Chapter 64 : We Should Settle What Needs to Be Settled
Chapter 64: We Should Settle What Needs to Be Settled
“What do you people think you’re doing! You can’t just barge in here like that!”
Inspector Kim shouted at the men who had suddenly stormed in.
But the men seemed completely indifferent to his yelling. Without a word, they looked around the room, then walked straight toward me.
“Are you Mr. Baek Min-woo?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“I’m Manager Oh Chung-seong. Deputy Chief Noh Gi-tae sent us.”
Sensing the unusual tension in the man’s demeanor, Kang-hyuk flinched and tugged on the hem of my jacket. Instead of answering, I gave a small nod.
“Hey! I’m asking you a question! Who the hell are you people!”
Before the man talking to me could respond, another one stepped forward to block Inspector Kim’s path. His eyes were as cold as ice.
“We’re from the Busan branch of the Korea Shipping Corporation.”
“The Korea Shipping Corporation?”
Inspector Kim tilted his head. He had never heard of such a company in his life.
“What’s that supposed to be? Anybody here know that name?”
The other detectives all shook their heads. With that, Inspector Kim regained some of his bluster and shouted again.
“Who do you think you are, barging in here like this!”
“Inspector Kim Pan-seok. Age forty-eight. Married with one son and one daughter. Recently accepted bribes from Seo Man-cheol of the Yeongdo gang totaling…”
The man began reciting Inspector Kim’s personal details in a calm, detached voice. As his vile secrets spilled from the stranger’s lips one by one, Inspector Kim’s face drained of color.
“Wh–what the hell is this…?”
Then, the man who had first spoken to me said in a low voice.
“Tell the Chief to come down.”
“Wh–which department are you with, again?”
The man didn’t answer. He only stared at Inspector Kim with a cold, unwavering gaze.
After a brief moment of hesitation, realization struck Inspector Kim like a bolt of lightning. Terrified, he bolted out of the office at full speed.
“Remove the handcuffs.”
At the quiet order, one of the remaining detectives rushed over and fumbled to unlock the cuffs on my wrists.
“Free my friend as well.”
I gestured toward Kang-hyuk with my chin. The detective’s trembling hands struggled with the key.
“We’ll take care of things here. The two of you may leave first.”
“No, Manager.”
I rubbed my reddened wrists where the cuffs had bitten into the skin and smiled coldly.
“They may have started this, but I’ll be the one to finish it.”
At that, the corner of the man’s mouth curved upward slightly, as though he found me intriguing. Still, I couldn’t help but feel a flicker of concern, even knowing Noh Gi-tae had sent them.
“Are you sure this isn’t overdoing it? They’re still local police officers.”
“For us, there’s no such word as ‘overdoing.’”
His voice carried absolute confidence.
“There are only two kinds of things in this world — what can be done and what cannot. And this sort of thing falls squarely in the first category.”
A soldier, without a doubt. His tone and bearing had that unmistakable air — a man trained to obey and execute orders without question.
It was clear Noh Gi-tae had sent the right people.
Inspector Kim burst out of the Investigation Division and sprinted toward the Chief’s office. He didn’t even bother to knock before he flung the door open.
The police chief, who had been leisurely chatting over tea with Seo Man-cheol, frowned deeply.
“You insolent fool! Barging in without so much as a knock — where are your manners!”
“Ch-Chief! Th-there’s…!”
Leaning against the doorframe and gasping for breath, Inspector Kim managed to stammer out his report.
“Some strange men just stormed in downstairs and are trying to take those punks we arrested earlier!”
“What?”
The Chief’s brow furrowed even deeper.
“What nonsense is this? Who dares to take suspects from us? Do they even know where they are?”
“They said something about the Korea Shipping Corporation. But judging by their attitude and the air they had about them… they seemed to be from ‘Yongdusan.’”
“Yongdusan?”
Just as the KCIA headquarters in Seoul was called “Namsan,” its Busan branch was known as “Yongdusan.”
A flicker of unease crossed the Chief’s face.
“The KCIA has no reason to interfere in something this trivial. Mr. Seo, any idea what this is about?”
Seo Man-cheol shook his head, equally baffled. For the first time, tension crept into his features.
“Inspector Kim, are you certain they’re from the KCIA?”
