CH 472

“It's not as complicated as you might think. Just expose yourself.”

“...Expose myself?” Kang Jin-Ho cocked his brow at Lee Hyeon-Su's recommendation.

“Yes. All you have to do is show your enemies that you're not with anyone. When you do that, they will act on their own.”

“Mm? I don't get it. Am I not exposed already? I don't recall trying to be more cautious until now...?”

“No, not true,” Lee Hyeon-Su firmly shook his head. “Mister Jin-Ho, you've been under the protection of... civilization all this time.”

“...?”

“CCTV cameras are everywhere. And places with people will be like a natural air-raid shelter. Especially those coming from foreign countries... They'll have no choice but to be extra cautious.”

“Mm...!”

“To bait your enemies into the open... You need to discard all of them. Only when you are at a place where civilization can't reach will those people feel like they can do whatever they want.”

Kang Jin-Ho slowly nodded. He could understand that much.

Bang Jin-Hun didn't seem to have realized it yet, but Lee Jung-Geol's biggest achievement as the Assembly Master was forming a 'perfect' synergistic connection with the political world. At least, that was what Kang Jin-Ho believed. Of course, Kim Seok-Il should've played a big part in that as well.

Considering the level of hostility between the people of murim and the ruling government in the past, even Kang Jin-Ho could see how much effort Lee Jung-Geol had put in to create the current status quo. Even if the situation in the modern era was markedly different from the past...

The fact that the Martial Assembly and the government worked together to conceal and sweep everything under the carpet regardless of what happened had given the proverbial wings to the martial artists of the modern era. They now had a wider margin of error.

However, invaders from overseas didn't enjoy such protection. And that knowledge was keeping them reticent, more cautious. Trying to deal with something as flawlessly as possible without being exposed took a lot of effort, after all!

“I see. So, what happens after that?”

“Well, that is...” Lee Hyeon-Su smiled meaningfully.

***

Back in the present...

“Hmm...” Kang Jin-Ho glanced at the large duffel bag resting on the passenger seat before focusing on the road ahead. Even if it was him driving, taking his eyes off the road for too long wouldn't result in anything good.

A suspicious smirk floated on Kang Jin-Ho's lips as he stared at the distant coastline.

'The sun... is setting.'

The burning ball of amber light was slowly descending below the horizon. Very slowly.

***

Vincent urgently asked, “Do we have the target's current location?”

“Yes, Captain! We're getting real-time updates as we speak!”

“Who is tailing the target?”

“No one, sir. We've attached a GPS tracker on the target's vehicle.”

“Nice!” Vincent tightly clenched his fist. 'You better not think you can slip away from us!'

Things were different from the past. Back then, a number of agents had to work together to tail just one target. However, the era had changed, and a mini-GPS tracker was all that was required these days to track a person's location at any time.

If this had been somewhere in Europe, Vincent wouldn't even have to rely on trackers like that. Just one quick call to phone companies would've been sufficient to track the target's mobile phone, after all!

In this world, nothing was out of reach as long as you had political power and wealth. And the influence acquired through those means could be so much more... versatile in the hidden world compared to the surface world.

Vincent asked his subordinate again. “Where is the target right now?”

“Sir, he's still on the move toward the coast.”

“Hah. How nice of him to choose a picturesque spot like that,” Vincent smirked. An ocean, was it? Now that was a romantic place to die. As a matter of fact, probably the best place, too. The smirk on the Frenchman's face deepened while thinking Kang Jin-Ho sure had a nice taste. He impatiently asked another question. “Aren't we getting closer?”

“...”

“Mm? Silence isn't the answer I've been looking for.”

“My apologies, sir. We are traveling on a bus while the target is in a Lamborghini, so…”

Vincent tutted softly. “I might have forgiven him if he drove a Bugatti, but... I can't do that when he chose a stupid and vulgar Italian cow!”

The subordinate, Mathieu, almost blurted out what a car's nationality had anything to do with this situation. However, he wisely swallowed all those words back. There was no need to trip his boss up like that right now.

'By the way, sir... The founder of Bugatti was an Italian.'

Even if Bugatti's current 'nationality' was French...

“Tell the driver to drive faster. We must not miss this chance, Mathieu. You know that this is a one-in-a-million opportunity, don't you?”

“Of course, sir,” Mathieu nodded. After conveying the order to the bus driver, Mathieu focused on the single red dot flickering on a tablet's screen.

'What an idiot...'

He recalled Kang Jin-Ho's dazed-looking face. Although something about that face seemed a little cold and distant, Kang Jin-Ho's dumb-looking smile seemed friendly enough, at least. What a bizarre-feeling face that was, indeed.

“...We'll give you plenty of reasons to frown soon enough.”

***

“Mm... That's a nice breeze,” Kang Jin-Ho muttered.

