280 – Corporation, Villain, Gang # 2
The interior of the building was cleaner than expected.
Except for the thick smell of cigarettes.
—Crrrng…!
Especially the Squirrel Beast Kkungkungi, with its sensitive sense of smell, dived into my pocket.
—Zzji…!
—Hioong….
Kkungkkungi, who hated smoke, as well as Ahn Ahn, also hid themselves in my inner pocket.
It was like a chemical warfare room.
Why do people smoke such unhealthy cigarettes?
While I was deep in thought, we arrived at a place called “President’s Office.”
It turned out to be an unexpectedly ordinary office, furnished with a sofa and a table for guests.
“Is soju okay?”
But instead of tea or soft drinks, they served soju as refreshments.
This kind of treatment was something I hadn’t seen before.
Ting-!
With a snap of his fingers, the golden-handed man sent the top of the soju bottle flying off.
It was as sharp as if it had been sliced with a sharp molecular blade.
Since he had a golden prosthetic hand, I had expected this man to be at least an A Rank talent. He must be an unofficial Awakened who hasn’t been reported to the country.
Though he looked a bit older to be called an Awakened.
I had learned from my instructor about how non-Awakened individuals awaken their magical powers.
I suspected this man had enhanced his body with something like a serum.
The existence of this golden-handed man significantly increased my trust in the information held by “Big Sister.”
Anyone knowledgeable about serums would likely know much more.
Chug-chug—.
The golden hand downed the cold soju in one shot.
“You’re here to meet Big Sister, right? Unfortunately, our Matriarch has been quite angry for the past few days and has delegated everything to me. I regret to say you must go back.”
Huh?
You are inviting us here only to tell us to go back?
In that instant, I recalled something from the past.
Gangs had a very closed culture, making it hard to divulge anything to outsiders.
In other words, it meant they had nothing to share with us, as we were outsiders.
Lee Jin-A spoke up.
“Even though I’m Seo Sun-A’s younger sister?”
“Jin-A, just because you’re Sun-A’s sister doesn’t mean I’ll let you in here. That alone shows sufficient goodwill towards you. If Sun-A had come herself, of course, she would have met the Matriarch. Sun-A was a big player in the history of the gang, collecting the most ‘protection fees.’ She was favored by the Matriarch.”
Is that what it feels like to be a living legend?
In other words, Ms. Seo Sun-A is like Haildo in the world of bad guys.
“The Matriarch is very regretful that Sun-A has deviated from the path of the gang. That’s why the position of president of the gang has been left vacant since then. I’m temporarily filling in.”
“But my sister won’t come back. She’s married and living well now. She’s even thinking about having kids.”
“Once a bad guy, always a bad guy. Anyway, it was nice to meet you, Jin-A. And it was nice to meet you too, Haildo. Let me guide you back.”
Are you serious about sending us back just like this?
I don’t have time.
Here, I should show determination as a man.
Swoosh—.
I picked up the cold soju bottle.
I could feel the snake-like gaze of the golden-handed man watching me with interest.
I quickly realized that how I drank this alcohol could significantly change my future prospects.
“Ah—.”
I opened my mouth and bit into the soju bottle!
It was a skill that ordinary people could never replicate, and those living in the underworld would surely feel my ambition.
Seo Ye-Rim and Lee Jin-A were also shocked.
“Hey! What are you doing?!”
“Have you lost your mind?!”
Soon, the golden hand frowned.
He looked at me like a homeroom teacher observing a student who noted ‘Emiya Kiritsugu’ in the section for people they respect.
“…Why would you do that? You’re even more fiery than the rumors said. Are you implying that you’ll bite through a soju bottle if we don’t cooperate? But I liked that. Please wait a moment.”
# # #
“Senior, is your mouth okay?”
“Ah.”
I opened my mouth to show Ari the inside of my mouth.
It meant everything was fine.
Chewing a soju bottle wouldn’t hurt my mouth or my insides.
An A Rank Awakened was such a being.
Close to a human tank.
“Still, just in case, I’ll touch it to stimulate it.”
Swoosh—.
Ari inserted her finger into my mouth and touched my tongue and the roof of my mouth for stimulation.
Heh heh, that tickles.
The examination process took a long time, and Seo Ye-Rim, unable to bear it, finally exploded with annoyance, “Hey! How long are you going to poke your fingers in someone else’s mouth?!” Only then did the examination conclude.
“Everything looks fine. But that was too reckless!”
“But the result was good, wasn’t it?”
