46 Signed, Lee Dojin

Seoul was, in general, a very peaceful city. But that didn't mean it was without crime. And with crime, there always came gangs, though here, they were of great rarity.

The Pyeongwon Gang was one of them.

Ah Yeurongs father, incidentally, was their bookkeeper—though he had told his family his occupation was an accountant. The mother did not care to question it, as long as the money kept coming in, while his daughter was still too young to care for such things.

Did he have regrets about his career choice? Certainly. There wasn't anyone here who did not question their life once or twice upon entering this dangerous occupation, lest they were a psychopath, but it did have undeniable benefits. Hell, in the first place, the most dangerous part was not dying in the line of action, but rather being busted by something benign. The worst thing he had ever done was take a dump on Park Wonhe's Porsche. All in all, he was a rather harmless guy, though he did imagine if the police ever came crashing by, scouring through all the evidence, he'd not leave without a fight.

"Well, whatever supports the family, I guess," he muttered to himself and clicked through the files on his computer with a weary look. The spacebar had stopped working again, an omen for a terrible day, he thought.

He was currently sitting in his office. One of the perks of working for shady businesses was the privileges. He knew he wasn't good enough to have his own space, but the gang needed him, and generally, he was treated well.

On his desk, a fan kept buzzing, throwing wind at him. He wasn't particularly warm, but the electric noise helped him concentrate and work harder. He believed it had something to do with alpha waves, a frequency that tapped into his brain and vibrated just the right synapses to create a certain type of harmony that made him twice as sharp.

A knock cleared his mind. It was definitely a woman, The boys here weren't polite enough to give him a warning before barging in. The door opened, he was right. It was an older lady, out of shape and with heavy make-up. She was on the smaller side, but her face was fierce enough for none to disrespect her. There weren't many women in this gang, obviously, but those who were, were most often scarier than the men.

"Ah Chul, someone has delivered a message to you," the woman said. She had a rough voice.

He nodded lightly, thinking nothing more of it. "Just forward it to me later on. I'll take a look."

"No." The lady shook her head. And waved a white envelope in her hand. "It's a message," she repeated, but this time putting emphasis on the word. "You know what that means right?"

Ah Chul stopped typing, realizing the severity of her words. He closed this fan off, the buzzing disappearing. "Give it to me," he said, not realizing his brows had furrowed.

The lady complied and right after left him to his own devices. "Well then, if you need anything, you know who to find." She closed the door behind her. At times like these, it was best to leave the person alone.

Ah Chul laughed dryly. There was only one meaning behind getting a message. If it was something nice, they would have called. He ripped the envelope open:

'We have kidnapped your daughter, Ah Yeurong. Close your business around Haewon street and pull your goons back, or she dies. Have a nice day.'

"You motherfucker," he shouted out loud. He was completely enraged now. But his eyes weren't seeing red. He had to confirm something first.

The man took out his phone, immediately dialing the number of his daughter. He had made it imperative to his family that they should always answer their phone. Naturally, that did not always work, but his constant nagging made them pick nine times out of ten. And as far as he knew, Ah Yeurong was on an excursion. There should be plenty of time to write him a message at least.

However, after a few beeps, he received a response he had never gotten before. "The connection be established. The number may not exist or the owner has shut their phone. Please try again later."

Ah Chul slammed his hand on the table. This wasn't a drill. This had never happened before. Something was seriously wrong. "Fuck! Fuck!" He shouted out but it did not vent his wrath. he tried breathing in and out, calming down. Anger would only cloud his mind. For now, his daughter had to be okay. She had to be. he looked at the letter again and realized there was something written below.

"Signed, Lee Dojin."

A burst of rough laughter escaped him. What kind of idiot would sign with his own name? Was it a trap or a Red Herring? He gnashed his teeth. It didn't matter. All he could saw was the single lead given. He'd be a fool not to take it.

He took his phone again. With his connections, it should not be hard to find this person. The letter crumbled in his hands. "I knew it. A terrible day."

...

Completing the excursion, the students left the museum one by one. They handed in their assignment and were allowed home. Though Dong Jowoon had told them to return home promptly, the students gathered with their friends and already made plans to go eat or see a movie. He wanted to chastise them but was stopped by Ji-ah, who told him to relax. Dong Jowoon read her the riot act, but by then, the students had already left.

Oh Sanbaek had excused himself quite a while ago. In the end, he really came to apologize, without raising a fuss. Kim Jyejin felt he was full of shit, yet he proved her wrong by simply leaving.

Time passed, and almost all of them had left. Lee Dojin remained as he was waiting for Ji-ah, while Jyejin had nothing to do anyway, so the both of them remained. Two girls came out. They had a confused look, mixed with worry.

