It was around the time when the issues with the slot machine in Cheonsu had calmed down.
Taking advantage of the vacation, I set off for Busan with Myeongsoo and Hyunseong.
After dropping them off at their respective homes, I arrived at 'our' home.
A sense of nostalgia welled up in my chest as I stepped through the gate.
When I opened the front door, the smell of grandmaās doenjang stew tickled my nose.
"Grandma! Iām here!"
The grandma in the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron, came running.
"Oh~ my child, you must have had a hard time coming. Go take a shower quickly. Iāve prepared your meal."
"Grandma, letās hug."
"Why are you being so affectionate? You smell."
"Why? Whatās wrong with grandmaās smell? Itās so good. If anyone says anything, tell me. Iāll scold them."
I hugged grandma tightly.
Grandmaās smell.
Itās good!
Grandma patted my back and said,
"Oh~ you must have had a hard time."
"Grandma, I missed you. Didnāt you miss me?"
"Alright, go take a shower and come out."
"Okay."
In front of grandma, I feel like a child again.
Why didnāt I realize this happiness before?
I quickly took a shower, changed my clothes, and came out.
"Since my child is here, I made the side dishes you like."
"I cried in Seoul because I wanted to eat grandmaās food."
"Donāt exaggerate."
Grandma laughed, seemingly in a good mood.
The grandma who was quietly sitting and looking at me said,
"Grandma, letās eat."
"Go ahead."
I took a big spoonful of the steaming white rice and put it in my mouth.
Then, when I took a spoonful of grandmaās doenjang stew, it felt like heaven.
"Is it good?"
"Yeah, grandma, eat quickly."
"Alright. Dig in."
Grandma picked up her spoon and chopsticks with a smile.
"Is life in Seoul going well? Is it tough?"
"No, itās fine except for not having grandma. But, isnāt grandma lonely by yourself? Bored?"
The grandma shook her head.
"No, I go to the senior center and keep myself busy. These days, the weather is nice, so I go out a lot with the other grandmas."
"Thatās good, grandma."
"Are the in-laws treating you well?"
"Yeah."
"School?"
"Iām doing well. I go to the same school as Myeongsoo, so itās not as boring. Iāve become very close with my classmates."
"Our Muhyuk can do well anywhere. Thatās why Iām so happy."
"What...?"
I called grandma almost every day from Seoul.
Even if I had plans in the evening, I made sure to call her at least once every two days.
But even though I heard her voice so often, seeing her face was even better.
That night, I talked with grandma until late.
I spent the day in the warm home.
* * *
A department office building in Jung District, Busan.
Park Dongsooās office.
"What do you think? I canāt figure it out."
Park Dongsoo and a man were having a conversation.
The man, who was looking at documents in front of Park Dongsoo, raised his head.
The man, with a sharp face that didnāt fit a gangster, spoke.
"Mr. Park, is this all of it?"
Park Dongsoo nodded.
"What? Is there a problem?"
"Didnāt this organization dominate the Seo area? It seems much smaller than I thought."
"Really? Do you think Iām joking? It could all be gone in a flash."
"Hmm..."
The man, still looking at the documents, tilted his head. Park Dongsoo waved his hand.
"Why, because of the war on crime, all the big organizations have been taken down. Isnāt that why?"
"Hmm... Well, if this is the end, thereās nothing we can do. But why do you want to continue managing them after subduing them? I canāt understand Mr. Parkās thinking no matter how much I think about it."
"Using only force will just create more trouble. We need to let them make a living to some extent."
The man sighed deeply, as if it was a headache.
"This world is just as complicated, isnāt it?"
"Ha ha ha, of course. By the way, have you seen our Dongsoo? Heās a smart kid. Heās in Busan now, so you should meet him at the office later."
"Sure."
The manās reaction was indifferent, but Park Dongsoo didnāt mind.
Park Dongsoo mentioned the manās name.
"Saegun, I asked a kid to come see you. Isnāt it surprising? A kid whoās only twenty looks like heās seen the world. You should see him. Then youāll understand what I mean."
At that, Saegun chuckled and said,
"A twenty-year-old kid, how much of the world has he really seen? Heāll just talk my ear off. Iāll talk to him a bit."
"Ha ha ha."
* * *
At that moment.
In a room of a nightclub in Seo area.
