. Tactical Errors (II)

[Y]oo Jin-ho's suspicion heightened as he questioned, "Reaper? Who told you about that name?"

"I'll tell you if you can handle what's coming… or maybe not!" His mysterious assailant replied cryptically, assuming a subtle fighting stance.

Unbeknownst to him, the person dressed as a biker was, in fact, Lee Ju-hee, who frequently disguised herself as a man to remain incognito during critical moments.

The surroundings fell into an eerie silence, with tension thickening in the air.

Deftly unsheathing a concealed dagger from the back of her pants, her deadly gaze fixed on Yoo Jin-ho beneath the helmet, carefully studying her opponent for an opening.

Then breaking through the tension with cat-like elegance, she sent her dagger slicing forward, aiming for his neck.

Yoo Jin-ho simply tilted his head out of the way, smoothly avoiding each of her strikes.

Noticing that his opponent was using a dagger, he concluded the guy was a close-combat fighter — an assassin maybe?

Without missing a beat, Lee Ju-hee crouched slightly, deftly rotating the dagger in her hand with the blade pointed inward, before slashing at his torso.

"Tsk! There goes my new shirt!" Yoo Jin-ho complained, an unsettling gleam grazing his intense stare.

'Damn it,' Lee Ju-hee cursed internally, adrenaline coursing through her veins, a grisly stir in her gut.

Reacting on impulse, she instinctively back-stepped, her eyes catching the black shirt he wore, with one of its buttons missing and a stain of blood seeping through the fabric where the wound lay.

He remained standing there, seemingly relaxed and poised, showing no signs of being affected.

'Could it be? ...Is he toying with me?'

Yoo Jin-ho's familiar, laid-back voice mixed with a hint of reluctance, cut through the chaos of her thoughts, as he asked with a twitch of his right brow, "Do we really have to continue this?"

Seething with irritation, Lee Ju-hee snarled, "I'm not done yet, you son of a bitch!"

Yoo Jin-ho let out a weary sigh, brushing his hair backward, the atmosphere around him instantly turning grim. A shudder ran down her spine, her body instinctively warning her of impending danger.

"If you seek revenge, I won't stop you. But not until I confirm for myself that 'she' is truly dead," he disclosed, before launching his counterattack, "Renewal Taekwondo, Whirlwind Strike!"

In a split second, Yoo Jin-ho took a step back, channeling a burst of energy as he spun on his supporting foot, his kicking leg rising swiftly.

His body transformed into a blur of motion, akin to a swirling vortex, as he struck Lee Ju-hee's abdomen with an inhuman whirlwind, propelling her backward.

Gasping for air and erupting into a fit of coughs, she rolled to her side, tasting the metallic tang of blood in her mouth. The weight of the helmet suddenly felt unbearable.

"Is that all? Do you think this level of skill is enough to avenge 'her'?" Yoo Jin-ho's obnoxious words drew a dark glare from Lee Ju-hee.

He had no inkling of the torment she endured to reach this point. When she'd claimed 'she' was dead, it wasn't a lie. The weak version of herself had died, and she had killed her own vulnerability.

But this? She gritted her teeth at the painful realization that, despite her relentless efforts, she was vastly outmatched.

"Mock me all you want! I couldn't care less!" she exclaimed defiantly.

"I'm not mocking you," Yoo Jin-ho remarked, trying to make his point clear. "I'm just saying that with your current skill level, you won't achieve anything but get yourself killed."

"SHUT UP!" she croaked bitterly, gathering herself for another attack, the dagger still tightly gripped in her hand.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Her strikes sliced through the air again, targeting vulnerable spots on his body. Yet, once again, he flawlessly dodged each one, showcasing her vast inferiority.

Then reacting swiftly, Yoo Jin-ho vanished from her sight, appearing behind her to deliver a kick to the back of her leg, forcing her to her knees.

What was with this guy? She had comparable skills in taekwondo and agility, but his speed seemed inhumane.

Even though she had faced swift opponents like Vortex previously, Yoo Jin-ho was effortlessly deflecting all her attacks with ease.

It dawned on her that he resembled a true reaper, moving elusively and launching near-silent attacks — almost like he had no presence of his own.

"That's what I thought!" Yoo Jin-ho mumbled thoughtfully. "You're not half bad, but still too weak! At this rate, you'll end up dead!"

With an icy glint in her eyes, Lee Ju-hee confronted him with cold indifference. "I don't care what you say! I'll send you to rot in hell with the others!"

"The others? Who are you talking about?" Yoo Jin-ho approached her, leaning forward to meet her gaze, presuming it was eye-level. "Have you attacked others too? Let me guess, Yo-han… No?"

"Then… Han Si-hyun?" He continued, throwing names at her, seemingly hoping she would reveal her victims.

Summoning the last of her strength, she pushed him backward with both hands. As he staggered back, trying to regain his balance, she struggled to her feet.

Too bad she was wearing leather gloves to hide her feminine hands; otherwise, she would have taken a 'read' at him.

