By Zephyria 
‘Betrayal. And assassination.’
That the Dark Demon, Chairman Kwon Jung-il, was killed by his right-hand man?
To be murdered by someone he treated like a limb was a stain on his dignity. How could he control the black-haired beasts of the bottom of life, who had nothing to lose and whose eyes were bloodshot, if he couldn’t even handle one subordinate? Therefore, Chairman Kwon Jung-il’s death was a matter that the Gyeongjeong Faction had to handle with the utmost importance and care.
“Hyungnim. We couldn’t find Woo Tae-hwon in Busan either.”
Chairman Kwon’s third son, Kwon Sang-oh, frowned and puffed out his chest.
His dyed blonde hair had black roots, and a skull tattoo covering his neck was noticeable. His appearance, wearing a flashy floral shirt and a gold necklace, was more like a street thug than the chairman’s son.
Moreover, on the knuckles of his right hand, ‘One Punishment, Hundred Admonitions,’ and on the knuckles of his left hand, the characters ‘Winner Takes All’ were tattooed one character at a time from his index finger to his pinky.
“They searched the captains like they were catching lice, but it doesn’t seem like he was smuggled out by boat.”
He was standing in a study with paper windows. In the middle of the room was a traditional wooden desk and chair, and behind it was a study space. The neatly arranged books were ancient texts written in Chinese characters. The white porcelain and lamps all showed off a quaint traditional beauty.
The office in the main house that Chairman Kwon Jung-il had used during his lifetime. But now, the one sitting at that desk was not Chairman Kwon, but his eldest son, Kwon Tae-oh.
Dressed in a high-end three-piece suit with black and silver vertical stripes, he clicked his tongue softly. A cold beauty with a cold impression, he exuded a restrained, cool atmosphere, unlike his youngest brother Kwon Sang-oh, who was born from the same mother.
“China?”
“There’s no news from there either. The guys lying in wait at the airport are quiet too…”
“So. You still haven’t found him. There’s not a single bastard who’s earning his keep.”
Kwon Tae-oh opened the drawer of the low desk. Inside was a .45 caliber pistol wrapped in white cloth.
Right here. The place where Kwon Tae-oh was sitting now was where Chairman Kwon Jung-il had died with a bullet in his head. The gun he picked up was the murder weapon that had been abandoned at the scene. Kwon Tae-oh held the barrel in his hand and slowly stroked the muzzle with his fingertips. A murderous aura was felt in his slow gestures.
“Haa… That’s what I’m saying. I’ll definitely take care of those bastards. But hyungnim, isn’t now the time to worry about Woo Tae-hwon?”
The third son, Kwon Sang-oh, spoke impatiently, as if frustrated. His voice was frivolous. Or, to put it more bluntly, it was vulgar.
“You know that the second hyungnim is drawing his sword, trying to overturn the chairman’s seat. If we leave it like this, even Tae-oh hyungnim will be eaten alive. Now is not the time to let all the kids out to catch Woo Tae-hwon, that bastard.”
His grumbling tone was full of dissatisfaction. The third son, Kwon Sang-oh, was volunteering to be the lackey of the first son, Kwon Tae-oh, but that was because he didn’t have the ability to become chairman himself. Kwon Tae-oh had to become the next Gyeongjeong chairman so that he could get a big position, but if the second son, Kwon Hyeon-oh, were to rise up, it would all be for nothing. It was like catching the wrong lifeline and giving the porridge you cooked to a dog.
“Shut up, you bastard. Stop talking nonsense and catch Woo Tae-hwon first.”
Kwon Sang-oh was restless, but Kwon Tae-oh was unmoved.
Awake or asleep, Woo Tae-hwon, Woo Tae-hwon, Woo Tae-hwon…! Kwon Sang-oh couldn’t understand why he kept telling him to catch Woo Tae-hwon.
Of course, he agreed that taking the head of the traitor who killed his father, Chairman Kwon Jung-il, was also an important issue. He had heard countless times that in order to restore the prestige of Gyeongjeong, they had to tear the traitor’s limbs apart and cut off his head to retaliate. But that could only be done if the family was quiet, right? If he lost the chairman’s seat to the second hyungnim, the prestige of Gyeongjeong would be useless.
“Haa, you’re really frustrating, hyungnim! How are things going right now?”
Kwon Sang-oh couldn’t control his anger and slammed his fist on the desk. As he became impatient, he blurted out informal speech like in the old days.
