The Five-Fold Benefit (3)
Two days passed, and contact finally came from Hermes Japan. During that time, Yoon-gi had enjoyed a pleasant stay at the hospital with Merrill, but when Yamada arrived, he put on a show of being physically and mentally exhausted.
“Um... are you feeling alright?”
“Ah, yes...”
At Yoon-gi’s response, delivered with an incredibly weary expression, Yamada’s complexion darkened even further.
“I am truly sorry. Due to our lax management, we have caused you such immense trouble. Please, I beg for your forgiveness.”
“I don’t believe this is a situation where forgiveness is even on the table, but... how have you decided to wrap this matter up?”
Yoon-gi felt a bitter laugh rising in his throat at the sight of Yamada talking about forgiveness when the perpetrator, Watanabe, hadn’t even shown his face, but he didn’t let it show.
“Ah... the head office has issued an ‘initial’ directive. We are to terminate the modeling contract with Watanabe-kun.”
“I see.”
Just as Yoon-gi was nodding, Yamada spoke up again.
“Excuse me...”
“Is there something you wish to say?”
“I don’t know if I should be saying this, but...”
“Then perhaps it would be better if you didn’t.”
Yoon-gi adjusted the tempo of the conversation, feeling that Yamada’s tendency to view him as soft had crossed the line.
“Yes? No, wait... that is...”
Taken aback by Yoon-gi’s unexpected response, Yamada hesitated for a moment before finally blurting out what he had intended to say.
“I apologize. The... the directive from headquarters was indeed as I stated, but I believe there is still room for negotiation. Watanabe-kun also wishes to apologize, so could you please reconsider this matter? Watanabe-kun is still young and acted out of childish impulse; wouldn’t it be a shame to ruin a young man’s life over a momentary mistake? You, too, will eventually reach an age of hot-blooded youth, Yoon-nim.”
“Wait, where does this crazy bastard get off, spewing such filth from his trap?”
As Cha Pyong-il flared up in anger, Seo Jong-hun glared at him. Although Yoon-gi hadn’t said anything, the previous security lapse had been a massive blunder. Seo Jong-hun had failed to guide Cha Pyong-il because he thought he was there as a secretary rather than a bodyguard, and Cha Pyong-il, lacking experience, hadn’t even considered the need to follow Yoon-gi into the restroom. Because of this, Seo Jong-hun had been teaching Cha Pyong-il his own security experience while Yoon-gi was hospitalized, but Cha Pyong-il had made another mistake. A bodyguard should not be interrupting a conversation like this.
“Cha Pyong-il!”
“Ugh... I, I apologize. I was just so angry...”
If Yoon-gi had been able to speak Japanese, Cha Pyong-il wouldn’t have been so agitated. However, because the conversation between Yoon-gi and Yamada was being conducted through Seo Jong-hun’s interpretation, it had the disadvantage of being audible to those around them. Of course, the fact that Yoon-gi let it slide was proof that he didn’t mind.
“Yoon-gi, I’m sorry.”
“No, please continue the interpretation.”
With Cha Pyong-il nodding, the conversation between Yoon-gi and Yamada resumed.
“It’s quite fascinating that you ask me to forgive someone who hasn’t even come to apologize. Is Japan always like this?”
“Ah, no, not at all. The reason I came today is to ask if you would be willing to attend an apology session.”
“Instead of him coming to apologize?”
“Watanabe-kun is so incredibly sorry that he hasn’t been able to bring himself to come. He wants to apologize in a more formal setting. If you would only grant us a meeting...”
Yoon-gi sighed in disbelief, as if for Yamada’s benefit, and nodded.
“Understood. I shall see just how sincere his apology is.”
“Thank you! Thank you!”
Yamada’s face lit up, and after thanking him repeatedly, he left the hospital room.
“Yoon-gi, are you really going to meet him? I’ve interacted with Japanese people often, and I can tell you, he’s not doing this because he’s truly sorry.”
At Seo Jong-hun’s words, Yoon-gi let out a soft chuckle.
“Of course I know that. But this is to ensure I leave no room for them to maneuver.”
“Maneuver?”
“Yes. If I go tomorrow, I go. If I don’t, they’ll just whine to the head office again, saying, ‘We tried to apologize, but the other party wouldn’t accept it.’ Well, the head office’s directive won’t change, but isn’t it better to crush them thoroughly while we’re at it? There’s nothing more unpleasant than thinking you’ve caught a bug in a tissue, only to have it fly away the moment you lift it.”
