Several black sedans rolled into the street outside the market, their engines drowning out everything around them.
The crowd around the arena noticed first.
"Look over there!"
"What is that?"
"Isn't that one of the top conglomerates that started right here in Busan?!"
"That's the company that stands shoulder to shoulder with the H Group!"
"What is the chairman of L Group doing here?!"
Inside the black sedan, Lee Nakchun leaned back in his seat and glanced out the window. "Looks like I arrived first," he said to himself. He turned to his men. "Move quickly. Find your seats. It's about to start."
Just then, someone in the crowd looked up.
"Huh?"
"Good God!"
"What is that now?"
"Isn't that the Busan mayor's exclusive helicopter?!"
Up in the helicopter, Busan Metropolitan City Mayor Do Hyungwang looked down at the convoy of black cars on the street below. 'Chairman Lee got here first,' he thought. 'We'd better move fast. Good seats don't wait.'
Then came the commotion from the direction of the harbor.
"Look! Another one!"
"Those are Busan ships?!"
"Half the fleet in this city belongs to one man!"
"There's only one person it could be!"
"Ship tycoon Park Jinnam!"
At the harbor, a large vessel eased toward the dock. On deck, Park Jinnam held a hookah pipe between his lips and squinted toward the shore. 'Chairman Lee and Mayor Do are here too, huh,' he thought. 'Looks like the intel was solid.'
The crowd completely broke loose.
"What on earth is going on?!"
"Every single bigshot in Busan just showed up?!"
---
Vin Jin, Daniel, and Zack all turned at once.
Vin Jin frowned. "Are these people here to back up Sang Baek?"
Daniel looked over the cars, the helicopter, the ships, and shook his head. "They don't look like they're here to fight." He paused. "It's more like they came to watch something." Another pause. "What exactly did they come here to see?"
That was when Sang Baek spoke.
"There was a man."
Daniel turned to look at him.
Sang Baek wasn't looking at any of them. His gaze was somewhere distant, his voice calm, like he was recounting something from a long time ago.
"When that man was absent, someone came looking for us. When the era of the circle ended, that man was gone. Jinrang Hyung-nim. I couldn't accept it. Since Jinrang Hyung-nim hadn't lost, we hadn't been defeated either. We rebuilt the organization and waited for his return. We found talent and raised them up. We opened new ventures and grew our power in the shadows. Everything was prepared to welcome the king. Jinrang. And that day is today. He has finally returned."
He turned and looked directly at Daniel. Something appeared in his eyes for the first time — not anger, but something deeper than that.
"Cower like dogs. Every last one of you will be torn apart today. The wolf is coming."
---
The helicopter descended slowly onto an open lot near the harbor.
The hatch opened.
A man stepped out.
He was tall and broad across the shoulders, somewhere in his late twenties or early thirties, hard to say exactly. Sunken black eyes. Disheveled black hair. A short goatee and mustache on his jaw. Below his left eye sat an unusual scar that resembled scales. Black polo shirt under a dark gray suit, black trousers. On each hand he wore a gold-yellow ring — one engraved with the word "Busan," the other with "Purgatory."
He stood at the hatch and looked down at everything below him.
Jinrang.
---
Somewhere in the crowd, someone felt something.
Not heard. Not seen.
Felt.
Park Baki stood among the crowd and went slightly still. Then the corner of his mouth slowly pulled back into a smile he hadn't even decided to make.
'Ah...' he thought. 'What a powerful aura.'
He could feel his fingers trembling faintly. Not from fear. Something more primal than that was surging up through his body.
'My body is shivering. I can feel it. I can feel that man's strength.'
He drew a slow breath and stared toward the helicopter without blinking.
'I really, really want to fight him.'
The people around him started to notice.
"Hey, what is that guy doing..."
"What's wrong with him?"
"Stay back, he looks weird..."
Baki heard none of it. Every bit of his attention was locked on Jinrang.
---
Meanwhile, Sang Baek kept talking. "Today is an opening ceremony."
Daniel repeated the words. "Opening ceremony?"
"James Lee's dogs will be torn to pieces today," Sang Baek said. "And then we set out. We go looking for James Lee. To take our revenge."
The moment the words left his mouth, the crowd erupted completely.
Jinrang stepped down from the helicopter and walked toward the arena.
"WHOAAAAA!!"
"JINRANG'S BACK!"
"JINRANG IS REALLY HERE!!"
"WE FINALLY GET TO WATCH JINRANG FIGHT!"
"THE STRONGEST CHAMPION HAS RETURNED!"
"THE DAY IS FINALLY HERE!!"
On the ship, Park Jinnam held his hookah pipe and narrowed his eyes with a grin. 'Man,' he thought, 'these cheers really bring back memories.'
In the helicopter, Mayor Do Hyungwang watched the crowd below and murmured quietly, "Finally. We get to watch Jinrang fight."
In the sedan, Chairman Lee Nakchun leaned back and let the faintest smile cross his face. "This is exactly what we came here for."
---
Just then, a hand reached toward Baki from behind.
Fingers crept slowly toward his shoulder.
Baki spun around and grabbed the hand.
He saw who it was and let go.
"What are you doing here?"
Choi Bongpal rubbed her wrist and stepped back with a laugh. "Whoa, calm down. Do you know what your face looks like right now? You look like a wild animal."
Baki touched his own face. "Is that so? I couldn't control myself. It's been so long since I've come across someone at this level. Something inside me just ignited. By the way, when did you get here?"
"Just now," Bongpal said. "It's alright, I understand. After all, that's Jinrang. The man who started his journey as champion of this arena and ended up saving all of Busan. This whole city loves him."
She looked toward the arena floor as she spoke, and her eyes landed on Daniel, Zack, Vin Jin, and Vasco. They went slightly wide.
"Oh, so those are the kids. Wait — is that Hwang Jungseok, Jinrang Gang's Number Three? He looks pretty badly beaten up. And even Sang Baek has bruises on him. What happened here..." She trailed off. "Did the kids do all this? Never mind that. Now that Jinrang is here, those kids are in serious trouble." She glanced sideways at Baki. "Do you know them? You're all from Seoul, after all."
Baki smiled. "Seoul is a big place."
Bongpal nodded. "Fair enough. Makes sense you wouldn't know them."
"Who said I don't know them?" Baki said. "I do know them. They're... very special kids."
Bongpal looked at him. "Is that so? What are you going to do then? They attacked Jinrang's men, so he won't let it go. Jinrang is like a wolf — whoever harms his pack, he deals with personally. I don't think those kids would survive against Jinrang."
Baki kept his eyes on the arena and smiled. "As long as they're not dead or crippled, it's fine. Let them go out and see the world. They've already come this far on their own. I want to see just how far they can go."