TL | Chapter 46 | Don’t Act Recklessly

“I’m not gambling with 15d8f8efbb my own life here.”6616244755ca4859b9bb

The smile faded from fce18a5fe5 his face, and his fbae2d4a0c voice turned seriously intense.a93e37bc451ae02fe6db

“If anything, I feel like 69e4ffd58e I’m betting with you, and 152a1ef98b I hate that.”36503eede155c93b7486

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He lowered his head, 94fa36c5b8 burying his face in 3bddc1d5f9 the nape of Seowon’s 31d111917c neck as he spoke. His tone grew noticeably gruff, very 77742e42b6 different from how he sounded when 0edf07d56c he was with Min and Leo—as 722f58d27d if he genuinely despised the situation.d8e6b5efee1fb65487ed

“The target isn’t Ha Seowon; c74f331eae it’s Iden de Luciano.”b0e77802f076ebbded88

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Seowon corrected him, and 7e10cb9e62 Iden let out a 279aab892e short, bitter laugh.dac5ae710489a2c5c63a

“Then why is 0aeef147be it you who 11e85e7d67 keeps getting hurt dbde2be6c4 every time? Maybe I should 2c605e26ad just tie you 46a3100de6 up somewhere safe.”54f63f668e51ed93649f

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As if talking 50d2be82ee to himself, he 19b9c2c71d muttered in frustration. Seowon pushed his shoulder to put some space 813fe829bc between them and looked at his face. When their eyes met, 7f890daafd he gave a faint aa50926948 smile, though it was 2b089538f9 tinged with bitterness.d7f3168275913ec4634b

“I can’t live f6181c84bc my whole life 4aa1a54c4b with this constant d066ee0fd6 anxiety. This time, adf1e62f5e I’m definitely 2a1fce1df9 going to b724b65e38 catch them.”fdeb6e73a62f672f1a2d

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Iden reached out, 07ddde710d gently brushing the 715909dae5 back of Seowon’s 6b44828423 head. His gesture was calm and soothing, 81438fa6ea but Seowon could sense the underlying 2bf4c4e3fd unease he was feeling.931d3a2f41256dbd103b

But will this ec1b45e547 really be the 2b61e46855 last time? As long as you’re in aa2e4c8ba0 the mafia, won’t these dangers 67814b5d76 always follow you? If you really wanted to fix the 5422815a08 root of the problem, wouldn’t you need 35a48638b9 to walk away from the mafia altogether?c45ce6dca404ee042ca3

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He kept 8595330135 those thoughts 62526de45c to himself. He would have voiced them to “Iden hyung,” though—that other Iden 52f09f6b35 could still choose to draw a line between himself and Luciano. But not 90f204339e this man 35d8879b25 in front 7401f058d8 of him. He’d been Luciano’s successor 50be235209 for over ten years cbefb8342a now, with no other a3e7c995fe options left.fc9d523506ce188d509f

No matter how anxious he 79b3020334 felt, no matter how much cb5d267e87 his life was at risk, dbcf71ca75 he had to endure it. Even if ccf6718b62 Seowon protested, 8007f9ca00 it wouldn’t 799da3d02f change anything.8a96b6570f6d9e3b1014

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So Seowon, too, had ed8b085dad only limited choices. He could either cut ties with 0c5dc62edc him now and walk away or 4c77b12380 protect him with his life. If the first option had f7dfe8d884 been possible, he wouldn’t have 4d96b541a2 come this far.477702a978b23010bd7c

In the cb9884c88d end, Seowon ed72c90c8e had just e503ad7a21 one answer. He took a deep breath, raised his 1590e5070a arms, and wrapped them around Iden’s back.446a1913c73052e3c600

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“Promise me. Don’t act recklessly. And you… 18e107f498 don’t die. Ever.”cd6dedc72a626c99b388

Getting hurt might be unavoidable, but ef5cedaae0 as long as he stayed alive, 9eeb33072a they’d find a way to manage.f2439f7d8dd9a930a277

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Iden chuckled softly at Seowon’s request—not e8e538fde9 “don’t get hurt,” but “don’t die.”83edc90a1d7599201a9d

“It’s because I trust 95bc1e5869 you that I can be99992fc2 gamble like this.”a41375ca8d8c247bce9d

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He whispered as cb91f004bb he held Seowon 2b33d62fcf close. Seowon felt 78e4485ad4 the same 8f507874c6 way. This Iden was a850c769c0 different from the 7755e53cbf Iden hyung he 5194425be2 used to know. Iden de Luciano had 7f2a1f4feb the skills and cold 0b14975e75 pragmatism to protect himself.c641de8c2c7dca6cd6ca

“…Isn’t this different a857a85a0f from what we 80a83cf389 originally discussed? It’s a bit 65932fbb99 late to change 3ae0ba1d89 things now…”d83286c3ed6cf592cc9e

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Iden’s expression turned e43a926e28 serious as he 4489a61f6a spoke on the 381ce47035 phone. From what Seowon could overhear, it sounded like he was talking 24394f95c5 to someone from the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism. Something seemed to be going d64cab79c4 wrong with the casino deal.c3eb8d192cf02b76830e