The golden hand told us to wait.
After about 10 minutes of waiting in the cigarette-smelling office, Seo Ye-Rim looked around, opening up pictures and books.
“Come to think of it, I think I heard from my dad a long time ago. There’s an organization that makes money by using orphans and runaways and helps them graduate from high school with that money. So it was here?”
Wasn’t it just a group that robs kids of their money?
Is there some noble reason behind why they steal money?
Clack-clack—.
Then the golden hand opened the door and entered, saying a word.
“The Matriarch has created a little cushion for those who have no choice but to live off the backs of others. We’re just doing exactly that, nothing more, nothing less. Now, look here.”
The golden hand spread out documents that he had in his golden hand across the table.
“We’re going to ask you for one request. The content is simple. Just bring back a certain man, dead or alive. Then Big Sister will meet you.”
Is it about finding a person?
As I thought it was a simple request, the golden hand added more.
“It should be an easy task for you. But be careful. Many teams have participated in a bidding war for the chance to meet Big Sister. Among them are Osa Group’s ‘Cleaners.'”
Are they referring to the ‘White Cleaners’ from Osa Group? I heard they are a cleaning crew made up entirely of Awakened individuals.
Wearing white clothes, right?
I heard they are specialized exterminators with an average annual salary of a billion.
They move in groups and bring advanced equipment that concentrates Osa Group’s technology to easily overpower and take down even Awakened who rank higher than them, right?
I wouldn’t have expected Megacorp Osa to be after the chance to meet Big Sister.
For some unknown reason, and due to the timing and situation, I didn’t have a good feeling about this.
“Who are we looking for?”
Yu Ara asked.
Then the golden hand pointed to a photo of a man.
“This is the man who was Big Sister’s adopted son. He has been imprisoned due to certain circumstances, but now he is causing problems in our area. His name is Lee Dong-sik.”
Lee Dong-sik.
That was a familiar name.
In fact, he was the man I had been looking for as well.
# # #
Makcheon City had many basements and winding alleys.
Finding a single person who had gone underground in this extrajudicial zone was extremely difficult, but fortunately, we had Lee Jin-A.
“Hey, do you know Lee Dong-sik?”
We returned to the information seller.
The information seller chuckled and nodded.
“Looks like you’ve entered into a bidding competition to meet Big Sister, huh? I know information about Lee Dong-sik. But it will cost you dearly. Two big ones. Deal?”
Two big ones.
What is that unit?
2000?
200 million?
2 billion?
When Lee Jin-A casually replied, “Deal,” the information seller seemed to embrace her and rubbed his face against her chest.
Rubbing—.
“This is it, this is it. This is really Big Sister. I can’t accept it when this becomes someone else’s someday…!”
“What the hell?”
‘Two big ones’ literally meant ‘two big ones.’
Indeed, among the people I know, Lee Jin-A stood out in various ways.
Should I call it the ambition in her heart?
“Lee Dong-sik. That man reappeared a few days ago and joined forces with malicious gangs in this Makcheon City. They’re said to be kidnapping runaway youths with nowhere to go and taking them somewhere. Isn’t the prohibition of kidnapping and human trafficking an unwritten rule of this Makcheon City? That would violate the tenets of Big Sister. In a way, it’s a challenge to her authority.”
“So do you know where that man is?”
“I don’t know his location either. If I knew that precisely, I would have quit being an information seller and gathered people to catch Lee Dong-sik. How many have changed their fates with just one interview with Big Sister?”
To meet with Big Sister means having the power to influence Makcheon City and further be able to align with Megacorp and political figures in the area.
In other words, it means gaining ‘connections.’
“I’ve heard that the current president became the president after having been the leader of the opposition party after meeting Big Sister. Though whether that’s true or not, who knows. Anyway, I got this?”
Swoosh—.
The information seller pulled something from his pocket.
It was a small handkerchief.
“This is a handkerchief that Lee Dong-sik used. Don’t ask me how I got it. It was an incredibly difficult and laborious path. It’s a trade secret. I’m giving it to you. With the Squirrel Beast around, tracking won’t be too hard, right?”
That was right.
Kkungkkungi’s sense of smell was so incredible that it could sense olfactory information as visuals.
Sniff-sniff—.
Kkungkkungi sniffed the handkerchief a few times, then—Crrrng…!—it puffed up its fur and leaped off in a direction.
Seeing that, the information seller let out a small sigh.
“I’m jealous. If I had a Squirrel Beast, finding a person would be effortless.”
