Even though he must have seen Oh Gil-seok and Shin Seong-il being dragged away earlier, Moon Tae-beom's eyes showed no signs of being intimidated. I did not know if he was trusting the Blue Wind Association behind him, or if he believed I would never kill him since he had Japanese citizenship.
"Moon Tae-beom, Fune Toshiro."
However, as soon as Moon Tae-beom's Japanese name came out of my mouth, his eyes began to shake rapidly.
"The action captain of the Hiraguri group, a secondary organization of the Yamaguchi-gumi. The adopted son of the boss, Choi Jae-soo."
"...How do you know that?"
This was exactly the extent of what I had found out in my previous life. It was just personal information at best, but it was absolutely not something a Young Master who was merely a college student could find out. Moon Tae-beom was probably thinking the same thing.
I smiled at him with a look that said I knew everything.
"Just what is your true identity?"
The end of Moon Tae-beom's voice was trembling.
"Kim Mu-hyeok. You already know, right? Wasn't your goal to get rid of me?"
As I completely eliminated the Cheon Su-man brothers and stood tall as the successor, this guy's fate also changed. Originally, Moon Tae-beom was the advance guard who entered Korea in 1997, slowly eating away at Myeon District's Private Loan Market when the Interest Limitation Act disappeared in 1998, waiting for the main force to arrive from Japan.
"...What do you know?"
"You are not in a position to ask. Just tell me everything you know. If you do, I might consider only taking one of your arms."
"Stop talking nonsense and kill me. I will choose honor."
"Hahaha."
I laughed for a long time at his words.
"Honor?"
"If I can die as a subject of the great Japanese Empire..."
"What subject, when you were looked down on so much in Japan. Fine, do not speak. I plan to let you go just like this."
"What?"
Moon Tae-beom looked at me with a bewildered face. A cold smile appeared on my face.
"And I will secretly spread a rumor. That you told me everything and begged for your life. There is no need for me to dirty my hands when you say you want to die honorably."
All color drained from Moon Tae-beom's face.
"Go back to Japan and die. Section Chief Ma, do not lay a hand on him and take him back to Myeon District."
"Understood."
I got up from the chair without any lingering attachment and turned my body. Moon Tae-beom, who had been sitting in a daze, suddenly snapped back to his senses. With his body tied up, he crawled on the floor to come to me.
"Please, please... kill me."
At Moon Tae-beom's desperate voice, I turned my body around again. I looked at him with a gaze full of contempt, but Moon Tae-beom could not say a word even while looking into my eyes. His previously fierce demeanor was nowhere to be found, and Moon Tae-beom's eyes were simply filled with distant terror.
"Tell me everything you know. Then I will kill you. An honorable death? A subject of the great Japanese Empire? Fine, I will give that to you."
"...Understood. I will tell you everything."
One of Section Chief Ma's subordinates dragged him and sat him on the chair. I turned around again and walked out of the factory. The rain that had been falling when we arrived had changed into snow.
"What weather."
As I reached out my hand, a gently falling snowflake landed on my palm. The coldness of the snow brought me back to my senses.
"Find out everything you can from Shin Seong-il and Moon Tae-beom and report back, and if there is nothing more to learn, dispose of them as you see fit. Keep Oh Gil-seok alive. We will have a use for him later."
"Understood."
"Let us go, it is cold."
Section Chief Ma opened an umbrella over my head and walked slowly, matching my pace. Arriving at Pyeongchang District, I went straight to Grandfather's study.
"Grandfather, it is Mu-hyeok."
"Come in."
When I opened the door and walked in, Grandfather's face as he looked at me was like a child overflowing with curiosity.
"You worked hard. Have a seat first."
"Yes."
I followed Grandfather and sat on the sofa. He seemed to be looking forward to this in many ways.
"Speak."
"It turns out Boss Shin intentionally approached Grandfather from the very beginning."
"Hmm..."
Grandfather swallowed at my words.
"Section Chief Ma will find out the details. For now, Boss Shin and a Japanese yakuza named Moon Tae-beom, along with the Baek-ho faction in Gangnam, are involved."
"The Baek-ho faction? Baek Jeong-gi?"
"Yes. When we went to subdue the two, Baek Jeong-gi's right-hand man came into Myeon District to save Boss Shin. No, it seems he was waiting nearby from the start."
