“You guys wait in the car.”

“Yes, boss.”

Standing in front of the door, Hwang Tae-su couldn’t control his trembling heart.

“I mean it. Wait in the car.”

“……Understood.”

Hwang Tae-su took a deep breath. And then, instead of stepping in… he couldn’t step in.

Hoo- Hoo-!

After calming his breath once more, Hwang Tae-su spoke.

“I’m telling you again. Don’t come out of the car and just wait. No matter what happens. Got it?”

“……Yes.”

Hwang Tae-su tightly shut his eyes and opened the door.

Rattle—!

“We’re not open yet….”

Yeon-jun, mistaking him for a customer, hesitated.

“What brings you here, President Hwang…?”

Hwang Tae-su glanced at Seo-jun, who was plucking the wings off a Dekanto.

“Ahem. Just thought I’d drop by to see if everything’s fine. No problems?”

“No. No problems at all.”

“That’s a relief. I heard some rough types have been poking around District 12, so I was worried.”

“Thanks to you, we’re fine. Ah! And thank you.”

“Thank me?”

“For the scholarship program.”

“Ah, if it’s about that, you should be thanking your brother, not me….”

“Huh?”

“No, I mean, is that man over there your brother?”

“Ah, yes. Hyung, this is President Hwang Tae-su.”

Seo-jun wiped his hands and mouth with a napkin and gave a slight bow.

“I’m Lee Seo-jun.”

Unlike his usual self, he was being extremely polite.

The unfamiliar sight gave Hwang Tae-su an inexplicable headache.

“I see. N-Nice to meet you.”

As he slowly looked around the shop, his eyes landed on the fingerprint scanner at the counter.

“Do underage kids still try to forge IDs and buy alcohol these days?”

It was a signal.

A signal that he had brought the IDs Seo-jun had requested.

But Seo-jun showed no interest. Instead, Yeon-jun answered.

“Not often, but it happens from time to time.”

“I heard even fingerprint scanners can be bypassed nowadays.”

“That’s true, but installing an iris scanner is a bit much.”

“Oh, come on, how much could it cost…? I’ll have my guys bring one over later.”

“That won’t be necessary….”

“No, I want to do it. You have no idea how grateful I am to you, Mr. Lee.”

“…….”

What’s he scheming?

What’s his angle?

Yeon-jun was suspicious. The Hwang Tae-su he knew wasn’t the kind to be this generous.

“Ah, is this Seo-woo?”

Yeon-jun was startled again.

How does he know Seo-woo’s name?

Did he investigate them?

“How do you know his name…?”

“Well, your brother….”

“Yes?”

“……I mean, you and your brother look exactly alike.”

“We’re siblings. But… if you don’t mind me asking, how do you know Seo-woo’s name?”

There was no way Hwang Tae-su wouldn’t know. The whole reason he even started the scholarship program was because of that kid, Seo-woo.

But he couldn’t exactly say that outright.

“How could I not know? He was selected as the first scholar of the Hwang Tae-su Scholarship Program.”

“Ah….”

Now understanding, Yeon-jun nodded.

“Well, I should get going.”

“Already?”

He had given the signal plenty of times.

He wanted to get out of there as soon as possible.

But then—

“President Hwang, if you haven’t eaten yet, why don’t you stay for a meal?”

Hwang Tae-su felt his heart drop. He frantically waved his hands.

“Oh, no, I couldn’t possibly interrupt your family meal. I’m fine, really….”

“Stay and eat. The Dakdoritang is really good.”

Eat if you don’t want to die.

If you don’t want to become Dakdoritang yourself.

…No, surely that’s just my imagination?

As he desperately wished it was just his imagination—

“Yeah, if you haven’t eaten, you should take some with you. It’s really delicious.”

With Yeon-jun, who had no sense of the situation, encouraging him, Hwang Tae-su had no choice but to sit hesitantly across from Seo-jun with a tearful expression.

“Isn’t he cute?”

Flinch.

“Excuse me? Are you talking about me?”

“You must have a death wish.”

“……I’m sorry.”

“I meant Seo-woo.”

Seo-jun nodded towards Seo-woo, who was sitting in front of the TV watching an anime.

“Ah, yes! Your nephew is very cute! I’ve never seen a child so adorable before. He seems to have a bright personality too.”

Seo-jun, looking satisfied, naturally extended his hand.

From past encounters, Hwang Tae-su had learned to read the usually reserved Seo-jun’s cues.

Swiftly, he handed over Park Yeon’s ID.

“Thanks.”

“If you need anything else, don’t hesitate to ask!”

As Hwang Tae-su uttered his insincere words—

Yeon-jun returned with the food.

“The rice is a bit undercooked. Hope that’s okay.”

“Actually, that’s great. Undercooked rice pairs better with Dakdoritang broth.”

“Then enjoy your meal. Hyung, I’ll be right back—I need to call Seo-woo’s teacher.”

“Why? Something happen at daycare?”

“No, nothing major. They’re going on a field trip and want to check with the parents about the location.”

“Ah.”

As Yeon-jun stepped out to make the call, Hwang Tae-su cautiously watched Seo-jun.

“You can eat comfortably.”

How was he supposed to eat with someone staring at him like that?

Without knowing that Seo-jun had read his thoughts, Hwang Tae-su scooped up a big bite of rice.

Just as Yeon-jun said, it was slightly undercooked but still had a pleasant texture.

Then, a type of kimchi he had never seen before caught his eye.

He considered asking Seo-jun about it but decided against it.

“It’s Gyeongjong Cabbage Kimchi.”

