Chapter 319: Best Buddies
There was tension in the atmosphere. Everyone was waiting for a reaction from Mason Blackfire.
Yohan was actually expecting him to explode, but the man remained calm.
"Well, if you change your mind, you know how to reach me," he finally said after a few seconds.
Alfredo had been silently observing to see just how Mason would manage to get out of this one without seeming weak. In the end, he realized there was no way and yielded shamelessly.
He couldn’t help but crack a smile at the man’s intelligence. Only a fool would go after a man like Yohan after hearing everything he had done. A technique master was almost a god compared to normal people.
"Hey, Yohan, did you pull the trigger that killed Hatoru yourself?" he asked with a grin.
The way he was speaking, as though they were good friends, made Yohan frown for a moment.
"Why do you care?" he shot back.
"Look, I only came here so we can discuss what is going to happen now that Hatoru is gone."
"What do you mean?" Mason asked. "Do you want to go after his seat?"
His brows furrowed as they locked gazes.
"Not at all. I’m just concerned because Gunjoo told me you would be dealing with the aftermath."
"Yes, that’s what we were discussing before you came in," Gunjoo said with a small, awkward chuckle. He could tell by the look on their faces that they were probably thinking he was getting too close to Yohan.
"We plan on going after all his other branches in the city and taking out all of his men. Then we’ll take the city for ourselves," Gunjoo continued.
"That means all his businesses would still function as usual?"
"Not all of them, but why do you suddenly care about it so much? I thought you said you had no interest in this," Gunjoo wondered.
"I don’t. I just don’t want the city to be turned upside down because of Hatoru’s absence."
"Don’t worry about anything. Our boss is a very good man. He’ll take good care of the city."
Gunjoo put an arm around Yohan’s shoulders and escorted him outside.
He led him downstairs to the parking lot, where Yohan’s car had already been packed.
"I sent one of my guys to pack everything just as you asked," Gunjoo said, handing the key back to Yohan.
"You must have told them to search my things to find all my secrets," Yohan said with a small grin.
Gunjoo swallowed before answering.
"How would I do that? I made sure your friend packed the bags."
Yohan stared at him for a few extra seconds before turning away.
"I believe you."
He didn’t, but it also didn’t matter because there was nothing to find. Ever since he ran into Alfredo, he had made sure to carry his special red book everywhere he went.
Right now, it was in his back pocket, so there was nothing else to find even if Gunjoo had his men search his stuff.
"Thanks for your help."
He got into his car and started it.
Then the window rolled down.
"Also, I’d like to be kept in the loop about anything major that goes down..."
"Anything major like what?"
"You know what I mean," Yohan said with a small sigh.
"You know something like that costs money, right?"
"...But since we’re basically best buddies, I’ll do it for free," he chuckled with a wide grin.
Yohan shook his head as he rolled the window back up before pulling out and driving away.
"That brat couldn’t even say thank you for filling his tank..." Gunjoo cursed lazily as he walked back inside. "Well, building a good relationship with him is worth every penny."
"Is that right?" Ivan said as soon as he entered.
"Were you waiting here just to say something like that?" Gunjoo scoffed as he walked past him.
"Don’t fuck around. You know the rules. If he’s not one of us, then he’s our enemy."
"Believe me, Ivan, the last thing you want is to be that guy’s enemy."
"He’s a fucking child! And you’re a pussy! If you want to protect him, use a fucking better excuse."
"Wait, you think I’m protecting him? From you?" Gunjoo let out a small chuckle.
"You think this kind of trick would work?" Ivan’s brows furrowed. "Better get that kid in line. If not, he’ll have to be reminded who’s in charge."
...
From there, Yohan drove straight to his massage parlor.
As he stepped out of the car, he spotted Remi welcoming a customer. She looked just as bright and radiant as the first time he saw her.
It took a few extra seconds before she noticed him.
"Boss!" she screamed as she ran over and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Where have you been? How could you just disappear like that?"
The questions just kept coming, one after another, as tears fell from her eyes.
Yohan could hardly believe she had actually missed him this much after he had only been away for a month. It seemed their connection was far deeper than he had imagined.
"It’s fine now. I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere else."
He gently stroked the back of her head while she held him too tightly to let go.
The young male customer she had been attending to wore a deeply disappointed scowl. Seeing the pretty girl he had started developing a crush on dive into another man’s arms was heartbreaking.
’Well, there’s two of them, so maybe there’s still a chance...’
The thought had barely formed when Mia came sprinting out from one of the rooms.
"Yohan!"
She threw herself at him just as Remi finally let go.
Hers was even worse, as she leaped off the ground and into his arms. It was impressive that he barely even stepped back when she slammed into him.
Instead, his hand moved under her thigh to support her so naturally.
"Well, you can’t act like Remi because we just saw each other last week," he said with a grin.
"That doesn’t change the fact that I missed you."
"I missed you guys too," his excitement slipping into his voice.