Chapter 09
Men Who Aren’t Worth Sparing Even in Death
: The Game Has Begun
Hyeoksu was trembling violently as he leaned against the wall.
Voices could be heard behind me.
“Oh my God! What happened?”
“That guy looks dead! Call the police, quick!”
When I looked back, several people were staring at me and backing away.
A woman was reporting the location to the police on her smartphone.
There was no time.
I vaulted over the wall surrounding the parking lot and took off running.
I cut through an alley, entered an apartment complex, and then made my way to the Magangcheon stream.
There were a few people exercising along the stream, but none of them paid me any attention.
After crossing the stream and passing through a neighborhood park, I reached a construction site.
I changed my clothes there, then headed into the mountains to hide.
“Phew.”
My mind was in a daze.
I had secured my escape route in advance and made it out without encountering any trouble, yet my heart was still pounding uncontrollably.
The sensation lingering in my fingertips was strangely satisfying, but the blood pooled in the hollow of my neck bothered me.
Could that cause problems?
After resting for a while, I began crossing the mountain.
Team Leader Jo Taesu examined the crime scene.
There were scattered bloodstains on the ground.
Jo turned to Detective Woo and asked,
“What did the witnesses say?”
“They described him as a muscular man, about 175 centimeters tall. One witness even said she thought he was a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle because he was carrying a round, green bag.”
“So one guy took down all three of them by himself?”
“Yes.”
“What about the tout?”
“He works in the Yeopo faction’s territory, so we suspect this could have been retaliation by the faction. But he says he doesn’t know the attacker at all.”
Jo shook his head.
“There’s no way Ma Punggang would cause trouble the moment he got out of prison. And the sunglasses and mask don’t make sense, either.”
Jo looked toward the wall surrounding the parking lot.
It was about two meters high.
If the suspect had cleared it so easily, he was no ordinary man.
“Detective Seo, collect all the CCTV footage. Detective Woo, look for more witnesses. Detective Jeong, meet with the gang members and find out what you can.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Detective Kang, you’re coming with me.”
“Yes, sir.”
Jo walked out of the alley with a bitter expression.
“I said things had been quiet lately, and now the cases are piling up one after another.”
“Tell me about it. First, someone beats a bunch of delinquent teenagers to a pulp, and now someone tears a gang apart. It’s like Superman has shown up.”
“I hope it really is Superman.”
“Officer!”
Two women approached Jo.
“What is it?”
“I think I saw the man who ran away earlier. He was behind a restaurant building, carrying a turtle-shaped bag.”
“Which restaurant?”
“Wangju Gukbap.”
“Did you notice anything else unusual?”
“He was wearing sunglasses and a mask, so I thought that was strange. But I only saw him for a moment.”
“Thank you. If you remember anything else, give me a call.”
Jo handed her his business card and headed toward Wangju Gukbap.
“It’ll be difficult without a clear view of his face.”
“If we follow the trail one step at a time, we’ll find something.”
Jo examined the building that housed Wangju Gukbap.
There was a PC café on the second floor, a bar on the third, and a massage parlor on the fourth.
He entered the restaurant first and asked for their cooperation.
“I’m Detective Jo Taesu from Magang Police Station. There was an assault nearby, and we’d like your assistance. Could we see your CCTV footage?”
After checking Jo’s identification, the owner showed them the recordings.
They reviewed the footage from roughly an hour before and after the incident.
As they played it back at high speed, Detective Kang suddenly called out.
“Team Leader! There’s the turtle bag!”
Jo looked at the screen.
A man was sitting by the window, looking outside.
“That’s our guy. He saw them dragging the victim over and then went outside.”
They paused the footage when the man was paying for his meal.
Jo zoomed in on his face and leaned closer to the screen.
“Detective Kang, look at his beard. Doesn’t it look fake?”
“It does look that way.”
“I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before…”
Jo furrowed his brow and tapped the back of his head.
“I know I’ve seen that face, but I can’t remember where. The beard is throwing me off.”
“I can’t place him, either.”
“Where have I seen him?”
Jo covered the beard on the screen with his fingertip and continued staring.
