/
“Go ahead. Speak,” Kang Chan stated.
A chuckle came over the phone. It sounded more like a scoff, though.
-You waste no time with formalities. You’re just as curt as I heard.
This had to be the person currently holding Lanok hostage or someone who had the power to get Lanok back safely. His lax, unhurried tone made it clear he was definitely either one of the two.
-You should be careful when you speak to me.
Pft!
Kang Chan snorted, then slammed the receiver down with a loud bang.
Motherfucker! He’s the one who called because he’s in a rush. Does he really think he can play it nice and cool?
Kang Chan had not given up on Lanok. However, in the spur of the moment, he concluded that he couldn’t let the man confidently take the upper hand just because the man had Lanok in his grasp.
Seok Kang-Ho, who was looking bored because he couldn’t understand what was being said, was now carefully observing Kang Chan’s expression.
Ring. Ring. Ring.
When the phone rang again, everyone’s gazes shifted to Kang Chan and the line on Lanok’s desk.
Kang Chan made his trademark smirk as he picked up the receiver.
“Ello?”
-If you hang up on my calls like that again—
This son of a bitch still hasn’t learned his lesson, has he?
Kang Chan swiftly ended the call again. As he bit on another cigarette, Raphael quickly held up a lighter for him.
Across from Kang Chan, he noticed Anne’s hands trembling vehemently, understandably so. After all, everyone in the room knew that the calls that they were receiving right now were directly related to Lanok’s safety. Even Xavier was looking at Kang Chan with a pale face.
However, Kang Chan’s expression clearly showed what he was thinking. ‘What the hell are you going to do about it?’
His eyes had one clear message as well: find Lanok first and think about other things later.
***
The man gritted his teeth as he put down the phone. There were four desks in the vast room that he was in, and Lanok was sitting on the opposite sofa from him.
He stared daggers at Lanok as the corners of his lips began to twitch out of a mix of anger and frustration. Not long after, the phone started to ring.
Ring. Ring. Ring.
Letting out a deep sigh, the man picked it up.
“Wei!” he answered.
-Sou Ke, it’s Vasili.
With his head hanging low, Huh Geuk’s expression crumpled. He seem as if he was having a hard time trying to keep his temper under control.
-You have already lost. If you keep ignoring my warnings and still attempt to open the entrance to the nuclear silo, just know that I’m not above cooperating with the United States and Britain to administer revenge. You only have an hour left before our special forces arrive now. You better finish your negotiations with the God of Blackfield before you run out of time. This is my last warning, Sou Ke. If you don’t listen, you’ll know just how heavy my words are.
Huh Geuk’s face reddened as he let go of the lower lip he had kept bitten.
“The God of Blackfield won’t answer my calls,” he said.
A moment of silence crossed the line before Vasili began to snicker at him.
-Ah, you must have unnecessarily put up an arrogant front. Huhuhu. Hahahaha.
Huh Geuk glared at Lanok, not having anyone else to direct his anger to.
Lanok just looked calm and collected. He was leaning back on the chair with his legs crossed as if he was aware of everything that was going on.
-I’ll mediate for you just this once. And if I may give you a piece of advice, don’t mess with that man.
“Hmm!”
-And if you haven’t already, you better make sure Lanok isn’t uncomfortable. I hope in your best interests that there isn’t even a single stray scratch on Lanok. If he does, China will have to pay an astronomical price as a consequence of this incident.
“Hey! Is there something about that guy that I’m missing? What’s his deal?”
-Ha. You dared touch Lanok when you don’t even know who he is? Now that the God of Blackfield has expressed his intent to protect Lanok, we’re left with no other choice but to guarantee nothing happens to him. Because of that, the other countries’ intelligence agencies can relax a little.
Huh Geuk furrowed his brows, not understanding what Vasili was saying.
-From here on out, The God of Blackfield’s first suspect will always be China if ever Lanok’s life is in danger again. It doesn’t matter if it’s just because of a traffic accident or some other reason.
Huh Geuk sighed and sat against one of the desks.
-I’m only helping you this one time. I’ll call God of Blackfield and speak to him, so call him again in ten minutes. Apologize, and don’t state any conditions for returning Lanok. You better not waste my arbitration.
Huh Geuk hung up and let out another sigh.
“Can I have some tea, if it’s fine with you?” Lanok asked, looking directly into Huh Geuk’s eyes.
Huh Geuk had lost. This was pretty much already a lost bottle. It was a futile and humiliating one too, because coming out of it, China had just essentially donated their vested rights in the world of intelligence to Lanok.
