The Cop Is Too Strong [EN]: Chapter 244

< #244. The Chilseong Society Meeting >

The cafe entrance offered a clear view of the intersection.

Section Chief Kwak Su-cheol and Haru spoke simultaneously as they faced each other.

“A date?”

“Running away from home?”

Indeed, neither considered the other a likely candidate for a friendly meeting.

Even though Section Chief Kwak had some old-fashioned tendencies, he constantly provoked arguments. Haru, on the other hand, attacked at the first opportunity, creating a gap too wide for them to accept such a scenario.

Haru blushed at the mention of a date, while Section Chief Kwak let out a dry laugh.

“Running away from home? At my age? Where’s Dolgyeok-i [likely a reference to a family member or pet]?”

“Ah, no, it’s not a date. I’m meeting someone.”

“Oh, really? Are they coming to this cafe? Come on in, I’ll buy.”

Haru answered without hesitation.

“I’ll have a strawberry smoothie.”

“Oh my, you’re quick to answer, as if you’ve been waiting for it.”

With that, they entered the cafe, ordered drinks, and sat facing each other at a table.

Section Chief Kwak and Haru had rarely been alone together like this. Even when they were, it was during work, leaving no room for awkwardness as they discussed the case or focused on their tasks.

A suffocating silence settled between them. In the meantime, they both glanced at the cafe entrance, periodically checking if the person they were meeting had arrived.

“Hasn’t your friend arrived yet? A friend?”

Haru hesitated for a moment before nodding.

“A friend, um, yes.”

After about 10 minutes, they both began to feel slightly irritated.

Section Chief Kwak didn’t want to reveal that he was playing mobile games, so he couldn’t take out his phone. Haru, however, connected to the game on her phone and sent a whisper to Section Chief Gwak.

-Harusari: Why aren’t you here?

[Section Chief Gwak is offline.]

-Harusari: 10 minutes, hurry up.

[Section Chief Gwak is offline.]

Slurp, slurp-

The strawberry smoothie she ordered was running low. At the same time, Haru’s patience also dwindled.

Haru’s fingers moved rapidly.

-Harusari: 10 minutes have passed.

[Section Chief Gwak is offline.]

-Harusari: I was going to cut off one of your fingers and be your friend if you came, but I can’t. You have to die.

[Section Chief Gwak is offline.]

“Ugh, is it because I drank something cold? Why do I suddenly feel cold?”

The moment Haru narrowed her eyes, Section Chief Kwak felt an unknown chill and rubbed his arms with both hands.

The air conditioner blew, and goosebumps rose all over his skin.

After a while, he checked the time and stood up.

“I have something to do, have fun meeting your friend.”

“Yes, thank you for the drink. Please go in, Section Chief Kwak.”

“Not Section Chief, Section Chief Kwak. See you next time.”

With that, they parted ways stiffly.

That night.

-Section Chief Gwak: Why didn’t you come? Were you scared?

-Harusari: …Do you want to die?

-Section Chief Gwak: So you’re only a gangster online. I waited for over 30 minutes, but you didn’t come. Were you that scared?

-Harusari: Liar, you’re my target for endless assassination from today.

-Section Chief Gwak: Was there ever a time when I wasn’t? Don’t let your guard down either, this old man has a thick wallet.

Thus, the face-to-face meeting was canceled, and only their mutual hatred intensified.

A satisfied smile spread across Section Chief Kwak’s face.

As Harusari said, hunting her wasn’t easy because she appeared like a ghost whenever he showed up at the hunting grounds. But leaving that bleak reality behind, one pleasant thing had occurred.

His first disciple, Seo Eun-choigo, frequently logged in and worked hard, growing rapidly under his tutelage.

-Seo Eun-choigo: Master, I’ve enhanced the legendary sword to +9.

-Section Chief Gwak: …That’s, that’s expensive, isn’t it? How much did it cost?

-Seo Eun-choigo: I didn’t keep track, but it probably didn’t cost 100 million won [approximately $75,000 USD].

-Section Chief Gwak: Ah… Our disciple is so kind, let’s strengthen our bond as master and disciple even more.”

When Seo Eun-choigo’s rapid growth allowed them to hunt together to some extent, Section Chief Kwak discovered Harusari’s close friend, Seo Eun-yi-dang.

-Section Chief Gwak: Disciple! Kill that one! That’s the close friend of that enemy from back then!

Without realizing it, Section Chief Kwak pitted parents against children and cornered Seo Eun-yi-dang while benefiting himself.