Yoo Jin-ho chuckled, finding it somewhat amusing, "Why do you have to be so rude, huh? I'm trying to have a nice friendly talk here!"

"SHUT UP!" she cursed at him once more, her voice still disguised by the contraption, but surprisingly, fear was absent from her demeanor.

Despite knowing she was outmatched and the odds of surviving were slim, she remained calm and composed, facing her opponent head-on.

"You're stronger than me! Why don't you just kill me?" she asked, her voice tinged with frustration.

Jin-ho shrugged, a hint of something different in his expression. "Where's the fun in that? Weren't you planning to seek revenge for her?"

"Why do you care?! You're the reason she ended up like that!" she retorted fiercely.

As he slid his hands into his pant pockets, his gaze softened, revealing unreadable emotions. A low smirk formed at the corner of his lips, but this time, it wasn't filled with smugness or mockery. Strangely, it looked melancholic.

"I'll tell you if you can beat me!" he threw a provocative challenge her way, one that mirrored her earlier one.

"I'll just have—" She was still in the midst of speaking when he delivered a powerful punch to her gut, knocking the wind out of her. Wheezing in pain and gasping for air, she crumpled to her knees, clutching her abdomen in agony.

"For now, you're still too weak," he stated, turning away and walking in the opposite direction.

Although he initially mistook her for one of Han Si-hyun's lackeys when attacked, this encounter seemed to interest him as well.

"Where are you going, you bastard?" she snapped.

Yoo Jin-ho casually retorted, "Home!"

"I s-said… I'm not done yet—"

"Nah… we're done! Come back when you're stronger!" He halted, looking back at her over his right shoulder. Then emphasizing each words, he said, "And until you can beat me, don't even think about seeking 're-ven-ge' on the others!"

With that, he left her perplexed about the whole situation.

Once he had distanced himself from his pursuer, Yoo Jin-ho pulled out his phone and dialed a number. "Hey, Shadow? Need some intel on a lady. You game?" he inquired as the other person answered the call.

***

"Noona, where are you? I've been trying to reach you for hours!" Min-ho's voice echoed through the phone, filled with concern.

"M-Min-ho?" Lee Ju-hee breathed out as she leaned against a nearby wall, desperately trying to catch her breath.

She was a mess, with dried streaks of blood at the corner of her lips and her labored breathing. When she lifted the black leather jacket slightly to inspect her wounds, she noticed the forming bruise at the spot where Yoo Jin-ho had punched her earlier.

"Hey? Are you alright? Why do you sound like you've been running a marathon or something?"

"I met him… Yoo Jin-ho, codename Reaper, I mean!" Lee Ju-hee managed to say, her voice still shaky from the encounter.

"Noona, what the hell did you do?" Min-ho's tone quickly turned into a chide. "I told you to wait for me! We were supposed to—"

"He's strong, Min-ho," she interjected, her words slightly labored. "Really strong."

"Hey, are you sure you're okay? Tell me you're not hurt, are you?"

"Just a couple of bruises!" she admitted honestly. "The guy went easy on me!"

She heard Min-ho sigh through the phone, his tone turning sterner as he asked, "Are your injuries life-threatening?"

"N-no," Lee Ju-hee's voice wavered as she leaned against the alleyway wall, sliding down to sit on the ground.

Discarding the helmet and the gloves, she buried her face in her palm, feeling the wetness on her cheeks. It was only then that she realized she had tears on her cheeks.

Sensing her distress, Min-ho tried to reassure, "Listen, I'm tracking your phone right now! I'll be there soon, and we can talk, alright?"

"N-no, Min-ho, listen!" Her words came out in a mix of frustration and grief. She felt defeated, hurt, and frustrated by her own weakness. "Hah, revenge? What a joke! I wasn't even a match for him!"

"Noona… your efforts weren't in vain, trust me!" Min-ho said patiently, understanding her vexation. "Going in with brute force isn't the only way! We'll figure something out!"

"This sucks!" She exhaled, wiping away the tears streaming down her face.

"Tell me something! Did he know who you are?"

"No! I don't think so!" She answered, her voice finally sounding steady. "I thought he already did though!"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Remember the stranger I talked about? The one who tried to…"

"Yeah… what are you getting at?" Min-ho prompted, curious about the connection.

"Well, you won't believe this, but he turned out to be Yoo Jin-ho, the one we were searching for all along!"

"W-what?" Min-ho gasped through the phone-call, seemingly taken aback by the sudden revelation. "Do you think he recognized you as 'the woman' from four years ago?"

"Thankfully, no. He still thinks I'm dead. I made sure of that," she explained.

"So, he has no idea you're seeking revenge against him?"

"Not directly, but now he knows there's someone after him."

"Well, that can work to our advantage," Min-ho muttered thoughtfully.

"I hope so. This whole situation is driving me crazy!"

"Don't worry, I've got your back. We'll figure out a plan to deal with him!"

After a moment of silence, she spoke up again, proposing a new strategy. "I believe it's time to switch to plan B!"

"Which is?"

"A honey-trap!"