“Of course,” Huh Geuk replied. He gestured and gave a look to an agent, who quickly brought over a porcelain tea set and filled Lanok a cup. “Lanok, it seems there has been a misunderstanding.”
Lanok nodded as he lifted his teacup.
“Apologies and reparations to the South Korean and French government, as well as to any other country who mobilized soldiers,” Lanok stated his requests unfazed.
Huh Geuk agreed in a tone that sounded like he was sighing.
“And isn’t it about time for you to call?” Lanok asked calmly.
Lanok set down his cup with a click, and Huh Geuk glared at the phone at Lanok’s question. Huh Geuk was now cornered and would only be able to make one last move.
Would he retreat from here or attack again?
***
Ring. Ring. Ring.
“Ello?”
-It’s Vasili.
Everyone in the office swallowed nervously when Kang Chan smirked.
-What are you so angry about? Sou Ke will call you again. It won’t be the end of the world to answer the phone nicely for once, you know, especially with Lanok waiting for you.
Kang Chan stopped himself from asking the question that was threatening to spill out from the tip of his tongue.
-I see you still refuse to ask about Lanok’s well-being. I understand you’re brewing with anger, but it seems that some people have been injured, so why don’t you stop here? At this rate, it’s only going to be our nation’s innocent men who are sacrificed all because they’re geographically close to China.
“All right,” Kang Chan answered in acknowledgment.
The call ended with Vasili’s strange laughter. Just as the silence in the room palpably sank to the floor, the direct line began to bellow again.
Ring. Ring. Ring.
Kang Chan extended his arm to pick it up. Xavier anxiously watched on.
“Ello?”
-It’s Sou Ke, God of Blackfield.
“Where are you?” Kang Chan cut to the chase.
The man seemed to have been taken aback by how abrupt it was, considering he didn’t say anything in reply.
“Tell me where the ambassador is,” Kang Chan commanded.
Anne covered her mouth with a hand, and Raphael’s fists trembled slightly.
A quiet sigh came from across the phone.
-Come to the Chinese embassy. But you have to come alone.
“That’s up to me to decide,” Kang Chan stated standoffishly.
To read the uncut version, go to pawread dot com.
Click.
After hanging up, Kang Chan immediately got out of his seat and turned to look at a French agent.
“Move Xavier where you see fit, but make sure to keep a close eye on him,” Kang Chan ordered.
“Understood, sir,” the agent replied.
“This is absurd,” Xavier grumbled loudly as two agents grabbed hold of both of his arms and took him out of the office.
“I will be heading to the Chinese embassy now. Seok Kang-Ho and I will head inside. Choi Jong-Il, you’ll stand by right outside,” Kang Chan commanded.
“Yes, sir,” Choi Jong-Il responded.
Anne looked between Kang Chan, Raphael, and Choi Jong-Il, not understanding their Korean. As Seok Kang-Ho and Choi Jong-Il’s group left the office, Kang Chan turned to Anne.
“It seems the ambassador is being held in the Chinese embassy,” Kang Chan explained.
Tears immediately began to fall from Anne’s eyes.
“Thank you. Thank you, Channy!” she exclaimed.
“It’s all going to be okay,” Kang Chan assured her as she ran into his arms and hugged him. He patted her back in response, then turned back around.
“Raphael,” he said.
“Yes, Monsieur Kang,” Raphael replied.
“If there are any more calls asking for me, give them my number,” Kang Chan informed him.
“As you command, Monsieur Kang,” Raphael replied.
Kang Chan hung the gun that was on the table at his waist. Before walking out the door, he glanced back, finding Anne wiping her tears and Raphael respectfully bowing at him.
***
Choi Jong-Il knew the location of the Chinese embassy, so Kang Chan and Seok Kang-Ho simply followed him. As they hit the road, Kang Chan called someone on his phone.
-Mr. Kang Chan! It’s Kim Hyung-Jung.
The tone and urgency with which Kim Hyung-Jung answered the phone showed just how nervous he was.
“Mr. Kim, please send two units of the special forces to the Chinese embassy,” Kang Chan requested.
-What? Pardon?
“I’ll be arriving there in around twenty minutes. It’s where Ambassador Lanok is, Mr. Kim. We will win this battle whether we deploy special forces units or not. However, I also plan to use this opportunity to display our country’s strength.”
-I understand, Mr. Kang Chan! I’ll call you as soon as I’m done arranging this.
When the call dropped, Seok Kang-Ho glanced at Kang Chan.
“Those motherfuckers! Seems like they didn’t learn their lesson even after getting wrecked in Paju, huh?” Seok Kang-Ho said jokingly.
Nope! They definitely didn’t.
Kang Chan simply nodded in agreement.