-……The management bureau announced that it is uncertain whether the creature in the video, which appears as an angelic figure, is a type of beastman or a new kind of monster. They also mentioned that they are working in collaboration with international organizations...

“Who keeps turning on the TV?”

Go Hyung-geon reflexively turned off the TV, and Hwang Tae-su shifted his gaze to the middle-aged man with long hair.

“It’s better now. Anyway, with just a little support from the government, this business is definitely possible.”

“I’m sure I’ve already replied in writing.”

“I’ve received the reply. But the response wasn’t satisfactory, so I’ve brought the district mayor here.”

The middle-aged man with long hair was Lee Ho-jin, the mayor of District 12.

District 12 used to be Itaewon. However, it now includes parts of Hannam-dong, Bogwang-dong, and Yongsan-dong.

Therefore, a district mayor existed. Unlike other areas, it was an appointed position, not an elected one.

Hwang Tae-su, speaking with a scrunched face, was met with a faint smile from Lee Ho-jin.

After the great upheaval, the power of law enforcement had grown stronger. To exercise effective control, it had become a necessary step.

Although appointed, as the head of the administrative district, Lee Ho-jin still wielded significant power.

If it were anyone else, they might have been intimidated in front of Hwang Tae-su, but Lee Ho-jin didn’t need to feel that way.

“You didn’t bring me here, you kidnapped me, didn’t you?”

“If someone hears that, they might think it’s really a kidnapping. Anyway, if the central government covers half the cost, this is a feasible business.”

“Have you actually looked into it?”

“I’ve looked into it.”

“Who looked into it?”

“I did.”

Lee Ho-jin sniffed.

“I know Mr. Hwang has dealt with money before, but there’s a difference between playing with money and running a transportation business.”

“That’s why I’m asking the government to cover just 50%, right? I’ll take care of the rest, whether it’s profitable or not.”

“Mr. Hwang, let’s be honest here.”

“What do you mean?”

“What’s your real intention?”

“What intention?”

“What’s your agenda for wanting to start a bus transportation business?”

“I don’t have an agenda.”

“Mr. Hwang, the mighty Mr. Hwang wouldn’t empty his wallet without some kind of hidden agenda to run a charity business, would he?”

“Can’t I do that?”

“There’s no law saying you can’t. But I’m suspicious of your motives.”

“I don’t have any ulterior motives. Look, if we run buses on this route, we can run the transportation business efficiently.”

Hwang Tae-su pointed to the business plan on the table, but Lee Ho-jin didn’t even glance at it.

“Since Mr. Hwang is insisting, I’ll look into it. But this isn’t something I can decide on my own. You understand that, right?”

“I understand.”

“Then may I leave now?”

Hwang Tae-su nodded, stood up, and tried to see him off.

“Don’t come out.”

After Lee Ho-jin left, Hwang Tae-su crumpled his face and slumped onto the sofa. Go Hyung-geon, looking for a cue, spoke up.

“Sir.”

“What?”

“What’s with this sudden transportation business?”

At Hyung-geon’s words, Hwang Tae-su recalled the time when he had been sweating heavily last time.

Even thinking about it now made him grit his teeth. The problem was, it was still an ongoing issue.

‘Damn it, when is he coming?’

He had taken his time to practice and even went on vacation. It had already been several days since he had been living without a car.

Sure, he could have borrowed his subordinates’ cars, but the timing was just too awkward.

“Isn’t this your big picture plan?”

Sighing, Hwang Tae-su looked at Kim Si-hyun.

“...As expected, only Si-hyun, who’s had some university education, understands my intentions.”

“Thank you.”

“...Okay.”

“By the way, could you explain what kind of big picture you have in mind?”

“Well…”

Hwang Tae-su was momentarily at a loss for words, but his mind had been sharp since meeting Monster 1 and Monster 2.

“It’s District 13.”

“…!”

“The transportation business is a bridge that will cross into District 13.”

“I knew it! So, this bus route is only going through District 12 now, but later, it’ll expand to District 13, right? And gradually, you’ll increase your influence over District 13?”

It seemed like the dream interpretation fit the situation, but Hwang Tae-su couldn’t deny it.

“That’s right.”

At his confirmation, the large men shouted in unison.

“As expected! You’re amazing!”

“Boss, we respect you!”

“You’re the Zhuge Konglong of our time!”

“You guys, don’t get carried away. Hahaha.”

Although Hwang Tae-su puffed up his chest, his insides were burning with anxiety.

‘By the way, is the car clean?’

“Aren’t you worried?”

“What’s there to worry about?”

“But the Demon God disappeared suddenly!”

“Maybe he went to the bathroom.”

“I know where the Demon God is! You should track him down!”

“I don’t want to.”

“Why not?”

Park Yeon couldn’t bring himself to say the real reason.

Instead, he shrugged his shoulders.

“I made plans to watch fireworks with a friend later.”

“A friend? Do you even have any friends?”

“I made one.”

“A useless warrior who can’t even help with an ant’s burden!”

Normally, Park Yeon wouldn’t tolerate such an insult, but today, he was unusually lenient.

It was because it was his first time making a (formal) friend, and that friend had promised to show him fireworks later that night.

But that wasn’t the only reason he had softened.

“I found it!”

Park Yeon, who had been wandering inside the lodging for a while, raised his fist with joy.

He was holding a key in his hand.

“What’s that?”

“Don’t you know? You must not watch dramas properly.”

“Is that even important right now? The Demon God is more important!”

“The Demon God will be fine on his own.”

