51 chapter - Preliminary Skirmish (1)
The man, listening to his subordinate’s report while putting on a golf green, slowly turned around and said,
“What?”
A golf club was in his hand.
“Say that again.”
“I’m sorry.”
“I don’t need apologies. Brief me again.”
“That is…”
His subordinate, head lowered, began the briefing.
“Kang Juhui was found dead.”
“You retrieved the body, right?”
“…We couldn’t.”
The subordinate looked up at the man in terror.
The man with the golf club asked again, his face hard.
“What?”
Rage soon welled up on his face.
“You crazy bitch…!”
He swung the golf club at his subordinate’s head.
Crack!
The loud sound rang out, but what broke was the golf club.
“Son of a—!”
Then a red aura flared from the man’s hand, wrapping around the ruined club.
He kept swinging at his subordinate.
Thud! Wham! Thud!
Only then came a reaction.
“Ghhk. Keugh!”
Blood soaked the floor before the man spoke.
“I told you to manage the kids properly, didn’t I? Still can’t get your head straight?”
“…M-my apologies, Sir Seunghyun.”
For an ordinary person, such injuries would have meant instant death.
Yet shockingly, the subordinate’s condition was improving in real time.
Kim Seunghyun said,
“Sangwook. Do better, yeah?”
“…I’ll try.”
Though the wounds had been bad enough to leave the floor drenched in blood, the man called Sangwook was already back to normal.
“Not try. Do it. We’ve already lost two of the low-rank kids. Both under your watch. You get it?”
“I’m sorry.”
“Hoo. Sangwook.”
“Yes, Sir Seunghyun.”
Kim Seunghyun draped an arm over the blood-soaked Sangwook’s shoulder.
“You know you’re the one I trust most out of the three high-ranks, don’t you?”
“I know. I’m sorry I haven’t lived up to your expectations.”
“Good. I don’t want to be disappointed. So bring me Kang Juhui’s body. No matter what it takes.”
“Yes.”
“It’s absolute. And if you’re about to give me that bullshit again about it disappearing inside a Gate…”
At that moment.
The office door opened and someone rushed in.
“Boss!”
Kim Seunghyun looked at the one who had just called him “boss” with a murderous expression and muttered,
“You’ve lost your mind.”
“F-forgive the intrusion, but…!”
“But what? If this isn’t important, I’ll kill you.”
“T-the Chairman is here to see you!”
Instantly, Kim Seunghyun’s face went pale.
“The Chairman?”
On his face appeared the same emotion that had been on Han Sangwook’s earlier—fear.
Kim Seunghyun asked,
“Where is he?”
“We’ve seated him in Room One.”
Kim Seunghyun hurried out.
Past the pounding music that rattled the eardrums, past the stage where drunk and drugged-up people danced, lay the area with rooms for VVIPs.
Room One among them was reserved only for the most special guests.
It was usually left empty, and aside from Seunghyun using it himself, it wasn’t opened even once a month.
Arriving at the door of Room One, Kim Seunghyun straightened his clothes, then carefully opened it.
Inside, a man in a black suit was drinking whiskey.
Bowing respectfully, Seunghyun said,
“I greet you, Chairman.”
The Chairman acted as though he hadn’t heard a word.
As he savored his whiskey, a cold silence filled the air, and Seunghyun remained frozen in his bow.
Only when sweat ran down Seunghyun’s nose and dripped to the floor did the Chairman finally speak.
“Jun.”
“Yes, Chairman.”
“I heard we lost a low-rank vampire.”
“….”
“And that the corpse of the one killed inside the Gate was not recovered.”
Seunghyun immediately dropped to his knees and pressed his forehead to the floor.
“Forgive me!”
There was a loud crack, but it was only the floor that split. Seunghyun’s forehead was unscathed.
The Chairman took another sip of whiskey, then rose to his feet.
“Remember. There won’t be a second time.”
“…Yes, Chairman.”
Then the boy who had been standing silently behind Seunghyun opened the door.
But beyond the door was not the club. It was a study.
A luxurious study flooded with warm sunlight, despite the time being close to midnight.
The Chairman entered, and the boy at his side followed him in and shut the door.
Right after—
Clack. Slam!
Kim Seunghyun stormed out of Room One.
With his violent strength, the door looked half-blown apart, as though struck by a shell.
Striding quickly, he soon reached his office.
There Han Sangwook, who had been beaten earlier, was waiting.
“Fuuuck! Aaaagh!”
Kicking over the desk and flipping the sofa, Seunghyun glared at Sangwook with bloodshot eyes and said,
“Sangwook. You will recover Kang Juhui’s body. If you don’t, you, me, and every last one of our people are fucking dead. Got it?”
Han Sangwook gave a heavy nod.
**
“Oppa. How do I look?”
I looked closely at Lee Yuna’s face before answering.
“Looks fine.”
“It doesn’t show?”
“Yeah. Looks natural.”
With sunrise she had returned to human, but when night fell she became a vampire again.
It seemed she only reverted to human form during the day, then back to vampire at night.
“Phew. Thank God.”
Right now Yuna had covered her pale skin with as much makeup as possible.
