Chapter 105
Bzzz...
Late in the afternoon, the flight departing Hong Kong arrived at the Vladivostok International Airport in Russia, passing through Shanghai, only just before midnight.
The travel time was about ten hours.
Even though they had sat in reasonably comfortable seats, Tae Ju-ha and Heo Yu-rim wore extremely exhausted expressions.
In-hyuk glanced at them with concern and asked,
"Are you okay?"
"... I'm dying here."
Her voice was on the verge of losing her temper.
"Let's go to the accommodation for now."
As she spoke, Tae Ju-ha looked over at Heo Yu-rim, who seemed just as worn out as herself.
"Is the hotel far from here?"
"About an hour by car."
"Haah..."
After leaving the arrivals hall, Van Hester moved separately to rent a car.
Meanwhile, In-hyuk stayed inside the airport, discreetly scanning the area with Hong Yu-geon.
Hong Yu-geon quietly approached and whispered in Spanish,
"Creo que también los tengo aquí. (It looks like they're here too.)"
It was past midnight, so aside from those who had just arrived and were leaving, the airport was almost deserted.
Of course, just like Hong Yu-geon, In-hyuk had already spotted the suspicious individuals.
"I know."
"But aren't there more of them than before? Do they have some kind of determination this time?"
"It probably means that Kooou holds a position in the National Intelligence Service that allows him to deploy as many agents as I can."
At that moment, Tae Ju-ha, visibly irritated, shoved her face in next to them.
"What are you whispering about? Don't tell me you're still be—"
In-hyuk swiftly covered her mouth with his palm.
"Unless you plan to announce we've noticed we're being tailed, be careful here."
"..."
It seemed Tae Ju-ha understood immediately, as she quickly nodded.
"The fact they're just watching us probably means someone in the group noticed our movements and put them on us."
Tae Ju-ha lowered her voice to almost a tenth of its previous volume.
"I was going to ask anyway—wasn't our destination supposed to be known only to us?"
"It could have leaked somewhere along the chairman's line."
Her worries aside, he couldn't mention the National Intelligence Service, in case he made a careless slip.
"Are you really sure we're okay?"
"We've been followed the whole way, but nothing has happened so far, has it?"
Truthfully, seeing the number of agents deployed this time made In-hyuk slightly uneasy as well.
'Just like Hong Yu-geon said, it looks like they're planning something.'
While he was thinking this, a message came through Ghost Link on his phone.
【NIS02: An agent belonging to Division 1 died from gunfire by another Division 1 agent in Wong Kok, Hong Kong. The agent was on standby for a mission.】
【NIS02: Division 1 Vladivostok team deployed, mission unknown.】
The sender's nickname belonged to someone In-hyuk had connected within the National Intelligence Service.
Looking through the contents, In-hyuk could only harden his expression. He could already roughly guess who the agent killed in Hong Kong was.
'Did they kill the agent I left in the restroom with them?'
Of those In-hyuk knew, that was the only one likely to be killed.
Plus, the second message was troublesome too.
Considering how many NIS agents he'd just spotted, it seemed to refer to the Vladivostok team.
Of course, he couldn't be a hundred percent sure, but that could be checked separately.
'If they're deploying a whole team to monitor us... it really means there's something going on.'
With that, he transferred some funds and left a reply for the contact.
【HERMIT: Division 1 Vladivostok Team. Monitoring Tae Ju-ha of Taeshin Group and Kang In-hyuk of Taeshin Asset Management at Vladivostok airport.】
Bzzz— Bzzz—
Despite the late hour, the reply came in less than a minute.
【NIS02: How did you know?】
【HERMIT: The method doesn't matter. Just consider it a service for your safety and our relationship.】
【NIS02: Thank you.】
That was where the exchange ended.
There was always the risk that the contact would associate HERMIT with In-hyuk.
But In-hyuk had calculated this, intentionally exposing information.
The reason was simple. The real identity of NIS02 was Shin Jin-hong, the deputy general manager of Division 2 at the National Intelligence Service.
'If the second deputy general manager is involved, some kind of brake will be applied, whatever happens.'
As this played out, Van Hester returned, together with a staff member, having rented two cars.
In-hyuk gathered everyone and they set off straight away.
Just as in other countries, In-hyuk had Tae Ju-ha ride in the front seat.
"If you're tired, you should get some sleep."
"How could I sleep while you're driving?"
"I'm fine."
He alternated checking the rear-view mirror and side mirrors. Sure enough, there was a car following them at a fixed distance.
The followers were professional enough not to make it obvious.
However, In-hyuk was a greater expert in tracking than they were.
Plus, his senses were now sharper than the average person, so he could distinguish them.
As the atmosphere quieted, Tae Ju-ha started speaking less, and before long, she had fallen asleep.
"Bzzz..."
She even started snoring a little.
* * *
In the deep hours before dawn.
The lights in the National Intelligence Service director's office were still on.
Director Jin Jong-man sat in a heavy silence, silently eyeing the deputy general managers, who had been summoned urgently.
It had already been ten minutes since this silence began.
No one knew why they'd been called.
The director provided no explanation, just let the silence stretch on, until Jin Jong-man met their eyes and spoke.
