Free Web Novel“AAAAAAAAAGHHHH!”
Blood burst out and soaked the office floor. Heo Gihun screamed in agony, and the others' faces darkened.
Ah—except for Byun Seongho, who was still sprawled out on the floor, too dazed to register anything.
“Son of a bitch, still trying to stir up shit. What? You’re saying Brother Saseong gave the order?”
Wiping the blood from his eyes with the back of his hand, Park Dongsu turned to look at the remaining two.
“You’re retiring too. I can’t protect you anymore. You’re not gonna tell me who ordered this, huh?”
“It’s true, Brother Saseong gave the green light. We went to him ourselves and asked if we could move.”
“Yeah. We’ll just retire quietly... so please, let it go.”
At that moment, the youngest guy who’d been keeping watch outside ran in shouting.
“Detective Park just arrived!”
Park Dongsu handed the knife to Yang Soohyeong and spoke.
“So, you’re saying Brother Saseong gave his blessing. If that’s a lie, you’re really fucking dead. Got that?”
While Dongsu gave his cold warning, Hyunseong’s father walked in.
He took one look at the scene and roared in shock.
“What the fuck is this?!”
Seeing the blood running down my arm, he rushed to me.
“Muhyuk! Are you alright? Who was it? Which bastard did this to you?!”
“It just grazed me.”
“Grazed?! You’re bleeding like this. Doesn’t it hurt?!”
At the sight of Hyunseong’s father acting like this, not just Park Dongsu and his men—but even the hardened gangsters around him—were stunned.
After examining me carefully, Hyunseong’s father turned with a terrifying aura and shouted at the gangsters.
“Hey! Park Dongsu, you fucker! Didn’t I tell you not to drag Muhyuk into this shit? Are you really that desperate to eat prison food?”
“No, Detective... I didn’t lure him into anything. That kid’s not the type to do what he’s told anyway.”
Dongsu responded with a wronged expression. He really did look genuinely innocent.
“Ha... And what is this goddamn mess? What’s Gihun doing over there clutching his leg? And what’s going on with Seongho, Kangseok, and Byungsoo? The whole Busan crew is here—what, was this some kind of reunion?” frёewebηovel.cѳm
“I just wanted to buy Muhyuk something nice to eat since he was visiting Busan! Then these assholes suddenly came at me with knives. You think I could just sit still and take it?”
“This... this isn’t something I can cover up anymore.”
Hyunseong’s father sighed and shook his head in frustration.
I stepped between the two and spoke up.
“Father, could I have a word?”
“Hey! Muhyuk! You should be thinking about going to the hospital, not hanging around here. Go!”
“It’s not that serious. Please, just step inside with me for a moment...”
When I kept staring at him, Hyunseong’s father finally sighed and followed me into the inner office.
“This place is a wreck. ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) It’s honestly a relief you only got hurt this much.”
We stood near the only clean desk and started talking.
“I’d like the other side of this—everyone but Park Dongsu—to be prosecuted. How high up in the prosecution would we need this to be coordinated?”
“The prosecution... maybe a deputy chief prosecutor in the Violent Crimes Division? Why? What are you planning with Dongsu?”
“I need influence in Seoul. So that rank should be enough, right?”
“If the prosecutor decides not to raise an issue, then yeah—it’ll be smooth.”
Right then and there, I called Chief Prosecutor Yoon.
“This is Muhyuk, sir. I’m calling to ask a favor.”
– A favor?
“A situation broke out in Busan. Is there anyone in the prosecution who’d listen to you? Preferably someone with a high enough rank...”
– Busan? That’s easy. Wait a moment. I’ll have someone contact you directly.
“Thank you, sir.”
– Come on, no need for thanks between us. Don’t be a stranger, alright?
“I’ll visit you when I’m back in Seoul.”
– I’ll hold you to that.
After hanging up, I turned to Hyunseong’s father.
“Sir, go ahead and wrap things up outside. I’ll handle the prosecution side and match steps with you. Sorry again for asking this of you...”
He waved me off.
“Forget it. It’s not the first time I’ve cleaned up after you guys. No need to apologize. Before you head back to Seoul, let’s have a meal together. With Grandma and Myungsoo’s family too.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And... don’t get too mixed up with gangsters. I know you say you need them, so I won’t lecture you. But very few people come out clean from ties to gangs.”
I only nodded.
When we stepped back into the main office, all eyes turned to us.
Hyunseong’s father clicked his tongue repeatedly, clearly appalled at the scene.