The sharp fangs couldn’t be hidden, but at least her complexion could be disguised somewhat.
“Then I’ll go help my sister. Oppa, rest outside a little longer, and when my sister’s friends arrive, come in together.”
“Yeah.”
Yuna returned to the funeral hall, and I stepped outside to call Im Jin-sol.
[Hello?]
“Where are you?”
[Almost there. Thirty minutes maybe?]
“Call me when you get here.”
Hong Soo-ah, who had come by taxi, arrived first. About ten minutes later, Im Jin-sol and Seong Yohan joined us.
Im Jin-sol asked,
“How’s Yuna? She holding up?”
“So-so.”
For Yuna, the only family she had left was her older sister.
Since she had lived with her sister’s family until college, she was bound to be close to her brother-in-law, Jo Cheolho.
Even so, Yuna did not cry in public.
She was a strong kid.
“Let’s go in.”
Unlike the first day, the funeral hall was crowded.
“What a tragedy.”
“They say Heaven calls good people early.”
“Heaven can be so cruel.”
The room was filled with people sincerely mourning Jo Cheolho.
Proof that he had been a good man.
‘That good man died because of me.’
Not just died.
He had been tortured to death by Kang Juhui.
All because he looked close to me.
‘I should have killed Kang Juhui sooner.’
The reason I, not family, had stayed by the hall since morning was guilt.
Then Im Jin-sol nudged my side.
“Boss. What’s wrong?”
“…Nothing. You guys go pay respects. Soo-ah and I did yesterday.”
“Got it.”
After the formalities, we sat together at a table.
“Unni, oppa. You’re here.”
“Yuna, are you okay?”
“I’m fine… I’ll bring some food first.”
Yuna quickly set the table, and we ate yukgaejang in silence.
When the meal ended, I spoke.
“Let’s talk outside.”
I took the party to a café near the hospital.
Thankfully, it wasn’t crowded.
We sat in the most secluded corner.
“Boss, what’s going on?”
To Im Jin-sol’s question, I answered,
“Jo Cheolho’s death was my fault.”
Everyone looked at me in shock.
Keeping a stern face, I continued,
“Watch this.”
Without further explanation, I played the video of Kang Juhui killing Jo Cheolho.
[Hey. Don’t look away. Look here.]
The party members froze when they recognized the face of the man tied to the chair.
[I’ll tell you why you’re dying. It’s because of Choi Changshik. You know him, right?]
[That bastard gouged out my eyes. Piece of shit, isn’t he?]
A woman holding a scalpel appeared on screen.
I said flatly,
“Her name is Kang Juhui. An accomplice in the F-Rank Gate disappearance case.”
“Hold on. Boss.”
Im Jin-sol paused the video.
“Did you report this to the police?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Right after I got the video, Juhui called me. A video call. She had Yuna hostage. She threatened to kill her if I didn’t come within an hour.”
Im Jin-sol, stunned, asked urgently,
“S-so… what happened?”
“I killed Juhui and rescued Yuna. But in the process, Yuna became a vampire.”
“…What?”
Im Jin-sol let out a disbelieving laugh.
“Boss, maybe I’m not getting it, but… what did Yuna become?”
“I said she became a vampire.”
They all stared at me, each with their own expression of shock.
I calmly explained the full chain of events.
“…That’s what happened.”
“Haah. Crazy.”
After listening, Seong Yohan, deep in thought, got to the point.
“But Captain, how did Juhui become a vampire?”
“I heard there’s an organization that made her one.”
“What?”
“They’re called Black Fang.”
Catching my meaning, Yohan’s face darkened.
“You mean there’s a vampire organization?”
“Yeah. They say you can meet them at the Night Market.”
“That… the Night Market is a pretty famous black market…”
I knew it too.
“Right. A vampire group is based in the middle of Seoul.”
The idea that a monster faction could exist in the capital of South Korea left everyone dumbstruck.
“Then this isn’t over, is it?”
“Yeah.”
I met each of their eyes.
“Whether Juhui’s actions were just personal revenge, or the group’s design, I don’t know. If it’s the latter, then they’re still targeting me.”
And—
“If so, then at any time, ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) like with Jo Cheolho, those close to me could get caught in the fire. That means you, and further, even your families are in danger.”
“…”
That was why I explained the truth openly to them first.
There would be no more victims like Jo Cheolho.
Hong Soo-ah quietly asked,
“…Why are they after you, Captain?”
“I don’t know the exact reason.”
After a pause, I went on.
“As much as I want to storm into the Night Market alone and see the faces of Black Fang, I know that’d be stupid.”
Right now we didn’t even know their full strength.
“Vampires are known to appear only in B-Rank Gates. If those bastards came from there, I’d just die if I went alone.”
As I was about to continue, Im Jin-sol slapped the table.
“Hold it. The way you’re talking… you want us to go attack them with you, right? I’m against it. Are you insane? Even together we’d just die!”
“I know.”
I replied evenly,
“That’s why I’m going to report this to the guild and request official support.”
The enemy wasn’t the only one with an organization.
I had one too.
One far stronger than some criminal syndicate.
“I intend to wipe them out of Seoul.”