“You ungrateful fool... You don’t even understand how the Demon God took you in.”

“I’ve said it a hundred times, I’m indebted to Yeon-jun.”

“Then I’ll go find him.”

“Do what you want. But…”

Park Doo-shik, who had been leaving the lodging, stopped in his tracks.

“Want some help?”

“No. Before that, guess what this is.”

Park Yeon shook the key in his hand, and Doo-shik’s eyes widened.

“What the heck is that?”

“Hehe. This is a car key.”

“…!”

“I can tell from your expression what you’re thinking.”

Park Yeon chuckled. If Doo-shik had seen any drama, he wouldn’t be able to contain his surprise at the sight of this car key.

No… If he had seen a car even once, it would be impossible to stay calm just looking at a car key.

Gulp!

“What are you going to do with that?”

Park Yeon chuckled lowly and left the lodging. He began pressing the buttons on the car key.

Beep beep beep!

Beep beep—!

“How do you open it?”

Click!

After several tries, the car door opened. Park Yeon confidently got into the driver’s seat.

A startled Doo-shik rushed over, flailing.

“You’re not planning to drive, are you?”

“What’s wrong with that?”

“Well, it’s just… driving without the Demon God knowing…”

“Without him knowing? Can’t you see I’m driving openly?”

That’s an even bigger problem...

Park Yeon spoke to Doo-shik, who muttered to himself.

“Are you getting in or not?”

“…”

Doo-shik silently climbed into the passenger seat.

Park Yeon started the engine like it was nothing. Although the method for opening the door wasn’t depicted in the drama, starting the car was something that came up repeatedly in shows.

Vroom-!

Soon, the cheerful sound of the engine starting filled the air, and a smile spread across Park Yeon’s face.

“But why isn’t it moving?”

“It’s in P right now. You need to…”

Crank!

The gear shifted to D.

“Huh?”

Confusion appeared on Park Yeon's face. Despite shifting the gear to D, the car didn’t move.

Vroom!

Even pressing the accelerator, the car remained still.

“Shouldn’t it be in R?”

“No. D is correct.”

“You never know.”

“Hmm.”

After some thought, Park Yeon shifted the gear to R. But once again, the car didn’t move.

So, Park Yeon started pressing various buttons.

Swoosh-!

The windshield wiper magic activated,

Screeching-!

The wind magic appeared, and then...

-Starting guidance.

He heard the familiar voice of a woman he had been hearing all the way there.

And finally...

Click.

“It’s moving! It’s moving!”

“Is this going forward? Why does it seem like it’s going backward?”

“Heh heh. You’re clueless. You have to press the accelerator to move forward. Watch.”

Park Yeon placed his foot on the accelerator. And when he gently pressed it...

Vroom!

The RPM shot up, and the car quickly reversed. And before Park Yeon could do anything...

Crash-!

It crashed into a tree.

“……”

“……”

Kim I-seul couldn’t hide her excitement when she received a call from Park Yeon’s number.

It had been just about an hour since they had returned to their respective lodgings after the walk.

But already, a phone call?

Her cheeks turned red as she picked up the call after a slight pause.

“Yes, Oppa.”

-Where are you right now?

“I’m at home. Why?”

-Then... could you come out for a moment? I desperately need your help.

I-seul felt a surge of joy.

He needs *my* help.

Not just anyone, but *my* help.

And desperately too!

“Where are you?”

-I’m in the pension parking lot.

“I’ll be there soon.”

After hanging up, I-seul immediately left the house. As she stepped out, she saw Park Yeon waving from a distance.

“Sorry for calling you out like this while you were resting.”

“It’s fine. But what do you need my help with?”

“Well…”

Park Yeon pointed to a scene of disaster.

“...Did you do this?”

Park Yeon shrugged his shoulders.

“It’s not just me. I was with Doo-shik.”

“……”

“The tree seems fine, but the car got pretty damaged. That’s why I was hoping you could help me figure out what to do.”

Although her expectations turned into disappointment, I-seul didn’t show it. As she approached the car, she noticed the back bumper was loose.

“This is Seo-jun’s car, right?”

“Well, for now, you could say that.”

“So you’re saying you secretly drove it and caused this accident?”

“It’s not exactly that. I tried to park it properly, but something unexpected happened.”

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

“As you can see.”

“At least that’s a relief. It looks like only the back bumper is damaged. There aren’t any scratches elsewhere.”

Park Yeon let out a sigh of relief at her words and immediately grabbed I-seul’s hand.

He had been worried all along.

Of course, the car wasn’t Seo-jun’s. It belonged to Hwang Tae-su. But that only made him more anxious.

Hwang Tae-su had been very kind to him.

He had damaged the car of someone who had helped him a lot, so how could he not be worried?

“I’m glad. Really glad.”

“……”

I-seul’s face turned red, and she couldn’t respond. She awkwardly pushed Park Yeon’s hand away and said,

“I... I have a friend who runs a big auto repair shop. They also deal with refurbished parts, so they can probably get a new bumper and replace it.”

“How much will it cost?”

“I’m not sure.”

“At least an estimate?”

“Hmm. For a car of this size, maybe around three hundred? Even though it’s a domestic car, it’s a luxury sedan, and labor costs are involved too.”

Three hundred.

Park Yeon awkwardly smiled.

“...Three hundred won?”

“Oh, Oppa, stop joking.”

“Then three hundred thousand?”

“There’s no such thing as three hundred thousand. You’re impossible, Oppa.”

“……”

Surely not, right?