Seo Eun-yi-dang, who was still at a low level due to being busy in the real world, was slowly pushed back, unable to handle even Section Chief Kwak alone.

-Seo Eun-yi-dang: You’re being unfair.

-Section Chief Gwak: I’m just implementing justice.

Just as she was in crisis, Harusari suddenly appeared in the air, using an outrageously expensive instant teleport scroll.

The battle ended in an instant.

[Seo Eun-choigo has died.]

[Section Chief Gwak has died.]

-Harusari: Ptooey [an expression of disgust].

-Seo Eun-yi-dang: Thanks.

Section Chief Kwak lay on the cold hunting ground floor, staring blankly at his character and the two characters trampling on Seo Eun-choigo’s corpse lying next to him. Then, suddenly, something came to mind.

“Huh? Haru? Seo Eun?”

Harusari standing crookedly and Seo Eun-yi-dang sticking close to her.

He felt like he had seen Haru and Ahn Seo-eun standing in that exact formation somewhere before. Even their IDs seemed to represent them.

However, Section Chief Kwak shook his head with a resolute expression.

“No way, absolutely not. There’s no way that vicious, cruel, underhanded, promise-breaking, and ugly Harusari could be Haru.”

Section Chief Kwak, waiting for resurrection, dreamed of revenge against Harusari and Seo Eun-yi-dang and charged his emergency funds into the game today without his wife knowing.

“Harusari, I’ll definitely catch you.”

Of course, Section Chief Kwak’s investigation was doomed from the start.

* * *

An office with antique furniture. A middle-aged man with a glossy face was carefully examining an invitation wrapped in black with red lines.

“They left this? From the VIP side?”

“Yes, they added that you should open it immediately upon receiving it.”

“Hmm.”

Contact with VIPs is risky in a country as unstable as this. The middle-aged man frowned and pondered, but eventually untied the red lines and checked the contents inside.

“An invitation?”

The note was indeed a banquet invitation, with the seal of the VIP’s chief of staff accurately stamped on it.

The date was three days later.

Many corporate heads don’t reside in the country full-time. However, the three-day notice was so short that they would have to quickly wrap up their work and return home.

That’s why they told him to open it immediately.

The image of numerous corporate heads urgently launching their private jets was clear.

The middle-aged man pondered, but the conclusion remained the same.

“Going is uncomfortable, but not going will definitely result in disadvantages.”

At the same time, numerous political and business figures belonging to the Chilseong Society also received invitations.

* * *

“Hmm…”

Chairman Ahn of the Daesung Group was no exception. He was looking at the invitation with a deeply troubled expression.

“Do you really have to go?”

Unlike before, Chairman Ahn informed Ahn Seo-eun that he had received the invitation, and Seo-eun rushed to the main house to dissuade him.

“I don’t want to see those guys’ faces either, but if I don’t go, it will only raise suspicion. I have to go and at least exchange pleasantries.”

“Then I’ll go with you.”

“…What?”

Seo-eun’s eyes were resolute. There was a slight hint of worry in those eyes, a rare sight.

Chairman Ahn unknowingly smiled, then quickly hardened his face and turned his head.

“No, even if you’re my daughter, people who haven’t received an invitation can’t enter. Only one escort is allowed.”

“Then I’ll be the escort…”

Seo-eun tried to insist but stopped. Even she realized it didn’t make sense.

She didn’t know what might happen there, so even as an escort, she needed a highly skilled bodyguard.

She suddenly thought of someone and turned around. Hwang Jang-soo was wandering around the entrance, looking at the artwork.

“I’d feel relieved if you took that escort, Guard Hwang.”

“Guard Hwang?”

Chairman Ahn’s eyes turned to Hwang Jang-soo. He was a person with an intimidating appearance, but he knew about him from Shin Hae-soo.

Even though his skills had never been directly revealed to the outside, he was said to be as skilled as Hae-soo.

“I understand… More than that.”

Ahn Seo-eun was delighted at Chairman Ahn’s acceptance, like a young girl. Chairman Ahn hesitated while looking at his daughter, then mustered the courage to continue.

“Where are you hunting these days?”

“…Pardon?”

Ahn Seo-eun asked again, wondering if she had misheard. Chairman Ahn’s face turned red at that innocent expression.

“Ah, no. Never mind. Go out now.”

* * *

The hideout.

“…So I ended up guarding that old man, ugh, I hate it.”

“What do you hate? They’re giving you hundreds of dollars a day. I’d sell my soul if I were you.”

“You’ve been guarding women who could outshine most actresses. Try guarding an old geezer. Sigh, you wouldn’t understand unless you’ve done it.”