After arriving at the destination, he parked the car out of sight and leisurely headed to the seaside. This little harbor town wasn't a beachside resort or anything like that, so he didn't get to feel the sand under his feet. Still, looking at the wide expanse of the distant horizon was a wonderful experience nonetheless.

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Not too long ago, Choi Yeon-Ha dragged him to a scenic seaside location almost identical to this place. But the feeling he got that time was different from today. Back then, Kang Jin-Ho didn't get a chance to silently take in and appreciate the natural beauty before his eyes.

'No, wait... Is that the only reason?'

Kang Jin-Ho smirked to himself.

'No, that can't be it. It has to be something else. There must be another reason why the ocean feels different to me today.'

The waves sounded chilly and mysterious when blanketed by the falling darkness. Kang Jin-Ho stared at the ocean for a while before mouthing a fresh cigarette.

'Mm... What did Lee Hyeon-Su say I should do?'

Click...

Kang Jin-Ho lit his cigarette before sucking in a lungful of smoke.

'So... I wonder what it will be like.'

He knew someone was targeting him. And soon, he'd get to find out the extent of their operation.

“Excuse me, mister...?” A man wearing a baseball cap approached Kang Jin-Ho leisurely smoking away. “Are you Mister Kang Jin-Ho?”

“Yes,” Kang Jin-Ho calmly replied.

“Hello. I've been waiting for you. Would you like to depart now?”

“Yes, I'd like to,” Kang Jin-Ho nodded.

“I see. Please follow me. This way.” The man took the lead and began walking toward a pier in the distance. Kang Jin-Ho silently followed him and soon reached the spot where a medium-sized vessel was moored to the dock. The man pointed toward the ship's cabin. “Please, get on.”

“Alright.” Kang Jin-Ho nodded, then lightly tossed the duffel bag onboard before climbing on himself. The man wordlessly stepped into the boat's cockpit.

'Mm. Nicely handled.'

Kang Jin-Ho smirked after liking what Lee Hyeon-Su had done with the preparation ahead of time. It seemed efficiently handled.

'...Just like Azure Demon, isn't it?'

This was how Azure Demon used to operate in the past.

Kang Jin-Ho didn't need to think or plan ahead too much. All he needed to do was... Well, think about what he wanted to do. Then, Azure Demon would cook up different ways to make Kang Jin-Ho's wishes come true.

One of Azure Demon's specialties was dispatching people ahead of time so that Kang Jin-Ho could act without delay.

Kang Jin-Ho chuckled in amusement after getting this slight deja vu of the past from Lee Hyeon-Su's actions.

Obviously, it'd be impossible for Lee Hyeon-Su to fill Azure Demon's void. That much was certain.

Azure Demon wasn't simply a soldier in Kang Jin-Ho's army. No, he was a comrade, a partner-in-crime, who climbed from the bottom together with Kang Jin-Ho. Demanding something similar from Lee Hyeon-Su was impossible. For one, Kang Jin-Ho wouldn't be able to accept it.

However, was there a need to demand someone, or anyone else for that matter, to become a copy of Azure Demon?

The vessel left the dock and began scything through the incoming waves to head toward the open water. Kang Jin-Ho stared at the ocean veiled in the darkness of the night.

'Well... Since we're doing this, allow me to do a proper job.'

I'll go there, then. To a place where modern civilization hasn't reached yet...!

***

“Where is he?” Vincent urgently asked.

“C-captain. The target's vehicle is parked over there...”

“The mini tracker?”

“It's attached to the vehicle, sir.”

“Son of a b*tch!” Vincent exploded in fury. “What the f*ck are we supposed to do now?!”

Vincent and his men had finally reached the seaside, but Kang Jin-Ho was long gone by then. If they missed this chance, who knew when they'd come across another one?

“Find him! Now!”

“Yes, sir!”

The Chevaliers cried out before dispersing in all directions.

Vincent tugged at his collars after feeling his throat starting to burn up in nervousness.

'Damn it. Why does it feel like something about this is... strange?'

Indeed, something about this situation seemed a little... 'off' for lack of a better term. This particular chase didn't feel the same as other missions of similar nature.

When carrying out a mission in a foreign country, one was bound to get entangled in several unexpected hurdles. Obviously, Vincent had experienced that many times in his life. There was no need to panic, in other words.

However, Vincent's instincts were trying to say something to him.

'Something's different this time.'

Vincent felt that something felt off about this chase compared to his previous missions. This didn't feel like a simple error. The best way to describe this feeling would be... Vincent was too busy chasing after a lone wolf to notice a wolf pack closing in on him from behind. Something like that.

'Should we stop?'

Every plan should be founded upon rational thinking. However, sometimes instincts and gut feelings could triumph over logic and rational thinking during field operations where information was limited.