A mischievous smile began to play on Yoon-gi’s lips.
***
The day after Yamada left the hospital room, Yoon-gi headed to a high-end traditional restaurant in Kyoto as requested. Everyone was shocked by the audacity of asking him to come all the way to Kyoto when Watanabe should have been the one crawling to the hospital to apologize, but Yoon-gi had already decided to go. After all, he had to be there for his future plans to take shape.
“This is Yoon-nim, here at the invitation of Yamada or Watanabe.”
At Seo Jong-hun’s words, the restaurant staffer offered a service smile and began guiding Yoon-gi and Seo Jong-hun toward the deepest part of the establishment. They soon reached a spot where a rather long hallway was visible, and it was obvious that a special room lay at the end of it.
“From this point on, only Yoon-nim may enter.”
When a man in his mid-30s wearing a suit, who had been standing at the entrance of the hallway, blocked Seo Jong-hun’s path, Seo Jong-hun let out a dry laugh.
“Don’t talk nonsense. What do you expect to happen if you send someone who doesn’t even speak Japanese in alone?”
The man in his 30s, his expression somewhat rigid, shook his head with a thin, ill-fitting smile.
“We have prepared a Korean interpreter, so there will be no issues with communication.”
“I told you not to talk nonsense.”
“I apologize, but it is the restaurant’s policy.”
It was Yoon-gi who ended the standoff between the two.
“It seems we cannot enter together, so let’s turn back.”
Perhaps understanding Yoon-gi’s words as he turned around without a second thought, the man in his 30s shouted urgently.
“A-alright! Please, come in together!”
His Korean was slightly clumsy. Seeing the staffer, Yoon-gi let out a bitter laugh and began walking down the hallway with Seo Jong-hun.
“Will this be alright...?”
“Don’t worry.”
When Yoon-gi and Seo Jong-hun opened the door to the special room, Yamada and Watanabe were sitting there, surrounded by dozens of men who clearly looked like yakuza lining the walls.
“Welcome! Yoon-nim!”
Yamada stood up and bowed slightly, but Watanabe remained seated, barely nodding his head.
“I came because you said you would apologize, but this is quite a spectacle.”
“Ah, please don’t mind these people. You can just think of them as folding screens.”
At Yamada’s good-natured smile, Yoon-gi shrugged, maintaining a relaxed demeanor, but Seo Jong-hun’s expression hardened.
‘If it comes to it, I’ll have to grab Yoon-gi and run.’
Unlike Seo Jong-hun, who was searching for an exit, Yoon-gi spoke to Yamada with an air of complete ease and superiority.
“So, where is the apology?”
At Yoon-gi’s words, seated comfortably, Yamada laughed again.
“Ah, please wait a moment. The food will be out shortly. This is a special room accessible only to VIPs, and I reserved it today just for you, Yoon-nim.”
Yoon-gi hadn’t wanted food at all; if there was one thing he wanted, it was an apology. But Yamada’s actions were like scratching the back of someone’s hand when they had an itch on their leg.
“Hey, is the food still not ready?!”
At Yamada’s shout, food began to be brought in, and soon a spread of Japanese cuisine that looked quite appetizing was laid out.
“This is the kaiseki cuisine that Japan prides itself on. Please, have a taste.”
“My doctor told me to be careful with what I eat for the time being. Anyway, if you have nothing else to say, I’ll be taking my leave.”
In an instant, the expressions of the yakuza, whom he had been told to think of as folding screens, turned incredibly menacing, and at the same time, Watanabe could be seen sneering.
“Ah, I apologize. Then I will get straight to the point. I made a small mistake while trying to apologize properly.”
As Yamada looked at him, Watanabe sighed, nodded, and then looked at Yoon-gi.
“This matter is truly regrettable. It was something that should never have happened, and I think I made a mistake. Since this won’t happen again, can’t you help me out just this once?”
“How am I supposed to help you?”
Yoon-gi had asked out of curiosity about the next move, but Yamada’s face lit up as he held out a piece of paper and a pen toward Yoon-gi.
“If you just sign here, everything will be resolved smoothly.”
[I, Choi Yoon-gi, do not wish for the termination of Watanabe-kun’s contract.]
It was a memorandum that could be summarized as such, so as soon as Yoon-gi heard Seo Jong-hun’s translation, he scoffed and tore the paper to shreds.
