Hoarding In Hell [EN]: Chapter 212

212. Good Cop, Bad Cop (2)

“Please calm down, Mr. Kang Hyun-moo.”

Seeing Hyun-moo on the verge of a fit, Park Hwi-so tried to calm him down first.

Of course, simply telling him to calm down wouldn’t work, so he had to offer a tempting piece of information.

“Robert Lee is still in the United States. He only appears in highly controlled routes and heavily secured environments. The fact that he even entered Korea was unusual. That’s why we were able to easily find the connection with you.”

“So, he only associates with quite wealthy families?”

“As he operates on the US West Coast, he has close ties with Korean multinational corporations and the wealthy. He seems to be involved in lobbying for various immigration-related legislation in addition to inheritance law.”

He was someone who could never be involved with Hyun-moo, who was a poor, ‘dirt-spoon’ [a Korean term for someone born into poverty] in Korea.

In other words, it even occurred to him that this situation might be part of the Alliance’s design.

Park Hwi-so pressed Hyun-moo, asking,

“Why didn’t you contact him in the first place? Did you forget that you received his business card?”

“I can’t say I remembered it. When I returned with the Return Stone, the situation was… a bit too chaotic.”

If he had time to think calmly on his own, he might have remembered the business card and contacted him.

Either to curse at him or to go and kill him.

However, Hyun-moo met Yoo-min immediately afterward, and Yoo-min solved almost all of his problems.

Thinking about it calmly, Hyun-moo slowly began to sort out his thoughts.

Robert Lee gave him the business card expecting to be contacted. He wouldn’t have given it to him otherwise.

If he had contacted him? Whether he was beaten up or persuaded, Hyun-moo would have been incorporated into their sphere of influence through a series of processes.

But the plan fell apart from that stage.

And since it failed at that stage, the Alliance clearly hesitated to get more deeply involved in this situation.

Even as the Alliance members were repeatedly defeated, the Teacher or Professor kept a distance.

Even Park Hwi-so and Ryu Soo-ah were caught in the middle without even knowing about him.

‘A pawn who doesn’t even know he’s a pawn.’

He felt a sense of pity for Park Hwi-so, who thought of the Alliance in such grand terms.

In the end, that’s what an organization is.

The more an organization promotes noble purposes and plausible justice, the more rotten it is everywhere.

The only thing that guarantees the cleanliness of an organization is a transparent procedure. Secret societies can never do that.

‘But that means… Robert Lee is likely to be either directly ordered by the Teacher or is the Teacher himself.’

They wouldn’t let just anyone handle something like a Return Stone. He didn’t know the intention of giving him the Return Stone, but he could find out later through torture or brainwashing.

Right now, it was important to capture the guy with that information with his head intact.

“Immediately catch that bastard…”

Hyun-moo stopped talking, about to order him to catch him. Park Hwi-so looked at him with a puzzled expression when Hyun-moo stopped in the middle of giving the order.

Hyun-moo’s eyes were filled with conflict.

‘Is it really the right thing to bring this bastard in?’

Of course, he was completely different from when he first returned from Difficulty: Hell.

But even if there was a difference in timing, he was worried that contacting him would eventually involve him in some grand design.

And there was one more reason.

‘If, if, if, if it’s just a hypothetical situation.’

What if the fact that it was his father’s keepsake was a lie from the beginning?

So, if the person who sent him the Return Stone was that human.

Hyun-moo didn’t know how he would act when he met the person who might be behind it. And he didn’t know how he should act.

However, the moment his thoughts were about to become complicated, the emotions he had put aside suddenly surged up. There was no need to think complicatedly from the beginning. There was no need to hesitate.

The principle is simple.

Whoever it is, he will definitely repay anyone who screws him over.

“Catch that bastard right now. It’s okay if he’s missing four or five limbs, just keep him alive.”

“Are we talking about a human now, not a spider or a centipede?”

“Yes.”

He can forget the favors he received for a while, but he never forgets a grudge.