The man was definitely familiar, buried somewhere in his memory, but he couldn’t bring the image to mind.
The news reported that a young man had died in the hospital after being assaulted in Hamyang-dong.
They were dressing up a thug, a lowlife gangster, as a young man to make him sound more sympathetic.
Dead.
That meant I’d effectively committed murder for the first time, yet I felt surprisingly calm about it.
Was it because I hadn’t watched them die right in front of me?
Or had the accumulated weight of my revenge numbed my emotions?
The moment I returned to my normal appearance, the wound in the hollow of my neck disappeared completely.
That was the mask’s recovery ability.
Ding-ding—diri-ri-ding—
Hyeoksu was practically bursting with excitement.
“Bro! There was a murder in Hamyang-dong today!”
I pretended not to know anything.
“Really?”
“The guys who stabbed me in the neck, remember? They were beating me up again when some man showed up and saved me. He was unbelievably good at fighting!”
Hyeoksu was overwhelmed with emotion.
“I think he must’ve trained in martial arts professionally. It was like watching a movie! I was scared, but it felt so damn satisfying! Those bastards! They should’ve all died!”
“Are you okay?”
“I got hit a few times, but that guy saved my life. Videos of it have been posted all over various online communities. You should watch them, bro. The guy’s like some martial arts master!”
I was glad Hyeoksu was happy.
“What happens to your work now?”
“The police said they’re going to investigate all the gangsters around here, so I won’t be able to work for a while.”
“Then quit working as a tout and take your time looking for a place to open your own business.”
“I feel bad asking, but could you help me out a little?”
“I told you. I’ve got thirty million won to spare.”
“Bro, thank you so much. I’ll work really hard and pay you back as soon as I can.”
“Just do that.”
I hoped things would work out for Hyeoksu.
He was the one who had stopped me when I was about to give up on life, so I owed him a great deal.
I went over everything that had happened after the assault, checking for mistakes.
The construction site was nothing more than a cleared patch of land, with no CCTV cameras, so it was safe. After crossing the mountain into Anyang, I’d taken Line 4 at Geumjeong Station and traveled around in a wide loop before coming home. It would be difficult to trace my movements.
I’d burned my clothes, shoes, sunglasses, bag, mask, and everything else at an incineration facility, leaving no evidence behind.
I’d even left my smartphone at home, giving myself an alibi.
It’ll be fine.
As I prepared to leave for work, I remembered the video Hyeoksu had mentioned.
Someone among the people gathered behind the parking lot must have filmed it.
I searched online and found several links.
I clicked one and watched.
The voice of the man filming came first.
“Holy shit! This is insane!”
Then the footage showed me taking down the second thug.
One man crumpled after taking a punch to the cheekbone. Another was struck on the jaw with the top of my foot, blood spilling from his mouth.
The fight against the man wielding a Japanese-style fish knife looked as spectacular and graceful as a scene from a movie.
A spinning kick. A left hook. An uppercut.
And finally, a shoulder throw to finish him off.
The comments were overwhelmingly supportive.
└ Gangsters like these deserve to die.
└ Seriously, it’s time for another war on crime.
└ If these bastards ever cross my path, I’ll slice them all up with an angle grinder.
└ These guys are from the Dongtak faction. The big guy who got hit in the jaw is my junior. He used to brag about being an MZ gangster. Serves him right.
└ Stop calling them MZ gangsters. They take pride in that label. They’re just trash.
└ Sir, you are a hero of our time. This is what happens when the authorities fail to do their jobs.
Judging by public opinion, my actions didn’t seem to have been wrong.
A VIP room in a room salon.
Detective Jeong had summoned Hwang Wonchang, the boss of the Dongtak faction, and Ma Punggang, the boss of the Yeopo faction.
Detective Jeong, seated at the head of the table, spoke first.
“Things have gotten pretty tense. Our team leader is furious.”
“Let’s be honest. Didn’t you send someone after them, hyung?”
At Hwang Wonchang’s words, Ma Punggang glared at him.
“Look at you, Wonchang. You’ve grown quite bold while I was away. You must have grown ten lives in the meantime.”