“Sigh... Could you tone it down a bit? A few of these guys need to go to the hospital, not the police station. Let’s see... where’s the phone, Dongsu?”
“Father, I have a phone...”
“Forget it. Why are you using such an expensive one?”
Returning to his role as Detective Park, he picked up the office phone and dialed somewhere.
Moments later, Detective Park’s team entered.
“Whoa~ Captain, what the hell happened here?”
“Spare me. Take the ones needing medical attention to the hospital, Jjanggu, that’s your job. I’ll take the rest. Let’s get moving.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Oh, and don’t touch Dongsu’s kid.”
“Sir?”
“It’s all arranged with the prosecution. Move your asses already!”
The officers began sorting and dragging the perpetrators out.
“Muhyuk, I’ll see you later.”
“Yes. Take care, Father.”
“And Dongsu.”
“Yes, sir.”
Hyunseong’s father gave him a hard look.
“You better behave. If anything happens to Muhyuk, I’ll make sure you rot in prison for the rest of your life. You understand?”
“Yes, sir.”
Tch.
With a click of his tongue, Hyunseong’s father walked out.
After the detectives hauled out the ringleaders and their crew, only Dongsu’s men were left.
“Take the injured ones to the hospital, feed the others and send them back to their lodgings. Make sure they’ve got spending money too.”
“Yes, boss.”
Yang Soohyeong led the underlings out.
Now only the three of us remained in the office—me, Park Dongsu, and Lee Sanggeun.
“Phew... Brother Saseong gave the order, huh? Don’t know whether to believe that or not.”
“Boss, I suggest you verify it for yourself,” Sanggeun replied calmly.
Dongsu studied Sanggeun’s face in silence.
“Sigh... we’ve got a lot to talk about too, don’t we?”
Letting out another heavy sigh, he turned to me.
“Muhyuk, I’m all over the place right now. Give me a few days—I’ll contact you. I’m sorry.”
“...Understood.”
“Go on now. I’ve gotta have a talk with this lawyer and get things cleaned up. Let’s meet again soon.”
“Yes, sir.”
Just like that, I left the office and returned home, without having achieved my goal.
* * *
After Kim Muhyuk left, only Park Dongsu and Lee Sanggeun remained. They each took a clean chair and sat down.
“Hey. Since when have you been carrying around those knives? That wasn’t your first time, huh?”
“Hmm... I’ve been living that way since I left the orphanage. Somehow, I passed the bar and became a lawyer.”
“Why didn’t you say anything? We’re alone here. You’re not hiding a knife strapped to your ankle, are you? I never gave you permission for that—and this is a matter of trust between us.”
Dongsu looked at Sanggeun seriously and ran a hand across his forehead.
“Watch your words. If not, one of us doesn’t leave this office alive today. I’m not in the mood.”
“I didn’t see any need to tell you. I’ve never once had bad intentions toward you, Boss. When you first approached me, I asked you one thing—if you’d help me make money.”
“...”
In the silence, their gazes locked.
Sanggeun lowered his eyes first and bowed his head.
“I need money. I have a lot of kids depending on me. To feed them, I had to become ruthless.”
He pulled out one of the sashimi knives he’d carried and handed it to Dongsu.
Taking the blade, Dongsu stared quietly at him.
“If you’re uncomfortable with me carrying knives, go ahead—cripple me with that right now. But if you do... then you have to take responsibility for me until the end.”
It was Lee Sanggeun, with a resolute look in his eyes.
Park Dongsu, who had been silently staring at the sashimi knife, handed it back to him and said,
“Clean it up. The problem was that you didn’t say anything. I’ve never once doubted you while working together, so from now on, just tell me. I don’t want to go through something like this ever again······.”
“Yes, sir.”
“You were calling me ‘hyung’ just fine earlier. Keep doing that. Just call me ‘boss’ in front of others, got it?”
“Yes, hyung.”
Silence returned to the office.
Park Dongsu, lost in thought with a bitter expression, suddenly asked,
“What do you think? Do you really think Brother Saseong tried to set me up? No matter how much I think about it, I just can’t understand. I did all his time for him, I even took responsibility for his family. He can’t do this to me, can he? Did I do something wrong?”
His lamenting voice trembled slightly.
“May I speak my mind?”
When Park Dongsu nodded, Lee Sanggeun cautiously opened his mouth.
“I don’t think he gave a direct order from prison. I think it was more of a scheme, trying to create a justification. However······.”