Usually, such a thing was referred to as one's instinct to win. And Vincent's instinct was pleading with him. It was telling him something about this mission didn't smell right. It was too... unnatural. His instinct cried out to him not to get involved any further.

As Vincent stewed in his thoughts, Mathieu rushed toward him with the news. “Sir! We've found him!”

“Where is he?”

“...He's apparently out in the ocean.”

“Say what?” Vincent stared in flabbergast. “The ocean? Why?”

Why would anyone go out to sea at night?

“Sir. The target seems to have gone to one of the islands to prepare for early-dawn fishing. The locals said that a chartered fishing boat left not too long ago and headed to an island known as a good fishing spot.”

“What the hell?!” Vincent yelled unhappily. How was he supposed to know Koreans had such a culture of... fishing at night? “The target's gone fishing, you say? You sure about this?”

“...Yes, sir.”

“Insane son of a b*tch,” Vincent tutted loudly. Didn't Kang Jin-Ho understand the situation he was in? How could he head off on a fishing trip by himself? What a pair of balls that man had! Vincent felt his blood rush up to his head.

Mathieu cautiously asked, “Sir, what should we do?”

“Can we charter a boat ourselves?”

“Yes, sir. Usually, it's not possible without making a booking first, but the calm ocean means the locals are willing to take us to the island in question as long as we're willing to double the asking rate.”

“Huh? There must be more than a few islands around here, yet they can take us to the correct one? How?”

“The local fishermen said there are only a handful of fishing spots. And the target apparently said he wanted to go to an uninhabited island. I'm told that there aren't all that many uninhabited islands that are good for fishing, sir.”

“An... uninhabited island?” Vincent's expression stiffened. “Uninhabited... Island...”

An ominous foreboding washed over him like a tidal wave. Kang Jin-Ho suddenly decided he'd travel to the seaside... And to an uninhabited island, no less?

'It's too coincidental...'

Vincent frowned deeply. Wasn't this too convenient? It was as if Kang Jin-Ho was luring them all to an uninhabited island. He glanced at Mathieu. “Tell me something. Doesn't this development seem odd to you?”

Vincent wanted to confirm if his gut feeling was correct.

“What do you mean, sir?” Mathieu tilted his head.

“I'm asking for your opinion, Mathieu. Isn't it strange for our target to suddenly go on a fishing trip to an uninhabited island? What do you think?”

Mathieu's head-tilting intensified. “Well... It certainly looks strange from our perspective, but it probably isn't to the locals, sir.”

“Really? Why?”

“Sir, there must be more than enough punters who enjoy fishing in the middle of the night. Otherwise, we wouldn't get so many fishing vessels moored around here, as well as an entire commercial district centered around that in this town.”

“Mm...”

“It must be a common occurrence to the locals. Sir, we also get plenty of pleasure seekers with their yachts in the Mediterranean. Although the method might not be the same, the desire to seek amusement is practically identical, at least in my opinion.”

Vincent tilted his head, thinking that Mathieu had a valid point.

'What should I do here?'

When viewed through rational thinking, nothing seemed amiss. However, Vincent's instincts kept sending alarm signals. They warned him only danger awaited from this point onward.

“What should we do, sir? We can't keep delaying it any further. As you've said before…” Mathieu leaned in closer to Vincent. “...This is a great opportunity, sir. We can eliminate Kang Jin-Ho and quickly leave.”

“...Right. I got it.” Vincent nodded, his mind now made up. One piece of information was for certain: Kang Jin-Ho was heading to an island somewhere. In that case, one more thing needed to be confirmed. “Mathieu, go and find out the schedules for fishing vessels.”

“Sir?”

“I want you to check the schedules and logs of every ship that left this harbor in the past two days. Kang Jin-Ho's comrades might be waiting on that island, ready to ambush us. We'll confirm that first. And there's also a chance of us getting ambushed from behind after we set off, so make sure no other vessels can depart after us. Leave a couple of men behind for that purpose,” said Vincent, his expression growing firmer and more determined. “Even if our men can't stop people from setting out, they'll still be able to send the word if anyone's following us.”

“Understood, sir!”

“That should be enough,” Vincent nodded while grimacing.

Even if this really was a trap, all Vincent and his men needed was a bit of time. The target was on an island with no escape, after all. It shouldn't take long to eliminate Kang Jin-Ho and leave, Vincent wagered.

'Now, we shall see.'

This seemed like the best combination of rational thinking and gut feeling. If Vincent was worried about something, he only needed to eliminate the source of that worry.

A content smirk floated up on Vincent's face at that thought. Unfortunately, he was unaware of something.

He didn't notice that the bright moon was staring down at him from the darkened skies above. The ghostly moonlight was slowly bathing him... As if to bless him for what was about to come.