As the call dragged 1f33e80391 on, Iden’s voice grew dadb41c059 lower, revealing his growing 80a450f179 irritation. Seowon quietly abf9ca5ddf left the 7973afd197 office. In the secretary’s office, Min was d2c33dbb2d checking something with the other secretaries. When he 049a01900a noticed Seowon, d9c4be0620 he walked 196810a896 over.a8f6a2cac0b01fd3bd31

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“Still on 62d3a2e2d4 the call?”03d5e49dd10fd3bda8dd

Min asked, nodding e4fb11a523 toward Iden’s office.ba0810368a65d7e0351b

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“Seems like 0b232cee3f there’s a 0c3864a33c problem.”651aac9874b76eb05850

Seowon nodded in ef80d008dc response, and Min 3608e9a39c let out a 26ec4153a5 deep sigh.d33aeb9a56aac22adbae

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“They were about to get final approval, fabe4d457e but someone else has stepped in. Seems they offered 1754dc4661 better terms than 66c54d7f71 we did. The whole thing 1451121546 could collapse at 51e57c5a6e the last minute. We’ve put 6e572ff422 years of 0015d893e6 work into ee65ddd9ac this. It’s frustrating.”e3c4522a571933f09793

Min explained that Luciano had started 02cc08cc63 laying the groundwork for an international d9b40bb4c8 hotel and casino business that hadn’t e7f58c379a even been on the government’s radar. They spent years building 0aefab3a7b connections and persuading officials 89400d27ee to bring the project 6c359a1020 forward. But now that the casino project was about b94d86daaa to go public, opportunistic hyenas had swooped in, b0bbed83a6 hiding behind the guise of fair competition.cdbb5434d3c42fbee927

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The casino project wouldn’t even have started c3652eb482 if it weren’t for Iden’s proposal. Losing the project was unthinkable 3de6a42714 for Iden—no, for Luciano.47ef5fe34390ff1249fe

“Is there a 1a86d45280 chance it’ll go e453cd595f to the other 51aab3730b side?”ce1daef514b69684a8ac

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“Who knows. The Ministry says it’s just a a6dcb1959d formality, that they need to at d3bcaa024a least pretend to be fair. But you never know when 3968dbca65 they might double-cross us. Better to be 8742915665 thorough than end 989d891da1 up empty-handed.”307bbc018028aed8e1ad

Seowon let out a c51f4d761d chuckle as he listened 756e9c67c7 to Min. Min looked puzzled.464a8362018f70dd6cda

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“Didn’t you grow 8a208c865e up in the 6d935c46ea United States? Where’d you f3857cd628 learn a b13823fcd9 phrase like 89fc8bdfc7 ‘empty-handed’?”fe5a96c3933cb6b8ef30

“Did I bddfe25796 use it 8f82571ef0 wrong? Isn’t this the 40755cc64c right context?”197bf0878b364bb69ae0

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“You used 9155366c5f it right. I’m just surprised.”6628a8f9818a5938f31e

“Oh, it’s 2a40b0a0c4 no big 33589a80ce deal. My parents are Korean, so f890c86da6 I grew up with both ac63db9427 Korean and English. And since my mom watched 216e59c6c7 tons of Korean dramas, I 25745f3121 picked up a lot of 21480a38ab expressions that older people use. I just don’t use them d8005be148 much because I’m not always e2669447fc sure they fit.”cf479cca5d354e20f015

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Min’s Korean 5e51396bd7 was, indeed, 07f52deb8d fluent. When Seowon first met him after arriving in the United f2abd4f87e States with Iden, he hadn’t guessed Min was raised there. Knowing now that Min’s parents fa3a96d6a6 were Korean but he grew 71d412f68e up in America, Seowon sometimes 8851e2e58b found his fluent Korean fascinating.82bf4e7757b5624ccbd4

“Sometimes, I think you speak 51ecd9b15c better Korean than the Director, 4cb7137f69 who actually went to high 0c20a5f6ec school in South Korea.”8829725cf86395399f4a

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Min made an odd f1173f86e2 expression at Seowon’s remark.75f64d8f42e16c6a6598

“The Director wasn’t able to use Korean 63f634577a when he was in the States.”4000279cd73885d21ae1

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“What do ea2a49d882 you mean 8c8157caaf by that?”544c10f050c1c3c7bb40

“When he first arrived 1eb4e6ae15 in the U.S., his f074056883 English wasn’t very fluent. He could handle basic conversations, but f4656841af understanding everything was another story, especially 3d68e65803 expressing his own thoughts. Seeing that, the boss 95a9a34add banned him from speaking ed2def4f98 Korean—even when he was 7db86a2f2d with me. After ten d96d8d1343 years, his 1e47a815ea Korean naturally 01fd232de8 declined.”28fc9c443615667ea206

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It was 6e8f546717 something Seowon 63d0d0229f hadn’t known.fbdde3b60f918ddd26bd