He would just chew up the design or trap whole.

***

US West Coast, San Francisco.

It was early summer, but San Francisco was experiencing abnormal temperatures due to climate change.

People were struggling with the heat and taking shelter in the shade from the soaring temperatures.

But some people couldn’t do that.

“Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, this is Scheherazade. Reporting that it’s more bearable than I thought.”

[……Did you just make up that name? I thought you’d be whining about the heat, what’s wrong with you?]

Seo Ji-hoo replied when Song Yeo-un sent a radio message while watching the building across the street from the rooftop.

In the first place, the wireless equipment they used was a system that didn’t have to worry about eavesdropping, so they didn’t really need code names.

But considering the purpose of the mission, it would have been better to set it up in advance.

“No, San Francisco has an image of being a summer city. A warm resort. But even though it’s an abnormal temperature, it’s only 26 degrees Celsius [79 degrees Fahrenheit]. It’s kind of unsightly. You guys need to see the spicy taste of Joseon [ancient Korean kingdom]… I feel like that.”

[It’s true that it’s a warm country. The average annual temperature never drops below freezing.]

“It’s heaven!? A place that’s neither hot nor cold was right here?!

[Focus on the mission.]

“The meeting is still in progress. It’s taking a long time. How’s the scenery over there?”

[What are you talking about?]

“If you’re waiting on the beach road, you’ll see good scenery, right? I’m jealous.”

[Don’t say nonsense…….]

“Ask the Chief if I can delay my return by a few days for a vacation after the mission. Can you do that? Teddy Bear is the Chief’s darling.”

[Ms. Song Yeo-un is the one who…….]

“Shh, Teddy Bear. You have to use code words!”

[……Scheherazade’s sister is directly sponsored by the Chief. No matter what her sister makes, the Chief buys it all at the price she calls, so her income is higher than our combined salaries.]

“My sister is a bit of a talented person. Ah, Jasmine, Lavender, Mint, target is moving. Repeat. Baldy is going out.”

[Jasmine confirmed.]

[Lavender confirmed.]

[Mint confirmed.]

[……Teddy Bear confirmed. When did you guys unify the code names without me? I can roughly tell who’s who by their voice, but.]

“Everyone’s just answering with a sense of tact.”

Seo Ji-hoo felt like he had been deceived, but it was clear that Baldy meant this target.

Seo Ji-hoo prepared to move according to the signal, and Song Yeo-un started running towards the capture point.

In a city where traffic jams occur, humans can be faster than cars if they can run on the rooftops of buildings without being detected like clockwork dolls.

[If you don’t get caught, you’ll move along the designated route. Stop the car at point A, Lavender will prepare the equipment, and I’ll announce the start of the operation. After the capture is complete, Scheherazade will enter, take the target, and set the goal to move to point B.]

“You’re adapting quickly, Teddy Bear.”

[No more small talk from this time on.]

Song Yeo-un grumbled, but she couldn’t help it.

The operation is Seo Ji-hoo’s responsibility, and the action is her responsibility.

The sword must be wielded in the direction the swordsman is pointing.

Song Yeo-un reached the promised A point much faster than Seo Ji-hoo.

As expected, there was traffic on the road, so Seo Ji-hoo was leisurely following Robert Lee while keeping his distance.

According to the plan, Robert Lee’s car will enter the alley in 5 minutes.

“Lavender, is the wig ready?”

[Ready.]

Right on time, Robert Lee turned his car into a narrow alley. It was a side road that he entered because of the traffic jam.

And this was point A.

What Robert Lee found there was a huge refrigerated truck.

Robert Lee’s car quickly slowed down as the huge refrigerated truck blocked the road. At that time, the refrigerated truck door opened with a thud, and something fell to the floor.

It was a steel slope that seemed to invite him into the refrigerated warehouse.

Robert Lee, realizing the change, began to reverse at full speed. But at the same time, a roar came from right behind him.