Several men were gathered.
"So, Mr. Byun, are you saying you want us to team up against Park Dongsoo?"
"Thatās right. Dongsoo doesnāt have many direct subordinates now. We can move in quickly, ignore the kids, and just take care of Park Dongsoo. What do you think, Mr. Presidents?"
The four presidents were lost in thought.
Each was busy calculating their own gains and losses.
Byun Seongho only slightly stimulated their greed...
'That bastard, how dare he make me look bad in front of my brothers? Youāll get what you deserve!'
The oldest-looking man spoke first.
"Seongho, what happens after we take down Park Dongsoo? What about the territories?"
"Oh, Mr. Kihun. Are you already thinking about that? Letās settle things first, and then we can talk. What do you think, Mr. Kim, Mr. Son?"
At that, the man called 'Mr. Son,' who looked like a rat, spoke.
"No, we need to decide this first. After taking care of Park Dongsoo, will we end up fighting each other? That would mean we all die. Letās decide now."
Then, the man who looked like a pig, with a large, flabby body, spoke.
"Brothers, Iām fine with anything. But shouldnāt we ask Mr. Saseong first? We need a reason for the others to follow, donāt we? What do you think?"
At Kim Byungsooās words, the other three nodded.
The rat-like Son Gangseok glanced at Huh Kihun and said,
"Mr. Kihun, you should go to Mr. Saseong. After all, youāre the senior, right?"
"Right."
"I agree."
Huh Kihun, receiving the looks from the other three, said,
"Well, then Iāll take Seo area. Seongho, Byungsoo, Gangseok, are you all okay with that?"
"Hmm..."
Seeing no response, Huh Kihun frowned.
"Well, then I wonāt go to Mr. Saseong. Itās obvious that Iāll be the one to bear the brunt. Why should I do it? They donāt think Iām a fool."
Kim Byungsoo and Son Gangseok quickly replied.
"Brother, why are you so hasty? Alright, take Seo area. Weāll talk about the rest among ourselves."
"Alright, brother. Do as you wish."
Byun Seongho didnāt answer, trying to hold out.
But he couldnāt avoid answering due to the looks from the other two.
"Ha~ Alright, you take Seo area. But, you need to get Mr. Saseongās approval. Got it?"
"Thatās not a problem. After all, he didnāt even talk to Mr. Saseong before hiding Dongsoo. Mr. Saseong is already upset with Dongsoo. Heās just holding back. We can handle it, right?"
"Alright~"
Ha ha ha!
The room was filled with the laughter of the four men.
"Then, letās drink. After meeting Mr. Saseong, Iāll set the date. Seongho, check Dongsooās schedule. Got it?"
"I understand. Iāll check it. Iāll figure out the location once I have a rough date."
That day, they drank until they were completely drunk, laughing and talking about the bright future that lay ahead.
* * *
It had been a week since I came down to Busan.
During that time, I had only one simple drinking session with the kids and otherwise just rolled around at home without much thought.
Suddenly, the phone rang.
"Kim Muhyuk here."
- Oh, itās me, Yoon Changho.
"Yes, Chief Prosecutor."
- Youāre in Busan, right?
"Yes, I informed you before I came down. Is there something wrong?"
- Nothing serious, but the first-instance judgment for the Cheonsu case is coming soon, right? I wanted to hear your thoughts.
"Hmm... I think itās best to proceed as agreed with grandfather."
- Thatās right? I had a private meeting with the President. It was my first time as a prosecutor. He praised me for handling this case well. I was so happy, ha ha ha.
I laughed appropriately and agreed.
- Thanks to you. I didnāt expect coming to Busan would be such a blessing. I was thinking of quitting and becoming a lawyer.
"Itās good to know you, Chief Prosecutor. You feel like an uncle and a senior from college."
-Ha ha ha, you really know how to talk. Anyway, after the first-instance judgment, my hands will be off. You know that, right? I can interfere up to the second instance, but if we proceed as agreed, itās better for me not to get involved. What do you think?
"Go ahead. But, what do you think will happen to the prosecutor who took the fall? I heard he was offered a seat in the National Assembly."
- Ha~ Iām already having a headache. He says he wants to stay in the prosecution, but heās already marked and canāt go higher. You know the ridiculous law of the prosecution being a single entity.
"He wants to continue as a prosecutor?"
