Daniel Park sat on his couch, remote in hand, mindlessly flipping through channels. The TV's glow illuminated his face in the darkened living room.
He stopped on the news channel.
The anchor sat at her desk, her expression grave. Behind her, a photo of Charles Choi appeared—the familiar face of the HNH Group CEO smiling in an official corporate portrait.
"—in a shocking development this morning, Charles Choi, CEO of HNH Group, was found dead near a residence in Chungcheong-Do. Sources confirm Mr. Choi's body showed signs of severe trauma consistent with a brutal assault."
Daniel's hand froze on the remote.
The screen cut to aerial footage of a broken-down house surrounded by police tape. Officers moved around the perimeter like ants.
"The body was discovered near a property belonging to Noh Bakugo, a local resident. Police also recovered several shell casings at the scene. Preliminary analysis indicates they came from standard-issue police firearms."
Daniel leaned forward, eyes widening.
"Investigators are searching for two persons of interest: Mr. Noh Bakugo and Police Officer Jichang Kwak, a close associate of Mr. Noh. Both men are missing. However, heavy rainfall has significantly hampered the investigation, washing away potential evidence including blood samples and other forensic material."
The anchor's face reappeared. "The circumstances surrounding Mr. Choi's death remain unclear. Police are asking anyone with information to—"
Daniel muted the TV.
His mind raced. Just yesterday—yesterday—he'd met both Jichang Kwak and Noh Bakugo. They seemed like good people. Strong, sure, but not murderers.
There's no way they killed Charles Choi.
But even if they had...
Daniel couldn't wrap his head around it. Charles Choi was supposed to be untouchable. The man behind the Ten Geniuses. Someone like that doesn't just die.
Especially not quietly, in some backwater house in Chungcheong-Do.
Something didn't add up.
---
Across the city, Steve Hong stood motionless in his office, staring at the television mounted on his wall.
The news anchor's voice droned on, but Steve had stopped listening minutes ago. His reflection in the darkened window showed a man frozen in disbelief.
Charles Choi was dead.
Dead.
Steve's hands clenched into fists.
For long—long—he'd worked to expose Charles Choi. To reveal the monster behind the corporate mask. To show the world what kind of man truly ran HNH Group was.
If killing Charles had been the goal, Steve could have tried it long ago. He had resources. Connections. People who would've done it for the right price.
But that wasn't the plan.
The plan was to expose him. To drag him into the light where everyone could see his real face. To destroy not just the man, but everything he'd built on lies and manipulation.
Death was too easy. Too clean.
And now someone had given Charles Choi exactly that—a quick, brutal end before the world ever learned the truth.
Steve's jaw tightened. His fist slammed against the desk.
"Damn it."
All that work. All that planning.
Gone.
Steve exhaled slowly, forcing himself to calm down.
The question now wasn't about revenge or exposure.
The question was: who?
Who could kill Charles Choi?
---
In Daegu, far from Seoul's chaos, Baki Hanma stood in a small, sparsely furnished room.
Beside him, Gongseob Ji stared at Jichang Kwak's unconscious form. Jichang Kwak's breathing was shallow but stable. Bandages covered most of his upper body.
Gongseob Ji's composure cracked. His voice rose to a shout. "F**king avalokitesvara!! Who did this?!"
Baki sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "He should be on the news now. Turn on the TV."
Gongseob Ji moved quickly, grabbing the remote. The screen flickered to life, showing the same news broadcast playing across the country.
Charles Choi's face appeared.
The anchor explained the circumstances of his death.
Gongseob Ji's expression shifted from confusion to shock to disbelief. His mouth opened and closed several times before words finally came out.
"F**king avalokitesvara!! Who did this?!"
Baki's eye twitched. He sighed again, heavier this time. "Stop repeating yourself. I did that. That bastard deserved to die."
Silence.
Then Gongseob Ji spun around, eyes wide. In an instant, he closed the distance and wrapped his arms around Baki in a tight hug.
"Amitabha!" Tears welled in his eyes. "Finally, you did some good deeds in your life, my friend!"
Baki grimaced, trying to push him away. "Get off—"
But Gongseob Ji held firm, his voice taking on a more serious tone. "But Buddha likes to test his devotees. I can feel trouble coming toward you."
"I said get off!" Baki finally shoved Gongseob Ji back, creating distance. "Stop clinging to me like that!"
Gongseob Ji straightened his robes, his expression shifting to something more contemplative. He pulled out a string of Buddhist prayer beads and began counting them methodically.
"Amitabha." His voice became almost ceremonial. "Even I, the great monk Gongseob Ji, cannot help you escape Buddha's test. This is a retribution you must surpass by yourself."
Baki's jaw clenched. His damaged eye throbbed with dull pain. "Fuck you, Fake Monk! You just have to take care of old man Noh and Jichang, and keep them hidden until Jichang recovers. The police will be searching for them."
Gongseob Ji clasped his hands together, his face serene.
"Amitabha." A small smile appeared. "Helping a friend in need is helping yourself. This monk shall help you."
Baki relaxed slightly, his shoulders dropping. "Good. Keep them here. Don't let anyone know where they are."
"Of course." Gongseob Ji's eyes drifted back to Jichang's unconscious form
"I will be going then." Baki moved toward the door. "Old man Noh is fine. Just shaken up. But Jichang took serious damage before I got there."
"Speaking of which." An old voice came from the doorway.
Baki turned. Noh Bakugo stood there, his expression troubled.
"The evidence we collected," Noh said. "It's gone."
Baki frowned. "What do you mean gone?"
"When I went back to retrieve it from Jichang's house, someone had already taken it." Noh stepped into the room. "Everything we gathered—the documents, the photos, all of it."
Baki shrugged. "Charles Choi is dead. There's no use for that information anymore."
"You're wrong." Noh's voice hardened. "That evidence wasn't just against Charles Choi."
Baki's eye narrowed. "What?"
"We had evidence against others involved in Gapryong Kim's death." Noh looked directly at Baki. "Charles Choi wasn't acting alone. There were others. And now whoever took that evidence knows everything we knew."
Silence filled the room.
---
Workers Headquarters
Eugene sat across from James Lee, fingers steepled on the desk between them.
"Where is it?" Eugene leaned forward.
James sighed. "I couldn't retrieve it. Baki Hanma was at the scene."
"And?"
"Charles Choi is dead. There's no need for it anymore."
Eugene smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Is that so? But why do I feel like that evidence had something to do with James Lee from the 1st generation too, DG?"
James leaned back. "Maybe. I don't know. I didn't see it."
"Of course you didn't." Eugene's smile widened. "It's okay. After all, Chairman Charles is dead."
The words hung in the air.
James said nothing.
"Okay, that's it for today," Eugene said.
James stood and walked toward the door. His hand touched the handle.
"DG."
He stopped.
"Be careful," Eugene said softly. "Dead men's secrets have a way of resurfacing."
James left without responding.