“What? This gangster grandpa?”

“What, you say that one more time, I’ll twist your waist like I’m wringing laundry.”

While Hwang Jang-soo and Jjoksae were bickering, Shin Hae-soo was looking at the monitor next to Jung Young-soo.

Due to Chairman Ahn’s call and the request for Hwang Jang-soo’s support, Shin Hae-soo also began to collect information about the Chilseong Society’s meeting in earnest.

After secretly investigating, they found that quite a few celebrities had suddenly changed their schedules.

At least 30 or more leaders from each field had received invitations. Conversely, that meant that they were all members of the Chilseong Society. It was hard to find leaders who weren’t part of the Chilseong Society.

The Chilseong Society was completely swallowing South Korea.

Hae-soo began to prepare, focusing all his attention on this historic meeting.

“Jjoksae, if anything happens on the scene, radio immediately. Young-soo, get ready to hack the CCTV on time, and Haru, play the game.”

“Yes, sir!”

Haru answered solemnly.

Unfortunately, Hae-soo can’t even go near there. He’s been marked as a person of interest by the members of the Chilseong Society.

As such, he was planning to extract information by mobilizing all possible means.

* * *

Banquet day.

Chairman Ahn came out of the main house and ran into Hwang Jang-soo, who was waiting in front of the private car.

“Ahem, let’s go.”

“Yeeeah.”

At the casual answer, Chairman Ahn turned his head to look at Hwang Jang-soo, wondering if he had misheard, but he realized he hadn’t, judging by the sly expression.

It was a refreshing shock to Chairman Ahn, who was used to bodyguards acting with precision.

“Watch your head, why aren’t you getting in? Is there something on my face?”

“…No.”

Chairman Ahn didn’t like his flippant words and actions, but he suppressed his anger, reminding himself that he only had to get through today since his daughter had assigned him.

The banquet hall was the Sky Lounge of the ‘Noblesse’ Hotel, newly built this year by the Hajin Group.

As soon as they entered the main gate, an employee approached them for valet parking. Just before getting out of the car, Hwang Jang-soo pulled out thick horn-rimmed glasses from his inside pocket.

His already fierce impression became strangely fiercer when he wore the glasses.

“What’s that?”

Hwang Jang-soo slightly raised the bridge of his glasses and replied.

“It’s fashion. Fashion.”

Chairman Ahn frowned slightly at Jang-soo’s affected pronunciation and shook his head.

As they entered the lobby, beautiful female employees in stylish uniforms greeted them with smiles.

“Hello, Chairman Ahn Gi-won. I’m Kim Yong-mi from the information team. I’ll guide you to the banquet hall.”

The employees already knew the faces and titles of the people who had received invitations.

Hwang Jang-soo looked around with a beaming face and belatedly chased after Chairman Ahn, who had moved away.

After taking the private elevator to the Sky Lounge, there was another security check at the entrance.

“Thank you for coming. We apologize, but you are not allowed to bring electronic devices inside. Please leave all electronic devices here without exception before entering.”

Another employee held out a luxurious metal box with Chairman Ahn’s name on it. Chairman Ahn naturally took off his watch and put it in there along with his cell phone.

Hwang Jang-soo was slightly embarrassed but soon put his cell phone there with a sly expression.

“Can I pick it up when I go to the bathroom? I can’t poop well if I don’t watch YouTube when I poop.”

Chairman Ahn, who brought him, frowned at Hwang Jang-soo’s crude expression, but the female employee maintained a picture-perfect smile that didn’t show any embarrassment, not even for a moment.

“Yes, don’t worry and enjoy yourself.”

At the entrance to the banquet hall, there was an arched frame like an airport security checkpoint. When Hwang Jang-soo passed through it, he felt a very slight static electricity from the bridge of his glasses.

Zzz-

“…Hmm.”

Very slightly, his brow furrowed and then relaxed.

* * *

At the same time, the large screen in the hideout that had been sharing Hwang Jang-soo’s view turned black.

Jung Young-soo had a blank expression on his face.

“Ah…”

“They’re thorough.”

Because of the nature of the place, it was a really ultra-small, custom-made glasses with a high-priced item that the camera was almost invisible to the naked eye.

Hae-soo grabbed the coat hanging on the chair, turned around, and looked at Haru.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes, sir!”

It was an opportunity he couldn’t miss, but there would inevitably be company employees overflowing there. In the event of a collision, an opponent that could not be dealt with would only lead to sacrifice.

Hae-soo headed to the Noblesse Hotel with only Haru.