"First deputy director."
At the same time, Choo Jae-min, deputy general manager of Division 1, answered, slightly startled.
"Yes, director."
"Do you remember every single activity and whereabouts of your subordinate teams?"
It was an odd question, and Choo Jae-min hesitated before responding carefully.
"I focus on keeping track of their major missions."
"Then what is the Vladivostok team doing right now?"
At that question, both Choo Jae-min and Im Deok-chang, sitting next to him, stiffened.
"The team's mission is..."
Overseas missions were not to be disclosed even to the other division deputies.
Naturally, it was uncomfortable to discuss this here.
"You may speak freely. What mission is that team handling?"
"... They're preparing a case dealing with a technical leak set to move along the Vladivostok line."
"Are all the agents committed to that case?"
"The operation will collaborate with the domestic team according to procedure, so right now they're on standby."
At his answer, Jin Jong-man let out a deep sigh.
"Is the company involved in this technology leak Taeshin Group?"
"Pardon? I can't tell you the company name here, but it's not them."
"Then why did I hear that the Vladivostok team is trailing people from Taeshin Group visiting there?"
At that, Choo Jae-min looked shocked.
"... What do you mean? That team? Is there some mistake?"
"Would I say this without any basis?"
But Choo Jae-min couldn't recall any such information.
"Let me—I will check right now..."
Tap—
Before he could finish, Jin Jong-man showed a CCTV photo of a specific location on his tablet.
"Here are the agents deployed in Vladivostok. Still think I'm misinformed?"
The photos weren't just distant shots; they showed close-ups of the agents' faces, with precise affiliations and names listed.
Of course, the photo also included the images of Kang In-hyuk and Tae Ju-ha from Taeshin Group, arriving at the airport.
"..."
Momentarily lost for words, Choo Jae-min pressed his lips together.
Jin Jong-man continued, his face grave.
"Yesterday, one agent was shot dead by an assailant in Hong Kong! Now, the team is acting arbitrarily without notifying their supervisor? How am I supposed to make sense of this?!"
Choo Jae-min was already reeling from the first incident.
But now another unbelievable situation had exploded, making it even harder to grasp the situation or speak rashly.
Then, Jin Jong-man's gaze shifted to Im Deok-chang.
"Deputy general manager Im."
"... Yes, director."
"You checked the immigration material for Hong Kong International Airport handled by Division 1 yesterday. That doesn't have any relation to this, does it?"
At the same time, Choo Jae-min, whose head had been hung low, looked up at him.
Im Deok-chang answered quickly, thinking frantically.
"I received information from the corporate side that a person of interest appeared, so I checked."
"Was that just a coincidence?"
"... Yes."
"Then who was this person? The person of interest you just mentioned."
The coincidental timing meant the suspicion could not so easily be dismissed.
Im Deok-chang thought for a moment and answered carefully.
"It's Gordon Grimes, the CEO of AMK Partners, who has recently been a major influence in the domestic financial world."
Jin Jong-man knew that name well.
"So he appeared?"
"I haven't confirmed that yet. I was just investigating after hearing external information that he might visit a specific company."
Cold sweat formed on Im Deok-chang's forehead.
"Judging by what's happening in both Hong Kong and Vladivostok, it means someone's been violating our authority and moving agents. Therefore, contact that team immediately and recall them."
Choo Jae-min was startled.
"Then what do we do about the mission in preparation? If we replace the agents now, there'll be a disruption."
"Would you just leave agents operating without Organization approval?"
That too made no sense.
"Recall the rogue agent from Hong Kong as well. And thoroughly investigate everyone who came into contact with those agents."
A considerable amount of funding was invested in each mission.
Scrapping it meant the responsible parties would bear significant consequences.
But in this situation, no one could defy his orders.
Meanwhile, Shin Jin-hong, the second deputy general manager who had been summoned alongside the first and third, was doing his best to suppress his laughter.
He was, after all, the source of the situation Jin Jong-man described.
Of course, if only the other two had been summoned, it might have aroused unnecessary suspicion, so he was included as well.
.
.
.
A few hours later.
Inside a suite of the five-star Fasiz Hotel in Russia, In-hyuk was awake, sitting quietly.
At that moment, he received a message from Hong Yu-geon.
【They withdrew quickly. Did they all get sudden diarrhea or something?】
Amused by the joke, In-hyuk nodded.
The information he threw to Shin Jin-hong, the second deputy general manager of the National Intelligence Service, had worked perfectly.
He then summoned Hong Yu-geon and Van Hester inside as well.
"Didn't think I'd ever use the saying that even dog poop can be useful."
Shin Jin-hong had been stacking up all kinds of corruption even before he became second deputy general manager.
In the original timeline, as soon as the administration changed, he swiftly faced a hearing to settle his accounts.
It was such a significant event then; In-hyuk couldn't not know about it.
At the same time, since he understood both Shin's carrots and sticks, he could use that knowledge now that he had returned to the past.
"But even though they retreated, that probably isn't the end."
In Hong Kong, Kooou used NIS agents like guides.
If the same is true now, it was clear they wouldn't just stand idle after retreating.
In-hyuk found it hard to fall asleep, endlessly turning over possibilities in his mind.