Grandfather's expression grew a little serious.
"Hmm... So they are saying they no longer care about the unwritten rule of not touching each other."
"Since one of the three major factions in Gangnam broke the promise first, I plan to raise Park Dong-soo's forces and strike back."
"It was on the news that there was a fight between thugs on the streets of Myeon District. There will need to be a scapegoat."
"Park Dong-soo said he would prepare one. The Baek-ho faction will probably prepare a scapegoat as well. Please help ensure it ends at that level for now."
Grandfather nodded at my words.
"Do not engage in an all-out war for the time being. The president is no ordinary person, so we do not know where he will bounce next."
"I will tell them to slowly squeeze their breathing space. An all-out war would mean death for both sides, after all. Even the Blue Wind Association will have nothing to say about this much."
"Handle it as you see fit. But do not step forward to the front lines yourself. Use Myeong-hun's forces if you need them."
"I will speak to Manager Ha if needed."
As I spoke with emphasis, Grandfather's expression seemed a bit relieved.
"By the way, you said Seong-il intentionally approached me. Since when? I was the one who chose him. From the wrestling ring."
"He said he served someone since the day he was born. Over generations."
"Hmm... So that is why he quit wrestling and came to me. There was nothing strange no matter how much background checking was done... A spy for the Blue Wind Association."
A hollow sound, indistinguishable between a scoff and a sigh, rang out in the study.
"I will report the details later. We also failed to find any connections with the Blue Wind Association when we investigated. If it were not for Moon Tae-beom, I would not have noticed it either."
As I mentioned Moon Tae-beom's name, Grandfather demanded an explanation from me with an intrigued look.
"Right, just how did you know that guy?"
Naturally, I could not tell the truth. I made a suitable excuse.
"It seems he was acquainted with Boss Park in Busan. That is how I found out."
"Hah... You truly never know how human affairs will turn out. To think you would receive help from a thug."
"He is a decent person. I have known him since I was young, and he has never made a mistake in the tasks I gave him. Being too kind for a thug is his flaw, but in a way, it is also an advantage."
Grandfather nodded and soon leaned his back against the sofa.
"Are you feeling unwell anywhere?"
"My body is really not well lately..."
"You should go to the hospital."
"Yes. I already scheduled it for next week anyway."
"Please rest. I will take my leave."
I bowed and came outside. Manager Ha, who was standing outside the door, looked at me and bowed his head.
"Grandfather's health looks noticeably worse. Please pay close attention to him, Manager Ha."
"Understood."
A few days passed. Eventually, one of Park Dong-soo's action captains and ten gang members took the fall and turned themselves in. The Baek-ho faction did something similar.
There were too many witnesses, so it was impossible to forcibly cover it up.
"Everything has been taken care of."
As always, I was sitting on the bed, listening to the report from Section Chief Ma, who stood up straight.
"Boss Shin knew very little. He said they always contacted him first, and they did not tell him what to do. Even for this incident, he said he only received orders to connect Moon Tae-beom with Boss."
"Hmm..."
"I think it might be preparation for after the Chairman passes away. No matter how much Shin Seong-il gets close to the Chairman, he cannot act by bypassing Manager Ha."
I thought the same. No matter if Shin Seong-il became a close aide, it was a fairly well-known fact that Grandfather did not trust people easily. Let alone the fact that the Blue Wind Association could not possibly be unaware of that fact.
"Oh Gil-seok was reportedly in charge of Moon Tae-beom's escort. He was always nearby, and it seems he rushed over recklessly when we suddenly barged in."
"To think a guy who calls himself the right-hand man of Gangnam's largest gang boss is merely acting as an escort for an action captain of a Japanese syndicate."
I clicked my tongue in sheer absurdity. Breaking the promise with Myeon District just to escort the action captain of a lower-level organization, not even the boss of the Yamaguchi-gumi. It clearly showed who had the upper hand in their relationship.
"Is there anything else?"
"Yes, he was told that he only received orders to protect Moon Tae-beom."
"Package him up properly in a few spots and throw him in front of a big nightclub in Gangnam. It is the Baek-ho faction's territory, so they will pick him up on their own."
"Understood."
The conversation about Moon Tae-beom continued. This was the important part.
"It seems Boss's words worked properly; he told us everything obediently."
