Free Web NovelThe banquet hall, where the event was in full swing, was not lacking in atmosphere.
The elderly man who was the guest of honor today appeared in a wheelchair.
As soon as he appeared, everyone seated at the round tables stood up and bowed their heads.
Even people had come all the way from Japan to celebrate his birthday.
Although he had already retired, many of his juniors and sworn brothers were still living in the gangster world.
The influence of the old man celebrating his eightieth birthday today was obvious.
“Thank you all for coming such a long way.”
The old man took the microphone and greeted his juniors.
“Life was hard back then, and somehow I ended up stepping into the world of fists. Luckily, I met good friends and younger brothers and managed to stay alive. In those chaotic times, we lost many people.”
Like a school principal giving a long speech at a morning assembly, the old man reminisced for quite a while.
Inside the banquet hall where his speech continued, the factions were clearly divided.
Those supporting Chu Dongbin and Lim Hwasu, and those supporting Yang Wooguk.
Even while the old man spoke, they were glaring at each other.
“And...”
After finishing his recollections, the old man trailed off while looking at Lim Hwasu and Yang Wooguk.
“Hwasu. And Wooguk. Come up here.”
At the old man’s call, Lim Hwasu and Yang Wooguk reluctantly stood up.
The two approached him and greeted him.
“Boss. Congratulations on your eightieth birthday!”
“Congratulations, Boss!”
They raised their voices as if competing.
“My hearing isn’t gone yet!”
The old man waved his hand sharply, frowning as he scolded them.
“You two! I hear you’ve been pointing knives at each other lately!”
“......”
“You fools. What kind of era do you think this is, starting a war between yourselves? Do you all want to die together?!”
The old man slammed the armrest of his wheelchair.
Despite being in a wheelchair, he was still vigorous.
“Hey! Hwasu.”
“Yes, Boss.”
“Even cold water has an order of who drinks first. Yet you want to push aside your seniors and become the boss? Should all your seniors retire then? Speak.”
“......”
Lim Hwasu simply lowered his head and said nothing.
There were countless things he wanted to say, but this was not the place.
“Why are you silent? Are you ignoring my words now too?”
“No, Boss. I did not ask to be recommended as the next chairman.”
“You should have refused anyway. Can you honestly say you had no greed? Look me in the eye and say it.”
After the continued scolding, Lim Hwasu finally raised his head and faced the old man.
“...Originally, it would not have mattered much to me who became chairman, as long as it wasn’t Director Yang. But he has already chosen me. This is no longer something I can decide myself.”
Just as Lim Hwasu said, the person who created Chunha Group had chosen him.
But the old man did not see why that should matter. Chunha Group had been created by men of the fist and was meant to be carried forward by their juniors.
For the first time in decades since liberation, all the fists of Korea had finally been unified.
No one had ever achieved such a thing.
Even Kim Duhan, who once tried to dominate the underworld, failed to accomplish it. And neither did Lee Jeongjae, who once enjoyed absolute power under the protection of the Liberal Party government.
As long as they stopped killing each other, everyone could live well.
The old man had no desire to see the underworld divided again.
“If Director Yang takes control of Chunha Group, we will return to the old days.”
After hearing Lim Hwasu’s words, the old man turned his gaze toward Yang Wooguk.
Seeing the killing intent in Yang Wooguk’s eyes, the old man narrowed his deeply wrinkled eyes.
“Hey. Yang Wooguk.”
At the old man’s call, Yang Wooguk erased the killing intent from his gaze and bowed his head.
“Yes, Boss.”
“No matter how much you dislike Hwasu being chosen as chairman, how could you attack your own family?” freeweɓnovēl.coɱ
“I did not give that order, Boss.”
The old man frowned and asked again.
“Really? You’re saying you didn’t instigate it?”
“Yes. That’s correct. The younger men below me simply showed excessive loyalty.”
“Then should I cripple that man’s leg?”
The smile on Yang Wooguk’s face disappeared.
“Boss... are you telling me to cripple one of my men?”
“You said it wasn’t you. Are you saying you’ll protect a bastard who ignored his superior’s orders and attacked his own family?”
Although the situation had been caused by his own instructions, Yang Wooguk could not openly say he would abandon his subordinate here.
Clicking his tongue inwardly, he finally spoke.
“...He is my subordinate. I must protect him.”
“Tsk. That’s exactly why you’re not qualified to be a boss, Wooguk. When the time comes to discard someone, you must do it without hesitation.”
The old man clicked his tongue and shook his head.
