Chapter 336 - Clash of the Idols (2)

KJ held his breath. The President did not expect him to lash out or curse at him. Kwon Jiwon would do neither but would patiently listen to him. He knew his enemy well and both of them were aware that the time to confront each other was upon them. 

And only one would survive.

"Find me, Kwon Jiwon," the President challenged. "Let's have a chat, shall we?"

KJ was silent as the President kept on speaking. 

"You know where to find me," The President went on. "I'm not hiding anymore. I'm sure your friend, SD, already knows."

With that, the President hung up on him. KJ sat there, staring at the phone for a long time before making a call.

SD's cool voice came from the other line. "I knew you'd call," he sighed. "But I didn't expect it to be this soon."

"I need to know where he lives," KJ said shortly. "Now."

"Isn't it a little too early?" SD asked. "Your friend hasn't even been buried yet. Don't do something stupid in your grief, Kwon Jiwon."

"I'm not," KJ said in a calm tone. "I'm doing what I should have done a long time ago. And it has to be now. I'll either destroy the President or he'll destroy me. But it must be done before Dasom's burial."

SD did not reply because it was futile. The man was not in vengeance mode but it was a promise he must fulfill. People were not bound by revenge to destroy their enemies but by duty. And SD was all too well aware of this duty.

"How much do you want for the information?" KJ asked."I'll give you all my wealth for it."

SD smirked. "Sounds tempting," he said. "But this, I'll do it for free."

Before KJ could ask anything more, he hung up and turned to face the man tied up in front of him. Jay was put in an X position. His limbs were tied to four poles on a round wheel and his body was badly whipped to the point blood was oozing out of his wounds. He had been stripped n.a.k.e.d and SD had his men do some significant damage to his private areas as well.

"I'll have to give it to you," SD snickered. "You're a tough nut to crack!"

"I already gave you the address to the mansion!" Jay spat at him.

"Yeah, you did," SD agreed. "But it was so easy. Considering that you managed to pull the biggest shocker of the year, perhaps in the history of this country, I find it difficult to believe that you'll give up your master so easily."

He casually spun the wheel, putting Jay in an upside down position. Jay felt his blood rushing to his head, making him feel dizzy but he kept this ground.

"This is part of the President's plan too," SD stated. "He wants to lure KJ to the mansion on purpose. To kill him obviously but if I'm not wrong, he's also luring Abyss there. They're bound to follow KJ there so it'll be like killing two birds with one stone. Aish! This makes me so mad that I couldn't gather all this information first."

"You were fed information on purpose," Jay wheezed. "So that we could get into the party-"

"And while we believed Mirae was the target, you guys were actually targeting Dasom," SD finished the sentence for him. "Because after Mirae, only EXOTIC was KJ's weakness. With Ash being at loggerheads with KJ and Jinhyun out of the country, Dasom was the perfect target. Plus, the fact that KJ had raised him, Dasom's death will have a heavier impact on the whole group."

He turned the wheel again, this time much faster. Jay was yelling as the speed of the wheel increased.

"How clever," SD said, still spinning the wheel. His put on a smile which hid his malicious nature. He masked his anger that the Cartel had fooled him. He did not care if the information he sold created wars and killed millions. But supplying him with lies was unforgivable.

He stepped on Jay's neck, throttling him. "Unfortunately for you," he began. "You have severely underestimated Kwon Jiwon. A man is the strongest when he no longer has any attachment to anything. Because once those bonds are snipped, he's willing to face death with open arms. And you know what happens to those who no longer fear death?"

His foot was still on Jay's throat and the latter was being choked. Liquid was flowing from his eyes and nose while SD was apathetic.

"They end up eliminating all those who stand in their way," SD concluded, increasing the force on his foot. He quietly watched as the lights went off in Jay's eyes until there was nothing left but blackness. He casually texted KJ and told him to meet him at the docks within an hour. With  everyone's focus on Dasom, it should be easy for KJ to sneak out.

He paused for a moment before calling another number. 

"Hello?" Song Tamlin's voice came from the other end.

"Hi," SD sneered. "Song Tamlin."

Tamlin straightened up upon hearing that voice. It can't be! He thought. This is…

"I believe you have a debt to repay," SD voiced out. "It's time for the payment."

Tamlin's lips quivered as he heard SD's instructions. His mouth fell in shock. Kwon Jiwon was going to the mansion?

"I believe you know what to do," SD said in a cryptic way and hung up. Tamlin sat there for a while, debating with himself before deciding to head off. Song Dasom's death had set in motion a domino effect in which everything was falling apart. There was only one way to stop this madness.

And it would end up in more deaths, he thought bitterly as he picked up his coat to leave the house.

...

Mirae entered the safehouse where Riggs and her other men were guarding Nida. She also brought Hyun Jung with her while Somi was handling the funeral preparations. They snuck out of the building and used a different car to drive towards the safehouse.

Nida was quiet and unmoving. They had treated her wounds and while they managed to heal most of her wounds, the amount of s.e.x.u.a.l assault she had to endure, left her ovaries in a bad state. She contracted several STD's and shockingly, she had also suffered a miscarriage which she had attributed to heavy bleeding due to the torture. The girl was physically and mentally drained. N2 kept an eye on her, monitoring her health.

"How is she now?" Mirae asked him.

"She can talk but still in immense shock," N2 sighed.

"We need to ask her many things," Hyun Jung stated. "Can we?"

"Sure," N2 replied. "She's inside the bedroom."

Mirae told Hyun Jung to stay back while she went inside to talk to the traumatized girl. Nida ws lying on the bed but looked up when she heard Mirae coming in.

"How are you now?" Mirae asked. She was not particularly fond of the woman but she sympathized with what Nida had gone through. No one deserved that amount of pain.

"Cut the crap and let's get down to business," Nida sighed. "We both know you want the mansion's location."

Before Mirae could reply Nida said, "Look, my escape was probably orchestrated by the President himself so that I lure you to the mansion and he could kill you."

"I know," Mirae replied. "Which is why I want to know everything about that mansion. How can we infiltrate it without letting him know?"

"You can't," Nida stated. "The whole mansion has hidden explosives which will go off the moment you make the wrong step. You'll need someone who knows the location of those explosives and can diffuse them. An insider who knows that mansion well."

Mirae froze. "You don't mean...Ash Park?"