“Hyung, my youngest brother is dead. This is practically a declaration of war!”
“You idiot! Do you think we’d hire someone just to protect some lowlife tout? What the hell do you use that head of yours for—a hat rack?”
As the atmosphere grew hostile, Detective Jeong intervened.
“So neither of you was behind this?”
“Does that make any sense? Why would we hire someone to deal with a bunch of small fry? If we wanted them taken care of, we could’ve just sent Chunsik. And why the hell would we care about protecting some tout?”
Detective Jeong looked at Hwang Wonchang.
“I’m sorry about your brother, but don’t make a move. You know what our team leader is like. Stir up a hornet’s nest, and you’ll regret it.”
“Detective Jeong, that’s my brother! There’s no way I can sit back and do nothing! I’ll find that bastard and peel the skin right off his belly!”
“If you’re confident you can handle our team leader, do whatever you want.”
Detective Jeong stood up, then added,
“Show the video to your men. If anyone recognizes the guy, have them contact us immediately.”
After Detective Jeong left, Hwang Wonchang fumed.
“Fuck! Those damn pigs are making threats when they can’t even catch the guy.”
“Keep your head down for now. If Team Leader Jo gets pissed off, he’ll tear everything apart down to the bone.”
“That’s my brother we’re talking about! I’ll catch that bastard and carve him up! I’m leaving.”
Hwang Wonchang walked out of the room with Chu Dongman, who had been waiting outside, and headed down to the first floor.
Chu Dongman was the enforcer Hwang Wonchang trusted most, a former combat sports athlete known for his cold-blooded nature.
With a cigarette between his lips, Hwang Wonchang spoke in a low voice.
“Send the boys out and make sure they bring him in alive. That tout might know something.”
“I don’t think talking will get us very far.”
“I’ll handle the negotiations. Just make him talk, no matter what!”
“Understood.”
Hwang Wonchang chewed on his lower lip, his snake-like eyes glinting viciously.
A small conference room at Magang Police Station.
Team Leader Jo Taesu opened the meeting.
“Even if the victim was a gangster, someone died, so we have to catch the killer. You’ve all seen the comments. We can’t let the public turn this guy into a hero. Speak freely. What do you think?”
“I think the suspect is connected to the tout. He was watching them and followed them into the alley.”
“I think he’d been keeping an eye on all three of those men.”
“I agree. Rather than risking his life to save a single tout, I’d guess he had some kind of grudge against the three men.”
“Start by digging into the backgrounds of the three victims and the tout.”
Jo looked at the map displayed on the screen and continued.
“The suspect disappeared around the neighborhood park. He probably took the road leading to the construction site and crossed the mountain. But that mountain connects to Anyang, Gwacheon, Sadang, Sillim, Bongcheon, Seoksu, Geumcheon, and countless other areas. We’re going to have to check every CCTV camera we can find, so brace yourselves.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Detective Seo, have you identified the shoes and bag?”
“They’re very old models, so it’ll take some time.”
Detective Woo chimed in.
“I’ve watched the video several times. The guy seems to have trained in martial arts professionally. He knows exactly where to strike and how to put his weight behind each blow.”
“I agree. He even wore a fake beard and planned his escape route in advance. He’s no ordinary civilian.”
“Could the tout have hired him? Apparently, those three often bullied him.”
“With skills like that, he wouldn’t come cheap.”
Jo furrowed his brow before continuing.
“Detective Woo, go to Unung-dong and meet the high school students who were beaten there. Show them the suspect’s picture. It isn’t a proper composite sketch, but see if they recognize him. Use hypnosis if necessary.”
“Understood.”
“Could it really be the same person? If it is, we might have someone playing the hero.”
Playing the hero.
Why?
What did he stand to gain?
There was one thing Jo couldn’t understand.
The suspect had committed the crime while concealing his face, even though he knew perfectly well that the restaurant had CCTV cameras and had already shown his face there.
Was he that confident in his disguises?
Just then, someone knocked on the door, and Detective Pyo from the investigative team entered.
“Team Leader, we found bloodstains that don’t belong to any of the victims.”