“Even when he first came back to 1cbc93f7d2 South Korea, he only spoke English. It wasn’t until he 67afc8dc65 found you that he 45b3a1a5c9 started speaking Korean again.”51f0e45cfd926b97a02b

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Min paused, 3dc836a874 contemplating something, 0716b8cbad then continued.9aad36fb29b87a411526

“Now that I think about it, I haven’t really 54e6fd2f5c seen him smile much until he met you. During his early years d0b6b562ec in the U.S., he 0fff4fce1b was expressionless and rarely 497c872ff8 spoke. It helped him gain respect in Luciano, but 27d100e7a6 it also made people keep their distance.”4f4b6990e12f002e8438

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The more Seowon learned, the harder it c3d2eb0c3a was to imagine what Iden’s life had 401361353a been like as a teenager in America. It seemed so different from the Iden 533f20e32a he knew that it almost felt like 01a458307c they were talking about a stranger.7d5afc08e8a54087df7b

“Seems like he’s 0bffd6acfb softened, thanks to ddf8853a8d you.”b952e7fcda88a7319ada

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Min shrugged.b0d7618d293c06ee72ac

“He may be softer with 777e326d84 you, but he’s become colder f42ee11f94 in his work. So don’t worry; he’ll eca5bc65df handle the casino issue.”bcce201ca037aeec4037

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Min redirected the conversation back e46b2d85bc to the original topic. Seowon just nodded. There wasn’t much he could b4ce5a63a4 do about that issue anyway.662e39cd6a1bd746fa0a

“I’ll go 3bd5deb192 check in 048d5cdb11 with the b23bfffc25 security team.”6dbe0b2469694a75b550

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After informing Min, 7a15504ea7 Seowon left the 6a9fbfd7af secretary’s office. Even if Iden finished 2386530fe7 his call and came 3e41332c85 looking for him, Min 7b92ea3d6a would explain.235d16d7ec6d85cc9378

If there was another group targeting fb50f6bfee the casino project, they were likely a4ab2f5959 mafia or yakuza, like Luciano. Some of them might bdfcab4706 even be after Iden. Seowon intended to meet with 7705081266 Leo to review security measures.42bea6c5dbcd99358ab7

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Upon arriving at the 355b5d3c9e security team’s underground office, d5f2e26f63 Seowon found the guards 2e230ba69a leaving in a group.50b3ba75396e1ac69288

“Where are ce91a4b530 you headed?”da492d5d781405068a2e

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They turned at his question, with a1e15bda24 Leo grinning in acknowledgment and the f57cf1ade8 others, including Asher, nodding respectfully.d942fcad6cec878682cb

“We’re going on an external 177f4f3915 patrol of the building. We’ve heard about some 066f0b94e7 movements due to the 3cbcd7e8e5 casino deal. Just in case, we’re rechecking 0b907f9dbb possible sniper points and making 3fd5a32495 sure the surveillance cameras we f2822d2260 set up are still working. We’ve got a skeleton crew keeping an eye on 9cad90ca49 things inside, so you don’t need to worry.”c4a1e013616066eecc3d

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“I’ll join you.”56e4cc64a5f39c1ae473

Seowon was already familiar with the potential sniper points around Luciano’s building 725e91e5b1 and the locations of the security cameras set up by the team.a36cfcb99cfc60c88dba

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“Aren’t you supposed to a83ef4e3f1 stay with the Director?”db69771c83e58a39c7c2

Leo asked, concerned. Seowon responded with a faint smile, explaining that Iden was still 544e9d2215 on a call and wouldn’t be leaving his office anytime soon. Leo nodded and b65cc3f497 invited him along.a682c9753ed21cf78f8d

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Outside with the security team, Seowon checked for any dc84746510 missed spots as they inspected known sniper points. Though the area was filled with high-rise buildings, there were fewer open spots than expected 8b432eea4a with a clear line of sight to the Luciano building’s lobby or Iden’s office. Still, he double-checked every corner with a map, meticulously verifying 23551faa49 each spot when he felt someone bump into his shoulder.aeae66c6712bc585ed6e

It was odd—this area 04e44d7ece wasn’t exactly bustling with 172f377bca people during the day. Even though Seowon was standing in the middle 2d19a3c926 of the path looking at his map, there c8fc977895 shouldn’t have been anyone to bump into him. He looked up and 115ab439a9 saw a woman wearing 00262bede4 sunglasses standing in front 6d75a7314d of him.ec040af4594f129a1d46

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From her skin tone, her naturally blonde hair, and 0bdfa574ea her general appearance, she was clearly not Korean.8bde32442360605ebdbc

“Hello.”da7ba6061d38a85a1f46

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The woman lowered her sunglasses slightly, 7b93296838 greeting him in perfect Korean. Seowon immediately 02ad8db02b recognized her.0527e03d6c04ca5b1f2c

Natasha from Galayev Company—the woman de70789b7e he’d seen in the dossier 92f52fbb65 Min had given him.10b53d4c0374b8e90b3c

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