“Right now, among our father’s children, only you can’t come to your senses. You always act cool and pretend to be smart behind the scenes, but what are you going to do if you act so frustratingly at an important time like this? It’s obvious that the second hyung is going to bring a bloodbath. Even Kwon Rae-i, that crazy bastard, has figured out the atmosphere and slipped out of the Separate House!”
As he spat out the words, his face crumpled. He frowned and puffed out his chest, unable to control his anger.
“Why is it that only you don’t know that even a young concubine has packed her bags and run away? Or what, are you and Hyeon-oh hyung colluding? Are you two putting on a show for me right now, huh?”
Kwon Tae-oh didn’t even bat an eye, even with Kwon Sang-oh next to him, spewing out words in anger. He silently stroked the muzzle with his fingertips, then released the lock on the barrel and aimed it at Kwon Sang-oh. Exactly at his head, in the center of his forehead.
“Sang-oh.”
“……!”
When his name was called in a chilling voice, Kwon Sang-oh, who had been making a fuss like a neighborhood thug, finally shut his mouth.
“Our father, you see. His face was shattered.”
“Hyu, hyungnim.”
“Blood, brain matter, I was the first to discover that terrible wreckage… You only saw your father’s portrait at the funeral, right?”
“…….”
“What were you thinking when you offered incense at the burial site? Thinking of lining up with me and getting a piece of the pie? Or thinking of siding with Hyeon-oh? Were you weighing which one would be better?”
Kwon Tae-oh pulled the slide of the pistol and loaded a bullet. If he pulled the trigger now, it would fire. Even though he was aiming at his own brother, there was no shaking in the muzzle. He was just cold and ruthless.
“Our Sang-oh. I don’t dislike you. Having obvious thoughts is a disadvantage, but it can also be an advantage depending on how you use it. A large organization needs someone like you, who is fiery and ambitious.”
Fear of death. At the same time, a surge of resistance and stubbornness. Kwon Sang-oh, his expression twisted fiercely, gritted his teeth and answered.
“Yes, hyungnim.”
His eyes were burning.
“If I lead coldly from above, you will play the role of burning hotly from below. Do you understand?”
“Yes… Thank you.”
“I’ll think. You’ll act. We can be very close brothers. Right…?”
Kwon Sang-oh slowly nodded. His face was pale, as if he had been hit with cold water. Only then did Kwon Tae-oh move the muzzle to the side. Then, as if there was no compromise or concession on this issue, he ordered firmly.
“Woo Tae-hwon, you have to find that bastard. If we don’t take his head first, the prestige of Gyeongjeong will sink as it is.”
“Of course. Hyungnim is right.”
“And Hyeon-oh… Kwon Hyeon-oh, that bastard has grown his head enough. The second son may have his own intentions, but we’ll take care of him soon, so let him have his sweet dreams for now.”
“Yes…”
“Good. How admirable and good it is that you understand when I speak nicely.”
Kwon Tae-oh gave a bitter smile. He glanced at Kwon Sang-oh, who was nodding, and stared at the door, firing the gun.
“Then go out right now and find Woo Tae-hwon.”
Bang!
With a deafening Gunfire, a hole was punched straight through the door. A hole was punched through the paper-covered sliding door, and the bullet slammed into the hallway on the other side. Kwon Sang-oh gasped.
“I understand, hyungnim! I will definitely find him!”
As expected, the first hyung is the scariest. The second hyung is not easy either.
Kwon Sang-oh hurriedly left the office without getting anything in return. He was ashamed that he had lost face in front of his own brother and ran away. In order to save his pride, he comforted himself by thinking that his youngest brother, Kwon Rae-i, was even more of a coward than him. Thinking of that crazy concubine bastard, who had run away from the Separate House as soon as his father died, he thought he was much greater. If he just listened to the first hyungnim, Tae-oh, his position would be guaranteed in the future.
‘Yeah, it’s better this way. If the second hyungnim tries to take the chairman’s seat and gets purged, then I’ll be the second-in-command of Gyeongjeong!’
But what about Woo Tae-hwon?
Where on earth was he supposed to find that treacherous bastard?
Whether he had soared into the sky or disappeared into the ground, he had searched every corner of Korea for a month, but he had not found a single trace. At this point, it might be right to assume that he was already dead.
‘We issued a search warrant immediately without any loopholes, so he couldn’t have left the country by boat or plane…’
Could that bastard really be dead?