Yes, dying by my hands was much better for Moon Tae-beom. Because then, at the very least, his family in Japan would be safe. However, if I let him go like this, and if I secretly released a few pieces of information I knew, not only Moon Tae-beom himself but also his family would face a terrible fate.
"He said they had been trying to work on Korea's private loan market but could not build up their power properly because of the Chairman, and only recently did Moon Tae-beom come in first to slowly prepare to establish a foothold."
This was something I already knew.
"But suddenly he received a call from Japan, and an order was given to approach Boss through Boss Shin's introduction. They said they would give him another order once he made the approach."
And this was the changed future. Their actions had changed because of my moves.
"He said his superior told him to gain your trust unconditionally, and to kill you when the order to kill was given."
Then he must have been a bit annoyed that things did not go his way. I raised the corners of my mouth slightly. This was perhaps an opportunity.
An opportunity to create a connection point with the Blue Wind Association, whose tail I could rarely ever catch.
"He said the operation was hurriedly changed after Boss Cheon was kicked out of the country. It seems he does not really know much about the plan after eliminating you."
If I had made one wrong move, I almost collapsed in vain again. There was no chance I would keep Moon Tae-beom by my side, but I had not suspected Boss Shin, who showed unwavering loyalty to Grandfather.
"Huu..."
At the sound of my sigh, Section Chief Ma bowed his head.
"It seems we need to increase the personnel for Boss's personal security as well."
"...That is uncomfortable."
"Even if they travel with us in a different car, we must increase the numbers."
Section Chief Ma spoke as if he absolutely could not compromise.
"I am not one to be easily beaten anywhere either. Section Chief Ma is enough."
"I beg of you, Boss."
If he said it like that, it could not be helped. I let out a sigh and nodded.
"Instead, only Section Chief Ma will be in close proximity, and let us have the others support from the perimeter."
"Thank you, Boss."
"What about the subordinates who got hurt?"
"There is no one severely injured, so it is fine."
I gave a small nod.
"Understood. You may leave. Ah, please relay it to Manager Ha as well. So that he can report to the Chairman."
"Yes."
Section Chief Ma left, and I was left alone in my thoughts. 'To think they would already show movements to eliminate me.' I needed to investigate the situation in Japan a bit more.
I planned to see if there was any faction that could be hostile to the Yamaguchi-gumi, and if there was, I intended to move in a direction that utilized them. I had no intention of just sitting still. If I take a hit, I must pay it back tenfold.
As a result, Oh Gil-seok had one arm and one leg damaged beyond recovery, and was thrown into the Baek-ho faction's territory. Shin Seong-il and Moon Tae-beom were not reported to me, but perhaps they were somewhere off the Incheon coast? The cold winter was also now at its end.
In Japan, the Kobe earthquake occurred, and insurance companies that had invested in dollars withdrew their overseas funds to pay out insurance claims, causing the yen to strengthen.
"Brother, let us clear out the yen. Liquidate everything by the end of March, and bet on the decline with a maturity around September. There will be a lot of volume." — Okay.
The profit is good this time too.
"Once this investment is over, there will be no major investments for a while. Leave half in Dreamhigh Investment and please work on splitting the other half into a few paper companies." — What?
Paper companies?
You want to make shell companies?
"Yes. Make it as complicated as possible so that no one knows who the owner is. There must be professionals who specialize in that. It does not matter how much it costs, so set it up properly and distribute it into several corporations across various tax havens," — ...
You know this is a crime, right? The moment I get caught, I will never get out of an American prison until I die? A stiff voice came over the receiver.
I chuckled.
"So do not worry about the fees and use multiple agencies. Then you can absolutely launder it without anyone knowing who the owner is." — Okay.
Understood for now. I will start the distribution work as soon as the Japan business is done. Ah, I found the people you mentioned.
Should I recruit them?
"Stand by for now." — Huu...
Working with you makes every single day a roller coaster, seriously.
"Hahahaha. It will be even more fun. Look forward to it."
As I hung up the phone, Ma Seok-dae stopped the car as if he had been waiting.
"We have arrived, Boss."
When I opened the car door and stepped out, the still-cold wind hit me abruptly. Myeong-soo was set to enter the Judicial Research and Training Institute next week. Today's appointment was set to grab a meal together before that.
Upon going inside, there was someone I had never expected to see.
< Please, please... kill me. > The End