“They didn’t say, sir. But judging by how they walked into the Investigation Division without hesitation… I’m almost certain of it.”
The Chief’s frown deepened as he listened to Inspector Kim’s frantic report.
“The KCIA moving for this? Just who the hell is that brat?”
Even he, who ruled over Busan’s underworld, had no connections inside the KCIA. No matter how he tried, they had always been an unyielding fortress.
“And they said to bring you down as well…”
“What? Those bastards think they can summon me?”
Though the Chief bellowed in rage, his voice lacked the authority it once carried.
Inspector Kim stayed silent, head bowed. Seo Man-cheol stepped in to mediate.
“Let’s go down for now, Chief.”
“Mr. Seo, what kind of mess have you made of this situation?”
“If you handle this one well, I’ll make sure you’re generously rewarded.”
With a heavy sigh, the Chief reluctantly stood up. He was so overweight that the sofa he had been sitting on stayed sunken for a while after he rose.
“Fine. Let’s see what this is about.”
“Just a moment — I need to make a quick call first.”
Seo Man-cheol hurriedly picked up the phone, spoke briefly with someone, and hung up.
“Let’s go.”
Seo Man-cheol, the Chief, and Inspector Kim began making their way toward the Investigation Division, their steps heavy with tension.
The door to the Investigation Division opened, and Seo Man-cheol, the Chief, and Inspector Kim entered one after another.
“Who do you think you are, causing a disturbance in a police station—”
Before the Chief could even finish asserting his authority, the man who had been speaking to me quietly rose from his seat.
He strode toward the Chief without hesitation, and in full view of everyone—
Smack!
A sharp, cracking sound split the air as his palm struck the Chief’s cheek.
The meaty thud echoed through the entire division. The Chief’s massive body swayed, his head whipping violently to the side.
When he turned back, his eyes were filled with disbelief. He tried to say something—
But the man’s hand flew again.
Smack! Smack! Smack!
The relentless slaps rang out like the beat of a drum. Struck again and again, the Chief stumbled, unable to keep his footing.
Seo Man-cheol, Inspector Kim, and every detective in the room stood frozen, staring in stunned silence at the unbelievable sight before them.
No one dared to step forward.
“Chief Lee, have you lost your mind? Dragging in a civilian with no crime—were you planning to torture him or something? Do you have a death wish to get dragged in yourself?”
Even the highest authority in the Busan Jungbu Police Station was nothing more than a frail man before an unseen, immense power.
“Th–that’s….”
The chief, whose face was swollen beyond recognition, barely managed to open his mouth.
“Wh–who exactly… are you people…?”
“Namsan.”
Only two syllables left the man’s lips, but the air inside the detectives’ office froze even colder.
“No matter if you’re from the KCIA… this is my jurisdiction…”
Before the chief could finish, his face swung to the side once more.
“Jurisdiction, my ass. You think the state put you in that chair so you could fill your greedy pockets? Do you even realize how important Jung-gu, Busan is right now? This place carries the fate of our nation’s reconstruction!”
The man’s voice was quiet, yet the weight in it crushed the chief’s very existence.
Overwhelming the chief, the man slowly turned his gaze toward Seo Man-cheol, who stood nearby. Even Seo Man-cheol—the so-called King of Busan’s underworld—flinched instinctively under that look.
“You’re that ‘Goblin,’ aren’t you?”
“……”
“Answer.”
“Yes. I’m Seo Man-cheol.”
The man clicked his tongue lightly, raising an eyebrow.
“If you’re a thug, then act like one. Your guts must’ve spilled out of your belly, huh? You think you’re some kind of businessman now? How dare you try to bend state authority to suit your greed. You want a tour of Namsan too?”
“N–no. There’s some kind of misunderstanding…”
“Misunderstanding? What kind of misunderstanding? Go on, try to convince me. If you can, that is.”
How could Seo Man-cheol possibly persuade him? He had only been testing me—he never expected it would blow up to this extent.
“Director.”
I called out to the man while glancing indifferently at Seo Man-cheol, who was sweating profusely.
“President Seo Man-cheol and I have some unfinished business to settle.”
“Is that so? Then do as you must.”
The same man who had spoken down to everyone else was now addressing only me with polite respect.
That fact alone proved that, in this room, I outranked everyone.
I rose from my seat and walked slowly toward Seo Man-cheol and his men.