“You don’t have to watch your words around me. Go on.”
“If you keep letting Lee Saseong get away with things like this, there’s no guarantee there won’t be more people like Heo Gihun. I think your lenient way of handling things has made them take you lightly and act rashly.”
“Mm.”
Since he’d felt something from this incident, Park Dongsu couldn’t deny Lee Sanggeun’s words and nodded.
“A decision needs to be made. You need to be more resolute. Take in those who should be kept close, but those who need to be removed—make sure they’re crippled so they never think twice again.”
“Damn it······. That Brother Saseong too, why the hell did he let himself get manipulated into hurting people like this.”
“······.”
When he’d first said he would do time for Lee Saseong, his younger brothers had tried to stop him. But even taking responsibility for his family—it all came back as betrayal. Park Dongsu hadn’t expected it.
No······.
Maybe, deep down, he had known, but chose to look away.
The era of romanticism was already over······.
Trying to shake off the heavy thoughts, Park Dongsu shook his head.
“Well, putting that aside. Whew~ When the hell am I going to clean up this place and sit down? I wanted to have a proper talk with Dongsaeng Muhyuk for the first time in a while, but now I’m too embarrassed to look him in the face.”
“Ha, haha.”
“You saw it earlier, right? How I beat the hell out of that bastard Seongho. You know what he said to me when we first met······.”
As Park Dongsu started bragging about Kim Muhyuk again, Lee Sanggeun sighed.
* * *
That evening.
I got a call on my cell phone.
It was someone saying they’d been contacted by Chief Prosecutor Yoon, asking what exactly they were supposed to do.
We agreed to meet near my house for a brief chat.
“Hello, I’m Kim Muhyuk.”
The prosecutor who showed up greeted me with a nod, then sat down and asked bluntly,
“What is it you want me to do?”
His tone was stiff and irritated, quite different from what I’d expected.
“By any chance······ which university did you attend?”
“Is that important right now?”
It seemed Chief Prosecutor Yoon hadn’t explained properly and had just ordered him to follow through with something out of the blue.
I gave him a polite smile.
“I’m Class of ’93 from the Law Department at Korea National University. I asked just in case you might be my senior.”
“Oh, really? So you’re my junior.”
His hardened expression relaxed slightly at the mention of Korea National.
“I’m not sure how much Senior Yoon explained, but······ it shouldn’t be anything bad for you.”
“Mm······.”
“If you can wrap this up cleanly, I’ll do my best to make sure you receive some good news.”
“Let’s hear it.”
I laid everything out—what should be excluded, what should be included—and gave him a full explanation.
After listening to the whole story, the prosecutor twisted his lips into a grin, as if he finally understood why he’d been summoned.
“Ha, this is the kind of thing I’d do even without a reward. I get to properly rope in and lock up some gangsters. But you want me to leave the other side out?”
“Yes, everything’s been settled with the police. If you can work with Captain Park from the Violent Crimes Division at Jungbu Police Station, everything will go smoothly. They said they can’t proceed unless the prosecution agrees.”
“Right. The police can’t handle cases however they want without orders from us. Got it. I’ll give it a go.”
“Thank you.”
After that, we just chatted casually about school and parted ways.
Before we split, I promised to treat him to a proper round of drinks next time in Seoul.
By the time I saw him off, it was already dark around us.
I let out a long sigh.
It was a day that made me painfully aware of how desperately I needed someone like Manager Ha by my side.
* * *
A few days later, I got a call from Park Dongsu.
The place he asked me to meet him was a street vendor tent in Jagalchi.
“Dongsaeng! Over here!”
When I lifted the flap and peeked inside, Park Dongsu, already seated, waved at me.
I greeted him with a smile and stepped in to take a seat.
“Hey, about last time—sorry. Damn bastards, I had no idea they’d pull that crap then.”
“It’s alright.”
I shook my head lightly and brought up the matter we hadn’t had time to finish last time.
“You said Busan’s mostly been cleaned up, didn’t you?”
“That’s right······.”
“You’ll need to finish that quickly and start expanding into Seoul. When do you think you’ll be ready?”
“Once we tidy up the Haeundae side, everything’s more or less done. After that, I’ll have two of my most trusted younger guys handle things. But why?”
Park Dongsu poured me a shot of soju.
I drank it and slowly opened my mouth.
“Before that, deal with Lee Saseong first.”
The smile on Park Dongsu’s face froze.
< The End of Betrayal Is Always... > The End.