A truck of enormous size was rushing towards him. Seo Ji-hoo, who was wearing a seat belt, rammed Robert Lee’s car, which was hesitating between reversing and moving forward, without hesitation.

Then, he stuffed the car whole into the refrigerated truck.

The side mirrors on both sides of Robert Lee’s expensive Maserati were perfectly scratched off.

The car door and the side of the refrigerated truck warehouse were distorted to fit perfectly. With this, Robert Lee also lost his way to escape.

“A wig has been put on Baldy! Scheherazade, enter!”

At the same time as Seo Ji-hoo pulled out the vehicle, Song Yeo-un entered the refrigerated truck.

Song Yeo-un, seeing the Maserati that was all scratched and smashed, felt a brief sense of guilt as an ordinary citizen, but at the same time, she felt less sorry for the things she was about to do.

‘It’s already this broken, so what.’

The moment her hand touched the glass window, she activated the skill ‘Repulsion’. With a roar, the glass window shattered and scattered.

If hit wrong, it could be full of holes like a shotgun, but it’s okay as long as it doesn’t kill him instantly.

Song Yeo-un pushed her body into the hole in the car.

“Come out, Baldy! You can’t escape…….”

But Song Yeo-un couldn’t finish her words. She jumped out of the car with her face distorted with anger.

“He’s not here!”

“What?”

Seo Ji-hoo, who had just jumped out of the car, replied to Song Yeo-un’s shout.

“Baldy escaped! Damn it. He was here until we entered the alley, so he was here until Teddy Bear was about to hit Baldy. Mint, Jasmine, he must have gone to one of you! Lavender, abandon the car and join the search!”

***

However, as expected of someone who slipped out of the car without a sound, it was not easy to find Robert Lee.

Mint and Jasmine, who were blocking the way out of the alley, had not found him either.

On the radio, Song Yeo-un’s curses were heard almost every 10 seconds.

[Teddy Bear, this is Mint. I hear a siren, and it seems that the local police are approaching.]

Seo Ji-hoo clicked his tongue. He had to finish everything and get out before the police came.

If Hyun-moo had come in person, things would have been much easier. He could have just raided his house.

However, the entry procedures for ability users are strict in the United States. Especially if they belong to the top rankers like Kang Hyun-moo.

They wouldn’t block his entry, but he would be watched wherever he went.

“Scheherazade, listen. I think we should stop here. The police are approaching.”

But there was no answer from Song Yeo-un.

Seo Ji-hoo sent another radio message, but it was the same.

There were two possibilities. Song Yeo-un was so pissed off that she smashed the radio…….

Seo Ji-hoo had a bad feeling.

“Mint, Lavender, Jasmine. Can you confirm Scheherazade’s location?”

[I saw her running towards the rooftop in the southeast direction a while ago.]

Seo Ji-hoo immediately ran in the direction he was told.

He hoped nothing would happen, but in this kind of illegal mission, all kinds of situations occur.

He had to consider the possibility that there might be collaborators or protectors of Robert Lee that they hadn’t even discovered.

He tried to make it a quick decision to prevent such a situation as much as possible, but…….

Thud.

At that time, Seo Ji-hoo found a bloody man standing on one side of the alley.

A man with a tired expression and half-gray hair stained with blood.

Seo Ji-hoo made a sharp expression as he smelled the stench of blood coming from him.

It was Robert Lee, the target this time.

He had an elegant and refined appearance, but he was lurking like a wounded beast.

“……Where did Song Yeo-un go?”

“Song Yeo-un? Are you talking about that short-haired bitch?”

Robert Lee tilted his head and raised the corners of his mouth.

“It’s already too late. Hehehe…….”

“What did you do?”

“That bitch beat me up until I was in this state, and I barely managed to escape.”

“……What?”

“Didn’t you guys plan to catch me? Or is it dead or alive? I was beaten so badly that I thought I was going to die if I got hit wrong like this.”

Robert Lee raised both arms and said.

“That’s enough. I’ll surrender quietly, so please don’t hit me anymore…….”