In the middle of a slum-like area, right in front of an illegal money-lending shop -
Knock!
Knock!
A fist hammered against a metal shutter.
Light sighed.
"They're closed..."
Jamie stood behind him and looked at the shutter.
"Yeah..."
And right now...
They were standing at the exact location Magg had given them.
Daeho stood behind both of them, nervously looking around.
"Umm... guys?"
Neither of them responded.
"I think we should go back and come later..."
Jamie turned around.
"Seriously?"
He looked back at the shutter.
Then at Light.
"Let's break it, Light!"
Light grinned.
"Hell yeah!"
Both of them raised their right legs.
And-
WHAM!
WHAM!
Their feet slammed into the metal shutter.
The shutter rattled violently.
But it didn't move.
Light and Jamie looked at each other.
Then they kicked again.
WHAM!
WHAM!
Again.
And again.
And again.
They continued front-kicking the shutter, fully intending to break it open.
Five minutes later...
"Aghh!"
Jamie lifted his leg for another kick.
BANG!
But this time, the shutter didn't even flinch.
Jamie, however, did.
The force of his own kick sent him stumbling backward.
He landed on his butt and grabbed his leg.
"Guess we aren't strong enough to break metal shutters..."
Light looked at the shutter.
"Yeah..."
He rubbed his chin.
"Guess we should really go back."
Daeho's eyes widened.
Panic immediately struck him.
"Wait! Wait!"
Light and Jamie turned around.
"Actually..."
Daeho swallowed.
"This is the place where I pledged my house."
Silence.
Light stared at him.
Jamie stared at him.
For one second, neither of them moved.
Then-
Both of them stood straight.
"What?!"
They grabbed Daeho by the shoulders.
"Aghh!"
They began shaking him vigorously.
"Why the fuck are you telling us this now?!"
"My foot hurts from kicking that shit!"
Daeho's head bounced back and forth.
"Sorry! Sorry!"
"Stop shaking me!!"
After a few seconds, they finally let go.
Daeho stumbled backward.
He quickly fixed his shirt.
"I have that guy's contact..."
Jamie sighed in relief.
He stepped forward and placed a hand on Daeho's head.
It wasn't out of anger this time.
It was relief.
He ruffled Daeho's hair.
"I knew you weren't useless."
Daeho blinked.
Jamie paused for a moment.
"Now then... call him."
Daeho's expression became nervous again.
"And what do I say?"
Light stepped forward.
"Say that you got the money."
He looked toward the shutter.
"Ask him to come here right now."
Daeho hesitated.
His hand slowly moved toward his pocket.
He really didn't want to make that call.
The last time he'd spoken to this man, he had been terrified.
But there was no other option.
His house was at stake.
Finally, Daeho sighed.
"Fine... I'll call him right now."
He pulled out his phone.
His fingers repeatedly tapped the screen as he searched through his contacts.
Light and Jamie watched him intensely.
Daeho found the number.
His finger hovered over it.
For a moment, he hesitated.
Then-
Tap.
The call began.
Light leaned closer.
Jamie did the same.
"Put it on speaker."
Daeho swallowed.
He pressed the speaker button and held the phone between the three of them.
The call rang.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Then-
A shrill, grumpy voice came through the speaker.
"Who's this?"
Daeho immediately stuttered.
"I-I'm Daeho! You lent me 500k won that day..."
There was a short silence.
Then the voice responded.
"Oh, it's you, that dweeb."
Daeho's face twitched.
"Uh... yeah."
He took a breath.
"I have the full amount."
He quickly added-
"WITH interest for this month..."
The man on the other end didn't seem particularly surprised.
"If you want to pay it, come to the shop."
Daeho blinked.
"I'm right there."
"Nice!"
The call ended.
Daeho stared at his phone.
"..."
Jamie stared at him.
Light stared at him.
Daeho slowly looked up.
"That was easier than I expected."
Light shrugged.
"Good."
A few minutes later...
A noisy scooter slowly cruised down the dirty road.
Its engine rattled loudly against the silence of the neighborhood.
Daeho immediately recognized it.
The scooter stopped directly in front of the three.
The rider was a skinny-fat, bald man.
He climbed off the scooter heavily, as if the weight of the entire world was sitting on his shoulders.
He stretched his back.
Then looked toward Daeho.
"I know this kid."
He pointed at him.
"But who the hell are you two?"
Light and Jamie answered at the same time.
"Friends."
The lender stared at them.
"Fine. Whatever."
He turned toward the shutter.
"Follow me."
He walked toward the shop.
The same metal shutter stood in front of them.
The lender reached down and unlocked the lock.
Click.
Then, with a fluid motion, he grabbed the bottom of the shutter and pushed it upward.
The metal rolled up.
The entrance opened.
The three followed him inside.
"Come in, punks."
The shop was small.
Almost too small.
There was an old wooden table sitting in the middle of the room. A pile of documents was scattered across it. Pens, papers, folders, and other stationery were thrown around without much organization.
At the far side of the room stood a metal locker.
Light slowly looked around.
The walls were covered in peeling paint. Several cracks ran across them. The place smelled old.
Damp.
Unclean.
But then-
Light's eyes stopped.
At one corner of the room...
There were dark stains on the wall.
Jamie noticed them too.
Both of them became silent.
Their eyes remained fixed on the stains.
Neither wanted to say what they were thinking.
Light's palms became slightly sweaty.
Jamie swallowed.
Something is definitely wrong here...
The lender didn't seem to notice their reaction.
He simply walked behind the wooden table and dropped himself into his chair.
Then he leaned forward.
"So..."
His eyes moved toward Daeho.
"The money?"
Daeho looked at Jamie.
Then at Light.
Then back at the lender.
"Money?"
The lender's eyebrow twitched.
"Yeah."
He pointed at Daeho.
"You called me, bitch!"
Daeho immediately shrank back.
Light stepped forward.
He placed both hands on the wooden table.
His eyes narrowed.
"First show us the pledged documents."
The lender stared at him.
His expression hardened.
"Money first."
Light didn't move.
"House first."
The lender's eyebrow twitched.
"Money first."
"House first."
"Money first!"
"House first!"
A vein popped on the lender's forehead.
The stupid exchange continued for another second.
Neither side backed down.
Finally-
The lender slammed both hands onto the table.
"Are you kids playing with me?!"
His eyes bored into Light's.
The room fell silent.
Light didn't flinch.
Instead, his eyes slowly moved around the area.
There was no one else.
Only the four of them.
The lender.
Daeho.
Jamie.
And him.
Light's expression changed slightly.
He looked toward Jamie.
"Jamie..."
Jamie glanced at him.
Light nodded toward the entrance.
"Drop the shutter close."