Somewhere in Seoul.
In an empty school building, the sound of footsteps echoed through the silent halls as someone climbed the stairs.
That person carried a large plastic bag in one hand, continuing upward until reaching a wide door that led to the rooftop.
When he pushed it open, the midday breeze swept through.
What came into view was a collection of workout stands and machines arranged beside each other.
"You've been working out nonstop for hours I see." He said with a smirk, spotting someone using one of the stands.
"Don't you ever think about taking a break?" He added, closing the door behind him as he walked closer to the person who was bench-pressing a thick barbell loaded with six steel plates on each side.
Though the bar was made to hold heavy weight without bending, a slight curve had already formed.
Placing the bag down, James observed silently. The person didn't respond as his eyes were unfocused, his mind clearly in a blank state.
Still, his arms moved with steady rhythm, pushing and retracting as if on autopilot, though it was obvious to James that the body had gone far past its limits hours ago.
"And done." The person finally muttered, setting the barbell back on its stand.
"Aren't you the one who said the training needed to be intense? You said normal workouts wouldn't affect me." He added, sitting up on the bench and glancing at James. Even with his previous distracted state, he was still able to hear.
The boy Infront him looked around fourteen years old, with striking red-and-black hair and black eyes that held a level of maturity far beyond his age. He wore a school outfit consisting of a white shirt, brown pants, and white shoes.
"Well, not that intense." James replied with a smirk. "But it seems you're managing just fine on your own."
"Yeah." The person said, standing and grabbing a towel to wipe his face. "At first, keeping up this level of intensity was tough, but my body adapted after the second try. My growth rate even doubled."
He tossed the towel aside and took a deep breath, gazing out from the rooftop. The orange hue of the setting sun stretched across the horizon as far as the eye could see. The breeze brushed lightly against him.
From James's perspective, no one would ever guess this was a fourteen-year-old boy.
He was tall, a few inches taller than James. His medium-length hair was silvery white, messy and scruffled yet naturally smooth and wavy. His eyes were a deep crimson, glowing like bright rubies.
His physique was incredibly developed. His bare upper body revealed a broad chest and eight perfectly defined, symmetrical abs.
His thick arms displayed the intricate details of each muscle, showing how thoroughly conditioned they were. His back was wide, with every muscle clearly outlined, tapering down neatly to his waist.
His legs were just as conditioned and muscularly defined, though they were covered by loose, sporty pants.
"I can see that." James said, hands in his pockets, replying to Ryu's words.
How could he not notice? The intense training Ryu had endured for weeks was clearly transforming his body at an incredible rate.
Still, this didn't surprise James. Ryu had already told him what the Anatomist discovered about his physical structure.
At first, when regular workouts stopped showing any results, it was obvious that Ryu's body was different.
Basic and athletic routines had only worked when he first started training. After a while, they stopped having any effect on his growth.
That made James curious. Though the idea of pushing the body under extreme strain seemed like an obvious solution, he still advised Ryu to get checked by a Biomedical Anatomist, and James managed to find one for him.
The results had surprised him and sparked his interest even more. It was impressive that a human body like Ryu's could even exist, one holding a potential capable of eclipsing any prodigy.
But of course, that excluded James from being grouped with ordinary prodigies. He wasn't just a prodigy, he was the prodigy.
"Thanks for bringing what I asked for." Ryu said, picking up the bag and checking its contents, several rice balls and ramen cups. "All that training drained my tank."
James gave a short nod, turned around, and walked toward the tall podium above the rooftop door. With an easy jump, he landed on the surface and sat down on the ledge, looking out over the view below and the open sky above.
Ryu followed and sat beside him, setting the bag down next to him.
"You want some?" Ryu asked, reaching in and pulling out a rice ball before offering one to James.
"Nah." James chuckled, taking a lollipop from his pocket. He unwrapped it and popped it into his mouth. "You know I've already got my appetizer."
"You never seem to run out of those." Ryu said, glancing at the lollipop that James was enjoying. "Honestly, I'm starting to wonder if you're immune to cavities at this point." He unwrapped the the rice ball that was wrapped in seaweedand and took two bites.
"Who knows?" James laughed lightly at the comment.
"By the way, last time you said you'd tell me about it." Ryu said after a moment, his gaze still resting on the distant scenery. "About that old man who approached you."
James tilted his head slightly, the memory surfacing in his mind. The image of an old man with one arm, eyes burning with a strange conviction.
"Ah, that one." He said at last, his tone calm yet faintly amused. "You've always been the type to understand me, Ryu. The kind who observes from the sidelines, watching people move like pieces on a board, trying to discern which of them is worth the attention attention."
A faint smirk curved his lips as he rolled the lollipop between his fingers.
"But what fascinates me isn't the situation itself, nor the outcome that follows. It's the individual who acts within it. The nature that compels him to act, that's where the truth hides."
He paused, savoring the sweetness on his tongue before speaking again.
"When that old man approached me, do you know what he said?"
"What?" Ryu looked over.
"'He said and I quote: Trust me. One day, I will rule the world. Whatever you desire, anything, it will be waiting at the summit."
Ryu, halfway through his last bite of rice ball, froze mid-motion.
"Senile?" He muttered, brows furrowing as he studied James' expression.
"Heh." James chuckled softly. "You'd think so."
He leaned back with his hands supporting, his eyes drifting toward the horizon.
"Human nature is, endlessly curious, isn't it? Some are delusional, others cunning, greedy, arrogant, stupid, or clever. A swarm of contradictions wrapped in flesh. But every so often, someone appears, someone who defies those ordinary categories. Someone who transcends the limits that bind the rest."