“Chiksho!”
Watanabe jumped up from his seat with a snarling expression, and the yakuza also gave off the vibe that they would rush at Yoon-gi at any moment and tear him to pieces. At the same time, Seo Jong-hun was mentally simulating how to extract Yoon-gi at any second, but their collision never occurred. It was because the door suddenly opened, and the man in his 30s who had been guarding the entrance appeared.
“I told you not to let anyone in! ...Huck!”
Watanabe, who had initially been annoyed while looking at the man, was struck with sheer terror upon seeing the countless Black and White men standing behind him. American soldiers in military uniforms were pouring into the special room.
“BACK OFF!!!”
At the shout of the Black captain in English, the yakuza turned pale and began to huddle against the wall behind Watanabe. It was only natural, as the American soldiers were aiming their M4 infantry rifles directly at them.
“If I kill all the yakuza here right now, will I be punished or not?”
Because Seo Jong-hun didn’t translate, Yoon-gi looked at him, and Seo Jong-hun, despite his shocked expression, began to translate. At that, everyone’s complexion turned deathly white, but Watanabe tried not to back down even in the midst of it.
“H-huh! Such threats don’t work on me!”
“Threats? Vermin like you wouldn’t cause any trouble even if you were dead. Shall I show you?”
As Yoon-gi raised his right arm horizontally to the sky, the American soldiers made a metallic click as they took precise aim at the yakuza. It was a situation where a squad of yakuza would be wiped out the moment a trigger was pulled. At that, Yamada ended up wetting his pants, and the rest of the yakuza knelt on the floor and bowed their heads.
[Yurushite kudasai!!]
Watching the yakuza begging for forgiveness in unison, Yoon-gi stood up and laughed heartily.
“Hey, Watanabe. What about you?”
At Yoon-gi’s words, the yakuza and Yamada rushed forward, forcing Watanabe to his knees and making him slam his forehead into the floor. As Yoon-gi placed his foot on the back of Watanabe’s head and applied pressure, Watanabe trembled with humiliation, but Yoon-gi actually enjoyed the reaction.
“You’ve already had two strikes. When you get the third strike, your team loses because of you. Do you understand? Watanabe?”
Watanabe didn’t answer, but Yamada answered for him with a desperate expression.
“Yes, yes! I understand perfectly! We will make sure this never happens again!”
At Yamada’s words, Yoon-gi stepped on Watanabe a little harder before lifting his foot from the back of his head.
“Then, let’s make sure we don’t see each other again. Mr. Yamada?”
With a bright smile, Yoon-gi walked out of the special room.
***
“I really thought my heart was going to stop.”
At Seo Jong-hun’s words as he patted his chest in the hotel room, Yoon-gi smiled.
“I explained it to you beforehand, didn’t I? I told you that if it were a Japanese person like Watanabe, they would definitely act that way.”
“No, even if I heard the plan, experiencing it is different. What would you have done if those guys inside had rushed at you and stabbed you? I really thought I was going to be killed by your father.”
“If that had happened, I wouldn’t have had to worry about being killed by my father, would I?”
At Yoon-gi’s slightly terrifying joke, accompanied by a grin, Seo Jong-hun looked horrified before letting out a dry laugh and a light sigh, then asked Yoon-gi.
“By the way, your connections are truly incredible. To mobilize even the U.S. military. But were you really going to kill them all?”
Yoon-gi shook his head.
“Even I don’t have that kind of extra-legal status. It was just a show. But the ability to make that show feel real is what true power is.”
“Hmm... certainly. I was truly trembling as I watched your arm. I thought you were a Roman Emperor in the Colosseum.”
Hearing this, Yoon-gi struck a pose like a show host and shouted.
“I have been your lead actor, Choi Yoon-gi!”
“You’re truly as cheerful as your father.”
“The blood doesn’t lie.”
Seo Jong-hun, who had been laughing, asked as if he had just thought of something curious.
“But wasn’t that a bit excessive? I don’t think the other side will back down easily like this... The expression on the guy whose head you stepped on was something else.”
“Ah, I did that on purpose. So they wouldn’t back down easily.”
No sooner had Yoon-gi finished speaking than the hotel room phone began to ring.
“Hello?”
Yoon-gi picked up the receiver, and after a moment, he covered the bottom of the receiver with his palm and whispered softly to Seo Jong-hun.
“It’s just as I expected.”