“Huh?”

“That kimchi.”

“Ah… I didn’t know Gyeongjong cabbage could be used for kimchi.”

Seo-jun looked surprised.

Gyeongjong cabbage was something only older generations knew about.

Even before the upheaval, there were few Gyeongjong cabbage farms left, and it was gradually fading from memory.

For someone like Hwang Tae-su, who seemed to be in his late thirties, to know about it was unexpected.

“You know Gyeongjong cabbage?”

“Of course. It’s basically a weed.”

“A weed?”

“In open dungeons, it’s everywhere.”

“It’s everywhere?”

“Yeah. Though open dungeons have no entry restrictions, there’s always the risk of monsters appearing, so ordinary people don’t go harvesting it easily.”

“So that’s how it was. That’s how it was.”

Recalling the old woman who had smiled kindly with a chuckle, Seo-jun let out a soft laugh.

He had been deceived. Completely and utterly deceived. And yet, he didn’t feel all that bad about it.

Being deceived meant that even someone revered as a god still bore the imperfections of a human.

‘I should eat quickly and get out of here.’

Hwang Tae-su picked up a piece of Gyeongjong cabbage kimchi with his chopsticks and brought it to his mouth.

Crunch-!

“Oh!”

It was delicious. Especially the sharp, biting flavor that surged forward—it was exquisite.

They say that when one reaches the peak of enlightenment, they forget even their own existence.

In simpler terms, it was the kind of taste where two could be eating, and one could die without the other even noticing.

That was exactly what happened to Hwang Tae-su.

Forgetting even the fact that Seo-jun was sitting across from him, he placed another piece of kimchi on his spoon and sent it into his mouth.

Crunch, crunch!

Munch, munch—!

“Ohhh! This is just too good!”

The combination of soft, fluffy rice and kimchi.

It was a match made in heaven.

And if he were to add a bit of dakdoritang broth to this perfect combination?

Gulp!

Hurriedly, Hwang Tae-su scooped up some broth with his spoon and mixed it into his rice. Perhaps because the rice was slightly undercooked, the broth soaked in perfectly.

Taking a big spoonful of the well-mixed rice steeped in dakdoritang broth, he sent it straight into his mouth.

As expected, it was delicious.

The spicy and slightly numbing taste of the dakdoritang broth, coupled with a hint of sweetness!

Now, it was time for the chicken.

Ensuring that the chicken breast had soaked up the broth, Hwang Tae-su mixed it with his rice before placing it on his spoon.

And on top of that—kimchi.

The moment this trio entered his mouth, a shiver ran through his entire body.

‘Soju… This is perfect with soju!’

It was a miraculous thing.

The moment he thought of it, soju and a soju glass appeared right before his eyes.

Hurriedly, Hwang Tae-su twisted off the soju cap.

He was eager to drink before the lingering flavors of the three-layered combination in his mouth faded away.

Gulp!

“Ahhh—! This is killer!”

Next up was the soft and fluffy potato.

He mashed the potato over his rice, mixing it thoroughly with the broth.

Spoon in hand, he stood by.

With his other hand, he poured himself another drink.

Trickle—.

Then, one shot!

“Ahh!”

The sharp bitterness shot straight to his head.

And yet, within that bitterness lay a subtle sweetness.

Before the lingering flavors could fade, he quickly swallowed the rice and potato he had prepared.

“Ugh, hot!”

The fluffy potato had scalded the roof of his mouth, but it didn’t matter.

Because it was delicious!

Because it was just too delicious!

And so, after finishing two bottles of soju and scraping up the last bits of dakdoritang, Hwang Tae-su finally patted his now-bulging belly.

“Oh man, that was a great meal. This place makes really good dakdoritang. I have to come back here later…”

Wait a minute, this place?

Where exactly was this place?

Where was he right now?

The moment his mind, which had been lost in a trance, slowly resurfaced—

Hwang Tae-su snapped back to his senses.

“This is…”

“That’ll be fifty thousand won in total.”

A den of robbers—just without the knives.

Kim Chul-jun had been attacked in an ambush.

This was no trivial matter.

It had only been yesterday that they resolved the 12-K98 barrier. And now, an attack.

Letting out a sigh, Lee Myung-seop spoke up.

“Mr. Chul-jun, are you alright?”

“Thanks to you, I’m fine.”

“Still, the attending physician advised that you should rest for a while. Perhaps you should take it easy.”

“This is nothing.”

Nodding, Lee Myung-seop turned to the middle-aged man beside him.

“Deputy Director, have we still not extracted a confession?”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault. These men were determined to assassinate Mr. Kim Chul-jun.”

They were ruthless.

Of the eight attackers, six committed suicide during the arrest. The autopsy revealed the cause of death as an ether overload.

They had been careless, thinking they had subdued the unconscious attackers.

The moment they regained consciousness, they bit down on the poison hidden in their mouths. They managed to prevent two from killing themselves, but extracting a confession had been a failure.

“I never thought even Mr. Cho Seok-hoon’s hypnotic techniques wouldn’t work.”

“Indeed. Hypnosis isn’t foolproof, but for them to be resistant even to that…”

“Director, there’s only one option left.”

Lee Myung-seop immediately thought of torture.

Under both domestic and international law, torture of prisoners was strictly prohibited, but after the upheaval, the lines between legal and illegal had blurred.

However…

‘Even if we torture them, they won’t talk.’

If only they had proof—just one piece of solid evidence.

Or better yet, if they had power.

Faced with the reality of a powerless nation, Lee Myung-seop’s shoulders slumped.