His black eyes darkly gleamed, filled with comprehension that bordered on unsettling.
"That old man. I should've dismissed him as a lunatic. And yet, I didn't. Because what I saw in his eyes that day, it wasn't senility. Nor madness, at least not in the way most understand it."
He turned slightly, the reflection of the area's lights glinting in his pupils.
"Those eyes. They spoke with a clarity louder than reason. A madness that wasn't born from confusion, but from rationality itself. The kind of insanity that calculates, plans, and sacrifices without hesitation. He's the kind of man who would burn the world to illuminate his own path."
Ryu sat thoughtfully as he listened.
"So that's why you followed him." He said slowly. "I thought you'd lost your mind but now I see. You wanted to witness him."
"Exactly." James nodded faintly. "I want to see how far that kind of conviction can reach. Whether he'll ascend the summit he dreams of, or collapse halfway there."
He went quiet, the playful edge in his tone fading into something solemn.
"But it's a pity." He murmured. "The path he's chosen, it's one that can only end in ruin."
Ryu said nothing, but the silence between them carried understanding.
James finally glanced sideways, catching Ryu's faint smirk as his crimson eyes shimmered in the dim light, the same unspoken intention mirrored within.
"By the way." James broke the silence. "You remember when we cleaned out those old gang members around the area, right?"
"Hmm." Ryu nodded, stuffing the last piece of rice ball into his mouth. The next moment, he pulled a cup of ramen from the bag and peeled the lid open. Warm steam rose from the hot water James had poured at the convenience store earlier, which he steered with chopsticks.
"Their words that time." James continued, his mind returning to what the old gang members had said. Words that had left him curious.
"They mentioned the previous generation. The era when violence was at its peak, and gang wars between street rulers were a daily occurrence.
"And during that time, they said that a gang called the Fist Gang stood at the top, led by someone named Gapryong Kim."
James explained as he pieced together what he'd learned.
"Yeah? What about it?" Ryu asked, slurping noodles like a vacuum. The next secind, his eye twitched slightly, as if a thought struck him.
"You don't think.." He said, glancing sideways at James, who wore his usual knowing smirk.
"Yeah." James replied. "That old man might've been from that gang. I could tell from the first moment I saw him that he wasn't weak."
He remembered clearly. Even though the man's body had been covered by clothes, James could see the solid build, the presence of real strength, and the legs that were dangerously light.
Everything about him pointed to a trained fighter. The only group that fit was the Fist Gang.
Not that it mattered much. Sooner or later, the truth would come out.
"That's... Kind of interesting, I guess." Ryu said.
"Interesting?" James chuckled. "You haven't even heard the best part."
That made Ryu look at him.
"That old man is going to prison soon, though he didn't tell me the reason." James said with a grin. "But he told me to wait for him. He'll call me once he's out which should be in a few years."
"Huh?" Ryu blinked, clearly bewildered. "You know I never question your judgment, but are you sure about that old man?"
He was genuinely confused. The image he'd had of this mysterious old figure was starting to crumble, replaced by some delusional hobo from the streets.
"Yeah, don't worry." James said casually. "Me being wrong was never a possibility to begin with."
"By the way, what's his name?"
"Charles Choi."
Ryu nodded, storing the name in his mind.
"So, what about you?" James asked. "You said you had something you wanted to talk about."
"Well, about that..." Ryu said, chewing on his noodles. "I'm thinking of going bounty hunting."
"You mean the ones on the dark web?" James frowned, not quite understanding the reason.
"Yeah." Ryu nodded. "I'm low on cash right now, so I figured hunting bounties would be a good way to make money."
"Didn't we earn a huge amount when we cleared out those gangs?" James asked with a raised brow. The money they'd made was more than enough to keep anyone financially stable for a while.
"Yeah, well." Ryu scratched the back of his neck, looking embarrassed. "I kind of lost it all on some online bets I shouldn't have taken."
James laughed lightly at that.
"If that's the case, want me to lend you some?" He offered without hesitation.
"Nah, it's fine. I can manage." Ryu said, shaking his head. He wasn't the type to accept help easily.
"Besides, check this out." Ryu pulled out his phone and handed it to James. "I doubt I'll need a second bounty after this one."
James looked at the screen.
"The head of the Yamazaki Clan?" He read aloud, frowning. There wasn't much information. No photo, just the sentence, and the term for the bounty placement id old.
But from that name alone, that was enough to tell it was a Yakuza clan.
The reward, however, was staggering, nine-figure sum.
"Hmm, this doesn't look like an ordinary clan. And it's based in Japan." He noted, scrolling through the bounty's details. The list of those who had accepted the mission over the years exceeded ten thousand, in which all of them failed.
"So, you're going to Japan?" He asked.
"Yeah. I've got enough money saved for travel and settlement." Ryu said, placing the empty cup beside him.
"And once I finish that bounty, I'm planning to tour the world." He added, lying back and staring at the sky.
"Hmm, and you're not inviting me?" James smirked, crushing the lollipop in his mouth.
"If you want to come, then do it," Ryu replied with a faint grin. "It'd be better than following that old man, but." He paused. "I doubt that'll change your mind."
James just chuckled, gazing out at the scenery.
"So, when are you leaving?"
"In a year." Ryu said calmly. "I need to keep working on training my body."
"Like you said, it's better if I get the feel of the stages first." He added, glancing at James.
"Looking forward to it." James said with a quiet laugh, his eyes gleaming with anticipation. He was eager to see how far Ryu's body would evolve by then.
After all, Ryu's body wasn't one in a million.
It was one in existence.