“Anyway, both of you stop attacking each other immediately.”
“If Director Yang stops, I will stop as well.”
“If Director Lim gives up the chairman position, I will stop attacking.”
The old man tried to mediate, but their positions remained completely parallel.
“Then both of you intend to destroy each other! Appoint someone else as chairman!”
“That is not something I can decide myself. Even if I say I don’t want it, there is no guarantee he will listen.”
Lim Hwasu answered stubbornly. The old man found him frustrating.
“Since when have we lived and died by the orders of that kid Kim Muhyuk! We built this with our own power—”
At that moment, the banquet hall doors burst open and a man rushed inside.
Everyone’s gaze turned toward the suddenly opened entrance.
“S-Something terrible has happened! Someone has attacked! Many people are already injured!”
Lim Hwasu and Yang Wooguk looked at each other.
Thinking the other side had launched the attack, their eyes filled with hostility.
* * *
At Manager Ma’s threat, Jung Seokgi looked around.
The men from Lim Hwasu’s side were watching the situation carefully, while the large men from Yang Wooguk’s side glared viciously.
“You understand how important today’s event is for our company, don’t you?”
“Why should I care about that? I’ll say it one last time. Anyone who wants to leave should go outside the hotel and wait.”
Manager Ma spoke indifferently and raised his hand.
Realizing that the order to advance would come any moment, Jung Seokgi quickly made a decision.
“We’ll withdraw. Everyone, move outside!”
Even though Lim Hwasu had not given the order personally, clashing with Manager Ma here would never be a good choice.
“What are you doing! Move out now!”
The gangsters on Lim Hwasu’s side hesitated but began walking forward following Jung Seokgi’s command.
“Hey! Where do you think you’re going! Are you betraying us?!”
Gangsters from Yang Wooguk’s side grabbed their shoulders and shouted.
“Let go, you bastard!”
But the men from Lim Hwasu’s side shook them off roughly and quickly exited the hotel entrance.
“I’ll go upstairs and report first.”
Manager Ma nodded.
Having received permission, Jung Seokgi turned toward the elevators.
At that moment—
“Die!”
A man screamed and charged at Jung Seokgi from behind.
The sashimi knife he pulled from his clothes gleamed sharply.
Caught off guard, Jung Seokgi twisted his body to dodge the blade, but it still grazed his side.
“Y-You crazy bastard!”
Seeing this, two of Jung Seokgi’s subordinates pulled sashimi knives from their clothes.
“You son of a bitch! How dare you swing a knife at him!”
Chaos erupted.
Watching the situation unfold, Manager Ma shook his head slowly and gave the signal.
“Advance. Team One, follow me upstairs.”
At Manager Ma’s gesture, the mercenaries surged forward.
Anyone who intended to leave had already gone. Most of those remaining were Yang Wooguk’s men.
As the mercenaries charged in, the gangsters who had been scrambling in confusion began pulling out their sashimi knives to fight back.
“Die! Do you know where you are?!”
Manager Ma watched the scene for a moment before leading Team One toward the stairs instead of the elevator.
“Stop them! Stop those bastards!”
A shout rang out, and several gangsters ran past the mercenaries toward Manager Ma.
Manager Ma did not even turn around.
While a few of his subordinates fell back to deal with the pursuers, he continued walking straight toward the stairs.
Several large men were blocking the stairway, holding sashimi knives.
A few of Manager Ma’s quick-witted subordinates pulled out their batons and rushed forward.
“Die!”
“Is that ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) the only thing you gangsters know how to say?”
Unlike the enraged gangsters, Manager Ma’s men looked completely relaxed.
Even as the fight broke out, Manager Ma calmly walked forward toward the stairs.
He threw a punch at the massive man standing alone in front of the others.
Before the man could react, the punch shot forward and slammed into his face.
The giant collapsed instantly from a single blow.
“Clear the way.”
Half of his men rushed up the stairs.
Dull thuds could be heard both behind Manager Ma and from above.
Passing the groaning bodies sprawled on the stairs, Manager Ma continued upward.
It didn’t take long to reach the third floor, where the banquet hall was located.
One of his subordinates flung open the tightly shut emergency door.
“Wow. It’s packed here too.”
The man who opened the door sighed after looking inside.
“Why? A lot of them?”
Another subordinate asked as he stepped inside behind him.
The moment he saw the gangsters guarding the banquet hall entrance, he grimaced.
“What is this, bugs? No matter how many you kill, more keep popping out. This is exhausting.”
“Well, what can you do? Orders are orders.”