- Yes. The President contacted me before the Chief Prosecutor did, and I told him to expose it on TV. But, it seems heās been decided to be sent to Jeju District Prosecutorās Office.
The original plan changed.
Originally, he was supposed to run for the National Assembly, but now heās aligned with Chief Prosecutor Yoon due to my intervention.
"Tell him to stay put for now. Iāll make sure heās compensated for his living expenses. You can pretend to give him a daily allowance. Thereās no one better than a hunting dog, right?"
- Ha ha ha, this guy is really amusing. Alright, if I really become the Chief Prosecutor, Iāll take you to the Supreme Prosecutors' Office.
"If it doesnāt work out, Iāll support his campaign for the National Assembly. Let him choose."
- Alright. When you come to Seoul, letās have a meal at that house.
"Yes, Chief Prosecutor. Iāll hang up now."
As long as grandfather is around, I canāt completely eliminate Cheonsu and his brother.
I have to be satisfied with letting them eat a bit of prison food.
"Muhyuk! Come eat."
Hearing grandmaās call from outside, I got up from the bed and stretched.
"Yeah, grandma! Iām coming."
I went outside, ate the lunch grandma prepared, and got ready to leave.
I had to meet Park Dongsoo to discuss Busan and the plan to expand to Seoul.
If I leave it too long, other guys will likely take over.
I needed to establish a foothold in Seoul as quickly as possible... How much has Busan been cleaned up?
I drove to the department office building and went up to Park Dongsooās office on the third floor.
Two of Park Dongsooās subordinates were standing in front of the office. I nodded to them and opened the door.
In the quite large, open office, a few big guys were waiting, but Park Dongsoo wasnāt visible.
"Heās inside. Go in."
After the unfamiliar big guy spoke, I responded with a smile and entered the office.
"Hey! Dongsoo! How long has it been? Wow, itās good to see you! Come in quickly."
He was the same as always.
"Phew..."
I sighed and closed the door.
The person sitting with Park Dongsoo glanced at me.
Although he looked a bit younger, I quickly recognized him.
Gangster lawyer, Saegun.
He was a gangster who had a law degree and had tried to expand into Gangnam, one of the most valuable areas in Seoul.
I remembered introducing him to Park Dongsoo because he used to help gangsters in Busan when he was younger.
"Mr. Saegun? Nice to see you."
"Kim Muhyuk? Is that you? Wow, Iāve never met you, but your name is so familiar. Mr. Park has talked about you a lot."
"Ha ha ha..."
I laughed awkwardly to ease the tension.
"Dongsoo? Are you upset? You didnāt even acknowledge me and greeted Saegun? This isnāt right."
"Yes, hello. Itās been a while. Youāve gained weight. Take care of your body. Your belly wonāt even fit a knife. If you gained weight thinking about that, you succeeded."
Park Dongsoo looked stunned at my words.
Saegun also looked bewildered, staring at me as if I were crazy.
"Ha ha ha ha ha! This crazy guy. Youāre a real troublemaker. I like you for this. I was worried youād change in Seoul, but youāre the same, the same."
"Letās sit down. We have a lot to talk about once youāre done."
I sat and listened to the conversation between Saegun and Park Dongsoo for about ten minutes.
Once they finished, Park Dongsoo looked at me and said,
"So, why are you here? Whatās the talk?"
"How much of Busan have you cleaned up?"
"Hmm... Why are you in such a hurry? Why?"
"The situation has changed. I think we need to establish a foothold in Seoul as quickly as possible."
"Seoul? Already?"
"Yes. When you go to Seoul... "
At that moment,
Bang.
Clang.
Suddenly, something broke and scattered, and the outside became noisy with curses.
Yang Soohyung, Park Dongsooās right-hand man, burst in.
"Dongsoo hyung! Weāre being attacked, attacked!"
"What are you babbling about? Who?"
Park Dongsoo and Saegun stood up.
"Seo area, Yeonsandong, Bosudong, Hadan... They seem to have formed an alliance. Theyāre coming in numbers. It will take time for our guys to get here, what should we do?"
At that moment, about ten men entered the office.
Some faces were familiar.
Byun Seongho.
"Hmm! Dongsoo, did you think you could live by ignoring me like this? Whatās this? Even that guy is here? Iāll take care of you all at once. Lucky me."