Then, I turned my gaze to Inspector Kim, the man who had earlier pointed a gun at my forehead.
“Inspector Kim. What was it you said to me earlier? Was it something about mocking the authority of the law?”
“……”
Inspector Kim’s face went pale.
“I don’t take the law lightly. In fact, I know better than anyone how terrifying that power can be. So, may I give you a word of advice?”
I patted his shoulder lightly.
“Abuse that power recklessly, and you’ll destroy yourself.”
“Th–that’s… some kind of misunderstanding…”
“We can clear that up later. For now, Inspector, could I borrow one of your interrogation rooms? I’ve got a matter to quietly settle with Mr. Seo Man-cheol.”
I turned to look at Seo Man-cheol. His eyes trembled violently with shock and humiliation.
“Y–yes! Of course! Over there…! You can use that room!”
“Thank you. Now then, Mr. Seo Man-cheol, let’s resolve what needs to be resolved.”
Turning my body, I spoke to Kang-hyuk.
“Kang-hyuk, grab the bag.”
Without a word, Kang-hyuk stood, closed the bag full of money, and followed behind me.
I didn’t hesitate as I opened the interrogation room door Inspector Kim had indicated and stepped inside.
“Aren’t you coming in, Mr. Seo Man-cheol?”
“……”
With a stiff expression, Seo Man-cheol reluctantly followed me into the room.
The door closed, leaving just three of us inside the cramped, musty interrogation room.
“Please, have a seat.”
Kang-hyuk and I sat side by side, while Seo Man-cheol sat across from us. Strangely, it looked as though he were the one being interrogated.
“Now, why did you have to make such a simple matter so complicated?”
Breaking the silence, I spoke first, my tone openly mocking.
“A man shouldn’t go back on his word. Before we talked, I clearly suggested we enjoy a bit of leisure first, and you agreed, didn’t you, Mr. Seo Man-cheol?”
“……”
“And yet you went behind my back and called the police? Pathetic. Even women wouldn’t stoop that low…”
“Watch your mouth.”
At my blunt insult, Seo Man-cheol finally spoke. His voice was low and cold.
“Your pride must’ve taken quite a blow, huh? The so-called ‘Goblin,’ Busan’s greatest fighter—dragging in the police over a petty scuffle? How low you’ve fallen.”
“…Enough. You think you own the world now, don’t you?”
I fell silent for a moment.
Once, I too had acted like I owned the world—like all the blazing lights of Gangnam belonged to me.
But none of it had ever been mine. I was merely… unpleasant memories surfaced.
I couldn’t let him provoke me further. Best to focus on business. If I looked at his face any longer, I wasn’t sure what I’d do.
“I heard Kang-hyuk’s debt was one million two hundred seventy thousand hwan. Is that right?”
“…One million three hundred thousand.”
“Ha. It’s gone up nearly thirty thousand already? Quite the interest rate you’ve got.”
I began taking bundles of cash out of the bag—each bound in bands of 100,000-hwan bills—and stacked twenty of them before him like a tower.
“Two million hwan. With this, the filthy shackles you placed on Kang-hyuk are gone. Settle it cleanly.”
“Brother! I told you, I only borrowed seven hundred thousand! What’s with two million—”
Seeing such a ridiculous sum thrown around, Kang-hyuk tried to protest, frustrated.
“Stay quiet.”
I grabbed his arm to stop him. If it could be solved with money, it was cheap.
“I’m being generous, for the sake of your pride before your underlings. So let’s end this cleanly here.”
Two million hwan—or even two hundred million—meant nothing compared to what Kang-hyuk was worth to me. Seo Man-cheol narrowed his eyes suspiciously and asked,
“What does that boy mean to you, that you’d go this far? I hear you’re not even blood-related…”
“He’s a friend who’s as good as family to me.”
At my firm reply, Seo Man-cheol fell silent. After staring at the pile of cash on the table, he slowly pushed it back toward me.
“Heh. Still, I can’t just give him up for such a paltry amount.”
“…So you intend to see this through to the end?”
“Well, you never really know what ‘the end’ is until you reach it, do you?”
Just then, noise erupted from the hallway outside the interrogation room.
Urgent footsteps and shouting mixed together—and at that very moment, a cold, confident smirk crept across Seo Man-cheol’s lips.
As if he had expected it all along.