After the light joke, the subordinates continued past the emergency door and entered the lobby of the banquet hall floor.
When Manager Ma stepped in, his men immediately parted to both sides to make a path.
“Clean it up.”
“Yes!”
At Manager Ma’s command, the subordinates charged forward. The gangsters swung their sashimi knives wildly, but the men paid them no mind.
The sound of knives cutting through the air mixed with the heavy strikes of batons, along with shouting and groaning.
Because there were so many gangsters, the fight dragged on for quite a while. Manager Ma simply stood there and watched.
After some time passed, the large banquet hall doors opened, and the elderly man in the wheelchair came out, followed by veteran and current-generation high-ranking gangsters.
“W-What is this?! What kind of mess is this?! Who the hell did this?!”
The old man shouted, unable to hold back his anger.
The man standing behind his wheelchair recognized Manager Ma and whispered into his ear.
“That man is Kim Muhyuk’s right hand.”
After hearing the whisper, the old man glared at Manager Ma.
But Manager Ma calmly met his gaze.
“Do you know what kind of day today is?! Some bastard with no background dares cause trouble on my birthday?! What are you waiting for?! Kill him! Kill that bastard!”
From the opposite side, Lim Hwasu spoke in an attempt to calm him down.
“At this rate things will escalate, Boss. Let’s first find out what’s going on—”
The old man cut him off and pointed a finger at him.
“You bastard! Are you ignoring me too? Just because I’ve retired, you think I have no power left? Do you know what will happen if I give a single order? Hey, Wooguk! Deal with this quickly and drag that bastard in front of me! If you do, I’ll support you no matter what.”
At those words, Yang Wooguk lifted one corner of his mouth.
It wasn’t a bad offer.
With the old man’s support, Lim Hwasu’s faction could be shaken significantly.
“Yes, Boss.”
Yang Wooguk gave a look to the men standing behind him, and more than a dozen burly men stepped forward.
They had formed the organization together with Yang Wooguk and were the key contributors who had helped him rise to this position.
Each one of them was a famous knife fighter in the underworld.
As they walked forward, they picked up the sashimi knives scattered across the floor and gripped them in both hands.
The moment they grabbed the knives, they rushed forward and joined the fight.
With the knife fighters joining, the battle that had been leaning to one side became fierce again.
As time passed, some of Manager Ma’s subordinates also began to get injured.
After carefully observing the number and movements of the knife fighters, Manager Ma bent down and picked up a sashimi knife from the floor.
Then he sprinted forward.
“I’m going in. Make a path.”
His subordinates pushed the enemy back once more.
Following the path they created, Manager Ma rushed toward the banquet hall.
“Stop him! Stop him!”
“Where did that monster come from?!”
The knife fighters shouted, but the crowd blocked their way, making it impossible for them to move forward.
Just like that, Manager Ma entered the banquet hall.
“M-Manager...”
Lim Hwasu called out to him, but Manager Ma gave no response.
Instead, he charged straight toward Yang Wooguk.
Yang Wooguk stepped back and shouted,
“S-Stop him! Stop that bastard!”
Several of Yang Wooguk’s remaining subordinates rushed forward to block Manager Ma.
But Manager Ma easily subdued them by slashing their throats with the knife.
Blood sprayed instantly, and the men collapsed clutching their necks.
Terrified, Yang Wooguk trembled as he slowly stepped backward.
There were still many gangsters present, but none dared step forward to block Manager Ma, who advanced with clear killing intent.
Manager Ma spoke coldly as he walked toward the retreating Yang Wooguk.
“How dare you ignore the Boss’s words?”
Holding the knife dripping with blood, Manager Ma approached him, radiating a terrifying killing aura. freewēbnoveℓ.com
Driven by fear, Yang Wooguk finally lost his senses and rushed forward, throwing a punch.
“Die, you bastard!”
But Manager Ma easily dodged the punch and swung the knife.
“Aaagh!”
Yang Wooguk’s posture broke as his arm was cut.
Manager Ma immediately stepped into him.
Then he grabbed one of Yang Wooguk’s legs as he fell and slashed through his Achilles tendon.
Blood burst out like a fountain. It splattered across Manager Ma’s face and clothes, but he didn’t care at all.
“Listen carefully. The reason you can hold a celebration in a place like this isn’t because you’re so great. It’s only possible because the Boss allowed it.”
His expression remained indifferent. His voice carried no rise or fall.
And the blood on Manager Ma’s face was more than enough to make everyone in the room tremble in fear.
