"Evidence removed, sir," came 22's reply as he followed.
"Plane's here!" 45 said, eyes on the sky. The wind already felt like escape.
Our private plane rolled down. We climbed aboard and took off before anyone could guess who we were.
Today's mission was complete.
But surely... not the end.
I'll meet you again, Soakjin. Don't die yet.
Back at the base, my boss-- no, Father --clipped his cigarette and tapped the tablet, a glass of my favorite wine already waiting on his luxurious table.
He clapped once and said, "You did well. Steady hands. You're close to becoming the real 'Kim,' not only Kim Taehyung in name, my tiger."
I let out a laugh that tasted like tin. Titles are a joke until they're real.
Before I could swallow the thought, he spoke again. I took a sip of wine and said, "I won't call myself a proper 'Kim' unless I'm more than any tiger. Just like love-- it can't be love unless it's proved true every second, dad. You taught us that."
"Yes, sir. We believe love is a lie, so we say goodbye to them!" the others echoed with proud chuckles, high-fives and fist bumps.
He chuckled too and sat in his wheeled chair with a smirk. "Right, boys... now, hack the locked suitcase and Tae... come here."
"Roger, sir!" my teammates returned to their work and I followed him.
He hummed softly, pushed the chair, reached his computer, flipped it on and faced the screen. "Another mission," he said, voice like a game character announcing the next level. I looked at the screen filled with unclear footage and data.
"It's only a code name. No photo. No face. Black Mask007," his son Kang Jae-hyun said as he stood beside him. He's the same age as me. He said it slow, like saying a code out loud could make it feel as casual as drinking water.
"Yes... low profile. High value... connected to Soakjin's case... indirectly. Suspected as the mastermind. Your call when you find him. Extract or eliminate. He's already acting to get back this suitcase. It's something more than money."
My hands tightened on my shirt. No face. Only data. It felt like searching for a single mosquito with a red mark on its back. But it's another mission after all. I have to do it-- at least to honor what he did for me in those years.
After the debrief I walked into my room with the whole wine bottle, not in the mood for dinner or a shower just yet. How could I? My stomach was full of worry, thoughts and possibilities.
I peeled off my dirty shirt, left on nothing but my pants. That was it.
Steam rose off my body like roasted chestnuts.
The room was calm, comforting and silent from the world. I treated my wounds with bandages while my mind replayed the scenes, words and sounds from tonight.
About that freaky Soakjin behavior-- the way he craved it... I don't want to think about those now. Another job has already landed on my head like a plane. My brain can't rest until I find a clue.
Okay. Think. That Black Mask007 is indirectly connected to Soakjin's case... and could be the mastermind. Is he the reason Soakjin took my bullets instead of giving me a little premium tease-- or telling me who and why the suitcase was being delivered?
Mask007 is another mafia, clearly. If I'm right, he might have wanted to kill Mr. Park Yujin and illegally win the election... or something more personal. I don't know yet. We should never think we're always right, even if 99% is certain.
Because even that 1% is enough to end a life. That's not poetry. That's reality.
"I should call you a mosquito then, Mask007," I muttered, leaning back against the headboard. My tired eyes focused on the neon city. It always felt peaceful... and nostalgic.
I kept drinking from the bottle, lost in thought.
The door opened after a while, revealing Jae-hyun with a bowl of rice and kimchi. His eyes dropped over my half-naked body.
"Sleeping after drinking a whole bottle of wine and not eating?" he asked, a little teasing, a little tender. He's always been like that-- too good to me, like an actual brother even though he's the same age.
"What's the point of building expectations around the case if you fall apart yourself? It'll fail anyway," he added.
I sighed and tried to give my usual line, "For the sake of---"
"No 'for the sake of-- just eat. I'm not in the mood for excuses," he cut me off and pushed a spoonful of rice with kimchi.
"Hmph! Careful, or I'll choke because of your overcaring," I muffled, a hand under my chin.
"Better than living between belief and betrayal," he said like a proverb.
I swallowed without chewing properly. The words reminded me of something I didn't want to think about.
Silence. I ate while he fed me.
"Did 22 unlock the suitcase? What's in it?" I tried to change the topic.
"Yes," he said simply, like it was nothing interesting. Without seeing his interest I felt my own fade.
I sat up straight. "What is it? Why do you look disappointed? Wasn't it black money and diamonds?"
"Hmph," he exhaled and closed his eyes..and..I wasn't sure if it was a yes or no..
"Then?" I raised an eyebrow.
"I never thought Soakjin would turn out this... stupid," he said, lips pressed thin.
"Ah! Stop twisting and just tell me, bro," I growled, shaking him by the collar.
"Ima--" He tried to start dramatically.
"No storytelling. Just tell me. I don't want plots," I snapped. My head felt hot; he was turning it into a pressure cooker.
"Fine," he said.
"Speak."
Jae-hyun sighed, deeper this time. His fingers drummed on the table. "Fine... you really wanna know?"
"Yeah. Before I lose the little sanity left in my blood," I muttered.
He leaned back, grabbed the remote, and pointed it at the holo-screen beside the wine bottles. The suitcase popped open on screen --- dark velvet inside. No money. No diamonds. No gold. Just one tiny thing.
A paper bird....a single paper bird..
Folded so neatly it looked like a child had made it and then forgotten it there. No signature. No marks. Nothing shiny or expensive. Just pale, fragile paper.
I blinked. "What?!" My hand flew to my head. "You're joking, right? I swear it was heavy with money and diamonds!"
He didn't smile. "There was only rocks inside with those papers."
For a long second silence crawled between us like a ghost. I let out a small, disbelieving laugh. "A paper bird? That's it? I almost got shot for a piece of kindergarten art?" I rubbed my temple.
"We searched every way to find something... anything... but there was nothing," he said, face hollow, as if he hadn't slept for days.
"It's not that simple... it can't be. I refuse to believe I worked like a dog for nothing," I growled and rushed out of the room, taking the suitcase from my hopeless team.
I picked it up with gloved hands and held it to the light. "Let's look closer."
The paper was darker on the edges-- almost burnt. I noticed faint traces of circles, invisible lines.
"What, Soakjin was doing origami while hiding his dirty money?" I mocked, half disbelief, half fury. I'll kill him next time.
"Watch," Jae-hyun whispered. I looked.
Chapter 4 (spoiler)
The air in the room dropped to silence. Even the sound of the clock seemed to vanish. I stared at the bird, my heartbeat matching the flicker of the flame.
I breathed out, "Pregnant... London... what does that even mean?"
"Welcome to our reality again, Kim Taehyung," Jae-hyun said, smiling dryly. "Even stupidity wears a mask."