"Uhm Seungsengnim," the addressed Ji-ah, "have you perhaps seen Ah Yeurong? We couldn't find her anywhere."

Ji-ah looked at her attendance sheet. "No, she hasn't. Why? Was she not with you?" As far as she knew, the tree of them were always together.

"Well," one of the girls muttered. "She had been, but after some time, we lost her. We looked for a while, but she was nowhere to be found. Do you think maybe we should do something?"

"It's going to be fine, it's just an excursion, and this is Seoul." She smiled lightly. "There are some others who haven't arrived yet, so it's not strange. Relax."

The two girls were skeptical, but stayed silent, as what Ji-ah said did make sense.

They all waited together, but after almost an hour passed, no one came out. The sun had begun its descent, and it slowly got darker. The museum itself was about to close. Baek Ji-ah kept her eyes glued to the door. Every time someone walked through, and it was not her student, her heart beat a tad bit faster. Maybe it was because of the girls, but she had become nervous too. No, no, that couldn't be. Why would anything bad happen today?

"What's wrong with these kids," Dong Jowoon complained. "They probably just skipped because they were bored. Kids these days know nothing about responsibility."

"Yeurong isn't like that!" The girl turned angry. "Her father is really strict, she would never do something like skipping school. She doesn't even shut her phone, because her father would scold her. That's why we are worried because she did not pick up or reply to my messages."

"Fine, I didn't mean it like that."

Meanwhile, Lee Dojin had squatted down and kept his sight on the street. There wasn't a reason to do so, but his eyes had been on a black van for a while. The windows were blocked out, and it scoured the place, though he could not tell why. After a few more rounds, it came to a stop.

He opened his mouth. "Guys, we may have to leave."

Before anyone could react, a few men in black suits stepped out. At the front, an old man with a scar across his face approached them with a smile. The quicker ones realized that they were the guys who had made a scene in front of the gate the other day.

"Would you look at that? I thought you were sketchy but didn't realize you were a piece of shit," the old man said. He glanced at Ji-ah. "I suppose you can call it a reunion."

Lee Dojin returned his glance. "You need anything?"

"Step into the car," he said sharply. "Boss's orders."

"I don't want to."

"I did not ask." He smiled.

The surrounding people were dumbfounded by what was happening. Jyejin walked forward, and asked, "Hey, what's going on?" She stretched her hand out, but the old man shoved her away. "Kyah!"

"Get lost," he told her with a rough voice. The men behind him came forward. "This has nothing to do with you."

"Jeyjin!" Ji-ah shouted and grabbed the girl's shoulders. "Are you okay?"

She did not reply. Instead, she hissed at the old man, "Who the hell do you think you are?"

"It doesn't matter who I am." The old man looked at Lee Dojin. He grinned, but it did not reach his eyes. "What matters is who you are. I'll be frank. Did you kidnap a lady named Ah Yeurong."

"Are you braindead?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "Well, it was worth a try."

One of Ah Yeurongs friends stepped forward. "Did something happen to Yeurong?"

The man waved his hand. The suited men surrounded Lee Dojin. Ji-ah was about to step forward, but was stopoed by the pale Jowoon. The man nodded. "Well, let's talk more in the car. Time's of the essence so let's go okay?" He turned around, expecting him to go.

"I won't go, and I didn't kidnap the girl." Lee Dojin replied. "Look, I don't really want any trouble, and you clearly are in a rush, why don't you just leave?"

". . . I don't think you understand your situation, brat." His voice fell, turning incredibly low. he squatted down to be at the same eye-level as him. "You think you are hot shit, huh? That's the thing with you kids. For you, the school is your whole world. You know nothing of what's outside, and you feel like you can be anything. I'll say it one last time. Step. In. The. Car."

"Then listen well. I don't know that bitch. " Lee Dojin's face turned dark, his eyes sharp. "Piss off." His sharp fangs showed as he said so.

The man turned silent. "Young-Soo. Rough him up a little, alright?"

"On it, sir." The big guy stepped forward. He didn't show any reaction, only throwing his fist down, hitting Dojin straight in the face. A loud, dull sound resounded. Jyejin eyes opened wide, as she felt her strength escape. The old man smiled.

"Ah, fuck," Dojin muttered calmly, shocking the men in black. Especially the guy hitting him. He was sure he had used his full power.

Lee Dojin continued talking, blood dripping from his forehead. But he showed no reaction. "Fine, let's say I did." Lee Dojin grabbed the man's wrist. He laughed loudly. His expression was always the liveliest when he was about to fight. His grip tightened, and the man's wrist started cracking. The guy screamed, trying to retract his hand, but could not budge.

"What are you going to do about it?"