, he offered a polite greeting.
> [It's been a while, Deputy Leader.]
Dmitri Sobolov, boss of the Sobolov Bratva.
Yozef gave only a slight nod in acknowledgment. Dmitri looked around, noticed Yozef's men digging a hole with shovels, and asked,
> [What were you doing?]
Yozef turned to look at the men digging, then replied,
> [One of the sheep I was raising caught an infectious disease. To prevent it from spreading through the flock, the infected one has to be culled.]
He stared into the pit created by his men's shovels and added with a complicated expression,
> [It was one I was quite fond of, so I'm not feeling great about this.]
"Ah… I see."
Dmitri nodded, then glanced sideways at Yozef.
> [Did you call me all the way out here just for a sheep?]
Yozef remained silent for a moment, still staring at the pit, before finally turning to look at Dmitri.
> [Shall we take a walk?]
Yozef began walking again. Dmitri and Yozef's half-sister Liliya followed behind him. Dmitri's men tried to follow as well, but Liliya shot them a sharp glare. Dmitri quickly stopped them.
As they continued walking, Yozef spoke to Dmitri.
> [Things in Saint Petersburg have been looking suspicious lately.]
Dmitri frowned, clearly confused.
> [What do you mean?]
> [I received a report from the Derzhatel Ovcharka that some of your men have been skimming part of the contract deposits from our deals.]
The Derzhatel Ovcharka was the position within the Red Mafia responsible for managing the organization's books and finances. The person currently holding that role was Yozef's half-sister, Irina Komarova.
Dmitri looked slightly flustered but quickly composed himself and answered calmly.
> [It must be a mistake in the report.]
But his voice was trembling ever so slightly.
Yozef stopped walking, turned around, and glared at him.
> [Are you saying my sister gave me a false report?]
"What I mean is that the Derzhatel Ovcharka may have misunderstood something. And even if my men did it, I had no knowledge of it. If you give me some time, I'll find the ringleaders and punish them myself."
Yozef continued staring at him, thinking, He's planning to cut off the tail to save himself.
Unable to listen any longer, Yozef's expression turned unpleasant as he said,
> [One of the sheep caught a truly terrible disease.]
"What? But earlier you said—"
BANG!
Before he could finish, Dmitri's head exploded. He collapsed without another word. Liliya Komarova—Yozef's secretary and youngest half-sister—had fired a single shot into his head with her SAI custom Glock 19.
"Parhan!!"
"What the fuck!!"
Shocked by their boss's sudden death, Dmitri's men raised their weapons to fight back. But Yozef's surrounding subordinates opened fire with a barrage of guns, cutting them all down. Despite their attempts to resist, they were overwhelmed by superior firepower and fell one after another.
Yozef wiped the blood, flesh, and brain matter that had splattered onto his face with a handkerchief, then coldly looked down at Dmitri's corpse, whose shattered head was leaking its contents.
He folded the handkerchief and tucked it into his pocket before asking Liliya,
> [What about the rest?]
Liliya holstered her pistol at her right hip and answered,
> [Vasilev should have taken care of them by now.]
Almost as soon as she finished speaking, her phone rang from inside her brown jacket pocket. She pulled it out and answered.
> [Hello?]
> [All tasks have been completed as ordered.]
The caller was Sergey Vasilov, a captain in the Komarov Bratva. Sergey, holding a CMMG MK47 assault rifle fitted with various attachments, stood inside a building. Around him lay bloodied corpses riddled with bullets or slashed by blades. Members of the Hishniki 3rd Squad—dressed in black tactical gear and body armor like special forces—were checking the bodies for any survivors.
With those chilling eyes, Sergey slowly scanned the area and continued his report to Liliya.
> [There were a few who tried to run, but the squad is pursuing them. They should all be caught soon.]
Sergey Vasilov. One of the captains of Yozef's private military organization, the Hishniki.
> [Good work. Return by plane with only a portion of the personnel.]
> [Understood.]
Liliya ended the call. Yozef asked her,
> [Results?]
"Same as always."
At that moment, one of Yozef's men carrying a UMP45 submachine gun with various attachments approached and reported,
> [Deputy Leader. Confirmed kills are complete.]
> [Chop them all up and bury them in that pit.]
"Yes, sir."
As Yozef watched the corpses of Dmitri and his men being dragged into the ranch warehouse, something seemed to occur to him. He turned to Liliya and asked,
> [What time is the tea party today?]
"Two o'clock in the afternoon."
"Still quite a while left. By the way, did Father say he would attend this tea party as well?"
"Yes. We told him he didn't have to, but he insisted on coming anyway. Even though he's still sick…"
Vigo Komarov, the former boss of the Komarov Bratva, was bedridden due to a terminal illness. He didn't have much time left.
"It's been a while since all the siblings gathered."
"Not all of them, right?"
Yozef glared at Liliya with clear displeasure and asked,
> [Do we really have to treat a traitor who abandoned her siblings and ran off to another country as family?]
Liliya avoided his gaze and lowered her head.
"I know that you and a few of your brothers have always treated her specially. But don't forget—she is a traitor who, blinded by mere emotion, sold out countless siblings."
"......Understood."
Though she said she understood, Liliya's expression looked somewhat uncomfortable.
Yozef walked with her toward an Aurus-4123 sedan parked near the ranch. They climbed into the back seat. Soon after, his subordinates got into the driver's and passenger seats, and the car carrying them left the ranch, heading off into the distance.